Cubs outfielder Jason Heyward will undergo an MRI this morning after leaving yesterday’s game following a diving catch, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune notes. Heyward says his “lower rib bone and hip bone hit each other.” He adds that he isn’t experiencing any sharp pain and is relieved that there aren’t any broken bones, but it sounds like he could still wind up on the disabled list. If Heyward were to head to the DL, the Cubs could activate Matt Szczur, who’s currently on the DL with a hamstring injury. Here’s more from the National League.
- Padres outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. appears to be getting his career back on track in San Diego, writes FOX Sports’ Flinder Boyd in a lengthy profile that chronicles the twists and turns Upton’s career has taken. After miserable seasons with the Braves in 2013 and 2014, Upton has quietly had modest success with the Padres, batting .257/.327/.429 last season and .266/.346/.441 this year. “I stopped trying to live up to other peoples’ expectations,” says Upton. “I’m just thankful for another opportunity.”
- The Rockies have recalled pitchers Jordan Lyles and Miguel Castro from Triple-A Albuquerque and placed righty Christian Bergman on the 15-day DL with a strained oblique, as MLB.com’s Thomas Harding notes (Twitter links). They’ve also optioned righty Scott Oberg to Albuquerque. The moves give the Rockies’ bullpen somewhat of a new look. Lyles, who has struggled in both the big-league and Triple-A rotations this year, will take Bergman’s long relief role. Castro had briefly been optioned to Albuquerque after a stint on the DL for shoulder inflammation. The hard-throwing 21-year-old was previously off to a fast start with the Rockies, whiffing nine batters and allowing just one run and two walks in his first seven innings.
Rockies have some pitchers all of a sudden. Guess that’s what happens when you draft in top 5 many years in a row. They look like they’ll be really solid as soon as next year.
What are you even talking about? The Rockies have had only three top 5 picks in the history of the franchise (Greg Reynolds, Jon Gray, and Brendan Rodgers) and none of them were in consecutive drafts. In fact, only one of them is currently a pitcher on the roster.
They have always had “decent” starting pitching, but the bullpen was primarily the problem. This year’s revamped bullpen is not blowing as many games and the team is benefiting. Honestly, they are pretty solid right now. Of course they usually do look good in May until the bullpen gets overused by Weiss and they fall apart in the summer. But for now it is still May so I can be idealistic.
Other peoples’ expectations? What was he and his agent saying to prospective employers when he was a free agent?
I know right? That’s exactly what professional athletes get paid to do, live up to expectations. Living in Atlanta I got to see the Upton bros a good bit. I didn’t care for either’s playing style or attitude. With that said, when BJ does connect on a HR, it’s a beautiful swing. Keyword there is WHEN!
Melvin might not come off as a great personality and fan favorite, but I have to admire his work ethic. It was reported several times during his slump, that he was the hardest working player on the team. He was consistently trying to appease us fans, and prove his worth here in Atlanta. So much so, that ultimately Melvin just put way too much pressure on himself.
When a game stops becoming fun to play, it is hard to have positive results. I hope Melvin continues to do well with the Padres, and continues to build upon his recent success!!
Although the stats never showed it, he worked relentlessly here in Atlanta..I’m glad all that hard work is finally paying off for him again!!
Hopefully he can take what he went through, and help out his brother!! Justin seems to be pressing so far this year, and I’m betting much of it is due to him trying to impress and win over his new fan base and team!! Same goes for Heyward
Agreed sir, might have been frustrating to watch, but he tried and cared. Glad to see former Braves doing well.
Glad to see him doing well as well. Not his fault that teams overvalued his skills (he deserves to sign the best deal he can). His numbers were horrible in Atlanta, but I too have heard nothing but positive comments about his work effort (I cut him some slack if he flashed frustration)
Wish him the best.. Any of us would have taken the $. Any one of us would have wanted the opportunity to perform ..
I can’t believe Melvin has been the better Upton this year.
It seemed like Melvin was trying to replicate his brother too much when they played together. His rare hot streaks in Atlanta were fun to watch, the worst thing about this is it really makes Atlanta seem even less appealing to free agents
Thanks for memories Bossman. You’ve helped me become terrified of free agent signings. Glad we had to give up Kimbrel to unload your contract. Supes excited that you waited until San Diego to be even league average.
Matt Wisler alone made the deal worth it.
“Fans” don’t like to worry about details. Haha
I have no idea what this means. On a human level, I’m glad another human is doing better in the world. But as a fan of the braves, I am definitely salty that a guy signed for 75mil and couldn’t hit his weight. Why wouldn’t I be?
What?
Lol wisler isnt that great dude. But for the record, padres turned the trade into upton margot guerrera and two others. And whatever they get for upton also adds to the deal.
Wisler had a 5.10 xfip last year and 4.75 so far this year…hes got a .230 babip. When that comes back up he’s going to get rocked.