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Health Notes: Trout, Jeffress, Murphy, Tuivailala, Volquez

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It doesn’t seem as if the Angels will end up needing to place superstar Mike Trout on the injured list. The club indicated in an announcement today that he’s recovering well after tweaking his groin muscle recently, with an MRI showing that the swelling is subsiding and Trout “report[ing] daily improvement.” Another medical review is scheduled for Sunday. It’s not known whether Trout could be activated thereafter, but a decision will need to be made sooner than later. While the club obviously prefers not to go without him any longer than necessary, the worst outcome would be for Trout to make things worse by rushing back.

More on the injury front from around the game:

  • Late-inning man Jeremy Jeffress is expected to return to the Brewers after one more rehab outing, skipper Craig Counsell tells reporters including Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Twitter link). Jeffress has been moving at about the pace that was hoped when it was announced he’d open the year on the injured list with a somewhat balky shoulder. He has been knocked around a bit on his rehab assignment, though that’s hardly the focus. Jeffress says he’s gaining velocity and feeling stronger as he goes. He’ll soon get the chance to try to replicate his magnificent 2018 season.
  • Rockies first baseman Daniel Murphy will not require surgery to repair his fractured left index finger, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post reports on Twitter. That seems generally promising, if only because it’s always preferable to avoid the risks of a procedure. It’s not clear exactly how long he’ll be sidelined; at last look, the club expected he’d be out of commission through at least the end of the month, but that seems like the bare minimum. Whatever the duration, it’ll be more than desirable for a team that currently sports the league’s worst offense.
  • While there’s still no precise timeline, a return to action is now in sight for Mariners reliever Sam Tuivailala. He’s still at least a month away from the majors but is nearing live BP sessions, MLB.com’s Greg Johns reports via Twitter. The 26-year-old hurler, who is working back from a torn Achilles, appears to be a bit ahead of schedule as compared to expectations last fall. He still has a fair number of additional hurdles yet to clear, of course, but it’s generally promising for the increasingly interesting M’s.
  • The Rangers still lack clarity regarding the severity of the elbow injury to veteran starter Edinson Volquez. For now, the plan is to put him on the shelf for the next four to six weeks before bringing him in for imaging and a medical review, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram was among those to cover (Twitter link). It’s a bit of an unusual situation, but it seems the hurler preferred to wait; the team agreed since he’d be sidelined regardless and the results would be more reliable after swelling has gone down. Volquez has suggested he’ll retire if he has again blown out his ulnar collateral ligament. If that’s not necessary, he could presumably return to pitch this year in Texas. It seems we’ll all wait a while longer to learn the outcome.

NL Notes: Nats, Rosenthal, Rox, Freeland, Brewers, Cards, Reyes

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Nationals reliever Trevor Rosenthal’s hellish early season start continued Sunday when he failed to retire either Met he faced, walking one and hitting another. Rosenthal also threw a pair of wild pitches and totaled just one strike during his seven-pitch outing. Worse, the 28-year-old hasn’t recorded an out against any of the nine batters he has gone against this season, making him the first pitcher since 1995 to achieve that ignominious feat, Jon Heyman of MLB Network notes. Rosenthal, who missed all of 2018 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, expressed confidence in his health Sunday and his chances of eventually escaping this slump, per Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com. Meanwhile, asked if the Nationals can continue to put Rosenthal on the mound, manager Dave Martinez said: “We have to come up with something. We have to figure something out for him. We tried to tweak something with his mechanics, but we’ve got to keep working on it.”

Martinez added the Nationals are “going to need Rosey,” who was their most noteworthy bullpen addition of the offseason. Thanks to a successful run with the Cardinals from 2012-17, Rosenthal’s earning a guaranteed $7MM this season with Washington, which took a chance on him in the wake of his injury. His return has gone about as poorly as possible thus far, of course, though Rosenthal’s hardly the lone problem in the Nationals’ bullpen. The unit entered Sunday with a league-worst 10.02 ERA and nearly blew a 12-1 lead before hanging on for a 12-9 win.

