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Archives for July 2020

Brad Keller, Ryan O’Hearn Test Positive For Coronavirus

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Royals right-hander Brad Keller and first baseman Ryan O’Hearn have tested positive for the coronavirus, per the team. Keller said in a statement that is dealing with minor symptoms at the moment, while O’Hearn is asymptomatic. They’ll both need a pair of negative tests before they’re cleared to return to the team. For now, they’ll isolate as they await those negative tests. Keller and O’Hearn join Salvador Perez as known Royals players to have tested positive in the early days of Summer Camp.

The hope is obviously that both will make swift recoveries and be ready when games begin later this month, although there’s no way of knowing when either will be cleared. Keller, 25 later this month, is a lock for the Royals rotation and served as their Opening Day starter a year ago. The former Rule 5 pick tossed 165 1/3 frames of 4.19 ERA ball over the course of 28 starts for Kansas City this past season.

O’Hearn, who’ll turn 27 in late July, had a big Spring Training before the league shutdown and was competing with Ryan McBroom for regular reps at first base. There’s an obvious platoon pairing between the two if the organization sees fit, but both are looking at the 2020 season as a hopeful proving grounds. O’Hearn posted a monstrous .262/.353/.597 slash (153 wRC+) in 170 plate appearances in 2018 but saw his production decline precipitously in 2019 (.195/.281/.369).

Diamondbacks’ Seth Beer Tests Positive For COVID-19

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Diamondbacks first baseman/outfielder Seth Beer has tested positive for COVID-19, manager Torey Lovullo told Zach Buchanan of The Athletic and other reporters. It’s unclear whether Beer is asymptomatic, Buchanan adds. Regardless, he’ll need to log two consecutive negative tests before he’s eligible to rejoin the Diamondbacks.

Arizona’s among the teams hit hardest by the virus in recent weeks. Prior to Beer, the club saw several players – outfielder Kole Calhoun, pitchers Junior Guerra and Silvino Bracho, as well as multiple unnamed individuals – test positive for the illness. The Diamondbacks also lost righty Mike Leake for the season, as he opted out of playing because of health concerns.

Beer isn’t on the Diamondbacks’ 40-man roster, but the team does have him in its 60-man player pool. The 23-year-old power hitter is a recent first-round pick, having gone 28th overall to the Astros in 2018, and joined the D-backs in the two clubs’ blockbuster Zack Greinke deal at last summer’s trade deadline. Beer accrued 533 plate appearances between High-A and Double-A ball in 2019, when he slashed .289/.388/.516 with 26 home runs.

Orioles Announce 2 Draft Signings

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The Orioles have announced the signings of third-round shortstop Anthony Servideo and fourth-round third baseman Coby Mayo, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com tweets. Mayo’s above-slot agreement of $1.75MM was first reported a little under a month ago.

Servideo, previously with Mississippi, also inked an above-slot deal. He signed for $950K, outpacing the $844,200 recommended value of the 74th overall pick, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports. MLB.com ranked Servideo as the 110th-best prospect available before the draft, crediting him for his ability to draw walks, his speed and his adeptness as a defender. While the 21-year-old Servideo only amassed 87 plate appearances during a shortened 2020 college season, he did bat an outstanding .390/.575/.695.

Servideo’s one of three members of this year’s Orioles draft class from the Southeastern Conference, joining first-round outfielder Heston Kjerstad (Arkansas) and supplemental first-round shortstop Jordan Westburg (Mississippi State). Those two have also already signed, as has second-round outfielder Hudson Haskin. The only recent O’s pick who’s not officially under contract is fifth-round pitcher Carter Baumler, as Joe Trezza of MLB.com notes, but it appears the two sides will finalize a contract sometime soon.

Cardinals Add Three To Summer Camp Roster

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The Cardinals have added right-hander Seth Elledge and lefties Zack Thompson and Rob Kaminsky to their Summer Camp roster at Busch Stadium, MLB.com’s Anne Rogers tweets. Doing so means each has been added to the team’s 60-man player pool. The Cardinals’ initial pool contained 44 players, and they’ve since added third baseman Elehuris Montero to camp as well (although he was recently diagnosed with COVID-19, as were southpaws Genesis Cabrera and Ricardo Sanchez).

