NL Injury Notes: Winkler, Gonzales, Solarte, Edgin
Braves righty Daniel Winkler, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2014 and missed most of last season, left the club’s game Sunday in agony with a fractured elbow, Mark Saxon of ESPN.com was among those to report (on Twitter). Winkler, whom Atlanta took from Colorado during the offseason’s Rule 5 draft, was off to a hot start as a member of the Braves’ bullpen. Prior to the injury, he had gone 2 1/3 innings without allowing a hit or a run, adding four strikeouts against one walk. It’s currently unknown how much time Winkler will miss, but given the significance of the injury, the rest of the season seems like a strong possibility for the 26-year-old.
Here’s more injury news from around the National League:
- Cardinals lefty Marco Gonzales is deciding whether to undergo elbow surgery after consulting with doctors, including renowned orthopedic surgeon Neal ElAttrache, tweets Saxon. It’s unknown what type of surgery Gonzales is considering, writes Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. If the 24-year-old undergoes Tommy John surgery, he’d face a 12- to 18-month recovery, Langosch notes. Prior to notifying the Cardinals’ medical staff of elbow discomfort during the final week of Spring Training, Gonzales was expected to serve as rotation depth for the club this season. Gonzales, who dealt with shoulder issues last season, has logged a 4.82 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 5.3 BB/9 in 37 1/3 MLB innings.
- Padres third baseman Yangervis Solarte is headed to the 15-day disabled list with a right hamstring injury, paving the way for the call-up of utility man Alexi Amarista, according to Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Solarte slashed an eye-popping .375/.474/.563 over his first 19 plate appearances this year. Amarista fared well in a minuscule sample size for Triple-A El Paso to start the year, but he recorded a weak .204/.257/.287 in 357 PAs for the Padres last season and hasn’t exactly been stellar in his 1,575 big league PAs (.227/.274/.325). He does, however, offer versatility, having spent time at six different positions in the infield and outfield during his career.
- Another past Tommy John recipient, Mets reliever Josh Edgin, began a rehab assignment Sunday with 2/3 of an inning at Class-A St. Lucie and is on track for an early May return, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (Twitter link). The southpaw last saw action in 2014, when he served as a shutdown option for the Mets in compiling a 9.22 K/9 and 1.98 BB/9 to accompany a stingy 1.32 ERA in 27 1/3 innings.
NL Notes: Solarte, Wang, Papelbon
Yangervis Solarte has made a good impression on the Padres since arriving from New York in the Chase Headley trade, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes. He’s versatile (playing second base, third base and outfield), and he’s hit .271/.347/.383 in 126 plate appearances so far, coming up with several big hits. That’s not bad at all for a solid defender playing in Petco Park. The Padres can move him around the diamond to accommodate their other players. “He’s shown he’s capable of holding down a major-league job,” says manager Bud Black. “What role that is, I think depends on the makeup of the other 12 position players.” Here are more notes from the NL.
- It’s unclear what the Brewers will do with Rule 5 pick Wei-Chung Wang, Caitlin Swieca of MLB.com writes. Milwaukee selected Wang from the Pirates last fall even though he hadn’t played above rookie ball. He predictably struggled out of the Brewers’ bullpen, but since hitting the DL with shoulder tightness in July, he’s transitioned back into starting while on a rehab assignment at the Class A level. It’s unclear whether the Brewers will recall him in September.
- The Phillies have had trouble drumming up interest in closer Jonathan Papelbon even though he’s cleared waivers and the Phillies are willing to eat some of his salary, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Papelbon’s declining velocity might be a one problem, but as Rosenthal points out, he’s gotten good results despite it. His personality might be another issue, but GM Ruben Amaro insists Papelbon is well behaved, even though he’s opinionated.
AL Notes: Beane, Solarte, Bell, Harrison
Athletics GM Billy Beane may have outdone himself with his most recent round of immense production from unheralded players, writes MLB.com’s Richard Justice. Third baseman Josh Donaldson, who has continued his torrid pace since seemingly emerging out of nowhere last year, stood out to Beane with his somewhat hidden elite athleticism and extreme competitiveness. Now, reclamation project Jesse Chavez is taking the league by storm from the mound. “We liked him in the minor leagues,” Beane explained, “and felt he’d never really got an opportunity in the big leagues.” While Beane’s much-publicized success with statistical analysis has required consistent adaptation to maintain an edge, he says that the club identified Chavez through the same use of “objective numbers” that drove the Moneyball era. “We’ve had to reinvent ourselves a few times,” he explained. “There were things we were doing 10 years ago we weren’t able to continue to do. To constantly solve the challenges we have is not easy. It’s very self-satisfying for all of us.” Given Beane’s comments on Chavez’s lack of opportunity, it will certainly be interesting to see whether recent addition Kyle Blanks is able to harness his potential with healthy, consistent playing time in Oakland.
Here’s more out of the American League:
- If Chavez is not the most surprising top performer through the season’s first quarter, that is only due to the emergence of 26-year-old journeyman Yangervis Solarte, who sports a .907 OPS in his rookie campaign. The Tigers were keen to sign Solarte before acquiring Ian Kinsler, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. With Detroit assistant GM Al Avila reportedly a big fan of Solarte, the team had also unsuccessfully pursued him as a minor league free agent before the 2011 and 2012 campaigns. Solarte’s agent, Peter Greenberg, says that Solarte chose to go to the Yankees because the team had an easier path to a big league opening and ultimately gave him a relatively robust $22K monthly salary in the minors (with three months guaranteed).
- Orioles executive VP Dan Duquette addressed today’s signing of free agent reliever Heath Bell, who will look to revive his career by starting over at Triple-A. “Bell is a proven veteran pitcher with experience who has agreed to a Triple-A deal,” Duquette told Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link). “We believe he can help our major league club later this season.”
- Injured Rangers starter Matt Harrison will undertake an epidural injection in hopes of quieting the pain from his back condition, but the next steps remain unclear, reports Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest. “It’s kind of put me in the position where either I deal with it or have the surgery and get it fused together and try to make a comeback from that,” said Harrison. “It’s going to be even tougher than it was the last time but I’m willing to give it a try. I’m still trying to wrap my head around what’s going on at this point in time and trying not to let it sink in that it may have been my last game.” Ultimately, while he clearly hopes to do whatever it takes to return, Harrison indicated that he would keep his long-term future in mind with the dangerous condition he has. “Obviously your health is most important but I know there are guys who’ve come back before,” he said. “I’m going to give that a shot if I end up having it but if I come back and things are the same or worse as they were before it’s not worth the risk. It’s really not worth me being 29 years old and not being able to walk.”