The Opener: A’s, Pasquantino, Rangers, Angels
As the 2023 regular season continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Nevada legislature resumes discussions:
The bill in Nevada’s state legislature that would provide $380MM in public money to fund a stadium in Las Vegas for the A’s was put on hold last week when the legislature adjourned Thursday night. As noted by Jacob Solis, Tabitha Mueller, and Sean Golonka of The Nevada Independent, that adjournment is set to end today, allowing negotiations on the stadium bill to begin once again.
The ongoing special session was called by Governor Joe Lombardo, though members of the legislature have become frustrated by the lack of amendments to the bill since the end of the legislature’s regular session on June 5. Amendments that have been suggested include ensuring the A’s home games are not exempt from the state’s 9% Live Entertainment Tax and requiring the A’s to match their past donation commitments to California food banks with similar commitments in Nevada.
2. Pasquantino to undergo MRI:
Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino recently landed on the injured list due to shoulder soreness, which MLB.com’s Anne Rogers notes has similarities to an injury that kept him out of action for three weeks last season. While he’ll undergo an MRI today to get a clearer idea of the injury’s specifics, Pasquantino himself noted that his shoulder feels “pretty much the same” as it did during last season’s injury. The 25-year-old is one of just five above average hitters for the Royals this season by measure of wRC+. While Pasquantino is on the shelf, Nick Pratto figures to move from the outfield back to his natural position, first base.
3. Rangers vs. Angels Series Preview:
The Rangers and Angels begin a four-game set today that could have major implications in the race for the AL West crown. As things stand, the Rangers have a commanding lead in the division, with a five-game lead over the second-place Astros and a six-and-a-half-game lead over the third-place Angels. That said, the Angels appear to be the hot hand at the moment. The club has won six of their last seven as they arrive in Texas, where the Rangers are coming off a difficult series loss to the AL-leading Rays.
Tonight’s game will begin at 7:05pm CT when Angels lefty Tyler Anderson, who has struggled to a 5.62 ERA in 57 2/3 innings this season, takes the mound against Rangers right-hander Dane Dunning, who was excellent in a bullpen role before joining the rotation and posting a 2.97 ERA and 4.02 FIP across six starts. Looking to the rest of the series, Angels righty Jaime Barria will take on Rangers righty Jon Gray in Game 2. Game 3 will see a duel between lefties Reid Detmers and Andrew Heaney. Game 4 will see a pitching duel between each team’s top starter: Shohei Ohtani and Nathan Eovaldi.
Steve Cohen “Frustrated” But Won’t Be “Reactionary” To Mets’ Slow Start
After snapping a seven-game losing streak on Saturday, the Mets couldn’t remain in the win column today, dropping a 2-1 result to the Pirates. The loss dropped New York’s record to 31-35, putting them in fourth place in the NL East and 9.5 games behind the first-place Braves. The crowded NL standings mean that the Mets are only 3.5 games back of a wild card berth, yet obviously the Mets didn’t expect to find themselves in such a middling position after winning 101 games in 2022 and then augmenting their roster with a blockbuster offseason.
Since owner Steve Cohen has been so aggressive in his spending to make the Mets into a World Series contender, there has been a lot of speculation over whether or not Cohen’s desire to win could now manifest itself in managerial or front office changes in response to the Mets’ slow start. However, as Cohen indicated to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, such changes don’t appear to be in the works, nor is he planning to “blow up” just to express public frustration.
“The reality is it’s not going to solve our problems,” Cohen said. “And I think in some ways it can be demotivating….I think that’s the worst thing you can do is to be overly reactionary. General fan reaction, it’s usually, ‘I can’t believe Steve’s not going nuts, fire somebody.’ My answer to that is, ‘OK, let’s say I went nuts. Let’s say I fired somebody. Then what?’ What does that accomplish? Who are you gonna replace them with? This is the middle of the season. And then if you actually ask people [who are the replacements], they have no answers, other than they’re just angry, and I get that. I’m frustrated too.”
