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Tigers’ Ryan Kreidler Undergoes Finger Surgery

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The Tigers announced yesterday that infielder Ryan Kreidler underwent surgery for a fractured right index finger on April 11. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press was among those to relay the news (X link). The club didn’t announce when they expect Kreidler to return to action but it seems fair to expect an absence of at least a few more weeks. He is on the club’s 40-man roster but didn’t break camp with the Tigers and was optioned to Triple-A Toledo to start the year, having now been put on the minor league injured list.

The Tigers are currently operating with diminished infield depth at the major league level, since both Gio Urshela and Andy Ibáñez have landed on the IL this month, each due to a strained hamstring. Matt Vierling has taken over the everyday third base job from Urshela of late, while Buddy Kennedy has taken over for Ibáñez, serving as a bench infielder alongside Zach McKinstry.

Kreidler, 26, could have been in the mix for such a gig were it not for this injury. He has taken 102 plate appearances for the Tigers over the previous two seasons, though he’s hit just .165/.220/.209 in his major league career thus far. He’s naturally performed better in the minors, with a line of .241/.340/.417 across different levels in his career.

He has played the three infield positions to the left of first base as well as some center field, which could make him a valuable utility piece if he could bring a bit more offense up to the majors. Baseball America ranked him as one of the club’s top ten prospects going into 2022 and 2023.

Staying on the field has been an issue for Kreidler in recent years. He suffered a right hand fracture in April of 2022 and was limited to 86 games that year, 60 in the minors and 26 in the majors. Last year, he required core muscle surgery and got into 74 games, 11 in the majors.

He is now once again on the shelf and looking at a stretch of missed time. After a handful of injury setbacks in recent years, he and the Tigers will naturally be hoping that he can quickly get over this issue and get some regular reps this year. He is optionable for the rest of this year and will still have one option year left going forward.

Cardinals Option Jordan Walker

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The Cardinals announced Wednesday that they’ve optioned right fielder Jordan Walker and lefty Zack Thompson to Triple-A Memphis. Infielder Jose Fermin and southpaw John King are being recalled from Memphis to take their spots on the roster.

It’s been a brutal start to the season for the 21-year-old Walker, who entered the 2023 season widely considered one of the game’s top 10 prospects and debuted with a .276/.342/.445 showing as a rookie. He’s looked lost at the plate in his sophomore season, hitting just .155/.239/.259 with a 26.9% strikeout rate and no home runs in his first 67 trips to the plate. Given the magnitude of those struggles and the Cardinals’ 10-14 start to the season — fifth in the NL Central — they’ll send Walker down to try to get the promising young slugger back on track.

This isn’t the first time the Cards have sent Walker to Memphis amid some struggles at the plate. Though he made the Opening Day roster in St. Louis last season and began his career with a 12-game hitting streak, Walker slumped in the aftermath and was optioned to Triple-A in late April — both to get his bat back on track and to afford the converted third baseman some additional reps in right field. His defense remains a work in progress, but Walker returned to the big leagues on June 2 and turned in a stout .277/.346/.455 batting line with 16 home runs, an 8.8% walk rate and a 21.7% strikeout rate in his final 387 plate appearances on the season.

With Walker down in Memphis, the Cardinals will go with Alec Burleson in left field, Michael Siani in center and Lars Nootbaar in right field. It’s not the alignment the team envisioned heading into the season, but they’re still without Dylan Carlson (shoulder sprain) and Tommy Edman (recovering from wrist surgery) and have also optioned prospect Victor Scott II to Memphis in the wake of his own struggles (.085/.138/.136 in 65 plate appearances).

From a service time vantage point, Walker’s optional assignment doesn’t figure to change his free agent timeline but could potentially alter his path to arbitration. He accrued 149 days of service in 2023, setting him up to reach Super Two status following the 2025 season and reach arbitration four times rather than three. If Walker is only down for a few weeks, he’ll very likely remain on that path. If his optional assignment extends a month or more, as it did in ’23, it’s possible he could wind up falling shy of Super Two status and be on a more standard arbitration path. Either way, he’s already picked up enough service this season to reach the one-year mark, so he remains on track for free agency following the 2029 season.

