Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world today:
1. Crawford visiting Meister:
Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford has been struggling with soreness in his shoulder lately, and yesterday the Mariners revealed (as relayed by Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times) that he was set to visit with Dr. Keith Meister “to make sure [they’re] on the right track.” Any visit with a surgeon is going to be cause for concern among fans, but Mariners brass seemed to downplay the severity of the situation and added they expected to have an update on Crawford today. The shortstop is headed into the final year of his extension with Seattle and rebounded from a tough 2024 last year to hit a respectable .265/.352/.370 while playing 157 games at shortstop. If Crawford was to begin the season on the injured list, it would be an immediate test of the Mariners’ infield depth. Top prospect Colt Emerson is approaching the big leagues, but Leo Rivas and Ryan Bliss are already on the 40-man roster, whereas Emerson would need to have his contract selected. For a short-term absence, plugging Rivas in at shortstop seems likelier.
2. Cole returns to the mound:
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole is poised to make his first start since undergoing Tommy John surgery when the Red Sox visit Steinbrenner Field later today. The game is scheduled for 1:05pm local time in Florida and will pit Cole against Red Sox youngster Connelly Early, who made a big first impression in the majors last year with a 2.33 ERA in four starts. Cole is obviously one of the most talented pitchers in baseball when healthy and won a Cy Young Award back in 2023. However, he’s made just 17 starts since then due to elbow issues. Now headed into his age-35 season, it’s fair to wonder exactly what the longtime ace will look like once he returns to the mound.
3. Alberto waiver resolution:
The White Sox put Rule 5 pick Alexander Alberto on waivers this week, and that process should be resolved today. The Sox will have to offer him back to the Rays if he goes unclaimed, but any other team could pluck Alberto from the waiver wire before then if they’re willing to adhere to Rule 5 draft restrictions. The 24-year-old has yet to even throw a pitch in Double-A but impressed last year with a 2.59 ERA in 48 2/3 innings of work. It was understandable for a rebuilding club like the White Sox to roll the dice on him, but if he was unable to make the club’s bullpen out of camp (thanks in large part to a 10.80 ERA in 6 2/3 spring innings), it’s unclear if there will be another team willing to taking a shot on the towering 6’8″ righty.
Hmm. No mention of the WBC results…
Venezuela Red Sox beat USA Red Sox 3-2.
Makes you wonder what Abreu and Anthony will talk about for the next month.
Probably talk about how Judge is not clutch in big moments. He is the MLB version of Connor McDavid. Mr. Regular Season.
Oilers fan here. (Insert middle finger emoji)
Sabe – Could have been worse, imagine if Whitlock gave up the gamewinning hit to Abreu.
The Sox didnt like what they saw in Alberto, or they didnt like the numbers in 6.2 innings this spring? They knew he was rough around the edges.
I had said all off season that he would need at least until July to get in a rhythm, and had thought that the White Sox, being in a rebuild, were prepared to go through some of those growing pains with Alberto on the big league roster. I had thought that aspect of drafting Alberto out of A ball made sense and that it could prove to be a big coup.
The Sox rotation isnt spectacular by any means. Alberto could have worked in a low pressure, clean up role this season and he might have hit his stride with some innings under his belt.
Releasing Alberto makes the Sox look foolish for drafting him in the first place. It is now a careless pick with little savvy and less patience with a pitcher who still has significant upside. Im not saying he is Eury Perez but he has the same length. He has a similar delivery. He could have pitched in the bullpen and potentially developed into a pitcher with top of the rotation stuff.
Thats what the Sox thought too but Murakami Fever took hold and the Sox waived Alberto for Nick Sandlin and Jordan Hicks, a trade that cost them 16M over the next two seasons. Hicks didnt fair much better this spring.
It is absolutely ridiculous to me that teams are making decisions based on sample sizes of 6 IP, or let’s say 23 ABs. Spring stats mean nothing. Now, you can determine a lot from a guy’s approach, mechanics, and whatnot. But not from spring stats! Look, almost anything can happen for a short period of time. But luck runs out. Hitters start facing real pitchers, not 4A guys who will never sniff MLB or vets working on stuff. Yet teams do this and that’s why each year we see guys make teams based on unsustainable spring results and then they inevitably fall back to earth after the season starts.
It’s not only based on spring stats, it’s the latter as you’ve noted. The team had an entire spring to evaluate Alberto and he has had command issues even at A+. The Rule 5 draft is a lottery pick and they mostly don’t work out anyway. The White Sox have other players they want to keep on their 40-man so it’s not a big deal.