Baseball Daily Dose: Daily Dose: Strasburg Strained
All eyes on the baseball world were ready to gaze upon one of the premiere pitching matchups in the world on Monday night as Stephen Strasburg and the Nationals were traveling to Los Angeles to do battle with Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. As the lone 10:00 PM start on the docket, they would have the entire focus on them, masterfully displaying their craft.
Unfortunately like many things in life that seem too good to be true, it was not to be. The fun ended before it started as Strasburg was scratched due to an upper back strain.
The 27-year-old hurler dealt with similar back and neck issues during the beginning of the 2015 season, and has been no stranger to the disabled list during his seven-year career. The Nationals remain hopeful that this won’t turn into a long-term issue and that he’ll miss just the one start.
Strasburg is in the midst of his finest season as a professional, winning his first 10 decisions while compiling a 2.90 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 118/24 K/BB ratio across 93 innings of work. To lose him for any significant amount of time would be a tremendous detriment to the Nationals and to fantasy owners alike. Let’s hope for a speedy recovery.
On the other side of the diamond, Clayton Kershaw still delivered on the promise of a masterful pitching performance. The three-time National League Cy Young award winner continued to strengthen his case for a fourth, limiting the Nationals to one run on six hits over seven strong innings. Kershaw punched out eight on the evening and didn’t walk a batter.
He now sits at 11-1 on the season, his 11 wins tied with Jake Arrieta and Chris Sale for the top mark in all of baseball. Kershaw also sits atop the heap with his miniscule 1.57 ERA and 0.67 WHIP. That’s not even taking into account his other-worldly 141/7 K/BB ratio through 115 innings. He’s simply spectacular.
It’s heating Upton here
Justin Upton has been a notoriously streaky hitter throughout his career. He’ll have stretches where he mashes home runs in bunches, then will go weeks or even months at a time, flailing at everything and looking completely lost at the plate. The Tigers went out and signed him to a massive six-year, $132.75 million contract over the winter, and until recently they had only seen the terrible side of the 28-year-old outfielder.
Over the first two months of the season, Upton slashed a cringe-inducing .217/.264/.326 with just three home runs, 11 RBI and a 72/12 K/BB ratio in 197 plate appearances. Ouch.
Then, the calendar flipped to June, and Upton’s bat has begun to show signs of life. In 18 games this month, he has hit .288/.358/.562 with five homers, 20 RBI, three stolen bases and a 20/8 K/BB mark in 81 plate appearances.
His power stroke was in full display on Monday night in Motown, Upton demolished a two-run homer into the shrubbery in straight away center field at Comerica Park that gave the Tigers a 7-6 lead in the seventh inning. The Mariners came back and tied the game the following frame, but Upton had more heroics in store. He turned around a Vidal Nuno fastball in the 12th inning, lining a solo homer over the wall in left field to send the Tigers home as walk-off winners.
He has now clubbed four home runs in his last four games and looks absolutely locked in at the plate. Fantasy owners, in both season-long and daily formats, should hop on and ride the wave for as long as it lasts until he shows signs of cooling off once again.
Blast from the Past?
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported Monday that the Mets have had internal debates about a possible reunion with shortstop Jose Reyes. The hurdle appears to be that the club wants to make sure that such a signing wouldn’t be a public-relations nightmare.
Reyes was designated for assignment last week by the Rockies after completing his 51-game suspension for a domestic violence incident involving his wife. He can be signed for the major league minimum, so there is really no financial risk on the side of the Mets.
Reyes spent the first nine years of his big league career with the Mets, hitting .292/.341/.441, stealing 370 bases, making four All-Star teams and serving as a catalyst atop the lineup for nearly a decade.
There is also a strong need for an offensive upgrade, especially with David Wright sidelined for the remainder of the season. Even at 33-years-old, Reyes was on top of his game in 2015, slashing .274/.310/.378 with seven homers, 53 RBI and 24 stolen bases in 116 games between the Blue Jays and Rockies.
If it’s indeed something that the club plans to explore, the likely scenario is that Reyes would assume the full-time role at shortstop while Asdrubal Cabrera shifts over to third base and Wilmer Flores heads back to utility role.
The Mets are also reportedly considering making a run at Cuban third baseman Yulieski Gurriel. Such a signing would seem to rule out a reunion with Reyes.
American League Quick Hits: Steve Pearce was forced to leave Monday’s game in the ninth inning with a hamstring injury. The Rays plan to give him a few days before deciding on a potential trip to the disabled list… Mikie Mahtook suffered a fractured left hand when he was hit by a pitch on Monday… Gregorio Petit clubbed his first career grand slam in a losing effort against the Astros… Jose Abreu delivered a two-run double in the 10th inning to beat Craig Kimbrel and the Red Sox… Steven Wright didn’t allow an earned run over nine terrific innings, but was saddled with a no-decision… Juan Uribe homered for the third consecutive game as the Indians topped the Rays… Evan Longoria went deep yet again, his 18th of the season, in a loss there… Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow indicated that a promotion for top prospect A.J. Reed was not imminent… Steven Souza received a cortisone injection on Monday and is aiming to return during the club’s next homestand… Taijuan Walker is heading back to Seattle for an MRI on his injured right foot… Rusney Castillo cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Pawtucket… The Rays are reportedly open to a potential reunion with Carl Crawford…
National League Quick Hits: Trevor Rosenthal allowed two hits and hit a batter, but managed to escape with his 13th save against the Cubs… The Mets aren’t ready to consider a demotion to Triple-A for Michael Conforto just yet… Mark Reynolds blasted a pair of home runs in a victory over the Marlins… Marcel Ozuna swatted a pair of his own in a losing effort there… Jeff Locke fired 6 2/3 shutout innings, outdueling Madison Bumgarner in a victory against the Giants… Matt Duffy (Achilles) landed on the 15-day disabled list… Mallex Smith is expected to be sidelined for longer than six weeks with his broken hand… Yasiel Puig (hamstring) will be activated from the disabled list on Tuesday… The Marlins have inquired on the availability of Jake Odorizzi from the Rays… Dexter Fowler landed on the disabled list with his hamstring injury… Willson Contreras is expected to start two out of every five games behind the plate for the Cubs, making him relevant in mixed leagues… Vincent Velasquez will make his first minor league rehab start with Double-A Reading on Wednesday… The Phillies signed top overall pick Mickey Moniak, he’ll receive a $6.1 million signing bonus, which is well under slot value.
