Collin McHugh Shut Down For Six Weeks
Astros righty Collin McHugh has been shut down for six weeks with a posterior impingement of his right elbow, the team has announced. An MRI did not reveal problems with his ulnar collateral ligament. McHugh will avoid surgery and will be reevaluated after six weeks. McHugh had begun the season on the DL due to right shoulder tendinitis, and he was pulled from a Triple-A rehab start earlier this week with elbow discomfort.
The 29-year-old McHugh posted a 4.34 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 184 2/3 innings with the Astros last year, continuing a solid three-year run that began when he posted a 2.73 ERA and finished fourth in AL Rookie Of The Year voting after the Astros claimed him from the Rockies in the 2013-14 offseason. He was set to open 2017 once again in the Houston rotation. In his absence, the Astros will continue to rely on their depth, with both Joe Musgrove and Mike Fiers joining Dallas Keuchel, Lance McCullers and Charlie Morton. There’s also Chris Devenski and long reliever Brad Peacock, both of whom have MLB starting experience.
In Triple-A Fresno, the Astros also have top prospect Francis Martes, although they might like him to get some experience at that level before joining the big-league rotation. Righty Brady Rodgers also appears to be a reasonable depth option.
Significant trades rarely occur this early in the season, so it stands to reason that the Astros might wait before making a huge move to replace McHugh. It’s worth noting, though, that they were connected to the White Sox’ Jose Quintana throughout the offseason and have more than enough young talent to complete a major trade. In lieu of that, it perhaps wouldn’t be surprising if they attempted some sort of minor transaction to round out their starting pitching depth.
AL West Notes: Cintron, McHugh, Ross, Faulkner
Former big leaguer Alex Cintron has joined the Astros as an interpreter, as MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart reports. The nine-year veteran, who’s now 38, will primarily function as the club’s Spanish-language liaison while traveling with the team, though GM Jeff Luhnow says he’ll also provide some value “on the baseball operations side of things.” MLB and the player’s association installed a new rule last year requiring every club to carry such personnel, though it seems Houston has added a bit of a wrinkle by hiring a former big leaguer whose duties will extend further.
Here’s more from the AL West’s Texas contingent:
- Astros righty Collin McHugh is slated for a checkup after experiencing elbow and biceps tightness in his Triple-A rehab outing yesterday, as Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports. The medical evaluation will obviously dictate how things progress, but as Kaplan writes, Houston must now consider the possibility that McHugh won’t be back for a few more weeks. He had been expected to return to the majors in the next few days, but was only able to work one inning before he was pulled.
- Things seemingly went better for Rangers righty Tyson Ross, who worked three innings in extended spring action, as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports on Twitter. Next up for Ross is a four-inning outing on April 12th. Obviously, it seems he’ll keep building up while working on a five-day schedule; given the progress thus far, perhaps he’ll be prepared to join the MLB roster in relatively short order. If and when he does, Ross will be throwing his first big league pitches since Opening Day of 2016.
- The Rangers‘ decision to trade lefty Andrew Faulkner yesterday came about after he fell well shy of expectations this spring, as Grant explains. Faulkner, 24, seemed set to compete for a pen job in camp, but never ironed out his mechanics. As Grant details, he lost his feel for the zone so much that he was not even appearing in minor-league games after departing major league camp. The Orioles evidently see some hope still, so for now he’ll take a 40-man spot in Baltimore. Meanwhile, Grant explains, Texas appears likely to utilize the roster spot that was cleared to add another reserve infielder or reliever.
Injury Notes: Richards, McHugh, Axford, Kaprielian
After exiting his first start of the season with biceps cramps, Angels ace Garrett Richards will undergo what the team is calling a precautionary MRI tomorrow, per a club announcement. Manager Mike Scioscia told reporters, including Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register, that the team’s medical staff is “confident this isn’t connected to his other situation last year,” in reference to the torn ulnar collateral ligament that Richards suffered last season. While the majority of players with UCL tears ultimately fall to Tommy John surgery, Richards opted for a stem cell therapy treatment that allowed him to rehab without surgery and pitch throughout Spring Training. The Halos are hopeful that Richards can help to anchor their staff in 2017, though obviously this isn’t the start they envisioned.
