New York Mets
Mar 3, 2019; Dunedin, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays infielder Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) runs home during the second inning against the New York Yankees at Dunedin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
April 25, 2019
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is getting his long-awaited call-up to the majors.
Toronto manager Charlie Montoyo told reporters following Blue Jays’ Wednesday loss to the San Francisco Giants that Guerrero, the top-ranked prospect in all of baseball by most scouting services, will be called up from Triple-A Buffalo to make his major league debut Friday at home against the Oakland A’s.
Guerrero, who plays third base, went 2-for-5 with a home run and a pair of runs scored against Syracuse on Wednesday. In 12 minor league games this season, the 20-year-old is batting .333 (14-for-45) with three home runs, nine RBIs and nine runs.
Guerrero’s father, Vladimir, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame last year. The elder Guerrero, 44, played 16 seasons in the majors, primarily with the Montreal Expos and Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels. He was a nine-time All-Star and the 2004 American League Most Valuable Player.
The news also comes on a day when the Blue Jays held shortstop Freddy Galvis held out of the game, ending his consecutive-games-played streak at 349. That was the longest active streak in baseball. With Thursday an off day, the club has an extra day to decide whether Galvis, who left the Sunday game in Oakland after trying to field a grounder, will go on the injured list.
–The Milwaukee Brewers agreed to a one-year, $2 million contract with free agent left-hander Gio Gonzalez, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported.
The deal includes $2 million in performance bonuses for the 33-year-old veteran, who was released from his minor league contract with the New York Yankees on Monday.
Last season, Gonzalez joined Milwaukee in an Aug. 31 trade with Washington and went 3-0 with a 2.13 ERA in five regular-season starts. He also allowed two runs on three hits in three innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. The two-time All-Star is 127-97 with a 3.69 ERA in 11 big league campaigns.
–Tampa Bay Rays infielder Joey Wendle suffered a fractured right wrist when he was hit by pitch by Kansas City left-hander Jake Diekman in the sixth inning.
Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters after the contest that there wasn’t yet a timetable for Wendle’s return. Wendle returned to active duty on Sunday after missing 17 games with a hamstring injury.
Wendle is batting .136 in eight games this season. Last year, Wendle batted .300 with seven homers and 61 RBIs in 139 games.
–Infielder Daniel Murphy, out since breaking his left index finger in the second game of the season, was activated from the 20-day injured list by the Colorado Rockies.
He went 1-for-4 with a walk, a strikeout and a run scored in the Rockies’ 9-5 victory over Washington, with whom Murphy played for two-plus seasons. He signed a two-year, $24 million contract with the Rockies in December.
Murphy is a .299 career hitter with 122 homers and 641 RBIs over 11 seasons with the New York Mets (2008-15), Nationals (2016-18) and Chicago Cubs (2018).
–The New York Yankees activated catcher Gary Sanchez from the 10-day injured list in time for the team’s game against the Los Angeles Angels. He was placed on the IL with a calf strain April 12.
The club also demoted right-handed reliever Chad Green and catcher Kyle Higashioka to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and promoted left-hander Stephen Tarpley from the same affiliate.
Sanchez is hitting .268 with six home runs and 11 RBIs this season, although he also has four throwing errors. The Yankees’ injured list still includes names such as outfielders Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks, and right-hander Luis Severino.
–The Seattle Mariners acquired right-hander Mike Wright from the Baltimore Orioles for minor league infielder Ryne Ogren.
Wright, 29, was designated for assignment by Baltimore on Sunday after going 0-1 with one save and a 9.45 ERA in 10 relief appearances. In five seasons with the Orioles, Wright compiled a 10-12 record with a 5.95 ERA and 192 strikeouts in 242 innings.
Ogren is batting .146 with one home run and three RBIs in 11 games at Class-A West Virginia.
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
Apr 22, 2019; New York City, NY, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Steven Matz (32) pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports
April 23, 2019
Jeff McNeil had two hits, including a solo home run, to lift the host New York Mets past the Philadelphia Phillies 5-1 on Monday in a game that saw Phillies right fielder Bryce Harper get ejected while arguing from the dugout.
