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Xander Bogaerts

AL Notes: Vlad Jr., Bogaerts, Twins, Castellanos

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It has long seemed obvious that the Blue Jays would prefer to hold top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at Triple-A to open the 2019 season. After all, the team decided not to call him up late last season and can push back his potential free agency by one season if they keep him down for at least a brief stretch to begin the new campaign. GM Ross Atkins declined yesterday to provide any kind of hint as to the anticipated timing, as Keegan Matheson of the Score tweets, though he did so in a manner that seemingly suggests the club is indeed preparing to hold off on a call-up. “There’s no firm timeline on when [Guerrero] arrives or when he is playing in Toronto for the first time,” said Atkins, “but we want to make sure he’s the best possible third baseman and the best possible hitter he can be.”

Let’s take a look at some other notes from the American League …

  • The Red Sox and shortstop Xander Bogaerts reportedly failed to gain traction in extension talks earlier this winter. Perhaps it’s still possible, though, that the pending free agent could line up with the organization on a new deal. As John Tomase of WEEI.com writes, Bogaerts acknowledged that the slow-developing free agent market provides cause for him to consider extension scenarios — “you obviously have to think about that,” he said — though he also did not exactly hint that he’s particularly inclined to forego the risks and upside of the open market. The 26-year-old called this winter’s market developments “weird.” As for the possibility of a future in Boston, he ultimately would say only that he likes playing with the team and that “we’ll see what happens.”
  • While the Twins have looked into extensions with multiple young players, and recently locked up both Max Kepler and Jorge Polanco, all is quiet on that front at this point, per LaVelle E. Neal III off the Star Tribune (via Twitter). Players such as outfielder Eddie Rosario and righty Jose Berrios would seem to represent highly appealing targets, though both also have added leverage due to their strong 2018 seasons.
  • The Tigers, meanwhile, do not appear to have anything in the works with outfielder Nicholas Castellanos, who seems to be more of a mid-season trade candidate than extension candidate. Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press writes that skipper Ron Gardenhire would prefer Castellanos stick around. He just might get his wish, at least for the first half of the season, as it still seems there’s insufficient market interest in the defensively challenged slugger to pique the Detroit organization’s interest.

Red Sox Notes: Bogaerts, Betts, Sale, Porcello, Bullpen, Catchers

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Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston reported earlier this month that the world champion Red Sox had been discussing a contract extension with an unnamed player. It turns out that player was shortstop Xander Bogaerts, according to Drellich, though he adds that the two sides never came close to an agreement during their talks. The 26-year-old Bogaerts is now slated to make $12MM in 2019, potentially his last season with the Red Sox. Meanwhile, outfielder Andrew Benintendi – who, according to industry speculation, was an extension target for the Red Sox earlier this offseason – said Saturday he and the team haven’t talked about a new pact, Drellich relays. The 24-year-old Benintendi still has another pre-arbitration season remaining, meaning the Red Sox aren’t in danger of losing him for a while.

  • As with Bogaerts, the Red Sox are at risk of losing outfielder and reigning AL MVP Mookie Betts in the near future. Betts, 26, is entering his penultimate year of arbitration control, in which he’ll earn $20MM (a record for a player in Year 2 of arb eligibility). Unsurprisingly, though, the Red Sox want to keep Betts in the fold for the long haul. CEO Sam Kennedy stated Saturday (via Drellich) that “we’ve made it crystal clear that we want him a part of the Red Sox organization long term.” Betts, for his part, said: “Contract things are kind of tough to come up with, especially with both sides and kind of how the economics and all those things work. I love Boston, love my teammates, love the fans and all those types of things, so we’ll just continue to see what happens.” While Betts does appear open to signing an extension with the Red Sox, he doesn’t seem averse to testing the open market, per Drellich.
  • Two key members of Boston’s starting staff, left-hander Chris Sale and righty Rick Porcello, could each hit free agency a year from now. The soon-to-be 30-year-old Sale suggested Saturday that he’s willing to discuss an extension, but the Red Sox haven’t broached the subject yet. “My phone is on if they call me,” he said (via Ian Browne of MLB.com). “Obviously nothing has happened up until this point. If they call, I’d answer.” Sale also indicated that his left shoulder – which was a problem at times late last season, when he dealt with a massive drop in velocity – is no longer an issue. As for Porcello, 30, he also revealed that no extension talks have taken place, though he’d “love to” discuss a new contract with the club, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com tweets. For now, Porcello’s on track to wrap up the four-year, $82.5MM pact he signed with the Red Sox in April 2015.
  • Having lost Joe Kelly to the Dodgers and Craig Kimbrel to the open market, Boston’s “actively engaged with multiple free-agent relievers,” Cotillo writes. While Cotillo doesn’t rule out a Kimbrel re-signing, he notes an addition could come in the $2MM to $3MM neighborhood. Kimbrel will certainly earn far more than that, though there are several other free agents who could be possibilities for the Red Sox in that price range.
  • Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Thursday he doesn’t expect that all three of the team’s catchers – Christian Vazquez, Sandy Leon and Blake Swihart – will be on its Opening Day roster, Sean McAdam of BostonSportsJournal.com reports (subscription required). Because all of those players are out of options, a trade is likely coming. Dombrowski noted that “there’s interest, but we still haven’t made a deal we feel comfortable making.” All three catchers had abysmal offensive seasons over 200-plus plate appearances in 2018, but if defense is Boston’s main concern, the odd man out may be Swihart. After all, the former high-end prospect has accrued little playing time as a backstop over the past few years.

