MLB Rumors - MLBTradeRumors.com - Part 2 (2024)

The Orioles announced that right-hander Brooks Kriske was claimed off waivers from the Reds, then assigned to Triple-A Norfolk. As reported by MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko (X link) earlier today, left-hander Nick Vespi was designated for assignment to create an opening on Baltimore’s 40-man roster.

Cincinnati designed Kriske for assignment earlier this week, and the righty now returns to one of his former teams. Kriske posted a 12.27 ERA over four games and 3 2/3 innings with the Orioles in 2021, before the O’s released him following the season so Kriske could sign with the Yokohama BayStars of Nippon Professional Baseball. After his season in Japan, Kriske returned to North America on a minors deal with the Royals and delivered a 4.05 ERA in 6 2/3 innings in 2023, before heading back to NPB for a brief stint with the Seibu Lions.

Kriske then signed a minors deal with the Reds this past winter, and didn’t see any big league action despite a brief stint on Cincinnati’s active roster back in June. He had a 3.10 ERA and eye-opening 36.7% strikeout rate in 49 1/3 innings at Triple-A Louisville, albeit with the red flags of an inflated 14.8% walk rate and a very favorable .205 BABIP. The numbers essentially continue the story of Kriske’s career, as the 30-year-old has long struggled with his control while also missing a lot of bats.

The resume was intriguing enough for the Orioles to bring Kriske in for another look in the organization, though if he does get called up to the majors, Kriske lacks some flexibility since he is out of minor league options. Vespi is in his final option year, and he has been recalled and demoted from Triple-A the maximum five times this season, which undoubtedly factored into Baltimore’s decision to send the southpaw to the DFA wire.

Vespi has frequently been shuttled back and forth between Baltimore and Norfolk during his three Major League seasons, as the O’s haven’t felt compelled to give Vespi an extended look despite some pretty solid performance. Vespi has a 3.88 ERA over his 53 1/3 career MLB innings, including a 2.92 ERA in 12 1/3 frames in 2024. In something of the inverse of Kriske, Vespi is a control specialist (5.9% walk rate in the bigs) who doesn’t record many strikeouts (20.9K%).

Strangely, Vespi’s walk rate has gone through the roof during his time at Triple-A this season, with a huge 15.9% walk rate contributing to his 7.71 ERA over 37 1/3 innings in Norfolk. Both the walk rate and the ERA seem like outliers against Vespi’s otherwise solid career record at the Triple-A level, and other teams might not be dissuaded from putting in a waiver claim to obtain his rights.

The Mets announced that right-hander Paul Blackburn has been placed on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to August 24) due to a right hand bruise. Righty Huascar Brazoban was called up from Triple-A to take Blackburn’s spot on the active roster.

Acquired in a deadline trade from the Athletics, Blackburn has an inconsistent 5.18 ERA over five starts with New York, as he has mixed three quality outings amidst a pair of rough performances. His former Oakland team tagged him with six earned runs over four innings on August 13, and Blackburn was charged with five ER over 2 1/3 innings against the Padres on Friday. The tough night was made worse when Blackburn was hit in the hand by a David Peralta line drive, which forced him out of the game.

On the plus side, a CT scan revealed only a bruise, and Blackburn was initially hopeful he could avoid the injured list altogether. However, a throwing session today resulted in “a lot of stiffness and soreness,” as Blackburn told Newsday’s Tim Healey and other reporters. The decision was then made to put Blackburn on the IL to give him time to fully recover, and the right-hander feels he can return after just the minimum 15 days.

The Mets have an off-day tomorrow but then play nine games in as many days before their next break on September 5. At least one start will need to covered to account for Blackburn’s turn in the rotation, and Tylor Megill is probably the most logical candidate to be summoned from Triple-A for a spot outing or two. The Monday off-day gives the Mets some time to plan how they’ll approach Blackburn’s absence, and perhaps see if any further discomfort or swelling provides any change to his timeline.

12:38PM: The Padres officially promoted Bachar, and optioned right-hander Logan Gillaspie to Triple-A. Matthew Batten was also outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers; Batten was designated for assignment earlier this week.

9:21AM: The Padres will add right-hander Lake Bachar to the active roster prior to today’s game with the Mets, according to Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune (X link). Bachar was added to the 40-man roster earlier this month, so the Padres will just have to make one corresponding move to free up space on the 26-man.

