AL East Notes: Red Sox, Sale, Devers, Yankees, Judge, Chapman
Red Sox ace Chris Sale is progressing in his recovery from left shoulder inflammation and could return in time to make multiple starts before the playoffs begin, per Max Gelman of MLB.com. Sale has been on the disabled list since Aug. 18 (retroactive to the 15th), his second DL stint on account of shoulder inflammation since July. Sale had been enjoying a Cy Young-caliber campaign before landing on the shelf, and it’s certainly possible he’ll still end up with the award. While Sale has only thrown 146 innings, he leads the AL in ERA (1.97), K/9 (13.5), rWAR (6.5) and fWAR (6.1).
Here’s more on Boston and its chief rival:
- The Yankees are “very optimistic” injured right fielder Aaron Judge will return this season, manager Aaron Boone told reporters Friday (via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com). The hulking slugger suffered a chip fracture in his right wrist on July 26, and the team only expected Judge to miss three weeks at the time. Instead, Judge has been out upward of a month, and there’s still “no set date for him to resume swinging a bat,” Hoch writes. In the event Judge is unable to return this year, the Yankees have a nice fallback option in Andrew McCutchen, whom they acquired from the Giants on Friday. McCutchen made his Yankees debut on Saturday, starting in right and going 0-for-3 from the leadoff spot.
- The Yankees are also without closer Aroldis Chapman, who went on the DL on Aug. 22 with left knee inflammation. Chapman’s status for the rest of the season is now in question, general manager Brian Cashman suggested. Regarding a potential Chapman return, Cashman said (via Hoch): “I can’t tell you with a level of confidence or not. I know he’s going through the motions now of getting the treatment necessary and until we see him out there doing what he’s done in the past like he’s capable of doing it, it’s probably best for me to be cautious on that.” Even without Chapman, the Yankees still boast a set of quality relievers, including fill-in closer Dellin Betances. But having to go into the playoffs without the flamethrowing Chapman would still be an unfortunate development for the Yankees, considering the elite left-hander had been in the midst of another dominant season before going on the DL.
- Back to Boston, which has been without third baseman Rafael Devers since Aug. 17 with a hamstring injury. Devers has been playing with Triple-A Pawtucket of late, and the Red Sox don’t appear to be in a hurry to recall him, Sean McAdam of BostonSportsJournal.com tweets. “One thing’s for sure, Raffy’s got to play better,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “That’s the bottom line. We’re here to win games and whoever’s playing best is going to play.” To Devers’ credit, he did homer at the Triple-A level on Saturday. The 21-year-old has fallen flat in the majors this season after an encouraging rookie campaign in 2017, however, having hit just .242/.298/.422 in 423 plate appearances. Third base has been a disappointment in general for Boston, which has gotten subpar production from both Devers and Eduardo Nunez.
Braves Promote Kyle Wright
The Braves announced several roster moves Saturday, including the promotion of right-handed pitching prospect Kyle Wright, whom they selected from Triple-A Gwinnett. The club also transferred closer Arodys Vizcaino to the 60-day disabled list and selected outfielder Lane Adams‘ contract from Triple-A. Meanwhile, injured righty Brandon McCarthy re-aggravated his right knee during a rehab assignment and did not come off the 60-day DL, Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
There’s a lot to unpack here, though the most exciting news for Atlanta is the addition of Wright. The ex-Vanderbilt standout entered the 2017 draft as a potential No. 1 pick, but he fell to No. 5, leading the Braves to scoop Wright up and sign him to a then-record bonus worth $7MM. Wright has made good on that pick by emerging as one of the majors’ elite pitching prospects, evidenced in part by MLB.com ranking him as the game’s 24th-best farmhand. The 22-year-old is set to become the latest highly promising Braves hurler to debut in 2018, joining the now-injured Mike Soroka, Touki Toussaint and Kolby Allard.
While Wright has a chance to eventually emerge as a high-end starter, he’ll work out of the playoff-contending Braves’ bullpen down the stretch, per Burns. Wright did make three relief appearances out of seven at the Triple-A level this year, but he has primarily served as a starter in 2018. Across 27 appearances and 24 starts between Double-A and Triple-A this season, Wright pitched to a 3.46 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9.
Elsewhere in the Braves’ bullpen, Vizcaino’s move to the 60-day DL looks discouraging on the surface, but he’s still likely to make it back in 2018, manager Brian Snitker told Burns and other reporters on Saturday. Vizcaino had been on the 10-day DL since July 14 with right shoulder troubles, so he’s now ineligible to return until mid-September. His absence has paved the way for lefty A.J. Minter to close for the Braves, and the latter has converted 11 of 13 saves while notching a 3.12 ERA with 10.21 K/9 against 2.94 BB/9 in 52 innings this season.
