Baseball Daily Dose: Daily Dose: $tra$burg
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You can cross a big name off the list of next winter’s potential free agent class.
Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post first reported and multiple outlets confirmed that Stephen Strasburg has agreed to a long-term contract extension with the Nationals. Jon Heyman of MLB Network says the deal is for seven years and $175 million and FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal notes that Strasburg can opt out of the contract after the third or fourth year. A press conference announcing the extension is expected to take place on Tuesday.
The timing on this is surprising, as Strasburg is a Scott Boras client who had been in line to be the marquee starting pitcher of next winter’s free agent class. Chances are he would have been able to get more than $175 million in the offseason had he finished the campaign healthy. However, as a guy who’s already had Tommy John surgery and dealt with other injuries in his career, it’s hard to blame Strasburg for jumping on this amount of guaranteed money, especially since he’ll have a chance to opt out after his age-30 or age-31 season.
Strasburg, who will turn 28 in July, looks like he might have the best season of his career in 2016. He’s put up a 2.76 ERA and 1.04WHIP over his first seven starts and boasts a 58/12 K/BB ratio across 49 innings. With Strasburg off the market, we’re looking at the likes of Brett Anderson, Andrew Cashner, Clay Buchholz and Rich Hill as the starting pitcher headliners of the next free agent crop.
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Bradley Blasting
There was quite a bit of evidence at one time which said Jackie Bradley was an all-glove, no-hit outfielder. It’s probably time to re-evaluate that line of thinking.
Bradley extended his hitting streak to 15 games with a huge night at the plate in Monday’s win over the A’s, as he went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and six RBI. The 26-year-old has seen his batting average jump from .222 to .303 over his hit streak and is now sporting a healthy .303/.353.550 batting line on the season with four home runs and 21 RBI.
Bradley put up a .196/.268/.280 batting line over 530 plate appearances in his first two major league seasons and it was looking like more of the same when he had a .125/.217/.200 line through the end of July last year. However, something appeared to click for Bradley down the stretch last season, as he batted .276/.361/.564 with nine home runs and 40 RBI over the final two months. That success has obviously carried over into a promising start in his first 31 games of 2016.
So which Bradley are we to believe is the real one? The reality probably lies somewhere in between, but don’t forget that this is a guy who just turned 26 a few weeks ago and who batted .294/.391/.460 in the minors. Bradley is certainly squaring the ball up more this season, as his hard hit percentage and line drive percentage are well above his career norms.
Bradley gets dinged in fantasy leagues because he doesn’t really stand out in one area and also because he hits toward the bottom of the Red Sox lineup. Despite Monday’s grand slam and a way-too-early 20-homer pace in 2016, he doesn’t have a whole lot of power. And, while Bradley has yet to be caught stealing at the big league level, he doesn’t run much. With a .294 average in the minors and .286 average in the majors since last August, it’s possible he’ll turn out to be a high-average hitter. However, we can’t ignore that Bradley is still only a career .225 batter at the major league level. At worst, we’re looking at an elite defender who has shown himself to be trending up with the bat.
Surgery for Simmons
If you’re protective of your ulnar collateral ligaments, it’s advisable to avoid Anaheim.
On Friday, it was revealed that Angels ace Garrett Richards is likely headed for Tommy John surgery due to a UCL tear and that Andrew Heaney has UCL damage, as well. More bad news came down Monday, as Andrelton Simmons was diagnosed with a full thickness tear of the UCL in his left thumb.
Simmons, who suffered the injury while diving for a ball on Sunday, will undergo surgery this week. There has been no timetable set for his return, but it’s a recovery that will certainly take him multiple months. Fanduel’s injury expert Will Carroll believes it will be difficult for Simmons to make it back this season.
Simmons has batted only .219/.246/.281 this season and just .251/.298/.330 since the beginning of the 2014 campaign, so it’s doubtful his loss will be felt much on offense. However, he’s the premier defensive shortstop in the game, so the Halos’ pitching staff will undoubtedly miss his presence.
Replacing Simmons at shortstop will be Cliff Pennington. Pennington has shared time at second base with Johnny Giavotella this season, but now both players are in line to play every day. It’s possible the club will seek help outside the organization. Former Angels shortstop Erick Aybar is surely available, but he’s hitting only .187/.221/.215 for the Braves. It’s certainly a situation to avoid for fantasy purposes.
National League Quick Hits: Jake Lamb homered, tripled and knocked in four runs in a win over the Rockies on Monday … Jose Fernandez recorded 11 strikeouts across seven shutout innings in Monday’s victory over the Brewers … Stephen Strasburg allowed four runs but had a season-high 11 strikeouts in Monday’s win over the Tigers … Tony Cingrani notched his second save in his last three appearances in Monday’s win over the Pirates … Brandon McCarthy (elbow) will face hitters next week … Trevor Story doubled twice and drove in three runs against the Diamondbacks on Monday … Daniel Murphy went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBI in a win over the Tigers on Monday … Derek Dietrich went 3-for-4 with an RBI single and a run scored in Monday’s victory over the Brewers … John Lamb (thumb) will likely be skipped in the Reds’ rotation this week but is expected to avoid the disabled list …
American League Quick Hits: Todd Frazier went 4-for-6 with a solo homer, a grand slam and six RBI in Monday’s extra-innings victory over the Rangers … Carlos Beltran launched a pair of solo homers in Monday’s win over the Royals … Ketel Marte went 4-for-5 with a three-run homer against the Rays on Monday … Rougned Odor triple and smacked a solo homer versus the White Sox on Monday … Danny Valencia exited Monday’s game after aggravating his hamstring injury … Khris Davis had an RBI double and a solo homer in Monday’s loss to the Red Sox … J.D. Martinez went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer in Monday’s loss to the Nationals … Alex Gordon went 2-for-3 with a solo homer and a walk in Monday’s loss to the Yankees … Taijuan Walker (neck) expects to make his next start as scheduled on Wednesday against the Rays … Lance McCullers (shoulder) is set to throw a bullpen session on Tuesday and could be cleared to rejoin the Astros’ rotation later this week … Yovani Gallardo (shoulder) is set to resume throwing on Saturday … Eduardo Rodriguez (knee) will make at least one more rehab start before rejoining the Red Sox’ rotation … Jacoby Ellsbury (hip) remained out of the lineup Monday and isn’t expected to play Tuesday, either … C.J. Wilson (shoulder) threw off a mound Sunday for the first time since March …
