Rays Select Oliver Dunn
The Rays announced that they have selected the contract of just-acquired infielder Oliver Dunn from Triple-A Durham. He’ll take the active roster spot of fellow infielder Ben Williamson, who’s headed to the 10-day injured list due to a lower back strain. The Rays acquired Dunn from the White Sox in exchange for lefty Joe Rock last night.
Tampa Bay also reinstated veteran left-hander Steven Matz from the 15-day injured list and optioned righty Chase Solesky to Durham in a corresponding move. Matz will start today’s game, per the team.
Dunn, 28, doesn’t have an impressive big league track record but has been on a tear with the Sox’ top affiliate in Charlotte this season. He’s a .206/.261/.290 in parts of two seasons (145 plate appearances) with the Brewers, but Dunn has raked at a .295/.393/.545 clip with the Knights this season. He’s connected on nine homers, gone 9-for-10 in stolen base attempts and walked at a stout 13.1% clip (against a 23.5% strikeout rate).
Dunn gives the Rays a left-handed bat with some versatility to step in for Williamson, who’s seen time at second base, shortstop and third base for the Rays this season while batting .268/.349/.349 (99 wRC+). Dunn hasn’t played shortstop in the majors but has 262 minor league innings there (196 across the past two seasons). He has ample experience at third base and second base in addition to more limited work in left field and at first base.
The Opener: Marte, Thornton, Dodgers/Padres
The Mets and Nationals are having one of the weirder series of the year. New York scored 10 runs in the 12th inning on Monday. Washington erased a 5-0 deficit on Tuesday by hanging nine runs (six earned) on Nolan McLean, including an inside-the-park grand slam by James Wood. And the four-game set is only half over.
1. Marte wins it for D-Backs
The Diamondbacks scored in the first inning on Tuesday against the Giants. They were then shut out for seven innings. The bats came alive in the bottom of the ninth inning, with Arizona scoring four times, capped off by a Ketel Marte walk-off home run. It was the first walk-off homer in the veteran’s 12-year career. Marte hasn’t boosted his OPS above .700 since mid-April, but his underlying metrics are strong. The second baseman ranks in the 88th percentile for xBA and in the 73rd percentile for xSLG. “Usually at this stage in the season, I have really good numbers,” Marte said (h/t Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports). “But (manager Torey Lovullo) always tells me you’re making good contact, don’t be so hard on yourself.”
2. Thornton to make debut
Mets pitching prospect Zach Thornton is expected to debut against the Nationals on Wednesday. The lefty is a borderline top 10 prospect in New York’s system. He’s put together a solid minor league season, posting a 3.16 in seven starts between Double-A and Triple-A. Thornton will step into the rotation spot vacated by Clay Holmes. The veteran righty may avoid surgery for his fractured fibula, but he’s still facing an extended absence. Thornton will have some runway here to stick with the big-league club if he performs well.
3. Dodgers beat Miller on career-first play
Flame-throwing closer Mason Miller came on in a tie game against the Dodgers on Tuesday night. He walked Max Muncy, who was pinch-run for by Alex Call. An over-eager Call made a move to second base before Miller went to the plate, and should’ve been picked off. Instead, Miller threw the ball away, allowing Call to advance to third. Andy Pages came through with a sac fly to give Los Angeles the lead. Will Klein closed it out to put the Dodgers back on top in the NL West. The errant pickoff throw was the first error of Miller’s career (h/t AJ Cassavell of MLB.com). It resulted in his first loss as a Padre.
Photo courtesy of Joe Camporeale, Imagn Images
Gerrit Cole To Start For Yankees On Friday
Yankees manager Aaron Boone informed reporters, including Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, that right-hander Gerrit Cole will be activated from the 15-day injured list to start for the club on Friday. That will be his first start in the big leagues since 2024, as he spent 2025 recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Cole’s track record is well known at this point, as he has been one of the most consistent performers for most of his career. He has a 3.18 earned run average in almost 2,000 big league innings. In 12 seasons, he has only once finished with an ERA higher than 3.88.
