MLBTR Poll: AL Wild Card Race
We just gathered your latest predictions on the National League side, where there are still quite a few scenarios to consider. But the situation in the American League has gained quite a bit of clarity of late. It appears we’re looking at a potentially fascinating three-team race … with only one of those clubs ultimately getting a full divisional series.
Entering play today, the Rays half a half-game lead over the Athletics, who in turn carry another half-game advantage over the Indians. The Red Sox have fallen well out of the picture, removing one possibility for intrigue. Odds are, we’re going to see those three clubs duke it out down the stretch for position.
Okay, there is still one other realistic outcome. The Indians still have an outside chance of catching the Twins in the AL Central. And if that’s the case, then it’s also true that there’s even a possibility that the Twins will fall outside the postseason picture entirely. But even with Minnesota’s recent run of roster woes, the four-game spread gives them a stout advantage. And it’s especially improbable — so say the postseason odds estimators, at least — that the Minny faithful will be left without even a single playoff contest. Fangraphs and 538 both put the odds at less than one percent of that scenario.
Accordingly, we’ll focus on the Tampa Bay-Oakland-Cleveland low-revenue battle royale. There are any number of outrageous late-season scenarios if we end up with various sorts of ties. Regardless, it’s quite likely that only one of those organizations will be left standing when the ALDS begins.
Every minor factor matters at this stage of the season. The quality of the opposition is an especially major consideration. Here’s the remaining schedule for these three teams.
Rays
@ Rangers (1), @Angels (3), @Dodgers (2), vs. Red Sox (4), vs. Yankees (2), @ Blue Jays (3)
Athletics
@ Astros (1), @ Rangers (3), vs. Royals (3), vs. Rangers (3), @Angels (2), @Mariners (4)
Indians
vs. Twins (3), vs. Tigers (3), vs. Phillies (3), @ White Sox (3), @Nationals (3)
How do you think it’ll turn out? (Poll link for app users. Response order randomized.)
Which Teams Will Play In The Wild Card Game?
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Rays & Athletics 58% (2,870)
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Athletics & Indians 24% (1,183)
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Indians & Rays 18% (892)
Total votes: 4,945
Quick Hits: Buchholz, Keuchel, Phils, Mets, Indians
Blue Jays right-hander Clay Buchholz, who turned 35 last month and is closing in on another trip to free agency, told Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe that he intends to play again in 2020. But there’s one condition: Buchholz isn’t willing to pitch in the minors, Abraham reports. “I told my agent that,” Buchholz said. “I feel like I’m capable of pitching as well as I did five or six years ago. It’s not about money. It’s about considering myself a major league pitcher.” Buchholz took a minor league contract a year ago and then proceeded to revive his career with the Diamondbacks, which persuaded Toronto to hand him a $3MM guarantee last offseason. The investment hasn’t paid off for the Jays, though, as a shoulder injury has limited Buchholz to eight starts and 42 1/3 innings of 5.31 ERA/5.15 FIP ball. Buchholz could have trouble landing a guaranteed deal during the upcoming winter as a result, and that might put his career in jeopardy if he’s not up for another minor league stint.
More from around the majors…
- The Phillies reportedly showed interest in left-hander Dallas Keuchel during his long stay in free agency, but the 31-year-old suggested Wednesday that wasn’t the case. “If you don’t come calling, what is there for me to be mad about? I think a lot of those guys over there in that front office are second-guessing themselves. I would too,” Keuchel said to Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and other reporters. He made those comments after stymieing the Phillies with six innings of one-run ball in a 3-1 victory for the Braves. Despite the defeat, the Phillies (75-70) are still just two games back of a wild-card spot, though they might be in better position had they signed Keuchel. The former AL Cy Young winner has posted a terrific 3.35 ERA over 96 2/3 innings since joining the Braves on a one-year, $13MM contract in June. While Keuchel’s peripherals aren’t as impressive, he’d still rank among the absolute best starters on a Philly team whose rotation has fallen flat in 2019.
