May Makes MLB Debut
In the wake of the biceps injury to Ross Stripling, the Dodgers called upon minor league standout pitcher Dustin May to take the mound on Friday. With just five Triple-A appearances under his belt, the 21-year old righthander drew the Padres in his first go-around. May put together a solid effort but took the loss with 5 2/3 innings, allowing nine hits, eight of which were singles, four runs, three were earned, and no walks with three strikeouts. The final two runs came courtesy of the only extra base hit May surrendered, a two-out double by Josh Naylor on his 97th pitch of the game. May has flashed strikeout potential before, but it’s never been his strong suit with a minor league K% hovering in the low 20’s. May excels at keeping the ball in the park and keeping runners off of the base paths.
On the other side, Eric Lauer, looked sharp, tossing six innings of three-hit ball, allowing three runs, no walks, and six strikeouts. Lauer has consistently been inconsistent and is only worthy of a stream this late in the season. Wil Myers and Eric Hosmer would provide the offense for the Padres., both ending the night with three hits and an RBI.
Gleyber Lifts Yanks
After a brutal weekend series last week, the Yankees looked to rebound against their division rival, the Red Sox. The combination of Gleyber Torres’ hitting and James Paxton’s pitching proved to be the deciding factor in Friday’s matchup. Torres’ first-inning grand slam was all the run support that Paxton needed. Looking to find his groove, Paxton pitched six innings of two-run ball, while walking three and striking out six. The Big Maple was used his curveball more last night and is worth keeping an eye on going forward.
Eduardo Rodriguez continues to be one of the more frustrating pitchers to have rostered. Rodriguez struck out eight Yankees, but also issued six free passes. The takeaway from this start was Rodriguez was able to limit the damage to only that first-inning grand slam. Rodriguez continues to be among the league leaders in limiting hard contact and exit velocity allowed. These are signs pointing to something to hang our hats on.
Dahl Suffers a Brutal Injury
Finally, David Dahl was delivering on all the hype and seemed to be getting through a season unscathed. Unfortunately, the injury bug bit again, this time in gruesome fashion. Dahl twisted his right ankle sliding for a fly ball in the sixth inning, . The initial concern was a broken ankle, but reports say it’s just a severe sprain. The injury will likely put an end to Dahl’s 2019 fantasy season if not his MLB season. The Rockies seemed to use this moment as a rallying call. Ryan McMahon homered in the bottom of the inning and then Ian Desmond knocked in the go-ahead run in the seventh in Dahl’s place in the lineup. Both Desmond and McMahon are providing strong numbers this season.
Cleveland’s Improved Outfield Pays Off Immediately
In the wake of the Trevor Bauer/Yasiel Puig and Franmil Reyes trades, Cleveland’s new outfield looked to provide an immediate boost. Puig provided his new team with two hits and two RBI. Francisco Lindor had another multi-hit game, as did Jose Ramirez. Puig’s enthusiasm is a welcome addition to a clubhouse complementing Lindor and Ramirez. Suddenly, this offense looks more formidable with everyone likely to get boost in numbers Mike Clevinger was strong yet again, hurling 6 1/3 frames with one run, three hits, four walks, and eight strikeouts against the Mike Trout led Angels. He’s the ace of this staff now.
For the Angels, Trout hit his 36th home run and his 25th double. In surprising news, David Fletcher, with a league’s best 9.4% K%, had a no-contact night, fanning three times, showing just how dominant Clevinger was and how well he controlled the Angels lineup.
Wood Earns his First Win
Alex Wood made his second start for the Cincinnati Reds, building upon his initial outing. The southpaw pitched six and two-thirds innings with four hits (two solo home runs), two runs, one walk, and five strikeouts. Wood threw 60 of his 93 pitches for strikes, a key to his first win with the Reds. Joey Votto turned back the clock with two hits and three RBI. Unfortunately, the 2-for-3 night for Votto only raised his season batting average to .266. Raisel Iglesias tossed a scoreless ninth to earn his 21st save of the year.
It was the young bats of the Braves providing the offense. Both Ronald Acuna and Austin Riley blasted solo home runs. Braves pitcher Kevin Gausman may have pitched himself into a bullpen role after last nights effort. Gausman gave up all five runs in only four and two-thirds innings, allowing eight hits and two walks. Gausman did manage to strike out five batters in the effort. Acuna going yard isn’t anything new, however Riley’s homer came at a good time as he’s losing playing time to Ender inciarte and especially Adam Duvall. Friday night’s start was just the second in nine games for the rookie slugger. Despite Riley’s 17th long ball, Duvall remains the primary left fielder
News and Notes:
Nationals outright RHP, Justin Miller to Triple-A: Struggles plus the deadline acquisitions cost Miller his spot
Luis Severino (RHP, NYY), set to throw off a mound on Monday: The plan remains for Severino to return in September, slowly ramping up pitch count so he’s full strength for October.
Cardinals to activate OF Marcell Ozuna: Tyler O’Neil most likely to lose playing time
Rangers select contract of RHP Emmanuel Clase: Dark horse to close after11 saves for Double-A Frisco.
White Sox purchase contract of INF Matt Skole: Bench fodder
Nationals DFA LHP, Tony Sipp: Another casualty of the bullpen fortification
White Sox release INF Alcides Escobar: What took them so long?
Dodgers place RHP, Hyun-Jin Ryu on 10-day IL: Plan is to miss only one start
Rockies demote Wade Davis from closer role: What took them so long? Scott Oberg steps into 9th inning duties.
Ryon Healy (INF, SEA) to undergo season-ending hip surgery: Cross him off the list
Giants DFA 1B/OF Tyler Austin: Pablo Sandoval and Mike Yastrzemski rendered Austin expendable
Pirates DFA 3B Jung Ho Kang: Never got in a grove after coming back following personal issues
Indians place RHP, Danny Salazar and LHP Tyler Olson on 10-day IL, also release RHP Neil Ramirez and OF Trayce Thompson: Salazar didn’t look right, now we know why
Phillies place LHP Adam Morgan on 10-day IL: Club will miss his 19 holds in 29 2/3 innings
Angels DFA C Jonathan Lucroy: Still a strong defender, could latch on somewhere as a backup
Braves release LHP Luiz Gohara: Injuries plus a victim of a loaded system helped alleviate a 40-man roster crunch
Mariners select the contract of RHP Reggie McClain: not likely to close
Twins acquire OF Brandon Barnes from Indians: Righthanded hitter helps balance lefty-heavy outfield
Red Sox place RHP, Heath Hembree on IL: Tried to come back too soon last time