Red Sox Avoid Arbitration With Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley

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4:05pm: The Boston org has wrapped up deals with all of its dozen arb-eligible players, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). We’ve covered several other players elsewhere. Notably, shortstop Xander Bogaerts ($12MM) and outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. ($8.55MM) have agreed to big salaries.

11:20am: The Red Sox and American League MVP Mookie Betts have settled on a one-year deal worth $20MM, tweets Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. The salary figure is a record for a player in his second year of arbitration eligibility. According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Betts could earn an additional $400K via awards (Twitter link). Betts, who will remain under team control through 2020, had been projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $18.7MM.

Fresh off a historic 2018 campaign in which he slashed an otherworldly .346/.438/.640 en route to a World Series title, Betts earned himself a $9.5MM raise from his previous salary. His record-setting deal will establish the new standard for players with four-plus years of MLB service time. In fact, notes Jeff Passan of ESPN, Betts’s new contract has been exceeded only by players in their fourth year of arbitration by virtue of the Super Two rule.

Furthermore, this development could be notable for the Red Sox in that the team failed to reach an agreement with their superstar outfielder last winter, leading to an arbitration hearing to determine his salary. It is possible that this settlement could signify an increased willingness to discuss a potential contract extension, for which it appears talks have yet to substantially progress, in the future. However, should the two sides fail to agree to a multi-year extension next offseason–Betts’s last arbitration-eligible season before reaching free agency–the three-time All-Star could command an astronomical salary in his final year of team control; at the very least, Betts appears poised to eclipse–if not shatter–the $23MM record set by Josh Donaldson one year ago, which currently marks the highest one-year arbitration salary ever.

Red Sox Notes: Bogaerts, Payroll, Sale, Catchers

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Following a startling afternoon report that the Red Sox would “listen” to offers on franchise cornerstones Xander Bogaerts, Rick Porcello, and Jackie Bradley Jr., presumably in order to clear payroll space for upgrades elsewhere on the diamond, the BoSox brass spent much of the evening in equivocation.  Indeed, NBC Sports Boston’s Evan Drellich reports that the defending champs would need to be “blown away” to deal their star shortstop, and the notion that they’re “actively shopping” these players is “overblown.”  Replacing the 26-year-old Bogaerts, who’s posted an exceptional 17.4 fWAR over the last four seasons, would be nearly impossible, and the rental market, at least in recent times, leaves little to be desired.  Boston, though, will face a number of tough decisions with core players in the upcoming seasons: after all, nearly half of the team’s projected 25-man roster is set to hit free agency by the conclusion of 2020 season.

In other news from Beantown . . .

