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Vincent Velasquez

Phillies Plan To Move Spencer Howard Into Rotation

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The Phillies optioned righty Spencer Howard to their alternate site this week, but it’s not the demotion it might appear to be upon first glance. Rather, they’ll get him stretched out to work as a starter over the next few weeks with an eye toward adding him to the rotation next month, Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

It’s a quick change in direction for a Phillies club that had previously planned to keep Howard, the organization’s top pitching prospect, in a bullpen role for the 2021 season. President of baseball ops Dave Dombrowski plainly said as much prior to the season, but as Breen highlights, the team’s fourth and fifth spots in the rotation have yielded dreadful results.

Lefty Matt Moore, signed to a one-year deal on the back of a solid showing in Japan last year, has yet to give the Phillies a competitive start. He’s been tagged for a dozen earned runs on 17 hits with an ugly 12-to-9 K/BB ratio through 11 innings of work. Righty Chase Anderson was mostly solid during his first three starts, yielding two runs apiece, but those starts lasted just five, four and four innings, respectively. He was clobbered for six runs in 3 2/3 innings in his most recent turn (albeit at Coors Field). Vince Velasquez has made only one start, lasting four innings, and hasn’t fared especially well in relief.

Fortunately for the Phillies, the top three starters in their rotation have each been excellent. Ace Aaron Nola is sitting on a 2.84 ERA through 31 2/3 innings and recently hurled a shutout in which he punched out 10 Cardinals. Zack Wheeler’s strikeouts are back after a 2020 hiatus, and he’s sporting a 3.13 ERA through an identical 31 2/3 inning workload. Zach Eflin leads Philadelphia starters with a 2.77 ERA and a brilliant 19-to-2 K/BB ratio in 26 innings.

Ideally, Howard will get stretched out and turn that strong trio into a formidable quartet. The 2017 second-rounder has ranked among the game’s Top 50 prospects for the past two seasons, according to each of Baseball America, FanGraphs and MLB.com. He hasn’t exactly thrived in the Majors to this point (6.28 ERA, 4.44 SIERA), but he’s only tallied 28 1/3 MLB innings and is still just 24 years of age. We don’t have 2020 minor league numbers to look at for obvious reasons, but back in ’19, Howard tallied 71 innings across four levels and logged a combined 2.03 ERA with a brilliant 34.8 percent strikeout rate and a tiny 5.9 percent walk rate.

Of course, the Phillies’ initial reason for wanting to use Howard in the ’pen was to limit his 2021 workload after he battled shoulder troubles in both 2019 and 2020. He’s not going to be plugged into the rotation and given the go-ahead to toss six or seven innings every fifth day through season’s end. Breen suggests the righty could be tasked with working the first four or perhaps five innings of a game every fifth day. Perhaps both he and Anderson — if Anderson can continue working in mostly solid four- or five-inning blocks — could then round out the starting staff, with the Phils leaning more heavily on the ’pen on those days.

The Phillies have one of the game’s bottom 10 farm systems by most rankings (including BA and MLB.com), so it’s not a huge surprise that they’re lacking in upper-level alternatives to plug into the rotation. Left-hander Bailey Falter and righty Adonis Medina give them a pair of candidates, and both have already very briefly cracked the big leagues.

The Phils will surely have some other internal arms pop up, and they have some depth pieces like Bryan Mitchell and Enyel De Los Santos slated to begin the year in Triple-A. They were also among the teams to watch Anibal Sanchez’s workout last Friday. Still, if they continue to hover around .500 and remain in the playoff hunt, it’s easy to envision Dombrowski hitting the summer trade market in search of some arms to augment his starting staff.

NL East Health Notes: Soroka, Phillies, Nats, D. Smith

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Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos told Fox Sports South that right-hander Mike Soroka could make his season debut in mid-April, David O’Brien of The Athletic relays. Soroka got through his third simulated game of the spring without any issues Friday. The 23-year-old remains on the comeback trail from a torn right Achilles that limited him to three starts last season. Before that, Soroka burst on the scene with 174 2/3 innings of 2.68 ERA pitching in 2019.

