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Rangers Place Ian Kennedy On Injured List, Select Spencer Patton

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The Rangers announced Wednesday that they’ve placed right-hander Ian Kennedy on the 10-day injured list due to a “mild” hamstring strain and selected the contract of right-hander Spencer Patton from Triple-A Round Rock in his place. Texas already had an open spot on the 40-man roster, so an additional corresponding move is not necessary. Patton will be in the club’s bullpen for today’s game.

Kennedy, 36, has proven to be one of the best minor league signings in all of baseball this season. He inked a non-guaranteed pact with an invite to Spring Training and parlayed a strong showing there into a $2.15MM base salary. He’s not only justified that modest investment, he’s thrived as one of the game’s more effective late-inning relievers. Kennedy has pitched 21 1/3 innings and racked up 12 saves to go along with a 2.53 ERA, a hefty 29.8 percent strikeout rate and a tidy 8.3 percent walk rate.

That standout performance, coupled with a generally poor performance from the team as a whole, makes Kennedy one of the most obvious trade candidates on this summer’s market. Texas has dropped nine of its past ten games, falling to 16 games south of the .500 mark and 13 games back of the division-leading Athletics. As such, it’s good news for the Rangers that Kennedy is dealing with only a “mild” strain. While a timeline for his return wasn’t provided, the mild nature of the injury should allow him to return long before the July 30 trade deadline.

As for Patton, today’s promotion will mark the culmination of a nearly five-year journey back to the big leagues. A 24th-round pick of the Royals back in 2011, Patton made his MLB debut as a Ranger in 2014 and spent parts of the next three seasons as an up-and-down member of the bullpen for both the Rangers and Cubs.

From there, Patton went on to spend four seasons pitching with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. The righty was one of NPB’s best relievers in 2017-18 before struggling, in part due to injury, in 2019-20. Even with the downturn in his final two years in Japan, however, Patton’s overall NPB track record was strong: 205 2/3 innings of 3.68 ERA ball with a 27.4 percent strikeout rate against a 9.5 percent walk rate.

Patton returned to the Rangers on a minor league deal of his own this winter, and he’s fired off 12 scoreless innings to begin his season in Round Rock. He’s walked six hitters, which clearly isn’t ideal, but has also yielded only six hits and whiffed a dozen of the 45 batters he’s faced. He’ll now get the chance to prove that the gains he appeared to make in NPB are sustainable here at the game’s top level in North America. Patton turned 33 back in February, so if he is indeed able to replicate his NPB success here in MLB, he could have several years remaining as a productive, late-inning reliever — be it with the Rangers or with another club.

AL Central Notes: Twins, Haase, Turnbull, Junis

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The Twins’ season has been a disaster thus far, but they’re on the verge of getting some desperately needed reinforcements. The team announced that Byron Buxton will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul beginning today, and Kenta Maeda will make a rehab start for the Saints tomorrow. The 27-year-old Buxton stormed out of the gates looking like a legitimate MVP candidate, slashing .370/.408/.772 with nine home runs, 10  doubles, five steals and his typical stellar defense through 24 games (98 plate appearances). A Grade 2 hip strain has sidelined him for more than a month, however.

Maeda, meanwhile, was the AL Cy Young runner-up in 2020’s shortened season but has had a rough go of it in 2021. The 33-year-old posted solid numbers in his first three starts but didn’t tally many innings due to high pitch counts. He’s since had a bit of a velocity dip while struggling in the run-up to an IL placement of his own due to a groin strain. The Twins have trotted out a carousel of outfield options with Buxton, Max Kepler and utilityman Luis Arraez all injured, while injuries on the pitching staff have prompted the team to remain committed to veteran Matt Shoemaker in the rotation despite pronounced struggles (as explored here by Dan Hayes of The Athletic).

