The Pittsburgh Pirates announced today that they claimed RHP A.J. Schugel off waivers from the Seattle Mariners.
The #Pirates today claimed RHP A.J. Schugel off waivers from the #Mariners.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) January 19, 2016
Schugel spent the 2015 season with the Arizona Diamondbacks before he was claimed by the Mariners on December 16th and then DFA’d by the organization on January 12th. He’s spent the bulk of his professional career in the minor leagues and made his MLB debut this past season with the Diamondbacks, appearing in five games and pitching to a 5.00 ERA/6.58 FIP in nine major league innings.
This is a fairly minor move and it is likely the Schugel is another arm for spring training and minor league depth for when the season starts. Unless the Pirates are decimated by injuries, it is unlikely that he sees a major league uniform this season.
Schugel has a fairly typical arsenal of pitches. He throws his four-seam fastball 58.4 percent of the time, which averages about 91.7 mph, a curveball 10.8 percent of the time at 76.6 mph, and a change-up 30.8 percent of the time at 80.5 MPH. He has a fairly decent but unspectacular arm, which would seem very ideal for Triple-A depth.
You need arms and bodies to fill out a Spring Training roster, so moves like this are not very surprising, but maybe working in the Pirates’ organization could greatly benefit Schugel. We all thought Vance Worley was simply minor league depth when he got here in 2014 and he pitched very important innings for the Pirates over his two seasons in Pittsburgh. Stranger things have happened in baseball, but I don’t think it’s likely that Schugel sees a Pirates’ uniform in 2016.
UPDATE:
In a corresponding move to make room for Schugel on the 40-man roster, the Pirates designated RHP Yoervis Medina for assignment.
The #Pirates have also designated RHP Yoervis Medina for assignment.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) January 19, 2016
The Pirates had to make room for Schugel on the 40-man roster, but it’s surprising that Medina is the guy to go. Medina was claimed by the Pirates off waivers from the Cubs back on December 23rd, and was coming off a season in which he pitched to a 1.62 ERA, but in just 21 innings of work. For his career, Medina holds a 3.08 ERA over three seasons of relief work, and was a quality seventh and eighth inning man for the Mariners in 2013 and 2014. Medina can still clear waivers and remain with the team, but with his career statistics and low salary, I’m not sure he will.
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