More from the National League East:

  • Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto played a sim game Friday and could make his Grapefruit League debut next week, manager Joe Girardi announced (via Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer). The star has been on the mend from a fractured right thumb. Girardi added that outfielder Adam Haseley is “ahead of schedule” in his recovery from a groin strain. Haseley, who went down March 5, hasn’t officially been ruled out for Opening Day.
  • Sticking with the Phillies, righty Vince Velasquez has an oblique injury, Girardi told Matt Gelb of The Athletic and other reporters. The severity is unknown, but oblique injuries often lead to absences that last for multiple weeks. It could be another shot to Philly’s staff, which has also seen Zach Eflin and Spencer Howard deal with injuries this spring. Velasquez could be their fifth starter to open 2021 if Eflin and Howar aren’t ready to go. In the event all three are shelved, though, it might open the door for veteran minor league addition Ivan Nova to claim a job.
  • Nationals center fielder Victor Robles exited Friday’s game with back tightness, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post. It doesn’t seem particularly serious, but the Nats will know more Saturday. Meanwhile, it was an encouraging day for righty Stephen Strasburg, who got through a 74-pitch sim game without any problems, Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com tweets. A calf injury has slowed Strasburg this spring, after the former World Series MVP missed almost all of 2020 – the first season of a seven-year, $245MM contract – with carpal tunnel syndrome.
  • Mets slugger Dominic Smith informed Anthony DiComo of MLB.com and other reporters that he could return to Grapefruit League action as early as Sunday. Smith, the favorite to start in left field for the Mets, has been dealing with a right wrist issue that has sidelined him for the past couple of the days. He posted back-to-back excellent seasons at the plate from 2019-20, during which he combined for a .299/.366/.571 line with 21 home runs in 396 PA.

Vince Velasquez Drawing Trade Interest

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Before tendering right-hander Vince Velasquez a contract for the 2021 season, the Phillies received inquires into his availability, according to the Athletic’s Matt Gelb.

There’s no denying that Velasquez has a great arm. Making that arm work for him on the pitching mound has been an up-and-down endeavor for the 28-year-old, however. The six-year veteran is set to make somewhere between $3.8MM and $4.8MM in his final season before free agency – a palatable amount for a rotation arm should the Phillies ultimately decide to move him, especially without the hindrance of a long-term financial commitment.

Whether or not Velazquez qualifies as a rotation arm is a question that the Phillies themselves have waffled on the past couple of seasons. Out of 42 total appearances the last two years, 30 have been starts – but that’s compared to 69 out of 70 from 2016 to 2018.

Inconsistency has, in fact, been the constant for Velazquez. He mixes wipe-out stuff (10.5 K/9 over the last two seasons) with a too-high walk rate (9.1 BB%) and year-to-year arsenal uncertainty. His 93-94 mph fastball more-or-less sets the tone, but deciding on a second-best offering has been somewhat of a rollercoaster.

His slider, for example, had largely been an effective, if judicious selection for him his first few years in the rotation, but as it gained traction volume-wise, hitters took it to the tune of a .407 wOBA in 2019. His changeup, meanwhile, had fallen almost out of his arsenal entirely in 2018 and 2019 before finding its way back into the mix last season, when he threw it 14.3% of the time and limited hitters to a 26.7 HardHit%. He throws a sinker, sparingly, but it’s been thumped – except in 2016 and 2020 when it registered a .298 wOBA and 243 wOBA, respectively.

All in all, Velasquez has been good for roughly 1.3 bWAR per 150 innings over his Phillies tenure – though 146 2/3 innings in 2018 mark a career high. Still, he owns a 4.33 FIP and 4.21 xFIP, as well as an exactly-league-average 100 FIP- for his career. Even that, however, doesn’t really tell the tale, as he’s alternated above-average seasons and below-average seasons by that mark since joining Philadelphia’s rotation: 94, 125, 90, 115, and 91 from 2016 to 2020.

That there’s interest in Velasquez is hardly surprising. But pinning his value to the wall is difficult. To summarize: on average, he’s an average ML arm that manifests as either 9-10% better or 15-25% worse than average.

As of right now, he figures to start the 2021 season right back in the Philly rotation behind Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler, and Zach Eflin, right alongside rookie Spencer Howard. Rumor is there’s a new decision-maker in town, however, as well as a new pitching coach, so this is their puzzle to solve.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: National League

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Entering the day, there were more than 150 players on the clock to exchange arbitration figures with their respective teams prior to a noon ET deadline. As one would expect, there’ll be an utter landslide of arbitration agreements in advance of that deadline. We already ran through some key facts and reminders on the arbitration process earlier this morning for those who are unfamiliar or simply need a refresher on one of MLB’s most complex idiosyncrasies, which will hopefully clear up many questions readers might have.

