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NL Central Notes: Kratz, Wacha, Pirates

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The Brewers are facing a decision on veteran catcher Erik Kratz, as Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel details. With Yasmani Grandal and Manny Pina ahead of Kratz on the depth chart, Kratz’s days with the organization seem numbered. The 38-year-old is out of minor league options, and the Brewers only plan to carry two catchers on the roster to open the season. A move to either trade Kratz or attempt to pass him through outright waivers seems inevitable, and president of baseball ops David Stearns was candid about Kratz’s roster status. “We’ve tried to keep him posted on what’s going on,” said Stearns. “…It’s a balance between trying to preserve your injury insurance and trying to assess the market and what’s out there. We’ll continue to balance that, but I imagine that resolution will happen close to the end of camp.” Stearns added that he Brewers are “sensitive to do right by the player” in searching for other opportunities, while Kratz himself had nothing but praise for the professionalism with which the organization has handled the situation.

More on the NL Central…

  • Michael Wacha is very cognizant of the fact that this could be his final Spring Training with the Cardinals, writes Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A free agent after the season, Wacha has already watched the Cardinals extend teammate Miles Mikolas (on a four-year, $68MM deal). Wacha called the contract “awesome” for Mikolas adding that his teammate is a “stud pitcher and great off the field.” As far as his own contract status, however, Wacha stressed the importance of not getting caught up in that sort of thing with the season approaching. The 2012 first-rounder was limited to 84 1/3 innings last season due to an oblique injury, but he was sharp when on the field, working to a 3.20 ERA with 7.6 K/9, 3.8 BB/9, 0.96 HR/9 and a 43.2 percent grounder rate. He’ll be the youngest established starter available in free agency next winter, so a healthy season is particularly crucial.
  • Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette breaks down the Pirates’ shortstop battle between Erik Gonzalez and 2015 first-rounder Kevin Newman. Gonzalez, acquired from the Indians this offseason, is out of minor league options, so he’ll break camp with the club whether it’s as a starter at short or as a versatile utility piece. However, if Gonzalez beats out Newman for the starting role, it seems likelier that Newman would head to Triple-A for regular at-bats. Pablo Reyes and Cole Tucker are both in the mix as well, although Tucker has yet to even play a game in Triple-A and would seem like a long shot at this juncture. If neither Newman nor Tucker breaks camp with the team, Reyes could also be in line to earn a bench role as a utility piece. It’s a roster battle with numerous layers, which Brink discusses with GM Neal Huntington as well as several of the players involved.

NL Notes: D-Backs, Wheeler, Wacha, Dunn

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The Diamondbacks’ interesting offseason reflects GM Mike Hazen’s self-described effort to “thread the needle,” Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic writes in an excellent look at the Arizona organization and its top baseball executive. Despite trading away franchise cornerstone Paul Goldschmidt in what could turn out to be a highly consequential trade, the Snakes will enter the season with intentions of trying to contend — albeit with a realistic outlook and, it seems fair to presume, backup plans should things go south. Hazen says he’s committed to trying to put a winner on the field whenever possible, making clear he has no regret for pushing in chips at last summer’s trade deadline. It’s an interesting article that’s well worth a full read.

More from the National League:

  • Mets righty Zack Wheeler has been noted as a potential extension target this spring, but it does not sound as if he’s anxious to discuss a new deal after previously agreeing to a $5.975MM contract for his final season of arbitration eligibility. As Tim Healey of Newsday writes, Wheeler declined to say that he’s interested in — or even thinking at all about — a long-term arrangement. “I’m here right now,” Wheeler says. “That’s all I’m worried about. All that stuff will figure itself out and I’ll worry about that later.” Those comments certainly don’t seem to rule out an extension, and Wheeler made clear he’s happy to be playing for the Mets, but they also leave little reason to think that he is anxious to secure a new deal. If the team was hoping it might find value by striking up negotiations this spring, then, it may be disappointed.
  • Meanwhile, right-handed Cardinals starter Michael Wacha struck a similar tone, as Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports, though he’s in a bit of a different situation than Wheeler. Though Wacha also turned in strong results last year, he ended the season on the shelf with an oblique injury. His own injury struggles are well-documented, albeit not as extensive as Wheeler’s, yet the situation is not one that’s obviously ripe for extension talks even as free agency beckons. Wacha made clear he has not been approached by the club to this point, saying he’s “not getting prepared for any talks” in camp.
  • The Rockies are hopeful that southpaw Mike Dunn will be ready to head north with the club out of camp and have a full 2019 season, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding writes. That would be a boon to a relief unit that has not received the contributions it hoped for from multiple high-priced relief pitchers. The 33-year-old Dunn did not pitch to expectations in 2017 and had a dreadful 2018 showing before giong down to shoulder surgery. That creates quite a lot of uncertainty, though bullpen coach Darren Holmes says that the southpaw’s “arm is working as well as it did in 2016 or better” as camp approaches.

