With the season winding down, Sportsnet’s Arden Zwelling writes that both right-hander Marco Estrada and outfielder Dalton Pompey are likely nearing the end of their time with the Blue Jays. Estrada, 35, is a free agent at season’s end, and the Toronto organization has rotation locks in Aaron Sanchez, Marcus Stroman and Ryan Borucki lined up for next season, with several other younger options on hand in the organization as well. As for Pompey, Zwelling notes that he’ll be out of options in 2019 and no longer fits into a crowded outfield picture in Toronto, suggesting that the 25-year-old will either be traded to another organization or simply designated for assignment as the Jays look to protect prospects in advance of the Rule 5 Draft.
Here’s more from the division…
- Orioles prospect Hunter Harvey has suffered yet another setback in his return from elbow troubles, writes Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. The O’s had planned to send Harvey, a former Top 10 overall draft pick and once a consensus top 100 prospect, to the Arizona Fall League following the season. Those plans have been scrapped, and Harvey will cease throwing in the instructional league as well. The 23-year-old righty has already had Tommy John surgery in his young professional career, and he’s also battled shoulder troubles this year as well. There’s little doubting Harvey’s raw talent, but at this point, he’s thrown just 176 1/3 innings in parts of five professional seasons due to his inability to stay healthy. The 2018 season accounted for 32 1/3 of those frames, during which Harvey limped to a 5.57 ERA with a 30-to-9 K/BB ratio.
- Red Sox infielder Eduardo Nunez exited tonight’s game due to soreness in his right knee, tweets Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. It’s the latest in a long series of knee injuries that have hampered the versatile infielder dating back to last season. Nunez recently acknowledged that he’s played through discomfort for much of the season, posting a woeful .264/.288/.378 slash through 494 plate appearances along the way. Manager Alex Cora doesn’t believe Nunez’s injury to be serious, but he’ll be out of the lineup tomorrow at the very least. Nunez’s 400th plate appearance boosted the value of his 2019 player option from $4MM to $5MM (per WEEI’s Rob Bradford), and his ongoing knee issues create a possibility that he’ll simply opt to return at that rate for the 2019 season.
- The Yankees activated Aroldis Chapman from the 10-day disabled list earlier today, but Dan Martin of the New York Post writes that he’ll be eased back into the closer’s role as the Yanks try to be mindful of the knee issues that have slowed him in 2018. “We want to get him back in the mix,” said manager Aaron Boone. “…and in a regular role sooner than later, but we also want to make sure we are using him in big spots here down the stretch so he is firing on all cylinders as we head into October.” With Chapman, Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez all back from the disabled list, the Yankees are more or less at full strength, but they’re still likely to need to get through an upstart Athletics club the Wild Card game in order to orchestrate a return to the American League Division Series.
Yankees team is energized!
They’re saying “no celebrating in our house”
As somebody who loves the Red Sox, hates the Yankees, and couldn’t care less about the Mets…
Get out of here with that none sense.
You’re an idiot!
Nonsense is one word
Zach Britton looked really energized throwing two balls away in the 9th inning yesterday. Tonight was a scheduled loss. Tomorrow they clinch the division, you heard it here first!
Your right looks like they rested a bunch of guys tonight. Yep Jd Martinez was off oh wait no he played. Maybe it was betts, nope wrong there too. Oh I figured it out the rested Devers cause that bat has saved you all season.
Come to think of it they did pitch their 2nd best pitcher in Price. And as Pedro once said. The Yankees are his Daddy.
The only thing from last night that matters is whether or not NY is inside Price’s head. Was hoping for a good start to get him ready mentally for the playoffs.
Yankee fans are the biggest morons in the world. Don’t forget you’re still 9.5 games back
eyoung11, allow me to humble you:
David Price Since signing with Boston:
Yankee Stadium: 0-6, 9.79 ERA 13 home runs in 30.1 IP
7.71 ERA in 11 starts against the Yankees
David Price against Yankees 2018:
18 earned runs, 21 hits — 9 HR— in 15.2 IP (Four starts)
One fluke good start.
Every night is an important one right now for the Yankees, if they want to hold off the A’s for home field in the WC game…
This is true. Plus he never has been a big game pitcher. For a stat driven website it’s obvious he rarely pitches well against the Yanks. Between this and Chris Sale possibly tiring, it could be an early out for the Sox.
A’s should be more worried about Rays who are 22-5 since August 19, and 5.5 games out of the second wild card spot with 12 games left.
“Too little too late” category, I know, but I’m more fascinated in watching this stunning development. Love watching history be made.
