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Angels To Promote Chase Silseth

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The Angels announced they’re planning to promote pitching prospect Chase Silseth to start tomorrow night’s game against the A’s. The team will need to make a 40-man roster move before the contest to officially accommodate his selection.

It’s a remarkably quick ascent for Silseth, who was still pitching at the University of Arizona less than a year ago. Anaheim selected him in the 11th round of last year’s draft, going overslot with a $485K bonus to lure him away from Tucson. Silseth started 18 games for the Wildcats but posted just a 5.55 ERA in a hitter-friendly environment, battling control inconsistency along the way. Nevertheless, his power arsenal — a mid-90s fastball, pair of promising breaking balls and split-changeup — made him the #145 prospect in the draft class, according to Baseball America.

Over the offseason, BA named Silseth the #12 minor leaguer in the Angels’ system. The outlet suggested his long-term home might be in the bullpen, as did FanGraphs’ Brendan Gawlowski and Eric Longenhagen in naming him the organization’s #28 prospect. The Angels quickly pushed him to Double-A Rocket City as a starter, though, and he’s impressed over five outings. The 21-year-old (22 next week) has a 1.73 ERA with a massive 37.4% strikeout rate in 26 innings. He’s only walked 7.1% of batters faced, and the front office clearly feels he’s capable of holding his own against big league hitters immediately.

Whether the forthcoming MLB stint will prove more lasting than a spot start is to be determined, but Silseth has quickly put himself on the map as a near-term depth option for the Halos. He’ll also earn the distinction of being the first player from his draft class to reach the majors after an excellent beginning to his pro career.

Mariners Acquire Mike Ford From Giants

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The Mariners announced they’ve acquired first baseman Mike Ford from the Giants in exchange for cash considerations. It’s a reversal of the teams’ deal from two weeks ago that sent Ford from Seattle to San Francisco for cash.

Ford has pinballed between the two clubs as virtually the 41st player on both rosters. Seattle signed him to a minor league deal 0ver the offseason, then selected him to the big leagues while Luis Torrens was on the COVID-19 list. Once Torrens was healthy enough to return, the M’s designated Ford for assignment.

San Francisco jumped the waiver order by acquiring him, but the 29-year-old only appeared in one MLB game. The big left-handed hitter lost his 40-man roster spot yesterday when the Giants and M’s swung another trade, with San Francisco picking up utility infielder Donovan Walton for a pitching prospect.

The M’s now had a vacancy on the 40-man roster, and they’ll bring Ford back to the organization. The Princeton University product had acquitted himself well during his first run, hitting .317/.404/.488 through 11 games with Triple-A Tacoma. If the M’s are prepared to keep Ford on the 40-man this time around, he could serve as a left-handed bench bat for skipper Scott Servais or head back to the Rainiers as a depth player. He’s in his final minor league option year.

Reds Place Lucas Sims On Injured List, Select Robert Dugger

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The Reds announced a series of moves in their bullpen before tonight’s game in Pittsburgh. Lucas Sims has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to yesterday, due to lower back spasms. Cincinnati selected Robert Dugger to take his spot on the roster. The Reds also optioned Dauri Moreta to Triple-A Louisville and recalled Jared Solomon.

Sims heads to the IL for the second time this year. The right-hander missed the first two weeks of the season after back spasms delayed his Spring Training ramp-up work. He made it back for six games in between the IL stints but looked out of sorts. Sims has allowed seven runs, walked six batters and struck out just five during 6 2/3 frames of work. Last season’s 4.40 ERA across 47 frames wasn’t great, but he punched out an elite 39% of opponents on a hefty 14.8% swinging strike rate.

This year, the 28-year-old’s swing-and-miss numbers are way down. That’s also true of his velocity, with his fastball, slider and curveball all losing a tick or two relative to last season. It certainly seems as if he’s yet to get completely right physically, and a new bout of back spasms will keep him out for at least the next two weeks.

Dugger returns to the majors just four days after being designated for assignment. The righty cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to Louisville yesterday. He didn’t appear in a game for the Bats before quickly being called back up. Cincinnati never filled Dugger’s 40-man roster spot after designating him and also removed COVID substitute Ronnie Dawson from the roster earlier this week; their 40-man tally now sits at 39.

During his first MLB stint with the Reds, Dugger made just one appearance. He soaked up three innings of relief, but that workload knocked him out of commission for a few days. Because he’s out of minor league option years, the Reds then removed him from the 40-man to clear an active roster spot. That was the second time he’d found himself in that situation, as the Rays also DFA Dugger following one extended relief outing. He’ll again have to stick in the majors or be exposed to waivers now that he’s back in the big leagues.

