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Quick Hits: In-Game Video, Calhoun, Reyes

By Mark Polishuk | March 14, 2021 at 10:54pm CDT

It was on this day in 1932 that the Reds made one of the best trades in franchise history, acquiring future Hall-of-Fame catcher Ernie Lombardi as part of a seven-player trade with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Lombardi was coming off a solid rookie season, but since Brooklyn already had Al Lopez behind the plate, Lombardi became an expendable trade chip. The Reds reaped the benefits as Lombardi rose to stardom over 10 seasons in Cincinnati, hitting .311/.359/.469 with 120 homers over 4288 plate appearances in a Reds uniform. His tenure in Cincy included the 1938 NL MVP Award, five All-Star appearances, and a starring role in the Reds’ World Series victory in 1940.

Some items from the modern game…

Players will once again be able to access in-game video clips this season, with the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier writing that Major League Baseball’s central office will be controlling the video footage available to teams. Players and coaches will be able to access footage of a past at-bat or pitching sequence during a game, via dugout iPads, with the league editing the footage to ensure that teams can’t use video for underhanded purposes — like stealing signals, for instance. Prior to 2020, it had become common practice for a hitter to visit a clubhouse computer terminal to review footage from his previous plate appearance, but clubhouse terminals were banned due to COVID-19 concerns last year. This certainly played a role in some hitters suddenly struggling at the plate, since they had gotten to used to making video-aided adjustments.
Willie Calhoun has been bothered by a groin injury during Spring Training, and Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link) believes the Rangers could be cautious and place Calhoun on the injured list to begin the year. An IL stint certainly wouldn’t be welcome for Calhoun considering his injury-shortened and unproductive 2020 campaign, though it might be necessary to ensure that the young slugger is both fully healthy and fully prepared for the season. A former top-100 prospect, Calhoun seemed to taking a step forward with a solid .269/.323/.524 slash line over 337 PA in 2019.
Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak has already said that the team will use Alex Reyes out of the bullpen this season, but with Miles Mikolas and Kwang Hyun Kim both facing injury problems, Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wonders if the team should reverse course and install Reyes into the rotation. While it makes sense that the Cards want to carefully manage Reyes’ workload given his own lengthy injury history, Frederickson argues that the most optimal usage of Reyes’ projected 80-100 innings would be to use him as a starter until the rotation gets healthy, and then shift him to the pen.

MLBTR Poll: Who Will Win The AL West?

By Mark Polishuk | March 14, 2021 at 9:24pm CDT

George Springer, Marcus Semien, Liam Hendriks, Lance Lynn….it seemed that for much of the offseason, the news out of the AL West focused on what stars were leaving the division, rather than joining. It has made for an intriguing divisional race as we approach Opening Day, so let’s run down the contenders as per Fangraphs’ projected standings.

The Astros are judged to be the best of the bunch, projected for an 89-73 record despite losing Springer, potentially losing other still-unsigned free agents (i.e. Josh Reddick, Roberto Osuna), and losing Justin Verlander last season to Tommy John surgery. On the plus side, the Astros brought a couple of key offensive players back into the mix by re-signing Michael Brantley and Yuli Gurriel, and they added Jake Odorizzi to a bolster an injury-hampered rotation. There are certainly some question marks on Houston’s roster, but the core group of talent might be enough to capture the division.

Clocking in with an 84-78 projection, matching this record would give the Angels their fourth-highest win total since 2012 — Mike Trout’s first full season in the big leagues. The Halos’ inability to build a winner around their superstar has been a sore point for both Orange County fans and perhaps the baseball world at large, but comparatively speaking, the Angels also didn’t suffer as many major personnel losses this winter as their division rivals did. While the Angels didn’t make any blockbuster acquisitions, they did aim to get better, adding such second-tier veterans as Raisel Iglesias, Jose Quintana, Alex Cobb, Jose Iglesias, Dexter Fowler, and Kurt Suzuki. With Trout and Anthony Rendon anchoring the lineup and Shohei Ohtani perhaps healthy again, do the Angels have enough to finally get back to the postseason?