While the the latest development regarding Vizcaino isn’t ideal, McCarthy’s setback is downright discouraging, as it’s now possible he has thrown his last major league pitch. McCarthy, who hasn’t taken a major league mound since June 24, announced earlier this month that he plans to retire at the end of the season. The 35-year-old has started in all 15 of his appearances this season, but he was set to finish the year as a reliever upon his return.
Adams, whom the Braves signed to a minors pact in mid-July, saw action with them earlier season and last year, totaling 143 plate appearances and batting a respectable .270/.345/.460. The 28-year-old was out of the Atlanta organization for a brief period in 2018, though, as he elected free agency in late April and then latched on with the Cubs. But Adams struggled with Chicago’s top minor league affiliate before rejoining Gwinnett, with which he hit an unappealing .191/.238/.266 with no home runs in 101 PAs this season.
Cubs Activate Kris Bryant, Addison Russell
The NL Central-leading Cubs are getting healthier as they charge toward a third straight division title. The club announced that it has activated superstar third baseman Kris Bryant and shortstop Addison Russell from the 10-day disabled list. Of the two, only Bryant’s in the Cubs’ starting lineup for Saturday’s game in Philadelphia.
The Cubs’ roster looks stronger than it did when Bryant landed on the shelf July 26 with left shoulder inflammation, as the team has since swung deals for several players, including left-hander Cole Hamels and second baseman Daniel Murphy. Those additions have helped Chicago stay atop its division, which it leads by 3 1/2 games, in Bryant’s absence.
At the time of his DL placement, the 26-year-old Bryant was slashing .276/.380/.474 in 358 plate appearances. While those numbers are 29 percent better than league average, according to FanGraphs’ wRC+ metric, they’re a good deal worse than Bryant’s career line of .286/.387/.519 (141 wRC+). Perhaps because of his shoulder troubles, Bryant’s power output has fallen this season, as he has managed 11 home runs and a career-worst .197 ISO. Nevertheless, the 2016 NL MVP remains an eminently valuable player – one whom the Cubs are no doubt overjoyed to welcome back. Chicago primarily deployed David Bote at third with Bryant out, and while the former has had his moments during a quality rookie campaign, his production has cratered of late. Bote racked up 82 PAs in August and hit a meager .187/.244/.387 with 25 strikeouts against four walks.
As for Russell, he appears to be in line for diminished playing time, thanks in part to the acquisition of Murphy. Russell went on the DL with a sprained left index finger Aug. 22, which made room for the Cubs to add Murphy to their roster. Murphy has been hot since then, and carries a better offensive track record than Russell, making it likely he’ll continue as Chicago’s top option at the keystone. And Murphy’s presence has left shortstop for Javier Baez, who had been the Cubs’ starting second baseman and has been one of the majors’ most valuable players in 2018.
Astros Activate Brian McCann, Select Josh James
The Astros have activated catcher Brian McCann and outfielder Jake Marisnick from the 10-day disabled list, selected the contract of right-hander Josh James from Triple-A Fresno, and recalled lefty Cionel Perez from Fresno, Ben DuBose of MLB.com was among those to report.
The most notable news here is the return of McCann, who went on the DL on July 3 with a right knee injury and then underwent surgery to repair the issue. McCann will start Saturday for the Astros, who mostly turned to Max Stassi and Martin Maldonado behind the plate in his stead.
Houston acquired Maldonado from the Angels a few weeks after losing McCann, and the defensive-minded backstop has since offered above-average offensive production in 64 plate appearances (.237/.270/.492 with three home runs). The 32-year-old Maldonado has never been much of a hitter, though, and an unsustainable power surge (.254 ISO) has been the reason for his respectable output as an Astro, helping to overshadow subpar strikeout and walk rates (23.4 percent and 3.1 percent, respectively).
Stassi, meanwhile, has come back to earth to a significant extent since a hot offensive start to 2018, but overall, he has batted a solid .234/.322/.407 with eight homers in 242 PAs. Notably, the 27-year-old has been a major asset behind the plate, as Baseball Prospectus has ranked him as the game’s best pitch framer this season.