Fermin’s recall to the big leagues is of some note for the Cards, given his early performance in Memphis. The 25-year-old hit just .235/.339/.255 in 61 plate appearances during last year’s MLB debut and was generally credited with bottom-of-the-scale power on scouting reports. He’s torn the cover off the ball in his first 72 plate appearances this year, however, belting four homers and hitting .350/.458/.650 with 11 walks (15.3%) against just three strikeouts (4.2%). He’s chipped in six doubles and also gone 5-for-5 in stolen base attempts. It’s unlikely he can sustain that level of production against major league pitching, of course, but he’s earned the opportunity to carve out a role on the big league roster.

Thompson, 26, made two starts early in the season but was rocked for eight runs in 10 1/3 innings. He moved back to the bullpen and has been working in a long relief role. The results haven’t been any better. Though he fired 3 1/3 shutout innings with six strikeouts against the Phillies on April 10, he’s followed that up with 10 runs over his next two appearances. He’ll give way to King, who allowed a run in 2 1/3 innings earlier this season and has yielded two runs in 5 1/3 Triple-A frames thus far.

Red Sox Considering C.J. Cron

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The Red Sox lost first baseman Triston Casas for a yet-to-be-determined but significant period of time yesterday, as the 24-year-old slugger was diagnosed with a left rib fracture. Manager Alex Cora said at the time that Bobby Dalbec would get the bulk of playing time at first base in lieu of Casas, but it seems the Sox are also mulling the possibility of going outside the organization. Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports that Boston has had some initial talks about bringing veteran C.J. Cron back to the organization.

Cron, 34, was with the Sox during spring training but was granted his release in late March after he triggered an opt-out clause. The veteran slugger saw action in just six spring games and went 3-for-15 with a pair of walks. He remains unsigned.

Middling as those small-sample spring numbers may be, Cron has a long and generally productive track record at the big league level. He’s a career .260/.320/.471 hitter who’s hit 25 or more home runs in four different seasons, including a 29-homer campaign as recently as the 2022 season with the Rockies. Cron hit .260/.304/.476 and popped 11 homers in 56 games with the Rox last season before being traded to the Angels — his original organization — at the deadline. He slumped to a .200/.259/.260 line in 15 games post-trade, however, and twice hit the injured list due to lower back troubles over the final two months of the season.

Cron has had four IL placements due to back and neck injuries since the 2021 season, and he missed the majority of the shortened 2020 campaign after damaging a ligament in his knee while fielding a grounder — an injury that eventually required surgery. It’s been a tough few years on the health front, but Cron has typically been a productive bat when he’s been on the field. Given the fact that he’s still unsigned after opting out of a minor league deal, one would imagine the cost to sign him would be affordable as well.

There are other options for the Sox to consider if they indeed go outside the organization. Fellow veteran Brandon Belt remains unsigned despite a hefty .254/.369/.490 slash and 19 home runs in 404 plate appearances with the Blue Jays last year. That performance checked in 38% better than league average, by measure of wRC+ (138). The Cubs also just designated veteran Garrett Cooper for assignment despite a rather productive 41 plate appearances to begin his season (.270/.341/.432, 118 wRC+). Cooper has punched out in more than 30% of his plate appearances and benefited from a .391 BABIP, which could be red flags for the Sox and other interested parties, however.

For now, it’ll be Dalbec getting the looks at first base, though it’s hardly a surprise that the Sox aren’t comfortable simply handing him the keys at first base. The former hit 33 home runs in his first 156 big league games from 2020-21 but has since batted just .198/.268/.337 (65 wRC+) in 441 plate appearances — all while punching out at a glaring 37.2% clip. Even more concerning is Dalbec’s start to the 2024 season. The 28-year-old has taken 35 plate appearances and gone 1-for-32 with 18 strikeouts.

