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AL West Notes: Athletics, Heaney, Moore

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Trevor Cahill is set to return from the disabled list tomorrow after missing one start, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Athletics will have him displace Kendall Graveman in the rotation, she adds in a separate column. Graveman pitched reasonably well in his one start after a demotion to Triple-A, but the A’s still would like him to continue to round back into form in Nashville following a surprisingly ugly start to the season. As Slusser notes, Oakland could’ve dropped Brett Anderson from the rotation, but doing so would mean designating the lefty for assignment.

Graveman was optioned out to make room on the roster for the return of Stephen Piscotty — who homered in his first at-bat back with the team tonight — from the bereavement list. The Athletics will need to make another roster move to accommodate Cahill’s activation tomorrow, which could mean optioning Jake Smolinski to Nashville as well, per Slusser.

Here’s more from the division…

  • Angels lefty Andrew Heaney dominated the division-rival Astros last night, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register writes, in what the pitcher calls “probably the best game I pitched in my career.” Heaney now carries a 3.93 ERA over 34 1/3 innings through six starts. But fielding-independent pitching numbers suggest he has been even better; he’s carrying an appealing combination of 10.2 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9. As Fletcher notes, the results have been particularly promising over the last four outings, reflecting a decision by Heaney to abandon an experiment with pitching on the third-base side of the rubber. All said, his performance to date has been enormously encouraging, though the big question remains whether he can stay healthy.
  • Despite a terrible start to the season, left-hander Matt Moore will remain in the Rangers’ rotation for now, writes MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan. The former Rays/Giants southpaw will lug a 7.82 ERA into Saturday’s start against the White Sox, having averaged 6.6 K/9 against 4.3 BB/9 with 1.42 HR/9 and a 38.6 percent ground-ball rate. Moore has no doubt had some poor fortune, with a .388 BABIP and 62.3 percent strand rate, but even fielding-independent metrics peg him well north of 5.00. Sullivan does note that Moore’s spot, however, is in some jeopardy. Manager Jeff Banister stressed that Moore has “got to show some progress” before adding that he’s not considering a switch in the rotation just yet. Right-hander Jesse Chavez has showed well in a long relief role, though Banister suggested that the organization is happy with Chavez in his current role at present.

Keynan Middleton Headed To DL With UCL Damage

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Angels reliever Keynan Middleton is going on the 10-day DL after being diagnosed with damage to his ulnar collateral ligament, as MLB.com’s Maria Guardado was among those to report (Twitter links). He is headed for a second opinion.

Clearly, that’s unwelcome news for the 24-year-old righty. It’s not known at this point just how severe the damage is; it seems team and player are looking to gather information before deciding upon a course of treatment. In the most serious cases, of course, UCL injuries require extensive surgery (most famously, the Tommy John procedure) that comes with upwards of a year of rehab.

As things stand, then, we simply don’t know how long Middleton will be sidelined. Given that there’s a problem with the ligament, though, even the most optimistic scenario will involve a fairly lengthy DL stint. And the risk of the rest-and-rehab — which is sometimes accompanied by stem cell and/or platelet-rich plasma treatment — is that the player may end up delaying his procedure and thus also his ultimate point of return.

Given the stakes, the Angels and Middleton will understandably weigh the decision carefully. He had become firmly ensconced in the team’s bullpen hierarchy, even locking up six saves this year for the Halos. Even losing a few months of work from Middleton will increase the pressure on other arms in the Los Angeles pen.

Today’s news comes after Middleton had turned in 17 2/3 innings of 2.04 ERA pitching to open the season. Of course, there were already some signs of concern. Middleton was doling out a few too many free passes (4.6 per nine) and had seen his swinging-strike rate plummet from an eye-opening 16.6% in 2017 down to 9.5% to begin the current year.

While the Angels are no doubt aware that the young hurler still has a ways to go to prove he’s a reliable late-inning force, the team surely would have preferred to continue giving him that opportunity. Now, the Halos’ roster’s already-unimposing high-leverage mix appears all the more in need of buttressing at the trade deadline. With the club off to a strong start but facing a tough year-long fight for the postseason, it would not be surprising at all to see GM Billy Eppler focus on adding arms this summer.