Central Notes: Machado, Cardinals, Reds, Zimmer

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Could the White Sox now be the favorites to land Manny Machado?  Despite whispers of a mystery team being involved in Machado’s market, the Sox, Yankees, and Phillies were known to be the three clubs most heavily pursuing the free agent infielder.  However, with the Yankees addressing their infield needs elsewhere and the Phillies perhaps now in the driver’s seat to sign Bryce Harper, it leaves the White Sox as potentially the last team standing for Machado.  While things seem to be leaning in the Pale Hose’s direction right now, an industry source tells Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times that “everything is still on the table” in regards to where Machado or Harper could sign.  “These guys are still so young (both 26), so if things aren’t what they want they could gamble and take a much shorter deal and try [free agency] again in the near future,” the source speculated.

More from both the AL and NL Central divisions…

  • The Cardinals have yet to hold any extension talks with Paul Goldschmidt, Marcell Ozuna, or Michael Wacha, GM Michael Girsch told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other media.  All three players are scheduled for free agency next winter, and while negotiations could yet take place later in the offseason, Girsch said “We’ll see how this year goes” in regards to the trio.  Since Goldschmidt has yet to play a game in a Cards uniform, it would be very surprising to see him ink an extension before getting a chance to test the open market.  As for Ozuna and Wacha, it makes sense for the Cardinals to see how either player bounces back from an injury-marred 2018 before making a long-term commitment.  Ozuna was solid but unspectacular last season, hitting .280/.325/.433 with 23 homers over 628 plate appearances while dealing with nagging shoulder issues.  Wacha, meanwhile, didn’t pitch after June 20 due to an oblique injury.
  • If the Reds could only spend their money on either Dallas Keuchel or A.J. Pollock, MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon feels the team would choose Keuchel, given the greater need for rotation help.  Both players have been linked to the Reds in hot stove rumors this winter, and while Cincinnati has made some notable additions (i.e. Alex Wood and Tanner Roark) to its starting five, it still lacks a top-of-the-rotation arm.  Without Pollock or another true center fielder, the Reds could at least make do at the position in the short term, using some combination of Scott Schebler, Yasiel Puig, and Nick Senzel between the corners.  In another question in Sheldon’s mailbag piece, he doesn’t feel Jesse Winker will be an option in center field due to Winker’s lack of range.
  • Indians outfielder Bradley Zimmer is hoping to beat his recovery timetable as he rehabs from shoulder surgery, telling MLB.com’s Mandy Bell and other reporters that “I feel like I’ll be ready for Spring Training.”  Zimmer was slated for an eight-to-twelve month absence from baseball activities after undergoing labrum surgery last July, so he feels he is making good progress, while acknowledging that “the timetable is not really in my hands, as far as my progression.”  Still, it seems to be a good sign that the former top prospect is looking to hit the field sooner rather than later, especially since the Tribe is sore need of outfield help.  Zimmer has just a .237/.300/.370 slash line over 446 PA in the big leagues, though he has already displayed some quality baserunning and slick glovework in his brief time at the MLB level.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: National League

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The deadline for players and teams to exchange arbitration figures passed yesterday at 1pm ET, and there has been a landslide of settlements on one-year deals to avoid an arbitration hearing. We’ll track those settlements from the National League in this post. Once all of the day’s settlements have filtered in, I’ll organize them by division to make them a bit easier to parse.

It’s worth mentioning that the vast majority of teams have adopted a “file and trial” approach to arbitration, meaning that once arbitration figures are exchanged with a player, negotiations on a one-year deal will cease. The two parties may still discuss a multi-year deal after that point, but the majority of players who exchange figures with their team today will head to an arbitration hearing.