Mets starter Steven Matz (2-1) was effective, allowing three hits and one run in six innings. He struck out six and walked two. It was a completely different outcome from his last start against the Phillies in which he faced eight batters and failed to record an out on April 16.
Rhys Hoskins ripped a solo homer for the Phillies. Cesar Hernandez had Philadelphia’s only other two hits in the game, as the Phillies failed to support starter Jake Arrieta (3-2). The right-hander threw six-plus innings and gave up seven hits and four runs (three earned). He fanned seven and walked one.
In a bizarre circumstance, Harper was tossed with two outs in the fourth. After a questionable called strike to Hernandez, plate umpire Mark Carlson motioned to the dugout and ejected Harper for arguing balls and strikes. Harper had reached base in all of his previous 21 games with the Phillies before going 0-for-2 with two strikeouts and being ejected.
Rockies 7, Nationals 5
Nolan Arenado homered and finished with three hits — including the 1,000th of his career — while Mark Reynolds and Raimel Tapia also went deep to lead Colorado past Washington in Denver.
Trevor Story had two hits and Seunghwan Oh (1-0) pitched an inning of relief for the victory. Colorado has won seven of its past eight following an eight-game losing streak. Wade Davis pitched the ninth inning for his second save.
Arenado’s milestone hit came leading off the seventh inning, when he hit his fourth home run of the season off reliever Wander Suero (1-2) to make it 6-5. Brian Dozier homered, and Howie Kendrick drove in two for the Nationals.
Cardinals 13, Brewers 5
Dexter Fowler matched his career high with four hits, drove in four runs and scored three to help St. Louis throttle visiting Milwaukee in the opener of the three-game series.
Paul Goldschmidt had three hits and three RBIs, and Jose Martinez, Paul DeJong and Matt Carpenter contributed two hits each for St. Louis, which blew the game open with seven runs in the seventh inning.
Cardinals right-hander Jack Flaherty (2-1) made his third start of the season against the Brewers and delivered his longest outing, going six innings and giving up four runs and three hits, all homers. He struck out a season-high 10 and walked one. Milwaukee’s Adrian Houser (0-1), making his first major league start, went four-plus innings and gave up five runs on nine hits.
Twins 9, Astros 5
Jorge Polanco recorded his second four-hit game of the season, and he belted a two-run, two-out homer in the eighth inning to carry Minnesota to victory in the opener of a three-game series in Houston.
The Twins, winners of five of their past six, scored two in the first and another run in the second — Jason Castro’s first home run of the season leading off the frame — off Brad Peacock (2-1). Minnesota’s Jake Odorizzi (2-2) limited the Astros to two runs on eight hits over 5 2/3 innings, striking out two without walking a batter.
Houston trailed 7-1 before getting a solo homer from Michael Brantley in the sixth inning and a three-run blast from Carlos Correa in the seventh, but like Sunday night (when Houston rallied from a nine-run deficit and loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth inning before falling 11-10), the Astros couldn’t complete the comeback.
Rays 6, Royals 3
Tampa Bay hit for the cycle in the bottom of the seventh, scoring three runs to emerge with a win over visiting Kansas City. Mike Zunino hit a 425-foot, two-run home run to dead center for the key hit in the inning.
Wilmer Font (1-0) recorded the final out of the seventh and picked up the victory for the Rays, who snapped a four-game losing streak. Emilio Pagan pitched the ninth to record up his first major league save.
Brad Keller (2-2) took the loss for the Royals, who dropped their fourth in a row. He had not surrendered more than three earned runs in any of his first five starts, but he gave up five runs on seven hits in 6 1/3 innings.
Diamondbacks 12, Pirates 4
David Peralta smacked a three-run triple and Christian Walker added a two-run homer during a seven-run seventh inning as Arizona clobbered host Pittsburgh.
