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Anthony Rendon

Angels Activate Anthony Rendon; Mike Trout To Return Monday

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The Angels have activated third baseman Anthony Rendon from the 10-day injured and optioned infielder Luis Rengifo, the team announced. Rendon had been on the IL since April 12 with a left groin strain.

Now in the second season of a seven-year, $245MM contract, Rendon has continued to thrive since leaving the Nationals for the Angels in free agency. He was one of the majors’ premier performers last season and got off to a good start this year before going on the IL. So far, Rendon owns a .290/.378/.387 with one home run in eight games and 37 plate appearances. The Angels turned to Rengifo, Jose Rojas and Jack Mayfield at the hot corner over the past couple weeks, but no one from that trio has come close to replicating Rendon’s production.

In another piece of welcome news for the Halos, center fielder Mike Trout will return to their starting lineup Monday in Texas. Trout last played on April 22, when he suffered a bruised left elbow on a hit by pitch from the Astros’ Cristian Javier. Fortunately, the game’s preeminent player avoided a serious injury.

Injury Notes: Crawford, Longoria, Rendon, Nola, Giolito

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The Giants made Brandon Crawford a late scratch from yesterday’s lineup due to quad tightness.  Evan Longoria also missed his second consecutive game with hamstring tightness, after the same issue forced him to make an early exit from last Thursday’s game.  To add some extra infield help, the Giants called up Jason Vosler from the alternate training site prior to yesterday’s game (reliever Jarlin Garcia was placed on the 10-day IL with a left groin strain).

San Francisco has more infield depth than most clubs, though even the Giants’ roster has been stressed with Crawford and Longoria both hurting and Donovan Solano already on the injured list recovering from a calf strain.  Mauricio Dubon is the top choice to fill in at shortstop if Crawford has to miss any more time, while Wilmer Flores has been handling third base in Longoria’s absence.  It also creates an opportunity for Vosler, who made his MLB debut last night.  The 27-year-old was a 16th-round pick for the Cubs back in 2014, and Vosler has spent his minor league career in the Cubs and Padres farm systems, also spending time at San Diego’s alternate training site in 2020.

The latest on some other injury situations from around baseball…

  • Anthony Rendon could return to the Angels’ lineup tomorrow or Tuesday, manager Joe Maddon told The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya and other reporters.  Rendon hit the 10-day IL due to a left groin strain back on April 12, so the third baseman will likely end up missing only slightly more than the 10-day minimum.  Anaheim’s already-strong offense will be even more dangerous with the addition of a former All-Star in Rendon, who is entering his second season with the team.
  • Austin Nola could return to the Padres lineup next week, manager Jayce Tingler told reporters (including Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune).  Nola has been out since mid-March after fracturing his left middle finger in Spring Training, though Nola is playing games at the Padres’ alternate training site.  San Diego has relied upon Victor Caratini and top prospect Luis Campusano to handle catching duties in Nola’s absence, though neither Caratini or Campusano have been very productive at the plate.
  • Michael Kopech will start for the White Sox today rather than originally-scheduled starter Lucas Giolito, who told reporters (including Vinnie Duber of NBC Sports Chicago) he has been “pushed back a couple of days” due to a cut on the middle finger of his throwing hand.  As Giolito explained in self-deprecating fashion, he suffered the minor injury because “I thought that a glass water bottle I had was twist-off, and it wasn’t twist-off.”  The team decided to hold Giolito out of today’s start just to be cautious, and the right-hander expects to pitch Tuesday when the White Sox open a series against the Tigers.

Angels Notes: Odorizzi, Injuries, Rodriguez

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The Angels’ offseason search for pitching help led them to Jose Quintana and Alex Cobb in the rotation, as well as Raisel Iglesias, Tony Watson, Steve Cishek, Alex Claudio, Junior Guerra and Aaron Slegers in the bullpen. That’s a considerable amount of turnover on its own, but right-hander Jake Odorizzi revealed during last night’s broadcast that the Halos made a strong run at him in free agency as well. The Angels, according to Odorizzi, “were one of the teams that talked to us pretty much from start to finish” (Twitter link via Jack Harris of the L.A. Times). Odorizzi, of course, went on to sign with the division-rival Astros, pushing them right up against the luxury-tax threshold and prompting them to cut Cishek loose from a minor league deal he’d signed with Houston — despite a solid spring effort. Cishek latched on with the Halos on a big league deal and has been solid thus far through his first seven relief appearances. Odorizzi has struggled a bit after signing late, but the fact that he’s punched out 11 of the 36 hitters he’s faced (30.6%) and walked just three (8.3%) is encouraging.

