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Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Vlad Jr., Twins, Marte, Astros, Yanks, Brewers

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This week in baseball blogs…

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Giants Move Derek Holland To Bullpen

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The Giants are moving struggling left-hander Derek Holland to their bullpen, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. Righty Tyler Beede will take the ball in Holland’s place Tuesday.

This is the second noteworthy change of the day in San Francisco’s rotation, as the team previously demoted 2018 rookie sensation Dereck Rodriguez to the minors in response to his discouraging start to the season. Likewise, Holland has thus far failed to follow up last year’s quality performance – one that convinced the Giants to re-sign him to a one-year, $7MM guarantee in the offseason.

A year ago at this time, Holland was in the early stages of a renaissance season after the former Ranger and White Sox accepted the Giants’ minor league offer. Holland ended up notching a 3.57 ERA/3.87 FIP with 8.88 K/9 and 3.52 BB/9 over 171 1/3 innings, making him one of the majors’ top bargain pickups of 2018. Now, though, the 32-year-old’s sitting on a 6.75 ERA/6.35 FIP with a bloated walk rate (5.19) and a sky-high 27 percent home run-to-fly ball rate in 34 2/3 frames. While Holland’s strikeout rate has surged to 10.9 per nine, it hasn’t come close to offsetting his flaws.

Furthermore, it seems bad blood has developed between Holland and the Giants’ front office, as the hurler accused the club of putting him on the IL with a “fake injury” last month (via Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle). Holland added he’s “not happy about” that IL placement, which occurred April 29 on account of a bruised left index finger and ended quickly when he returned May 9.

Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi responded to Holland’s comments, per Schulman, saying in part: “He had a finger issue that he had back in spring training. It flared up. We got an MRI. He felt he could continue pitching. We felt it would be prudent to give him the time off. The decision was collaboratively made. We have extensive medical records of it.”

Zaidi also noted that “players and the staff and front office people sometimes have differences of opinion when they should or shouldn’t play.” It seems Holland’s not the only Giant who has differences with Zaidi & Co., though, with Pavlovic tweeting there’s unhappiness within the clubhouse regarding the team’s recent IL placements and roster moves.

Now, with Holland losing his spot in favor of Beede, the Giants’ staff still has two vacancies after Drew Pomeranz went on the IL on May 9 with a left lat strain. Aside from Holland, Beede, Rodriguez, Madison Bumgarner and Jeff Samardzija, the only experienced, healthy starting options on the Giants’ 40-man roster are Triple-A arms Andrew Suarez and Ty Blach. Those two don’t inspire much confidence, however, which could lead the Giants to make another 40-man promotion (Shaun Anderson’s a possibility, according to Schulman) or deploy an opener.

Whit Merrifield Seeing Less Time In Outfield

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Royals utilityman Whit Merrifield racked up a career-high 39 outfield appearances a year ago, but he’s probably not going to approach that total this season. The Royals are wary of the physical toll that the outfield could take on Merrifield and will try to keep him at his primary position, second base, as much as possible, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com and Rustin Dodd of The Athletic explain.

While Merrifield has already accrued 11 outfield appearances this season, he hasn’t played there since April 11, Flanagan notes. In the Royals’ estimation, the decision to keep Merrifield out of the grass has likely helped him continue his impressive run of durability this season. Merrifield logged 303 of a possible 324 appearances from 2017-18, including 158 of 162 last year, and has been present in all 40 of the Royals’ games in 2019.

Unlike last year, when he was by far the brightest light on a 58-win team, Merrifield’s one of several standouts on this season’s club. At 14-26, the rebuilding Royals are still looking way up toward the majors’ contending teams, but Hunter Dozier, Adalberto Mondesi, Alex Gordon and Jorge Soler are among offensive regulars who have joined Merrifield in providing reasons for optimism. Merrifield, who’s a few months removed from signing a team-friendly extension, is slashing .294/.352/.531 (131 wRC+) in his age-30 season with 20 extra-base hits (eight doubles, six homers and six triples), seven steals and just 27 strikeouts in 180 plate appearances.

Between Merrifield and Mondesi, Kansas City’s infield looks as if its locked down for the near and long term, which will have ramifications on other members of the organization. For instance, those two are blocking hot-hitting middle infield prospect Nicky Lopez, whom general manager Dayton Moore spoke about Saturday.

