Padres starter Chris Paddack appears to be ready to come off the IL to start Monday’s game in Arizona, according to Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune. Acee says that Padres manager Jayce Tingler didn’t confirm the plan, but then later listed Paddack as Monday’s starter on Twitter.
For Paddack, his third big league season has been a disappointing one, logging an ERA of 5.13 over 93 innings. That’s a spike from last year’s 4.73 and his 3.33 mark from 2019. His strikeout rate has also gone in the wrong direction. After a solid 26.9% rate in his debut season, it dropped to 23.7% last year and sits at 22.5% so far this year. However, his walk rate has stuck around 5% in every season, which is excellent. (MLB average is 8.7% this year.)
Despite those struggles, the team has certainly missed Paddack. Since the righty went on the shelf July 31st with an oblique issue, the team has been on a disastrous slide. They’ve gone 9-15 so far in the month of August, surrendering the final National League playoff spot to Cincinnati. During that time, the rotation was missing not only Paddack, but also Yu Darvish. They tried to patch over those absences with the addition of Jake Arrieta, only to see him land on the IL himself after just one start of 3 1/3 innings. With Darvish having already returned and Paddack on the way, that could allow the team to steady the ship and finish strong, as they try to retake the Reds over the season’s final weeks.
Other notes from the west…
- Rockies starter Jon Gray left last night’s start after 48 pitches. Manager Bud Black told reporters, including Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post, that the move was precautionary and related to some forearm tightness. Nick Groke of The Athletic gets a bit more granular, explaining that the injured area appears to be away from the ulnar collateral ligament, hopefully negating the worst fears of Rockies fans. Though the extent of the injury remains to be seen, it makes sense for the club to be cautious, as they are 11 games out of a playoff spot. Gray is a free agent at year’s end, but the Rockies are reportedly hoping to sign him to an extension. They will also have to decide on whether or not to issue him a qualifying offer at the end of the season. Gray would surely warrant the offer if he’s healthy. Over 806 2/3 career innings, Gray has an ERA of 4.52 while pitching primarily in the most hitter-friendly ballpark in the league, producing 15.7 fWAR.
- Rangers infielder Andy Ibanez left last night’s game with left hamstring tightness, per Kennedi Landry of MLB.com. She quotes Rangers manager Chris Woodward as being “not optimistic” about the injury. Regardless of the eventual severity of the injury, the club has every reason to be cautious, as they have one of the worst records in the league and no shot at contending. If this is the end of the season for Ibanez, it will go down as a solid rookie campaign for the 28-year-old. He’s hit .260/.304/.415, wRC+ of 96, while splitting time between first, second and third base, as well as one game in left field.
- Shohei Ohtani was hit on the hand by a pitch in last night’s game, while serving as the designated hitter. However, he stuck around for the remainder of the contest and x-rays on the hand came back negative. Angels manager Jeff Madden told reporters, including Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register, that Ohtani should be fine to make his scheduled start on Tuesday. That is good news for the club and baseball fans in general, as Ohtani is having the most unique and fascinating season that baseball has seen in quite some time, if not ever. He’s currently the MLB home run leader with 41, and has an overall slash line of .264/.363/.623, producing a wRC+ of 160 which is currently bested by only two other qualified hitters. (Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bryce Harper) All of that is combined with Ohtani’s 105 innings in the Angels’ starting rotation with an ERA of 3.00.
- The Astros could be getting a couple of players back this week. Jose Urquidy is pitching in a rehab game tonight, which could be his last before returning, according to Jake Kaplan of The Athletic. Urquidy has only been able to make 14 starts this season because of injuries but has been excellent when healthy, putting up an ERA of 3.38. It’s unclear who would be bumped from the rotation in his absence, but some have speculated that Luis Garcia could be an option. Garcia has already set a career high in innings pitched this year and has seen his results slip a bit recently. Since July 26th, he has an ERA of 4.22. The club has already moved another young starter, Cristian Javier, to the bullpen as a way to manage his workload. The Astros could also be welcoming Chas McCormick back later this week. General manager James Click told various reporters, including Mark Berman of Fox 26, that the outfielder could be back as soon as Friday. The club hasn’t suffered much in McCormick’s absence, given that Jake Meyers has been manning center field and has been on a tear. Since having his contract selected last month, in the first 20 games of his career, Meyers is slashing .323/.348/.523.
Ohtani has struck out a million times and his batting average is down to .260. Can this dolt Maddon please give this kid a day off, or at least leave him out of the lineup on days he pitches? Ohtani looks tired.
I agree, I wouldn’t say hes tired , but needs a re set day or 2. starting to figure out sliders in the dirt he chases about 75% of the time. and get him out of the lead off spot wth
Thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery.