Injury absences had been rare for him. From 2013 to 2023, he logged at least 116 innings in each full season and hit the 200-inning mark six times. Elbow issues became a talking point in 2024. Fresh off his Cy Young win in 2023, he experienced some elbow discomfort early the next year. He began the 2024 season on the IL but ultimately returned and posted a 3.41 ERA over 95 innings. He then put up a 2.17 ERA in five postseason starts as the Yanks charged to the World Series, ultimately falling to the Dodgers.
Then in spring training 2025, elbow discomfort returned. This time, it was more serious, as Cole had to go under the knife in March. He sat out the 2025 season and the Yanks did fairly well without him. They had signed Max Fried, who stepped into the ace role. Fried gave the Yanks a 2.86 ERA over 32 starts last year as the Yanks went 94-68. They couldn’t go as far in the playoffs as the year prior, dropping an ALDS matchup with the Blue Jays.
Now, coincidentally, Fried and Cole are effectively swapping places again. Fried recently hit the IL due to a bone bruise in his left elbow. It’s unclear how long that issue will keep Fried on the shelf, but it continues the stretch of the two pitchers technically being on the same team without ever being on the active roster together.
Cole has been rehabbing for a few weeks and was slated to make one more rehab start. The Yanks initially said that Fried’s injury wouldn’t prompt them to speed up Cole’s timeline but it seems they have pivoted from that. Cole is undoubtedly stretched out, having gone at least 4 1/3 innings in all six of his rehab outings. His 4.66 ERA doesn’t look especially impressive but he only allowed three earned runs combined over his two most recent games, tossing 10 1/3 innings in those.
Fried’s injury temporarily delays a tough decision for the Yankees. The club has been getting good results from Fried, Will Warren, Cam Schlittler and Ryan Weathers, with all four of those guys having ERAs under 3.60. Carlos Rodón has a 5.63 ERA but it only two starts, as he also began the season on the IL recovering from elbow surgery. As Cole was rehabbing, it looked like someone was going to get an undeserved demotion to the minors or the bullpen.
For now, Cole takes Fried’s spot and everyone else in that group can stay. If Fried is able to return relatively quickly, then perhaps an awkward decision will be required at that time, though it’s also possible another injury pops up in the interim. It’s also possible that Clarke Schmidt could enter the picture later in the season, as he is recovering a Tommy John surgery performed in July.
Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images
Marlins Notes: Garrett, Snelling, Alderman
The Marlins are optioning lefty Braxton Garrett back to Triple-A Jacksonville, reports Christina De Nicola of MLB.com. They’ll make a corresponding move tomorrow.
Garrett was recalled to step into the rotation last week. His season debut could hardly have gone worse. He allowed five runs on four hits and five walks while recording just four outs in a road loss to the Twins. Garrett took the ball again today against the Braves. He required 65 pitches to complete three innings of two-run ball, allowing three hits and walks apiece with a pair of strikeouts.
The 28-year-old Garrett was a capable mid-rotation starter between 2022-23. He lost most of the ’24 season to a flexor strain and underwent UCL surgery in January 2025. That wiped out all of last year. The Marlins optioned him out of Spring Training to allow him to build up in Triple-A. Garrett has a 2.30 ERA and 26% strikeout rate through six starts with Jacksonville, but his command has been a work in progress in the minors as well (12.3% walk rate).
Miami only recalled Garrett last week due to an unfortunate injury to rookie southpaw Robby Snelling. The 22-year-old made his MLB debut on May 8. He reported elbow discomfort during a between starts throwing session and was diagnosed with a UCL sprain. That’ll keep him down for a while, with a specific timeline to be determined after he goes for further testing.
The team announced yesterday that Snelling will see Dr. Keith Meister on Thursday (relayed by Kevin Barral of Fish On First). They should have a better idea by the weekend whether Snelling will require an operation or can proceed with a non-surgical route.
In either case, the Marlins will need to figure out the fifth rotation spot this weekend. Janson Junk and Sandy Alcantara will go for the final two games of the Atlanta series. Miami hasn’t announced pitching plans for their weekend set against the Mets. Eury Pérez and Max Meyer would be on regular rest for the first two games.
Ryan Gusto, Bradley Blalock and Dax Fulton are all on the 40-man roster and in the Jacksonville rotation. Fulton pitched tonight, while Blalock has struggled his last two times out. Gusto scuffled a bit early in the season but has turned in strong outings in three of his last four appearances. He struck out 10 over seven innings of two-run ball over the weekend.