The 40-man roster placement came about due to an opt-out clause Bachar triggered in his minor league deal, as the Padres selected that contract in order to keep him in the organization. The 29-year-old righty was a fifth-round pick for the Padres in 2016, and is now seemingly in line to make his Major League debut in his ninth pro season. Bachar’s resume consists of seven years on the field plus two lost years in 2020-21 — the pandemic wiped out the 2020 minor league season, and Bachar underwent a Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for all of 2021.

Understandably, Bachar showed some rust when he returned to action in 2022, but he rebounded with a 2.69 ERA over 60 1/3 relief innings for Double-A San Antonio in 2023. This earned Bachar his first promotion to Triple-A this season, and he has produced a 4.12 ERA, 27.6% strikeout rate, and 10.6% walk rate across 67 2/3 innings for the El Paso affiliate. Bachar has allowed 11 homers this year, but all things considered, his numbers have been pretty decent for a fly-ball pitcher in a very hitter-friendly league.

As Saunders noted in another piece back in April, Bachar’s turn-around in 2023 was aided by his development of a splitter. Adding this third pitch along with his 94-97mph fastball and a slider with a lot of horizontal break put Bachar on the path that has now brought him to San Diego’s MLB roster. Even if this might be a “cup of coffee” type of call-up to get a fresh arm into the Padres’ bullpen for a few days, Bachar can officially call himself a big leaguer once he gets into a game.

The Royals announced that outfielder Hunter Renfroe was placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring strain. Outfielder Tyler Gentry was called up from Triple-A Omaha to take Renfroe’s spot on the active roster.

Renfroe was subbed out in the ninth inning of yesterday’s 11-2 Royals loss to the Phillies, and the early exit didn’t seem unusual given the game’s lopsided nature. However, manager Matt Quatraro told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anne Rogers) today that Renfroe had a minor tweak of the hamstring that led the team to put him on the IL as something of a precautionary measure. Bringing Gentry up also keeps the Royals at full roster strength during a crowded section of the schedule — today is the third game in a stretch of 14 games in 13 days for Kansas City, counting tomorrow’s double-header with the Guardians.

This is the second time Renfroe has been on the IL this season, as he previously had a minimal 10-game absence after suffering a bone bruise on his left foot in June. Since returning from that prior IL stint, Renfroe has hit a respectable .274/.351/.433 with six home runs over 185 plate appearances, helping get himself on track after an ice-cold start in the first two-plus months of the season. That rough start is still dragging down Renfroe’s overall numbers, as he has a below-average 97 wRC+ from a .237/.312/.398 slash line over 372 PA.

Given how much better Renfroe has been swinging the bat over the last two months, the Royals can ill-afford to lose their starting right fielder for any lengthy amount of time as the club competes for a playoff spot. The left-handed hitting Adam Frazier has gotten the next highest amount of right-field playing time as a complement to Renfroe’s righty bat, and K.C. could opt to give Dairon Blanco more time in right along with Frazier.

Gentry also figures to be part of the mix in his first taste of Major League action. Gentry was a third-round pick for the Royals in the 2020 draft and he has spent the last two seasons at Triple-A, hitting .254/.360/.424 with 29 homers and 19 steals (out of 23 attempts) over 995 plate appearances with Omaha. Kansas City added him to the 40-man roster last November in advance of the Rule 5 Draft.

MLB Pipeline ranks the 25-year-old Gentry 15th on their list of Royals prospects, with a 60-grade throwing arm that has resulted in most of his minor league career spent in the right field position. Gentry has had a tendency to hit better later in the season during his time in the minors, so he could be peaking at the right time for his debut in the Show, or he might naturally need another adjustment period as he sees Major League pitching for the first time. Gentry is considered more of a contact hitter than a power bat, which doesn’t entirely fit the profile of a slugging corner outfield type.

The Pirates announced that they have selected the contract of left-hander Brady Feigl from Triple-A Indianapolis. Feigl will take the 26-man and 40-man roster left vacant by Hunter Stratton, who was placed on the 60-day injured list after suffering a season-ending left knee patella tendon rupture in yesterday’s game.

