Latest On Dinelson Lamet, Mike Clevinger
OCT. 14: Good news for Lamet, Clevinger and the Padres: General manager A.J. Preller said Wednesday (via AJ Cassavell of MLB.com) that it doesn’t seem “either situation is surgical,” so the two righties should be ready for the spring.
OCT. 13: Padres righty Dinelson Lamet has begun platelet-rich plasma therapy on his right elbow, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Lamet has been out of action since September 25 due to biceps tightness, though examinations of his arm revealed “no ligament issues” according to one of Acee’s sources, and Lamet is expected to be ready for the start of Spring Training.
Lamet was unable to pitch during the Padres’ postseason run, bringing a sour end to an otherwise dream season for the 28-year-old. Seen as a potential breakout candidate after a promising 2019, Lamet more than lived up to expectations by posting a 2.09 ERA, 4.65 K/BB rate, and 12.1 K/9 over 69 innings for San Diego. Armed with a 97mph fastball that sat in the 91st percentile of spin rate, Lamet’s 2.4 fWAR tied him for fifth among all Major League pitchers in 2020.
After Lamet missed all of 2018 due to Tommy John surgery, there was natural concern about another arm injury, but the issue didn’t sideline Lamet entirely. As Acee notes, Lamet kept playing catch in order to keep his arm loose, just in case he received clearance to pitch in some capacity during the playoffs.
It’s quite possible that the Padres could still be playing had Lamet and Mike Clevinger both been healthy for October. Clevinger is also expected to be ready for the start of the 2021 season since his elbow impingement is thought to require arthroscopic surgery at the most, though Acee adds today that Clevinger will be examined by doctors this week and “no definite plan has been established.”
Tommy Pham “In Good Condition” After Being Stabbed
In a scary development, Padres outfielder Tommy Pham underwent surgery after being stabbed in his lower back Sunday night, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Fortunately, he is “currently in good condition,” the team announced.
Pham came upon an argument near his car between individuals whom he did not know, Acee reports. The 32-year-old was attacked after asking those involved to move away from his vehicle. Fortunately, Pham avoided organ damage, although he did require stitches, Acee adds.
“I’d like to thank the incredible medical staff at UC San Diego Health for taking such great care of me last night,” Pham said in a statement. “I truly appreciate the hard work of the (San Diego Police Department) as well as they continue their search for the suspects. While it was a very traumatic and eye-opening experience for me, I’m on the road to recovery and I know I’ll be back to my offseason training routine in no time.”
Pham came to San Diego last offseason in a trade with the Rays. There’s no indication at this point that yesterday’s incident will affect his readiness for Spring Training. We at MLBTR wish Pham well in his recovery.
Latest On Mike Clevinger
A late-season elbow impingement forced Mike Clevinger to sit out the Padres’ wild card series with the Cardinals, and an attempt return in Game 1 of the NLCS resulted in just 24 pitches and a second-inning removal. There is some reason for optimism, however, as “according to multiple people familiar with his injury, [Clevinger] is likely headed for nothing more invasive than arthroscopic surgery,” Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
This would put the right-hander on track to be ready to roll for the start of the 2021 season. While arthroscopic surgery isn’t exactly routine, it would certainly be a relief to Clevinger and the Padres that his elbow problem is minor enough that it can be corrected with such a relatively straight-forward procedure (if even that step is required).
Though Clevinger couldn’t contribute much in the postseason, he posted a 2.84 ERA, 6.33 K/BB rate, and 9.0 K/9 over 19 innings for the Padres after being acquired from the Indians in a blockbuster deadline trade. San Diego paid a significant price for Clevinger, not just because of what he could add to the 2020 team, but for his two remaining years of arbitration of control in 2021 and 2022. While the Padres probably won’t entirely breathe easy until they see Clevinger healthy during offseason work or in Spring Training, it seems like the team can count on Clevinger being ready to anchor the rotation of what the Friars hope will be another pennant contender.
Abraham Almonte Elects Free Agency
Outfielder Abraham Almonte has elected to become a free agent rather than accept an outright assignment from the Padres. Almonte was designated for assignment two days ago to create space for rookie southpaw Ryan Weathers to join San Diego’s NLDS roster.
Signed to a minor league contract in the offseason, Almonte ended up appearing in seven games for the Padres, collecting a hit and two walks over 13 plate appearances as he was shuttled between the MLB roster and the alternate training site.
The 31-year-old will now head into the open market looking to catch on with another team, after playing for six different organizations during his 15 total seasons in pro baseball. Almonte has appeared in each of the last eight Major League seasons, with a career .237/.298/.370 slash line, 18 homers, and 25 steals (from 33 chances) over 1151 plate appearances. Almonte is known less for his switch-hitting bat and more for his ability to play all three outfield positions, which could make him attractive on another minors contract for a team looking for outfield depth in 2021.