  • Both Alex Speier of the Boston Globe and Chad Jennings of The Athletic offer insight into the potential mass exodus set to hit the club after the 2019 and 2020 seasons.  Each of Bogaerts, Porcello, Chris Sale, and possibly J.D. Martinez (if he elects to exercise his opt-out) are free agents after next season, with Bradley and Mookie Betts set to hit the market the following year.  Though the club’s annual reserves match (and often surpass) that of any other MLB team, keeping all these players in the fold seems altogether unlikely: “I do caution, and the one thing I keep talking about, is that it’s just from a financial perspective and rule perspective, it’s not going to be possible to keep everybody that we have,” GM Dave Dombrowski said. “You have to realize that if anybody is signed long term now, it may have an effect on some other things that you may do later on.”  It seems prudent, then, to cull from at least two of the lower-profile members of the group (which includes a half-dozen or so other contributors), though Porcello, with his $21.1MM salary for next season, and Bradley, with declining performance in the box, may not yield the assets the BoSox desire.
  • Drellich, in a separate report, cites sources claiming that lefty Chris Sale would be “open” to extension talks, and perhaps more so than “most players of his caliber.”  The 29-year-old, of course, just completed one of the most impressive seasons in AL history and is on a surefire hall-of-fame trajectory; the figures, then, are sure to be astronomical, but neither the team nor Dombrowski have shied away from huge starting-pitcher payouts in the past.
  • Christopher Smith of MLB.com reports that the Sox “prefer to trade” one of their three catchers before Spring Training but “are willing” to hold on to each. Blake Swihart, long the subject of trade rumors across the baseball landscape, continued to disappoint at the plate in 2018, while platoon mates Christian Vazquez and Sandy Leon combined for a dreadful -1.7 fWAR. The position seems a clear target of upgrade for the defending champs, though dealing from their current surfeit may be challenging, to say the least.

Report: Red Sox Taking Offers On Rick Porcello, Others

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The defending World Series champion Red Sox are at least opening the door to some surprising sell-side moves, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter links). Though the club is obviously not going to divert from its attempt to repeat, it seems there’s a movement afoot to pare back some existing payroll.

The true end goal here isn’t clear. Boston already splurged to re-sign Nathan Eovaldi, giving him a four-year deal at a $17MM rate of pay, and it doesn’t seem as if the club is interested in doing anything that would substantially harm its competitive position. The division, after all, promises to be quite competitive — to say nothing of the top-heavy American League.

Still, the Sox are said to be “openly listening” to offers for veteran right-hander Rick Porcello, who’ll earn $21MM this year before reaching free agency. Yet more surprisingly, the club is said to be “willing to talk about” star shortstop Xander Bogaerts (projected $11.9MM arbitration salary in final season of eligibility) and quality center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. ($7.9MM, second-to-last season of eligibility).

Parting with any of these players would clearly harm the team’s 2019 roster — unless, that is, there was a plan in place to add a different piece to fill the opening. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic tweets that the idea would indeed be to repurpose any payroll savings, perhaps opening the door to some bullpen reinforcements.

While that’s sensible from one perspective, it still feels like an incomplete picture. After all, it’s not as if the Boston organization has high-quality fill-in pieces knocking down the door.  In Porcello’s case, at least, there’s an argument that the Red Sox have sufficient depth after bringing back Eovaldi, but it obviously wouldn’t be as good as the sturdy 29-year-old. Bogaerts is not remotely replaceable from within; presumably, the club would go onto the market for a different option at short. As for Bradley, it’s easy to imagine Andrew Benintendi taking over in center, but that’d still leave an outfield opening that would need to be addressed in some regard (perhaps in part through reliance upon Steve Pearce and other existing reserves).

It’s fair to wonder just what the Sox could anticipate recouping in hypothetical trades. Porcello’s hefty salary limits his appeal, making him more of a candidate to be dealt for another spendy veteran or perhaps a limited prospect return. Bogaerts has plenty of rental value, though the Red Sox would be dealing with fellow contenders to find a fit and there’s limited demand at the shortstop position. Bradley is controllable fr two years and could fit in plenty of places, though his offensive numbers have been down and he’s not the type of piece that most teams would go wild to acquire — particularly with some similar players potentially also available via trade.

Generally speaking, boosting the farm would certainly be of interest, but it’d be quite tricky to do that and save money without significantly damaging the team’s immediate competitiveness. Sussing out how this potential strategy could make sense in the aggregate is frankly difficult to do without contemplating multiple successive transactions. It’s certainly a fascinating development for the Red Sox and the broader market, but it is tough to guess at this point how it might all play out.

