Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

The Giants Should Consider A Rotation Change

By | at

The Giants had a rotation battle throughout Spring Training. Logan Webb, Robbie Ray and Justin Verlander were locked into the top three spots. President of baseball operations Buster Posey said in December that the team remained committed to Jordan Hicks as a starter. The final job would go to one of three younger arms: Kyle Harrison, Hayden Birdsong or Landen Roupp.

Harrison seemed like the frontrunner entering camp. If that had been the case, he quickly pitched his way out of it. The lefty allowed eight runs in 6 2/3 spring innings. The Giants optioned him before Opening Day. (He's since made four starts at Triple-A Sacramento, allowing nine earned runs despite recording 21 strikeouts over 15 innings.) It came down to Birdsong and Roupp, with the latter getting the nod. Birdsong broke camp as a long reliever.

The decision came as a surprise. Birdsong started 16 all of his major league appearances last year. He turned in a 4.75 ERA over 72 innings as a rookie. He'd been lights out during Spring Training, firing 12 innings of one-run ball with 18 strikeouts and no walks. Roupp had a good but less impressive camp, giving up five runs with 14 strikeouts and one walk across 12 frames. He also had more experience working out of the bullpen, as he'd started just four of 23 appearances during his debut season last year.

San Francisco probably feels good about their decision to give Roupp a rotation job. The 26-year-old righty carries a 4.09 earned run average with an excellent 31.2% strikeout rate through the first four turns. He has recorded a pair of quality starts and reached seven innings for the first time in his MLB career on Saturday, when he held the Angels to two runs while striking out nine.

While Roupp has earned continued starting looks, the rest of the rotation beyond Webb has struggled. The Giants have raced to a 15-9 record despite their rotation having the seventh-worst ERA in MLB, entering play Wednesday. They should already consider making a change.

Unlock Subscriber-Exclusive Articles Like This One With a Trade Rumors Front Office Subscription

BENEFITS
  • Access weekly subscriber-only articles by Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams, and Anthony Franco.
  • Join exclusive weekly live chats with Anthony.
  • Remove ads and support our writers.
  • Access GM-caliber tools like our MLB Contract Tracker

Phillies Notes: Sanchez, Suarez, Johnson

By | at

The Phillies had a bit of an injury scare on Tuesday, as left-hander Cristopher Sánchez departed his start against the Mets after two innings. Sánchez was working with diminished velocity, and the club announced postgame that he’d dealt with forearm soreness.

Despite that ominous initial word, the Phillies downplayed concern on Wednesday. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski told reporters (including Lochlahn March of The Philadelphia Inquirer) that Sánchez felt normal this morning. While the southpaw will hold off on playing catch until Friday, the Phillies don’t plan to send him for imaging. They’ll wait to see how he feels when he resumes throwing in a couple days.

Sánchez made his first All-Star Game and finished 10th in NL Cy Young voting a season ago. He worked 183 1/3 innings of 3.32 ERA ball in his first full season as a starter. He’s pitching just as well this year, allowing 3.42 earned runs per nine over 26 1/3 frames. He’s getting grounders at a typically excellent 55.1% clip while striking out 29.2% of opponents. The start before yesterday was one of his best. He recorded a career-high 12 punchouts across seven innings of three-run against the Giants.

The Phils have had the same five starters all season: Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Jesús Luzardo, Taijuan Walker and Sánchez. Nola has had a rough start, allowing a 6.43 ERA on nearly two home runs per nine while working with diminished velocity. Nola’s fastball tends to pick up life over the course of the season, and he’s obviously going to get a long leash based on his track record. The other four starters have ERA’s comfortably below 4.00.

Ranger Suárez has been out all season after experiencing back stiffness late in Spring Training. He has made a trio of minor league rehab appearances, including five scoreless frames at Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday. Matt Gelb of The Athletic writes that Suárez is expected to make one more start for the IronPigs on Sunday before returning to the big league rotation next week.

If Sánchez avoids the injured list, the Phils will need to decide between a six-man rotation or bumping someone to the bullpen. Walker, who would have begun the season in long relief if Suárez were healthy, would presumably be the odd man out. The veteran righty is pitching well, though, turning in a 2.29 ERA over 19 2/3 innings through his first four starts. His 19.3% strikeout rate is still a couple points below league average, but he has added a tick of velocity after last year’s dismal season.

