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The Blue Jays Shouldn’t Be Resisting A Reset

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The 2024 season clearly hasn't gone the way the Blue Jays hoped. Expected to contend for a Wild Card spot at the very least, the Jays have instead encountered notable injuries (Jordan Romano, Alek Manoah) and seen career-worst performances from several key players (Bo Bichette, Alejandro Kirk, Justin Turner, Kevin Kiermaier). Top prospect Orelvis Martinez received an 80-game PED suspension. Very, very little has gone well in Toronto -- as evidenced by their 46-56 record and -82 run differential.

Unsurprisingly, Toronto has become a deadline seller. The front office reportedly isn't interested in any kind of large-scale rebuild, however, and is focused on primarily selling off rental assets. Reliever Yimi Garcia has already been traded to the Mariners. Starter Yusei Kikuchi and the aforementioned Turner are among the candidates to change hands. That'll bring back some modest returns in terms of prospects. It's also not sufficient for a team in Toronto's situation.

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Blue Jays Plan To Keep Chris Bassitt, Kevin Gausman

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The Blue Jays enter next week’s trade deadline as clear sellers, but virtually all of the focus thus far has been on the rental players they can offer to other teams. Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, relievers Yimi Garcia and Trevor Richards, and catcher Danny Jansen are all free agents at season’s end and thus all candidates to change hands. Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith reports that Toronto hasn’t changed its stance on hoping to contend in 2025 and as such has not been shopping either Chris Bassitt (signed through 2025) or Kevin Gausman (through 2026). As is the case with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette (both under club control through 2025), that pair of arms is generally expected to stay put.

At least with regard to Bassitt, it’s mildly surprising that the Jays aren’t more strongly contemplating a trade. The veteran righty is in year two of a three-year, $63MM contract and pitching fairly well — but it’s also his age-35 campaign. He’ll pitch all of next year at 36. Generally, when teams sign a free agent to a multi-year deal, they’re more interested in the earlier seasons of the deal and consider the final year(s) to be the cost of doing business. Toronto doesn’t have much pitching depth, so they’d need to replace Bassitt either via free agency or trade, but one would think that next year’s $21MM salary could be reallocated to a younger arm. Beyond that, Bassitt could of course net the Jays some young talent as well.

Bassitt, who’s pitching as this is being written, entered play Thursday with a 3.71 ERA, 21.3% strikeout rate, 9.3% walk rate and 41.2% grounder rate. He’s started 20 games and tossed 114 innings — an average of just over 5 2/3 innings per appearance. He’s still a clearly above-average starter, but some clubs might take this opportunity to try to add some young talent, clear some payroll off the following season’s books and reinvest that notable salary elsewhere. (The Cubs, for instance, have considered the possibility of taking that approach with Jameson Taillon.)

It’s a similar story with Gausman, although at 33 years of age with two extra years to go and in the midst of a down season, a trade involving him might not be so straightforward. Gausman’s 93.9 mph average fastball is down from last year’s 94.7 mph and from 2022’s 95 mph. His 22.9% strikeout rate is still a solid mark, but it’s way down from last year’s 31.1% clip. Ditto his 6.3% walk rate, which is slightly improved over last year’s 7.2% mark but nowhere close to his 3.9% rate from 2022.

Gausman is missing fewer bats than usual and giving up an uncharacteristic level of loud contact. This year’s 90.2 mph average exit velocity and 11.4% barrel rate are both career-worst marks, while Gausman’s 1.30 HR/9 is his worst mark since the juiced ball season in 2019. Gausman is earning $24MM this season and $23MM in each of the next two years. He’ll have a combined $54MM still owed to him as of the trade deadline.

Also signed through the 2025 season is reliever Chad Green, whom the Jays will pay $10.5MM next year. MLB.com’s Jon Morosi suggests that the Yankees are interested in a reunion, citing Green’s low ERA and status as a popular teammate in New York as part of the rationale.

It’d frankly be something of a surprise if the Yankees were interested in going down that road, however. Green’s 1.82 ERA is impressive, but the right-hander will also turn 34 next May. He’s sitting on a career-low 22.1% strikeout rate and an 8% walk rate that, while solid, is the second-highest of his career. This season’s 95.3 mph average fastball is the second-lowest of his career, and Green is yielding a woeful 92.7 mph average exit velocity and 48.7% hard-hit rate — both among the worst marks in baseball.