McCann, 34, has garnered plenty of praise for his defense throughout his career, and has typically been among the majors’ premier offensive backstops. However, he struggled to a .206/.283/.323 line with five HRs and a career-worst .116 ISO in 173 PAs before undergoing surgery. As a left-handed hitter, he may well finish the season in a platoon with the righty-swinging Maldonado or Stassi. After that, it’s unclear what McCann’s future will hold, as he’s likely to hit free agency over the winter. McCann is controllable next year by way of a $15MM club option, but he won’t amass the necessary 1,000 PAs from 2017-18 for it to vest, and the Astros won’t exercise it.
While the McCann era may be winding down in Houston, James’ career with the team is just beginning. The Astros, clinging to a 1 1/2-game lead over the A’s for the AL West lead, will start the 25-year-old James against the Angels on Saturday. Houston’s turning to James, a 34th-round pick in 2014, because it’s without starters Charlie Morton and Lance McCullers Jr. – both of whom are on the DL.
MLB.com’s sixth-ranked Astros prospect, James earned his way the majors this year by posting a 3.40 ERA/3.39 FIP with a sky-high 12.92 K/9 (against 3.79 BB/9) across 17 starts and 92 2/3 Triple-A innings. James offers serious heat, per MLB.com, as his fastball sits between 95 mph to 97 mph and is capable of reaching triple digits. His repertoire also includes a promising slider and “an improving changeup,” according to MLB.com, though the outlet suggests he’s likely to be a reliever in the majors.
Josh Donaldson To Begin Rehab Assignment Tuesday
Aug. 27: Donaldson will set out on a rehab assignment tomorrow, tweets Nightengale. The Jays could pass him through waivers within 48 hours and have time to trade him before Friday’s deadline for postseason eligibility.
Nonetheless, it seems like a long shot that a club would be convinced of Donaldson’s health to the point it’d surrender enough prospect value to outweigh the value Toronto could receive from issuing a qualifying offer at season’s end. But, if the Blue Jays themselves consider Donaldson too great a risk to receive a QO, then they every reason to shop him aggressively in the limited window with which they’ll be presented.
Aug. 26: Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson will start a rehab assignment at the Single-A level within the next 48 hours, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports. This is a key development because it could help pave the way for the Blue Jays to deal Donaldson this month, as he’ll be eligible to go on revocable trade waivers when he begins his rehab stint.
Donaldson has been on the disabled list since May 29 because of a strained left calf, which has killed the Blue Jays’ chances of trading the pending free agent. However, if Donaldson shows he’s healthy during his rehab stint, the Jays may be able to make a buzzer-beating deal involving the 32-year-old before the month concludes.
Even if Donaldson looks physically fine over the next few days, there’s no guarantee Toronto will find a return to its liking, given that Donaldson’s stock has declined this season. After starring from 2013-17, including his AL MVP-winning season in 2015, Donaldson has spent most of this year on the DL and hasn’t performed nearly as well as expected when he has taken the field. All told, Donaldson has slashed an underwhelming .234/.333/.423 in 159 plate appearances.
Beyond the injury and performance issues that have defined his season, Donaldson doesn’t come with a team-friendly salary. He’s owed the balance of $23MM (around $5MM), which figures to drive down his trade value if Toronto doesn’t eat a significant portion of the money. In the event those factors combine to preclude the Jays from trading Donaldson in August, they’ll still have a chance to receive compensation for him in the offseason. They’d need to issue Donaldson a qualifying offer (worth $17.4MM last offseason), which he’d have to reject before signing elsewhere.
Whether Donaldson finishes the season in Toronto or another city, the fact that he’s seemingly on the brink of a return is an encouraging development as he nears free agency. While this has been a nightmarish year for the three-time All-Star, it appears he’ll have a chance to rebuild some of his stock over the next few weeks.
Athletics Place Sean Manaea On DL
6:50PM: Manaea’s problem only arose today while the southpaw was playing catch, manager Bob Melvin told the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser and other media. Manaea will undergo an MRI, and has already left the A’s on their road trip to head back to Oakland for further examination.
12:41PM: The Athletics have placed left-hander Sean Manaea on the 10-day disabled list with a shoulder impingement and recalled reliever Emilio Pagan from Triple-A Nashville, per a team announcement.
It’s unknown if Manaea will miss any time beyond the 10-day window, though it’s clear the location of the injury is alarming, and it likely helps explain his recent dip in velocity. This development is all the more troubling for the Athletics given both Manaea’s importance to their rotation and the fact that they’re fighting for a playoff spot. Oakland will enter play Sunday four games up on AL West rival Seattle for the league’s second wild-card spot and just 1 1/2 behind the division-leading Astros.
