2017 World Baseball Classic Archives

Didi Gregorius leaves WBC with right shoulder injury

March 20, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

Welp, this isn’t good: Didi Gregorius has left Team Netherlands and is returning to Tampa with a right shoulder injury, according to Bryan Hoch and Kevin Kernan. It’s a “hematoma of the subcapsular muscle,” whatever that means, according to Anthony Rieber. Gregorius had a preliminary MRI yesterday and will go for more tests tomorrow.

“The doctor was really encouraged by his strength and felt good about it, but we thought we’re going to cover ourselves,” said Joe Girardi to Randy Miller. “It’s obviously not what you want to hear, but hopefully it’s something short. But again, we have not seen him. The evaluation from the doctor was his strength was really good. But we’ve got to see him.”

Gregorius played six games in the World Baseball Classic — one at shortstop and five at designated hitter in deference to Andrelton Simmons. The Netherlands clinched a spot in the semifinals last week and they’ve spent the last few days in Arizona working out and playing exhibition games while waiting for the semifinals to start tonight.

It’s unclear how exactly Gregorius got hurt, but it could simply be one of those wear and tear baseball injuries. I know everyone will freak out and blame the WBC, but Gregorius could have just as easily gotten hurt with the Yankees. It doesn’t really matter though. He’s hurt and that’s that.

Hopefully tomorrow’s tests bring good news because the shortstop depth chart is not pretty. Ronald Torreyes, Ruben Tejada, Donovan Solano, and Pete Kozma are the best in-house options. I don’t think the Yankees would be foolish enough to accelerate their timetable with Gleyber Torres because of the injury. Didi getting hurt doesn’t make Torres more MLB ready.

Gregorius, 27, hit .276/.304/.447 (98 wRC+) with 20 home runs last season. He went 8-for-23 (.385) with four doubles and a home run in his six WBC games. Opening Day is only 13 days away, so unless this is a really minor injury, Didi’s chances of being ready to start the season aren’t good.

Open Thread: February 20th Camp Notes

February 20, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

I missed this last week, but the Yankees have announced single-game tickets for the 2017 season go on sale next Monday, February 27th. The Mastercard pre-sale period begins this Wednesday, February 22nd. Baseball is coming, folks. Make sure you get your tickets. Here are the day’s notes from Tampa:

Jon Niese passed his physical and his minor league deal is official, the Yankees announced. There are now 67 players in big league camp, though Richard Bleier remains in limbo after being designated for assignment. Niese said he was surprised he had to settle for a minor league deal, and added he signed with the Yankees because he sees a good opportunity to make the team. Joe Girardi said Niese is competing for a bullpen spot, not a rotation spot. [Jack Curry, Erik Boland]
One more note on Niese: he’s an Article XX(B) free agent because he has six years of service time and signed a minor league deal. That means two things. One, the Yankees have to pay him a $100,000 bonus at the end of Spring Training before sending him to the minors. And two, his contract automatically includes a June 1st opt-out if he is not on the big league roster.
Here, via Brendan Kuty, are the day’s pitching assignments, hitting groups, and fielding groups. Bryan Mitchell and Luis Cessa both threw simulated games while Michael Pineda, Tyler Clippard, Justus Sheffield, and Chance Adams were among those to throw live batting practice. Greg Bird took someone deep during a sim game (video).
Hensley Meulens, the former Yankee, said Didi Gregorius is going to play second, short, and third with the Netherlands during the World Baseball Classic. He’ll also get at-bats as the DH. Meulens is the team’s manager. The Netherlands has Jonathan Schoop at second, Andrelton Simmons at short, and Xander Bogaerts at third. [Jon Morosi]

This is the open thread for the evening. The NBA is still in their All-Star break and none of the local hockey teams are in action, so all you’ve got tonight are a handful of college basketball games. Talk about anything here as long as it’s not religion or politics.

Pineda, Severino among the Dominican Republic’s eligible pitchers for the WBC

February 8, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

Earlier today, the Dominican Republic announced their official roster for the upcoming 2017 World Baseball Classic. As expected, Dellin Betances is on the roster while Gary Sanchez is not. Here’s the roster. Robinson Cano at second, Manny Machado at short, and Adrian Beltre at third is one heck of an infield, eh? Tony Pena has a fun roster to manage.

