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60-Man Player Pool Additions: Orioles, Rays

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A couple of American League East teams have made new additions to their 60-man player pools. Here are the latest updates:

  • One of the Orioles’ top prospects, right-hander Grayson Rodriguez has joined their player pool, the team announced. The 20-year-old isn’t far removed from going 11th overall to the Orioles in the 2018 draft. He made his Single-A debut last year and turned heads with a 2.68 ERA, 12.4 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 94 innings. Rodriguez currently ranks among the league’s best farmhands – FanGraphs (No. 29), MLB.com (36) and Baseball America (37) are among the prospect outlets that are quite bullish on him.
  • The Rays have added catcher/outfielder Brett Sullivan, who will head to their alternate training site, Juan Toribio of MLB.com tweets. Sullivan was a 17th-round pick of the Rays in 2015 who has since climbed to Double-A ball. He batted an impressive .280/.333/.459 (127 wRC+) and hit 10 home runs with 21 stolen bases in 403 plate appearances last season.

Orioles Trade Hector Velazquez To Astros

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The Orioles announced this morning that they’ve traded right-hander Hector Velazquez to the Astros in exchange for a player to be named later. Baltimore had outrighted Velazquez off its 40-man roster just prior to Opening Day.

Velazquez, 31, spent the past three seasons with the Red Sox, throwing well from 2017-18 before stumbling to a 5.43 ERA in 56 frames in 2019. He’d previously logged a 3.12 ERA in 109 2/3 MLB frames, with averages of 5.9 strikeouts, 2.7 walks and 0.9 home runs per nine innings. The righty’s low strikeout right and lofty 80.7 percent strand rate prompted fielding-independent metrics to treat that ERA with some skepticism, but even metrics like FIP (4.24), SIERA (4.54) felt he was at least a passable option.

Things deteriorated last year for Velazquez when his walk and home run rates spiked. His strand rate not only regressed toward the league average (72.3 percent) but blew right by it and swung toward another extreme: 61.9 percent. Velazquez doesn’t miss many bats, but he can generate grounders with a low-spin sinker when at his best, as evidenced by a near-50 percent grounder rate in 2018.

It’s a necessary depth move for an Astros club that has been hammered by injuries on the pitching staff. Houston currently has nine rookies on its staff, including seven relievers who hadn’t accrued a single day of MLB service prior to Opening Day. It’s not clear whether Velazquez will be selected directly to the Major League roster, although given the sheer inexperience that currently permeates the Houston roster, there’d seem to be a decent chance that Velazquez will be called up in the near future.

MLB Announces Scheduling Changes Following Marlins Outbreak

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Major League Baseball has formally announced a series of alterations to the upcoming schedule in the wake of the Marlins’ Covid-19 outbreak. The changes are as follows:

  • All Marlins games are postponed through Sunday. As a result, the Marlins aren’t expected to play until next Monday.
  • The remainder of this week’s Phillies-vs.-Yankees games have been postponed. As a result, the Phillies aren’t expected to play until Friday.
  • The Yankees and Orioles are now scheduled to play at Camden Yards on Wednesday and Thursday.
  • Additional scheduling alterations for the week of Aug. 3 will be announced by the league later this week.

Those alterations seemingly leave the Nationals without an opponent this coming weekend, as had been recently reported to be the case by Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Major League Baseball concluded its press release with the following statement:

The difficult circumstances of one Club reinforce the vital need to be diligent with the protocols in all ways, both on and off the field.  We will continue to bolster our protocols and make any necessary adjustments.  The realities of the virus still loom large, and we must operate with that in mind every day.  We are confident that Clubs and players will act appropriately, for themselves and for others, and the data provides reason to believe that the protocols can work effectively.

Notably, the release doesn’t address the bizarre scene on Sunday that saw Marlins players and field staff make the final call on playing — rather than a league official or health expert — even as positive tests piled up. Both shortstop Miguel Rojas and manager Don Mattingly said after the game that the team never gave strong consideration to calling off the game. It’s rather remarkable that the decision on whether to play that day fell the field level in the first place, however. Whether any alterations to that decision process will be implemented moving forward remains unclear.

MLB’s press release indicates that the other 29 teams have not had any new positive tests among on-field personnel since July 24. That would seem to clash with the Reds’ July 25 announcement that Matt Davidson has been placed on the IL following a positive Covid-19 test, though that test may have technically been conducted prior to the 24th. There have been several other players placed on the IL without a reason given, although that doesn’t ensure any have had a positive test. Teams are permitted to place players on the Covid-19 IL if they show symptoms or are exposed to someone known to have tested positive.

Marlins’ Season “Paused” As MLB Plots Scheduling Modifications

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1:45pm: In addition to the Phillies being paused through Friday and the Marlins being paused until Monday, the Orioles and Yankees are now indeed likely to play one another on Wednesday and Thursday, Sherman tweets. The Nationals, meanwhile, won’t have a game at all this weekend, since they’d been slated to play the Marlins.

