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New York Times
01-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Only 1 MLB team used the minimum 13 pitchers in April. Now, the Phillies have a starter incoming
PHILADELPHIA — Tanner Banks threw 131 pitches at 94 mph or harder in 2024, but in the first month of 2025, he could hardly top 93 mph. He is a middle reliever with minor-league options who was not eliciting much swing-and-miss earlier in April. The Philadelphia Phillies could have cited diminished velocity and swapped him with another arm from Triple A. Teams churn through their bullpens, especially in April. That is how the game works now. Advertisement But the Phillies kept pitching Banks. He entered to protect a seventh-inning lead in Wednesday's 7-2 win over the Washington Nationals and struck out three of the first four batters he faced. The final one, Josh Bell, fouled off a first-pitch slider. Banks fired a fastball next for a called strike. It was 94 mph — the first one all season. Bell struck out on a changeup. Banks had his best outing yet. Afterward, as the Phillies slapped hands in the hallway leading into the clubhouse to celebrate a win, the same 13 pitchers who began the season with the Phillies were all there. The group has not changed. The season is more than a month old. 'No, I haven't even noticed it,' Banks said. 'But it's good.' The Phillies will have a roster move to make this weekend, but they have traversed an April of pitching attrition across the sport without needing a single pitching transaction. 'Does nobody else do that?' Banks said. Well, no. The Phillies are an anomaly. They are the only club to use the minimum 13 pitchers in 2025. That will change Sunday when Ranger Suárez (back soreness) returns from the injured list. The Phillies are highly unlikely to go to a six-man rotation, which will prompt a tough decision but one that qualifies as a first-world problem. Half the teams in the league entered Wednesday having used at least 18 pitchers. The Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers and Baltimore Orioles were tied for the most with 22 apiece. The Miami Marlins made a roster move for a new pitcher on the fourth day of the season. The Dodgers have used almost as many starting pitchers (11) as the Phillies have used pitchers, period. 'You want me to tell you a secret?' Banks said. 'We have a phenomenal training staff. Top to bottom. They're on the ball. They're really good at monitoring workload and making sure we don't get overused — for the most part. It's kind of a 'feel something, say something, and we'll be smart about how we use you.'' The medical team was tested last week when Cristopher Sánchez exited a start in New York with what the team termed as 'left forearm soreness.' It was ominous. Then it was weird when the Phillies never ordered an MRI for Sánchez. They were steadfast in the examinations and feedback Sánchez provided. They rested him for a few days, then put him through a throwing progression. They shuffled around the rotation thanks to some convenient off days. They reinserted Sánchez on seven days' rest, and he looked fine in five innings against the Nationals. Advertisement Sánchez's hardest pitch of the night, a 97.3 mph fastball, came on his 80th pitch. His 82nd was 97.1 mph. 'I mean, exactly what I was looking for today — just feeling like my best self, as I always do,' Sánchez said through a team interpreter. 'Just go out and compete.' Kept 'em quiet — Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) May 1, 2025 Sánchez walked three and hit a batter. It wasn't his best. 'I felt a little rusty,' he said, 'but I think that I can fix that easily.' It also served as confirmation for how the Phillies handled Sánchez. 'It's been a week since he's pitched,' Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. 'Command was off a little bit, but the stuff was really good. Changeup looked normal. The slider looked normal. Fastball velocity was good. So I'm pleased with it.' The Phillies entered this week with a blank rotation slate. They have a plan now, confirmed after Suárez passed one final test Wednesday afternoon with a bullpen session. Taijuan Walker will start Thursday. Over the weekend, Jesús Luzardo and Aaron Nola will pitch against the Arizona Diamondbacks before Suárez's season debut. The lefty has been sidelined by back soreness since the end of spring training. At this time last season, he had already thrown 41 innings of a 1.32 ERA. The Phillies do not expect that again from Suárez. But he is a potential difference-maker in the rotation. Suárez has motivation as a pending free agent; the Phillies just need him to be a competent back-of-the-rotation pitcher. There are trickle-down effects. Walker has pitched better in 2025 and would not be anything but a long man in the bullpen. Could the Phillies ride a six-man rotation? 