While this isn’t exactly a clear vote of confidence in GM Billy Eppler or manager Buck Showalter, Cohen stated that he isn’t letting “recency bias” dictate his decisions, saying “You’re better off trying to manage through these periods and not throw your entire plans out the window. It’s just not good management, good strategy.” In one of multiple references Cohen made between the Mets and his hedge fund business, Cohen noted that “there are moments where we’ve drawn down really hard for whatever reasons — whether it’s markets, whether it’s something that we did wrong — it doesn’t mean I completely change or let people go. I don’t operate that way. These are challenges. This is management. This is the moment where you get to witness how your management deals with problems.”
Cohen made it clear that he isn’t pleased with the season to date, pointing to both a lack of results from the rotation as well as “mental errors” from the team at large. But, “those are what I would call unforced errors that we can fix and we will because these are good guys who are working hard,” Cohen said, and he feels his pitching staff has too much talent to continue struggling.
“What is the odds this group of pitchers will pitch this way the entire season. Probably unlikely,” Cohen said. “That is why there is reason for optimism in a moment where it looks like the wheels have just come off….These are people who have performed in the past, and you’ve got to believe that it’s fixable. I keep coming back to that: The best indicator of future performance is how they performed in the past. And they have performed consistently well in the past. That gives me optimism for the future.”
The Mets entered Sunday’s action ranked 25th of 30 teams in rotation ERA, as both under-performance and health issues have been pitfalls for the team’s starters. Justin Verlander and Carlos Carrasco each missed significant time on the 15-day injured list, while Max Scherzer has battled some neck soreness and also served a 10-game suspension for use of a foreign substance on his hands while pitching. Jose Quintana has yet to pitch at all this season due to a stress fracture in his ribs suffered during Spring Training, and isn’t expected back until July. Beyond this veteran group, Kodai Senga has pitched well in his first MLB season, but Tylor Megill, David Peterson, and Joey Lucchesi have all struggled.
AL East Notes: Red Sox, Mondesi, Mills, Weber, Belt
The Red Sox are an even 33-33 after tonight’s win over the Yankees, and they remain 3.5 games behind the Blue Jays just to reach fourth place in the hyper-competitive AL East. Barring a big surge over the next month, the Sox might decide to look ahead to 2024, and the Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham notes that the club has a number of interesting trade chips if it did opt to sell. Beyond the multiple players (i.e. Justin Turner, James Paxton, Adam Duvall, Enrique Hernandez) who could be free agents this winter, Abraham writes that the Sox could offer up more controllable options like Kenley Jansen or Chris Martin, who are both under contract for the 2024 season.
Such a decision, of course, would hinge on how the Red Sox are preparing to approach 2024, since naturally a quality closer like Jansen would be expected to play a big role on a would-be contender. In Abraham’s view, Jansen could be “the big prize” of Boston’s likeliest trade chips, given his postseason track record and how many teams are in need of bullpen help. The Red Sox could also see value in selling relatively high on Jansen considering that he turns 36 in September, and that his solid 3.48 ERA is undermined by a 12.8% walk rate that is among the highest of his career. Salary could also be a factor, as Jansen is owed $16MM in 2024.
More from around the AL East…
- Red Sox manager Alex Cora gave Abraham and other reporters some updates on injured players, but the news isn’t good for either Adalberto Mondesi or Wyatt Mills. Mondesi is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered in April 2022, and while he had been taking part in extended Spring Training, he doesn’t appear to be making any further progress or getting any closer to minor league games. As for Mills, the right-hander had a setback in his recovery from elbow inflammation that sidelined him during Spring Training. Both Mondesi and Mills (acquired from the Royals in separate transactions during the offseason) are on the 60-day injured list and have yet to play in 2023.
- Ryan Weber is leaning towards a PRP shot and a non-surgical rehab plan to help fix his UCL strain, the Yankees reliever told Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News. Tommy John surgery might yet be a possibility, but Weber wants to investigate his options in order to try and avoid such a long-term rehab. Weber was placed on the 15-day injured list last week and was immediately shifted to the 60-day IL, so he won’t be back until early August at the absolute earliest.
