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A’s Option Ryan Noda

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The A’s optioned first baseman Ryan Noda to Triple-A Las Vegas following today’s win over the Pirates. Oakland hasn’t announced a corresponding move, but MLB.com’s Martín Gallegos tweets that they could reinstate third baseman J.D. Davis from the 10-day injured list before Friday’s series opener against the Marlins.

It’s a quick turn of events for the A’s Opening Day first baseman. The second pick in the 2022 Rule 5 draft, Noda not only stuck on the roster but was one of Oakland’s best hitters as a rookie. He hit 16 homers with a .229/.364/.406 slash through 495 plate appearances. Between a very patient approach and below-average contact rate, Noda struck out at a huge 34.3% clip. Yet he also walked at a massive 15.6% rate — a top ten mark in MLB — and hit for enough power to be a productive offensive player.

That has not been the case in 2024. An 0-4 showing this afternoon dropped his season line to .128/.242/.198 in exactly 100 trips to the dish. Noda has taken another 12 free passes, but he has punched out 32 times. He hasn’t done any kind of damage, hitting just one homer and a trio of doubles. That longball and one of the doubles came against the Guardians on April 20. Noda doesn’t have a knock since then, as he has gone hitless in his last 11 appearances.

Skipper Mark Kotsay has continued to give Noda regular run against right-handed pitching. They’ll need to go in another direction for at least the next couple of weeks while he works to get back on track in the Pacific Coast League. Switch-hitting Abraham Toro has moved to first base for the A’s last two games against left-handed starters. Max Schuemann has stepped in at Toro’s customary second base spot for those contests.

If Davis is indeed ready to return from the adductor strain that has cost him the past two weeks, he’ll likely return to third base. That could push Tyler Nevin across the diamond. The right-handed hitting Nevin, whom the A’s claimed off waivers from the Orioles a month ago, connected on his fourth homer of the season in today’s game and is up to a .325/.375/.500 slash over 88 plate appearances.

Rangers Notes: Scherzer, Mahle, Rocker, Church

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Right-hander Max Scherzer has made one rehab start already and was slated for a second one but will be delayed a few days after experiencing some soreness in his right thumb, GM Chris Young told the Rangers beat last night (X link via Kennedi Landry of MLB.com). They’re hopeful he can make his next start this week.

The 39-year-old Scherzer has spent the entire season to date on the 15-day injured list while he mends from offseason back surgery. He was excellent in eight starts down the stretch last year, pitching to a 3.20 ERA with a 29.9% strikeout rate and 8.5% walk rate following the trade that sent him from the Mets to Texas. The original thought was that Scherzer would be sidelined into June, but the Rangers held off on placing the three-time Cy Young winner on the 60-day injured list with his recovery ahead of schedule. There’s no indication that his back is providing any problems, so assuming the thumb injury proves minor, a mid-May return still feels viable.

Texas currently ranks 14th in the majors with a 3.87 ERA from the rotation. That’s thanks largely to strong showings from Nathan Eovaldi, Dane Dunning and Jon Gray — each of whom has made six starts. Left-hander Cody Bradford impressed early but has since gone on the injured list with a stress fracture in his rib. Veteran Andrew Heaney has struggled in five starts, and rookie Jack Leiter was hit hard in his big league debut. Right-hander Michael Lorenzen, who signed a late-spring one-year deal, has helped solidify things through his first three starts — but a return from Scherzer would be a substantial boon to the staff, of course.

Scherzer is just one of three veteran starters on the mend for Texas. Jacob deGrom and Tyler Mahle are both expected back later in the season. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News provides an update on Mahle’s rehab from Tommy John surgery, noting that he and Rangers prospect Kumar Rocker not only coincidentally had their Tommy John procedures performed on the same day last year but performed by the same surgeon: Dr. Keith Meister. Rocker has begun throwing all of his pitches off a mound, while Mahle is also pitching off a mound and will join his teammates on their upcoming road trip. Mahle and Rocker aren’t yet to the point where they’re facing live hitters, but each is progressing well through the rehab process.

