The Rays have acquired 1B/OF Marc Krauss from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. In turn, the team optioned utility infielder — and former heir apparent to Ben Zobrist’s roster spot — Nick Franklin to Triple-A Durham in order to make room on the roster.
Jeff Todd (MLB Trade Rumors) writes,
The Rays have acquired first baseman/outfielder Marc Krauss from the Angels in exchange for righty Kyle Winkler, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Krauss will head straight to the active roster, with utilityman Nick Franklin being optioned to clear roster space.
The left-handed-hitting Krauss was designated and outrighted by the Angels earlier in the year. He was off to a rough .143/.211/.286 start over 38 plate appearances at that time. Krauss came to the Halos over the offseason in a waiver claim from the Astros.
Krauss has always hit well in the upper minors, and that has been no different this year. Over 195 trips to the plate, he owns a .289/.415/.453 slash with four long balls.
The former second-round pick has split his big league time between first and the corner outfield, but has mostly played on the grass in the minors. He has seen action in parts of three seasons in the majors, taking 392 plate appearances and posting a cumulative .603 OPS.
Winkler, 25, has not yet advanced out of the minors. He has mostly pitched in a relief capacity as a professional. This year, splitting his time between Double-A and Triple-A, Winkler owns a 1.46 ERA over 12 1/3 frames with 10.9 K/9 against just 0.7 BB/9, though the bulk of the positive numbers came at the lower of those levels.
Rays VP of Baseball Operations Erik Neander spoke on the acquisition:
Marc is a disciplined hitter who brings left-handed power to our club. He’s a good fit for our present roster.
Franklin struggled through an oblique injury to start the season, slashing a sub-optimal .139 BA/.205 OBP/.215 SLG/.420 OPS/.206 wOBA in parts of 28 games and 78 plate appearances with Tampa Bay this season.
Neander noted the necessity of the move, especially from the perspective of Franklin:
Nick’s oblique injury in spring training interrupted his preparation for the season, and when he returned, our team’s injuries forced him to learn a new position on the fly. He’s young and talented and a big part of our future. Our goal is to make sure he is able to continue developing and get back on track, and we believe consistent playing time is the best way to achieve that.