The Giants swapped Luis Matos out for OF Wade Meckler, a mustachioed lefty with a great approach who’s been hot all season across several stops, slashing .379/.463/.522 with five home runs in 69 games across three levels. Well, four, now that he’s gone from High-A to the majors in a matter of months.
The Cardinals recalled 1B Luken Baker, who was hitting .334 with 33 home runs in 84 Triple-A games and should play a lot from here on out or at least earn himself more than a dozen starts.
Rays LHP Jacob Lopez earned a save in his major league debut, covering three innings and allowing one run in a blowout. Good on them for finding a creative way to provide Lopez a new challenge despite being booked in the rotation.
Rays SS Osleivis Basabe looks like the shortstop while Wander Franco’s on the restricted list. Acquired from Texas in the Nate Lowe trade, Basabe is a 6’1” righty who’s still adding strength to his 165 lb on frame. He slashed .296/.351/.426 in 94 Triple-A games, good for just a 93 wRC+ in an offense-friendly league.
Rays 2B Jonathan Aranda is on the way for more support as OF Manny Margot heads to the injured list. Nothing left for Aranda to do in the minors anyway.
Rays SS Carson Williams is headed to Triple-A Durham in support of an infield that’s a little bit lonelier than it was a week ago.
With apologies to the injured Ozzie Albies, I’m happy to see Atlanta SS Vaughn Grissom back in the majors. He posted a 129 wRC+ in 88 games at Triple-A, slashing .327/.412/.494 with six home runs and 11 steals. The homers will come if he continues to work his process, is my thinking on the low total there. He’s a 6’3” 210 lb 22-year-old dominating Triple-A pitching, and I still think he’s got a shot at an everyday spot for Atlanta in 2024, particularly if he hits well over the next couple weeks.
Red Sox OF Wilyer Abreu (24, AAA) has bounced back after a dry July, slashing .450/.522/1.025 with seven home runs in 11 August games. Acquired from Houston last year in the Christian Vazquez trade, Abreu is taking the baton from Enmanuel Valdez and extending the legs of a solid trade for the Sawx.
Pitchers need to be protected from Orioles SS Jackson Holliday in Double-A. He’s hitting .380 with a 17 percent strikeout rate in 19 games at the level. It’s a little ludicrous how ready he seems for the next challenge.
A left-handed hitter with solid pull power, Yankees C Ben Rice (24, AA) is tailor-made for his home ballpark. Kind of tailor-made for this moment in the organization, now that I’m thinking that way. The team needs tough outs who hit left-handed. Rice has become an extremely difficult out in 2023, posting impressive plate skills and slashing .329/.465/.614 with 11 home runs and eight steals in 45 games across three levels. In 20 games at Double-A, he’s slashing .342/.422/.696 with seven home runs. Feels like he’s earning himself a chance to be the strong-side catcher at some point next season, given that the org doesn’t have a long-term catcher in place.
Rangers OF Spencer Packard (25, AA) has been printing hits this month, slashing .460/.509/.720 with five walks, four strikeouts and three home runs in his last 12 games, bringing his season-long line up to .296/.397/.459 with 12 home runs. He’s old for the level, a fate he shares with most college bats impacted by covid, but he’s on the uptick and could latch on with a rebuilder if he never finds daylight in Seattle.
Dodgers SS Wilman Diaz (19, A) is striking out a lot, but he’s also doing real damage in the pros for the first time, smashing five home runs over his last nine games in Low-A. He’s hitting .349 in the early going there (21 games) despite a 38.5 percent strikeout rate.
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