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Injury Updates: Hendricks, Trout, V-Mart, McCullers, Segura

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The right hand tendinitis that has kept Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks out since June 8 will likely shelve him for a while longer, reports Gorden Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. Thanks to the setback he suffered Tuesday, Hendricks’ absence “will be measured in weeks,” not days, writes Wittenmyer. Hendricks is “sore,” said manager Joe Maddon, who added that his injury is “awkward” and “just not going away.” Like most of his Cubs teammates, Hendricks has taken steps backward this year on the heels of a magical 2016. After contending for the NL Cy Young last season, when he logged a 2.13 ERA, 8.05 K/9 and 2.08 BB/9 over 190 innings, the soft-tossing 27-year-old has experienced a velocity drop and recorded a 4.09 ERA, 7.44 K/9 and 3.08 BB/9 over 61 2/3 frames in 2017.

The latest on several other notable major leaguers dealing with injuries:

  • The top player in the game, Angels center fielder Mike Trout, will resume swinging next week and travel with the Halos during their visits to New York and Boston, relays ESPN.com. Trout, who underwent surgery on torn left thumb ligaments May 31, hopes to return before the six- to eight-week recovery timeline and play in next month’s All-Star Game. “It would be pretty cool just to, hopefully, be back by then,” Trout said. “Before the All-Star break, right at the All-Star break, just depending on how it goes.”
  • Tigers designated hitter Victor Martinez, diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat this week, was released from a Detroit-area hospital on Saturday, according to Jason Beck of MLB.com. It’s unclear whether Martinez will come off the disabled list when he’s first eligible on June 27, per Beck. For now, “the thought process is probably a week of rest,” said manager Brad Ausmus.
  • Astros manager A.J. Hinch announced Saturday that righty Lance McCullers will come off the DL during the upcoming week (via Brian McTaggart of MLB.com). McCullers just hit the DL on Monday with discomfort in his lower back, so his stay will end up as a short one. He’s one of four Astros starters on the DL – Dallas Keuchel, Charlie Morton and Collin McHugh are the others – and arguably the best of the bunch. McCullers has been superb over his first 76 2/3 innings this season, having posted a 2.58 ERA, 10.45 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 63 percent ground-ball rate. His teammate Morton, out since May 25 with a lat strain, also seems to be progressing toward a return. Morton is set to make a two-inning rehab start for the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate on Thursday.
  • After a high ankle sprain forced Mariners shortstop Jean Segura to the DL on June 2, general manager Jerry Dipoto suggested he could miss two months. However, fortunately for the Mariners, it appears Segura will return much sooner than that, perhaps as early as next week if a Triple-A rehab assignment goes well, relays Greg Johns of MLB.com. Segura batted .341/.391/.462 in 198 plate appearances before his injury, which helped convince the Mariners to sign the offseason trade acquisition from Arizona to a five-year contract extension.
  • The Angels have placed righty Matt Shoemaker on the DL, retroactive to Friday, with a forearm strain and activated reliever Cam Bedrosian, per Kaelen Jones of MLB.com. Forearm injuries are scary for pitchers, but Shoemaker’s tightness is in his extensor muscle, making it less likely to be related to his elbow. Still, even if Shoemaker’s only out for a little while, the Angels are in the unenviable position of having a full rotation on the DL with him, Garrett Richards, Andrew Heaney, Tyler Skaggs and Nick Tropeano. On the other hand, Bedrosian’s return is welcome news for the Angels, whose bullpen has been surprisingly effective without him. Bedrosian dominated over 6 2/3 innings before a groin strain forced him to the DL in late April, and the 25-year-old was also a lights-out option in a breakout 2016 campaign.

Cafardo’s Latest: Gray, Astros, Stanton, Phils, Cards, BoSox

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The AL West rival Astros and Athletics are mutually interested in making a trade that would involve Oakland right-hander Sonny Gray, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The last-place A’s have been closely monitoring the Astros’ system, per Cafardo, during a period in which Houston’s four best starters (Dallas Keuchel, Lance McCullers, Charlie Morton and Collin McHugh) are on the disabled list. Gray, who would likely slot in third in a healthy Astros rotation, is only running a 4.44 ERA through 52 2/3 innings, but his secondary stats are encouraging and he’s under control via arbitration through 2019. As such, he’d warrant a strong return for the A’s.

