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Mets Shut Noah Syndergaard Down For Six Weeks

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Mets right-hander Noah Syndergaard will be shut down from throwing for the next six weeks due to inflammation in his right elbow, manager Luis Rojas announced to reporters Thursday (Twitter link via Anthony DiComo of MLB.com).

Syndergaard, who is working his way back from 2020 Tommy John surgery, exited his most recent minor league rehab start due to elbow discomfort. Tests did not reveal any damage to Syndergaard’s ulnar collateral ligament, but today’s announcement still marks a substantial setback. He’ll need to build back up once he resumes throwing in mid-July, meaning the earliest he’d be able to return to the big league rotation is likely some point in August.

The Syndergaard setback is the latest in a rather remarkable deluge of injuries the organization is attempting to weather. While the pitching staff hasn’t been hit as hard as the lineup, the looming promise of a Syndergaard return nevertheless stood as a potential boon for the club as it tries to patch the roster together while a whopping 17 players are on the injured list.

The Mets’ rotation has been excellent, anchored by yet another dominant performance from two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom. Mets starters have pitched to a collective 2.94 ERA on the season, ranking fifth in baseball. They also have the game’s fifth-best strikeout percentage (28.1 percent) and the seventh-lowest walk percentage (7.1 percent).

That said, it’s been a top-heavy group. Each of deGrom, Taijuan Walker and Marcus Stroman has turned in a sub-3.00 ERA (sub-1.00, in deGrom’s case), but young David Peterson has worked to a 4.91 mark in 44 innings while the fifth spot has been a revolving door. Carlos Carrasco, like Syndergaard, has yet to pitch this season and is said to still be “weeks” away from his potential Mets debut, and another rotation option, Jordan Yamamoto, was placed on the 60-day injured list yesterday.

The setback, of course, is worrisome for Syndergaard on a personal level as well. He’s in his final season of club control and was already facing a best-case scenario of just under four months to showcase his health in advance of free agency. He could now be looking at closer to a six-week audition window — perhaps longer if the Mets reach the postseason.

Mickey Callaway Placed On Ineligible List Through At Least 2022

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Major League Baseball has placed Angels pitching coach Mickey Callaway on its ineligible list through at least the 2022 season, commissioner Rob Manfred announced. The league made the decision after investigating Callaway for harassment allegations that were levied against him. The Angels have fired Callaway, per a team announcement. Maanfred issued the following statement on his ruling:

My office has completed its investigation into allegations of sexual harassment by Mickey Callaway.  Having reviewed all of the available evidence, I have concluded that Mr. Callaway violated MLB’s policies, and that placement on the Ineligible List is warranted.  We want to thank the many people who cooperated with our Department of Investigations (DOI) in their work, which spanned Mr. Callaway’s positions with three different Clubs.  The Clubs that employed Mr. Callaway each fully cooperated with DOI, including providing emails and assisting with identifying key witnesses.  Harassment has no place within Major League Baseball, and we are committed to providing an appropriate work environment for all those involved in our game.

The allegations against Callaway first came to light in a report from Brittany Ghiroli and Katie Strang of The Athletic, who explained that five women in sports media accused him of lewd behavior. The Angels subsequently suspended Callaway, and Ghiroli, Strang and colleague Ken Rosenthal soon reported that even more women had come forward to make allegations against Callaway. In one case, Callaway was said to carry on an extramarital affair with a woman whose husband found out and made Cleveland president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti and general manager Mike Chernoff aware. The husband also reportedly contacted another of Callaway’s former employers, the Mets, to make a complaint, but nothing was done back then.

In response to the reports, Callaway admitted in March to multiple “infidelities” but maintained that some of the reporting was “inaccurate.” He also denied using his position to harass women, but MLB concluded otherwise during its lengthy investigation. Now, Callaway is facing a year-plus ban, and it seems hard to believe any MLB team will hire him when he’s eligible to return.

Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen Discusses Team’s Outlook

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The Diamondbacks entered play tonight amidst a nine-game losing streak that has dropped the club to an NL-worst 18-31. It’s still relatively early in the year, but Arizona’s close to digging themselves a hole they can’t climb out of.

