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Jacoby Ellsbury

AL East Notes: Jackson, Devers, Ellsbury, Fowler

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The Orioles’ decision to outright left-hander Paul Fry over the weekend could be a precursor to adding veteran righty Edwin Jackson to the big league roster, writes Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. Jackson had an opt-out clause in his contract for June 1 but agreed to push that date back to today as the team took a bit more time to make its decision. Jackson’s lack of minor league options is a strike against him, Encina notes, as the O’s have liberally shuffled relievers back and forth from Triple-A Norfolk and Baltimore this season. However, his ability to throw multiple innings in relief and recent effectiveness could make up for that fact. Jackson has tossed 5 2/3 scoreless frames with four strikeouts and no walks across his past three outings and has a 3.10 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9 on the year as a whole. If he does trigger his opt-out, the Orioles would have 48 hours to add him to the roster or release him.

Elsewhere in the AL East…

  • ESPN’s Buster Olney spoke to a talent evaluator from a rival club who recently watched Red Sox prospect Rafael Devers and came away convinced that the 20-year-old’s size and conditioning won’t allow him to stick at third base in the long run. While that’s just one opinion — Baseball America wrote this offseason that Devers’ glovework has improved, for instance — the lack of certainty isn’t great for a Boston club that has a murky third base picture in the long term thanks to Pablo Sandoval’s struggles and Brock Holt’s injuries. As Olney notes, Devers’ defense will also impact how other clubs view him in potential trade discussions as well.
  • Jacoby Ellsbury will see a neurologist today after a recurrence of his concussion symptoms led to a shutdown from baseball activities over the weekend, writes George A. King III of the New York Post. The Yankees have the outfield depth to withstand a lengthy absence from Ellsbury, who was off to a fine start on the year, but they’re currently utilizing converted infielder Rob Refsnyder in that mix. Mason Williams would offer a better defensive option should the Yanks need a long-term option, King suggests. In a separate piece, he notes that the team doesn’t love the idea of promoting prospect Dustin Fowler if there aren’t everyday at-bats for him at an outfield slot. With Aaron Hicks, Brett Gardner and Aaron Judge all playing well, there doesn’t seem to be a place for Fowler right now, despite his .300/.335/.563 batting line through 225 Triple-A plate appearances.

AL East Notes: Alvarez, Ellsbury, Sanchez, Ramos, Boxberger, Torres

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Pedro Alvarez and the Orioles agreed to extend their relationship beyond Alvarez’s original June 1 opt-out date, though that extension is up today, David Hall of the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot reports (Twitter link).  “Anything remains possible” between the two sides, Hall writes, which isn’t a surprise given the number of moving parts within Alvarez’s situation.  The slugger has only a .224/.295/.452 overall slash line at Triple-A this season, though he has been on a major hot streak over the last two weeks.  Alvarez’s transition to becoming an outfielder also remains very much a work in progress, which limits his ability to find a spot on Baltimore’s 25-man roster.

Here’s more from around the AL East…

  • Jacoby Ellsbury has been shut down due to a return of his concussion symptoms, Yankees manager Joe Girardi told media (including MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch).  Ellsbury suffered the injury after a collision with the outfield wall while making a catch on May 24, and he has already spent more than the minimum seven days on the concussion DL.  The veteran is off to a strong .281/.349/.422 start over his first 153 plate appearances, though New York has a very capable center field replacement in Aaron Hicks while Ellsbury recovers.
  • Blue Jays righty Aaron Sanchez may begin throwing as soon as tomorrow, manager John Gibbons told Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith and other reporters.  Sanchez hasn’t thrown a pitch since May 19 in an effort to fully recover from the blister and fingernail problems that have plagued him all season, leading to three separate DL stints.  It may still be a while before Sanchez returns to the mound, as Gibbons said the right-hander will “definitely” require a rehab assignment after he is able to begin throwing.
  • Wilson Ramos is aiming to make his Rays debut in late June, after completing a 20-day minor league rehab stint, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes.  Ramos has reportedly been making solid progress in his recovery from the ACL and meniscus tears he suffered in the last week of the 2016 season.
  • Also from Topkin, Rays reliever Brad Boxberger is also looking to return from the DL late this month.  Boxberger will begin a rehab assignment on Sunday that is tentatively scheduled to last for three weeks.  The right-hander will require a lengthy ramping-up process after missing much of Spring Training with a lat strain, and then suffering a flexor strain in his throwing shoulder.
  • Gleyber Torres has spent the bulk of his Triple-A time at third base, and the top Yankees prospect could very well get a crack at the position in the big leagues this season if Chase Headley continues to struggle.  NJ Advance Media’s Brendan Kuty talks to Yankees third base coach and infield instructor Joe Espada about Torres’ defensive abilities and the challenges in moving from shortstop to the hot corner.

