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The Braves announced that infielder/outfielder Luke Williams has been outrighted to Triple-A Gwinnett. There wasn’t any previous indication that he had been removed from the 40-man roster, but he was apparently put on waivers recently and cleared. This drops the club’s 40-man count to 37.
Williams, 28, was claimed off waivers from the Dodgers in June of 2023. Atlanta non-tendered him at the end of that season but then re-signed him to a minor league deal. He was back on the 40-man by the middle of April 2024.
He has never been more than a part-time player. He has appeared in each of the past four big league seasons, suiting up for the Phillies, Giants and Marlins before bouncing to Los Angeles and Atlanta. But he has stepped to the plate just 315 times over those four campaigns with a tepid .221/.280/.290 batting line.
He has still proved to be a useful depth piece, despite that lack of offense. He has 20 steals in 26 attempts and has enough defensive versatility to have played every position except catcher. He also had options, meaning he could be sent to the minors and back fairly freely. However, that is no longer the case, as he exhausted his final option season in 2024. That was going to make it tougher for him to hang onto a roster spot, so he has been bumped off today.
Players can reject an outright assignment and elect free agency if they have at least three years of major league service time or a previous career outright. Williams doesn’t meet either of those criteria, so he’ll stick with the club as non-roster depth.
For Atlanta, they now have three open spots on the 40-man roster. Those could be useful since they seem likely to select the contract of catcher Drake Baldwin. They also have a large number of veteran relievers in camp as non-roster invitees, including Hector Neris, Enyel De Los Santos, Chasen Shreve and others.
More must-reads:
- Injured Phillies pitcher takes big step toward return
- Another team joins Eugenio Suarez sweepstakes
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TODAY'S BEST
Another team joins Eugenio Suarez sweepstakes
The Phillies have had some talks with the Diamondbacks about third baseman Eugenio Suarez, according to Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer. It isn’t clear whether or not the discussions are anything more than due diligence on the Phillies’ part, but Philadelphia can now be added to a lengthy list of teams with some degree of interest in the slugger. The New York Post’s Jon Heyman raised Suarez as a “potential fit” for the Phils Friday, since the club is in need of third base help with Alec Bohm on the 10-day injured list. Putting Suarez in between the powerful left-handed hitting duo of Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber would only add more balance and pop to the lineup, and make it even harder for opposing pitchers and managers to navigate through what is already a dangerous Philadelphia lineup. Since Bohm is expected back from his fractured rib roughly halfway through August, however, Lauber notes that added Suarez would creates a bit of a positional logjam. Harper and Schwarber have the first base and DH spots locked down, so there would be nowhere for Bohm and Suarez to both play unless Schwarber was moved into left field. Harper doesn’t appear to be a candidate for a return to outfield work, as Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski stated last month. Speculatively, the Phillies could clear space by trading Bohm himself, though such a deal would naturally be trickier since Bohm is on the IL. It is possible Bohm could head to Arizona as part of a Suarez trade package, as adding Bohm would help the D-backs fill some at-bats at first base since Josh Naylor has been traded, and Bohm could provide cover at third base if Jordan Lawlar runs into more struggles at the MLB level. Bohm is arbitration-eligible for the final time this winter, so this extra year of team control might appeal to the Diamondbacks or other teams looking for corner infield help. Since the Diamondbacks are also shopping several of their outfielders, it is possible the two sides could work out a multi-player deal that would see the Phillies add both Suarez and some outfield help in one fell swoop. Lauber writes that Arizona was scouting Mick Abel’s most recent Triple-A start, which again could be due diligence or a signal that the D-backs (known to be pursuing pitching) have a particular interest in Abel as a trade chip. Dombrowski is no stranger to bold trades, so the Phillies can’t be entirely ruled out for Suarez until the dust settles. Money won’t be a factor, as the Phils have already shown they’re more than willing to break the bank in pursuit of a championship. Suarez is still owed roughly $5.2M of his $15M salary for the 2025 season before he heads into free agency. Since the Phillies are already over the highest level ($301M) of luxury-tax penalization, they’ll pay a 110% tax on every dollar spent beyond the $301M threshold, so Suarez’s real price tag for the Phillies will be more than $10.5M.
