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Archives for April 2021

Braves Acquire Edgar Santana From Pirates

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9:27 am: Santana’s suspension has been served and he is eligible to return to the active roster, per David O’Brien of the Athletic (Twitter link).

8:05 am: The Braves are acquiring right-hander Edgar Santana from the Pirates in exchange for cash considerations, per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). Pittsburgh designated Santana for assignment earlier this week.

A few years ago, Santana looked to have solidified himself as a reliable bullpen arm in Pittsburgh. In 84.1 innings between 2017-18, he managed a solid 3.31 ERA/3.77 SIERA. Santana didn’t miss many bats for a reliever (21.0% strikeout percentage), but he was quite good at avoiding free passes (6.8% walk rate) and racked up ground balls at a decent 45.6% clip.

Unfortunately, Santana suffered a torn UCL and required Tommy John Surgery in October 2018. The timing of the procedure cost him the entire 2019 season. Santana was then hit with an 80-game PED suspension last June, keeping him out of action for all of last year’s abbreviated season.

Nearly three years removed from his most recent game action, it’s unclear whether Santana will be able to recapture any of his former promise. He does still have a pair of minor-league option years remaining, so he’ll give the Braves some additional bullpen flexibility if the front office is sufficiently impressed with his current form to keep him on the 40-man roster. Atlanta freed up a 40-man spot (and thinned out its righty bullpen depth) in the Orlando Arcia trade earlier this week, so no corresponding move is necessary to accomodate Santana’s arrival.

MLB Inspecting “Suspicious Baseballs” From Trevor Bauer’s Latest Start

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10:41pm: If the league attempts to punish Bauer, the union “would challenge any discipline not covered under current rules,” Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times tweets.

8:09pm: Major League Baseball announced last month that it plans to crack down on pitchers doctoring baseballs. Now, one of the game’s highest-profile pitchers, Dodgers right-hander Trevor Bauer, is under the league’s microscope, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Bauer started against the Athletics on Wednesday, when he yielded two earned runs on 10 strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. The umpires from that game have since collected multiple “suspicious baseballs” that Bauer threw, according to Rosenthal, who writes that they “had visible markings and were sticky.” As Rosenthal notes, though, the league may not be able to prove whether it was Bauer who doctored the ball, so it’s unclear whether it will discipline him.

Of course, the fact that the league’s looking at Bauer is especially intriguing when considering some of the past comments the outspoken 30-year-old has made in regards to potential cheating. He accused Astros pitchers of using illegal means in 2018 in an effort to increase their spin rate, and he then called the team “hypocrites” and “cheaters” last year.

Bauer had a career campaign in 2020 as a member of the Reds, with whom he won the National Cy Young, before signing a three-year, $102MM guarantee with the Dodgers in free agency. The returns so far have been promising, as Bauer has posted 20 strikeouts against three walks while giving up six runs on six hits in 13 innings, though this latest development is unwelcome for him and the Dodgers.

AL Injury Notes: Astros, L. Bard, Ray, Pinder

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Astros southpaw Framber Valdez hasn’t pitched in the majors this season on account of a broken finger, though he did return to throwing from flat ground Thursday, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. While general manager James Click called Thursday’s session a “tremendous step forward” for Valdez, there still isn’t a clear timetable for a potential 2021 debut. Valdez broke out last season with 70 2/3 innings of 3.57 ERA/3.23 SIERA ball, an elite 60 percent groundball rate, and terrific strikeout and walk percentages of 26.4 and 5.6, respectively.