Jacoby Ellsbury Placed On DL With Concussion, Neck Sprain

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9:30pm: Ellsbury has been placed on the 7-day DL, tweets MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch. The team has yet to announce a corresponding roster move, however.

7:30pm: The Yankees announced that center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury was removed from tonight’s game with a concussion and a neck sprain. Ellsbury made a sensational catch of a deep fly-ball to center field but crashed into wall upon making the grab and was down on the field for several seconds before being attended to by trainers (video link). That occurred on the first play of the game, and while Ellsbury initially remained in the contest, he was replaced by Aaron Hicks in the bottom of the second inning.

While the Yankees haven’t made an announcement of a DL trip, it seems that the diagnosis of a concussion would likely call for a trip to the 7-day disabled list. Ellsbury has played quite well thus far in 2017, hitting .281/.349/.422 with four homers and eight steals through the first 153 plate appearances of his age-33 campaign. If he is indeed sidelined, the Yanks have the outfield depth to get by, as Hicks has also been tremendous in what is shaping up to be a breakout campaign. Hicks or Brett Gardner could handle the bulk of the work in center, with the other playing left field and Aaron Judge manning right field.

In the event of a DL stint, Mason Williams seems like the most logical candidate to replace Ellsbury on the roster. The fleet-footed 25-year-old has hit poorly in Triple-A this season, but he’s already on the Yankees’ 40-man roster, whereas top prospect Clint Frazier would require a corresponding 40-man roster move. And, given the organization’s hope for Frazier in the long run, the Yankees may not want to bring Frazier up as a temporary injury replacement. Alternatively, the ability of both Hicks and Gardner to handle center field could make Rob Refsnyder a short-term option, as he’s begun to play some corner outfield in recent seasons as well.

East Notes: Ellsbury, Encarnacion, Ortiz, Mets, Morales

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Outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury’s $153MM deal could turn out to be one of the worst in the history of the Yankees franchise, ESPN’s Andrew Marchand writes. At the time the deal was signed, it looked like the team’s best chance to get value was for Ellsbury to be very productive at the front end of the deal, but that hasn’t really proven to be the case. He produced a solid .271/.328/.419 season in 2014, but last year he hit just .257/.318/.345 while dealing with knee issues, with his isolated power dropping from .148 to .088. He’s off to a 4-for-18 start this season. Here’s more from the East divisions.

  • Red Sox legend David Ortiz thinks Edwin Encarnacion should replace him as the Sox’ DH after he retires, WEEI’s Rob Bradford writes. “Hell, yeah. He’s a perfect replacement,” Ortiz says. “Because of everything, but mostly because he can hit.” Encarnacion says he still wants to play first base as well as DH, but he’s already talked to Ortiz about the possibility of playing DH full-time in the future (although not for the Red Sox specifically). Encarnacion batted .277/.372/.557 last season in Toronto. It now appears extension talks with the Blue Jays are dead. He’s set to become a free agent after the season.
  • Mets manager Terry Collins says that he will utilize a full-blown left field platoon of Michael Conforto and Juan Lagares, Marc Carig of Newsday reports (Twitter links). “We’re in a situation where we’re trying to win games,” said Collins. “This is not a time to develop players.” The Mets skipper added that it wasn’t just a matter of getting Lagares in for his glove, noting that he likes his bat against lefties.
  • Blue Jays lefty Franklin Morales says he felt “weakness” in his shoulder upon completing his first warm-up pitch yesterday, Sportsnet’s Arden Zwelling tweets. Also via Zwelling (on Twitter), Jays manager John Gibbons says today that Morales’ situation isn’t serious and that Morales simply couldn’t loosen up last night. The Jays had planned to use Morales in the sixth inning yesterday, but he didn’t end up pitching. The Jays signed Morales to a one-year, non-guaranteed deal last week after the Brewers released him.

