Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Mookie Betts Will Miss Tokyo Series Due To Illness

By | at

9:38PM: Betts indeed won’t play in the two games against the Cubs, Roberts confirmed to Bill Plunkett (multiple links) and other reporters today.  Betts has lost almost 15 pounds due to his illness, and the Dodgers are considering sending Betts back from Japan so he can fully recover and be ready for the domestic opener.

8:31AM: Dodgers superstar Mookie Betts was held out of the club’s exhibition games against NPB’s Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers, and manager Dave Roberts explained to reporters (including David Brandt of the Associated Press) that Betts was suffering from an illness. The 32-year-old was suffering from flu-like symptoms prior to the club’s trip to Japan, but Roberts noted that he’s been “really sick” since the club arrived in Tokyo and has started losing weight. As a result, Roberts expressed pessimism to reporters (including Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register) today that Betts would be available for the Tokyo Series against the Cubs later this week.

“I think that we’re really trying to be mindful of not just Opening Day but not putting him in harm’s way,” Roberts said, according to Plunkett. “He hasn’t taken live at-bats or played in any games and not to put him in a position where he potentially could get hurt.”

While Betts hasn’t been completely ruled out for the series, Roberts said Betts would need to come into the club’s next workout feeling strong and avoid the sort of fatigue he showed during today’s practice. Fortunately, there’s been no indication to this point that Betts is likely to miss regular season games once the club returns stateside, where the Dodgers are slated to play their home opener against the Tigers on March 27.

Losing a player of Betts’s caliber for any amount of time is a significant blow. The eight-time All-Star is among the most talented players in the sport and has slashed an excellent .284/.372/.530 (147 wRC+) since being traded to L.A. back in 2020. After playing right field nearly exclusively during his days with the Red Sox, Betts has seen increasingly frequent time on the infield dirt over his years with the Dodgers and enters the 2025 season as the club’s starting shortstop after splitting time between right field, shortstop, and second base in recent years.

The loss of Betts for the Tokyo Series is likely to cause a more significant shuffle in the club’s lineup card for those two games than the average injury would. The Dodgers’ 31-man travel roster is relatively light on full-time infielders, particularly after Hyeseong Kim was optioned to the minors last week ahead of the club’s trip to Japan. If Betts winds up missing those games, Tommy Edman figures to slide from center field back onto the infield to pair with Miguel Rojas up the middle.

That would open center field up for youngster Andy Pages, who posted a solid rookie season for the Dodgers last year but was squeezed out of the lineup by the club’s signing of Michael Conforto this winter. Utility men Enrique Hernandez and Chris Taylor could also factor in either at second base or in center field in some capacity during the series, with Hernandez in particular a likely candidate to see time. The Cubs are slated to start left-handers Shota Imanaga and Justin Steele during the Tokyo Series, and Hernandez has excelled against southpaws throughout his career.

Angels Notes: Rengifo, Neto, Moncada

By | at

TODAY: Washington told Jeff Fletcher and other reporters today that Moncada’s thumb has “some deep bruises” but “nothing is torn,” so “we’ve got to let it settle down before we start letting him try to hit.”  The manager isn’t yet sure if Moncada may or may not need an IL stint to begin the season.

MARCH 15: The Angels have had a number of health woes throughout the spring, with among the most recent being concern that a nagging hamstring issue could keep infielder Luis Rengifo off the club’s Opening Day roster. Fortunately for the club and Rengifo, however, things appear to be trending in the right direction with less than two weeks remaining until the Angels begin their season in Chicago against the White Sox. As noted by Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register, Rengifo started the club’s spring game yesterday at third base and declared to reporters (including Fletcher) that he would be ready for Opening Day. Manager Ron Washington was more reserved, but acknowledged that Rengifo does have enough time to be ready for the start of the season so long as he avoids any further setbacks.