'Possibly,' Thomson said earlier this week. 'We're kind of walking through that a little bit right now.' Maybe it's a consideration, but all indications are the Phillies will not go that route. Advertisement Their rotation is a strength, and though they like the idea of an extra day of rest for their starters every so often, that does not outweigh taking everyone off routine. Running a six-man rotation means a seven-man bullpen, which is trickier than it sounds. The only relievers with minor-league options are Banks and Orion Kerkering. The Phillies do not have robust bullpen depth at Triple A to churn through. A seven-man bullpen would require one of those spots to be a revolving door based on the previous night's usage. 'Those are things we're always talking about,' Thomson said. 'All the things that can influence the decision whether to go to a six-man or not.' The path of least resistance is bumping Walker to the bullpen and casting aside either Carlos Hernández or José Ruiz, who are making $1.2 million each and are out of minor-league options. Ruiz probably pitched the best he has all season in Wednesday's win. Asked to enter the sixth with a three-run lead, he struck out two batters in a 12-pitch scoreless inning, then recorded an out on one pitch in the seventh. The Phillies know they will face pitching adversity at some point this season. It's impossible to avoid. They will have to manage Luzardo's innings. Suárez's too. They are excited about Andrew Painter somehow factoring into the mix this summer. The April pitching was not perfect — far from it — but there was something to surviving the first month without long-term damage. 'It's just a testament to what they have going on behind the scenes,' Banks said. 'The guys that should get more credit than they do, and they don't get mentioned.' Sometimes, all it takes is a little patience. Or a boring (finally) win when all of the pitching is tidy. The Phillies have secrets they won't share about how they oversee pitchers' health — integrated departments, daily meetings, specific metrics, etc. They do not have all of the answers because no one does. Maybe it's luck. They seem to have something.
Boston Globe
29-04-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
‘Roman Anthony is going to be a star.' Longtime executive J.P. Ricciardi doesn't hold back assessing Red Sox prospect
'Roman Anthony is going to be a star,' Advertisement Anthony has been destroying Triple A this year. He's hitting .313/.451/.588 with five home runs with an equal number of walks and strikeouts (a 21 percent rate for both). He's also barreled the ball at a 20 percent rate, the highest in Triple A. In short, despite the fact that he is the youngest player in Triple A (20), he's been hitting as well or better than almost any other player at the level. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Still, it's possible to perform at an elite level without necessarily being an elite prospect. But in the eyes of Ricciardi, Anthony is doing both. Ricciardi has a history with the outfielder. As a member of the Giants' front office in 2022, he scouted Anthony multiple times during his senior season of high school, and he assessed Anthony as a first-round talent. Advertisement The chance to see Anthony in Triple A with NESN, and to see his physical and game development, has only elevated his view. 'He is a physical specimen. He's become so much more physical,' said Ricciardi. 'These are the things he does that I like a lot, that all good players at a high level — that become All-Stars — do: He's got great command of the strike zone. He's not afraid to hit with two strikes. He doesn't flinch against lefthanded pitching. He hits the ball hard the opposite way, which means he keeps his bat in the zone a long time, and he's going to have opposite-field power. He's got great instincts on the bases. He's got very good instincts in the outfield. 