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Chicago White Sox third baseman Todd Frazier suffered an injury to his mouth on Wednesday against the Texas Rangers after heading into the crowd in an attempt to a catch a foul ball. However, he will return to the lineup quickly.

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Frazier Comments on Injury and Return

Thursday, May 12

“I felt my tongue go through my bottom lip,” Frazier said on Wednesday, per Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune. “So I ran off as quick as I could.”

Frazier Crucial to White Sox Offense 

After experiencing a career year in which he hit 35 home runs, drove in 89 runs and won the Home Run Derby, the Cincinnati Reds traded Frazier in the offseason to the White Sox in a three-team trade.

One thing that helped him become a star was his exhibition of power to all parts of the field at the smaller Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.

Another was his ability to stay on the field. He played over 150 games in each of the past three seasons.

This year at the bigger U.S. Cellular Field, Frazier was showing no signs of losing any power, as he hit his 11th homer of the season in the fourth inning against the Rangers before injuring himself.

The White Sox put Carlos Sanchez in at third base to replace Frazier. The 23-year-old has played sparingly this season and owns a .226/.268/.319 career slash line.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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The Los Angeles Angels have acquired infielder Brendan Ryan in a trade with the Washington Nationals, the team announced on Tuesday. 

The Nationals will receive cash considerations in return, per MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman. 

Ryan has spent nine years in the majors, most recently with the New York Yankees where he appeared in 106 games in two seasons. 

He signed a minor league deal with the Nationals in the offseason and had not appeared with the big club in the first 32 games. 

With a career .234 batting average and 19 home runs in almost 3,000 plate appearances, Ryan isn’t the kind of player that can make much of an offensive impact within a lineup. 

But the Angels are desperate for a shortstop after Andrelton Simmons tore the full thickness in his left thumb, which will require surgery. According to Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times, Simmons is expected to be out until “probably” July. 

He’s just the latest Angel to hit the disabled list as pitchers Garrett Richards, Andrew Heaney, C.J. Wilson and Huston Street are all dealing with injuries. 

That left just Cliff Pennington, a shortstop who has played in just 55 games over the past two seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays and Angels, as the full-time option. Third baseman Yunel Escobar, who did play shortstop throughout his career, is not an option to cycle in at the position, per Moura.

Ryan will provide some much-needed depth at the position and will be in uniform for Tuesday night’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals, a team he spent the first four years of his career with. 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com

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Minnesota Twins first baseman and designated hitter Byung Ho Park left Saturday’s game against the Chicago White Sox with a right knee contusion.    

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Park Expected To Be Back Soon

Saturday, May 7

The Twins announced Park’s injury and stated that he is listed as day to day. 

The 29-year-old is in his first year in the major leagues after nine seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization, where he was one of the premier power hitters in the game. He signed a four-year, $12 million deal with Minnesota in December.

In his final four seasons in Korea, he launched 31, 37, 52 and 53 home runs, respectively, and was expected to bring some added pop to a Twins team that hit a below-average 156 home runs last year. 

Park has done just that as his power numbers have carried over well to the United States with seven home runs in his first 24 games while batting .268. 

And it’s big-time power too, as he can knock the cover off the ball:

He has been impressing his teammates throughout the early portions of this season, via Fox Sports North:

In his absence, Joe Mauer and Oswaldo Arcia should step in at designated hitter while Park recovers. They’ll try to compensate for the absence of power, as no one in the lineup has more than four home runs. 

With the Twins listing him at day to day, though, Park’s absence shouldn’t be too long to seriously hurt the team. 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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Kansas City Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas was placed on the disabled list Saturday with a thumb injury after originally trying to play through the ailment.

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Moustakas’ Timetable Unclear With Thumb Issue

Saturday, May 7

Joel Goldberg of Fox Sports Kansas City confirmed the infielder was placed on the DL with a thumb fracture. He’ll be replaced on the 25-man roster by Cheslor Cuthbert. Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star confirmed the move.

Moustakas originally missed some time earlier in the week while battling problems with his thumb. He returned to the starting lineup Wednesday but was held out again Friday after an off day. That signaled there was probably a bigger issue at hand.

It’s unclear how long he could miss with the injury. The 27-year-old slugger has tallied seven home runs through 25 games so far this season.

He’s coming off of a career year in 2015. He recorded highs with a .284 batting average and 22 home runs along with 82 RBI as he helped lead the Royals to their first World Series title in 30 years. 

He proved that he can be a legitimate middle-of-the-order batter and could carry the offense as well.

However there was more work to be done heading into the 2016 season, speaking with Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star: “I’m going to keep trying to do what I did last year. And get better at it. I’m not going to try and change anything, I just want to continue improving on hitting the ball the other way. That’s where I had most of my success last year.”

While Moustakas recovers, Christian Colon could step in at third base. Colon will be best known for his go-ahead single in the 12th inning of Game 5 of the World Series that delivered the title to Kansas City.