The Opener: Bellinger, Kiermaier, Cooper

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As the 2024 regular season continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Bellinger headed for further evaluation:

Cubs center fielder Cody Bellinger exited yesterday’s game 7-2 win over the Astros yesterday prior to the bottom of the seventh inning. The 28-year-old had crashed into the outfield wall on a play earlier in the game and was diagnosed with a right rib contusion per a team announcement. Manager Craig Counsell said after the game that x-rays came back negative, but the club will wait to see how the two-time All Star feels today before putting a timetable on his return to action (X link via ESPN’s Jesse Rogers).

Bellinger got off to a slow start this season but has caught fire in recent days, going 10-for-30 with three home runs, a triple, and five walks over his past eight games. That hot stretch has brought his season slash line up to .226/.320/.441 (103 wRC+) despite an fluky low .215 BABIP. Mike Tauchman figures to slide over from right field to center in Bellinger’s absence, with youngster Alexander Canario stepping into the starting lineup in right. A longer absence could open the door for a top prospect such as Pete Crow-Armstrong or Owen Caissie to join the big league club.

2. Kiermaier day-to-day:

The Cubs weren’t the only team to lose their starting center fielder mid-game yesterday, as the Blue Jays removed Kevin Kiermaier from yesterday’s 3-2 loss against the Royals in the sixth inning due to flexor discomfort in his left hip. Per MLB.com’s Injury Tracker, Kiermaier is considered day-to-day for the moment but Toronto had not yet fully evaluated the veteran by the end of last night’s game. It’s the same hip on which Kiermaier required season-ending surgery in July 2022.

It’s been a difficult start to the season for Kiermaier, who has slashed just .193/.246/.246 in 62 trips to the plate this season. Even so, the 34-year-old has continued to provide value to the Jays with his trademark superlative defense in center field. While Kiermaier is down, Daulton Varsho figures to slide over to center field with a combination of Davis Schneider, Cavan Biggio, and Ernie Clement handling left.

3. Where will Cooper land?

Prior to yesterday’s game, the Cubs designated veteran first baseman Garrett Cooper for assignment in a somewhat surprising move. The 33-year-old is coming off a down 2023 season with the Marlins and Padres but has hit .270/.341/.432 (118 wRC+) in limited playing time with the Cubs this season. There are some red flags, as Cooper’s 31.7% strikeout rate would be a career-high over a full season and his .391 average on balls in play is likely to regress.

Even so, Cooper is a former All-Star who has slashed a respectable .264/.336/.445 (112 wRC+) since the start of the 2020 season and boasts a strong .285/.337/.475 slash line against left-handed pitching throughout his career. That could make the veteran an interesting piece for teams in need of help at first base or DH, such as the Red Sox or Astros. The Cubs have one week to either trade, release, or waive Cooper following yesterday’s DFA. Successfully moving him to another team could allow them to get the remainder of his $1.75MM salary off their books, a meaningful sum given their proximity to the first luxury tax threshold.

Triston Casas Facing Notable Absence Due To Rib Fracture

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Red Sox skipper Álex Cora acknowledged over the weekend that there was concern about a potentially “lengthy absence” for first baseman Triston Casas following a rib injury, and it now seems those fears were warranted. Cora announced to the Red Sox beat that an MRI revealed a left rib fracture for Casas (X link via MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo), adding that the slugger is expected to be sidelined for “a while.” Cora didn’t delve into specifics but noted that Bobby Dalbec will pick up the bulk of playing time at first base in his absence.

The news is obviously rough for the Red Sox, as Casas has emerged as a consistently above-average hitter early in his career. Though he just turned 24 years old in January, he now has 687 major league plate appearances with 35 home runs and a walk rate of 14.7%. His 25.5% strikeout rate is a bit on the high side but the power and the free passes have led to a 252/.362/.482 batting line and 129 wRC+.

The Sox will now have to proceed without that production for some nebulous amount of time. “Time-table? There’s none,” Cora said, per Ian Browne of MLB.com. “This has to heal on its own. We’ve just got to be patient.”