The call-up marks the end of a long and unlikely journey for Feigl, who is now on the verge of making his MLB debut at age 33. Feigl wasn’t drafted coming out of Mount St. Mary’s University, and he spent the 2014-19 seasons pitching in the Braves’ and Rangers’ farm systems with some level of success, though a Tommy John surgery cost him almost all of both the 2015 and 2016 campaigns.

Between the pandemic-canceled 2020 minor league season and then more injuries in 2021, Feigl spent two years away from pro ball before resurfacing in the independent Atlantic League. He pitched well enough in two Atlantic League seasons to land a minor league contract with the Pirates for 2024, and he has delivered a 3.83 ERA, 29% strikeout rate, and 6.1% walk rate over 51 2/3 innings for Indianapolis. A .333 BABIP and an inflated 19% homer rate have somewhat inflated Feigl’s ERA, but he has otherwise pitched well in his return to affiliated baseball.

Feigl isn’t exactly a prospect given his age, and he might be just a short-term add to the Pirates’ bullpen in the wake of Stratton’s sudden and unexpected injury. Still, getting onto a big league roster represents a tremendous achievement for Feigl after all of the twists and setbacks of his pro career, and he’ll get at least some opportunity to show what he can do against MLB hitters.

11:03AM: Stratton’s season is officially over, as the Pirates placed him on the 60-day injured list.

7:38AM: Pirates right-hander Hunter Stratton suffered a left knee patella tendon rupture during the fourth inning of the Bucs’ 10-2 loss to the Reds on Saturday. Stratton had just entered the game in relief of Jake Woodford, and his fourth pitch of the appearance was a wild pitch that evaded catcher Joey Bart. As Jonathan India raced home to score from third base, Bart’s toss to Stratton (covering home plate) bounced off Stratton’s glove and rolled to the backstop. While in pursuit of the loose ball, Stratton stumbled and jammed his left leg into the stone wall behind the plate.

Stratton was down for several minutes in the aftermath of the play, and had to leave the field on a cart. Post-game, manager Derek Shelton told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Justin Guerriero and other reporters that Stratton was receiving an MRI and that the situation “did not look good. I would say this is going to be significant time [out].”

Official word on Stratton’s status should come today when he is inevitably placed on the injured list, but between the nature of the knee injury and the late date on the baseball calendar, it would certainly seem like Stratton’s 2024 season is over. The question now is how much time the 27-year-old will need to recover, and how much of his 2025 campaign could be impacted.

A 16th-round selection for the Pirates in the 2017 draft, Stratton didn’t make his MLB debut until 2023, when he had a 2.25 ERA over 12 innings as a September call-up. Pittsburgh non-tendered Stratton following the season but then re-signed him to a new minor league contract, and he was part of the club’s Opening Day roster this year. The righty’s first full Major League season has included a six-week stint on the IL due to a triceps strain, and now this flukish patella tendon rupture that will bring his year to a close.

When healthy, Stratton has pitched respectably well, posting a 3.58 ERA over 37 2/3 relief innings. While his strikeout rate is a modest 20.9%, Stratton has done an excellent job of inducing soft contact, and he has avoided free passes to the tune of a 4.4% walk rate. The latter stat is the most significant part of Stratton’s development into a big leaguer, as he had a 12.98% walk rate across his 392 career innings in the Pirates’ farm system.

The Mets have released outfielder Eddie Rosario, The Athletic’s Will Sammon reports (via X). Rosario signed a minor league deal just 10 days ago, but he’ll now leave the organization after seven games with Triple-A Syracuse.

Rosario didn’t have much success in his brief time in Syracuse, as he posted just a .444 OPS with eight strikeouts over 30 plate appearances. It continues what has been an altogether rough 2024 season for the former NLCS MVP, as Rosario has hit .175/.215/.316 over 319 combined PA at the big league level with the Nationals and Braves.

Washington signed Rosario to a minor league deal last winter, and the Nationals are still on the hook for most of the remainder of Rosario’s $2MM salary. (The Braves only covered the prorated portion of the Major League minimum salary for Rosario’s 24 games on their roster.) Signing Rosario to a minors deal was therefore a no-risk move for the Mets as a way to seeing if a change of scenery could spark the veteran, but New York will now also move on from Rosario’s services.