There was an evening game against the Orioles that Ohtani struggled a bit on the mound last week. . The next day they had a game at 10AM. I thought for sure Ohtani would get the day off. He ended up leading off the game with a HR. Joe pretty much let’s Ohtani decide when he gets a day off., so I wouldn’t put it all on Joe. He is having the best season of his career so it is kind of hard to argue with results. He leads baseball in WAR and HRs, 1st in slugging and 2nd in OPS in the league behind Vlad Jr. If he does that, he can hit in the 260s or lower if he wants.
Congrats to Ohtani on joining the 40/20 club. Not bad for a pitcher.
You measure someone by 260? Wow, you really know your stuff.
He’s third in baseball in wRC+. Get your head out of 200r.
Halo, regardless of your argument, you can’t argue that his numbers have fallen off. A day or two to reset his mind and body could only help.
They have absolutely fallen off. But overall, they are still outstanding. To imply he is not outstanding because he’s hitting 260 is ridiculous.
Great idea, go back to managing him like Brad Ausmus did.
Excellent idea.
I propose that he be given this Monday & Tuesday off to recharge. It’s late August & he has been pulling double duty all season.
Hoping someone will let Madden know.
Halo11Fan welcome to the Club.I’ve had to hear how Tatis is overrated all season because of his throwing issues the first 2 months of the season.
22 yr old kid leading in almost every offensive category despite playing with a shoulder needing surgery AND missing 30+ games.
Haters gonna hate…..or they would have to admit a player not on their team is great!
Again, Ohtani is having a great season, but stop with the “maybe ever” stuff. Babe Ruth did it while pitching complete games, not 5 innings. Its basically been a century since it occurred, so kudos to Mr Ohtani, but Ruth did it w/o the game paying the salary it does now, or having the year round conditioning available today. it wasn’t common place when Ruth did it either. All credit to Ohtani for what he is doing, but you shouldn’t be writing on this site if you’re acting like you don’t know who Babe Ruth is.
Padres19. Haters gonna hate. And typically hate like this can’t exist without ignorance.
Babe Ruth won 10 games and hit 30 HRs exactly ZERO times.
As far as double duty, he’s better than Babe Ruth.
He’s not the Hitter or Pitcher Babe Ruth was, but as far as double duty, Ohtani is number one.
I’d like to see him hit with Trout hitting behind him. I guarantee you that he’ll get better pitches to hit.
As a dodgers fan I want to stand up and say many of us respect the work he puts in on the field as one of the best in the game… however your team as a whole is not very well constructed to support him. Too much bad money tied up in hosmer and will myers (granted he does come off the books soon) among others. Not to mention everyone knew emptying a lot of the farm for guys like Snell (never goes past 5 innings and is inconsistent) and Darvish (even thought I personally love him he has clear health issues the past few years) who were really big wildcards to rely upon to carry the team. Even though we don’t like you guys very much up here, I will say seeing y’all play better would be great for our rivalry and great for baseball!
So the Babe faced competition on a nightly basis like the players of today? Are you of relation to the Ruth family, because, wow, this was funny to read.
@stymeedone Ruth was a great pitcher primarily for the Red Sox. He later became a great hitter for the Yankees. He did not do them both in the same season. The talent pool was limited to white guys from the US. Now the game is inclusive of everybody. Also, player make millions nowadays. Back then players were plumbers and factory workers that played baseball rather than just baseball players. With a larger talent pool, you get better competition. Pitchers pitched in the 80s back then making it both easier to pitch and hit. They were not concerned with velocity or spin rates back then.. The game has changed a ton over the course of 100 years. Babe Ruth played in a era that hitters hit over 400. Players are not able to come close to that that ever though they are better trained and equipped to do so. Ted Williams and Joe Dimarggio could hit a lot of home runs and strike out rarely just because the pitchers were not as good back then. The torque the pitchers put on their arms today is tremendous compared to back then. That is why you see so many injuries today compared to back then even though pitchers dont pitch 300+ innings anymore. Adam Ottavino said he would strike out Babe Ruth every time if he faced him after watching footage of him., I tend to agree with him.
There is a significant difference to being able to pitch and hit well in separate seasons back in 1910-1920 and being able to do both in the same 2020.
I used “260” because it was stated in the article. Look at any numbers over the past two months – ops, etc. Theyre all down. But i don’t know what i’m looking at. Merlot Joe has it all figured out in the Angels chase for 77 wins
I wonder what Ruth could’ve done if he could have DH’ed during his career? Fact is Ohtani doesn’t have to go play 9 innings in the OF to get his AB’s on his non pitching days. I imagine this would be far more taxing on him than just taking 4-5 AB’s each game. It’s still a great feat what he has done, but It isn’t really the same.
@Donny G the hater, your Ohtani in DH’ing holds no weight. You should watch a game. Ohtani hits when he pitches most of his games even in the AL. The bottom line, Ohtani is the 1st to do both in the same season with volume. So this is actually a 1st EVER time. Appreciate
You’re the coolest. Thanks for reminding us all.
