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NL West Notes: Muncy, Bellinger, Seager, Gray, Dickerson, Ruf, Rockies, Weil

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The Dodgers are aiming to put much of their lineup back together in time for a big three-game series with the Padres beginning on Monday.  As of now, the hope is that Max Muncy and Cody Bellinger could both come off the injured list in time for at least part of that series, L.A. manager Dave Roberts told The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya (all Twitter links) and other reporters.  Muncy (oblique strain) and Bellinger (hamstring tightness) both haven’t played since June 11 and are eligible to be activated off the 10-day IL on June 22.  The duo each took part in a simulated game at the Dodgers’ Spring Training facility today, Roberts said.  Corey Seager (fractured hand) might not be too far behind them, as he is tentatively to begin a rehab assignment next week after being sidelined since May 15 due to a fractured hand.

The news isn’t as positive for Dodgers pitching prospect Josiah Gray, as Roberts said Gray is “a ways down the road” in being ready to return from a shoulder impingement.  A consensus top-100 prospect in baseball, Gray made his Triple-A debut this season but pitched in only one game before getting injured.  The 23-year-old right-hander had been projected to make his Major League debut later this year assuming things went well at Triple-A, but Gray might not have too long to get healthy and then make a good impression on the mound if he is going to factor into the Dodgers’ September call-up plans.

More from the NL West…

  • Giants manager Gabe Kapler told reporters (including Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle) that Alex Dickerson and Darin Ruf are beginning minor league rehab assignments today.  Ruf was placed on the 10-day IL with a right hamstring strain on May 27, while an upper back strain sent Dickerson to the IL on June 9.  With so many members of the first-place Giants playing well, Slusser thinks the impending returns of Dickerson and Ruf could create a bit of a roster crunch.  Someone like Mike Tauchman, for instance, couldn’t be easily moved off the roster since he is out of minor league options, so the Giants would have to first expose him to waivers if they wanted to send him to Triple-A.
  • The Rockies parted ways with assistant GM Jon Weil earlier this week, with The Athletic’s Nick Groke adding some more details about the front office situation.  Weil was told that the team wouldn’t be renewing his contract, which ended Weil’s 16-year run in the organization.  Between Weil leaving and VP of scouting Bill Schmidt being promoted to the interim GM job, both Weil’s and Schmidt’s former roles haven’t been filled, as the team has instead moved their responsibilities around to other current employees.  In addition, the baseball operations department is being overseen by Rockies president of business operations Greg Feasel.  This doesn’t seem like an ideal situation for a Rockies club that looks to be approaching a critical trade deadline and potential rebuilding period, — as Groke puts it, “a potential trade of [Trevor] Story and [Jon] Gray will be left to a business-minded president with no baseball experience, an interim GM with only two remaining lieutenants, and no true research department.”

NL West Notes: Weil, Seager, Sanchez, Crawford

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The Rockies and assistant GM Jon Weil have mutually decided to part ways, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports (Twitter link).  Weil has been with the organization since 2005 and in his current role since 2014, and The Denver Post’s Nick Groke writes that Weil is known league-wide as “an astute evaluator,” such as his “instrumental” role in the Rockies’ acquisition of German Marquez in a trade with the Rays back in January 2016.

Weil was considered a candidate for the interim GM role after Jeff Bridich’s resignation back in April, though the club opted to give the job to another long-time employee in VP of scouting Bill Schmidt.  The circumstances of Weil’s departure aren’t known, and it could be just as simple as both sides wanting a change after so many years.  For a Colorado front office known for its long-term continuity, however, it could perhaps be a hint that the organization is looking ahead to some wider-scale changes after the season, such as the hiring of a new general manager or president of baseball operations from outside the organization.