Red Sox Rumors: JDM, Bogaerts, Kikuchi, Payroll, Farm

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Both J.D. Martinez and Xander Bogaerts are likely to test free agency a year from now, writes Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston. Martinez has an opt-out provision in his five-year, $110MM contract with the Red Sox, and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski gave no indication of interest in restructuring that deal, per Drellich. “He can choose to leave, it’s his opt out,” said Dombrowski. “But the reason we put ‘em in there were medically oriented as we went through at the time. That medical hasn’t changed.” Dombrowski is referring to medical provisions that were worked into the contract, allowing the Red Sox to convert the final two seasons of the deal into mutual options in the event that Martinez misses enough time due to a preexisting Lisfranc injury in his foot. As for Bogaerts, Dombrowski called his contract situation “important” for the team. Agent Scott Boras, meanwhile, told Drellich he’s “open to any thoughts [the Red Sox] have on the subject.” Asked about a recent extension for fellow client Jose Altuve, Boras pointed out that Bogaerts is two and a half years younger and also plays shortstop.

More from Boston…

  • Boston’s interest in Japanese left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, who is expected to be posted for MLB teams later this month, can be described as “lukewarm,” reports WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford. Dombrowski declined to comment on Kikuchi at the GM Meetings, beyond indicating that as one of Japan’s top arms, he’s a pitcher the Sox have scouted frequently in the past (as have many MLB clubs). “Yes, we have a pulse on him,” said Dombrowski. Boston could theoretically look to add some arms behind its top trio of Chris Sale, David Price and Rick Porcello — especially considering Sale’s presence on next year’s free-agent market — but it doesn’t sound as though Kikuchi will be a prime target.
  • In a pair of columns for the Boston Globe, Alex Speier looks at Boston’s payroll/luxury tax situation as well as the team’s poorly regarded farm system. There’s virtually no scenario in which the Sox will avoid another season of luxury tax penalization, Speier observes, making the question not one of if they’ll incur penalty but rather one of how steep a penalty they’re willing to accept. Boston went into the highest luxury bracket this season and will be taxed at the maximum rate while also seeing its top draft pick dropped by 10 spots. Principal owner John Henry tells Speier, “You can’t do that all the time,” but Speier notes that it’s not clear if the organization is willing to do so once more in 2019. From a distance, it’s worth noting that this is the final season of club control over Sale, Martinez and Bogaerts, so there’s a good case to be made for maintaining aggression (though that’s just my own two cents). As for the farm system, Speier notes that a survey of rival evaluators left no real consensus as to the team’s top prospect — a fact that serves to highlight the general uncertainty that permeates the farm. But, the Sox surely have the pieces to once again be active on next summer’s rental market, Speier notes while highlighting a particular concentration of interesting third base prospects.

AL East Notes: Machado, Gardner, Nunez, Red Sox

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The Yankees baseball operations and scouting departments are “lukewarm” on free agent Manny Machado, per Andy Martino of SNY.tv. Brian Cashman has not been shy about his pursuit of Machado in the past, but the third-baseman-turned-shortstop’s antics during this postseason may have slowed what otherwise could have been a more aggressive pursuit of the infielder in free agency. This isn’t to say the Yankees won’t end up signing Machado, but the questioning of Machado’s hustle and baseball ethic certainly allow the Yankees, as well as other teams, to take a more understandably patient approach in regards to his free agency. Martino adds (via Twitter) that the biggest variable still in play is the Steinbrenner family and whether or not Boston’s World Series win will prompt an aggressive mandate in regards to either Machado or fellow free agent stud Bryce Harper.

