Erick Aybar has been added to the 40-man roster with the sad-sack Padres. He should have value in NL-only leagues but his days of mixed league relevance are behind him.
It was Bigfoot’s fault swears a woman.
The hype is starting to grow with Michael Brantley, just like it did 12 months ago. Last season those hopes were dashed as he barely played. This season... we shall see. What we do know is, that his shoulder appears to be okay, for the moment, and he’s set to take a big step on his road to recovery as he’s expected to play the Indians next three games in the Cactus League, beginning Tuesday. It’s a big hurdle to overcome, but the fact that three games can legitimately called a hurdle to overcome should tell you a lot about the outlook of Brantley in 2017.
Socrates Brito was a big time let down last season and he’s on the way to leaving the same taste in the mouth of his owners this season. Brito has been placed on the 60-day DL with a dislocated left ring finger.
Jhoulys Chacin will start on Opening Day for the Padres. Don’t get too excited. This is only cause the Padres stink so badly, not because Chacin has done something impressive. The Padres might have the worst starting staff in the 21st century.
Scooter Gennett is now on the Reds after he was added off of waivers. A few things. (1) The second longest tenured position player on the Brewers, behind Ryan Braun, is now Hernan Perez. This is amazing since Hernan joined the team on June 3rd, 2015. If we’re talking a guy who has continuously been on the team, Perez was briefly a free agent, then the #2 man is Domingo Santana. (2) The Reds don’t seem to have a spot for Gennett with Jose Peraza, Zack Cozart and Eugenio Suarez set to handle the infield. His addition might mean the team is ready to send Cozart out of town with Peraza taking over at short with Gennett at second. (3) Gennett, rather quietly, hit 14 homers with eight steals last season. (4) Gennett cannot hit lefties at all, like he’s horribly bad, with a career .490 OPS. However, he hits pretty well against righties with a .294/.330/.446 slash line.
Sonny Gray is up to throwing at max effort from 105 feet. Sidelined with a lat issues, it’s sounding like a return in April is certainly possible.
The greatest hitting seasons ever.
Raisel Iglesias (shower fall) should be ready for Opening Day. I think he’s the best bet to lead the Reds in saves, though concerns about his durability and ultimately his role make that position far from certain.
Can we finally come to the conclusion that Ketel Marte just can’t hit? That might be a slight exaggeration. The D’backs think so as he was sent to Triple-A Tuesday. He’s droppable in anything but NL-only leagues. Chris Owings and Nick Ahmed will likely see work at shortstop with the news. Owings, by the way, appeared in 70 games at shortstop and 49 in the outfield last season as he hit .277 with 21 steals. Not much to like other than the speed, but 20 thefts is legit.
Lance McCullers will start the second game of the season for the Astros. For more, see his Player Profile.
MLB.com asked me to participate in a 12-team mixed league. Check out how the draft played out.
The greatest pitching seasons ever.
My J.T. Realmuto Player Profile.
Carlos Rodon is going to begin the year on the disabled list. That said, tests run on his biceps showed only bursitis. He should be fine and it seems like he could be back on the bump in late-April.
Aaron Sanchez popped a blister on his finger Monday night. He should be fine, unless he pulls a Rich Hill of course.
A scuba diver saved saves a shark.
Ervin Santana will be the Twins Opening Day starter this year.
Here’s my Yangervis Solarte Player Profile.
Here’s the review of my Tout Wars club.
Julio Urias will not make the Opening Day roster. I sent out that note on Twitter this morning and I was immediately hit up with multiple questions about whether people should start dropping Urias. Folks, I try to help you all but sometimes you just don’t listen. Here’s what you need to know. Urias was never going to throw 200-innings this season. The upside might not even be 165 innings a year after the 20-year-old tossed just 122 innings. It’s like you all haven’t been paying any attention if this news is causing you to panic with Urias. So what if he doesn’t make the O.D. roster? That roster move doesn’t change his ranking or outlook one single bit for 2017.
For Star Wars nerds like myself...
Ray Flowers can be heard Monday/Tuesday and Thursday/Friday, 7 PM EDT, Wednesday 8 PM EDT on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 9 PM EDT PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).