Some more notes on the Halos…

  • Manager Joe Maddon said after last night’s game that he expects injured outfielder Juan Lagares and catcher Max Stassi to rejoin the club this weekend (Twitter link via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register). Lagares has been out since April 11 due to a calf strain, while Stassi hit the IL two days later owing to a thumb injury. Maddon added that he expects third baseman Anthony Rendon, out since the 11th himself due to a groin strain, to return to the club early next week during the Angels’ series against the Rangers. The 30-year-old Rendon has been nothing short of brilliant since signing his seven-year deal; in 60 games as an Angel, he’s slashed a hearty .286/.413/.482 with 10 homers, 11 doubles, a triple, 43 walks and just 38 strikeouts through 269 plate appearances.
  • Rookie right-hander Chris Rodriguez is expected to remain in the bullpen for the 2021 season, writes MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger, but his early work has reinforced the organization’s belief that he can be an impact starter in the future. “He’s a strike-thrower and he can get quick outs by challenging hitters with that fastball and force them to beat it into the ground,” says Maddon of Rodriguez. “You can see him becoming a frontline starter. It gives me a lot to think about now that I’ve seen it.” Rodriguez has indeed been impressive thus far. The 22-year-old has held opponents to four runs on eight hits and six walks in 10 1/3 innings while racking up 14 strikeouts. The command could obviously stand to improve, but Rodriguez is also boasting a whopping 64% ground-ball rate thanks to his power sinker. Hitters have seemingly had a tough time reading the ball out of his hand, too, as evidenced by a 23.4% called-strike rate that ranks fifth among all pitchers (min. 10 innings pitched). Maddon noted that Rodriguez could eventually see late-inning work this year, though for the time being he’s providing ample value in a multi-inning role.

West Notes: Solano, Crawford, Rendon, Fiers, Pena

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Giants second baseman Donovan Solano exited their game against the Phillies on Wednesday with a right calf strain, manager Gabe Kapler announced (Twitter links via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle). Kapler admitted that the injury could lead to an IL stint for Solano, who’s off to a .300/.333/.380 start in 54 plate appearances this year. Should he land on the shelf, Tommy La Stella, Mauricio Dubon and Wilmer Flores would be candidates to fill in at the keystone. Brandon Crawford was also removed from this afternoon’s game early, but it seems his issue isn’t as severe. The longtime San Francisco shortstop felt some tightness in his side and was pulled for precautionary reasons, Kapler said (via Andrew Baggarly of the Athletic).

More from the West divisions:

  • Anthony Rendon is “getting really, really close” to returning to the Angels, manager Joe Maddon told reporters (including Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times). The star third baseman landed on the injured list April 12 due to a left groin strain. There’s still no specific date for Rendon’s anticipated return, but it doesn’t seem they’ll be without him too much longer. Because of a trio of postponements, the Angels have only played seven games without Rendon so far, going 3-4 while relying on José Rojas, Jack Mayfield and Luis Rengifo at the hot corner.
  • The Athletics could activate right-hander Mike Fiers from the IL in the coming days, according to Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle. The A’s have gone the first few weeks of the season without Fiers after he suffered a lumbar strain that was initially diagnosed as hip inflammation. Fiers, 35, had a rough 2020 – 4.58 ERA/5.41 SIERA in 59 innings – but the A’s still brought him back on a one-year, $3.5MM guarantee in free agency. He figures to slot back into the A’s rotation when he returns, though it’s unclear whom Fiers will replace if the team sticks with a five-man starting staff.
  • Astros shortstop prospect Jeremy Pena will undergo surgery on his left wrist, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports. The Astros announced that Pena will require “approximately five months” to recover, meaning his minor league season is likely over before it even began. Pena hadn’t played above High-A ball coming into this year, but Rome notes that he was expected to start this season at the Triple-A level. The 23-year-old, who is regarded as one of the Astros’ best prospects, combined for a terrific .303/.385/.440 slash with seven home runs and 20 steals across 473 plate appearances between High-A and Low-A in 2019.

AL Notes: Yankees, Rendon, Mondesi, Rays

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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.

Angels Place Anthony Rendon On 10-Day IL

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The Angels have placed star third baseman Anthony Rendon on the 10-day injured list with a left groin strain, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. Rendon suffered the injury Saturday, and the Angels are hopeful he won’t miss more time than 10 days, according to manager Joe Maddon.

Rendon, a former National whom LA signed to a seven-year, $245MM contract before 2020, has been a smash success in an Angels uniform. He was one of the most valuable players in baseball last season, when he batted .286/.418/.497 (154 wRC+) with nine home runs in 232 plate appearances and tied for fifth in the majors in fWAR (2.7). Rendon hasn’t been that hot at the start of this season, but he has slashed a more-than-respectable .290/.378/.387 with a homer in 37 trips to the plate.