As always, all salary projections referenced within this post are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz, and we’ll also be updating our 2019 Arbitration Tracker throughout the day…

Today’s Updates

  • Rounding out contract numbers for the St. Louis Cardinals, Dominic Leone will take home $1.26MM, Chasen Shreve will make $900K, and outfielder Marcell Ozuna will earn $12.25MM in his last season before free agency, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). Ozuna has the most high-impact potential as he looks to rebound from a still-productive season in 2018 that saw his power output hindered at times by a balky shoulder. He still managed 23 home runs and a .280/.325/.433 slash line while playing just about every day outside of a 10-day DL stint late in August.
  • The Diamondbacks came to terms with a slew of players, per Feinsand (via Twitter), including Matt Andriese for $920K, Steven Souza Jr. for $4.125MM, shortstop Nick Ahmed for $3.6625MM, and potential closer Archie Bradley for $1.83MM.
  • The Rockies and starting pitcher Jon Gray have come to an agreement on a $2.935MM deal, per Feinsand (via Twitter). Gray had an up-and-down 2018 that is generally considered to be more promising than the optics of his 5.12 ERA make it seem.
  • The Pirates have come to terms on one-year deals with both of their arbitration eligible players, per Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Left fielder Corey Dickerson signs for $8.5MM, and reliever Keone Kela takes home $3.175MM. It’s a small arb class for the Pirates, whose list will grow next season as players like Josh Bell, Jameson Taillon, and Joe Musgrove, among others, reach their first season of eligibility.
  • The Dodgers signed a couple of their remaining arbitration-eligible players yesterday, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (Twitter links). Utility man Chris Taylor has a $3.5MM deal, while outfield Joc Pederson settled at $5MM.

Earlier Updates

Read more

Cardinals Activate Adam Wainwright, Transfer Michael Wacha To 60-Day DL

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7:28pm: St. Louis GM Mike Girsch says that Wacha will not return this season, as MLB.com’s Jen Langosch tweets. Wacha’s oblique injury was aggravated, removing any chance of his return.

1:54pm: The Cardinals announced Monday that they’ve activated right-hander Adam Wainwright from the 60-day disabled list and transferred righty Michael Wacha from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL in order to create space on the roster.

The 37-year-old Wainwright will start tonight’s game against the Pirates, marking his first appearance since May 13. The three-time All-Star and two-time Cy Young runner-up has been bothered by elbow issues for much of the season after initially landing on the DL for inflammation back in May. He’s been limited to four appearances in 2018, totaling just 18 innings of work for the Cards in that time.

Wainwright told reporters back in Spring Training that he had no plans to talk about his future in the game and has, to this point, held to that stance (link via the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Rick Hummel). But given that the 2018 season is the final year on Wainwright’s contract, there’ll be plenty of speculation as to whether the next few weeks with the Cards represent his big league swan song. Any such determination surely won’t come until after the season, though, and it stands to reason that the manner in which he performs and his ability to recover after this month’s starts will prove instructive in making that call. Wainwright is earning $19.5MM this season in the final year of a five-year, $95MM extension he signed prior to the 2014 campaign.

As for Wacha, he hasn’t taken the mound since mid-June due to what seems to be a severe oblique injury. It should be noted that today’s news doesn’t technically mean his season is over. Wacha had already been on the disabled list for 60 days, so he’d already have filled that minimum requirement should the Cards deem him ready to pitch between now and season’s end. There’s been no indication that’s likely, however; to the contrary, Wacha was actually scratched from a rehab start last week due to renewed discomfort in his ailing oblique muscle. The 27-year-old enjoyed a fair bit of success when healthy this season, pitching to a 3.20 ERA with 7.6 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9 in 84 1/3 innings over the life of 15 starts.

NL Injury Notes: Wright, Cardinals, Straily

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Long-injured third baseman David Wright is working toward a 2018 comeback as the season nears an end, but the Mets aren’t optimistic he’ll return to the majors this year. Assistant general manager John Ricco suggested Friday (via Mike Puma of the New York Post) that Wright won’t have time to get up to speed, saying “it does get more difficult to foresee a situation where he could come back” to the bigs this season. Ricco added that money won’t play a role in whether Wright takes the field for the Mets this year, noting that he hasn’t been medically cleared to play in the majors. However, the club will take a financial hit if he does, Puma points out. The 35-year-old is still due approximately $2.6MM through season’s end, but insurance will pay 75 percent of that sum if he stays on the shelf. Otherwise, the Mets will have to pay all of it, and if they continue to keep Wright on ice, he may have a case for a grievance – albeit one he’d likely lose – as Puma explains. A series of upper body issues, including spinal stenosis, have prevented the career-long Met and seven-time All-Star from playing in the majors since May 27, 2016.