More from the NL West…

  • Dodgers manager Dave Roberts is hopeful that Corey Seager can begin a minor league rehab assignment by the “middle to end of next week,” the skipper told The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya and other reporters.  Seager suffered a fractured right hand after being hit with a Ross Detwiler pitch on May 15, and was expected to miss at least a month in recovery.  The first step will come this weekend, as Seager is slated to do some hitting on the field at the Dodgers’ Spring Training facility.  Seager was still ranked in the spot on MLBTR’s most recent 2021-22 Free Agent Power Rankings, assuming that he is able to return to the field in due course and is still able to play to his usual high standard in the wake of his injury.
  • Aaron Sanchez left a minor league rehab outing tonight after 1 1/3 innings due to a blister on his throwing hand, Mark W. Sanchez of KNBR reports.  The Giants right-hander has a checkered history of blister and finger issues, which ruined his last three seasons with the Blue Jays following an All-Star season in 2016.  Sanchez missed all of 2020 recovering from shoulder surgery and was seemingly putting together a decent comeback campaign (3.18 ERA/4.26 SIERA) over 28 1/3 innings with San Francisco this year before biceps tightness sent him to the injured list on May 8.
  • Longtime Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford hit a career milestone today when he officially reached 10 full years of Major League service time, and Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group commemorated the achievement with a look back at several memorable moments from Crawford’s career.  Ten years in the big leagues is a major landmark for any player, perhaps especially for a somewhat modestly-scouted player (Crawford was a fourth-round pick in 2008) who has become a fixture with his hometown team.  Crawford’s contract with the Giants already contained a full no-trade clause, though by locking in “10-and-5” rights, Crawford can veto any potential trade for the remainder of his career.  This isn’t to say that a trade is anywhere on the horizon, as the shortstop is posting career-best numbers for the first-place Giants.

NPB’s Orix Buffaloes Sign Rangel Ravelo

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First baseman/outfielder Rangel Ravelo has signed with the Orix Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball, according to reporters Francys Romero and Yusseff Diaz (Twitter link).  Ravelo had previously been on a minor league contract with the Dodgers, but the two sides worked out a deal for Orix to purchase Ravelo’s rights earlier this week.

As noted by Romero, there was some expectation that Ravelo would receive a promotion to the Dodgers’ big league roster, considering that Ravelo was crushing Triple-A pitching.  The 29-year-old had a .407/.504/.758 slash line and eight homers over 113 plate appearances for the Oklahoma City affiliate, though the Dodgers didn’t turn to Ravelo even after multiple injuries created opening on the MLB roster.

Ravelo will now head to Japan for a new chapter in his 12-year professional career.  A sixth-round pick for the White Sox in the 2010 draft, Ravelo was part of one of the more notable trades in recent Athletics history — Ravelo, Marcus Semien, Chris Bassitt, and Josh Phegley all went to Oakland in December 2014 while Jeff Samardzija and Michael Ynoa were sent to Chicago.  Ravelo didn’t reach the majors until 2019 as a member of the Cardinals, however, and Ravelo hit .189/.250/.351 over 84 PA with St. Louis in 2019-20.  After being non-tendered by the Cards last winter, Ravelo signed on with Los Angeles.

Rangers Acquire Dennis Santana, Designate Hyeon-jong Yang

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The Rangers announced they’ve acquired right-hander Dennis Santana from the Dodgers in exchange for left-handed pitching prospect Kelvin Bautista. To create 40-man roster space for Santana, Texas designated left-hander Hyeon-jong Yang for assignment. Texas optioned Santana to Triple-A Round Rock.

The Dodgers designated Santana for assignment last week. The 25-year-old saw big league action in each season between 2018-21. Across 40 2/3 MLB innings, Santana has only managed a 6.42 ERA/4.88 SIERA with worse than average strikeout and walk rates (18.7% and 11.9%, respectively). He’s fared particularly poorly this season, allowing eleven runs (ten earned) on eighteen hits and eleven walks with just eight strikeouts across fifteen frames.

To Santana’s credit, he has induced ground balls at a robust 54.9% clip in 2021. That’s a new development but not all that surprising for a pitcher who leans primarily on a 95 MPH sinker. Santana, though, throws an extremely high-spin sinker. Unlike with four-seam fastballs, sinkers tend to fare better as low-spin offerings, since higher-spin heaters can resist gravity and be less likely to dive down towards the bottom of the strike zone.

Nevertheless, Santana’s three-pitch mix (he throws a slider and changeup with relatively equal frequency) has long intrigued scouts. Entering the year, Baseball America ranked Santana the Dodgers #19 prospect, praising his repertoire but questioning his command. The Rangers will now attempt to actualize that upside. Santana is in his final minor league option year, so he can be sent back and forth between Arlington and Round Rock without being exposed to waivers for the remainder of this season. While all 32 of his MLB appearances have come in relief, Santana has started the majority of his minor league games, so it’s possible the Rangers could try to lengthen him back out as rotation depth.