Pirates starter Joe Musgrove, who had allowed two earned runs this season, was charged with three runs and five hits in six-plus innings. He struck out five and walked two. Kyle Crick (0-1) took the loss after giving up four runs in two-thirds of an inning.
Eduardo Escobar homered and drove in three runs, and John Ryan Murphy added three hits for Arizona, which has won six of its past eight games. Diamondbacks starter Zack Godley gave up four runs and seven hits in four innings, but Matt Andriese (3-1) got the win with two scoreless innings of relief.
White Sox 12, Orioles 2
Jose Abreu hit his 150th career home run and drove in five runs while James McCann hit a homer and had four RBIs as Chicago scored a season high in runs to win at Baltimore.
Orioles starter David Hess (1-4) kept the White Sox quiet in the first four innings, but homers have troubled him this season, and it happened again in this game. With the game scoreless, Tim Anderson started the fifth with a double and Nicky Delmonico walked. McCann then crushed a three-run shot to left-center — the eighth surrendered by Hess.
Manny Banuelos made his first start this season for Chicago — his first major league start since September 2015 — and scattered five hits in four shutout innings. Jace Fry (1-0) got the victory in relief.
Tigers at Red Sox, ppd.
Detroit’s scheduled game at Boston was rained out and will be made up as part of a day-night doubleheader Tuesday.
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
FILE PHOTO: Apr 17, 2019; Bronx, NY, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (17) reacts against the New York Yankees during the fourth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
April 23, 2019
Boston Red Sox right-hander Nathan Eovaldi will undergo elbow surgery on Tuesday, multiple media outlets reported Monday.
Eovaldi’s surgery is to remove loose bodies in his right elbow. He is expected to miss four to six weeks.
The 29-year-old was placed on the 10-day injury list on Saturday. He has a 6.00 ERA in four starts this season.
Eovaldi pitched Wednesday against the New York Yankees and gave up one unearned run and three hits over six innings. He didn’t experience any problems during the start but he was unable to straighten his right arm the following day.
–The MRI exam of New York Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom’s right elbow revealed no damage, and the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner could make his scheduled Friday start.
“No problems whatsoever,” New York general manager Brodie Van Wagenen told reporters. “We got the answers we were hoping for.”
After the exam came back without a problem, deGrom threw a 30-pitch bullpen session prior to the Mets’ Monday game against the Philadelphia Phillies.
–The Pittsburgh Pirates activated outfielder Gregory Polanco from the injured list prior to their game against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks.
Polanco has been working his way back from major surgery on his left shoulder. He injured the shoulder and a knee while sliding into second base during a game against the Miami Marlins on Sept. 7.
–The Colorado Rockies placed staff ace Kyle Freeland on the 10-day injured list due to a blister on his left middle finger.
The left-hander pitched six scoreless against the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday before he departed after 86 pitches due to the blister.
Freeland, 25, is 2-3 with a 4.23 ERA in five starts this season. Last season, he went 17-7 with a 2.85 ERA in 33 starts while finishing fourth in the National League Cy Young Award balloting.
–The New York Yankees released left-hander Gio Gonzalez from his minor league contract, officially making the 33-year-old a free agent.
Gonzalez opted out of the deal on Saturday, leaving the Yankees facing a 48-hour deadline in which to either place on him on the 25-man roster or grant him his release. He would have received a $3 million base salary plus $300,000 for each start if he was added to the roster.
Gonzalez went 2-1 with a 6.00 ERA in three starts at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
–A Florida judge ruled that Detroit Tigers designated hitter Miguel Cabrera must support the two children he fathered out of wedlock the same way he does the children born to his wife, the Detroit Free Press reported.
The decision is the latest turn in an 18-month battle between Cabrera and Belkis Rodriguez of Orlando, Fla. In her 2017 child support lawsuit, she contended her children deserve to have the same lifestyle his other three children have.
Orange County Circuit Court Judge Alan Apte agreed with Rodriguez, writing in his ruling, “The court finds that the parties’ children should have the same opportunities as the opportunities that the father provides to his three other children that he and his wife share.”
