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St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn was forced to leave Saturday’s game against the San Francisco Giants after rolling his right ankle while fielding a ground ball, according to Bay Area News Group’s Andrew Baggarly. 

Continue for updates. 

Lynn Walks Off on His Own Power

Saturday, August 29

The St. Louis hurler headed for the dugout in the eighth inning and was replaced by relief pitcher Randy Choate, but it was quite encouraging that he was able to walk off the field after crumbling to the ground, as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch‘s Derrick Goold observed: 

MLB.com provided video here showing how the injury occurred.

Per Baggarly, Lynn’s ankle sprain is being described as mild. Jennifer Langosch of MLB.com reported Lynn is optimistic he’ll be able to make his next start due to very little swelling in his ankle and being able to walk without a limp.

Prior to departing the National League clash, Lynn was pitching a six-hit shutout. Had he held the Giants scoreless, it would have been his first shutout of the season and the second of his career, per Goold.

Entering Saturday afternoon, Lynn was 10-8 with a 2.94 ERA and 1.34 WHIP. But after going 3-1 in July, Lynn’s August has been a mixed bag. Prior to going down with the ankle injury, the 28-year-old was 2-3 in August with a 4.07 ERA that ranked as his worst in any month this season. 

While Lynn isn’t regarded as a full-fledged ace just yet, the Cardinals (82-46) will need him healthy as they seek to capture a third straight NL Central crown and make yet another deep postseason run. 

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Fan safety at MLB games has been under the microscope lately, and legal action from a Fenway Park attendee is set to intensify discussion about the issue.

According to the Boston Globe‘s Travis Andersen, Stephanie Taubin is suing Boston Red Sox owner John Henry after she was struck by a foul ball last season while sitting above home plate.

Per Andersen, Taubin was sitting in a section that was undergoing renovations, and as a result, protective glass designed to prevent airborne objects from striking fans was not in its usual place. According to court documents filed by Taubin, the absence of glass left her seating “at greater risk of foul balls entering that [section] of Fenway Park.”

In a statement provided to the Boston Globe, the franchise reiterated that “the safety of Red Sox fans and providing a quality ballpark experience are essential to the Red Sox, and to Mr. Henry, and are goals for which we strive as an organization to deliver.”

While the monetary components of Taubin’s suit against Henry have yet to be reported, her filing comes at a time when MLB franchises are starting to examine the merits of enhanced protective measures for fans.

Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reported Wednesday the Philadelphia Phillies are interested in installing more protective netting, although plans have yet to be finalized.

The lawsuit comes on the heels of a similar incident at Fenway Park back in June. According to the Boston Globe, a woman was injured when the bat of Oakland A’s third baseman Brett Lawrie shattered and struck her in the head.

While her injuries were originally believed to be “life-threatening,” according to the Boston Globe, the woman was released from the hospital and underwent an “excellent” recovery, per the Associated Press (via Fox Sports).  

Sweeping measures have yet to be enacted to combat the issue, but Rosenthal reported MLB is “working diligently” on viable improvements to fan safety across the league, according to league spokesman Pat Courtney.

It appears the league is taking positive steps toward the protection of its fans with the postseason approaching.   

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Washington Nationals outfielder Michael Taylor was forced to leave Thursday’s game against the San Diego Padres with a right knee contusion, per the team.

He will not play in Friday’s game vs. the Marlins, per Jacob Emert of MLB.com.

Continue for updates. 

Taylor Collides with Outfield Wall

Thursday, August 27

Taylor attempted to make a leaping catch in center field to no avail in the top of the seventh inning Thursday night and eventually left the field with the assistance of a trainer and fellow outfielder Jayson Werth. 

MLB.com relayed video of the collision: 

With the center fielder knocked out, Werth shifted to right field, Bryce Harper moved to center, and Danny Espinosa went from second base to left field. Trea Turner replaced Espinosa at second.