More from the NL…

  • Although Rockies owner Dick Monfort seems interested in extending left-hander Kyle Freeland, the two sides haven’t engaged in talks yet, Heyman reports. Colorado just extended righty German Marquez for a guaranteed $43MM – a number Heyman regards as “an obvious floor” for Freeland, who’s in his final pre-arbitration season and has three years of control left thereafter. Freeland, 26 next month, made a major case for long-term security in 2018, in which he amassed 202 1/3 innings of 2.85 ERA pitching and finished fourth in the NL Cy Young race.
  • While the Brewers are reportedly keeping an eye on the majors’ two best free agents, closer Craig Kimbrel and starter Dallas Keuchel, it doesn’t sound as if they’re expecting to sign either hurler. Assistant general manager Matt Arnold told Jim Duquette of SiriusXM on Sunday that the Brewers “do not foresee any additions at this point” from the outside. That may have something to do with the possibility  that the Brewers, who are already running a franchise-record season-opening payroll of $122MM-plus, don’t have the spending room left to sign either player for anything close to what they’re seeking. Kimbrel’s current asking price is unclear, but there’s no doubt it’s lofty, while Ken Rosenthal reported Saturday that Keuchel may be looking for a deal in the $18MM-per-year range.
  • The Cardinals demoted highly touted righty Alex Reyes to the minors Saturday, but they don’t plan on having the 24-year-old come back as a starter this season. Building up Reyes’ workload is “not even close to on our radar,” manager Mike Shildt told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Sunday. Rather, Reyes will typically total two innings and 30 to 40 pitches per Triple-A appearance, Goold explains. The goal is for Reyes to function as a late-game, multi-inning reliever when he heads back to St. Louis, though there’s no timetable for his return to the majors, Goold reports.

Injury Notes: Indians, Lindor, Brewers, Jeffress, Yankees, Andujar

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Lower-body injuries have kept the Indians’ starting middle infield – shortstop Francisco Lindor (high left ankle sprain) and second baseman Jason Kipnis (right calf strain) – from taking the field this season. The latter is making progress in his Triple-A rehab assignment, though there’s still no timetable for his return, Mandy Bell of MLB.com writes. Lindor, who’s out until at least late April, is only doing light workouts at the moment, but “he’s getting better every day,” manager Terry Francona said. The Indians will reevaluate Lindor during the upcoming week, Bell reports. The absences of Lindor and Kipnis have forced the Tribe to deploy Eric Stamets, Brad Miller and Max Moroff as their main middle infielders. Unfortunately for Cleveland, those three have produced abysmal results, having combined for a paltry four hits (three singles and a double) in 57 plate appearances.

  • Barring any setbacks in his Triple-A rehab stint, reliever Jeremy Jeffress will rejoin the Brewers next weekend, according to manager Craig Counsell (via Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). The return of Jeffress, who hasn’t debuted this year on account of right shoulder weakness, will be a welcome one for a Milwaukee team that lost fellow late-game option Corey Knebel to season-ending Tommy John surgery last week. The reigning National League Central champions have nevertheless rolled to a 7-2 start, though their bullpen has lacked a complement to the untouchable Josh Hader. Jeffress filled that role with aplomb in 2018, during which he notched a near-spotless 1.29 ERA with 10.45 K/9, 3.17 BB/9 and a 56.4 percent groundball rate in 76 2/3 innings.
  • Yankees third baseman Miguel Andujar expressed optimism earlier this week that he wouldn’t need to undergo season-ending surgery on his right shoulder. Manager Aaron Boone was similarly enthusiastic Saturday, George A. King III of the New York Post relays. While Boone acknowledged that surgery remains an option, he left open the possibility that this injury won’t lead to a long-term absence and added, “We are optimistic just because of the strength he is showing in all his testing.’’ Andujar’s still not swinging a bat, but whether he returns will depend more on how well he throws when he’s cleared to do so, per Boone. Without Andujar and shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, the injury-stricken Yankees have turned to veteran second baseman DJ LeMahieu to man third and Tyler Wade to handle the keystone. LeMahieu has thrived in the early portion of a two-year, $24MM contract, whereas Wade has been in over his head thus far in 2019.
  • Left-hander CC Sabathia, yet another Yankee on the injured list, could rejoin the team’s rotation next weekend, Boone said (also via King). In the meantime, the 38-year-old Sabathia – who’s working back from offseason heart surgery – will throw 60 to 70 pitches in a low-level minor league game Monday. Sabathia will bump either Domingo German or Jonathan Loaisiga from the Yankees’ starting five. Both right-handers did well in their initial starts of the season, but neither went past the five-inning mark.

