Marlins’ Paul Campbell Issued 80-Game PED Suspension
Marlins right-hander Paul Campbell has been suspended for 80 games for violating Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, the league announced. Campbell tested positive for Dehydrochlormethyltestosterone (DHCMT).
Originally a 21st-round pick for the Rays in the 2017 draft, Campbell was selected out of Tampa Bay’s organization by the Marlins in last December’s Rule 5 draft. Making his big league debut this season, Campbell had an 8.74 ERA over 11 1/3 innings for Miami, with a below-average 21.3% strikeout rate but with some respectable hard-contact numbers. Control was also an issue, with six walks allowed in Campbell’s 11 1/3 frames.
Via the MLB Players Association, Campbell released a statement about his suspension, saying he “never knowingly, willingly, or intentionally ingested this substance in any form, nor have I ever heard of DHCMT prior to this situation.”
“Due to the fact that I do not know the origin of how this substance has entered into my system, I currently have no viable defense in support of my innocence. I have unfortunately become one of the many athletes, across multiple sports, who are presenting themselves to the world and asking for members of the anti-doping world to help us find answers as to why this metabolite is continuing to show up in athletes’ bodies and ultimately costing them significant detours in their careers.”
DHCMT has been a subject of controversy in recent years, as The Wall Street Journal’s Jared Diamond explored in a piece last August. Kent Emanuel, Tres Barrera, Chris Colabello, and Alec Asher are a few of the other MLB players who have been suspended for DHCMT, and Emanuel recently stated (hat tip to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal) that the league rejected an MLBPA proposal stating that a player couldn’t be suspended unless he had more than 100 pictograms of DHCMT in his system.
Dodgers Claim Phil Bickford, Designate Mike Kickham
The Dodgers have claimed right-hander Phil Bickford off waivers from the Brewers. Both teams have announced the move, with the Dodgers designating left-hander Mike Kickham for assignment to create roster space.
Bickford pitched just one inning for the Brewers in 2021, to go along with his lone inning for the team last season. Twice a first-round draft pick (for the Blue Jays in 2013 and, after opting to attend college, with the Giants in 2015), Bickford’s career has been stalled by injuries and a 50-game suspension for a drug of abuse in 2017.
The righty is still only 25 years old, however, and has yet to pitch in either Double-A or Triple-A ball. It could be that some time in a proper minor league game environment will help hone Bickford’s potential as a relief pitcher, since he recorded a whopping 53 strikeouts in 32 2/3 bullpen innings (with a 2.48 ERA) for Milwaukee’s high-A affiliate in 2019.
Kickham signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in the offseason and had his contract selected by the team yesterday. He tossed two innings of mop-up work in the Dodgers’ 16-4 victory over the Brewers, though Kickham allowed three earned runs. The 32-year-old has now appeared in four Major League seasons, though with a sizeable gap in between — Kickham pitched for the Giants in 2013-14 and then worked in the minors before resurfacing for 14 innings with the Red Sox in 2020.
Rockies Name Bill Schmidt As Interim GM
1:41PM: The Rockies have officially announced Schmidt as the new interim GM. As per the team’s press release, “Schmidt will oversee all aspects of the club’s baseball operations,” which would perhaps imply that Feasel will either return his focus to business operations, or simply that Schmidt is the top voice in all baseball-related matters.
1:05PM: Rockies vice-president of scouting Bill Schmidt is expected to be named the club’s interim general manager, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding reports (Twitter link). After former GM Jeff Bridich resigned last week, there had been speculation that an internal name would take on the interim position, with Schmidt and assistant general managers Zack Rosenthal, Jon Weil, and Zach Wilson all floated as potential candidates to assume the role.
Schmidt has almost four decades of experience in pro baseball, beginning as a minor league coach in the Reds, Brewers, and Yankees organizations while also working as a scout with the Reds and Yankees. After working as a crosschecker with the Indians for four seasons, Schmidt joined the Rockies in 1999 and has become a fixture of the organization, assuming his current VP-scouting job in 2007.
