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NL Notes: Thames, Posey, Dodgers, Phillies

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Eric Thames’ agent, Adam Karon, was the driving force behind the now-Brewers’ slugger’s decision to sign with the Korea Baseball Organization in 2013, writes Tyler Kepner of the New York Times. “My view was, ‘Look, you’ve always been successful when you’ve played every day, and you’re not going to get the opportunity here,’” Karon said. “He was the last man on the 40-man roster of the worst team in baseball.”

Then a member of the Astros organization and a participant in the Venezuelan Winter League, Thames scoffed at Karon’s suggestion initially. However, he had a change of heart and ended up inking a two-year deal with the NC Dinos. Thames became a sensation in Korea, where he toyed with the KBO’s offspeed-heavy pitchers from 2014-16. He parlayed that success into a three-year, $16MM pact with the Brewers this past winter, and the first baseman has certainly done his part to justify that investment so far. The 30-year-old entered Saturday leading the league in both home runs (11) and ISO (an absurd .506), and he has swung at just 19.8 percent of pitches outside the strike zone – down from 36.3 percent with the Mariners and Blue Jays from 2011-12. There is skepticism toward Thames’ success, though, evidenced in part by the fact that the league administered him a random drug test for the third time in a 10-day span on Friday, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Thames seems more amused than bothered by the testing, but he’s not sure how “random” it actually is, relays Haudricourt (Twitter link).

More from the National League:

  • Giants catcher Buster Posey has long been a workhorse behind the plate, and while moving the 30-year-old to a different position could possibly help prolong his effectiveness, it’s not on the team’s agenda, details Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. “When you have a guy that’s led us to three titles, a lot of it is because of his preparation and guidance of the starting rotation and the bullpen,” said general manager Bobby Evans. “I think it distinguishes him from other positions — and other guys. My mindset is we’re a better team with Buster back there, and as long as we can keep him back there, we want to do it.” Posey wouldn’t fight a position change down the line, saying that “it’s about winning ballgames,” but he notes that “there’s value in having a good hitter behind the plate and being able to put a bat at first base as well.” The Giants plan to start Posey 115 to 120 times at catcher and in 15 to 20 games at first/designated hitter, per Crasnick,  potentially putting him on track for a sixth straight 140-plus-game season.
  • The Dodgers have considered shifting the blister-plagued Rich Hill to the bullpen, but manager Dave Roberts announced Saturday that the left-hander will return to their rotation when they activate him from the DL, tweets Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. Hill, who landed on the shelf April 17 (already his second DL stint of the year), will throw a four-frame, 60-pitch rehab outing with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga on Thursday.
  • Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola isn’t making ideal progress in his recovery from a lower-back strain. Nola threw a two-inning simulation game Friday and then complained of back discomfort, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com was among those to report. That means Nola won’t come off the DL when he’s first eligible on Monday. When asked if Nola suffered a setback, manager Pete Mackanin said: “If you want to call it that. We’re being cautious with him this early in the season.” Mackanin added, though, that Nola is “improving.”

Dodgers Sign Max Muncy To Minor-League Deal

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The Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers have announced that their parent club has signed infielder Max Muncy, apparently to a minor-league deal. He’ll play for Oklahoma City.

The Athletics outrighted Muncy last winter. He played a handful of games with them in Spring Training, but it appears they released him at some point. He has not yet appeared in the Majors or minors in the regular season.

The 26-year-old Muncy has collected 245 big-league plate appearances with the A’s over the past two seasons, batting .195/.290/.321. He’s batted .262/.355/.407 while playing five positions (first, second, third and the outfield corners) over his career at the Triple-A level, indicating that he’s a solid depth option in the high minors, perhaps especially for a team like the Dodgers, who currently have a variety of position players on the DL.

Injury Notes: Syndergaard, Sanchez, Duda, Cabrera, Skaggs, Britton, Dyson, More

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A pair of struggling teams got the good news that they’ll have key hurlers taking the hill on Sunday. Noah Syndergaard is ready to go after some worry over his biceps, as Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports on Twitter. Syndergaard is said to have denied a request that he undergo an MRI, saying he feels fully healthy. Also, Aaron Sanchez will return for the Blue Jays, as Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca tweets.