Some more notes from the division…

  • Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said in an appearance on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM this morning that he plans to give catcher Eric Haase “as much playing time as I can” to afford him further opportunity to cement his place on the big league roster (Twitter link, with audio). The 28-year-old Haase, a Detroit native and childhood Tigers fan, has been an out-of-nowhere success story since being summoned to Detroit. The minor league veteran has tallied 74 plate appearances and responded with a .265/.324/.647 slash and a whopping seven home ruins. Hinch called Haase a “pretty good athlete,” which is why he’s seen time in left field, and suggested Haase could also handle first base. There’s a case being made to keep Haase on the roster even when the team’s other catching options come off the injured list.
  • Hinch also noted in his appearance (via MLB.com’s Jason Beck, on Twitter) that right-hander Spencer Turnbull will miss “a little bit of time but not nearly as long” as the Tigers originally feared when he first alerted the team to the forearm strain that has landed him on the 10-day IL. That sounds like Turn bull is in for more than a minimal stint, but it’s good that a worst-case scenario has been avoided. The 28-year-old Turnbull drew headlines for this year’s no-hitter, but he’s been a solid starter for Detroit dating back to 2019. During that stretch, he’s logged a combined 4.13 ERA in 255 innings with a 22 percent strikeout rate and a 9.1 percent walk rate. With three years of club control remaining beyond the 2021 season, a healthy Turnbull would figure to command considerable interest on the summer trade market, though that club control also means the Tigers are under no pressure to move him if a compelling offer doesn’t present itself.
  • The Royals optioned righty Jakob Junis to Triple-A Omaha this week on the heels of some recent struggles, and skipper Mike Matheny told reporters after the move that 28-year-old will stretch out for longer stints even though his eventual role upon his return to the Majors isn’t yet determined (link via Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star). “You can be a starter (in the minors) and that doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t come back as a reliever,” Matheny said of Junis, who made four solid starts earlier this year but has been hit hard out of the bullpen. Matheny noted that Junis “should” be a pitcher who is capable both of working multiple innings as a reliever but also succeeding when plugged into high-leverage spots. The future role for Junis is surely somewhat dependent on how young pitchers and prospects like Brady Singer, Daniel Lynch, Jackson Kowar and Kris Bubic develop. Junis was a solid back-of-the-rotation piece for the Royals from 2017-18 (4.35 ERA, 101 ERA+ in 275 1/3 innings) but has just 19 innings of bullpen experience in the Majors.

Royals To Select Jackson Kowar

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The Royals will call-up Jackson Kowar to start tomorrow night’s game against the Angels, manager Mike Matheny announced to reporters (including Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City). Jakob Junis will be optioned to Triple-A Omaha in a corresponding move.

Selected with the 33rd overall pick of the 2018 draft (one spot ahead of fellow vaunted Royals rookie Daniel Lynch), Kowar is now regarded as one of the sport’s more promising pitching prospects. Entering this season, Baseball America ranked him as baseball’s #95 overall prospect and the #4 farmhand in the Kansas City organization. Keith Law of the Athletic also placed Kowar fourth in the system, while Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs slots him eighth. All three outlets credit him with a potentially elite changeup and a mid-90s sinker. Whether Kowar will develop into an efficient strike-thrower figures to determine his ultimate role.

BA projects Kowar as a potential middle of the rotation starter, feeling he’ll develop “at least average control.” Law feels he could settle in at the back of a rotation if his command improves a bit in the coming seasons. Longenhagen, meanwhile, suggests he’s most likely to wind up in high-leverage relief, likening him to former Royal Ryan Madson. Regardless of the exact form it takes, public prospect forecasters all view Kowar as a potential noteworthy part of a pitching staff in some capacity.

Kowar has gotten off to a fantastic start in Omaha this year, his first taste of the minors’ top level. Through six starts, he’s worked to a 0.85 ERA in 31 2/3 frames, striking out a whopping 33.9% of opposing hitters while walking 8.3%. That strong showing has brought his career minor league ERA down to 3.10, slightly better than the 3.53 mark he managed over three seasons at the University of Florida.

He becomes the third of the Royals crop of well-regarded pitching prospects to make his MLB debut. Brady Singer, Kowar’s college teammate, reached the big leagues last season and has thrown 117 2/3 innings of 4.51 ERA/4.20 SIERA ball over his first 23 starts. Lynch was promoted on May 3, although he’s since been optioned back to Triple-A after giving up 15 runs in his first eight innings.

