The 2021 Major League Baseball Player Chatter, News and Fantasy Thread

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Musgrove has not been good his past few starts

[Chi_archie]

Ya I've noticed a lot of 1-0 and 2-0 games

as the weather gets warmer all around I think it will get back to norms

[stevenash]

as the weather gets warmer all around I think it will get back to norms

A lot of football scores yesterday though.

[JMobile]

Musgrove has not been good his past few starts

They usually never are after getting a no hitter

[Stallion]

George Springer possibly hurt for the Jays. Can't catch a break with this guy.

[BigSpoon]

Dodgers lose Dustin May for the year. Will undergo Tommy John surgery.

[EmpireMaker]

4:06pm: May will undergo Tommy John surgery, the Dodgers announced (Twitter link via Juan Toribio of MLB.com). He’ll miss the rest of this season and likely a sizable portion of the 2022 campaign.
2:44pm: Dodgers right-hander Dustin May left Saturday’s start in the second inning due to an arm injury, and the initial news isn’t good. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reports (Twitter link) that May has suffered some damage to his right UCL, and he and the “Dodgers will make [an] official decision on how to proceed in the next 24 hours.”
The worst-case scenario, of course, would be a Tommy John surgery that would keep May on the shelf for the next 13-15 months. Depending on the severity of the UCL damage, May could first opt to rest and rehab his elbow in an attempt to pitch through the discomfort — Masahiro Tanaka is probably the most well-known example of a pitcher who avoided TJ surgery and went on to pitch for years with little issue despite a tear in his UCL. That said, Tanaka is a rare case, and if May spends time rehabbing his elbow and then has to undergo a Tommy John procedure anyway, the added time could run him the risk of missing the entire 2022 campaign.
Regardless, it’s an all-around tough situation for a 23-year-old hurler who seemed to be on pace to be the Dodgers’ next great homegrown pitcher. A third-round pick in the 2016 draft, May was regarded as one of baseball’s best prospects during his time in the Los Angeles farm system, and he has a 2.93 ERA, 24.2% strikeout rate, and an impressive 5.9% walk rate over 113 2/3 innings in the big leagues. He has also logged 14 postseason innings, with 10 2/3 of those frames coming during the Dodgers’ run to the World Series last fall.
Los Angeles plans to have Tony Gonsolin step into May’s open rotation spot, though Gonsolin has yet to pitch this year due to shoulder inflammation, and will require an estimated 3-4 weeks to get fully ramped up. The Dodgers could make do with a four-man rotation until Gonsolin is ready, and David Price doesn’t appear to be a starting option since he is also still recovering from a hamstring strain.
With a starting four of Trevor Bauer, Clayton Kershaw, Julio Urias, and Walker Buehler, it’s hard to say the Dodgers are exactly hurting for rotation help. If May does indeed end up missing an extended amount of time, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the team sign an innings-eating veteran to a minor league deal in the short term, and L.A. could certainly eye a bigger-name hurler at the trade deadline.

[batt33]

Dodgers lose Dustin May for the year. Will undergo Tommy John surgery.

who are the dodgers going to throw money at now?

[jrgum3]

as the weather gets warmer all around I think it will get back to norms

Agreed a lot of players get off to slow starts due to the weather being colder in April than other months. I am banking on offense picking up as we head into the summer months because that's usually how baseball goes.

[EmpireMaker]

The Mets have fired hitting coach Chili Davis and assistant hitting coach Tom Slater, Tim Britton of The Athletic was among those to report. Minor league hitting coordinator Hugh Quattlebaum will take over for Davis, and farm director Kevin Howard will succeed Slater.
New York made this decision in the wake of a 6-5 loss to St. Louis that dropped the team to a disappointing 11-12. A mediocre offensive performance has played a role in the Mets’ slow start, as their hitters currently rank 17th in the majors in wRC+ (96). Prized offseason pickup Francisco Lindor, whom the Mets acquired from the Indians and then signed to a 10-year, $341MM extension, has slumped over the Mets’ first 23 games. Likewise, outfielder/first baseman Dominic Smith has fallen flat after an excellent showing in 2020, as has $40MM free-agent signing James McCann.
Of course, it’s debatable how much blame Davis and Slater deserve for the above players’ struggles. It’s also worth noting J.D. Davis (who went on the 10-day injured list Monday), Brandon Nimmo and Pete Alonso have all gotten off to great starts. Regardless, the Mets are taking their coaching staff in another direction in hopes of breaking a four-year playoff drought.
In Davis, the Mets are saying goodbye to a former big league slugger whom they hired before 2019, when Mickey Callaway – not Luis Rojas – was their manager. Prior to that, Davis worked as the hitting coach for the Cubs, who relieved him of duties after the 2018 campaign. Slater joined the Mets’ staff as their assistant hitting coach a year earlier than Davis.

