Rangers setup man Matt Bush is headed back to Texas to have the sore AC joint in his shoulder examined and to receive an injection for the pain, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. While that sounds ominous for an already banged-up Rangers club, Grant notes that the team currently believes that Bush will avoid a trip to the disabled list. Bush dealt with a similar issue at times in 2016, per the report, so it’s not entirely new issue. That said, even a brief absence for Bush thins out a Rangers relief corps that has struggled greatly in the season’s early stages. Closer Sam Dyson has had a nightmarish start to the year, yielding a staggering 11 runs on 11 hits (two homers) and three walks in just three innings of work. Dyson coughed up a five-run lead to the Angels in the ninth inning last night while Bush was deemed “unavailable” by manager Jeff Banister. Given Dyson’s catastrophic meltdown and Bush’s ailing shoulder, it wouldn’t be a surprise to Jeremy Jeffress and/or Tony Barnette get some save opportunities in the near future.
More notes out of Arlington and the rest of the AL West…
- Rangers right-hander Andrew Cashner feels that he’s ready to join the rotation after throwing five shutout innings in an extended Spring Training game, writes Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The Rangers, though, have yet to make a decision on whether to activate the oft-injured righty. Texas may elect to give Cashner another rehab outing in an effort to further build up some arm strength, which would make sense given the current state of the bullpen. As Wilson notes, being able to exceed 100 pitches would be preferable in an ideal scenario, as that’d spare the Rangers’ relief corps some extra work. Righties Dillon Gee, Nick Martinez and Eddie Gamboa could make a spot start in the interim, Wilson adds.
- The Mariners will have a few roster moves to make today, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times notes (Twitter links). Outfielder Boog Powell is set to be reinstated after receiving an 80-game suspension for a failed PED test late last June, and Seattle will need to open a 40-man spot to accommodate him. Additionally, Divish reports that the Mariners are slated to promote right-hander Evan Marshall from Triple-A Tacoma to get a fresh arm into their ’pen.
- Though the Athletics opened the season with a closer-by-committee approach, that committee has narrowed to include just two pitchers, manager Bob Melvin said yesterday on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link). Per Melvin, left-hander Sean Doolittle and right-hander Santiago Casilla will share ninth inning duties and be called upon based on the matchups the A’s are facing heading into the final inning. That means that righties Ryan Madson (last year’s primary closer) and Ryan Dull will each function primarily as setup men.
Hey Rangers, I hear David Robertson is available.
Alexgordonbeckham,
Thank you for the heads up. We will look into Robertson as soon as we find someone able to view his next outing.
This can only be 100% legit.
It is.
I mean, it has to be!
I still don’t understand that Cashner signing.
That’s a shame.
Yes, it is a shame that Texas thought Cashner was worth 10m.
He sucks so he’ll fit right in with the 2017 Texas Rangers
shut your face
Agreed. They had an all-star in Colby Lewis in 2016 until his injury. I still think they should’ve resigned him
Good luck with Cashner and depending on him
Relying on Andrew Cashner to save the bullpen hasn’t worked since 2013.
Why hasn’t a team signed Cashner to be a reliever? That has to be where his career is headed.
A few months ago, I thought Texas could win the AL, but then I saw how poorly they addressed their pitching needs.
My next pick was Houston, but, again, I doubted the depth of their rotation.
My third pick was Boston, but then Price openly discussed Tommy John surgery, Pomeranz had biceps problems, and, most horrifying of all, Kyle “Tomato Can” Kendrick was the Sox’s best pitcher of the spring (gaaah!).
So I settled on my local team, the Blue Jays, who might have the best AL rotation again (Stroman just threw a complete game). But 1-7??? If they don’t sweep Baltimore this weekend, my kid will have to be put in restraints for his own safety. (He’s very attached to the Jays. He once spotted Dalton Pompey through the window of a nail salon — and they had a nice chat. I couldn’t have spotted him without his name on his jersey!)