Junis, who moved to the bullpen when Lynch was selected, will head to Omaha to build back up as a starting pitcher, Worthy relays. Junis performed fairly well in the season’s first month while working out of the rotation, although he’s struggled in a relief role. His demotion will open an active roster spot for Kowar, but Kansas City will need to make another transaction before tomorrow’s game. The Royals 40-man roster is full, so a move is necessary to accommodate Kowar’s formal selection.

Even if Kowar sticks in the majors for good, he’ll be controllable through the end of the 2027 season. The early-June timing of his promotion makes it possible he’ll qualify for Super Two status, which would allow him to reach arbitration eligibility for the first time after 2023 (assuming the existing arbitration structure remains in the next collective bargaining agreement). Future optional assignments could change that trajectory.

Central Notes: Mondesi, Twins, Moroff, White Sox

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Before this afternoon’s game against the Twins, the Royals placed shortstop Adalberto Mondesi on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 4, with a left hamstring strain. It’s a tough blow for the speedy shortstop, who missed almost all of the season’s first two months with an oblique issue. In between the injuries, Mondesi has gotten off to a productive start, hitting .360/.360/.720 with a pair of homers in seven games. To replace him on the active roster, Kansas City recalled outfielder Edward Olivares from Triple-A Omaha.

More from the game’s central divisions:

  • Twins center fielder Byron Buxton could embark on a minor league rehab assignment at some point next week, manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press). Buxton has missed the better part of a month with a right hip strain, a devastating development considering his incredible start to the season. Before the injury, the 27-year-old looked well on his way to putting himself in early AL MVP conversation, hitting .370/.408/.772 with nine homers in his first 98 plate appearances. Righty Kenta Maeda, meanwhile, threw a 35-pitch bullpen session this morning and looks to be nearing a rehab assignment of his own, per Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com (Twitter link).
  • Cardinals utilityman Max Moroff will require season-ending surgery on his left shoulder, manager Mike Shildt announced (via Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat). The procedure comes with a seven-month recovery timeline, so Moroff figures to be ready for next Spring Training. Moroff, selected to the St. Louis roster last month, went just 1-16 with ten strikeouts in six games. The Cardinals figure to transfer him to the 60-day injured list when the need for a 40-man roster spot arises.
  • The White Sox announced this morning they’ve reinstated outfielder Adam Engel from the injured list to make his season debut. He’s starting in center field this afternoon against the Tigers. Fellow center fielder Billy Hamilton is going on the 10-day IL due to a right oblique strain in a corresponding move. Engel has missed the first two months of the year with a right hamstring strain. Hamilton has been among the depth outfielders the Sox have relied upon in center without Luis Robert and Engel. Over 75 plate appearances, the speedy Hamilton is hitting .217/.247/.406 with a pair of home runs.

Agent: Ben Zobrist’s Playing Days Are Over

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Ben Zobrist’s name surfaced in the news over the last few days, as a tweet from Heritage Auction Sports claimed that Zobrist’s World Series ring from the 2016 Cubs was going to be up for bids in August.  However, Zobrist’s agent Scott Pucino told Paul Sullivan of The Chicago Tribune that the ring wasn’t going to be sold, and that Zobrist told him that ” ’Why would I sell this ring?  It makes no sense.  I’m never going to get rid of this ring — never, never, ever.’ ”

That would seem to put that curious matter to rest, and Pucino also confirmed what has seemed increasingly obvious over the last two years: Zobrist has ended his playing career.  Though Zobrist has not officially retired, Pucino said that Zobrist is focusing on taking care of his children while going through a divorce.  “He’s a devoted dad and grabbing the bull by the horns and taking hold of the situation,” Pucino said.

Zobrist last played in 2019, his 14th Major League season.  He only played in 47 games during that final year, as his divorce led him to spend much of the season on personal leave — the money surrendered by Zobrist for his time on the restricted list allowed the Cubs enough luxury tax wiggle room to sign Craig Kimbrel, so Zobrist’s impact is still being felt on the Cubs to this day.

