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Injury Notes: Soroka, Manaea, Gennett, Wood

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Braves right-hander Mike Soroka was removed from today’s game after being hit by a pitch by Austin Voth.  Soroka was struck in his right forearm, and while he took his base and finished the inning, he didn’t return to the mound in the bottom half of the frame.  The team announced that Soroka was removed “as a precaution,” and MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweeted that x-rays on Soroka’s forearm were negative.  It doesn’t appear as if the injury is too serious, which is undoubtedly a big relief for both the Braves and the rookie sensation.  While advanced metrics indicate that Soroka’s grounder-heavy (57% ground ball rate) arsenal is due for some regression, his 2.07 ERA over 78 1/3 innings has been a huge boost to an inconsistent Atlanta rotation.

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

  • After throwing 60 pitches in a simulated game on Thursday, Sean Manaea’s rehab has been halted after the southpaw reported soreness in his right side, Athletics manager Bob Melvin told MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos and other media.  “He’s got a little bit of a side soreness, so we’re shutting him down for a little bit. I don’t know if it’s an oblique or if he’s just feeling it a little bit in his side,” Melvin said. “We’re cutting back on him for a little bit here to get healthy. It’s not the arm, which is good.”  There isn’t any known timetable for when Manaea could begin throwing again, though Melvin didn’t seem to consider the issue to be major.  The A’s were projecting a possible return for Manaea after the All-Star break, as the left-hander was slated to begin a minor league rehab assignment following his last simulated outing.  Manaea hasn’t pitched since August 24, 2018 after undergoing shoulder surgery last September.
  • Scooter Gennett’s rehab assignment shifts from high-A ball to Triple-A this week, and Reds manager David Bell told reporters (including Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer) that “there’s a chance” Gennett could be activated off the injured list on Friday, when the Reds begin a series against the Cubs.  The club will be as careful as possible with Gennett’s recovery process, of course, as the second baseman has yet to play this season due to a severe groin strain.  Gennett’s minor league rehab stint can last up to 20 days in length, and he only just got back on the field earlier this week.
  • Alex Wood, another Reds player who has yet to see action this season, is scheduled for his first rehab start on Thursday, Bell said.  Back problems have kept Wood out of action since late February, and he isn’t expected to be a candidate to join Cincinnati’s roster until after the All-Star break.  “We can’t rush it and he hasn’t had a Spring Training. We have to build him up,” Bell said.

Athletics Select Brian Schlitter

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The Athletics have selected the contract of right-hander Brian Schlitter from Triple-A Las Vegas, the team announced. He’ll take the 25-man spot of closer Blake Treinen, whom the A’s placed on the injured list Saturday, and give the club a full 40-man roster.

This will be Schlitter’s first time in the majors since 2015, when he threw 7 1/3 innings with the Cubs. Schlitter saw action with the Cubs in two other seasons (2010 and ’14), and combined for a 5.40 ERA/4.26 FIP with 5.27 K/9, 3.27 BB/9 and an excellent 56.5 percent groundball rate in 71 2/3 frames with the club. He hasn’t pitched in the majors for anyone else.

Now 33, Schlitter spent 2018 with the Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate before he joined the A’s on a minor league deal in the offseason. Despite pitching the first couple months of this season in an environment that’s unkind to hurlers, he managed playable results over 34 2/3 innings before his call-up. Schlitter has posted a 3.89 ERA/4.54 FIP with 7.01 K/9, 1.3 BB/9 and a tremendous 67.9 percent grounder mark in Vegas.

Pitcher Notes: J. Hicks, Phillies, Astros, Padres, A’s

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The latest on a slew of major league hurlers…

