AL Notes: Yankees, Rendon, Mondesi, Rays
The Yankees were supposed to be one of baseball’s premier teams this year, but they haven’t looked the part so far. The club is currently in a tailspin, having lost five in a row to fall to an American League-worst 5-10. Nevertheless, general manager Brian Cashman isn’t panicking. The longtime executive gave votes of confidence to the Yankees’ roster and manager Aaron Boone on Monday, per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. Cashman indicated the Yankees aren’t going to make any knee-jerk decisions with their roster or in their dugout as a result of their poor start. “That’s the message to our players: ‘We do believe in you,” he said. “We know what you’re capable of. This is a bad stretch, and we’re going to get through this together.” Cashman did admit that owner Hal Steinbrenner is “disappointed” with how the team has performed, but it doesn’t seem as if that will lead to any kind of drastic changes. “I’ve got a lot of trust in the people we have,” Cashman declared.
- Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon began baseball activities Monday, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. Rendon landed on the 10-day injured list April 12 (retroactive to April 11) with a left groin strain, though he won’t return when he’s first eligible on Wednesday. The Angels have used Jose Rojas, Jack Mayfield and Luis Rengifo at third over the past week, but all three have failed to produce. Rojas, who leads the Angels in playing time at the hot corner since Rendon went down, has gotten one hit in 19 plate appearances. Mayfield and Rengifo are a combined 1-for-8.
- Royals shortstop Adalberto Mondesi has already missed three weeks with a right oblique strain, and a return doesn’t appear imminent. Manager Mike Matheny said Monday that Mondesi is “doing limited control movement” and hasn’t begun taking swings since he went on the IL on March 30. The Royals have gotten off to a surprising 9-5 start without Mondesi, in part because fill-in Nicky Lopez has put up respectable production in his stead, but they surely want last year’s stolen base champ back sooner than later.
- The Rays placed left-hander Ryan Sherriff on the restricted list April 3 when he decided to take time off from the game, but he has returned to the organization, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Sherriff will head to minor league camp in order to get himself back into pitching shape. The 30-year-old has only thrown one-third of an inning for the Rays this season, but he held opposing offenses scoreless over 9 2/3 innings in 2020. Sherriff added another two scoreless frames against the Dodgers in a pair of World Series appearances.
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Twins To Resume Play Tuesday
APRIL 19, 8:54pm: The A’s announced that they’ll play a doubleheader against the Twins on Tuesday.
7:56pm: The Twins’ latest tests came back negative, tweets Rosenthal, who adds that they’re on track to resume play Tuesday.
APRIL 18, 7:34PM: The Twins’ latest round of COVID-19 testing came back negative, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (via Twitter). If tomorrow’s tests are also negative, the team will depart for Oakland with the intention of playing the Tuesday doubleheader.
1:37PM: Major League Baseball has confirmed the postponement of tomorrow’s game. A Tuesday doubleheader has been tentatively scheduled.
1:29PM: Athletics manager Bob Melvin told reporters this afternoon it is his understanding tomorrow’s game between the Twins and Athletics will be postponed (via Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press). The hope is the two teams will be able to return to action on Tuesday, with a doubleheader to make up Monday’s game a possibility.
The Twins’ past two games against the Angels were postponed due to the spread of a COVID-19 variant among the Minnesota clubhouse. To date, three Minnesota players (including Andrelton Simmons and Kyle Garlick) and a staff member have tested positive. The Twins are continuing to monitor for further viral spread.
Minnesota and Oakland were originally scheduled for a three-game series from April 19-21. Both teams have a scheduled off day on Thursday.
MLBTR Poll: Boston’s Hot Start
After ending the shortened 2020 season with a 24-36 record and a last-place finish in the American League East, the Red Sox were not a popular playoff pick entering the current campaign. Sure, the team reunited with World Series-winning manager Alex Cora, but its offseason was otherwise a fairly low-key one. The big-market Red Sox’s largest free-agent guarantee went to utility player Enrique Hernandez, who signed a two-year, $14MM guarantee, and they didn’t make any blockbuster acquisitions on the trade market. They also knew they would spend a sizable chunk of 2021 without left-handed ace Chris Sale, who isn’t quite 13 full months removed from Tommy John surgery.