'He's just a complete player. His instincts are really, really good. When you watch a guy play a lot, you see their instincts. He has amazing instincts. He closes on balls in the outfield really well. I think he's going to stay in center field.' It's an enticing package, one that made it difficult for Ricciardi to find directly comparable players. He suggested Anthony could be a better version of 19-year big leaguer Steve Finley (a two-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glover), or a player in the mold of five-time All-Star Paul O'Neill but with more power. '[In] 35 years of scouting, I've seen a lot of good players. I've seen Manny Ramirez as a high school kid. I saw David Ortiz … in A-ball when he was playing in Seattle. The list goes on and on and on. I can compare a lot of guys. My Rolodex goes pretty deep,' said Ricciardi. 'When you see them, you see them, and this is what I see. He's probably [among] a handful of maybe 25 guys over a 35-year scouting career for me that I've seen that needs to be at the top of the list, and I don't think he's going to be disappointing at all.' Advertisement But until then, what does Anthony need to develop in order to be as ready as possible for his first opportunity? Ricciardi shook his head and chuckled as he considered the question. 'It's only a matter of time. You know when you go to supermarket and they've got the rotisserie chickens. Some need a little more than others [to cook]. He's done,' said Ricciardi. 'He's ready.' Alex Speier can be reached at
New York Times
21-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Triston McKenzie's fall from grace continues as Guardians designate him for assignment
CLEVELAND — From the rooftop of the Gateway East parking garage, perched above the left-field corner at Progressive Field, Nolan Jones witnessed one of his fondest baseball memories five years ago. Jones, then a minor-leaguer, and his now-fiancée couldn't watch certain Cleveland games because of blackouts, so they decided to watch Triston McKenzie's big-league debut in person. Because that debut took place during the pandemic-shortened season in 2020, they had to get creative to find seats with a view. Advertisement For years, Jones and McKenzie were widely considered the organization's top two prospects. They teased each other about who was No. 1, as the choice regularly changed, depending on the outlet and the year. When McKenzie reached the majors, though, it was validation for both of them. And he stamped the promotion with an unforgettable performance: six innings, two hits and 10 strikeouts, including one of Miguel Cabrera. He proceeded to head home and face Cabrera in MLB The Show, just to drive home the surrealism of the experience. 'It didn't go like this in my head,' he said that night. 'Not even close.' The 10 strikeouts were the second-most for a debut in franchise history, behind only Luis Tiant's 11-strikeout game from 56 years earlier. The outing offered a glimpse of the future for McKenzie, who hadn't pitched in an actual game in two years. Injuries wiped out his 2019 season in the minors, and the pandemic delayed his arrival in 2020. Once he burst onto the scene, though, it was evident he had top-of-the-rotation potential. By the spring of 2023, as McKenzie and the Guardians exchanged contract extension proposals, he was a trendy Cy Young Award pick. The year before, he posted a 2.96 ERA, totaled 190 strikeouts and looked undaunted on the mound in the postseason. The last two years, however, his career has unraveled in painfully quick fashion. Shoulder and elbow trouble sidelined him for much of the 2023 season. He decided against Tommy John surgery and instead opted for rest and rehab. He wrestled with that choice for weeks, and it spawned a year in which he lacked conviction on the mound. When McKenzie failed to crack Cleveland's starting rotation this spring, the clock toward an inevitable breakup began. It culminated in the Guardians designating him for assignment Monday. They needed a fresh arm in the bullpen, and even though McKenzie's arm is just that, they can't trust him in his current state. Advertisement It's an eye-opening fall from grace for one of the most beloved players in the clubhouse. 'It was really difficult to find innings for Triston,' Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. McKenzie didn't have minor-league options, otherwise, the club would have simply sent him two hours south on I-71 to sort through his issues at Triple A. Now, they'll wait to learn if another club claims him and what's left of his $1.95 million salary. His fastball velocity has ticked up in a relief role to 93.7 mph, but it's essentially all he throws. All but 24 of his 123 pitches this season have been fastballs. And that predictability has led to an 11.12 ERA in four outings. The Guardians have said for weeks he needs to establish his curveball and slider in the strike zone, but there hasn't been much progress on that front. Vogt said they saw 'glimpses of it' early in spring training, but toward the end of camp, and throughout the first month of the season, McKenzie hasn't pitched like the guy who seemed poised to be an All-Star a couple of years ago. 