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NL East Notes: TJ, Wright, Marlins, Nats, Chacin

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In a piece for ESPN The Magazine, Sam Miller speaks with Scott Boras about pitching injuries — focusing, particularly, on several key NL East former TJ patients who are repped by the super agent. It’s an interesting piece, and I recommend you give it a full read. Boras says that his sometimes rather public discussion of the care of arms is “not an authority-driven exercise,” but rather “an education exercise” designed to draw attention to the issue. He explains that he hopes only to help ensure that all involved — including teams and, especially, his players — are able to “make an informed decision” for themselves. As Miller notes, that was precisely the purpose of the recent Tommy John study of MLBTR contributor Bradley Woodrum, which endeavored to identify statistical clues of UCL tear susceptibility.

Here’s more from the National League East:

  • Speaking of key injury situations, Mets third baseman David Wright faces an ongoing battle to overcome spinal stenosis, as Ron Berler writes in an excellent article for Men’s Fitness. New York will hope that he is able to remain productive and healthy, but it’s going to take a continued effort from the veteran — who has certainly been up to the task thus far, as the piece details.
  • The Marlins announced several camp decisions today; among them, the team is optioning righty Kyle Barraclough and southpaw Justin Nicolino to Triple-A. Barraclough had an impressive debut last year after coming over in the Steve Cishek trade, and looked to be a power pen option to help fill in for the injured Carter Capps. He still may have that chance, but will need to keep working on refining his command after permitting eight walks to go with eight strikeouts in 6 1/3 spring innings. Nicolino, meanwhile, had good results in the earned run department but only managed two strikeouts in his 8 1/3 frames, but he’ll likely be the first man up if and when a rotation need arises.
  • The Nationals have an interesting potential dilemma brewing in the outfield, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Michael Taylor has had a strong camp, and seems clearly ready for a full test at the MLB level, but Ben Revere is now in the fold at center while Jayson Werth’s contract (and, it might be added, standing in the organization) make it difficult to create space. From my perspective, Werth’s injury history makes him a prime candidate for regular rest, which ought to provide plenty of opportunity for all of these players. It’s interesting to note, though, that Rosenthal says the Nats likely would have traded Taylor had the club managed to sign Jason Heyward or Yoenis Cespedes over the winter.
  • Off the field, but relating to it, the Nationals are engaged in a renewed effort to sell their ballpark’s naming rights, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reports. Valerie Camillo, the organization’s chief revenue and marketing officer, explained that “this is a major revenue opportunity that was untapped by the team, when you look at overall picture of revenue growth potential.” Particularly with the MASN television dispute still proving a tough nut to crack, it obviously makes sense to pursue all avenues to improve the bottom line. While that may require some difficult tradeoffs with the Nationals Park name fairly entrenched, Camillo says that the club is doing it for a good reason: “It’s not as if we’ll be maximizing revenue without a competitive product on the field. We’re doing what we can to keep the fans happy, and I think the predominant thing fans want is winning.”
  • Braves righty Jhoulys Chacin is making a push for a rotation job, as Michael Kolligian reports for MLB.com. He has generally been expected to land in the pen after signing a minor league pact, but skipper Fredi Gonzalez says that Chacin is “really making a case.” Gonzalez continued: “he is definitely a guy who, if he keeps pitching like he is, he’ll be in the rotation someplace.” Utilizing Chacin and other veterans in the starting staff would certainly allow the organization to be conservative in deploying its younger options — a topic I discussed in reviewing the Braves’ offseason earlier this morning.

NL East Notes: Giolito, Henderson, Appel, Toussaint, Newcomb

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If Lucas Giolito isn’t in the majors by June then something has gone wrong, a scout tells Jayson Stark of ESPN, Giolito is the number three prospect in the game per ESPN, Baseball Prospectus, and MLB.com. Giolito features a 98 mph fastball, plus-plus curve, and an above average changeup. Stark and those he’s talked to can’t offer enough praise, throwing around terms like future “superstar” without reservation. The Nationals will hope Giolito can provide the same midseason boost their division rivals enjoyed from Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz last season.