Top prospect Thomas White isn’t on the 40-man but also looms in Triple-A. The 6’5″ southpaw has made five starts since returning from a season-opening injured list stint due to an oblique strain. He has yet to complete five innings in a start and has given up eight runs (six earned) over six combined frames in his past two outings. It’d be an odd time to call him up, but White ranks as the #4 pitching prospect in the sport at Baseball America. He’d been scheduled to start for Jacksonville tomorrow, but they now list reliever Zach McCambley for that game. It’s unclear if that’s related to a potential promotion or due to some kind of health question.
An injury probably will delay the debut for another of Miami’s better prospects. Triple-A slugger Kemp Alderman was placed on the minor league injured list after a collision at first base over the weekend. A natural outfielder, Alderman had recently begun getting some first base reps.
Alderman is out to a .303/.376/.526 start with nine homers in 40 games for Jacksonville. He’s striking out at a concerning 31% clip but obliterating the ball when he makes contact. Alderman has made hard contact on 64% of his batted balls while posting a 96 mph average exit velocity. That’s comparable to what James Wood, Munetaka Murakami and Oneil Cruz are doing at the MLB level. Alderman is obviously facing far lesser pitching than he’d see in the Majors, but he clearly has immense raw power.
Miami could certainly have used a jolt at first base. Christopher Morel, signed to a $2MM free agent deal to handle the position, missed most of April with an oblique injury. He has hit .152 without a home run in 15 games since returning. Connor Norby has a league average .231/.335/.378 slash line between the corner infield spots and designated hitter.
Rays, White Sox Swap Joe Rock For Oliver Dunn
The Rays and White Sox announced a one-for-one trade that sends lefty reliever Joe Rock from Tampa Bay to Chicago. Minor league infielder Oliver Dunn goes to the Rays; Dunn had not been on Chicago’s 40-man roster.
Chicago optioned Rock to Triple-A Charlotte and transferred Kyle Teel to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot. That’s a procedural move, as the 60-day window backdates to Opening Day. Teel won’t be back until late June at the earliest after suffering an LCL sprain in his left knee over the weekend.
A 6’6″ southpaw, Rock was a second-round pick by Colorado in 2021. The Rays acquired him in Spring Training 2024 for former first-rounder Greg Jones. Rock spent that season working out of the Triple-A rotation, struggling to a 4.58 earned run average. He made a very brief MLB debut last summer, pitching 7 2/3 innings of two-run ball with 11 strikeouts over three appearances.
Rock otherwise spent the season in a swing role in Triple-A, posting a 5.21 ERA across 96 2/3 frames. The Rays moved him to short relief this year in the hope that his stuff would play up in 1-2 inning stints. Rock has missed more bats, striking out 27 of 78 opponents (34.6%) in the minors.
His 92.9 mph average fastball isn’t much above where it sat last year, though, and Rock has battled the worst control of his career. He has walked 17 batters and plunked four more, giving out free passes to more than a quarter of batters faced. Rock has allowed 10 runs (nine earned) through 15 Triple-A innings this year.
The lack of strikes had pushed the Ohio University product to the fringe of the roster. The Rays didn’t designate Rock for assignment but had soured enough on him that they were willing to deal him for a depth infielder on a minor league contract. Chicago will see if a change of scenery can get him on track. Rock is in his second of three option years, so there’s still some roster flexibility.
Sean Newcomb and Bryan Hudson have pitched well as Will Venable’s top two lefty relievers. The Sox brought Brandon Eisert back up from Charlotte last week as a third southpaw in the MLB bullpen. Tyler Schweitzer, Tyler Gilbert and Chris Murphy are on the 40-man roster and on optional assignment. The Sox certainly aren’t lacking left-handed bullpen arms.
Dunn is a 28-year-old utilityman who appeared at the MLB level with the Brewers from 2024-25. The lefty batter owns a .206/.261/.290 slash with one home run in 145 career plate appearances. Milwaukee sent Dunn unclaimed through waivers last September and allowed him to walk as a minor league free agent. He signed a non-roster deal with the Sox in December.