Orioles Select Denyi Reyes

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The Orioles announced this morning they’ve selected righty Denyi Reyes onto the big league club. Travis Lakins Sr. was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk in a corresponding move, with Chris Ellis transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list to clear space on the 40-man roster.

Should manager Brandon Hyde deploy Reyes during his MLB stint, he’d be making his major league debut. This isn’t the first time he’s made it onto a 40-man roster, however. Formerly a Red Sox’s prospect, Reyes occupied a spot on Boston’s 40-man from 2018-20. The Sox added him to the roster to keep him from being taken in the Rule 5 draft, and he spent the 2019 season with their Double-A affiliate in Portland. In January 2020, Boston designated Reyes for assignment and passed him through outright waivers without giving him a look against big league hitters.

Baseball America slotted the 6’4″ hurler the #18 prospect in the Boston farm system during his first winter on the 40-man. While he only worked with an 89-92 MPH fastball and a bevy of fringy secondary offerings, the outlet credited his plus control and ability to keep hitters off balance. For the most part, that profile has been reflected in his minor league numbers. Reyes carved up low minors hitters and has almost never walked batters at any level, but he didn’t miss many bats at Double-A in 2019 and struggled with the home run ball during his second crack there last year.

Reyes qualified for minor league free agency at the end of last season, and he signed a non-roster deal with Baltimore during Spring Training. He’s made three starts with Norfolk, allowing 11 runs in 12 innings. The 25-year-old has fanned an impressive 15 hitters while doling out just three free passes in that time, though, and the O’s will add him to the big league staff. Reyes adds a multi-inning option for Hyde in advance of a likely bullpen game this afternoon against the Cardinals.

Ellis’ transfer to the 60-day IL was a matter of when, not if. The 29-year-old righty underwent season-ending shoulder surgery last week. Re-signed to a minors contract over the winter, Ellis made two big league starts.

Orioles, Hector Perez Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Orioles have signed reliever Héctor Pérez to a minor league contract, according to the team’s transactions tracker at MLB.com. He has been assigned to the team’s Florida complex but will presumably head to a high minors affiliate after building into game shape.

Pérez, 26 next month, has just one major league appearance under his belt. That came with the Blue Jays in 2020, when he tossed 1 2/3 innings in a loss to the Yankees. The 6’3″ righty isn’t all that far removed from being one of the better pitching prospects in the Astros’ farm system, though. He topped out as Houston’s #7 prospect heading into the 2018 season, according to Baseball America, and slotted among the Astros’ and Jays’ top 30 minor leaguers each season between 2017-19.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Pérez has been involved in a pair of trades during his career. Houston packaged him alongside Ken Giles and David Paulino for Roberto Osuna at the 2018 deadline. After a couple seasons in the upper minors with Toronto — and the aforementioned lone big league outing — the Jays shipped him to the Reds in January 2021 for a player to be named later (eventually announced as minor league outfielder Darlin Guzman).

Pérez didn’t make an MLB appearance with Cincinnati. He split the most recent campaign between Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Louisville, struggling at both stops. Overall, he posted a 6.16 ERA in 38 innings, striking out a serviceable 24.9% of opposing hitters but fighting extreme control issues. Pérez walked 24.4% of batters faced, and the Reds designated him for assignment in June. He cleared outright waivers and qualified for minor league free agency at the end of the season once Cincinnati opted not to add him back to the 40-man roster.

During his time as a prospect, Pérez was praised for a fastball that reached the mid-upper 90s and a promising splitter. He’ll try to more effectively harness that arsenal and emerge as a relief option for the O’s. Baltimore’s bullpen has been solid thus far, placing 15th in ERA (3.52), 22nd in strikeout/walk rate differential (12.8 percentage points) and leading the majors with a 48.2% ground-ball percentage.

Rays Sign Three Pitchers To Minor League Deals

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The Rays announced that they have signed a trio of righties to minor league deals, as relayed by team broadcaster Neil Solondz. Shawn Armstrong, Kevin Herget and Joe Wieland are now all in the organization, with all heading to the Triple-A Durham Bulls. (Wieland will get built up in extended Spring Training before joining the Bulls.)

Armstrong is the most experienced of the bunch and likely the one most recognizable to Tampa fans, as he spent time with the club last year. After being acquired midseason from the Orioles for cash considerations, Armstrong was eventually selected to the roster and logged 16 innings of 4.50 ERA ball for the Rays. The team may have found a way to unlock a new gear for him, as his strikeout rate shot up 33.8%, well above his career rate of 23.4%, though in an obviously small sample size.