With a forgettable 2020 and an understated winter in their rear-view mirror, the Red Sox began this season poorly with a three-game sweep at the hands of the lowly Orioles. At that very early point, it looked as if Boston might be in for another lean year, though the team has since done a 180. The Red Sox climbed out of their hole with a stunning nine straight victories, and while they have lost three of five since then, they’re still an impressive 11-6, atop the American League and 2 1/2 games up in the AL East. They earned their latest victory Monday in an 11-4 drubbing of the White Sox and ace Lucas Giolito, whom they chased in the second inning after pummeling him for eight runs over one-plus frame.
The Red Sox have been a well-rounded outfit during their sizzling start, as their offense and pitching have combined to give the club the AL’s top run differential (plus-28). As of this writing, the Red Sox are second in the majors in wRC+ and third in runs scored, owing largely to their three best hitters (J.D. Martinez, Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts) and solid complementary performances from Alex Verdugo, Christian Vazquez and Christian Arroyo. Meanwhile, Nathan Eovaldi has carried their Sale-less rotation, and their bullpen has received great work from the likes of Matt Barnes, Matt Andriese, Phillips Valdez and Rule 5 pick Garrett Whitlock, among others. Between its starters and relievers, Boston owns a respectable 3.70 ERA/3.89 SIERA.
The rest of the AL East hasn’t looked nearly as sharp as the Red Sox to this point. The Rays, the defending division champions and pennant winners, are in second at 8-8. The injury-riddled Blue Jays are 7-9, as are the Orioles, though Toronto is far more likely than Baltimore to threaten Boston over a 162-game schedule. And then there’s the last-place Yankees, who have done seemingly nothing right during a surprising 5-10 start.
In most cases, it’s much too soon to crown a club or write one off, but the Red Sox have looked like the class of their division thus far. Do you think they’re good enough to hang in the AL race the rest of the way?
(Poll link for app users)
Is Boston a legitimate threat in the AL?
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Yes 51% (4,763)
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No 49% (4,579)
Total votes: 9,342
Phillies Place 3 On Injured List
5:13pm: No Phillies players are known to have tested positive for COVID, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets.
3:27pm: The Phillies announced that they have placed a pair of left-handers – Jose Alvarado and Matt Moore – as well as infielder Ronald Torreyes on the COVID-19 injured list for undisclosed reasons. The club recalled lefties Damon Jones and Cristopher Sanchez to fill in for Alvarado and Moore, while infielder Nick Maton is up for Torreyes. It’s unknown how much time Alvarado, Moore and Torreyes will miss.
Alvarado, an offseason pickup from Tampa Bay, has been a key part of the Phillies’ bullpen so far. Through 5 2/3 innings, the 25-year-old has averaged a career-high 99.5 mph on his fastball and held hitters to one run on four hits and two walks, also adding 10 strikeouts.
Moore hasn’t fared nearly as well as Alvarez. The 31-year-old returned from a one-year stint in Japan in free agency on a $3MM guarantee, and while he did claim a spot in the Phillies’ rotation, his first three starts have been a disaster. Eleven innings into his season, Moore has yielded 12 earned runs on 17 hits, including four homers, and 12 walks (15 strikeouts).
Torreyes has garnered the least playing time of the three, having appeared in three games and totaled five plate appearances so far.
In other Phillies news, the team announced that first base coach Paco Figueroa and and coaching assistant Bobby Meacham have entered COVID protocols. Infield coach Juan Castro will take over for Figueroa during his absence, while Triple-A LeHigh Valley manager Gary Jones will handle third base duties. Meacham had been filling in since third base coach Dusty Wathan went into COVID protocols last week.