  • The Cardinals expected to have right-hander Michael Wacha back in their rotation by now, but the left oblique strain that has shelved him since June 20 continues to pose a problem. Ten days after exiting a Double-A start on account of oblique issues, the rehabbing Wacha was unable to make his scheduled start with Triple-A Memphis on Friday because of “discomfort” in that area, Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Wacha’s now slated to return “to St. Louis for more evaluation,” according to Cardinals manager Mike Shildt. With so little time remaining in the season, Wacha may be done for the year, Hummel observes. Fortunately for the Cardinals, who are clinging to a one-game lead for the NL’s second wild-card spot, fellow righty Adam Wainwright is on the cusp of returning from his own injury issues. The former ace is set to join Miles Mikolas, Austin Gomber, Jack Flaherty and John Gant in the Cards’ rotation – a group that appears increasingly likely to finish 2018 without Wacha. The 27-year-old had been one of the Redbirds’ most effective starters before his injury, as he logged a 3.20 ERA/4.21 FIP over 84 1/3 innings.
  • In further unwelcome news for the Cardinals, catcher Yadier Molina is dealing with a strained left hamstring and will sit out for at least the weekend – if not longer – Shildt revealed (via Hummel). Although Molina’s strain is “mild,” there’s “no timetable” for his return, per Shildt. Molina already missed several weeks earlier in the season with a pelvic injury, but the potential Hall of Famer has otherwise turned in another terrific year, with a .273/.324/.447 line and 17 home runs over 447 plate appearances and quality work behind the dish. For as long as the 36-year-old Molina’s out, St. Louis will rely on Francisco Pena and Carson Kelly to handle the position.
  • Marlins righty Dan Straily exited his start against Pittsburgh on Friday with a left oblique strain, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald tweets. The severity of the injury isn’t clear, but with time running out on the rebuilding Marlins’ season, it seems fair to surmise that Straily won’t pitch again in 2018. The 29-year-old has posted a respectable 4.12 ERA with 7.28 K/9 against 3.83 BB/9 over 122 1/3 innings this season, but ERA indicators such as FIP (5.11), xFIP (4.99) and SIERA (4.92) haven’t been enamored of his work.

NL Notes: Harper, Giants, Wacha, Cardinals, Marlins

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The Giants have been long-rumored suitors for Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper, who’s expected to reach free agency in the offseason and sign one of the richest contracts in baseball history. While Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle opines that the deep-pocketed Giants should go after Harper, he casts doubt on the possibility of the soon-to-be 26-year-old superstar signing with them. Giants CEO Larry Baer said this week that the club should “lean more toward the development” side of things in the immediate future, Schulman points out, adding it’s doubtful Harper would select San Francisco over teams in better position to contend immediately. Schulman also suggests that the Giants’ stadium, pitcher-friendly AT&T Park, could work against them during the Harper sweepstakes. It’s worth noting, then, that the Giants’ venue currently ranks 19th among 30 parks in HR factor for left-handed hitters, per Baseball Prospectus.

A couple more notes from the National League…

  • Cardinals right-hander Michael Wacha is slated to rejoin the team’s rotation during the first week of September, manager Mike Shildt told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other reporters Saturday. Wacha will first need to get through a Double-A rehab outing on Tuesday, when he could throw 75 to 80 pitches, per Goold. A left oblique strain has kept Wacha out since June 21, before which he made 15 starts and tossed 84 1/3 innings of 3.20 ERA/4.21 FIP ball. Meanwhile, reliever Dominic Leone is also on track to return to the Cardinals early next month, Joe Trezza of MLB.com tweets. The offseason trade acquisition from Toronto landed on the DL on May 5 with a nerve issue in his right biceps – an injury which has prevented Leone from properly following up the excellent 2017 he had with the Blue Jays.
  • Marlins first baseman Garrett Cooper suffered a setback during a rehab assignment on Wednesday and is “likely” done for the season, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com writes. Cooper has been dealing with right wrist problems since the second game of the season, when the Cubs’ Kyle Hendricks hit him with a pitch, and hasn’t played since July 20. With the Marlins having traded former starting first baseman Justin Bour to the Phillies earlier this month, a healthy Cooper perhaps could have made a case for the job heading into 2019. Instead, it appears the 27-year-old’s season will end with a .212/.316/.242 batting line over just 38 major league plate appearances.