Of course, Zobrist had already long since made his mark on Chicago baseball history due to his role in the Cubs’ curse-breaking 2016 championship run.  Signed to a four-year, $56MM free agent deal in the 2015-16 offseason, Zobrist hit .272/.386/.446 over 631 PA during the regular season, and then won World Series MVP honors by batting .357/.419/.500 over 31 PA during the Fall Classic.  That came on the heels of another big performance for Zobrist in the previous year’s World Series, as Zobrist was acquired by the Royals before the trade deadline in 2015 and then helped Kansas City capture the title.

Over 14 MLB seasons, the switch-hitting Zobrist batted .266/.357/.426 over 6836 PA for the Rays, Athletics, Royals, and Cubs.  The Astros initially drafted Zobrist in the sixth round in 2004, and after being dealt to Tampa in July 2006, Zobrist went from being mostly a full-time shortstop into the super-utilityman position that defined his career.

Through far from the only “Swiss Army Knife” of a player in history (Jose Oquendo and Tony Phillips stand out for fans of 80’s and 90’s baseball), Zobrist’s name became synonymous with on-field versatility in this generation.  He made 794 of his 1503 career starts as a second baseman, but also 363 starts in right field, 196 starts at shortstop, 107 starts in left field, as well as time as a center fielder and at both corner infield slots.  Between his multi-position ability and productive switch-hitting bat, Zobrist could be moved around the diamond and utilized in a number of different fashions by Rays manager Joe Maddon and future skippers throughout Zobrist’s career.

While Zobrist ranks third in fWAR (behind Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford) on the Rays’ all-time franchise list, it can be argued that Zobrist might be the “greatest Ray ever” for both on-field value and symbolic reasons, as he exemplifies how the Rays have looked to mold a seemingly endless array of multi-positional players since Zobrist’s time with the franchise.  Beyond just Tampa Bay, teams all over baseball in recent years have looked to maximize bench depth by having super-utility types on the roster.

From 2009-16, Zobrist generated 40.5 fWAR, a total surpassed by only eight players in baseball during that eight-season span.  These prime years saw him reach three All-Star teams, finish as high as eighth place in AL MVP voting (2009), and capture those two World Series titles with the Royals and Cubs in consecutive years.

MLBTR wishes all the best to Zobrist in his post-playing days, and congratulates him on an outstanding career.

Red Sox Acquire Three Prospects To Complete Andrew Benintendi Trade

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Nearly four months after trading Andrew Benintendi to the Royals as part of a three-team swap also involving the Mets, the Red Sox announced that they’ve acquired outfielder Freddy Valdez from the Mets and right-handers Grant Gambrell and Luis De La Rosa from the Royals as players to be named later, officially completing the trade. The Red Sox acquired outfielder Franchy Cordero (from the Royals) and minor league righty Josh Winckowski (from the Mets) at the time of the trade, which also sent outfielder Khalil Lee from Kansas City to New York.

The 19-year-old Valdez has yet to progress to A-ball after splitting the 2019 season between the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League and Gulf Coast League. The Mets signed him for a $1.4MM bonus as a 16-year-old out of the Dominican Republic back in 2018. In his lone season of pro ball, he hit .274/.367/.448 with an 18 percent strikeout rate and an 11.4 percent walk rate.

Valdez is generally regarded as one of the Mets’ top 20 prospects, ranking 13th at The Athletic, 14th at MLB.com, 17th at Baseball America and 18th at FanGraphs. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen calls Valdez an “absolute behemoth of a corner outfield prospect” with “thunderous” power, likening him to Indians slugger Franmil Reyes. The Athletic’s Keith Law writes that Valdez has “huge” power with above-average speed and a plus arm, though many scouting reports on Valdez raise questions about his hit tool and his defensive future.

