Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram runs through some potential September call-ups for the Rangers, listing outfielder Scott Heineman, left-hander Brady Feigl and veteran right-hander Chris Tillman as potential options who are not on the 40-man roster. Per Wilson, the Rangers are intrigued by Tillman as a potential piece for the 2019 rotation, and a September call-up would serve as an audition of sorts. Tillman hasn’t had any big league success since 2016 and has missed time with a groin injury since signing a minor league deal with the Rangers. However, he has a fairly lengthy MLB track record, and the Rangers are thin on upper-level pitching depth. At the very least, Tillman could be a candidate to head to Spring Training as a non-roster invitee in 2019, though perhaps with a strong September showing the team would consider a guaranteed deal.
Here’s more from the AL West…
- Fernando Rodney doesn’t know what the Athletics’ plans for him are as pertains to the 2019 season, but the league’s leading arrow-shooter made clear to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle last week that he has every intention of playing. Whether the A’s exercise a $4.25MM club option on Rodney remains to be seen, but the 41-year-old right-hander has certainly given his new team plenty of reason to consider retaining him. Rodney has fired off eight scoreless innings with a 7-to-2 K/BB ratio since being acquired in exchange for young righty Dakota Chalmers earlier this month. As Slusser notes, he’s four saves shy of Francisco Cordero’s all-time record for a Dominican-born player. Rodney is keenly aware of that fact, acknowledging that he’d hoped to set the record with the Twins and still has his sights set on doing so in the future.
- Angels pitcher/DH Shohei Ohtani seems to be champing at the bit to make his next major-league start after a long layoff following the diagnosis of a UCL sprain. As Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group reports on Twitter, the prized 24-year-old feels he’s ready to go after throwing fifty pitches today in a simulated game. While skipper Mike Scioscia indicated that Ohtani’s stuff is crisp, the club is surely prioritizing the long-term in deciding how to proceed. This campaign won’t end in a postseason appearance, after all, and Ohtani’s right arm is of critical importance to the Halos’ hopes in 2019 and beyond.
- Corey Brock of The Athletic takes a look at the rise of Edwin Diaz to one of the game’s elite closers (subscription required). Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto, manager Scott Servais, bullpen coach Brian DeLunas and first base coach Chris Prieto are among those to weigh in on Diaz’s ascension from a prospect who never appeared on a major Top 100 list to the second-fastest player ever to reach 100 big league saves. As Dipoto recalls, there was a fair bit of internal debate in his first offseason as GM with the team about whether to develop Diaz as a starter or a reliever. It was eventually decided to see how Diaz’s stuff would play in shorter stints and, if things didn’t go well, to then transition him back to the Majors. Diaz uncorked a 101 mph fastball on his first pitch out of the Double-A bullpen, per Dipoto, and the right-hander’s ensuing dominance made the organization’s decision fairly straightforward. Brock also chats with Astros manager A.J. Hinch and a few of Diaz’s teammates about his emergence as one of the game’s premier relievers.
- In other Seattle pitching news, the Mariners have placed southpaw Marco Gonzales on the 10-day DL with a cervical neck muscle strain, per a club announcement. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by outfielder Guillermo Heredia. As Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times writes, it’s still not clear how the M’s will address the newly opened rotation hole. While it’s possible southpaw James Paxton will be ready to go in time to take the ball on Wednesday, when Gonzales had been scheduled to start, that would mean moving up his schedule. It’s certainly not an optimal situation for a Seattle club that is trying to catch up to the division-leading Astros and Athletics. Gonzales entered the month of August with a strong 3.37 ERA, but has faded of late. He coughed up eight earned runs in just three innings in his most recent start and has seen his earned-run average climb all the way to 4.32. It has been a compelling season for the 26-year-old, regardless, but as Divish explains the southpaw may be wearing down now that he has reached 145 2/3 frames on the year — a significant workload for a pitcher who has been limited by injuries for most of the past three campaigns.
Seems kind of silly to let Ohtani pitch again this season, what is the point?
Because that’s how they’ll know if the arm needs surgery or not.
If it fails before end of September, then have surgery before end of 2018 and miss 2019 season. Wait until next season to find out there is a problem and miss remainder of 2019 season plus some of 2020.
Ohtani has not been told he needs to get TJ
Let Ohtani pitch every game, Angels!
“Because that’s how they’ll know if he needs surgery or not.”
What do you think? Every Angels pitcher has had it. You think this is different?
He should have had it in May. Then he would have been an excellent mid season addition.
Adios 2019!
