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NL Notes: Rockies, Cubs, Marlins, Nationals

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The Rockies announced a pair of corresponding roster moves today. They selected the contract of Connor Joe from Triple-A, while right-handed pitcher Jose Mujica was optioned to Triple-A. It’s good to see Joe back in the Majors. The 28-year-old opted out of 2020 after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, writes MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. The Rockies like Joe as a possibility at first base or left off the bench. Joe was a first round draft pick of the Pirates back in 2014. Mujica will be a long-term rotation possibility for the Rockies, though he came out of the bullpen for both of his appearances this season. Elsewhere in the NL…

  • Cubs southpaw Brailyn Marquez has been about six weeks behind in his conditioning after testing positive for COVID-19. The Cubs’ top pitching prospect doesn’t have an official assignment yet, but it’s believed that he’ll soon head to Double-A, per Bruce Levine of 670thescore.com (via Twitter). Marquez doesn’t turn 22 years old until September.
  • Both Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Jorge Alfaro hope to begin their rehab assignments next week and return from the injured list by next weekend, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (via Twitter). Marlins fans eagerly await Chisholm’s return after the infielder posted a 154 wRC+ in 80 plate appearances this season.
  • Wander Suero will begin his own rehab assignment with Triple-A Rochester, per Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com. The Nationals’ reliever has been out since April 18th with an oblique strain. Stephen Strasburg, meanwhile, will soon pitch his second simulated game since landing on the injured list. Presumably, that means the Nats are still in an evaluation stage, and it might take some time yet before Strasburg can return to the diamond.

Nationals Place Stephen Strasburg On Injured List, Select Paolo Espino

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10:56 am: Strasburg felt shoulder discomfort after a recent bullpen session, manager Dave Martinez tells reporters (including Dan Kolko of MASNsports.com). A subsequent MRI revealed the inflammation. The Nationals hope his absence won’t be particularly long, although there’s no current defined timetable for his return.

9:44 am: The Nationals announced they’ve placed right-hander Stephen Strasburg on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to April 15, with right shoulder inflammation. Righty Paolo Espino was selected from the alternate training site to start this afternoon’s game in Strasburg’s stead. Additionally, Washington placed reliever Wander Suero on the 10-day IL with a left oblique strain and recalled righty Ryne Harper.

Washington did not give a timetable for Strasburg’s return. Today’s IL placement is the latest injury setback for the star right-hander, who was limited to just two starts during the shortened 2020 season by carpal tunnel syndrome. The 32-year-old was also hampered by a leg injury during Spring Training, but it didn’t prevent him from beginning this season on the active roster. Unfortunately, he’ll now deal with a shoulder issue after a pair of regular season starts.

Espino, 34, made a pair of appearances for the Nats last season. That was his first big league time since 2017, the only other year in which he’s appeared in the majors. While Espino was outrighted off the 40-man roster last fall, he returned to the organization on a minor-league deal. He’ll make a spot start today against the Diamondbacks.

Suero left yesterday’s appearance after facing just one batter and was reported to be headed for an MRI, so it’s no surprise he’s headed to the injured list. Harper will return to take Suero’s place in the bullpen for now.

East Injury Notes: Kiermaier, Harper, Suero, Biggio

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The Rays activated Kevin Kiermaier off the 10-day injured list today, and he played two innings as defensive sub in Tampa Bay’s 6-3 victory over the Yankees.  It was Kiermaier’s first appearance since April 5, as a left quad strain sent the three-time Gold Glover to the IL only four games into the new season.  While still one of the sport’s best defenders when he is able to play, Kiermaier has been a frequent IL visitor over the years due to a wide variety of injuries, which is why the Rays have fortified their center field depth in the form of Manuel Margot and Brett Phillips.

