Phillies release ex-Stanford ace Appel

Mark Appel, a former first overall pick out of Stanford by the Houston Astros, finally made his big league debut last season, just shy of his 31st birthday. The righthander is now without a team again.

Appel was released Monday by the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies. He had an 11.12 ERA in six Grapefruit League appearances this spring, walking six and allowing three home runs over 52⁄3 innings.

Phillies manager Rob Thomson said Appel wasn’t going to make the team and that the organization didn’t have a spot for him in Class AAA.

The No. 1 pick by Houston in the 2013 draft, Appel got a $6.35 million signing bonus. He finally made his big league debut last June 29 and had a 1.74 ERA while throwing 101⁄3 innings in six appearances for the Phillies.

Appel made it to Class AAA for the Astros in 2015 before being sent to Philadelphia in a multiplayer trade. He decided to quit baseball after the 2017 season following injuries and ineffectiveness but rejoined the Phillies organization in 2021.

Braves’ shortstop likely to be Arcia

The Atlanta Braves have apparently decided who will replace the departed Dansby Swanson as their starting shortstop. It’s not who most people expected it to be.

Vaughn Grissom and Braden Shewmake were optioned to Class AAA Gwinnett on Monday. That leaves utility infielder Orlando Arcia as the likely replacement for Swanson, who left the Braves in free agency during the offseason for a $177 million, seven-year deal with the Chicago Cubs.

Grissom, who had been widely anticipated to be Swanson’s successor, went 3-for-4 in the game with an RBI and run scored in a 6-5 win over Tampa Bay on Monday, raising his batting average to .371 in 12 games this spring.