Brewers Claim Donnie Hart

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The Brewers have claimed southpaw Donnie Hart off waivers from the Dodgers, per a club announcement. Milwaukee moved righty Bobby Wahl to the 60-day injured list to create roster space.

Hart was optioned to Triple-A to begin his tenure with the Brewers organization. He’ll wait there for an opportunity to arise. Hart had been claimed in the middle of camp by the Los Angeles organization but obviously wasn’t a key part of their plans.

Since breaking into the majors with an eye-opening 2016 debut —  one earned run in 18 1/3 innings —  Hart has seen his results decline. He managed a 3.71 ERA in 43 2/3 frames in the following season, but the peripherals weren’t terribly promising. Last year, he was knocked around in twenty appearances — a dozen earned runs on 31 hits with an ugly 13:12 K/BB ratio — and ended up spending most of the year at Triple-A.

Hart did continue dominate at the highest level of the minors. He has been tough on pre-MLB batters at all levels, but has been especially excellent at Triple-A, where he owns a 2.40 ERA with 10.4 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 over 56 1/3 innings. If he can find a way to translate those K/BB numbers to the majors, and continue to generate groundballs as he has (52.6% in the big leagues), the soft-tossing 28-year-old could be an interesting pen piece.

NL Central Notes: Ozuna, Shaw, Hader, Maddon

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Cardinals left fielder Marcell Ozuna was scratched from Wednesday’s lineup after experiencing pain in his torso, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Goold further tweets that Ozuna is headed for an MRI tomorrow, and manager Mike Shildt expressed some concern about a potential intercostal strain. It’s a frustrating development for both team and player, as Ozuna was hoping to bounce back from an injury-marred 2018 season in which ongoing shoulder issues hampered his swing. The Cardinals, meanwhile, were hoping that a healthier Ozuna could pair with offseason acquisition Paul Goldschmidt to bolster the middle of the batting order. If Ozuna needs to miss time, Tyler O’Neill could step into a larger role with the club, and Jose Martinez (who started in place of Ozuna today) could get some additional at-bats as well.

More from the NL Central…

  • In light of the recent wave of extensions throughout Major League Baseball, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com asked a few Brewers players about their thoughts on some recent deals and their own willingness to engage in discussions. Third baseman Travis Shaw stated that he’s “open for business” when it comes to talking about a potential long-term deal to keep in Milwaukee beyond the 2021 season (currently slated to be his final season of team control). Late-inning terminator Josh Hader, meanwhile, suggested that his current focus is more on playing baseball than thinking about that side of the game. “If they feel they want to do an extension, then that’s the business side of it,” said Hader. “They control that.” The 24-year-old Hader has not yet even accumulated two full years of Major League service time and remains under club control through the 2023 season. Milwaukee president of baseball ops David Stearns added to McCalvy that while he’s not closed off to extension talks during the season, “there’s a reason” most deals are completed before Opening Day.
  • Cubs skipper Joe Maddon said Wednesday that the two-year extension signed by managerial peer Terry Francona doesn’t have him thinking about his own contract status (link via Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun Times). “I’ve been treated more than well,” said Maddon. “So I don’t lament or worry about things like that.” Maddon added that he’s not in the business of comparing himself to other skippers throughout the league. Wittenmyer, however, notes that Maddon’s current $6MM salary is substantially higher than the rates at which the influx of younger managers are being paid throughout the league. That, certainly, will be a factor in negotiations with the Cubs (or any other club, if he is not retained).

