Padres outfielder Alex Dickerson has been diagnosed with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his left (throwing) elbow, and surgery is a possibility, writes MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell. It’s a tough break for the 27-year-old Dickerson, who missed all of the 2017 season following back surgery but showed some promise at the plate in his rookie campaign in 2016. That year, Dickerson slashed .257/.333/.455 with 10 homers in 285 plate appearances while walking at a 9.1 percent clip and fanning in just 15.4 percent of his plate appearances. Per Cassavell, the club is “hopeful” that Dickerson won’t require Tommy John surgery, but even if he doesn’t require surgery, he’s likely to miss at least the first month of the season.
More from the NL West…
- Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times takes an excellent look at the Dodgers’ failed pursuit of Shohei Ohtani. The team had Clayton Kershaw, Justin Turner and Chris Taylor fly into L.A. to help sell Ohtani on the Dodgers in their in-person meeting, but it proved to be a somewhat frustrating experience. Both Turner and Kershaw candidly stated that the process felt like a “waste of time,” indicating that Ohtani already seemed set on signing with an AL club where he could serve as a part-time DH. Kershaw didn’t express any ill feelings toward Ohtani himself, though he voiced some frustration toward CAA, Ohtani’s agency, over the matter. “I’m kind of mad at his agent for making us waste all that time and effort,” said Kershaw. “Fifteen teams should have been out of it, from the beginning.” Ohtani’s agent with CAA, Nez Balelo, issued a rebuttal to McCullough in which he calls any assertion that Ohtani would meet with a team for which he had no interest in playing “unfounded and an insult to [Ohtani’s] personal ethics.” Balelo also points out that Ohtani met with more NL clubs (four) than AL clubs (three). It’s a fascinating column that is filled with quotes from Kershaw, Turner, Balelo, Dave Roberts and Andrew Friedman.
- The D-backs have plenty of roster decisions to make by the end of Spring Training, but the bench presents a particularly enigmatic situation, writes Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic. GM Mike Hazen and skipper Torey Lovullo need to determine whether they plan to carry seven or eight relievers, which will determine whether they utilize a four- or five-man bench. Even if it’s the latter, there are numerous battles for a spot. Lovullo calls a third catcher a “luxury” that he enjoyed in 2017, but Chris Herrmann or John Ryan Murphy (the two men who’d compete to fill that role) are vying with Yasmany Tomas and possibly Christian Walker for a potential fifth bench slot. The first four slots figure to go to Jeff Mathis, Chris Owings, Jarrod Dyson and Daniel Descalso, with Nick Ahmed and Ketel Marte likely holding the up-the-middle starting gigs. Notably, both Herrmann and Murphy are out of minor league options.
Ohtani wasnt the waste of time this offseason. Giancarlo Stanton was.
Must be a slow news night if we’re hearing about Dickerson from the Padres…..
Must be a slow trolling night too?
My inside source agrees.
Thought it made more sense to go to the AL for Ohtani. Seemed like a waste of time and it sounds like a waste of time.
Look, everyone kind of knew who would be favorites going into the Ohtani market. Buyers usually have some preconceived notions going in, its up to the salesman to change his mind. Doesn’t always happen and when it doesn’t you move and dont cry about it. Sometimes you have to waste time to strike gold
Ohtani gave everyone a chance to change his mind. They couldn’t do it.
Its lucky these players were born with a natural talent to make money playing a kids game as some of them seem like they woukd be challenged in the real world. Obviously they worked hard to get where they are but effort without natural gifts only takes you so far.
So, basically, TWO of the following players will not make Arizon’s opening Day roster: Yasmany Tomas, Chris Hermann, and John Ryan Murphy…
If the D-Backs decide to go with a 4 man bench, then most likely, all THREE will not make the squad..
I wonder if there would be any takers for Tomas??
Tomas, who is still only 27, and has really only spent about 2 years in the majors, he did recently hit 31 HR’s, with a respectable average and decent approach at the plate, not too long ago…
The big dilemma with Tomas though, is his 3 years and approx 45 mil. left on his contract…
If the D-backs took on Markakis’ 2018 contract, and ate a portion of the money remaining for Tomas, I wouldn’t mind at all if the Braves took a gamble on him.
He could slide into LF, and could be the power bat the Braves desperately need this season and moving forward..
The following late 2018, opening day 2019 line-up would look pretty good..