Obviously, given Valdez’s age and the fact that he’s yet to even take a single at-bat in A-ball, he’s years from factoring into the Red Sox’ big league plans. On some levels, there figure to be comparisons to another player the Red Sox received in this trade: Franchy Cordero. Valdez, by all accounts, is a physical specimen at a young age with a tantalizing set of loud tools but has a ways to go before scouts will be sold that those tools can translate at the Major League level. As far as lower-level lottery tickets go, he’s the type that comes with considerable upside but also a fair bit of risk.

Gambrell, 23, is the more highly regarded of the two players coming over from the Royals and also much nearer to the big leagues. Kansas City’s third-round pick out of Oregon State in 2019, Gambrell has tossed 22 2/3 innings of 4.37 ERA ball in Class-A Advanced to begin the season, recording a 19.8 percent strikeout rate, 7.6 percent walk rate and 50 percent ground-ball rate in that time. Longenhagen ranked him 21st among K.C. prospects, noting that Gambrell used the off-time in 2020 to get into better shape and reported to camp in 2021 with a “totally different body” and improved velocity.

De La Rosa is even more of a lottery ticket than Valdez. Still just 18 years old, he signed as a 16-year-old in 2018 and carved up the Dominican Summer League a year later, tossing 38 2/3 innings with a 2.33 ERA, a ridiculous 52-to-7 K/BB ratio and a strong 48.9 percent grounder rate. Despite that exceptional short-season debut, De La Rosa isn’t ranked among the Royals’ best prospects, although he could certainly generate some further recognition if he can back up that dominant 2019 showing at a more advanced level.

The Athletic’s Chad Jennings first reported that the Red Sox would acquire Valdez from the Mets (Twitter link). Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe reported (via Twitter) that Gambrell and De La Rosa were also headed to the Sox.

Red Sox Expected To Finalize PTBNLs From Benintendi Trade In Near Future

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The Red Sox will soon decide on the three players they’re still owed as players to be named later from February’s three-team Andrew Benintendi swap, per a pair of reports from Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star (Twitter link) and Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com. Worthy suggests that the Royals, who owe the Red Sox two players, could have some resolution within the next week or two. Meanwhile, Cotillo indicates that the player the Mets will send to Boston is expected to be the best of the three PTBNLs and must be settled upon by this coming Friday.

Technically, the teams involved all have until August to settle the deal, as PTBNLs come with six-month windows. It seems as though the matter will be resolved well before to that point, however.

It’s fairly common for teams to take some of that six-month allotment to evaluate the farm system of a trade partner. Oftentimes, the team receiving the PTBNLs agrees to a list of players from which they select, and those players can be tracked and evaluated over the coming months. That aspect was likely of particular importance for the Red Sox this time around, given last year’s lack of a minor league season.

The original trade sent Benintendi to Kansas City and outfield prospect Khalil Lee to New York, while the Red Sox received outfielder Franchy Cordero (from the Royals) and minor league righty Josh Winckowski (from the Mets). Cordero’s early struggles prompted the Red Sox to option him to Triple-A Worcester last week, which resulted in a fair bit of criticism of the trade from the Red Sox’ vantage point. Of course, Cordero is but one of five pieces who’ll join the Sox organization as a result of the deal, and judging any trade before the identities of all involved players are even known is rather short-sighted.

Benintendi, 26, got out to a miserable start in Kansas City, batting just .180/.254/.230 through the season’s first three weeks. He’s been on a tear in the five weeks since that time, however, raking at a .345/.395/.466 in 129 plate appearances. Cordero, meanwhile, mustered only a .179/.228/.274 slash in 102 plate appearances. He’s 5-for-12 with a couple homers since being optioned. The 22-year-old Lee went 1-for-18 with the Mets in his first taste of MLB action after being recalled out of necessity due to the team’s rash of injuries. He was recently optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse, where he’ll be in line for everyday at-bats.

The Royals control Benintendi through the 2022 season. The Red Sox control Cordero through at least 2023. Lee had yet to make his MLB debut when the Mets acquired him and has multiple minor league options remaining, so he could be a piece of their outfield puzzle for upwards of a decade, depending on his development and the frequency with which he’s optioned.

