Injury Notes: Stroman, Pollock, Wood, Peralta, Reed, Gennett
The latest on some injury situations from around baseball….
- Marcus Stroman was originally scheduled to start for the Blue Jays against the Red Sox tonight, but the team has opted to instead use Derek Law as an opener and Thomas Pannone as a bulk pitcher. Stroman left his last outing with a left pectoral cramp, and the Jays will delay his next start by at least one day, though “there’s a chance that he won’t pitch until after the All-Star break,” manager Charlie Montoyo told media (including MLB.com’s Alexis Brudnicki. “He’s still the same way, day to day,” Montoyo said. “But again, if he’s not 100 percent, we’re not going to pitch him….If he plays catch today and feels like he could throw a bullpen or something nice and easy, that he could go, then we’ll pitch him.” Stroman’s injury isn’t thought to be serious, though the Blue Jays are being as cautious as possible with their ace, particularly given his status as one of the game’s top trade deadline candidates.
- A.J. Pollock is beginning his minor league rehab assignment tonight with the Dodgers‘ high-A affiliate in Rancho Cucamonga, as per the team’s Twitter feed. Pollock has been out of action since late April, when a staph infection in his right elbow led to surgery to remove metalwork in that elbow from a previous procedure in 2016. The outfielder had managed only a .223/.287/.330 slash line over his first 115 plate appearances as a Dodger before hitting the IL, and is hopeful of returning to the Los Angeles roster after the All-Star break.
- Reds manager David Bell provided updates on several injured members of the Cincinnati roster in his pregame meeting with reporters, including Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Alex Wood is slated to begin a rehab assignment this week, as the lefty will pitch for the first time this season after being beset with back problems since Spring Training. Wandy Peralta (hip) may need a minor league rehab game or two, though he had a bullpen session today and is pretty close to a return. Cody Reed (knee strain) is back “throwing” since hitting the IL in late May, Bell said, though “he’s probably still a couple of weeks away from pitching.”
- There has also been “no talk of IL at this point” about Scooter Gennett, Bell said, after Gennett left Wednesday’s game with tightness in his left groin. Gennett didn’t play today, as Bell decided to give the veteran two full days of rest since the Reds have an off-day on Friday. Gennett only recently returned from a right groin strain that had sidelined him since March 22.
Better Rental: Madison Bumgarner Or Zack Wheeler?
It’s fair to say Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner and Mets right-hander Zack Wheeler are the two best soon-to-be free-agent starters who could realistically change teams before the July 31 trade deadline. Neither the Giants nor Mets are in contention, and there haven’t been any rumors about extension talks between the teams and the hurlers. Furthermore, both clubs’ farm systems are lacking, so trading Bumgarner and Wheeler could help the organizations better themselves in that area. The question is: Who’s the more desirable of the pair?
The more impressive track record belongs to Bumgarner, who will turn 30 the day after the deadline. He’s a three-time World Series champion and one of the most successful postseason pitchers in recent memory, which could matter to starter-needy clubs that have their sights set on fall baseball. Bumgarner owns a phenomenal 2.11 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 1.6 BB/9 in 102 1/3 playoff innings, though he hasn’t pitched that deep into the season since 2016. More recently, Bumgarner has morphed into a mid-rotation starter, no longer the front-line stalwart he was when he was helping the Giants to championships.
This season, Bumgarner has pitched to a 4.02 ERA/3.96 FIP with a 35.8 percent groundball rate over 109 2/3 innings, and has seen hitters put up a .332 expected weighted on-base average against his offerings versus a .311 real wOBA. Those are respectable numbers, but they’re not those of a rotation savior. At the same time, though, Bumgarner has produced a K/BB ratio befitting of an ace. With 9.27 K/9 against 1.97 BB/9, he stands 17th in the majors in K/BB ratio (4.71). The fact that Bumgarner has recorded career-best chase and first-pitch strike rates has helped him in that regard.