Health Notes: Martin, Bauer, Devers/Kinsler, Hicks, DeShields, Altuve, Helli/Stras, Wacha/Martinez

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In his latest column, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer calls it “unlikely” that outfielder Leonys Martin will play with the Indians again this season. A trade deadline pickup, Martin has been on the disabled list for more than a week after being diagnosed with a bacterial infection that, at one point, was considered to be life-threatening in nature. While all of baseball breathed a collective sigh of relief when the Indians announced that Martin was in stable condition and expected to make a full recovery, his absence puts Cleveland back in the same spot it was prior to acquiring him in late July. Michael Brantley is performing well again as the team’s regular left fielder, but the rest of the outfield mix is comprised by struggling rookie Greg Allen and poorly performing veterans Rajai Davis and Melky Cabrera. It seems reasonable to expect that the team will be on the hunt for additional outfield help between now and Aug. 31.

Here are some additional health updates from around the game:

  • Indians skipper Terry Francona says the club anticipates that breakout righty Trevor Bauer will be sidelined for four to six weeks with a fibula stress fracture, as T.J. Zuppe of The Athletic was among those to tweet. That’s obviously a huge disappointment for a pitcher who has emerged as one of the best in baseball this year. With the postseason beckoning, it’s also a big concern for the Cleveland ballclub. Of course, the team will not need to worry about the loss down the stretch with the division all but in hand. But it’ll certainly be interesting to see just how Bauer is brought along as the playoffs approach.
  • It was a mixed bag of injury news today for the Red Sox, who will send third baseman Rafael Devers to the 10-day disabled list while activating second bagger Ian Kinsler. No further roster moves will be necessary to accommodate the change. Devers is hitting the shelf for the third time in the last six weeks or so and it’s the second occasion as to which the hamstring is to blame. That said, it’s not clear that the organization really believes there’s cause for concern that Devers won’t be at full strength come October.
  • Tigers backstop John Hicks likely won’t make it back this year after requiring abdominal surgery, as Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press recently reported. That’s a disappointing turn for a player who has turned in a solid performance in a robust role this year. Hicks, who is nearing his 29th birthday, has hit within range of league average at the MLB level since landing in Detroit. While he has been miscast as a part-time first baseman, his offensive work is more than adequate for a time-sharing catcher.
  • The Rangers have placed center fielder Delino DeShields Jr. on the 10-day DL with a finger fracture. He suffered the break to the tip of his right middle finger. Drew Robinson will be recalled to take the roster spot. It has been a tough year at the plate for DeShields, who turned 26 just yesterday. He has swiped 18 bags on the year, but carries only a .204/.303/.272 slash over 348 plate appearances. As the Rangers look ahead to an offseason of uncertainty, they’d surely like to see DeShields in action as much as possible, so the hope will be that he can bounce back relatively quickly.
  • Elsewhere in Texas, the slumping Astros were glad today to get some promising injury reports. Outfielder George Springer was activated off of the 10-day DL, as Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports (Twitter links). Meanwhile, star second bagger Jose Altuve will likely need a rehab stint but seems to be progressing from his knee issues. The ’Stros are trying to hold off a surprisingly strong challenge in the division.
  • Nationals righty Jeremy Hellickson is destined for his own DL stint, as Pete Kerzel of MASNsports.com was among those to report. Fortunately, he’s dealing with a sprain rather than a break in his wrist, which was injured in a play at the plate. It seems the Nats are hopeful that Stephen Strasburg could be ready to return by Tuesday, when Hellickson was next scheduled to start. Losing Hellickson would only be the latest blow for an organization that has dealt with problem after problem in 2018. While it’s still not impossible to imagine a late surge, the Nats need all hands on deck to make a comeback plausible.
  • For the Cardinals, it has been all positives of late. But the team could still stand to get a few pieces back. In particular, righties Michael Wacha and Carlos Martinez are on the come back trail. As MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch tweets, Wacha is set to begin a rehab assignment in short order and Martinez is now working in a relief capacity in the minors. In the case of Martinez, the plan is for him to shift to the bullpen when he is ready to roll, which perhaps won’t be far off now that he’s pitching competitively.

NL Injury Notes: D-backs, Cards, Cervelli, Mets, Cespedes

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Diamondbacks right-hander Shelby Miller went on the disabled list Friday with elbow inflammation, though the club’s hopeful he dodged a major injury. The D-backs don’t believe Miller re-injured his ulnar collateral ligament, manager Torey Lovullo told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic and other reporters. Miller previously missed most of 2017 and some of this year after tearing his UCL and requiring Tommy John surgery. Arizona won’t know more on Miller’s status until next week when renowned orthopedist Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Miller’s surgery, looks at the results of his MRI. If Miller’s able to return to the mound this season, he’ll try to shake off a dreadful four-start, 15-inning stretch in which he yielded 19 earned runs on 24 hits.