That Rengifo figures to be ready for the start of the season is surely a huge relief for the Angels. After all, the switch hitter was the club’s top offensive performer last year aside from Mike Trout, who was limited to just 29 games due to injuries last year. Rengifo was not healthy in 2024 himself, playing in only 79 games with 304 trips to the plate, but in those limited appearances he hit a solid .300/.347/.417 with a wRC+ of 117. Rengifo is currently penciled in as the club’s starting second baseman, though he has the versatility to handle third base, shortstop, and the outfield corners as well. With second baseman and 2024 first-rounder Christian Moore seemingly already knocking on the door of the major leagues with a phenomenal spring, it’s easy to imagine that versatility being key to Angels’ plans for Rengifo in the near future.

In other positive injury news, Fletcher relays that shortstop Zach Neto has been making progress as he works his way back from offseason shoulder surgery. Neto has already been ruled out for Opening Day, but isn’t expected to miss much of the regular season as he’s already ahead of his expected schedule. The 24-year-old has yet to progress to facing live pitching, but is preparing for game action by standing in the box for the bullpen sessions of his teammates and is currently throwing from 105 feet, nearly the full length from shortstop to first base. The Halos’ top hitter by both bWAR and fWAR last year, Neto figures to slide back into his job as the club’s everyday shortstop sometime in April as things stand.

Not all of the latest news out of Angels camp is positive, however. As noted by MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger, third baseman Yoan Moncada was scratched from yesterday’s lineup due to thumb soreness. He remained out of the lineup today, and while there’s been no indication of the severity of the issue to this point, it’s at least somewhat concerning given the veteran’s lengthy injury history and the issue’s proximity to Opening Day. If Moncada’s thumb issue were to prove more serious, non-roster invitee J.D. Davis may be best positioned to take advantage of the vacant job at third base although fellow non-roster invitees Tim Anderson and Carter Kieboom could also theoretically be in the mix.

Michael Tonkin To Open Season On Injured List

By | at

The Twins will be without right-hander Michael Tonkin to start the season, according to a report from Phil Miller of the Star Tribune. Miller adds that the club’s plan is for Tonkin to remain in extended Spring Training for “a few weeks” to build back up to pitching. Tonkin has been sidelined in recent days by a mild rotator cuff strain.

While the news isn’t especially surprising given the nature of rotator cuff issues, it’s nonetheless a disappointing update for both Tonkin and Twins fans. The 35-year-old righty was a 30th-round pick by Minnesota all the way back in 2008 and debuted with the club during the 2013 season. Across parts of five seasons in Minnesota, Tonkin posted a relatively pedestrian 4.43 ERA (95 ERA+) with a 4.57 FIP in 146 1/3 innings of work. That somewhat middling performance in his first stint with Minnesota led Tonkin to head overseas for the 2018 season. In 51 innings for Japan’s Nippon Ham Fighters that year, the right-hander posted a solid 3.71 ERA before returning stateside.

After his brief stay in NPB, Tonkin bounced between several minor league systems and independent teams before finally resurfacing in the majors with Atlanta back in 2023. He posted a solid enough 4.28 ERA (102 ERA+) with the Braves that year and was picked up by the Mets on a major league deal prior to the 2024 season. The righty’s stint in Queens did not go especially well, with ten runs (four earned) allowed in five appearances that led him to be designated for assignment in early April.

The righty bounced between the Mets, Twins, and Yankees via the waiver wire early in the 2024 season and eventually settled in the Bronx for the first half. He posted strong numbers with the club but was squeezed off the roster in late August, leading him back to Minnesota. In his final 51 games (70 1/3 innings of work) last year, Tonkin pitched to a strong 3.33 ERA and 3.27 FIP with a 25.2% strikeout rate. Those solid numbers were enough for the Twins to keep Tonkin in the fold for his age-35 season, but now he’ll be shelved to begin the season. An exact timetable for his return to action isn’t entirely clear, though given that Tonkin is expected to spend at least a few weeks in extended Spring Training it seems as though late April or early May could be a reasonable expectation for his return to the majors.

