Injury Notes: Canha, Boxberger, Norris, Cashner, Brantley, Gallardo, Travis, Chirinos
Athletics first baseman/outfielder Mark Canha is weighing surgery to repair a hip impingement, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Undergoing the procedure would keep him out the rest of the way, per the report, but he’s still undecided and will seek a second opinion. It seems that he’ll at least try out a cortisone shot before going under the knife. The 27-year-old had a strong 2015 season, sticking as a Rule 5 pick, but has come out of the gates with a meager .122/.140/.341 slash in 44 plate appearances in 2016.
Here are some more injury updates from around the game that are worthy of note:
- Rays closer Brad Boxberger, who is on the mend from core muscle surgery dating back to Spring Training, threw 22 pitches in an extended Spring Training game yesterday, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. If Boxberger feels good today, he’ll likely begin a rehab assignment early next week (possibly Monday) with an eye toward returning late in the month of May. Boxberger led the American League with 41 saves in 2015 and would immediately deepen a bullpen that ranks 10th in the Majors in ERA but carries a more troubling ranking of 25th in the FIP department.
- The Padres had originally planned to carry three catchers for a short time following the claim of Hector Sanchez, but a hand injury to Derek Norris last night now makes the decision to claim Sanchez all the more critical, writes Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Norris was hit on the hand by a pitch and would ultimately leave the game, and while initial x-rays were negative, he’s undergoing further tests today. Interestingly, Lin notes that the Sanchez claim, initially, would’ve allowed the Padres to use Christian Bethancourt as a pinch-hitter, and there was even some talk of him getting some work in at third base (scouting reports have long touted his arm as an 80-grade tool). However, if Norris is found to have any kind of fracture and will miss some time, those plans will change.
- Meanwhile, the Padres decided to put righty Andrew Cashner on the 15-day DL today after determining that his hamstring wasn’t quite ready to go, as Lin tweets. It certainly doesn’t appear to be a major injury, since Cashner very nearly was allowed to pitch tonight, but it’s nonetheless notable. After all, San Diego doesn’t appear to be primed to contend this year, and Cashner could be an important trade piece — or qualifying offer recipient, if he can really turn things around. But he’s currently allowing just under five earned runs per nine, with ERA estimators not much more optimistic.
- Michael Brantley‘s surgically repaired shoulder is fatigued, reports Cleveland.com’s Zack Meisel, which prompted the Indians to rest him on Tuesday and Wednesday in advance of yesterday’s off-day. Brantley will take batting practice today and be re-evaluated. Per Meisel, Brantley’s shoulder has not been “bouncing back in ideal fashion” following an increase in playing time for the team’s star player. Brantley underwent shoulder surgery over the winter, and while earlier projections had him possibly remaining on the disabled list well into May, he instead beat that timeline by a good margin and was in the Indians’ lineup in late April.
- Orioles righty Yovani Gallardo is set to begin throwing again tomorrow, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports on Twitter. It’s been a three-week gap since he last picked up a baseball, and Gallardo is only expected to engage in a light toss. His timeline to return to action from a shoulder injury remains uncertain, with at least a couple rehab outings seemingly in his future even if things go well.
- The Blue Jays, meanwhile, now have reason to believe that second baseman Devon Travis will soon be back. Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca tweets that Travis is heading out on a rehab assignment, which will begin a maximum twenty-day stretch in the minors. So long as Travis progresses, he ought to be back in Toronto by early June, it would appear. The 25-year-old burst onto the scene early last year, but he hasn’t played since late July after undergoing a procedure on his left shoulder.
- Likewise, Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos has been able to throw for each of the last five days, Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. That’s certainly promising, given that he’s recovering from a broken right forearm. Chirinos won’t be eligible to come off of the 60-day DL until June 9th, but Texas would surely like to get him back as close to that date as possible.