Both Michael Pineda and Luis Severino are included in the team’s “Designated Pitcher Pool,” which is a new wrinkle in the WBC. Each team will designate ten pitchers who can be added to the roster later in the tournament. They’re allowed to add two pitchers at the end of the first round and another two at the end of the second round. So up to four of the ten extra pitchers can join the roster.

The Designated Pitcher Pool is a pretty blatant attempt by MLB and the WBC folks to get Clayton Kershaw to commit to Team USA. The Championship Game is at Dodger Stadium on March 22nd, and if Team USA advances, they want Kershaw on the mound because it’ll create serious buzz. The rule allows Kershaw to remain with the Dodgers in Spring Training and make the one start for Team USA.

The Dominican Republic won the 2013 WBC, and, based on their roster, they’re going to contend for a title again this year. They’re in a first round pool with Canada, Colombia, and Team USA. Pineda’s rotation spot with the Yankees is secure, but Severino has to win one in camp. I wonder if he’d decline to be added to the WBC roster should the Dominican Republic ask him to join the team. We’ll see.

Gary Sanchez will pass on the 2017 World Baseball Classic

February 7, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

According to multiple reports, Gary Sanchez has decided not to play for the Dominican Republic during the upcoming 2017 World Baseball Classic. The tournament begins March 6th and the Championship Game will be played March 22nd at Dodger Stadium.

Sanchez told Sweeny Murti he initially accepted an invitation to play in the WBC, but he changed his mind recently and will instead spend Spring Training with the Yankees. That’s good. Sanchez is about to begin his first full season as the starting catcher and he needs to familiarize himself with the pitching staff.

Dellin Betances will suit up for the Dominican Republic, which will be managed by Yankees first base coach Tony Pena. Didi Gregorius is going to play for the Netherlands. Minor leaguers Kellin Deglan (Canada), Tito Polo, Carlos Vidal, and Donovan Solano (all Colombia) are on WBC rosters as well.

Saturday Links: Otani, Spring Training Caps, A-Rod, Fowler

February 4, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

For the first time I can remember, a Steinbrenner has backed off the “World Series or bust” mantra. While speaking to David Lennon earlier this week, Hal Steinbrenner said the Yankees have the potential to be a postseason team in 2017. Not exactly a glowing endorsement, but hey, give Hal points for honesty. Here’s some stuff to check out as we wait for Spring Training to begin.

Otani won’t play in Arizona, WBC

Shohei Otani, the best non-MLB player in the world, will not play in Arizona with the Nippon Ham Fighters this month or the World Baseball Classic next month, reports the Kyodo News. Otani is nursing a nagging ankle injury. There was some hope he would be able to DH in the WBC, but nope. He’s being removed from Japan’s 28-man roster entirely. They don’t want to push it.

The (Ham) Fighters are scheduled to hold Spring Training in Arizona at the Padres’ complex for the second straight year. It was going to be a great chance for MLB clubs to get their eyes on Otani, even the Spring Training version of him, right in their own backyards. Now they’ll have to wait for the regular season, and, to be fair, they were going to scout him during the regular season anyway. They just won’t get an early start in camp or the WBC.

The biggest question remains whether Otani will actually come over to MLB next season. Reports indicate he will, but the new international hard cap means his earning potential will be severely limited. He could wait three years until he turns 25, make good money in Japan in the meantime, then come over when he’s no longer subject to the hard cap. We’ll see.

MLB unveils new Spring Training caps

Last week we got a sneak peak at the Yankees’ new Spring Training caps, and yesterday morning, MLB made it official. The pinstriped brim is part of this year’s Grapefruit League ensemble. Thankfully the team’s road cap is much more … normal.

Well, I don’t think I’ll be running out to buy either one of those. Whatever. The jerseys, thankfully, look like normal Spring Training jerseys. You win some and you lose some.

A-Rod’s coming to camp … twice

Earlier this week Steinbrenner confirmed Alex Rodriguez will serve not one, but two stints this spring as a guest instructor, according to Lennon. They haven’t yet mapped out a plan for the regular season, however. A-Rod’s official title is special advisor, though he’s really more like a special instructor, going around and working with various prospects. What are the chances Gleyber Torres will be Rodriguez’s pet project this year, 90%? I’ll take the over.

Fowler is Law’s sleeper prospect

Yesterday Keith Law (subs. req’d) wrapped up his annual prospect rankings package by naming one sleeper prospect for each team. He defines a sleeper as a prospect “not in the current top 100, but I think they have a good chance to take a big leap forward during 2017, ending up not just in the top 100 but also somewhere in the middle to upper reaches of it.” Outfielder Dustin Fowler is his pick for the Yankees.