In other Twins bullpen news, right-hander Brock Stewart exited yesterday’s game due to a hamstring issue. Miller reports that Stewart suffered a “mild” hamstring strain but tested well in the aftermath of the injury and shouldn’t be shut down for very long, with the righty likely to resume throwing at some point this week. While Stewart’s 5.17 ERA in 16 games for the Twins last year was hardly exceptional, his 30% strikeout rate and 3.80 FIP were both intriguing enough to make him a valuable piece of the Twins’ bullpen mix headed into this year and today’s announcement regarding Tonkin figures to make him all the more important to the club’s relief depth come Opening Day. Stewart will likely be joined in the middle of the club’s bullpen by Jorge Alcala and Cole Sands as things currently stand, assuming he doesn’t suffer a setback prior to the start of the season.

White Sox Release Joey Gallo Ahead Of Move To Pitching

By | at

12:51pm: Gallo announced on social media in the aftermath of his release that he plans to convert to pitching going forward. The news shines additional light on Chicago’s decision to release Gallo, who can now search for a fresh minor league deal with a team interested in seeing what he can do on the mound. While Gallo has no professional experience on the mound, he did pitch in high school (even throwing a no-hitter) and has long had among the most impressive throwing arms in the game among position players, which was key to him earning two Gold Gloves in right field.

11:40am: The White Sox have granted Joey Gallo his unconditional release, as relayed by MLB.com’s Scott Merkin. Gallo had been in camp with the club on a minor league deal but will now head back into free agency to try and land a job with another club before Opening Day.

Gallo, 31, is coming off a difficult season with the Nationals where he hit just .161/.277/.336 (76 wRC+) in 260 trips to the plate. It’s the latest chapter in what’s been a very up-and-down career for the slugger, who was a first-round pick by the Rangers in 2012 and was a two-time All-Star across his seven years in Dallas, in 2019 and 2021. In that three season stretch, Gallo hit .209/.351/.477 with a wRC+ of 121. He crushed 70 home runs in just 280 games over those three years, but also struck out at a massive 35.6% clip.

That combination of nearly unmatched power and deep strikeout woes has contributed to a roller-coaster career where Gallo has been at times among the most impactful hitters in the sport and at times well below average. All of that has averaged out to a relatively middling .194/.319/.456 (107 wRC+) line across ten seasons in the majors, and while that’s still decent production overall Gallo hasn’t quite lived up to even that line in recent years. Despite a decent 103 wRC+ with the Twins in 2023, Gallo’s overall slash line over the past three years is just .166/.286/.379 with a well-below average wRC+ of 88. He’s struck out more than 40% of the time during that stretch, and his most productive season in Minnesota actually saw him punch out in a massive 42.8% of his trips to the plate.

Earlier in his career, Gallo helped to make up for his uneven offensive production with strong outfield defense. A two-time Gold Glove award winner in right field during his days with the Rangers who could even be counted on in center if necessary, Gallo’s fallen from grace defensively and now fits best as a roughly average defensive first baseman. Unfortunately, Gallo’s more limited defensive profile in recent years makes him a more difficult fit for a contending club in a bench role, while his offensive peaks and valleys make him difficult to bet on as a full-time starter.

Those concerns all culminated in the White Sox deciding to part ways with the slugger. While getting released by a club that lost the most games in MLB history last year is an ominous sign, it’s worth pointing out that Chicago actually has a relatively deep group of potential options at first base and in the outfield. Andrew Vaughn and Luis Robert Jr. figure to be everyday players at first base and in center field, while Mike Tauchman and Andrew Benintendi figure to capture the lion’s share of the playing time in the outfield corners.

Tauchman, Benintendi, and Gallo are all left-handed bats, so Gallo’s best opportunity for playing time in Chicago would’ve likely been spelling Vaughn at first base with Michael A. Taylor and Austin Slater both better suited for outfield roles. While Benintendi is out due to a hand fracture at the moment, he has yet to be explicitly ruled out for Opening Day and may be able to return fairly early in the season, making carrying a player like Gallo as a fill-in option less sensible.

Even so, however, it could be difficult for Gallo to find a major league gig with less than two weeks until the season begins. As much as injuries have opened up holes in various clubs’ lineups and rotations throughout the spring, there aren’t many obvious vacancies at first base around the league at the moment. Perhaps a club like the Padres, Pirates, or Marlins could use some additional depth at the position, but even those clubs have internal options they appear to be mostly comfortable with headed into Opening Day. With that said, teams certainly value depth and it’s not hard to imagine Gallo catching on with another club who has a less crowded first base and outfield mix on a fresh minor league deal, even if it doesn’t come with an immediate path to big league playing time.

