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Phillies Place Pat Neshek On 10-Day Injured List

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TODAY: Neshek is dealing with rotator cuff inflammation, the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Matt Breen tweets.  Neshek will “be out for a little while,” though the team doesn’t believe the injury will threaten his season.

SATURDAY: Phillies reliever Pat Neshek is expected to be placed on the 10-day injured list, manager Gabe Kapler told reporters including Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia (Twitter link). He is dealing with shoulder soreness.

The specifics of the malady aren’t clear, but caution is typically the wisest course when that particular joint is involved. Neshek, 38, had an excellent record of durability before running into some health issues last year.

It’s hard not to notice that the veteran hurler has had a few rough outings of late. In particular, he allowed three runs and two long balls in his latest appearance, bumping his season-long ERA from 3.24 to 4.67.

There have been some changes in the underlying numbers for Neshek, though it’s hard to know precisely what they mean in such a short sample. Neshek has only nine strikeouts on the year, but he has also allowed only a single walk in his 17 1/3 innings. His swinging-strike rate has dipped to 8.9%, markedly lower than his recent levels. And the typically flyball heavy sidearmer has drawn more grounders than usual, even while allowing homers at a greater rate (16.0% HR/FB) than ever before.

Astros Likely To Place Aledmys Diaz On 10-Day IL

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A left hamstring strain forced Aledmys Diaz to be removed from the Astros’ lineup during the first inning of today’s game, and manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan) that the injury is likely to send Diaz to the 10-day injured list.  Diaz missed three games last week due to hamstring soreness, and re-aggravated the injury while running the bases today.

Like pretty much everyone on the Astros’ roster this season, Diaz has been enjoying a good year at the plate, hitting .286/.321/.510 with five homers over 109 plate appearances.  Houston acquired the 28-year-old utilityman in a trade with Toronto during the offseason, seeing Diaz as an alternative to departing free agent Marwin Gonzalez.  Diaz has lived up to that versatile billing, starting at least two games at five different positions (all four infield slots and left field) this year.  Much of Diaz’s recent action has come at second base, as he has been filling in for the injured Jose Altuve.

While it hasn’t yet affected their big lead in the AL West, the Astros have been bit by the injury bug over the last few weeks, with Altuve, George Springer, Collin McHugh, Max Stassi, and now Diaz all sidelined.  The good news is that Altuve is expected back in a few days’ time, filling one major hole in the club’s lineup.  Depending on how long Diaz is out of action, Yuli Gurriel could handle backup shortstop duties behind Carlos Correa, though Gurriel has only played two games at short in his four MLB seasons.  Myles Straw is another consideration, as the outfielder has been seeing action at shortstop at Triple-A.

Phillies Move Vince Velasquez To Bullpen, Recall Pivetta

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The Phillies are tinkering with their starting rotation, recalling Nick Pivetta, who will reclaim his spot in the rotation and is slated to start Tuesday’s game against the Cardinals, tweets Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Meanwhile, right-hander Vince Velasquez will transition to a full-time bullpen role moving forward.

Velasquez, who boasts impressive strikeout stuff, has long been mentioned as a candidate to work out of the bullpen, and now we will have a chance to see just how his stuff plays in abbreviated outings in relief. After an impressive two-inning performance on Friday in which he struck out four batters, the Phils will give the 26-year-old Velasquez an extended look out of the bullpen. Velasquez certainly fits the prototype for converted relievers: for his career, the right-hander averages more than one strikeout per inning pitched, but that talent has thus far translated to a mediocre 4.52 career ERA. This season, walks and home runs have emerged as an issue, surrendering 1.9 HR/9 to go with 4.5 BB/9.

Taking his spot in the starting rotation will be Pivetta, who earned himself a short stint in the minor leagues after a frustrating start to his 2019, a year in which he was supposed to break out. Needless to say, there’s still time for Pivetta, who has long tantalized fans with elite pure stuff, to reverse his early-season misfortune and make good on his potential. If his six minor-league starts are any indicator of what’s to come, his raw stuff is still there: the 26-year-old struck out 50 batters in 37 Triple-A innings, good for a ratio of 12.2 K/9. By and large, though, it has been the long ball that has plagued Pivetta in 2019, having allowed 2.5 per nine innings pitched, an average that must come down if he’s to return to the form that he flashed last season.