- The Mets have named Terry Collins a senior advisor for player personnel, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets. Collins had already been serving as a special assistant to general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, so it’s unclear what new responsibilities he’ll take on in a changed role. Of course, the 70-year-old isn’t far removed from a run as the Mets’ manager. He held that job from 2011-17 – a span in which the team went 551-583 with two playoff trips, including a World Series appearance in 2015.
- Indians closer Brad Hand underwent an MRI on his left arm Wednesday, but results came back clean, manager Terry Francona revealed (via Always The Jake and James Rapien of 92.3 The Fan). Hand’s dealing with “kind of a tired arm” and will get the next couple days off, according to Francona. That’s a less-than-ideal development for a Cleveland team that’s in a three-way battle for a wild-card spot. The Indians have been without the 29-year-old Hand since Sunday, and though that was an effective performance, he yielded two earned runs on four hits in a third of an inning in the appearance preceding that one. The normally lights-out Hand has surrendered at least a pair of ER four times since the beginning of August.
Injury Notes: Hiura, Cubs, Ender, Rockies, Mariners
The playoff-contending Brewers received terrible news Tuesday when their best player, all-world outfielder Christian Yelich, suffered a season-ending broken kneecap. Fortunately for the club, though, one of its other top players is on the way back from the injured list. Second baseman Keston Hiura, out since Aug. 31 with a left hamstring strain, could get “some at-bats maybe over the weekend and more game action and field action on the home stand, is what it’s looking like,” according to manager Craig Counsell (via Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). The Brewers, who are now tied with division-rival Chicago for the Nl’s second wild-card spot, will open up a seven-game home stand next Monday. They’re in contention thanks in part to the rookie Hiura, who has slashed .301/.369/.571 with 16 home runs and nine stolen bases in his first 295 plate appearances in the majors.
- More unwelcome news for the Cubs, who are in real danger of missing the postseason: They won’t get closer Craig Kimbrel back from the injured list for “at least” another week, Scott Miller of Bleacher Report tweets. The club has been without Kimbrel since Sept. 1 because of right elbow inflammation. Meanwhile, the Cubs will evaluate shortstop Addison Russell when they return home Friday, Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com relays. Russell has been dealing with concussion-like symptoms since last weekend.
- Braves outfielder Ender Inciarte likely won’t return until the last week of September, David O’Brien of The Athletic suggests. Inciarte has been on the shelf since mid-August with a hamstring strain. It’s the second long-term injury of the year for Inciarte, who previously missed two months with a back issue. Inciarte had been amid a hot streak when he suffered his current ailment, as his OPS skyrocketed from .605 to .740 in the month between his IL stints. He and the soon-to-return Nick Markakis could act as a pair of important outfield reinforcements for the Braves as they gear up for the postseason.
- Rockies left-hander Tyler Anderson underwent season-ending left knee surgery back on June 11, but he still won’t be at full strength at the beginning of next year, per manager Bud Black (via Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post). The hope is that Anderson will come back “within the first couple of months” of 2020, Black said. The 29-year-old Anderson’s procedure wrapped up a nightmarish campaign for a hurler who was a respectable member of the Rockies’ rotation from 2016-18. He yielded 27 earned runs on 33 hits, including eight homers, in 20 2/3 innings this season.
- Mariners outfielder Jake Fraley will miss the remainder of the season because of sprained ligaments in his right thumb, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports. Fraley got his first taste of major league action in recent weeks, though he struggled to a .150/.171/.200 line with no home runs in a span of 41 trips to the plate. The 24-year-old offseason acquisition was far better in the minors, though, as he slashed a combined .298/.365/.545 with 19 long balls in 427 plate appearances between the Double-A and Triple-A levels.
Latest On Garrett Richards
Having scored a 10-year, $300MM contract, Manny Machado was easily the Padres’ biggest free-agent signing last winter. Long before that addition, though, the Padres made headlines by awarding right-hander Garrett Richards a two-year, $15.5MM guarantee.