 

West Notes: Ohtani, Mariners, Desmond, Reynolds, Dodgers

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Though the Angels elected not to use Shohei Ohtani as a pinch-hitter late in Saturday night’s game due to the fact that he was slated to start on Sunday, manager Mike Scioscia suggested yesterday that the team could eventually work to get Ohtani’s bat into the game more often (via Jeff Miller of the L.A. Times). Scioscia called the team’s template for using Ohtani “conservative” but added that the Angels could eventually loosen some constraints on the two-way star’s usage. Scioscia also acknowledged that the team has even considered forgoing the designated hitter on days when Ohtani pitches in American League stadiums, though as Miller notes, that could present problems for a team with a thin bench. “It would take an extreme, you know, something you might consider in September, if it was something that was really critical and you needed his bat in the lineup,” said the manager.

More from the game’s Western divisions…

  • While the loss of Robinson Cano due to a broken hand is a significant blow, the bullpen may be the Mariners’ primary focus when searching for upgrades, writes Bob Dutton for KLAY 1180 AM. Cano figures to be back this summer, and while the rotation has hardly been effective, it’s more difficult to add high-end starting pitching upgrades around the deadline than it is to add relief arms, Dutton notes. Seattle would be hard-pressed to outbid other teams for a top-of-the-rotation arm, and club officials have acknowledged to Dutton that targeting relief help is a likelier course of action. Juan Nicasio has completely melted down over his past couple appearances after a dominant start to the season, while Nick Vincent hasn’t been as effective as he has in recent seasons, either.
  • Ian Desmond’s struggles have become a glaring problem for the Rockies, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. However, manager Bud Black and the Colorado front office still believe the veteran will turn things around despite his .170/.213/.355 slash this season and his unsightly .244/.294/.369 line since coming to the Rockies in the 2016-17 offseason. Desmond’s problems are all the more concerning given the struggles of Ryan McMahon earlier this season, leaving the Rox with little in the way of in-house options. Saunders notes that talks between the Rockies and Mark Reynolds never really took off, though he suggests that if Reynolds loses his roster spot in Washington once Ryan Zimmerman returns, the two sides could again explore a fit. However, Saunders also hears from those within the organization that the team wouldn’t relegate Desmond to the bench in favor of Reynolds, which could make a return to Denver a tough sell.
  • Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic spoke to Dave Roberts, Kenley Jansen, Chris Taylor and others about the Dodgers’ early struggles (subscription link). While the losses of Corey Seager, Justin Turner, Clayton Kershaw and Hyun-Jun Ryu have hurt the club immensely, Rosenthal also contends that the Dodgers’ approach this offseason didn’t do the team any favors. The Dodgers were known to be avoiding the luxury tax threshold — an important factor as they prepare for next offseason’s impressive free-agent class — and thus sought bargain options to replace quality contributors such as Brandon Morrow and Tony Watson (namely, signing Tom Koehler and acquiring Scott Alexander). Of course, it’s worth pointing out that Morrow and Watson were low-cost acquisitions themselves, and Rosenthal notes that the current front office has had success in building bullpens on the fly in the past. With Turner nearing a return and Kershaw expected to be out for weeks, rather than months (per Rosenthal), there’s help on the horizon, however, at a time when the division-leading D-backs are struggling with some of their own injury losses.

AL West Notes: Cano, Middleton, A’s, Maxwell, Astros

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The Mariners “indicated” that they wouldn’t be looking for an external candidate to replace Robinson Cano at second base, the Tacoma News Tribune’s TJ Cotterill writes.  This would leave Seattle with internal options like Andrew Romine, Taylor Motter, and Gordon Beckham at the keystone, since center fielder Dee Gordon doesn’t appear to be under consideration for a move back to his former position.  In my view, the Mariners could re-assess their plans once they have a clearer idea of how much time Cano will miss, as we’re still just hours removed from the star second baseman suffering a fracture in his hand after being hit by a pitch in today’s game.

More rumblings from around the AL West…

  • Angels right-hander Keynan Middleton left today’s game after 12 pitches due to what the club termed as elbow discomfort.  Middleton will undergo an MRI tomorrow.  Today’s outing was Middleton’s third appearance since returning from a 10-day DL stint for inflammation in that same elbow.  The 24-year-old closer has posted good results when healthy (2.04 ERA and an 8.25 K/9 in 17 2/3 IP), and in his absence, Blake Parker and Jim Johnson figure to get the bulk of save opportunities for the Halos.  Be sure to follow @CloserNews (MLBTR’s affiliate Twitter site) for all the latest details on the ninth-inning situation for all 30 teams around baseball.
  • Because Bruce Maxwell hasn’t yet been sentenced following his plea agreement for a change of disorderly conduct, Canadian immigration laws will prevent Maxwell from joining the Athletics during their upcoming four-game series in Toronto, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.  Maxwell will have to be demoted at some point before Thursday’s series opener if the A’s are to have a backup behind Jonathan Lucroy.  Slusser suggests that prospect Beau Taylor (off to a hot start at Triple-A) could be considered even though he isn’t on the 40-man roster, though Josh Phegley could also be called up if Oakland didn’t want to make another transaction to clear room for Taylor.
  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow admitted that “Obviously, you have to think about potentially doing something” to address some struggling hitters on Houston’s roster, though Luhnow tells Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle that he still has faith in the “proven track records” of veterans like Evan Gattis or Jake Marisnick.  In regards to Marisnick, for instance, Luhnow mentioned that his excellent defense makes him an important figure for the team.  This gives Marisnick more value than another internal option like top prospect J.D. Davis, who is tearing up Triple-A pitching but is limited to just left field.

