As MLB’s regular season continues — and with one transaction already on the books this morning — here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world today:
1. Bryce is back:
Phillies superstar Bryce Harper was cleared to return to the team’s lineup yesterday, and will make his season debut tonight against the Dodgers. A transaction will be needed to make room for Harper on the active roster before tonight’s game, which is scheduled for 9:10pm CT tonight. Harper will look to help Philadelphia rebound from a brutal 13-4 loss last night as lefty Matt Strahm, whose impressive start to the season was recently discussed by MLBTR’s Darragh McDonald, takes on struggling ace Julio Urias. Harper’s return will surely provide a huge boost to a Phillies lineup that ranks just 15th in runs scored and 13th in on-base percentage.
2. Cubs keeping an eye on Gomes:
Cubs catcher Yan Gomes was hit in the head by a backswing during yesterday’s game against the Nationals and departed in the second inning. Manager David Ross told reporters (including The Athletic’s Patrick Mooney) last night that the club would evaluate Gomes today to determine if he is going to miss time. Mark Gonzales reports that catching prospect Miguel Amaya is headed to Washington D.C., meaning he’s the likely replacement in the event that Gomes does miss time. The 35-year-old Gomes has paired strong defense behind the plate with a .294/.310/.529 slash line at the plate in the early going, good for a 122 wRC+, so losing him would be a blow to the Cubs.
That said, the 24-year-old Amaya has long been one of Chicago’s top prospects. He was considered a top-100 prospect in all of baseball as recently as the 2021 season but has been derailed by Tommy John surgery and injuries to his foot and ankle in recent years. Now finally healthy, Amaya has been excellent at the plate in Double-A to open the 2023 campaign, slashing .273/.411/.659 in 56 plate appearances (182 wRC+). Should Amaya be recalled, he’ll be poised to make his major league debut quickly as he shares time with Tucker Barnhart.
3. MLBTR Chat Today:
With the calendar now flipped to May, some of the surprising early season storylines of the 2023 regular season have begun to even out, while other surprising trends are still going strong. If the beginning of this season has spurred any questions in your mind about your favorite team or the league as a whole, MLBTR’s Steve Adams is holding a live chat with readers at 1pm CT today. You can click here to ask a question in advance, join in live once the chat begins, or read the transcript once the chat is complete.
Bryce Harper is now the best all time Phillies player. It’s no longer Robert Abreu.
here’s a tip ace – if you are going to use a different ID don’t post the same crap word for word as you did under your old ID
I’m out of here. Not posting anymore.
Real people acting like bots. I’m ready for a new schtick.
not posting as “the former player” or as Ace or just going away?
Good
@The_Former_Player/Ace……………
Don’t let the door hit you where Ma Nature split ya
For Phillies fans, it’s Brycemas.
Haha Brycemas. Nice one OKBaseballFan. I love it we can have a litany of posts that do not just tear everyone down. .
It’s Brycemas!!!!!
Nice to see that apparently the Cubs are showing they have faith In Miguel Amaya. Hopefully he can stay healthy.
Dogbone, hopefully it’s a quick in and out flight. As absolutely crazy as this might sound—losing Gomes for any stretch could take a lot of good mojo away from this team.
If Amaya is officially called up, I’m assuming that it will be Valezquez heading back down to give Gomes only a couple of days off.
Considering that reports are that Gomes is not in protocol, I’m hoping that they he can avoid the IL.
True, Gomes missing time is not a good thing. But, at worst- when returning Amaya to the minor leagues- hopefully his airplane lands in Iowa and not Tennessee.
I wouldn’t be overly surprised to see the Cubs keep Amaya up for a bit so he can learn under Gomes.
I’m just concerned if Gomes has to sit too long that he’ll lose his timing and then won’t be providing the production he’s been giving us. At this point, I’m kinda like “Willson who?” Oh he’s the guy that said his new team was better than the cubs, yet they’re in last place.
Hey!! You can’t do that to Ace under any cognomen!!
He IS a former player I’ll have you know. He’s attested to that fact on more than one occasion!
Back in his playing days he lead the league in stolen bases six years in a row!!
Only thing that could stop Ace running in those days was Caopectate!
His nickname was “Ace of Base” because he always saw the sign!
A running legend and you all run him out of here.
Nobody puts Ace in the hole!!
it was a rough two weeks, but finally the only consistent thing is these comments will be DCartrow’s impeccable wit
Maxed out at 16 SB in a season- never lead the league.