We’ll track the majority of the National League’s settlements in this post and are maintaining a separate one for American League settlements as well. Note that all projections referenced come courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz:

  • The Rockies have an agreement in place with righty Jon Gray, per Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post (via Twitter). It’s a $5.6MM deal, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link).
  • Outfielder Tommy Pham has struck a $7.9MM pact with the Padres, who acquired him at the outset of the offseason, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). Other Friars striking deals, per an update from Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, include Zach Davies ($5.25MM) and Matt Strahm ($1.4MM).
  • The Nationals announced that they’ve avoided arbitration with Trea Turner. It’s a $7.45MM agreement, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (via Twitter), right in range of the $7.5MM projection.
  • The Mets are in agreement with a laundry list of players. Right-handers Marcus Stroman ($12MM) and Noah Syndergaard ($9.7MM) were the top earners, per reports from MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter) and MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (via Twitter). Both come in close to their projected values of $11.8M and $9.9MM, respectively. The Mets also have a $5.1MM deal with reliever Edwin Diaz, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports (Twitter links). He entered the offseason projected at the $7.0MM level but will fall well shy of that. Despite an outstanding overall track record, Diaz’s platform season was a dud and obviously created some risk in a hearing for his side. Outfielder Brandon Nimmo will play for $2.175MM in his first season of arb eligibility, landing well over the $1.7MM that the model projected. Southpaw Steven Matz, meanwhile, lands a $5MM deal, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). That’s $300K shy of his projected amount. Relievers Robert Gsellman and Seth Lugo will earn $1.225MM and $2MM, respectively, per Mike Puma of the New York Post (Twitter links). Slugger Michael Conforto will earn $8.0MM, per SNY.tv’s Andy Martino (via Twitter), which is notably south of the $9.2MM that we projected. And fellow outfielder Jake Marisnick checks in a just over 10% north of his projection at $3,312,500, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.
  • Star reliever Kirby Yates receiveds a $7,062,500 salary from the Padres, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. He tops the $6.5MM that MLBTR projected by a solid margin, reflecting just how exceptional he was in 2019.
  • The Marlins will pay recently acquired infielder Jonathan Villar a $8.2MM salary, per MLB.com’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). That’s a far sight shy of the $10.4MM that the MLBTR system projected, perhaps reflecting a more difficult path to the bigger number through recent comparables. The club also had some added leverage here since Villar would likely not fare terribly well on the open market if cut loose at this stage or later. (Unless this is a guaranteed deal, Villar could still be jettisoned, with the club paying just a fraction of the settled amount.) The Fish also have also agreed to terms with lefty Adam Conley (for $1.525MM, per MLB Network Radio’s Craig Mish, via Twitter) and righty Jose Urena (for $3.75MM, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, on Twitter).
  • Righty Vince Velasquez will pitch for $3.6MM this year with the Phillies, per Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philly (via Twitter). Fellow hurler Jose Alvarez will earn $2.95MM, per Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).
  • The Rockies have an agreement with lefty Kyle Freeland, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). He’ll earn $2.875MM. Outfielder David Dahl takes home $2.475MM, Heyman adds on Twitter. The former had projected at $2.4MM and the latter at $3.0MM.
  • Pirates hurler Joe Musgrove will receive $2.8MM, per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter links). Fellow righty Keone Kela will earn a reported $3.725MM. Both players had projected at $3.4MM, but land well to either side of that number. Infielder Adam Frazier also has a deal at $2.8MM, per Mackey (via Twitter).
  • Righty Anthony DeSclafani will earn $5.9MM from the Reds, according to Robert Murray (via Twitter). He had projected at $5.2MM. Backstop Curt Casali will earn $1.4625MM, per Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link). And reliever Matt Bowman takes down $865K, Murray adds on Twitter.
  • The Dodgers have worked out a non-typical deal with righty Ross Stripling, Heyman tweets. He’ll get an up-front signing bonus of $1.5MM, which he’ll receive in the next week, and then earn $600K for the campaign to come. Stripling had projected to earn $2.3MM on the year.
  • Cardinals righty John Gant will earn $1.3MM after settling with the club. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch first tweeted that a deal was in place, while Murray had the number on Twitter. That comes in just under his $1.4MM projection.