Green’s pristine earned run average is largely a function of two things: a .192 average on balls in play that stands as the tenth-lowest in baseball among the 441 pitchers with at least 20 innings pitched and a 100% strand rate. Green hasn’t allowed a single man he’s put on base to come around and score thus far. Neither of those marks are sustainable — particularly not when nearly half his batted balls are leaving the plate at 95 mph or more.

On top of all that, the Yankees are in the top tier of luxury penalization. They’d owe a 110% tax on top of Green’s salary. He’d cost them more than $7MM to rent for the remainder of the current season, and assuming they end up back in the top tax bracket next season, Green’s final year of his contract would cost the Yankees an outlandish $22.05MM. Perhaps if the Blue Jays agreed to pay down the vast majority of his contract or take back an undesirable pact, New York would indeed welcome the opportunity to bring back a popular teammate. That said, Green’s underlying numbers and the Yankees’ luxury-tax status make it hard to see how a reunion between the two parties would be realistic.

Blue Jays Reportedly Expressing Openness To Moving Rentals

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After another tough loss in San Francisco last night, the Blue Jays enter play this evening at 41-50. They’ve dropped nine games behind the Red Sox for the American League’s final postseason spot. Only the Angels, A’s and White Sox have a worse record in the AL.

With less than three weeks until the deadline, time is running out for the Jays to avoid selling. On June 27, GM Ross Atkins called the next few weeks “exceptionally important” in determining the team’s direction. The Jays have gone 5-7 since then.

Unsurprisingly, that looks like it’ll leave the front office to contemplate dealing short-term pieces. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com wrote last night that the Jays have indicated to other teams that they’re willing to move impending free agents. Feinsand suggested that Toronto is still disinterested in dealing players who are under team control beyond this season. Feinsand left open the possibility of Toronto holding onto players if they author a dramatic turnaround in the next couple weeks, but he noted that the Jays “are prepared to sell” if they don’t reverse course quickly. Including tonight, they have 16 games until the deadline.

A reluctance to trade controllable players aligns with Atkins’ prior public comments. The GM said in early June that moving Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Bo Bichette — each of whom are slated for free agency at the end of next season — “just doesn’t make any sense for us.” While Atkins didn’t categorically shoot down the idea of moving any other players, a reluctance to deal Guerrero and Bichette indicates the team expects to rebound in 2025.

Even if the Jays focus trade discussions on rentals, the roster could look very different in a few weeks. Toronto has six impending free agents, each of whom has a realistic chance to go. That group is headlined by Yusei Kikuchi, who slots alongside Jack Flaherty as the top rental starting pitchers who should be available.

Kikuchi is coming off one of the best outings of his career. The lefty set a personal high with 13 strikeouts over 7 1/3 innings of two-run ball in San Francisco yesterday. He has allowed an even four earned runs per nine through 101 1/3 innings. Kikuchi has fanned an above-average 26.1% of opponents while cutting his walks to a career-low 5.4% clip. Home runs have always been an issue for the veteran southpaw, particularly against right-handed hitters. Yet Kikuchi is working on a second straight season with an ERA around 4.00 with plus strikeout and walk numbers.

This is the final season of his three-year, $36MM free agent deal. The contract was frontloaded, so Kikuchi is making just $10MM this year. Around $3.28MM would remain at the deadline. That should be affordable for most contenders. Kikuchi would be a realistic qualifying offer candidate if the Jays don’t trade him. If Toronto exceeds the luxury tax threshold, they’d only receive a compensation pick after the fourth round in the 2025 draft if a qualified free agent signs elsewhere.

That’s also a potential factor for Danny Jansen, who is the top impending free agent catcher. Jansen’s free agent and trade appeal looked a lot stronger as recently as a month ago. The righty-hitting backstop carried a .287/.371/.535 batting line into June. He has hit an ill-timed power outage in the past six weeks. Jansen has gone without a homer while running a .122/.241/.162 slash since the end of May. His season line (.217/.315/.377 over 203 plate appearances) is exactly league average, as measured by wRC+.