With Miller out for now, Arizona is set to reinstall righty Clay Buchholz into its rotation after the All-Star break, per Piecoro. Buchholz has been out since June 25, the day the Diamondbacks activated Miller, on account of a strained left oblique. The minor league signing looked like an excellent buy-low pickup before he went on the shelf, having pitched to a 2.56 ERA in his first 38 2/3 innings and seven starts as a D-back.

  • Righty Michael Wacha likely won’t return to the Cardinals for at least another month, Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch suggests. Wacha has already missed nearly a month with a left oblique strain, depriving the Cardinals of someone who had thrown 84 1/3 innings of 3.20 ERA ball before going on the DL. Meanwhile, righty Adam Wainwright will also be out into August, Hummel adds. Wainwright, who’s currently on the 60-day DL, has sat out just over two months with elbow problems, making this the second straight injury-shortened year for the former ace.
  • Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli is headed to the seven-day concussion DL for the second time in less than a month, the team announced. Pittsburgh recalled backstop Jacob Stallings to take the place of Cervelli, who’s dealing with post-concussive symptoms. This continues a long history of head injuries for Cervelli and marks the fourth time since June 2017 that he has gone on the concussion DL. Although good health has been all too rare for Cervelli, the 32-year-old has been one of the majors’ best catchers in 2018 when he has taken the field.
  • Rehabbing Mets infielder T.J. Rivera suffered a setback in the minors on Friday, Betsy Helfand of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. Rivera, who’s working back from September 2017 Tommy John surgery, exited Triple-A Las Vegas’ game early on account of “discomfort” in his right arm, Helfand writes. “His arm was not feeling the way it should have so we’re going to reevaluate him tomorrow, see what the plan is,” manager Tony DeFrancesco said. Rivera hasn’t appeared in a major league game in nearly a year (July 26, 2017).
  • In better news for the Mets, manager Mickey Callaway told reporters (including Tim Britton of The Athletic) on Saturday that left fielder Yoenis Cespedes could make his long-awaited return as early as next weekend. Cespedes, who has been out with a hip strain since mid-May, “could ramp up his rehab in the coming days,” Anthony DiComo of MLB.com tweets.

Cardinals Place Michael Wacha On 10-Day DL

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JUNE 25: The expectation is that Wacha will be out until after the All-Star break, Cards GM Mike Girsch tells reporters including MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter). Given the nature of the injury, it’s no surprise to hear that he has already more or less been ruled out for that duration.

What’s interesting about the timing is that the Cardinals may or may not have a clear picture of Wacha’s outlook when the trade deadline hits. If he’s close to full strength or back in the majors, perhaps rotation depth won’t be as much of a need. Any significant uncertainty surrounding Wacha would boost the likelihood of a move to add a starter, though it’s also possible the St. Louis organization will focus on other, more pressing roster needs regardless.

JUNE 21, 10:50pm: The Cardinals have termed the oblique strain to be “moderate,” per MLB.com’s Joe Trezza (Twitter link). While it’s obviously good news for the team that Wacha isn’t looking at a severe strain that’ll keep him out for months, Trezza notes that the team still expects to be without Wacha for “at least” a couple of weeks.

2:26pm: The Cardinals announced that they have placed righty Michael Wacha on the 10-day DL, as had been expected. He’s dealing with a left oblique strain.

Fellow righty John Gant will come up to take his place on the active roster. For the time being, Gant may move into the pen, though the Cards will ultimately have to fill in a rotation opening. At present, the team will rely on Carlos Martinez, Miles Mikolas, Luke Weaver and Jack Flaherty in the starting five. Gant could step into that role, though the team also has rotation options in the form of Austin Gomber and Daniel Poncedeleon.

The open question is just how long the St. Louis organization will go without Wacha. He has had a strong campaign to date, working to a 3.20 earned run average with 7.6 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9 through 84 1/3 innings. The Cardinals didn’t provide an immediate timeline, though even Grade 1 oblique strains have been known to keep players on the disabled list for upwards of a month. With Alex Reyes already out for the season and Adam Wainwright’s status still uncertain, the pressures on the rotation are mounting.

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