The Eye: Moore could spark playoff run for TB
Three big name starting pitchers made their first starts of the season on Thursday afternoon. Jose Fernandez of the Marlins and Matt Moore of the Rays both came back from Tommy John surgery while Matt Cain of the Giants returned from a flexor tendon issue.
With all due respect to Cain and Moore, Fernandez is the most exciting pitcher of the bunch, and he announced his return with 99 mph heat in the first inning:
.@JDFernandez16 hitting 99 MPH in his first start back because OF COURSE he is. pic.twitter.com/sdIKOQ2hgG
— MLB GIFS (@MLBGIFs) July 2, 2015
Goodness. PitchFX says Fernandez topped out at 100.2 mph on Thursday. I repeat: a pitcher in his first start back from Tommy John surgery hit 100.2 mph on the gun. Incredible. Fernandez and the Fish got the best of Cain’s Giants (MIA 5, SF 4).
Moore allowed four runs in 4 2/3 innings against the Indians in a game the Rays eventually lost in 10 innings (CLE 5, TB 4). Moore looked rusty, which a lot of pitchers tend to do in their first start back from elbow reconstruction. He missed his spots consistently and averaged only 90.5 mph with his fastball according to PitchFX, down from 92.8 mph last year.
I tend to give pitchers a mulligan on their first start back from major injury, but make no mistake, the Rays need Moore to be very good this year, moreso than the Marlins need Fernandez or the Giants need Cain. That’s a function of Tampa Bay’s financial limitations and the ultra-competitive AL East.
The Marlins are pretty much out of the postseason race already, so while Fernandez makes them more fun to watch, he doesn’t improve their chances of contention all that much. The Giants have a lot of pitching, and even if Cain is a shell is his former self, they have the resources to go out and get whatever help the need at the trade deadline.
The Rays? They don’t have those resources. They can’t go out and get Cole Hamels later this month. Not even close. They probably can’t even afford a rental like Johnny Cueto, Mike Leake or Jeff Samardzija. Moore is their big midseason pitching addition.
Tampa Bay’s rotation came into Thursday with a 3.14 ERA, the third best in baseball, and they’ve done that without Moore or Alex Cobb. There are some smoke and mirrors involved too. Manager Kevin Cash has sheltered pitchers like Nathan Karns, Matt Andriese and Erasmo Ramirez by not allowing them to go through the order a third time whenever possible. Can that work all season? Maybe. It’ll be tough though.
Moore gives Cash and the Rays not just more pitching depth, but high-end pitching depth. Moore can be really good when he’s healthy. The club is unlikely to add pitching at the trade deadline — they need to focus on offense at this point anyway — so getting the lefty back is their big trade. And that makes him really important so soon after surgery.
Matt Moore’s first start back was an important step for the Rays. (USATSI)
And welcome to the Eye! The Big Jar of Baseball is 80 percent full Thursday, with 12 games on the docket. Check back here for frequent updates on all of the games, for urgent news and rumors, along with key highlights. It’s something of a one-stop-shop.
Today’s MLB Action (all times ET) (Full scoreboard)
Cubs 6, Mets 1: Recap | Box score
Indians 5, Rays 4 in 10 innings: Recap | Box score
Pirates 8, Tigers 4: Recap | Box score
Marlins 5, Giants 4: Recap | Box score
Braves 2, Nationals 1: Recap | Box score
Red Sox 12, Blue Jays 6: Recap | Box score
Brewers 8, Phillies 7 in 11 innings: Recap | Box score
Rangers 2, Orioles 0: Recap | Box score
Twins 2, Royals 0: Recap | Box score
Padres 5, Cardinals 3 in 11 innings: Recap | Box score
Athletics 4, Mariners 0: Recap | Box score
Diamondbacks 8, Rockies 1: Recap | Box score
Milestone Tracker
Longest current hit streak: Troy Tulowitzki brought a 14-game hit streak into Thursday, and he extended it to 15 games with a ninth inning bloop single. He went 1 for 4 with two strikeouts on the night.
Monthly awards: MLB announced the monthly awards for June on Thursday. Here are the winners:
| 2015 Monthly Awards: June | ||
| AL | NL | |
|---|---|---|
| Player of the Month | Albert Pujols, Angels | Giancarlo Stanton, Marlins |
| Pitcher of the Month | Chris Sale, White Sox | Max Scherzer, Nationals |
| Rookie of the Month | Carlos Correa, Astros | Maikel Franco, Phillies |
Daily Awards
Bat flip of the day: You do you, Jae-Gyun Hwang of the Lotte Giants in Korea (skip to 0:47 if you’re impatient):
Home run of the day: Apparently Tommy John surgery helped Jose Fernandez’s bat as well. He went deep on Thursday:
Catch of the day: Look how far David Lough had to run to rob Elvis Andrus of extra bases. He was shading him way over towards center field:
Pitching matchup of the day: On Thursday, there was a pitching matchup of Some Guy vs. Some Otherguy according to the Star Tribune.
Ha @StribSports oopsie #busted pic.twitter.com/StBigGgJP3
— Dahl (@mrdahl87) July 2, 2015
Minor league catch of the day: Check out Reed Harper of the Carolina Mudcats, the High Class-A affiliate of the Braves, making a great barehanded catch:
Cup check of the day: Someone on the A’s made sure Sean Doolittle was wearing the proper protection for Thursday’s game:
Cup check! http://t.co/8Hjt4oIx62 pic.twitter.com/rp2gkihntB
— Deadspin (@Deadspin) July 3, 2015
News, Injuries and Rumors
Cardinals fire scouting director, possibly linked to hacking scandal
Heyman: Dodgers land Cuban prospect Yadier Alvarez
Dodgers RP Brandon League designated for assignment
Dodgers acquire OF Jordan Paroubeck, RP Caleb Dirks
Yankees CF Jacoby Ellsbury (knee) scratched from rehab game
Braves SP Manny Banuelos leaves first career start with injury
Report: Dodgers sign Trevor Cahill to minors deal
Twins: Ervin Santana to start Sunday, Phil Hughes bumped a day
Diamondbacks’ Archie Bradley to stop throwing, rest hurt shoulder
Blue Jays agree to sign top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Giants place Tim Lincecum on disabled list with Cain returning
Royals SP Yordano Ventura throws 84 pitches in 2nd rehab start
Indians’ Michael Bourn to serve one-game suspension Thursday
Cardinals SP Jaime Garcia lined up to make next start Tuesday
Report: Rays 1B James Loney likely to come off DL on Friday
Brewers LF Khris Davis goes hitless in Class A rehab outing
Rays SP Jake Odorizzi impresses in rehab outing
Yankees RF Carlos Beltran (ribs) didn’t swing bat Wednesday
Dodgers OF Carl Crawford leaves minor-league game after HBP
Athletics RP Sean Doolittle will start playing catch next week
Astros OF George Springer (wrist) could end up on DL
Astros OF George Springer (wrist) could end up on DL
Click here for more player updates.
Look ahead to Friday (all times ET)
Another big name pitcher returns to the mound Friday: Jake Peavy will make his first start in close to three months following a back issue.
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