Tag Archives: MLB

Clayton Kershaw injury big blow to Dodgers

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Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw is being placed on the injured list due to an injury suffered on Tuesday.

This is not how the Los Angeles Dodgers wanted to start their season. Clayton Kershaw suffered an injury on Tuesday and is being placed on the injured list.

There is not a timetable for Kershaw’s return. Dustin May has been recalled to take the spot vacated by Clayton Kershaw in the pitching rotation. May was optioned on Thursday, but will have some big shoes to fill. While May doesn’t have to pitch to the level of Kershaw, there will be high expectations for the highly regarded 22-year old right hander.

The Dodgers have seen a lot of change in their pitching rotation since the end of last season. Hyun-Jin Ryu is now in Toronto with the Blue Jays and David Price already opted out of this season. Los Angeles still has Walker Buehler, but the other pitchers in their rotation will have a bit more pressure on them to perform. Julio Urias, Alex Wood, and Ross Stripling will have to step up if the Dodgers are going to live up to the lofty expectations they have this season.

Cleveland Baseball Club to host Royals to begin season

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The Cleveland Baseball Club is set to begin the 2020 season at home as they host the Kansas City Royals for a three game set.

It’s finally here, the 2020 MLB season is starting and the Cleveland Baseball Club are getting ready to face the Kansas City Royals at home. While the Royals do not figure to be the most competitive team, they are a club that can give even the best teams headaches. The top of their lineup has the ability to hit fairly well and has speed to burn. Adalberto Mondesi and Whit Merrifield combined for 63 stolen bases last season. Merrifield may be over 30 now, but he still has the ability to steal bases and force the pitcher to pay attention to him. Cleveland will have to be careful when either of these two get on base.

Cleveland’s pitching staff will feature Shane Bieber, Mike Clevvienger, and Carlos Carrasco when facing Kansas City. The Royals are slotted to start Danny Duffy and Brady Singer with their third pitcher TBA.

Duffy has been hit around a lot by Cleveland with a 5.48 ERA, 1.590 WHIP in 21 games (17 starts). There is the potential that Cleveland’s lineup could take advantage of him yet again on Friday night. There are plenty of switch-hitting and right-handed bats in the lineup that could add to the 13 home runs that Duffy has surrendered to Cleveland batters in the past.

Bieber does not have a great history when facing Kansas City (5.22 ERA and 1.466 WHIP in five games), but he is 3-0 in his career.

Clevinger has been absolutely dominant when facing the Royals. “Sunshine” has a 1.93 ERA and 1.031 in 13 appearances (12 starts) with a 9-0 record.

Carrasco has the most experience facing KC and he has been able to pitch fairly well in his 25 appearances (20 starts) with a 3.90 ERA, 1.243 WHIP, and a 11-7 record.

The games will take place at Progressive Field on the following dates and times.

Friday July 24 7:10 P.M.
Saturday July 25 5:10 P.M.
Sunday July 26 1:10 P.M.

Pittsburgh “off the table” for Blue Jays

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It appears that the Toronto Blue Jays will not be playing their home games at PNC Park this season and right now they are homeless.

Well, things changed rather quickly. Despite an earlier report that PNC Park in Pittsburgh would be the home of the Toronto Blue Jays this season, it appears that is now off the table. ESPN’s Buster Olney reported the news Wednesday afternoon.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health did not approve of the plan.

The possibility of Toronto having to play all of their games on the road this season is very real and would be exhausting. While half of their games they would be the home team, having to adapt to a new city every few days and not having some sort of makeshift home facility is not ideal.

The MLB season starts on Thursday and the Toronto Blue Jays are homeless.

Cleveland options three players

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The Cleveland Baseball Club has optioned Jake Bauers, James Hoyt, and Jefry Rodriguez to their alternative training site.

After the Cleveland Baseball Club set their rotation Tuesday it was only a matter of time before the rest of the roster would take shape. The club has made three roster moves before the Opening Day roster deadline.