An improved version of Pivetta would certainly be welcomed by the Phillies, who have received mixed results from their starting rotation, received good production from Zach Eflin, though Aaron Nola has yet to perform like the ace of last year’s staff. At the same time, experimenting with Velasquez in the bullpen could unlock something that prevented him from reaching his full potential as a starter. If something clicks, the Phillies could have themselves a versatile multi-inning threat, a role that surely is of considerable value for a contending team.

 

Minor MLB Transacations: 5/26/19

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Here are the latest minor moves from the baseball world…

  • The Blue Jays outrighted left-handed pitcher Ryan Feierabend to Triple-A, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. The knuckleballer cleared waivers after he was designated by Toronto on Friday. In two outings for the Blue Jays, including one start, Feierabend was largely ineffective, conceding seven runs in 5 2/3 innings, including two home runs.
  • Mets relievers Paul Sewald and Tim Peterson, each of whom was designated for assignment, have also cleared waivers and were outrighted to Triple-A, tweets Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. Control was an issue for Peterson, who walked six batters in his five appearances. Sewald misses a decent amount of bats, but is the owner of a mediocre 5.18 career ERA.
  • The Tigers claimed 32-year-old right-handed pitcher Austin Adams, who had been designated by the Twins. According to Evan Woodbery of MLive Media Group, Adams was subsequently placed on the active roster, replacing left-handed pitcher Matt Hall, who was optioned today after spending just one day with the Major League club.

Orioles Place Chris Davis On Injured List

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The Orioles have placed first baseman Chris Davis on the 10-day injured list, according to an official team announcement. Right-handed pitcher Evan Phillips has been recalled from Triple-A to replace Davis on the active roster. Davis has been bothered by inflammation to his left hip.

Davis has not started a game since Thursday and last appeared for the Orioles on Friday, which might have been attributed to his recent struggles at the plate. However, it now appears that the lack of playing time was at least partly due to an injury.

The former slugger, who showed signs of a resurgence after his historic slump, has found that success sandwiched between bouts of poor performance; over his last ten games, Davis has struck out 22 times in 36 plate appearances, a frustrating development for a veteran who looked to have overcome some of the issues that held him hitless for the first 12 games of the season.

Evan Phillips, 24, is back with the big league team after a brief stint in the minor leagues. He has appeared in 11 games for the O’s, pitching 12 2/3 innings and striking out 16 batters against 10 walks.

Angels Reinstate Andrew Heaney, Option Jaime Barria

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The Angels have reinstated left-handed pitcher Andrew Heaney from the injured list, per an official club announcement. Heaney will start Sunday’s game against the Rangers in his season debut. To make room for Heaney on the active roster, right-hander Jaime Barria has been optioned to Triple-A.

The 27-year-old Heaney is prepared to make his 2019 season debut, which couldn’t come sooner for the struggling Angels—the team’s own starting pitching has perhaps been the most substantial impediment to the Halos’ postseason aspirations. On Sunday, though, the club will welcome back Heaney, who enjoyed a breakout 2018, which marked the first time in his Major League career that the injury-riddled southpaw was able to make 30 starts in a season.

Last year, Heaney struck out 180 batters in as many innings, leading many to express optimism that he could anchor the 2019 Angels rotation, a development that has been years in the making due to Heaney’s injury-marred past, which included a Tommy John surgery that cost him most of the 2016 and 2017 seasons. For that reason, the elbow issues that landed him on the IL to open this season were that much more troubling. However, Heaney has served his time and is in position to provide a considerable boost to an Angels team that has endured more than its fair share of health-related misfortune.

Barria, who will go the minors, has kicked in 14 1/3 innings for the Halos, mostly coming out of the bullpen. Following a rookie season in which he posted a 3.41 ERA in 26 starts, Barria has worked out of a long-relief role this year, though he has gotten work as a starter in Triple-A Salt Lake, where he has a 6.58 ERA in 5 games.

Giants Option Andrew Suarez

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The Giants have optioned left-handed pitcher Andrew Suarez to Triple-A, tweets Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. His spot on the roster will go to right-hander Sam Coonrod, who has been recalled from Triple-A.

Suarez’s demotion comes after making just two starts for the Major League club, neither of which yielded particularly promising results. In ten innings of work this season, Suarez has conceded three home runs and ten earned runs while walking as many batters as he has struck out.