A good portion of the A’s unexpected success this season has come thanks to the 26-year-old Manaea, who easily leads the team in starts (27) and innings (161 2/3). Along the way, Manaea has pitched to a 3.59 ERA/4.25 FIP with 6.05 K/9, 1.79 BB/9 and a 44 percent groundball rate. His DL placement continues a run of poor injury luck in the A’s starting staff, which is also without Jharel Cotton, A.J. Puk, Andrew Triggs, Kendall Graveman and Paul Blackburn and has seen Trevor Cahill and Brett Anderson miss extended periods of time. As a result of that slew of injuries, Manaea had been the last man standing from Oakland’s season-opening staff, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle points out.
Despite its myriad injuries, the A’s patchwork rotation – which currently includes Cahill, Anderson, Mike Fiers, Edwin Jackson and Chris Bassitt – has fared decently this year. Oakland’s starters have managed to bridge the gap to a quality bullpen, ranking 16th in the majors in both ERA (4.04) and fWAR (7.7). Fiers has made positive contributions to those numbers since the A’s added him in a trade with the Tigers on Aug. 6, and his acquisition now looks all the more timely in the wake of Manaea’s injury.
AL Notes: McCullers, Yanks, Sheffield, Tulo, Mallex
Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. has been out for three weeks because of a forearm strain, and his return isn’t imminent. Manager A.J. Hinch told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle and other reporters Sunday that McCullers won’t throw a bullpen “any time soon,” and if the 24-year-old returns this season, he’s unlikely to rejoin the Astros’ rotation. “It would be hard to get him built back up as a starter,” Hinch said, alluding to the lack of time remaining in the regular season, while general manager Jeff Luhnow added (via Rome) that he expects McCullers “to be back and ready for postseason in a relief role.” Fortunately for Houston, it does have the starting depth to survive McCullers’ absence from its rotation, and it’s worth noting he worked as a reliever at times during the team’s run to a World Series title last fall. In one of the most memorable performances of the 2017 playoffs, the curve-throwing McCullers closed out the Yankees in Game 7 of the ALCS with four scoreless innings.
- Speaking of the Yankees, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News talked to a scout about their top pitching prospect, lefty Justus Sheffield. The Yankees have recently been using the 22-year-old Sheffield in relief at the Triple-A level to get him ready to work out of the big league bullpen in the coming weeks, though the scout expressed doubt that he’s poised to make a sizable impact in that role right now. “His pitches/approach were same as when starting, they didn’t play up at all,” the scout said after seeing Sheffield pitch in relief. “Lefties weren’t fooled at all, meaning everything was squared up, including a long home run by the eight-hole hitter.” Sheffield will face “an adjustment period” when he does come to the majors, continued the scout. Widely regarded as one of the game’s best pitching prospects, Sheffield has logged an impressive 2.66 ERA/3.21 FIP in 84 2/3 Triple-A innings this season, though he has done so without posting dominant strikeout and walk numbers (8.5 K/9, 3.83 BB/9).
- This will go down as a lost year for Blue Jays shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who will miss the entire season on account of heel issues. Tulowitzki spoke about his status for 2019 on Sunday, telling Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet and other reporters that he expects to be Toronto’s starting shortstop. The soon-to-be 34-year-old seems unwilling to consider a position change, stating: “I just said I’m a shortstop. If someone’s better than me, I’ll pack my bags and go home.” Unfortunately for the once-elite Tulowitzki, the Jays arguably do have someone better in the fold now in Lourdes Gurriel Jr. The 22-year-old has been terrific as a rookie this season and looks as if he could be part of the long-term solution for the club. On the other hand, the injury-prone Tulowitzki was subpar when he last took the field, as he hit just .249/.300/.378 in 260 plate appearances in 2017.
- Rays outfielder Mallex Smith has been hospitalized with a viral infection, but manager Kevin Cash issued an encouraging update Sunday, informing reporters that he’s “doing considerably better” and could be released from the hospital today (via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). Cash added that the Rays are hopeful Smith won’t stay on the disabled list for much longer than the minimum of 10 days. Prior to this weekend’s scare, the fleet-of-foot Smith had quietly been enjoying an outstanding season. The 25-year-old leads qualified Rays hitters in OPS (.810) and has totaled 27 steals and 3.1 fWAR over 426 PAs.