  • Cardinals closer Jordan Hicks is dealing with right triceps tendinitis, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch tweets. Hicks will undergo additional tests Sunday. One of the last things the Cardinals need is a long absence for the 22-year-old Hicks, who has put up a 3.14 ERA/3.17 FIP with 9.73 K/9, 3.45 BB/9, a whopping 67.2 percent groundball rate and 14 saves on 15 chances in 28 2/3 innings this season. Hicks is the hardest thrower in baseball, which has certainly aided in his success.
  • Phillies relievers David Robertson and Tommy Hunter are progressing toward returns, according to Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer. While Robertson hasn’t yet embarked on a rehab assignment, the hope is that he’ll rejoin the Phillies’ bullpen before the All-Star break. Robertson has been out since mid-April with a flexor strain in his right elbow. Meanwhile, Hunter’s in the early stages of a rehab stint. Hunter’s also working back from a right flexor strain, which has kept him out all season. The Phillies have guaranteed $41MM to Robertson and Hunter over the past two offseasons, but they’ve gotten just 6/2 3 innings from them this year (all from the former).
  • The Astros could activate righty Collin McHugh from the injured list Tuesday, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. McHugh has been out since May 21 with right elbow discomfort. On the other hand, rehabbing reliever Joe Smith won’t return until after the All-Star break, manager A.J. Hinch said. Smith’s still on the mend from the left Achilles surgery he underwent last December.
  • Padres righty Dinelson Lamet could return next week, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes. The 26-year-old Lamet hasn’t pitched in the majors since undergoing Tommy John surgery in April 2018. Lamet was then coming off his own lone season in the majors, in which he registered a 4.57 ERA/4.35 FIP with 10.94 K/9 against 4.25 BB/9 across 114 1/3 innings and 21 starts.
  • The Athletics’ pitching staff, reeling from ace Frankie Montas’ suspension, may get righties Marco Estrada and Jharel Cotton back soon. Estrada, on the injured list since April 17 because of a lumbar strain in his back, threw his first bullpen Saturday since going on the IL, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. He could be a second-half option for the Athletics, according to Slusser. Cotton’s on track to begin a rehab assignment after the All-Star break, Slusser tweets. Cotton had been making encouraging progress in his recovery from March 2018 Tommy John surgery before he had to undergo a hamstring procedure earlier this month.

A’s Place Blake Treinen On Injured List

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7:25pm: Treinen’s dealing with a mild rotator cuff strain, per Martin Gallegos of MLB.com.

6:29pm: The Athletics have placed closer Blake Treinen on the 10-day injured list with a right shoulder strain, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The strain’s muscular, not structural, Slusser adds.

While Treinen’s injury may not be severe, it’s the second sizable blow to the playoff-contending A’s pitching staff in as many days. They lost ace Frankie Montas to an 80-game suspension for performance-enhancing drug use Friday.

The injury has bothered Treinen for a while, Slusser tweets, which may somewhat explain the 30-year-old’s decline in 2019. Treinen was close to untouchable last year, as evidenced by a nearly nonexistent 0.78 ERA in 80 1/3 innings, but has registered a 4.08 ERA in 35 1/3 frames this season. Treinen’s 4.11 FIP suggests his bloated ERA hasn’t been the product of bad luck. His 9.17 K/9 and 5.35 BB/9 also represent marked drop-offs from his otherworldly production in 2018.

It’s unclear who will take over for Treinen as Oakland’s closer during his absence. Treinen has totaled all 16 of the A’s saves this season, after all. Lou Trivino, Yusmeiro Petit, Ryan Buchter, Liam Hendriks and Joakim Soria rank 1-5 in their bullpen in holds. Soria has amassed 220 saves in the majors, which makes him a logical pick to serve as the A’s game-ending solution on paper, but the 35-year-old has had difficulty preventing runs this season.

Frankie Montas Gets 80-Game PED Suspension

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In stunning news, Major League Baseball has issued an 80-game suspension to Athletics ace Frankie Montas for performance-enhancing drug use, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports. Montas tested positive for banned substance Ostarine, according to Sam Dykstra of MLB.com.

“The A’s were disappointed upon learning of this suspension,” the team said in a statement. “We fully support MLB’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program and we will welcome Frankie back after the discipline has been served.”

Montas issued a statement of his own (via MLBPA Communications), saying, in part, “While I never intended to take any prohibited substance, I unfortunately and unknowingly ingested a contaminated supplement that I had purchased over-the-counter at a nutrition store here in the United States.”

The 26-year-old added that he accepts responsibility for the ban and hopes to contribute to the A’s later in the season.

Montas, who’s earning $560K this year, won’t be paid during his suspension. More importantly for Oakland, though, he won’t be eligible for the postseason if the team clinches a berth. At 40-36, the A’s are just one game out of the AL’s second wild-card spot.

The A’s are in contention this season thanks in no small part to Montas, who performed like an ace in 2019 prior to this shocking development. In what will go down as his last start for at least a few months, the hard-throwing right-hander tossed eight innings of one-run, nine-strikeout ball in a win over the Rays on Thursday. It was the fourth straight quality start for Montas, owner of a sterling 2.70 ERA/2.86 FIP with 9.7 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 50.8 percent groundball rate in 90 innings this season.