1:26pm: The current plan is for the Marlins to be held out from playing until “at least” next Monday, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter link). Incorporating doubleheaders and making use of some off-days could help to make up ground in the schedule, although with only a week’s worth of off-days worked into the existing schedule, there are some potential pitfalls with that approach as well.

12:58pm: The Phillies are expected to resume action against the Blue Jays on Friday, Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets.

12:52pm: The Marlins’ 2020 campaign has been “paused,” according to Craig Mish of Sports Grid (Twitter link). That development is part of an apparent effort on the part of Major League Baseball to tweak its schedule to account for the breakout of COVID-19 cases within the Miami organization.

With the Phillies also sidelined, at least for the short term, the league is left with two teams out of action. It’s considering a plan to match up those two organizations’ previously scheduled opponents — the Yankees and Orioles — in order to keep logging as many games as possible, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link).

While the Philadelphia organization doesn’t have any new positive tests to worry about, it recently took the field against the Marlins. The Phils will also be held back for at least some time as a result, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports (Twitter links).

The idea, it seems, would be to get the Marlins and Phillies caught up on total contests later in the season. If they don’t quite make it to 60 total games, postseason qualification could still be determined by winning percentage. It isn’t clear exactly what standards the league will apply to determine when to resume action for these teams.

This on-the-fly scheduling construction is obviously fraught with difficulty. Many problems could end up being kicked down the road, particularly if the Marlins have further difficulties or the breakout turns out to have expanded to other organizations.

Predict The AL East Division Winner

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With final roster decisions in the books and the 2020 season underway at long last, it’s time to make some predictions. We’re polling the MLBTR readership on each of the game’s six divisions — though plenty more teams will crack the postseason under the rather inclusive new playoff qualification system. We’ve already surveyed the AL Central, NL Central, and NL East landscapes, and now we’ll turn to the American League East.

The Yankees have certainly been tabbed the favorite by most observers, but several key players have questionable injury histories and the short-season format opens the door for challengers. The Rays are perhaps the prime contender for a surprise, with a deep and versatile roster that’s far more talented than the payroll would suggest. Then again, we may all be overlooking the Red Sox, who have certainly shed some talent but still have several rather high-ceiling players. There’s a ton of young talent on the Blue Jays roster; maybe the team could surprise if those precocious performers develop ahead of schedule. It’s quite difficult to make a case for the Orioles, even in a pithy blurb, but … hey, they’re tied for the division lead at 2-1 entering play today!

Which team do you think is going to take the division title? (Poll link for app users.)

Predict The 2020 A.L. East Division Winner
Yankees 53.19% (3,832 votes)
Rays 22.92% (1,651 votes)
Orioles 10.49% (756 votes)
Blue Jays 9.77% (704 votes)
Red Sox 3.62% (261 votes)
Total Votes: 7,204

Rob Manfred On MLB’s Latest Coronavirus Issues

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COVID-19 has thrown a wrench into Major League Baseball’s plans throughout the past few months, and Monday was no different. The Marlins-Orioles and Yankees-Phillies games were both postponed because of the outbreak affecting the Miami club, which has seen 11 of the 33 players on its 30-man roster and three-man taxi squad test positive. The Marlins-O’s matchup on Tuesday will also be pushed back as a result, but commissioner Rob Manfred expressed confidence Monday that the 60-game season will still be able to take place.

“We think we can keep people safe and continue to play,” Manfred said (per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com and Bill Shakin of the Los Angeles Times), adding that the league hasn’t seriously considering shutting down the season at this point. For MLB to do that, it would require one of its teams “losing a number of players that rendered it completely non-competitive,” Manfred stated. 

Whether the Marlins are “non-competitive” in their current state isn’t fully clear, as the identities of their players who tested positive aren’t known right now. They certainly appear to be at a disadvantage, though. The Fish were scheduled to play the Orioles in Miami, but the two could instead square off in Baltimore on Wednesday if the Marlins’ coronavirus tests yield the desired results, according to Manfred (via Shaikin). Manfred expects that the latest results from Miami and Philadelphia (which hosted the Marlins over the weekend) will come in Monday night, and the league will issue an update Tuesday, Hoch tweets.

It’s hard to call this anything but a terrible outcome for MLB, whose season just kicked off and looks less certain than ever to finish, but Manfred’s taking an optimistic approach for the time being. He insisted (via Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald) that this is not “a nightmare situation” for the sport.

Marlins’ Home Opener Postponed After Team Covid-19 Outbreak

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10:30am: Passan tweets that the updated tally is 11 of 33 players who’ve been traveling with the club (i.e. the 30-man roster and three-man taxi squad) and a pair of coaches have tested positive. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald and Sherman hear the same (Twitter links). Mish adds that some of the team’s more notable players are among the positive group.

Major League Baseball has issued the following statement:

Tonight’s scheduled games between the Miami Marlins and the Baltimore Orioles at Marlins Park and the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Yankees at Citizens Bank Park have been postponed while Major League Baseball conducts additional COVID-19 testing.  The members of the Marlins’ traveling party are self-quarantining in place while awaiting the outcome of those results.  Major League Baseball has been coordinating with the Major League Baseball Players Association; the Marlins; the Orioles; the Marlins’ weekend opponent, the Phillies; and Club medical staffs, and will continue to provide updates as appropriate.

