Matthew Boyd Exits Start Due To Triceps Issue
10:50pm: Tigers manager A.J. Hinch tells reporters in his postgame session that Boyd felt something abnormal in his triceps during the third inning (Twitter link via Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic). They’ll know more following an additional wave of tests tomorrow, but Hinch suggested a cautious approach is likely to be taken.
9:25pm: Tigers lefty Matthew Boyd is being evaluated after exiting tonight’s start during the third inning with what the team is terming “left arm discomfort,” per a club announcement. Boyd signaled into the dugout for a trainer to come out after 2 1/3 innings of work against the Royals tonight (video link).
While the hope is that he’ll avoid any notable injury, the departure of such an obvious trade candidate this time of year is plenty notable. Boyd has pitched quite well thus far in 2021, bouncing back from an awful 2020 season to post a 3.44 ERA through his first 70 2/3 innings. His 19.6 percent strikeout rate is his lowest since 2017, but Boyd’s 6.4 percent walk rate is also the second-best mark of his career (narrowly trailing a 6.3 percent mark from 2019).
Boyd, 30, was a popular target on the trade market a couple years back, but the Tigers had more than three years of control over him at that point and opted to hold on with the hope of extracting a better offer at some point down the road. Unfortunately, Boyd took a step back in 2019 and then had the worst year of his career in 2020, so that opportunity has yet to present itself.
At this point, the Tigers control Boyd for just one more year after the current season, making him perhaps one of the likeliest players in all of baseball to be dealt — assuming he’s healthy. He’s earning a reasonable $6.5MM salary in 2021 and has been more effective than ever before against right-handed opponents, in part due to an increase in the use of a changeup that has generally befuddled opposite-handed opponents.
Opposing hitters are batting just .224/.246/.343 in the 69 plate appearances Boyd has finished off with a changeup, and the pitch itself has generated a 29 percent whiff rate, per Statcast. Entering play tonight, Boyd had thrown just two changeups to lefties all season but 244 to right-handers; he threw just 187 changeups in a similar workload last season and only 182 over the course of 32 starts in 2019.
Even if the discomfort proves minor enough that Boyd doesn’t miss an outing, his performance and health from this point forth will obviously be all the more important to monitor for those who closely follow the trade market. There’s still a bit more than six weeks to go until the July 30 deadline, so if Boyd shakes off the current ailment and continues at his previous pace in the weeks leading up to the deadline, this will be a quickly forgotten blip on the radar. If he requires a lengthy absence or sees an immediate dip in his results in the coming weeks, there will be obvious implications for the Tigers that extend well beyond their 2021 win-loss record.
Twins Place Michael Pineda On Injured List
The Twins announced Monday that they’ve placed righty Michael Pineda (right elbow inflammation) and infielder/outfielder Rob Refsnyder (hamstring strain) on the 10-day injured list. In a pair of corresponding moves, they’ve reinstated Kenta Maeda and Luis Arraez from the injured list. Center fielder Byron Buxton has not yet been activated, though Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press tweets that he traveled with the team to Seattle, which suggests a return is near.
The loss of Pineda is notable on multiple levels. The big righty has been one of the Twins’ few effective starters so far in 2021. He also stands out as one of the more obvious trade candidates on the roster for a disappointing Minnesota club that looks more and more likely to sell veteran pieces as the summer wears on.
Pineda, 32, was terrific for the first two months of the season, pitching to a 2.62 ERA with a 26.7 percent strikeout rate and a 6.8 percent strikeout rate. However, Pineda had one start pushed back this month, and he exited another — his most recent outing — with elbow discomfort after just four innings. He’s followed up that terrific April/May run with a three-start stretch that has seen him total just 11 1/3 innings while yielding 10 runs.
On the whole, Pineda still has plenty respectable numbers. He’s accumulated 56 innings on the year and posted a 3.70 earned run average with a 22.1 percent strikeout rate, a 6.5 percent walk rate and a 38.1 percent ground-ball rate. That type of production would help to bolster just about any rotation in baseball, and given that Pineda is playing out the second season of a two-year, $20MM contract, his salary is manageable enough for the majority of contenders. The Twins may not want to commit to selling just yet, but at 26-39 and 15 games back of the division lead, that’s the likeliest outcome.