After struggling to a .208/.315/.338 line in Triple-A a year ago, Dunn has gotten out to a much better start this season. He hit .296/.397/.533 with eight homers in 40 games for Charlotte. Dunn takes a lot of pitches and had shown strong on-base numbers up through Double-A. He’s primarily a third baseman who can play the middle infield if necessary and has some left field experience in the minors.
The Rays recently lost one of their left-handed bench bats when Jake Fraley suffered a sports hernia injury that required surgery. They’re also a little shorthanded in the infield with Ben Williamson day-to-day with back tightness. Tampa Bay might add Dunn directly to the MLB bench if Williamson requires an injured list stint. They don’t have any depth infielders on optional assignment to Triple-A, and Dunn has outhit internal non-roster pieces Logan Davidson and Raynel Delgado. Tampa Bay has a pair of openings on the 40-man roster if they want to select Dunn’s contract.
Guardians Re-Sign Kolby Allard To Minor League Deal
The Guardians are bringing left-hander Kolby Allard back on a minor league contract, reports Tim Stebbins of MLB.com. Cleveland had granted the southpaw his release yesterday, but it seems Allard didn’t find an MLB opportunity with another club.
Cleveland’s front office and coaching staff clearly appreciates what Allard brings to the table as a depth arm. He’s capable of working multiple innings and held a low-leverage relief spot for the majority of the 2025 season. Allard worked to a 2.63 ERA across 65 innings a year ago despite sitting 90 mph with his fastball and running a well below-average 15.8% strikeout rate.
Allard fills up the strike zone but has fringy stuff. He has given up 16 hits to allow 10 runs across 8 2/3 MLB frames this year. He has pitched three times with Triple-A Columbus, surrendering seven runs with an uncharacteristic seven walks over 5 1/3 innings. The Guardians have signed him to five minor league contracts over the past two seasons.
A Closer Look At The Best Offense In Baseball
Ah yes, the team we all expected to lead the majors in scoring nearly 50 games into the 2026 season: the New York Yankees (no?), the Los Angeles Dodgers (really?), the Washington Nationals. Wait, what?
Through 48 games, the Nationals are two games below .500 with a run differential (-22) that suggests they’re lucky to have won as many as they have. Their pitchers and defense have allowed a league-worst 284 runs. Yet, their run prevention struggles are hiding just how well they’re done on the other side of the ball.
Through 48 games, the Nationals have scored an MLB-leading 262 runs. That’s 12 more than the Braves in second, 18 more than the AL-leading Yankees, and 95 more than the last-place San Francisco Giants. If they maintain this pace, their 5.46 runs per game would set a new franchise record, surpassing the World Series-winning 2019 club (5.39) and the dominant 1994 Montreal Expos (5.13).
I don’t mean to say I expect the Nationals to keep this up all year. I doubt anyone does. Even so, what they’ve done to this point is impressive, especially considering preseason expectations. Coming into the year, you could have predicted Washington would score the fewest runs in the league, and nobody would have batted an eye. FanGraphs still projects the Nationals to rank last in runs per game over the rest of the season. Yet, they’ve already piled up so many that even if they score at their projected last-place pace (4.28 runs per game) over their final 114 contests, they would finish the year with 750 runs. That would be the fifth-highest total in franchise history.
The Expos/Nationals franchise is in its 58th season, and this is only the ninth year in which the team has scored at least 262 runs over any 48-game stretch. Those other years were 1987 (.562 winning percentage), 1994 (.649), 1996 (.543), 2012 (.605), 2017 (.599), 2018 (.506), and 2019 (.574). All eight seasons were winning campaigns. And heck, the eventual World Series champions in each of the last three seasons (2023-25) led the majors in scoring through their respective 48th games. Once again, I’m not trying to say Washington will win the World Series. I’m not trying to say Washington will finish with a winning record. But 48 games isn’t nothing, and through 48 games, the Nationals’ offense has been a lot more productive than you probably realized.