But that’s not all that’s happening in the AL East…

  • The Yankees have a $12.5MM option on Brett Gardner with a $2MM buyout for next season. Gardner, the longest-tenured Yankee, expressed an interest in coming back, but it remains to be seen if there will be a room in a crowded Yankee outfield that includes holdovers Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks. MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch writes that Brian Cashman and his lieutenants have held three days of scouting meetings to craft their strategy heading into the offseason, with  starting pitching figuring to be the priority. Regarding Gardner, the team could buyout his contract and look to bring him back at a discounted rate, but whether the 35-year-old outfielder would be amenable to such an arrangement is unclear. In 2018, Gardner appeared in 140 games, slashing .236/.322/.368 (2.8 rWAR).
  • Not that this would be a surprise, but Boston’s Eduardo Nunez is likely to pick up his $5MM option for next season, per Fancred’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Despite his occasional postseason heroics, it was a tough season for Nunez, who slashed only .256/.289/.388 during the regular season. The .321/.353/.539 Nunez hit in 38 games in 2017 after being acquired midseason feels like a distant memory, but he can still provide some value off the bench as a versatile infielder and right-handed compliment to young stud Rafael Devers.
  • As you ready yourself to dive into baseball’s transaction season, take a minute to read this piece from the Athletic’s Tim Britton about the Red Sox staffer charged with ushering the young players of Boston’s minor league system through each step of their development. Raquel Ferreira is one of the highest ranking women in Major League Baseball and one of the unsung heroes of Boston’s stellar development team. Her title is vice president of major-league and minor-league operations, but that hardly describes the impact she’s had in the twenty years since she joined the Red Sox as an administrative assistant. Ferreira handles everything from managing the logistics of player family travel to walking new players through the basics of minor-league orientation, as she did with Xander Bogaerts when he first signed out of Aruba and thought he had to spend an entire year at each minor-league level. 

Injury Notes: Pedroia, C-Mart, Moylan, Happ, Bogaerts

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The Red Sox struck a deal with the Angels today to acquire second baseman Ian Kinsler, and although that’s not a firm indicator that the injured Dustin Pedroia won’t make it back to the field, Christopher Smith of Masslive.com reports that the club doesn’t seem overly optimistic about the prospect of his return. “I can’t say we don’t expect him to return but we’re not anticipating that he’s going to be,” said Dave Dombrowski, the club’s president of baseball operations. Pedroia’s currently rehabbing back in Arizona, and has yet to make any significant contribution this season after undergoing offseason knee surgery.

A few more injury notes from around the league…

  • The Cardinals have officially placed right-hander Carlos Martinez back on the disabled list with a right shoulder strain. Martinez owns a 3.41 ERA on the season, and ERA estimators like FIP (3.65) and xFIP (4.44) paint a slightly worse picture. That’s not the whole story though, as Martinez owns an ERA above 5 since returning from his first DL stint thanks to a lat strain.
  • Likewise, the Braves have placed righty reliever Peter Moylan on the 10-day DL (with a right forearm strain) retroactive to Sunday. Moylan hasn’t looked quite like himself this season; usually a talented right-handed specialist, he’s been hit hard this season to the tune of a 4.45 ERA while walking an uncharacteristic 5.72 batters per nine innings.
  • The Yankees sent newly-acquired starter J.A. Happ home on Tuesday after he reportedly contracted a “hand, foot and mouth disease”. The left-hander might not make his next scheduled start against the Red Sox. Happ was acquired by the Yankees just this past week in an effort by the club to shore up its rotation.
  • Speaking of the Red Sox, Xander Bogaerts had a scare today. The Boston shortstop was hit by a pitch on the hand and collapsed to the ground in pain during tonight’s game, though thankfully exams found the injury to be only a hand contusion (source: Ian Browne, MLB.com). Bogaerts is hitting .275/.340/.512 on the season and already has 16 homers, putting him on pace to set a new career high.

AL East Notes: Austin, Kelly, Walker, Bogaerts, Holt, Hardy

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The suspension appeals for Yankees first baseman Tyler Austin and Red Sox setup man Joe Kelly have both been heard. Austin’s suspension has been reduced from five games to four, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter link), while Kelly’s six-game suspension was upheld (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Ian Browne). Both players were suspended and fined for their respective roles in the bench-clearing brawl two weeks back.