Wheeler’s also 29, yet he doesn’t have a single inning of playoff experience. Still, there’s a case to be made that he’s a better asset than Bumgarner. This much is clear: On a $5.975MM salary against Bumgarner’s $12MM, Wheeler is noticeably less expensive. And while Bumgarner’s not going to intimidate anyone with his low-90s velocity, Wheeler attacks hitters with one of the hardest fastballs in the game – a pitch that averages upward of 97.2 mph. Wheeler has used his velo to register 9.71 K/9 versus 2.53 BB/9 this year, yet he hasn’t had an easy time preventing runs. Wheeler’s ERA is at a lofty 4.42 through 114 frames, but his FIP’s a much more encouraging 3.63, and he has induced grounders at roughly a 45 percent clip. He’s also outdoing Bumgarner in the wOBA/xwOBA department (.295/.302).
Undoubtedly, Bumgarner or Wheeler is a question playoff-caliber teams seeking starters have asked themselves in recent weeks, and it’s one they’ll continue debating leading up to the deadline. With both pitchers likely on the move in the next four weeks, they may end up having a large amount of say in this year’s playoff race and perhaps the postseason itself. Which of the two would you rather have?
(Poll link for app users)
Which starter would you rather acquire?
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Madison Bumgarner 61% (5,151)
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Zack Wheeler 39% (3,317)
Total votes: 8,468
Reds Place Amir Garrett On 10-Day Injured List
Prior to this afternoon’s 1-0 win over the Brewers, the Reds placed left-hander Amir Garrett on the 10-day injured list due to a left lat strain. The placement was retroactive to July 3. Outfielder Josh VanMeter was called up from Triple-A to take Garrett’s spot on the 25-man roster.
Formerly a top-100 ranked prospect in 2016 and 2017, Garrett struggled as a starting pitcher in his 2017 rookie season but has since blossomed as a reliever. Garrett has a 1.70 ERA, 13.1 K/9, 51.9% grounder rate, and 2.70 K/BB rate over 37 frames out of Cincinnati’s bullpen this season. His walk rate (4.86 BB/9) is a bit high and Garrett’s 93.5% strand rate is likely unsustainable, but he has been a very solid weapon overall out of the Reds’ pen, dominating both right-handed and left-handed hitters. Garrett’s signature pitch, a slider that he has used 58.8% of the time this season, has been virtually untouchable — batters have a .098 average and a .146 slugging percentage against Garrett’s slider.
The injury isn’t considered to be too serious, as Garrett told MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon and other reporters that it was only a case of “regular soreness,” perhaps due to throwing more fastballs than usual in Tuesday’s outing. Between Friday’s off-day on the Reds schedule and the All-Star break, Garrett might end up missing only five games if he requires only the minimum 10-day IL stint.
As Shelton notes, however, the Reds still have a short-term issue in a lack of left-handed relievers in the pen with Garrett and Wandy Peralta both on the IL. Alex Wood and Cody Reed are the only other southpaws on the 40-man roster, and they are both working their way back from their own injuries. With Cincinnati increasingly looking like they’ll stay close enough in the NL Central race to be deadline buyers, one would think the team will target left-handed relief help even if Garrett is back in pretty short order.
MLB Draft Signings: 7/4/19
We’ll use this post to track the latest noteworthy draft signings. Click here for the full list of slot values and draft pool bonuses, and you can find prospect rankings and scouting reports from Baseball America’s Top 500, Fangraphs’ Top 200, MLB.com’s Top 200, and the Top 50 of ESPN.com’s Keith Law …
- The Rangers signed sixth-rounder Cody Bradford to a significantly over-slot deal, MLB.com’s Jim Callis reports (via Twitter). Bradford, a fourth-year junior out of Baylor, signed for a $700K bonus that far surpasses the $284.2K recommended price for the 175th overall pick. Bradford’s stock dropped after undergoing surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome, as Callis noted that the left-hander (the Big 12’s Pitcher Of The Year in 2018) was seen as a second-round pick prior to his injury. Even after the TOS surgery, Bradford was still ranked as the 165th-best draft prospect on MLB.com’s list.