–The St. Louis Cardinals placed starting pitcher Michael Wacha on the 10-day injured list with patellar tendinitis in his left knee, retroactive to April 19.
Wacha is 1-0 with a 4.64 ERA through four starts this season, including a 6-3 win against the Milwaukee Brewers in his most recent start last Wednesday.
The 27-year-old right-hander leads the Cardinals with 24 strikeouts in 21 1/3 innings.
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
FILE PHOTO: Apr 14, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Jacob deGrom (48) pitches against the Atlanta Braves during the first inning at SunTrust Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo
April 23, 2019
The MRI exam of New York Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom’s right elbow revealed no damage on Monday, and the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner could make his scheduled Friday start.
The Mets were breathing a sigh of relief after the club ace’s exam came back clean.
“No problems whatsoever,” New York general manager Brodie Van Wagenen told reporters. “We got the answers we were hoping for.”
After the exam came back without a problem, deGrom threw a 30-pitch bullpen session prior to Monday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies.
DeGrom was placed on the 10-day injured list on Friday but “felt completely normal” during a throwing session the following day.
“After getting some treatment (Friday) and getting things moving around, I started feeling a little better,” deGrom told reporters after the Saturday session. “So I decided to throw today and actually felt good with how it went.”
DeGrom is eligible to be activated on Friday when the Milwaukee Brewers come to town.
He was roughed up badly in each of his past two starts to see his ERA soar to 3.68.
After allowing no runs and eight hits over 13 innings while winning his first two starts, deGrom allowed nine runs and 13 hits in nine innings over the past two. Most alarming was that he served up five total homers in the two setbacks.
The 30-year-old recently signed a five-year, $137.5 million extension.
DeGrom posted a spectacular 1.70 ERA and struck out 269 in 32 starts last season while winning the Cy Young Award despite having a 10-9 record.
Also Monday, the Mets activated third baseman Todd Frazier (oblique) from the injured list, and he was set to make his season debut against the Phillies. Frazier, 33, batted .213 with 18 homers and 59 RBIs in 115 games last season.
Left-hander Justin Wilson (elbow) was placed on the injured list, right-hander Paul Sewald was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse and infielder Luis Guillorme was recalled from the same club.
The 31-year-old Wilson was 1-1 with a 3.24 ERA in nine appearances this season. Sewald, 28, had a 3.60 ERA in three appearances for New York earlier this season, and the 24-year-old Guillorme was 1-for-9 in eight appearances with the Mets earlier this season.
Second baseman Robinson Cano (right hand) wasn’t listed in the starting lineup one day after being hit by a pitch.
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
Apr 20, 2019; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) rounds second base after hitting a solo home run in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
April 21, 2019
New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge exited Saturday’s game against the Kansas City Royals with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning with a left oblique injury.
Already with a home run in the first inning — his fifth of the season — Judge singled to right field in the sixth but appeared to feel something on the swing. He gingerly ran to first base and was lifted from the game after a brief consultation from trainer Steve Donahue.
Manager Aaron Boone told reporters afterward that Judge was getting an MRI exam. Asked if Judge could avoid a trip to the injured list, Boone replied, “Probably not. No.”
New York began the game with 12 players on the injured list, including Giancarlo Stanton (strained left biceps), Gary Sanchez (strained left calf) and Luis Severino (right rotator cuff inflammation).
–The Cleveland Indians activated All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor from the 10-day injured list ahead of his team’s doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves and designated veteran Hanley Ramirez for assignment.
Lindor, who suffered a right calf strain before spring training play began and later sprained his left ankle, hit .417 with two home runs, a double and two RBIs in three games in a rehab stint with Triple-A Columbus.
Lindor is a career .288 hitter who delivered career bests with 38 home runs and 92 RBIs last season. The three-time All-Star finished second in the voting for Rookie of the Year in 2015. Ramirez was hitting just .184 with a double and two home runs in 49 at-bats this season.
