We’ll round up the latest health news from around MLB on this Sunday morning.
- Blake Snell will return to spring training action Monday, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. A bullpen session Friday went according to plan, Topkin adds, so the Rays feel comfortable allowing the 2018 AL Cy Young winner to begin building up innings in-game. It’s possible Snell won’t quite be ready for Opening Day, but it seems the cortisone shot he received in his throwing elbow last week isn’t indicative of any long-term issue.
- Indians’ right-hander Carlos Carrasco has been slowed recently by “mild elbow inflammation,” tweets MLB.com’s Mandy Bell. At this point, the club doesn’t consider the issue a great concern, Bell adds. A full, healthy season from Carrasco would certainly be a plus for Cleveland, who has traded away Trevor Bauer and Corey Kluber in the past calendar year and saw Mike Clevinger go down for the season’s first month-plus with a partial meniscus tear.
- Royals’ shortstop Adalberto Mondesi has yet to make his spring training debut thanks to the shoulder surgery he underwent last September. His rehab was “paused” recently due to some soreness, manager Mike Matheny told reporters (via Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com), but a visit Friday with his surgeon confirmed Mondesi is on schedule in his recovery. Kansas City continues to hold out hope the talented 24-year-old will be able to return by Opening Day.
- Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register has the latest on a few Dodgers’ health situations. Mookie Betts has missed a few games of action with food poisoning, but he could return to the lineup Monday, manager Dave Roberts tells Plunkett. Meanwhile, Joc Pederson will make his first spring training start in minor-league camp today as he recovers from a hip injury, while right-hander Jimmy Nelson is set for a bullpen session. Nelson was briefly shut down with groin discomfort two weeks ago.
I have a bad feeling about this season.. On paper, put us in the World Series!! Im just hoping this isn’t an injury bug year once again that won’t allow us to play to our full potential.
You are clearly talking about the Padres, right.
The Dodgers will win the World Series this year and sign Betts as a free agent.
No, they won’t win the World Series. I believe they’ll sign Mookie Betts long term, but they have a massive glaring problem nobody’s talking about. Garbage closer, weak overall bullpen and staters. Clayton is on and down slope fast, who knows what price will bring, and outside of Bueler they don’t have much to trust. They’re gonna be hit hard. I’d love to see it for Roberts, I just don’t trust any of the pitching issues they have.
If you consider Kershaw going downhill then I guess most starters are going downhill. He is still a very effective starter and one of the best in the game. kenely had one mediocre year so I wouldn’t consider the closer garbage and most teams would kill to have a bullpen like that. Plus they have an abundance of depth that is very enviable.
It’s nice to know someone has a nice big and perfectly clear crystal ball. Got any stock market tips while you’re making impossible predictions?
How can anybody know what will happen in the regular season let alone the postseason seven freaking months from now? But one thing we should know now is the Dodgers have actually done quite a bit to shore up their bullpen by adding Treinen and Graterol. Kershaw on the “downslope” is still one of the top pitchers in the game, and Buehler is poised to inherit the team ace mantle. If Price isn’t the number three they need I feel certain they will go shopping in July. After that the “issue” they have is filling the other two rotation slots with two of Urias, Wood, May, Stripling, or Gonsolin. I suspect every team in baseball would kill to be stuck with that “issue.” So the “massive glaring problem nobody is talking about” isn’t being talked about because it doesn’t exist.
As for Betts, his being a Dodger this year has no bearing on where he signs out of free agency. Short of some sort of major injury during the season he will receive lots of rich offers next winter. The other thing we should know is the Dodgers have never guaranteed anyone even a quarter of what he’ll get in free agency. So no crystal ball is needed to handicap that race, the Dodgers are a long shot right out of the gate.
I agree about the Dodgers signing Betts after this season. I think he will be too pricey and it is not Friedman’s style to offer the biggest contract. I think the Dodgers mainly made that trade for this season and will just wait and see if he likes L.A. enough to potentially take a bit less to stay. Regardless, I think it was a good trade, and Price may surprise a lot of people. He no longer will be relied upon to be a top of the rotation guy and has said he feels completely healthy. No one can tell the future, but life is about probability and right now the Dodgers look more stacked than any team in the NL, for sure. The bullpen and rotation are both improved over last season and the position player depth is ridiculous.
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So Blueskies apparently has said crystal ball…since bullpen issue doesn’t “exist”. But an educated guess would be in favor of bullpen being mediocre based in last year’s performances from Treinen and Jansen. Nobody knows how the rook Graterol will do…cept you dog!
BlueSkies I think one of the young arms (Urias, May or Gonsolin) will emerge in 2020. That is all the Dodgers need to push Price to the #4 slot heading into October baseball. The Dodgers have quality arms in the bullpen and they should improve from 2019 regardless of what happens to Jansen.
