Transaction Analysis: Sour Chen Music

BALTIMORE ORIOLES Team Audit | Player Cards | Depth Chart

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Purchased the contract of 1B/OF-L Chris Parmelee from Triple-A Norfolk; optioned LHP Wei-Yin Chen to Advanced-A Frederick; transferred 2B-R Jonathan Schoop to the 60-day disabled list (torn knee ligament). [6/16]

A controversial move for two reasons: 1) the Orioles said Chen’s demotion was due to fatigue (as if the disabled list no longer exists) and 2) Chen refuted that claim on Twitter. Such a sequence doesn’t speak well to the communication between Chen and the Orioles, nor does it bode well for their future relations. Here’s the worst part: The fuss is (mostly) about nothing.

Provided Chen’s optional assignment lasts fewer than 20 days (and it will), then he will receive full service-time credit and pay for the time missed. He won’t even burn an option. Granted, he will need to report to Frederick and take part in what amounts to a glorified rehab start—an insulting proposition for a pitcher who threw eight shutout innings against a Triple-A lineup his last time out. Given some of the other roster manipulation tricks we see that mess with a player’s time or money, this is probably on the low-end of the sketchy scale, albeit on the high-end of the unnecessary drama scale.

All this to make room for Parmelee, who otherwise would’ve opted out of his contract. He has made a habit of devouring Triple-A then fasting when he reaches the majors. Not so in 2015, or not yet, anyway. Sure, Parmelee did hit fine in Triple-A, but he’s also performed well early on with the O’s, homering three times in his first three games, including twice in his debut. Buck Showalter has been using Parmelee in right field against righties; expect that to continue for as long as his hitting does.

CHICAGO WHITE SOX Team Audit | Player Cards | Depth Chart

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Recalled RHP Scott Carroll from Triple-A Charlotte; designated RHP Hector Noesi for assignment. [6/18]

Imagine if White Sox fans had been told in January that Noesi would have a better DRA- come mid-June than Stephen Strasburg and Danny Duffy. They might’ve said, "What’s DRA?" Turns out pitching better than Strasburg and Duffy this season is no great accomplishment, as Noesi still finished with worse numbers than Jason Marquis and Jerome Williams—a bad place to be five years ago, let alone in 2015. Once bumped from the rotation, Noesi couldn’t find success in a low-leverage relief role, ending his Chicago stint by allowing 10 runs in his final eight innings. Say this much about Noesi’s year: He outlasted the NHL playoffs.

Replacing Noesi is Carroll, who is more than two years older. He threw 129 innings last season for the White Sox, after which he was designated for assignment and granted free agency. He later rejoined Chicago on a minor-league deal. Beyond extreme groundball tendencies, there isn’t a whole lot to like here. He doesn’t miss bats or throw a higher-than-normal rate of strikes and he can’t even use his age as an excuse. Like Noesi, Carroll isn’t long for the majors.

TAMPA BAY RAYS Team Audit | Player Cards | Depth Chart

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Purchased the contract of RHP Ronald Belisario from Triple-A Durham; optioned LHP C.J. Riefenhauser to Triple-A Durham. [6/16]

Belisario is back, this time sans goggles. Anyone familiar with him knows the score: high-quality sinker, tons o’ grounders—that’s the good. The bad is he lacks an above-average secondary offering or command. Oh, and his numbers suggest he should be hidden from left-handed batters.

The Rays chose to promote Belisario after he triggered his opt-out clause despite so-so numbers at Durham, perhaps as a way of acknowledging the gap between their bullpen’s middle-of-the-pack ERA and poor component measures. Blame it on Tampa Bay’s constant toggling through bullpen arms—they’re up to 18 pitchers having made relief appearances, not including Belisario or position players—but that’s the point: while Belisario isn’t a savior, he beats Preston Guilmet and Everett Teaford.

MILWAUKEE BREWERS Team Audit | Player Cards | Depth Chart

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Claimed 3B-R Matt Dominguez off waivers from the Astros; designated LHP Wei-Chung Wang for assignment. [6/16]

A sensible, if unexciting, move. Doug Melvin is likely to trade third baseman Aramis Ramirez before the deadline, creating playing time at the hot corner. Rather than inserting a random, no-hit utility infielder, Melvin can now call upon Dominguez, a random, no-hit third baseman.

Dominguez’s most marketable attributes are his high-quality glove and moderate pop. Those positive qualities are sabotaged by the rest of his offensive game, which is ugly and limits his chances of becoming more than a well-below-average hitter. Dominguez’s supporters will point to his age (he turns 26 in a few months) and past success as evidence that there could be more upside than meets the stat sheet. Everyone else will look at Dominguez’s career MLB and present Triple-A True Averages (both .233) and accept his ceiling for what it is: Pedro Feliz.

SAN DIEGO PADRES Team Audit | Player Cards | Depth Chart

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Purchased the contract of 3B-L Brett Wallace from Triple-A El Paso; designated LHP Eury De La Rosa for assignment. [6/19]

If it isn’t clear to everyone that these Padres are all about offense—based on their outfield choices and willingness to play Will Middlebrooks and Yonder Alonso out of position—then perhaps using Wallace at third base now and again will make it so.

You can understand San Diego’s thinking. Throughout his big-league career, Wallace has been close to a league-average hitter; he’ll post an ugly strikeout-to-walk ratio, true, but he’s learned to tap into his power and can give you a boost if you prioritize production to aesthetics. The problem here is twofold. Being "close to a league-average hitter" works better at the hot corner than the cold one, yet Wallace works better at the cold corner than the hot one.

Based on what we know about Wallace’s defensive skill set—and remember, Pat Murphy has seen plenty of Wallace in college and this season at Triple-A—it’s no stretch to call him the worst defensive third baseman in the National League. Sure enough, Wallace’s .908 fielding percentage would be the second-worst in the majors among players with 100-plus innings at third (behind Joey Gallo). Fielding percentage is a bad stat, etc., but here it jibes with what we’d expect.

So does playing a league-average hitter at a position he has no business playing make sense? Is it a worthwhile proposition for a team with an already poor defense? For most teams, the answer might be no. For these monomaniacal Padres? Well, it looks like they’ll try anything to score more runs.