Jake Bauers, James Hoyt, and Jefry Rodriguez will all head to the alternative training site. The moves with Hoyt and Rodriguez are hardly surprising considering the rotation being set and the bullpen is what it is right now.

Jake Bauers’ future with the team is questionable right now. The reemergence of Bradley Zimmer takes an outfield and left-handed bat spot out of the mix for Bauers. Tyler Naquin is also another player who takes playing time away from Bauers and seems to regained a prominent role. The rest of the outfield are right-handed hitters and that does not really impact Bauers all that much.

The key for Cleveland’s outfield is health. While it is encouraging to see the likes of Bradley Zimmer and Tyler Naquin playing well in Summer Camp, they do have a lengthy injury history. If either player were to go down with an injury it would provide Jake Bauers an opportunity to redeem himself. Until then all he can do is keep working and improve his game. Bauers is still young enough that he can be an impactful player somewhere down the line, he just might have to wait a little bit longer for an everyday chance.

Blue Jays to play “home” games in Pittsburgh

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The Toronto Blue Jays will be sharing PNC Park in Pittsburgh with the Pirates for their “home” games this season as Toronto is not an option.

After a few days of uncertainty the Toronto Blue Jays have a ballpark to call home for the 2020 season. PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

Toronto was no longer an option after the Canadian government told the club and Major League Baseball that games were not going to be permitted to take place at Rogers Centre. Buffalo and Baltimore were discussed as options, but it is Pittsburgh where the Blue Jays will play the majority of their home games this season. There are two times when they will not play a home game in Pittsburgh. Toronto will be the “home team” when facing the Yankees and Nationals in their stadium due to the Pirates having priority over the Blue Jays at PNC Park.

While the stadium problem is solved, it does present a new issue. Part of the reason for the way the season was constructed was to limit the players/teams contact with each other. Now more teams than initially planned will make trips to the same stadium, calling into question the integrity of the season they are about to embark upon. Ensuring that everyone involved in this season is safe will now be a much larger endeavor than previously imagined which could present more difficulties they may not be adequately prepared for.

Cleveland needs to commit to a name change

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It is time for the Cleveland Baseball Club to commit to a name change and put their current moniker in the rearview mirror.

It has been almost three weeks since the Cleveland Baseball Club tweeted that they are evaluating their team name.

Since then it’s been relatively quiet on the corner of Carnegie and Ontario. Outside of a few reports and stories popping every once in a while about internal discussions, there has not been a commitment from the team to state what they are doing with the name. It is time to commit to changing their name.

Only discussions about a possible change are happening. There is not a commitment from ownership stating their intentions to change the name.

The Washington Football Team has committed to a change since announcing their evaluation of their name. Their evaluation began just before Cleveland’s and their commitment to a new name has come since. Only crickets can be heard in Cleveland in regards to their process.

While there are difficulties considering the MLB season is set to begin soon, there are ways around it. Cleveland has two sets of uniforms that simply say “Cleveland’ on them that they could use. This would allow them to retire their name while continuing the process of finding and trademarking a new name. Is this a perfect solution? No, but it provides a way to distance themselves from a racially insensitive name and at the same time not have to attempt an impossible overnight overhaul.

Cleveland rounds out rotation with Civale, Plesac

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The Cleveland Baseball Club has rounded out their rotation going with Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac for the fourth and fifth spots.

Rotation candidate Adam Plutko will start out in the bullpen as the club will only use a five man rotation after considering a six man option. 

This is absolutely the right call. Not only is there much more upside with Civale and Plesac, they’re both significantly better than Plutko. Plutko seems best suited for the bullpen as he can come in mop up duty either way. Whether Cleveland is up big or down a ton, Plutko can eat innings to preserve some of their more valuable arms. 

If either one of Civale or Plesac falter or suffer an injury, Plutko would be someone on the shortlist to be in the mix to join the rotation. Plutko has experience in that role and is someone that Terry Francona trusts, a factor that should be heavily considered if a replacement is needed. 