Yang loses his roster spot after eight appearances (four starts). Signed to a minor league deal over the winter after a lengthy, successful career in the Korea Baseball Organization, the 33-year-old was selected to Texas’ MLB roster in late April. Yang struggled in 29 big league innings, working to a 5.59 ERA with a subpar 15% strikeout rate and an elevated 11.8% walk rate. The Rangers will have a week to trade him or place him on outright waivers.

Bautista signed with the Rangers as an amateur out of the Dominican Republic during the 2017-18 international signing period. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs ranked Bautista the #62 prospect in the Texas farm system last month, noting that the diminutive southpaw throws in the mid-upper 90s with a promising but inconsistent curveball and subpar command.

Dodgers Select Steven Souza, Designate Nate Jones

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The Dodgers have selected the contract of outfielder Steven Souza Jr., and designated right-hander Nate Jones for assignment in the corresponding roster move.

Souza signed a minor league deal with Los Angeles in late March, a week after the Astros released him from another minors contract.  The 32-year-old has displayed plenty of pop at Triple-A Oklahoma City, batting .279/.444/.603 with six home runs in 90 plate appearances for the Dodgers’ top farm team.

Best known for three solid years with the Rays from 2015-17, Souza has battled several injuries throughout his career, most notably a major knee injury that kept him out of action for the entire 2019 season.  He returned to play 11 games with the Cubs in 2020 before being released in September.  Souza will now move into a bench role for the World Series champions, as the Dodgers are in need of some outfield depth with Cody Bellinger on the 10-day injured list.

Jones was another minor league signing for the Dodgers back in May, after the Braves cut him loose after 12 appearances and 10 1/3 innings.  Jones overcame some major control and homer issues to post a 3.48 ERA in his brief time in Atlanta, but the bottom fell out in L.A. as Jones posted an 8.31 ERA in 8 2/3 innings in Dodger Blue.  Over 19 total innings in 2021, Jones has already surrendered seven homers, underlining a home run problem that has become increasingly dire over his last four seasons.

Since the start of the 2020 season, Jones has a 5.97 ERA and 12 home runs allowed in 37 2/3 total innings with the Dodgers, Braves, and Reds.  Once a borderline elite setup man during his heyday with the White Sox, Jones was hampered by numerous injuries, and he has tossed only 89 2/3 total innings over the last five seasons.

Will Trevor Bauer Opt Out After The Season?

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When Trevor Bauer signed a three-year, $102MM deal with the Dodgers back in February, he ensured flexibility by securing opt-outs after the first and second years.  However, the details suggest the contract was designed to keep Bauer in Los Angeles for the first two seasons.

Bauer received a $10MM signing bonus, $5MM of which was paid in March.  The other $5MM will be paid next month.  Beyond that, his 2021 salary is $28MM, but with the quirk that it’s all payable on November 1st of this year.  Here’s what happens if he opts out after the 2021 season, according to Cot’s:

Bauer may opt out of the contract after the 2021 season, receiving a $2M buyout, with Dodgers deferring $20M of 2021 salary without interest, paid in $2M installments each Dec. 1, 2031-40

In other words, if Bauer opts out after this season, he walks away with $12MM in hand, and then has to wait a decade until the Dodgers pay him again.  And even then, it’s $2MM per year for ten years, with no interest.  Your estimates may vary, but that deferred $20MM is worth a lot less than being paid now – most likely half as much.

Opting out after the 2022 season involves none of that deferred money stuff, and throws in a $15MM buyout.  Bauer would have earned $85MM for two seasons, foregoing a mere $17MM for ’23.  Barring injury, jumping out of the contract at this point seems like an easy choice.  As the best pitcher on the free agent market, Bauer landed a very flexible contract.  The Dodgers took on all the downside risk, which is the nature of opt-out clauses.