D-Backs general manager Mike Hazen addressed the team’s downturn with reporters (including Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic). While he stopped short of declaring them an eventual seller, Hazen admitted they “need to start playing better” if they’re to salvage this season. “I think June 1 is typically around the marker that we have to take some assessment on where we stand,” Hazen said of plotting the organization’s course (via Piecoro). “That’s coming upon us quickly. It doesn’t mean you’re necessarily going to act on that right away, but you at least have to be mindful.”

Hazen suggested there’s still some optimism the club could turn things around. The D-Backs have been hit hard by injuries in recent weeks, but they’re starting to get some help back, at least on the position player side. Star center fielder Ketel Marte was activated from the injured list last week after he missed a month and a half with a hamstring strain. Catcher Carson Kelly, who got off to an incredible start, was recently reinstated from a brief IL stint of his own. Arizona’s still without first baseman Christian Walker, infielder Asdrúbal Cabrera and right fielder Kole Calhoun, as well as starting pitchers Zac Gallen, Luke Weaver and Taylor Widener.

Even if the club gets back to health, it’s fair to wonder if they can work their way back into the mix at this point, particularly considering the strength of the NL West. Arizona already sits 13.5 games back of the division-leading Padres and 12 and 11.5 back of the Dodgers and Giants, respectively. FanGraphs pegs the D-Backs playoff odds at just 0.1%, so the most likely scenario is the Arizona front office will eventually have to turn their sights to 2022 and beyond.

If the Diamondbacks do wind up selling near the July 30 trade deadline, they have a few players who’d figure to draw interest from more immediate contenders. Cabrera is off to a blistering .289/.393/.474 start. It’s still not especially clear when the 35-year-old is expected to come back from his IL stint, but he’d certainly generate some calls if he returns in the next few weeks and continues to perform at the plate.

David Peralta is hitting well and controlled through 2022 on reasonable $7.5MM salaries. Eduardo Escobar is struggling to reach base (.230/.271/.471) but he’s popped thirteen homers, can play a couple infield positions, and is in the final season of his three-year, $21MM deal. Marte, Kelly and Josh Rojas are all controllable through at least 2024; it seems unlikely the D-Backs would part with any of that trio unless they embark on a full teardown, but each would have plenty of trade value. There are fewer obvious trade candidates on the pitching side of the equation (again, barring an unlikely full rebuild that would make Gallen available), but lefty Caleb Smith has taken fairly well to a bullpen conversion and could find himself on the move.

Phillies Sign Jorge Bonifacio

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The Phillies have signed outfielder Jorge Bonifacio to a minor league contract, as noted by Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America. Bonifacio has been assigned to Double-A Reading, where he’s begun his Fightin Phils career 0-1 with a strikeout.

Bonfiacio saw major league action every year from 2017-20. He once looked like a potential long-term piece for the Royals, hitting a decent .255/.320/.432 with 17 home runs as a rookie in 2017. He wound up suspended for almost half the following season after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs, though, and he’s struggled at the plate since returning from that ban. Over the past three seasons, he’s hit just .231/.307/.360 across 385 plate appearances with Kansas City and the Tigers.

The 27-year-old has worked exclusively in the corner outfield in recent seasons. He’s not a potential option for the Phils uncertain center field situation, but he’ll add some experienced depth in the corners. Bonifacio’s assignment to Double-A suggests he might be behind players like Travis Jankowski and Ryan Cordell, both of whom also have MLB experience and are at Triple-A Lehigh Valley, on the depth chart. Still, there’s little harm for the Phillies in adding some experience to the organization, particularly with right fielder Bryce Harper hitting the injured list with a forearm contusion.

Giants Outright Braden Bishop, Trevor Hildenberger

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The Giants have outrighted Braden Bishop and right-handed reliever Trevor Hildenberger to Triple-A Sacramento, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. The team designated the two of them for assignment in recent days.

Bishop is a Bay Area native whose younger brother, Hunter, is in the Giants’ system. The Giants claimed the elder Bishop, 27, via waivers from the Mariners on May 17, though he didn’t get a chance with San Francisco before it designated him. Bishop had brief major league appearances with the M’s from 2019-21 and batted an ugly .133/.188/.156 in that 99-PA span.

The Giants grabbed Hildenberger off waivers from the Mets on May 18, but he also didn’t see any action with the club before it jettisoned him. Between the Mets and Twins, the 30-year-old has pitched to a 5.52 ERA (with a much better 3.60 SIERA) 133 2/3 innings since he debuted in 2017.