Giants Select Trevor Gott
The Giants have selected the contract of right-hander Trevor Gott, Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group was among those to report. The club also recalled left-hander Sam Selman and optioned outfielder Steven Duggar and catcher Chadwick Tromp. With hurlers Jake McGee and Logan Webb on the COVID list, the Giants won’t have to make a corresponding 40-man move to clear room for Gott.
Gott and Selman will give the Giants’ bullpen a pair of fresh arms after their relievers totaled 11 2/3 innings over the weekend in the team’s three-game series against the Marlins. The 28-year-old Gott was a regular in San Francisco’s bullpen in each of the previous two seasons, but the club designated him for assignment in February and then retained him after he cleared waivers.
In 2019, his first season with the Giants, Gott threw 52 2/3 innings of 4.44 ERA ball, but he finished with a more palatable 3.73 SIERA and posted above-average strikeout and walk percentages of 26.6 and 7.9, respectively. Gott wasn’t able to build on the positives last season, though, as he yielded 13 earned runs on 13 hits (including seven homers) across 11 2/3 frames. He also ended the year with as many walks as strikeouts (eight).
Starling Marte Suffers Fractured Rib
APRIL 19: Marte suffered a non-displaced fracture in the 12th rib on his left side, the Marlins announced. He’ll go five to seven days without baseball activities, and then the Marlins will re-evaluate him. In the meantime, he’ll head to the IL.
APRIL 18: Marlins outfielder Starling Marte left today’s game in the middle of a ninth-inning plate appearance due to what appeared to be an injury to his side or oblique area. After the first two pitches of the at-bat, Marte grabbed at his side, and was taken out of the game after being observed by manager Don Mattingly and a team trainer.
Speaking to The Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson and other reporters after the game, Mattingly said that Marte wanted to keep playing, but the skipper opted to be cautious.
“He’s a big part of what we do. He’s that cog in the offense, defense, on the bases….That’s the reason to pull him out of the game,” Mattingly said. “You don’t want to lose this guy for six weeks. It could be a couple weeks. It could be 10 days. It could be five days. We want it to be the minimum.”
While Marte will undergo further testing to determine the extent of the injury, Mattingly comments seem to indicate that the center fielder will miss at least some time, and likely make a trip to the 10-day injured list. If the injury is indeed oblique-related, it would be the third such injury of Marte’s career, though the first two IL stints (in 2012 and 2018) didn’t keep Marte out of action for too long.
Nonetheless, any setback is an unfortunate interruption to Marte’s superb start, as he had a .310/.414/.483 slash line and two home runs over his first 70 PA of the season. Magneuris Sierra is the most probable candidate to step into center field duty if Marte does have to miss an extended amount of time, and Miami could also call up Lewis Brinson or Monte Harrison from the alternate training site.
Reds Activate Sonny Gray, Outright Cam Bedrosian
APRIL 19: The Reds have outrighted Bedrosian to their alternate site, Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. He’ll remain in the organization.
APRIL 17: The Reds are activating right-hander Sonny Gray from the injured list to start this afternoon’s game against the Indians. In a corresponding move, reliever Cam Bedrosian has been designated for assignment (via C. Trent Rosecrans of the Athletic).
Gray has long been expected to make his return at some point this week. A back injury has kept the right-hander out of action in the early going. His return should be a boon to the Reds, since Gray pitched to a 3.70 ERA/3.83 SIERA over 11 starts last season. Given the lack of a minor-league setting to build back his arm strength, though, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Reds be particularly cautious with his workload over his first few starts.
The return of Gray bumps the 29-year-old Bedrosian from the roster. Formerly a productive reliever with the Angels, the righty has gotten off to a disastrous start in 2021. Over 5.2 innings across six games, Bedrosian has coughed up seven runs on ten hits (including a pair of homers) with six walks and seven strikeouts.