Regardless of the eventual length of his absence, it adds to a growing pile of injuries for the Red Sox. Trevor Story is out for the year due to shoulder surgery. Vaughn Grissom hasn’t yet made his debut with the team due to a groin strain, though he is on a rehab assignment and getting closer to joining the big league club. The rotation is without Lucas Giolito, Garrett Whitlock and Nick Pivetta at the moment. The Sox have managed to go 13-10 so far and stay afloat in a tough A.L. East race, but each injury will make it harder to keep that up as the grind of the season continues.

For now, Dalbec will step in at first base, despite having hit .033/.121/.067 on the year so far. He has generally hit will in Triple-A over the years but struggled whenever brought up to the majors. He has hit .224/.291/.434 in the big leagues, 93 wRC+, while striking out in 36.5% of his plate appearances. Dating back to the start of 2021, he has hit .265/.372/.558 in the minors. His 33.8% strikeout rate down on the farm in that time has still been high but that production leads to a 129 wRC+.

The Sox will be hoping that a run of consistent playing time will help Dalbec get into a groove and have his major league numbers more closely resemble what he’s done in the minors. The Sox could also keep their eyes open for other options. The Cubs just designated first baseman Garrett Cooper for assignment and Boston is a sensible landing spot for him, though it’s one of many. If the Red Sox end up finding someone they like for the first base gig more than Dalbec, he can play other positions and is also still optionable.

Assuming Casas is going to miss at least a couple of months, he’ll be moved to the 60-day injured list whenever the club needs a roster spot. He was already placed on the 10-day IL on the weekend.

Merrill Kelly Expected To Miss More Than A Month

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The Diamondbacks placed Merrill Kelly on the 15-day injured list this evening due to a shoulder strain. After tonight’s 14-1 drubbing of the Cardinals, manager Torey Lovullo said the Snakes expected Kelly to be out for an extended stretch.

“We’re not looking in terms of weeks as what we had hoped for,” Lovullo admitted (link via Theo Mackie of AZ Central). “So I think the next step up is a month, more than that.” While the manager said that surgery is not under consideration, he was noncommittal when asked if Kelly would be back before the All-Star Break.

It’s another hit to a rotation that’s already without Eduardo Rodriguez until at least the end of May. Arizona’s biggest offseason signee suffered a lat strain in Spring Training. A recent setback resulted in a move to the 60-day IL. The D-Backs subsequently signed Jordan Montgomery to offset some of the impact of losing Rodriguez, yet Kelly’s absence adds more uncertainty to what is arguably the team’s weakest area: rotation depth.

Zac Gallen, Montgomery and Brandon Pfaadt will hold the top three spots. Ryne Nelson opened the season in the rotation before taking a comebacker off his elbow and landing on the IL last week. Slade Cecconi and Tommy Henry seem like the top options for the #4/5 spots until Nelson returns. There’s very little experience behind them. Cristian Mena and Blake Walston are on the 40-man roster but have yet to make their MLB debuts. Humberto Castellanos and Konnor Pilkington have limited big league experience and are in the organization as non-roster players at Triple-A Reno.

No one from that group can be expected to come particularly close to matching Kelly’s reliability. The veteran righty has allowed fewer than 3.40 earned runs per nine while reaching 30 starts in each of the past two seasons. He’d gotten out to another excellent April, working to a 2.19 ERA in his first 24 2/3 frames.

The defending NL champs have had a pedestrian start overall, posting a 12-13 record. They’ll hope a talented lineup keeps them in the playoff mix until their rotation gets closer to full strength. Rodriguez and Kelly could be back well in advance of deadline season, but an extended absence from one or both may increase the pressure on the front office to upgrade the starting pitching this summer.

Rockies Notes: Bryant, Jones, Freeland, Gilbreath

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Kris Bryant’s frustrating Rockies tenure continued last week when the former MVP went on the injured list thanks to a lower back strain. The placement was retroactive to April 14, so he would be eligible to return tomorrow. That’s not going to happen, as manager Bud Black told reporters that the first baseman/outfielder hasn’t been cleared for baseball activities (X link via Patrick Lyons).