West Notes: Belt, Bellinger, Gonzales, Pomeranz, Adell

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The Giants are placing first baseman Brandon Belt on the 10-day injured list with a mild left oblique strain and recalling infielder Jason Vosler, per manager Gabe Kapler (via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle). Kapler doesn’t expect Belt to miss more than 10 to 14 days, and in the meantime, Darin Ruf will get the lion’s share of playing time at first base. Even a short absence for Belt could be a tough blow for the contending Giants, though, considering he’s off to a .228/.350/.447 start with eight home runs in 137 plate appearances. However, Ruf has also hit well – albeit over a smaller sample of 97 PA – with a .228/.361/.506 line and six long balls.

  • The Dodgers are hopeful that slugger Cody Bellinger will return from the injured list on Saturday, manager Dave Roberts told Juan Toribio of MLB.com and other reporters. Los Angeles has gone nearly the entire season without Bellinger, who suffered a hairline fracture in his left leg and hasn’t played since April 5. Nevertheless, the reigning World Series champions have more than held their own in Bellinger’s absence, having won eight straight to improve to 30-18.
  • Mariners left-hander Marco Gonzales, out since April with a forearm strain, is making progress and could come back during the team’s upcoming homestand (May 27-June 2), per Adam Jude of the Seattle Times. Gonzales was one of the top starters in the league year, but he’s off to a rough beginning this season between the injury and his performance. Before going on the IL, Gonzales recorded a surprisingly poor 5.40 ERA/4.87 SIERA in 28 1/3 innings, and his walk rate skyrocketed compared to 2020. He issued walks just 2.5 percent of the time then, but he’s up to 9.1 now.
  • Padres reliever Drew Pomeranz has suffered a setback in his recovery from a left shoulder impingement, manager Jayce Tingler announced to AJ Cassavell of MLB.com and other reporters. The Padres will shut Pomeranz down from throwing for about a week and then decide how to proceed. Unfortunately, injuries have been a common problem since Pomeranz’s career began in 2011. When healthy, though, he has been a revelation for the Padres since they inked him to a four-year, $34MM contract before 2020. Dating back to then, the 32-year-old has registered a 1.67 ERA with a highly impressive 38 percent strikeout rate in 32 1/3 innings, including 13 2/3 this season.
  • Despite his encouraging start to the season at the Triple-A level, the Angels have not recalled top outfield prospect Jo Adell. That doesn’t look as if it’s going to change imminently, as general manager Perry Minasian said Tuesday (via Bill Shaikin of the LA Times): “He’s making some strides. He’s not there yet.” While the 22-year-old Adell has hit a power-packed .266/.326/.696 with 10 home runs in 86 plate appearances, he has posted a high strikeout rate of 33.7 percent at the same time. Strikeouts have been an issue over the past few years for Adell, including during his major league debut last season. He fanned in 41.7 percent of his 132 PA then and batted a woeful .161/.212/.266.

Indians Place Zach Plesac On 10-Day IL

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MAY 26: No surgery for Plesac, but he’ll miss a good amount of time. The Indians will re-evaluate Plesac every seven to 10 days, and he’ll take three weeks to begin a throwing progression, Mandy Bell of MLB.com tweets.

MAY 25: The Indians will place starter Zach Plesac on the 10-day injured list with a non-displaced fracture in his right thumb, Zack Meisel of The Athletic was among those to report. He suffered the injury while “rather aggressively taking off his undershirt,” manager Terry Francona told Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com and other media.

It’s unclear how much time Plesac will miss, but the 26-year-old isn’t someone Cleveland can afford to go without for too long. After all, for the third straight season, Plesac has been one of the Indians’ top starters. He owns a 4.14 ERA/4.43 SIERA with a 16.2 percent strikeout rate, a 5.1 percent walk rate and a personal-high 52.7 percent groundball rate over 58 2/3 innings. Among Indians hurlers, only reigning American League Cy Young winner Shane Bieber and Aaron Civale have amassed more frames this year than Plesac.