Free Agent Notes: Lincecum, Nathan, Oviedo
Fielding questions about the Orioles‘ interest in Tim Lincecum, executive VP Dan Duquette downplayed that likelihood and provided some hints as to the market’s development, as Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports. In Duquette’s view, Lincecum is likely to sign with a west coast club and is likely to get a shot at a rotation. “He’s going to sign with a club that needs a starter,” said the O’s top baseball decisionmaker. “That’s what he wants to do, and I’m confident he’s going to get that opportunity.”
- The Diamondbacks are a theoretical suitor with a geographic match, but the club does not appear likely to get involved on Lincecum, as Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic tweets. While GM Dave Stewart says that the organization had scouts on hand for the showcase, he went on to say, “I don’t see us going any steps further.” Lincecum appears to be drawing fairly wide interest, but it’s still not clear which team will make him a handshake agreement of a starting role. We had heard that the 31-year-old could reach a decision over the weekend after his showcase on Friday, but that obviously didn’t happen.
- Last we checked in, veteran reliever Joe Nathan was still set on a comeback, and Chris Cotillo of SB Nation tweets an update. Nathan, who’s recovering from Tommy John surgery, is beginning a throwing program. There’s apparently at least some hope that he’ll be ready for game action by July 1st, though it would be pretty surprising to see him in the majors anywhere near that soon if he’s only now ramping up.
- Cuban righty Johan Oviedo is opening some eyes, MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez tweets. An 18-year-old with a big frame, Oviedo is said to be working in the mid-nineties with his fastball, though of course scouts will be looking for quite a bit more than just that. He’s eligible to sign, but will be subject to bonus pool restrictions.
- Morgan Campbell of the Toronto Star provides an interesting look at the question of how the talent flow from Cuba to the majors may impact the game on the island. At present, stakeholders on the island merely watch as their best players depart, receiving no compensation. It’s certainly fair to raise doubts about the long-term impacts of that set of incentives, to say nothing of the other issues that have arisen in player movement out of Cuba. Of course, all indications are that a new system will be installed, but it remains to be seen how it’ll be structured.
AL Notes: Gallardo, Ausmus, Hill
Orioles righty Yovani Gallardo will have a “light catch” over the weekend, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports on Twitter. Gallardo hit the DL on April 23rd but is only now apparently set to test out his bothersome shoulder. Even if he’s able to begin progressing back toward the mound, his timetable remains uncertain. And beyond that, Gallardo still will face questions about his ability to remain effective while exhibiting a rather significant velocity decline that apparently preceded his injury.
Here are a few more notes from the American League:
- Tigers manager Brad Ausmus acknowledges that he is “in the crosshairs” with his team struggling, writes MLive.com’s Aaron McMann. “I knew when I took this job, I was probably going to get fired before I walked away from it,” said Ausmus. “Not this job in particular, but just managing in general. How many managers walk away from a job?” The Tigers are off to a fairly disappointing 14-16 start and suffered through a disastrous bullpen meltdown on Sunday, when Mark Lowe and Justin Wilson combined to serve up seven runs in the eighth inning. Ausmus said he hasn’t heard anything either way from owner Mike Ilitch or GM Al Avila in terms of his job security.
- Rich Hill has been one of the best stories in the league this season with the A’s, but the Red Sox made an effort to keep around following his September renaissance last season, according to WEEI.com’s John Tomase. Boston offered Hill a one-year, Major League deal on the heels of his four brilliant starts down the stretch, but the money didn’t match up to Oakland’s $6MM, per Tomase’s sources. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski wouldn’t get into any specific details, unsurprisingly, but he did acknowledge that his team made Hill what it felt to be a competitive offer. “We gave him what we felt was a solid offer,” said Dombrowski. “They did better. It’s always easier in hindsight. It’s a situation where we did like him enough to offer him a nice deal, we thought. Oakland really stepped up, and you tip your cap.”
Minor MLB Transactions: 5/9/16
Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…
- The Cubs have purchased the contract of righty Alex Sanabia from the Mexican League Tijuana Toros, MLBTR’s Zach Links has learned. Sanabia will head to Triple-A Iowa to bolster the club’s rotation depth. The 27-year-old has seen action in parts of three MLB seasons with the Marlins, throwing 138 2/3 innings over 24 starts and four relief appearances and posting a sturdy 4.15 ERA with 5.6 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9. Sanabia had a rough go of things with the Angels’ top affiliate last year, but has given the Toros 30 innings of 3.60 ERA ball with 6.0 K/9 against a stingy 0.9 BB/9.