Injury/Rehab Notes: Tulo, Lamb, Jeffress, Heaney

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Yankees shortstop Troy Tulowitzki exited Tuesday’s game with a left calf strain and will “almost certainly” head to the injured list, manager Aaron Boone tells reporters (Twitter link via the YES Network’s Jack Curry). If and when Tulo does hit the IL, he’ll bring the Yankees’ total to a staggering 11 players on the shelf, including two left-side infielders in as many days. Third baseman Miguel Andujar went on the injured list due to a labrum tear yesterday, and with both him and Tulowitzki out of the picture, the Yankees will be relying on a mix of Gleyber Torres, DJ LeMahieu and Tyler Wade around the infield. Young Thairo Estrada is already on the 40-man roster and could get a call to help provide some depth while Tulowitzki is out. There’s no firm timetable for Tulo just yet.

Some more notable health updates from around baseball…

  • Diamondbacks infielder Jake Lamb pulled up lame while legging out a double in this afternoon’s game, and the early diagnosis is a strained left quadriceps, per The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan (Twitter link). Lamb will undergo an MRI tomorrow to further evaluate the severity of the injury. If Lamb is to miss time with the injury, the D-backs can increase Christian Walker’s role at first base and perhaps mix in Alex Avila a bit as well. The 28-year-old Lamb has gotten off to a slow start in 2019 as he looks to rebound from a 2018 campaign that was ruined by shoulder troubles.
  • Brewers righty Jeremy Jeffress is slated to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A San Antonio tomorrow, tweets MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. He’s been sidelined with some weakness in his shoulder but hasn’t been diagnosed with any structural damage or significant injury. Jeffress has been building strength since being slowed down in mid-March and will test out his shoulder over a series of appearances with San Antonio. President of baseball operations David Stearns recently suggested that mid or late April could be a reasonable return date for Jeffress, whose importance to the team only increased with the revelation that Corey Knebel will miss the entire 2019 season as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.
  • The Angels announced yesterday that a CT scan revealed “chronic changes to the elbow” in left-hander Andrew Heaney. Ominous as that sounds, Heaney will be cleared to resume a throwing program within the next week to 10 days. He’s also undergoing a cortisone shot to help combat the discomfort in his elbow. The good news for the Angels is that there seemingly wasn’t any evidence of structural damage regarding Heaney’s ulnar collateral ligament. Heaney has yet to appear in a game this season and was limited to just 1 2/3 innings early in Spring Training, so even once he does resume a throwing program, he’ll still be several weeks from surfacing as an option in the Halos’ rotation.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Kimbrel, Keuchel, Eloy, Pillar, Joyce

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There isn’t much indication that Craig Kimbrel or Dallas Keuchel are closing in on new contracts, though that hasn’t stopped teams from keeping in touch with the two free agents.  Ken Rosenthal and Dennis Lin of The Athletic (subscription required) list the Mets and Brewers as two of the clubs checking in on both pitchers, though Milwaukee is more focused on Kimbrel as a potential add.  The Rays are also still maintaining contact with Kimbrel, after reports during Spring Training suggested Tampa Bay was at least considering signing the closer.  Rosenthal and Lin described the Mets’ interest in Keuchel and Kimbrel “as a matter of due diligence,” with MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo and Newsday’s Tim Healey (both Twitter links) adding that it doesn’t seem likely that either pitcher will end up in a Mets uniform.