Matt Shoemaker Shut Down Indefinitely

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Angels right-hander Matt Shoemaker has been shut down indefinitely after suffering a setback in his rehab from a forearm strain, he told reporters Thursday (Twitter link via Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times). Shoemaker is headed to see a nerve specialist in Missouri next week in an effort to better determine the cause of his discomfort.

“It’s extremely frustrating,” the right-hander said. “I’m pissed off. Everything felt great until I ramped up with bullpen on Sunday. Then the symptoms came back.”

The setback is the latest in an ongoing string of health issues for Shoemaker, who has pitched in just 83 1/3 innings dating back to Opening Day 2017. Shoemaker has had three separate trips to the disabled list in the past year due to forearm injuries and underwent surgery on his right forearm last August. A season prior, he was struck by a line-drive and suffered a skull fracture that ultimately required surgery to alleviate internal bleeding. As Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register explains, though, while both last year’s forearm injury and the current injury are nerve related, the current injury seems to be different than the one that plagued him in 2017.

It’s yet another tough loss for an Angels pitching staff that is currently without Nick Tropeano due to a shoulder injury and has seen J.C. Ramirez’s season cut short by Tommy John surgery. The Halos also lost righty Alex Meyer and lefty Nate Smith for the 2018 season long before it even began due to shoulder surgery (Sept. 2017 for Meyer, Jan. 2018 for Smith).

[Related: Los Angeles Angels depth chart]

Shohei Ohtani, Garrett Richards, Tyler Skaggs, Andrew Heaney and Jaime Barria are currently in the Angels’ rotation, with Parker Bridwell on the 40-man roster as a sixth option when necessary (though he’s currently in Triple-A). Former Reds lefty John Lamb is off to a nice start with their Triple-A club as he looks to put his injuries behind him, though he’s not on the 40-man roster.

The Angels already have one open spot on their 40-man roster, and at this point, Shoemaker has been on the disabled list for 40 days and clearly won’t be activated before hitting the 60-day mark. As such, the Angels should be able to make two depth adds whenever they see fit — be they internal or from outside the organization — by using their vacant spot and by transferring Shoemaker to the 60-day disabled list.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/7/18

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Here are Monday’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Angels acquired minor league right-hander Max Cordy from the Twins in exchange for cash, Matt Eddy of Baseball America reports. Minnesota selected the now-24-year-old Cordy in the final round of the 2015 draft. He’s yet to advance beyond A-ball, though he does come with a track record of missing bats and inducing huge ground-ball rates (north of 60 percent) in the low minors. Cordy has averaged 5.5 walks per nine innings pitched since being drafted and is off to a rough start in Class-A Advanced this season, owning a 7.15 ERA in 11 2/3 innings.
  • The Orioles picked up minor league catcher Wilson Garcia from the Phillies in exchange for cash, also via Eddy. The 24-year-old Garcia is a career .281/.314/.386 hitter in the minors, but he’s yet to move past A-ball. Garcia seemingly throws quite well, given a 40 percent caught-stealing mark in his career to date. Baltimore assigned him to their Class-A Advanced affiliate in Frederick.
  • Right-hander Luis Santos cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Buffalo by the Blue Jays, per the team’s transactions log on their official web site. The 27-year-old was clobbered for six runs in 1 2/3 innings in his lone MLB appearance this season before being designated for assignment. Santos did post a 2.70 ERA and a 16-to-4 K/BB ratio in 16 2/3 innings in the Majors last season, and he has a career 3.90 ERA with 8.1 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9 in 117 2/3 innings of relief at the Triple-A level.

Angels Select Juan Graterol

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The Angels have selected the contract of catcher Juan Graterol, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports on Twitter. He had been bumped from the 40-man a month ago.