Bauer started this season strong enough to at least give another look to the possibility of opting out after ’21.  After an outing at San Francisco on May 21st, Bauer’s ERA sat at 1.98 through 12 starts, with a 36.2 K%.  If you had asked me at that point, I’d have said it’d make sense for Bauer to opt out after ’21, even if just to land the same three-year deal all over again.  But on the horizon was a hallmark date with a potentially large effect on Bauer and many other pitchers.  On June 3rd, Bob Nightengale wrote, “Major League Baseball informed owners Thursday that it is engaged in the next phase of league-directed enforcement banning the use of foreign substances by pitchers — which would include 10-day suspensions — two persons with direct knowledge of the meeting told USA TODAY Sports.”  Today, MLB announced its new enforcement plan, which starts Monday.

Through May 31st, Bauer averaged 2840 RPM and 93.8 miles per hour on his four-seam fastball.  In the two starts since, those numbers are 2630 RPM and 94.1 mph.  There are players who have lost more RPM on their four-seamers since the impending crackdown became known, without much velocity change, such as the Indians’ James Karinchak.  But Bauer’s 210 RPM loss on the four-seamer is significant, especially for a guy who throws the pitch 44% of the time.

All we can say definitively is that the average spin rate on Bauer’s four-seam fastball in two starts after June 3rd was 210 RPM lower than the average RPM in a dozen starts before that date.  That the RPM drop was caused by Bauer stopping the usage of foreign substances on the ball or changing what he uses is the implication, but not a fact.  It’d take a further leap to say that Bauer’s mediocre results in those two starts were caused by the RPM drop.  It should be noted that 2630 RPM still ranks sixth in baseball from June 3rd onward, and there’s nothing too meaningful about allowing seven earned runs in 12 1/3 innings.  It’s also worth pointing out that Bauer’s ERA was probably not going to stay around 2.00 even without a foreign substance crackdown.  Bauer certainly has not shied away from MLB’s sticky stuff drama, as he “demonstrated to reporters on the field before Tuesday’s game that a combination of sweat and rosin was sufficient to allow him to stick a baseball to his hand, palm down,” according to Bill Plunkett of the OC Register.  He showed this on Twitter, while also diving into Tyler Glasnow’s comments.

If you’re an MLB GM considering signing Bauer at some point in the future, you’re definitely going to try to determine how much of Bauer’s recent success was the result of the use of foreign substances, because you have to forecast how he’ll perform over the next several years.  If this was a major consideration for Bauer’s suitors in the 2020-21 offseason, I didn’t hear about it.  For Bauer and potential suitors, the calculus has changed.  So let’s get your opinions on when we’ll see him next on the free agent market.

When will Trevor Bauer hit free agency next?
He'll opt out after the 2022 season. 52.50% (4,502 votes)
He'll play out his three-year deal and hit the market after '23. 31.34% (2,688 votes)
He'll opt out after the 2021 season. 16.16% (1,386 votes)
Total Votes: 8,576

Dodgers Place Cody Bellinger On IL

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The Dodgers placed center fielder Cody Bellinger on the IL for left hamstring tightness and recalled Mitch White, MLB.com’s Juan Toribio was among those to report.  The timing of the injury is unfortunate, as tonight is the first full-capacity game at Dodger Stadium since before the pandemic.  Bellinger is eligible to be activated on June 22nd, notes Eric Stephen of True Blue L.A.

Bellinger returned from a lengthy IL stint on May 29th after recovering from a hairline fracture in his left fibula.  Now, he’s back to the IL due to a hamstring injury, which first cropped up last Friday.  The Dodgers will again make do without the 2019 NL MVP.  This year, that’s generally meant Chris Taylor and Mookie Betts in center field.  With Max Muncy hitting the IL on Saturday, the Dodgers’ current first base tandem is Matt Beaty and Albert Pujols.  In his 66 plate appearances with the Dodgers, Pujols has a 131 wRC+.  The Dodgers are also without star shortstop Corey Seager, who might return early next month from a broken hand.

In recalling White, the Dodgers have gone to a nine-man bullpen after yesterday’s short start from Tony Gonsolin.

Dodgers Place Max Muncy On 10-Day Injured List

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JUNE 13: Manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Juan Toribio of MLB.com) the Dodgers are hopeful Muncy will be able to return after a minimal 10-day IL stint, but cautioned that the team won’t rush him back before he’s ready.

JUNE 12: The Dodgers have placed infielder Max Muncy on the 10-day injured list due to a right oblique strain, the team announced.  Outfielder Luke Raley has been called up from Triple-A to fill Muncy’s spot on the active roster.