More rumblings from Cafardo as the trade deadline approaches:

  • If the Marlins place right fielder Giancarlo Stanton on the trade block in the coming months, the NL East rival Phillies would be a sensible landing spot, opines Cafardo. The cellar-dwelling Phillies are a big-market team with the money and the prospects to swing a deal for Stanton (who’s due nearly $300MM over the final 10 years of his contract), observes Cafardo. Stanton has a full no-trade clause, though, so there’s no guarantee he’d approve a deal to Philadelphia or anywhere else. Further complicating matters, Cafardo has heard that the Phillies would “need” to acquire fellow Marlins outfielder Christian Yelich in a deal involving Stanton. Even though Yelich is under control for reasonable prices through the 2022 campaign, he could end up on the block.
  • Given that they’re five games back in their division and 10.5 out of a wild-card spot, the Cardinals don’t look like surefire buyers at the moment. Nevertheless, a pair of right-handed-hitting right fielders – the Tigers’ J.D. Martinez and the White Sox’s Avisail Garcia – have been frequently linked to the Redbirds this year, relays Cafardo. Martinez, a free agent-to-be who’s on an $11.75MM salary, is hitting a torrid .310/.398/.681 with 11 home runs in 133 plate appearances for the scuffling Tigers. Garcia, who’s much cheaper than Martinez ($3MM) and under control through 2019, is in the midst of a career year (.337/.378/.549 with 10 HRs in 262 PAs) for the soon-to-sell White Sox.
  • The Red Sox have “limited” interest in signing free agent third baseman Jhonny Peralta to a minor league contract, reports Cafardo. Peralta has been available since St. Louis released him Tuesday, which came after more than a year of subpar production from the once-steady veteran. Peralta would give the Red Sox yet another flawed hot corner option, though he is familiar with president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, who was the general manager in Detroit during Peralta’s run there from 2010-13.
  • Phillies left fielder Howie Kendrick will intrigue both the Red Sox and Yankees if he’s able to play third, writes Cafardo. Kendrick has a bit of experience there (18 games), but the 33-year-old primarily lined up at second base before switching to the outfield. Regardless of whether a move to third is on the horizon, the righty-swinging Kendrick has emerged as a likely trade chip for rebuilding Philadelphia, suggests Cafardo (and as MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk and Jeff Todd have recently noted). Kendrick isn’t cheap ($10MM), but the impending free agent has helped his stock with a .324/.383/.467 line in 115 PAs.

AL East Notes: Plouffe, Davis, Smith, Red Sox

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The Rays see newly acquired Trevor Plouffe helping them against left-handed pitching, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. He’ll be used to spell Evan Longoria at third base and Logan Morrison at first, and the Rays could also consider using him in the corner outfield spots, manager Kevin Cash tells Topkin. Cash also says the organization had talks with Plouffe last winter before he ultimately signed with the Athletics. “For us to be able to get him here two months, three months, in is a good thing for us,” Cash says. Here’s more from the AL East.

  • Chris Davis’ oblique strain could keep him out of the Orioles’ lineup until after the All-Star break, writes Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. This season’s break begins July 10. Davis reports improvement in the injury but says he’s still having trouble moving and sleeping. “I was basically told it’s sensitive,” says Davis. “It’s one of those things you don’t want to rush because if you have a setback, it makes things that much harder.” This isn’t Davis’ first oblique strain — he landed on the disabled list with one in 2014, although that one was on his left side, and his current injury is on his right.
  • Red Sox reliever Carson Smith has been shut down for four or five days with a shoulder inflammation, meaning he won’t be able to begin his rehab assignment as planned, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal tweets. Smith had Tommy John surgery last year and hasn’t pitched in a big-league game since last May, so this setback, even if it proves to be a minor one, must be frustrating for him.
  • Trades for Smith and another injured reliever, Tyler Thornburg, demonstrate a failure in approach, Evan Drellich of CSNNE.com writes. It’s not the Red Sox’ fault Smith and Thornburg got hurt, but reliever performance tends to be mercurial, and the Red Sox have gotten good results this season from players like Matt Barnes and Robby Scott, for whom they didn’t have to part with significant assets. Of course, as Drellich also notes, the team’s trade for Craig Kimbrel has been a great success thus far.