New York Notes: Warthen, Severino, Prado, Gardner

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Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen was overworked early in his career, writes Tim Rohan of the New York Times. Warthen figured he had torn his UCL back in 1975, but Tommy John had only received his eponymous surgery in 1974. Major league players were paid very little at the time so Warthen couldn’t afford the surgery or a year away from baseball. Instead he worked through the injury and his career ended a few years later at the age of 25. Of course, now it’s his job to make sure his young pitching staff remains healthy and productive for years to come.

Here’s more from that other New York club:

  • The Yankees were right to keep top prospect Luis Severino, writes John Harper of the New York Daily News. Severino was one name discussed with the Tigers for David Price. Notably, Price is now 0-6 in six postseason starts with a 5.23 ERA. Scouts believe Severino will soon be the Yankees ace, and he’s under club control for another six seasons. Per one scout, “If you’re talking six or seven years for Price…I’d take Severino anyway.“
  • GM Brian Cashman was loathe to part with Martin Prado in the offseason trade for Nathan Eovaldi, per Harper. His versatility and ability to match up against hard throwing left-handed pitching would have been useful for the club. The Marlins have him under club control for the 2016 season, but the Yankees are already paying $3MM of his $11MM contract. Personally, I see a swap for Prado as a worthy alternative to free agent Ben Zobrist.
  • After a miserable second half, the Yankees may consider trading Brett Gardner, suggests Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Gardner has a similar skill set to leadoff hitter Jacoby Ellsbury, but both players disappeared in the second half of the season. If Gardner were to be traded, it could open the door for a power bat like Justin Upton or Yoenis Cespedes. One scout opined that an early season wrist injury and late season shoulder soreness could have affected Gardner’s play. He’s owed $36MM through 2018 with a $12.5MM club option for 2019 ($2MM buyout). He’ll also be paid a $1MM assignment bonus if traded.

AL East Notes: Hanley, Ellsbury, Orioles, Moore

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Here’s the latest from around the AL East…

  • The Red Sox have given Hanley Ramirez permission to begin his offseason rehab process at his home in Fort Lauderdale, which ESPN Boston’s Gordon Edes feels is a curious and perhaps telling move from the team.  While Ramirez has been shut down for 2015 due to a shoulder injury, Edes notes that the likes of Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz, Koji Uehara and Junichi Tazawa all remained with the club despite being shut down with past and current injuries in order to keep supporting their teammates.  It could just be a case of bad optics, or it could be a hint that the Red Sox don’t have Ramirez in their future plans and will try to trade him this winter.
  • The Red Sox aren’t missing Jacoby Ellsbury given the wealth of young outfield talent on the roster, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes.  “Ellsbury was not viewed by the Red Sox as a must-sign,” Silverman said, as the outfielder went on to sign a seven-year, $153MM free agent deal with the Yankees.  Given how Ellsbury has struggled this year, it’s no surprise the Sox would prefer to look to the future with Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Rusney Castillo.
  • Some teams are already inquiring if Orioles pitching coach Dave Wallace will be available this winter, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko reports.  Wallace and the rest of the O’s coaching staff are still without contracts for 2016, though executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette recently told Kubatko that the club was in “the process” of getting those deals worked out.  The highly-regarded Wallace has been Baltimore’s pitching coach for two seasons and Kubatko speculates that if he were to leave, bullpen coach Dom Chiti could leave as well since the two are good friends.
  • Matt Moore tells Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times that he feels he’s turned a bit of a corner in his recovery from Tommy John surgery and should be fully back to normal by Spring Training.  Moore badly struggled in his first six starts back and was demoted to the minors, though since returning to the Rays he has pitched better, posting a 3.86 ERA and a 22-to-5 K/BB rate over his last 23 1/3 innings.
  • The Yankees will replace Dave Miley as the manager of their Triple-A affiliate, George A. King III of the New York Post reports.  Miley, who managed the Reds from 2003-05, just completed his 10th season managing the Yankees’ Triple-A team.

