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Every Team’s Initial September Call-Ups

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Each season as the calendar flips to September, we see a flurry of transactions around Major League Baseball. Active roster sizes jump from 26 to 28 for the season’s final month, with teams permitted to bring up no more than one additional pitcher. We’ve already covered a host of transactions with 40-man roster implications throughout the day at MLBTR. Here’s a full round-up of teams’ initial September roster moves.

American League West

Houston Astros:

Los Angeles Angels:

Oakland Athletics

Seattle Mariners

  • Reinstated LHP Matthew Boyd from 60-day injured list
  • Recalled OF Taylor Trammell from Triple-A Tacoma
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Texas Rangers

  • Selected contract of RHP Jesus Tinoco from Triple-A Round Rock
  • Recalled OF Nick Solak from Triple-A Round Rock
  • Corresponding move: Transferred RHP Josh Sborz to 60-day injured list

American League Central

Chicago White Sox

  • Recalled OF Adam Haseley from Triple-A Charlotte
  • Recalled RHP Matt Foster from Triple-A Charlotte
  • Corresponding move: None required

Cleveland Guardians

Detroit Tigers

Kansas City Royals

  • Selected contract of RHP Daniel Mengden from Triple-A Omaha
  • Recalled OF Nate Eaton from Triple-A Omaha
  • Corresponding move: None required

Minnesota Twins

  • Added LHP Austin Davis (previously claimed off waivers from Red Sox) to active roster
  • Selected contract of OF Billy Hamilton from Triple-A St. Paul
  • Corresponding move: Transferred OF Trevor Larnach to 60-day injured list

American League East

Baltimore Orioles

  • Selected contract of 1B Jesus Aguilar from Triple-A Norfolk
  • Recalled LHP DL Hall from Triple-A Norfolk
  • Corresponding move: Designated INF Richie Martin for assignment

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

  • Recalled SS Oswald Peraza from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
  • Activated INF Marwin Gonzalez from paternity list
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Tampa Bay Rays

  • Reinstated RHP Matt Wisler from the 15-day injured list
  • Recalled INF Jonathan Aranda from Triple-A Durham
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Toronto Blue Jays

  • Recalled RHP Casey Lawrence from Triple-A Buffalo
  • Added OF Bradley Zimmer (claimed off waivers from Phillies this week) to active roster
  • Corresponding moves: None required

National League West

Arizona Diamondbacks

Colorado Rockies

  • Recalled INF Alan Trejo from Triple-A Albuquerque
  • Recalled RHP Chad Smith from Triple-A Albuquerque
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Los Angeles Dodgers

  • Reinstated LHP Clayton Kershaw from 15-day injured list
  • Recalled 3B Miguel Vargas from Triple-A Oklahoma City
  • Corresponding moves: None required

San Diego Padres

  • Recalled INF Matt Beaty from Triple-A El Paso
  • Recalled RHP Reiss Knehr from Triple-A El Paso
  • Corresponding moves: None required

San Francisco Giants

National League Central

Chicago Cubs

  • Selected contract of RHP Jeremiah Estrada from Triple-A Iowa
  • Recalled INF David Bote from Triple-A Iowa
  • Corresponding move: Transferred Wade Miley from 15-day injured list to 60-day injured list

Cincinnati Reds

Milwaukee Brewers

  • Recalled RHP Luis Perdomo from Triple-A Nashville
  • Recalled OF Esteury Ruiz from Triple-A Nashville
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Pittsburgh Pirates

  • Recalled RHP Johan Oviedo from Triple-A Indianapolis
  • Recalled OF Calvin Mitchell from Triple-A Indianapolis
  • Corresponding moves: None required

St. Louis Cardinals

  • Selected contract of OF Ben DeLuzio from Triple-A Memphis
  • Recalled RHP James Naile from Triple-A Memphis
  • Corresponding moves: None required

National League East

Atlanta Braves

  • Reinstated IF Orlando Arcia from 10-day injured list
  • Added recently-claimed RHP Jesse Chavez to active roster
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Miami Marlins*

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

  • Selected contract of RHP Vinny Nittoli from Triple-A Lehigh Valley
  • Recalled C Donny Sands from Triple-A Lehigh Valley
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Washington Nationals

  • Recalled C Tres Barrera from Triple-A Rochester
  • Recalled RHP Mason Thompson from Triple-A Rochester
  • Corresponding moves: None required

*Marlins moves reported by Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link)

Cade Cavalli Shut Down For Two Weeks Due To Shoulder Inflammation

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The Nationals are shutting down right-hander Cade Cavalli for the next two weeks due to shoulder inflammation, tweets Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post. Cavalli will be placed on the 15-day injured list.

