The Marlins placed right-hander JT Chargois on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to Aug. 4) and designated left-hander Devin Smeltzer for assignment, according to Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. In corresponding moves, the club called up righty Huascar Brazoban and left-hander Ryan Weathers from Triple-A.
This is the third time that Smeltzer has been DFA’d this season, so it is possible that he’ll once again clear waivers and accept an outright assignment to Triple-A Jacksonville. He does have the ability to reject an outright and become a free agent, but Smeltzer might not mind shuttling back and forth as one of the Marlins’ go-to depth options.
The numbers also aren’t in Smeltzer’s favor this season, as he has a 5.79 ERA over 18 2/3 innings with the Marlins and a 5.95 ERA over 65 frames at the Triple-A level. The home run problems that arose for Smeltzer with the Twins in 2022 have continued this year, as he has allowed 20 homers over his 83 2/3 combined innings at both levels. Smeltzer has started all 14 of his games in Jacksonville but he has started only one of his eight appearances with the Marlins, as Miami has mostly utilized him as a long reliever.
Chargois is dealing with a strain in his right rib cage, marking his second IL stint of the season after he missed about five weeks earlier this year with a right oblique strain. When he has been able to play, Chargois has been a solid member of Miami’s bullpen, posting a 3.68 ERA/4.09 SIERA over 29 1/3 innings. Despite a 96.3 mph fastball, Chargois isn’t a big strikeout pitcher, instead relying on soft contact and keeping the ball on the ground. The right-hander has a 59.3% grounder rate this season, and a .259 BABIP has further enhanced his success.
It isn’t great news for the Marlins to lose a pretty reliable reliever during their playoff push, especially after the club made a point of adding to its bullpen at the deadline. The reinforcements from Jacksonville might help, as Brazoban has also been back and forth from Triple-A a couple of times this season, while Weathers is now set to make his Marlins debut. The Fish acquired Weathers from the Padres in exchange for Garrett Cooper and Sean Reynolds in a deadline deal on Tuesday, and Weathers will look to get on track in a new environment after posting a 6.25 ERA over 44 2/3 innings with San Diego this season.
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