'He was just unable to land spin in the zone,' Vogt said. 'It was a difficult decision.' There also hasn't been much opportunity for McKenzie to work through his struggles. He made four appearances in 21 games, each outing coming in a one-sided affair. Last summer, the club demoted him to Triple-A Columbus, but while there, he wasn't attacking the strike zone like they had hoped. The Guardians were so desperate for starting pitching they scooped up Matthew Boyd and Alex Cobb, and they leaned on their bullpen until it fell over. But they left McKenzie in Columbus. He's only 27, so this doesn't have to be the final chapter in his big-league journey. If this is the end of his tenure with the organization that selected him 42nd in the 2015 draft, it feels like he — and everyone who enjoyed watching his lanky frame uncork gorgeous, looping curveballs — got short-changed. Injuries bit him at the worst time, when he was just figuring out how to thrive at the highest level. Advertisement He and Shane Bieber created an imposing tandem atop the Guardians' rotation in 2022, and neither has been the same since. In reality, McKenzie's debut, with cardboard cutouts occupying seats and fake crowd noise being pumped into the ballpark sound system after each of those 10 strikeouts, didn't take place too long ago. It does, however, feel like it's been eons since we've watched a healthy, confident McKenzie sneak chest-high fastballs past hitters at will.
Boston Globe
07-04-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Red Sox deal righthander Quinn Priester to the Brewers for minor league outfielder Yophery Rodriguez
Hunter Dobbins , who allowed two runs over five innings in Advertisement Between Dobbins and Fitts, Sox manager Alex Cora said the organization was satisfied with the options in its rotation. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'We saw one option yesterday and he was really good,' Cora said. 'We're going to see one tonight [Fitts] and he's a good pitcher. And we've got two in Triple A. So I think that's kind of like trading from a power point, whatever you call it. That's our strength now. Related : Rodriguez, 19, was one of Milwaukee's top 15 prospects. The lefthanded hitter from the Dominican Republic has a .254 average with a .769 OPS over 165 minor league games. He was 5 for 12 with a double and triple in three games for High A Wisconsin this season. Per one evaluator, Rodriguez controls the strike zone well and has advanced bat-to-ball skills with emerging power that suggests he will have major league value. He has played primarily center field in the minors but could ultimately move to a corner. Advertisement For Priester, this is the second time he has been traded in eight months. The Red Sox acquired him from the Pirates in July for infielder Priester, a first-round pick by the Pirates in 2019, is 6-9 with a 6.23 ERA in 21 major league games (15 starts). The Brewers, who have been hit hard by injuries to their pitching staff, had an immediate need for a healthy arm. 'I think as an organization, we've got to do what's best for the organization,' Cora said. 'He's a good kid. He did everything that we asked him to do in the offseason. He came to spring training a lot stronger. He had a good spring training, but this is where we're at now.' The trade was first reported by Hunter Noll of Beyond The Monster. Stock returns The Worcester Red Sox were getting ready to fly back Sunday from Jacksonville, Fla. Robert Stock was texting with his wife. WooSox manager Chad Tracy had some news for Stock — the Red Sox were calling him up to the majors for the first time since 2021 — but the 'Fasten your seatbelt' sign was on, so Tracy couldn't get up to tell him. Tracy's only option was to shoot Stock a text. 'He's like, 'I've never called someone up from a text before,' ' Stock said. ' 'But this is the reality.' ' Stock gave himself 30 seconds to enjoy the moment. After a five-year journey that took him from the minors to Korea to Mexico, Stock returned as a different pitcher with a different focus Advertisement 'It's like, OK, but I need to go up and do my best to stay,' he said. The righthander transformed himself from an overhand pitcher with a conventional pitch-mix to a side-arming sinker-baller. It started in 2023, when the Brewers signed him and asked if he wanted to learn how to throw sinkers. 