At this point, the issue doesn’t seem to be terribly severe. Dougherty relays that Cavalli felt some discomfort in the day after his start and went for an MRI, which showed inflammation but no structural damage. “Everything looks good, except for he has a little bit of inflammation around the capsule,” manager Dave Martinez tells Jessica Camerato of MLB.com. “But the labrum, tendons, the rotator cuff, everything is very, very clean.” Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com relays word from Martinez, who says that they’re not shutting him down for the season because they want him to try to work back to health in the short-term, rather than just focussing on next year’s Spring Training.

The fact that the issue isn’t terribly serious is surely comforting for fans of the club, though the news also has to be at least somewhat deflating. It was just over a year ago that the club kicked off a rebuild by trading away many of their best players, including Max Scherzer and Trea Turner. This year, the club dug themselves even deeper in that hole by trading Juan Soto and Josh Bell. Amid all of that subtraction from the big league roster, one thing for fans to look forward to was the emergence of youngsters, with Cavalli being among the most exciting. Now he’s heading to the IL after just a single big league start and might not even appear again this season. In the long run, Cavalli can hopefully recover and make this minor setback a non-issue.

In the short-term, the club will have to patch over a hole in the rotation. Cory Abbott was optioned when Cavalli was called up and could be a candidate to return. Optioned players normally have to spend at least ten days off the roster before being added back on, though an exception is made when someone is going on the IL. Dougherty reports that Abbott was supposed to throw in Rochester today, the home of Washington’s Triple-A club, but was pulled off.

NL East Notes: Alvarez, Hernandez, Sanchez

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Star Mets prospect Francisco Alvarez is undergoing evaluation on a sore right ankle, SNY’s Andy Martino reports (Twitter link).  As per other Peter Botte and Mike Puma of the New York Post, the injury isn’t thought to be too severe, though simply given the calendar, there is a possibility that the Mets could shut Alvarez down for what remains of the 2022 season.  More will be known in a few days’ time, after Alvarez has been more fully tested.

One of the top minor leaguers in all of baseball, there has been speculation that the 20-year-old Alvarez might receive a call-up to the majors this season, as the Mets haven’t gotten much from the catching position.  However, even before his ankle injury surfaced, Alvarez wasn’t off to a great start in his first taste of Triple-A action, batting only .180/.340/.378 in 141 plate appearances.  It certainly isn’t the ideal platform to launch a young player into making his MLB debut in the thick of a pennant race, and naturally the Mets want to be as careful as possible with the development of a possible cornerstone player of the future.

Other updates from around the NL East…

  • The Nationals shifted Yadiel Hernandez to the 60-day injured list on Saturday, officially ending the outfielder’s season.  (In a corresponding move, Washington reinstated left-hander Seth Romero from the 60-day IL and assigned him to Double-A.)  Hernandez was retroactively placed on the 10-day IL on August 19 due to a left calf strain, and his third MLB season saw the 34-year-old hit .269/.312/.410 with nine homers over 327 plate appearances.  Hernandez has spent much of his Nats tenure as the left-handed hitting side of an outfield platoon, posting roughly league-average offense since the start of the 2021 campaign.  He is under team control through 2026, but given his age and the Nationals’ rebuild, it is possible the team might consider moving onto a younger option for next season.
  • Sixto Sanchez’s continued shoulder inflammation will result in a cortisone shot on Monday, per Craig Mish of the Miami Herald (via Twitter).  Sanchez made his MLB debut with 39 innings in 2020, but hasn’t since pitched at any level due to shoulder problems, which included surgery in July 2021.  It is becoming increasingly unlikely that Sanchez will get any game action in the majors or minors before 2022 is out, making it another lost year for the Marlins right-hander.

Nationals Release Maikel Franco

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The Nationals have released veteran infielder Maikel Franco, reinstated second baseman Luis Garcia from the injured list, optioned righty Cory Abbott and selected the contract of top pitching prospect Cade Cavalli, per a team announcement. Cavalli’s looming promotion had been announced by the team earlier in the week. Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com first noted that Garcia was in the clubhouse and that Franco appeared to be packing up and saying his goodbyes, indicating a move was on the horizon.

Franco, who turns 30 today, has spent the season as Washington’s primary third baseman. The Nats signed the former Phillies top prospect to a minor league deal over the winter, and he broke camp with the team. Franco has gotten 99 starts, with the vast majority of that time coming at his customary position at the hot corner. While he’s been a durable lineup fixture, the right-handed hitter simply hasn’t produced much at the plate. Franco posted a .229/.255/.342 showing across 388 plate appearances, only connecting on nine home runs with a meager 3.1% walk rate.