Here’s more from the NL East:

  • Mets non-roster invitee Jim Henderson is battling for one of the final bullpen jobs, writes Glenn Sattell of MLB.com. The former closer has missed most of the last two seasons with a shoulder injury. He’s finally healthy, throwing in the 90s, and turning in solid results. With only a couple spots open to competition, Henderson will face stiff competition. The good news for him is this: if he’s really healthy, somebody will have a job for him.
  • Former first overall pick Mark Appel may be well served by his recent change of scenery, writes Jim Salisbury of Baseball America. Appel, 25, joined the Phillies organization over the offseason as a part of the Ken Giles trade. Despite well-regarded stuff, a straight fastball and command issues have limited his performance to date. The command has continued to be an issue this spring, but perhaps a new coaching staff can help to add a new perspective. My own two cents – the comparison between Appel and former first overall pick Luke Hochevar is an easy one. Hochevar didn’t unlock his talent until he transitioned to relief. Appel may also benefit from such a move, and he could have the necessary stuff to switch back to starting like Carlos Carrasco.
  • A couple Braves trade acquisitions are turning heads, writes J.J. Cooper of Baseball America. Touki Toussaint joined Atlanta as compensation for taking on Bronson Arroyo’s salary. While his stuff continues to impress, command and control issues plague him. He’s described as possessing a quality fastball, curve, and change. Meanwhile, Sean Newcomb has shown better strikeout stuff throughout his minor league career. Acquired in the Andrelton Simmons trade, Newcomb also has a history of shaky command.

Nationals Release Logan Schafer

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.

  • The Nationals have announced that they’ve released outfielder Logan Schafer. (They also reassigned infielder Jason Martinson to the minors.) The Nats had signed Schafer to a minor-league deal in November. He hit 4-for-20 in Spring Training. The 29-year-old can play all three outfield positions and generally rates as a solid defender, particularly in a corner, but he hasn’t shown enough offense to stick in the Majors. Schafer appeared in all of the last five seasons with the Brewers, accumulating a career .212/.286/.319 line in 646 career plate appearances, including 143 last year. Milwaukee outrighted him after the season.

Latest On Bronson Arroyo

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SATURDAY 10:55am: GM Mike Rizzo says Arroyo has partial tears in his rotator cuff tendon and there is inflammation in the area, MASN’s Dan Kolko reports (all Twitter links). Arroyo will be shut down for ten days to two weeks, at which point he’ll begin a program to strengthen his shoulder. The rehab process could take four to six weeks.

FRIDAY 8:33pm: The Nationals have told reporters, including MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman (Twitter link), that tonight’s reports regarding Arroyo are “not consistent” with their findings. Nats brass, Arroyo and the club’s medical staff will have a meeting tomorrow.

7:17pm: The initial results of an MRI on Bronson Arroyo’s shoulder were, somewhat incredibly, misread by the doctor that evaluated him, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Arroyo does not have a tear of the rotator cuff in right shoulder, as he was initially told, but rather is suffering from bursa sac inflammation. Arroyo will be shut down for seven to 10 days, but he does not have the career-threatening injury he believed himself to be facing just yesterday. Notably, James Wagner of the Washington Post tweets that the first diagnosis came from a non-baseball doctor, so it was not the Nationals’ medical staff that provided the faulty results.

Earlier this week, MLB Network’s Peter Gammons reported that Arroyo had a tear in his labrum, and Arroyo himself spoke to reporters the following day to reveal that he’d been told the tear was actually in his rotator cuff. The veteran right-hander was said to be weighing whether to undergo surgery and rehab for another comeback attempt or call it a career.

The injury still seems to hinder Arroyo’s chances of making the Nationals’ Opening Day rotation, as another seven to 10 days without throwing would mean he can return to throwing with another seven to 10 days of Spring Training to get back up to speed. However, the very fact that Arroyo is not facing a devastating injury is a breath of fresh air. The well-liked and well-respected Arroyo has been hoping to break camp with the Nats and return to a Major League mound for the first time since the summer of 2014, when he tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow and required Tommy John surgery.

