Daily Dose: Oh Danny Boy
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What’s more impressive these days, no-hitting the Dodgers or holding the Blue Jays to two runs over seven innings in Toronto?
I'm kidding, of course, but there's no doubting Danny Salazar was electric on Monday. The Indians right-hander recorded 10 strikeouts over his seven frames, yielding six hits while issuing just one free pass. The two runs the Jays were able to tally versus Salazar came on a two-out, two-run triple by American League MVP front-runner Josh Donaldson.
Salazar struggled in his previous outing in New York, but Monday’s effort has been more representative of what he’s done of late. Over his last nine starts, the 25-year-old boasts a 2.05 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 64/17 K/BB ratio over 61 1/3 innings. He’s surrendered a mere 39 hits over those 61 1/3 frames.
Salazar has dealt with his ups and downs the last two seasons, getting sent to the minors last year and failing to crack the Opening Day rotation in 2015. His command can be spotty at times, but when he’s on there are few better in the game.
The Indians, meanwhile, are suddenly within shouting distance of the second Wild Card spot in the AL after winning six straight and nine out of their last 11. They sit four games back of the Rangers.
Contenders Add to Roster
Contending teams wanting to add potential options for their playoff roster needed to do so on Monday, and there were a couple clubs that did just that.
The Cubs acquired Austin Jackson from the Mariners in exchange for a player to be named later and international bonus slot money. Once a key cog on some postseason teams in his days with the Tigers, Jackson is more of a role player now. He’s hit a pedestrian .272/.312/.387 with eight homers and 15 stolen bases for the Mariners this season.
Jackson isn’t going to supplant Dexter Fowler in center field, but he gives the Cubs outfield depth with Jorge Soler likely out at least a couple more weeks with an oblique injury. The 28-year-old hasn’t played anywhere other than center field since 2009 when he was a farmhand with the Yankees, but the Cubs will likely ask Jackson to chip in in right field. He’s not going to have much fantasy value in Chicago.
The guy taking over the spot Jackson vacated in center field with the Mariners – Brad Miller – has more fantasy appeal during the final month of the season. Miller has been up and down in 2015 with a .246/.323/.388 batting line, but he’s hit nine homers, stolen 12 bases and is eligible at second base, shortstop and outfield in some leagues. His playing time had been cut back a bit upon Ketel Marte’s arrival, but he should now be in there pretty much every day.
San Francisco added some outfield depth with the addition of Alejandro De Aza, who came over from the Red Sox in exchange for pitching prospect Luis Ysla. De Aza was removed from the Orioles’ 40-man roster earlier this season after hitting only .214/.277/.359 over 30 games, but he righted the ship in Boston with a .292/.347/.484 batting line, four homers and three steals over 60 contests.
Hunter Pence’s progress from a strained oblique has been slow, as he took 20 swings off a tee Monday and was still feeling soreness. He looks to be at least another couple weeks away. The Giants still figure to roll with Nori Aoki, Angel Pagan and Marlon Byrd most days while Pence is out (while Pagan can remain healthy, anyway). Gregor Blanco and De Aza give manager Bruce Bochy another couple options.
The Royals also made a trade Monday, dealing infield prospect Luis Valenzuela to the Braves in exchange for Jonny Gomes. Gomes’ .221/.325/.364 batting line for the season is pretty ugly, but he entered play Monday hitting .271/.375/.458 in the second half. Plus, he’s always killed lefties, going into Monday with a .247/.412/.466 line against them this season and a .275/.379/.484 versus them in his career.
Kansas City figures to use Gomes mainly in a pinch-hitting role against southpaws, but it’s possible he could steal some starts in right field away from Alex Rios. Rios is in the midst of a dreadful season that seen him bat just .253/.288/.333.
Finally, the Dodgers picked up Justin Ruggiano from the Mariners, sending a player to be named later or cash to Seattle. Ruggiano was taken off the M’s 40-man roster in June after sporting a .214/.321/.357 batting line over 81 plate appearances. He got things together at Triple-A Tacoma, though, hitting .296/.385/.514 with 10 homers. He also boasts a career .266/.331/.505 line against lefties. With Yasiel Puig (hamstring) and Enrique Hernandez (hamstring) sidelined and Joc Pederson in a lengthy slump, Ruggiano figures to see a good amount of playing time, at least versus southpaws.
National League Quick Hits: Marco Gonzales will start Tuesday versus the Nationals in place of Carlos Martinez, who was scratched with a minor back injury ... Bartolo Colon picked up the win on Monday with eight scoreless innings versus the Phillies ... Tyson Ross struck out seven while spinning seven shutout innings in Monday’s win over the Rangers ... Maikel Franco (wrist) will take batting practice on Wednesday and is looking likely to return at some point this month ... Corey Dickerson (ribs) took batting practice Monday and could be game-ready before long ... Charlie Blackmon went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple, a walk and a stolen base in Monday's victory against the Diamondbacks ... A.J. Pollock singled and launched a two-run shot versus the Rockies ... Lucas Duda (back) is not expected to be activated from the disabled list when first eligible on September 6 ... Addison Russell went 2-for-4 with a two-run double and a solo home run in Monday’s loss to the Reds ... Ryan Zimmerman went 3-for-4 with an RBI double and a three-run home run in a loss to the Cardinals ... Shelby Miller spun seven frames of one-run ball but still lost to the Marlins on Monday ... Michael Conforto went 2-for-2 with a walk and a solo home run as the Mets took down the Phillies on Monday ... Howie Kendrick (hamstring) still isn't ready to begin a rehab assignment ... Matt Adams (quad) had a minor setback when he tweaked something in his left leg (not the one he had surgery on) ...
American League Quick Hits: Mark Teixeira (shin) has been sent back to New York to undergo more tests and has been ruled out for the series versus the Red Sox ... The Rangers are expected to use Josh Hamilton (knee) only as a pinch-hitter in September ... Dallas Keuchel strengthened his American League Cy Young case by striking out eight over seven frames of one-run ball in a win over the Mariners ... Mark Trumbo went deep twice in Monday’s loss to the Astros ... Carlos Correa went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in his return to the Astros’ lineup ... David Ortiz homered, doubled and walked in Monday’s victory over the Yankees ... Miguel Gonzalez will undergo an MRI on his right shoulder and right elbow on Tuesday ... Chris Archer struck out six over six shutout innings Monday versus the Orioles ... Chris Bassitt underwent an MRI Monday after experiencing right shoulder soreness ... David Freese (finger) will be activated from the disabled list on Tuesday ... Jurickson Profar (shoulder) could be activated from the disabled list this month ... Dustin Pedroia (hamstring) has been cleared to ramp up his baseball activities ... Dylan Bundy (shoulder) has been cleared for throwing ... David Robertson was claimed off revocable waivers by the Yankees, but the White Sox pulled him back ...