Injury Notes: Chisholm, Duvall, Soler, Garcia

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Two Marlins regulars are nursing injuries, as Jazz Chisholm has missed four games due to an ankle sprain and Adam Duvall has missed games due to soreness in his left side.  Manager Don Mattingly indicated to reporters that both players were being held out largely due to precautionary reasons, noting that “if we weren’t being conservative, I think [Chisholm] probably could have played today.”  Chisholm spent just shy of three weeks on the injured list earlier this season after suffering a hamstring strain, and the Marlins are naturally being careful to ensure that their young star isn’t lost for another extended amount of time.

Chisholm is hitting .286/.350/.486 with five home runs and nine stolen bases over 117 PA this season.  Duvall hasn’t been performing as well (.213/.257/.425 in 171 plate appearances) at the plate, but the veteran has provided some extra utility in the field by playing respectable defense over 53 innings as a fill-in center fielder.  Mattingly described Duvall as already feeling “better” by Saturday, so it’s possible Duvall could be back in the lineup for Sunday’s game with the Red Sox.

More injury updates from around baseball…

  • Jorge Soler left today’s 6-5 Royals loss to the Twins after the first inning due to right groin discomfort.  An injury would further damper what has already been a rough season for Soler, who is hitting just .178/.257/.314 with four home runs over his first 195 plate appearances.  Soler’s last full season in 2019 saw him lead the American League with 48 homers while batting .265/.354/.569 in 679 PA.
  • Nationals infielder Luis Garcia will receive an MRI after suffering an on-field hamstring cramp prior to the third inning of the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader with the Brewers.  While warming up before the inning, a cramp that had bothered Garcia earlier in the game suddenly forced him to the ground, and he had to be helped off the field.  Garcia has spent much of the season at Triple-A, at Washington’s alternate training site, or on the big league taxi squad, and was just called back up to the active roster earlier this week.

The Best Minor League Deals Of 2021 (So Far): Pitchers

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We took a look last week at some of the minor league pacts that have paid the most dividends, focusing in on position players in both leagues. Unsurprisingly, given the lack of offense throughout baseball as a whole at the moment, there are even more success stories on the pitching side of the coin. Some of these are products of small sample size, particularly for the many relievers on the list, but at least for our initial check-in on this subject, the early returns have been strong.