Allow me to remind you Xabial, World Series titles in the 21st century: Red Sox 3 yankees 1
What does that have to do with xabial’s posts?
How ‘bout you tell the whole story…
It’s 3 titles in the past 100 years.
Don’t know why the multiple posts happened- sorry.
C’mon now.
What have you done for me lately? Nothing!
Rays play 7 vs Jays, 4 vs Yankees to finish the year. They control a good part of their own destiny considering the Jays can’t beat them and the 4 vs NYY are in the Trop
They’ll have to go 11-0 or 10-1 for there to even be a chance. I can’t see OAK going any worse than 5-6.
Xab, the Yankees have four games with the Rays next week. As long as the A’s do their job, they want to play at home.
LOL. Were you happy when the Yankees bought Babe Ruth from Boston? Sports today is all about today and to a lesser extent the recent past. 2004 was special because it was tge first championship any Sox fan has seen. That is becoming old news.
Hey EY-for a first time baseball fan you may not realize that the stats clock rewinds during the playoffs.
Unlike the previous round of games between the two teams, the Yankees are back to relatively good health. Combined with great late season fill in trades this is a very different team than you were laughing at.
Now JR, here’s what this series is proving;
Price can’t win at Yankee Stadium.
Where is Chris Sale this week?
Oh, I know that he wasn’t scheduled to pitch, however his whole rest vacation was planned around NOT pitching against the Yankees. His skinny arm is warm, vacation or no vacation. Sales historical results will continue to repeat and he will fade in the days ahead. Don’t be fooled by a few innings against the impotent Mets.
The Red Sox are running out of steam. A game of attrition, it will be interesting to see how the team performs when another leak springs up.
So Moron, how comfy are you with your 9.5 game lead now? Or are you one of those foolish Sox fans who clamors to regular season stats in the face of post season meltdowns?
That’s a convenient argument when you had nothing to look back on but 85 years of losing.
So let’s see, your argument is that those 85 years of losing are meaningless, yet the 2004 title is special because it’s the first time they won in 85 years. Brilliant…….
But, let’s set that nonsense aside for a moment and assume your bogus premise about “sports today” is true. Looking at the recent past of the Red Sox, you’ve got 2 embarrassing first round playoff defeats (4-1 and 4-0), preceeded by 2 last place finishes. Yeah, I’d be bragging right now too…..
That would be 3-2 idiot. 2000 is 21st century.
Wrong!
It means they may need to start Price at Fenway Park and hope the home crowd helps him. His numbers are atrocious.
Nice celebration at the stadium last night! What were you saying?
David price another wash up pitcher
Guess which team has the most wash up???
The giants
You fool. We follow our teams today and yes take pride in their history but who really cares today that a team won a championship before we were born?
Radical and will not happen but if his knee can hold up, I’d start Wright this week. Price’s past suggest he could be valuable as a jack of all trades reliever on the playoffs and yes he does scare me as a starter against NY.
The same people who are trying to give credibility to a specious argument by still calling 2004 “special.”
BTW, congrats on the name calling.
Did you stay up all night thinking of that one?
…says the guy still fangirling Dewey Evans, nearly 30 years retired.
Do you enjoy embarrassing yourself like this?
Tool, embarrassment is a bit of a stretch for a baseball forum. Come on… Anything to add to the conversation? Yankee fans can’t actually prefer the position their team is in, battling to host a wild card game.
Right, cuz name calling really adds to the conversation.
BTW, the conversation had nothing to do with preferring being a wild card.
Adjust your meds and try again to add something relevant.
Got your attention. Apologize for it though. I’m just tired of people bringing up in my view nonsense. What happen in B/W days in today’s 3D world just seems ridiculous, again to me. As far as Evans goes, tge eye test is all you need to look at to realize in his time, he was overlooked but HOF worthy. I also often plead the case of Thurman Munson although I hate the Yankees.
You are like the classiest Red Sox poster here, dewey. My top2. Which is why I’d hate to do this to you: 1:55 video, lower the volume.
Yankees’ better historical AND the present.
twitter.com/DaaaRedSoxLose/status/1042241666470621…
(Hope to) see you in the post-season.
Agreed that it would be fun for both fan bases. Appreciate the support Xab. That said, no one can change the past so why fret over it? Fast forward a couple of years and should the Mets turn it around, their fans aren’t going to care about 2017 – 2019. By the way, I have had to bite my lip when people bring up 2011, 12, 14 and 15. I ignore 2012 and Bobby V. because while it was way over the top, BV was basically following management’s orders. It is very recent so yes those last place finishes half to be part of the occasion. If they win again though the sting diminishes. The Sox and Giants are very similar.
