Takeaways from MLB Week 14
The two teams that played in last year’s World Series lost key pitchers this week. New York Mets starter Matt Harvey was lost for the year, while Kansas City Royals closer Wade Davis landed on the 15-day disabled list.
Both players were major contributors to their respective teams.
The better news came from Davis who is eyeing a return on July 16 and will skip the All-Star festivities to focus on his health.
For other teams, though, MLB’s Week 14 had a positive undertone. Which teams might those be?
Royals Bullpen Takes a Hit, Loses Closer Wade Davis
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The Kansas City Royals bullpen is built unlike any other. While most teams look to get their starters deep into games, Kansas City’s relievers are so good that manager Ned Yost has the luxury of relieving his starters earlier than most managers.
It has been the hallmark of a Royals team that has made back-to-back World Series, winning it last year. Currently Kansas City leads MLB in bullpen ERA.
But the unit lost, arguably, its most important piece in closer Wade Davis.
The team announced in a press release on Tuesday that it had placed Davis on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to July 1, with a right forearm strain. Davis, a right-handed pitcher, has converted 19 of 21 save opportunities this season. He was selected to the American League All-Star team but told Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star that he would skip all associated activities to focus on his health.
Davis is eligible to return to action on July 16. The Kansas City Star piece says that the strain is not serious. But given that such an injury can lead to further problems, expect the team to be very careful in deciding when Davis will return.
Given the Royals depth, they are equipped to overcome such an injury over the short term. It’s possible that Yost will replace Davis by committee, electing to allow matchups to dictate who he uses in the ninth inning.
Joakim Soria is the pitcher in the Royals’ bullpen with the most closing experience. He served as the team’s closer from 2007-2011 before stints in the role for the Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers.
He signed again with the Royals this offseason as a free agent.
Jose Reyes Rejoins the Mets
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In 2003, Jose Reyes made his MLB debut with the New York Mets as a shortstop. After starting his second stint with the club on Tuesday playing third base, he will hope for a rebirth.
Reyes best season came in 2011, a contract year, when he hit .337/.384/.493. That spurred a six-year, $106 million dollar contract with the Miami Marlins prior to the 2012 season, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. He spent only one year in Miami and was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays where he spent three seasons. Last year, Reyes was traded to the Colorado Rockies, where he hit .259/.291/.368 in a 47-game stint. He has not hit .300 during any season of his current contract, which has a club option for the 2018 season.
This offseason, Reyes was involved in an alleged domestic violence incident with his wife in a Hawaii hotel room. Reyes was arrested but charges were dropped. Still, the incident earned Reyes a 51-game suspension.
His 2016 debut came Tuesday. The Rockies were looking to trade Reyes after the emergence of rookie shortstop Trevor Story.
For the Mets, the team is hoping Reyes can recapture the magic from his earlier stint with the club. Currently, New York ranks toward the bottom of MLB in nearly every relevant offensive category.
All-Star Rosters Named, NL Squad Loaded with Cubs
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Rosters for the 2016 All-Star Game in San Diego were announced this week, and the entire NL infield will feature members of the Chicago Cubs.
First baseman Anthony Rizzo, second baseman Ben Zobrist, shortstop Addison Russell and third baseman Kris Bryant will all start for the NL. Cubs center fielder Dexter Fowler will also start for the team, giving the club five total starters. Fowler is currently on the disabled list with a hamstring strain and the Cubs have not said whether he will play in the game.
Chicago pitchers Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester were also voted onto the team.
San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey, New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes and Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper round out the NL starters.
The Boston Red Sox, baseball’s best offensive team this season by measure of batting average and runs scored, are the most represented among AL starters. Boston, which fell to third place in the AL East this week, will have shortstop Xander Bogarts, outfielders Mookie Betts and Jackie Bradley Jr. and designated hitter David Ortiz start for the AL squad.
Red Sox pitchers Craig Kimbrel and Steven Wright are also on the roster. MLB.com published a complete list of the rosters for the game, which takes place on July 12.
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Blue Jays Charging, Overtake Red Sox for Second in AL East
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On May 25, the Toronto Blue Jays were hovering around .500, seven games out of first place in the AL East and sparking questions as to whether Toronto’s 2015 team was a “one-hit wonder.”
But courtesy of a seven winning streak this week—that's still going—the Blue Jays now sit two games behind the division-leading Baltimore Orioles and overtook the Boston Red Sox for second place in the AL East. Had the season ended Friday, Toronto would find itself playing in the wild-card game.
The team’s stellar play of late is largely a credit to the resurgence of shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who is finally looking like the player the Blue Jays thought they were getting when they traded for him last season.
Heading into Friday’s action, four of Tulowitzki’s last seven games were multi-hit affairs and is hitting .328 in the 17 games since he came off the disabled list as of Friday morning. Meanwhile, third baseman Josh Donaldson is making his bid to repeat as AL MVP. Through Thursday’s games he was hitting .305/.418/.600 with 22 homers and 60 RBI.
In a division with offensive powers Baltimore and Boston, Toronto too flashed its skill at the plate this past week. Over the seven games heading into Saturday's action, the team scored 55 runs.
Matt Harvey Opts to Have Season-Ending Surgery
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The tumultuous, oft-injury riddled career of New York Mets ace Matt Harvey took a terrible turn on Friday when the club announced that he would undergo season-ending surgery to relieve his thoracic outlet syndrome.
The condition causes nerve compression around the neck and shoulder area.
The timing of the news comes at a time when Harvey was playing his best baseball of the season. Harvey struggled with control issues to start the 2016 season, which caused his ERA to balloon as high as 6.08 after a May 24 start on the road against the Washington Nationals.
From there, though, he began to look like the ace he was expected to be for the Mets in 2016. He only allowed nine earned runs in his last six starts, though he left his latest outing after 3.2 innings.
The news is devastating for a Mets starting staff that has been dealing with a rash of injuries. Starters Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz have been dealing with bone spurs of varying degrees.
Harvey, 27, had Tommy John surgery on his right pitching elbow in 2013. He missed the entire 2014 season and in his return to action last season posted a 2.27 ERA and 2.01 FIP. He was selected to the NL All-Star Team and placed fourth in Cy Young voting last season.
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