Twins Sign Royce Lewis

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5:50pm: The Twins have announced the signing. Lewis’ deal is worth $6.725MM, per Heyman, who notes that it’s a record for a high school player in the new system (Twitter links).

4:34pm: The Twins have agreed to a deal with first overall draft pick Royce Lewis, Fan Rag’s Jon Heyman tweets. Lewis will receive a bonus of a bit over $6.7MM. Lewis, a high school shortstop from California, will forgo his commitment to UC-Irvine, as expected.

It was reported late last week that Lewis would soon take a physical with the Twins and that he was expected to receive a bonus slightly higher than the $6.5MM 2015 first overall pick Dansby Swanson got from the Diamondbacks, so today’s news does not come as a major surprise. It appears Lewis’ bonus will not be the biggest overall in this year’s draft, however — that honor could go to Braves No. 5 overall pick Kyle Wright, who received $7MM, or Rays No. 4 overall selection Brendan McKay, who could receive slightly more.

The first overall pick had a pool value of $7,770,700 this year, so it appears that when Lewis’ signing is complete, the Twins will save around $1M against their total draft pool of $14,156,800. Notably, they’ve already struck a deal with third-rounder Blayne Enlow for $2MM, a little over $1.2MM more than the value of the No. 76 pick. The Lewis and Enlow deals, then, will essentially balance one another out.

The Twins were reportedly interested in both Lewis and McKay with the first overall pick, and Lewis’ willingness to accept the Twins’ bonus offer was reportedly a key factor in their decision to select him. Lewis, though, did rate as one of the premium talents in this year’s draft. MLB.com rated him the No. 5 prospect available, noting that he has excellent athleticism and good range either in the infield or center field. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen rated Lewis similarly, noting his feel for hitting, projectable body and the likelihood he could become a plus center field if he’s eventually moved off shortstop. Baseball America (subscription required) noted Lewis’ plus makeup, speed and raw power.

Lewis will join a collection of young Twins talent that includes big-leaguers Miguel Sano, Byron Buxton and Jose Berrios, along with prospects Nick Gordon, Stephen Gonsalves and Enlow. Lewis only turned 18 the week before the draft and could require ample time to develop, but he’ll immediately become one of the crown jewels of the Twins’ system.

Twins Designate Adam Wilk For Assignment

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The Twins have designated lefty Adam Wilk for assignment and selected the contract of righty Alan Busenitz from Triple-A Rochester, Phil Miller of the Star Tribune tweets.

Wilk joined the Twins last month as a waiver claim from the Mets and has since made three big league appearances, including a start against the Indians on Saturday. That didn’t go well for Wilk, who lasted 3 1/3 innings and allowed six earned runs on eight hits and three walks, with two strikeouts, in a 9-3 loss. The 29-year-old has struggled in general in the majors this season, having pitched to a 9.00 ERA, with 5.14 K/9 against 5.79 BB/9, across 14 combined innings with the Mets and Twins. He has been better, albeit not great, with the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate, logging a 4.38 ERA, 4.38 K/9 and 2.19 BB/9 in 12 1/3 frames.

The 26-year-old Busenitz, a 25th-round pick of the Angels in 2013, is now in position to make his major league debut. He’s in his first full season with the Minnesota organization, which acquired him last August in a deal involving Hector Santiago, Ricky Nolasco and Alex Meyer. Busenitz has impressed in relief in Triple-A this season, recording a 2.15 ERA, 9.82 K/9 and 2.76 BB/9 in 19 appearances and 29 1/3 innings.