- Left-hander Ryan O’Rourke has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A by the Twins, tweets Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The 28-year-old has appeared in 36 games for Minnesota over the past two seasons but struggled to a 5.83 ERA. While O’Rourke misses plenty of bats (8.9 K/9), he also has struggled with his control, as evidenced by the 20 walks he’s issued in 29 1/3 big league innings. Lefties, however, have been befuddled by him, batting just .149/.286/.234 in 58 plate appearances.
- The Orioles announced today that right-hander Scott McGough has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Norfolk. Baltimore designated the 26-year-old, who was claimed off waivers from the Marlins earlier this year, for assignment last week. McGough made his big league debut in Miami last season but allowed seven runs in 6 2/3 innings. He’s been roughed up for a dozen runs in 8 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level this season but had an excellent 2015 campaign, posting a 1.93 ERA in 37 1/3 innings across three minor league level.
- The Red Sox have signed former A’s first baseman Nate Freiman to a minor league deal and assigned him to Double-A Portland, according to an announcement from the independent Atlantic League. Freiman, 29, has been playing for the Atlantic League’s Long Island Ducks and hitting quite well through a small six-game sample (8-for-21, two homers, one double, two walks). Freiman showed good pop and handled left-handed pitching well for the 2013-14 A’s (.279/.326/.470 in 233 PAs), but his production evaporated at the Triple-A level last season when he hit just .220/.279/.321 in 305 PAs.
- The Nationals acquired minor league catcher Martin Medina from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations, per Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. The 26-year-old was originally drafted by the White Sox in the 20th round back in 2011, but Chicago flipped him to Toronto last summer (also for cash considerations). He’s a career .244/.314/.334 hitter in the minors and has caught 30 percent of opposing base-stealers, but he’s yet to progress beyond the Double-A level.
- Also via Eddy, the Braves have released right-hander Rob Wooten from Triple-A Gwinnett. The long-time Brewers reliever signed a minors pact with Atlanta this winter and had a nice showing with Gwinnett, yielding just three runs on seven hits and no walks with seven strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings. The rest of Wooten’s career has come with the Brewers organization. He owns a 4.07 ERA with 8.3 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 in 185 2/3 Triple-A innings and a 5.03 ERA with 7.0 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in 68 big league frames.
- One more from Eddy, who adds that the Reds traded outfielder Pin-Chieh Chen to the Dodgers in exchange for cash considerations. The 24-year-old Chen, signed by the Cubs as a free agent out of Taiwan prior to the 2010 season, has climbed as high as Double-A in the minors, spending parts of four seasons at that level and compiling a .236/.344/.327 batting line there. Baseball America rated him as Chicago’s No. 31 prospect prior to the 2012 season but didn’t rise higher than that on their prospect rankings.
Big-Name Rumors: Chicago, Braun, Angels, Orioles, Lincecum
The latest rumblings on a slew of established players who could change uniforms in the coming months:
- The White Sox have $13MM to spend as a result of Adam LaRoche‘s March retirement and are in need of another left-handed bat, which means they’re a potential fit for outfielders Jay Bruce, Brett Gardner, Carlos Gonzalez, Seth Smith and Nick Markakis, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The Angels could also be in on those players, per Cafardo. It’s difficult to imagine a pitching-devoid team with a barren farm system dealing assets for an outfielder, however, especially considering the respective price tags those five players carry. The least expensive player of the group is Smith, who is making $6.75MM this season and has a $7MM club option for 2017, but he’s a solid part of a first-place Seattle team that’s trying to break a 14-year playoff drought and fend off the Angels, among others, in the AL West.