Kansas City is going to have plenty of competition in the AL Central this season with the Detroit Tigers, up-and-coming Cleveland Indians and the surprising Chicago White Sox. Without Moustakas, the Royals can’t afford to slump or else they could lose their stronghold on the division.  

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com

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Two-time Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum threw for a number of MLB scouts Friday in Arizona to show teams what he has to offer.

He threw 41 pitches and was able to reach 91 mph with his fastball, according to the San Jose Mercury News‘ Andrew Baggarly.

CSN Bay Area showed some of his highlights from Friday:

Once one of the sport’s elite pitchers, Lincecum has struggled mightily over the past four seasons, per Sarah Langs of ESPN Stats & Info:

He had hip surgery in September. The injury caused major problems last year, as he told Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan:

I didn’t know which days were gonna be the good days and which were gonna be the bad ones. Some days my hip would bite at me. Some days it would be fine. But I didn’t have a lot of stability and strength in it. I wasn’t able to sustain the end of my motion, when my foot hit. It felt very erratic, very wild. It didn’t feel like much of a drive. It felt like I was jumping. That’s where I lost it all. The power was lost in my legs, and it didn’t drive through my hips, my mid-back and up into my shoulder. I was throwing a lot with my arm. 

It was quite a fall from grace for a pitcher who tossed a pair of no-hitters and won three World Series titles with the Giants.

Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports spoke with optimistic team representatives who were on hand at Lincecum’s session:

With that kind of general consensus, it’s safe to assume that Lincecum will be contacted by a number of teams. He may not pitch in the majors right after being signed, though, as he’ll need to adjust to live batters.

But for a team that is in need of help in the middle of its rotation, Lincecum could be an inexpensive option who could be a steal down the road.

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Former San Francisco Giants pitcher and current free agent Tim Lincecum will try to prove to representatives from more than 20 MLB teams that his surgically repaired hip is healthy during a throwing session Friday, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman.

After going 33-12 over a two-year stretch with two Cy Young Awards in 2008 and 2009, Lincecum’s last four years have seen him go 39-42 with an ERA worse than 4.00 in each season before he underwent hip surgery in September.

The hype is building, though, thanks to Lincecum’s father telling Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports that his son’s curveball is “the best curveball I’ve seen in four years.”

On Wednesday, Lincecum spoke with Passan about the injury that nagged him throughout his struggles:

I didn’t know which days were gonna be the good days and which were gonna be the bad ones. Some days my hip would bite at me. Some days it would be fine. But I didn’t have a lot of stability and strength in it. I wasn’t able to sustain the end of my motion, when my foot hit. It felt very erratic, very wild. It didn’t feel like much of a drive. It felt like I was jumping. That’s where I lost it all. The power was lost in my legs, and it didn’t drive through my hips, my mid-back and up into my shoulder. I was throwing a lot with my arm. 

Even with that uncertainty, he managed to go 7-4 with a 4.13 ERA in 2015 before shutting down for the year, though there were certain moments when the injury flared up:

Eight months after surgery, Lincecum is ready to get back to baseball, though he told Passan that he would “need a few minor league starts to acclimate himself to live games before he’s ready for the major leagues.”

Though many teams may be interested, there is a chance that he’ll return to San Francisco, as he told Passan: “Where I end up is where I’ll end up. [The Giants] already have six starters. I’ve got to just look out for me, and if they’re the No. 1 piece in the puzzle when it comes down to decision time, I’ll be excited to go back.”

If Lincecum is able to show off a fastball that reaches 90-plus mph with a dynamic curveball, he may see some offers from teams that are looking for help in their rotations. 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Matt Adams left Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies with a knee injury. However, he’s ready to return.

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Adams Active vs. Pirates

Saturday, May 7

Adams returned to the lineup for Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh.

Adams Provides Valuable Power Bat When Healthy

The injury bug continues to plague Adams, who missed 102 games last season because of a quad injury that required surgery.

Even in his return toward the end of 2015, he still seemed hobbled by the injury, according to MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch:

In 2016, he’s been splitting time at first base with Matt Holliday, originally a left fielder who is starting to slow down in his 13th year in the league, and Brandon Moss.

In 27 games this season, he was hitting .273 with three home runs and seven RBI. He was starting to heat up, having hit .400 in his last four games.

Adams provides decent power and could hit around 15 home runs a year. But with his contract expiring at the end of the 2016 season, recurring injuries could lead to the end of his tenure in St. Louis. 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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Chicago Cubs right fielder Jason Heyward is out of Monday’s lineup because of a wrist injury. It is unclear when he’ll return. 

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Heyward to Miss Multiple Games with Sore Wrist

Monday, May 2

Heyward will not start against the Pittsburgh Pirates as he receives treatment for his sore right wrist, per Gordon Wittenmeyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. The wrist has been an issue since the first week of the season, and Heyward will get “at least” two days off, reported Wittenmyer, who added he’ll be available off the bench. 

