The Miami Marlins have announced a flurry of roster moves.
On Thursday afternoon, the Marlins placed left-hander John King on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to July 8) with a left ankle sprain and outfielder Owen Caissie on the 10-day IL with a right calf strain. They also optioned right-hander Zack Brzykcy to Triple-A Jacksonville.
To fill those three roster spots, right-hander Janson Junk was reinstated from the 15-day IL while right-hander Ryan Gusto and outfielder Rece Hinds were recalled. Cristina De Nicola of MLB.com was first to report Hinds’ promotion.
King, 31, is the most surprising name on the transaction list. The lefty reliever last appeared in Tuesday’s 10-inning win over the Seattle Mariners before suffering the injury Wednesday while going through pitching drills in the outfield. It is a significant loss for a bullpen that is already without Anthony Bender, Ronny Henriquez, Josh Ekness and Andrew Nardi.
Across 40 appearances this season, King has posted a 2.48 ERA and 0.75 WHIP with 30 strikeouts in 40 innings. He has kept hitters off balance with his sinker (+5 run value), changeup (+5) and sweeper (+4), generating a 34.4% chase rate and a 46.7% groundball rate.
Caissie, 24, exited Wednesday night’s game after one inning in the field because of right calf tightness. Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said postgame that the outfielder initially felt the tightness on Tuesday but went through pregame work on Wednesday with no issues.
Through 80 games this season, Caissie has produced a .239/.297/.459 slash line with 12 home runs and 50 RBI. Seven of those 12 home runs have come since June 10. The lefty bat has played a big part in propelling Miami back into the postseason picture, posting a 1.038 OPS over his last 68 plate appearances. The Marlins (51-42) have gone 19-7 during that stretch.
Hinds, 25, will serve as Caissie’s replacement during his absence. Since being acquired from the Cincinnati Reds in May, the right-handed bat has remained at Triple-A Jacksonville, where he has produced a .231/.296/.404 slash line over 28 games. He has struggled with strikeouts at the major league level, fanning in 42% of his 131 career plate appearances.
The Marlins will start Janson Junk on the mound Thursday night in his first big-league outing since being sidelined with right shin bone inflammation at the end of May. The 30-year-old right-hander opened the season as Miami’s fifth starter, going 3-5 with a 4.80 ERA over 60 innings before the injury. His rotation spot was used primarily as a bullpen game during his absence.
In need of more innings, the Marlins swapped out Brzykcy for Gusto, who has served as both a long reliever and opener this season. He owns a 5.55 ERA and 1.60 WHIP over 24.1 MLB innings (eight appearances) this year and is a candidate to serve in a piggyback relief role Thursday. Brzykcy appeared in only one game with Miami after being called up on June 30, allowing one run across two innings in a 39-pitch outing against the Colorado Rockies.