Earlier Settlements

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Phillies Notes: Velasquez, Morgan, Bohm

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The latest out of Philadelphia…

  • The Phillies moved right-hander Vince Velasquez to their bullpen May 26, but they’re already giving him an opportunity to reclaim his old starting role. Velasquez will start Saturday, when he could “take control of the fifth spot for the time being,” manager Gabe Kapler told Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer and other reporters. The 24-year-old Velasquez hasn’t performed well as either a reliever or starter this season, evidenced by a 4.71 ERA/5.57 FIP in 42 innings. But with no obvious answer behind Aaron Nola, Jake Arrieta, Zach Eflin and Nick Pivetta, the Phillies are turning back to Velasquez. For the most part, Nola, Arrieta, Eflin and Pivetta haven’t been great either, which helps explain the Phillies’ recent tumble down the NL East standings. They’ve lost 13 of 19 since sitting a season-best 11 games over .500 on May 29, and now trail the division-leading Braves by 4 1/2 games.
  • Philadelphia announced Friday that it has reinstated reliever Adam Morgan from the 10-day injured list and optioned fellow lefty Cole Irvin to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Morgan missed just under a month with a left forearm strain. Before that, the former starter pitched to a 1.96 ERA (with a less shiny 3.93 FIP) and logged 8.84 K/9 against 2.45 BB/9 in 18 1/3 innings. Morgan’s return is a bit of good news for a Philly bullpen which is still dealing with injuries to David Robertson, Seranthony Dominguez, Pat Neshek, Victor Arano, Jerad Eickhoff and Tommy Hunter.
  • The Phillies have promoted young third baseman Alec Bohm to the Double-A level, per per the Inquirer’s Matt Breen. The 22-year-old Bohm opened the season at Single-A before jumping to High-A, where he raked with a .329/.395/.506 line (164 wRC+), four home runs, and 17 unintentional walks against 21 strikeouts in 177 plate appearances. Bohm, the third pick in last year’s draft and now MLB.com’s 39th-ranked prospect, could end up in the majors around September if he continues rolling in the minors, Breen writes. The Phillies are weak at third base, where Maikel Franco has managed awful production, though they could remedy that by the July 31 trade deadline instead of counting on Bohm as a late-season savior.

Phillies Move Vince Velasquez To Bullpen, Recall Pivetta

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The Phillies are tinkering with their starting rotation, recalling Nick Pivetta, who will reclaim his spot in the rotation and is slated to start Tuesday’s game against the Cardinals, tweets Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Meanwhile, right-hander Vince Velasquez will transition to a full-time bullpen role moving forward.

Velasquez, who boasts impressive strikeout stuff, has long been mentioned as a candidate to work out of the bullpen, and now we will have a chance to see just how his stuff plays in abbreviated outings in relief. After an impressive two-inning performance on Friday in which he struck out four batters, the Phils will give the 26-year-old Velasquez an extended look out of the bullpen. Velasquez certainly fits the prototype for converted relievers: for his career, the right-hander averages more than one strikeout per inning pitched, but that talent has thus far translated to a mediocre 4.52 career ERA. This season, walks and home runs have emerged as an issue, surrendering 1.9 HR/9 to go with 4.5 BB/9.

Taking his spot in the starting rotation will be Pivetta, who earned himself a short stint in the minor leagues after a frustrating start to his 2019, a year in which he was supposed to break out. Needless to say, there’s still time for Pivetta, who has long tantalized fans with elite pure stuff, to reverse his early-season misfortune and make good on his potential. If his six minor-league starts are any indicator of what’s to come, his raw stuff is still there: the 26-year-old struck out 50 batters in 37 Triple-A innings, good for a ratio of 12.2 K/9. By and large, though, it has been the long ball that has plagued Pivetta in 2019, having allowed 2.5 per nine innings pitched, an average that must come down if he’s to return to the form that he flashed last season.

An improved version of Pivetta would certainly be welcomed by the Phillies, who have received mixed results from their starting rotation, received good production from Zach Eflin, though Aaron Nola has yet to perform like the ace of last year’s staff. At the same time, experimenting with Velasquez in the bullpen could unlock something that prevented him from reaching his full potential as a starter. If something clicks, the Phillies could have themselves a versatile multi-inning threat, a role that surely is of considerable value for a contending team.

 

Phillies Weighing Rotation Change

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As the Phillies seek to map out a pitching plan that keeps them on top of the National League East, they’re preparing for a rotation change. The team is presently deciding whether to return Nick Pivetta or Vince Velasquez to the starting five in time to take the ball next Tuesday, manager Gabe Kapler told reporters including Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia (via Twitter).

