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Matt Manning Fractures Metatarsal In Foot
April 12: The Tigers announced today that Manning has been placed on the 15-day injured list with infielder Tyler Nevin recalled to take his place on the roster.
April 11: Tigers starter Matt Manning fractured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot during tonight’s loss to the Blue Jays, the team informed reporters (including Chris McCosky of the Detroit News). The right-hander was in a walking boot in the clubhouse.
Manning sustained the injury on his final pitch of the start. An Alejandro Kirk comebacker bounced off his foot and rolled to Spencer Torkelson at first base. Manning was able to scramble to first base to receive the throw from Torkelson and record the putout. That likely would’ve ended his start regardless, as he finished the sixth inning on 85 pitches. It wasn’t until after the game that it became clear Manning had been injured on the play.
The 25-year-old downplayed the issue after the game, stating he hoped he’d be back relatively shortly (via Jason Beck of MLB.com). It’s hard to imagine he won’t require at least a brief stint on the 15-day injured list, though, which would represent another setback in his young career. Manning lost most of the first half of the 2022 campaign to shoulder inflammation. The foot issue is a fluke incident that isn’t likely to present the same kind of overarching concern of last year’s shoulder problem, but it seems likely to cost him some time.
A former ninth overall pick, Manning has long been viewed as a potential core piece in Detroit. The Tigers anchored their rebuild around young pitching, with Manning joining Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and 2020 third overall pick Jackson Jobe as hopeful impact starters. Unfortunately, all four of those hurlers have battled significant injury issues. Mize could miss the entire season recovering from last summer’s Tommy John surgery. Skubal is on the 60-day injured list after undergoing a flexor tendon repair last August. Jobe could miss the majority of the minor league campaign due to lumbar spine inflammation.
The Tigers have turned to a starting five of Matthew Boyd, Eduardo Rodriguez, Spencer Turnbull, Manning and Joey Wentz to open the year. Righty Michael Lorenzen was signed to a free agent deal to hold down a job. He started the year on the IL with a minor groin strain but is expected to be reinstated later in the week after making a rehab start for Triple-A Toledo last Saturday. Should Manning require an IL stint, the Tigers could plug Lorenzen into his spot and keep Wentz in the starting five.
Twins Promote Edouard Julien
April 12: The Twins formally announced that Julien has been recalled from Triple-A St. Paul. He’ll make his big league debut today at second base, Twins vice president of communications Dustin Morse tweets.
April 11: The Twins are promoting Edouard Julien before tomorrow’s game against the White Sox, reports Aaron Gleeman of the Athletic (Twitter link). That’ll be the corresponding move for the placement of Joey Gallo on the 10-day injured list.
It’s the first major league call for Julien. An 18th round pick out of Auburn in 2019, he signed for a well overslot $493K bonus after a down sophomore season. He’s significantly elevated his stock in pro ball. Julien has been an excellent offensive player throughout his time in the minors. He hit .267/.434/.480 in 2021, his first full minor league season after the cancelation of the previous campaign. The left-handed hitter spent all of last year with Double-A Wichita, raking at a .300/.441/.490 clip with 17 home runs over 508 plate appearances.
Julien showed top-end patience at the plate. His 19.3% walk rate was more than double the MLB average. That willingness to work deep counts translated to a slightly higher than average 24.6% strikeout percentage, though it’s a tradeoff with which the Twins are surely comfortable given Julien’s huge on-base marks.
The Quebec native played for Canada during this spring’s World Baseball Classic. He was assigned to Triple-A St. Paul to open this season. Julien has picked up right where he left off, collecting eight hits and seven walks through his first 36 plate appearances. He’s homered twice and doubled over his first eight games at the top minor league level.
Over the winter, Julien generated some top prospect attention. ESPN and FanGraphs placed him near the back of their respective Top 100 lists, while he finished just outside the Top 100 at Baseball America. Prospect evaluators unsurprisingly praise his plate discipline and strong left-handed power potential. He’s widely expected to be a productive offensive player at the MLB level.
Julien’s defensive profile is more spotty. He’s split his time between second base, left field and first base in the minors. Evaluators have offered bearish reviews on his glove at the keystone, suggesting he’s better suited for left field or first base long term. With Gallo’s injury vacating first base, it seems likely Julien will break in primarily there.
The Twins added Julien to their 40-man roster last offseason to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. They won’t need to make any additional moves to call him up. The 23-year-old still has three minor league option years remaining, so the Twins can shuttle him between the majors and St. Paul as needed.