The Padres handed Richards his deal knowing they likely wouldn’t get much from the former Angel this season after he underwent Tommy John surgery in July 2018. Indeed, with little time left this year, Richards hasn’t yet made his Padres debut. It appears to be on the way, however. Richards will throw a bullpen session Saturday, and if he gets through that unscathed, he’ll likely take the hill during San Diego’s series in Milwaukee next week, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.
At 67-77, the Padres have sewn up their 13th consecutive season without a playoff berth. But if they’re going to make a long-awaited return to contention a year from now, a healthy Richards could be a key factor. The problem is that good health has been hard to come by for Richards, whom arm injuries have consistently dogged over the past few seasons. The 31-year-old hasn’t logged a full season since 2015, and has only amassed 138 2/3 innings dating back to the 2016 campaign. When he has been able to take the ball, though, Richards has served as a more-than-respectable big league starter, evidenced by his 3.54 ERA/3.62 FIP with 7.8 K/9, 3.24 BB/9 and a 52.5 percent groundball rate across 744 2/3 innings.
Going forward, the Padres could certainly use the type of production that Richards has typically offered. On paper, he’d fit nicely into a group that has gotten solid numbers this year from Chris Paddack, Joey Lucchesi, Eric Lauer and Dinelson Lamet. San Diego hasn’t found a quality option to fill out its starting staff, however, as Cal Quantrill, Matt Strahm and Nick Margevicius have each failed to truly seize hold of a rotation spot. If the team has its way, Richards won’t encounter that type of difficulty when he’s finally ready to join its staff – a unit that could also include elite prospect MacKenzie Gore in the near future.
Rangers Could Prioritize Third Base In Offseason
Few teams have been worse off at the hot corner this season than the Rangers. Their third basemen rank 23rd in the majors in fWAR (8.6) and 24th in wRC+ (87). It’s fair to say life after Adrian Beltre hasn’t gone smoothly for Texas, which tried to replace the future Hall of Famer with free-agent stopgap Asdrubal Cabrera. But Cabrera performed so poorly over the season’s first few months that the Rangers released him in the first week of August. Logan Forsythe and Isiah Kiner-Falefa haven’t been productive, meanwhile, and utilityman Danny Santana and rookie Nick Solak – although extremely impressive during his very young career – have each started just a handful of games at the position.
Considering their issues at third this year, it seems the Rangers will prioritize the spot over the winter, as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News writes. As you’d expect, manager Chris Woodward indicated Wednesday that he’d rather go forward with one player at third – not a cast of different faces.
Asked if third will be an important offseason focus for the Rangers, Woodward said: “It’s pretty big. I’m guessing we will be in pursuit of a third baseman. We’d like to not have rotating third basemen next year.”
If Texas enters the winter in a spending mood (Grant reports the team’s expected to be more aggressive in free agency), it could be among the clubs in on a pair of big-time free agents in Anthony Rendon and Josh Donaldson. Rendon, a 29-year-old superstar for the Nationals, figures to rake in the highest-paying contract of any position player during the offseason. Whether the Rangers will be up to the task of ponying up for him remains to be seen, but if they are, it could help their cause that Rendon is a native of Texas. The next deal for Donaldson, who will turn 34 in December, won’t come close to Rendon’s in total value, but the Brave is a standout in his own right who will no doubt earn a sizable guarantee on the open market.
After Rendon, Donaldson and perhaps Mike Moustakas (who has a mutual option with the Brewers for 2020), it doesn’t appear as if free agency will be teeming with third base solutions in the next couple months. The Rangers have spent big in the past, though, and if they’re committed to breaking a three-year playoff drought in 2020, it wouldn’t be a shock to see them reel in any of those three via the open market.
Angels Notes: Bedrosian, Upton
With the playoffs officially out of the question for the Angels, they’ve decided to shut injured reliever Cam Bedrosian down for the season, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. Meanwhile, outfielder Justin Upton underwent an MRI on his right knee Wednesday. The results aren’t yet known.