You act like .260 is some really decent batting average, although I suppose for a fair to middling team like the Angels it is.
But for the leaders in their division, the Houston Astros, that would easily be one of the worst averages in their entire lineup.
Brantley bats second with a .317 average, Jake Meyers bats eighth with a .313 average (believe it or not), Gurriel bats fifth with a .313 average, Bregman bats sixth with a .284 average, Aledmys Diaz hits .283 and fills in wherever he’s needed, Alvarez bats cleanup with a .280 average, Kyle Tucker bats seventh with a .278 average, Correa bats third with a .277 average, and Altuve leads off batting just .272 which pales in comparison to the rest of the lineup.
Hey guy, are any of the players you mentioned leading all of baseball in extra base hits? Homers? Are they the ace of the pitching staff and going to win in double figures? Striking out more than a batter an inning? Ohtani is doing something that has literally never been done in the history of the game. The man has 22 stolen bases and just stole home. He was player of the month in back to back months. No one said he’s perfect, but to find what is wrong with him is working very hard to be negative. He’s the most anticipated player in the game right now– even more than Trout or Tatis– because it’s never been done. Now, go yell at yourself in the mirror and know I still love you.
No one is pitching to Ohtani because there is no one behind him doing damage. Trout and Rendon make a huge difference. Ohtani is striking out because he’s trying to do too much and not taking the two or three walks a game that he should. i don’t see obvious signs of tiring.
In batting leadoff, there’s a big difference between not being on base via the K, or getting on base via the walk where he can use his base stealing skills, and base running skills to score runs….ever think that he’s striking out because the league has got a book on him now?
I watch every game and every at bat. I see a guy expanding his hitting zone because he has no one hitting behind him. IBB are up, walks in general are up– and he wants to swing the bat. They all slow down late in the season– look at Guerrerro’s drop off.
@Carl, your right on Ohtani. It’s simply because teams are being smart and not giving him much hit, simply because he’s tearing it up without any protection.
It all comes down to not having a big RH bat behind him. It all changes when you can stack Trout and Rendon behind him. Look out!
You herd it here first. 2022 AL MVP 2nd and 3rd place are Trout and Ohtani. 1st place a lesser player. 😉 stolen votes, but you know who the best are.
Agree. He’s Struck out almost 40 times in his last 100 AB’s with 4 hrs and 8 RBI’s. This idea he’s not getting pitched to is false. I’ve seen his AB’s and Pitchers are attacking him. He’s seeing 2-3 pitches every bat over the plate down the middle and he takes the pitch or fouls them off and is in consistent 0-2, 1-2 counts and swings at pitches in the dirt, over his head or way out side. They need to get him on the field for BP and make him start hitting balls to left. The pull happy upper cut swing isn’t working.. His 2nd half has been a disaster at the plate. How can you be so good in 1st half and be so bad in the 2nd?.
@Donny, You do know there’s some peaks and valleys in all players seasons, if not the best 5 would all hit .400 and 80 homers. Wow! This guy must be a long time Yankee homer
I still think Ryan Weathers should be arrested.
Was the only way he could strike Ohtani out lol
If you can’t beat em, bean em- probably Rich Gossage
Although the Goose wasn’t afraid to work inside (& he certainly comes across as a rather grumpy dude these days), he was just so damn competitive I don’t actually see him ever saying anything like that.
I read that he told a young pitcher that you should never allow three straight homers, the third guy should get hit
What’d he do?
“Angels manager Jeff Madden”
I mean, can’t you at least get ONE of his names right?
Ohtani, going both ways (don’t misread that) has to be exhausted. I figured he would tucker out towards the end of the season. I hope LAA with Trout & Ohtani can do better in 2022
He might be exhausted. Or it may be he seldom gets anything to hit.
Yeah doesn’t he manage the team with the superstar center fielder Matt Salmon?
It’s Marty tuna
Mark Bass
Paddack’s FIP and xFIP are both around 3.70. His BABIP is up at .326, so between bad defense behind him and some just plain bad luck he has seen his ERA go up. In my opinion, by taking the cutter out of his mix and going back to using FB up in the zone and change up and curve low in the zone like he did in his rookie season he will be closer to that 3.70 as an ERA than 5.13 going forward.
Completely agree. Last handful or two of starts have been good indicators…
No need to bump anyone for Urquidy. Go to a six man rotation.
They probably will go to a 6-man rotation whenever Greinke comes back, but only until September 26th when they’re done playing 17 straight games in 17 days. Then over the final 6 games of the season they can start to make adjustments for the playoffs. With his experience Greinke will be one of the starters alongside McCullers and Valdez. Then they need to decide between Garcia and Urquidy as their #4 starter. The other goes to the bullpen along with Odorizzi.