One pitcher who is definitely making that role change: Seth Johnson. Dombrowski told reporters (including The Philly Inquirer’s Scott Lauber) that the righty is moving to the bullpen in Triple-A. Johnson has been a starting pitcher through his five seasons in the minors. He also started his lone major league appearance, a 2 1/3 inning start last September. Philadelphia acquired Johnson from the Orioles in last summer’s deadline deal that sent Gregory Soto to Baltimore.

A former top 40 draft choice, Johnson ranks as the #6 prospect in the Phils’ system at Baseball America. His fastball is averaging north of 95 MPH in Triple-A. That could tick up in shorter stints, while Johnson draws praise for his cutter and curveball. His subpar command always pointed to a possible bullpen future that has now come to pass. Jonson carries a 3.98 ERA over 20 1/3 innings in Lehigh Valley this year. He has punched out 27% of opponents while issuing walks nearly 15% of the time.

White Sox Re-Sign Omar Narvaez To Minor League Deal

By | at

The White Sox brought Omar Narváez back on a minor league contract. The deal was announced by their Triple-A affiliate in Charlotte, where the veteran catcher has been assigned.

Narváez had elected free agency on Monday after being outrighted off Chicago’s major league roster. He’d spent a week in the big leagues after the Korey Lee injury, appearing in four games as the backup behind Matt Thaiss. He went 2-7 with a couple walks. The Sox called up well-regarded prospect Edgar Quero on Thursday, pushing Narváez out in the process.

It’s common for players to re-sign on a fresh minor league deal after rejecting an outright assignment. Narváez seemed like a candidate to look elsewhere, as the Sox don’t have a great path to playing time behind the plate. Quero should get regular playing time, while Thaiss is out of options and cannot be sent down without going on waivers. Top prospect Kyle Teel is the starter in Charlotte, leaving Narváez to work as his backup in the minors.

Narváez is clearly comfortable with the situation. He spent the first three years of his big league career with the Sox between 2016-18. He developed into a solid #1 catcher for the Mariners and Brewers thereafter, though his production has tanked over the past few seasons. He owns a .201/.278/.286 slash line since the start of 2022.

Grayson Rodriguez Diagnosed With Mild Lat Strain

By | at

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde provided an update on Grayson Rodriguez before tonight’s loss to the Nationals. The right-hander was diagnosed with a mild strain in his right lat, relays Jake Rill of MLB.com. The O’s hope he can resume a throwing program within a few weeks.

The team announced last week that Rodriguez was going for a second opinion after experiencing shoulder soreness. He’d begun the season on the injured list because of elbow inflammation. The shoulder discomfort arose during his rehab process. It’s not an entirely new development, however. Rodriguez sustained a lat strain while he was a prospect midway through the 2022 season. Shoulder discomfort sidelined him early last year, while lat soreness ended his season in August.

It’ll now be at least a few weeks before Rodriguez is able to throw again. He’ll presumably be starting from scratch at that point, so he’s almost certainly going to be out into June at the earliest. It’s not the worst-case situation, but it’s another hit to a floundering Baltimore rotation. Rodriguez is arguably the O’s best starter. He posted a 3.86 ERA while striking out 26.5% of opponents across 20 starts last season.

Baltimore’s rotation carried an MLB-worst 6.22 earned run average into play Wednesday. Tomoyuki Sugano, who has been their most effective healthy starter, managed seven innings of three-run ball tonight. That’ll help the rotation’s rate stats, but the O’s were unable to capitalize on his solid outing in an eventual 4-3 loss. They’ve dropped three in a row to fall to 9-14.

Cade Povich goes against MacKenzie Gore tomorrow as they try to avoid a sweep. They’ll likely turn to rookie Brandon Young to open a weekend set against Detroit on Friday. Charlie Morton and Dean Kremer — both of whom have been hit hard — would be on schedule to finish the series. The O’s have been without Opening Day starter Zach Eflin for two weeks because of a low-grade lat strain of his own. Hyde said that Eflin will progress to bullpen sessions later this week (via Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun).

Tim Mayza Shut Down For Six Weeks

By | at

The Pirates are shutting down lefty reliever Tim Mayza for six weeks, director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk informs reporters (including Colin Beazley of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Alex Stumpf of MLB.com). The southpaw went on the 15-day injured list over the weekend with a lat strain. Stumpf notes that he’s also dealing with a teres major injury.

