Cleveland Indians Designate Zach McAllister, Recall Tyler Holt

The Cleveland Indians announced today SP Zach McAllister was being designated for an eventual optional assignment to Columbus.

Jul 31, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Zach McAllister (34) delivers in the second inning against the Seattle Mariners at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Don’t let the use of the term “designate” scare you, this is almost assuredly a paper move to send McAllister to AAA Columbus, and is identical to the procedure the Indians used with SP Carlos Carrasco last season, as explained by MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian and Mark Emery then:

"In order to option Carrasco to Triple-A, the Indians need to first secure optional waivers, which is a two-day process for a player three years removed from his Major League debut. Since the right-hander was recalled Saturday to pitch against Detroit, Cleveland needed to designate him for assignment while awaiting the right to option him to the Minor Leagues."

Bastian explained part of the rational for the move on Twitter:

Tyler Holt will rejoin the Indians and Chris Dickerson remains out of the lineup, but has not been placed on the DL as of now.

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McAllister’s rough season continued as he allowed eight hits and four runs (all earned) in 3.1 IP against the Seattle Mariners last night. He will be working with the AAA coaching staff on goals and tasks, though neither Bastian nor the Indians have said exactly what goals and tasks they are.