Cleveland is in more-than-capable hands with Bieber and Civale as a one-two punch, but the rest of its starting staff loses quite a bit of luster thereafter. Triston McKenzie, whom the team optioned on May 22, as well as Logan Allen and Sam Hentges have struggled over a combined 15 starts. The Indians also demoted Allen a few weeks ago, but he or McKenzie could be candidates to come back with Plesac out of commission.

Corey Kluber To Miss At Least 8 Weeks; Luke Voit Suffers Oblique Strain

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4:30pm: It gets worse for the Yankees, as Boone has since said Kluber will miss at least eight weeks (via Jack Curry of YES Network). He’ll be shut down from throwing for four weeks and then will have to build up his arm strength for another four.

4:12pm: Yankees right-hander Corey Kluber has a sub-scapular strain in his rotator cuff and will miss at least four weeks, manager Aaron Boone told Bryan Hoch of MLB.com and other reporters. Meanwhile, first baseman Luke Voit has a Grade 2 oblique strain and will go on the 10-day injured list.

Kluber had to leave his start early on Tuesday as a result of this injury, which will at least put a temporary halt to what has been an outstanding season for the two-time American League Cy Young winner. After signing a one-year, $11MM contract with the Yankees in the offseason, Kluber has opened the year with 53 1/3 innings of 3.04 ERA ball, and he fired a no-hitter against Texas last week. It’s by far the best Kluber has looked since earlier in his career, which has been hampered by multiple injuries over the past few years. The former workhorse, 35, totaled just 35 2/3 innings in 2019, his last season with the Indians, because of a fractured forearm. And he was unable to bounce back last year as a member of the Rangers, with whom he threw one inning and was then shut down for good with a shoulder problem.

The loss of Kluber for at least two months (if not more) is obviously a significant blow to the Yankees’ rotation, which has been a strength during the team’s quality start. Ace Gerrit Cole, Domingo German and Jordan Montgomery have all pitched well, while Jameson Taillon’s peripherals are a lot more encouraging than his 5.06 ERA. The Yankees could also get back Luis Severino from Tommy John recovery sometime during the summer, but in the meantime, they’ll turn to Deivi Garcia to fill the last spot in their starting staff.

The loss of Voit is another troubling development for the Yankees, and it continues a difficult, injury-shortened campaign for him. After leading the majors with 22 home runs a season ago, he opened this year on the IL with a torn left meniscus that required surgery. Since he made his season debut in May, Voit has hit an uncharacteristically poor .182/.280/.250 with shockingly little power in 50 plate appearances. Voit has just one home run and a meager .068 ISO thus far. The Yankees seem likely to use Mike Ford and DJ LeMahieu at first base while Voit is absent.

In better news for the Yankees’ offense, slugger Giancarlo Stanton could come off the IL on Friday, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic was among those to report. Stanton, who has been out since May 14, slashed a superb .283/.347/.534 with nine homers in 144 PA before going down with a quad strain.

Cubs Place Nico Hoerner On IL, Designate Shelby Miller

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The Cubs have placed infielder/outfielder Nico Hoerner on the 10-day injured list, designated right-hander Shelby Miller for assignment and selected the contract of outfielder Rafael Ortega, Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago was among those to report.

Hoerner suffered a left hamstring strain earlier this week, forcing the team to place him on the shelf for the second time this month. He missed time earlier with a left forearm strain, but a healthy version of Hoerner has been a standout this season. Even though the 24-year-old hasn’t homered in 84 plate appearances, he has made up for it with a .338/.405/.432 line and a paltry strikeout percentage of 14.3. Hoerner has also seen some time and both middle infield positions and all three outfield spots, though he has primarily lined up at the keystone. The Cubs figure to use a combination of Eric Sogard and David Bote at second while Hoerner’s out.

Miller, 30, is a former star hurler whose career fell off course in 2016 after a trade to Arizona, and he hasn’t been able to get back on track since then. Injuries have been part of the problem along the way, and Miller was on the IL with a back problem before the Cubs designated him. They signed Miller to a minor league contract last winter but have only gotten two disastrous innings of seven-run, seven-hit, five-walk ball from him.

Ortega, also 30, has past MLB experience with a handful of teams, though he has slumped to a .229/.287/.290 line in 447 plate appearances at the game’s top level. He has, however, hit a much more effective .294/.368/.447 with 39 home runs and 86 stolen bases across 2,232 trips to the plate in Triple-A.