More injury-related items from Houston and a couple of other American League teams…

  • Angels right-handed reliever Luke Bard will undergo season-ending hip surgery, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic was among those to report. He’ll need six to eight months to recover from the procedure. Bard was already set to miss a significant amount of time this season, as the Angels sent him to the 60-day injured list shortly before the campaign began. Although the 30-year-old’s high spin rate has made him a potential breakout candidate since he debuted with the Angels in 2018, he has only managed a 5.05 ERA through 66 innings – including 5 1/3 frames in 2020.
  • The Blue Jays hope lefty Robbie Ray will return to the rotation this week, according to Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star (via Twitter). The southpaw threw 63 pitches in a simulated game yesterday. The last hurdle to clear is just seeing how he feels over the next couple of days.
  • The Athletics placed infielder/outfielder Chad Pinder on the IL because of a left knee sprain, but it appears he’ll sit out for a lot longer than the 10-day minimum. Pinder is is week to week and not participating in any baseball activities, per Martin Gallegos of MLB.com. The 29-year-old opened the season as one of the Athletics’ main outfielders before going down, and they’ve since used Ka’ai Tom, Stephen Piscotty, Tony Kemp and Seth Brown in the corners to help fill the void.
  • Astros reliever Enoli Paredes left their game Thursday with a trainer, Rome tweets. The righty exited after throwing just three strikes out of 13 pitches and walking the only two batters he faced. Control has been a problem in all three appearances this year for Paredes, who has walked six hitters in 1 1/3 innings. Paredes also put up a below-average walk rate of 12.2 percent in his rookie year in 2020, but he still notched a 3.05 ERA (with a much less inspiring 4.63 SIERA) over 20 2/3 frames. [UPDATE: Paredes “did something to his side,” manager Dusty Baker said (via Rome). The Astros should know more Friday.]

NL Injury Notes: Wong, Akiyama, Goldy, Davis

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Brewers second baseman Kolten Wong departed the team’s game against the Cardinals on Thursday after re-aggravating his left oblique, manager Craig Counsell told Andrew Wagner of the Wisconsin State Journal and other reporters. It’s the same issue that kept Wong from playing Wednesday, and Counsell said (via Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) there’s a “distinct possibility” that he’ll require a trip to the injured list. Wong, previously with St. Louis, joined the Brewers on a two-year, $18MM contract during the offseason. If he does have to miss time shortly into his Brewers tenure, it would be another blow to the middle infield depth of a team that traded Orlando Arcia to Atlanta earlier this week. The Brewers did add veteran Dee Strange-Gordon on a minor league contract Thursday, though Daniel Robertson – who replaced Wong when he exited – would be the favorite to handle most of the reps at the keystone.

  • The Reds are planning to have Shogo Akiyama back with the team in early-to-mid May, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports (via Twitter). Akiyama started slowly for the Red last season, but he was able to adjust and post a strong second half. At least so far, however, the Reds have managed just fine without him. Tyler Naquin has helped fill the void with a massive start to the season. With Nick Senzel, Jesse Winker, Nick Castellanos, and Aristides Aquino on the roster, the Reds are in no real hurry to upset the apple cart, so to speak.
  • Paul Goldschmidt was scratched from today’s Cardinals game because of lower back tightness, per MLB.com’s Zachary Silver (via Twitter). The move was precautionary, so presumably the Cardinals don’t expect this to lead to an IL placement. Manager Mike Shildt said after the game that Goldschmidt’s day to day, and the Cardinals will know more about his status Friday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News tweets.
  • The Mets received some good news on J.D. Davis. X-rays came back negative on his bruised left hand, Tim Healey of Newsday relays (via Twitter). Davis does not appear to be headed to the injured list, though he remained out of the lineup for the Mets’ home opener today. Jonathan Villar took his place at the hot corner. Villar got the start at third base today for the first time since 2016. Luis Guillorme would also be in line to see a bump in playing time while Davis is on the shelf. It’s not clear, however, how much time Davis will miss.

Trevor Rosenthal Undergoes Thoracic Outlet Surgery

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APRIL 8: Rosenthal underwent thoracic outlet surgery Thursday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com tweets. He’ll be re-evaluated in eight weeks.

APRIL 7: After opening the season on the injured list due to a shoulder problem, Athletics closer Trevor Rosenthal could now require thoracic outlet surgery to address the injury, manager Bob Melvin announced to reporters Wednesday (Twitter link via Shayna Rubin of the San Jose Mercury News). It’s a sudden and troubling development for a struggling A’s club. The procedure would come with “at least” a 12-week recovery time, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. The right-hander is weighing his options and is expected to make a decision in the near future.