Black stressed that surgery is not on the table, but there’s no timeline for Bryant’s return. Injuries have been a recurring theme throughout his first three seasons in Denver. Bryant’s 2022 campaign was ended in August by plantar fasciitis in his left foot. He had multi-week absences for a heel contusion and a broken finger last year. The four-time All-Star has appeared in 135 games with Colorado, tallying 571 plate appearances. He owns a middling .249/.329/.391 batting line, including a .149/.273/.255 mark over 13 games this year.

Elehuris Montero has taken over as the primary first baseman with Bryant out. The 25-year-old has yet to take advantage of the opportunity. Montero entered tonight’s game against the Padres with a .210/.250/.226 slash in 68 plate appearances. Only the Astros have gotten less offensive production from their first basemen overall.

The corner outfield hasn’t been much better. Colorado’s left fielders entered play Tuesday with a .149/.237/.253 line, placing 28th (above the Dodgers and White Sox) by measure of wRC+. That’s mostly because of a tough start from Nolan Jones, who was arguably the team’s best player in 2023. After an impressive .297/.389/.542 showing last year, Jones has started the ’24 campaign with a .148/.219/.250 slash. He snapped an 0-26 skid with a base hit in tonight’s win over San Diego but was removed from the game in the seventh inning.

Colorado announced that Jones experienced some back stiffness (relayed by Luke Zahlmann of the Denver Gazette). The Rox will hope it’s nothing more than a blip as the 25-year-old tries to recapture last year’s form. Jake Cave came off the bench to finish the game in left and could pick up a few more at-bats if Jones needs any time off.

Injuries have also been a story on the other side of the ball. Colorado went into the season without Germán Márquez and Antonio Senzatela as they rehab from Tommy John procedures. Kyle Freeland went on the shelf with an elbow injury last week. The southpaw indicated that testing revealed a small strain in his UCL but seemed optimistic about the prognosis, suggesting that doctors didn’t expect it to worsen (link via MLB.com’s Thomas Harding). The Rockies have floated a four-to-six week timeline for Freeland’s return.

In more positive news, lefty reliever Lucas Gilbreath took a significant step forward in the recovery from his March 2023 Tommy John procedure. Colorado sent Gilbreath to Triple-A Albuquerque to begin a minor league rehab assignment. The results weren’t great — two runs on a hit and two walks with one out — yet it’s more notable that he was able to toss 18 pitches in his first affiliated game action since August 2022.

Now 28, Gibreath turned in solid results between 2021-22. He logged 85 2/3 innings with a 3.78 ERA, punching out a quarter of opponents. While he’s had below-average command, Gilbreath looked the part of a potential setup option before the surgery.

Francisco Alvarez Expected To Miss Roughly Eight Weeks After Thumb Surgery

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Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez underwent surgery to repair the UCL tear in his left thumb, the team announced. The club suggested the procedure tends to require eight weeks before a player can return to game action. Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase reported shortly before the team announcement (on X) that the young catcher expected to be back at some point in July.

That’s at the longer end of the timeline which the team provided over the weekend. New York announced on Saturday that Alvarez was going under the knife. At the time, manager Carlos Mendoza loosely floated a recovery timetable in the six-to-eight week range, although he noted the team would have a clearer picture after the surgery.

New York initially placed Alvarez on the 10-day injured list. It’s likely that he’ll be moved to the 60-day IL once the team needs to open a spot on the 40-man roster. It’s a tough loss to the Mets lineup, as Alvarez is one of the team’s better power threats. He hit 25 homers last year as a 21-year-old rookie. He’d only connected on one longball in his first 59 plate appearances this season, hitting .236/.288/.364 over 16 games.

The Mets selected Tomás Nido onto the major league roster after the Alvarez injury. He’ll back up Omar Narváez for the foreseeable future. They’re the only healthy catchers on the 40-man roster. Narváez, who is likely to get the majority of the playing time, has struggled since signing a two-year free agent deal. The veteran hit .211/.283/.297 in 49 games last season. He’s out to a .179/.233/.214 start over his first 10 contests.