Both of those talented but uneven hurlers opened the year in the rotation, but the ground has shifted in the two months since. Pivetta was hit hard in four starts and ended up being optioned back down to figure things out. Velasquez has been shelved with a forearm strain for a few weeks.

In their absence, the Phillies brought in some new arms. Jerad Eickhoff came first; he has firmly laid claim to a job. The same can’t be said of Cole Irvin, who’ll now be bumped out of the group of five. Irvin was bombed in his third start of the year and is likely ticketed for a trip back to Triple-A on optional assignment.

In the aggregate, there’s one spot up for grabs. Pivetta’s claim to the role is simple: he has racked up fifty strikeouts and allowed just 22 hits in 37 Triple-A frames. The stuff is there. He’s also still not commanding the ball perfectly, as evidenced by his twenty walks in that same stretch against minor-league competition. Pivetta’s latest start wasn’t his sharpest effort, as Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

Wandering command has also been an issue for Velasquez. He’s occasionally dominant but has never strung together an exceptional overall season. Velasquez owns a 3.86 ERA in 30 1/3 innings this year, but has been awfully homer- and walk-prone (with seven of the former and 15 of the latter).

Ultimately, both pitchers are sure to have an impact at the MLB level this year (presuming good health, at least). Perhaps both could ultimately be utilized in multi-inning roles other than those of a traditional starter, whether in tandem with one another or in concert with other pitchers. There are plenty of creative possibilities.

For the time being, the Phils need to figure out which pitcher can best help the team rack up the wins it needs to fend off the divisional competition, all while assessing how best the roster can be improved in the summer trade market. Unless Pivetta or Velazquez takes the job and runs with it, there could be more tinkering to come.

Phillies Place Vince Velasquez On IL, Promote Cole Irvin

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SUNDAY: Irvin’s officially up in place of Davis, the Phillies announced.

SATURDAY: The Phillies announced that they’ve placed Vince Velasquez on the 10-day injured list with a right forearm strain. In a corresponding move, the club recalled lefty Austin Davis from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. However, the Phillies will select southpaw Cole Irvin from Triple-A to start in Velasquez’s place Sunday in Kansas City. Irvin will take the last open spot on the Phillies’ 40-man roster.

This is the latest in a long line of arm injuries for Velasquez, who has logged IL time in the past for a biceps strain and a flexor strain, among other problems. Moreover, it’s worth noting a forearm strain sent budding Rays ace Tyler Glasnow to the shelf for four to six weeks on Saturday.  Velasquez suggested this isn’t nearly as serious as Glasnow’s injury, though, telling Scott Lauber of Philly.com and other reporters that he only expects to miss one start.

Velasquez, 26, hasn’t turned into the front-line starter the Phillies wanted when they acquired the then-prospect in a 2015 blockbuster with the Astros, though he has generally been a capable rotation piece. But Velasquez did endure back-to-back subpar starts prior to his IL placement, and most of his production this year hasn’t been nearly as encouraging as the 3.99 ERA and 9.2 K/9 he has put up over six starts and 29 1/3 frames. Along with those numbers, Velasquez has notched a horrid 5.81 FIP with 4.6 BB/9 and, compared to 2018, seen his swinging-strike and contact rates go in the wrong direction. He’s also yielding more than two home runs per nine and benefiting from a .250 batting average on balls in play and a 90.1 percent strand rate.

With Velasquez down, the 25-year-old Irvin will make his big league debut three seasons after the Phillies chose him in the fifth round of the 2016 draft. The former Oregon Duck had been enjoying his second straight sub-3.00 ERA season at the Triple-A level before his promotion, though the rest of his numbers have gone backward since 2018. While MLB.com ranks Irvin as the Phillies’ 16th-best prospect, lauding “his ability to use his four-pitch mix well to keep hitters guessing and off-balance,” the outlet adds that he only features one above-average offering (a changeup).

Phillies Place Vince Velasquez On DL, Activate Pat Neshek

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The Phillies announced a series of roster moves Sunday, including sending right-hander Vince Velasquez to the 10-day disabled list and activating reliever Pat Neshek from the DL. Additionally, the club recalled righty Jake Thompson from Triple-A Lehigh Valley and optioned left-hander Zac Curtis.