Of course, the 26-year-old Suarez is still young and relatively inexperienced, having worked just 170 1/3 career innings in the big leagues. Though the early returns for the 2019 season have been ugly, his rookie numbers were far more encouraging, suggesting that Suarez is at least worthy of consideration for a spot in the rebuilding Giants’ starting rotation. For the time being, though, his tryout for new president of baseball ops Farhan Zaidi will be put on hold and Suarez will head to the minors to iron out his issues.

As Baggarly notes, it appears that Suarez’s absence will clear the way for Dereck Rodriguez to reclaim his spot in the rotation. However, that is not certain; Tyler Beede is another candidate to replace Suarez in the rotation. Rodriguez, for his part, has not enjoyed much more success than Suarez in 2019, but after a brief stint in the minors he could be given the chance to show that his rookie success was no fluke. Sam Coonrod, meanwhile, will pitch out of the bullpen as he makes his Major League debut.

Coonrod, a fifth-round selection of the Giants in 2014, is a 26-year-old right-hander who began working out of the bullpen in the minors last season after beginning his professional career as a starter. Coonrod has played at the Triple-A level in 2019, pitching 18 innings in as many games, striking out 30 batters and walking 11. Though his 7.00 ERA is unsightly, his peripherals are considerably more impressive and point to MLB-caliber stuff.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Dodgers, Franmil, Yanks, Jays, Twins

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This week in baseball blogs…

Submissions: ZachBBWI @gmail.com

Didi Gregorius Begins Rehab Assignment

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SUNDAY: Gregorius is likely to move to Triple-A Scranton on Tuesday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com tweets. Boone is hopeful Gregorius will rejoin the Yankees in “a week or two.”

SATURDAY: The first-place Yankees have been without injured shortstop Didi Gregorius all season, but it appears he’s moving closer to a return. Gregorius is set to begin a rehab assignment with Single-A Tampa, per an announcement from New York.

Gregorius, one of the Yankees’ most valuable players dating back to the beginning of his tenure with them in 2015, has been on the mend from Tommy John surgery since last October. The 29-year-old’s injury helped lead to speculation New York would pursue Manny Machado in free agency, but the club ended up taking much cheaper routes to bolster its infield, signing DJ LeMahieu and Troy Tulowitzki. The addition of LeMahieu, whom the Yankees signed to a two-year, $24MM contract, looks like a shrewd pickup so far. The low-cost signing of the oft-injured Tulowitzki hasn’t been nearly as beneficial, on the other hand, as he hasn’t played since April 3 on account of a calf strain.

With Gregorius and Tulowitzki out of commission, the Yankees’ middle infield has typically consisted of rising star Gleyber Torres at short and LeMahieu at second. It’s unclear how the Yankees’ infield will align once Gregorius comes back, as they also have surprising standouts Gio Urshela and Thairo Estrada joining powerful first baseman Luke Voit in the mix, but they surely consider that a high-class problem. Manager Aaron Boone said Friday that Gregorius should return within 20 days, per Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News.

Once Gregorius does come back, he’ll be vying for a potentially significant offseason payday. Gregorius, who’s fresh off back-to-back seasons of at least 4.0 fWAR, stands as the majors’ most enticing soon-to-be free-agent shortstop in the wake of Xander Bogaerts’ extension with the Red Sox. MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes ranks Gregorius as the game’s sixth-best impending free agent.

Pirates Designate Jake Elmore, Select Jacob Stallings, Place Francisco Cervelli On 7-Day IL

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The Pirates have designated infielder Jake Elmore for assignment and selected the contract of catcher Jacob Stallings from Triple-A Indianapolis, per Adam Berry of MLB.com. The club has also placed injured catcher Francisco Cervelli on the seven-day concussion IL and recalled outfielder Jose Osuna from Indianapolis.

Elmore spent just under two full weeks on the Pirates’ roster, as they promoted him May 13 to take the injured Jung Ho Kang’s 25-man spot. He collected just one hit (a single) and no walks in 20 plate appearances thereafter, making it easier for the Pirates to subject him to DFA limbo. Formerly a Diamondback, Astro, Red, Ray and Brewer, the 31-year-old Elmore is a meager .208/.287/.269 hitter in 498 career PA. However, Elmore has been an asset at the minors’ top level, especially during a .380/.444/.546 showing in 124 trips to the plate this year.

Pittsburgh outrighted Stallings off its 40-man May 17, but he’s quickly back to help cover for Cervelli. The 29-year-old has appeared in the majors in five straight seasons and combined for a .286/.325/.325 line in 83 PA.

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