Things aren’t going quite so well for pitching prospect Marc Church. Young revealed yesterday that the right-hander has been diagnosed with a strained rotator cuff and will be sidelined for a yet-to-be-determined period as a result of that shoulder issue (X link via Jeff Wilson of RangersToday.com).

Church, 23, was the team’s 18th-round pick back in 2019 — signing for an over-slot $300K bonus — and has emerged as a prospect of note in the Rangers’ system, ranking 22nd at MLB.com. Church has missed bats in bunches throughout his minor league tenure, fanning 34.7% of his total opponents. A former high school shortstop who didn’t begin pitching until his senior year, he draws praise for his athleticism and could yet have some untapped upside as he’s still relatively new to pitching. MLB.com’s report on him notes that he has a pair of plus-plus (70-grade) offerings when his heater and slider are at their best but lacks consistency.

Church has also begun to encounter some command troubles in the upper minors. He split last season between Double-A and Triple-A, walking a combined 14% of his opponents. He also fanned just shy of 30% of batters faced, however. Church opened the current season with a solid 4 2/3 innings out of the ’pen before going down with his current injury. He’s already on the 40-man roster and stands as a candidate to make his big league debut in 2024, particularly after a strong spring showing: 10 2/3 innings, five hits, three runs, five walks, 14 strikeouts. If Church is able to get back on the mound without a long-term absence, he could still find his way to the big leagues this season, but it’s not entirely clear how feasible that is in light of this setback. The Rangers will presumably have more updates on the promising young righty in the weeks to come.

Astros Notes: McCormick, Javier, Urquidy, Hader

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The Astros placed Chas McCormick on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to April 28, before tonight’s matchup with the Guardians. The outfielder is dealing with right hamstring discomfort. Infielder Jacob Amaya was recalled in his place, while the Astros also brought up Trey Cabbage (a move first reported by Ari Alexander of KPRC 2) to take the spot vacated when they optioned José Abreu last night.

McCormick had a tough first month of the season. The typically steady left fielder is out to a .236/.325/.278 slash through 83 plate appearances. He still has yet to hit a home run after connecting on a career-high 22 longballs a season ago. McCormick had been an above-average hitter in each of his first three campaigns. Last year’s .273/.353/.489 line was the best work of his career.

His effort to get on track will be put on pause by the hamstring issue, although there’s nothing to suggest he’s facing a long-term absence. Joey Loperfido has gotten the nod in left field for the past two nights. The rookie could be in line for regular playing time on the grass after hitting 13 homers in 25 games for Triple-A Sugar Land. Loperfido could also pick up first base reps as the Astros rotate through options to replace Abreu. Jon Singleton has gotten the nod at that position in each of the last two games.

McCormick and utility infielder Grae Kessinger are Houston’s only position players on the IL. They haven’t been nearly as fortunate on the pitching side. Most of their rotation has spent time on the injured list at some point. Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr. are still a ways away in their rehabs from arm surgeries, while José Urquidy and Cristian Javier are on the 15-day IL.

Houston released encouraging updates on the latter two right-handers this afternoon. Manager Joe Espada told reporters (including The Athletic’s Chandler Rome) that the Astros might reinstate Javier to start Sunday’s matchup with the Mariners. Javier has been out since April 18 with neck discomfort, so he could make it back not long after the 15-day minimum if things go well in the next few days.

Urquidy has been battling a longer-term ailment. He reported elbow pain in Spring Training and was eventually diagnosed with a forearm strain. Urquidy has been on the IL for the entire season but could be nearing a rehab stint. Espada indicated that the 29-year-old threw 30 pitches in a live batting practice session today (X link via Brian McTaggart of MLB.com). If Urquidy gets through one more session without issue, he could report to a minor league affiliate to build into game shape.