[Cross]

Offense will probably get a bit better, but pitchers still bending them over these days.

[Chi_archie]

The Mets have fired hitting coach Chili Davis and assistant hitting coach Tom Slater, Tim Britton of The Athletic was among those to report. Minor league hitting coordinator Hugh Quattlebaum will take over for Davis, and farm director Kevin Howard will succeed Slater.
New York made this decision in the wake of a 6-5 loss to St. Louis that dropped the team to a disappointing 11-12. A mediocre offensive performance has played a role in the Mets’ slow start, as their hitters currently rank 17th in the majors in wRC+ (96). Prized offseason pickup Francisco Lindor, whom the Mets acquired from the Indians and then signed to a 10-year, $341MM extension, has slumped over the Mets’ first 23 games. Likewise, outfielder/first baseman Dominic Smith has fallen flat after an excellent showing in 2020, as has $40MM free-agent signing James McCann.
Of course, it’s debatable how much blame Davis and Slater deserve for the above players’ struggles. It’s also worth noting J.D. Davis (who went on the 10-day injured list Monday), Brandon Nimmo and Pete Alonso have all gotten off to great starts. Regardless, the Mets are taking their coaching staff in another direction in hopes of breaking a four-year playoff drought.
In Davis, the Mets are saying goodbye to a former big league slugger whom they hired before 2019, when Mickey Callaway – not Luis Rojas – was their manager. Prior to that, Davis worked as the hitting coach for the Cubs, who relieved him of duties after the 2018 campaign. Slater joined the Mets’ staff as their assistant hitting coach a year earlier than Davis.

See ya Chili

[stevenash]

See ya Chili

I always liked Chili the personality from Jamaica and all but it's beyond me why they'd hire a guy who stuck out 100 times a year as a player even before staking out 100 times a year was considered normal.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Padres pitching has been really good and the offense very spotty.

[stevenash]

Padres pitching has been really good and the offense very spotty.

And next week the pitching will be spotty and the offense very good.
Happens to all teams in a 162 game season.

... and my Royals are coming back down to Earth.

[JMobile]

My boy Kershaw getting wrecked by the Cubbies

[stevenash]

My boy Kershaw getting wrecked by the Cubbies

He's not automatic anymore.
He's still going to the Hall though.

[jrgum3]

I always liked Chili the personality from Jamaica and all but it's beyond me why they'd hire a guy who stuck out 100 times a year as a player even before staking out 100 times a year was considered normal.

I remember when Chili played for the Giants when I was a kid. Seems I remember him being an average ballplayer but I guess he was good enough to get a job as a hitting coach go figure.

[stevenash]

I remember when Chili played for the Giants when I was a kid. Seems I remember him not being an average ballplayer but I guess he was good enough to get a job as a hitting coach go figure.

What's the old adage?
"Those who can do, those who can't teach"

[batt33]

I remember when Chili played for the Giants when I was a kid. Seems I remember him being an average ballplayer but I guess he was good enough to get a job as a hitting coach go figure.

I remember when he signed my fresno giants baseball program.......

[Stallion]

Kershaw isn't what he once was. His wife is kinda hot though.

[Otters27]

Any former pitchers here?

I used to rage when the coaches didn't pitch me when I thought I should have. Anybody else have this experience? How'd you handle it?

[jrgum3]

Ugh I hate 7 inning double headers. Granted the Giants should've still swept the double header against the Rockies today but no lead is ever safe in Coors Field especially not a 4 run lead with a shaky closer on the mound. Tough pill to swallow and frustrating as hell especially when your closest division rivals all lost today or in the case of the Padres are currently trailing.

[Cross]

Huge double header sweep for Cubs, back on the bandwagon for now. KB the MVP!!

[mr. leisure]

Huge double header sweep for Cubs, back on the bandwagon for now. KB the MVP!!