Fowler has the right mix of ability, some performance and youth to end up squarely in the top 100 next winter. Teenage prospects such outfielder Estevan Florial or shortstop Wilkerman Garcia are probably a year from that kind of status.

Pretty much the only thing Fowler doesn’t do is walk, and while minor league walk rates aren’t very predictive, the scouting report says he is a bit of a free swinger. With a little more patience, Fowler could develop into a 20-20 center fielder with solid on-base percentages. And it’s not even clear he is one of the ten best prospects in the organization right now. Wild.

Morosi: Didi Gregorius expected to play in the 2017 World Baseball Classic

January 24, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

According to Jon Morosi, dedicated WBC newsman, Didi Gregorius is expected to play for the Netherlands in the upcoming 2017 World Baseball Classic. None of the rosters have been officially announced yet, though that should happen reasonably soon. The tournament begins March 6th and the Netherlands opens pool play in South Korea, so Didi has a long flight ahead of him.

There are currently six Dutch players in the big leagues, and Morosi says all of them will play in the WBC except Kenley Jansen. That means Gregorius will share an infield with Andrelton Simmons, Xander Bogaerts, Jurickson Profar, and Jonathan Schoop. The rest of the roster will be made up of players from Honkbal Hoofdklasse, the highest level of pro ball in the Netherlands.

Last week Bogaerts told Brian MacPherson he’s going to play third base at the WBC while Simmons mans shortstop, meaning Gregorius will either have to play second base (Schoop’s position) or designated hitter. It’s entirely possible Didi will end up getting starts at second, short, and DH in the tournament. We’ll see. He’s one of the team’s best players, so he’ll be in the lineup one way or another.

Gregorius did not play in any of the previous WBCs, and since his roster spot with the Yankees is secure, he has nothing to lose by playing in the event. It wouldn’t make sense for, say, Luis Cessa to go pitch for Mexico in the WBC when he’s trying to win a rotation spot with the Yankees, you know? Gregorius isn’t competing for his job. He knows he is New York’s starting shortstop.

The final WBC rosters will be announced in the coming weeks. We know Dellin Betances will pitch for the Dominican Republic and Masahiro Tanaka will not pitch for Japan, and that’s about it right now. The Yankees have a few other players who could represent their country in the WBC.

Masahiro Tanaka will not play in the 2017 World Baseball Classic

January 23, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

While speaking at an event in Japan on Monday, Masahiro Tanaka confirmed he will not participate in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, according to the Associated Press. He didn’t given a specific reason for his decision. “Taking various things into consideration, it would be difficult so I will not participate,” he said. The tournament begins March 6th.

Tanaka, who was part of Japan’s roster in both the 2009 and 2013 WBCs, said he wanted to pitch in the 2017 event back in December. Apparently something changed his mind since then, perhaps even the Yankees. That said, the Yankees had no control over the situation. They couldn’t prevent Tanaka from participating in the WBC. Brian Cashman confirmed it.

Japan released a partial roster late last month that included 19 players, but only one big leaguer: outfielder Nori Aoki. The Associated Press report says the rest of the roster is expected to be made up of players from Nippon Pro Baseball. Japan has used big leaguers in the past, most notably Ichiro Suzuki and Daisuke Matsuzaka, but they’ve gotten away from that in recent WBCs. Their entire 2013 WBC roster was NPB players.

The WBC added a new rule this year that allows each team to add two pitchers to the roster after each round of the tournament, which is pretty blatantly an attempt to get Clayton Kershaw to commit to Team USA and pitch in the Championship Game at Dodger Stadium should they advance. Kershaw would be able to spend Spring Training with the Dodgers and then make the one quick WBC start.

Anyway, when the WBC announced that rule change, I wondered whether Japan would attempt to woo Tanaka (and Yu Darvish?) to pitch in the later rounds of the tournament, should they advance. That new rule is a good way for teams to get big name pitchers to commit to the WBC and add some excitement while allowing the players to remain in Spring Training with their big league team for most of March.

At some point very soon the 16 WBC teams will announce their official rosters for the tournament. Right now Dellin Betances is the only Yankee to commit to the event, as far as we know. He’ll pitch for the Dominican Republic. Minor leaguers Tito Polo and Carlos Vidal figure to play for Colombia after suiting up for the qualifying tournament last spring. The Yankees have other WBC candidates too.