The move was necessitated by the unavailability of Martin Maldonado, who is on the bereavement list. A 40-man spot was opened by moving J.C. Ramirez to the 60-day DL, which was going to happen at some point anyway since he is down for the rest of the year.

Graterol, 29, has seen limited MLB action over the past two years. He has produced a .214/.218/.276 slash in 102 plate appearances at the game’s highest level. In parts of five seasons at Triple-A, he carries a marginal .286/.313/.346 batting line.

Injury Notes: Donaldson, Tropeano, Musgrove, Twins

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The Blue Jays announced tonight that third baseman Josh Donaldson will rejoin the club Thursday and is likely to be activated from the disabled list. A shoulder issue has kept the former AL MVP out of action since April 10, though he’s played in multiple minor league rehab games and appears to be back on track after experiencing some troubles throwing across the diamond earlier this season. The Jays have stayed afloat just fine in the absence of their best player, as they’re currently sporting a 17-13 record and right in the middle of the AL Wild Card mix a month into the season. Donaldson will have plenty riding on a healthy and productive return, as he’s set to hit free agency for the first time following the 2018 campaign.

Some other health-related notes from around the league…

  • Already being hit hard by the injury bug, the Angels took another punch on Wednesday, announcing that righty Nick Tropeano is headed to the 10-day DL with a shoulder issue. The good news for the Halos is that the injury appears minor, as Tropeano told reporters he’ll “100 percent” be ready to return after the 10-day minimum (Twitter link via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register). As Tropeano explains, he’s not even planning to stop throwing and already played catch earlier today. The Angels, it seems, are merely acting with precaution after the righty felt some something slightly off in his shoulder.
  • Pirates righty Joe Musgrove threw 36 pitches in a rehab outing, writes Oliver Macklin of MLB.com, 29 of which went for strikes. Manager Clint Hurdle added that Musgrove threw his cutter, slider and changeup in the outing and demonstrated “firm” velocity on his fastball. Perhaps more notable is the fact that Hurdle confirmed that Musgrove will indeed be rejoining the Pirates’ rotation when he returns from the disabled list. That could be bad news for rookie Nick Kingham, who turned in one of the best debuts in recent MLB history when he flirted with a perfect game through more than six innings this past Sunday. Kingham is slated to start Friday for the Buccos, though Hurdle said in announcing that earlier this week that there was nothing guaranteed beyond that point. Speculatively speaking, right-hander Chad Kuhl has also struggled in 2018 (5.01 ERA, seven homers in 32 1/3 innings), so perhaps he could be bumped if Kingham impresses in his second big league start.
  • Byron Buxton has yet to progress to running since being diagnosed with a hairline fracture in his toe, writes MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger. Buxton sustained the injury when he fouled a ball into his foot during a rehab game in Fort Myers as he was working his way back from a bout with ongoing migraine headaches. He’ll rejoin the club on Friday but won’t necessarily be activated from the DL, Bollinger notes, as the team is debating whether he needs another rehab stint now that he’s been off for several weeks due to the foot injury. Bollinger adds that righty Trevor May, recovering from 2017 Tommy John surgery, tossed three innings and 46 pitches in an extended Spring Training game as he pushes his way toward readiness for a rehab assignment with the team’s Triple-A club.

Injury Notes: Middleton, Bumgarner, Mariners, Hedges, Orioles, Chirinos

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The Angels announced today that they’ve placed right-hander Keynan Middleton on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to April 29, with inflammation in his right elbow. It’s not immediately clear how long the team expects Middleton to be sidelined, though the loss comes as a notable hit to the Halos’ bullpen. Middleton, 24, has handled much of the Angels’ closer responsibilities in 2018, saving six games while pitching to a 2.40 ERA with a 15-to-7 K/BB ratio in 15 innings of work. With Middleton on the shelf, Cam Bedrosian, Blake Parker and (especially) Jim Johnson have experience closing games out at the big league level, though Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register suggests that rookie Justin Anderson could step into the ninth inning spotlight (Twitter link). Eduardo Paredes has been recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake to take Middleton’s roster spot for now.