In a rare Astros pitching development not related to injury, Espada tabbed star closer Josh Hader for a two-inning stint in yesterday’s extra-inning win over the Guards. The Astros called on Hader to keep the game tied in the top of the ninth. When both teams failed to score, they sent him back out for the tenth. He allowed the automatic runner to score but got credited for the win when Victor Caratini popped a two-out walk-off homer in the bottom half.

That was not just Hader’s first multi-inning appearance of the season. It was the first time he’d worked more than one inning in a regular season game since 2020; he hadn’t completed two full innings since 2019 when he was a member of the Brewers. As he became more established, Hader had been vocal about not wanting to work more than one inning.

The five-time All-Star indicated that’s no longer the case now that he has secured a five-year, $95MM free agent contract. Hader told the Houston beat that his expectation for 2024 is “to be available for multiple innings” (link via The Houston Chronicle’s Matt Kawahara). The southpaw contrasted that to the past few seasons when he was going through the arbitration system and didn’t have long-term financial security. Those comments may not sit well with the Milwaukee or San Diego fanbases, but it’s a nice boost for the Astros.

Hader has had some uncharacteristic struggles in his first month in Houston. He has allowed 10 runs (nine earned) through his first 12 2/3 innings. Hader has recorded 21 strikeouts behind a huge 16% swinging strike rate, though, so he should find more consistency as the season goes along. The back of the bullpen has been a surprising disappointment thus far. Bryan Abreu and Ryan Pressly have also scuffled, contributing to Houston’s 10-19 start.

Luis Patiño Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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Padres right-hander Luis Patiño underwent Tommy John surgery yesterday, per Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune. The righty will miss the remainder of 2024 and some part of 2025 as well.

Patiño, 24, began the season on the 15-day injured list due to elbow inflammation. It seems that subsequent testing revealed the need for surgery. Given the typical 14-18 month recovery range for Tommy John procedures, he will miss the remainder of this year and a significant chunk of 2025 as well.

It’s yet another setback for a pitcher who was once a top prospect. Patiño came up as a Padres prospect and was on Baseball America’s top 100 list in three straight years from 2019 to 2021, being in the top 25 in the latter two. He had a 2.35 earned run average in 234 innings in the minors from 2017 to 2019, striking out 29.4% of batters faced while walking just 8.4%. The Friars called him up in 2020 and he posted a 5.19 ERA in 17 1/3 innings, though he was only 20 years old at that time.

Going into 2021, he was traded to the Rays as part of the Blake Snell deal, going to Tampa alongside Francisco Mejia, Blake Hunt and Cole Wilcox. He tossed 77 1/3 innings in his first season for the Rays, with a 4.31 ERA in that time. His 22.2% strikeout rate and 8.7% walk rate were fairly average, but not a bad outcome for a pitcher who was only 21 years old and in his first extended look at the big leagues.

But in 2022, an oblique strain cost him more than three months. He was only able to pitch 20 innings on the year and had a bloated ERA of 8.10 in that time. Last year, he was kept mostly in the minors and showcased significant command woes. In 45 1/3 innings for Triple-A Durham, he walked 13.4% of batters and posted a 6.75 ERA.

He went to the White Sox in a cash deal just before the trade deadline and his struggles continued. His 17 2/3 innings in the majors were passable, with a 3.57 ERA. But in 14 1/3 Triple-A innings after the deal, he walked a massive 20.3% of batters faced.

He exhausted his final option year and the Sox designated him for assignment in December. The Padres claimed him off waivers, bringing him back to his original organization. Unfortunately, he’s now facing a significant layoff as he recovers from his surgery.

Amid all of these twists and turns, it’s easy to forget that Patiño is still incredibly young. Though he’s bounced around the league for years and is now out of options, he’s younger than some top prospects who haven’t even made it to the big leagues yet, such as Will Warren or Christian Scott. He still has time to get himself back on track, though he obviously has a long recovery ahead of him now.