Despite the slump, the Jays should still get calls on Jansen. There aren’t likely to be many starting caliber catchers available this summer. Jansen has shown that kind of talent throughout his career, though his value has generally been undercut by a lengthy injury history. Even if he’s not currently in top form, Jansen has excellent strike zone discipline with double-digit home run power. He’s a quality receiving catcher but doesn’t have a great arm. The 29-year-old is making $5.2MM in his final arbitration season.

Kevin Kiermaier and Justin Turner are both playing on one-year free agent deals, respectively valued at $10.5MM and $13MM. They’re established veterans who could generate some interest for a bench role on a contender. The Jays would likely need to pay down most of the money to facilitate a trade of either player, though. Kiermaier remains an excellent defensive center fielder but has a career-worst .187/.232/.295 batting line over 181 plate appearances. The 39-year-old Turner is hitting .240/.347/.360 with five homers over 294 trips to the plate. He is working mostly as a designated hitter with sporadic reps at the corner infield spots.

Relievers Yimi García and Trevor Richards are the final two impending free agents. García, who is playing on a $6MM salary, got out to an excellent start to the year. He fired 28 innings of 2.57 ERA ball with a huge 34.6% strikeout rate over 27 appearances. An elbow issue sent him to the injured list in mid-June. García is on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Buffalo. Keegan Matheson of MLB.com tweets that neck stiffness has delayed him but the Jays are hopeful that García will be ready for reinstatement this weekend.

Richards, who is making just $2.15MM in his last arbitration season, owns a 3.40 earned run average in 47 2/3 frames. The changeup specialist has fanned a quarter of opponents against a 9% walk rate. Richards doesn’t have eye-popping velocity and this year’s 10% swinging strike rate is the lowest of his career. He’s best suited for a middle relief role but should have some appeal on the trade market as an affordable multi-inning arm.

Moving the bulk or all of those players could have significant financial ramifications for the organization. RosterResource estimates the organization’s luxury tax commitments just north of $247MM. Cot’s Baseball Contracts calculates the team’s CBT mark closer to $250MM. Those outside projections put the team $10-13MM above this year’s $237MM base tax threshold. An organization’s competitive balance tax number is calculated at the end of the season.

If the Jays commit to selling, they could get close to or below the tax line. They should be able to offload the prorated portions of Kikuchi’s $12MM and Jansen’s $5.2MM respective CBT numbers. If García is healthy, they could probably find a taker for what remains of his contract. Depending on what portion of the Kiermaier and Turner money another team might be willing to eat, there may be a path to getting their CBT number under $237MM. That would reset the team’s tax bracket and free them from the escalating penalties as a repeat payor if they decided to spend back above the tax line in 2025.

Getting under the CBT marker would be much easier if the Jays were willing to go beyond the rentals. Guerrero, Bichette, Chris Bassitt, Kevin Gausman, José Berríos and Chad Green are all on notable arbitration or multi-year salaries. Moving anyone from that group would make a return to competitiveness in 2025 more of an uphill battle, of course. It doesn’t seem that’s an avenue the front office is eager to take. It remains to be seen if they’ll more seriously consider that kind of roster overhaul over the coming weeks.

AL East Notes: Mata, Mayo, Gausman

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The Red Sox are approaching a crossroads with regards to right-hander Bryan Mata. As noted by Chris Cotillo of MassLive, Mata has begun a rehab assignment as he works his way back from a hamstring strain that he suffered back in February. The 25-year-old was once one of the club’s top pitching prospects but has struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness over the past two seasons, pitching to a combined 6.39 ERA in 31 innings of work across all levels of he minors since the start of the 2023 campaign.

While the rehab assignment for a struggling pitcher who has yet to make his big league debut wouldn’t typically be especially notable, Mata’s rehab assignment is particularly worth noting because the righty is out of options. Given that, the Red Sox will have to make a decision regarding his future in the organization once his rehab clock runs out on June 12. If the club isn’t willing to offer Mata a spot on the active roster, they’ll need to designate him for assignment and risk losing him on waivers to get the chance to outright the young righty to the minor leagues. MassLive’s Sean McAdam reported back in February that the Red Sox expect Mata to be claimed if he’s exposed to waivers, though it’s possible that could change depending on how he looks throughout his rehab assignment.