Thompson, 22, is both the most highly regarded of today’s trio of additions and also the furthest from the Majors. The University of Kentucky product was the Cardinals’ first-round pick (No. 19 overall) in 2019 and ranks as their No. 5 prospect at FanGraphs and MLB.com. Thompson, however, only pitched two innings of Rookie ball and 13 1/3 frames with the Cards’ Class-A Advanced club in 2019. His inclusion is likely more for developmental purposes than due to his status a a legitimate option in 2020. He was seen as something of an injury risk in the ’19 draft but draws praise for a plus curve and above-average changeup. He was with the team during the initial Spring Training and tossed three perfect innings with three strikeouts.

Both Elledge and Kaminsky are more likely to be called upon should a need arise in 2020. Elledge, 24, is a pure bullpen prospect who came to the Cards in the trade that sent Sam Tuivailala to the Mariners. He posted a lackluster 4.26 ERA in 67 2/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A last year, but his overall body of work as a pro is sharp — as was his work in the 2019 Arizona Fall League. Elledge has averaged nearly a dozen punchouts per nine innings pitched but also saw his walk rate jump in Triple-A last year (19 free passes in 34 1/3 innings). With John Brebbia out until 2021 (Tommy John surgery) and Jordan Hicks set to open the year on the IL while rehabbing his own Tommy John procedure, Elledge gives the Cards some right-handed relief depth.

Kaminsky, 25, was a first-round pick by the Cardinals back in 2013 but was traded to the Indians for Brandon Moss two years later. Things didn’t pan out for Kaminsky there, and after spending parts of five seasons in Cleveland’s minor league ranks, he became a minor league free agent this winter, ultimately landing with the Cards on a minors deal.

A 2017 forearm injury cost Kaminsky the entire year and may have helped prompt a shift to the bullpen. He was quite good as a reliever in Double-A both in 2018 and 2019, but he struggled in the supercharged offensive environment in Triple-A last year (5.11 ERA, 31-to-14 K/BB ratio in 24 2/3 frames). Like Elledge, he’s a non-roster player but could conceivably see some MLB action in 2020 if the Cardinals need to tap into their depth.

Brewers Add Dylan File To 60-Man Player Pool

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The Brewers are adding Double-A right-hander Dylan File to their 60-man player pool, The Athletic’s Emily Waldon reports (via Twitter). Milwaukee’s initial player pool was only 45 players, so it’s seemed quite likely some additional players will be added — be they internal add or external pickups. File is the first name added to the bunch.

A 21st-round pick back in 2017, the now 24-year-old File has delivered steady results while climbing through the system. The Dixie State University product tossed 136 1/3 frames of 3.96 ERA ball at Class-A during his first full pro season in 2018 and enjoyed considerably better results between Class-A Advanced and Double-A in 2019. File racked up 147 innings with a combined 3.24 ERA — though he spent more time in Double-A and pitched better there against most advanced competition. His 80 2/3 frames with the Brewers’ Biloxi affiliate resulted in a 2.79 ERA and a pristine 73-to-15 K/BB ratio with a 44.4 percent ground-ball rate.

FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen ranks File 17th among Brewers farmhands, calling him a “high-probability fifth starter” with plus command and an above-average curveball. MLB.com tabs him 24th in the system and is more bullish on his slider than his curve but generally offers a similar picture of File’s future as a back-of-the-rotation starter or a multi-inning reliever.

Given the Brewers’ somewhat piecemeal approach to putting together a rotation and their unconventional use of pitchers in general, it only makes sense that they’d continue deepening the stockpile of arms from which they can draw. File hasn’t been added to the 40-man roster yet, but his quick rise through the system and sharp results in Double-A a year ago have positioned him for a potential call-up at some point in this year’s abbreviated season.

Jesus Luzardo Tests Positive For Coronavirus

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Athletics left-hander Jesus Luzardo has tested positive for the coronavirus, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (Twitter links). He’ll go into self isolation and need a pair of negative tests, separated by at least 24 hours, before he can return to the team. Fortunately, Luzardo tells Slusser that he’s “feeling good” and “ready to get going” once he receives that pair of negative tests.

There’d been some prior concern about Luzardo and right-hander Mike Fiers, as the two regularly worked out together during the league’s shutdown and had both been absent from camp. Margin Gallegos of MLB.com tweeted earlier that Fiers is back in camp and working out with the club, so it seems he tested negative.