Albies – 2B
Acuña Jr. – RF
Freeman – 1B
Tomas – LF
Riley – 3B
Inciarte – CF
Flowers – C
Swanson – SS
I’d gladly take a .270-.275, .320-.330 OBP, and 27-33 HR’s from Tomas in the 4 hole..And who knows, with only 2 years of experience, with a change of scenery, and with more motivation, he could still get better..
Not to mention, anytime Freeman has had some sort of power protection behind him in the line-up, he has done extremely well!!
I mean, if Matt Kemp can protect Freeman well, then surely Tomas could also provide Freeman with some protection as well…
Plus, with Inciarte and Acuña Jr. roaming CF and RF, then combined, they could certainly help and make up a good bit for Tomas’ limited range..
Could prove to be a fairly low risk, solid reward move for the Braves…
And for those who might say, no we can’t take on anymore salary, because we may not be able to get Harper or Machado, be realistic please…Neither player is ever coming to Atlanta!! lol
I’m not a Diamondbacks fan but I’m gonna stop you at saying Tomas has a good approach at the plate. His plate discipline is pretty much nonexistent, and it’s more likely that he’s a .255/.305 player with 20-25 homers (in an increasingly power-happy game, no less) than anything more.
You’re right about Acuna and (especially) Inciarte making the other 2/3 of the outfield solid defensively, but Tomas is such a bad defender that even if he was put with two other good defenders, his lack of defensive value puts an insane amount of pressure on his bat and he’s not nearly good enough of a hitter to overcome that.
You’re also right that Harper and Machado aren’t going to the Braves, but wouldn’t you rather have a little financial flexibility for another move instead of limiting yourself? There are probably about a dozen hitters that are still unsigned and could provide comparable offense to Tomas for probably a fifth of the yearly cost.
As a Cardinals fan, I can say that if their outfield situation had some openings, I wouldn’t mind taking a flyer on Tomas. Only real knock I can see is the salary. Adding in some prospects or salary could easily offset that. Somebody needs to give him a chance.
No! No! AND No! The Cards have a decent outfield right now
What dollar amount makes sense to take a chance on Tomas? 10 million? Anymore than that is too much for sure. He’s a horrible defender who looks lazy out there and he has no OBP skills what so ever. He’s literally a one tool player. 3 years 10 million? I don’t see how you justify anymore.
You projected Tomas as if he will get better. He’s never topped a 315 OPS and his career average is below 310. He’s a double play machine as well. This might be the case of you reading an offensive stat line rather than watching the guy play. I’ve personally only seen about 8-9 games of him playing but I didn’t see anything that would suggest he’s any better than the numbers show.
@bravesfan
Its pretty unreasonable to think that a player that is battling for the last spot on the bench in AZ could step right in and bat cleanup on any other major league team.
Tomas is 100% a DH and that’s it. As a die-hard D-backs fan I can honestly tell you Tomas has no place in any outfield. His defense is not bad, it’s entirely unplayable. He does have a legit bat and an AL team willing to let the D-backs pay a good chunk of his salary could end up with a bargain DH without having to give up too much in the way of prospects. His contract was a terrible decision made by the old, inept leadership and has no place on the current team.
Plain and simple Kershaw is suck a little B!t(h straight up.
Seems like a solid educated comment
Im sure you went to Africa and worked on charitable projects
Don’t forget giving a large portion of your salary to charities.
Anaheim denizen. They do the best they can but….
Thanks for making us all look bad. As much as I loathe the Dodgers, Kershaw is a class act and one of the best pitchers I’ve ever seen.
Gotta give credit when it is due.
wha
Ohtani should’ve chosen a team like San Diego or Texas. I don’t think the Angels are going to be patient enough with him as a hitter if (when) he struggles as a hitter early since they’re a playoffs or bust team.
Too bad for Dickerson, although, he probably wouldn’t have made the major league roster anyways. The outfield in San Diego is crowded as it is. Pirela, renfroe, Margot, Myers, jankowski, Cordero, and Dickerson…. jankowski and Dickerson are probably the least promising of the group. Really hope the Padres find a way to get Cordero some at bats. Struggled in a small sample last year, but dominated in AAA and Dominican league this offseason. Not sure I want him in a platoon with renfroe though, as both renfroe and Cordero need consistent at bats right now to continue their progression…. should be interesting to see what management decides
Gotta love how the agent deflects Kershaws comments and makes it personal against Ohtani lol. While I have no reason to question Ohtani’s integrity and think he intentionally string teams along … I also have no reason to not believe Kershaw that he seemed already decided. Probably does had to do with the agent. Love how these agents spin everything ..