Losing Mata on waivers would be a frustrating outcome for the Red Sox given the tantalizing talent he flashed prior to injuries sidetracking his career. In his most recent healthy season, the right-hander pitched to a strong 2.49 ERA in 83 innings while advancing through four levels of the minor leagues, including a 1.85 ERA in 10 appearances at the Double-A level and a 3.47 ERA in five starts at Triple-A. That season, Mata struck out a whopping 30.3% of batters faced, albeit with an elevated 13.3% walk rate. If the righty can get anything close to those huge strikeout numbers during his rehab assignment, it could certainly make sense for the club to offer him a role in the bullpen given the number of optionable relief arms they’re currently utilizing.

More from around the AL East…

  • Orioles fans received some tough news from down on the farm on Friday, when the club announced that top third base prospect Coby Mayo suffered a fractured rib and has been placed on the minor league injured list. The Orioles indicated that Mayo will be out for “several weeks” due to the injury. It’s a frustrating setback for the 22-year-old, who is a consensus top-30 prospect in the sport and has impressed with a .291/.359/.605 slash line in 42 games at the Triple-A level this year. It was certainly plausible that the club could turn to Mayo as a starting option at some point in the near future given his fantastic play and the struggles of fellow top prospect Jackson Holliday, though this injury surely represents a setback for Mayo’s timeline to be called up to the majors. Jorge Mateo is currently rounding out the club’s starting infield mix in the majors alongside youngsters Jordan Westburg and Gunnar Henderson.
  • Blue Jays ace Kevin Gausman has been off to a rough start this season, with a 4.89 ERA through nine starts despite a decent 3.50 FIP. Gausman’s struggles this season are particularly surprising given his utter dominance in recent years; from 2021 to ’23, the right-hander pitched to a 3.10 ERA (132 ERA+) with an even better 2.79 FIP. Gausman spoke to reporters (including MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson) yesterday about his frustrating results this season and described the campaign as an “uphill battle” to this point before suggesting that he “probably should have gone on the IL” at the start of the season. The righty battled shoulder soreness throughout Spring Training but nonetheless opened the season in the club’s rotation amid injuries sidelining much of the club’s starting pitching depth, including Alek Manoah and Yariel Rodriguez.

Blue Jays Expect To Place Manoah, Swanson, Romano On Injured List

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The Blue Jays will place closer Jordan Romano and setup man Erik Swanson on the injured list to begin the season, manager John Schneider announced to reporters Wednesday (X thread via Shi Davidi of Sportsnet). Right-hander Alek Manoah is also likely headed to the 15-day IL, the manager added, though it seems that’ll just be to allow him some extra time to continue building up after he was slowed by shoulder trouble earlier in camp. Manoah tossed 34 pitches in a simulated game today and will continue to build from there. Righties Nate Pearson and Wes Parsons will open the season on the big league roster in place of Romano and Swanson.

Both Romano and Swanson recently underwent MRIs after experiencing some discomfort, neither of which revealed structural damage. Romano has some inflammation in his elbow, while Swanson is dealing with some tightness in his forearm. Neither is expected to miss significant time, but it’s nonetheless a blow to the Jays’ bullpen in the early stages of the season.

Romano, 31 next month, has become a powerhouse at the back of the Toronto ’pen. Over the past four seasons, he’s pitched to a 2.29 ERA (3.13 FIP, 3.14 SIERA) with a gaudy 30.8% strikeout rate against a 9.2% walk rate. Last year’s K-BB% wasn’t quite as dominant as in the prior three seasons, but Romano’s 17.1% swinging-strike rate was a flat-out elite mark that hints at a potential “rebound” in strikeout rate (as much as anyone needs to “rebound” from a generally excellent 29% mark in that regard). The right-hander also tied a career-high with 36 saves.