I think the biggest concerns is the bats going cold in October and Dave Roberts. Not sold on him as the manager to get it done.
I was responding to the argument that pitching was going to be a “massive glaring problem” by pointing out who they’ve got, the talent coming up and the improvements made in the offseason. Try to stick with what has actually been said and actually exists, it helps.
May is probably going to start the season in the minors (I believe he’s in minors spring camp now) but he could easily return to the majors during the season. Urias will be a starter and is the best bet to work his way up from the bottom to the middle of the rotation. Jansen can’t be treated as the default closer any longer, and not especially on consecutive days, but they have two other options now that were not available last year.
The bats going cold in October is a preparation issue (even Friedman has admitted as much), and if you don’t like Roberts’ handling of lineups and pitchers and such then talk to the FO. He’s managing the team their way.
The same Dodgers with the number one ranked bullpen 2 years in a row? Those Dodgers?
Dodgers bullpen was ranked #9 last year by ERA with a 3.85, but whatever.
Buehler and Kershaw is as good a 1, 2 punch as almost any team in baseball. Buehler is already one of the top 10 starters in baseball and is still improving. Kershaw was throwing to guys who knew what was coming in the playoffs. Urias was the consensus best pitching prospect in the game a couple of years ago and has done anything but disappoint so far in his major league career. If he is healthy he will break out as a starter this year.
The Dodgers have a wicked offense this year. Their starting staff is miles ahead of the Yankees. Their only problem is their bullpen. Nobody in that pen can be legitimately depended upon at this point. But if the BP is their only problem, they can easily address that at the trade deadline. They may have to overpay, but it will be worth it for a WS victory. They have more prospects to offer than anybody, and the best closer in the game should be available at the deadline and plays just down the coast.
I am a Padre fan, so when I tell you the Dodgers are good you know it is anything but Homerism.
LMAO…The fact anyone sees the Dodgers as having a pitching depth problem is incredibly beyond absurd!!
Their #’s 6 and 7 starting options would be alot of teams #3 or #4…
I’m not even a Dodgers fan, and I know they have stud starter after stud starter in Kershaw, Buehler, Price, May, Urias, Stripling, Gonsolin, Woody, and they have Graterol, M.White, V.Gonzalez, and Nelson that have previously been used as solid starters…
That isn’t even counting whatever options I’m missing that’ll be pitching in AA or AAA..
Although, with just those guys above, you’re talking about 8 starters that could ALL easily put up above average numbers, and literally NO ONE would be surprised by it…
Countless teams are struggling just to fill out their 5 man rotations with THREE above average starters..!!!
By someone saying the Dodgers lack starting depth, that basically tells me he/she knows absolutely NOTHING about baseball whatsoever..From then on, nothing that person says can be taken seriously..What a joke..
Graterol threw 100 mph in last work has had 2 good outing. I think he will be great for years to come.
weak overall bp and starters? love to see it for roberts? clown post.
Call me fuzzy your clown. All you’ve gotta do is actually know how to decipher numbers. But I’m sure the started will all win 20.
You bitter the Cubs are not even trying? You guys won’t win another WS in your lifetime.
Decipher the numbers? You are pulling this out of your butt.
Oh they will. When did the indians last win? I mean we know they choked in 2016..
The only numbers you’ve deciphered is how to budget your weekly allowance..Get out of here with your obvious trolling.
The Dodgers are the golden standard of the NL, and any franchise would swap rosters and their affiliates rosters (which means their minor leagues rosters) with them in a heartbeat..
Dodgers don’t have the starting pitching for playoffs . Buehler is a stud but kershaw aged and chokes , lost ryu and maeda in pen/start if needed
Easy to choke when they know what pitch is coming.
Hoping this means the Tribe is just getting injury issues out of the way during Spring Training, and that it’ll be an injury-free regular season. Hoping…
Sorry my Cleveland friend. At best I think your third in the central. I mean Incase you have noticed Chicago and Minnesota are LOADED to the hilt. Start rebuilding like Detroit.
The Twins will be trotting out Homer Bailey every five days. I like my chances as an Indian fan.
Lol ya as a 5th starter. Cleveland isn’t sure who the third fourth or fifth starter is going to be.
The same 4th and 5th starters that helped them win 93 games last year.
Bailey is the Twins 4th starter to start the year. I will take Clevinger, Bieber, Carrasco, Civale, and Pleasac any day over the Twins rotation.
Something tells me Yankees fans have similar feelings right now.
Food poisoning LoL probably got it from a Red Sox fan.
Are you saying that Betts is a cannibal?
And a fine young one, at that!
Was that early or late 90s? Either way those cannibals creeped me out more than the ones in the original “The Hills Have Eyes.”
“Papa Jup?”
“Papa Jup. We ‘bout ready!”
Last night I had a dream that a hamburger was eating me!