Here’s more on the injury front:

  • First baseman Lucas Duda is also nearing a return for the Mets. He started a rehab assignment this evening and played for six innings. Given the fairly limited duration of his layoff for a hyperextended elbow, it seems reasonable to think he’ll be back up in just a few days.
  • It seems there’s forward momentum for Tigers star Miguel Cabrera, as MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports on Twitter. Cabrera, who was forced to the DL with a groin strain, was able to jog and take batting practice today at the park.
  • The Angels are assessing another injury for lefty Tyler Skaggs. Per a club announcement, he left his outing tonight with “right side tightness.” Just that means for the 25-year-old isn’t clear at this time. Heading into the current season, Skaggs had made only 41 starts since debuting in 2012. Over his five starts and 29 1/3 innings in 2017, Skaggs has pitched to a 3.99 ERA with a strong 29:9 K/BB ratio.
  • Orioles closer Zach Britton may also be back Sunday — or, if not, then after the team’s off-day on Monday — per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (via Twitter). The southpaw is preparing to return rather quickly from an initially worrying forearm injury. He figures to step right back into the closer role for the O’s.
  • The Rangers welcomed back Sam Dyson from his short DL stint. Though he jumped right back in and pitched in the ninth tonight, working a scoreless frame, that came in a losing effort. Unlike Britton, Dyson has likely been bypassed in the closer role, at least for the time being.
  • While the Nationals are holding their breath over a new and potentially serious injury issue tonight, the team did get a bit of positive news earlier. An MRI came back clean for southpaw Sammy Solis, as Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com tweets. While there’s some inflammation present in his balky elbow, there’s no ligament issue.
  • There are a few updates on some Reds hurlers who are working back from injury, as C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Homer Bailey will throw a pen session early next week — his first since having bone spurs removed over the offseason. Fellow righty Anthony DeSclafani, meanwhile, is unfortunately still not ready to start throwing. Doctors will reassess his sprained UCL after allowing it a few more weeks of rest. And lefty Brandon Finnegan, who’s dealing with an oblique issue, is still a week away even from being examined again by physicians. The club is allowing him plenty of rest before taking stock of his path back tot he rotation.
  • Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts provided the latest on a few of his team’s ailing players, as Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times was among those to report (links to Twitter). “Mechanical” issues are still holding back lefty Scott Kazmir, who still doesn’t seem to have a clear path back to the majors. The club will soon activate several position players, though, with Franklin Gutierrez likely to be followed within a week or so by Joc Pederson and Logan Forsythe. That’ll likely mean dropping top prospect Cody Bellinger back to Triple-A, McCullough notes.
  • Athletics southpaw Sean Manaea is likely to miss a start and may hit the 10-day DL, as Joe Stiglich of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. But the overall news is good. Manaea, who came down with some shoulder stiffness in his most recent outing, is not expected to require an extended absence.

NL West Notes: Jankowski, Desmond, Hill, Wood, Ethier

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Padres center fielder Travis Jankowski hit the 10-day disabled list earlier this week with what the team called a “deep bone bruise” in his right foot, but there’s now a concern that Jankowski may have a hairline fracture as well, reports MLB.com’s Barry M. Bloom. If that’s the case, the 25-year-old could be out more than a month. Bloom quotes manager Andy Green as saying the team doctors aren’t yet able to determine if there’s a fracture (perhaps due to the swelling), but they’ll be cautious either way. Even if there’s no fracture, it sounds as if Jankowski can expect to miss more than the minimum 10 days. “They told me I’d be in the boot for another week to 10 days,” Jankowski tells Bloom. Jankowski turned in a marginal performance at the plate in 2016, hitting .245/.332/.313 in 383 plate appearances, but he played strong defense in center field and provided significant baserunning value with 30 steals.