A few more notable injury updates from around the game…
- Astros right-hander Collin McHugh exited his rehab start with Triple-A Fresno on Thursday after just one inning, per Bryant-Jon Anteola of the Fresno Bee (Twitter links). According to Anteola, McHugh threw 26 pitches in the first inning, but after a pair of warmup pitches prior to the second frame, he called for the trainer to come to the mound and was removed from the game. McHugh dealt with a dead arm during Spring Training and opened the season on the disabled list. There’s been no word from the team just yet, but Anteola notes that McHugh’s pitch count for the rehab outing was set for 85 pitches, making the early departure all the more ominous.
- An MRI revealed nothing beyond the original diagnosis of a strain in the right shoulder of injured Athletics reliever John Axford, as MLB.com’s Alex Espinoza writes. Nonetheless, Axford won’t even pick up a ball for the next week. Manager Bob Melvin told reporters that there’s no timeline for Axford’s return right now, and the team will reevaluate the situation once he resumes throwing. It seems likely, then, that Axford will miss more than the minimum 10 days with this ailment, though the fact that the MRI revealed no structural damage in his rotator cuff or labrum is good news for both team and player. Somewhat remarkably, Espinoza notes that this is Axford’s first trip to the disabled list in a nine-year MLB career.
- Yankees top prospect James Kaprielian is headed for an MRI and a dye contrast on his right elbow after experiencing pain, the team announced. Kaprielian, New York’s first-round pick back in 2015 and one of the top-ranked prospects in all of baseball, has already been placed on the minor league disabled list. This isn’t Kaprielian’s first brush with arm troubles, either, as he made just three starts in 2016 due largely to a strained flexor tendon in his right arm. (He did return to make seven starts in the Arizona Fall League.) Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, MLB.com and ESPN’s Keith Law all ranked Kaprielian in their top 100 prospects heading into the 2017 season, with Law’s No. 28 overall ranking standing out as the most bullish.
AL West Notes: Gray, Bassitt, Singleton, Mariners, Angels
Athletics right-hander Sonny Gray threw a 25-pitch bullpen session yesterday, during which he utilized all of his pitches and threw at a 100 percent effort level, writes Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. He’s slated for another ‘pen session on Friday — the next step in his rehab of a strained lat muscle that caused him to be shut down for most of Spring Training. Gray will throw one or two more bullpen sessions in total, then throw to live hitters once or twice before embarking on a rehab assignment (where he’ll likely make two minor league starts), per Slusser.
Slusser adds a bit more good news for A’s fans as well, noting that right-hander Chris Bassitt looks to be ahead of schedule in his recovery from 2016 Tommy John surgery. Bassitt will throw to hitters today and is nearing a minor league rehab assignment of his own, though he’ll need a considerably longer rehab stint than Gray due to the nature of their injuries.
More from the AL West…
- Astros first baseman Jon Singleton has been pushed all the way back to Double-A to open the season, as Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle writes. While the move was made to ensure he is able to receive consistent playing time, that obviously suggests he’s behind others — most notably, A.J. Reed — in the depth chart. Unlike Reed, Singleton is also without a 40-man spot at present, though his contract, which runs through 2018 and includes three option years thereafter, surely provides at least some incentive for the organization to move him to the majors if circumstances warrant.
- Drew Smyly received a platelet-rich plasma injection on Tuesday, Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto told the media (link via Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune). That procedure doesn’t impact the team’s expected recovery, however, which Dipoto still pegs at six to eight weeks. “Six weeks until he begins throwing. Eight until we anticipate we can make a better judgment on when he’ll rejoin the club,” Dipoto said. Fellow left-hander Ariel Miranda was tabbed as the first line of defense in the wake of Smyly’s injury, and he’ll make his first start of the season tomorrow.
- The Mariners‘ claim of right-hander Evan Marshall stems, in part, from familiarity on the part Dipoto, the general manager told reporters, including Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. “He was actually a draft pick from my final year with the Diamondbacks,” Dipoto explains. “…He has a very heavy sinker that will touch 96 mph. His velocity will be in that 94ish range. He has a very high rate of ground balls, last year was 57 percent, which is pretty consistent with his career norm.” Marshall, 27, posted an outstanding 2.74 ERA with 9.9 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 60.7 percent ground-ball rate as a rookie in 2014. Since that time, he’s struggled in the Majors, though one has to wonder how much those troubles were impacted by a skull fracture that he sustained when he was hit by a line drive — an injury that required surgical repair and cost him a significant chunk of the season.
- Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register spoke to Angels outfielder Ben Revere about his reserve role with the team and the difficulty of trying to reestablish oneself as a player that can be relied on every day while receiving only limited at-bats. Revere isn’t down on himself after losing out on the left field job despite a vastly superior spring to that of starter Cameron Maybin. “No matter what happens, if I go the whole year being a backup, I’m going to try to get No. 9 (Maybin) to have the best year of his career,” Revere says. “…Spring training doesn’t mean a damn thing. It’s all about performing when it counts. It starts now.”
- Fletcher also suggests, once again, that the Angels could be forced to make some type of roster move to alleviate the first base mix once Luis Valbuena returns from an injury next month. Valbuena figures to receive the bulk of the time at first base, leaving the Halos with a pair of right-handed-hitting complements in the form of C.J. Cron and Jefry Marte. While it was Marte who drew the start last night despite a lefty pitcher being on the hill, manager Mike Scioscia tells Fletcher that the decision to start Marte was merely a means of getting him into the lineup early in the season without asking him to sit for too long.
Quick Hits: Tigers, Giants, Sox, Astros, Brewers, Rays, Orioles
The Tigers will “look into” signing just-released outfielder Melvin Upton Jr., according to general manager Al Avila, though Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press relays that a deal sounds unlikely (Twitter links). With J.D. Martinez on the shelf because of a foot injury, Upton’s brother, Justin Upton, will enter the season as Detroit’s only established outfielder. The Uptons played together in both Atlanta and San Diego from 2013-15, but it doesn’t seem as if they’ll reunite in the Motor City. Meanwhile, it doesn’t appear the Giants will even consider signing Melvin Upton. He’s not on their radar, tweets Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.
More from around baseball:
- Well-regarded Cuban outfield prospect Luis Robert held a showcase Thursday in the Dominican Republic, and “high-ranking team officials” from several major league clubs were on hand, according to Ben Badler of Baseball America (click to watch footage of Robert). “Nearly all teams” sent someone to watch Robert, per Badler, who reported in March that the White Sox seem to be the likeliest landing spot for the 19-year-old. The White Sox sent special assistant Marco Paddy to observe Robert, and they have scheduled a private workout with him for next week. The Astros will also work out Robert, though they’ve already exceeded their 2016-17 international bonus pool.
- Brewers reliever Tyler Cravy threatened to retire after his demotion to the minors Saturday, but the 27-year-old quickly walked back those comments, writes Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. “I don’t plan on quitting,” tweeted Cravy, who noted he’ll “continue to work hard” and allow his performance to “do the talking.” Cravy remains less than thrilled with the organization, it seems, as he added that he’s “still not aware” why he didn’t make Milwaukee’s roster.
- The Rays have made “steady” progress toward a new stadium in the Tampa Bay area, owner Stuart Sternberg announced Sunday (Twitter link via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). Sternberg is “very optimistic” something will get done to replace Tropicana Field, which opened in 1990 and has been the Rays’ home since 1998, their inaugural season.
- The Orioles tried to make a trade with the Red Sox to keep Rule 5 pick Aneury Tavarez, Baltimore GM Dan Duquette told reporters, including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, on Sunday (Twitter link). The division rivals couldn’t agree to a deal, though, so the Orioles had to return Tavarez to the Red Sox. Duquette revealed that there was less urgency to retain Tavarez because of the emergence of 22-year-old outfielder Cedric Mullins, whom MLB Pipeline ranks as the Orioles’ 19th-best prospect. Mullins will start the season with Double-A Bowie.
Notable Roster Decisions: Friday
As Spring Training draws to a close, the final determinations about each team’s roster will be continue to come into focus. Here are some of the day’s more notable roster decisions…
- Prized righty Tyler Glasnow will take the final spot in the Pirates rotation, Stephen Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports on Twitter. He had been competing with Trevor Williams, who’ll head to the bullpen, Adam Berry of MLB.com adds on Twitter. With southpaw Wade LeBlanc also taking a job, that seems to set the stage for Rule 5 pick Tyler Webb to hit the waiver wire.