While Julien didn’t break camp with the MLB club, he’s still in position to potentially secure a full service year in 2023. Players need to accrue 172 days on the big league roster to reach one year. Julien would narrowly meet that cutoff if he’s in the majors for good, though any optional assignment back to the minors would keep him shy of a full season. The Twins aren’t in position to recoup any draft compensation for his promotion, as he only appeared on the preseason Top 100 list at one of ESPN, Baseball America and MLB Pipeline.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Braves, Nick Margevicius Agree To Minor League Deal
The Braves recently signed left-hander Nick Margevicius to a minor league contract, as noted by Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America. He’s been assigned to the club’s Florida complex, per the transactions tracker at MLB.com.
That’ll presumably be a temporary stop for Margevicius to build into game shape before eventually reporting to Triple-A Gwinnett. From there, he’ll look to work his way back to the majors for the first time in two years. Margevicius pitched at the big league level between 2019-21, suiting up with the Padres and Mariners. The former 7th round draftee has started 22 of 32 big league outings, posting a 6.12 ERA over 110 1/3 innings.
Margevicius doesn’t throw hard. His fastball generally sits a little below 90 MPH. He’s shown excellent control in his minor league career, walking a mere 4.4% of opposing hitters. His 8.1% walk rate at the major league level is closer to average, but the lack of free passes has helped him manage a decent 4.04 ERA across 301 minor league innings.
Much of that success came earlier in his career. Margevicius was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome in May 2021, ending his season after just 12 appearances. He lost his spot on Seattle’s 40-man roster last May and went unclaimed on waivers. Sent outright to Triple-A Tacoma, he struggled to a 7.53 ERA across 49 innings. His 20.3% strikeout rate and 7.6% walk percentage weren’t too far from average but a massive .422 batting average on balls in play against him led to plenty of runs crossing the plate.
Seattle released the Rider product early in Spring Training. After a few weeks on the open market, he joins the third organization of his professional career. He’ll add some rotation and/or long relief depth to the upper levels of the Atlanta system once he’s built into game shape.
German Marquez Diagnosed With Forearm Strain, No Significant Structural Damage
10:47pm: Márquez expects to be placed on the 15-day injured list, he said after tonight’s loss to the Cardinals (relayed by Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post).
9:24pm: Rockies starter Germán Márquez was sent for an MRI after leaving yesterday’s start with tightness in his forearm. Imaging revealed a muscle strain but no significant structural damage, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.
It’s a relief there are apparently no structural issues that would raise the specter of surgery. Nevertheless, it’s hard to envision Márquez avoiding the injured list after the revelation of a forearm injury. The Rockies haven’t yet made a roster move or provided any kind of timetable for his recovery.
Márquez is the top pitcher on the Rockies’ staff. He’s allowed eight runs in 16 1/3 innings this season but struck out 13 while issuing only two walks. The Venezuelan-born hurler had a down 2022 season, allowing nearly five earned runs per nine over 31 starts. Between 2017-21, he worked to a 4.25 ERA with an above-average 24% strikeout rate.
Rotation depth is a major concern for Colorado. Antonio Senzatela is still recovering from last summer’s torn ACL. Beyond Márquez and Kyle Freeland, the Rox currently have José Ureña, Ryan Feltner and Austin Gomber rounding out the starting five. Ureña and Feltner, in particular, have been hit hard in their first two starts. Long reliever Connor Seabold and Peter Lambert appear to be the top options to step into the rotation should Márquez miss any time.
It’s a crucial season for Márquez, who’s in the final guaranteed year of his contract. The Rockies aren’t expected to compete for a playoff spot and could listen to offers on players closer to the trade deadline. A healthy Márquez would be a target for a number of clubs, though Colorado has steadfastly refused interest in previous summers. They could well do so again, as the Rox hold a $16MM option on his services that comes with a $2.5MM buyout for next season. The net $13.5MM call is strong value if the right-hander is healthy. That calculus could change if he’s forced to miss a notable chunk of this season with a forearm issue but the timeline remains to be determined.
Twins Place Joey Gallo On Injured List
The Twins placed Joey Gallo on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to April 8, shortly before tonight’s matchup with the White Sox. The first baseman/outfielder is dealing with a right intercostal strain.
It doesn’t seem all that serious, as Gallo was participating in drills this evening. He told reporters he felt he was “in a good spot” physically tonight, though the club has evidently decided to proceed with caution (via Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com). That’d seem to suggest there’s a good chance he won’t require much or any more time than the minimal week off.
Gallo signed a one-year free agent deal last offseason. The Twins were hoping he could bounceback from a tough year and a half split between the Dodgers and Rangers. The two-time All-Star opened his Minnesota tenure with a fantastic week. Gallo has five hits (including three home runs) and a pair of walks over his first 20 plate appearances as a Twin.