Muncy hit a two-run homer in the first inning of the Dodgers’ 12-1 win over the Rangers on Friday, but he was replaced at first base by Albert Pujols for the start of the second inning.  The home run was Muncy’s team-leading 14th of the season, continuing an outstanding season that has seen Muncy hit .264/.418/.528 with a league-best 46 walks.

Unfortunately for the Dodgers, they’ll now be without this productive bat for at least the next 10 days, and potentially quite a few more if Muncy has suffered anything beyond a minimal strain.  Muncy has also been bothered by a sore ankle in recent days, so it’s possible that even if his oblique problem is a minor one, the Dodgers might give Muncy beyond the 10-day minimum just to get him fully healed up and ready to go.  Muncy was scheduled to undergo more tests on his oblique today but the team has yet to release any update on the severity of the injury or any sort of recovery timeline.

With Muncy out, Pujols and Matt Beaty could now serve as a righty/lefty platoon at first base.  Beaty has been a productive part-timer in his three seasons with L.A., and Pujols moving into a semi-starting role for the World Series champions represents quite a turn-around for the future Hall-of-Famer over the last month.  It seemed as if Pujols’ career might have been over after the Angels cut him loose in May, but since signing with the Dodgers, Pujols has hit .268/.317/.571 with five home runs over 60 PA.

If Muncy’s injury wasn’t enough, Cody Bellinger also left Friday’s game due to left hamstring tightness.  Bellinger’s issue doesn’t seem to be as serious, since manager Dave Roberts told MLB.com’s Juan Toribio and other reporters that Bellinger could potentially be back in action by Sunday.

Dodgers Sign Vidal Nuno III To Minors Contract

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The Dodgers have signed left-hander Vidal Nuno III to a minor league contract, according to Triple-A Oklahoma City’s communications director and broadcaster Alex Freedman (Twitter link).

This is technically Nuno’s second stint with the Dodgers, Freeman notes, since Los Angeles originally acquired the southpaw in a trade with the Mariners in November 2016.  Nuno never appeared in a game for the Dodgers, however, as he was flipped to the Orioles in another swap in February 2017.

A veteran of six MLB seasons from 2013-18, Nuno has a 4.06 ERA/3.97 SIERA, 19.6% strikeout rate, and 13% strikeout/walk rate over 377 innings, working out of the bullpen in 113 of his 155 career games.  Never a hard-thrower or a big strikeout pitcher, Nuno relied on a five-pitch arsenal and soft contact to retire his fair share of batters.

Nuno signed minor league deals with the Nationals and Rays in 2019 but didn’t receive another call-up back to the Show.  After not pitching during the canceled 2020 minor league season, Nuno landed with Tijuana of the Mexican League this year, pitching two games for the Toros.

Dodgers Designate Dennis Santana, Select Andy Burns

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The Dodgers announced a trio of roster moves, with Andy Burns joining the active roster after the infielder’s contract was selected from Triple-A.  Right-hander Dennis Santana was designated for assignment to open up a spot for Burns on the 40-man roster, and right-hander Mitch White was optioned to Triple-A.

Burns’ big league resume consists of 10 games with the Blue Jays back in 2016.  Since being drafted as an 11th-round pick in 2011, Burns’ pro career has been mostly spent in Toronto’s farm system, but he also spent parts of three seasons playing overseas in South Korea and Australia.  After signing a minor league deal with Los Angeles last winter, Burns has been ripping up Triple-A pitching, with a .330/.427/.598 slash line over 117 plate appearances with Oklahoma City.

As is typical with most Dodgers players, Burns offers defensive versatility.  The 30-year-old has mostly played second and third base over his career, but also has quite a bit of experience at shortstop, first base, left field, and a handful of games as a right fielder.  Burns joins Zach McKinstry and Matt Beaty as L.A. bench options who can handle multiple positions, while Albert Pujols remains limited to first base and pinch-hit duties.

Santana has appeared in each of the last four seasons for the Dodgers, totaling a 6.42 ERA and 18.7% strikeout rate over 40 2/3 Major League innings.  Control has increasingly emerged as a problem for Santana, with inflated walk totals at both the MLB and Triple-A levels in 2019 and 2021 — this season, the righty has 11 walks against only eight strikeouts.

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