If there’s a silver lining in this for Patiño, it’s that he’s already on the major league injured list. He’ll eventually be transferred to the 60-day variety whenever the Padres need his roster spot, collecting big league pay and service time for the whole year. He’ll cross the three-year service mark this season and will be eligible for arbitration this winter, though he’ll be a non-tender candidate given his health status.

Red Sox Designate Vladimir Gutierrez For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced that they have signed first baseman Dominic Smith to a one-year contract. He’ll take the roster spot of outfielder/designated hitter Masataka Yoshida, who has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a left thumb sprain, retroactive to April 29. To open a 40-man spot for Smith, right-hander Vladimir Gutierrez has been designated for assignment. Prior to the official announcement, manager Álex Cora announced that Yoshida was heading to the IL on Jones & Mego. Hat tip to Rob Bradford of WEEI. The Sox adding Smith was reported on earlier today.

Yoshida, 30, has hit .275/.348/.388 so far this year. That’s fairly comparable to last year’s production, when he hit .289/.338/.445 in his first season after coming over from Japan. He departed Sunday’s game after jamming his hand during an at-bat, per Christopher Smith of MassLive. Smith relayed yesterday that Yoshida would be getting an MRI, which seems to have revealed this injury.

Though the Sox won’t be happy to lose Yoshida’s bat, his absence will give them a bit of lineup flexibility. He has primarily been serving as the designated hitter this year, with just one inning in left field. They can now use that DH spot to rotate various players through based on health and matchups.

With Triston Casas on the injured list and unlikely to return any time soon, the Sox have been looking outside the organization for help at first base. They acquired Garrett Cooper from the Cubs but he himself is banged up after getting hit by a pitch last night on his arm last night. Chris Cotillo of MassLive relayed that Cooper is just bruised and is going to be okay but it’s possible he may need a day or two to rest up.

With Smith now on the roster, he can perhaps cover for Cooper as he is on the mend. With Yoshida out, the Sox could have both Smith and Cooper in the lineup via the DH slot, if they so choose. Both players have a bit of outfield experience but neither of them are considered strong defenders on the grass.

To get Smith onto the roster, the Sox have cut Gutierrez. The 28-year-old was acquired from the Brewers in a cash deal a couple of weeks ago. The Red Sox have kept him down in Triple-A on optional assignment since then, where he has pitched six innings over three appearances, allowing four earned runs while striking out seven but walking eight.

The Sox will now have a week to trade him or pass him through waivers. He’s been bouncing around the league quite a bit this year. He signed a minor league deal with the Marlins in February and was selected to their roster in the first few days of the season. He was designated for assignment and went to the Brewers on a waiver claim, before being DFA’d again and getting flipped to the Red Sox. That makes today his third DFA in roughly a month.

The Cuban righty joined affiliated ball by signing with the Reds as a 21-year-old, earning a bonus of $4.75MM. He made his major league debut in 2021 with 114 innings over 22 starts, posting a 4.74 earned run average that year while striking out just 17.7% of batters faced. He struggled in 2022 before requiring Tommy John surgery in June of that year, wiping out the remainder of that season and most of his 2023. The Reds outrighted him off their roster at the end of last year, which led to his minor league deal with Miami.

Diamondbacks Promote Blake Walston For MLB Debut

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The Diamondbacks announced that they have optioned left-hander Andrew Saalfrank, with fellow lefty Blake Walston recalled in a corresponding move. The latter will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game.

Walston, 23 next month, was the club’s first round pick in 2019. The Diamondbacks used the 26th overall pick of that year’s draft to grab Walston out of New Hanover High School in Wilmington, North Carolina.

He got a brief debut in the professional ranks in 2019, but then the minors were canceled due to the pandemic in 2020. He tossed 95 2/3 innings in 2021 between Single-A and High-A with a 3.76 earned run average, 28.8% strikeout rate and 8.1% walk rate.