AL East Notes: Wieters, Davis, Rays, Kelly

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Matt Wieters left the third inning of last night’s Orioles loss to the Mariners with a right hamstring strain, and he’ll be re-evaluated on Friday when the club is back in Baltimore.  All parties are hopeful that Wieters can avoid the DL, and the catcher told reporters (including Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun) that “I think we caught it before it became a severe strain. The hamstring got tight and it was getting tighter. I think we stopped before we did any serious damage to it.”  Losing Wieters would obviously be a blow to the Orioles’ postseason chances, and another DL stint also wouldn’t do any favors to Wieters’ free agent stock this offseason.  The catcher already missed the first two months of the season recovering from Tommy John surgery but had been hitting well (.278/.305/.449 with five homers) in 167 PA since his return.

Some more from around the division…

  • Chris Davis has rebounded from a miserable 2014 to have a big 2015 season, with improved health and better performance against fastballs as two major reasons for his resurgence, MLB.com’s Mike Petriello writes.  With a thin market of free agent first basemen this winter, Petriello thinks Davis could make a big cash-in on the open market this offseason, perhaps even a contract topping the $100MM mark.
  • Desmond Jennings and Drew Smyly are both slated to return from DL stints to the Rays this week, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes.  Smyly’s return is the more tenuous of the two, as he didn’t pitch well in a recent rehab start.  He’ll throw a bullpen session on Thursday to determine whether he’ll make his scheduled start against the Rangers on Sunday.
  • With Koji Uehara done for the season, Joe Kelly could be the Red Sox answer at closer both for the rest of 2015 and maybe in the future, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes.  Kelly, for his part, tells The Boston Herald’s Jason Mastrodonato that he has no interest in switching to a bullpen role.
  • Has the Jacoby Ellsbury signing already been a bust for the Yankees?  Brendan Kuty of the Star-Ledger poses the questions and breaks down both sides of the argument, concluding that it’s still too early to judge the seven-year, $153MM contract before even two full seasons have passed.  Ellsbury’s underachieving, injury-plagued 2015 season, however, is a cause for concern for the Yankees, especially since Ellsbury was still expected to perform like a top-level player for at least the first few years of the deal.

Yankees Notes: Tanaka, Ellsbury, Rogers, Trout

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The return of Masahiro Tanaka to the Yankees rotation has given the team new life, writes John Harper of the New York Daily News. Tanaka showed good velocity in his return to action, topping out at 96 mph. Beyond Michael Pineda’s strong season, New York has received inconsistent performances from the rotation. If Tanaka returns to his 2014 form, the club will be in a better position to buy at the trade deadline. Here’s more on the Bronx Bombers:

  • Outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury remains sidelined with a knee injury. He has a heavy-duty brace that won’t be removed for at least another week, reports Wallace Matthews of ESPN. He is currently expected to return to the club in early July. The team has survived his absence by moving Brett Gardner to center field while using Chris Young, Garrett Jones, Carlos Beltran, and Ramon Flores in the outfield corners. A trade appears unlikely since the team has survived Ellbury’s absence for a couple weeks with eight wins and seven losses.
  • Reliever Esmil Rogers may be on a short leash, writes Ken Davidoff of the New York Post. The bullpen nearly blew a seven run lead in the ninth inning yesterday. Five of the runs were charged to Rogers who failed to record an out. The Yankees pen currently has five left-handed relievers, but manager Joe Girardi says it isn’t a problem, per Ryan Hatch of NJ.com. Southpaws like Andrew Miller, Justin Wilson, Chasen Shreve, and Jacob Lindgren can be used against both righties and lefties. However, Girardi would like another reliable right-handed weapon – something Rogers may not be able to provide.
  • As we prepare for the Rule 4 draft, Charles Curtis of NJ.com details just how close the Yankees came to selecting MVP Mike Trout. The club viewed Trout as the second best player in the draft and held the 29th overall pick. An area scout for the club provided coaching for Trout and had firsthand knowledge of his work ethic. Unfortunately for New York, the Angels swooped in with the 25th pick.
  • The Yankees will pick 16th this year, their highest selection since 1993, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Decades of success and big free agent purchases have left the Yankees with few early draft picks. Sherman notes that the club didn’t have the opportunity to select 18 percent of current major leaguers. For those interested, Sherman breaks down the results of recent drafts.