- Brandon Belt left Saturday’s game due to tightness in his left hamstring, and wasn’t part of the Blue Jays‘ 7-6 win over the Twins today. Following Sunday’s game, Jays manager John Schneider told MLB.com and other media that Belt’s MRI didn’t reveal any structural damage, so Belt will remain day-to-day. Since Toronto doesn’t play on Monday, the hope is that another day off will allow Belt to return to the lineup for the start of a big series with the Orioles on Tuesday. Belt is hitting .263/.378/.434 with four home runs over 180 plate appearances in his first season with the Jays, as after a very slow start, Belt has quietly been one of baseball’s hotter hitters over the past month.
MLBTR Chat Transcript
Click here to read the transcript of this weekend’s live baseball chat
Tigers Notes: Baddoo, Vierling, Manning
Akil Baddoo left Friday’s game after injuring his right quad while running out a grounder. The quad strain ended up sending Baddoo to the 10-day injured list, as the Tigers placed the outfielder on the IL Saturday, and the newly-acquired Nick Solak was called up from Triple-A.
It isn’t clear how much time Baddoo could miss, since while Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including Rainer Sabin of the Detroit Free Press) that Baddoo will be “out for the foreseeable future,” the quad strain is on the “mild side.” It’s at least good news that Baddoo has apparently avoided a higher degree of strain, even if the IL stint is a setback for the 24-year-old outfielder.
A Rule 5 pick in December 2020, Baddoo had a very impressive rookie season and seemed to be a surprise building block for a Tigers club that appeared to be turning a corner in 2021. However, like virtually every other Detroit hitter, Baddoo took a big step backwards in 2022, hitting only .204/.289/.269 over 225 plate appearances. The 2023 campaign has continued this inconsistency for Baddoo, but he has taken a step forward from last year, hitting .231/.341/.343 over 168 PA.
The surprising Zach McKinstry has moved into everyday duty in the Tigers’ outfield, which has been a bit of a revolving door due to injuries. Austin Meadows has been sidelined since April because of anxiety issues, while Riley Greene is facing an extended absence due to a stress reaction in his left fibula. On the plus side, Kerry Carpenter was activated off the IL earlier this week, and Matt Vierling may also soon be returning for Monday’s game with the Braves.
Lower-back soreness sent Vierling to the injured list on May 29, but it looks like he could miss only slightly beyond the minimum 10 days. Vierling has already played two minor league rehab games and was in Detroit today being evaluated by team doctors. Acquired from the Phillies as part of the Gregory Soto trade in January, Vierling has hit .241/.297/.352 over 175 PA while playing mostly in right field, but he has also gotten some work at the other two outfield slots and even at second and third base.
In other injury news, the Tigers announced that Matt Manning will start an injury rehab assignment today at Triple-A Toledo. It was exactly two months ago today that Manning suffered a fracture in his right foot, and he has since been transferred to the 60-day IL (though that roster move doesn’t impact his potential return date). Manning will certainly need at least a couple of rehab starts after missing so much time, but it seems plausible that he can return to Detroit’s rotation before the end of June.
Guardians Outright Zach Plesac To Triple-A
TODAY: Plesac accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A after clearing waivers.
JUNE 4: The Guardians have designated right-hander Zach Plesac for assignment, making room on the 40-man roster for right-hander Triston McKenzie to be activated from the 60-day injured list. Plesac had been optioned to Triple-A earlier this month. To make room for McKenzie on the active roster, the club has optioned right-hander Michael Kelly to the Triple-A.
The news brings Plesac’s time as a member of the Guardians to a conclusion that’s surely disappointing for both player and franchise. A twelfth round pick by Cleveland in the 2016 draft, Plesac made his debut in 2019 and began his career on an impressive note, with a solid 3.81 ERA (124 ERA+) in 115 2/3 innings of work.
While Plesac’s 4.94 FIP and strikeout rate of just 18.4% in 2019 both gave plenty of reason for concern, Plesac appeared to take a leap forward during his sophomore season that at the time appeared to cement him as a stalwart of the club’s rotation going forward, even in spite of the fact that he was optioned to the club’s alternate site after violating MLB’s health and safety protocols during the 2020 pandemic season. During the shortened season, Plesac dominated opposing hitters to a 2.28 ERA (196 ERA+) in eight starts, backed up by a solid 3.39 FIP and a greatly improved 27.7% strikeout rate.