The 30-year-old Swanson, acquired from the Mariners in last offseason’s Teoscar Hernandez trade, would’ve been the favorite to step into closing duties for Romano were he healthy. He posted a 2.97 ERA in his first season with the Jays and carries a terrific 2.60 earned run average (3.04 FIP, 3.07 SIERA) over the past three seasons. During that time, Swanson has punched out 29.4% of his opponents against a very strong 6.7% walk rate.

With Romano and Swanson shelved to begin the year, closing duties will presumably fall to veteran Yimi Garcia. Setup options include Chad Green, the aforementioned Pearson, lefty Tim Mayza and fellow southpaw Genesis Cabrera. The Jays still have a decent group of relievers, but any team’s bullpen is going to look a little dicey when subtracting its two clear best relievers, as is the case in Toronto.

As for the rotation, Manoah is slotted into the No. 5 spot as he looks to rebound from last year’s nightmarish season. The Jays were concerned for a bit that staff ace Kevin Gausman would also require an IL stint, but it seems he’s progressed enough to avoid that fate. They’ll still open the season with Jose Berrios, Chris Bassitt and Yusei Kikuchi starting the first three games, but Gausman will be in line for the fourth or fifth game. He just pitched in a final spring tune-up outing Monday and thus won’t be sufficiently rested for an Opening Day nod.

With Manoah out, righty Bowden Francis will get the rotation nod to begin the season. He’s already been confirmed for the roster — his first career Opening Day roster spot — and will look to build on last year’s impressive rookie showing. The 27-year-old tossed 36 1/3 frames of 1.73 ERA ball with plus strikeout and walk rates (25.7% and 5.9%, respectively) over the life of 20 relief appearances. Francis has typically been a starter in the minors, so an early rotation role will be plenty familiar for him. He could be the first man up in the rotation throughout the early portion of the season if the Jays incur injuries on the staff, though top prospect Ricky Tiedemann will also likely make his big league debut at some point this season.

Kevin Gausman Expects To Be Ready For Regular Season

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Kevin Gausman is one of a few Blue Jays pitchers who has been a bit behind this spring. The Jays scratched him from a throwing session on Monday as he dealt with “general fatigue” in his throwing shoulder. While any mention of shoulder discomfort for a pitcher of Gausman’s caliber will raise some concern, it doesn’t appear to be an issue that’ll carry into the year.

Manager John Schneider said yesterday the Jays were hopeful to have their ace working off a mound again by next Monday. In an appearance on SiriusXM’s MLB Network Radio with Steve Phillips and Xavier Scruggs this afternoon, Gausman downplayed any concern. “Just had to slow it down a little bit and not jump in to facing hitters right away, but I’ll be ready for the regular season,” he said.

There are just under three weeks until Opening Day. Gausman, if healthy and fully built up, would get the call for that tilt against the Rays. The Jays certainly aren’t going to force the issue for a largely symbolic honor, so they could elect to hold off his season debut until their series opener against the Astros on April 1.

That would likely leave the Opening Day assignment to Chris Bassitt. He and Gausman will be joined in the season-opening starting five by José Berríos and Yusei Kikuchi. The Jays expected Alek Manoah to secure the fifth starter role entering camp, but he has been delayed by shoulder soreness. If he’s not available to start the season, righty Bowden Francis seems the likeliest candidate to step in. Francis pitched to a 1.73 ERA over 20 MLB appearances in long relief last year. He has never started a big league game but reached as many as four innings out of the bullpen. Francis has started two of three spring appearances, working eight frames of three-run ball with 10 strikeouts.

Mitch White must also make the MLB roster or be offered to other teams, as he has exhausted his minor league options. He has worked in a swing capacity at the big league level and owns an ERA just under 5.00 over 161 1/3 MLB innings. Unlike Francis, White is off to a rocky start to the spring. He has walked six with just a pair of strikeouts in six innings spanning three relief outings. He’d probably be ticketed for long relief if Francis grabs the fifth starter spot.

Offseason signee Yariel Rodríguez and top prospect Ricky Tiedemann could factor into the rotation mix over the course of the year. Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet wrote last night that neither player is viewed as a realistic candidate to break camp, however. Rodríguez sat out last season after pitching in the World Baseball Classic as he waited for MLB to declare him a free agent. Tiedemann had a pair of stints on the minor league injured list and was limited to 44 innings over 15 appearances across four levels.