More injury-related notes from around the AL East and NL East…

  • Bryce Harper is day-to-day with lower back soreness, the Phillies announced.  Harper isn’t in today’s lineup against the Cardinals, and manager Joe Girardi suggested to reporters (including MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki) that the problem may have occurred when Harper slid into second base after hitting a double in Friday’s game.  It’s something of a precautionary measure for the Phillies since Harper was bothered by back issues last season, though Zolecki noted that Harper still hit .230/.392/.467 over 158 plate appearances after August 21, when Harper’s back problems developed.  This year, of course, the Phils don’t have the luxury of periodically using Harper as a designated hitter to give him a partial rest day.
  • Wander Suero will undergo an MRI after leaving today’s game after one batter, Nationals manager Davey Martinez told The Washington Post’s Jesse Dougherty and other reporters.  Suero was removed from the game while facing his second batter, after initially walking Eduardo Escobar.  Now in his fourth season, Suero has been a solid member of the Nats’ bullpen, with a career 3.99 ERA and 25.9% strikeout rate over 149 career innings heading into today’s action.  The D.C. relief corps has already been thinned by injuries to Luis Avilan and Will Harris.
  • Cavan Biggio could potentially return to the Blue Jays’ lineup on Sunday, manager Charlie Montoyo told MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson and other reporters.  Biggio left Thursday’s game after being hit in the right hand by a line drive, though x-rays were negative and Biggio was slated to participate in batting practice and a game of catch today.

Nationals Activate Juan Soto

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The Nationals have activated outfielder Juan Soto and right-hander Wander Suero from the injured list, the team announced. Outfielder Andrew Stevenson was optioned to the alternate training site to open one roster spot, while the team’s recent placement of Will Harris on the IL left them with an existing vacancy.

Soto isn’t in tonight’s lineup, manager Dave Martinez told reporters (Twitter thread via Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com), but he’s available to pinch-hit. Soto himself told the club that he felt he needed at least another day to get up to speed for a full nine-inning game. The 21-year-old has yet to play this season since testing positive for Covid-19 on Opening Day and also missed much of the team’s Summer Camp, so he’s a bit behind. Recently signed utilityman Josh Harrison is getting the nod in left field in Soto’s place tonight.

The Nats have gone 3-4 in Soto’s absence. Their schedule has been partly interrupted by the Marlins’ Covid-19 outbreak, as the Nats were scheduled to face the Fish over the weekend but saw that series postponed due to ongoing health concerns with the Miami organization. In a way, the Nationals will benefit from that postponement, as they’ll now likely have Soto back in the fold for three games he’d have otherwise missed. For the time being, they’ll host the Mets for the first of a two-game set. Washington’s next dozen games will come against the Mets and the Orioles. Soto won’t be back in the everyday lineup right out of the gate, but he’ll be back in the heart of the order before long.

Nationals Place Roenis Elias, Wander Suero On IL

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The Nationals have placed relievers Roenis Elias and Wander Suero on the injured list, per a club announcement. The team didn’t provide a reason for the moves, though the hope is that neither player is dealing with the coronavirus.

Elias and Suero have not taken part in any of the Nationals’ workouts in Summer Camp thus far. The 31-year-old Elias was one of the Nationals’ summer acquisitions last season, when they were trying to fix a then-struggling bullpen, but injuries limited the left-hander to just four appearances and two innings with the Nats after they got him from the Mariners. Elias didn’t pitch past Sept. 5, meaning he didn’t factor into Washington’s first-ever run to a World Series title.

Suero, meanwhile, was a rather durable member of the Nationals’ bullpen in 2019, easily leading all of their relievers in appearances (78) and innings (71 1/3). And while the right-handed Suero only mustered a 4.54 ERA during that stretch, that came with a far more palatable 3.07 FIP and 10.22 K/9 against 3.28 BB/9.

When healthy, Elias and Suero should be important members of Washington’s relief corps this year. For now, though, it appears the club will have to open 2020 without them.