- Like their crosstown rivals, the Cubs could also pursue Bruce, Gonzalez and Markakis, in addition to Ryan Braun and Josh Reddick, reports ESPN’s Jim Bowden. The 23-6 Cubs don’t look like a team in need of a major acquisition, though they did lose a highly useful outfield cog early in the season when Kyle Schwarber suffered a catastrophic knee injury. In Schwarber’s absence, the depth-laden Cubs have divvied up left field playing time among star third baseman Kris Bryant, Jorge Soler and Matt Szczur.
- Orioles general manager Dan Duquette told Bowden on MLB Network Radio that the team is monitoring the Tim Lincecum market, but he expects the two-time Cy Young Award winner to sign somewhere west of the Mississippi (Twitter links).
Orioles Designate Scott McGough For Assignment
The Orioles have announced that they’ve designated righty Scott McGough for assignment. The move clears space for infielder Paul Janish, who the Orioles have added to their roster to provide Manny Machado with a bit of shortstop help for their doubleheader against the Athletics today. The O’s also optioned lefty T.J. McFarland to Triple-A Norfolk.
The Orioles claimed McGough from the Marlins last month, then sent him to Norfolk, where he struggled in six appearances. For the season, McGough has allowed 12 runs and six walks while striking out seven over 8 1/3 innings. The 26-year-old made six relief appearances for the Marlins last season.
AL East Notes: Gallardo, Sandoval, Swisher, Sowers
Orioles right-hander Yovani Gallardo tells reporters, including Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link), that there’s still no timetable for him to begin throwing. However, the 30-year-old did somewhat vaguely say he believes his return to throwing to be just “around the corner.” Gallardo hit the disabled list back on April 23 due to shoulder tendinitis and was originally projected to miss around four weeks. It’s been nearly two weeks since that time, though, so it’s looking like he may miss that window by a bit, as one has to figure that he’ll require a minor league rehab assignment after not throwing for several weeks. Gallardo agreed to a three-year deal with the Orioles this winter but saw that reduced to a two-year, $22MM pact over concerns with the same shoulder that now has him on the disabled list.
- Red Sox chairman Tom Werner elaborated on the lack of insurance on Pablo Sandoval‘s contract earlier this week in an appearance on WEEI’s Ordway, Merloni and Fauria show, writes Rob Bradford. Werner said that the decisions to take out insurance policies on contracts are made on a case-by-case basis and that while the club does have insurance on some contracts, Sandoval’s five-year, $95MM deal isn’t one of them. “The fact is this guy played in 157 games with the Giants the year before we signed a deal with him, and that doesn’t include postseason,” said Werner. “…You know there is wear and tear. You could look at an MRI on 80 percent of players and there would be something that you would notice. … We don’t know what happened. I’m going to surmise that he did something this year that injured it because he woke up one day and he couldn’t lift his arm above his stomach. He’s not saying at the moment.”
- Nick Swisher is off to a solid start with the Yankees‘ Triple-A affiliate, batting .299/.324/.463 with three homers in 71 plate appearances, but the 34-year-old is having some difficulty running, one evaluator told the New York Post’s George A. King III. The person to whom King spoke described Swisher’s running as “hard to look at,” which is perhaps unsurprising for a player of his age coming off multiple knee surgeries. Nonetheless, the limited mobility likely restricts Swisher to first base, King writes, so the likeliest means by which Swisher could be recalled would be in the event of an injury to Mark Teixeira, although even than New York could turn to Dustin Ackley, King notes.
- Fangraphs’ David Laurila interviews former MLB left-hander Jeremy Sowers, who is now working for the Rays after obtaining an MBA from the University of North Carloina. Sowers discusses the end of his career, his transition to the other side of the game, his future in front offices and the openness he has to data and analytics as a new way of looking at pitching in an excellent Q&A with Laurila. “After about two weeks with the Rays, and hearing some of the information they could bring to me, I kind of began wishing I had approached pitching differently,” said Sowers of the Rays’ use of data and analytics. “…It was just another way of thinking about first-pitch strikes, or trusting my breaking ball, or understanding sink versus carry. It’s all stuff you could think about in 2009, but not in the same way we can look at it now. … I’m not going to look at data and say that it is, for lack of a better word, ‘crap.’ I’m going to try to understand what it means.” The entire interview is well worth a read.