Twins Prospect Matt Canterino Undergoes Season-Ending Shoulder Surgery

By | at

Twins right-hander Matt Canterino has undergone season-ending surgery to “tighten” ligaments in his throwing shoulder, as relayed by Phil Miller of the Star Tribune.

It’s a brutal blow for the 27-year-old hurler, who will now miss a third consecutive season after last pitching during the regular season back in 2022. A second-round pick by the Twins back in 2019, Canterino has been nothing short of dominant during his professional career but has been had his career thrown off the rails by injury woes. After posting a sterling 1.44 ERA in seven starts down the stretch during his draft year, Canterino missed the entire 2020 season (like all minor leaguers) due to the cancelled minor league season that year.

Upon returning to action in 2021, the right-hander was once again dominant with a sensational 0.78 ERA but made just six starts due to a forearm injury. He returned to action in 2022 and picked up right where he had left off, with a 1.83 ERA and a 34.8% strikeout rate in his first taste of Double-A action, but that 2021 forearm issue resurfaced and he ultimately required Tommy John surgery. That led him to miss the entire 2023 campaign, and in 2024 he was sidelined the entire year due to a rotator cuff strain. He pitched a scoreless inning during Spring Training this year but was shut down earlier this month due to a shoulder strain, which has now required him to go under the knife once again.

It’s a devastating turn of events for Canterino and deeply frustrating for the Twins, particularly given the right-hander’s obvious and immense talent when healthy enough to take the mound. While he’s been limited to just 85 innings in his minor league career, those innings could hardly have been more impressive. He’s posted a lifetime 1.48 ERA during his professional career while striking out a sensational 39.2% of opponents. His 10.5% walk rate is certainly elevated, but that issue is masked by Canterino’s overpowering stuff and an impressive ability to keep the ball in the park. He’s surrendered just three home runs throughout his MiLB career despite his fly ball-heavy approach, and it’s easy to imagine him finding success at Triple-A and even in the majors with his impressive repertoire so long as he can eventually stay healthy enough to use it.

Canterino is currently on the 40-man roster, which means the Twins could theoretically place him on the 60-day injured list to open up a 40-man roster spot should they need to at some point this year. With that being said, doing so would mean that Canterino will accrue big league service time this year despite not having made his MLB debut. Alternatively, Canterino can be placed on the minor league injured list, where he would not accrue MLB service time but would count against the club’s 40-man roster.

Orioles Notes: Henderson, Mateo, Urias

By | at

Orioles star Gunnar Henderson provided a positive update on the status of his intercostal strain yesterday, telling reporters (including Roch Kubatko of MASN) that he’s “feeling good” as he works his way back to the field in hopes of being ready for Opening Day. Henderson first suffered the injury in late February, and after nearly three weeks of rehab the shortstop expressed some optimism about his situation.

“It’s getting there,” Henderson said, as relayed by Kubatko. “It’s a lot better than what it originally felt like.”

He went on to add that his “plan” is to be active and in the lineup for Opening Day against the Blue Jays on March 27, and hopefully get into some Spring Training games before then as well. While he wasn’t in either lineup for today’s set to split squad Grapefruit League games, Opening Day is still almost two weeks away which should offer the Orioles a bit of time to work with as they look to get Henderson up to speed in time for the start of the regular season.

Losing the shortstop for any amount of time would be devastating given that he was one of the top players in the entire sport last year. After impressing in a 32-game cup of coffee during the 2022 season, Henderson won the AL Rookie of the Year award in 2023 before making his first All-Star game last year and finishing fourth in a stacked AL MVP class behind Aaron Judge, Bobby Witt Jr. and Juan Soto. If Henderson were to miss time, the club could slide Jackson Holliday over to shortstop from second base, with a potential bench player like Livan Soto handling second or perhaps Jordan Westburg moving to the keystone to make room for Coby Mayo at the hot corner. Of course, for now the Orioles seem to be focused on preparing Henderson for the start of the season rather than potential alternatives.