Agents are ALWAYS at the root of all MLB’s problems. The players dont care about anything but playing.
Any Pirates fan who remembers Derek Bell openly telling reporters that he was going into Operation Shutdown would disagree.
Is he Lev Bell’s uncle? Or just a like mind?
“The players don’t care about anything but playing for a lot of money”
Fixed it for you
Some don’t care though.
uh…what about the money thing?
I think if Ichiro was to sign with Seattle earlier then Ohtani would have signed up in Seattle too
So Ohtani only wanted to play with a Japanese star? He didn’t believe he could build a dynasty with Trout?
What dynasty has Trout built?
Well, Trout has been, through 7 seasons, the best player in baseball history. That’s a dynasty of sorts; he’s never really had a great player to pair with, and has been dragged down by playing for a team that seems to be unable to keep pitchers healthy and last year gave 636 PAs to the worst player in baseball because they owe him a lot of money. Trout is a force of nature but no player wins a baseball game by himself; this isn’t the NBA.
Definitely not the greatest player in history.
except for the whole ohtani wanting to be the only big Japanese player on the team thing
Or the story where Ohtani wanted to play with Darvish ! There were so many stories floating around!
I kinda see what kershaws saying, but either way, isn’t it better to take a chance then to wonder what if? Seems like a worthwhile try to me
I think kershaw & turner for that matter are saying it wasn’t worth it……there was no “what if”
I think what Kershaw is saying is he interrupted his offseason plans.
Or his dinner date or literally anything – his point is Ohtani was 100% not signing in the NL.
All three of them made a special effort to attend. Dave Roberts was more diplomatic about how the meeting went down, but the players all came away from it with the impression that Ohtani never seriously entertained signing with any NL team. Kershaw’s annoyance with the agent is kind of misplaced, though. The agent works for the player, so whatever he did in this process to irritate them was at the player’s direction.
Most people really dislike having their time wasted. It’s not only an imposition but the implication is their time is more valuable than yours.
I just can’t see having 3 catchers being a luxury. Especially when none of them can hit a lick. Have to think there’s no way they keep that many this time around.
From an inside sorce word has it SD going to sign JA
Ohtani was a waste of time, when you think of the years that teams like the Dodgers and Rangers wasted on him in scouting. In the the end, he wanted LA–for a movie career or something?–only the AL so he could DH on his non-pitching days. I’m glad Kershaw sat his butt down when he batted against him. Phenom? Pfft. Here’s a curve ball for you, rookie.
People should never have tj surgery for a sprained ligament. If people just rest and stretch and eat properly they will recover. The body is supposed to heal itself if taken proper care of but thats why injuries happen to begin with so its too much to expect from some people and teams want value. They dont want a long rehab or to delay a sirgery even longer. Tj is not necessary. Try yoga and eat things that rebuild ligaments. Just like a lerson with a tooth problem can go let a dentist deatroy their mouths or chew on some egg shells which are 95 percent calcium carbonate crystals. People think doctors know best. They dont. They can help people but people should learn that they can heal themselves. And juat cause most tj surgeries are successful doesnt mean yours will be. And you have to learn the same sorts of atretching and eating habits post surgery that could have healed your arm with no surgery at all so you may as well try. Stetching in a relaxed manner with breath control will fix arm problems if done properly. Most people stretch incorrectly. You just have to isolate the muscle.
I am so very glad you are not a medical professional. Or at least, I really hope you aren’t.
Stupid comment Rishi. Most TJ surgeries start as a sprained ligament, then a partial tear, then full tear (TJ).
Typical socal attitude. “They didn’t pick me, it couldn’t of been my fault so it must be some secret reason.” How about the Dodgers organization is trash? It’s always been trash and it will always be trash. Who wants to pitch with small game Kershaw? Dodgers can’t handle that players would rather play for the angels.
I didn’t realize Kershaw was such a crybaby. Shutup and play ball like you have been.
Can’t wait to see Ohtani get lit up this year as a starter. He’ll be moved to the bullpen by next year.