Pitching Notes: Montas, Astros, Morejon, Rays
The latest on a few teams’ Division Series pitching plans:
- The Athletics are turning the ball over to right-hander Frankie Montas for this afternoon’s must-win Game 4 against the Astros, per various reporters (including Shayna Rubin of the San Jose Mercury News). The 27-year-old was the best pitcher on staff in 2019 before an 80-game suspension following a positive PED test derailed his season. Montas hasn’t performed anywhere close to last year’s level in 2020, although he continues to pump high-90’s heat and strike batters out at a high rate.
- The Astros haven’t yet named their opposing starter for Game 4. Manager Dusty Baker didn’t rule out turning the ball over to veteran Zack Greinke, who has been dealing with some arm soreness, notes Jason Beck of MLB.com. The 36-year-old ran in the outfield before yesterday’s game but did not throw, reported Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). If Greinke doesn’t go, fellow righty Cristian Javier would be the logical choice to get the ball. [UPDATE: Greinke will get the ball for this afternoon’s potential clincher, via Jake Kaplan of the Athletic and others].
- The Padres finalized their rotation plans for what they hope will be the next two games against the Dodgers. Young southpaw Adrián Morejón will go in tonight’s Game 3, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link), with righty Chris Paddack scheduled for a potential Game 4. Of course, there’ll only be a fourth game if San Diego can stave off elimination tonight with L.A. leading the best-of-five set two games to none.
- The Rays, meanwhile, are planning to go to an opener to kick off tonight’s Game 4 against the Yankees. Reliever Ryan Thompson will get the ball to start (via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). Presumably, the sidearmer will be backed up by lefty Ryan Yarbrough, who has shown he’s comfortable providing bulk innings behind openers over the past two years.
Padres Remove Mike Clevinger From NLDS Roster
The Padres removed right-hander Mike Clevinger from their NL Division Series roster against the Dodgers, the club announced. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (Twitter link) previously reported that such a move was a “virtual certainty.” By rule, removing a player mid-series also disqualifies them from the next round, so Clevinger is not eligible to participate in the NLCS. In a best case scenario, he’d return for the World Series if the Padres qualify.
Clevinger made it back from an elbow strain to start last night’s Game 1. Unfortunately, he was pulled just two pitches into the second inning after a marked dip in velocity. He’ll be reevaluated after “about a week” to allow the inflammation in his elbow to subside, Rosenthal adds. Fortunately, the belief is that Clevinger wouldn’t have done further damage had he continued pitching, hears Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). Rather, the bigger issue is whether he would’ve been capable of effectively working through the discomfort, per Acee. Given how obviously hampered Clevinger appeared to be last night, that would’ve been a real question.
Dan Altavilla is being added to the roster in a corresponding move. The 28-year-old reliever was active for San Diego’s Wild Card series against the Cardinals but scratched for the NLDS as San Diego looked for pitchers more experienced in working multiple innings.
Zach Davies Named Padres Game Two Starter
Zach Davies will get the start in game two of the NLDS tonight, per the team. Presumably, this lines up Chris Paddack for a game 3 start.
A lot rides on Davies tonight, not only because a 2-0 deficit would put the Padres on the brink of elimination, but because the bullpen has been pushed hard so far this postseason. Mike Clevinger‘s injury left the Padres to rely on their relievers beginning in the second inning of game two. This after using at least 9 pitchers per game in each of their postseason games this season. It’s an all hands on deck situation for San Diego.
To the Padres’ credit, they saw this coming, at least in part. They did roster 15 pitchers for the series, more than most teams, though with Clevinger’s injury they’re essentially playing a man down. Still, so long as they’re comfortable going all 15-deep, the Padres can survive the series this way. They could theoretically get through today’s game not using anybody who pitched yesterday, and then head into game three with 8 relievers having had a day of rest. A long outing from Davies would go a long way to resetting the rest of the bullpen. That’s easier said than done, though as Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register notes, Davies has pitched well against the Dodgers in his career with a 2.37 ERA in 8 starts.
Of course, game four is when it will get really complicated for the Padres. They’ll be looking at bullpen games in game 4 and in game 5, unless Clevinger is able to make his way back. They could replace Clevinger on the roster, but they’d lose him for the NLCS then as well. If that were to happen, Luis Perdomo, Michel Baez, and MacKenzie Gore would be options to take the roster spot, per the Athletic’s Dennis Lin. Of the three, Gore is not on the 40-man roster, which is full.
Quick Hits: Padres, Weathers, Cardinals, Blue Jays
Left-hander Ryan Weathers was something of a surprise inclusion on the Padres’ NLDS roster, as the 20-year-old had yet to pitch in even a Double-A game, let alone a Major League contest. Still, Weather made his MLB debut in tonight’s Game 1 and impressed, tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings and allowing two walks but no hits.