  1. Ian Kennedy, RHP, Rangers: We’re nearing Memorial Day weekend, and Kennedy is tied for the American League lead in saves — just as everyone expected! The 36-year-old righty isn’t just scraping by and narrowly escaping in a bunch of three-run leads, though. He’s tallied 19 1/3 innings and allowed just four runs, all while recording a terrific 31.1 percent strikeout rate and a tiny 5.4 percent walk rate. If Texas remains near the bottom of the AL West standings, he’ll be an appealing trade target for bullpen-needy clubs.
  2. Drew Steckenrider, RHP, Mariners: A quality setup man with the 2017-18 Marlins, Steckenrider’s time in Miami was derailed by injuries — most notably a 2019 flexor strain. He looks to be back on track in his new surroundings, however, having tossed 18 1/3 innings of 2.45 ERA ball with a 29.2 percent strikeout rate and an 11.1 percent walk rate. The walks are a bit elevated, but he’s helped to combat that with a career-best 54 percent ground-ball mark. The Mariners (or another club) could control Steckenrider through 2023 via arbitration as well, which only adds to the value.
  3. Jimmy Nelson, RHP, Dodgers:  The Dodgers just placed Nelson on the injured list due to a forearm issue, so there are (once again) some obvious health question marks with Nelson. There’s no ignoring how effective he’s been thus far, however. Nelson’s 39.1 percent strikeout rate is the ninth-best among all MLB relievers, and he’s paired that with a pristine 2.41 ERA. Like Shaw, he’s walked too many batters (13 percent), but the former Brewers ace has shown high-leverage, late-inning potential with L.A.
  4. Bryan Shaw, RHP, Indians: Shaw was an iron man in the Cleveland ’pen but flopped in Colorado after signing a three-year, $27MM contract going into 2018. Back in his old stomping grounds, he’s tallied 19 innings with a pristine 1.42 ERA. The 33-year-old has issued 13 walks, so he’ll need to cut back on the free passes if he hopes to continue this success, but Shaw’s strikeout and ground-ball percentages are among the best of his career (29.3 percent, 57.5 percent, respectively).
  5. Lucas Luetge, LHP, Yankees: Luetge’s last MLB appearance prior to his Yankees debut came with the 2015 Mariners. The now-34-year-old southpaw signed minor league deals with five organizations before making it back to the show, which is remarkable in and of itself. That he’s been one of the Yankees’ best relievers, however, makes his story all the more incredible. Luetge, who entered 2021 with all of 89 MLB frames under his belt, has a 2.95 ERA and a 19-to-3 K/BB ratio in 21 1/3 innings for the Yankees thus far. Considering the injuries to Zack Britton and Darren O’Day, Luetge’s unexpected contributions have been a godsend. If he can keep this up, he’ll be arbitration-eligible this winter and controllable through the 2024 season.
  6. Hyeon-jong Yang, LHP, Rangers: Yang, a former KBO MVP, could’ve returned to that league on a guaranteed deal but refused to give up on his aspirations of playing in the Majors, even if it meant taking a non-guaranteed pact. He’s 21 1/3 innings into the realization of that lifelong goal, and the Rangers are no doubt pleased with their decision. Yang, 33, opened the season with the Rangers’ alternate site group but had his contract selected in late April. He now owns a 3.38 ERA, and while his pedestrian strikeout and walk rates might point to some possible regression, he’s induced plenty of weak contact (average 87.4 mph exit velocity, just a 13.1 percent line-drive rate). An 11.2 percent swinging-strike rate suggests there could be more K’s to come, as well.
  7. Chi Chi Gonzalez, RHP, Rockies: Gonzalez’s numbers don’t stand out that much, but he’s eating innings and delivering roughly league-average run-prevention numbers when adjusting for his home park (102 ERA+, 99 ERA-). Through nine appearances, seven of them starts, Gonzalez is carrying a 4.54 ERA. He’s totaled 41 2/3 innings for a Rockies club that has gone the whole season without lefty Kyle Freeland. Gonzalez has rattled off consecutive quality starts and helped the Rox get through the first two months of the season. The secondary marks aren’t great, but average innings have value — especially in 2021 when teams are so conscientious about their pitchers’ workloads.
  8. Nabil Crismatt, RHP, Padres: Crismatt had just 8 1/3 innings of MLB experience (all with the 2020 Cardinals) when he arrived in Padres camp this spring. He’s more than doubled that total in 2021 already, pitching 17 2/3 innings of 2.55 ERA ball with a hefty 52.2 percent grounder rate. Crismatt is an oddity in today’s game, sitting under 89 mph with a fastball that is only seldom used due to the fact that he throws his changeup at a whopping 46.5 percent clip. It’s weird, but so far — it’s worked.
  9. Anthony Bender, RHP, Marlins: A 26-year-old rookie who never pitched above Double-A with the Royals or Brewers before joining the Marlins on a minor league deal this winter, Bender is sitting 97.4 mph with his heater and has tossed 8 2/3 shutout innings to open his career. He’s whiffed 36.7 percent of his opponents against a 3.3 percent walk rate. Small sample? Sure, but Bender also rattled off 8 1/3 shutout frames during Spring Training, too. Not bad for a guy who posted a 5.48 ERA with the independent American Association’s Milwaukee Milkmen in 2020.