Rosenthal, 30, spent much of the offseason seeking a lucrative multi-year deal after turning in an absolutely dominant performance between the Royals and the Padres last season. However, when he wasn’t able to find a long-term deal to his liking, the hard-throwing righty opted for a one-year deal at a strong $11MM rate to serve as the closer at the pitcher-friendly O.Co Coliseum.

It was a surprise investment for an A’s club that spent most of the winter idling on the sidelines as teams throughout the league sifted through the free-agent market. Only after the A’s were able to shed a notable portion of Khris Davis’ contract did they enter the free-agent waters, and even then, their initial expenditures were modest, one-year commitments to Yusmeiro Petit, Sergio Romo and Mitch Moreland. Rosenthal was an entirely different type of spend, and it’s now an open question whether they’ll get any real return on what was a major splash by their standards.

Thoracic outlet syndrome is the latest in a series of setbacks for Rosenthal, who broke into the league as one of the game’s most dominant young relievers with the Cardinals but has since struggled to stay healthy. Tommy John surgery wiped out Rosenthal’s entire 2018 season, and when he returned with the Nationals in 2019, he developed a sudden case of the yips. Rosenthal walked 26 of the 85 batters he faced between Washington and Detroit that season. He also hit another four batters and snapped off nine wild pitches in just 15 1/3 innings. He tried to find himself with the Yankees’ Triple-A club but faced just five hitters with Scranton, issuing three walks, hitting a fourth batter and throwing another wild pitch.

Those immense struggles made Rosenthal’s comeback in 2020 all the more remarkable. Not only did he rediscover some big league success, he emerged as one of the most dominant relievers in all of baseball. Through 23 2/3 innings between Kansas City and San Diego, Rosenthal notched a 1.90 ERA with an overpowering 41.8 percent strikeout rate, a strong 8.8 percent walk rate and a fastball that averaged 98.1 mph. It was vintage Rosenthal.

From here, the future is sadly muddied once again. The track record for pitchers coming back from thoracic outlet surgery is generally poor, and few pitchers have undergone both Tommy John surgery and a TOS procedure in such close proximity. Matt Harvey is the most prominent example of a pitcher to undergo both operations in a short time, missing the 2014 season due to Tommy John and then undergoing TOS midway through the 2016 campaign. Obviously, he’s been unable to rediscover the dominant form he displayed early in his career.

There are certainly success stories among pitchers who’ve had surgery to correct thoracic outlet syndrome. Recently retired righty and current Rangers general manager Chris Young credited the procedure with saving his career, and Rosenthal’s former Cardinals teammate, Jaime Garcia, enjoyed a productive three-year stretch upon returning from his own TOS operation.

For the Athletics, the new development on Rosenthal means they’ll be extra reliant on veterans like Romo, Petit and Jake Diekman in the late innings. Right-handers Lou Trivino and J.B. Wendelken have had their share of success in the big leagues as well; Wendelken in particular has been quietly dominant dating back to 2018. The A’s also have a former top 10 overall pick, left-hander A.J. Puk, as an intriguing option in the ’pen this year as he looks to put his own injury woes in the rearview mirror.

George Springer Suffers Quad Strain

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APRIL 8: Springer has a low-grade strain, according to manager Charlie Montoyo. He’s unlikely to debut until at at least April 15, Scott Mitchell of TSN tweets.

APRIL 7: Blue Jays center fielder George Springer looked as if he could make his 2021 debut Thursday, but there’s no longer a chance of that happening. Springer felt tightness in his right quad while running the bases on Tuesday and has undergone an MRI, Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star was among those to report. The Jays are still awaiting the results of Springer’s MRI.

When Toronto signed Springer to the largest guarantee in free agency – a six year, $150MM pact – the hope was obviously that he would be part of their lineup beginning Opening Day. But the three-time All-Star suffered a Grade 2 left oblique strain during spring training, which has prevented him from debuting this year, and this latest issue will keep him out for at least a little more time. Springer appeared in 140 or more games in each season with the Astros from 2016-18, but he missed 40 contests in 2019 and sat out nine times during the abbreviated 2020 campaign.