Bedrosian has been a clear bright spot in a Halos pitching staff that has lacked reasons for optimism this year, but the right-hander hasn’t pitched in two weeks on account of a forearm issue. Fortunately, the Angels didn’t find any kind of alarming issue before shutting him down, per Fletcher. They’re simply erring on the side of caution because their postseason hopes are gone. The 27-year-old Bedrosian’s 2019 will end with a 3.23 ERA/3.83 FIP, 9.39 K/9, 3.23 BB/9 and a 47.6 percent groundball rate in 61 1/3 innings. Bedrosian’s set to go through his penultimate trip through arbitration in the offseason, when he’ll collect a raise on his current salary of $1.75MM.
Contrary to Bedrosian, Upton has gone through a rough 2019 – the second season of a five-year, $106MM contract. The 32-year-old has typically been an above-average contributor since his career began in 2007, but Upton has been among the least valuable players in baseball this season. Since missing the first few months of the season with a toe injury and debuting June 17, Upton has hit a meager .215/.309/.416 with 12 home runs and a personal-worst 30.5 percent strikeout rate in 256 plate appearances. Depending on the severity of his injury, Upton could join Bedrosian in missing the last couple weeks of the season.
Michael Pineda Hopes To Stay With Twins
Even though the AL Central-leading Twins are well on their way to a playoff berth, the 2019 season is already in the rearview mirror for one of their top starters, Michael Pineda. Major League Baseball hit the right-hander with a 60-game suspension last weekend after he tested positive for the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide, which is on its list of banned substances. It’s a costly ban for Pineda, writes the Star Tribune’s Phil Miller, who explains that the 30-year-old will surrender a substantial amount of money. He’s out the rest of his $8MM salary this season ($984K), could lose as much as $1.5MM in bonuses and won’t collect any of his salary during the rest of his suspension in 2020 (39 games).
The question now is where Pineda, a pending free agent, will pitch next season. The former Mariner and Yankee joined the Twins on a two-year, $10MM contract in December 2017, at which point he was recovering from Tommy John surgery. Pineda didn’t pitch in the majors at all last year as a result, but he made an impressive return this season before his misdeed sent him to the shelf. He concluded his campaign with 146 innings of 4.01 ERA/4.02 FIP pitching and 8.63 K/9 against 1.73 BB/9.
If not for his ban, Pineda would have been a strong bet to land a quality payday on the open market during the upcoming winter. It’s conceivable he’ll still get one, but regardless, Pineda’s hopeful he’ll stay in Minnesota, according to Miller. While Pineda wants to re-sign with the Twins, he noted he doesn’t “have control over that. We’ll let time decide that.”
For now, Pineda – who expressed contrition over his suspension – will continue to hang around the team as it tries to win its first World Series title since 1991. It’s going to be all the more difficult to accomplish that feat without Pineda, though, and it’s possible his ill-timed suspension will turn the Twins’ hierarchy off of the concept of re-signing him. On the other hand, however, starting pitching’s going to be an obvious need for the Twins in the offseason, which could steer them toward a Pineda reunion.
The lone full-time starter on the Twins who’s set to return next year is their No. 1 option, Jose Berrios. Pineda, Kyle Gibson and Jake Odorizzi – who have each been effective over a combined 81 starts – are all slated to reach free agency. Martin Perez could join them, though the Twins will first have to decide whether to exercise his $7.5MM club option or buy him out for $500K.
The Least Valuable Sluggers Of 2019
With a couple weeks left in the regular season, 108 players have already hit at least 20 home runs, and several more figure to join the group before the year’s out. We all know it’s a homer-happy game these days, but even if you’re capable of launching the ball over the fence on a consistent basis, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a valuable player. Seventeen of the sport’s 20-HR hitters have posted 1.0 fWAR or worse so far this year, setting them up to end the season as below-average players by that metric. Say what you will about fWAR, but it’s generally able to pinpoint who is and isn’t particularly useful to his team’s cause. With that said, let’s take a look at this year’s least valuable sluggers as the campaign nears its end…
Eddie Rosario, OF, Twins (HRs: 28; fWAR: 1.0)
- While Rosario has seldom been a big on-base threat since his career started in 2015, this year’s .299 OBP is the second-worst mark of his career and has helped tamp down his value. Despite a .276 average and a .491 slugging percentage, Rosario has managed a so-so 101 wRC+ to this point. Thanks to that and below-average defense (minus-4 DRS, minus-3.5 UZR), Rosario’s smack dab between average and replacement level this season.
