Herrmann Optioned, Fryer Selected

[Seth Stohs]

Eric Fryer was working out with Team USA, preparing for the Pan-Am Games. However, he was added to the 40-man roster and summoned to the big leagues. Herrmann was optioned to Rochester.

 

To make room on the 40-man roster, Ricky Nolasco was placed on the 60-Day Disabled List.

 

Not a huge surprise, though the timing is a little strange.

[drjim]

 

Eric Fryer was working out with Team USA, preparing for the Pan-Am Games. However, he was added to the 40-man roster and summoned to the big leagues. Herrmann was optioned to Rochester.

 

To make room on the 40-man roster, Ricky Nolasco was placed on the 60-Day Disabled List.

 

Not a huge surprise, though the timing is a little strange.

 

I suspect they wanted to do it before he left for the Pan Am games.

[drock2190]

Going to be here in time for the afternoon game tomorrow?

[Linus]

Why not? Herrmann is just not a MLB hitter I'm afraid.

[TheLeviathan]

[jokin]

Revolving door in the Twins clubhouse of late.

 

Good to see them finally 60-day Nolasco.  The timing of this move strangely coincides with the news on Nolasco's surgery.  This might be Hermann's last rodeo with the Twins.

[nater79a]

 

Going to be here in time for the afternoon game tomorrow?

 

Good question. Assuming Fryer is in Cary, NC, the site of the USA Baseball National Training Complex. Not sure what the closest airport is to Cary.  Grab a red-eye out of there.

[stringer bell]

 

Revolving door in the Twins clubhouse of late.

 

Good to see them finally 60-day Nolasco.  The timing of this move strangely coincides with the news on Nolasco's surgery.  This might be Hermann's last rodeo with the Twins.

??????Why is it good to see the club 60-day Nolasco? As soon as they announced he was going to have surgery, it was a given that he would be out more than 60 days, but not making that move meant they had a move they could make to add a player. Making that move to switch out Fryer for Herrmann to me is pretty meager.

 

Good luck to Fryer. Perhaps Molitor will trust him to give Zuke more time off. I don't expect him to hit much more or less than Herrmann.

[DaveW]

Yup

[jokin]

 

??????Why is it good to see the club 60-day Nolasco? As soon as they announced he was going to have surgery, it was a given that he would be out more than 60 days, but not making that move meant they had a move they could make to add a player. Making that move to switch out Fryer for Herrmann to me is pretty meager.

 

Good luck to Fryer. Perhaps Molitor will trust him to give Zuke more time off. I don't expect him to hit much more or less than Herrmann.

 

What else were you expecting from the Twins here?  The club had been sitting at a 39-man roster,even WITH Nolasco on the DL for quite some time already.  

 

What moving Nolasco off the roster and Hermann on it, makes it easier for them to subtract below-replacement guys like Hermann and Fryer and add key components in July in the pen, rotation or position players, that present potential upgrades for the stretch run.   

[curt1965]

About time! Always the optimist, I think Fryer will help. He has been hitting well at Rochester ( but it is Rochester).

Fryer will be the Twins best defensive catcher. Really glad they made the move-Herrmann just bad no chance the past 6 weeks.

[DaveW]

Bad player replaces bad player, more news at 11!

[sampleSizeOfOne]

Bad player replaces bad player, more news at 11!

Ah, but one has been working with AAA pitchers all summer who may be called up, and the other hasn't?

 

Don't know if it is a significant difference, but i like grasping at straws...

[jimbo92107]

Eric Fryer is a better defensive catcher than Chris Herrmann, and right now Fryer is hitting close to .300 (but not much pop), while Herrmann's bat has gone completely cold. This move is about a month overdue.

 

I don't blame Herrmann for losing his batting eye given his sporadic chances to play. The Twins have been wearing out Kurt Suzuki for the first half of the season, and it needs to stop. Hopefully Fryer will get to play closer to half the time, so Suzuki isn't too beat up before any late season push to get into the playoffs.

 

The other player this will help is Chris Herrmann, who needs to play on a regular basis to get his bat going again. He's not a bad hitter, he's just out of sync. I predict that his average will go up dramatically once he's playing every day for a month. Then he can come back up and do it all over again!

[mickeymental]

he'll almost certainly hit more than herrmann and could hit more than suzuki. plus he's probably decent behind the plate. and they're probably shopping for something better. what's not to like?

[South Dakota Tom]

This may also be the front office acknowledging that they have not been successful in finding a trade partner for a league-ready catcher.  I will say I admire the spirit of at least trying changes to shake things up.  We stood pat way too long and way too often over the past seasons.  I like the defensive upgrade, and I trust Molly to understand what he's aiming for and who can best help him gel this lineup.

[stringer bell]

Eric Fryer is 3 for his last 26 and will be 30 years old next month. IMHO, his promotion wasn't worth adding him to the 40-man roster, which is now full. I would expect he could offer about as much offensively as Herrmann.

[JB_Iowa]

Never saw this coming and I apologize to everyone (esp. jaimedude) for yelling that Fryer was on the Pan Am team.

 

I guess international commitments don't mean anything when it comes to marginal catchers.

[GACbaseball]

Or the Twins are trying to save face in the international baseball community by not allowing someone bad like Fryer to represent the USA

[nicksaviking]

 

Maybe this has less to do with chosing Fryer over Herrmann but instead this is chosing Fryer over Suzuki.

 

Considering how infrequently Herrmann played, I think it could be assumed the team always liked Fryer better, but wanted him getting regular time, or perhaps giving the AAA pitchers regular time with the better defensive catcher.