 

AL East Notes: Cuba, Clevenger, Ellsbury

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Major League Baseball denied statements of a Cuban official indicating that the Orioles were set to play the Cuban national team in Havana this year, as Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports. The league is clearly interested in forging ties with the neighboring country, but is also proceeding quite cautiously given the still-uncertain political situation.

  • Recently-recalled Orioles catcher Steve Clevenger says that he primarily focused on improving his defense during his minor league stint to open the year, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports. Of course, he also put up some impressive numbers at the plate. Discussing the move manager Buck Showalter made clear that Clevenger is playing as much for next year — when the team will see Matt Wieters reach free agency — as for this one, when Wieters will likely force him back to Triple-A. “I try to be blunt to a fault about what they need to do when they’re there,” Showalter said. “I talked about continue to be engaged with the pitcher and catching and throwing. I said, ’You’re going to be out of options next year, you’re going to control all this.’ I said, ’Try to present yourself for us and everybody else in the game as good as possible. Go down there and lead the league in hitting.'”
  • Yankees center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury could miss a month or more with his knee injury, skipper Joe Girardi told reporters, including NJ.com’s Ryan Hatch. While the club has received excellent production from Chris Young and can also use Slade Heathcott in center to spot him and take the platoon advantage, a prolonged absence from Ellsbury is a major hit to New York. On the plus side, the Yankees ought to have a handle on Ellsbury’s progress well in advance of the trade deadline.

AL East Notes: Craig, Smyly, Ellsbury, Saunders

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It is by now well-documented that Allen Craig of the Red Sox has experienced a significant decline at the plate, leading to his outright off of the 40-man roster. But as Alex Speier of the Boston Globe explains, the fall-off has been so steep that it actually has historical dimensions. Looking at other players who posted consistently strong batting lines in their age-26 to 28 seasons, Speier shows that no other player has fallen as far as has Craig (62 OPS+) in the following two years. There could, of course, still be some hope of a turnaround given the complicated role that injuries in his struggles and the fact that he is still only 30.

  • Rays lefty Drew Smyly appears to be reconsidering the surgical route and could instead attempt to rest and then rehab his ailing left shoulder, ESPN.com reports. It’s not clear what precipitated the changed approach, but manager Kevin Cash says that the current plan may allow Smyly to return later this year. “We’re optimistic,” Cash said. “We’re hearing good things.” While any return to action would, at this point, presumably be rather late in the year — Smyly was just placed on the 60-day DL and would obviously require a lengthy resting and rebuilding process — the realistic possibility of a return could impact the team’s summer trade market plans.
  • The Yankees good news on Jacoby Ellsbury, who will not need surgery on his just-injured right knee, as Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com reports. “It is not anything that requires surgery so we are not holding anything that is doom or gloom,” said manager Joe Girardi. “We just have to see how he responds over the next few days and see what [team doctor Chris] Ahmad says.”
  • Meanwhile, the Blue Jays are still set to be without outfielder Michael Saunders for three to five weeks, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisolm reports. Saunders says he suffered a bone bruise in his left knee that arose out of his recent surgery to remove his meniscus. The Jays are still bringing up the rear in the division, of course, and will hope that Saunders can return to action sooner rather than later.
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