Wow…defensive much? Turn off Jim Rome. The ‘smack’ is too funny. The question is who is better? Or did you lose focus? Last century it was clearly the Yanks. This is the century of the Sox. It’s nice that NY had a good season to make it a rivalry again. However, this season Boston is far superior. Wishful thinking that NY is poised for a postseason run.
equation.
And Cora is saying with his managerial decisions “I don’t care about winning, so I’ll leave my RHP to face Walker instead of bringing in the lefty. And I won’t bother having Mookie bat with the game on the line in the 9th.”.
(Walker is a switch-hitter and Mookie was not going to play in a bench-driven game while he’s presumably hurt)
Walker has drastic splits, but you’re right when it comes to Mookie. They have the division, but after that who knows?
As an O’s fan I was quite excited to see Harvey join Bundy (and formerly Gausman) in the rotation, but Harvey now looks done. How fragile pitching can be….
Bundy, gausman, Harvey, Matusz, Britton… am I forgetting anyone? Waaaay too much talent has passed through the Orioles with nothing to show. Have there been any changes in the development of pitchers? If not, I expect the same from Rodriguez.
Well Britton was developed wonderfully actually. And despite the numbers right now Bundy (for those who have watched him, at beginning of the year and the last few starts) has terrific stuff too.
As for forgetting: well, Arietta.
Terrific stuff and developing a pitcher are polar opposites. Nobody doubts that bundy has talent. He just looks up and watches the ball sail over the fence every other inning. As for matusz he was out of the league a year after leaving Baltimore. Harvey’s just been plagued by injuries. No fault on the orioles for that, it’s unfortunate but part of the game.
A’s are coming…
To Yankee stadium for the Wild Card game…
To beat the Yankees and knock them out of the 2018 playoffs.
Reality calling, you should really pickup…
I respect but disagree with the word choice herein Steve. Since when is batting .264 woeful? Are his numbers disappointing especially from the first half? Yes, but battling an injury hitting .264 is not woeful. His power numbers are down from when they got him last year but who expected a repeat? The injuries have affected his speed and defense, especially at 2B. Please reassess some word choices both positive and negative. Otherwise I love these posts and appreciate the efforts.
Obviously my above post is about Nunez.
A 288 OBP is quite woeful, as is a 378 SLG. Those are quite woeful numbers for a corner infielder, especially one with bad defense.
You’re getting a lot of downvotes, but that doesn’t change the fact that you’re 100% correct. Nunez has regressed to the mediocrity of his Yankees days. That isn’t my opinion — that’s the stats talking.
You mean Nunez of the $.10 cent head! I agree, this is exactly why the Yankees parted ways with him…..he kills you with his decision making and when he blows it…oh boy he really does.
His Red Sox debut had them howling about how he is reborn because he’s a Red Sox…..when Pigs fly!
Help me understand $.10 cent. Is there a place value issue?
His contract is not of a top power hitting corner player. He was signed as a utility guy who could provide meaningful insurance for Pedroia and Devers. Unfortunately his knee is not right. I blame the Sox doctor if anyone. Anyone watching knows Nunez when healthy is a good bat with speed.
Nunez has never played good D.
He’s a role player who performs well ONLY up to a limited amount of games and fades quickly when over exposed.
You can’t just ignore obp…
That slashline as a whole IS woeful. That OPS is 149th out of 161 MLB batters with 450 PA. He’s one of the worst hitters in MLB who plays almost everyday.
He’s clearly hurt. I guess many posters would argue he should play through it if he stayed on the DL. Look at what everyone said at the beginning of this year about Brock Holt.
Hunter Harvey was the 22nd pick in the draft. Definitely not a top 10 selection.
Why was Chapman thrown into a close game when the Yankees said, we’ll ease him back into the game? Two nights ago, the Yankees were winning a blowout, but no Chapman while last night he was brought into a tight game situation with the Red Sox. The 2018 Yankees are the most mismanaged ball club in their history. I’ve never seen such a dysfunctional team with so much talent.
Yeah, I am with you. I have not liked Boones handling of the pen this season. Boone could be possibly bringing a positive effect on the team with the clubhouse management (though, there is no way to really know) but his in game management is awful. Last weekend against the Jays he decided to just give up in the 7th inning and put in the worst version of Kahnle followed by a September call up. So when the Yankees hit 2 solos and a grandslam they were still down by 1. Thanks Boone