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MLB News and Notes: Yankees Injury Woes Continue

Spring training games have gotten well on their way, and opening day will be later this month. With that in mind, most players are just trying to get their work in while others are competing for one of the last remaining spots on the rosters.

Regardless, spring training is a time for a fresh start, where every team has the same record, and fans can celebrate the possibilities. Still, there is a lot of news circulating around the baseball world, so let’s take a look at some of the news from this last week.

Yankees Struggling With The Injury Bug

It has certainly not been the start to the season that the Yankees wanted when it comes to their health. After already having lost James Paxton for the beginning of the season due to back surgery, the Yankees announced this week that Luis Severino will be out for the 2020 season as he underwent Tommy John surgery.

This now makes two seasons that Severino has been limited by health. Last year, Severino only played in three games due to arm injuries as well. In 2017 and 2018, Severino seemed like an ace in the making. At 24 years old in 2018, he went 19-8 with a 3.39 ERA and 220 strikeouts in 191 1/3 innings. Unfortunately, since then, health has gotten in the way.

Sadly for Yankees’ fans, Severino isn’t the only injury that they have been dealing with. Star outfielder Aaron Judge has also been sidelined with a sore right shoulder. While initial tests came back negative, he has still not even been able to take batting practice on the field, let alone play in a spring training game.

Last season, Judge also had to miss time due to injuries. In 378 at-bats, he hit .272/.381/.540 with 27 home runs, 55 runs batted in and 75 runs scored.

Still, if that wasn’t enough, the Yankees have also lost outfielder Giancarlo Stanton for the beginning of the season as he has a grade one calf strain. Like the others mentioned, Stanton was limited by injuries last year, too. In 2019, he had just 59 at-bats, hitting three home runs and driving in 13 in that time.

Padres Bring In Dozier

The San Diego Padres signed a veteran infielder to a minor league deal this week. Second baseman Brian Dozier agreed to a minor league deal that will pay him just over $2 million if he were to make the big league roster (as well as some other incentives).

While the Padres have players like Jurickson Profar, Greg Garcia and Breyvic Valera vying for the second base spot, Dozier will bring another name to the mix to compete for the spot.

Last season, with the Washington Nationals, Dozier hit .238/.340/.430 with 20 home runs, 50 runs batted in and 54 runs scored. It will be interesting to see if he can crack the roster, but it at least gives the up-and-coming Padres another veteran option.

Brewers Extend Peralta

This week the Milwaukee Brewers took a cue from the Chicago White Sox and agreed to a five-year deal with one of their young relievers. Similar to the White Sox deal with Aaron Bummer, the Brewers agreed to a deal with the 23-year-old Freddy Peralta.

The deal is for five years and $15.5 million. It also includes two years of club options worth another $14.5 million.

While Peralta has not had the success that Bummer has had in Chicago, he still has a lot of upside. There is a belief that he could still be useful as a starting pitcher and, if not, he definitely has a spot in the bullpen. Last season, with Milwaukee, he was 7-3 with a 5.29 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. He appeared in 39 games but started just eight games.

In 85 innings pitched, he had 115 strikeouts. Regardless, it is a low-cost deal for the Brewers that could pay off handsomely if Peralta can put it all together.

Davis Named Closer In Colorado

Sometimes it pays off to be a veteran. While his season was absolutely abysmal last year, manager Bud Black has announced that Wade Davis will start the season off as the closer for the team this year again. Last year was a train wreck for Davis.

In 50 games, he went 1-6 with an 8.65 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP. In 42.2 innings pitched, he had 42 strikeouts and 15 saves.

Despite the struggles last year in Colorado, Davis has shown signs of brilliance in the past. For instance, in 2015 with Kansas City Royals, Davis was 8-1 with a 0.94 ERA and 0.79 WHIP. He had 17 saves that season and 78 strikeouts in 67.1 innings. At 34, the Rockies are hoping that he can bounce back.

If he can’t, the job may be handed to Scott Oberg. Oberg, who will turn 30 later this month, went 6-1 with a 2.25 ERA last year. He had five saves towards the end of the season and had 58 strikeouts in 56 innings. While Davis will start the year as the Colorado closer, it wouldn’t be surprising if he doesn’t make it through the year as their closer.

Morrow Out For A Couple Weeks

Brandon Morrow is a guy you want to root for but just can’t seem to catch a break lately. After a solid season in 2018 for the Chicago Cubs, one that saw him go for 22 saves and a 1.47 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 35 games, he has been injured since.

He lost the entire 2019 season due to a variety of injuries, and after having seemed to be on track to start the spring training this year, he is out again.

It was found that Morrow suffered a slight tear in his calf that will sideline him at least a couple weeks. While the injury won’t keep him out long, it may jeopardize the beginning of the season for him. Frankly, at this point, it is tough to trust the 35-year-old can stay healthy, but Morrow will hope to right the ship this season from both a performance and injury standpoint.

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