Unfortunately, Plesac’s dominance he showcased in 2020 did not last. Plesac’s lack of punch-outs came back in full force in 2021 as he struck out just 16.7% of batters faced, a figure lower than all but five starters with at least 140 innings that season. Consequently, Plesac’s results left plenty to be desired, with a 4.67 ERA that checked in just below league average with a 92 ERA+. When 2022 proved to be more of the same, as Plesac posted an ERA+ of 88 with a strikeout rate of 17.6%, Plesac’s dominant 2020 season quickly began to feel like ancient history.
Still, Plesac managed to secure a spot in the 2023 Opening Day rotation for the Guardians in part due to early injuries to McKenzie and Aaron Civale. That stint in the rotation proved to be disastrous, though, as Plesac posted a ghastly 7.59 ERA across six starts while failing to pitch into the sixth inning in all but one of his appearances. That led the club to option him to Triple-A last month, where he continued to struggle with a 7.56 ERA in 25 innings.
Going forward, the Guardians will have one week to waive or trade Plesac before either assigning him outright to Triple-A or granting him his release. Of course, Plesac has three years of big league service time, giving him the option to reject an outright assignment. That said, he would forgo the remainder of his $2.95MM salary in doing so, making it rather unlikely Plesac decides to test the open market.
Of course, it’s possible things won’t even progress that far. Plesac, as an optionable pitcher who’s still just 28 years old with a history of success int he big leagues, could draw interest from pitching-needy clubs such as the Rockies, Cardinals, or Rays even in spite of his extreme struggles this season.
Plesac’s departure opens the door for McKenzie to make his MLB debut after having the start to his season delayed by a teres major strain. A first-round pick in the 2015 draft by Cleveland, the 25-year-old McKenzie broke out in a big way last season, posting a phenomenal 2.96 ERA (127 ERA+) and 3.59 FIP in 191 1/3 innings with a 25.6% strikeout rate against a walk rate of just 5.9% as the Guardians managed to win the 2022 AL Central crown. McKenzie figures to immediately slot into the top of the club’s rotation alongside Shane Bieber, filling the vacancy left by Cal Quantrill‘s placement on the IL earlier this week.
Making room for McKenzie on the active roster is Kelly, who did not make it into a game for the Guardians after being selected to the roster just yesterday. Kelly figures to serve as pitching depth for the Guardians at Triple-A going forward after posting an impressive 1.61 ERA in 22 1/3 innings at the level prior to his brief call-up.
Red Sox Release Raimel Tapia, Outright Matt Dermody
The Red Sox announced that outfielder Raimel Tapia has been released, and that left-hander Matt Dermody has been outrighted to Triple-A. Both players were designated for assignment earlier this week.
Tapia signed a minor league deal with Boston during the offseason, and after his contract was selected, Tapia locked in a $2MM salary for the 2023 season. The Sox are still on the hook for the remainder (roughly $1.22MM) of that money owed, and that salary could be why teams passed on Tapia on the DFA wire. An interested club can now sign Tapia to a minors contract and only owe him the prorated MLB average salary, with the Red Sox covering the rest.
The 29-year-old Tapia is hitting .264/.333/.368 over 97 plate appearances this season, roughly in line with the career .277/.318/.392 slash line he carried with the Rockies and Blue Jays from 2016-22. Limited mostly to facing right-handed pitching this year, Tapia has a hit a strong .309/.373/.441 in 76 PA against righties, and he has seen action for the Red Sox in all three outfield positions.
Since Tapia has over five years of Major League experience, he had the right to reject an outright assignment to Triple-A and elect free agency. It could be that Tapia planned to take this avenue anyway, so the Sox simply opted to release him after no trade possibilities emerged when Tapia was on the waiver wire. Given Tapia’s track record as a respectable backup outfield option and his good numbers against right-handed pitching, it seems likely that he’ll catch on with another team in relatively short order.
Dermody has been outrighted before in his career, so he also had the option to elect free agency but he has instead decided to remain in Boston’s organization. In cup-of-coffee fashion, Dermody was selected to the Red Sox roster and then DFA’ed on the same day, with a four-inning start against the Guardians on June 8 sandwiched in between the two transactions. It marked the first Major League start for Dermody, though he has started regularly in the minors and in his non-affiliated stints in the KBO League and with the independent Sugar Land Skeeters.