'I had never done it before,' he said. 'I loved that idea, but I was really bad at it.' He spent months in Triple A, but reps were few and far between, so he asked to be released to find places where he could get innings. He threw for the Long Island Ducks in the independent Atlantic League, the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos in Mexico's independent league and Naranjeros de Hermosillo in the Mexican Pacific Winter League 'As often as I'd take the ball, they'd let me,' he said. 'That's exactly what I needed. And over time, my arm slot dropped to throw a sidearm and that really ticked my stuff up and I'm glad that that just accidentally happened.' Mr. $500 million While it has yet to be officially announced, Cora applauded the deal. 'If it's true, great for him,' Cora said. 'I mean, he had a whole country behind that contract. I think it's good for the franchise. It's good for baseball. The guy's also unique at what he does, and he enjoys the game. You see him play and it's amazing. If it happens, good for him.' Advertisement Julian Benbow can be reached at
New York Times
29-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Ryan Kreidler? Spencer Torkelson? More questions and answers on the Tigers' Opening Day roster
LOS ANGELES — Some of the decisions were foreshadowed. Some were classified as surprises. The roster the Detroit Tigers will open their season with Thursday at Dodger Stadium is undoubtedly different than the one they would have envisioned at the start of spring training. It is different even than what they might have imagined one week ago. Advertisement Such is life when three center fielders (Parker Meadows, Matt Vierling and Wenceel Pérez) are injured and your best Triple-A option (Akil Baddoo) is also on the shelf. 'It's been challenging, but it's the job,' Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris said Wednesday. 'We don't have any time to really dwell on it. We don't expect anyone to feel sorry for us. We're expecting to put out the best team we can and come up with the best strategy we can find to beat the Dodgers.' A summary of the final moves: Ryan Kreidler is in center field. Brenan Hanifee is in the bullpen and Jason Foley, last season's team saves leader, is not. Veteran Andrew Chafin is in the minors, and young gun Brant Hurter is in the major leagues. Justyn-Henry Malloy, a revelation in last season's playoffs, will start in Triple A. And Spencer Torkelson is back after a redemptive spring. Here's more from Harris and manager A.J. Hinch on the rationale behind their last-minute decisions: Kreidler will have a daunting task to begin the season. Despite his defensive prowess on the infield, Kreidler has played only 20 minor-league games in center field. His major-league experience in center? All of three innings. The Tigers nonetheless have faith he can handle the defense. 'He makes a lot of really good plays,' Hinch said. 'He's a smart player. He can throw. He gets off the ball like a shortstop, because he is a shortstop. We're going to keep evaluating along the way and make the best decisions to get as many outs as we can, as fast as we can.' Kreidler's bat, though, remains a major uncertainty. In his major-league career, Kreidler has hit only .147 in 150 at-bats over parts of three seasons. He has only a .468 OPS against left-handed pitching and a .372 OPS against right-handers. Injuries have plagued Kreidler's development, but he also hit only .200 over 48 games last season in Triple A. This spring, he posted a .217 average but walked 10 times, hit two home runs and generated an encouraging .862 OPS. Advertisement He's here for the glove. But he will still have to hit some to justify his spot. 'The more we talked about our roster,' Harris said, 'the more we realized we need to keep prioritizing outfield defense. We need to keep protecting our pitching, and we need to keep prioritizing versatility in-game. Ryan Kreidler helps us do that. … He's going to play a lot of center field for us. He's going to protect our pitching and helps us build around what I believe to be the strength and backbone of our team, which is pitching.' After the Tigers' Grapefruit League finale, Malloy stood in the visiting clubhouse and summed up his spring 'I like the camp that I had,' Malloy said. 