Should they stay in contention leading up to the July 31 trade deadline, the Athletics will have a chance to acquire starting help. However, it’s hard to believe anyone they’d acquire would make an impact similar to that of Montas, who’s near the top of the majors in most starting stats this year. The club does have important injury reinforcements working back – including Sean Manaea and Jesus Luzardo – who figure to make life easier for the Athletics once they return. However, any way you look at it, the loss of Montas is a devastating shot to the A’s rotation. It could have a significant effect on the AL playoff race as a result.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Athletics’ Extension Talks

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After locking up Khris Davis on a three-year extension in April, the Athletics have continued to look into long-term deals with some of their key players.  The A’s have approached Marcus Semien on multiple occasions about an extension, though Semien tells Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that there haven’t been any recent talks between the two sides.  Beyond Semien, Slusser notes that the A’s have also explored multi-year contracts with Matt Chapman and Matt Olson.

This isn’t the first time we’ve heard about Oakland’s interest in keeping any of these players, and it seems likely that negotiations will continue on an on-and-off basis for some time to come.  Both Chapman and Olson are controlled through the 2023 season, and while Semien can be a free agent after the 2020 season, it could be that talks with the shortstop simply paused once the season began, as most players prefer to save contractual business for the offseason.

Both Chapman and his agent, Scott Boras, recently discussed the possibility of an extension with Slusser in separate editions of the “A’s Plus” podcast.  Boras, as you might expect, took a slightly more bottom-line approach, noting that discussions with the A’s carry something of an extra hurdle.  “Oakland is in a place where they have a lot of promise that requires definition, that requires sureties that they’re going to have a stadium,” Boras said.  Nonetheless, the agent also said that “We keep our ears open and listen and talk to ownership regularly about” a long-term deal between Chapman and the team.

For his part, Chapman wants a deal that “has to be fair for both sides,” though he reiterated his desire to remain in Oakland over the long term.  “I do want to be a part of this team and I would love to be extended and play a long time….Hopefully, we can get something done,” the third baseman said.

The Davis contract represented Oakland’s first extension in quite some time, as the team focused on something of a rebuild on the fly to amass a new group of talent.  After the 2017 season, however, Billy Beane said the A’s would now start to look at identifying and then extending the true core members of the roster going forward.

Nick Hundley Undergoes Knee Surgery

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Injured Athletics catcher Nick Hundley underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Tuesday, per Martin Gallegos of MLB.com. He should return within six weeks, according to manager Bob Melvin (via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle).

The 35-year-old Hundley has been on the injured list with back spasms since June 8, so his knee issue is a new development. Before Hundley landed on the IL, the respected veteran got off to an underwhelming start, hitting .200/.233/.357 (55 wRC+) in 73 plate appearances. He struggled defensively in the process, according to Baseball Prospectus.

Hundley, an ex-Padre, Oriole, Rockie and Giant, joined the Athletics on a minor league deal in February. Prior to that, the A’s plan was for Josh Phegley and Chris Herrmann to comprise their two catchers at the outset of 2019. However, Herrmann underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in March, which paved the way for Hundley to earn a roster spot.

While Hundley hasn’t performed well to this point, the normally light-hitting Phegley has been surprisingly effective. He and Beau Taylor, whom the A’s selected from Triple-A Las Vegas when Hundley went down, look as if they’ll continue to handle backstop duties for Oakland for as long as Hundley’s out.

MLB Draft Signings: 6/17/19

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Here’s a look at the latest noteworthy draft signings, with the newest moves at the top of the post.  Click here for the full list of slot values and draft pool bonuses, and you can find prospect rankings and scouting reports from Baseball America’s Top 500,  Fangraphs’ Top 200, MLB.com’s Top 200, and the Top 50 of ESPN.com’s Keith Law….

  • The Athletics have agreed to a deal with second-round pick Tyler Baum, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com was among those to report. Baum’s pick (No. 66) features a $1,003,300 slot value, but the team gave him just $900K, Jim Callis of MLB.com tweets. His agreement means the A’s have now secured their top 11 selections. A right-hander from the University of North Carolina, Baum placed 100th in MLB.com’s pre-draft rankings. Callis and Jonathan Mayo note the 21-year-old Baum didn’t have a great final season at UNC. However, they add that all four of Baum’s pitches can be “solid or better,” potentially setting him up for a career as a No. 4 starter/late-game reliever.