Here’s more from Rosenthal, via his most recent Full Count video for FOX Sports…

  • Eloy Jimenez’s career-opening extension with the White Sox included “an understanding” that Jimenez and his camp wouldn’t pursue a service-time grievance with the league and players’ union.  Jimenez’s agents expressed public displeasure last summer when their client wasn’t given a late-season promotion, and the young slugger had been ticketed to begin this season in Triple-A before he inked his extension, which opened the door for Jimenez to join Chicago’s Opening Day roster.  The evidence seems to pretty clearly suggest that the White Sox were aiming to extend their control over Jimenez for an extra year, though the Sox are far from the only team that deploys this strategy with top prospects.
  • The Giants are the only team known to be involved in the Kevin Pillar trade market, though Rosenthal notes that the Blue Jays have also talked with multiple other teams about the center fielder.  Pillar offers two years of team control and a center field glove that was elite from 2015-17, as per the UZR/150 and Defensive Runs Saved metrics.  Last season, however, Pillar’s glovework was rated closer to average overall, and he has yet to post even league-average run production over his six MLB seasons.  If a trade did take place, Pillar would join Kendrys Morales, Russell Martin, and Troy Tulowitzki as Jays veterans sent out of town as Toronto makes room for its younger players.
  • The Braves acquired Matt Joyce from the Giants last weekend, just three days after Joyce joined San Francisco on a minor league contract.  Rosenthal provides some details on the transaction, stating that while the Giants were prepared to part ways with Joyce regardless, Atlanta chose to send some cash to the Giants in a trade rather than simply sign Joyce when he became available.  Since league offices were closed last Saturday on the day of the trade, Joyce’s arrival in the Braves’ spring camp could have been further delayed had the two sides been required to wait for the contract to be officially approved.  With a trade, however, Joyce was able to get some time in Atlanta’s camp, which led to his placement on the club’s Opening Day roster (Joyce marked his first PA with his new team by swatting a pinch-hit homer).

Quick Hits: Brewers, Kimbrel, Keuchel, Astros, Correa, A’s, Nats

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The Brewers have reportedly engaged in “pretty serious” negotiations of late with closer Craig Kimbrel, who remains available even after the start of the season. Now, having lost closer Corey Knebel to season-ending Tommy John surgery, a union between the Brewers and Kimbrel looks even more plausible on paper. However, barring a massive drop in asking price, the Brewers aren’t in position to sign Kimbrel or the majors’ other big-ticket free agent, starter Dallas Keuchel, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Both Kimbrel and Keuchel rejected a $17.9MM qualifying offer from their previous team at the outset of the offseason. But even if they wind up settling for one-year contracts, odds are those deals will approach or exceed the worth of the qualifying offer. The Brewers, for their part, probably don’t even have half the value of the QO left in their budget, Haudricourt relays, as they’re already sporting a franchise-record Opening Day payroll. As a result, Haudricourt posits they’re more likely to rely on in-house reinforcements such as injured reliever Jeremy Jeffress and on-the-mend starter Jimmy Nelson than splurge on one of the two star free agents sitting on the open market.

More from around the game…

  • Astros shortstop Carlos Correa is likely to make his season debut Sunday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle suggests. Correa suffered a neck strain a week ago, which has left short to the error-prone Aledmys Diaz and elite third baseman Alex Bregman so far this season. Upon his return, the 24-year-old Correa will aim to rebound from a surprisingly pedestrian 2018 campaign, his second straight injury-limited season.
  • Athletics catcher Chris Herrmann, who underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee toward the beginning of March, expects to miss eight to 10 weeks, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The recipient of a $1MM guarantee over the winter, Herrmann had the inside track on a season-opening roster spot before going under the knife. His injury opened the door for minor league signing Nick Hundley to join holdover Josh Phegley as the Athletics’ top two catchers. Hundley and Phegley have gotten off to slow starts in the early going.
  • Nationals left-hander Vidal Nuno III decided not to exercise his March 27 opt-out clause, Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post tweets. Nuno, who did not make the Nats’ season-opening roster, will have another chance to exit his minor league deal June 15 if he’s still with the organization. In the meantime, the 31-year-old is set to begin the season at the Triple-A level, per Dougherty. Nuno spent most of 2018 in Triple-A with the Rays, but he did amass 33 innings in the majors and pitch to a stingy 1.64 ERA (alongside an unspectacular 4.46 FIP and a paltry 28.6 percent groundball rate) with 7.91 K/9 and 2.73 BB/9.