Prior to that injury, Arroyo was baseball’s most durable starter. From 2005-13, Arroyo pitched in 300 games and averaged 211 innings per season, falling shy of the 200-inning milestone just one time, when he tossed 199 innings in 2011. Arroyo was not only durable, but effective, as he worked to a 4.10 ERA in that span despite pitching at the hitter friendly Great American Ball Park and despite the fact that many of those frames came during a much higher-scoring time period.

Bronson Arroyo Has Torn Rotator Cuff

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10:50am: The tear is in Arroyo’s rotator cuff, not his labrum, the pitcher himself told reporters (Twitter link via Zuckerman). Arroyo described the tear as “significant” and said that while he’s waiting for further evaluation, “It’s not looking real good.” Via James Wagner of the Washington Post (on Twitter), Arroyo says he will decide whether to rehab the shoulder or retire within the next couple of days.

MARCH 17, 9:15am: The Nationals told reporters this morning, including Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com, that reports of the labrum tear are “premature,” and they’re waiting for an MRI from the D-backs to compare the results to yesterday’s test (links to Zuckerman on Twitter). Zuckerman further notes, though, that Arroyo was seen hugging teammates in the clubhouse and that “everyone seems to sense what the likely result” of the situation is. Said manager Dusty Baker: “We don’t have to make a rash decision on anything. I think we owe him that as a man and as a professional.”

MARCH 16: Right-hander Bronson Arroyo, who is in camp with the Nationals on a minor league contract and has been vying for the fifth spot in their rotation, has an “80 percent tear” of the labrum in his right shoulder, tweets MLB Network’s Peter Gammons. Earlier today, it was reported that Arroyo would be scratched from his upcoming start due to shoulder soreness, but the severity of the injury will end Arroyo’s comeback attempt with the Nationals, Gammons notes.

Arroyo chose a minor league deal with the Nats (and his former skipper Dusty Baker) this winter over a return to Cincinnati on a minor league pact. The veteran innings eater had been hoping to make it back to the Majors for the first time since 2014 after missing the 2015 campaign while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Arroyo had long been known for his durability prior to signing a two-year pact with the D-backs spanning those 2014-15 seasons, but he underwent Tommy John after tearing his UCL three months into his first season with Arizona. He didn’t pitch in 2015, though his salary was included in a couple of trades to help balance out the financial element of said deals.

Arroyo could certainly look to rehab from the injury, but the possibility also has to be raised that this latest setback could bring to an end what has been a long and fruitful career in the big leagues. Earlier this spring, the 39-year-old told Tyler Kepner of the New York Times that he hoped to pitch beyond the 2016 campaign, but he also added, “If I don’t make it out of this camp and this arm just won’t go, I’m completely satisfied with what I’ve done in the game.”

From the team’s vantage point, the loss of Arroyo means that right-handers Joe Ross and Tanner Roark are likely to fill out the rotation behind Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Gio Gonzalez. Top prospect Lucas Giolito figures to challenge for a rotation spot of his own at some point over the course of the season as well.

Injury Notes: Ryu, McCullers, Lorenzen, Arroyo, Weaver, Wieters

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Dodgers lefty Hyun-jin Ryu will likely not be able to get up to speed in time to participate in any spring action, manager Dave Roberts tells reporters, including Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter). Ryu had hoped to make his way back to big league action by May, but the skipper says that timetable is now “unrealistic.” Needless to say, the Dodgers were hoping that Ryu’s shoulder would respond better, and he represents one of several notable question marks for the big-budget club.