A six-week shutdown means Mayza very likely won’t be back until after the All-Star Break. He won’t be cleared to resume throwing until June at the earliest. He’d need multiple bullpen and batting practice sessions before heading on a minor league rehab assignment. A transfer to the 60-day IL is all but assured.

Mayza signed a one-year, $1.15MM free agent deal in February. He’d had a decent run with the Yankees after being released by the Blue Jays. Mayza had been tagged for an 8.03 earned run average across 35 appearances with Toronto. He allowed an even four earned runs per nine through 18 innings in the Bronx, striking out 12 against three walks. The Yanks non-tendered him anyhow, but the solid finish got him a roster spot in Pittsburgh. Mayza looked good in the early going, striking out eight amidst 9 1/3 frames of three-run ball.

The Bucs still have three left-handers in their bullpen. Ryan Borucki and Caleb Ferguson are working in the middle innings, while Joey Wentz can pitch as the long man. Borucki has allowed four earned runs through 10 innings. Ferguson has worked 11 innings of two-run ball. Wentz has surrendered three earned over 12 2/3 frames.

Rangers Select Nick Ahmed, Place Corey Seager On Injured List

By | at

The Rangers announced that they’ve placed Corey Seager on the 10-day injured list with a right hamstring strain. Texas selected Nick Ahmed onto the roster in his place. They designated left-hander Walter Pennington for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot.

Seager pulled up as he ran out a ground-ball during yesterday’s win in Sacramento. He immediately subbed out of the game. Josh Smith, who had started in center field, came in to play shortstop. Leody Taveras drew into center field off the bench. Any kind of hamstring strain usually results in an IL placement, but the Rangers seem optimistic that they’ve avoided the worst. Kennedi Landry of MLB.com notes that Seager is expected back right around 10 days from now.

The five-time All-Star has started 20 of 23 games at shortstop. Smith has started twice, while the since-optioned Jonathan Ornelas made one appearance. Seager has joined Smith and Wyatt Langford as the most productive hitters in an otherwise struggling lineup. He’s hitting .286/.345/.468 with four homers through 84 plate appearances.

Smith made his first major league start in center field last night. He could move back to the infield on a regular basis while Seager is out. That’d push Taveras back into everyday center field work. The switch-hitting outfielder is off to a .197/.210/.246 start and has yet to hit a home run through 62 plate appearances. If the Rangers want to keep Smith in center, they’d turn to the veteran Ahmed as their starting shortstop.

This will be the 12th big league season for Ahmed, a two-time Gold Glove winner who has spent the majority of his career with the Diamondbacks. Arizona released him late in the ’23 campaign. He divided last season between the Giants, Dodgers and Padres and combined for a .229/.267/.295 batting line across 228 plate appearances. The 35-year-old signed an offseason minor league deal with Texas. He had a big spring, batting .324 with a trio of homers over 15 games.

It wasn’t enough to break camp. Ahmed was granted his release before Opening Day but returned to the organization on a new minor league contract last week. He’d been working out at their Arizona complex rather than playing in Triple-A. Spring Training numbers aside, the Rangers won’t expect much from Ahmed offensively. He should remain a plus on defense. Statcast credited him with nine Outs Above Average across 554 1/3 innings last season.

The roster shuffling squeezes out Pennington, who made 15 relief appearances for Texas last year. The 27-year-old made his big league debut with the Royals last July. Kansas City dealt him to Texas for Michael Lorenzen at the deadline. Pennington carried a 2.26 ERA through 37 Triple-A appearances at the time. He worked 17 1/3 innings out of the Texas bullpen after the trade. While he only allowed six earned runs, he issued 11 walks against 16 strikeouts.

Pennington made four appearances this spring, allowing three runs on eight hits with two walks and strikeouts apiece. Texas initially optioned him to Triple-A but reassigned him to the complex before Opening Day. There hasn’t been any indication of an injury, but Pennington hasn’t made any regular season appearances in the minors.

Texas will have five days to trade Pennington or place him on waivers. Assuming he hasn’t suffered any kind of undisclosed injury, they could attempt to outright him to the minors. (Injured players cannot be outrighted, so they’re almost always released after a DFA.) Last year’s strong numbers in Triple-A could get him some attention on the waiver wire. Pennington has two minor league option years remaining.

Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News relayed the moves before the club announcement.