Injury Notes: Zych, Perez, Diaz, Orioles, Skaggs
The Mariners announced tonight that right-hander Tony Zych has been placed on the disabled list due to right shoulder tendinitis (retroactive to May 2). In his place, Steve Johnson‘s contract has been selected from Triple-A Tacoma. The loss of Zych is significant for the Mariners, as the 25-year-old has quietly been a dominant relief arm in the Majors since being recalled last season. In 30 1/3 innings at the Major League level, Zych has posted a 2.67 ERA, 12.8 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 with a 51.5 percent ground-ball rate. While he’s far from a household name, Zych has averaged 95.7 mph on his heater in the Majors and rates 14th among MLB pitchers (min. 30 innings) in terms of K%-BB% dating back to last season. There’s yet to be any word on the length of his absence, and manager Scott Servais said today (via the Tacoma News Tribune’s Bob Dutton, on Twitter) that Zych is returning to Seattle to have his shoulder examined. A corresponding 40-man roster move was not necessary due to yesterday’s outright of right-hander Joe Wieland.
Some other notable injury news from around the league…
- Indians catcher Roberto Perez suffered a fractured thumb while making a tag at the plate on Odubel Herrera over the weekend, and he now faces the possibility of surgery, writes MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian. The team will wait three days before having Perez’s hand re-evaluated, which will let the swelling around the thumb subside and lead to a clearer analysis of the injury. Manager Terry Francona offered a somewhat optimistic outlook, telling the media that a surgical procedure might not come with a considerably lengthier recovery timeline than a simple rest-and-rehab approach. Adam Moore has been called up from Triple-A to serve as the backup to Yan Gomes in the meantime, and if Cleveland is on the lookout for additional catching depth, Texas did designate former Indians backstop Chris Gimenez for assignment earlier today.
- The Pirates will lose one of their top prospects, catcher Elias Diaz, to right elbow surgery, per a club announcement. As Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes, the club didn’t disclose the type of operation, though he notes that Diaz has previously been dealing with pain on the lateral side of his right (throwing) elbow. Both the club and Diaz himself have said previously that they don’t believe his ulnar collateral ligament is an issue, which would take Tommy John surgery off the table. Diaz, it would appear, had the surgery earlier today, as he shared a post-op photo with Dr. James Andrews on his Instagram.
- Neither J.J. Hardy nor the Orioles are publicly putting a timeline on his recovery from a fractured left foot, writes CSN Mid-Atlantic’s Rich Dubroff. Per Dubroff, Hardy will be in a walking boot for the next two to three weeks, which would seem to make the shorter end of the reported four to eight week recovery timetable seem a bit aggressive. As Hardy explains to Dubroff, he didn’t initially believe the injury to be serious after fouling a ball into his left foot. However, as the game progressed, his foot tightened up and the pain worsened.
- Also of note for Orioles fans: Dubroff tweets that left-handed reliever Jeff Beliveau, signed to a minor league deal this offseason while recovering from shoulder surgery, has been activated and assigned to Baltimore’s Class-A Advanced affiliate to begin his progression back to consideration for the big league roster. Beliveau, 29, posted a 2.63 ERA in 24 innings with the division-rival Rays back in 2014 but has scarcely pitched since that time due to a torn labrum. The Orioles believe he can help the big league club later this year, Dubroff adds.
- Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times tweets that an examination of Angels left-hander Tyler Skaggs confirmed that the rehabbing southpaw is dealing with tendinitis in his biceps. Skaggs, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, won’t throw for a week and will be re-evaluated at that time to see if he can begin his rehab work.
Latest On Tim Lincecum Showcase
We learned recently that free agent righty Tim Lincecum is preparing for a long-awaited showcase on Friday. Once one of the best pitchers in the game, Lincecum has been slowed by a variety of injury and performance issues more recently — including, particularly, hip surgery this past September — and is looking to show that he’s back to full health before signing.