While Henderson seemingly remains on track to break camp with the club, the same cannot be said for utility man Jorge Mateo. As noted by Kubatko, manager Brandon Hyde told reporters Friday that it’s “very doubtful” Mateo will be ready for Opening Day. The versatile hitter has spent the spring recovering from elbow surgery, and recently expressed optimism that he’d be able to make it back in time for Opening Day. That optimism isn’t entirely unfounded, as Mateo is making his spring debut today. With that being said, the final decision of Mateo’s readiness will come down to Hyde and GM Mike Elias, both of whom have now expressed doubt about Mateo’s odds of breaking camp with the club.

Back to more promising injury news, infielder Ramon Urias has been slowed in recent days by a sore hamstring but is not expected to miss significant time due to the issue. Kubatko writes that the 30-year-old went through a full slate of defensive work and took batting practice yesterday, while MLB.com’s Jake Rill notes that Urias told reporters this morning that his hamstring is feeling better and that there’s “no concern” about his ability to be ready for Opening Day. Urias is in neither lineup for today’s split squad games, but both he and Hyde expressed optimism that he would be back in the lineup for Baltimore in relatively short order.

Bryan Shaw Reassigned To Reds Minor League Camp, Will Report To Triple-A

By | at

The Reds announced a series of roster cuts this morning, most notably including right-hander Bryan Shaw. Shaw, 37, signed a minor league deal with Cincinnati back in December, but it is customary for non-roster veterans to have opt-out opportunities built into their contracts even if they (like Shaw) don’t qualify as Article XX(B) free agents who receive uniform opt-out opportunities as mandated by the league’s collective bargaining agreement.

Given this reality, it’s typical for a veteran who is reassigned to minor league camp to explore alternate options in free agency rather than report to the minors and stick with their current club. That’s not the path Shaw is taking, however, as MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon writes that Shaw has decided to stay with the Reds organization and report to Triple-A Louisville when the season begins. That news was relayed to reporters by manager Terry Francona, for whom Shaw pitched in seven seasons with Cleveland.

“He wants to stay,” Francona said, as relayed by Sheldon. “The guy has pitched 16 years. I’ve seen him have springs like this and then he goes out and throws in 81 games and faces the middle of the order all the time. That just wasn’t the position he was in this spring and he’s inconsistent with the strike zone. His stuff is still fine. And we were thrilled he wants to go to Triple-A. He can still do it.”

Shaw, 37, was a second-rounder by the Diamondbacks back in 2008 who made his big league debut during the 2011 season. Since then, the veteran reliever has posted a 3.96 ERA (109 ERA+) with a 4.05 FIP throughout his career, which has seen him throw 764 1/3 innings of work across 14 MLB seasons. He’s struggled with ineffectiveness over the past three seasons, however, pitching to a lackluster 5.00 ERA with a 4.54 FIP across 108 frames with the Guardians and White Sox. That decline in performance has seen Shaw’s opportunities at the big league level begin to dry up somewhat; he pitched in just five big league games for the White Sox last year before spending the rest of 2025 in the Angels organization at Triple-A Salt Lake, for whom he posted a solid 4.14 ERA even in the tough offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League.

After a lackluster spring where he posted a solid enough 4.05 ERA in seven appearances but walked (9) more batters than he struck out (7), Shaw is once again ticketed for Triple-A at least to begin the season. The fact that the veteran is sticking around in the minors is welcome news for the Reds, however, given the club’s relative lack of relief depth on the 40-man roster. While some arms set to serve as rotation depth like Carson Spiers and Lyon Richardson could theoretically be used out of the bullpen, right-hander Yosver Zulueta is the only full-time reliever on the club’s 40-man roster not already projected to make the club’s Opening Day bullpen. Given the frequency with which injuries pop up across a 162-game season, that should leave plenty of room for even players not yet on the 40-man roster such as Shaw to make a case for themselves at Triple-A and pitch their way onto the big league club over the course of the coming campaign.