After being hit in the face by a Jonathon Niese pitch in 2013 as a member of the Atlanta Braves, Heyward has played in a majority of games for the past two seasons. However, this is hardly the start the Cubs wanted from Heyward in Chicago. 

The right fielder signed an eight-year, $184 million contract in the offseason with the Cubs after one season with the divisional rival St. Louis Cardinals. 

His numbers over the first six years of his career don’t suggest that Heyward is worth that kind of money. He had a career .268 batting average entering the 2016 season and hit more than 20 home runs just once.

Heyward has been struggling thus far in 2016, hitting a mere .211 with zero home runs and 13 RBI. 

While Heyward’s power numbers have lacked since he hit 27 home runs in 2012, he has proved he can find a way to get on base, averaging an on-base percentage of over .340 in the past three seasons. This year, it has slipped to .317. 

He also rounds out his game by providing a stellar glove in the outfield with Gold Glove awards in 2012 and 2014. 

Unfortunately for the Cubs, they are in the toughest division in baseball in the National League Central. The Cardinals and Pirates also have playoff aspirations and will be a constant in the playoff picture all season. The hope for Chicago fans is that Heyward can recovery quickly and return to the form that netted him such a lofty contract. 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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Miami Marlins pitcher Adam Conley was four outs away from a no-hitter in just his 16th career start.

But with Conley’s pitch count at 116, manager Don Mattingly opted to protect the 25-year-old’s arm, taking him out of the game in the bottom of the eighth inning for reliever Jose Urena with Miami leading the Milwaukee Brewers 5-0.

The Brewers managed to get to the Marlins bullpen and put up three runs, but Miami was able to hold on for a 6-3 win.

Conley’s final stat line was 7.2 innings pitched, no runs, no hits, seven strikeouts and four walks. 

The Marlins congratulated the young pitcher after he exited the game:

With a 4-2 career record entering Friday night, Conley had never pitched more than seven innings in a major league game. He pitched exactly seven against the New York Mets on Sept. 16, giving up just three hits and no runs while striking out six.

He also had never thrown more than 106 pitches in a game. At the rate he was pitching Friday, he could have gone over 130 pitches if he had finished the contest, which would have been an enormous strain on his developing arm.

If Conley weren’t such an important asset to the Marlins rotation, Mattingly might have been more inclined to let him finish the game.

But for a Marlins franchise that is attempting to build a team that can keep up with the Washington Nationals and Mets in the National League East, overworking a young pitcher—whom FanGraphs ranked as the organization’s No. 5 prospect in 2014—during a game that was already in hand would have been unnecessary. 

Conley’s start was a needed bright spot for a team that received a huge blow late Thursday night when MLB announced an 80-game suspension for All-Star second baseman Dee Gordon after he tested positive for performance-enhancing substances. 

So while it might be disappointing that the young pitcher was unable to go the distance Friday night, Marlins fans have another young arm to look forward to watching every five days in a rotation that already features Jose Fernandez.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Jorge De La Rosa has suffered a groin strain and was put on the 15-day disabled list, the team announced Wednesday. 

Continue for updates.

Rockies Face Time Without Top-End Starter

Wednesday, April 27

The Rockies recalled right-hander Eddie Butler from Triple-A as a prospective replacement for De La Rosa in the rotation. 

De La Rosa was pulled from Tuesday night’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates after running out a grounder to lead off the third inning. 

The 35-year-old De La Rosa was 1-3 in five starts this season with a 10.18 ERA. His 23 earned runs was the most among all pitchers in the league, a dreadful start for the pitcher who was named the Rockies’ Opening Day starter. 

Speaking with Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post, De La Rosa disclosed that this groin issue has been nagging him since his first start of the season, but Rockies manager Walt Weiss doesn’t believe that this is a “long-term problem.”

“I think it’s been an issue, but I don’t know when,” Weiss said. “He’s had a lot of nagging injuries over the years that kind of crop up from time to time. The groin is one of them, so it’s hard to say when exactly it started.”

The lack of longevity stymied De La Rosa’s growth in the league, as he could never develop into a staff ace. In his first 14 seasons in the league, he’s only pitched more than 150 innings three times. 

What might have been more concerning for the Rockies was that De La Rosa admitted that his arm felt “lazy” after an April 19 start against the Cincinnati Reds, per Saunders. Weiss, though, said that the team doesn’t think he has any problems with his arm. 

Butler, who is available to come out of the bullpen for Wednesday night’s game, will try to provide some relief to a Rockies team that is allowing the most runs per game in the majors with 6.2. 

They’ll have to rely on Chad Bettis and Tyler Chatwood to carry the rotation toward the top and keep the Rockies in the thick of what looks to be a very competitive NL West division that features the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants. 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

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