Earlier today, general manager A.J. Preller told MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell and other reporters that Weathers has “always been a strike thrower, and he’s continued to get better over the last few months….Honestly, it’s just giving another quality arm to [manager Jayce Tingler] and see how he wants to use him.” The seventh overall pick in the 2018 draft, Weathers has a 3.78 ERA, 4.91 K/BB rate, and 8.5 K/9 over his 114 1/3 pro innings. Working out at the Padres’ alternate training site, Weathers has seen his fastball velocity jump from 91mph last season to the 96-97mph range this year. He topped out at 96.4mph tonight, working a steady array of fastballs, sliders, and sinkers to six members of the fearsome Dodgers lineup.
More from around the majors…
- The Cardinals rank 23rd of 30 teams in home runs since the start of the 2017 season, and their 51 homers in 2020 was a league low. There’s no easy way to correct this power shortage, leaving The Athletic’s Mark Saxon to speculate that St. Louis might need to make some tough choices to get some more pop into the lineup without drastically (or at all) increasing payroll. For instance, could the Cards again trade from their depth of pitching prospects for a bat, even while their need for additional arms might be greater in 2021? Or, a more drastic option could be to decline Kolten Wong‘s $12.5MM option for 2021 and install Tommy Edman at second base, freeing up some money to land a slugger.
- The Blue Jays face a lot of possibilities as they look to upgrade their roster this offseason, and the Toronto Star’s Gregor Chisholm explores several of those options as part of a reader mailbag piece. In Chisholm’s opinion, the Jays should consider trying to move Randal Grichuk in order to improve the outfield defense and to get some of Grichuk’s contract off the books — Grichuk is owed $29MM through the 2023 season. Grichuk is an imperfect fit as a center fielder but he did rebound from a tough 2019 to hit .273/.312/.481 with 12 homers (112 wRC+, 114 OPS+) over 231 PA this season, so that offensive production could attract some trade suitors.
Mike Clevinger Leaves Game 1 In Second Inning
Padres right-hander Mike Clevinger was removed from tonight’s game after throwing two pitches in the bottom of the second inning. After tossing 22 pitches in a scoreless first inning that included two walks and a wild pitch, Clevinger threw two balls to Dodgers slugger Cody Bellinger before departing after a mound visit from manager Jayce Tingler and a team trainer.
It wasn’t clear until today whether San Diego would even include Clevinger on the NLDS roster, yet Clevinger was indeed on the hill to start Game 1. The righty hadn’t pitched since September 23 due to an elbow strain that forced him to sit out the Padres’ wild card series victory over the Cardinals.
There hasn’t been any word on Clevinger’s status, though Tingler speculated during an in-game interview (hat tip to MLB.com’s Adam Berry) that “I think what happened was that long half-inning there and it tightened up and never warmed back up on him.” The Padres sent six batters to the plate in the top of the second and forced Dodgers starter Walker Buehler to throw 33 pitches, which led to a lengthy wait for Clevinger.
While San Diego likely didn’t expect too long an outing for Clevinger given his return from injury, the Friars have now been forced into a makeshift bullpen game to begin their series with Los Angeles. It will test the depth of a Padres team that is already missing a key arm in Dinelson Lamet and now faces the possibility that Clevinger could be done for at least the rest of this series. As Berry noted, the Padres can make an injury replacement for Clevinger on the NLDS roster, but that would mean Clevinger is also not allowed to pitch should the Padres reach the NL Championship Series.
Mike Clevinger Makes Padres’ NLDS Roster
The Padres have set their 28-man roster for this week’s NLDS matchup against their divisional gatekeepers, the Dodgers. Here are the details:
Right-Handed Pitchers
- Austin Adams
- Mike Clevinger
- Zach Davies
- Pierce Johnson
- Chris Paddack
- Emilio Pagán
- Luis Patiño
- Garrett Richards
- Trevor Rosenthal
- Craig Stammen
Left-Handed Pitchers
Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
The biggest questions leading up to this series for the Padres surrounded the health of Mike Clevinger and Dinelson Lamet. We have our answers: Clevinger is on the roster, and he’ll start game one, while Lamet will not appear in the NLDS.
The other changes are Allen and prospect Weathers making the roster over Dan Altavilla, Greg Garcia, and Jorge Mateo. Allen is a San Diego native who provides speed and defensive depth in the outfield. Weathers, meanwhile, has yet to make his major league debut – or even pitch above Single-A. The 20-year-old southpaw was San Diego’s #10th ranked prospect on Baseball America’s midseason report. Campusano (#5), Morejon (#7), and Patiño (#2) also appear on both the Padres’ top prospects list and their NLDS roster.