Prior to exiting Thursday’s contest, Taylor had gone 0-for-2 at the plate with a walk and a strikeout. Entering the night, he was batting .241 with 13 home runs and 55 RBI. But in August, he’s batted just .238 with a .297 on-base percentage.  

With Tyler Moore already on the disabled list with a left ankle sprain and Denard Span “unlikely to return this season” as he heads to the DL with left hip inflammation, per Zuckerman, the Nationals are quickly running out of depth in the outfield.    

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In the midst of a playoff push, the Chicago Cubs are looking to bolster their bullpen by any means necessary. 

According to the Seattle Mariners’ public relations Twitter account, the Cubs acquired reliever Fernando Rodney from the Mariners on Thursday in exchange for cash considerations. 

CSN Chicago’s Patrick Mooney reported Rodney is expected to join the Cubs Friday night when they square off against the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

The Mariners designated Rodney for assignment on Aug. 23, which opened up a 10-day period during which the reliever could be traded.

“It’s tough,” Seattle manager Lloyd McClendon said after designating Rodney, according to ESPN.com. “You are connected to players and you want them to do good. And it’s very unfortunate when you have to tell them you are making a change. It’s never easy.”

Rodney has appeared in 54 games during the 2015 season, but he’s regressed harshly after tying a career-high with 48 saves while posting a 2.85 ERA during the 2014 season.

At 38 years old, Rodney has recorded just 16 saves while blowing six and posting a 5-5 record. His ERA has also ballooned to 5.68—the highest mark he’s tallied since 2003 (6.07). 

Despite Rodney’s struggles, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick noted Rodney’s familiarity with Chicago manager Joe Maddon could spark a revival: 

Rodney and Maddon spent time together with the Tampa Bay Rays during the 2012 and 2013 seasons. 

And while the two-time All-Star has been struggling mightily, it can’t hurt the Cubs to take a low-risk flier on a short-term rental. According to Spotrac, Rodney is earning $7 million in the final year of his deal.  

To date, Cubs relievers rank sixth in the NL with a 3.47 ERA and seventh with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 2.75. Those numbers are hardly poor, but Chicago is in a position where it can try to buy low and resurrect Rodney’s season with some middle-relief opportunities.

Save situations will likely be out of the question, but new surroundings could help stabilize Rodney’s numbers a bit as the Cubs seek to clinch their first postseason berth since 2008.  

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Boston Red Sox left fielder Hanley Ramirez has underwhelmed on defense all season long, and a positional change appears to be in the works as a result of some glaring deficiencies. 

According to the Boston Globe‘s Pete Abraham, Red Sox interim manager Torey Lovullo told reporters it’s a “possibility” Ramirez will play first base by season’s end. 

“He’ll play in a game if he’s ready,” Lovullo said, according to MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “We’re not going to rush this. He’s going to continue to play left field for us.”

However, Ramirez sounded more definitive regarding a move to first base, according to the Boston Herald‘s Michael Silverman: 

MassLive.com’s Jen McCaffrey passed along a glimpse of Ramirez taking reps at first base prior to Tuesday’s game against the Chicago White Sox:

Should Ramirez move to first base, Rusney Castillo is a prime candidate to take over as the team’s everyday left fielder.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he played there at some point before the season is over,” Lovullo said of Castillo, per the Boston Herald‘s Scott Lauber. “Stay tuned.”

According to Baseball-Reference.com, Ramirez is in the midst of his worst defensive season since entering the league in 2005. Entering Tuesday night, the 31-year-old has accrued minus-2.5 defensive wins above replacement. If he sustains that pace, it would mark the second time Ramirez has posted a dWAR lower than minus-two. The other came in 2007.  

While Ramirez made his name as a shortstop with the Florida—turned Miami—Marlins, he’s appeared in 91 games in left field and just one at third base this season for the Red Sox. 

And while he’s disappointed in left, the Boston Globe‘s Nick Cafardo cautioned that a move to first base could hurt Ramirez’s stock even more. 

“The problem is, he doesn’t work hard on his defense, according to team sources,” Cafardo wrote. “The one time he did work was in spring training, when he was out before and after practice and games.”