Here are some more notes on some injury situations around the game:

  • Exciting young Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. will open the year on the DL, manager A.J. Hinch said today, as Richard Justice of MLB.com was among those to tweet. He, too, has dealt with shoulder issues, though hopefully not as severe as those that drove Ryu to surgery. Houston has options to step in, including Doug Fister, Scott Feldman, and Mike Fiers, and will surely be cautious in handling the 22-year-old, who upped his career-high annual innings tally by over fifty frames last season.
  • The Reds are hopeful that one of their young hurlers, Michael Lorenzen, can stave off Tommy John surgery after an MRI revealed a mild UCL sprain, Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Lorenzen will need to rest and almost certainly won’t open the season in the rotation, but it seems that he was rather fortunate not to find a more significant injury after experiencing soreness for some time this spring.
  • Nationals right-hander Bronson Arroyo was scratched from his start today with shoulder soreness, as James Wagner of the Washington Post reports. For now, the 39-year-old will rest and see how it responds, but any absence certainly puts a dent in his hopes of beating out Tanner Roark and Joe Ross for a rotation gig. Arroyo, who signed a minor-league deal full of incentives if he makes the majors, had some work done in his shoulder when he was out for Tommy John surgery, according to skipper Dusty Baker.
  • Meanwhile, Angels righty Jered Weaver dismissed any thought that he wouldn’t be prepared to open the year, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports. Recent medical evaluations don’t seem to offer many clues as to the reason for his precipitous velocity decline. Manager Mike Scioscia wasn’t quite as conclusive as the righty as to his availability out of camp, stressing that the organization was taking things one step at a time, but did suggest that Weaver will have every opportunity to try to perform on the hill.
  • Orioles catcher Matt Wieters seems to be clear of any structural concerns in his right elbow, as MLB.com’s Britt Ghiroli reports. In an update to that story, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com notes that Dr. James Andrews concurred with the organization’s doctors. For now, then, Wieters will work on eliminating any discomfort before getting back to work behind the dish.

NL Notes: Cueto, Jennings, Pirates

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Giants starter Johnny Cueto was hit in the head on a Billy Burns liner on the first pitch of his outing Monday night, according to various reporters, including the San Francisco Chronicle’s Henry Schulman. Cueto stayed in the game and pitched three innings, but was checked by team doctors after pitching and will head to the hospital in accordance with team protocol (Twitter links). One would think the Giants would have removed Cueto from the game after the incident if they had considered the issue serious (acknowledging, of course, that pro sports teams have at times underestimated the impact of potential concussions). There would have been no reason for the Giants to keep Cueto in a Spring Training game if they had any indication he was hurt. Still, the situation bears monitoring. Here’s more from around the NL.

  • The grievance filed by the Marlins against the Nationals regarding former Marlins GM and manager Dan Jennings was settled in favor of the Nationals, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post writes. The Nationals are paying Jennings $115K to be a special assistant to GM Mike Rizzo. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported yesterday that the Marlins took issue with that salary because they owed Jennings $1.5MM based on his previous contract with them, minus his salary in his new position. The Marlins thought the Nats’ $115K salary was too low given Jennings’ responsibilities, and that they were therefore on the hook for too much of his remaining salary. Via Janes, though, the disagreement has been resolved. “It’€™s an old grievance, and it has been settled,” says Rizzo.
  • Pirates GM Neal Huntington is excited about his organization’s Triple-A rotation, Stephen A. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. The Bucs today optioned top prospects Tyler Glasnow and Jameson Taillon to Triple-A Indianapolis and reassigned fellow starters Chad Kuhl, Steven Brault and Trevor Williams. (They also optioned outfielder Harold Ramirez and reassigned catcher Reese McGuire and lefty Kelvin Marte.) Of those starting pitchers, Glasnow and Taillon are the headliners, but Kuhl, Brault and Williams are all prospects in their own right. All could wind up pitching at Indianapolis this year (although perhaps not right away, as Nesbitt notes, since the Bucs might need to preserve a spot there for a depth starter like Kyle Lobstein or Wilfredo Boscan.) “The future is bright,” says Huntington. “You run Taillon, Glasnow, Kuhl, Brault and Williams out in one setting — that’s a very exciting group. … Each one of them brings something that’s very, very intriguing. Now you put that group of five together, it bodes well for our future.” Kuhl is a sinkerballer who pitched well for Double-A Altoona last season. Brault, a lefty, excelled at Class A+ and Double-A after arriving last winter in the trade that sent Travis Snider to Baltimore. And Williams is a recent arrival who the Bucs acquired from the Marlins when pitching guru Jim Benedict headed to Miami.