The Jays will need to be cautious with the workloads for both pitchers, an easier task if they open the year in Triple-A. They’ve each been a little behind in camp. Rodríguez has battled back spasms and Tiedemann was delayed by leg inflammation. Neither injury is serious and both pitchers should soon see game action.

Blue Jays Notes: Swanson, Rotation, Clement

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Blue Jays reliever Erik Swanson has recently been dealing with a scary situation, as it was announced last week that his son Toby was struck by a car and had to be airlifted to hospital. Thankfully, it seems things have progressed well since then. Swanson spoke with members of the media today, including Keegan Matheson of MLB.com, passing along the good news. “I stand here, very happily, telling you that in the next day or two, he should probably be going home.”

Toby’s health is obviously more important than baseball, but it sounds as though Swanson may be able to start turning his attentions back to his upcoming season. Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet relays that Swanson threw about 20 pitches today at the club’s complex and is on track to be ready for Opening Day, though he may throw another side session before getting into an organized game. Swanson made 69 appearances for the Jays last year, earning four saves and 29 holds while posting a 2.97 ERA.

Turning to the Toronto rotation, a few question marks have popped up here in camp as both Kevin Gausman and Alek Manoah were slowed by some shoulder soreness. The depth was also a bit of a concern, as Yariel Rodríguez was dealing with some back spasms while prospect Ricky Tiedemann was battling inflammation in his calf and hamstring.

As of today, three of those four appear to be progressing in a positive direction, with Manoah being the exception. Per Matheson, Manoah’s shoulder is still sore and he wasn’t able to throw today’s scheduled bullpen session. His recent MRI didn’t show any structural damage but the delays from the continued discomfort are starting to put his readiness for the start of the season in question.

Elsewhere, the news is more positive. Per Nicholson-Smith, the Jays are hopeful that Gausman can be throwing off a mound by Monday and start building up for the season. Tiedemann will be starting Saturday’s game, per Matheson, which could allow him to be almost fully built up by Opening Day. As for Rodríguez, Francys Romero relays that he’s feeling better and will throw live BP tomorrow, with game action to follow if all goes well.

The Jays figure to open the season with José Berríos, Chris Bassitt and Yusei Kikuchi in three rotation spots. Gausman and Manoah would join them if they were healthy but it sounds as though that’s unlikely to be the case with Manoah and at least somewhat uncertain with Gausman. Both Bowden Francis and Mitch White are getting stretched out in spring and could step into a rotation spot to start the year. If only one is needed, White is out of options but Francis still has one option year remaining. That could give White a leg up but he could also find himself in the bullpen as a long reliever if Francis takes the job.

Rodríguez and Tiedemann will be battling Francis and White for innings as well but they may be held back by their spring delays and general workload concerns. Rodríguez had been working as a reliever in Japan and didn’t pitch at all in 2023 after the World Baseball Classic as he waited to be released from his NPB contract. Tiedemann dealt with various injuries last year and only tossed 47 innings in the minors, followed by 18 more in the Arizona Fall League. The Jays would likely prefer to be cautious with both of them as opposed to rushing them into a season-opening big league jobs.

Elsewhere on Toronto’s roster, the Jays are facing an interesting decision with infielder Ernie Clement, as laid out in a column from Nicholson-Smith. Clement has long been considered a glove-first player but seemed to take a step forward offensively last year. He hit .380/.385/.500 in his 52 big league plate appearances and .348/.401/.544 in Triple-A.

He likely won’t be able to sustain the .391 batting average on balls in play he ran in the majors last year or even the .338 mark he had in Triple-A, as major league average was .297 in 2023. But he clearly has a knack for putting the bat on the ball as he hardly ever strikes out. He was punched out just 7.7% of the time in the big leagues last year and just 5% of the time in Triple-A.

Even passable offense can make him a solid bench piece, since he’s considered a quality defender at multiple positions, having lined up at all four infield spots and the outfield corners in his career. But he’s now out of options and can’t be sent down. The Jays will need at least one bench spot for a catcher and then may need others for guys like Davis Schneider, Daniel Vogelbach, Spencer Horwitz, Nathan Lukes or Santiago Espinal.