In 2022, he returned to High-A but cruised through four starts before getting bumped up. He had a 5.16 ERA over his 21 Double-A starts that year, despite decent peripherals. He struck out 24% of batters faced and walked 8.5%, but a .341 batting average on balls in play and 14.5% home run per flyball rate added some extra runs.

Last year, he was sent to Triple-A and had a 4.52 ERA over 30 starts. He walked 14% of batters faced while only striking out 15.6% of them. He was added to Arizona’s 40-man roster in November to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft and returned to Triple-A this year. Through 20 2/3 innings this season, he has walked 15.3% of batters faced, striking out 19.4%, leading to a 4.79 ERA. Were it not for a 77.6% strand rate, he may have fared worse, which is why his FIP is at 6.36.

That lack of control perhaps points to a future relief role but he is still quite young and has time to rein in his stuff. The Diamondbacks have continued to stretch him out, suggesting they still believe in his potential to stick in a rotation at some point. Baseball America ranked him the #11 prospect in the club’s system coming into this year.

For now, he’s likely on the roster to give the club a multi-inning option out of the bullpen due to some strange circumstances. Jordan Montgomery was supposed to start yesterday’s game before it was delayed by a colony of bees that had taken up residence in the netting behind home plate. The start of the contest was delayed by about two hours while was called who could remove the bees, and the club decided to scratch Montgomery in that time. It seems fair to assume that Montgomery had already gone through some pregame preparations and the club didn’t want to ramp him back up again after a lengthy shutdown, similar to how pitchers often don’t return after long rain delays.

In the end, the Snakes went with a bullpen game and used seven different pitchers to cover 10 innings, as they eventually defeated the Dodgers in extra innings. Montgomery is taking the ball tonight but with a weakened bullpen, so Walston may be tapped, especially if Montgomery is bounced early.

Mets Sign Mike Brosseau To Minor League Deal

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The Mets have agreed to a minor league contract with infielder Mike Brosseau, per the team’s transaction log at MLB.com. They’ve also released outfielder Taylor Kohlwey from their Triple-A affiliate, per the MiLB transaction log.

Brosseau, 30, is a familiar face for Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns, who previously helmed the Brewers — where Brosseau played in 2022-23. The Former Brewers and Rays infielder is a career .242/.313/.438 hitter with 26 homers, 28 doubles, a triple and seven steals (in seven attempts) through parts of five big league seasons — a total of 647 plate appearances.

It’s a solid overall track record for Brosseau, who originally joined the Rays as an undrafted free agent. However, the bulk of his production came in a standout 2020 season that saw him slash .302/.378/.558 in 98 trips to the plate. He had lesser — but still productive — showings in 2019 and 2022, but since that excellent 2020 campaign he’s posted a tepid .217/.295/.385 line overall.

The right-handed-hitting Brosseau has substantial platoon splits. He’s a career .265/.326/.464 hitter against southpaws (117 wRC+) but owns just a .209/.293/.374 line against fellow righties (87 wRC+). Contact has been an issue throughout his career, as he’s fanned in 29.5% of his career plate appearances.

Brosseau has played all over the diamond in his relatively brief big league career, appearing at all four infield spots, in both outfield corners and even pitching 9 2/3 innings of mop-up duty (where he’s allowed three runs on eight hits and a pair of walks with one strikeout). The majority of his time has been spent at third base (778 innings), where he’s drawn poor ratings from Defensive Runs Saved (-5) and Outs Above Average (-8). Brosseau also has 404 innings at second base and has drawn positive grades there. He hasn’t appeared in even 150 innings at any of the other spots on the roster.