NL East Notes: Jennings, Ozuna, Wright, Flores

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The Marlins have filed a grievance over the $100K salary that the Nationals are allegedly paying former Miami GM/manager Dan Jennings, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports.  Jennings joined the Washington front office as a special assistant to GM Mike Rizzo in January after being fired by Miami after the season.  Jennings still had three years and $5.8MM remaining on his Marlins contract, including $1.5MM for 2016, and Miami owes Jennings the difference between that $1.5MM figure and his new salary for the 2016 season.  The Marlins aren’t pleased about still being on the hook for $1.4MM and they claim their NL East rival is paying Jennings “well below a salary commensurate with his responsibilities,” Jackson writes.

Here’s some more from around the NL East…

  • Marcell Ozuna is looking at 2016 as “a fresh start” and he’s happy to still be with the Marlins, the outfielder told Andre C. Fernandez of the Miami Herald.  Ozuna was widely assumed to be on his way out of Miami after a tough season and a reported personality clash with owner Jeffrey Loria, though a trade never came to fruition and he’s still slated to be the Marlins’ regular center fielder.  Manager Don Mattingly noted that many players struggle to adjust in their second seasons in the bigs, and that “almost every club was calling us about [Ozuna]…because people see he’s that kind of talent.”
  • Almost all of Wilmer Flores’ spring action has come at third base, leading Newsday’s David Lennon to wonder if the Mets have even more concerns about David Wright’s health.  The veteran third baseman is scheduled to make his spring debut in a minor league game on Monday with an eye towards joining the Mets later in the week.  The club was originally planning to limit Wright to around 130 games in order to manage his spinal stenosis, though Wright said last month that “you can’t have a plan” given the condition’s unpredictability.  Flores has played only 27 games at third in the bigs and just one in the last two seasons, so the extra time could merely be the Mets’ way of getting him re-acclimated for an increased workload at the position.  If Flores ends up spending more time than expected at third, Lennon notes, that will leave New York thin on backup options around the infield.
  • In other NL East news from earlier today on MLBTR, the Mets are looking for a backup catcher and the Nationals have a June 15th deadline to decide on GM Mike Rizzo’s two-year contract option.

Nationals Have June 15 Deadline On Mike Rizzo’s Two-Year Contract Option

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The Nationals’ club option on GM/president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo actually covers both the 2017 and 2018 seasons, and the team has a June 15 deadline to decide whether or not to exercise its two-year option and keep Rizzo in the fold, The Washington Post’s Barry Svrluga reports.  Svrluga reported in November that the Nats held options on Rizzo’s services for both 2017 and 2018 (the GM was previously thought to only have a 2017 option), though with the news that both options have to be picked up at once, it creates an interesting new wrinkle in the Nationals’ eventual decision.

It’s fairly unusual to see a two-year option, though as that second Svrluga link illustrates, Nationals upper management tends to approach decisions different than most ownership groups (with no small amount of controversy involved).  Still, when Rizzo signed his contract extension in August 2013, all signs pointed to Rizzo remaining atop Washington’s baseball ops pyramid for years to come.  It was only a year ago that Rizzo seemed to have as much job security as any executive in baseball — the Nats were coming off two postseason appearances in three years and were seen as World Series favorites for 2015.

Unfortunately for both Rizzo and the Nationals, they finished with just a 83-79 record in a season marred by injuries to key stars, down seasons by regulars and the ugly dugout choking incident between Jonathan Papelbon and Bryce Harper.  Manager Matt Williams was fired and replaced by Dusty Baker, though that hiring wasn’t without its own bit of drama since the Nats previously seemed ready to hire Bud Black before he rejected a lowball contract offer.

While Rizzo kept his job for 2016, “his situation can be considered tenuous,” Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post wrote in November.  It’s fair to say that Rizzo was already facing pressure heading into the last guaranteed year of his contract, though this deadline set just two and a half months into the season adds a few more degrees to his hot seat.  If the Nats get off to a slow start, that could be enough for ownership to decide that a front office shakeup is necessary rather than make another two-year commitment to Rizzo on June 15.  It’s also possible, Svrluga opines, that Rizzo and the team could re-negotiate a new contract this spring.  Svrluga doubts the Nats would simply let the June 15 deadline pass and allow Rizzo to be a lame duck for the rest of the season, as that would be an awkward situation for all parties.