Remembering The A’s-Cubs 2014 July 4th Special
July 4th is always a day of pageantry around the game of baseball, though it’s typically quiet on the trade front. Five years ago today, however, the Athletics and Cubs produced some rare fireworks with a memorable swap that created quite the butterfly effect.
The Oakland organization acquired not one, but two top trade targets of that year’s summer market in Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel. Prying both loose nearly a month before the deadline meant coughing up one of the game’s best prospects in Addison Russell, along with a nice secondary piece in Billy McKinney. Pitcher Dan Straily also went to Chicago to help the team fill innings.
This is the swap that forever gives credence to fan and media notions of “packaging” trade chips, a concept that has been mimicked since but remains relatively rare. The Cubs had good reason to put a big asking price on the two hurlers at that stage of the season.
Samardzija, a pitcher long lauded for his talent, had finally come into his own with a 2.83 ERA through 108 innings. He came with another year of arbitration eligibility, leaving ample leverage with the Cubs. The club could have auctioned him closer to the deadline, held him for a winter trade, or pursued an extension over the offseason to come.
Hammel also owned a sub-3.00 ERA at the time the deal came together, making him an excellent rental asset. His $6MM make-good deal worked out better than the Cubs ever could have anticipated. Top Chicago baseball decisionmaker Theo Epstein could plausibly tell his counterpart, Billy Beane of the A’s, that he would be glad to wait to see what he could get for Hammel on July 31st if Oakland wouldn’t pay full retail for both hurlers.
It was easy for the Cubs to pull the trigger when Russell was plugged in as the headliner. He then ranked as one of the dozen or so best prospects in the game. Best of all, he was already playing at the Double-A level, meaning the Cubs had good reason to believe they would get production out of him in the very near term. McKinney was also a significant trade piece, having only just been taken in the first round of the draft in the prior year.
For the Athletics, it goes without saying that this was an all-in move. At the time, the club was dominating the rest of the league, but facing a stern test from the Angels. Oakland’s all-in bid ultimately didn’t quite work out. The A’s went on to make another major summer strike for a starter, adding Jon Lester from the Red Sox. Lester (2.44 ERA) and Samardzija (3.14) threw quite well, while Hammel (4.26) faded but was sturdy enough. But the Athletics were out-raced by the Halos in the AL West. The A’s took a Wild Card slot, but lost one of the most memorable games of recent memory to the eventual American League-champion Royals.
Ironically, after starting that contest, Lester would end up signing with the Cubs in the ensuing offseason. He later said that the trade made it easier for him to imagine playing in a new city after spending his entire career in Boston. He ended up deciding to join Epstein, the former Sox GM, in Chicago….and ultimately played a key role in the club’s curse-breaking championship run.
Russell was also a key contributor in 2016, earning an All-Star nod and finishing the season with 21 home runs in his age-22 campaign. It seemed he was on his way to being a long-term stalwart and perhaps even a Chicago legend. That has all changed since. After some tepid work on the field, Russell was suspended following accusations of domestic abuse. The team has stuck with him since, but the sheen has long since worn off.
McKinney never appeared in a MLB uniform for the Cubs, but he would help the team out in another way. He again featured as a secondary piece in another major trade, going along with another elite infield prospect Gleyber Torres in the 2016 deal that landed the Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman and helped spur the team’s title run. Torres was no doubt seen as somewhat more expendable due to the presence of Russell and other good young infielders (especially Javy Baez, who has eclipsed him at short). But it no doubt stings quite a bit to see Torres starring in pinstripes.
This was also the first of a series of seemingly incongruous moves involving Straily. He was sent out in the ensuing offseason in the deal that brought Dexter Fowler to Chicago, beginning a notable chapter all its own for the Cubs organization. (That trade also involved the dearly departed Luis Valbuena.) Straily was swapped to the Padres in the following spring for journeyman catcher Erik Kratz, only to be claimed off waivers days later by the Reds. After a surprising 2016 campaign, Straily was shipped to the Marlins in a deal that landed the Reds then-prospect and current NL Cy Young candidate Luis Castillo (who was briefly a member of the Pads before being forcibly traded back to the Fish). Straily was released this spring after two useful but uninspiring seasons in Miami.
