Week That Was: O Captain!
The Mets have managed to remain atop the NL East for most of the season without the services of their captain and best hitter David Wright, who landed on the disabled list in April after just eight games with spinal stenosis and remained mired there through months of setbacks. Now, they're getting him back just in time for the stretch run.
Wright returned to the Mets lineup in style on Monday, smacking a deep home run in his first at-bat and helping launch a blowout victory.
Mets manager Terry Collins has admitted that Wright may not be 100 percent again until next spring, stating that he plans to give the third baseman regular rest here in the final weeks of the season. We've already seen that play out, as Wright sat out on Wednesday after playing Monday and Tuesday. In all, Wright has gone 4-for-15 in his first week back in action.
Don't expect to see the seven-time All Star in prime form this season, but he should still be a fairly productive hitter the rest of the way.
* Denard Span also returned this week after missing significant time with a back ailment of his own, but after just two games he was struck by hip inflammation that is related to the same back/core issues, and now he will undergo season-ending surgery. Span had been enjoying his best season in years but unfortunately his body simply will not cooperate. He's a free agent this offseason.
* The Twins had hoped to reinstate Phil Hughes when he was eligible this week, but his back hasn't healed as quickly as planned so he remains sidelined. He's just now starting to play catch so it seems likely he'll be out for at least a couple more weeks. Fortunately, rookie Tyler Duffey has been doing a bang-up job in Hughes' stead, and is an intriguing deep-league target.
* The Mariners optioned Mike Zunino to Triple-A. The young catcher has scuffled at the plate all year and hasn't at any point been able to gain any real traction in the big leagues despite gaudy numbers in the minors. He was batting .130 with a 361 OPS in September. John Hicks and Jesus Sucre will split time behind the plate for Seattle, but neither offers a shred of offensive upside.
* Jorge Soler was placed on the DL with the dreaded strained oblique, and figures to be out of action for at least a month. While he's gone, Chris Coghlan will shift to right field and Tommy La Stella has been recalled from the minors to take over at second base. Chris Denorfia may also see an uptick in playing time.
* Sean Doolittle, who had made only one appearance all season for the A's while struggling with shoulder pain, finally reentered the fray this week. There's been some talk that the 2014 All Star might be able to reclaim the closer role from Edward Mujica, but in two appearances this week Doolittle coughed up three runs with three walks and no strikeouts. We're skeptical that he's going to be able to provide much in 2015.
* Battling an arthritic right knee, CC Sabathia was placed on the shelf Monday and it initially looked like he might be done for the season. A promising second opinion spawned optimism that he will indeed be able to come back, and maybe even after the minimum 15 days. Still, Sabathia has been a hittable mess this year and holds little fantasy relevance.
* It was a good week for Kris Bryant. The rookie slugger went deep twice against the Braves on Sunday, then delivered a ninth-inning walk-off shot against the Indians on Monday. He has picked up at least one knock in each game since, and enters play on Friday with a seven-game hitting streak. The 23-year-old is turning himself into a shoe-in for NL Rookie of the Year.
* The Cubs acquired reliever Fernando Rodney from the Mariners in exchange for a player to be named later. Rodney saved a league-leading 48 games last year for Seattle and opened this season in the closer role but lost his hold on the gig due to inconsistent and erratic performances. He has given up four runs while recording only two outs in his last couple trips to the mound, but had a 1.74 ERA in his prior 10 appearances.
* Desmond Jennings, who missed the first four months of the season while recovering from surgery on his left knee, reinjured the same knee while sliding into second base last weekend and wound up back on the DL. It seems unlikely we'll see him again this year and there have to be some long-term concerns, given that speed is such a big part of his game.
* Yasiel Puig injured his hamstring while legging out an infield single on Thursday, and unfortunately it was the same one that he's had problems with earlier in the season. Not a good sign. The outfielder, who has been limited to 77 games this year, may be looking at another lengthy absence although he has expressed that he'd like to play through the pain if possible.
* After watching him flounder around in left field for much of the season, the Red Sox finally announced this week that they'll be pulling the plug on the ill-fated "Hanley Ramirez, Outfielder" experiment. The former shortstop acknowledged that he'll be moving to first base full-time next year. Hopefully he'll get back to hitting enough to justify the assignment, because this year he really hasn't.
* Justin Verlander is beginning to look like his old self. He took a no-hitter into the ninth against the Angels on Wednesday, ultimately settling for a one-hit shutout. Verlander was rocked by Baltimore for seven runs in his first start after the All-Star break, but since then he has a 1.38 ERA and 49-to-8 K/BB ratio in 52 innings. The strikeouts are especially encouraging after seeing his K-rate dip substantially last year.
* The Indians placed Carlos Carrasco on the DL due to shoulder inflammation, but fortunately his MRI came back clean and he should be back in early September.
* Jose Fernandez threw a very successful bullpen session this week and the Marlins are hoping to get him back in mid-September. That's great news since it looked at one point like he might simply be shut down.
* The Mariners fired general manager Jack Zduriencik.
