Baseball Daily Dose: Daily Dose: Kimbrel Sidelined
Knee soreness turned out to be a lot more than that for Craig Kimbrel.
Kimbrel, who was unavailable Friday after feeling soreness in his left knee, was diagnosed Saturday with a torn medial meniscus in the knee, an injury like to sideline him for three to six weeks. Kimbrel will have surgery Monday to repair the injury.
The dominant closer sustained the injury fielding ground balls during batting practice prior to Friday’s game. In spring, starter Eduardo Rodriguez also suffered a knee injury shagging balls during BP.
“Honestly, this is an anomaly,” Farrell told NESN. “This is what our players go through normally day in and day out, traditionally in the game. We can’t put guys in bubbles, and yet you get a little bit of a change in direction, and this is what happens.”
The team quickly acted to fill Kimbrel’s spot in the bullpen, trading for Diamondbacks closer Brad Ziegler, but it’s Koji Uehara, not Ziegler, who will be the team’s closer in Kimbrel’s stead, at least from the outset. Uehara saved Friday night’s game with Kimbrel unavailable, and he came back Saturday to close out the Rays for his fourth save of the season.
“Koji’s our closer,” Farrell said. “And then on days when he’s not going to be available, we’ve got Brad to turn to. … I think it’s important to maintain some consistency late in the game, and that’s where Koji’s going to serve as our closer.”
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Rodon Having A Bad Week
It was insult, then injury, for Carlos Rodon this week.
After allowing 12 hits and six runs in Tuesday’s start against the Yankees, Rodon slipped while going up the dugout stairs Friday and sprained his left wrist, necessitating a trip to the 15-day disabled list. Rodon will be out until after the All-Star break and will miss at least one start as a result.
“It’s unfortunate,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “Hopefully it’s not going to be anything that lingers past these two weeks. It’s something you deal with, and somebody else is going to have to fill his spot when we start back up after the break.”
Ventura also said Rodon will likely have to make at least one rehab start before returning. Rodon will wear a brace on the wrist for the next week to 10 days before being re-evaluated.
It’s been a frustrating year for the 23-year-old, including but not limited to Friday’s freak injury. Rodon is 2-7 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.53 WHIP in 16 starts, a year after posting a promising 3.75 ERA over 139 1/3 innings as a rookie.
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Fractured Hand Halts Cron
The only thing that could stop C.J. Cron was a broken hand.
Cron, who was blistering the ball since the calendar turned to July, was placed on the 15-day disabled list Friday after suffering a fractured left hand in Friday night’s game. Cron is expected to miss a month as a result.
In eight July games prior to the injury, Cron was hitting .364/.405/.879 with five home runs, 17 RBI and nine runs scored. That included a historic 6-for-6, two-homer, five-RBI and five-run game against the Red Sox on July 2.
“It’s a blow to us and to C.J.,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “He had really picked it up and started to become productive the way we know he can.”
With Cron out, Ji-Man Choi and Jefry Marte are expected to split time at first base. Choi got the start there Saturday, going 0-for-2 with two walks in a 3-2 loss to the Orioles.
National League Quick Hits: With Brad Ziegler gone, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that Tyler Clippard is expected to close for the Diamondbacks. Daniel Hudson could also receive consideration, but Clippard is the most logical candidate. The 31-year-old right-hander boasts 54 career saves, including 32 as the full-time stopper for the Nationals in 2012. He’s immediately worthy of an add in all formats … Yoenis Cespedes (quad) is not in the Mets’ lineup Saturday against the Nationals. Cespedes has already been replaced by Starling Marte on the NL All-Star roster, which suggests he won’t be available at all this weekend. The last time Cespedes dealt with a quad strain he missed about 4-5 days. It’s fair to assume this injury will sideline him for a similar amount of time … Matt Holliday (ankle) was scratched from the Cardinals starting lineup on Saturday. Holliday left Friday’s game with a minor ankle injury and apparently it was still bothering him on Saturday. The fact that he was in the initial lineup lends credence to the fact that the injury is minor and shouldn’t be a major concern for fantasy owners … Odubel Herrera (foot) is not in the Phillies’ lineup Saturday against the Rockies. Herrera fouled a ball off his foot on Friday night but stayed in the game. Manager Pete Mackanin said Herrera is okay but wanted to give him the day off … Max Scherzer was on top of his game on Saturday, striking out nine batters while surrendering only one unearned run in seven innings to defeat the Mets 6-1. He held the Mets to three hits and two walks in the dominant outing. His record improves to 10-6 with a 3.03 ERA and 0.96 WHIP. His 164 strikeouts lead the major leagues … Tyler Anderson led the Rockies to an 8-3 victory over the Phillies on Saturday, allowing only two runs in six innings and hitting a two-run home run of his own. He gave up nine hits but didn’t walk anyone and struck out six. The former first round pick missed all of last year to injury but has been excellent in the minors and majors this year. He has a 3.03 ERA with 32 strikeouts and six walks in 35 2/3 innings spread across six starts for the Rockies. Both the win and the homer were career firsts for Anderson.
American League Quick Hits: The Athletics have not resumed contract talks with Josh Reddick. The A’s reportedly offered Reddick a three-year, $36 million contract last offseason. Reddick quickly countered with a proposed four-year, $56 million extension, which is believed to be at least $5-10 million below his market value. It’s been crickets since then and with the trade deadline looming, there’s a good chance Reddick will be wearing a new uniform in a few weeks. The Blue Jays, Cubs, Dodgers, Giants, Nationals and Royals are a few of the many teams that have shown interest … David Robertson was unavailable for Saturday’s game against the Braves because of a strained left leg. With Robertson out, Nate Jones logged a four-out save. Robertson said he’s been dealing with the injury since Thursday. Robertson has already been ruled out for Sunday’s series finale, though the team is holding off on putting him on the disabled list. In the meantime, Jones will fill in at closer … Rick Porcello allowed a lone run over seven innings of work Saturday, leading the Red Sox to a 4-1 victory over the Rays. Porcello gave up a solo home run to the second batter he faced, but he scattered five hits without issuing a free pass over the rest of his time. He struck out five in the outing. The win moved him to 11-2 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.17 WHIP through 18 first-half starts … Kelvin Herrera earned his first save of the season Saturday, pitching a perfect ninth inning to preserve a 5-3 win over the Mariners. Herrera needed nine pitches to do away with the M’s, a much better showing than his last time out, when he took the loss while allowing two runs to the Jays. Herrera will continue to get save chances while Wade Davis is on the shelf, but Davis is progressing well and may not afford the 26-year-old much time in his seat before retaking it for himself. Herrera is an elite setup man and would be a must-own if Davis did ever miss substantial time, posting a 1.77 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 52/7 K/BB ratio over 40 2/3 innings in the first half … Jonathan Schoop went 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI single to lead the Orioles to a comeback, 3-2 win over the Angels on Saturday. Schoop was instrumental in the comeback, scoring on a balk to tie the game in the seventh inning before delivering the go-ahead hit in the eighth. The multi-hit game was the fourth for Schoop during his eight-game hitting streak, raising his overall line to .304/.339/.512 … Stephen Vogt went 3-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored as the Athletics edged the Astros 3-2 on Saturday. Vogt provided most of the A’s offense on the day, hitting a solo dong in second inning and adding an RBI single in the third. The home run was his seventh of the year, giving him 27 RBI and 30 runs scored. The 31-year-old is hitting a respectable .277/.320/.442 overall.