Red Sox Notes: Abreu, Devers, Newcomb

By | at

Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu has been out of action this spring due to a gastrointestinal virus that, as of last week, had kept the 25-year-old from even swinging a bat this spring. That led to plenty of questions about whether or not he would be ready in time for Opening Day, but as noted by Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic yesterday, he was cleared to play in today’s Grapefruit League game.

It was a major step forward for Abreu, who told reporters (including Christopher Smith of MassLive) that he expects to be ready for Opening Day later this month after acknowledging that he’ll need “some more reps” before he’s in regular season form. Notably, Abreu lost considerable weight as a result of the virus but has said that he doesn’t view that weight loss as a concern as he still feels as strong and mobile as ever. If Abreu does prove to be ready for Opening Day, that would be a major relief for a Red Sox lineup that appears poised to rely on a platoon of him and Rob Refsnyder in right field this season. The sixth place finisher in AL Rookie of the Year voting last year, Abreu won a Gold Glove for his work in right field while hitting .253/.322/.459 (114 wRC+), including a 126 wRC+ against right-handed pitching.

Abreu was joined in his return to the lineup by star teammate Rafael Devers. Devers has gotten plenty of attention this spring after the club’s signing of third baseman Alex Bregman, as the Red Sox have thusfar refused to anoint either Devers or Bregman as the Opening Day third baseman in the aftermath of Devers’s vocal opposition to a move off the hot corner. The slugger has struck a more conciliatory tone in recent days, however, as Bregman has been used almost exclusively at third this spring while Devers was slowed in camp after rehabbing a shoulder injury throughout the offseason. Devers was back in the lineup alongside Abreu today, however, and manager Alex Cora told reporters (including Smith) that the duo will get time on the backfields tomorrow before returning to the lineup on Monday as they ease back into regular playing time.

With Devers and Abreu both seemingly making good pace to start for the Red Sox on Opening Day, much of the intrigue in the final weeks of Red Sox camp seems likely to be focused on the rotation. Garrett Crochet, Walker Buehler, and Tanner Houck will feature in the club’s starting five, but the last two spots are up for grabs after Lucas Giolito, Brayan Bello, and Kutter Crawford were all delayed in camp by various injuries. 40-man roster arms Cooper Criswell, Richard Fitts, and Quinn Priester have long been known to be in the conversation for those spots, but Cora told reporters (including Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe) today that non-roster southpaw Sean Newcomb is also in the mix for a rotation job.

Newcomb, 31, was a first-round pick by the Angels back in 2014 and had success in both the rotation and bullpen with Atlanta during the early years of his career. He posted a 3.87 ERA and 4.17 FIP in 332 1/3 innings of work across the 2017 to 2019 seasons, but the wheels came off during the shortened 2020 season and he’s struggled every since. Over the past five seasons, he’s posted a 6.66 ERA with a 5.49 FIP in 98 2/3 innings, the majority of which came out of the bullpen. The southpaw has been nothing short of dominant for the Red Sox this spring, however, and his 0.93 ERA in 9 2/3 frames has seemingly given Boston’s decision-makers enough to think about that he has a chance at starting the season not just on the roster, but in the rotation.

Diamondbacks Sign J.P. Feyereisen To A Minor League Deal

By | at

The Diamondbacks have signed right-hander J.P. Feyereisen to a minor league deal, according to an announcement from the club’s Triple-A affiliate Reno Aces.

Feyereisen, 32, was a 16th-round pick by Cleveland all the way back in 2014 but didn’t make his big league debut in the shortened 2020 season, when he made six relief appearances with the Brewers. That brief cup of coffee aside, Feyereisen’s real first crack at a significant role with Milwaukee came in 2021. The right-hander posted a solid 3.26 ERA in 19 1/3 innings with the club early in the year but was eventually shipped out to the Rays alongside Drew Rasmussen as part of the trade that brought Willy Adames to Milwaukee in May of that year.