“There’s nobody left to call up right now [where] there’s a chance to play every day,” Moore said. “What I will say is that yes, we’re very excited about Nicky Lopez and he will have a bright future on this team, we hope.”

The 24-year-old Lopez has hit an eye-opening .363/.463/.513 (151 wRC+) with three homers and nine steals in 134 PA with Triple-A Omaha, all while drawing 20 walks and striking out just five times. Still, if we’re to believe Moore, a promotion isn’t imminent.

Astros Place Jose Altuve On Injured List

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10:59pm: Altuve’s IL placement is official, Kaplan reports. His roster spot will indeed go to Martin.

5:53pm: The Astros are likely to send second baseman Jose Altuve to the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, manager A.J. Hinch announced Saturday (via Jake Kaplan of The Athletic and Mark Berman of Fox 26). The promotion of right-hander Corbin Martin will be the corresponding 25-man roster move, per Kaplan.

Altuve exited Friday’s game with the strain, and even though Hinch noted the Astros don’t think it’s serious, they’re erring on the side of caution with one of their cornerstones. For now, they’ll turn to Aledmys Diaz at the keystone and have Yuli Gurriel back him up, according to Kaplan.

This will be only the second IL placement in Altuve’s career since he made his major league debut in 2011. The six-time All-Star missed three weeks last summer with a right knee injury, but that didn’t stop him from producing at an elite level for the fifth straight season.

Altuve, 29, hasn’t been his usual great self thus far in 2019, thanks in part to a sure-to-rise .234 batting average on balls in play, though he has still hit a respectable .243/.329/.472 (119 wRC+) with nine home runs and a 25:18 K:BB ratio in 164 plate appearances. Altuve’s replacement, Diaz, has also done well avoiding strikeouts, having fanned in just 13.8 percent of plate trips. However, Diaz has still only mustered a .217/.246/.383 line (66 wRC+) with two HRs in 65 attempts.

Andrew Heaney At Least 2 Weeks From Returning

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Angels left-hander Andrew Heaney won’t make his season debut until around May 25 at the earliest, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports. Heaney will throw a three-inning, 45-pitch minor league rehab game Wednesday, and he’ll need to log a minimum of one more outing after that prior to his activation, according to manager Brad Ausmus.

With Shohei Ohtani unable to pitch this year, Heaney arguably ranks as the Angels’ top starter. The 27-year-old made a case for that distinction last season when he amassed 180 innings of 4.15 ERA/3.99 FIP ball over 30 starts. It was a career year for Heaney, a former star prospect whom injuries and inconsistency have stunted since he made his big league debut with the Marlins in 2014. He’s currently on the mend from issues in his elbow, which has endured “chronic changes.” Fortunately, though, the problem hasn’t forced the onetime Tommy John surgery patient to return to the operating table.

Thanks in part to Heaney’s absence, the Angels are sporting a weak 19-20 record, though they have gone on a 10-4 run since sitting a season-worst seven games below .500 through 25 games. The Halos’ Heaney- and Ohtani-less rotation sits second last in the majors in ERA and FIP, largely because free-agent additions Matt Harvey and Trevor Cahill haven’t justified the team’s investments in them yet. Meanwhile, holdover Tyler Skaggs and Felix Pena have been mixed bags, 2018 rookie standout Jaime Barria hasn’t been a factor, and Chris Stratton opened his Angels tenure in ugly enough fashion for the team to jettison him after just five starts. However, along with Heaney’s forthcoming return, there could be hope in the form of righty Griffin Canning. The well-regarded prospect, 23, excelled at the Triple-A level to begin the year and has since shown flashes of brilliance in his first two major league starts.

Mets Place Justin Wilson On IL; Jeurys Familia Set To Return Sunday

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The Mets’ bullpen is set for a couple noteworthy changes this weekend, per Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News. The team placed left-hander Justin Wilson on the 10-day injured list Saturday because of an elbow problem, while righty Jeurys Familia is expected to come off the IL on Sunday. In the meantime, the Mets recalled righty Eric Hanhold from Triple-A Syracuse.

Wilson’s IL placement is already the second of the season for the 31-year-old, who went down April 26 with elbow soreness and is now back on the shelf almost immediately after returning from that issue. Wilson came back May 6, gave up two earned runs on three hits in an inning of work and hasn’t pitched since.