The reigning AL West champion Athletics are projected for a modest 83-79 mark, as Oakland lost some significant veteran talent in Semien, Hendriks, Robbie Grossman, Joakim Soria, and Tommy La Stella. Of course, the A’s have made a habit of overachieving in the Billy Beane era, and they do have a lot of promising young arms. If the pitching staff can healthy and even a couple of hurlers make the proverbial leap, the A’s might have one of the sport’s better rotations. On the offensive side, Oakland is hoping Elvis Andrus thrives with a change of scenery, and that Matt Chapman and Matt Olson hit a bit more like their usual selves.

If the three front-runners all have their weak spots, is there an opportunity for an underdog to emerge? Fangraphs doesn’t thinks so, as both the Mariners (74-88) and Rangers (72-90) are projected to fall well back of the pack, yet it isn’t as if either team is bereft of talent. Seattle has a lot of promising young players that could possibly break out early and help Marco Gonzales, Kyle Seager, and bounce-back candidate James Paxton steal some wins. The Rangers made some interesting additions in Dane Dunning, Nate Lowe, and David Dahl, plus you figure Texas is due for some better offensive luck considering virtually the entire team (even star Joey Gallo) had down years at the plate in 2020.

So, the question remains, who will end up as AL West champions? (Poll link for app users)

Brewers Notes: Shaw, Fisher, Houser, Cain, Black

By Mark Polishuk | March 14, 2021 at 6:57pm CDT

Travis Shaw can opt out of his minor league contract with the Brewers tomorrow but it seems very likely that the team will include Shaw on its Opening Day roster, according to Tom Haudricourt and Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Officially selecting Shaw’s contract would guarantee the veteran a $1.5MM salary for the coming season, and the Brewers would have to make another corresponding move to open up a 40-man roster spot. The left-handed hitting Shaw is expected to get the bulk of playing time at third base when a right-hander is on the mound, with Orlando Arcia, Daniel Robertson, and (if not at shortstop) Luis Urias all getting at-bats against southpaws.

More from the city of Giannis, Liberace, Laverne and Shirley…

Today’s Cactus League game with the Mariners saw both Derek Fisher and Adrian Houser leave early due to injury. According to the Brewers’ official announcement, “left hamstring discomfort” forced Fisher from the game after he scored from first base on a double, and manager Craig Counsell told Haudricourt and other reporters that Fisher will be out of action for a while. The out-of-options Fisher was already facing some tough competition to win a roster job, and this injury setback could further hamper if not ruin his chances. As for Houser, he left the game with right thumb discomfort, but both the hurler and Counsell felt it was a minor issue that shouldn’t much interrupt Houser’s preseason preparations.
In other injury news, Lorenzo Cain is expected to make his Spring Training debut by the weekend, Counsell told The Athletic’s Will Sammon and other reporters. After opting out of much of the 2020 season, Cain’s return to the field has been slowed by a quad injury. It remains to be seen how much time Cain will need to ramp up for the season, so an injured list placement probably still isn’t out of the question for at least the first week of the schedule.
Right-hander Ray Black will begin throwing off a mound by the end of the week, Counsell said, as Black will return to work after being shut down due to elbow inflammation. The hard-throwing Black tossed only three innings over three games in 2020, missing much of the season due to a strain in his right rotator cuff. Given his recent injury history, Black could very well be an IL candidate for Opening Day.

Sonny Gray Likely To Begin Season On Injured List

By Mark Polishuk | March 14, 2021 at 5:16pm CDT

Sonny Gray was scratched from a scheduled Cactus League outing today due to a recurring back issue that will likely put the right-handed on the injured list to begin the season. Gray told The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Bobby Nightengale and other reporters that he has been dealing with back spasms for the past month, and since he’ll need time to ramp back up after being shut down for a few days, he will probably miss the season’s first week.

“The way we’ve all kind of thought about it was, do we take five or six days right now and completely try to knock it out so you’re a week behind to start the season or eight days or whatever it ends up being? Or do you just keep going and maybe it turns into a larger issue and then maybe you miss 10 starts,” Gray said.