Rich Hill Still Planning To Pitch This Year

By | at

Rich Hill continues to throw in hopes of signing soon, he tells Chris Cotillo of MassLive. Cotillo adds that multiple teams — including one from the AL East that is not the Red Sox — have shown interest in the 45-year-old lefty.

Hill told The San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser in January that he planned to continue pitching. There haven’t been any definitive reports within the past three months, but Hill evidently still hopes to reach the big leagues for a 21st consecutive season. Last year, he waited until the middle of August to agree to a minor league contract with the Red Sox (on what was his eighth different deal with Boston). The Sox called him up a couple weeks later but released him after 3 2/3 innings.

Last year’s late signing was deliberate. Hill wanted to spend time with his family early in the season, while the later signing would theoretically keep him fresh and allow him to prioritize a deal with a potential playoff team. That didn’t really work out as hoped, as Hill didn’t get much of a look on a Boston team that was only a fringe contender. He has previously suggested he could pursue more of a traditional full-season schedule this time around, though he obviously remains unsigned nearly a month after Opening Day.

Twins Release Matt Canterino

By | at

The Twins released righty Matt Canterino, according to the MLB.com transaction log. That was the likeliest outcome when Minnesota designated the injured pitcher for assignment last week. Canterino underwent season-ending shoulder surgery midway through Spring Training.

Injured players cannot be placed on outright waivers. The Twins therefore needed to trade Canterino or release him after the DFA. A trade of a pitcher rehabbing shoulder surgery seemed unlikely. Assuming he goes unclaimed on release waivers, Canterino will become a free agent. The Twins can look to bring him back on a two-year minor league contract, though the former second-round pick will have the ability to explore other opportunities.

Canterino was once one of Minnesota’s most promising young arms. The Rice product ranked in the top half of Baseball America’s ranking of the organization’s top 30 prospects every season between 2020-24. A mid-90s fastball and plus slider gave him a chance at a mid-rotation role or potential leverage work out of the bullpen.

He just hasn’t been able to stay healthy for almost his entire professional career. Canterino battled elbow issues early in his minor league tenure. That was a precursor for 2022 Tommy John surgery. He missed two seasons recovering from that procedure. Minnesota added him to the 40-man roster during the 2022-23 offseason so as not to lose him in the Rule 5 draft, but he hasn’t thrown a regular season pitch since then. They were hopeful that he’d return from the elbow problem this year. The shoulder issue arose during Spring Training and will cost him yet another season.

Canterino has been very effective in his intermittent stints. He has a 1.48 ERA with a 39.1% strikeout rate over 85 career minor league frames. He’ll turn 28 in December.

Looking Ahead To Club Options: NL Central

By | at

MLBTR continues our division by division look at next year’s team/mutual option class with the NL Central. Virtually all of the mutual options will be bought out by one side. Generally, if the team is willing to retain the player at the option price, the player will decline his end in search of a better free agent deal.

Previous installments: player options/opt-outs, NL West, AL West

Chicago Cubs

  • Shota Imanaga, LHP (team has three-year, $57MM option covering 2026-28; if they decline, Imanaga has $15MM player option for 2026)

Imanaga signed a somewhat complex four-year, $53MM deal when he made the jump from NPB during the 2023-24 offseason. Next winter, the Cubs need to decide whether to trigger a three-year, $57MM option for the 2026-28 seasons. That’d come with respective salaries of $20MM, $20MM and $17MM. If the Cubs decline their end, Imanaga would be able to decline a $15MM player option for ’26 and test free agency.

It’d almost certainly take an injury for that to happen. Concerns about how Imanaga’s stuff might translate against MLB competition proved unfounded. The southpaw finished fifth in NL Cy Young balloting during his first major league season. He turned in a 2.91 earned run average across 173 1/3 innings, striking out a quarter of opponents against a 4% walk rate. The punchouts haven’t been there through this year’s first five starts, but he takes a 2.22 ERA into tonight’s appearance against the Dodgers. He’s getting whiffs on an excellent 14% of his pitches, so he’ll likely finish off a few more strikeouts moving forward. Imanaga’s deal looks like a bargain, and the Cubs should happily sign up for another three seasons at a $19MM average annual value unless he suffers an injury.

  • Colin Rea, RHP ($6MM club option, $750K buyout)

Rea reunited with Craig Counsell in Chicago after the Brewers declined his $5.5MM club option. It actually worked out slightly to his financial benefit. The righty collected a $1MM buyout from Milwaukee and secured a $5MM guarantee with the Cubs. He’s playing this year on a $4.25MM salary and will make at least a $750K buyout on next year’s club option. That’s valued at $6MM, so it’ll be a $5.25MM decision.