- The Giants have nailed down their bench and rotation, as Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. Aaron Hill and Chris Marrero will round out the bench. The veteran Hill figures to share the infield reserve duties with Conor Gillaspie, while Marrero will surprisingly open the season as a part of a left field platoon with the left-handed-hitting Jarrett Parker. Meanwhile, Matt Cain will keep a rotation spot, though Ty Blach will also make the club as a reliever — where he could often spell Cain in lengthier outings.
- With injuries and young arms entering the picture, the Rockies‘ pitching plans were interesting to watch this spring. As Nick Groke of the Denver Post tweets, the team will roll with lefty Kyle Freeland and righties Antonio Senzatela and German Marquez to fill out their starting staff. It seems likely that the former two will open the year in the rotation, with Marquez heading to the pen and staying on hand if a need arises.
Click to read earlier updates …
Central Notes: Quintana, ChiSox, Reds, Pirates
The White Sox are primed to open the season with top starter and well-known trade candidate Jose Quintana in their rotation, notes Bob Nightengale of USA Today (on Twitter). Chicago has been shopping Quintana over the past few months, but it still hasn’t found a proposal to its liking and likely won’t by Opening Day. Few teams, if any, have drawn more connections to Quintana than the Astros since he has been on the block, though they’re “not budging” from their offer, Nightengale hears.
Several more items from the Central divisions:
- The Reds have officially tabbed Amir Garrett and Rookie Davis to start the year in their rotation, tweets C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Neither hurler has any major league experience to this point. The 24-year-old Garrett, Baseball America‘s 81st-ranked prospect, ascended to Triple-A last season and put up a 3.46 ERA with 7.18 K/9 against 4.12 BB/9 in 67 2/3 innings. Davis, 23, was part of the Aroldis Chapman trade between the Reds and Yankees in 2015. Like Garrett, he reached Triple-A in 2016, though his results over a small sample weren’t ideal (7.50 ERA, 5.63 K/9, 2.63 BB/9 in 24 innings). In 134 1/3 Double-A frames, Davis owns a 3.28 ERA, 5.8 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9.
- The Pirates optioned left-hander Steven Brault to Triple-A on Tuesday, thereby cutting a contender for the final spot in their rotation. They’ll now choose among Tyler Glasnow, Drew Hutchison and Trevor Williams to slot in behind Gerrit Cole, Jameson Taillon, Ivan Nova and Chad Kuhl in what will be an all-righty rotation.
- The Reds reassigned veteran outfielder Desmond Jennings to the minors on Tuesday, which could bring about the end of his short tenure with the organization. Jennings, who joined the Reds in February on a minor league contract, can opt out of his deal before Opening Day, and Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer expects that to happen (Twitter link).
- Carlos Rodon, the second-best lefty in the White Sox‘s rotation, received good news on his bicep Tuesday, relays Scott Merkin of MLB.com. Rodon got a second opinion from Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who confirmed that the 24-year-old doesn’t have any structural damage. El Attrache diagnosed Rodon with bursitis, and he’ll embark on a throwing program the next two weeks before the team reevaluates him. Given that timeline, Rodon will open 2017 on the disabled list.
- Yet another note on the Reds, whose manager, Bryan Price, expects reliever Raisel Iglesias to be ready for Opening Day (Twitter link via Rosecrans). The righty hurt his elbow and hips when he fell in the shower a few weeks ago, thus putting his status for the start of the season in question. Undoubtedly the Reds’ premier relief weapon, Iglesias posted a 1.98 ERA, 9.72 K/9 and 3.42 BB/9 in 50 innings out of the bullpen after transitioning from the rotation a year ago.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Lucroy, Lindor, Ahmed, D’backs, Ryu
Here are highlights from the latest column by FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal:
- Catcher Jonathan Lucroy and the Rangers recently shelved talks about an extension. It’s not entirely clear what happened, but one possibility could be that Lucroy is waiting for a new Yadier Molina deal with the Cardinals, a contract that would help set his value. Molina could receive $17MM to $18MM a season, Rosenthal writes, and Lucroy would probably receive only a bit less.