Refsnyder, 30, was a pleasant surprise for an injury-ravaged Twins club. The journeyman utilityman signed a minor league deal over the winter but unexpectedly gave the Twins a .321/.371/.500 batting line in 62 trips to the plate before going down with his own injury. He’s taken on a good bit of the workload in center field while Buxton has recovered from a hip flexor strain.
In Maeda and Arraez, the Twins will be getting back a pair who were expected to play significant roles on a division contender. Maeda finished runner-up to Shane Bieber in last summer’s Cy Young voting, but he hasn’t looked right at all this season.
In nine starts before landing on the injured list with a groin injury, he pitched to a 5.27 ERA that was nearly double last season’s 2.70 mark. Maeda’s strikeout rate plummeted from 32.3 percent last year to 20.5 percent in 2021, while his walk rate has jumped from four percent to 5.8 percent. Most problematically, he’s given up home runs at the highest rate of his career (1.90 HR/9). Time will tell whether the stay on the IL can get the righty back on track.
Arraez, meanwhile, got out to a blistering start but saw his bat go ice-cold for several weeks before injuring his shoulder on a slide into second base. The versatile Arraez hit .331/.390/.429 with more walks than strikeouts in 487 plate appearances from 2019-20, but that output has slipped to .278/.358/.333 so far in 2021.
Marlins Move Brian Anderson To 60-Day IL, Select Luis Madero
=The Marlins are set to select the contract of right-hander Luis Madero from Triple-A Jacksonville and transfer third baseman Brian Anderson to the 60-day injured list to create space on the 40-man roster, reports Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). Miami will also place infielder Jose Devers on the 10-day injured list due to a right shoulder injury.
It’s a tough blow for a Marlins club that has been reeling in recent weeks, due in no small part to the loss of Anderson. On the day Anderson made an early exit due to what was eventually revealed to be a left shoulder subluxation, the Marlins were 23-24. They’ve gone 6-12 in the 18 games since, and while the absence of Anderson obviously isn’t the only reason, it’s a primary factor. The 28-year-old got out to a slow start in 2021 but has long been one of the Marlins’ top bats and was one of the hottest hitters in the NL at the time of his injury.
The move to the 60-day injured list means that Anderson will now be ineligible to return before late July. (The 60-day term of the stint refers to his initial placement on the IL — not the date on which the player is transferred to the 60-day list.) A timeline in that range has begun to look increasingly likely, particularly after MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola tweeted earlier today that Anderson has still not been cleared to begin hitting after three weeks on the the injured list.
Miami’s primary options at the hot corner in Anderson’s absence have been Jon Berti and Isan Diaz, and that pairing will likely continue to hold down the fort on a banged-up Marlins club that effectively has an entire infield — Anderson, Miguel Rojas, Devers and Garrett Cooper — on the injured list. They’re thin on additional options in the upper minors, though both Luis Marte and Eddy Alvarez have gotten quick looks from the Marlins over the past year. (Either would need to be added back to the 40-man roster.)
Madero, 24, made his big league debut with the Fish earlier this season but has already gone unclaimed on waivers once, which removed him from the 40-man roster at the time (hence today’s need for a 40-man transaction).
Madero at one point ranked within the top 20 prospects in the Angels organization, per both Baseball America and FanGraphs, but his stock has tumbled since that time. That’s due largely to being rocked for a 5.72 ERA in 89 1/3 frames of a pitcher-friendly Double-A environment back in ’19, but Madero’s work in Triple-A with the Marlins this year has been sharp: 23 2/3 innings of 2.28 ERA ball, albeit with fairly pedestrian strikeout (23.6) and walk (9.2) percentages.
Mets Designate Jacob Barnes For Assignment
The Mets have designated right-hander Jacob Barnes for assignment and recalled righty Sean Reid-Foley from Triple-A Syracuse, per a team announcement.
It’s been a rough showing for the 31-year-old Barnes with the Mets. In 18 2/3 innings, the former Brewers, Royals and Angels hurler has been tagged for 13 runs on 19 hits (six homers) and five walks. He’s punched out 18 batters and shown some of the best control of his big league career, but that penchant for serving up long balls has obviously outweighed any of the gains he might’ve expected from walking fewer batters.