More on the NL West…

  • Ian Desmond is nearing a return to the Rockies, manager Bud Black tells Nick Groke of the Denver Post. Desmond has been with the team but is splitting off to work at the team’s extended Spring Training complex this weekend, where he’ll begin playing in rehab games. According to Groke, Desmond will play multiple positions as he preps for the possibility of logging some outfield work in addition to his time at first base. Black tells Groke that Desmond is “closer than you think” to returning. Previously, Black has mentioned the possibility of Desmond working in the outfield against lefties to keep the Mark Reynolds’ hot right-handed bat in the lineup.
  • Left-hander Alex Wood will make at least one more start for the Dodgers, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (link via MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick). However, it’s also possible that Wood, who tossed six one-hit innings against the Giants in his most recent outing, will remain in the rotation even when Rich Hill is ready to be activated from the disabled list. “I think Alex has done everything he can to warrant a case to continue to be in the rotation,” said Roberts. “…I can’t say with 100 percent confidence when Rich will be back as a starter. There is talk about Rich potentially coming back sooner in a role out of the ’pen and that would leave an opportunity for Woody — who has pitched really well — to stay in the rotation.” Roberts has suggested on multiple occasions that Hill could be eased back from his blister problems as a reliever, though given the magnitude of his contract and last season’s excellence as a starter, one has to imagine that the team would eventually prefer that Hill rejoin the rotation.
  • Roberts also conceded the fact that outfielder Andre Ethier will be sidelined until June, “at the earliest,” as Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times writes. The Dodgers have been without Ethier since he was diagnosed with a herniated disk in his back late in Spring Training, and he’s yet to resume baseball activities more than five weeks after receiving an epidural injection. “The time that it’s taken, at this point, it’s almost like [he’ll need] a spring training again,” said Roberts. “…I’m not saying it needs to be a dedicated six weeks. But from the time of baseball activity, it’s easily fair to say [it’ll take] a month after that.” In Ethier’s absence, Andrew Toles has seen quite a bit of playing time, though he’s batting just .207/.258/.362 through 62 plate appearances.

Marlins Claim Joe Gunkel

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The Marlins have announced the claim of righty Joe Gunkel off waivers from the Dodgers. He has been optioned to Double-A Jacksonville, where he’ll serve as a near-MLB-ready depth option for the Fish.

Gunkel, 25, has bounced from the Red Sox to the Orioles to the Dodgers over the past 18 months before today’s arrival in the Marlins organization. Though he’s yet to crack a Major League roster and hasn’t generated considerable prospect fanfare — he topped out as the No. 20 prospect in a weak Orioles farm system this past offseason, per Baseball America — it’s not hard to see why he’s held appeal to so many clubs.

A former 18th-round pick, Gunkel has displayed pristine control throughout his minor league career, averaging just 1.5 walks per nine innings pitched over the life of 439 1/3 frames. And, as recently as 2015, thre righty posted a combined 2.68 ERA with 7.0 K/9 against 1.7 BB/9 in 144 2/3 innings between Class-A Advanced and Double-A.

In 2016, Gunkel’s ERA took a step backward (4.02), but he turned in a career-high 161 innings between Double-A and Triple-A while still showing off a staunch aversion to free passes (1.2 BB/9). Gunkel averaged 6.1 K/9 and induced grounders at a roughly 41 percent clip between those two levels. Gunkel has three minor league options remaining, meaning that he can be shuttled back and forth between the minors and Majors without first needing to clear waivers from now through the end of the 2019 campaign (if he ultimately sticks with one organization).

Dodgers Designate Joe Gunkel For Assignment

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The Dodgers have designated Triple-A right-hander Joe Gunkel for assignment, reports J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (Twitter link). His 40-man spot will go to vaunted prospect Cody Bellinger, who will make his Major League debut tonight in left field for the Dodgers. To clear a spot for Bellinger on the 25-man roster, the Dodgers optioned outfielder Brett Eibner back to Triple-A Oklahoma City, per Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).

Gunkel has a solid minor league track record, having tossed 104 1/3 innings with a 2.59 ERA, 6.0 K/9 and a strong 1.3 BB/9 rate for the Orioles’ Double-A affiliate in 2015. The 2016 season wasn’t as strong for Gunkel, though he did still post a 4.02 ERA with 6.1 K/9 against 1.2 BB/9 in 161 innings between Baltimore’s Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. Baltimore designated Gunkel for assignment earlier this month to clear a spot on the roster for hard-throwing reliever Miguel Castro after picking him up from the Rockies. Shortly thereafter, he was flipped to the Dodgers for cash or a player to be named later.