It’s a second straight well below-average season for Franco, who managed a .210/.253/.355 line with the Orioles last season. Fellow journeyman Ildemaro Vargas, who was selected onto the big league roster at the start of this month, has a far more productive .317/.354/.450 showing in 65 plate appearances. The switch-hitting Vargas has taken hold of the third base job as a result, while Garcia is now in line to pair with top prospect CJ Abrams as the primary middle infield duo. That pushed veteran second baseman Cesar Hernandez to the bench and squeezed Franco off the roster.

A nine-year MLB veteran, Franco finds himself on release waivers. Assuming he goes unclaimed, he’ll hit free agency and be able to explore other opportunities elsewhere. It seems likely he’ll be limited to minor league offers, although he’d technically be eligible for another team’s postseason roster if he signs before the end of this month.

Tyler Clippard Elects Free Agency

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AUGUST 25: Clippard has cleared waivers and refused an outright assignment, according to a team announcement. As expected, he’ll return to the open market in search of a new opportunity.

AUGUST 23: The Nationals are designating reliever Tyler Clippard for assignment, tweets Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post. The move frees an active roster spot for Erick Fedde, who is back from the 15-day injured list. The club also swapped out backup catchers, recalling Riley Adams from Triple-A Rochester while optioning Tres Barrera. Washington’s 40-man roster tally drops to 39.

A two-time All-Star, Clippard has been a durable and effective reliever for the bulk of his 16-year big league career. He spent an extended chunk of that run in the nation’s capital, pitching with the Nats between 2008-14 before bouncing throughout the league. The changeup specialist remained productive through 2020, but he’s had some injury woes over the past couple years. He lost a good chunk of last season with the Diamondbacks due to a capsule sprain. Clippard returned late in the year and posted a solid 3.20 ERA over 25 1/3 innings, but his peripherals weren’t especially impressive.

The 37-year-old returned to Washington on a minor league deal over the winter. He impressed with Rochester, posting a 2.23 ERA with an excellent 31.5% strikeout percentage through 40 1/3 frames. That earned him another big league call last month, but he quickly suffered a groin strain that sent him to the injured list. Clippard returned a couple weeks ago, but the Nats moved on after just four MLB appearances. He tossed five innings of four-run ball with four strikeouts and walks apiece, averaging a career-low 87.5 MPH on his fastball.

Washington will place the veteran on waivers in the next few days. If he goes unclaimed, Clippard would have the right to elect free agency and look for another opportunity elsewhere. If he lands with a new organization by September 1 — either via waiver claim or new free agent deal upon clearing waivers — he’d be eligible for postseason play this season.

Nationals Claim Tommy Romero From Rays

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The Nationals have claimed right-hander Tommy Romero off waivers from the Rays, and assigned Romero to Triple-A.  Both Romero and Kevin Herget were designated for assignment by Tampa Bay on Tuesday, and the Rays announced that Herget been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers.

Romero has a 7.71 ERA over three appearances and 4 2/3 innings for the Rays this season, marking the 24-year-old’s first bit of Major League experience.  A 15th-round pick for the Mariners in the 2017 draft, Romero has been in the Rays organization since 2018, and posted some quality numbers down on the farm.  He has a 2.66 ERA and 25.91% strikeout rate over 473 2/3 career innings in the minor leagues, with some variance both well above and well below that K%.

Romero has started 80 of his 108 games in the minors, though some of those were rather abbreviated outings, as the Rays experimented with some opener/piggyback starter scenarios.  Most recently, Romero has been working only as a reliever, with Tampa eyeing him as bullpen depth rather than rotation help if he got another call later in the season.

The waiver claim now makes that a moot point, and it seems likely the Nationals will stretch Romero out again as a starting pitcher.  The Nats have been aggressive on the waiver wire (as noted by the Washington Post’s Jesse Dougherty) in recent months, as the team has used the high waiver priority afforded to Washington’s low position in the standings to audition and check out several players.  There isn’t much risk for the rebuilding Nats in seeing if they can find a hidden gem amongst these waiver claims, and in Romero’s case, his age (25), solid minor league track record and his full set of minor league options make him an interesting candidate.

Nationals To Promote Cade Cavalli

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The Nationals are calling up top pitching prospect Cade Cavalli for his Major League debut on Friday, per a club announcement. Grant Paulsen of 106.7 FM The Fan first reported Cavalli would be getting the call to the big leagues. The 2020 first-rounder will need to have his contract formally selected to the Major League roster before Friday’s game.