–The Boston Red Sox placed right-hander Nathan Eovaldi on the 10-day injured list with a loose body in his right elbow, a move retroactive to Thursday.
The Red Sox called up left-hander Bobby Poyner from Triple-A Pawtucket in a corresponding move. They face the Rays in Tampa Bay on Saturday night.
Eovaldi has yet to get a decision and sports a 6.00 ERA in four starts this season, the first of a four-year deal he signed with Boston in the offseason. The 29-year-old was 6-7 with a 3.81 ERA in 22 games (21 starts) in 2018 but was 3-3 with a 3.33 ERA after being acquired by the Red Sox from Tampa Bay in late July and turned in a superb postseason for the eventual champions.
–A day after the New York Mets placed ace Jacob deGrom on the injured list, he threw in the outfield and told reporters he “felt completely normal.”
He played catch from 120 feet in the outfield at Busch Stadium in St. Louis and reported a positive outcome.
The team announced Friday that deGrom would undergo an MRI exam on Monday, but that is now up in the air, manager Mickey Callaway told reporters. DeGrom will meet with team medical director Dr. David Altchek in New York, who will make the call on the MRI.
–The Pittsburgh Pirates placed center fielder Starling Marte and shortstop Erik Gonzalez on the injured list, one day after the two were hurt in a fierce collision chasing after a pop fly.
Marte suffered a bruised abdominal wall while Gonzalez fractured his left clavicle in the collision during Friday’s win over San Francisco. Marte was placed on the 10-day IL and Gonzalez went on the 60-day IL.
Pittsburgh recalled shortstop Cole Tucker and outfielder Bryan Reynolds from Triple-A Indianapolis. Both players started Saturday’s game against the Giants in their major league debuts.
–Pitcher Gio Gonzalez opted out of his contract with the Yankees and intends to become a free agent, MLB.com reported.
Per the terms of Gonzalez’s contract, the Yankees have 48 hours to grant his release or add him to the roster. If he is put on the roster, Gonzalez will be paid a $3 million base salary, along with $300,000 per start.
In three starts at Triple A-Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, he as a 2-1 record with an ERA of 6.00.
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
FILE PHOTO: Feb 25, 2019; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22) looks on prior to facing the Chicago Cubs at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
April 12, 2019
Los Angeles ace Clayton Kershaw will make his first major league start of 2019 at home Monday against the Cincinnati Reds, the Dodgers announced Thursday.
The three-time Cy Young Award winner, working his way back after dealing with left shoulder inflammation during spring training, threw six innings on Tuesday night for Double-A Tulsa. He gave up five hits and two runs — both on home runs. He struck out six and walked none.
His first rehab start came on April 4 with Triple-A Oklahoma City, when he tossed 4 1/3 innings and allowed two runs on four hits, including a home run, with two walks and six strikeouts.
Last season, Kershaw finished with a 9-5 record and a 2.73 ERA in 26 starts for the Dodgers. In his 11-year career, the left-hander is 153-69 with a 2.39 ERA.
–The Atlanta Braves and 22-year-old second baseman Ozzie Albies agreed to a contract extension before an afternoon press conference officially announcing the deal.
The contract could be worth up to $35 million, per reports, and begins with the current season. Albies had been playing this season on a one-year deal worth $575,000.
Albies made the National League All-Star team in his first full season in 2018, when he batted .261 with 24 homers, 72 RBIs and 105 runs in 158 games. Albies entered Thursday night’s game against the New York Mets with a .364 average through 11 games.
–The Detroit Tigers activated outfielder JaCoby Jones from the injured list. Jones missed the start of the season after spraining an AC joint in his shoulder diving for a ball during a spring training game last month.
Jones, 26, one of the top defensive outfielders in the major leagues, appeared in 129 games for the Tigers last season and hit .207 with 11 home runs and 34 RBIs. He also collected 22 doubles.
The Tigers designated outfielder Mikie Mahtook for assignment. Mahtook was hitless in 23 at-bats this season.