The Blue Jays planned to enter the season with Teoscar Hernandez and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. flanking Springer in the outfield. Sans Springer, they have mostly turned to Randal Grichuk in center. Grichuk has gotten off to a hot start and helped offset Springer’s absence, though there’s no doubt the latter is the better option when he’s healthy.

Diamondbacks Place Ketel Marte On 10-Day Injured List, Recall Andrew Young

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The Diamondbacks have placed Ketel Marte on the 10-day injured list with a right hamstring strain, the team announced. Andrew Young has been recalled from the Taxi Squad to take his roster spot.

This is a tough blow for the Diamondbacks, who are off to a 2-4 start this season. Marte is off to an incredible .462/.500/.846 start to the season, already posting 0.7 fWAR in six games. The long-term outlook is as of yet unclear. That said, the initial plan was to have Marte assessed with an MRI tomorrow in Phoenix before making an decision, per MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert (via Twitter). That they went ahead and made the move prior to that evaluation isn’t a great sign.

Young, 26, came to the Diamondbacks from the Cardinals as part of the Paul Goldschmidt deal. He made his Major League debut last season with 34 plate appearances across 12 games. Young, like Marte, can move around the diamond defensively. Tim Locastro is playing centerfield today, where Marte started each of the first six games.

Upcoming Changes To MLBTR Commenting Policy

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My April 6th poll regarding the MLBTR comment section received over 5,800 responses, and the post had over 650 comments.  The MLBTR readership is passionate about how we handle commenting on sensitive topics like domestic violence, COVID-19, and politics.  The poll results:

  • 67.1% would like comments to remain closed on posts related to domestic violence
  • 63.8% would like comments to remain closed on posts related to COVID-19
  • 56.6% would like comments to remain closed on posts related to politics, such as MLB’s decision to move the All-Star Game out of Georgia
  • 74.4% would like MLBTR to continue attempting to remove comments that are unrelated to the topic of the post
  • 73.0% would use a button that allows you to mute specific commenters

I gave this data a lot of thought, and I also gave consideration to the individual comments left on the post.  I’ve gotten emails from people saying that they’re done with MLBTR because we have been closing comments on sensitive topics.  I’ve also gotten emails from people saying they will stop visiting MLBTR if we open comments on sensitive topics.  I hope people don’t leave.  We’re doing the best we can.  It’s clear there’s not a solution that will make everyone happy.

After much deliberation, here is what I’ve decided to do.  These new policies are subject to change.

  • We are going to create a mute button.  You will be able to easily mute all comments from a specific user, which will include the entirety of a thread started by that person.
  • We are going to continue closing comments on domestic violence posts.  I’m glad two-thirds of respondents agree with that choice.  There isn’t really a baseball discussion I want to host on those posts.
  • We are going to open comments on COVID-19 posts.  We started closing these over a year ago, when there was a lot unknown about COVID.  At this point, I hope it’s possible to discuss the implications of baseball COVID cases on rosters without debating the disease itself.  I don’t see why a baseball website should host political opinions or arguments on COVID.  This will be a test to see whether those comment sections can be apolitical.
  • We are going to open comments in cases where baseball and politics intersect, such as MLB’s decision to move the All-Star Game out of Georgia.  This was a difficult decision.  My feeling is that each individual already has the ability to “close” comments on a given post, by not clicking to reveal its comments.  I lean toward putting the power in the hands of readers: if you feel that the comments on certain posts or topics are not worth reading, you should not read them.  And if you do decide to wade into a sensitive topic, that is at your own risk, and you’ll have the ability to mute people you feel are not adding value.  You’ll also have the “flag” button for comments that violate our policy, which will be added to the Trade Rumors iOS app soon.
  • With the above point in mind, I am going to make a few changes to ensure that viewing the comments is an intentional experience.  On desktop web as well as the iOS app, rather than have the comments show automatically below the post, we are going to put in a View Comments button, similar to what we’ve long had on mobile web.  You will have to purposely click View Comments to see them.