Harding notes that Schmidt has been in charge of the Rockies’ drafts since 2000, which is a positive sign given how much notable homegrown talent the club has been able to find over the years. The larger issue, of course, has been how that talent has been been developed and utilized by a Rockies franchise that has struggled to put a consistent winner on the field — the Rox have topped the .500 mark just six times in Schmidt’s 21+ seasons in Denver. Building around that in-house talent was Bridich’s largest pitfall as GM, not to mention his falling-out with Nolan Arenado (speaking of prominent homegrown Rockies stars) that led to Arenado’s trade to the Cardinals.
The Rockies announced last week that the interim general manager would run the team for the remainder of the 2021 season, with team president Greg Feasel overseeing the baseball operations department on top of his previous responsibilities running the business operations. A search for a permanent GM (and possibly a head of baseball operations) will take place after the season.
Schmidt faces some immediate decisions, as the 10-18 Rockies are in last place and are the only NL West team with a losing record. If the team decides to rebuild, Schmidt might oversee some of the initial heavy lifting, such as potentially moving impending free agents Trevor Story and Jon Gray before the July 30th trade deadline.
With that in mind, the 2021 campaign could serve as something of an audition for Schmidt. Since owner Dick Monfort is known to value continuity and familiarity, it isn’t out of the question that Schmidt could be a candidate to become the full-time GM. Given that the Rockies have long been accused of an insular approach, the Colorado fanbase likely wouldn’t be pleased at another internal promotion, as it has been widely speculated that the Rockies would benefit from some fresh perspectives and a new approach in the baseball ops department (and less interference from Monfort).
Red Sox Claim Brandon Brennan From Mariners
The Red Sox have claimed right-hander Brandon Brennan off waivers from the Mariners. Brennan has been assigned to Triple-A Worcester. Righty Ryan Brasier was moved on the 60-day injured list to open up space for Brennan on Boston’s 40-man roster.
Seattle designated Brennan for assignment last week. The 29-year-old righty came to the Mariners from the Rockies in the 2018 Rule 5 Draft, and posted a 4.56 ERA and an above-average 24% strikeout rate over 47 1/3 innings for the M’s in his 2019 rookie season. Shoulder problems sidelined Brennan for over two and a half months of the 2019 season, and an oblique strain limited him to 7 1/3 innings in 2020.
Brennan hadn’t yet seen any MLB action this season, as he had been working at the Mariners’ alternate training site. His addition will add a bit more relief depth to a Red Sox pen that has been without Brasier, who began the year on the IL due to a calf strain, and he was also recovering from a fractured pinky finger during the season. It didn’t seem like Brasier was going to be back before June anyway, so his move to the 60-day IL is essentially just a procedural move on Boston’s part.
Rockies Release Ivan Nova
The Rockies released right-hander Ivan Nova from his minor league deal last week, The Athletic’s Nick Groke reports (via Twitter). It was a brief stint for Nova in the organization, as he only just signed with Colorado back on April 12.
Nova also signed a minors contract with the Phillies in January, but he was granted his release near the end of Spring Training since he wasn’t going to make the Opening Day roster. Nova’s deal with Philadelphia contained an out clause, and it isn’t known if a similar opt-out was also included in his Rockies contract — given the timing of the release, it’s possible that Nova had the ability to opt out of the deal if he wasn’t on Colorado’s big league roster by May 1, for instance.
A veteran of 11 MLB seasons, Nova posted an 8.53 ERA over 19 innings for the Tigers in 2020, missing much of the season due to right triceps tendinitis. The right-hander has been a reliable innings-eater for much of his career (tossing 187 frames for the White Sox as recently as 2019) and also delivered some solid results despite a big fastball and a below-average strikeout rate, as Nova has relied on soft contact and 48.9% grounder rate. With a 5.07 ERA/5.23 SIERA over his last 206 big league innings, however, it remains to be seen if Nova can offer anything more than just innings as he enters his age-34 season.