Normally a competent reliever, Wilson hasn’t yet given the Mets the type of production they were hoping for when they signed the ex-Pirate, Yankee, Tiger and Cub to a two-year, $10MM contract in free agency. Over 10 appearances and 9 1/3 innings, Wilson has yielded five earned runs on six hits – including two homers – and seen his strikeout rate drop precipitously.

As with the Wilson pickup, the Familia signing was one of a few headline-grabbing bullpen additions general manager Brodie Van Wagenen during his first winter on the job. Familia got an even richer pact, a three-year, $30MM deal, but has also fallen flat thus far. Now in his second stint with the Mets, the 29-year-old Familia logged a 6.26 ERA/5.98 FIP with 9.42 K/9, an untenable 8.16 BB/9 and a career-worst 18.2 percent HR-to-fly ball rate 14 1/3 innings before going to the IL. Familia’s velocity dropped at an alarming degree along the way, likely because he was trying to pitch through a Bennett lesion – which Thosar notes is “equivalent to a bone spur.”

While it’s unclear when Wilson will return to the Mets’ bullpen, they’ll need the vintage version of Familia immediately. New York’s relief corps looked like a strength coming into the season, but it has since stumbled to the majors’ seventh-worst walk rate and eighth-highest ERA amid the club’s uninspiring start.

Padres Place Francisco Mejia On IL, Recall Austin Allen

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The Padres have placed catcher Francisco Mejia on the 10-day injured list and recalled fellow backstop Austin Allen from Triple-A El Paso, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune relays.

The switch-hitting Mejia has been dealing with a left knee sprain “for weeks,” though the joint is “structurally sound” and shouldn’t require a long-term absence, Acee writes. The injury has contributed to a rough opening to 2019 for Mejia, a touted 23-year-old who has slashed a meager .167/.207/.259 (24 wRC+) with an 18:2 K:BB ratio and endured a power outage (.093 ISO, zero HRs) across 58 plate appearances.

Friars primary catcher Austin Hedges hasn’t been that much better than Mejia at the plate over 91 attempts, having hit .157/.231/.213 (45 wRC+), so Allen won’t have a high bar to clear in his first major league action. The 25-year-old has gotten his initial taste of Triple-A ball this season and batted an effective .279/.358/.529 (113 wRC+) with six home runs in 120 tries. Both MLB.com (No. 19) and FanGraphs (No. 20) rank Allen as a top 20 prospect in a loaded Padres system and hold his offensive potential in high regard. However, as the outlets explain, there are questions about whether the 6-foot-2, 220-pounder will be able to stick behind the plate.

Astros To Shift Collin McHugh To Bullpen, Promote Corbin Martin

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The Astros are moving right-hander Collin McHugh to their bullpen for at least “a few outings,” manager A.J. Hinch told Mark Berman of Fox 26 and other reporters Saturday. They’ll likely promote righty Corbin Martin from Triple-A Round Rock to start in McHugh’s place against Texas on Sunday, Hinch added. Martin’s not on the Astros’ 40-man roster, but because the team has two openings, it won’t need to create room for him.

McHugh’s demotion comes in response to a four-start slump in which his ERA shot from a season-best 1.96 on April 16 to 6.37. In his most recent performance, a 12-2 loss to the Royals on May 7, McHugh yielded eight earned runs on seven hits, including two homers, with three walks and three strikeouts in three innings. The long ball has haunted McHugh for a few weeks, as he gave up eight in his four-start slide after surrendering just one in his first three outings of 2019.

Until this season, home runs hadn’t been a problem for McHugh since the Astros added him off waivers entering the 2014 campaign. He was a quality rotation piece with the club from 2014-17, a 606 1/3-inning, 102-start stretch in which McHugh pitched to a 3.70 ERA/3.60 FIP with a 10 percent home run-to-fly ball rate. McHugh then shifted to the Astros’ bullpen last year, when he was somewhat quietly among the majors’ most effective relievers and where he experienced an uptick in velocity. Despite that, the Astros moved McHugh back to their rotation entering this season because of the departures of Charlie Morton and the still-unsigned Dallas Keuchel to free agency and the Tommy John surgery Lance McCullers Jr. underwent.