He was outrighted at the end of the year and elected free agency. He signed on with the Marlins on a minor league deal and made the Opening Day roster. He wasn’t able to transfer his 2021 performance across the state, however, as his 6 2/3 innings with Miami this year have resulted in a 10.80 ERA and just five punchouts. The 31-year-old will head to Durham and see if the Rays can work their magic again and get him back to where he was last year.

Wieland, 32, saw scattered MLB action from 2012 to 2016. Appearing for the Padres, Dodgers and Mariners, he logged 52 2/3 innings over ten starts and a couple of relief appearances with a 6.32 ERA. He then spent a couple of seasons in Japan, followed by one in Korea. He spent the 2017-18 campaigns pitching for the Yokohama Bay Stars of the NPB, where he worked to a combined 3.80 ERA. With the Kia Tigers of the KBO in 2019, things didn’t go quite as well, with his ERA jumping to 4.75. In 2020, Wieland signed a minor-league deal with the Cubs. Of course, the pandemic ended up wiping out the minors, and he was unable to crack the big league roster. He doesn’t appear to have pitched anywhere in 2021. Although he’s made the occasional relief appearance, the bulk of his work has come as a starter, meaning he could take a slot in the Bulls’ rotation and try to earn his way into the big leagues for the first time since 2016.

Herget, 31, has yet to make it up to the show. He was drafted by the Cardinals in the 39th round in 2013. He worked his way up to Triple-A by 2016 but never got the call to join the big league team. After eventually reaching free agency, he was signed by Cleveland and spent last year with the Triple-A Columbus Clippers. He appeared in 28 games, seven of them starts, throwing 80 1/3 innings with a 4.48 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate, 6.7% walk rate and 41.9% ground ball rate.

Twins Select Yennier Cano

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The Twins announced they’ve selected reliever Yennier Cano onto the big league roster. Southpaw Danny Coulombe was placed on the 15-day injured list with a left hip impingement in a corresponding move. To open space on the 40-man roster, Minnesota transferred reliever Jhon Romero from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.

Minnesota signed Cano out of Cuba in June 2019, when the 6’4″ righty was already 25 years old. He’d had some professional experience in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, but he nevertheless began in the low minors during his time in the farm system. Cano didn’t reach Double-A until last season, but he earned a bump to Triple-A by mid-June. He finished the season with the Twins’ highest affiliate in St. Paul, pitching to a 3.86 ERA in 51 1/3 innings over 30 appearances. Cano showed the ability to work multiple innings and induced ground-balls at a hefty 60.9% clip, but he also walked an alarming 12.8% of opposing hitters.

Over the offseason, Eric Longenhagen and Tess Taruskin of FanGraphs slotted Cano the #38 prospect in the Minnesota organization, praising his surprising velocity (94-97 MPH) from a lower arm slot. Assigned back to St. Paul to open the 2022 season, he’s worked 12 innings of one-run ball. Cano has 14 strikeouts and a more manageable four free passes in that time, while he’s induced grounders on three-quarters of batted balls. That strong start earns Cano his first crack against big league hitters.

Minnesota grabbed Romero off waivers from the Nationals in Spring Training. He made four appearances during the season’s first couple weeks, allowing two runs in five frames. The right-hander landed on the injured list retroactive to April 20 due to biceps tendinitis. He’ll apparently require an extended recovery period and won’t be eligible to return until late June — 60 days from the time of his original IL placement.

Francys Romero first reported Cano’s forthcoming promotion last night.

Giants Acquire Donovan Walton, Designate Mike Ford

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The Giants have acquired infielder Donovan Walton from the Mariners in exchange for pitching prospect Prelander Berroa, according to announcements from both teams. San Francisco has designated first baseman Mike Ford for assignment to clear space on the 40-man roster.

Walton, 28 later this month, has appeared in the majors in each of the past four seasons. He’s tallied just 102 cumulative plate appearances across 37 games, though, and his only MLB outing this year saw him enter as a pinch-runner. A left-handed hitter, Walton has posted a modest .196/.260/.315 showing in the majors.

The Oklahoma State product has a more robust body of work in the minors, where he’s a .287/.375/.427 hitter in parts of six seasons. That includes a .302/.391/.518 line in just shy of 400 trips to the plate at Triple-A, and Walton’s hitting .294/.368/.510 through 12 contests there this season. Perhaps of greatest import to the Giants, he’s a versatile defender who has a ton of professional experience in the middle infield. He figures to bounce around the diamond in a utility capacity for a Giants team that has dealt with injuries to both Evan Longoria and Tommy La Stella (although Longoria is making his season debut today). Walton is in his final minor league option year, meaning the Giants can shuttle him between San Francisco and Triple-A Sacramento for the remainder of the season if he sticks on the 40-man roster.