While the rotation is set, the club has not decided exactly how many pitchers they will carry to start the year.

Cleveland has one more exhibition game with Pittsburgh before the regular season starts and that could impact when it comes to finalizing the roster. 

Former Cleveland pitcher Bryan Shaw to Seattle

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Former Cleveland Baseball Club reliever Bryan Shaw is heading to the Seattle Mariners after the Colorado Rockies decided to part ways.

After two seasons in Colorado Bryan Shaw will have a new home. Shaw is expected to be heading to Seattle to join the Mariners per Jon Heyman. Shaw signed with the Rockies after the 2017 season on a three-year deal worth $27 million.

The former Cleveland Baseball Club reliever was a key bullpen arm for five seasons. Shaw appeared in 378 games while in Cleveland and finished with a 3.11 ERA, 1.188 WHIP, and 8.4 K/9. Shaw became a go-to guy for Terry Francona during his tenure with the club. When Tito needed to navigate a situation late in the game, more often than not Shaw was the guy. The only season in which Shaw did not lead Cleveland in appearances was his first in 2013. Cody Allen had 77 appearances while Shaw was tied with Joe Smith with 70. Shaw led MLB in appearances twice with 80 in 2014 and 79 in 2017 and also led the American League with 75 in 2016.

Bradley Zimmer is staking his claim for playing time

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Cleveland Baseball Club outfielder Bradley Zimmer is making the most of what may have been his last chance to make an impact in Cleveland.

This season was going to be make or break year for Bradley Zimmer in Cleveland. Zimmer has only appeared in 43 games over the past two seasons and Cleveland has added several outfielders into the mix which could have been the end of his time with the club. A resurgent Zimmer with his new batting stance and a productive summer camp has perhaps given him a second chance.

Bradley Zimmer went 2-3 in Monday’s exhibition with Pittsburgh which saw Cleveland win by a score of 11-7. Zimmer drove in a run during the 4th inning after doubling and scoring earlier in the game.

It is worth mentioning that this is not a one off performance from Zimmer. The former first round selection has been on a power tear during this restart, blasting two home runs in a scrimmage just. a few days ago.

There is one more exhibition game between Cleveland and Pittsburgh before the season starts and Bradley Zimmer has definitely earned some playing time. Exactly how much that is the mystery. If Zimmer can keep up the production at the plate, he could play a prominent role this season. The key for Zimmer will be to avoid a slump and this goes without saying, the injury bug. If that happens it could be quite the comeback story for Bradley Zimmer in Cleveland.

Cleveland Baseball Club sets top of rotation

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The Cleveland Baseball Club has set the top of their rotation for the upcoming season, going with Shane Bieber, Mike Clevinger, and Carlos Carrasco.

There is a bit more clarity when it comes to the rotation for the Cleveland Baseball Club. Zack Meisel of The Athletic has reported who will be in the top of the rotation and the order.

Terry Francona has decided to go with Shane Bieber, Mike Clevinger, and Carlos Carrasco for the first three spots in the rotation. Meisel also noted that the team is yet to decide whether they will go with a five or six man rotation.

Tito is sticking with Shane Bieber as his Opening Day starter. Bieber was given the nod back in March shortly after the injury to Mike Clevinger and Fracona has decided to stick with his previous decision.

The 1-2 punch of Bieber and Clevinger is one of the best in baseball. The duo of Bieber and Clevinger have the ability to go toe-to-toe with anyone in the league. Carlos Carrasco going third is not a bad third option at all. Carrasco has shown the ability to be an excellent and consistent pitcher in the past. A return to his 2014-2018 form would go a long way for Cleveland. Additionally, it would take pressure off the fourth, fifth, and possibly sixth spots in the rotation.

If Cleveland can just get something closely resembling that it would go quite a long way. It could mean that their first three starters could be one of the best going in baseball this season. A possibility that would make a world of difference in a 60-game sprint.