Pirates Sign Christian Bethancourt To Minors Contract
The Pirates have signed catcher Christian Bethancourt to a minor league deal, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). Bethancourt will report to Pittsburgh’s Triple-A affiliate for the beginning of the minor league season.
From 2013-17, Bethancourt hit .222/.252/.316 over 489 plate appearances with the Braves and Padres, primarily playing catcher but also getting some time as a corner outfielder, second baseman, and even as a pitcher over six relief appearances. (He also played some first base in the minors.) Bethancourt is still looking for a return trip to the majors, having played with the Brewers’ Triple-A team in 2018, the KBO League’s NC Dinos in 2019, and he has also inked minor league contracts with the Phillies in each of the last two offseasons but didn’t see any official playing time with Philadelphia.
Bethancourt will likely be deployed as catching depth, joining Andrew Susac and Joe Hudson as MLB-experienced backstops in Pittsburgh’s farm system. Jacob Stallings and Michael Perez are the Pirates’ top two catchers at the big league level, and since the Bucs are still in the midst of a rebuild, it wouldn’t be a shock if Stallings (currently hitting a cool .246/.388/.400 in 80 PA) was moved before the July trade deadline. This could open the door for Bethancourt or one of the other catchers to be bumped up to the active roster.
Latest On Padres Rotation
After a flurry of offseason acquisitions, the Padres entered the season with arguably one of the deepest pools of rotation candidates in the game. But just a month into the season, even the Padres are already looking at a bullpen game. Miguel Diaz will be the nominal starter today, but the 26-year-old right-hander has been working 3-4 inning stints at the Padres’ alternate site in preparation, writes Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. He has appeared in 47 games for the Padres going back to 2017 and only three times as a starter.
In the near term, the Padres are holding out hope that either Ryan Weathers or Dinelson Lamet will be ready to start on Tuesday, adds Acee. Said manager Jayce Tingler, “Both of them were pretty aggressive with their bullpens today and came out reporting feeling well. We think that’s a good step for both guys. We’ll see how they respond tomorrow and go from there.”
Lamet has made just one start his year, going two scoreless before being removed because of forearm soreness. Weathers, 21, was the youngest starting pitcher in baseball, and he’d been nothing short of brilliant before leaving his last start with arm soreness. The young southpaw has a 0.55 ERA/3.23 FIP over 16 1/3 innings combined out of the pen and rotation.
There remains no word on Chris Paddack, who was placed on the injured list without an injury designation. Presumably, that points to something Covid-19-related (be it a positive test, close contact or self-reported symptoms). That could mean a quick turnaround for Paddack as we have seen with a few players this year, but only time will tell. If Paddack isn’t able to return shortly, the Friars hope that Lamet and Weathers could fill out the rotation. Otherwise, Diaz may be in for more than just a spot start.
Rockies Make Contact With Ruben Amaro Jr.
The Rockies aren’t expected to hire a new general manager until next winter, but they have begun to sniff around potential candidates. Former Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. is the first name on the public list, per the Athletic’s Nick Groke (via Twitter). Said Amaro, “I would have some interest under the right circumstance. I think they’re figuring out who would be a real candidate and who wouldn’t.”Amaro Jr. is currently a color analyst on the Phillies’ broadcast team.
Amaro Jr. took over from Pat Gillick as the Phillies GM in November of 2008 just after the Phillies won the World Series. Amaro Jr. would lead the Phils to another pennan in 2009, but ultimately, a very talented Philadelphia team with Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard would fail to win another title. They would, however, make the playoffs in each of Amaro’s first three seasons.
Amaro Jr. was particularly criticized for handing Howard a five-year, $125MM extension in 2010 that wouldn’t kick in for another two years at the time of the signing. By the time the extension started, Howard was 32 years old and coming off a devastating Achilles injury. Howard would hit .226/.292/.427 over the length of the deal. Amaro Jr., however, wouldn’t be around to see the end of it: he was let go in September of 2015.