So, what of the two hurlers that spurred all this movement? Hammel may not have been at his best in Oakland, but that only helped the Cubbies get a deal to bring him back. They brought him in for an affordable $20MM over two years and certainly got their money worth. Hammel ended up throwing 337 1/3 innings of 3.79 ERA ball before he was sent back onto the open market, helping the team reach the World Series — though he did not crack the ’16 postseason roster.
Samardzija also ended up in Chicago, but with the cross-town White Sox. That swap allowed the A’s to recoup some of the lost prospect value, and, perhaps, get the last laugh in this whole scenario. In addition to Rangel Ravelo, who reached the majors briefly with the Cardinals, the deal brought in three players that remain in the Oakland organization. Marcus Semien effectively took Russell’s place as the long-term shortstop. That has turned out quite well for Oakland in and of itself, as Semien has easily outperformed Russell of late. He reached 3.7 fWAR last year and has already tabbed 3.1 in a breakout ’19 offensive campaign. The deal also included righty Chris Bassitt and catcher Josh Phegley, each of whom has had some ups and downs but currently features as a key cog for the 2019 A’s.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Latest On Mitch Haniger
The Mariners have temporarily halted Mitch Haniger‘s baseball activities, manager Scott Servais told reporters (including Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times, Jen Mueller of Root Sports, and MLB.com’s Greg Johns). Haniger underwent surgery to fix a ruptured testicle almost a month ago, and hasn’t yet begun a full injury rehab, instead just sticking to more basic workouts.
Even this has been a challenge, however, as Haniger reported some soreness while trying to increase his baseball-related activity, and was informed by a doctor that he needed to take a step back in the recovery process. “He’s just sore. We need to be really patient and give him time,” Servais said.
This isn’t the first setback for Haniger, as the initial hope was that he would already be back on the field by early July, though that timeline was recently pushed back until after the All-Star break. This latest news would seem to indicate that Haniger will be out of action for even longer, since he would seemingly need to ramp up his preparations in pain-free fashion and then embark on some minor league rehab games.
Rangers Release Shelby Miller
TODAY: The Rangers have placed Miller on unconditional release waivers, as per executive VP of communications John Blake (Twitter link). This might not necessarily be the end of Miller’s time with the organization, as MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan (via Twitter) reports “there has been some talking” between the two sides about Miller re-signing on a minor league deal and then pitching as a reliever at Triple-A.
MONDAY: The Rangers have designated righty Shelby Miller for assignment, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram was among those to cover on Twitter. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by recently claimed southpaw Jesse Biddle.
It’s understandable that the Texas organization finally ran out of patience with Miller, who signed a $2MM deal over the winter. Inked in hopes that he’d bounce back after a series of injury-ravaged campaigns, the former All-Star never gained traction in his new home.
Yanked from the rotation after eight messy starts, Miller has been hit nearly as hard in 14 2/3 innings as a reliever. All told, he carries a brutal 8.59 ERA with 30 strikeouts and 29 walks through 44 frames on the year.
Miller is throwing as hard as ever, with his average fastball sitting just under 95 mph, but that’s about the only promising aspect of his showing this year. He has induced opposing hitters to chase out of the zone just 21.2% of the time and carries a meager 7.5% swinging-strike rate.
By cutting the cord now, the Rangers will avoid paying roster and innings-pitched bonuses beyond those already accrued (a total of $400K for spending over ninety days on the active roster). That contractual factor likely didn’t play much of a role in the team’s decision, as it’d have been happy to pay up had Miller been producing at a worthwhile level.
Phillies Place Juan Nicasio On 10-Day Injured List
The Phillies announced that right-hander Juan Nicasio has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a left groin strain. Southpaw Austin Davis has been called up from Triple-A to take Nicasio’s spot on the 25-man roster.
Acquired as part of the blockbuster trade with the Mariners that also brought Jean Segura and James Pazos to Philadelphia, Nicasio came to his new team looking to rebound from a 6.00 ERA (albeit with some very impressive peripheral numbers) over 42 innings in 2018. The results haven’t been quite been there this season either, as Nicasio has a 5.24 ERA, 8.1 K/9, and 2.07 K/BB rate over 34 1/3 frames.