The Cubs had Rea work in long relief to begin the season. He has stepped into the rotation since the Justin Steele injury. The 34-year-old righty is out to a strong start, allowing two runs through his first 13 2/3 innings. He has punched out 12 while only allowing one walk in 56 plate appearances. Rea had held a rotation role in Milwaukee for most of last year, posting a 4.29 ERA through a career-high 167 2/3 innings. As a mid-30s swingman with league average whiff rates, he’s never going to break the bank, but the option price is reasonable for a capable #5/6 starter.

Turner’s option is mostly an accounting measure designed to push back $2MM of his $6MM free agent guarantee by a few months. Option buyouts are paid at year’s end, while the money would have been evenly distributed throughout the season had it simply been a $6MM salary. It’s unlikely that the Cubs would want to sign up for a $10MM salary covering Turner’s age-41 campaign even if he repeats his solid 2024 production.

The 17-year big league veteran has posted 11 consecutive above-average offensive seasons since his 2014 breakout with the Dodgers. His power numbers have declined with age, but he put up a strong .354 on-base percentage in 139 games between the Blue Jays and Mariners a year ago. Turner’s start on the North Side hasn’t been good. He’s hitting .147 without an extra-base hit over 14 games. He’s taken six walks against nine strikeouts but will obviously need to make more of a slugging impact.

Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati took a buy-low flier on Barlow, a former closer who was released by the Guardians shortly before the playoffs. The righty had fallen quickly down the depth chart in Cleveland. He carried a 3.52 ERA with a 32% strikeout rate into the All-Star Break. Barlow allowed a near-6.00 ERA while striking out just 19% of batters faced in the second half. A fastball that typically sat around 93 MPH had dropped to the 90-91 range.

The early tenure in Cincinnati has been mixed. Barlow has gotten his velocity back, averaging 93 on both his four-seam and sinker. He’s getting whiffs on a huge 15.3% of his offerings, nearly two percentage points above last year’s level. The stuff is certainly more encouraging, but the results haven’t followed. He has a pedestrian 9:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio while allowing five runs on eight hits through 9 1/3 innings. He was limited to a $2.5MM guarantee last offseason. He’ll need a more convincing rebound for Cincinnati to retain him on what amounts to a $5.5MM call.

Hays signed for $5MM after being non-tendered by the Phillies. The righty-hitting outfielder has been a capable regular for most of his career, but his production dipped last season while he battled a grueling kidney infection. A Spring Training calf injury delayed his team debut until last week. Hays has been on tear since his return, connecting on three homers while hitting .406 in 34 plate appearances. He has a hit in all seven games, including three straight multi-hit performances against his old teammates in Baltimore over the weekend.

Suter, who grew up in Cincinnati, joined the Reds on a $3MM deal during the 2023-24 offseason. He posted a 3.15 ERA through 65 2/3 innings and signed a $2.25MM extension at the start of last winter. The 35-year-old southpaw is out to a customary start. He has managed 9 2/3 frames of three-run ball despite striking out just four of 38 opponents. Suter’s stuff is never going to jump off the page — he’s sitting in his typical 85-88 MPH range with his fastballs — but he avoids hard contact and is aiming for his seventh straight sub-4.00 ERA showing. Assuming he continues on his usual pace, the Reds should want him back on a $2.75MM decision.

Milwaukee Brewers

Milwaukee made a big investment by their standards in signing Hoskins to a two-year, $34MM contract during the 2023-24 offseason. The longtime Phillies first baseman had missed his walk year after suffering an ACL tear during Spring Training. The Brewers expected Hoskins to recapture his consistently above-average offensive form after a healthy offseason.

That didn’t happen in year one, as he hit a career-worst .214/.303/.419 across 517 plate appearances. Hoskins still managed 26 homers, but the overall offense was essentially league average. It wasn’t attributable to lingering knee discomfort. Hoskins did his best work early in the season, carrying an .813 OPS through the end of May. He hit .203/.285/.395 over the season’s final four months and bypassed an opt-out opportunity.

Hoskins has gotten out to another strong start this year. He’s batting .270 with a trio of homers and what would be a career-low 20% strikeout rate over his first 75 trips to the plate.