Walton, somewhat ironically, becomes the third infielder the Giants have acquired from Seattle in as many weeks. San Francisco also picked up Kevin Padlo on April 26 and acquired Ford on April 30. Both those deals were for cash considerations, but the M’s recoup a minor league arm in exchange for Walton.

Berroa, a 22-year-old righty, originally signed with the Twins as an amateur out of the Dominican Republic. San Francisco acquired him at the 2019 trade deadline, and he’s spent the past few seasons in the lower levels of the farm system. Baseball America named Berroa the #29 prospect in the Giants’ system over the offseason, writing that he owns a mid-upper 90s fastball and a solid slider. The outlet suggested Berroa’s control is a work of progress but that he has a chance to develop into a back-of-the-rotation starter.

Over four appearances with High-A Eugene this season, Berroa has worked 13 1/3 innings of one-run ball. He has 16 punchouts and six walks, a continuation of the high-strikeout, high-walk ways he’s shown throughout his young career. Berroa will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter if he’s not added to the Mariners’ 40-man roster.

Ford, meanwhile, suited up in just one game in black and orange. He collected a single in four plate appearances and has a .271/.417/.417 line over 60 Triple-A plate appearances this season. It’s the second time this year that Ford has been designated for assignment, as a DFA preceded the aforementioned trade from Seattle to San Francisco. The Giants will have a week to trade the 29-year-old or try to run him through outright waivers.

Pirates Likely To Select Cam Alldred

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The Pirates announced this afternoon they’re expected to select left-hander Cam Alldred onto the major league roster. If that happens, they’ll transfer catcher Roberto Pérez from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Righty Beau Sulser was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis to clear active roster space.

The Bucs selected Alldred in the 24th round of the 2018 draft out of the University of Cincinnati. The Ohio native had worked as a starter for the Bearcats but converted to relief immediately after entering the professional ranks. He signed for a modest $100K and has never appeared on an organizational prospects ranking at either Baseball America or FanGraphs, but Alldred has generally posted a strong minor league resume. He owns a 2.75 ERA in 173 2/3 career pro innings.

The 25-year-old has gotten off to a nice start with Indianapolis this year. He’s worked 17 2/3 frames across eight appearances, posting a 1.53 ERA. Allred’s 22.7% strikeout rate is a hair lower than average, but he’s induced ground-balls at an excellent 60.9% clip and only walked 4.5% of opponents. That’ll earn him his first shot in a big league bullpen.

Pérez’s transfer to the 60-day IL is a disappointing but unsurprising development. The 33-year-old, signed to a one-year deal over the offseason, suffered a left hamstring strain last week, and the Bucs quickly determined it to be a severe issue. He’ll be out of action for at least 60 days from the date of his original IL placement, May 7. That’ll keep him out of commission until the second week of July at the earliest, and it seems plausible he may not return until after the All-Star Break. Pittsburgh figures to rely on a catching tandem of Andrew Knapp and Michael Pérez for the foreseeable future.

Dodgers Designate Robbie Erlin For Assignment

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The Dodgers designated lefty Robbie Erlin for assignment, according to an announcement from the team.  The move accompanies the club’s selection of Ryan Pepiot’s contract.

Erlin, 31, spent 2021 with the Nippon Ham Fighters of NPB.  He inked a minor league deal with the Dodgers in February, and returned to a 40-man roster when his contract was selected Saturday, allowing him to serve as the 27th man in a doubleheader against the Cubs.  In his first big league action in nearly 20 months, Erlin posted a scoreless mop-up inning Sunday and then gave up a pair of runs to put a game in Pittsburgh further out of reach on Monday.

Considered one of the 35 best prospects in the game when the Rangers sent him to San Diego in the Mike Adams deal at the 2011 trade deadline, Erlin underwent Tommy John surgery in May 2016.  The Padres bounced him from their 40-man in October 2019, and then he moved to the Pirates and Braves before heading overseas.

In that classic MLB circle of life, Erlin has surrendered his Dodgers 40-man roster spot to Pepiot, who ranked 90th on Baseball America’s top 100 prospect list.  Pepiot, a 24-year-old righty, is a 55-grade prospect with what BA describes as a “devastating” changeup but “below average control.”  Pepiot hasn’t yet solved the control issue in his 68 Triple-A innings, but the Dodgers needed a starter for this afternoon’s game in Pittsburgh.

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