Kohlwey, 29, came to the Mets on a minor league deal back in December. He entered the season with a strong .296/.387/.444 slash in parts of four Triple-A seasons but has stumbled to an uncharacteristic .088/.162/.118 line in his first 37 plate appearances. The former 21st-rounder made his big league debut with the Padres last year and went 2-for-13 with a pair of singles in that brief call to the majors. Kohlwey has ample experience at all three outfield spots and at first base. He’ll be an option for teams seeking some left-handed-hitting outfield depth.

Angels Select Willie Calhoun

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The Angels announced today that they have selected the contract of outfielder Willie Calhoun. He will take the roster spot of infield Miguel Sanó, who has been placed on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to April 28. Sanó hasn’t been playing lately due to inflammation in his left knee. To open a 40-man spot for Calhoun, right-hander Zac Kristofak was designated for assignment. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reported that Calhoun was with the team prior to the official announcement.

Calhoun, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Angels in the offseason. He has taken 110 plate appearances in Triple-A this year, having hit .268/.345/.361. In the inflated offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League, that translates to a wRC+ of 80.

He was once a top prospect, as he dominated Triple-A pitching a few years back. From 2017 to 2019, he hit .297/.365/.509 at that level for a 122 wRC+ and seemed destined to carve out a big role in the majors. But he’s managed to hit just .240/.300/.404 in over a thousand plate appearances in the big leagues, 84 wRC+, bouncing from the Rangers to the Giants and Yankees.

He’ll now return to the bigs to give another outfield option to an Angels club that just lost Mike Trout for a few weeks, as he requires surgery for a torn meniscus. The club added Kevin Pillar yesterday and now Calhoun will give them yet another option to roam the grass. Jo Adell and Taylor Ward should have regular roles in the corners while Pillar and Mickey Moniak could share center field. The club doesn’t have a regular designated hitter, so there could be some extra at-bats there. Calhoun could spell Ward or Adell in a corner at times as they fill the DH slot.

Sanó had been covering third base with Anthony Rendon on the injured list but now he follows Rendon to the IL. That perhaps leaves Luis Rengifo at the hot corner and Brandon Drury at second. Cole Tucker and Ehire Adrianza are on the roster as multi-positional backups for the infield and the outfield, though Calhoun’s addition perhaps allows them to focus on the former. Again, the DH spot could provide extra plate appearances to anyone in this group.

Kristofak, 26, was just added to the Angels’ roster on Sunday. He made one appearances of two scoreless innings and then was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake the next day. The Angels will now have one week to trade him or pass him through waivers.

He has been pitching in a swing role in the minors over the past few years. From the start of 2022 to the present, he’s appeared in 56 games, 18 of those being starts. In his 124 1/3 innings, he has a 3.84 earned run average, 19.9% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate.

MLB Announces Suspensions For Rays-Brewers Brawl

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2:55pm: Rays manager Kevin Cash said after today’s game that Siri’s suspension was reduced to two games and he already started serving it, per Topkin.

1:05pm: Major League Baseball announced several suspensions today in relation to last night’s confrontation between the Rays and the Brewers. Milwaukee right-handers Freddy Peralta and Abner Uribe got suspensions of five and six games, respectively. Their manager Pat Murphy got a two-game suspension. Outfielder Jose Siri of the Rays got three games. All four parties also received undisclosed fines.

Murphy is serving his suspension starting today but both of the Milwaukee hurlers are appealing, per Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Siri will also be appealing his suspension, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Siri homered off Peralta in the third inning and then was plunked by Peralta in the sixth. The umpires conferred and ejected Peralta, despite the fact that no warnings had been issued in the game to that point. Murphy objected to the ejection and he was also ejected.

Siri came up again in the eighth with Uribe pitching. Siri hit a grounder to Rhys Hoskins at first base, who flipped the ball to Uribe as he covered first and recorded the out. Siri and Uribe exchanged words by first base before Uribe took a swipe at Siri. The two tried throwing punches towards each other as various parties tried to intervene with the benches emptying. Both were ejected after the fracas died down.