That one outing gave Dermody appearances in five different MLB seasons, though 23 of his 31 career games came with the Blue Jays in 2017. The southpaw will likely continue starting at Triple-A Worcester, where he has a 4.50 ERA over 44 innings with a 24.4% strikeout rate and 4.7% walk rate.
NL East Notes: Marlins, Phillies, Mets
Marlins left-hander Trevor Rogers didn’t make his scheduled rehab start yesterday due to an issue in his non-throwing shoulder, according to Craig Mish of the Miami Herald. The club is currently waiting for medical results before making a decision on how to proceed with Rogers, who could be back on the mound in Triple-A as soon as early next week if the impending medical update is encouraging. Rogers has made just four starts for the Marlins this year while battling a biceps strain. In those starts, Rogers posted a solid 4.00 ERA (111 ERA+) with a 4.11 FIP and 19 strikeouts in 18 innings of work, though he did struggle with his command as he hit three batters and walked six in that time.
After Rogers’s setback, the Marlins may be left looking for rotation options in the near future, as Mish indicates that the club is hoping to “slow down” youngster Eury Perez, who has already pitched 60 innings this season between Triple-A and the majors after throwing just 77 innings total last season. The 20-year-old phenom has been excellent in 29 innings in the majors this season, with a sterling 2.17 ERA. That being said, Perez’s 24.8% strikeout rate, 10.7% walk rate, and unsightly 27.3% groundball rate all leave something to be desired, resulting in a less inspiring 4.34 FIP.
Mish suggests that the Marlins may limit the young right-hander to somewhere between 100 and 115 innings during the 2023 campaign, and the club is hoping to have Perez available later in the season. A natural time to slow Perez down seemed to be on the horizon with Rogers’s pending return, but with the lefty’s timetable less clear, the Marlins may need to look elsewhere to cover for Perez’s starts if they wish to manage his innings headed into the summer.
More from around the NL East…
- Phillies fans got positive injury news regarding a pair of young right-handers yesterday, as Rule 5 draft pick Noah Song is set to begin work in sim games in the coming week, as noted by Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Song posted impressive numbers in 2019 after the Red Sox drafted him in the fourth round of that year’s draft, though he has not thrown a profession pitch since due to his service as an officer in the US Navy from 2020-2022 and this year’s injury woes. Coffey also notes that top pitching prospect Andrew Painter, who has been out since Spring Training while rehabbing a UCL sprain, threw a 20-pitch bullpen session yesterday. A consensus top prospect int he sport ranked as high as #5 by Baseball America entering the 2023 season, the 20-year-old Painter seemed poised to claim the fifth starter job in Philadelphia before the UCL injury left him shut down from baseball activity. Painter’s return to the mound is sure to breed optimism among fans in Philadelphia, though Coffey notes that manager Rob Thomson gave no update to Painter’s timetable for return ahead of yesterday’s bullpen session.
- Mike Puma of the New York Post suggested today that the Mets could look to skip the next start of right-hander Tylor Megill, who has struggled to a 5.14 ERA in 63 innings as a regular member of the club’s rotation this season. Things have gotten particularly difficult for Megill over the past three weeks, and the young right-hander has posted a ghastly 8.64 ERA in his last four starts, walking a whopping twelve batters while striking out just fourteen in 16 2/3 innings of work. As Puma notes, the club won’t require a fifth starter until they face the Astros on June 20, allowing them to either skip Megill’s next start and use him out of the bullpen for a period of time, or perhaps option Megill to Triple-A before giving Joey Lucchesi or David Peterson a look in the rotation. Manager Buck Showalter acknowledged that coming off days provide the club with flexibility, “especially in the bullpen if we wanted to add an arm.”
AL Notes: Astros, Fleming, Hendriks, Rucinski
In a radio appearance today, Astros GM Dana Brown provided updates on the club’s pair of injured, lefty-swinging outfielders, as relayed by Chandler Rome of The Athletic and Mark Berman of Fox 26. Brown notes that there’s currently no timetable for the return of slugger Yordan Alvarez to Houston’s lineup, and that one isn’t expected to crystalize in the coming days, with the GM suggesting that it will take “at least a week” for the club to have confidence in a timetable for Alvarez. Any missed time for Alvarez is a severe blow to the Astros, as the slugger has posted another phenomenal season so far in 2023, slashing .277/.388/.589 in 57 games before hitting the injured list with what has been described as “right oblique discomfort.”