A Gold Glove caliber outfielder, Gallo has primarily played first base with Minnesota. That’s because Alex Kirilloff opened the year on the injured list as he rehabs from last year’s season-ending wrist procedure. It seems both Kirilloff and second baseman Jorge Polanco are closing in on their season debuts, however. They’re each on rehab assignments with Low-A Fort Myers and should return to the majors within the next week or two.
Minnesota is playing tonight’s game a man down. They didn’t make a corresponding roster move today, although it’s possible they turn to one of their top prospects tomorrow. Aaron Gleeman of the Athletic notes that Edouard Julien was yanked from tonight’s game for Triple-A St. Paul shortly after Gallo’s IL placement was announced. Julien, ranked by Baseball America as the sport’s #97 overall prospect, was added to Minnesota’s 40-man roster last offseason. The Auburn product hit .300/.441/.490 in Double-A last season and is off to a .276/.417/.517 start in eight games in St. Paul.
Brewers Place Brandon Woodruff On Injured List
The Brewers announced they’ve placed star hurler Brandon Woodruff on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to April 8, due to shoulder inflammation. Janson Junk has been recalled from Triple-A Nashville to take the vacated active roster spot.
Woodruff is coming off a strong start against the Cardinals on Saturday. He threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings in an eventual shutout win, tallying 84 pitches. He didn’t respond as hoped between appearances, though, and the Brewers will put him on the shelf. Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets that the club is hopeful it’ll be a minimal stint, which would cost him two starts.
The right-hander lost a month last season to a high ankle sprain. He’s never previously spent time on the IL with an arm-related injury as a major leaguer. He’s topped 100 innings in each of the past three full schedules and make a full slate of 13 starts during the shortened 2020 campaign. Woodruff tallied 153 1/3 frames last year in spite of the ankle sprain, taking the ball 27 times.
Woodruff had been tabbed to start tomorrow’s game in Arizona. It now seems that’ll fall to Junk, who’d be making his team debut. Acquired from the Angels in the Hunter Renfroe trade over the winter, Junk opened the year on an optional assignment to Nashville. He’s thrown ten innings of one-run ball there, striking out seven while walking three. The righty started six of seven MLB appearances with the Halos between 2021-22, posting a 4.74 ERA over 24 2/3 frames.
Xander Bogaerts Discusses Free Agency
There were few bigger stories of last offseason than Xander Bogaerts’ free agency. A career-long member of the Red Sox, he opted out of the final three years and $60MM on his deal with Boston to test the open market. That came six months after Spring Training extension talks had gone nowhere, setting the stage for Bogaerts to join the Padres on a stunning 11-year, $280MM contract at the Winter Meetings.
Bogaerts recently addressed the end of his time in Boston with Chris Cotillo of MassLive. He expressed disappointment with the Red Sox’s initial extension proposal last spring. Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported at the time that Boston had offered four years and $90MM — one year and $30MM in new money — for Bogaerts to preemptively forego his opt-out chance. It was a surprisingly light offer that turned out to be well below Bogaerts’ open market value, one with which the All-Star shortstop wasn’t satisfied.
“The one in spring training was a little tough. I think it’s well-documented what the offer was,” Bogaerts told Cotillo. “That was a tough pill to swallow at that time because you’re hearing about extension talks so you’re looking forward to seeing what they’re thinking and what they’re offering. That was a tough one.”
The sides halted talks during the season but reengaged at the end of the year. Boston brass maintained at the outset of the offseason that keeping Bogaerts was their top priority. They indeed moved quite a bit from their extension offer, reportedly putting forth a proposal in the six-year, $160MM range during the winter. That was at least in the realm of general expectations at the start of the offseason — MLBTR predicted Bogaerts at seven years and $189MM at the start of the winter — but came up well shy of San Diego’s winning bid. Free agent prices for star talent exploded last winter and it seemed clear by the Winter Meetings that Bogaerts would surpass $200MM, though few would’ve foreseen a team nearing $300MM.
“Way off,” Bogaerts said of Boston’s final offer. “They felt the way they felt. They did what they did. I have no bad feelings for them. I’ve seen multiple great players come through that organization who I’ve played with and they’re not there anymore. Some guys went from pretty untradeable to tradeable. That was eye-opening. It makes you see things differently, for sure.”