Adam McCalvy and Adam Berry of MLB.com spoke to the relevant parties after the game and relayed some natural differences of opinion about what transpired. Crew chief Chris Guccione said the umpires thought it was “clear-cut” that Peralta intentionally threw at Siri, though the pitcher denied it. “How many homers did I give up in seven years? A lot, and I never did something after,” Peralta said. “It’s my first time I got ejected from a game in seven seasons and there’s no reason for me to hit him.”

For his part, Siri denied that he celebrated his home run in any outlandish way. “I didn’t take too much time,” Siri said through Rays interpreter Manny Navarro. “I hit the ball, took a couple of steps and then I started running like normal.”

As for the later incident at first base, Uribe had this to say: “There were some words shared that didn’t have much to do with the game that probably shouldn’t have been shared there in that exchange.”

His sparring partner described it thusly: “When I went to first base, I just went there normal, and he kind of hit me on the shoulder,” Siri said. “So I asked him why did he do that? And he just said, ‘Because I felt like it.’”

As mentioned, Murphy is serving his suspension immediately while the players are all appealing. Their suspensions will be held in abeyance until the appeal process is complete, though players in this situation will often drop an appeal at a convenient time, such as when they were planning to have an unrelated day off.

Orioles Place Grayson Rodriguez On Injured List

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The Orioles announced Wednesday that they’ve placed right-hander Grayson Rodriguez on the 15-day injured list due to inflammation in his right shoulder. The move is retroactive to April 30. Rodriguez will be replaced by veteran lefty John Means, who has been reinstated from a stint on the 15-day IL himself. Means has yet to pitch this season while recovering from a left forearm strain.

To this point, it’s unclear when Rodriguez hurt himself or how serious the injury is. He started Monday’s game and went 5 2/3 innings, throwing 101 pitches in the process. Until more information comes from the club, it can only be speculated as to how long he’ll out.

Regardless, it’s always a bit concerning when anything goes on with a pitcher’s throwing arm. Losing Rodriguez for any amount of time is a blow to the O’s since he has been in good form for quite a while now. His big league career got off to a rough start last year, as he had a 7.35 earned run average through 10 starts.

The Orioles optioned him to the minors and recalled him almost two months later, with Rodriguez posting good results since then. He had a 2.58 ERA after that recall last year and he has a 3.71 mark so far this year. Going back to that midseason call-up last year to today, he has a 2.93 ERA over 19 starts. In that time, he has a 24.4% strikeout rate, 7.3% walk rate and 46.7% ground ball rate.

Subtracting that kind of pitcher would hurt any rotation, but the O’s also have Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells on the injured list. Until today, Means was in that group as well. After today’s transactions, the healthy rotation consists of Means, Corbin Burnes, Cole Irvin, Dean Kremer and Albert Suárez.

Burnes is excellent but there are some question marks behind him. Irvin has a good ERA this year but iffy peripherals that suggest he’s not much different from past seasons. Kremer has a 4.19 ERA despite a .209 batting average on balls in play he won’t be able to maintain. Suárez has looked good in his three starts but it’s anyone’s guess if he can keep it going since he’s 34 years old and this is his first stint in the majors since 2017.

As for Means, he’s a big unknown himself. The lefty posted a 3.81 ERA with the O’s until requiring Tommy John surgery in April of 2022. He returned late last year and made four starts but didn’t make the club’s postseason roster due to some elbow soreness. He began this year on the IL and has been rehabbing in recent weeks, but with shaky results. He has thrown 18 2/3 innings for Triple-A Norfolk but with 18 earned runs allowed in that time.

It’s impossible to say what Means can provide for the club this year after hardly pitching at all in the previous two seasons and his poor results during his rehab, though he would be an asset if he could even get part of the way back to his pre-surgery form. Bradish is also nearing activation, which will give Baltimore another arm to bolster the group and could perhaps push Suárez into a long relief role in the bullpen.

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