Central Notes: Tribe, Ramirez, Votto, Cubs
Here’s the latest from MLB’s Central divisions:
- Cleveland has come up as a speculative trade destination for Toronto’s Josh Donaldson, and if the Indians acquire him or another third baseman this month, it would mean shifting Jose Ramirez from the hot corner to second base. However, manager Terry Francona threw some cold water on a potential in-season position change for Ramirez on Sunday, telling Jordan Bastian of MLB.com: “I know it sounds good on paper and it even sounds good to me on paper. There’s other things you have to think about other than just numbers.” Francona added that Ramirez hasn’t worked out at second base this season, which he posited may make the superstar more susceptible to an injury, and suggested switching positions at this juncture could throw Ramirez off track during an MVP-caliber season. Nevertheless, it’s worth noting Ramirez did rack up significant experience at the keystone last year, when he appeared in 71 games at the position. Incumbent second base starter Jason Kipnis has appeared in 118 games there this season, but he has limped to a .216/.305/.345 line in 493 plate appearances, leading to the possibility of the Tribe upgrading at that spot.
- The right knee contusion that sent Reds first baseman Joey Votto to the disabled list on Aug. 17 is “way worse” than the team originally thought, manager Jim Riggleman told Matthew Martell of MLB.com and other reporters Sunday. As such, Votto may not be ready to come off the DL when he’s first eligible, per Riggleman, though he did add that the 34-year-old has made notable progress since he landed on the shelf. Votto incurred the injury on a hit by pitch from Nationals reliever Ryan Madson.
- Beginning Friday, the Cubs will employ a six-man rotation, at least temporarily, manager Joe Maddon said Sunday (via Bruce Levine of 670 The Score). Alec Mills will stay among the starting staff after turning in a solid outing against Cincinnati this past Friday, and lefty Mike Montgomery will soon come off the DL – where he has been since Aug. 17 because of shoulder inflammation – to rejoin the group. With the Cubs amid a stretch in which they’re playing 23 straight games without an off day, the decision will provide a respite for top starters Jon Lester, Cole Hamels, Kyle Hendricks and Jose Quintana as the playoffs approach.
Juan Nicasio To Undergo Season-Ending Knee Surgery
Mariners reliever Juan Nicasio is scheduled to undergo season-ending knee surgery, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets. It seems the procedure will be “cleanup surgery, nothing catastrophic,” Corey Brock of The Athletic adds.
Nicasio has dealt with right knee issues throughout the season and endured multiple stints on the disabled list as a result. The 31-year-old last pitched Aug. 2, when he allowed two earned runs in two-thirds of an inning in a loss to Toronto. He’ll wrap up his season with a hideous 6.00 ERA across 42 innings, though FIP (2.99), xFIP (3.17) and SIERA (2.58) suggest Nicasio deserved far better in the run prevention department. Nicasio logged excellent strikeout and walk rates (11.36 K/9, 1.07 BB/9), to his credit, and he was victimized by an unusually high batting average on balls in play (.402) and an abnormally low strand rate (58.1 percent).
Assuming Nicasio returns at full strength in 2019, the Mariners will hope he experiences some positive regression during what will be a contract year. Seattle signed Nicasio to a two-year, $17MM guarantee in free agency last winter, but the deal obviously hasn’t panned out thus far for the club.
Cardinals Activate Dominic Leone, Release Ryan Sherriff
The Cardinals have activated reliever Dominic Leone from the 60-day disabled list and placed fellow reliever Mike Mayers on the 10-day DL with right shoulder inflammation, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports. Additionally, the Cardinals have released reliever Ryan Sherriff, according to Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.
Leone is finally set to return after missing nearly four months with a nerve issue in his right biceps. Before Leone went on the DL on May 5, the 26-year-old opened the season with 13 innings of 4.15 ERA ball, adding 15 strikeouts against three walks. The Cardinals were counting on Leone to serve as a key member of their bullpen this year after a terrific 2017 with the Blue Jays, who traded him to St. Louis for outfielder Randal Grichuk in January.
Leone hasn’t been available for most of 2018, but Mayers, on the other hand, has seen plenty of action. The hard-throwing 26-year-old ranks third among Cardinals relievers in both innings (45 2/3) and appearances (42). Mayers has been respectable along the way, having logged a 4.14 ERA with 8.28 K/9 and 2.56 BB/9, but a couple of recent blowups have hurt his numbers. In a loss to Colorado on Saturday, he yielded two earned runs on three hits and failed to record an out – perhaps thanks to his shoulder troubles.
The left-handed Sherriff, 28, had been with the Cardinals since they used a 28th-round pick on him in 2011. He worked his way to the majors last year, impressing over 14 1/3 innings with a 3.14 ERA, 9.42 K/9 against 2.51 BB/9, and a 65 percent groundball rate. Sherriff totaled another 5 2/3 big league frames earlier this season, but he struggled before undergoing Tommy John surgery in June. Not only did that procedure end his season, but it’s also likely to keep Sherriff out for a large portion of the 2019 campaign.