White Sox righty Dane Dunning recently discussed his Tommy John rehab work with MLB.com’s Scott Merkin. The 24-year-old has begun light throwing, but that’s just the start of a lengthy rebuilding process. He’s hoping to be ready for game action by early June, which would be about 15 months after his procedure. It is certainly possible that the highly regarded hurler could have an impact in the majors as soon as 2020, though odds are that he’ll spend more time regaining his footing in the upper minors. Dunning’s sterling 2018 showing was cut short by forearm issues that ultimately ended in the operating room. But he has already shown he can thrive at the Double-A level. When he is able to make it back, Dunning says he hopes to have an even “stronger foundation” to work from. He says he’s stronger, more aware of how to care for his body, and better prepared “to maintain a healthier balance through the season.”
More from the American League …
- With the Rangers continuing a tricky roster balancing act, the play of shortstop Elvis Andrus remains a key factor. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News examines the 31-year-old’s status as the 2019 campaign winds to a close. The organization can count on his three-year, $43MM future contract obligations remaining on the books, as Andrus has little reason to exercise his opt-out clause after an underwhelming season. While it’s a manageable-enough sum of money, it’d look a whole lot more palatable if Andrus was hitting near the league-average rate and performing better in the field. Instead, he has hovered at about twenty percent below average in productivity with the bat while showing inconsistency with his glove.
- Tigers southpaw Daniel Norris has been a bright spot in a dismal season in Detroit, Chris McCosky of the Detroit News writes. Norris is being handled with care down the stretch since he was so limited last season, which reflects the fact that the organization is invested in the 26-year-old’s future. To be sure, it’s not as if Norris has dominated. He has turned in stronger results of late but only owns a 4.70 ERA in 126 1/3 frames to date. As McCosky explains in detail, though, Norris has made some strides that have created a sense of optimism. The club will owe him a raise on his $1.275MM arbitration salary.
Daniel Norris is a bright spot? Because his ERA is under 6? If we’re lucky, we won’t have to see him pitch more than one inning at a time next season since that’s all he’s good for.
Norris will win 15 games within 3 years
Wins are a relatively meaningless stat. Bad pitchers can win 15 games if they get the run support.
Wins are only meaningless to the ignorant. A bad pitcher is not going to get the innings to win 15 games. Will it make them a Cy Young contender? Not necessarily. It does mean they provided valuable innings and kept their team in the game. Count how few reach 15 wins, and then tell me it’s meaningless
Exactly
“Bad pitchers can win 15 games if they get the run support.”
That’s a reach.
@maximumvelocity
To an extent, yes. But you still have to be good enough to last at least 5 innings and keep the game relatively close. Even then, you have to be pretty lucky to be bad and win 15.
And to think, I can actually remember when the W-L stat was a meaningful stat. We may never see that again in our lifetime, not the way the game has changed.
Not meaningless. The team won 15 times you started.
I agree. Within the next 3 years, Daniel Norris will have won 15 games. 3 down, 12 more to go
This is assuming he still has a job the next 3 years.
Sounds about right–5 wins a year for three years.
I agree, 4 next year 5 in 2021 and 6 in 2022
Andrus is hitting .279. He’s also having one of his better seasons on the base paths and his defense has been right in line with the rest of his career. So…
He’s not bad, but he’s gone from a 4 WAR player to around 2 WAR. And he’s only going to get older.
His SLG percentage has been way below average in 2018-19.
Andrus has never been a SLG % guy. He’s got the 3rd best SLG % of his career this season.
Elvis is not going anywhere except in the Dallas Ft.Worth area. No one wants his remaining contract so the Rangers are stuck with him. The same with Odor, no wants his “stench” contract either.
Find a spot in the bullpen for him. Only way anything works out for tigers is if the minor league arms come up and can become starters within 2 years.
Norris still is improving and has good potential. A little support and he is a 15 game winner
I hope Dunning has a full recovery and doesn’t lose anything long-term from the surgery. He has the potential to be the best of the Sox SP prospects, much of it due to his control. Yes, I know, it’s only potential, but I’d like to see what he’s truly capable of once he’s fully healed. It’s too bad they didn’t have had him go under the knife last year when he had the arm problems instead of this March (yes, I know, hindsight is a wonderful thing).
The good thing is once Dunning comes up (most likely ’21), the Sox will have a better idea of who sticks in the rotation and who goes to the pen. It’s still early, but between Giolito, Lopez, Cease, Kopech, and Dunning (along with anyone else they pick up along the way), I’m sure a good rotation will emerge from that group.
Add an established ace to that group (Cole, Madbum,…). Championship.
Cease clearly needs to figure something out. Hopefully he will have a bounce back year next season
Norris seems a bit like Nate Robertson, a real bulldog lefty.
He will be a good bridge to the younger guys for next year, but he won’t win a bunch of games without an offense.
However, if he sees a similar uptick in velocity next year similar to what JV saw a couple years after his core muscle surgery, he will be a good #5 for the next 3-4 years. Especially, if there is any fallout in the upper levels by Manning, Burrows, Mize, Perez, Faedo, and now Skubal.
Worst case, he offers a safety net if they decide to trade Boyd for hitting in the offseason and if Fulmer doesn’t bounce back quickly enough.
Cease’s game today was definitely not easy on the eyes. He might as well get the clunkers like that out of his system while the W-L totals means nothing for the Sox.
The good thing about Cease struggling this year is it will leave a bad taste in his mouth all Winter, and he will really want to prove he belongs next year. He has the skills and he shows flashes of brilliance, he just needs to make the adjustments necessary to thrive in MLB.
I think it shows that they really need someone to lead the rotation. I honestly don’t think it will be Cole or Bumgarner cause whether we want to admit it or not players are not really clamoring to play on the south side. Unless they overpay their best bet is a trade or even someone like Cole Hamels or someone winding down their career but still serviceable
@chicagofan1978
Absolutely. Giolito, Lopez, Cease, Kopech, Dunning all sound good with their potential, but whatever combination from that group emerges as the bulk of their rotation in the next couple of years, they need an experienced leader to guide them.
I don’t think it will be Cole or Bumgarner either, I think they’ll get outbid on both with the way teams like the Yankees, Boston, and both LA teams throw money around. It might be someone like Keuchel, Miley, or as you suggested Hamels (or whatever SP if they go the trade route). Someone they could sign anywhere from 2 to 4 years depending on who it is, until one of their own is ready to be the leader of the rotation.
Giolito is their ace right now, but he still has quite a bit to learn before being their leader. You need that ace or experienced leader to bring the rotation to the next level, to have the young guys learn from.
Elvis is Elvis, In any given season he’s good/he’s bad, but he has always been the rangers, steadfast cheerleader. He hits highs and lows but is the one player in MLB that can bring himself out of a slump. His defense is as good as the majority of any in baseball. He’s not perfect but very dependable and shows no signs of changing. Considering the team he’s now playing on he may think he’s back in the Minors. He doesn’t look happy.