Since IL placements can be backdated by three days, a minimum 10-day injured list visit would result in Gray missing the Reds’ first six games, thanks to an off-day in the schedule. Since the Reds are also off on April 8, it would theoretically line Gray up for his season debut April 9 against the Diamondbacks if his injury recovery goes as planned.

As Gray noted, both he and the Reds surely want to be as cautious as possible, though Gray’s absence does create a larger void in Cincinnati’s rotation that has taken some hits in recent days. Fifth starter candidate Tejay Antone left today’s game with a minor groin strain, while Wade Miley left a game earlier this week due to a hamstring injury. While there has yet to be word the seriousness of these injuries, should IL placements also be required, the Reds would be starting the year with a provisional rotation of Luis Castillo, Tyler Mahle, Michael Lorenzen, Jeff Hoffman, and Jose De Leon. Cincy picked up another arm today by claiming Carson Fulmer off waivers from the Pirates.

Rangers Prospect Bayron Lora In Car Accident

By Mark Polishuk | March 14, 2021 at 4:11pm CDT

MARCH 14: Lora has been released from the hospital, reports Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). An investigation into the accident is ongoing.

MARCH 13: Rangers outfield prospect Bayron Lora is in hospital after a recent car accident in his native Dominican Republic, Hector Gomez of Deportivo Z 101 (Twitter links) reports. One of the passengers in Lora’s car was killed in the collision. Lora and the other passengers are in serious condition, though in a follow-up tweet, Gomez writes that Lora “has been recovering satisfactorily.”

The Rangers released a statement, saying “We are aware of the accident involving Bayron Lora and several other individuals today in the Dominican Republic. We are working to gather more information at this time. Our thoughts and prayers are with the individuals who were involved in this accident and with their families. We have will have no further comment until we have more information on the accident. Thank you for your understanding.”

The 18-year-old Lora signed with Texas during the 2019-20 international signing window, inking a deal that contained a $3.9MM bonus. Lora was considered one of the top hitting prospects of the 2019-20 int’l class, with MLB Pipeline’s scouting report citing his “prodigious bat speed and strength.” Pipeline ranks Lora 20th on its list of the Rangers’ top 30 prospects, and gave Texas fans a noteworthy comp in saying that Lora is “looks like Joey Gallo’s tag-team partner and produces similar exit velocities.”

NL Notes: Rodgers, Carrasco, Cardinals, Nationals

By Anthony Franco | March 14, 2021 at 3:00pm CDT

Rockies infielder Brendan Rodgers left yesterday’s Spring Training contest after pulling up while trying to steal second base. He has since been diagnosed with a right hamstring strain, per Thomas Harding of MLB.com (Twitter link). It isn’t yet clear if the issue threatens his availability for Opening Day. If healthy, the former #3 overall pick looks to have a clear path to everyday playing time at second base. Should he be forced to miss time, Garrett Hampson or Josh Fuentes could stand to see an increased role (the latter at third base with Ryan McMahon playing the keystone). Chris Owings is also back in camp as a non-roster invitee and has plenty of second base experience.

Reds Claim Carson Fulmer

By Anthony Franco | March 14, 2021 at 2:34pm CDT

The Reds announced they’ve claimed right-hander Carson Fulmer off waivers from the Pirates. Pittsburgh designated Fulmer for assignment last week to create 40-man roster space after acquiring Duane Underwood Jr.

Fulmer has pitched parts of five seasons at the major league level and has yet to find much success. Over 105 career innings, he has just a 6.34 ERA/5.41 SIERA. Fulmer has posted worse than average strikeout (18.9%), walk (13.9%) and groundball (37.5%) rates.

In spite of the poor results, the 27-year-old has continued to attract interest around the league. Within the past eight months, the former eighth overall pick has been claimed off waivers by the Tigers, Pirates (twice) and Orioles. In each situation, the claiming team had been near the top of the league by waiver priority. Fulmer fell a little farther down the waiver order this time around, but he’ll find another landing spot nonetheless.