- An extension for Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor appears unlikely unless the team is willing to pay him at elite rates, Rosenthal opines. Lindor is on track to become a free agent at 28, and he has an endorsement deal with New Balance that provides him with extra funds during these early-career seasons during which his pay is relatively minimal.
- The Diamondbacks do not have shortstop Nick Ahmed on the market, Rosenthal reports. Ahmed has two minor-league options and is therefore useful to a Diamondbacks team that faces a reasonable amount of uncertainty at the shortstop position, where they also have the largely unproven Chris Owings and Ketel Marte. The Yankees, meanwhile, feel they don’t need Ahmed — Didi Gregorius is set to begin the season on the DL with a shoulder injury, but the Yankees prefer to get through the first several weeks of the season with a combination of Ronald Torreyes, Pete Kozma (a somewhat similar player to Ahmed, Rosenthal points out) and Tyler Wade at short.
- The Diamondbacks will keep an eye out for bullpen help as Opening Day approaches, perhaps pursuing players who don’t make other clubs’ 25-man rosters. In the meantime, though, the Snakes like what they see in Tom Wilhelmsen and J.J. Hoover, both of whom they signed to minor-league deals.
- The White Sox do not seem likely to deal Jose Quintana now when interest in him could ramp up at the deadline, but the Astros, with their strong farm system and rotation needs, seem likely to eventually acquire Quintana or another good starter.
- Dodgers lefty Hyun-jin Ryu, who has missed almost all of the past two seasons to injury, looks “like he hasn’t skipped a beat,” in the words of one scout. Ryu is competing for one of the Dodgers’ final two rotation spots.
AL Notes: Lindor, Swihart, Astros
Yesterday, we heard word of extension talks between Francisco Lindor and the Indians that was broken by a unique source — Cleveland GM Mike Chernoff’s six-year-old son, Brody. Brody said during a game broadcast that his dad was “trying to get Lindor to play for seven more years.” But the young Chernoff had his facts wrong, according to Cleveland.com’s Paul Hoynes. “Brody overheard my phone call about Jose Ramirez finalizing a deal that could keep him here for seven years,” says Mike Chernoff. “It was pretty funny. You gotta love kids.” This weekend, of course, the Indians reportedly neared a five-year extension with Ramirez that included two club options. It appears Brody’s first scoop was a bust, although he’s got plenty of time to work on his craft — recent history shows that baseball rumor reporters don’t peak until at least age 13. Here are more quick notes from the AL.
- The Red Sox announced a number of roster moves this morning, including their decision to option Blake Swihart to Triple-A Pawtucket. The team also optioned infielder Deven Marrero to Pawtucket and reassigned catcher Dan Butler and first baseman Sam Travis to minor-league camp. Swihart had a strong spring, batting .325/.386/.400, but both Sandy Leon and Christian Vazquez were out of options, and it’s not likely the Red Sox would want to lose either one.
- The Astros‘ last remaining roster spot comes down to righty relievers James Hoyt and Jandel Gustave, writes Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle. Collin McHugh is likely to begin the season on the DL due to a dead arm, which means both Mike Fiers and Joe Musgrove will make the Astros’ rotation and Brad Peacock (who is out of options) will be on the team in long relief. Peacock’s presence on the roster will keep the Astros from having to use Chris Devenski (who was quietly terrific as a rookie in 2016) in as many multi-inning outings, allowing him to pitch in higher-leverage spots. Hoyt or Gustave will pitch one-inning stints. Gustave has struck out ten batters in 8 2/3 Spring Training frames, but Kaplan notes that Hoyt profiles better against lefties, a potential factor since lefty Tony Sipp has struggled this spring (and he recently missed an outing due to back trouble, although that issue appears minor).
Minor MLB Transactions: 3/26/17
Here are the latest minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the post…
- The Brewers have acquired catcher Tyler Heineman from the Astros, as per the Crew’s official Twitter feed. Houston receive cash or a player to be named later in return. Heineman, 25, was an eighth-round pick for the Astros in the 2012 draft and he has a .283/.361/.399 slash line over 1543 career minor league plate appearances. Heineman has been assigned to the Brewers’ minor league camp, and he looks slated to provide the Crew with some extra catching depth while Andrew Susac is on the DL with a trapezius issue. Manny Pina and Jett Bandy look to form Milwaukee’s catching corps on the Opening Day roster.