But considering Ramirez is in just the first year of a four-year deal that will pay out $88 million guaranteed, per Spotrac, Boston may have no choice but to try to slide Ramirez into the infield as a way to save his value.

With a .254 batting average further hurting Ramirez’s cause, the Red Sox need to hold out hope that a positional overhaul will offer the three-time All-Star a clean slate in the years ahead.

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Mike Fiers hasn’t been with the Houston Astros long, but new surroundings didn’t prevent him from settling into a groove and earning his first win with the franchise in style. 

In Houston’s 3-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday at Minute Maid Park, Fiers tossed the 11th no-hitter in Astros franchise history and the first by a single pitcher since Darryl Kile did so in 1993, per ESPN Stats & Info. 

MLB.com relayed video of the achievement: 

Fiers joined Chris Heston, Max Scherzer, Cole Hamels and Hisashi Iwakuma as the only players to notch no-hitters this season: 

Fiers totaled 10 strikeouts and three walks while tossing 134 pitches—including 120 over the game’s first eight innings. To put that number in perspective, Fiers had totaled fewer than 100 pitches in 15 of his 24 starts entering Friday night. 

According to ESPN Stats & Info, it was the first time in Fiers’ career that he brought a start into the ninth inning.    

“I’ve gone through my ups and downs in this game and in life and, man, just to stick with it and to get to this point,” Fiers said, according to the Houston Chronicle‘s Jose de Jesus Ortiz. “I’m sure there are a lot of people who have doubted me my whole life and a lot of people who stood by my side and are still by my side right now. I love my family and I love my friends. It’s good to do it for them.”

ESPN Stats & Info also put the accomplishment into perspective:

Perhaps most impressive was that Fiers, acquired along with Carlos Gomez on July 30, accomplished the feat against a high-powered Dodgers offense that entered the night with an NL-best 148 home runs and fifth-ranked 502 runs. 

Fiers’ lack of overpowering velocity also made the no-hitter special, as Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan observed: 

Now the 30-year-old will look to build on his momentum and keep the victories coming as the Astros seek to capture their first-ever AL West crown and first division title since winning the NL Central in 2001. 

And with Fiers pitching alongside Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh on an Astros staff that leads the AL in earned run average, that drought may very well come to an end soon.  

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Oakland A’s first baseman Ike Davis has been diagnosed with a torn hip labrum and is slated to undergo surgery, according to the San Francisco Chronicle‘s Susan Slusser. 

Continue for updates.

Davis Out for the Season

Friday, August 21

The A’s placed Davis on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday with a strained left hip, but a more thorough examination of the first baseman’s nagging problem resulted in a more serious diagnosis.  

According to the Sacramento Bee‘s Matt Kawahara, Davis is slated to undergo surgery Thursday, August 27. 

The 28-year-old’s first season in Oakland has been marred by injuries. In addition to the season-ending hip surgery, Davis missed more than a month with a strained left quad. 

Davis returned to the field on June 19, but he’s struggled mightily at the plate ever since. After batting .233 during nine games in June, Davis posted a putrid average of .152 in July before ticking that mark up to .171 in August. 

As Davis heads for the operating table, Mark Canha is in line to draw the lion’s share of the starts at first base. So far this season, Canha is batting .253, with nine home runs and 41 RBI. 

With his season over, Davis will wrap up the year having batted .229 with three home runs, 20 RBI and a .301 on-base percentage. 

Now the A’s will be left to discuss whether they should invest in Davis long term. 

“Davis is making $3.8 million this season, so it’s tough to imagine the A’s wanting to keep him for a similar salary via the arbitration process next year,” NBC Sports’ Aaron Gleeman wrote. “He might be done in Oakland.”

With his future hanging in the balance, Davis has plenty to ponder as he gets set to rehabilitate and watch his teammates try to climb out of the AL West cellar. 