It’s hardly a surprise to see the Reds put in a claim for Fulmer. The Cincinnati organization has been rather open about their affinity for pitchers with high spin rates, and Fulmer certainly qualifies. The 27-year-old sat in the 91st percentile in fastball spin and 88th percentile in curveball spin last season, per Statcast. While that has yet to translate to MLB performance, there’s no harm for the Reds in taking a flier. Fulmer is out of minor league options, so he’ll need to either break camp with the big league club or else again be offered to rival teams.

Stephen Strasburg Day-To-Day With Calf Injury

By Anthony Franco | March 14, 2021 at 2:23pm CDT

2:23 pm: Fortunately, it seems there’s not much cause for concern. Strasburg felt some discomfort in his left calf but says the issue is “nothing major” (via Dougherty). “It’s not something that’s going to require any sort (of) long-term recovery. It’s definitely good news. So day-to-day,” Strasburg added.

1:23 pm: Nationals starter Stephen Strasburg left his Spring Training outing early this afternoon, Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post was among those to note (video provided by Alex Fast of Pitcher List). He appeared to show discomfort in his lower half.

There’s no indication at this point the issue is particularly serious. A return to form from Strasburg is key to the Nats’ hopes of contending in the NL East in 2021. After shining in the regular season between 2017-19, he took his game to new heights in the 2019 playoffs, helping Washington to a championship and winning World Series MVP honors. Unfortunately, carpal tunnel syndrome limited Strasburg to just five innings over two starts in 2020.

The Nationals are hoping for Strasburg to join Max Scherzer, Patrick Corbin and Jon Lester in the season-opening rotation. The fifth spot remains undecided between Joe Ross and Erick Fedde, although Ross appears to have the inside track.

Austin Nola Fractures Finger

By Anthony Franco | March 14, 2021 at 12:09pm CDT

Padres catcher Austin Nola has suffered a fractured left middle finger, manager Jayce Tingler announced to reporters (including AJ Cassavell of MLB.com and Dennis Lin of the Athletic). The injury occurred when Nola was struck with a foul tip during yesterday’s Spring Training contest, Tingler added. A definitive timetable will become clearer in a couple days.

With less than three weeks until Opening Day, it’s possible Nola will have to open the season on the injured list. If that’s the case, San Diego does have a capable replacement. Backup Víctor Caratini has a .250/.327/.372 line over the past four seasons and has generally rated well defensively. The 27-year-old also has a rapport with Yu Darvish, part of the reason he was acquired alongside the reigning NL Cy Young runner-up in this offseason’s blockbuster with the Cubs. Top prospect Luis Campusano is the only other catcher on the Padres’ 40-man roster. Campusano made his MLB debut last year due to the anomalous nature of the 2020 season but has only played one game above the High-A level.

While the Friars are more equipped than most teams to handle an absence to their top catcher, losing Nola for any extended period of time would be a difficult blow. Despite not making his MLB debut until his age-30 season in 2019, Nola has rather incredibly broken out as one of the sport’s most productive backstops over the past two seasons. He has a cumulative .271/.347/.461 slash between the Mariners and Padres, popping 17 home runs in 451 plate appearances while showcasing high-end glovework behind the plate.

East Notes: Andujar, Chirinos, Brasier, Rainey

By Anthony Franco | March 14, 2021 at 9:53am CDT

Miguel Andújar has been held back by soreness in his right hand/wrist area and will see a specialist tomorrow, Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including Marly Rivera of ESPN and Lindsey Adler of the Athletic). That evaluation will surely provide a clearer diagnosis and timetable for Andújar’s return to action, but this seemingly raises the possibility of a season-opening IL stint. Andújar hasn’t played much over the past two years after a strong rookie season in 2018. The 26-year-old has been frequently mentioned as a possible trade candidate based on the offensive upside he showed a few years ago and his lack of an obvious path to playing time in New York. The Yankees could continue to hold onto him as high-minors depth, though, as Andújar has an option year remaining.

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