While his results this season don’t exactly inspire confidence, it is worth remembering that Rosario was still a league-average hitter in the majors just last season, when he hit .255/.305/.450 with 21 home runs over 516 with Atlanta. It speaks to the overall hot-and-cold nature of Rosario’s big league career that he has an exact 100 OPS+ over his 10 MLB seasons, plus a 97 wRC+ that checks in slightly below the average mark.

This track record means that it wouldn’t be surprising to see another club take a flier on Rosario for a minor league deal. Signing with a new team prior to September 1 would make Rosario eligible for postseason play, as his past success in the playoffs makes this detail noteworthy even if Rosario hasn’t looked worthy of a 26-man roster spot, let alone a spot on a postseason roster. Given his struggles, Rosario might just be looking to catch on with any team (contender or non-contender) that can offer him a path back to the majors, and a chance to salvage something from a rough season.

The Marlins announced that they have selected the contract of left-hander Jonathan Bermudez from Triple-A Jacksonville. To clear space on both the 26-man and 40-man rosters, Miami optioned righty Emmanuel Ramirez to Triple-A, and moved outfielder Dane Myers from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL.

The 28-year-old Bermudez will be making his Major League debut whenever he appears in a game. A 23rd-round pick for the Astros in the 2018 draft, Bermudez pitched in Houston’s farm system until he was claimed off waivers by the Giants during the 2022 season. San Francisco parted ways with Bermudez just prior to Opening Day 2023 and he then caught on with Miami, spending most of that time at the Marlins’ Double-A affiliate.

Bermudez had a 2.53 ERA over 74 2/3 Double-A innings this year, but his time in Jacksonville was much rockier, with a 6.46 ERA to show for 23 2/3 innings of work (starting three of six appearances). This performance continued Bermudez’s lack of Triple-A success, as he has a 7.16 ERA over 137 total frames of Triple-A ball counting his time with the Giants’ and Astros’ top affiliates as well as his work in Jacksonville this season. Bermudez’s career Triple-A numbers also include a 23.69% strikeout rate and 11.13% walk rate.

While Bermudez has mostly worked as a starter in his career, it seems likelier that he’ll work out of the bullpen in Miami. Andrew Nardi was just placed on the 15-day IL yesterday, leaving the Marlins with just Kent Emanuel as the lone left-hander in the relief corps. Bermudez could add more depth from the left side and eat some innings in long relief, and it certainly seems possible he might pick up a start or two as the Marlins play out the string.

Myers has been out of action since fracturing his ankle in mid-July, so the move to the 60-day IL will now push his activation date to mid-September at the earliest. In MLB.com’s most recent update on Myers’ status, he is now out of a walking boot and is starting to ramp up workouts in the hopes of a return before the season is over.

The Yankees announced that Phil Bickford has rejoined the team on a new Major League contract, and the veteran righty has been selected to the club’s active roster. In the corresponding move, right-hander Michael Tonkin was designated for assignment.

Bickford first joined the Yankees on a minor league deal back in April, and after that contract was selected to the big league roster in late June, Bickford posted an ungainly 14.40 ERA in five innings over five appearances before New York designated him for assignment. Upon clearing waivers in July, Bickford opted for free agency rather than accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A, and he’ll now head back to the Bronx after a little less than eight weeks on the open market.

A veteran of five Major League seasons, Bickford’s high point was the 2.81 ERA he posted over 51 1/3 relief innings for the Brewers and Dodger in 2021. Since that season, Bickford has a 5.20 ERA in 133 1/3 innings with the Dodgers, Mets, and Yankees, along with a 25.3% strikeout rate and 9.3% walk rate.

There isn’t much to like about Bickford’s recent MLB track record, but he did pitch quite well at the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate this season, so the club had enough comfort in Bickford to sign him to a guaranteed deal. Bickford is out of minor league options, and thus would have to be designated for assignment if New York wanted to move him down to Triple-A again.

On the surface, replacing Tonkin with Bickford seems like a curious move since Tonkin has a 3.38 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate, and 9.1% walk rate in 56 relief innings for the New York bullpen this season. While the overall numbers are solid, however, Tonkin has a 9.39 ERA in his last 7 2/3 innings, and has been charged with multiple runs in three of his last five appearances. This includes two runs allowed over 1 2/3 innings in yesterday’s 9-2 Yankees loss to the Rockies, so today’s transaction could be a way to get Bickford’s fresher arm into the bullpen.