Some more injury news from around the league…

  • Giants manager Bruce Bochy told reporters today that Madison Bumgarner could begin throwing off a bullpen mound in a couple of weeks (Twitter link via Chris Haft of MLB.com). Bumgarner, of course, will need multiple bullpen sessions and some rest days between them before he can build up to the point where he’d be able to go out on a minor league rehab assignment. A mid-May target for bullpen sessions and, presumably, multiple outings in a rehab assignment would figure to put Bumgarner in line for a return at some point in June.
  • The Mariners announced today that both Dan Altavilla and Erasmo Ramirez are headed to the 10-day disabled list, with outfielder Guillermo Heredia and right-hander Casey Lawrence coming up from Triple-A Tacoma to take their spots. Altavilla, who has occupied a setup role for the M’s over the past couple of seasons, has inflammation in his right AC joint, whereas Ramirez will return to the DL with a Teres Major strain after only a brief activation period. Seattle didn’t provide timelines for either right-hander’s return, though Ramirez could be facing the longer recovery time of the two. Michael Pineda and Clayton Kershaw have both missed four-plus weeks in the past with similar injuries.
  • Catcher Austin Hedges has been placed on the 10-day DL with tendinitis in his right elbow, per a club announcement from the Padres, with Rafael Lopez coming up from Triple-A El Paso to fill his roster spot. The defensively sound Hedges has had another slow start to the season with the bat, hitting at just a .173/.235/.293 pace through 81 trips to the plate thus far. Veteran receiver A.J. Ellis figures to step up as San Diego’s primary backstop in Hedges’ absence. Lopez, 30, hit .222/.306/.463 in a career-high 63 PAs for the Blue Jays last season and is hitting .300/.372/.657 with a whopping seven homers through just 79 Triple-A PAs. He hit 12 homers in Triple-A last year through 223 PAs.
  • The Orioles announced that they’ve activated Mark Trumbo from the 10-day DL for his season debut, though they also had to place infielder Luis Sardinas on the DL in his place due to a strained lower back. Sardinas’ DL placement is retroactive to April 29, and defensive specialist Engelb Vielma is up from Triple-A to take over Sardinas’ infield duties for now. Pedro Alvarez’s resurgence at the plate could prompt Trumbo to see some time at the outfield in order to keep Alvarez in the lineup at designated hitter. Jace Peterson figures to get starts at second base until Jonathan Schoop returns.
  • Tampa Bay righty Yonny Chirinos has landed on the disabled list with a right forearm strain, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter links). The Rays have brought lefty Ryan Yarbrough back up from Triple-A Durham to take his spot on the roster. It’s not clear yet how long Chirinos will be expected to miss, though Topkin suggests that the organization doesn’t believe the injury to be serious. Chirinos had stepped up as the team’s de facto fourth starter following a series of injuries that initially led the Rays to open the season with three starters and a pair of bullpen days in place of a traditional five-man rotation. Yarbrough has been pitching in multi-inning relief stints with the Rays and could be looked at as a starting option himself in Chirinos’ absence.

Injury Updates: Ohtani, CarGo, Giants, Matz

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Here’s the latest on some injury situations from around the game…

  • Shohei Ohtani will be available as a DH for the Angels’ upcoming series against the Orioles (from Tuesday to Thursday) but his next start on the mound won’t be until next weekend in Seattle at the earliest, manager Mike Scioscia told MLB.com’s Maria Guardado and other reporters.  Ohtani suffered a minor ankle injury while trying to beat out a grounder on Friday, and the team will hold Ohtani out of a scheduled start against the O’s in order to make sure the ankle is completely healed.  Ohtani’s availability against Baltimore indicates that the injury isn’t too serious, though he wasn’t in the lineup on Saturday or Sunday.
  • Carlos Gonzalez is likely to be activated from the Rockies’ disabled list on Monday, the Athletic’s Nick Groke reports (Twitter link).  Gonzalez was placed on the DL with a hamstring strain and was eligible to be activated today, so he’ll end up missing slightly more than the 10-day minimum.  The veteran outfielder had managed only a .235/.264/.426 slash line over his first 72 PA of the season as Gonzalez tries to rebound from a disappointing 2017 campaign.
  • Some Giants DL updates are provided by The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly (on Twitter), who notes that Madison Bumgarner could be cleared on Tuesday to play catch, while Mark Melancon is now throwing from 90 feet as the closer continues his recovery from a bothersome pronator.  More immediately, left-hander Will Smith is likely to be activated from the DL on Wednesday, making his return to MLB after missing all of 2017 recovering from Tommy John surgery.
  • The Mets will skip Steven Matz’s next turn in the rotation since the southpaw is dealing with some minor back stiffness.  Rather than start on Tuesday as scheduled, Matz will instead pitch on Saturday.  He told MLB.com’s Tim Powers and other reporters that he has dealt with the injury before and is “feeling good” following a bullpen session today, though he and the team are just being cautious to avoid a larger issue.  No rotation replacement will be needed, as the Mets don’t play on Monday.
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