The injury bug has bitten Hyun-Jin Ryu many times in his career and it happened again Monday night in St. Louis.
Ryu delivered a pitch in the second inning against the Cardinals and immediately called for the Dodgers’ trainer to come out. After a brief talk, he walked off the field. Later, the club revealed that the left-hander was diagnosed with a left groin strain.
If that ailment sounds familiar for Ryu, it’s because it is. The southpaw tore that same groin muscle in May of last season and it wound up costing him over three months of action.
The good news is that the strain doesn’t appear to be nearly as serious this time around, as Ryu insisted that his removal from the game was merely precautionary. However, manager Dave Roberts said that the left-hander will be going on the 10-day injured list. It’s no surprise given how liberal the team has been with the use of the DL/IL.
The domino effect of Ryu going down is that we could get more starts from Julio Urias. Urias is slated to start on Friday against the Brewers in what was supposed to be his last start before returning to the bullpen to accommodate the return of Clayton Kershaw (shoulder). Now, it stands to reason that he’ll remain in the rotation with Ryu hurt.
Urias mowed down the Giants in his season debut on April 1, fanning seven while yielding just three hits over five scoreless innings. He then had a hiccup at Coors Field on Sunday, which is obviously forgivable.
The 22-year-old’s control can be spotty, but his stuff has looked all the way back and then some following shoulder surgery, as he’s throwing a full two mph harder (95.1 mph) than he did before the operation. Urias will remain very limited from a workload perspective this season after throwing just 22 innings last year, and even if his stay in the rotation is indeed extended now, he’s not a good bet to remain there over the long haul (Remember, Rich Hill is also due back before long). That said, this is a dynamic talent worth running out there in fantasy leagues each week when he’s starting. As long as it’s not at Coors, anyway.
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Snell Sizzling
“Reigning Cy Young winner” wasn’t a moniker befitting of Blake Snell in his first start of the season, but he’s offered a strong reminder his last two times out why he was the best pitcher in the American League last year.
Snell had an abbreviated spring training, throwing just three official Grapefruit League frames as the Rays attempted to pump the brakes on his workload after a career-high in innings last year. He then looked a little rusty in his season debut, serving up three home runs, allowing five runs and striking out just three against the Astros.
Snell then bounced back to fan 13 batters across seven frames of scoreless ball versus the Rockies on April 2. He surrendered just two hits and a walk in the masterpiece.
The talented left-hander followed that gem with another dandy on Monday, as he notched his second straight double-digit strikeout game with 11 punchouts and no walks in a win over the White Sox. Snell gave up a solo home run but no other tallies on the day.
Snell leads the AL and his just one off the major league lead with his 27 strikeouts (Max Scherzer has 28). That number has the chance to grow exponentially again on Sunday when the southpaw takes on the Blue Jays, a team that’s struck out more than any in the big leagues.
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Seattle Sluggers
Even general manager Jerry Dipoto wasn’t optimistic about the Mariners contending in 2019, so the fact that they’re sitting at 10-2 ranks as one of the bigger early-season surprises.
Seattle has been carried by an offense that’s been surprisingly potent, and it was on display Monday in Kansas City. The Mariners hammered the Royals 13-5, pounding out 15 hits and five home runs. They set a major league record in the process, as their 32 home runs through 12 games are the most in history, surpassing the 2000 Cardinals.
Much of the damage came during an eight-run sixth inning when the M’s batted around. Edwin Encarnacion led off the frame with a solo home run and finished off the scoring with a three-run blast. The aging but still-potent slugger now has four long balls on the season and a 1.142 OPS.
Daniel Vogelbach – who had already gone deep earlier in the game – also reached base twice in the fateful sixth inning with a pair of walks. Vogelbach has homered five times in his last four games and is sporting a slugging percentage – 1.471 – that doesn’t even seem real.
Jay Bruce is hitting just .186 this season but is tied for the AL lead with six home runs. His six dingers have come over his last seven contests.
There’s also Domingo Santana, who is perhaps an early average for AL Comeback Player of the Year. Santana was a forgotten man in Milwaukee last season but has been reborn in Seattle, posting a .340/.431/.640 batting line with four bombs, three steals and a major league-leading 19 RBI.
And don’t forget Tim Beckham, who sat out Monday with a hamstring injury. He’s been the team’s best hitter with an absurd .400/.489/.825 line with four long balls.
The Mariners’ pace is obviously unsustainable. I mean, they have six players slugging at least .600, for Pete’s sake. Perhaps we were too quick to write them off as a possible Wild Card contender, though. Perhaps their GM was, too.
National League Quick Hits: Rhys Hoskins popped a pair of solo homers Monday to lead the Phillies to a win over the Nationals. … Ronald Acuña went 2-for-3 with three runs scored, a two-run homer and a walk in the Braves’ victory over the Rockies on Monday. … Fernando Tatis Jr. went 1-for-2 with a two-run homer and two runs scored in a win over the Giants on Monday. … Jon Lester will undergo an MRI Tuesday after exiting Monday’s start with a hamstring injury, … The Padres recalled Luis Urias Monday. … Pat Neshek became the second Phillies reliever in as many days to notch a save on Monday. … Odubel Herrera went 2-for-4, homered and stole a base against the Nationals in Monday’s win. … David Dahl has a “slight” core injury and will not be placed on the injured list for the time being. … Franchy Cordero landed on the IL Monday with a right elbow sprain. … The Giants acquired Tyler Austin from the Twins on Monday.
American League Quick Hits: Luis Severino (shoulder) didn’t feel good while long-tossing Monday and is headed back to New York to undergo another MRI. … Brad Peacock will be moved to the Astros’ bullpen for the next two weeks. … Trey Mancini went 3-for-3 with a homer, two RBI and two walks as the Orioles crushed the A’s on Monday. … Jonathan Villar homered, singled and knocked in four runs against the A’s on Monday. … Chris Davis went 0-for-5 Monday and is now hitless in his last 49 at-bats, which is a major league record for a position player. … Aaron Judge went 2-for-3 with a homer and two walks against the Astros on Monday. … Clay Buchholz (elbow) will join the Blue Jays’ rotation on Saturday against the Rays.