Dan Straily, Tyler Zuber Sign With Long Island Ducks

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Former big league right-handers Dan Straily and Tyler Zuber have signed with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League, per a team announcement.

Straily, 35, has spent the past four seasons pitching in the Korea Baseball Organization, though he did briefly return stateside for Triple-A run with the 2022 D-backs. The former A’s, Marlins, Reds, Cubs, Orioles and Astros righty has pitched 503 innings for the KBO’s Lotte Giants, working to a 3.29 ERA with a 23.4% strikeout rate and 8.4% walk rate. Lotte released him midway through the 2023 season, however, as he scuffled to a more pedestrian 4.37 ERA in his first 16 starts.

Prior to his largely successful KBO run, Straily enjoyed a good bit of success in an eight-year span in the big leagues. While the righty wasn’t especially consistent, he had stretches where he looked like a solid innings-eating workhorse, including a 2016-17 run between Cincinnati and Miami wherein he tossed 373 innings of 4.01 ERA ball with a 21.3% strikeout rate and 8.5% walk rate. On the whole, Straily owns a 4.56 ERA in 803 1/3 innings split between the aforementioned six teams. He’s also pitched in the upper minors with the D-backs and Phillies.

Straily’s most recent MLB work came back in 2019, so he’s quite a ways removed from major league action at this point. Still, given the slate of pitching injuries that permeate Major League Baseball early every season, a nice run with the Ducks could be a springboard back into affiliated ball.

As for the 28-year-old Zuber, he was in spring training with the Guardians this year after signing a minor league deal but didn’t make the club after being torched for 10 runs on 10 hits and eight walks in just 5 1/3 innings. Zuber previously pitched for the Royals in 2020-21, debuting during the pandemic-shortened season with 22 innings of 4.09 ERA ball. He posted a gaudy 30.3% strikeout rate that year but coupled it with an alarming 20.2% walk rate. Overall, he’s pitched 49 1/3 big league frames with a 5.29 ERA, 24.8% strikeout rate and 16.7% walk rate.

Command was never an issue for Zuber in the low minors. When looking at his minor league career as a whole, his 3.20 earned run average, 31.3% strikeout rate and 8.5% walk rate are all impressive. However, Zuber began to battle pronounced control struggles during that 2020 debut, and his penchant for walks carried over into subsequent seasons. Perhaps not coincidentally, he was plagued by shoulder troubles in 2021-22 — missing the entire 2022 season as a result. Zuber spent the 2023 season with Arizona’s Triple-A club and showed a somewhat improved 11.1% walk rate but also a diminished 20% strikeout rate in 20 2/3 innings.

As with Straily — and any big league veterans who sign with indie ball clubs — it’s possible that a good showing in Long Island will serve as a catalyst for renewed interest from affiliated clubs.

Robert Stephenson To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

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Angels reliever Robert Stephenson announced that he’ll undergo Tommy John surgery and an internal brace procedure next week (X link via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register). That’ll likely sideline him a few months into the 2025 season.

The Halos revealed last week that an elbow injury would cause Stephenson to miss all of 2024. While the team didn’t indicate at the time whether he’d need surgery, it’s not a surprising development. The righty said he’s hopeful of returning early next year, although the timeline for a Tommy John recovery is usually in the 14-16 month range.

Stephenson didn’t get to pitch during his first season with the Angels. He was delayed in camp by a sore shoulder. He reported the more significant elbow pain during his first (and only) rehab outing for Triple-A Salt Lake. That evidently revealed UCL damage, which has contractual ramifications. Stephenson’s deal contained a conditional option for the 2027 season that would go into effect if he suffered a serious elbow injury. While he’ll make $11MM annually over the next three years, the Angels now have a very modest $2.5MM club option for ’27.

Of course, the team would have preferred to have Stephenson on the Angel Stadium mound this year instead. They envisioned him as an anchor of their setup corps after his breakout with the Rays. The hard-throwing righty pitched to a 2.35 ERA with a 42.9% strikeout rate in 38 1/3 innings after Tampa Bay acquired him last June. He’ll miss all of this season, his age-31 campaign. The option year covers his age-34 season.

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