Nicholson-Smith speaks to a scout from a rival club who suggests Clement would likely draw interest if the Jays tried to pass him through waivers but that he might be kept around as a backup to shortstop Bo Bichette.

Injury Notes: Gausman, Kahnle, Bednar, Medina

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Kevin Gausman is dealing with “general fatigue” in his throwing shoulder, manager John Schneider told reporters (including Keegan Matheson of MLB.com) on Monday morning. The Blue Jays ace underwent an MRI that fortunately revealed no structural damage or injury. While that’s clearly a relief, there’s going to be some level of concern whenever a pitcher of Gausman’s caliber is battling any kind of shoulder discomfort.

The Jays elected to have Gausman skip his scheduled throwing session on Monday. He’ll be reevaluated later in the week. There’s nothing to suggest his availability for Opening Day is in jeopardy at this point. It’s nevertheless a situation to which the Jays will pay close attention. Alek Manoah is also battling what appears to be minor shoulder soreness. They’re the bookends to a projected rotation that’ll include a middle trio of Chris Bassitt, Yusei Kikuchi and José Berríos. Right-hander Bowden Francis is probably the top option to step into the season-opening starting five if anyone from that group begins the year on the shelf.

A few other pitching injury situations early this week:

  • Tommy Kahnle hasn’t seen any game action this spring. He has been throwing side sessions, but Yankees manager Aaron Boone indicated the team is bringing him along more deliberately after he finished the 2023 season on the IL with shoulder inflammation (relayed by Greg Joyce of the New York Post). Boone indicated that Kahnle might not get on a Grapefruit League mound until close to the end of camp. That at least raises the possibility of opening the regular season on the 15-day injured list to buy him a little more time to get to full strength. Kahnle logged 40 2/3 innings in his return to the Bronx last year, his heaviest workload since 2019. He turned in a 2.66 ERA with a strong 29.1% strikeout rate in a setup capacity.
  • Pirates closer David Bednar is battling what seems to be minor tightness in his right lat, skipper Derek Shelton said over the weekend (via MLB.com). The two-time All-Star has yet to get on the mound in exhibition play as the team keeps an eye on the situation. Bednar is a force at the back of the Pittsburgh bullpen and one of the sport’s best relievers overall. He has turned in a 2.25 ERA through 179 2/3 innings for the Bucs after his inclusion in the Joe Musgrove trade return. Bednar allowed an even two earned runs per nine over 67 1/3 frames a season ago. He paced the National League with 39 saves.
  • The A’s pulled right-hander Luis Medina in the second inning of today’s Cactus League matchup against the Reds. Oakland announced that he sprained his right knee and didn’t provide any timetable for his return. Medina, a key piece of the Frankie Montas trade return, made his MLB debut last season. He started 17 of 23 appearances as a rookie, turning in a 5.42 ERA across 109 2/3 frames. Medina is battling for the #5 spot in the rotation. Paul Blackburn, JP Sears and offseason acquisitions Ross Stripling and Alex Wood look likely to take the top four jobs. Joe Boyle would be the expected choice for the #5 spot if Medina starts the year on the injured list.

Gerrit Cole Wins American League Cy Young Award

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As expected, Gerrit Cole is the 2023 Cy Young winner in the American League. The Baseball Writers Association of America announced the Yankee star has won the award. Former Minnesota right-hander Sonny Gray was the runner-up, while Toronto’s Kevin Gausman took home third place.

There wasn’t a ton of intrigue, as Cole received all 30 first-place votes. While he’s a six-time All-Star and two-time ERA champion, this is his first career Cy Young. No AL pitcher topped Cole’s 209 innings, while he led Junior Circuit pitchers (minimum 150 innings) with a 2.63 ERA. He was sixth among that group with a 27% strikeout rate and trailed only Gausman and Pablo López with 222 punchouts overall.

That well-rounded dominance made Cole an easy call as the AL’s best pitcher in the eyes of voters. It’s his sixth top five finish and the third time he has been a finalist, as he’d twice before finished as runner-up. Having at least one Cy Young on his résumé could go a long way towards burnishing an eventual Hall of Fame case.