I’ll admit that the title of this post is a little tongue-in-cheek. However, the Nationals really have hit well this year. Their .740 OPS ranks fifth in MLB, and their 108 wRC+ is sixth. There’s certainly some good luck in their high run total, but it isn’t just the result of timely hitting or balls finding holes. Their .331 expected wOBA ranks seventh in the majors, while their numbers with runners in scoring position are only in the middle of the pack. The BaseRuns formula at FanGraphs, which estimates the number of runs a team would be expected to score based on their underlying offensive stats, suggests that Washington “deserves” to have scored 5.10 runs per game. That’s less than 5.46, but it’s still excellent. Only the Cubs, Dodgers, and Braves have a higher BaseRuns expectation. Meanwhile, Baseball Prospectus’s DRC+, a metric that considers quality of contact instead of just results, ranks the Nationals as MLB’s sixth-best offense – and that’s without giving them credit for their excellent baserunning.
Turning to the individual players, the memory of Juan Soto is powering the Nationals’ lineup in 2026. Shortstop CJ Abrams and outfielder James Wood, both of whom came to Washington in the Soto trade, are tearing the cover off the ball. In fact, they’re both outhitting Soto himself. Wood, the leadoff hitter, is pacing the majors in runs scored, while Abrams, batting cleanup these days, ranks third in RBI. They’re each among the top 20 qualified hitters in OPS and wRC+.
Wood is hitting for a bit more power, and his 17.5% walk rate leads the National League. Abrams puts the ball in play more often, and he’s been flirting with a .300 average for much of the year. The question for Abrams going forward is whether he can avoid another midseason collapse. He started strong in 2024 and ’25 before struggling badly in each season’s second half. As for Wood, the only question is how high he can climb. The numbers are already remarkable, and the way he impacts the baseball suggests his ceiling is even higher. His .393 wOBA ranks 11th among qualified NL batters, but his .425 xwOBA leads the Senior Circuit.
After Wood and Abrams, Daylen Lile is the team’s only other qualified hitter with a wRC+ above league average. That goes to show how much Washington’s two best hitters have done for this offense, but Lile deserves his fair share of credit as well. The left fielder isn’t lighting the world on fire like he was down the stretch last year, but he has continued to be a power threat against right-handed pitching. A deeper team might platoon him more often, but his overall 112 wRC+ is solid, even if a 78 wRC+ against southpaws is dragging that number down.
Speaking of platoons, the Nationals’ best hitter this season – without any playing time minimums – has technically been Joey Wiemer. The righty-batting outfielder began the season by reaching base safely in his first 10 trips to the plate. All in all, he has slashed .300/.410/.529 with a team-best 165 wRC+ in 83 plate appearances. Wiemer’s track record and the underlying numbers made it clear that none of it was sustainable, and the Nationals saw that, optioning him in favor of Dylan Crews earlier today. Regardless, Wiemer is a part of this story, and a pretty important one at that.
So is fellow right-handed batter Curtis Mead, who is finally starting to look like the promising hitter he was in the Phillies’ and Rays’ minor league systems. A .213 isolated power and more walks than strikeouts through 114 plate appearances have resulted in a 133 wRC+. Washington has shielded the infielder from same-handed pitching, but to his credit, his early numbers are equally strong against lefties and righties alike. While the sample is small, Mead is swinging at the right pitches and hitting the ball hard. The Nationals are surely grateful the White Sox designated him for assignment at the beginning of the year.
One last player worth highlighting is Nasim Nuñez. With a .187 batting average and a 54 wRC+, the second baseman has hurt his team’s offense more than he’s helped. Still, he walks enough that he gets on base at a passable rate, and once he reaches base, he might be the most dangerous player in the game. His 20 stolen bases are tied for the MLB lead, while his 3.4 baserunning run value (per FanGraphs) ranks second to only José Ramírez. That accounts for two-thirds of the Nationals’ league-leading 5.1 baserunning runs.
I’ve only touched on six of the 14 players who have stepped to the plate for the Nationals this year, and one of them isn’t even on the active roster anymore. That’s a big reason why this level of success doesn’t seem sustainable. Wood is the closest thing this offense has to a sure bet, and he’s still just a 23-year-old who has never hit this well over a prolonged period of time. The Nationals earned their 262 runs, and they earned the praise I’m giving them. Yet, this praise shouldn’t be confused with confidence. The Nationals have had the most successful offense in baseball over the first eight weeks of the season, but there are a whole lot of weeks left to play.