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
Golf patrons enjoy drinks and snacks during the final day of practice for the 2019 Master golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, U.S., April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Mike Segar
April 11, 2019
By Frank Pingue
AUGUSTA Ga. (Reuters) – Augusta National patrons have proven for decades to be a different breed from fans at any other sporting event, providing a sort of golfing oasis for the world’s best players each year during the Masters.
At Augusta National, where the Masters began on Thursday after three heavily-attended practice days, one might have better luck booking a tee time at the exclusive course than finding anyone doing things like shouting out of line or using a cell phone.
Augusta National has essentially managed to maintain a remarkable sense of civility and respect among those attending the Masters, despite operating in a time where sporting events often produce excessive fan behavior.
“It’s quite refreshing to have everything in control,” said twice major champion Martin Kaymer of Germany. “You know what you are going to get here. It’s a very peaceful place.
“Everybody behaves perfectly fine, it’s very respectful and I think sometimes we miss that in sport. So that’s why it’s a good week to come to.”
Augusta National prides itself on tradition and while the club’s strictly-enforced rules may not make sense to everyone who attends the year’s biggest golfing event the list of no-nos are, for the most part, followed to a tee.
And so it is no surprise that the first page of the Masters Spectator Guide begins with a passage written by club co-founder Robert Jones in 1967 that addresses conduct, customs and etiquette.
“In golf, customs of etiquette and decorum are just as important as rules governing play,” Jones wrote, going on to add that “most distressing to those who love the game of golf is the applauding or cheering of misplays or misfortunes of a player.”
NO RUNNING
In many ways, Augusta National operates in a world of its own and has created an aura about itself that has appeared to permeate almost anyone who walks through its gates.
As such, you are unlikely to see people sprawled out on the course’s luscious grass, and if you do it will not be for long as they will quickly be asked to sit up properly. Running is also considered unacceptable.
“There’s something about Augusta National when someone walks through the gates, they know that it’s a place of respect, of beauty, and honoring traditions and values of the game,” said Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley.
“It’s something … I certainly hope never changes.”
One member of the media at this year’s Masters was asked to remove his New York Mets baseball cap while eating breakfast in the Press Building’s dining room.
Even 2018 Masters runner-up Rickie Fowler fell foul of the hat rule when, as a 22-year-old Masters rookie, he showed up to a 2011 news conference at Augusta National wearing his cap backwards until a club member asked him to turn it around.
When it comes to cell phones, they are prohibited on the course and violation of that rule will subject the ticket holder to removal from the grounds and the ticket purchaser to the permanent loss of credentials.
And gone are the random shouts of “mashed potato” directed at golfers the moment after hitting their tee shots during other PGA Tour events.
WELL-INFORMED PATRONS
At Augusta National, such behavior is mostly absent among a cast of spectators that competitors say are well-informed of the intricacies of the game, respective and reserved.
“If every week (on the PGA Tour) was like this week it would be awesome,” world number 10 Xander Schauffele told Reuters.
Those lucky enough to get tickets to the Masters do so not as a “fan” but as a “patron”, and while the difference in the two is mostly semantic it is one Augusta National is adamant about as it considers each attendee a valued customer.
So polite are the patrons that many arrive early to set up chairs at their preferred viewing areas and return hours later knowing their seat will still be there waiting for them.
“It’s a good thing,” former FedExCup champion Billy Horschel said when asked about what it is like knowing there will be little to no outside distraction while playing the Masters.
“Fans need to have fun but they need to understand that we are still trying to make a living for ourselves out here.”
(Reporting by Frank Pingue; Editing by Toby Davis)
Source: OANN
FILE PHOTO: Apr 8, 2019; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jon Lester (34) pitches during the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports
April 10, 2019
Chicago Cubs ace Jon Lester will be placed on the 10-day injured list Tuesday and miss “one, maybe two” starts with a hamstring strain, manager Joe Maddon announced Tuesday.
The left-hander got hurt while running the bases during the Cubs’ six-run second inning Monday in Chicago’s home opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He doubled home a run and later scored from second base on a single by Ben Zobrist.