AL Notes: Yankees, Luzardo, Royals

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Here are a few interesting recent notes from the American League …

  • While the era of value-conscious roster building hasn’t yet resulted in the desired number of World Championships, the Yankees have had plenty of success. And whatever one may say about the overall strategy, it’s hard to argue with most of the trades engineered by GM Brian Cashman, Ken Dadvidoff of the New York Post argues. Even if the players acquired by the Yanks haven’t always panned out as hoped, the club has not had much cause for regretting the young talent it parted with. It’s worth noting that there is one other deal that may have cost the Yanks dearly: the November 2017 trade of Caleb Smith and Garrett Cooper to the Marlins, which was seen at the time as little more than a roster clean-out. The player the Yankees added in that deal, young pitcher Mike King, emerged after the swap. But he has been slowed by elbow issues, while Smith and Cooper have emerged as quality MLB performers this year.*
  • We’ve known for a while that Jesus Luzardo would be on the move back toward the majors for the Athletics, but it remained to be seen how he’d look after a lengthy absence for shoulder problems. The youngster has only increased the excitement with his performance. He ran up nine strikeouts in four innings in his latest High-A appearance and earned a bump back up to Triple-A, as Martin Gallegos of MLB.com tweets. It’s still possible the 21-year-old could be held down for a while after he’s deemed at full health, but the A’s are surely also anxious to get him onto the MLB roster. There’s no word yet whether fellow rehabbing southpaw pitching prospect A.J. Puk will also move up to the highest level of the minors.
  • Veteran K.C. Star scribe Sam Mellinger delivered a realistic assessment of the Royals’ immediate outlook. The club signaled in mid-May that it believed it might be competitive for a Wild Card. GM Dayton Moore says he legitimately “expected more wins.” But as Mellinger explains, there’s an undeniable disconnect between expectations — particularly, those projected publicly — and the results on the field. There have been some notable successes, but the Royals have in the aggregate been nearly as bad as an unabashedly rebuilding Orioles club. Mellinger is careful to note that Moore and his top lieutenants aren’t at immediate risk of being replaced, particularly given their incredible achievements in recent years. It’s an interesting look at the state of a uniquely situated organization. Mellinger also notes that righties Jakob Junis and Scott Barlow have drawn some trade inquiries, though neither has been consistently effective this year and both have plenty of cheap control remaining.

*The initial version of this post mistakenly stated that King had undergone Tommy John surgery. We regret the error.

Sean Manaea Nearing Rehab Assignment

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Athletics left-hander Sean Manaea may require just one more simulated game before he can begin a minor-league rehab assignment, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.

After undergoing shoulder surgery last September, Manaea was expected to miss the entirety of the 2019 season. However, Manaea is operating well ahead of schedule, and looks on track to return to the Athletics’ rotation this season. Slusser reported in March that Manaea was aiming to return around the All-Star Break in July, and it now appears that the left-hander is progressing well towards that goal, though there is not yet a precise timeline for Manaea to rejoin the A’s.

Slusser notes that A.J. Puk and Jesus Luzardo, who recently began their own rehab assignments, are likely to return before Manaea, perhaps in early July. Though Puk and Luzardo have each yet to debut in the Major Leagues, both southpaws are widely regarded as MLB-ready prospects who would be pitching in Oakland were it not for untimely injuries.

The addition of Puk, Luzardo, and Manaea would represent a considerable boon to an Athletics club that has essentially treaded water this season. After earning a Wild Card berth last year, the 36-36 Athletics have only managed to hover around .500, remaining on the periphery of the playoff race, but mostly looking like a longshot to rejoin the October fray. Welcoming the aforementioned trio of promising lefties would only help those odds, it would seem, considering the inconsistent starting pitching that has troubled Bob Melvin’s club all season.

Manaea emerged last season as the Athletics’ best starter, pitching 160 2/3 innings for the A’s, ultimately working to a 3.59 ERA. Her peripheral numbers were slightly less impressive, but nonetheless painted Manaea as a valuable left-hander for a playoff club that wanted for starting options. He could slot into a 2019 rotation that has enjoyed a breakout season from Frankie Montas, as well as adequate showings from Chris Bassitt and Brett Anderson. If the three young left-handers can return quickly and make good on their potential, they could fuel a second-half surge in Oakland.

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