NL East Notes: Freeman, Strasburg, Harper, Turner, Mejia

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Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman left today’s spring action with a right wrist issue, as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Such a potentially minor occurrence might not warrant mention for most players, but Freeman missed significant time last year owing to issues in the same area, and he was proceeding cautiously as he ramps up for the 2016 season. (Indeed, as O’Brien has previously written, Freeman has long dealt with difficulties in his right wrist and hand.) For now, it’s only a situation to monitor, but there’s obviously added concern in his case.

Here’s more on Freeman and some other interesting players in the NL East:

  • Of course, Freeman was the topic of plenty of trade speculation this winter as the Braves continued to tweak their player assets — at least until GM John Coppolella made as clear as possible that Freeman wouldn’t be going anywhere. ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark explores the big lefty’s interesting offseason, reporting that Atlanta may have been closer to moving Freeman at one point than the organization has been willing to acknowledge. Coppolella denies that anything ever seriously progressed, while acknowledging that there was outside interest (which, of course, is no surprise). Freeman himself said he heard a lot of the chatter, but was eventually put to ease by the front office. And Coppolella explains that the first bagger is the organization’s “rock.” You’ll want to read the whole piece for the full story, as it is full of interesting content.
  • Nationals GM Mike Rizzo had some interesting comments today in an interview with MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM (audio link). He said that righty Stephen Strasburg “could be a long-term fit” in DC and suggested that the organization would seek to explore a new deal with the pending free agent. While “health is obviously a big factor with him,” said Rizzo, it seems clear that the Nats at least have interest in seeing what an extension (or, potentially, a free agent deal) would look like. The club GM and president also talked about star Bryce Harper’s long-term status, saying that the “money part of it … is going to be extreme and complicated” while noting that he feels the Nationals have done a good job of selling Harper on the organization as a fit down the line.
  • Rizzo also talked more Nationals matters on the podcast of ESPN.com’s Buster Olney. In addition to providing some more thoughts about Strasburg and Harper, more from an on-field than a contractual perspective, Rizzo spoke at length about top shortstop prospect Trea Turner. The Nats’ head baseball decisionmaker wouldn’t commit to an Opening Day roster job for the youngster, but also didn’t rule it out, and emphasized that Turner is “not far away from the big leagues” while crediting him not only with 80-grade speed, but also outstanding maturity. As for the deal that brought him to DC, Rizzo tipped his cap to the scouts who helped to identify Turner and Joe Ross as targets within the Padres organization. He explained further: “[W]hen they showed interest in Steven Souza … we made it clear that, you know, we had to have these two players in the trade or we wouldn’t be interested in moving Souza.” The Nats were able to “get[] involved in a three-team trade later in the process” — the Rays, of course, being the organization that ultimately ended up with Souza — to land a return that has looked quite promising ever since the deal was struck.
  • Mets reliever Jenrry Mejia spoke again with the media today, emphasizing — as he said recently — that he was not using any banned substances when he was tagged with his second and third positive tests, as Laura Albanese of Newsday reports (Twitter links). While he acknowledged his initial suspension was valid, he “framed it as an accident,” by Albanese’s characterization. Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com notes on Twitter that it appears Mejia’s lifetime ban was never formally appealed, so there may be some possibility that he could still have a chance at contesting the decision. As Nathaniel Vinton of the New York Daily News reports, it appears Mejia will attempt to do just that, though it should be noted there could well be procedural hurdles. For its part, the league issued a strong statement rejecting Mejia’s claims of a conspiracy against him, calling the righty a “repeated user of banned performance-enhancing substances” who is doing nothing more than “hiring aggressive lawyers and making wild, unsupported allegations about the conduct of others in an effort to clear their names.” Newsday’s David Lennon was among those to tweet the full statement.
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