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Texas Rangers left fielder Josh Hamilton hasn’t been able to work his way into a consistent rhythm during the 2015 season because of a string of injuries, and left knee inflammation will hinder him this time around, as it landed him on the 15-day disabled list on Aug. 20.

Continue for updates. 

Hamilton DL-Bound with Knee Issue

Thursday, Aug. 20

Rangers Vice President of Communications John Blake announced the team had called up Will Venable to take Hamilton’s spot on the roster.

According to MLB.com‘s T.R. Sullivan, the Rangers scratched Hamilton from an Aug. 12 showdown with the Minnesota Twins because of left knee soreness. It was just the third game he had missed since July 5. 

However, he was plagued by a hamstring injury earlier in the season that forced him to miss all but one game in June.    

And although he remained healthy in July, Hamilton struggled mightily at the plate, batting .227 with two home runs and nine RBI during that 20-game stretch. An 0-for-9 stretch that spanned July 11-17 and a 2-for-14 showing between July 20-22 represented the low points of his season at the plate. 

Through 38 appearances, the 2010 AL MVP is batting .254 with six home runs and 21 RBI. 

A year removed from appearing in just 89 games because of a variety of injuries—including shoulder, chest and rib ailments—Hamilton hasn’t been able to catch breaks conducive to providing efficient offerings at the plate.

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With the exception of a broken jaw suffered in 2013, St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Jason Heyward has been fairly durable since making his MLB debut in 2010. However, he left Monday’s game against the San Francisco Giants after the second inning with a hamstring injury.

Continue for updates.

Heyward Exits with Hamstring Tightness

Monday, Aug. 17

The Cardinals announced Heyward’s ailment, as Thomas Pham replaced him in center field. Heyward was 0-for-1 with a strikeout before exiting.

Heyward was flipped to the Cardinals last November in a move that saw the Atlanta Braves acquire pitcher Shelby Miller and minor leaguer Tyrell Jenkins.

Set to become an unrestricted free agent following the 2015 season, according to Spotrac, Heyward worked through some early-season struggles and eventually found a comfortable groove that’s gradually boosted his stock.

Back on June 22, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny discussed Heyward’s gradual evolution, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch‘s Rick Hummel: “He was trying to (1) make an impression on his new team and (2) still trying to figure out the kind of hitter he wants to be. And you always have free agency hanging over your shoulder. There are a lot of things going on all at once and it looks to me like he got rid of some of the clutter.” 

After hitting .217 in April and .284 in May, Heyward put a bow on June by batting .326. He followed that up with a .312 average in July.

On the season, the Cardinals outfielder is batting .287 with 43 RBI and 11 home runs for a St. Louis team that’s seeking to capture its third straight National League Central crown.

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San Diego Padres right fielder Matt Kemp became the first player in franchise history to hit for the cycle Friday night. 

In the Padres’ 9-5 win over the Colorado Rockies, Kemp bashed a triple to deep right-center field in the top of the ninth inning to cap off his monumental night. 

“I’ve come close plenty of times, I’ve just never gotten that one hit I definitely needed,” Kemp said, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune‘s Dennis Lin. “That triple is the hardest one to get.”

Kemp got things started with a two-run home run in the top of the first inning, and he followed that up with a single in the third before doubling to deep center in the seventh.

All told, Kemp went 4-for-5 with four RBI and two runs scored.

While the achievement was the first of its kind since for the Padres since their inception in 1969, Tony Gwynn came awfully close to hitting for the cycle during his Hall of Fame career, according to Baseball Photos on Twitter: 

ESPN Stats & Info passed along another staggering tidbit regarding the Padres’ inability to churn out cycles:

Kemp entered the evening batting .267 in August—five points up on his season-long average of .262. However, despite his recent surge, Kemp’s double and triple were his first of the month. 

After batting a putrid .186 in May and struggling to the tune of a .243 average in June, Kemp has worked his way into a more comfortable groove at the plate. 

And although the Padres are on the outskirts of the National League playoff picture, Kemp’s late-season improvement has given them something to take solace in as the 2015 campaign begins to wind down. 

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