It indeed seems clear the Red Sox weren’t as bullish on Bogaerts’ long-term projection as the Padres were. Boston had an in-house replacement to step in at shortstop after signing Trevor Story to a $140MM guarantee two offseasons ago. Those plans were scuttled, at least early in 2023, when it was revealed Story required an internal brace procedure to address a ligament issue in his throwing elbow. That pushed Enrique Hernández in from center field to man shortstop, though Adam Duvall’s wrist fracture could force Hernández back into center field more frequently.
Boston made another huge investment in the left side of the infield later in the winter. The Sox agreed to a $313.5MM extension with third baseman Rafael Devers in January. Devers is four years younger than Bogaerts and has been an even better hitter than the star shortstop. It’s not hard to see why the Boston front office considered Devers the safer long-term investment, even as Bogaerts plays the more demanding position and assuaged some concern about his glove with solid defensive marks last year.
Seth Brown Likely To Miss 4-6 Weeks With Oblique Strain
A’s corner outfielder Seth Brown has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 strain of his left oblique, skipper Mark Kotsay told reporters (including Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle). The injury has a general recovery timeline of four to six weeks.
Brown was already placed on the 10-day injured list over the weekend. It’s clear he’ll miss well beyond that minimum amount of time. It’s a tough blow to the A’s offense, as the lefty-hitting Brown was one of their more potent power bats. He connected on 25 home runs with a .230/.305/.444 line over 555 plate appearances last season. Brown started the year slowly but caught fire in the second half, tying for 11th in the majors with 15 homers after the All-Star Break.
As a result, Brown was penciled into the middle of the Oakland lineup against right-handed pitching. He’d hit third or fourth in all eight of his starts this season. Brown had opened the year slowly, hitting just .200 with one homer over his first 32 plate appearances. Still, his solid production of the previous two years ensured he’d get a long leash in an Oakland lineup that doesn’t have many established hitters.
The rebuilding A’s have predictably been off to a terrible start offensively. Only the Tigers (who have played one fewer game) have scored fewer runs than Oakland’s 28, and the A’s have a team slash line of just .198/.270/.325. They’re 2-8 through their first ten games.
Conner Capel has picked up the last three starts in left field. The 25-year-old seems likely to get the biggest jump in playing time with Brown out of action. Claimed off waivers from the Cardinals last summer, Capel has a .299/.355/.478 line in 30 big league games. The left-handed hitter combined for a .259/.361/.425 mark over 409 Triple-A plate appearances last season.
Pirates’ JT Brubaker, Mike Burrows Receiving Second Opinions On Elbow Injuries
Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk met with the team’s beat this afternoon (relayed by Rob Biertempfel of the Athletic). According to Tomczyk, right-handers JT Brubaker and Mike Burrows are each headed for second opinions after suffering elbow injuries. Burrows landed on the minor league injured list today with a sprain of his UCL.
It’s not a surprising development in Brubaker’s case. Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette first reported last week that Brubaker was weighing whether to undergo Tommy John surgery. That he’s now headed for a second opinion wouldn’t appear to bode well for his chance of avoiding going under the knife, though the club hasn’t definitively stated whether surgery is likely.
Brubaker had been one of Pittsburgh’s more durable arms over the past few seasons. He finished second on the team in innings in 2022 and topped 120 frames in each of the last two years. Brubaker has never posted an ERA better than last year’s 4.69 mark, but he’d shown decent strikeout and walk numbers while handling right-handed hitters reasonably well. If healthy, there was never much doubt he’d have secured a spot towards the back of the starting five again to enter the year.
That was put on hold this spring. Brubaker reported discomfort in his forearm/elbow area and was immediately shut down. The Bucs quickly placed him on the 60-day injured list, ruling him out at least until the end of May. With surgery seemingly a strong consideration, it’s possible he won’t be a factor at all this season.
Burrows hasn’t yet reached the major league level. An 11th round pick in 2018, the Connecticut native has been one of the Bucs’ more interesting pitching prospects. Baseball America slotted him ninth among Pittsburgh farmhands last offseason, praising his fastball-slider combination and solid control. BA suggests he could be a back-of-the-rotation starter if his changeup develops, although he’d probably be better suited for a bullpen role if he can’t find an average or better third pitch.
Pittsburgh added Burrows to the 40-man roster over the offseason to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He started the year on optional assignment to Triple-A Indianapolis. After throwing five innings of one-run ball in his first outing, he was pulled in the second inning of his following appearance. Even if he can avoid surgery, the 23-year-old figures to be out for an extended period after imaging revealed some damage to the elbow ligament.
Burrows will continue to count against Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster while on the minor league injured list. If the Bucs wanted to clear a roster spot, they could recall him and place him on the major league 60-day IL. That’d require paying him at the prorated MLB minimum rate of $720K and allow him to accrue major league service.