“Sometimes when you have elite speed, these things can happen,” Lester said Tuesday in a tongue-in-cheek message on Twitter.
Lester, 35, is 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA in three starts this season. The five-time All-Star is 178-98 with a 3.49 ERA in 14 major league seasons.
–The Cleveland Indians placed right-handed starter Mike Clevinger on the 10-day injured list, but he will be out for much longer.
Clevinger sustained a right upper back/Teres major muscle strain during his Sunday start. Manager Terry Francona called the injury “fairly significant” and told reporters it could be six to eight weeks “before we’re even looking at him picking up a ball.”
Clevinger (1-0) has not allowed a run in two starts this season while striking out 22 in 12 innings. He left the Sunday game after five innings.
–Pittsburgh right-hander Chris Archer, Cincinnati outfielder Yasiel Puig and Reds manager David Bell received suspensions for their roles in a bench-clearing brawl Sunday.
Archer received a five-game suspension for intentionally throwing a fastball behind the back of Derek Dietrich during the fourth inning in Pittsburgh. In his first at-bat, Dietrich had dropped his bat and stood to admire his towering 436-foot home run.
Puig drew a two-game suspension for “his aggressive actions during the incident,” the league said in a statement. Bell, who raced onto the field to argue that Archer should have been ejected, received a one-game suspension for his actions.
–Former New York Mets outfielder Lenny Dykstra has sued ex-teammate Ron Darling, alleging defamation over comments Darling made about him in his new book.
TMZ Sports reported that the lawsuit was filed in New York. Dykstra wants Darling to pay damages for “defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
Darling has stood by an allegation he made in his book that Dykstra shouted racial slurs at Boston Red Sox pitcher Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd in the 1986 World Series. Darling wrote that the insults were “worse than anything Jackie Robinson might have heard.”
–The Boston Red Sox reinstated second baseman Dustin Pedroia from the injured list ahead of the team’s home opener against the Toronto Blue Jays.
The club optioned infielder Tzu-Wei Lin to make room for Pedroia on the active roster. Pedroia started and went 1-for-4.
Pedroia, 35, began the season on the IL while battling inflammation in his surgically repaired left knee. He played in just three games in 2018 with 13 plate appearances. Before Tuesday, his most recent major league game was May 29, 2018, against the Blue Jays.
–The Washington Nationals reached an agreement with right-handed reliever Bud Norris on a minor league deal, pending results of a physical, according to The Athletic.
Norris, 34, spent spring training with the Toronto Blue Jays, posting a 9.00 ERA in three innings before injuring his forearm and getting released on April 2.
Norris spent the 2018 season in the St. Louis Cardinals’ bullpen, going 3-6 with 28 saves and a 3.59 ERA in 64 appearances.
–A Texas woman has sued the Houston Astros for more than $1 million, contending her left index finger was injured permanently last summer when the team mascot shot a giveaway shirt in her direction using a “T-shirt cannon.”
Jennifer Harughty said she was sitting behind third base last July 8 when the mascot, Orbit, launched a T-shirt at close range, resulting in a broken finger.
“It was a life-changing event that I think if it happened to anybody else … they would feel the same way,” Harughty told KTRK-TV in Houston.
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
FILE PHOTO: Former Major League baseball player Lenny Dykstra appears in Los Angeles Superior Court for an arraignment in San Fernando, California August 8, 2011. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
April 9, 2019
Former New York Mets outfielder Lenny Dykstra has sued ex-teammate Ron Darling, alleging defamation over comments Darling made about him in his new book.
TMZ Sports reported Tuesday that the lawsuit was filed in New York. Dykstra wants Darling to pay damages for “defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
Dykstra, 56, also wants a judicial injunction to keep further copies of the book from being sold.
Darling has stood by an allegation he made in his book that Dykstra shouted racial slurs at Boston Red Sox pitcher Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd in the 1986 World Series.