Mariners Claim Pat Light From Pirates, Outright Ryne Harper

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The Mariners have announced they’ve claimed righty Pat Light from the Pirates and assigned him to Triple-A Tacoma. They’ve also outrighted righty Ryne Harper to Triple-A Tacoma.

The Pirates designated Light for assignment last Saturday. The reliever is a former first-round pick of the Red Sox and has tantalizing velocity, but he has long struggled with his control, as his 5.1 BB/9 this year for Triple-A Indianapolis suggests. The 26-year-old pitched briefly in the big leagues for the Red Sox and Twins last season and allowed 22 runs in 16 2/3 innings, though he did average 95 MPH with his fastball.

The Mariners selected the 28-year-old Harper’s contract late last month, then optioned him to Tacoma before he threw a pitch for them. He has pitched parts of seven seasons in the minors but has never appeared in a big-league game despite having been on a big-league roster and being part of a trade for a big-leaguer (the 2015 deal that sent Jose Ramirez to Atlanta). He has, however, fared well this season for Tacoma, posting a 3.00 ERA, 10.9 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9 24 innings there.

Rangers Place Andrew Cashner On DL, Designate Peter O’Brien

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The Rangers have announced that they’ve placed righty Andrew Cashner on the 10-day DL with a left oblique strain. They’ve also purchased the contract of veteran righty reliever Ernesto Frieri to take his place on the 25-man roster. To clear 40-man space for Frieri, they’ve designated 1B/OF Peter O’Brien for assignment.

[Related: Updated Texas Rangers Depth Chart]

Cashner’s injury is the latest for a Rangers rotation that has also recently endured injuries to Cole Hamels and A.J. Griffin, although MLB.com’s TR Sullivan tweets that the Rangers hope Cashner will only need to miss a start or two. Cashner has posted a 3.50 ERA and 49.8 GB% in 69 1/3 innings with Texas, albeit with 4.3 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9.

Frieri is set to return to the big leagues after last appearing in the bigs with the Rays in 2015. He sat out the 2016 season to work on his mechanics, signed a minor-league deal with the Yankees, then latched on with the Rangers after opting out. For the season, he’s posted a 2.86 ERA, 10.6 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 22 Triple-A innings, perhaps indicating he’s recovered some portion of what made him successful as a closer for the Angels in 2012 and 2013 before he struggled with the Angels and Pirates in 2014.

The well-traveled O’Brien has already been a member of four organizations in 2017, heading from the Diamondbacks to the Royals to the Reds to the Rangers in a series of minor transactions. The 26-year-old has demonstrated impressive power, with 122 career minor-league home runs, but has always had trouble with strikeouts and this year has struggled to the tune of a .167/.254/.301 line in four minor-league stops. He briefly played in the big leagues with Arizona in 2015 and 2016.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/17/17

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.

  • The Athletics have announced that they’ve selected the contract of righty Michael Brady from Triple-A Nashville and optioned fellow righty Zach Neal to Nashville. Brady will provide reinforcements for an A’s bullpen that has pitched 12 1/3 innings in three high scoring games in the last three days. The 30-year-old has had a long road to the Majors — the Cal product was drafted by the Marlins as an infielder in the 24th round in 2009 before switching to pitching the following year and slowly grinding his way through the systems of the Marlins, Angels and Nationals. This season, he has a 3.67 ERA, 9.1 K/9 and 1.3 BB/9 over 41 2/3 innings with Nashville.
  • The Twins have announced that they’ve selected the contract of lefty Adam Wilk to start the first game of today’s doubleheader against Cleveland. They’ve also announced that they’ve optioned righty Ryan Pressly to Triple-A Rochester and recalled righty Alex Wimmers to serve as today’s 26th man. The 29-year-old Wilk began the 2017 with Triple-A Las Vegas in the Mets organization, briefly pitching for the Mets before being claimed and then outrighted by the Twins. In 44 1/3 innings so far this year at the Triple-A level, he’s posted a 5.48 ERA, albeit with a fine 7.1 K/9 and 1.6 BB/9.

Notable Draft Signings: Twins, Rays, Braves, Angels, Reds

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Here’s a roundup of notable recent signings from last week’s draft.