DL Placements: Felix Hernandez, Sean Doolittle, Josh Tomlin

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With several players hitting the disabled list this afternoon, we’ll round them up in this post:

  • The Mariners announced that starter Felix Hernandez will hit the DL owing to lower back tightness. It seems the idea is to afford him a longer rest by lining up the placement with the coming All-Star break, as Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets. Reliever Nick Rumbelow and infielder Gordon Beckham will head onto the active roster, with outfielder John Andreoli being optioned out. Hopefully for the M’s, a bit of a respite will allow Hernandez to bounce back in the second half. It has been a frustrating season to this point, as he has allowed 5.13 earned runs per nine over 105 1/3 innings.
  • Likewise, the Nationals announced that closer Sean Doolittle is hitting the shelf with left toe inflammation. His placement is retroactive to July 7th, meaning he’ll be eligible to return immediately after the break. The roster will get two fresh arms in Wander Suero and Austin Voth, while fellow right-hander Jefry Rodriguez was optioned after his start yesterday. As for Doolittle, it had been hoped that he would be able to return to action, but the team can ill afford an un-utilized roster spot with a tired relief corps. The club has other capable late-inning arms to turn to, though obviously the fervent hope will be that this placement will stave off any more concerning health matters.
  • Indians righty Josh Tomlin is going to the DL with a right hamstring strain, per another announcement. He’ll be replaced by Adam Plutko, who has seen seven games (including six starts) of action in the majors this year. Tomlin has struggled both before and after being bumped from the rotation. Though he hasn’t been hit quite as hard in a relief capacity, he’s still allowing a .256/.294/.538 slash to opposing hitters while working from the bullpen. The 33-year-old owns a 6.98 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 — and an unhealthy 3.9 homers per nine — over 49 total innings this year.

NL East Notes: Straily/Chen, Mets, Braves, Murphy

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The Marlins activated righty Dan Straily yesterday, meaning he and fellow starter Wei-Yin Chen are each now officially back in the team’s rotation. The initial results were somewhat mixed, unsurprisingly. Straily managed just one strikeout while allowing four earned runs on six hits and four walks in four frames; Chen was much more effective, limiting the damage to one earned on four hits and two free passes, though he retired only three batters by strikeout in his 5 1/3 innings. From a health perspective, though, the returns are quite promising. Both hurlers worked in their typical velocity ranges and will have several months to build value in advance of the trade deadline. Whether either will be moved remains to be seen, but both could be interesting chips in their own ways. Straily could be an appealingly affordable plug-in for the right contender, perhaps returning some young talent to the rebuilding Miami org. As for Chen, the $42MM guarantee left on his contract beyond the present season remains a major impediment to any trade. But if he can show he’s effective and healthy, perhaps the Marlins can find a taker for some of that cash.

Here’s more from the NL East, which is shaping up to be quite a bit more interesting than most anticipated at the outset of the season:

  • Though the Mets continue to pace the division, the race is only just getting started. Managing a roster all season long, particularly in the pitching department, could be a key to determining how things shake out. MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo addresses a host of reader questions, focusing on the club’s variety of swingmen. He suggests that Matt Harvey, Robert Gsellman, and Seth Lugo will likely continue working from the pen unless and until there’s a need for more than a spot start in the rotation. At that point, it seems, the organization could choose among them when the time comes.
  • Likewise, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman answers some queries from Braves fans. Of particular interest, he provides a gauge on what kind of cash the organization may have to spend in the coming winter. Bowman says he has been told there’ll be at least $50MM in payroll capacity to work with for 2019, which is certainly a rather hefty sum for a team that is not among the bigger spenders around the game. Just how much is ultimately utilized, and how it’s allocated, is obviously far from being clear. As Bowman notes, the team will be gather information on its assets and needs all season long, even as it tries to extend a promising start to the year.
  • Meanwhile, the Nationals continue to try to hold things together with several key cogs still on the mend. Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com has the latest on the injury front. Second baseman Daniel Murphy, who’s recovering from offseason knee surgery, made an appearance at Nats Park, but his status remains unclear at present. He’s set to be evaluated by the team’s medical staff before the next steps are determined. It’d be a surprise if a return is imminent for Murphy; fellow infielder Anthony Rendon, though, is likely not far from making it back from a toe injury. He may require a brief rehab stint but is expected to head back to the active roster in relatively short order. In other Nats news, the club has dipped into its farm to add another fresh arm. Righty Wander Suero will come up for his first MLB action, with Austin Voth optioned back to Triple-A without having made an appearance.
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