As a reminder, our commenting policy still requires that you avoid the following:

  • Attacks, insults, or trolling toward other commenters, the MLBTR staff, journalists, team personnel, players, or agents
  • Otherwise harassing other commenters in any way
  • Commentary that is unrelated to the subject matter of the post.  Take special note of this one.  74% of respondents don’t want off-topic comments, and once comments are open on COVID-19 and political posts, there will be little excuse for that.  A post about a Braves IL move is not an opening to discuss the All-Star Game decision; there will be a contained post for that.
  • Inappropriate language
  • Inappropriate avatars or images
  • Spam links or self-promotion
  • Personal contact information in the comments section

Specifically when it comes to attacks, insults, trolling, and harassment, doing this will still get you banned.  It is also important to note that we don’t try to assess who “started it,” and someone else getting away with a violation doesn’t justify yours.  We catch as much as we can.  If someone trolls or insults you, we ask that you flag their comment and resist the temptation to respond in kind.  Once the mute button is available, we will ask that you flag their comment and then mute them.

As I mentioned, this is subject to change.  If we find that commenting policy violations increase drastically and/or require a greatly increased amount of moderation time from our staff, we may choose to close comments to better focus on the core aspects of running MLB Trade Rumors.

These policy changes will go into effect when our mute button is rolled out on the website, likely by the end of April.  Until then, this policy remains in place.  The mute option will not initially be available in the Trade Rumors app, but we’ll get to work on that.  Once that’s done I intend to turn our focus to other ways we can improve MLBTR, and I’ll be surveying readers on that topic.

White Sox Place Billy Hamilton On Injured List, Call Up Nick Williams

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The White Sox placed Billy Hamilton on the injured list after he tweaked his hamstring in yesterday’s ballgame. Nick Williams has been called up to take his place on the roster  while Jace Fry was moved to the 60-day injured list. Williams had to be added to the 40-man roster, per the Athletic’s James Fegan (via Twitter).

Williams will get right into the action today. He is starting in left and batting seventh against the Royals. Williams, 27, was hardly Plan A for the White Sox this season, but he’ll have his cleats in the grass for their home opener nonetheless. Eloy Jimenez, of course, was the scheduled left fielder, but he tore his pectoral in the spring and will be out for four to five months.

Rookie Andrew Vaughn has split time in left with Hamilton to start the season. Leury Garcia has been one option for left, but he’s experiencing some leg tightness of his own, though he is available off the bench, notes Fegan. Garcia may also be needed at shortstop while Tim Anderson is on the injured list. Danny Mendick gets the start at short today.

As for Williams, he’ll be making his first Major League appearance since 2019. He hit .254/.313/.420 in 903 plate appearances with the Phillies from 2017 to 2019, a 94 wRC+ for his career. His role with the Phils was largely usurped by Bryce Harper as he saw his playing time and productivity diminish significantly in 2019. Prior to that season, he had posted a 110 wRC+ and 102 wRC+ in back-to-back seasons.  He signed with the White Sox this past January.

Red Sox Activate Eduardo Rodriguez

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The Red Sox have officially activated Eduardo Rodriguez for his much-anticipated first start of the 2021 season, the team announced. He will take the hill for today’s ballgame against Baltimore. Rodriguez, of course, will be making his first start since 2019 after missing last season due to myocarditis brought on by COVID-19. Rodriguez began this season on the injured list because of elbow inflammation.

It’s somewhat appropriate that Rodriguez be able to make his return against the Orioles, with whom he spent many of his development years. He came to the Red Sox in a deadline deal for Andrew Miller in July of 2014. He would make his debut for the Red Sox the following season, and he’s been a key piece of their rotation ever since.

The corresponding roster move was made yesterday when Tanner Houck was optioned to Boston’s alternate training site. He appeared in two games, starting one, totaling six innings. He gave up two earned runs on seven hits, but also managed an impressive 10:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Houck will almost certainly be back this season, potentially as early as next week as the Red Sox kick off a 16-game stretch without a day off, beginning this Saturday.

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