Category: Major League Baseball (MLB)

The Philadelphia Phillies recalled right-handed pitcher Luis F. Ortiz from Lehigh Valley on Tuesday and optioned fellow right-hander Yunior Marte to the Triple-A club.

Ortiz, 27, was 0-0 with a 2.70 ERA in eight relief appearances covering 10 innings for the Phillies from April 16 to May 6. He struck out 10 and walked three.

Marte, 28, had no decisions and a 7.71 ERA in 15 relief appearances for Philadelphia this season. He pitched 14 innings, with 13 strikeouts and eight walks.

–Field Level Media

Joe Torre, whose baseball career spans seven decades — highlighted by his election to the Hall of Fame in 2014 as a manager — was appointed to the Hall’s board of directors on Tuesday.

Torre, 82, has been special assistant to commissioner Rob Manfred since February 2020. He becomes the 17th member of the Hall of Fame board.

“Joe Torre’s seven-decade career in baseball — as an All-Star player, Hall of Fame manager and revered member of baseball’s leadership team — has made him a singularly respected voice of our National Pastime, and we are thrilled to welcome him to the Museum’s Board of Directors,” Jane Forbes Clark, the Hall’s chairman of the board, said in a news release. “Since his induction in 2014, Joe’s passion and dedication to the Hall of Fame has been steadfast, and his knowledge and insight will help guide the Museum into its future.”

Torre signed with the Milwaukee Braves in 1959 and played in two games in his first season in 1960. He finished an 18-year playing career with the New York Mets in 1977. He was a nine-time All-Star and won the 1971 National League MVP Award with the St. Louis Cardinals. He finished his career with a .297 batting average, 252 home runs and 2,342 hits.

Torre managed the Mets for five seasons starting in 1977 and later led the Atlanta Braves and Cardinals. He managed the New York Yankees from 1996 to 2007, winning four World Series titles. He finished his managerial career by leading the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2008 to 2010.

Torre’s win total of 2,326 as a manager ranks fifth all-time.

“It is a great privilege to join the Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors,” Torre said in a release. “Baseball has been my life, and I know well what Cooperstown means to our game and its loyal fans. I am honored to support the mission of the Hall of Fame and all the ways it can lift up the best game in the world.”

–Field Level Media

Los Angeles Angels infielder Brandon Drury was suspended Tuesday for one game and fined an undisclosed amount for making contact with an umpire Monday night.

Drury is appealing the suspension.

The incident happened in the top of the 10th inning against the Texas Rangers. Drury was called out on strikes and proceeded to argue with home plate umpire Ramon De Jesus, making contact in the process, according to MLB.

Drury was ejected. He went 0-for-5 before departing the game, won by the Angels in 12 innings.

Drury, 30, is batting .252 with 10 home runs and 30 RBIs. He’s played in 61 games (58 starts) this season, his first with the Angels.

–Field Level Media

The Milwaukee Brewers signed outfielder Raimel Tapia to a contract, The Athletic reported on Tuesday.

The reported deal comes two days after Tapia was released by the Boston Red Sox.

Tapia, 29, has appeared in 39 games for the Red Sox this season, batting .264 to go along with one home run and 10 RBIs.

He originally signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox before being named to the team’s Opening Day roster.

Tapia is a career .276 hitter with 27 homers and 198 RBIs in 606 games with the Colorado Rockies (2016-21), Toronto Blue Jays (2022) and Red Sox (2023).

–Field Level Media

Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger is expected to start a minor league rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday in Des Moines.

Bellinger has not played for the Cubs since suffering a left knee contusion while making a catch at the outfield fence May 15 in a loss to the Houston Astros. He was placed on the 10-day injured list on May 19, retroactive to May 16.

Cubs manager David Ross told Chicago radio station AM 670 The Score’s Bernstein & Holmes Show that Bellinger should play Tuesday.

“Cody is one of those guys, his mentality in the dugout, the way he carries himself, his presence in the locker room, there’s just so much to like about him,” Ross said on the radio program. “Yeah, we miss him, but hopefully we get him back real soon.”

Bellinger was batting .271 with seven home runs, 20 RBIs, a .337 on-base percentage and a .493 slugging percentage in 37 games for the Cubs.

The 27-year-old was National League MVP for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2019 before struggling the following three seasons. He bottomed out with a .165 average in 2021 and hit .210 last season.

A two-time All-Star and the 2017 NL Rookie of the Year, Bellinger played six seasons with the Dodgers before joining the Cubs on a one-year, $17.5 million deal in the offseason.