As for his fit with the Rockies, Amaro’s perceived shortcomings somewhat mirror those of the previous Colorado regime. Amaro Jr. drew ire in Philadelphia for holding on too long to the World-Series-winning core and failing to get enough back for those players he did deal away, such as Lee. He also wasn’t afraid to spend big money on free agent relievers, though the $50MM Amaro Jr. used to sign Jonathan Papelbon was considerably more productive than any of the Rockies’ recent splurges.
Amaro Jr. didn’t exactly leave the Phillies empty-handed, however, as he was responsible for acquiring Aaron Nola and Zach Eflin, as well as players like Ken Giles, J.P. Crawford, Sixto Sanchez, and Jorge Alfaro. The latter group no longer plays in Philly, but they were the talent pool from which Amaro’s successors were able to replenish the team via trades for J.T. Realmuto and Jean Segura, for example.
Of course, as the first name made public, there’s no indication that Amaro Jr. is anything more than one possible candidate in the first wave of potential applicants to become Jeff Bridich’s long-term replacement.
Injury Notes: Diaz, Springer, Arihara
Let’s begin our Monday morning by rounding up some injury news from yesterday’s games…
- Edwin Diaz left last night’s game against the Phillies after serving up a two-run double to Rhys Hoskins. Diaz was dealing with some back pain, but it doesn’t sound like the Mets are overly concerned, per Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News (via Twitter). The Mets held on for the win anyway, pulling ahead of the Phillies into a tie for first place with the Nationals. Diaz has a 4.22 ERA/2.17 FIP in 10 2/3 innings so far with three saves, a slightly-depressed 31.8 percent strikeout rate and 11.4 percent walk rate. His velocity has been good so far this year with an average 98.8 mph fastball. If he misses time, Jeurys Familia could step in as he did last name, when he snagged the final out for the save.
- George Springer was pulled from yesterday’s game because of fatigue in his legs, writes Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca. A quad injury has been bothering Springer as he tries to round himself into regular season form. While it’s a little concerning to see Springer pulled from just his fourth game of the year, it doesn’t sound as if the Blue Jays anticipate another injured list stint. Said manager Charlie Montoyo, “He felt it a little bit and we said, ‘OK, there’s no sense with this hot weather and stuff to force you to hit another at-bat or run or something. So, let’s just stop right there.'”
- Kohei Arihara received an injection in his right middle finger recently to help with some soreness around a callus, but he’s still likely to miss at least one start and potentially even land on the injured list, per MLB.com’s Daniel Guerrero. With Arihara set to miss time, Hyeon-jong Yang will move into the rotation. Yang has been good in two longer stints out of the pen, allowing just two earned runs in 8 2/3 innings. Yang was a starter in the KBO, though the 33-year-old is coming off a less-than-stellar year in which he racked up a 4.70 ERA in 172 1/3 innings over 31 starts for the Kia Tigers.
Pedro Strop Takes Personal Leave From Cubs
Right-hander Pedro Strop is back home in the Dominican Republic on a leave of absence for personal reasons, NBC Sports Chicago’s Gordon Wittenmyer reports. These seem to be all the details known at this time, as the Cubs haven’t given an official comment on the situation.
A member of the Cubs from 2013-19, Strop returned to the club on a minor league deal last September, with an injury-riddled and brief (2 1/3 innings) stint with the Reds representing his only action in the 2020 season. Strop signed a new minors contract with Chicago in February and then made it to the MLB roster for a pair of scoreless innings over two appearances in April. He had been working at the Cubs’ alternate training site since April 17.
It isn’t clear when, or even if, Strop could return to action. Wittenmyer notes that Strop wasn’t included on the Triple-A roster (or the rosters of any of the Cubs’ affiliates), which is notable since the minor league season begins this week.