Cade Cavalli

Cavalli, 24, was the No. 22 overall selection in 2020. The Oklahoma native and former Sooner star has enjoyed a solid season in Triple-A Rochester, where he’s notched a 3.71 ERA with a 25.9% strikeout rate, a 9.7% walk rate and a 43.1% grounder rate. Cavalli has gotten more comfortable in Triple-A and gotten stronger as the season wears on; after some rocky outings throughout his first 13 trips to the hill, he’s now rattled off a 1.47 ERA with a 43-to-12 K/BB ratio (29.7 K%, 8.7% BB%) in his past seven starts — a total of 36 1/3 innings.

The 6’4″, 240-pound Cavalli, in addition to his lofty draft status, currently ranks as one of the sport’s top pitching prospects. He checks in at No. 20 on FanGraphs’ most recent prospect rankings and is also featured prominently on the latest leaguewide lists from Baseball Prospectus (No. 29), Baseball America (No. 52) and MLB.com (No. 58).

Cavalli made the Futures Game roster in each of the past two seasons, though he was a late scratch from this year’s game due to a blister issue on his pitching hand. Fans who tuned into the 2021 game saw Cavalli touch 102 mph on the radar gun with a powerful heater that generally draws 70 grades on the 20-80 scale. Command issues, stemming in part from a violent delivery that gives some scouts concerns he’ll ultimately move to the bullpen, have been the big knock on Cavalli. He also works with a slider, curveball and changeup, each drawing praise as anywhere from an above-average to potentially plus pitch. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs writes in his scouting report that while there’s relief risk, “…if things click, Cavalli is going to be a monster.”

For the Nats, the hope is that Cavalli can achieve that top-of-the-rotation ceiling and join left-hander MacKenzie Gore and righty Josiah Gray as the nucleus of the team’s rotation for years to come. Because he’s being called up this late in the season, Cavalli can’t earn a full year of Major League service time and is also well past the point at which Super Two status is attainable. That means he’ll be controllable for six more seasons beyond this one — all the way through 2028 — and won’t be eligible to reach arbitration until after 2025 season. Of course, future demotions back to the minors could push back either of those trajectories.

Latest On Potential Sale Of Nationals

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Ted Leonsis has emerged as a potential suitor in the ongoing sales process involving the Nationals, according to a report from Barry Svrluga, Ben Strauss and Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post. Leonsis’ Monumental Sports & Entertainment is already a major factor in the D.C. sports scene, owning the NBA’s Wizards, the NHL’s Capitals and the WNBA’s Mystics.

According to the Post, Leonsis is one of a few potential buyers granted access to the Nationals financial data. He’s not making a run at sole ownership, however; Drew Hansen of the Washington Business Journal reports that David Rubenstein, a private equity businessman, is part of the group with Leonsis. It isn’t clear who else is involved with Leonsis and Rubenstein.

The Leonsis group becomes the third known potential suitors for the Nationals. Since the Lerner family announced in April they were exploring the possibility of a sale, the Post has reported that South Korean equity mogul Michael B. Kim and mortgage executive Stanley Middleman have each met with Nationals personnel. Whether Leonsis and Rubenstein have also formally met with Nationals executives yet isn’t known. The Post has reported that at least five potential bidders have met with the Lerners in recent weeks, so it’s not a given that any of the three publicly-known suitors will wind up submitting the winning bid.

The Lerner family has stopped short of making a firm declaration it’d pull the trigger on a sale, although it’s generally expected they’ll do so. The Post writes that the process could be finalized shortly after the conclusion of the season, with potential ratification of a sale taking place at the owners meetings in November. The Nationals are one of two franchises that could soon change hands, as Angels owner Arte Moreno announced yesterday he was looking into the possibility of selling the Anaheim organization as well.

NL Notes: Kimbrel, Fedde, Cavalli, Nationals, Junis

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The Dodgers used Craig Kimbrel for the last inning of today’s 10-3 win over the Marlins, and the reliever delivered a perfect frame to mop things up.  While not a save situation for Kimbrel, manager Dave Roberts told J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (Twitter links) and other reporters that Kimbrel and the team have agreed to base the right-hander’s workload going forward not on save chances, but rather on just getting regular outings.  This wouldn’t preclude Kimbrel being used in save opportunities, of course, and Roberts said he could still choose to use Kimbrel in consecutive games.