Velasquez is headed to the shelf after suffering a right forearm contusion in a start against the Nationals on Saturday. The injury came as a result of a line drive Velasquez took off the bat of the Nats’ Adam Eaton (video here). Before landing on the DL, Velasquez racked up 88 1/3 innings across 17 starts and pitched to an underwhelming ERA (4.69), though the hard-throwing 26-year-old managed 10.9 K/9 against 3.46 BB/9 and earned favorable reviews from FIP (3.81), xFIP (3.66) and SIERA (3.55).

With the Phillies currently in possession of a wild-card spot, the loss of Velasquez will be a blow to a rotation that has been among the majors’ most effective units this year. The club’s bullpen hasn’t been a lights-out group, on the other hand, but the addition of Neshek should help matters.

Neshek divided 2017 between Philadelphia and Colorado, the latter of which acquired him last summer, and posted a pristine 1.59 ERA with 9.96 K/9 against .87 BB/9 in 62 1/3 innings. The Phillies then reunited with Neshek in the offseason on a two-year, $16.25MM contract, but he hasn’t pitched for the club since securing that pact. The 37-year-old had been dealing with shoulder and forearm issues dating back to March, though he’s now finally set to rejoin Philly’s bullpen as the team seeks its first playoff berth since 2011.

East Notes: Betts, Eaton, Phillies, Clippard

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Mookie Betts tells WEEI’s Rob Bradford that nothing has changed on his end regarding a potential extension with the Red Sox, as the 25-year-old still has no intention of discussing a long-term deal during the season. Controlled for just two years beyond the current campaign, Betts’ increasing proximity to free agency and his continually elevated level of play have priced a theoretical extension out of bargain territory and into a massive financial undertaking, as Bradford examines. Certainly, that’s the case with any young star as he navigates through the arbitration process, but Betts already has one record arbitration payday in his back pocket, and he’s turning in the best season of his young career thus far. The $30MM annual rate that Jose Altuve secured on his recent extension with the Astros seems like an increasingly relevant comp, if not a baseline, Bradford posits in highlighting the difficulties that the Sox could face in locking up their brightest young star.

More from the game’s Eastern divisions…

  • Adam Eaton’s ankle injury doesn’t appear to be healing as well as the Nationals’ might’ve hoped, as Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reports that Eaton is traveling to Wisconsin to be evaluated by a specialist. He’ll meet with orthopedic surgeon Robert Anderson, currently on the Green Bay Packers’ medical staff but also a renowned surgeon who has worked with high-profile athletes ranging from Steph Curry to Cam Newton to Derek Jeter. Eaton has been on the disabled list for nearly a month after suffering an ankle injury on a slide early in the 2018 season.
  • The Phillies announced tonight that they’ve activated right-hander Ben Lively from the 10-day disabled list and optioned him to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The 26-year-old Lively opened the season in Philadelphia’s rotation but struggled to a 6.85 ERA in 23 2/3 innings before landing on the disabled list with a back strain. In his absence, fellow righty Zach Eflin stepped into the rotation and has been outstanding in two starts, yielding a run on seven hits and three walks with 13 strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings. He’ll remain in the rotation over Lively for now, and as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki noted yesterday, a continued hot streak from Eflin could force the Phils to make some tough decisions. GM Matt Klentak has already stated that Jerad Eickhoff will be in the rotation when he returns from the DL later this month, thus pitting Eflin against righties Vince Velasquez and Nick Pivetta for the final two rotation spots behind Aaron Nola and Jake Arrieta. Of course, things can change quickly in the coming weeks, either with a downturn in Eflin’s performance or another injury elsewhere on the roster.
  • With Roberto Osuna on administrative leave and under league investigation, the Blue Jays turned to Tyler Clippard with their first save opportunity. Jays manager John Gibbons deployed setup men Seung Hwan Oh, John Axford and Ryan Tepera in the middle innings on Wednesday evening with his team trailing before handing the ninth inning over to Clippard, who worked a scoreless inning with a pair of strikeouts. While Wednesday’s sequence of events doesn’t necessarily anoint Clippard the closer during Osuna’s absence, it does at least suggest that he’s the early favorite for the role. Signed to a minor league deal this March, Clippard has given the Jays 19 1/3 innings of 1.40 ERA ball with 10.2 K/9, 4.2 BB/9 and 1.4 HR/9. He’s running up a staggeringly low 18.6 percent ground-ball rate, however, which could well be a portent for further homer troubles down the line. As a reminder for fantasy players, you can track ninth-inning situations throughout the game by following MLBTR’s @CloserNews account on Twitter and by utilizing Jason Martinez’s closer depth chart over at Roster Resource.
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