Milwaukee signed Peralta to a $20MM extension just before Spring Training 2020. He was mostly unproven at the time, but it only took one more season before he developed into a top-of-the-rotation starter. This quickly became one of the more team-friendly contracts in baseball. The deal included respective $8MM club options for 2025 and ’26, which would have been Peralta’s first two free agent years had he gone through arbitration.

The 28-year-old righty has been the clear staff ace since Milwaukee traded Corbin Burnes. He posted a sub-4.00 ERA in each of the five guaranteed seasons of the contract. Peralta has rattled off another 28 1/3 frames of 1.91 ERA ball through his first five starts this year. Unless he suffers a significant injury that’d threaten his availability for next season, the Brewers are going to rubber-stamp the option.

Quintana signed late on a $4.25MM pillow contract after finding a weaker market than he expected. The net present value was actually just under $4MM, as Quintana agreed to defer the $2MM buyout on his ’26 mutual option. The Brewers aren’t going to exercise their end of the $15MM option for what would be the veteran lefty’s age-37 season. It looks like they got great value on the one-year deal, though, as Quintana is coming off a 3.75 ERA showing for the Mets. The late signing delayed his team debut, but he has fired 12 1/3 innings of one-run ball over his first two starts.

Woodruff underwent shoulder surgery late in the 2023 season. The Brewers re-signed him to a backloaded two-year deal with a $17.5MM guarantee. They knew he’d spend all of ’24 rehabbing. They’ve taken his progression carefully and didn’t push him during Spring Training. Woodruff began a minor league rehab stint on April 12. He has made a pair of rehab starts and could be back with the big league team in the next couple weeks.

Note: William Contreras’ arbitration contract contains a $12MM team option for next season. He’s excluded from this list because he’d remain under arbitration control if Milwaukee declines the option, as they did with Devin Williams last offseason.

Pittsburgh Pirates

  • None

St. Louis Cardinals

  • None

Latest On Blue Jays Rotation

By | at

The Blue Jays optioned fifth starter Easton Lucas to Triple-A Buffalo before Monday’s loss in Houston. They recalled reliever Josh Walker in his place, thus leaving them with a four-man rotation.

An off day on Thursday allows them to skip the fifth starter this time. Chris Bassitt and Bowden Francis will follow Kevin Gausman, who pitched tonight, in the Houston series. José Berríos will take Friday’s series opener against the Yankees, while Gausman and Bassitt will be back on regular rest to finish the weekend in the Bronx.

Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet relays word from manager John Schneider that the Jays will return to a five-man rotation after that. An off day next Monday would have allowed them to stick with a four-man staff into the end of next week, but that’s apparently not the plan. An optioned pitcher must stay in the minors for at least 15 days unless they’re being recalled as the corresponding move for an injured list placement. Barring injury, Lucas won’t be back for at least a couple weeks.

The 28-year-old Lucas entered this season with 14 career MLB appearances. All of those had come in relief. He was pushed into the starting five with Max Scherzer battling renewed thumb discomfort that sent him to the injured list. Lucas fired 10 1/3 scoreless innings with 11 strikeouts over his first two big league starts. He was bombed in each of his next two outings, however. The Braves put up eight runs (including a trio of homers) in his third appearance. He couldn’t get out of the second inning during Sunday’s start against the Mariners, who put up six runs. The overall result is a 7.41 earned run average through 17 innings.

Scherzer doesn’t seem especially close to a return. The future Hall of Famer provided a mildly positive update on Monday, saying a second cortisone shot has allowed him to better grip the ball (via Hazel Mae). Scherzer was able to throw off flat ground during pregame warm-ups at Daikin Park, but he doesn’t appear to be nearing a rehab stint.

It leaves the Jays in a difficult spot once they go back to a five-man rotation. The decision to turn to Lucas in the first place pointed to the team’s lack of depth beyond their Opening Day starting five. Jake Bloss, acquired in last summer’s Yusei Kikuchi trade, has three major league starts to his name. He has been hit hard over his first four Triple-A starts this year, allowing a 7.31 ERA with a below-average 17.5% strikeout rate. Aside from Lucas, prospect Adam Macko — who underwent meniscus surgery in February and hasn’t pitched this year — is the only other starter on the 40-man roster. Lefty Eric Lauer, who owns a 5.68 ERA through his first four Triple-A starts, is their most experienced non-roster depth option.

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top