NL Notes: Castellanos, Pirates, Reynolds, Nationals
Major League Baseball denied Nick Castellanos‘ appeal of his two-game suspension, so the Cincinnati outfielder will serve his suspension when the Reds play the Diamondbacks on Tuesday and Wednesday. Castellanos was suspended for his part in a bench-clearing incident between the Reds and Cardinals earlier this month, when Castellanos scored a run and then flexed over Cards pitcher Jake Woodford, who was covering the plate. Castellanos was on base in the first place due to a hit-by-pitch that drew a heated response from the slugger, and his reaction to Woodford at home plate led to both benches emptying.
Castellanos was the only player issued a suspension, which was a little surprising given the number of players involved in the fracas. Fines were issued to Castellanos and five other players (Jesse Winker, Eugenio Suarez, Jordan Hicks, Yadier Molina, and Nolan Arenado).
More from the National League…
- Ke’Bryan Hayes‘ return to the Pirates‘ lineup could help address the team’s problem in center field, as Dustin Fowler and Anthony Alford have both gotten off to dreadful starts to the season. As noted by Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Bryan Reynolds made a mid-game shift to center field yesterday, marking Reynolds’ first appearances in center all season. Reynolds has been solid (+3 Defensive Runs Saved, +3.4 UZR/150) over 322 1/3 career innings as a center fielder, though the Bucs have preferred to use him in left, believing it to be his more optimal defensive position. Moving Reynolds to center field, however, would allow Pittsburgh to give the red-hot Phillip Evans some time as a left fielder once Hayes reclaims third base.
- Thanks to four upcoming off-days in the schedule, the Nationals may not need a fifth starter until May 8, Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post writes. That counts as good news for a team that has already dealt with several injuries and COVID-related absences to starting pitchers this season. It isn’t yet clear when Jon Lester will make his season debut, but if he still needs a couple more weeks, the Nats could ride with their current starting four of Max Scherzer, Patrick Corbin, Joe Ross, and Erick Fedde, with Austin Voth and Paolo Espino available as depth options if a spot start is required or if Washington does decide to go with a five-man rotation. (It’s also worth noting that the Nationals have been exploring a possible reunion with Anibal Sanchez, but those plans may be on hold since Sanchez cut his finger while pitching at a recent showcase for scouts.) D.C. won’t have its full rotation back until Stephen Strasburg returns from the injured list, and Corbin is another concern, as the southpaw was crushed in his first two outings of the season.
Ronald Acuna Jr. Day-To-Day After Suffering Mild Abdominal Strain
TODAY: Acuna is day-to-day after an MRI “revealed a mild abdominal strain,” the Braves announced via Twitter.
APRIL 18: 9:50PM: Acuna has an abdominal strain, according to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (Twitter link). A decision about an injured list placement will come tomorrow.
7:48PM: Braves superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. left tonight’s game against the Cubs in the fourth inning “due to pain in his lower abdominal muscles,” the team announced.
Acuna drew a walk to begin the fourth inning, and then “appeared to tweak something” (as per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian) while diving back to the bag on a pickoff attempt. After advancing to second base on a Freddie Freeman walk, Acuna was visited by the Braves trainer but remained in the game, and later had to dive across the plate to score on a Travis d’Arnaud fly ball. For the bottom of the fourth, Ehire Adrianza took Acuna’s spot in right field and Johan Camargo entered the game to take over for Adrianza at second base.
More will be known about Acuna’s status after he undergoes tests, but needless to say, both Atlanta fans and the entire baseball world at large are holding their breath that the injury is a minor one. After establishing himself as one of the sport’s best players in his first three MLB seasons, Acuna is already drawing NL MVP buzz after hitting an extraordinary .419/.486/.887 with seven home runs over his first 72 plate appearances.
Should Acuna have to miss any time, he’ll join fellow outfielders Cristian Pache and Ender Inciarte on the injured list. The shorthanded Braves still have Marcell Ozuna in left field, but might have to rely on some combination of Guillermo Heredia, Adrianza, Camargo, or Austin Riley to handle the other two outfield positions in the interim. Atlanta does have several experienced options at its alternate training site (including Phil Ervin, Abraham Almonte, and Terrance Gore), as well as top prospect Drew Waters.