Along with placing Rendon on the IL, the Angels called up infielder Jack Mayfield, selected right-hander Ben Rowen and optioned righty Jaime Barria. Mayfield and Jose Rojas will help fill in for Rendon during his absence, while Rowen could see his first major league action since he was a member of the Brewers in 2016. The Angels signed the longtime farmhand to a minor league contract in the offseason.

West Notes: Rendon, Gonsolin, Moronta, Wade

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Anthony Rendon is dealing with a sore left groin, Angels manager Joe Maddon told reporters (including Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic and Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times). Maddon doesn’t expect Rendon to play in tomorrow evening’s game against the Royals, and it isn’t out of the question the star third baseman could require a stint on the injured list. The always-productive Rendon is off to a strong start to the 2021 season, with nine hits (including a home run) and five walks over his first 37 plate appearances.

More out of the game’s West divisions:

  • According to Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, Tony Gonsolin’s return is “a ways away for me with where he’s at.”  Roberts told Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register and other reporters that Gonsolin had yet to begin a throwing program since being placed on the 10-day injured list last Sunday.  Gonsolin is sidelined with shoulder inflammation that began to bother the right-hander around Opening Day, which was why he didn’t get any game action prior to his IL placement.
  • Before today’s game against the Rockies, the Giants placed reliever Reyes Moronta on the 10-day injured list with a right flexor strain, Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group was among those to note. While that sounds ominous, especially since Moronta missed the entire 2020 season recovering from shoulder surgery, manager Gabe Kapler said it’s a minor strain (via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle). To replace the right-hander on the active roster, the Giants recalled LaMonte Wade Jr. Acquired from the Twins over the offseason, Wade went 2-4 with a walk in his Giants’ debut this afternoon.

West Notes: Rockies, Freeland, Angels, Suzuki, Ohtani

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Denver native Kyle Freeland was a revelation for the Rockies in his sophomore season, posting a 2.85 ERA/3.67 FIP over 202 1/3 innings. Two years later, however, and the Rockies have yet to discuss an extension with their homegrown star, writes the Athletic’s Nick Groke. Freeland’s 2018 was an almost as a magical affair, so starved is the Rockies franchise for a cornerstone rotation piece. The bubble burst in 2019, of course, as his run prevention numbers ballooned to a 6.73 ERA/5.99 FIP. He found a middle ground over 70 2/3 innings in 2020, logging a 4.33 ERA/4.65 FIP with a 15.1 percent strikeout rate, 7.6 percent walk rate, and 51.5 percent groundball rate. Freeland agreed to a $5.025MM deal for 2021 on Friday, and he has two more seasons of arbitration before reaching free agency. Given the range of outcomes Freeland has already seen across four seasons, he’s likely to go year-to-year until reaching free agency after 2023. Let’s stay out west and check in with the Angels…

  • Kurt Suzuki had offers for more money, but he signed with the Angels for $1.5MM, per the Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya (via Twitter). Suzuki was with the Braves when Angels’ GM Perry Minasian was an executive there, which certainly could have helped smooth negotiations. But Suzuki’s ties to California don’t end there. Had Suzuki any reservations, he surely could have reached out to Anthony Rendon, who bonded with Suzuki’s son while the two were teammates in Washington, writes Robert Collias of The Maui News. Not to mention, Suzuki’s a native of Hawaii, he won a College World Series playing for Cal State Fullerton, and he began his career playing in the bay for the A’s. At 37-years-old, Suzuki’s not going to be a 130-start catcher, and injuries have hampered his ability to control the run game, but he’s been an above-average bat by measure of wRC+ in each of the last four seasons. Not to mention, having been the trusted receiver of Max Scherzer and Anibal Sanchez the past two seasons, Suzuki no doubt has plenty of sage advice to impart to the Angels’ less experiences backstops about how to manage a ballgame.
  • The Angels came to terms with five of their six arbitration-eligible players before yesterday’s filing deadline, but they’re heading to a hearing with star two-way player Shohei Ohtani. As if arbitration hearings aren’t complicated enough, Ohtani’s two-way abilities coupled with his injury history make him a particularly thorny case. Ohtani requested a $3.3MM salary, while the Angels countered at $2.5MM, per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. New GM Perry Minasian says the Angels will be a “file-and-go” team, also known as “file-and-trial,” meaning they don’t plan to continue negotiations after the filing deadline. Of course, even teams with this philosophy occasionally reach an agreement between the filing date and hearing.