'I think that I've done a pretty good job of just trying to make a manager and front office make a tough decision. I think that's a great problem to have for a ballclub.' Malloy talked about priding himself on being able to 'put together four or five professional at-bats every night.' That has very much been Malloy's calling card. He had an .893 OPS against left-handed pitching last season as a rookie. He reached base in 7 of his 11 postseason plate appearances. His ability to draw walks and hit for power, especially against lefties, made him a natural fit for a Tigers roster needing more punch. But defense seemed to be his undoing. Despite learning first base this winter and looking comfortable at the position this spring, the most at-bats for Malloy were likely going to come at DH or outfield. The Tigers, seemingly, had serious concerns about the ability to station Malloy in the grass. And in constructing this roster, they chose defense over bats. 'Outfield defense is not as easy to appreciate and measure on a per-game basis as offensive stats,' Harris said. 'Outfield defense is not on the scoreboard every time a player comes to the plate. But it's very valuable … It's our strategy to win games, and it has to continue to be our strategy even in light of the injuries we faced.' Advertisement After the Tigers signed Manuel Margot — a superior defender who also has a solid track record against left-handed pitching — and began talking about playing Kreidler in center, it was clear Malloy or Torkelson would be on the outs. Turns out Malloy is the one who will start in Triple A. 'We knew he's going to help us at some point this summer,' Harris said. The No. 1 pick entered spring training with an uphill battle. He scaled that terrain with ease, hitting five home runs and posting a 1.069 OPS in 55 plate appearances. With a more athletic stance, Torkelson appeared more adjustable at the plate and drove pitches in multiple quadrants of the strike zone for power. It was enough to earn him a spot over Malloy despite his apparent lack of positional versatility. Torkelson will start the opener at DH could still see time at first base as Colt Keith learns the position. And in case there were any doubts, his new foray into right field could present an in-game option for the Tigers if needed. Torkelson had a terrific spring and earned this spot. But will it translate to a bigger stage? 'I'm very proud of Tork, because I feel like there have been portions of our time here together where he's had the weight of the world on his shoulders,' Hinch said. 'The work now starts again in the season for him to be a middle-of-the-order bat that we want to rely on. … It's a great hat tip to Tork on (taking) his offseason into the spring and really crushing his way to the Opening Day lineup.' Hanifee gave the Tigers a difficult decision by throwing 10 2/3 scoreless innings this spring. 'Best stuff and best execution, really, are two things that I look at,' Hinch said. Hanifee was not only dominant in the scorebook, but he also flashed improved stuff, including a turbo sinker that looked even more lethal than the version that helped Hanifee put up a 1.84 ERA in 21 appearances last season. So the choice: Keep Hanifee and roll with Tyler Holton as the only left-hander in the bullpen? Or demote a more proven reliever? Foley turned out to be the loser here despite leading last season's Tigers with 28 saves. Foley's velocity was down this spring, and he had a 6.14 ERA over eight appearances. Foley will likely be back, but it might do him good to get right in Triple A. Advertisement 'It's tough news when, instead of flying to Los Angeles, you're flying to Triple A. But we believe in him, and we believe in the things he can do,' Hinch said. 'A couple of guys are throwing the ball a little better, and we're going to take a bit of a hotter hand into the season while continuing to watch on a daily basis to see when he can factor back in.' Meanwhile, Hanifee looked as potent as any Tigers reliever all spring. Chafin showed some signs of improvement over seven spring outings, but his fastball still struggled to reach 92 mph, and as a late signing on a minor-league deal, the Tigers have little to lose by optioning him and allowing time for the 34-year-old vet to ramp back into form. Hurter will begin the year as the team's second lefty despite a spring in which his command was shaky and he had a 5.25 ERA. Hurter is still a Stuff+ darling, can function as a lefty specialist or long reliever and gives the Tigers an array of options out of the bullpen. 'We don't think we saw his best stuff,' Harris said of Chafin, 'but we expect to be able to see his best stuff soon. He's gonna go to Toledo, he's gonna pitch for the Mud Hens and he's going to try to earn his way back here. We think he has a really good chance.' (Top photo of Ryan Kreidler: David Berding / Getty Images)
