MLBits: Rumors Already Heating Up? Low Attendance, Hot Starts, Injuries All Over, More

Apr 16, 2018

It has still not stopped snowing. And I’m starting to get ticked off. I won’t necessarily be surprised (or upset) if I’m wearing shorts within two weeks either, but this is just ridiculous. C’est la Chicago. Grumble.

Here’s some news from around the league …

Have you noticed the Mets yet? They’re off to a 12-2 start over in New York, and already have a 3.0 game lead in the NL East (… over the Phillies (i.e. not the Nationals), who’ve won six straight). It’s very early, but that’s such a strong start that it makes it highly likely the Mets will be in the playoff hunt at least through the Trade Deadline.

Ken Rosenthal discusses some rumors that’ve popped up (and some from the offseason) in this Fox Sports spot:

.@Ken_Rosenthal discusses the latest on the Mets’ catcher situation, Moose already being a hot trade candidate, the Orioles & Manny Machado and more pic.twitter.com/hn7CBOEelM
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) April 15, 2018

Apparently, the Mets asked the Marlins about J.T. Realmuto and Starlin Castro over the offseason, but the Marlins told them they didn’t need to cut any more payroll. With that said, Rosenthal expects the Realmuto chatter to pick back up around mid-season. For what it’s worth, I agree. There’s no way Realmuto starts 2019 as a Marlin. By the way, Rosenthal discusses much more than that in the video (including Manny Machado/Yankees rumors (they might not wait until he’s a free agent to get him)) so be sure to check it out.

Jeff Passan is tracking the early season attendance figures and has noticed some significant and scary drops across baseball – including the Cubs – but I think his tease about the weather nails it:

Attendance is down in staggering amounts across baseball, from Chicago to St. Louis to Baltimore and even in cities with warm weather and domes. 10 Degrees explores: Is the dip is weather-related, or is MLB at risk of an attendance problem due to tanking? https://t.co/yZyarmf2TW pic.twitter.com/P28oxXbfLe
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 16, 2018

I can’t speak for the more geographically-gifted teams, but I can say with certainty the weather in Chicago has been terrible *and* they’ve played just five games at home, so … yeah, not worried yet. Passan covers a lot more in his roundup.

Although this article is now a few days old, Jay Jaffe writes about the Pirates hot start to the season and how they may actually have some hope (and, to be clear, they’ve gone 2-1 since this article, so nothing’s really changed). But … I don’t buy it. We all lose our collective memory every season, when one or a few teams come out of nowhere with a hot start. Sure, some of them maintain it and surprise, but those are usually teams on the upswing arriving a year early, not a Pirates team that traded away Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole over the winter. Sure, they basically got Corey Dickerson for free, but I just doubt they walk away with this division, given how much stronger the Cubs, Brewers, and Cardinals look on paper. That’s just too many games against good teams to maintain a lead (paging @OldTakesExposed).

And, of course, the recent loss of Josh Harrison won’t help – Harrison left the game yesterday after being hit in the hand with a pitch. After being evaluated by team doctors, Harrison is expected to miss six weeks with a fractured bone in his left hand. He wasn’t really mashing this year, but he’s an important part of that club and the everyday leadoff hitter, so they’ll definitely miss him.

Speaking of injured NL second basemen who are important to their team …

Daniel Murphy will head to extended spring training tomorrow and begin getting ABs in games. Obviously a good sign, but Davey Martinez cautions he needs to now go through his own spring training. They won’t rush him.
— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) April 15, 2018

Given his age (33), the weather, and how hugely valuable Murphy’s been with the Nationals (10.2 WAR) over the past two seasons, it’s no surprise to see them taking it slow with his recovery. If he’s really starting his extended spring training today and will go on a rehab start soon after that, I still wouldn’t expect him back too far before mid-May. He’ll just be so far behind everyone else.

The Cardinals have activated infielder Jedd Gyorko and reliever Luke Gregerson from the disabled list today, which means the latter will make his 2018 debut against the Cubs tomorrow. Indeed, Gregerson will slide back into the back of the bullpen, but not into the closer role, which was taken over by Greg Holland at the last second. Meanwhile, with Jose Martinez’s hot start to the season, MLB.com predicts that most of Gyorko’s playing time will come at the expense of second baseman Kolton Wong and perhaps even some time at third base in place of Matt Carpenter.