Stats up-to-date entering play on Tuesday, May 19. Images courtesy of Rafael Suanes, Charles LeClaire, and Patrick Gorski – Imagn Images
Astros Place Lance McCullers Jr. On Injured List
The Astros announced that right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to May 16th, due to right shoulder inflammation. Fellow righty Nate Pearson has been reinstated from the 15-day IL in a corresponding move. Houston also reinstated outfielder Jake Meyers from the 10-day IL and optioned infielder/outfielder Shay Whitcomb.
McCullers was the scheduled starter for tonight’s game but the club announced a few hours ago that he had been scratched, with Jason Alexander to take the ball tonight instead. Though this was a last-minute scratch, manager Joe Espada said McCullers has been dealing with shoulder pain for “a while,” per Chandler Rome of The Athletic. It’s unclear how much time McCullers will miss, as he is heading to Houston for more testing.
Injuries have been a big part of recent history for McCullers. He missed the 2023 and 2024 seasons due a flexor injury that required surgery. He was back on the mound in 2025 and made 16 appearances, but with diminished velocity and a 6.51 earned run average. Here in 2026, he has a 6.86 ERA in eight starts.
Though he doesn’t appear to be the same pitcher he was before the injuries set him back, it’s still a blow for the Astros. The club has been hit real hard by injuries this year. In the rotation, Hunter Brown and Cristian Javier are each on the IL due to shoulder strains. The club is still waiting for Ronel Blanco, Brandon Walter and Hayden Wesneski to return from last year’s Tommy John surgeries.
Around those injuries and others, they have had to rely upon almost every depth option available. They have also been trying to deploy a six-man rotation at various times, both due to the schedule and trying to manage the workload of Tatsuya Imai. 12 different pitchers have already made starts for the club. Some of those have been openers but the club has clearly been churning through guys. Though McCullers doesn’t have good numbers, removing him from the equation just means they will have to keep reaching deeper when they’ve already fallen to 19-30 on the year.
As mentioned, Alexander is taking the ball tonight. That could be a spot start or he could stick around for another turn. Mike Burrows is the scheduled starter tomorrow. The Astros are off on Thursday, which is perhaps a chance to recover and reset before they play ten days in a row.
Burrows, Imai, Spencer Arrighetti, Peter Lambert and Kai-Wei Teng are in the rotation at the moment. If Alexander doesn’t stick around, they have Miguel Ullola, Colton Gordon and Ryan Weiss on optional assignment at Triple-A. Ullola has a 6.03 ERA and 16.8% walk rate in Triple-A this year. The Astros haven’t trusted him enough to call him up at any other point this season, despite really needing arms. Gordon and Weiss got some MLB time earlier this year but both posted ERAs north of 7.00 in those looks. Rome floats the possibility of calling up Ethan Pecko, who has a 2.21 ERA on the farm this year, though he’s not yet on the 40-man roster.
Photo courtesy of Jamie Sabau, Imagn Images
Ryan Jeffers, Emmanuel Rodriguez To Undergo Surgeries
Twins general manager Jeremy Zoll provided some updates on injured players to reporters, including Aaron Gleeman as well as Dan Hayes of The Athletic. Catcher Ryan Jeffers will undergo hamate surgery and has an expected return timeline of six to eight weeks. Outfielder Emmanuel Rodriguez will also undergo surgery, in his case to address the torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb.
Neither procedure is surprising but both are disappointing. It was reported earlier today that Jeffers had suffered a fracture of his hamate. That situation usually leads to surgery and that will indeed be the case in this instance.
Jeffers has been Minnesota’s primary catcher for a while now and has been one of the better offensive backstops in the league. Dating back to the start of 2023, he has a .258/.346/.445 line and 122 wRC+. Only four qualified catchers have a better wRC+ mark for that span and one of them, Willson Contreras, isn’t even a catcher anymore. That leaves Cal Raleigh, William Contreras and Will Smith as the active backstops ahead of Jeffers.
The production from Jeffers includes a huge .295/.408/.541 showing this season. That has helped the Twins hang in the playoff race, as they are currently only half a game out of a Wild Card spot in the American League. For now, Minnesota will have Victor Caratini and Alex Jackson handling the catching duties, which will surely be a downgrade. Caratini has a strong track record but is hitting only .192/.299/.231 this year. Jackson has a career batting line of .153/.239/.288.