For now, the 33-year-old will look to replicate this year’s success in hopes of leading the Yankees back to the postseason. Despite Cole turning in one of the best seasons of his career, New York floundered midseason and finished barely above .500. Cole will be in the Bronx for at least one more year. He’s headed into year five of a nine-year, $324MM free agent contract. He has the ability to opt out after next season.

Gray received 20 second-place votes to earn the highest Cy Young finish of his career. It was well timed for the three-time All-Star, who hit free agency a couple weeks ago. Gausman secured seven second-place votes and was the most common selection for third. Stray second-place votes went to Luis Castillo and Zach Eflin, although Baltimore’s Kyle Bradish edged out that duo for fourth in overall balloting.

Others to receive at least one vote: López, George Kirby, Framber Valdez, Chris Bassitt, Félix Bautista and Chris Martin. The full results are available at the BBWAA website.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Injury Notes: Edman, Candelario, Gausman, Sborz

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Tommy Edman was placed on the Cardinals’ 10-day injured list on July 7, as the multi-positional regular was suffering from inflammation in right wrist.  A clean MRI provided some hope that Edman could be back soon after the All-Star break, but that doesn’t look like it will be the case, as manager Oli Marmol told reporters (including MLB.com) that Edman received an injection in his wrist.  As a result, Marmol said it will be “several more days” before Edman can return.

Rotating between shortstop, second base, center field, and right field this season, Edman’s versatility and switch-hitting bat have been very helpful to St. Louis, even if his production at the plate has dropped off.  Edman had a 108 wRC+ over 630 plate appearances in 2022, but he had only a 91 wRC+ (and a .237/.303/.391 slash line) over 307 PA thus far in 2023.  It could be that the move to the outfield is hurting Edman’s hitting, as his offense has badly tailed off since the Cardinals started regularly starting him in center field in late May.  With St. Louis looking like probable sellers at the deadline, it remains to be seen how Edman might fit into what could be a remodeled mix around the diamond, though the first order of business for the 28-year-old is just to get healthy.  To be clear, there hasn’t been much trade buzz around Edman himself, and his lingering injury would certainly seem like a further obstacle to any sort of deal.

More injury updates from around baseball…

  • Jeimer Candelario is a much clearer trade candidate as the deadline approaches, but the Nationals third baseman got an injury scare of his own yesterday when he injured his thumb during a pregame fielding drill.  Manager Davey Martinez described the injury as a bone bruise, and Candelario tried to play through the pain but had to leave the game after his first at-bat.  Candelario is day to day for now, as Martinez told reporters (including Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com) that the infielder was hoping to be ready as soon as tonight’s game with the Cardinals.  While there’s no truly good time for an injury, the timing is particularly bad for Candelario and the Nats with the deadline approaching.  Even a minimal IL stint will likely impact the club’s chances of maximizing value in a trade, or it could scuttle the chances of a deal altogether.
  • Blue Jays righty Kevin Gausman was scratched from his scheduled start today due to soreness in his left side, with Chris Bassitt instead taking the hill against the Diamondbacks.  Jays manager John Schneider told The Athletic’s Kaitlyn McGrath (Twitter links) and other reporters that Gausman first felt the discomfort after his last start before the All-Star break, but an MRI didn’t reveal any injury.  As such, Gausman might be able to return as early as Tuesday when the Blue Jays begin a series with the Padres.  It’s no surprise that Toronto is being cautious with their ace, as a healthy Gausman (who leads all MLB pitchers with 4.0 fWAR) is critical to the Jays’ chances of reaching the postseason.
  • The Rangers placed right-hander Josh Sborz on the 15-day injured list due to right biceps tendinitis, with a backdated placement date of July 12.  Left-hander John King was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move.  Sborz has been rocked for nine earned runs over his last 9 1/3 innings (four appearances) of work, spoiling what had been a quietly solid season for the righty in the Texas bullpen.  In his previous 34 1/3 innings, Sborz had posted a 2.62 ERA while limiting opposing batters to a .460 OPS.  Texas has already made an early trade for Aroldis Chapman in an attempt to shore up its inconsistent bullpen, and more relief help might be needed by the deadline if Sborz will now miss a significant amount of time.
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