No doctor has told him to have Tommy John
Those records are private, and you wouldn’t know…
Note to author: it’s UCL sprain, not strain. Muscles and tendons strain, ligaments sprain.
Guys don’t get TJ for grade 2 sprains. Guys get TJ for tears, and Ohtani does not have a tear.
Having him come back and pitch now won’t change his 2019 availability at all.. If he comes back now and has no issues, that’s the same as him not pitching at all with regard to 2019. If he comes back now and has issues they can assess whether or not to go forward with TJ and he’ll miss all of 2019, but be back for 2020. If they wait until next year to find out if he’s got issues he’ll miss all of 2019 and part of 2020. I don’t know why this is so hard for some people to understand.
I knew that! Fixed.
As for the rest, I don’t know if it’s addressed to me, but … no, the mere fact of his returning now does not specifically “change his 2019 availability.” At the same time, whether he returns (we now know he will) and what happens if/when he does will certainly have an impact on his future. You yourself explain why – “if he comes back now and has issues …” Whether and when to bring him up to full speed is obviously an important question. They want to get a look at him now rather than waiting for next spring to find out, but also surely didn’t want to put undue stress on the ligament too soon.
Yeah! Just like Tanaka!
Trader Jerry’s decision not to go after starting pitching in free agency, and at the trade deadline has caused the m’s to titanic on an iceberg.
The sole reason we lost in July (the titanic month) was because of the offense. Sure the pitching didn’t help us every game, but they averaged something like 3.2 runs a game. No one will win when that happens. Although I’d like to see a starter picked up this year in free agency. And yeah, I would’ve liked to see the trade for a starter at the deadline, but that isn’t even the sole reason as to why we took a giant slide
It didn’t help that the A’s went on their ridiculous run of wins while the Mariners were stranding RISP throughout July. Our offensive problems were exacerbated by good pitching. Losing 5 of 6 against a solid ROX pitching staff in early July sent us on a downward spiral. It also seemed as though avg SP’s were having career nights against us- CWS Dylan Covey’s 2H performance mid July comes to mind. We’ll find out just how far we’ve sunk after this week’s 4g series vs A’s
*Champing* at the bit…
Ohtani went 2-for-5 with three-run HR today. (15th HR)
He’s been RAKING August (1.115 OPS, 5 HR’s in 49AB)
Maybe that’s one reason to be encouraged about his progress
You’d want to put the word “in” after raking. “RAKING August” isn’t what you’re going for. Not really the type to bring up something like that but a lot of your posts have awkward English/incorrect wording.
Your last sentence is a run-on sentence.
Ohtani has a legit shot at the ROY trophy, and if he pitches well for the rest of the year will win it! If his arm starts up again, they can have the surgery immediatly and not lose much time. from a marketing point of view it’s smart.
I think he should be the shoo-in for AL ROY. I think it’s fair to say that the only real competition is Miguel Andujar and Gleybar Torres. Their respective OPS+ are 126 and 121. Ohtani’s is 144 and on top of that he’s thrown 9 games of 3.10 Era ball with a 11.1 k/9. This guy is going to be something even more special when he hits his prime
You’d have to have your head checked if you gave Chris Tillman a guaranteed deal. I’ll always appreciate what he did in Baltimore but he’s toast. Can’t get minor leaguers out anymore.
I am not a Angel’s fan but Shohei Ohtani should not pitch at all the rest of the season. It’s ok to give him a simulated game action etc but allow him a offseason to rest & to set him up on a revamped offseason workout program.
Wrong Brady Feigl link, Jeff and Steve.
When you both work on an article together, could I call you Steff or Jeeve to save time?
Watch real games, not numbers. Shohei Ohtani’s numbers are tricky, so weak against lefties.
vs. Left 60AB
.167 .265 .233 .498 oh well….
Everyday players should be more rewarded. Miggy for Roy.
Isn’t it “chomping on the bit.”
No. It is champing, with the ‘a’ pronounced as in ‘talk’.
And while I’m chasing you off my lawn, it’s ‘got my goad’. NOT GOAT!
Thank me later.
So the s was a different tear and it’s a matter of time if the ucl is weakened now to finish above .500 or later when you need him the most in the middle of a playoff run? Oh no, wait it’s Arte Moreno…..what playoff run.
I always thought the usage of Ohtani to be interesting. If I was manager, I’d DH him every day, then let him be the closer (effectively removing the DH in the 9th inning) it’d be much less stress on his arm and he could play just about daily keeping his bat in the lineup