Jay Bruce, OF, Phillies (HRs: 25; fWAR: 1.0)
- In fairness to Bruce, injuries have limited him to just 314 plate appearance this year, making his home run amount all the more impressive. Still, between Seattle and Philly, Bruce has put up another unspectacular season in a growing line of them. He’s a .227/.274/.543 hitter with a 106 wRC+, though the long-panned outfielder has accounted for 2 DRS and a 0.8 UZR in the corners.
Yasiel Puig, OF, Indians (HRs: 24; fWAR: 0.8)
- The 28-year-old Puig has stumbled through one of the worst seasons of his career, which obviously isn’t what he had in mind for a platform campaign. The pending free agent and longtime Dodger has slashed a middling .255/.315/.455 over 555 trips to the plate between the Reds and Indians. Puig’s still a good outfielder (4 DRS, 0.4 UZR), but above-average offense has been his calling card for most of his time in the bigs. His decline in output at the plate this season has likely cost him a solid amount of money.
Franmil Reyes, OF, Indians (HRs: 34; fWAR: 0.8)
- The 24-year-old Reyes joined the Indians last month in the same trade as Puig, but the results haven’t been stellar in either case. Although Reyes has a shot at 40 homers, his .250/.313/.516 line (109 wRC+) isn’t great, especially for a DH. Reyes still has another two years left before he hits arbitration, though, so it’s doubtful the Indians will grow tired of him in the immediate future.
Eloy Jimenez, OF, White Sox (HRs: 25; fWAR: 0.8)
- Jimenez hasn’t made the type of star-caliber impact the White Sox may have wanted immediately from the hyped 22-year-old, but most players his age are still in the minors. A league-average batting line (101 wRC+; .249/.297/.473 in 437 PA) with 25 dingers isn’t anything to scoff at for a rookie. But it’s up in the air whether Jimenez will evolve into a viable outfielder. He has accounted for minus-11 DRS with a minus-4.6 UZR thus far.
Ryan McMahon, INF, Rockies (HRs: 20; fWAR: 0.7)
- As with Jimenez, the fact that McMahon’s not off to a dazzling start doesn’t mean he won’t morph into an indispensable long-term piece for Colorado. The 24-year-old McMahon has fared respectably at three positions, mostly second base, while slashing .258/.338/.455 (91 wRC+) in his first full season in the league.
Renato Nunez, DH/1B, Orioles (HRs: 29; fWAR: 0.7)
- Let’s say this for Nunez: He’s much more successful than the vast majority of waiver pickups. Nunez has at least turned into a passable hitter since the Orioles claimed him off the scrapheap from the Rangers in May 2018. However, for a DH, more is needed than the .251/.314/.471 showing (102 wRC+) that Nunez has given the rebuilding Orioles in 547 plate appearances this season. The O’s are in the process of trying to find long-term building blocks, and the 25-year-old Nunez hasn’t really established himself as one yet, homers aside.
Teoscar Hernandez, OF, Blue Jays (HRs: 21; fWAR: 0.5)
- Hernandez’s aggregate production has been far from excellent this season, but the 26-year-old has trended upward since a horrid stretch from April through June. Overall, Hernandez – who’s trying to prove to the Blue Jays he’s a long-term cog – has batted .215/.292/.436 with an 89 wRC+ and subpar defense (minus-5 DRS, minus-3.5 UZR). Offensively, if the powerful Hernandez is ever going to be a significant asset, he’ll have to slash his strikeouts. He has fanned in 33-plus percent of PA this season, continuing a K-happy career that began in 2016.