Really enjoyed seeing Dodgers lose both games of that twin bill .

[jrgum3]

Huge double header sweep for Cubs, back on the bandwagon for now. KB the MVP!!

The fact that the Cubbies swept the Dodgers makes the Giants splitting with the Rockies a little more tolerable. Would've liked to get the sweep but a blowup inning in Coors Field was bound to happen as it always seems to for the Giants when they go to Denver no matter how good the Rockies are.

[EmpireMaker]

Brewers are sending outfielder Christian Yelich to the 10-day injured list, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com tweets. Yelich is continuing to deal with a back issue. Milwaukee announced that it has recalled outfielder Tyrone Taylor to take Yelich’s spot. Yelich just returned Monday after missing three-plus weeks because of his ailing back, and he picked up two hits in a loss to the Phillies. However, manager Craig Counsell said Tuesday that Yelich “doesn’t feel good,” per Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The Brewers haven’t found anything serious in an MRI, but Counsell noted that there is “something else we haven’t diagnosed.” The team’s goal is “to completely resolve this,” Counsell added.

The Brewers have gone through most of the season without the former MVP, who has played in 10 games, totaled 41 plate appearances and batted .353/.463/.382. So far, though, they’ve overcome his absence (and a slew of other injuries) en route to a 17-12 record – good for a first-place tie with the Cardinals in the National League Central. Of course, that doesn’t mean the Brewers will continue to succeed without Yelich, especially considering most of their other outfielders have posted average or much worse numbers.

[stevenash]

Any former pitchers here?

I used to rage when the coaches didn't pitch me when I thought I should have. Anybody else have this experience? How'd you handle it?

Former catcher checking in.
Our input to the bench and pitching coaches factor in to the decision as to whether a pitcher stays in the game or if he's shot.

As to starting on four or five days rest that's all on the coaches.

[Chi_archie]

Any former pitchers here?

I used to rage when the coaches didn't pitch me when I thought I should have. Anybody else have this experience? How'd you handle it?

yes, drank behind the dugout

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Huge double header sweep for Cubs, back on the bandwagon for now. KB the MVP!!

Nice sweep, thank you!

KB will be traded sooner than later I'm guessing.

[JMobile]

Kershaw isn't what he once was. His wife is kinda hot though.

Jose Lima's wife was smoking. Nice rack too

[batt33]

Really enjoyed seeing Dodgers lose both games of that twin bill .

That was pretty sweet!!

[Stallion]

George Springer on the 10 day DL.

[jrgum3]

Beautiful comeback by the Cubs all with 2 outs in the Bottom of the 11th. Dodgers bullpen is a dumpster fire right now but credit the Cubs for never giving up and finding a way to get it done in extra innings today. Go Cubs Go!

[EmpireMaker]

The Blue Jays are placing George Springer back on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to May 3, with a right quad strain (via Shi Davidi of Sportsnet). The star center fielder reaggravated the same injury that kept him out for almost all of April. It’s unclear how long the team expects him to be sidelined this time around, but Springer was sent for an MRI earlier today, per Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star (Twitter link). In a corresponding move, Jonathan Davis has been recalled from Triple-A Buffalo.
It’s tough to imagine a worse start to Springer’s tenure in Toronto. The 31-year-old strained an oblique in Spring Training. On the cusp of returning from that injury, he suffered the aforementioned first quad strain. The quad delayed his regular season debut by a few weeks, and it’s causing him issue yet again.
Altogether, the series of injuries has limited Springer to 18 plate appearances in four games. That’s certainly not what he or the Jays imagined when he signed the offseason’s biggest free agent guarantee (six years, $150MM) over the winter. While Springer went on the IL each season from 2017-19, those absences generally didn’t keep him out long. He tallied 550+ plate appearances every year from 2016-19 and avoided the IL in 2020, playing in 51 of a possible 60 games. Of course, Springer earned that massive contract with an extended run of productivity, hitting .273/.363/.500 (135 wRC+) over his final five seasons with the Astros.
With Springer out for the season’s first month, the Jays turned to Randal Grichuk and Davis to cover center field. Grichuk, who has hit a strong .287/.330/.475, is likely in line for the lion’s share of playing time there yet again. Davis got off to a dreadful start to the year before being optioned after Springer came off the IL last week.