Congrats to Yadier Molina on passing me on the All-Time Innings Caught list, soon to be games. Crazy to be reminded it was 14,493 innings behind the plate. No wonder I had my hips replaced.
— Johnny Bench (@JohnnyBench_5) April 14, 2018

In more injury news, Rays center fielder (and nightly highlight reel) Kevin Kiermaier has torn a ligament in his right thumb and is expected to miss 8-12 weeks. That’s a real bummer for all the obvious reasons, but also because Kiermaier, known primarily for his defense, posted one of his best offensive seasons last year. So, now at 27-years-old, I was excited to watch what a further offensive breakout could do to the overall value of arguable the best defensive center fielder in baseball.

Because it’s clearly just one of those weeks: Brewers catcher Manny Pina is hitting the disabled, too (retroactive to Friday), and they’re calling up catching prospect Jacob Nottingham. Nottingham isn’t a “top” prospect (#27 in the Brewers system according to MLB Pipeline), but he has been off to a hot start in Triple-A so far this year. Also, Pina is just the latest Brewer to hit the DL, as he joins catcher Stephen Vogt, who was yet to debut this season, outfielder Christian Yelich, who is actually eligible to return as soon as today, and Cory Knebel, who has a strained left hamstring.

At the New York Post, Joel Sherman discusses the future of the Mets rotation – specifically Matt Harvey’s future – as, for what feels like the first time ever, everyone just may be healthy at the same time. For his part, Harvey has been off to a rough start (4.80 ERA, 4.72 FIP) and has set a new Mets record for most consecutive starts without even reaching the sixth inning (11). He was able to dial it up to 95 MPH in the first inning over the weekend, but that velocity apparently fell off the map quickly thereafter. It’s almost too hard to believe that his big breakout 6.5 WAR season was all the way back in 2013. I wonder if he’ll ever truly get back on track. I doubt it, but I wonder it, too.

MLB will be in San Juan, Puerto Rico this week to play two regular-season games (Twins and Indians), while also giving back and supporting an island that was recently devastated by Hurricane Maria: “The week’s events begin early Monday morning with the Puerto Rico Series Golf Invitational, hosted by Major League Baseball Charities and featuring Hall of Famers Cal Ripken Jr. and Roberto Alomar, along with former players Ed Figueroa, Orlando Merced, Joe Nathan and Dickie Thon. Proceeds from the tournament will benefit Boys & Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico and Habitat for Humanity.” You can read all about the big week planned in Puerto Rico right here at MLB.com.

And if you haven’t seen it yet, here’s Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor returning to his former elementary school:

Francisco Lindor returning to his old elementary school in Puerto Rico is giving me chills:pic.twitter.com/BH7i92Q9jq

— Baseball is Fun (@flippingbats) April 16, 2018

In case you missed it, a 44-year-old Bartolo Colon was perfect through 7.0 innings yesterday. He is AMAZING. And the crazy part is a 35-year-old Justin Verlander matched him pitch-for-pitch (both finished with 86 Game Scores according to MLB.com). It’s funny to consider Justin Verlander an old pitcher and then realize that Colon is almost a decade older.

And finally, this is just awesome: A young Nationals fan caught a Rockies homer and traded his ball with a young Rockies fan who caught a Nationals homer at the game. They swapped dingers, gave each other some knuckles, and had themselves a deal.

Two Young Fans Caught Homers from the Wrong Team … So They Traded at the Game! https://t.co/isH2F5Kho3 pic.twitter.com/2NeWH6sdl1
— Baseball is Fun (@flippingbats) April 16, 2018

written by

Michael Cerami

Michael Cerami began covering the Chicago Cubs for Bleacher Nation as a part-time contributor in 2015. One year later, he joined Bleacher Nation full-time, covering the Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball. Today, Michael runs Bleacher Nation, contributing as a writer (Cubs, MLB) and an editor for all sections of the site, including the Chicago Bears, Bulls, and Blackhawks, as well as MLB, NBA, NHL, and NFL. In 2019, Michael was the co-host of NBC Sports Chicago's Cubs Post-Game Show Outside the Ivy. You can find him on Twitter/X @Michael_Cerami

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