The A’s have claimed right-hander Spenser Watkins off waivers from the Astros, as first reported by Jessica Kleinschmidt (Twitter hyperlink). He’ll been assigned to Triple-A Las Vegas in the meanwhile. Houston designated Watkins for project over the weekend when Jose Urquidy was reinstated from the 60-day injured record.
Watkins, 30, has a little bit of main league expertise however has been caught within the minors all yr. He tossed 160 innings for the Orioles over 2021 and 2022, permitting 5.85 earned runs per 9 innings in that point. He solely struck out 13.7% of batters confronted however his 6.9% stroll fee was fairly robust.
This yr, the O’s optioned him to Triple-A Norfolk on the finish of Spring Coaching. He spent a couple of month on the minor league injured record and had solely tossed 26 innings for the Tides with a 7.27 ERA by mid-June. He was designated for project and flipped to the Astros for money. He tossed 20 1/3 innings for Triple-A Sugar Land with a 9.74 ERA, earlier than getting his second DFA of the yr this previous weekend.
The outcomes this yr haven’t been nice, but it surely’s seemingly not fairly as dangerous as his mixed 8.35 ERA would point out. His .386 batting common on balls in play and 55.4% strand fee are each on the unfortunate aspect of common, resulting in a 5.27 FIP that’s rather more palatable. The latest chunk of his season was additionally spent within the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, which seemingly didn’t do him any favors.
The A’s are the worst crew in baseball, with a 32-81 file and .283 successful share. Their pitching workers has a collective 5.82 ERA that’s simply the worst within the majors. Watkins can present them with a depth arm that has a little bit of main league expertise underneath his belt. He’s in his last choice yr and might be out of choices subsequent season, although he’s but to achieve arbitration and may doubtlessly be managed for 5 seasons past this one.