The right-hander found another gear in Tampa and performed excellently the rest of the way, with a 2.45 ERA in 36 2/3 innings of work for an overall season ERA of 2.73 in 55 innings. Feyereisen’s peripherals left something to be desired, with a 4.21 FIP thanks primarily to a massive 14.1% walk rate. Those peripheral concerns vanished in 2022, however, as Feyereisen posted an otherworldly start to the season for Tampa. In 24 1/3 scoreless frames for the Rays to open the year, Feyereisen cut his walk rate to just 5.8% while striking out 29.1% of opponents with a 1.67 FIP and a 2.93 SIERA. It was on pace to be one of the better relief seasons in recent memory, but unfortunately Feyereisen’s campaign was cut short by a shoulder injury.

The shoulder woes eventually wiped out the right-hander’s entire 2023 campaign after he underwent surgery on his rotator cuff. While Feyereisen returned to the mound (now as a member of the Dodgers) in 2024, his results left much to be desired. Feyereisen was shelled to the tune of an 8.18 ERA in 11 innings with L.A. in the majors last year, and even in the minors he struggled to a 5.48 ERA with a strikeout rate of just 17.9%. That led the Dodgers to outright Feyereisen off their 40-man roster last July, allowing him to elect free agency back in November. He’s been on the open market since then, but will now land in Arizona and attempt to work his way back into a big league role.

The Diamondbacks have spent the offseason in search of bullpen help, but have not yet secured the lock-down closer they were hoping to find. While Feyereisen is hardly a sure thing, there’s few relievers in the game who have showed the sort of upside he flashed during his stint with the Rays. If Arizona can unlock even some of that ceiling, it’s not hard to imagine Feyereisen pitching high leverage innings for the Diamondbacks at some point this season. For now, however, the right-hander appears ticketed for Triple-A Reno where he’ll look to get his career back on track.

Jose Trevino Avoids Fracture On Right Thumb

By | at

4:55pm: Wittenmyer reports that today’s CT scan showed no fracture, and that Trevino will likely avoid the injured list. He’s currently considered day-to-day by the club.

4:23pm: Reds catcher Jose Trevino was pulled from yesterday’s game after being struck on his throwing hand by a foul tip. As noted by Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Trevino was sent for “precautionary” x-rays that came back inconclusive yesterday. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon noted today that Trevino was being sent for a CT scan on his thumb, though results of that latest round of testing have not yet been reported.

Losing Trevino would be a devastating blow to Cincinnati, as they’ll already be without primary catcher Tyler Stephenson to start the season due to an oblique strain. That left Trevino as the club’s starting catcher to open the season, with Austin Wynns likely to slot in as the club’s backup. Acquired from the Yankees for veteran reliever Fernando Cruz over the offseason, Trevino hit a lackluster .230/.279/.361 in three seasons with the Yankees but offered a strong glove behind the plate.

If Trevino also misses time, Wynns may need to be supplemented with an external addition given the club’s lack of depth options behind the plate. Will Banfield and Michael Trautwein are both in camp as non-roster invitees, but neither has played in the majors before and each has less than 100 games of experience at even the Triple-A level. Adding a new catcher into the fold isn’t something the Reds seem keen on doing, as Wittenmyer notes that manager Terry Francona expressed a strong preference to keep the catching corps in-house.

“We don’t want to do that. I think we value guys that know our pitchers,” Francona said, as relayed by Wittenmyer. “And again, I don’t think it’s going to be a terribly long time (without Stephenson). But having somebody try to come in right now, hoo-boy, that’s a pretty big ask, trying to put down the right fingers and why you’re doing it.

An injury to Trevino could complicate that desire to avoid an external addition, particularly if Trevino requires a lengthy absence. Fortunately, the early signs seem to be positive about Trevino’s ability to play come Opening Day. Trevino himself seems confident he won’t need a trip to the injured list, as he told reporters (including Wittenmyer) that he “could play today.”

Of course, Trevino’s confidence that he can play doesn’t necessarily guarantee that he’ll avoid an injured list stint. That will surely depend to at least some extent on the results of today’s testing. If the Reds do end up needing to pursue an external option behind the plate, Yasmani Grandal is the best catcher still available in a fairly shallow market for catching talent. It’s also possible some non-roster veterans like Tucker Barnhart and Omar Narvaez could be made available in the coming weeks if they don’t break camp with their current clubs.

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