C.J. Cron, 1B, Twins (HRs: 24; fWAR: 0.4)
- The Rays non-tendered Cron last offseason after a 30-homer campaign, and early this year, he looked like one of the best buy-low pickups of the winter. Cron stormed out of the gates after joining the Twins for $4.8MM, but he has slowed down considerably since then. Cron has only batted .254/.315/.478 (104 wRC+) in 470 PA, which could again make him a non-tender candidate during the upcoming winter as he gears up for his final trip through arbitration.
Randal Grichuk, OF, Blue Jays (HRs: 25; fWAR: 0.3)
- The five-year, $52MM extension the Blue Jays handed Grichuk before the season isn’t looking like a particularly shrewd investment at the moment. Never known for getting on base, the .281 OBP the 25-year-old has put up thus far is the lowest he has ever recorded over a full season. In all, Grichuk’s just a .230/.281/.437 hitter, giving him a woeful 85 wRC+. It hasn’t been a case of bad luck, according to Statcast, which credits Grichuk with a .296 expected weighted on-base average that falls shy of his real wOBA (.305).
Justin Smoak, 1B, Blue Jays (HRs: 20; fWAR: 0.3)
- With three Jays on this list, maybe it’s no surprise the rebuilding club’s among the majors’ worst teams. Unlike Grichuk, though, Smoak is something of a Statcast darling. The soon-to-be free agent’s .212/.349/.406 line and 104 wRC+ through 464 PA aren’t anything special for a first baseman, but his .372 xwOBA (compared to a .332 wOBA) is one of the highest in the sport.
Eric Hosmer, 1B, Padres (HRs: 20; fWAR: 0.2)
- The Padres’ decision to hand Hosmer an eight-year, $144MM guarantee before the 2018 season continues to look rather questionable. The former Royal logged weak production a year ago, and though Hosmer has improved this season, the results aren’t nearly good enough for the money he’s making or the offense-driven position he plays. The grounder-hitting Hosmer’s .280/.327/.443 line in 603 PA has amounted to a 95 wRC+. He has given the Padres 0.0 fWAR over 1,280 PA since signing his franchise-record contract.
Domingo Santana, OF, Mariners (HRs: 21; fWAR: 0.2)
- Santana’s offensive output has tanked in the second half, though ongoing elbow problems have surely contributed to his late-season decline. The Mariners will hope Santana will look more like the player who registered a 127 wRC+ in the first half of 2019, not the one who has limped to a dismal 36 wRC+ since, when next season rolls around. Regardless, Santana’s defense may continue to be a major concern. With minus-15 DRS and a minus-16.0 UZR, he has been one of the worst outfielders in the game this year.
Rougned Odor, 2B, Rangers (HRs: 24; fWAR: 0.1)
- Although this is the third season with at least 20 homers for the 25-year-old Odor, the Rangers are understandably growing frustrated with his inconsistency. Odor has alternated between valuable and valueless since he came on the scene in 2014. Unfortunately for Texas, Odor has been closer to the latter this season. He has gone down on strikes a personal-worst 30.4 percent of the time en route to an ugly line of .203/.283/.421 (73 wRC+) in 517 trips to the plate.
Matt Adams, 1B, Nationals (HRs: 20; fWAR: 0.0)
- The 31-year-old Adams has only managed a .226/.277/.476 line with a wRC+ of 86, thanks in part to a career-high strikeout percentage (34.3). The lefty-hitting Adams has continued to struggle against same-handed pitchers in the process, making it look all the more likely the Nationals will buy him out for $1MM in lieu of exercising a $4MM option after the season.