From 2016-18, Barnes looked like he might emerge as a regular member of the Brewers’ bullpen. He tallied 147 1/3 innings of relief in that three-year stretch, posting a 3.54 ERA with respectable strikeout and walk percentages (24.4 and 9.9, respectively). Barnes has seen his velocity dip notably in the three years since that stretch, however, and dating back to Opening Day 2019 he’s been rocked for a 6.62 ERA in 69 1/3 innings across four teams.
The Mets will now have a week to trade Barnes or try to pass him through outright waivers. He’s on a $750K salary after avoiding arbitration over the winter, so while Barnes has the ability to reject an outright assignment based on service time, he’d quite likely accept in order to avoid forfeiting the rest of that payday.
Reid-Foley, 25, has been outstanding with the Mets thus far in 2021. The former Blue Jays righty has pitched 13 2/3 innings out of the bullpen and turned in a 1.98 ERA with 20 strikeouts against four walks.
Indians Place Shane Bieber On Injured List
The Indians have placed ace Shane Bieber on the 10-day injured list due to a right shoulder subscapularis muscle strain, per a club announcement. Young lefty Kyle Nelson is up from Triple-A Columbus to take Bieber’s spot on the active roster. Manager Terry Francona tells reporters that Bieber won’t throw for the next two weeks (Twitter link via Camryn Justice of ABC News 5 in Cleveland).
Even a short-term absence for Bieber is a brutal blow for the Indians, who are six games over .500 but also five and a half games back of the White Sox for the division lead. The Indians are also currently without righty Zach Plesac due to a fractured thumb, leaving Aaron Civale as the most established option in their ailing rotation.
Cleveland has also given looks to youngsters Triston McKenzie, Cal Quantrill, Logan Allen, Sam Hentges and Jean Carlos Mejia so far in 2021. No one from that grouping has proven himself to be a reliable option just yet, but the Indians will nevertheless need to tap further into that depth with Bieber on the shelf.
It’s been another strong season for Bieber, albeit one that’s not quite on par with last year’s utter dominance in a Cy Young-winning effort. Bieber leads the Major Leagues with 90 2/3 innings pitched, and he’s worked to a 3.28 ERA with a 33.9 percent strikeout rate that ranks seventh in the Majors.
Rangers, Mariners Complete Rafael Montero Deal
The Rangers have acquired minor league shortstop Andres Mesa from the Mariners as the player to be named later from last December’s Rafael Montero trade. The two parties had until tomorrow to agree on the player involved, as PTBNLs must be determined within six months of a trade’s completion. Mesa has been assigned to the Rangers’ affiliate in the Dominican Summer League.
Mesa, 18, was signed as an international prospect in the summer of 2019, landing a $500K bonus from the Mariners. He’s yet to play in an official game with the Mariners yet thanks to lack of any minor league competition in 2020. At the time of his signing, Baseball America’s Ben Badler called Mesa a plus runner with a “huge” arm and the athleticism to handle an up-the-middle position, be it shortstop, second base or center field.
Mesa becomes the second member of the Mariners 2019-20 international class to join the Rangers as part of the deal. Seventeen-year-old righty Jose Corniell was announced to be part of the trade at the time of the swap, and he currently ranks as the Rangers’ No. 29 prospect at MLB.com. That both players acquired are so young and so far from MLB readiness is a reflection of the younger direction the Rangers have taken over the course of the past year.
The acquisition of Montero hasn’t gone as well as the Mariners would’ve hoped. The former Mets top prospect was quite good in a resurgent showing with Texas from 2019-20, pitching to a combined 3.09 ERA with a hefty 28.9 percent strikeout rate and a tiny 5.9 percent walk rate. He’s sitting on a 5.21 ERA through 28 2/3 frames as a Mariner, and while a pair of rough outings in particular skew that ERA, the overall results have taken a dive from Montero’s 2019-20 levels. He’s striking out far fewer batters and issuing more walks, which have combined to offset an overwhelming uptick in ground-ball rate.
Montero isn’t giving up much in the way of hard contact, and fielding-independent numbers are more bullish on him than that bottom-line ERA, so there’s still some hope of a turnaround. He’s also controlled into the 2022 season via arbitration, so if he is ultimately able to right the ship, he has some value to the Mariners beyond the current campaign.