Denny Hamlin suffers vicious crash in Brickyard 400 qualifying
The favorite to win Sunday's Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will have quite a mountain to climb. Denny Hamlin, who was fastest in practice at IMS on Saturday and is searching for his first Brickyard 400 win, suffered a vicious impact during Saturday's NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session. Hamlin was the last car to make a lap during the session, but the No. 11 Toyota broke loose on the exit of turn 2. After tapping the outside wall, he spun into the grass before making hard contact with the inside wall. Hamlin did not produce a qualifying time and will be forced to go to a backup car for Sunday's race. The 58-time Cup Series winner will start last (39th) on Sunday. Hamlin did climb out of the car after the accident. Meanwhile, his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Chase Briscoe, secured the pole position for Sunday's race. The top five in qualifying were swept by Toyota, with 23XI Racing's Bubba Wallace joining Briscoe on the front row. The Brickyard 400 will go green shortly after 2 p.m. ET on Sunday, with coverage on TNT, the IMS Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
WNBA legend Lisa Leslie had three words for Angel Reese
Now in her second WNBA season, Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese is averaging a league‑leading 12.5 rebounds along with 13.8 points, 3.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game. She recently returned from injury and immediately picked up where she left off, posting her 16th double‑double of the season (11 points, 11 rebounds) on Tuesday night even as her Chicago Sky fell, 91-68, to the Minnesota Lynx. Then, on Wednesday, Reese showcased her brand power on Instagram, posting a pregame photo dressed head‑to‑toe in Gucci with the caption, "Don’t worry about me… life is GUCCI @gucci #guccipartner." The image quickly lit up her feed and drew an immediate response from one of the game’s all‑time greats, WNBA legend Lisa Leslie, who commented, “Yessss it is❤️." Despite flashes of elite play, the Sky have struggled mightily, standing at just 7-17 and sitting fifth in the Eastern Conference. Their 76.7 points per game rank 12th in the WNBA, and opponents are torching them for 86.8 a night (12th in the league). With head coach Tyler Marsh searching for consistency, every bright spot has been a welcome reprieve for a franchise that won the title as recently as 2021. Front and center among Chicago’s bright spots is Reese. Off the court, Reese has quickly built a burgeoning portfolio of endorsement deals, including Reebok, Calvin Klein, Beats by Dre, Amazon and now Gucci, underscoring her status as one of the WNBA’s brightest personalities. On the other side, you have Leslie, whose voice carries more weight than arguably anybody in women’s basketball. A three‑time league MVP, two‑time WNBA champion and Finals MVP and eight‑time All‑Star, Leslie helped define the league’s early years with the Los Angeles Sparks, including driving home the first dunk in WNBA history in 2002. A Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer (class of 2015), she remains a global ambassador for the sport.
Kings withdraw two-way qualifying offer to second-year forward
The Kings have withdrawn their two-way qualifying offer to forward Isaiah Crawford, making him an unrestricted free agent, according to RealGM’s official NBA transaction log. Crawford signed a two-way deal with Sacramento last July after going undrafted out of Louisiana Tech. The 23-year-old logged just 46 total minutes in 15 games at the NBA level as a rookie, but was a key part of the rotation for the Stockton Kings in the G League, posting averages of 13.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 1.2 steals in 31.5 minutes per game across 37 outings, with a shooting line of .471/.401/.789. Crawford received a two-way qualifying offer from the Kings last month, making him a restricted free agent, and the deadline for teams to unilaterally withdraw those QOs passed on July 13. However, qualifying offers can still be rescinded with the player’s consent, so Crawford signed off on the move him to make him unrestricted. The Kings have signed a pair of players – Dylan Cardwell and Isaiah Stevens – to two-year, two-way contracts since the new league year began on July 1. Rescinding Crawford’s qualifying offer suggests the team has other plans for its third two-way slot.
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