8:12am: The Marlins had four players test positive for COVID-19 over the weekend, and ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports this morning that an additional eight players and two coaches have since tested positive (Twitter link). Tonight’s scheduled home opener against the Orioles has been canceled, tweets Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. ESPN’s Jesse Rogers tweets that not all of the new cases are asymptomatic.

The Marlins remain in Philadelphia and won’t be traveling back to Miami as had been previously scheduled, per Sportsgrid’s Craig Mish (Twitter links). In the span of one weekend, the Marlins have now seen a dozen players and two coaches test positive. More troubling, perhaps, is that Mish emphasizes that Marlins players and coaching staff have been adhering to the league’s health and safety protocols.

It’s alarming, too, that Rosenthal and colleague Jayson Stark report (subscription link) that yesterday’s Marlins/Phillies game was played after three players tested positive. That brought the Marlins’ total known positive tests to seven, and a day later it appears that figure has doubled. Marlins shortstop Miguel Rojas and manager Don Mattingly said that the team was unified in its decision to play. Rosenthal and Stark add that the league conducted contact tracing and tested the remainder of the roster and staff, with all beyond the initial seven coming back negative.

The implications here, of course, are broad-reaching. The Phillies just shared the field with the Marlins for their opening three-game series, which will undoubtedly prompt concerns among Phillies players and staff. The Yankees, meanwhile, had been scheduled to travel to Philadelphia to set up shop in the same visiting clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park that was just home to 14 positive cases. Ramifications beyond the immediate circle of baseball employees exist as well, of course. The Marlins have been staying at a hotel in Philadelphia over the weekend, which means staff on hand there has likely been exposed as well.

The Yankees, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter links), aren’t staying at the same hotel the Marlins used. They’ve also brought in their own clubhouse staff rather than work with the Phillies’ visiting clubhouse staff. They might’ve chosen to do so anyway, but The Athletic’s Matt Gelb tweets that the Phillies have quarantined their entire visiting clubhouse staff while awaiting test results. There’s been no definitive word on whether tonight’s game between the Yankees and Phillies will even take place, but it’s certainly possible it’ll be postponed or canceled as well.

Orioles Sign 5th-Rounder Carter Baumler

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The Orioles have inked fifth-round right-hander Carter Baumler to an above-slot bonus, Jim Callis of MLB.com tweets. Baumler – the 133rd pick – will receive $1.5MM, a vast increase over the $422,300 recommended value of his selection. Notably, with Baumler under wraps, every pick from this year’s five-round MLB amateur draft class has signed.

The 18-year-old Baumler, who played high school baseball in Iowa, committed to Texas Christian University before the draft. He’ll bail on his TCU commitment in favor of the Orioles, who are getting a player who ranked among the top 150 available pre-draft players at ESPN (No. 100), MLB.com (02), FanGraphs (127) and Baseball America (147). According to MLB.com, Baumler boasts a 90 to 94 mph fastball with encouraging secondary offerings in a curveball and a changeup, as well as a “clean delivery and arm action.”

Orioles Outright Hector Velazquez

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The Orioles announced today that they have outrighted righty Hector Velazquez. He has already cleared waivers.

This move removes a player from the Baltimore 60-man player pool, leaving five openings to work with. The O’s clearly did not believe that Velazquez would be an option in the majors this year.

The 31-year-old hurler had been a useful swingman for the division-rival Red Sox, though he scuffled in 2019. Given the Orioles’ pitching needs, it seemed he had a good shot at carving out a role. Instead, he’ll be stashed on the Baltimore minor-league roster without a chance to play this season.

Blue Jays To Play Home Games In Buffalo

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The Blue Jays will play their home games for the 2020 season at their Triple-A site in Buffalo, reports Dan Connolly of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Jays have been searching for a home site since government regulations in Canada ruled out Toronto’s Rogers Centre. They thought they’d reached a deal with the Pirates to utilize Pittsburgh’s PNC Park, but the Pennsylvania Department of Health quashed that plan. The Blue Jays also explored the possibility of playing at Camden Yards in Baltimore, which the Orioles reportedly approved, but that arrangement was also pending government approval in Maryland.

All the while, the Jays have reportedly been working to upgrade their facilities at Buffalo’s Sahen Field, bringing the clubhouses lighting up to par with MLB standards (or at least as close as possible). The organization’s strong preference has been to play its home games at a Major League facility, but it seems they’ll instead settle in a familiar setting for many of the club’s young players.

The Jays have since officially confirmed the report, issuing a statement which indicates they’ll stage the “majority” of its 2020 home games in Buffalo. Said president and CEO Mark Shapiro within the release:

“This process has no doubt tested our team’s resilience, but our players and staff refuse to make excuses – we are determined to take the field on Opening Day today, and for the coming months, with the same intensity and competitiveness that our fans expect.”

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