Dodgers To Promote Cody Bellinger

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The Dodgers will promote top prospect Cody Bellinger, according to MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick (via Twitter). The 21-year-old will provide a left-handed-hitting option at first base and the corner outfield, though it’s unknown how long he’ll remain in the majors.

Cody Bellinger | Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

Bellinger flew up top prospect charts with a strong 2016 season, in which he slashed .271/.365/.507 over 477 plate appearances, the vast bulk of them coming at Double-A. After an excellent stint in the Arizona Fall League, Bellinger sat at seventh among all prospects leaguewide in the ranking of Baseball America.

Since that time, Bellinger has taken Triple-A by storm. Through 77 trips to the plate, he owns a .343/.429/.627 batting line with five home runs and seven steals. Adding him to the active MLB roster, though, will require the creation of a 40-man space.

The Dodgers fielded trade inquiries on the blue-chip prospect over the winter, as they have recently for other hyped youngsters such as Corey Seager, Julio Urias, and Joc Pederson. But Los Angeles has held firm on those players, all of whom will now have reached the majors. With Pederson on the DL, a need arose for another outfield bat, and it’ll be Bellinger who gets the call — at least temporarily. As Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times tweets, Bellinger is expected to see time in left and center.

Looking longer term, Bellinger’s promotion comes late enough into the season that his path to free agency would be delayed by one year, but not so late that he’d avoid Super Two status. If Bellinger remains in the Majors to stay, he’d accrue 159 days of Major League service time, putting on track to reach arbitration after the 2019 season and free agency upon completion of the 2023 campaign.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Dodgers Place Joc Pederson On 10-Day DL; Julio Urias To Make Season Debut

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The Dodgers have placed center fielder Joc Pederson on the 10-day DL, per a club announcement. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by outfielder Brett Eibner.

Pederson, who just turned 25, has a groin injury. It doesn’t seem likely to keep him out for a lengthy stretch, but the Dodgers evidently felt it was worth getting out ahead of with a DL placement. He’ll look to pick up his hitting a bit upon his return, after posting a tepid .220/.322/.340 mark through his first 18 games of the season.

Notably, too, Los Angeles is set to bring up talented young starter Julio Urias for his 2017 debut, per J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (Twitter link). The 20-year-old had opened the year at Triple-A as part of an effort to control his innings.

Urias has unsurprisingly dominated at the highest level of the minors, though he has also permitted nine walks in his 14 frames. Still, he has nothing left to prove there; the young southpaw already turned in 77 innings of 3.39 ERA ball in the majors last season.

It seems that Urias will take the ball Thursday, meaning that righty Kenta Maeda will be bumped from his next scheduled start. He’ll pitch Friday, per skipper Dave Roberts, as MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick tweets. The 29-year-old has been hit hard in the early going, with 24 hits and seven long balls recorded against him through 19 innings — though he has also maintained his excellent strikeout (9.0 K/9) and walk (2.4 BB/9) rates.

After this first outing, Urias could stay in the majors or head back to Albuquerque. How things shake out could also depend in part upon the status of Rich Hill, who is still on the DL with a troublesome blister.

Injury Notes: Cespedes, Price, Rangers, Britton, Pederson

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Yoenis Cespedes was out of the Mets’ lineup for the third straight game Sunday, leaving manager Terry Collins to acknowledge that the left fielder could head to the disabled list if his left hamstring issue doesn’t heal by Tuesday (via ESPN.com). “I think we’d need to take a look at that,” Collins said of a potential DL stint for Cespedes, who did tell the skipper he “felt a lot better” Sunday. Cespedes has mashed this season for the slow-starting Mets (.263/.377/.632 with six home runs in 69 plate appearances), but they’re nonetheless decently equipped to handle his short-term absence. Michael Conforto, Jay Bruce, Curtis Granderson and Juan Lagares give the Cespedes-less club a full complement of major league-caliber outfielders. (Update: Cespedes expects to return Tuesday, tweets Matt Ehalt of The Record.)