The 22-year-old Luzardo is widely considered to be among the five best pitching prospects in all of baseball and is expected to play a key role in the Oakland rotation both this year and for the foreseeable future. The recent diagnosis and subsequent need to remove himself from A’s Summer Camp could conceivably delay his readiness to start early in the year, though that type of speculation is of course secondary to his overall well-being.

Luzardo made his MLB debut with the A’s last year, tossing 12 innings and allowing just two runs on five hits and three walks with 16 strikeouts. A strained rotator cuff limited Luzardo’s time on the mound in general last season, but he was similarly excellent in 43 minor league innings: 2.51 ERA, 11.9 K/9, 1.7 BB/9. He’s expected to join Fiers, Sean Manaea, Frankie Montas, Chris Bassitt and fellow top prospect A.J. Puk in what should be a formidable mix of Oakland starters in 2020.

Eduardo Rodriguez, Bobby Dalbec Test Positive For COVID-19

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Two additional Red Sox players are being isolated with coronavirus infections, the club informed reporters including Steve Hewitt of the Boston Herald (via Twitter). Lefty Eduardo Rodriguez and infield prospect Bobby Dalbec each tested positive for COVID-19 (and consented to the public disclosure of that information).

Fortunately, there is no indication that either player is dealing with significant complications. It even sounds as if there’s still some hope for Rodriguez to be ready for the start of the season — or, at least, the southpaw is holding out the possibility in hopes of taking the honor of an Opening Day nod.

As with all the other such cases around the league, the two keys here are to ensure the health of the infected players and prevent any further transmission. Before they are able to join the Boston Summer Camp, Rodriguez and Dalbec will need to get past the disease and twice test negative.

It’s a disappointing situation for both players. Rodriguez had an impressive spring after a quality, 200-inning 2019 showing. He’s looking to lay the groundwork for his final trip through arbitration and perhaps take another step forward as a front-line starter. Dalbec reached Triple-A last year and earned a top-100 leaguewide prospect grade from Baseball America. He’s surely hoping to debut in the majors in 2020.

Latest On Phillies & COVID-19

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1:07pm: Liriano has decided to report to camp, Robert Murray tweets.

12:24pm: The Phillies were hit with several coronavirus cases relating to their Florida facility late last month. GM Matt Klentak updated the team’s situation today in comments to reporters including Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer (links to Twitter).

It runs out that outfielder Adam Haseley never had any real COVID-19 concerns. He had been away from camp, but not due to a positive test or contact with a suspected infection. Rather, it turns out that a lab error held up the 24-year-old.

That’s good news for Haseley, who’s now ready to roll. It’s a bit of a gut-check to hear of a mistake in the handling of testing, though at least the error was made in the direction of caution.

Of the four Phillies players that had been placed on the coronavirus IL, at least two — Scott Kingery and Tommy Hunter — are said to have tested positive for coronavirus. Former top overall draft pick Mikie Mahtook also registered a COVID-19 infection, which will obviously also take him out of commission while he recovers.

It’s clear there’s an even greater need for the Phils to clamp down and exercise care than most other clubs. In addition to those players, there are three coaches that have tested positive: bench coach Rob Thomson, catching coach Greg Brodzkinski, and bullpen coach Jim Gott.

Thankfully, there’s no indication to this point that any of the affected individuals is suffering significant symptoms. But the concern is obvious. Indeed, veteran lefty Francisco Liriano — who’s with the org on a minor-league deal — is said to be considering whether or not to opt out of the season.

Brewers Agree To Terms With First-Rounder Garrett Mitchell

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The Brewers have reached a deal with first-round pick Garrett Mitchell, who posted earlier today that he’s headed to Milwaukee to finalize things. The bonus lands in the realm of the slot value of $3,242,900, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets.

Mitchell drew strong grades from several draft pundits. MLB.com and Baseball America each ranked him the sixth-best available player eligible for selection. This signing completes the Brewers’ draft business.

While Mitchell was already a highly productive collegiate player at UCLA. And he’s said to possess a slate of skills that give him even more room to grow. Mitchell is an exceptional baserunner and defender, giving him a great starting point for launching a hopeful MLB career. If he can tap into his natural power in games, he could become an offensive force.

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