 

Not only is Fryer hitting and getting on base while Suzuki is not, Suzuki isn't blocking pitches in the dirt well and can't throw anyone out.  If I were to guess, I'd bet that Fryer is the primary starter going forward.

 

[Shane Wahl]

Eric Fryer is in no way any kind of answer to anything. Herrmann pounded AAA ball too last year. Fryer will not hit MLB pitching. That said, it is better to use Fryer once a week than Herrmann.

[Shane Wahl]

 

Maybe this has less to do with chosing Fryer over Herrmann but instead this is chosing Fryer over Suzuki.

 

Considering how infrequently Herrmann played, I think it could be assumed the team always liked Fryer better, but wanted him getting regular time, or perhaps giving the AAA pitchers regular time with the better defensive catcher.

 

Not only is Fryer hitting and getting on base while Suzuki is not, Suzuki isn't blocking pitches in the dirt well and can't throw anyone out.  If I were to guess, I'd bet that Fryer is the primary starter going forward.

 

Until the sub .600 OPS he provides gets too tiresome.

[Seth Stohs]

I was mainly just surprised by the timing. Fryer was crushing the ball early in the season. Now he's been struggling for a little while and was already working out with the USA team. 

 

I think it'll be interesting to see if Molitor will actually play Fryer more than he played Herrmann.

[Mike Sixel]

Let's hope he plays him more.....Suzuki isn't all that good, and appears to be wearing down.

[clank2000]

 

I was mainly just surprised by the timing. Fryer was crushing the ball early in the season. Now he's been struggling for a little while and was already working out with the USA team. 

 

I think it'll be interesting to see if Molitor will actually play Fryer more than he played Herrmann.

 

I hope so. Otherwise, he'd be screwed out of some Pan Am glory. Last night's line drive notwithstanding, Suzuki has looked clueless and dejected at the plate. And Fryer can actually throw someone out.

 

Who knew we'd be pining for Drew Butera?

[nicksaviking]

 

Until the sub .600 OPS he provides gets too tiresome.

 

I'm not saying I believe Fryer is a starting caliber MLB catcher.  However the team already is getting sub .600 OPS from that position so I'd guess the team is ready to say, screw it, lets go with the best glove, the offense can't get any worse.

 

On the plus side, Fryer and his lack of clubhouse status would probably always be slotted 8th or 9th in the lineup.  Molitor wouldn't be tempted to bat him 7th, 6th or 5th like he was with Suzuki.

[jorgenswest]

There is no evidence that Fryer would hit better than Herrmann in the second half. A singles laden AAA first half does not overshadow a career of weak hitting. Herrmann will benefit from playing regularly and if needed to return will be sharper with the bat.

 

I do think Fryer is better at blocking pitches. I will take the under on 33% caught stealing rate that Herrmann put up though. Herrmann was better in the minors. Neither has shown good framing numbers.

 

The greatest evidence that Fryer is not a good defensive catcher is the number of times he has been available and unclaimed. A good defensive catcher is hard to find and will be claimed even if they can't hit. They bring value that is sometimes unrecognized by fans. Butera was DFA'd at the same time Fryer was last year. The Dodgers found interest in Butera. There was no interest in Fryer. The Royals traded for Butera when Angels DFA'd and kept him over Kratz. If you are a good defensive catcher someone will want you.

[Mike Sixel]

So, basically, they have no catcher at the MLB level, AAA level, or AA level........and they are hoping this guy can get lucky, I think that's where we are right now. They also appear to have no RP, as there are constant rumors of them trading for one (ugh) from the local beat writers (aka, Twins PR machine). Let's hope this guy gets lucky for awhile.......

[USAFChief]

There is no evidence that Fryer would hit better than Herrmann in the second half. A singles laden AAA first half does not overshadow a career of weak hitting. Herrmann will benefit from playing regularly and if needed to return will be sharper with the bat.

I do think Fryer is better at blocking pitches. I will take the under on 33% caught stealing rate that Herrmann put up though. Herrmann was better in the minors. Neither has shown good framing numbers.

The greatest evidence that Fryer is not a good defensive catcher is the number of times he has been available and unclaimed. A good defensive catcher is hard to find and will be claimed even if they can't hit. They bring value that is sometimes unrecognized by fans. Butera was DFA'd at the same time Fryer was last year. The Dodgers found interest in Butera. There was no interest in Fryer. The Royals traded for Butera when Angels DFA'd and kept him over Kratz. If you are a good defensive catcher someone will want you.

There's no evidence he'll hit worse than Herrmann either. Their minor league numbers are similar, with the edge actually to Fryer.

 

As for Butera, he's on his fourth team in 2.5 seasons, but has less than 275 PAS in that time. He's been DFA'd twice in the past two years. .500 career OPS. I'd be willing to bet hes not with KC by this time next year. Nobody really wants him either, but catching is in short supply.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

What moving Nolasco off the roster and Hermann on it, makes it easier for them to subtract below-replacement guys like Hermann and Fryer and add key components in July in the pen, rotation or position players, that present potential upgrades for the stretch run.   

The Twins certainly have guys they should be able to remove from the 40-man -- but how does adding another such player make that easier?  If anything, it makes it harder -- Fryer is unlikely to be removed from the 40-man in the next month -- or it makes it more likely that Pinto is dropped instead.

 

My primary concern is that the Twins think this might "fix" their catching deficiency.  For the bullpen equivalent, it would be like if they had just added Jason Frasor or Scott Atchison instead of O'Rourke.  It's at best a sideways move that doesn't address the actually issue and further clogs the 40-man.