  10. Heath Hembree, RHP, Reds:  After a rough 2020 season, Hembree has bounced back early in 2021. His 4.15 ERA through 13 frames is nothing special, but his strikeout rate is sitting at a career-high 33.3 percent after plummeting in 2020. His 6.3 percent walk rate is a career-best, and his 13.1 percent swinging-strike rate isn’t far off from his peak years in Boston. Hembree’s velocity is also up to 95.2 mph after dipping to 93.9 mph in 2019-20. It’s early, but those are some encouraging indicators.
  11. Zack Littell, RHP, Giants: Littell hasn’t spent much time with the Giants yet, but he’s chucked 10 2/3 innings and held opponents to just one run on eight hits and three walks with nine punchouts. His 94.8 mph average fastball velocity is a career-high, as is his 48.3 percent grounder rate. The former Twins righty only has a year of big league service and could be controllable for several years if he figures it out in San Francisco.
  12. Deolis Guerra, RHP, Athletics: It’s hard to believe Guerra just turned 32, given that he was one of the pieces traded from the Mets to the Twins way back in 2008’s Johan Santana trade. He’s bounced around the league in journeyman style but is enjoying a nice run with the A’s to kick off the ’21 season. In 20 2/3 frames, Guerra has a 3.92 ERA with a pedestrian K-BB% but intriguing levels of weak contact induced.
  13. JT Chargois, RHP, Mariners: Like Littell, Chargois hasn’t seen much time in the bigs yet, but he’s sporting a 9-to-1 K/BB ratio in 8 2/3 innings for Seattle. He’s had multiple chances with the Twins and Dodgers in recent years but never found much consistency. Chargois also mustered only a 5.81 ERA pitching for Japan’s Rakuten Golden Eagles in 2020. Still, it’s a nice start to his 2021 season.
  14. Brad Boxberger, RHP, Brewers: The right-hander, who’ll turn 33 this week, has hurled 17 1/3 innings so far in Milwaukee and pitched to a 4.15 ERA but with a more impressive 17-to-3 K/BB mark. As with many relievers early in a given season, the bulk of the damage against Boxberger came in one appearance (against the Cardinals). He’s been unscored upon in 16 of his 19 outings so far in 2021.
  15. Ervin Santana, RHP, Royals: The Royals love their reunions more than any team in baseball, and Santana is somewhat improbably back to “smelling baseball,” as he likes to say, for a second stint in Kansas City. He’s only allowed four runs in 15 1/3 innings (2.35 ERA), but he’s also only picked up eight strikeouts against four walks. His fastball is sitting 93 mph again after living at 89-90 in 2018-19, but the red flags are plentiful: 13.1 percent strikeout rate, 91 percent strand rate, .213 BABIP, 45 percent opponents’ hard-hit rate.
  16. Paolo Espino, RHP, Nationals: The Nats quietly re-signed the now 34-year-old Espino before the calendar even flipped to November last year. So far, it’s been a worthwhile reunion, as he’s held opponents to four runs on nine hits and a walk with eight strikeouts in 14 innings (2.57 ERA). Espino won’t keep this up if he can’t miss some more bats and/or induce far more grounders, however. He’s currently benefiting from a .175 BABIP and an 83.3 percent strand rate, while his 26.6 percent grounder rate will make it to limit home runs. Still, the Nats have 14 innings of decent results to show for the deal.

As with the position players, some of these strong starts will fade. There are a few at the back of the list that look particularly difficult to sustain, but there also look to be some genuine bargains unearthed among this group. Some will likely result in trades (Kennedy), but it’d make for a fun story to follow should any of the controllable arms (e.g. Bender, Crismatt) ultimately emerge as long-term pieces for the clubs who gave them their best career opportunities to date.

Royals Activate Adalberto Mondesi

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The Royals announced that they have activated shortstop Adalberto Mondesi from the injured list. He’s in line to make his 2021 debut after missing nearly the first two full months of the season.

The 25-year-old Mondesi went on the IL on March 31, just before the season began, with a right oblique strain. The Royals have since gone through an up-and-down year without Mondesi, last season’s stolen base champion, as they got off to a great start before enduring an 11-game losing streak. But the club has righted the ship of late and now owns a 22-23 record that places it 4 1/2 games behind the American League Central-leading White Sox.

The absence of Mondesi left the Royals’ shortstop position to Nicky Lopez, who has hit .230/.317/.310 with zero home runs and five steals in 150 plate appearances. Mondesi batted a somewhat underwhelming .256/.294/.416 with six home runs over 233 trips to the plate in 2020, but he has established himself as a major stolen base threat and a valuable starter.

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