Injury Notes: Rendon, Altuve, Hamels, Cubs, Orioles

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The Angels aren’t sure whether third baseman and top winter acquisition Anthony Rendon will be ready when they open their season Friday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com relays. Rendon, a former Nationals star whom the Angels signed to a seven-year, $245MM contract in free agency, has been dealing with oblique soreness since last week. If he’s not able to take the field in a few days, the Angels are expected to use David Fletcher and Matt Thaiss at the hot corner, per Bollinger. The Angels’ infield could also be missing Luis Rengifo, who Bollinger writes stands a “strong chance” of sitting out the opener on account of hamstring soreness.

  • Astros second baseman Jose Altuve left the team’s preseason game against the Royals on Tuesday with a left leg contusion, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports. There’s now some question as to whether the former MVP will be healthy enough to go when the Astros’ season starts. “We’re hopeful he’ll be ready on Friday,” manager Dusty Baker said. “We’ll analyze him tomorrow and see where he is in the morning. Usually the day after that, you’re pretty sore.”
  • “It’s going to be a while” before left-hander Cole Hamels debuts in 2020, Braves manager Brian Snitker said Tuesday (via Mark Bowman of MLB.com). Hamels dealt with shoulder inflammation during spring training and has recently battled triceps tendinitis, thereby preventing him from facing live hitters over the past several months. Considering how short this season will be, the Braves may have trouble getting much bang for their buck out of Hamels. They inked the longtime workhorse to a one-year, $18MM contract over the winter. That guarantee turned into approximately a prorated $7MM when the season went from 162 games to 60.
  • Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who has been fighting rib and back issues, seems to be progressing. Manager David Ross said Tuesday (via Jordan Bastian of MLB.com) that it “looks like all thumbs up from today” in regards to Rizzo. He’s slated to start the team’s exhibition game against Minnesota on Wednesday. Meanwhile, southpaw  Jose Quintana – who underwent surgery on his left thumb three weeks ago – issued an encouraging update on his status (per Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune), saying he’s not feeling any pain. It remains unclear when he’ll be able to take the mound this season, though.
  • Orioles left-hander John Means will miss Opening Day because of arm fatigue, Joe Trezza of MLB.com tweets. As a result, offseason minor league signing and fellow southpaw Tommy Milone will start the Orioles’ opener against Boston on Friday. It’s not known when Means will be able to debut in 2020, but the Orioles are surely hoping it will be sooner than later. The 27-year-old Means was one of the few bright spots on Baltimore’s talent-deprived roster last season, after all, as he logged a 3.60 ERA/4.41 FIP with 7.03 K/9 and 2.21 BB/9 across 155 innings.

Minor Injury Notes: Rendon, Luzardo, deGrom

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Anthony Rendon sat out Friday’s game with oblique tightness, per the Angels’ PR department (via Twitter). Rendon is day-to-day. The Angels’ third baseman was remarkably stable during his time with the Nationals, appearing in at least 136 games in five of the last six seasons. His only significant injury time came in 2015 when a sprained knee and quad strain limited him to 80 games. This season, of course, games will come at a premium. Barring a setback, the Angels hope and plan to have Rendon back in the lineup well in time for their July 24th opener against the Oakland Athletics. Let’s take a spin around the league to check in on other minor injuries…

  • MLBTR’s Connor Byrne wrote yesterday about the A’s long-term dream for Jesus Luzardo as a rotation stalwart. But as Byrne noted, after missing time due to the positive coronavirus test, it’s unlikely he will be ready to join the rotation by Opening Day. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter) confirmed as much this morning, as manager Bob Melvin suggested the rotation would be “difficult for him initially.” What that means exactly for Luzardo’s near-term future isn’t totally clear. The A’s could choose to keep him in camp to stretch him out until he is ready to join the rotation. Or they could throw him back into the role he held last season as a multi-inning shutdown artist. Slusser suggests his chances of breaking camp on the roster are good, giving the A’s one heck of a bullpen weapon as the season gets underway.
  • The New York Mets plan to pitch Rick Porcello on Saturday and Corey Oswalt on Sunday, tweets Mike Puma of the New York Post. That puts ace Jacob deGrom in line for a simulated session to run concurrently with Sunday’s preseason game. DeGrom should then be ready to start the season opener next Friday, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post. A back issue flared up for deGrom last week, prompting an MRI, but all appears to be well and deGrom is back on track for Opening Day. With Noah Syndergaard out for the season, deGrom is probably the most important player on the Mets’ roster (which would probably be true even with Syndergaard). DeGrom has won each of the last two NL Cy Young awards, and in a short season, his brand of dominance could go a long way to keeping the Mets’ firmly in contention. One long losing streak could tank the year, but if deGrom is up to his usual antics (read: dominance), he should be as effective a streak stopper as there is in baseball.

 

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