“I heard what I heard and I put it in the book for a reason,” Darling said last week’s on ESPN’s “Golic and Wingo,” referring to his new book titled, “108 Stitches: Loose Threads, Ripping Yarns, and the Darndest Characters from My Time in the Game.”
In the book, released last week, Darling wrote that Dykstra was “shouting every imaginable and unimaginable insult and expletive in his (Boyd’s) direction — foul, racist, hateful, hurtful stuff” while in the on-deck circle. Further, Darling wrote that the insults were “worse than anything Jackie Robinson might have heard.”
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
FILE PHOTO: Mar 23, 2019; Lake Buena Vista, FL, USA; Atlanta Braves left fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (13) hits a solo home run against the New York Mets in the fifth inning at Champion Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
April 3, 2019
The Atlanta Braves and 21-year-old outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. have agreed to an eight-year, $100 million contract extension, the team announced Tuesday.
The deal begins this season and is the largest in history for a player with as little major league service time as Acuna has (165 days), according to the Braves. He also is believed to be the youngest player to receive a $100 million contract.
It also is the second-largest contract in franchise history, trailing the eight-year, $135 million deal for Freddie Freeman in 2014.
Acuna’s contract runs through 2026 and includes club options for 2027 and 2028, with ESPN and other outlets reporting that the options were worth $17 million each.
–The Toronto Blue Jays have agreed to a five-year, $52 million contract extension with outfielder Randal Grichuk, according to a report from Sportsnet.
The deal buys out three seasons of potential free agency and keeps Grichuk under contract through the 2023 season. Grichuk will receive a $5 million signing bonus as well as a salary increase from $5 million to $7 million in 2019. He is due to receive $12 million in 2020 and $9.3 million per year from 2021 through 2023.
The 27-year-old Grichuk is in his second season with the Blue Jays, who acquired him from the St. Louis Cardinals in January 2018 for right-handed reliever Dominic Leone and a minor-league prospect. Grichuk hit .245 with 25 home runs and 61 RBIs in 124 games in his first season with Toronto.
–The Blue Jays traded center fielder Kevin Pillar to the San Francisco Giants in return for right-handed pitchers Juan De Paula and Derek Law and infielder Alen Hanson.
Pillar is a career .260 hitter in 695 games, but his defense is first-rate, as a three-time Gold Glove finalist (2015, ’16, ’17) in center.
He signed a one-year, $5.8 million deal with the Blue Jays in January.
–The Colorado Rockies agreed with right-handed starter German Marquez on a five-year, $43 million contract extension, according to multiple reports.
Marquez, 24, was not yet arbitration-eligible but is now under contract through 2023. ESPN reports the deal includes a club option that could become a mutual option for 2024 if Marquez has two top-three finishes in Cy Young Award voting, with other escalators for top-five finishes.
The deal marks the second-largest guarantee for any pitcher with two or fewer years of service in the majors. Tampa Bay’s Blake Snell, who won the 2018 AL Cy Young Award, received a five-year, $50 million extension last month.
–Rockies infielder Daniel Murphy will be sidelined at least a month with a broken index finger, manager Bud Black told MLB Network Radio.
Murphy, who signed a two-year, $24 million contract with the Rockies in December, was injured in his second game with his new team. He was placed on the 10-day injured list Monday, his 34th birthday.
Black said the team is waiting on official word from a hand specialist, but an X-ray on Saturday revealed an avulsion fracture in Murphy’s left index finger.
–Former New York Mets pitcher Ron Darling stood by the allegation he made in his new book that Lenny Dykstra shouted racial slurs at a Boston Red Sox pitcher in the 1986 World Series.
Darling went on the ESPN radio show “Golic and Wingo” to reassert his claim that Dykstra, his former teammate, hurled racial insults at Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd prior to his first at-bat of Game 3 of the World Series.
“I heard what I heard and I put it in the book for a reason,” Darling said, referring to his new book titled, “108 Stitches: Loose Threads, Ripping Yarns, and the Darndest Characters from My Time in the Game.”
–Field Level Media
Source: OANN
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