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COVID IL Notes: Wheeler, Arauz, Sosa, Wainwright

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Phillies ace Zack Wheeler, who’d been on the COVID IL since Sunday, has been cleared to rejoin the team and will start tonight’s game against the Dodgers, reports Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Enquirer. To make room for Wheeler on the active roster, the Phillies optioned left-hander Bailey Falter to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. It’s a timely return for the Phillies, who’ll avoid a crunch in rotation following a pair of rainouts and a Sunday doubleheader against the Mets last weekend. Even with Wheeler’s return, the rotation is still down a man with Zach Eflin still on the COVID list. However, the club has an off-day on Monday, meaning they can survive with four starters for a couple of turns through the rotation. After five starts this year, Wheeler’s ERA is sitting at 4.10, with a 22.5% strikeout rate and 8.1% walk rate.

Rounding up the latest virus-related transactions…

  • The Red Sox announced that they have reinstated Jonathan Arauz from the COVID-related IL. To make room on the 40-man roster, left-hander Josh Taylor has been transferred from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL. Taylor has somewhat quietly become an important part of the Red Sox bullpen. Over the previous three seasons, he’s thrown 102 1/3 innings with a 3.69 ERA, 29.4% strikeout rate and 10% walk rate. He’s gradually earned himself some higher-leverage outings, notching 15 holds and a save last year. However, he began this year on the injured list due to back soreness. He began a rehab assignment last month, though that was paused after the issue lingered. The Red Sox evidently don’t think he’s close to a return, based on today’s transaction. Taylor will be eligible to return 60 days from his original placement on the IL, meaning he could be back in early June, though the club hasn’t provided any timetable for his next steps.
  • The Cardinals announced that Edmundo Sosa was activated from the COVID IL today. Kramer Robertson was optioned in a corresponding move. With the recent demotion of Paul DeJong, there’s an opening for Sosa to take over as the everyday shortstop in St. Louis. Last year, he broke out with a .271/.346/.389 showing for a 104 wRC+. However, he got off to a slow start this year, hitting just .160/.250/.160 in a small ten-game sample before landing on the injured list. He’ll be jockeying with Brendan Donovan, who is off to a hot start to his MLB career. Over his first 12 games in the big leagues, Donovan is hitting .278/.381/.556, 169 wRC+. Another path the team could eventually take would be to slide Tommy Edman over to shortstop and call up second base prospect Nolan Gorman, who is hitting .287/.350/.658 in Triple-A this year for a wRC+ of 157.
  • There’s one Cardinal that is still on the COVID IL, right-hander Adam Wainwright. It seems that he is back with the club and could be taking the ball for Sunday’s game, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Packy Naughton recently made a spot start to cover for Wainwright and would likely be bumped to the bullpen or optioned to the minors if Waino can indeed return this weekend. The 40-man roster currently has a vacancy, meaning a corresponding move won’t be necessary in that regard. Through six starts this year, Wainwright has a 3.18 ERA, 20% strikeout rate, 9.3% walk rate and 57.6% ground ball rate.

Phillies Designate David Paulino For Assignment, Activate Bailey Falter

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The Phillies have designated David Paulino for assignment, according to the club. The roster spot was needed for Bailey Falter, who has been reinstated from the COVID-IL.

This is a very quick turnaround for Paulino, who was selected to the Philadelphia roster just two days ago. The 27-year-old righty pitched two innings against the Reds yesterday, his first MLB action since 2018, surrendering two runs on three hits. His Triple-A numbers on the year are solid, if unspectacular. He has an ERA of 4.35 over 51 2/3 innings, with a quality strikeout rate of 25.2% but an unfortunate walk rate of 10.4%.

As for Falter, the 24-year-old lefty has been on the COVID-IL since mid-July. Before that, he had been bouncing between the minors and the majors. In 30 2/3 innings at Triple-A this season, he has an excellent 1.76 ERA with a strikeout rate of 36.7% and walk rate of 6.7%. In 18 innings at the MLB level, he has a 4.50 ERA, but with a strikeout rate of 29.6% and walk rate of 1.4%, both of which are much better than average.

COVID Notes: 7/16/21

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The latest coronavirus-related news around baseball:

  • Before this afternoon’s doubleheader agains the Phillies, the Marlins placed outfielder Jesús Sánchez on the COVID-19 injured list. It’s not clear whether he tested positive for the virus; players can also land on the IL for experiencing symptoms or for viral exposure. Sánchez is hitting a solid .265/.315/.434 through 89 plate appearances this season.
  • The Phillies reinstated reliever Bailey Falter from the COVID-19 injured list this afternoon. The southpaw landed on the IL as part of contact tracing efforts last weekend after third baseman Alec Bohm tested positive for the coronavirus. Falter has tallied 17 2/3 innings of multi-inning relief across eight appearances this season.

Alec Bohm Tests Positive For COVID-19

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10:48 am: Bohm has tested positive for COVID-19, Girardi told reporters (including Matt Gelb of the Athletic). He’ll remain in isolation for at least ten days.

10:17 am: The Phillies announced they’ve placed starting pitcher Aaron Nola, third baseman Alec Bohm and relievers Connor Brogdon and Bailey Falter on the COVID-19 injured list. Infielder Nick Maton and pitchers Mauricio Llovera, Damon Jones and Cristopher Sánchez have been recalled to replace them on the active roster.

Bohm was pulled from last night’s game as part of health and safety protocols. There’s no confirmation he or any of the other players involved have tested positive for COVID-19. Players can be placed on the COVID-19 IL for exposure to the virus or for experiencing virus-like symptoms. There is no minimum stint on the COVID IL.

Nola had been scheduled to start this afternoon’s game against the Red Sox. It’s not clear who will get the ball, although it seems likely manager Joe Girardi will conduct some sort of impromptu bullpen game. With the All-Star Break beginning tomorrow, the Phils can leverage a handful of arms to get through today’s contest and reevaluate the pitching staff before their doubleheader with the Marlins next Friday.

Phillies Add 6 Players To 40-Man Roster

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The Phillies have added three left-handers – Kyle Dohy, Bailey Falter and Damon Jones – as well as infielder Nick Maton, righty Francisco Morales and outfielder Simon Muzziotti to their 40-man roster, the team announced. They now have 37 players on their roster.

Going by MLB.com’s rankings, the most promising player in this group is Morales, whom it places fourth overall in the Phillies’ farm system. The hard-throwing 21-year-old has a chance to morph into a workhorse at the major league level, per MLB.com. So far, Morales has topped out at Single-A ball, where he recorded a 3.82 ERA/3.51 FIP and 12.01 K/9 against 4.28 BB/9 in 96 2/3 innings in 2019.

Muzziotti (No. 11), Maton (13), Jones (15) and Dohy (27) are also among the Phillies’ top 30 prospects. All of those players are homegrown products.

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