As an impending free agent, another good season as a starter could have put the soon-to-be 32-year-old McHugh in line for a respectable payday during the upcoming winter. While there’s still time for McHugh to rebound as a starter or reliever in advance of the offseason, he hasn’t done himself any favors with his bloated HR-fly ball rate (21.6), a sub-40 groundball percentage or a 6.37 ERA/5.17 FIP in 41 innings. To his credit, though, he has registered 9.22 K/9 against 3.07 BB/9.

McHugh’s struggles will create a big league opportunity for the 23-year-old Martin, a native of the Lone Star State and former Texas A&M Aggie whom the Astros chose in the second round of the 2017 draft. That pick, No. 56, was one of the two selections the Astros received from the Cardinals stemming from a hacking scandal.

Martin has held his own at all levels of the minors since he turned pro, especially during 2018 in Double-A, where he posted a 2.97 ERA/3.29 FIP with 8.39 K/9, 2.45 BB/9 and a 47.3 percent groundball rate in 103 innings. That performance earned Martin a promotion to Triple-A to begin this season, and he hasn’t fallen short there either, evidenced by a 1.48 ERA/3.35 FIP with 10.36 K/9, 4.07 BB/9 and another 47 percent-plus grounder mark over 24 1/3 frames.

Thanks in part to Martin’s minor league excellence, both FanGraphs (No. 50) and MLB.com (No. 73) regard the 6-foot-2, 200-pounder as one of baseball’s 75 best prospects. Entering the season, FanGraphs’ Kiley McDaniel and Eric Longenhagen wrote that “Martin sits in the mid-90s, mixes in a plus slider, with an above average changeup and average command,” though they expressed some disappointment in his strikeout numbers. Martin’s now in line to join a Houston staff that, aside from Wade Miley, hasn’t had much difficulty punching out opposing hitters this season.

Blue Jays Acquire Edwin Jackson

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5:23pm: Jackson’s minor league contract included an end-of-May opt-out clause, which played a role in the A’s decision to trade him, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. Slusser adds that it looks “more than likely” the cash in this deal will cover what the Athletics paid Jackson on his minors pact this season.

2:37pm: Per a team release, the Blue Jays have acquired righty Edwin Jackson from the A’s for cash considerations. It’ll be the staggering 14th career organization for the 35-year-old Jackson, who’d been pitching for Triple-A Las Vegas since he was signed by the club a few weeks ago.

Jackson enjoyed something of a renaissance with Oakland last season, posting a 3.33 ERA in 92 IP (17 starts) for the club. Teams were presumably put off by his ugly 115 xFIP-, though – just a slight uptick from his baseline established between 2014-18 – and he didn’t catch on with a club until April 12 of this season.

Blue Jays starters have done better than anticipated this season, though the unit’s dealt with a rash of injuries of late. Matt Shoemaker is out for the year after tearing his ACL in a base running incident, and righty Clay Buchholz is again on the shelf with an ailment of his own. Jackson may indeed find his way to Toronto immediately, where he should be afforded ample opportunity to see if his newfound run prevention is sustainable.

Giants Option Dereck Rodriguez

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Per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Bay Area, the Giants have optioned righty Dereck Rodriguez to AAA-Sacramento after catcher Erik Kratz returned from the 10-Day IL.

Rodriguez, the son of hall-of-fame catcher Ivan Rodriguez, converted to pitching in 2015 and quickly made his mark at the upper levels of the Twins and Giants systems. In 118 1/3 IP upon promotion the big club last season, Rodriguez delivered a 2.81 ERA, best among all NL rookies. The mark seemed a mirage, though, as his 112 xFIP-, on the back of 6.77 K/9 and low grounder rate, was among the league’s worst for all pitchers with at least 100 innings last season.

It didn’t take long for regression to pounce in ’19: the righty was torched for nine homers in 41 innings in the Giants’ extreme pitcher-friendly yard, and again struggled to miss bats and keep the ball on the ground. His 119 xFIP- is only slightly worse than last season’s mark, though his 5.05 ERA now more closely mirrors his subpar peripherals.

Rodriguez curried plenty of favor with the old Giants regime, but the new, data-driven one may not look quite so kindly on the contact-heavy profile.

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