Some of this damage has only recently been inflicted, and could potentially have been related to his injury — Nicasio has allowed six earned runs over his last two outings, totaling only two-thirds of an inning. Nicasio’s advanced metrics are again outperforming his real-world ERA, though his walks are up and his strikeout rate is down from his 2018 numbers.
The Phillies have been hit hard with reliever injuries this season, with Nicasio joining Seranthony Dominguez, David Robertson, Jerad Eickhoff, and Pat Neshek on the injured list. It isn’t known how much time Nicasio will miss, though the Phillies were already likely to be targeting bullpen upgrades at the deadline anyway given the middling numbers posted by their undermanned relief corps this season.
Twins Outright Andrew Vasquez Off 40-Man Roster
The Twins have outrighted southpaw Andrew Vasquez off their 40-man roster, according to multiple reporters (including Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press). Vasquez has been outrighted to Triple-A, where he has already been pitching for much of the season.
Vasquez made his MLB debut last September, appearing in nine games for Minnesota and posting a 5.40 ERA over five innings of work. He has only made one big league appearance in 2019, a very rough outing against the Mets on April 10 that saw Vasquez allow three earned runs without recording an out. The 25-year-old has also been dealing with injury, spending two separate stints on the Triple-A injured list this year due to shoulder problems.
Mets Notes: Matz, Ramos, Allan
Steven Matz has been a staple in the Mets’ rotation (when healthy) since his 2015 debut, but he’s recently been shifted to the bullpen in a move that manager Mickey Callaway hasn’t fully termed as temporary, Zach Braziller of the New York Post writes. While Callaway called Matz one of the team’s top five starters, the manager also declined to definitively state that Matz will return to the rotation. “I expect that after the All-Star break [he’ll be back in the rotation],” said Callaway, “but we’ll adjust if we need to.” That statement came prior to Matz’s bullpen debut last night — a scoreless outing. MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo writes that after the game, Callaway “hesitated multiple times” when asked about Matz’s return to the rotation and did indicate that he could stay in the ‘pen for a longer period of time. Matz himself spoke to DiComo and other reporters about the different feel of relief pitching and took a team-first approach, stating that he’s willing to pitch in any role the club feels will help win games.
More Mets talk…
- SNY’s John Harper opines that trading Wilson Ramos should be a priority for the Mets at the deadline, citing defensive issues that have led multiple pitchers to prefer throwing to Tomas Nido. Both Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard look like they’ll be paired with Nido moving forward, Harper writes. He quotes one unnamed official who suggests that part of Syndergaard’s 2019 struggles have come from pitching up in the zone more, some of which could be tied to Ramos’ struggles to block pitches in the dirt following a significant knee surgery late in his Nationals tenure. There’s no clear indication in the report that New York will actually look to jettison Ramos, who is an objectively better hitter than Nido even in a down season. Ramos has slashed .275/.348/.414 with nine homers while the 25-year-old Nido has displayed a continued inability to get on base. In 180 career plate appearances, Nido is a .209/.233/.308 hitter, including a .263 OBP in 80 trips to the plate in 2019. Defensive prowess aside, a .233 OBP is a tough sell even for a backup. Nido has walked only six times in his career despite primarily hitting eighth ahead of the pitcher.
- The Mets reached a deal last week with their third round pick, highly-touted high school right-hander Matthew Allan. The signing was the culmination of a bold gambit from the club’s front office, as The Athletic’s Tim Britton (subscription required) details how carving out the bonus pool space to meet Allan’s high asking price led to the Mets “manipulating our entire draft” to accommodate Allan, as GM Brodie Van Wagenen put it. After the third round, the Mets spent the rest of their picks in rounds 4-10 on college seniors, who had less negotiating leverage and thus signed for bonuses of $20K or less. A strong endorsement from scout Jon Updike also gave the Mets confidence that Allan would ultimately sign and begin his pro career, rather than attend college.