It seems the Dodgers will activate closer Kenley Jansen for tonight’s game, the relief ace tells reporters including MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick (Twitter links). That’s certainly good news for a club that has struggled to wrap up games in the late innings without him. More importantly, it seems as if there’s ongoing cause for optimism that Jansen will not be limited by the irregular heartbeat that forced him to the hospital earlier this month.
More injury news from around the league…
- The Mets announced this afternoon that they’ve placed outfielder Brandon Nimmo on the 10-day disabled list due to a bruised left index finger. With Nimmo out for at least the next week-plus, the Mets will keep Dominic Smith on the 25-man roster for the time being. Smith had been with the club on Sunday as the 26th man in New York’s doubleheader, and while he’d been slated to return to Triple-A Las Vegas, he’ll now remain in the bigs. It seems likely that he’ll stay up long enough for rosters to expand on Sept. 1.
- Likewise, the Orioles say that they’ve placed Mark Trumbo on the disabled list due to inflammation in his right knee. In a pair of corresponding moves, Baltimore reinstated Adam Jones from the bereavement list and also recalled outfielder John Andreoli from Triple-A Norfolk after claiming him off outright waivers from the Mariners organization over the weekend. The rebuilding O’s owe Trumbo another $13.5MM next year and they’d no doubt like to find a way to trim back that commitment. This injury could take him out of any consideration for a late-August swap — not that a deal ever seemed particularly likely in the first place. While the 32-year-old is posting a solid .261/.313/.452 slash with 17 homers in 358 plate appearances, his defensive limitations will severely limit interest from contenders (whether now or in the offseason to come).
- While Logan Morrison was originally diagnosed with a hip impingement that necessitated season-ending surgery, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press tweets that the Twins first baseman/designated hitter actually had a torn labrum repaired and a bone spur removed from the ailing hip. Meanwhile, right-hander Ervin Santana is seeing a hand specialist to examine the surgically repaired middle finger on his right hand (also via Berardino, on Twitter). Initially projected to require a 12-month recovery that would’ve had Santana back in early May, the issue has proven to be considerably more problematic. Santana didn’t pitch until late July and has made just five starts with an 8.03 ERA in 2018.
- Giants righty Jeff Samardzija is still hoping to make it back from shoulder issues this season. As Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group tweets, Samardzija is set for his first of two rehab starts this Wednesday. That would put the veteran hurler on track to start on the first day of September, when active rosters expand. Whether or not he’ll do so remains to be seen. For the Giants, any contribution will likely be too little, too late. But there is still time for the 33-year-old to put a more positive spin on his 2018 season. When he has been available to pitch this year, Samardzija has produced an ugly 6.25 ERA with an even more concerning 30:26 K/BB ratio in 44 2/3 innings over ten starts.
- Meanwhile, the Giants will welcome back emerging hurler Dereck Rodriguez, as John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets, to take the ball on Friday. Clearly, Rodriguez’s hamstring issues weren’t serious at all, as he only just hit the DL. That’s certainly good news for an organization that has been in need of future bright spots. Rodriguez came out of nowhere to throw 80 innings of 2.25 ERA pitching.
How many innings do rookie starting pitchers who get ROY votes generally throw in their first season?
it varies… Jose Fernandez tossed 171…deGrom tossed 140…..Fulmer threw 159. As a RP Kimbrel tossed 77
It varies just the same as hitters. It depends on how good they were in their time and how much of a game changer they were
Smith was not the 26th man for doubleheader purposes yesterday. MLB allowed each team in that Williamsport game to have a 26th player (position player only) because of the quick travel arrangements needed to make that game happen.
Kenly Jansens heart must be in it to merit such a quick return.
Or the Dodgers are trying to force him back because there bullpen is terrible without him
Anyone that follows the Dodgers can tell you Kenley is the ultimate competitor. He wants to shoulder the heavy load and he has the closer mentality. It’ll be a sight for sore eyes to see him take over the 9th inning again, if he’s truly healthy enough.
Yeah, right. Sigh. Another fun night in the ballpark.
He said “I’m not thinking about my heart, if it goes, it goes.” Gotta agree with LADreamin, Kenley wants that 9th inning.
If Gurnick’s reporting is accurate and Kenley is no longer on blood thinning medication–this is great news for him. I experienced atrial fibrilation following heart surgery and my cardiologist and electrophysiolgist, even after returning to sinus rhythm, were reluctant to remove me from a blood thinner, until I had an ablation to address the problem.
Of course, for privacy reasons we will will not (and should not) ever know the details of Kenley’s condition. That said, it is very encouraging for Kenley that he was restored to sinus (normal) rhythm so quickly and his doctors no longer see the need for him to be on blood thinners–just an excellent outcome in a short period of time. Best of luck to Kenley!
The dodgers probably figured out what Jensen and doizer we’re taking to give them heart troubles. Stop taking it and get back out there.
There’s a typo in the Santana story–he was supposed to be out 10-12 weeks, not 12-month recovery time.