Corey Knebel To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

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Brewers reliever Corey Knebel has elected to undergo Tommy John surgery, he tells reporters including Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Twitter link). The rehab process will take him out of action for all of the 2019 season and quite likely some of 2020 as well.

Knebel had been weighing the replacement of his right ulnar collateral ligament after speaking with multiple physicians. Evidently, it was less than a clear-cut decision, but he ultimately decided to bite the bullet rather than taking an uncertain rehab course that may only have delayed the inevitable.

The 27-year-old hurler had already agreed to a $5.125MM arbitration salary in his second season of eligibility. As a former Super Two qualifier, he’s eligible twice more. Whether the Brewers elect to tender him a contract next fall may depend upon how his rehab is progressing. Knebel would stand to earn a repeat of this season’s salary, which may be a bit of an expensive gamble. The presence of another season of arb eligibility certainly boosts the merits of a tender.

No matter how the future plays out, the reality at present is that the Brewers are down a key arm in the pen. Though he wasn’t as dominant last year as he had been in 2017, Kluber still ran up 55 1/3 innings of 3.58 ERA ball while recording an eye-popping 14.3 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9. Thankfully, the unit is still headlined by Josh Hader and Jeremy Jeffress (once he’s off the IL), but there’s little question it’s weakened from its ’18 levels.

Corey Knebel Weighing Tommy John Surgery

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March 28: Knebel has received opinions from three doctors and is weighing whether to undergo surgery or attempt a rest and rehab approach, per Todd Rosiak and Haudricourt. He’ll make a decision tomorrow.

March 21, 8:09pm: GM David Stearns says the team still isn’t sure how to label the damage to Knebel’s UCL, as Haudricourt tweets. But the organization “know[s] it’s damaged to some extent.”

6:52pm: Knebel has an injury to his ulnar collateral ligament, Counsell told reporters this evening. (Via Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel; links to Twitter.) That’s certainly worrying at first glance, though it’s said not to be a complete tear of the ligament. It’s also not a new injury, though it’s not clear whether additional damage may have been incurred.

At the moment, it’s not known whether the malady will require surgery and/or end Knebel’s season before it begins. He’s slated to receive a second opinion.

12:45pm: Brewers closer Corey Knebel will have his right elbow examined today, manager Craig Counsell revealed to reporters (Twitter link via Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel). The Athletic’s Robert Murray had previously written that he was taking a step back from throwing due to elbow discomfort. Counsell acknowledged that there is some cause for concern.

The Knebel injury makes it all the more apparent why Milwaukee has recently been in contact with Craig Kimbrel to discuss a potential fit. It was already known that Jeremy Jeffress would open the season on the injured list — though president of baseball operations David Stearns said this week that Jeffress could be back by mid or late April. It now seems likely that Knebel will join him there to begin the year.

Knebel, Jeffress and Josh Hader combined for much of the regular season to form an overpowering bullpen trio. Each of the three posted K/9 marks of 10.5 or better, while Hader and Jeffress checked in with ERAs south of 2.50. Knebel’s ERA wasn’t quite as eye-popping, thanks largely to a late August slump, but he didn’t allow a run over his final 16 1/3 innings of the regular season and posted a ridiculous 33-to-3 K/BB ratio along the way. On the season, he averaged 14.3 strikeouts per nine innings pitched.

There’s no indication that Jeffress’ shoulder issue is a long-term concern, but the situation surrounding Knebel, to this point, is more ominous (or at least more vague). If the Brewers do ultimately turn to Kimbrel in light of the bullpen issues that have cropped up this spring, they’d have to part with their fourth-round draft selection due to the fact that Kimbrel rejected a qualifying offer from the Red Sox. The Brewers already forfeited their third-round pick to sign Yasmani Grandal, and their current payroll projects at a franchise-record $127.5MM.

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