  • The Twins have agreed to terms with compensation pick and outfielder Brent Rooker, Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press writes. SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets that Rooker will receive the slot value of the No. 35 pick, which is $1,935,300. The Twins selected Rooker in the 38th round last year, and he gave them permission to draft him again, Berardino writes. Rooker batted a ridiculous .387/.495/.810 this season for Mississippi State. MLB.com rated him the No. 50 prospect in the draft, noting his track record of performing well with wood bats in summer leagues.
  • The Rays have signed second-round pick Michael Mercado, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Mercado will receive about $2MM, somewhat above the slot value of $1,714,500 for the No. 40 overall pick. MLB.com ranked Mercado 70th-best talent available, noting the California high school righty’s ability to throw four pitches for strikes. He was committed to Stanford.
  • The Braves have announced that they’ve signed their second-round pick, Georgia high school outfielder Drew Waters. Waters will receive a bonus of $1.5MM, saving the Braves about $175K against the $1,674,600 slot value of the No. 41 pick, as Hudson Belinsky of Baseball America tweets. Waters ranked as MLB.com’s No. 42 talent in the draft, praising his speed and the hard contact he makes at the plate. Baseball America was even higher on him, ranking him No. 23 and praising the switch-hitter’s power as both a lefty and righty. He was committed to the University of Georgia.
  • The Angels have agreed to a deal with second-rounder Griffin Canning, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. Fletcher notes that Canning will receive close to the slot value for the No. 47 pick, which is $1,459,200. Canning, a righty from UCLA, originally projected to go in the middle of the first round, but his stock reportedly dropped due to concerns over the results of an MRI. MLB.com rated Canning the No. 17 prospect in the draft, praising his simple delivery and describing him as a future mid- or back-of-the-rotation pitcher.
  • The Reds have signed fourth-rounder Cash Case for $1M, MLB.com’s Jim Callis tweets. The Florida high school shortstop will presumably need some sort of bag or other implement to carry that hefty sum, which comes in at significantly above the pick value of $501,900. Case has the potential to become an offensively-minded second baseman, Callis notes. Case did not rank in MLB.com’s top 200, but Baseball America rated him the No. 324 prospect in the draft. He was committed to Notre Dame.

Rays Acquire Trevor Plouffe From Athletics

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The Rays have acquired infielder Trevor Plouffe from the Athletics for cash considerations or a player to be named later, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes (Twitter links). The Rays will also receive cash in the deal, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets, with Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle adding that the Rays will receive over $2MM to cover a portion of the approximately $3MM left on Plouffe’s $5.25MM 2017 salary. The Rays have moved righty Matt Andriese (hip) to the 60-day DL to clear space for Plouffe on their 40-man roster.

The Athletics designated Plouffe for assignment last week after he batted just .214/.276/.357 while striking out 29.1% of the time in 199 plate appearances this season. The 31-year-old also had a somewhat disappointing 2016 campaign with the Twins in which he hit a modest .260/.303/.420 while earning below-average marks in UZR and DRS for his defense. The Twins then outrighted him rather than taking him through the arbitration process.

Still, there’s perhaps reason for the Rays to hope Plouffe will be somewhat productive. He was a decent regular in Minnesota in 2014 and 2015, and he has decent power (with 103 career big-league home runs) and can play either infield corner. He’s also batted a solid .269/.345/.459 against lefties in his career, whereas the Rays as a team have hit a modest .227/.312/.374 against southpaws.

The Rays have established players at third (Evan Longoria), first (Logan Morrison) and DH (Corey Dickerson), but the left-handed Morrison, despite having a very strong season overall, has not hit lefties well in his career. The Rays could try to find further opportunities for Plouffe as a pinch-hitter, and he should improve their bench, which has had uninspiring options like Michael Martinez and Rickie Weeks to man the infield corners. Also, as ESPN’s Jim Bowden points out in a tweet, the Rays’ AL East rivals the Red Sox have struggled at third base this season and had interest in Plouffe last winter, and the Rays acquiring him prevents the Red Sox from acquiring him now. Plouffe is eligible for free agency after the season.

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