Here’s the latest, with links to the Twitter account of MLB Network’s Jon Heyman unless otherwise noted:
- The showcase will be held at Scottsdale Stadium, the Giants’ spring home, per Heyman. While Lincecum has availed himself of his long-time team’s facilities during his ramp-up, it shouldn’t be supposed that a return to San Francisco is particularly likely. As we’ve covered before, the Giants are said to be interested in Lincecum as a bullpen option, while he’s hoping to find a shot as a starter.
- This particular event was always going to draw more fanfare than a typical bullpen session for a free agent who hasn’t posted a sub-4.00 ERA since 2011, but it appears that it could be made into a bigger spectacle than anyone would have foreseen. ESPN may be on hand to broadcast the outing, Heyman tweets, which would certainly lend an interesting combine-esque quality to the proceedings.
- Beyond the Giants, we heard previously that the Orioles, Padres, and Athletics plan to have a scouting presence on hand. The White Sox, too, will be there, per Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link), as will the Angels, according to Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com (via Twitter). And the Blue Jays will also take a look, John Lott tweets.
- Heyman also adds several more clubs that plant to send eyes (links: 1; 2; 3; 4). The Dodgers, Cubs, Nationals, and Marlins will be there from the National League side of things. And American League teams with at least one scout in the stands will include the Rangers and Astros.
AL East Notes: Yankees, Headley, Blue Jays, Smith, Harvey, Britton
Less than one-sixth of the season is in the books, but the Yankees already find themselves looking at a six-game gap in the AL East. GM Brian Cashman acknowledged that the start is concerning, telling Ken Davidoff of the New York Post that “we urgently need to stop the bleeding now.” But doing that is more a matter of minor adjustments and improvements than significant changes to the roster or field staff, the veteran executive suggests — at least for now. “We’ll continue to do the work necessary to put ourselves in position to succeed, and eventually that worm will turn. In the event things don’t turn I’m going to have to make it turn and be forced to do things that weren’t part of the game plan, whatever that would be,” Cashman said. “The best answer would come from this mix of players.”
- Perhaps no Yankees player has scuffled as badly as third baseman Chase Headley, who has been among the worst regulars in baseball. In Cashman’s view, Headley isn’t so much a victim of batted ball luck as he is simply struggling to hit the ball with authority (as his lack of a single extra-base hit would suggest). “He’s getting his walks, and thank God for that because it would be worse [without them],” said Cashman. “He has not been able to impact the baseball like he’s capable of. We have problems all over, but … he’s definitely someone you can point to and say we have to figure it out. He’s struggling the most.” While Headley has dealt with back issues at times, Cashman says that’s “definitely not an issue” right now. Headley is in the second season of a four-year, $52MM free agent contract.
- The Blue Jays are in better position than their division rivals from New York, but also have played beneath their high expectations in the early going. That doesn’t mean that manager John Gibbons is at risk, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. Instead, Toronto’s new front office is focused on finding a way to improve the results from the bullpen, per Heyman. Gibbons is under contract through 2017 under a reworked deal he agreed to this winter.
- The Red Sox are finally in position to call upon reliever Carson Smith, as he’s officially been activated from the DL. Smith has been expected to hold down a significant late-inning role since coming over this winter via trade, but first had to battle through a flexor strain. Boston will undoubtedly hope that Smith can avoid further elbow complications.
- Orioles pitching prospect Hunter Harvey will be delayed yet again, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports, as he will undergo sports hernia surgery this week. Now, it’s not clear that Harvey will have a shot at making his next regular season, minor league appearance before passing the two-year anniversary of his last. Harvey is still just 21, and remains a highly-regarded prospect, but has yet to move past the Class A level due to a litany of injuries. He’s expected to begin working back to action in July.
- Meanwhile, the Orioles got promising news on closer Zach Britton, as MLB.com’s Britt Ghiroli reports (via Twitter) that an MRI revealed no major cause for concern. The southpaw relief ace is hopeful that he’ll avoid the DL entirely after turning his ankle recently.