Mariners Trade Yacksel Rios To Red Sox
The Mariners announced Monday that they’ve traded right-handed reliever Yacksel Rios to the Red Sox in exchange for cash. Seattle had designated the 27-year-old Rios for assignment over the weekend.
Rios pitched three innings for the Mariners prior to his DFA, allowing a trio of runs on five hits and a pair of walks with two strikeouts. Seattle had only recently acquired him from the Rays in exchange for cash — a deal that came about as a result of an opt-out clause in Rios’ minor league deal with Tampa Bay.
While Rios hasn’t had much success in the Majors, he was lights-out in Triple-A this year, where he yielded just one run on eight hits and two walks with 17 strikeouts through 13 2/3 frames. A 6.47 ERA in 72 1/3 Major League innings gives plenty of reason to be a bit skeptical of that brilliant showing in Durham, but this is basically a no-risk pickup for the Red Sox, who have an open spot on the 40-man roster after designating righty Ryan Weber for assignment earlier in the day.
MLBTR Chat Transcript
Click here to read a transcript of Monday’s chat with MLBTR’s Steve Adams.
Royals Place Andrew Benintendi On 10-Day Injured List
The Royals have placed outfielder Andrew Benintendi on the 10-day injured list due to a right rib injury, manager Mike Matheny told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anne Rogers). Outfielder Edward Olivares is being called up to take Benintendi’s 26-man roster spot.
The specific injury occurred during a throw Benintendi made during yesterday’s 6-3 Royals loss to the Athletics, though Matheny said Benintendi has “felt something for a bit” beforehand. This could potentially indicate a longer stay than just 10 days on the IL for the outfielder, especially since a broken rib led to an early shutdown of Benintendi’s 2020 season with the Red Sox.
It’s an unfortunate turn of events for both Benintendi and the Royals, as the 26-year-old is in the midst of a quality bounce-back season. Benintendi has hit .283/.340/.429 over 241 plate appearances for Kansas City, good for a 110 OPS+ and 112 wRC+. After a slow start over the first three weeks, Benintendi has posted an .880 OPS over his last 174 PA.
Kansas City acquired Benintendi as part of a three-team trade with the Red Sox and Mets in February, with the Royals ultimately parting ways with Franchy Cordero, Khalil Lee, and minor league righties Grant Gambrell and Luis De La Rosa in their share of the deal. It was one of multiple aggressive moves by the Royals front office to make the team more competitive, though the club is now 30-34 after an early surge in April. While K.C. plans on becoming full-fledged contenders as soon as 2022, Benintendi’s injury (depending on how long he’s sidelined) might point the club towards selling at this year’s trade deadline.
With Benintendi out of action, Olivares might get the chance at an extended look at the big league level. Acquired from the Padres in the Trevor Rosenthal trade last August, Olivares hasn’t hit much in 120 PA in the majors, but he has been shredding Triple-A pitching this season (a .370/.452/.610 slash line and six homers over 115 PA).
Red Sox Designate Ryan Weber For Assignment
The Red Sox have designated right-hander Ryan Weber for assignment, manager Alex Cora told MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo and other reporters. Michael Chavis has been called up from Triple-A to take Weber’s spot on the active roster.
Weber’s contract was only just selected from Triple-A yesterday, and his lone appearance for the Sox ended up being a nightmare. Called into the game after starter Martin Perez was chased in the second inning, Weber was left to soak up innings in mop-up duty, and he allowed 11 runs over 5 2/3 innings in Boston’s 18-4 loss to the Blue Jays.
Now in his third season with the Red Sox, Weber posted a 4.73 ERA/4.66 SIERA over 83 2/3 innings in 2019-20. Weber is something of a groundball specialist, with a 52.3% grounder rate over his 163 career frames in the majors and only a 15.1% strikeout rate. He is versatile enough to work as a proper starting pitcher or as a multi-inning swingman type, though with limited effectiveness (Weber has a 5.30 career ERA).
Chavis has been shuttled back and forth a few times this season between Boston’s MLB roster and either the alternate training site or Triple-A Worcester. Chavis has hit .273/.273/.485 in 33 plate appearances this season, as the former top prospect is still trying to establish himself at the big league level. He’ll factor into Boston’s bench mix, and some playing time at first base could open up if Bobby Dalbec continues to struggle (though Dalbec has been looking a bit better over his last four games).