–Field Level Media

The Minnesota Twins reinstated first baseman/outfielder Joey Gallo from the injured list on Tuesday.

Gallo missed the past nine games with a left hamstring strain. He returns after a three-game rehab assignment.

The Twins made room for Gallo by optioning OF Kyle Garlick to Triple-A St. Paul.

Gallo, 29, is batting .188 with 11 home runs and 23 RBIs in 46 games this season, his first with the Twins.

Garlick, 31, went 1-for-11 with five strikeouts in six games in place of Gallo.

–Field Level Media

The St. Louis Cardinals placed late-inning reliever Ryan Helsley on the 15-day injured list Monday with a strained right forearm.

The move is retroactive to Saturday. In a corresponding transaction, the Cards recalled fellow right-hander Jake Woodford from Triple-A Memphis.

Helsley, 28, is 3-4 with a 3.24 ERA and seven saves in 22 relief appearances this season. Giovanny Gallegos has a team-leading eight saves.

Woodford, 26, is 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA in seven games (six starts) for the Cardinals this season.

–Field Level Media

The New York Mets signed Luke Voit to a minor league deal Monday and assigned him to Triple-A Syracuse.

The team announced Voit will be active Tuesday for the Triple-A Mets.

Voit was designated for assignment on May 29 after playing in 22 games with the Milwaukee Brewers this season.

Voit, 32, signed a minor league contract with the Brewers in the offseason, opted out of it and signed a major league deal with the club for $2 million. The Brewers are on the hook for the remainder of the contract.

Voit is a career .253 hitter with 95 home runs, 68 of those coming in four seasons with the New York Yankees. In seven seasons with five different clubs, Voit has 276 RBIs in 508 games.

–Field Level Media

The Los Angeles Angels purchased the contract of Daniel Murphy from Long Island of the independent Atlantic League and signed him to a minor league contract.

The move was announced by the general manager of the Ducks.

Murphy, who turned 38 in April, last played in the major leagues in 2020, appearing in 40 games with the Colorado Rockies.

Murphy came out of retirement to sign with the Ducks in March. He’s slashing .331/.410/.451 with two homers, nine doubles and 19 RBIs in 37 games with Long Island.

Murphy ostensibly finished his major league career with averages of .296/.341/.455 and 138 home runs to go with 735 RBIs in 12 seasons with the Mets (2008-15), Washington Nationals (2016-18), Chicago Cubs (2018) and Colorado Rockies (2019-20).

He was a three-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger and the 2015 National League Championship Series MVP.

Murphy presumably will be assigned to Triple-A Salt Lake when the Angels announce the move.

Fellow former Met Ruben Tejada is taking Murphy’s spot on the Long Island roster.

–Field Level Media

The Atlanta Braves continued to tinker with their pitching staff on Tuesday.

The club acquired right-hander Ben Heller from Tampa Bay, a trade that came hours after the Braves recalled RHP Roddery Munoz and outrighted left-hander Lucas Luetge to Triple-A Gwinnett. The Braves assigned Heller to Gwinnett.

The moves come a day after Atlanta optioned right-handed pitcher Mike Soroka to Gwinnett and moved staff ace Max Fried (forearm strain) to the 60-day injured list.

Heller, 31, designated for assignment by the Rays, hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2020. The Rays received international bonus pool money from the Braves. Heller is 2-0 with a 2.59 ERA in 31 relief appearances, all with the New York Yankees. He’s 3-2 with a 3.95 ERA at Triple-A Durham this season.

To make room for Heller on the 40-man roster, the Braves designated outfielder Nick Solak for assignment. He appeared in one game for the Braves this season as pinch runner, with a run scored.

Soroka is working his way back from twice tearing his right Achilles tendon. He missed more than two full seasons.

Munoz, 23, is a reliever who has yet to make his major league debut. This season, he has split time between Gwinnett and Double-A Mississippi and has a combined 4.94 ERA in 27 1/3 innings.

The Braves designated Luetge for assignment last week after he posted a 1-0 record with a 10.24 ERA in nine relief appearances. With this move, the 36-year-old will be able to remain with the Braves without occupying a spot on the 40-man roster.

Luetge has a career 12-11 record and 3.67 ERA in 227 games (one start) over seven MLB seasons with the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Braves.

The Braves, who lead the National League East, open a six-game homestand on Tuesday against the New York Mets.

–Field Level Media