The injury also interrupts a platform year for Jeffers, as he is an impending free agent. He was on pace to be the top available catcher and one of the top available bats regardless of position. That could still end up being the case but he’ll now have to deal with this lengthy absence and then try to get back on track after. The timeline with a hamate surgery isn’t massive in the grand scheme of things but players often struggle with a lack of power when they return.
As for Rodriguez, it’s also not a shocking development, as this thumb issue put him on the IL a couple of weeks ago. Though his timeline is still to be determined, the timing stings, as he is on the 40-man roster and could have been up in the big leagues right now if he were healthy.
The Twins have sent outfielder Matt Wallner and third baseman Royce Lewis to the minors this month, opening up some big league at-bats. Rodriguez wasn’t going to play third base but the demotion of Lewis could lead to other guys getting moved around. The Jeffers injury could also indirectly open up some designated hitter at-bats, as Caratini and Josh Bell have been splitting first base and DH. If Caratini is going to be behind the plate more regularly, there are extra DH at-bats available.
Though Rodriguez is very talented, injuries are becoming an annoying recurrence, perhaps giving Twins fans some déjà vu after years of watching Lewis and Byron Buxton. In the minors, Rodriguez has dealt with knee, abdominal, right thumb, left thumb and hip injuries. Due to all those ailments, he hasn’t topped 99 games in a season, which was back in 2023. He was capped at 45 games in 2024 and 65 last year. Now he is once again hurt and facing a notable absence.
When on the field, the talent is there and is also unique. Rodriguez has one of the most extreme approaches of any player. In his minor league career, he has a huge 30.2% strikeout rate but also a massive 21.6% walk rate. He has big power, speed and is considered a good defender. The strikeouts may become a problem but he also offsets those with the free passes.
Rodriguez has been on the Minnesota 40-man roster since November of 2023, getting added to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. That means he has already burned two option seasons and is currently burning the third. That could put him out of options going into 2027, unless he can qualify for a fourth option, though that may not be possible.
A player is eligible for a fourth option if he hasn’t played five “full” professional seasons, where a full season is defined as one in which the player is active for 90 days, or is active for at least 30 with a 90-day total of active/IL time. This is basically to discount short-season rookie ball campaigns or seasons totally lost to injury. Despite all his issues, Rodriguez has been in full-season ball since getting promoted to Low-A at the start of 2022. He played 40-plus games from 2022 to 2025, so that would seemingly hit the 30-day/90-day threshold in each and count as four full seasons. Here in 2026, he has only played 26 games thus far but was active from late March to early May, getting to at least 30 days again.
Photo courtesy of Matt Blewett, Imagn Images
Diamondbacks Place James McCann On IL, Select Aramis Garcia
The Diamondbacks announced that catcher James McCann has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a strained right quad. Fellow catcher Aramis Garcia has been selected to take his place on the roster. The Snakes had a couple of 40-man vacancies, with Garcia filling one of them.
McCann, 36 next month, was signed to a $2.75MM deal to serve as a veteran backup to Gabriel Moreno. McCann has appeared in 22 games with a .203/.217/.254 line and questionable defensive metrics.
Arizona has been rostering three catchers for most of the season. Adrian Del Castillo has done some catching but has been seeing a lot of time in the designated hitter slot, even though he hasn’t been living up to that designation, with a .185/.232/.326 line and 33.3% strikeout rate this year.
It seems the Snakes prefer to keep that three-catcher system going. Earlier this year, when Moreno required a stint on the IL, they added Garcia to the roster. He was mostly there for emergencies, as he spent over two weeks on the roster but only made three plate appearances. When Moreno came off the IL, the out-of-options Garcia was designated for assignment and outrighted back to Triple-A Reno.
It’s possible Garcia is slated for a similar experience now. While McCann is out, the Snakes will continue to have Moreno as their primary catcher, with Del Castillo a backup/DH. Garcia will be there for late-game substitutions or if someone gets hurt. Garcia has just a .210/.245/.321 line in his career but the Diamondbacks obviously value his defense and/or the work he does with pitchers. He was selected to their roster twice last year and this is now already his second selection of 2026.
Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images