Some more notes from the division…

  • With Austin suspended, Neil Walker could pick up those starts at first base, and the opportunity will be an important one for him, writes Newsday’s Steven Marcus. With Austin and rehabbing Greg Bird likely to hold down first base, Gleyber Torres now at second base, Miguel Andujar at third base and Brandon Drury on the mend, Walker’s role with the Yankees is becoming increasingly muddied as he battles through a dismal start to the season. Walker, who is hitting just .172/.232/.203, made no excuses for his poor start and said his shortened Spring Training and injury history aren’t at the root of his struggles.
  • Xander Bogaerts could return to the Red Sox today, writes Chad Jennings of The Athletic (subscription link), which would cut into the playing time of a resurgent Brock Holt, who is hitting .340/.400/.520 through his first 55 trips to the plate. Holt chats with Jennings about his lost 2017 season which was ruined by recurring symptoms of vertigo that impacted him at the plate and in the field. Boston made the decision to hang onto Holt and instead trade Deven Marrero to the D-backs in Spring Training, entrusting Holt to be the primary utility infielder in the process. Now, however, there’s at least some minor injury concern with Holt; he exited last night’s game with tightness in his hamstring and is set to be re-evaluated today (Twitter link via Jennings). If he requires a DL stint, the Sox could potentially just flip Holt and Bogaerts, placing the former on the disabled list while activating the latter.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tackles a host of Orioles questions from readers in light of the team’s awful start to the season, with topics ranging from the slow starts by Alex Cobb and Chris Tillman to the eventual promotion of Austin Hays. Of note, Kubatko reveals upon being asked about a possible J.J. Hardy reunion that the longtime O’s shortstop “seems quite content at home with his family.” Kubatko notes that he even broached the idea with some within the organization after Tim Beckham’s injury and was told that no one within the org seems to think that Hardy is reconsidering his current situation. The 35-year-old Hardy spent the past seven seasons as Baltimore’s primary shortstop but hit .217/.255/.323 through 73 games in an injury-plagued 2017 season and didn’t sign anywhere as a free agent this winter.

AL Notes: Manaea, Red Sox, Bogaerts, Rays, Twins

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The Red Sox entered play Saturday with the majors’ best record (17-2), the majors’ most runs (123) and the majors’ top triple-slash line (.293/.361/.497). None of that fazed Athletics left-hander Sean Manaea, who no-hit the Red Sox over nine innings of 10-strikeout, two-walk ball to become the first hurler to accomplish the feat this year. It’s the seventh no-hitter in Athletics history and the first for the franchise since Dallas Braden tossed a perfect game against Tampa Bay in May 2010. And remarkably, it occurred on nearly the 25th-year anniversary of the last time the Red Sox were on the wrong end of a no-hitter. Back on April 22, 1993, Chris Bosio of the Mariners held the Sox out of the hit column.

  • In better news for the Red Sox, shortstop Xander Bogaerts could return as early as Friday, Sean McAdam of BostonSportsJournal.com was among those to report (Twitter link). Bogaerts, who went on the disabled list April 9 with a cracked bone in his left ankle, is set to play a pair of rehab games with Triple-A Pawtucket on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Red Sox have won nine of 11 without Bogaerts, which is all the more impressive when considering he got off to an otherworldly start (.368/.400/.711 in 40 plate appearances) before landing on the DL.
  • Meanwhile, teammate Tyler Thornburg is “still a ways away from the majors,” Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets. But the reliever, who has been pitching in extended spring training, will rejoin the Red Sox during their upcoming homestand (beginning April 27) and could throw batting practice, per Abraham. Thornburg remains on the mend from the thoracic outlet syndrome surgery he underwent last summer. The righty hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2016, when he was among the game’s premier relievers as a member of the Brewers.
  • Rays righty Yonny Chirinos is now a full-fledged member of their rotation, manager Kevin Cash told Bill Chastain of MLB.com and other reporters Saturday. Tampa Bay opened the season with an unconventional three-man starting staff (Chris Archer, Blake Snell and Jake Faria), with Chirinos among those working as a “Bullpen Day” starter, but it saw enough from him during his first few outings to officially make it a four-man group. The 24-year-old has tallied 20 innings of 2.70 ERA/3.49 FIP ball in four appearances thus far. After throwing 50-some pitches in each of his first two games, Chiirnos racked up 75 and 89, respectively, in the previous two. He’s now stretched out enough to get into the 100 range, per Cash, and will start Sunday against Minnesota.
  • Chirinos will face Twins righty Phil Hughes, whom the team has reinstated from the disabled list. The Twins optioned pitcher Gabriel Moya to Triple-A to make room for Hughes, who had been on the shelf with a strained oblique. The 31-year-old Hughes hasn’t pitched in a big league game since July 14, 2017, thanks to the thoracic outlet syndrome revision surgery he underwent in August. At $13.2MM per year through next season, Hughes is one of the Twins’ highest-paid players, though he has struggled mightily since a sensational 2014 with the team. When he was healthy enough to pitch last season, Hughes logged a 5.87 ERA with a meager 30.7 percent groundball rate over 53 2/3 innings (14 appearances, seven starts).

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