Baseball Daily Dose: Daily Dose: Amazing Aaron
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It took until March 28 before Aaron Sanchez officially won a spot in the Blue Jays’ rotation. At this point it looks pretty silly that there was even a decision to be made.
Sanchez was simply brilliant Tuesday, striking out 12 batters while holding the Tigers to two runs on just three hits and a walk over eight innings. The win managed to escape him, as he was pulled in the ninth after yielding a single and RBI double and then watched closer Roberto Osuna give up the game-tying two-bagger. However, that hardly diminishes the performance from the young right-hander.
Tuesday’s showing was the best outing in what has been a season full of good ones so far for Sanchez. He’s had a couple hiccups where he permitted six runs, but all 10 of his other starts have been of the “quality” variety and he’s allowed two or fewer runs in eight starts. Sanchez boasts a 2.91 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 76/26 K/BB ratio over 80 1/3 innings on the season. For a guy who entered the season with a career 42/37 K/BB ratio over 66 frames as a starter in the big leagues, there have obviously been major strides taken here.
One thing to keep in mind amidst all the good vibes with Sanchez right now is that the Blue Jays still plan on transitioning the righty to the bullpen at some point this season. It’s understandable even in light of Sanchez’s dominance, as he threw just 102 innings last season and his career high is only 133 frames. Right now the soon-to-be 24-year-old is on pace to throw 216 1/3 innings, so it’s possible Sanchez might not be of much use to fantasy owners in the second half of the season. That’s a reason to consider selling him off sooner rather than later, but that doesn’t mean you can’t first count your blessings for having used a late-round pick on him this spring.
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Taillon Time
Early June is typically the time of the season where we see an influx of top prospects arriving in the majors as the Super Two deadline passes by. On Wednesday we’ll get a look at one of those top prospects.
The Pirates will call up big right-hander Jameson Taillon to make his major league debut against the Mets at PNC Park. His adversary Wednesday night will be Noah Syndergaard, so this should be a fun one.
Taillon missed the 2014 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery and the 2015 campaign while recovering from hernia surgery. The back-to-back missed seasons got Taillon dropped off some top-100 prospect lists coming into the season, but he’s come back with a vengeance. The 24-year-old has dominated at Triple-A Indianapolis, putting up a 2.04 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 61/6 K/BB ratio across 61 2/3 innings.
The need for Taillon was created by Monday’s rainout, which resulted in both Jon Niese and Juan Nicasio pitching on Tuesday. But does Taillon have a shot to stick around for the long haul? Manager Clint Hurdle was mum on the subject when asked Tuesday. However, the skipper has already indicated that Nicasio could be headed to the bullpen at some point, and it’s not as if Niese and Jeff Locke’s rotation spots look secure at this point (although Niese pitched very well Tuesday).
Given Taillon’s two-year layoff, the Pirates no doubt will want to be careful with his workload this season. It’s one reason why his stay in the rotation this time could be a brief one. However, a big performance Wednesday might change things, and he’s almost surely going to spend ample time in the rotation this year even if Wednesday turns out to just be a spot start. Taillon is a potential frontline starter and could have mixed league value right away once he’s given the ball every fifth day.
Machado Facing Suspension?
Well, we almost lasted a month in between good ol’ fashioned baseball brawls.
Twenty-three days after the fracas between the Blue Jays and Rangers, the Royals and Orioles were involved in an altercation Tuesday. Manny Machado charged the mound and appeared to land at least one punch to the face of Yordano Ventura after Ventura hit him in the back with a 99 mph fastball. Aside from getting lit up for six runs over just 4 1/3 innings and having a 5.32 ERA on the season, Ventura was apparently also angry about Machado admiring a long flyball earlier in the game, as the two exchanged words at the time. Both players were ejected from the contest.
Both players are surely facing suspensions, but the questions is, how long of a suspension? It’s easy to quickly point to Rougned Odor’s eight-game ban (later reduced to seven games) and Jose Bautista’s one-game ban because it happened so recently, but this was obviously a different situation. You could argue in this instance that Ventura was the instigator here even though it was Machado who charged the mound. Something else to consider is that both Ventura and Machado have history with these kinds of situations, so that could net them a lengthier suspension.
Given the way Ventura has been pitching, his fantasy owners probably aren’t going to shed any tears over him missing a start or two. In Machado’s case, though, it would obviously be a big blow for fantasy owners to lose him for a handful of contests. It took two days for Major League Baseball to announce suspensions for the Blue Jays/Rangers brawl, but it was more than a week after that when Odor actually started serving his suspension following an appeal hearing. So, it might be a while before we know the fates of Ventura and Machado.
National League Quick Hits: Zack Greinke spun a three-hit shutout in Tuesday’s victory over the Rays … Chris Carter tagged a pair of home runs and drove in five runs in Tuesday’s win over the A’s … Buster Posey sat out Tuesday and could miss a couple more games with an irritated nerve in his right thumb … Jorge Soler (hamstring) was placed on the disabled list Tuesday … Anthony Rendon went 3-for-5 with a homer and three RBI in a win over the White Sox … Jake Lamb slugged a three-run homer against the Rays on Tuesday … Anthony DeSclafani (oblique) has officially been cleared to make his season debut Friday versus the Athletics … Billy Hamilton went 3-for-3 with a solo home run and two stolen bases in Tuesday’s win over the Cardinals … Zach Davies lost a no-hitter in the seventh inning and ultimately settled for allowing two runs over seven frames in Tuesday’s win over the A’s … Jerad Eickhoff whiffed eight across seven frames of one-run ball versus the Cubs … Chris Owings sat out Tuesday due to a foot issue and could have plantar fasciitis … Starling Marte (ankle) sat out the second half of Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Mets and will be re-evaluated Wednesday … Jon Niese tossed seven shutout innings Tuesday in the Pirates’ defeat of the Mets Tuesday … Rubby De La Rosa (elbow) doesn’t need Tommy John surgery but will be sidelined until at least August …
American League Quick Hits: Eduardo Nunez clubbed a pair of solo home runs on Tuesday in the Twins’ extra-innings win over the Marlins … Mark Trumbo doubled in two runs and slugged his league-leading 20th homer in Tuesday’s victory over the Royals … Logan Forsythe (shoulder) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment Wednesday and could be activated as soon as this weekend … Rich Hill (groin) will throw a bullpen session Wednesday and rejoin the A’s rotation Saturday if the session goes well … Khris Davis didn’t play Tuesday and is questionable to play Wednesday due to numbness in his left hand … Carlos Rodon won’t start this week due to neck discomfort that moved to his pitching arm … Jurickson Profar made his first professional start at first base Tuesday … Wade Miley spun seven shutout innings against the Indians … Ian Desmond blasted a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning of Tuesday’s win over the Astros … Yan Gomes has been diagnosed with a testicular contusion after taking a foul tip in the groin Tuesday … Starlin Castro singled and knocked a solo homer in Tuesday’s win over the Angels … Ketel Marte is day-to-day after being scratched from the Mariners’ lineup Tuesday because of neck spasms … Leonys Martin (hamstring) is on track to be activated from the disabled list Friday … Tim Lincecum will make one more minor league start before joining the Angels’ rotation …