In more optimistic news, Brown notes that veteran outfielder Michael Brantley is making good progress in his rehab from shoulder inflammation after he was shut down last month. Brantley has yet to appear in a game this season after undergoing shoulder surgery last summer, but Brown notes that the veteran is playing catch and taking pain-free swings in the batting cage. While the update is certainly a positive one, it sounds as though Brantley is still a ways away from returning to the Astros, who would surely benefit from the boost the 36-year old could provide to their lineup.
More from around the AL…
- The Rays placed left-hander Josh Fleming on the 60-day injured list yesterday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times notes that Fleming is scheduled to meet with specialist Dr. Keith Meister later this week. When asked about the appointment, Fleming acknowledged to reporters that a ligament issue is possible, leaving a worst case scenario of Tommy John surgery on the table. That’s certainly a worrisome possibility for Tampa, as the club has seen their starting depth tested with as each of Jeffrey Springs, Drew Rasmussen, and Tyler Glasnow have spent significant portions of the season on the injured list.
- White Sox reliever Liam Hendriks was placed on the 15-day IL with elbow inflammation earlier today, temporarily halting the closer’s inspiring return to the big leagues following his recovery from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. As relayed by James Fegan of The Athletic, GM Rick Hahn said that Hendriks’s current ailment has similarities to a flexor strain he dealt with last season that left him on the shelf for just under a month. The club is hopeful that this current injury will have a similar timeline, though Hendriks will undergo an MRI to confirm that timetable. After a difficult first outing back from the injured list, Hendriks has posted a 2.25 ERA with a save and three strikeouts in his last four appearances.
- The Athletics provided an update on right-hander Drew Rucinski, who has been on the injured list with a stomach illness since late last month. As noted by MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos, Rucinski’s stomach ailment has improved, but the right-hander is dealing with a low-grade MCL sprain in his right knee that occurred during a bullpen session. The injury will leave him shut down from throwing for 2 to 3 weeks. Rucinski signed with the A’s on a one-year deal with a club option for 2024 this past offseason, but has managed just four starts for the club, pitching to a 9.00 ERA in 18 innings of work with a whopping 14 walks allowed compared to jut six strikeouts.
Alex Reyes Undergoes Shoulder Surgery, Won’t Pitch In 2023
Right-hander Alex Reyes won’t pitch in 2023 after undergoing shoulder surgery earlier this week, according to Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. This past offseason, the 28-year-old hurler signed with the Dodgers on a one-year deal that includes a $3MM club option for the 2024 season.
That, of course, will not come to pass, as Reyes as now gone under the knife for a second time in hopes of returning to the major league mound. Reyes has managed just 145 innings in his career since making his big league debut during the 2016 season due to countless injuries, though the right-hander has flashed immense talent when healthy. Most recently, Reyes posted a 3.24 ERA across 72 1/3 innings of work in 2021 that earned Reyes his first career All Star appearance.
As Plunkett notes, Reyes is now not expected to return to the majors until sometime in 2024, with a recovery time of at least twelve months. The outcome is surely deeply disappointed for both Reyes and the Dodgers, as Reyes had begun to ramp-up during Spring Training with an eye toward returning sometime before the All Star break. Unfortunately, Reyes had to be shut down thanks to increasing pain in his shoulder throughout his rehab process. At that point, Plunkett notes that more damage was found in Reyes’s throwing shoulder, though it was not related to the labrum that was repaired by Reyes’s previous surgery.
Fortunately for the Dodgers, the club has a solid bullpen even without Reyes, as the likes of Evan Phillips, Brusdar Graterol, and Caleb Ferguson have done well in holding down the late innings for LA this season. Going forward, the Dodgers will have to make a decision on Reyes’s $3MM option for 2024 in the coming months, though it’s possible the player and the club could come to terms on a different deal that would keep Reyes in LA without requiring the Dodgers to commit $3MM in guaranteed money to a pitcher who will have had a layoff of at least two and a half seasons due to injury.