Astros Shuffle Rotation With Valdez, Odorizzi Set To Return

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Astros skipper Dusty Baker announced several changes to his team’s pitching staff during his Wednesday media session, revealing that lefty Framber Valdez will return from the injured list to make his season debut Friday and Jake Odorizzi will be activated to start Saturday’s game (all Twitter links via Jake Kaplan of The Athletic). That’s the good news, but Baker also announced that righty Lance McCullers Jr. is headed to the 10-day IL due to shoulder soreness. The team does not believe the issue to be serious at this point.

The Astros have also selected the contract of right-hander Ralph Garza from Triple-A Sugar Land. Injured righty Josh James was moved from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL to open a roster spot. Lastly, Baker said right-hander Cristian Javier will be moved to the bullpen to accommodate the returns of Valdez and Odorizzi.

It’s a broad-ranging series of roster moves and role changes that carry significant implications for the Astros’ outlook moving forward. The 27-year-old Valdez broke out as one of the team’s best starters in 2020 and was expected to occupy a key role near the top of the rotation in ’21, but a broken ring finger sustained on a comebacker in Spring Training placed his very season in jeopardy. Valdez opted not to undergo surgery that could have cost him the bulk of the year, and he’ll now return to the mound after missing approximately two months of action.

Valdez stepped up in the wake of Justin Verlander’s injury last year, logging 70 2/3 frames with a 3.57 ERA and even better FIP (2.85) and SIERA (3.23) marks. He fanned a hearty 26.4 percent of his opponents against just a 5.6 percent walk rate — all while inducing grounders at a 60 percent clip that ranked among the game’s best. That combination of missed bats, precise control and grounders is a time-honored recipe for success, and he’ll now look to build on last year’s performance to cement himself as one of the club’s best rotation arms.

Odorizzi, 31, inked a three-year deal with the Astros over the winter (the third of which is a player option that’s unlikely to be exercised but was included as a means of manipulating the luxury tax). He made a pair of starts for the ’Stros earlier this season after a short ramp-up before being placed on the IL with a pronator muscle strain. Those first two outings didn’t go well, but Odorizzi will look to put that pair of outings and an injury-ruined 2020 season with the Twins behind him.

It appears the return of Odorizzi and Valdez will be utilized by the Astros as a means of managing the 24-year-old Javier’s workload. He’s been quite good thus far in 2021, pitching to a 3.14 ERA with a 29.9 percent strikeout rate and a 10.8 percent walk rate. However, the 48 2/3 innings he’s thrown are already just six shy of his entire 2020 total, and there are still more than four months of regular-season play remaining (plus, the Astros hope, additional October ball to be played). A move to the ’pen will allow the ’Stros to more carefully monitor his overall innings count this year.

The role change doesn’t necessarily rule out a return to the rotation later in the season, and based on Javier’s first 103 big league innings, it’d be a shock if the organization didn’t view him as a starter moving forward. He’s pitched to a combined 3.32 ERA with a 27.5 percent strikeout rate and 9.6 percent walk rate through 21 appearances (19 of them starts). With Verlander and Zack Greinke both slated to reach free agency this winter, there could be a fairly straightforward path to rotation work for Javier in 2022 and beyond.

Turning to the other IL moves announced today, the move of James to the 60-day IL is a procedural one that doesn’t really impact his timeline back to the Majors. He’s been out all year while recovering from hip surgery and was said during Spring Training to be targeting a June return. Today’s placement on the 60-day IL merely means that he can’t be activated until May 31, which wasn’t going to happen anyhow.

The departure of McCullers will be felt in the short-term, as he’s logged an excellent 2.96 ERA through his first 51 2/3 frames this year. The right-hander elected to forgo free agency in favor of a five-year, $85MM extension offer from the Astros during Spring Training, and at least to this point, the 27-year-old looks like a pitcher capable of living up to that deal.

Garza, 27, isn’t considered to be among the team’s top-ranked prospects but has tossed 6 2/3 shutout innings in Sugar Land, yielding just a hit and three walks with 11 punchouts along the way. He’s spent parts of four seasons in Triple-A, pitching to a combined 3.80 ERA with a 26.2 percent strikeout rate. He’ll join the club’s bullpen for now.

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