Albert Pujols, 1B/DH, Angels (HRs: 22; fWAR: minus-0.1)
- Pujols hit the 655th homer of his career Monday, leaving him just five shy of tying the legendary Willie Mays for fifth on the all-time list. Needless to say, the 39-year-old Pujols is one of the greatest players who has ever lived. That said, his years-long decline has continued in 2019 – the eighth season of a 10-year, $240MM contract that hasn’t gone to the Angels’ liking. Pujols, with his .251/.311/.448 line and inability to contribute as a defender or base runner, is on track for a second straight season of below-replacement-level production.
Khris Davis, DH, Athletics (HRs: 20; fWAR: minus-1.1)
- This has been a disastrous season for the man known as Khrush, whom the low-budget Athletics awarded a two-year, $33.5MM extension before the campaign. Davis was coming off his third straight season of 40-plus home runs (and fourth consecutive campaign with a .247 average) at that point. But injuries have helped limit Davis to a horrid .220/.287/.383 line with a 78 wRC+ through 474 PA in 2019. That’s obviously not going to cut it for someone whose bat determines whether he’s valuable.
Cubs Outright Taylor Davis
Cubs catcher Taylor Davis, who was designated for assignment over the weekend, cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Iowa, per the MLB.com transactions log.
Davis, 29, has been up and down with the Cubs over the past three seasons, appearing in just 20 games and putting together a .222/.256/.333 slash with a homer and a double in 39 trips to the plate. He also made one lone appearance on the mound in 2019, entering an 11-2 blowout and allowing three straight singles against the A’s before pulling an improbable Houdini act and escaping the jam unscathed.
A .277/.350/.386 hitter across parts of five Triple-A seasons, Taylor is known as a difficult player to strike out (12.5 percent) with a penchant for drawing plenty of walks (9.9 percent). Davis has thwarted exactly one quarter of the stolen-base attempts against him in his minor league career (60 of 240) and has posted well-above-average framing numbers in Triple-A over the past few seasons.
MLBTR Poll: Time For Changes In Pittsburgh?
Tuesday brought the latest ignominious development of 2019 for Pittsburgh, a team that has gone from playoff hopeful to laughingstock in the span of a couple months. The Pirates announced that reliever Kyle Crick underwent season-ending surgery for an injury to his right index finger, which came as a result of a fight with teammate and fellow late-game hurler Felipe Vazquez. While it’s unclear how the fight began or who was truly at fault, it doesn’t really matter – the bottom line is that it’s no way for a pair of teammates to act toward one another.
Unfortunately for the Pirates, the Crick-Vazquez dust-up wasn’t the first instance of in-fighting for the club this year. There have been multiple examples in which members of the organization haven’t been able to coexist. Crick, Vazquez and fellow reliever Keone Kela have been among the sources of conflict. Vazquez and Kela each drew interest leading up to the July 31 deadline, but general manager Neal Huntington didn’t move either (more understandable in the case of Vazquez than Kela, as the former’s an elite closer).
Speaking of Huntington, the roster he has built is well on its way to a fourth straight season without a playoff berth. The Pirates were in the NL wild-card race when the second half of the season commenced, even though they were an unimpressive 43-46 at the time. They’ve gone an abysmal 20-36 since then and now own a 63-82 record that’s good for the eighth-worst mark in baseball. That’s not all Huntington’s fault – it would help if owner Bob Nutting would actually spend some money – but he and-or manager Clint Hurdle could nonetheless be in danger of losing their jobs in the wake of what has turned into an awful season.
While Huntington and Hurdle helped the Pirates to three straight playoff berths from 2013-15, the partnership’s on its way to its third sub-.500 season out of four since then. Between the lack of on-field results in recent years and the behind-the-scenes issues the Pirates have endured this season, perhaps Nutting will decide to move on from one or both of the Huntington-Hurdle tandem when the campaign concludes. Huntington has been in place since 2007, and Hurdle has been at the helm dating back to 2011, but it could be time for a regime change in Pittsburgh. What do you think?
(Poll link for app users)
What should the Pirates do?
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Fire both 71% (4,959)
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Fire Huntington 12% (860)
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Fire Hurdle 9% (605)
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Keep both 8% (559)
Total votes: 6,983