It has been a shaky year for the veteran reliever, as between a subpar walk rate and a lot of hard contact allowed, Kimbrel has only a 4.46 ERA over 42 1/3 innings.  A big .388 BABIP is responsible for some of these struggles, but consistency has been hard to come by in Kimbrel’s first season in Los Angeles.  It has turned the ninth inning into a question mark for the Dodgers heading into the postseason, and it could be that Kimbrel’s adjusted role could be the team’s way of auditioning some other relievers for the closer’s job as October looms.  It is also possible the Dodgers will rotate Kimbrel and many other pitchers into save situations as circumstances dictate, which may concern L.A. fans who have seen late-game breakdowns doom the Dodgers in past postseason trips.

More from around the National League…

  • The Nationals rotation will get a jolt this week, as both Erick Fedde and top prospect Cade Cavalli might be in the mix.  Fedde is the surer thing, as manager Davey Martinez told reporters (including Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com) that Fedde will be activated from the 15-day injured list and start Tuesday’s game with the Mariners.  Right shoulder inflammation put Fedde out of action back on July 27, and the right-hander had a 4.95 ERA over 92 2/3 innings and 19 starts for Washington before going on the IL.  Fedde is a potential non-tender candidate as he enters his second year of arbitration eligibility, though he’ll have a few more starts to make his case for another contract, plus the Nationals might be open to giving a former first-rounder another chance anyway as the team looks to rebuild.  Cory Abbott will be moved to the bullpen to fit Fedde into the rotation.
  • Cavalli was the 22nd overall pick of the 2020 draft, and is ranked within the top 60 on updated prospect lists from Baseball America (52nd) and MLB Pipeline (58th).  It has been just a few days since Cavalli’s 24th birthday, and the right-hander has a 3.71 ERA, 25.9% strikeout rate, and 9.7% walk rate over 97 Triple-A innings this season.  Control is the biggest question facing Cavalli, who otherwise has four plus pitches, highlighted by a 97mph fastball that earned a 70 grade from both BA and Pipeline.  The Nationals’ rotation plans are somewhat unknown due to three off-days in the next eight-day span, but Zuckerman thinks Cavalli might be promoted during the team’s August 26-September 1 homestand.
  • X-rays were negative on Jakob Junis’ left hand after the Giants starter was hit by a line drive in today’s game.  Giants manager Gabe Kapler told reporters (including MLB.com’s Maria I. Guardado) that Junis will also get a CT scan tomorrow to further check for any damage.  The discomfort was severe enough for Junis to be forced out of the game in the sixth inning.  Since Junis is a right-handed pitcher and because San Francisco doesn’t play on either Monday or Thursday this week, it seems possible Junis might not need an IL trip or even technically any missed starts, if the off-days just push the rest of the rotation back.  Junis has had a solid first year with the Giants, posting a 3.58 ERA over 78 innings despite a hamstring string that cost him over a month of action.

David Dahl Opts Out Of Minor League Deal With Nationals

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Outfielder David Dahl has opted out of his minor league contract with the Nationals, reports Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (Twitter link). Washington could choose to select him onto the MLB roster to keep him in the fold, but Dougherty indicates they’ll let him head back onto the open market.

It’s the second consecutive minor league deal for Dahl that hasn’t resulted in a big league opportunity. He spent a year with the Brewers top affiliate in Nashville after signing a non-roster pact last August. Despite posting solid numbers with the Sounds, Dahl was let go by Milwaukee this July. He latched on with the Nats a couple weeks later, with the club seemingly eyeing him as a possible late-season replacement after some forthcoming deadline trades that subtracted from the lineup.

That didn’t wind up coming to be, as Dahl struggled over his 18 games with their highest affiliate in Rochester. He hit .224/.304/.343 in 79 trips to the plate, striking out on 22 occasions (27.8% rate). That’s a far cry from the .294/.357/.468 showing he’d posted in 280 plate appearances with Nashville earlier in the year, and the Nationals instead selected the contract of first baseman Joey Meneses and claimed outfielder Alex Call off waivers from the Guardians to backfill the 40-man roster.

Dahl’s most recent MLB came action came during the first half of the 2021 season with the Rangers. Signed to a $3MM deal the preceding offseason, the lefty-hitting outfielder hit .210/.247/.322 over 63 games in Arlington before being released. That came on the heels of an injury-wrecked 2020 season that had led the Rockies to cut him loose, and it’s now been three years since Dahl looked like a potential core piece in Colorado. The former #10 overall pick was an above-average hitter when healthy in each of his first three MLB seasons, which included a .302/.353/.524 showing in 2019 that earned him an All-Star nod.

The 28-year-old heads back into free agency in search of another opportunity. He seems likely to catch on elsewhere on a minor league pact, with a team that seeks non-roster outfield depth likely to be intrigued by his prior MLB success and recent solid production at the upper levels with Milwaukee. If Dahl finds a new landing spot by September 1, he’d technically be eligible for postseason play.

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