Tonkin is also out of minor league options, which relates to the transactional carousel that has largely defined his 2024 season. He signed a $1MM split contract with the Mets in the offsesason, then went to the Twins (his original MLB team) after being DFA’ed in April, but was claimed back by the Mets shortly thereafter when Minnesota also designated Tonkin. He hit the waiver wire yet again less than a week later and was claimed by the Yankees, and Tonkin then achieved some stability with an extended stretch of time in the Bronx bullpen before now again entering DFA limbo. If he clears waivers, Tonkin can elect free agency in lieu of accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A, but he would have to give up the remainder of his guaranteed salary.

TODAY: The Cardinals officially announced the IL placement for Contreras, and Herrera’s promotion to the active roster.

AUGUST 24: Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras has suffered a fracture to his right middle finger and is headed for the injured list, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Per Goold, catcher Ivan Herrera is expected to replace Contreras on the active roster tomorrow. Contreras suffered the injury when he was hit by a pitch during the club’s loss to the Twins this evening, and a specific timetable for his return is not yet available. Per Goold, Contreras is set to undergo scanning on the injured finger on Monday that could help determine the length of his absence.

While it’s not yet clear exactly how long Contreras figures to be out due to the injury, the news is nonetheless an incredibly frustrating development for the Cardinals. The 32-year-old has been among the club’s most reliable hitters this season with an excellent .263/.379/.470 slash line (141 wRC+) this season but has struggled to stay on the field between this latest injury and a broken arm suffered back in May when he was struck with a backswing after St. Louis coaches suggested he move closer to the plate to improve his pitch framing. With just over a month remaining in the regular season, a lengthy absence for Contreras could spell the end of his 2024 campaign.

Even if Contreras manages to return before the year comes to an end, it’s a worrisome omen for the Cardinals’ dwindling playoff aspirations. The club dropped to a 64-65 record today that puts them below .500 and in third place in the NL Central behind both the Brewers and Cubs. Given Milwaukee’s near-insurmountable 10.5 game lead in the division, however, the club’s playoff hopes have been more focused on the Wild Card in recent weeks. Unfortunately, the Cardinals are now six games back of the Braves for the final NL Wild Card spot and would not only need to make up that deficit but also surpass the Cubs, Giants, and Mets in the standings to claim a spot in the postseason.

Much of the club’s struggles this year have been due to an offense that has been rather lackluster this season. The club’s collective wRC+ of 97 is 18th in the majors, down from 13th with a 103 wRC+ when compared to last year’s 91-loss team. Improvements in the club’s rotation have helped to make the club more competitive than they were last year, but improving the starting staff’s collective ERA from 5.08 last year to 4.46 this season has not been enough to overcome the struggles of key offensive players from last year’s club like Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, and Nolan Gorman.

On an offense that’s seen only Alec Burleson, Masyn Winn, and Brendan Donovan post numbers more than 5% better than league average by wRC+ among its qualified hitters, it’s hard to overstate the importance of Contreras as a middle-of-the-order power bat for the Cardinals. With the veteran backstop now sidelined for the foreseeable future, the club will now need to hope for improvements from pieces like Arenado and Lars Nootbaar down the stretch to keep what little playoff hopes the club has alive.

They’ll also need young catchers Herrera and Pedro Pages to step up and perform in Contreras’s absence. Pages, 25, has been a suitable back-up for Contreras this year with a .250/.299/.364 slash line that’s good for an 86 wRC+, and his .326/.356/.442 slash line since the All-Star break is encouraging, though it comes in a limited sample size of just 14 games. That leaves Herrera as perhaps the better bet to draw regular starts behind the plate. The 24-year-old youngster has seen action in parts of three big league seasons but got his first extended look earlier this year and performed solidly with a .279/.340/.378 slash line (105 wRC+) and excellent peripheral numbers such as a 9.0% barrel rate that suggest the possibility of positive regression in his future. Herrera has continued to hit quite well since he returned to Triple-A early last month, with a .280/.402/.473 slash line in 112 trips to the plate since being sent back down.