  • Red Sox left-hander David Price will throw a 45- to 50-pitch bullpen session Monday as he tries to work back from forearm trouble, per Ben Standing of MLB.com. Price still seems a ways off from making his 2017 debut, but a positive showing Monday would put him in position to face live hitters sometime soon. “Once we get through [Monday’s] work session and kind of begin to map out a little more of a structure on a calendar, I think we’re at that point [of facing batters],” said manager John Farrell. “Anytime you get to the number of pitches thrown that will be tomorrow, you can start to foresee a progression to hitters and ultimately to games, but we don’t have that in place right now.”
  • The Rangers continue to play it safe with third baseman Adrian Beltre in his recovery from a right calf strain, meaning he probably won’t debut until May, relays Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News. “I think we need to continue to rehab,” said manager Jeff Banister. “The conservative nature is probably in our best interest.” Meanwhile, after upper back spams slowed Tyson Ross’ comeback from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, the expectation is that the right-hander will resume throwing from a mound by the end of the upcoming week, Banister told George.
  • Orioles closer Zach Britton will see a hand specialist Monday, after which he could resume throwing, writes Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com. Britton went on the disabled list last Sunday with a forearm strain – a scary injury for a pitcher – but an MRI came back clean on Friday. The Orioles believe sending the ace reliever to a specialist will help prevent a forearm strain from rearing its head again in the future, Ghiroli notes.
  • Center fielder Joc Pederson left the Dodgers’ win over the Diamondbacks on Sunday with right groin tightness, and the likelihood is that he’ll miss some games, according to Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. The Dodgers, already dealing with injuries to outfielders Andre Ethier and Franklin Gutierrez, will re-evaluate Pederson on Monday. A 25-plus-home run hitter in each of first two major league seasons, Pederson has gotten off to a sluggish start this year, with a .220/.322/.340 batting line and only one homer in 59 PAs.

NL West Notes: Span, Maeda, Spangenberg

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Here’s the latest from around the NL West…

  • Denard Span told CSNBayArea.com’s Alex Pavlovic and other reporters that he hopes to miss only a few days after hurting his shoulder crashing into the outfield wall last night.  Span said he suffered a similar injury in 2012 that kept him on the DL for several weeks, though his current issue doesn’t quite seem as serious, with Span noting that “the good thing is I’ve got range of motion.”  Between Span’s injury, Hunter Pence day-to-day with a knee strain and the team’s ongoing need in left field, the Giants are in need of some roster creativity to address the outfield.  Manager Bruce Bochy raised the possibility that Brandon Belt could play left (as he is today) in order to get Buster Posey at first and Nick Hundley behind the plate, as Hundley is hitting well.  Drew Stubbs could also be promoted from the minors as further outfield depth.
  • Kenta Maeda now has an 8.05 ERA through his first 19 innings after another rough start last night, though Dodgers manager Dave Roberts still expressed faith in his starter.  “We’re definitely going to hang with him.  But we’re going to talk through some things, and see what’s best for Kenta,” Roberts told Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times and other reporters, adding that the Dodgers could potentially skip Maeda’s next start.  Maeda has been hampered by a whopping 22.6% homer rate, a lack of grounders and an increase in hard contact (though only from soft to medium contact, by Fangraphs’ calculations).  As McCullough, Maeda’s problems actually date back to last season, as Maeda was less effective down the stretch than in the first half of his MLB rookie year.
  • With Cory Spangenberg on fire at Triple-A, the Padres may be in a bit of a roster crunch, MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell writes.  Spangenberg could be called up to take some playing time away from the struggling Ryan Schimpf at third base, though that still wouldn’t give Spangenberg the everyday at-bats the Padres want him to get, plus it also seems early to relegate Schimpf to a part-time role.  There’s also a 25-man issue in finding a place for Spangenberg, as the Padres have three Rule 5 Draft picks and three out-of-options players on their big league roster.
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