Cano Cracked

Cano Gets Cracked

The Mariners’ offense will be without one of its key components for the foreseeable future after Robinson Cano fractured the fifth metacarpal in his right hand on Sunday afternoon.

The hard-hitting second baseman was drilled in the hand by an 88 mph fastball from Blaine Hardy during the third inning of Sunday’s loss to the Tigers. Cano admitted that he knew right away that he had broken something and X-rays quickly confirmed the diagnosis.

Cano expressed his frustration to reporters after the game, "Of course it's frustrating, the way we've been playing," Cano said. "But you have to go with what God gives you. It can be something worse, but I have to take the time and recover 100 percent and come back and play again."

Cano will fly to Philadelphia on Tuesday to visit with a hand specialist to determine the next course of action, but it’s highly likely that he’s heading toward surgery.

Mariners’ manager Scott Servais said Sunday that Dee Gordon, who played second base primarily during his time with the Marlins, would remain in center field and would not be an option to replace Cano at second base.

That means the club could be turning to Gordon Beckham. The 31-year-old, a former eighth overall draft pick of the White Sox in 2008, is slashing a robust .300/.412/.500 with four homers and 15 RBI in 114 plate appearances at Triple-A Tacoma. He would have appeal as a middle infielder in AL-only leagues if he secures the full-time gig with Cano on the shelf.

Another internal option is Taylor Motter, who’s hitting .267/.363/.467 with a homer and two RBI in just 17 plate appearances at the big league level this season. He did belt seven homers and steal 12 bases in 92 games with the Mariners in 2017.

Mariners’ general manager Jerry Dipoto makes more deals than anyone else in the business and has probably already been on the phone calling around to see what type of upgrades are available via trade.

Fantasy owners looking to replace Cano’s production at second base may want to look toward Giants’ second baseman Alen Hanson. The 25-year-old has excelled since taking over for the injured Joe Panik, slashing .298/.346/.638 with four homers, 12 RBI and three stolen bases.

 

Peralta Shines in Debut

With Chase Anderson sidelined due to illness, the Brewers were forced to call-up 21-year-old Freddy Peralta to make an emergency start against the Rockies on Sunday. At Coors Field. Not exactly the optimal situation for a big league debut.

Peralta defied the odds.

With his family in attendance on Mother’s Day, Peralta delivered a masterful performance. He carried a no-hit bid into the sixth inning until David Dahl lined a one-out single into center field. In total, Peralta allowed just that one single and a pair of walks while racking up 13 strikeouts over 5 ⅔ innings. He could have gone on dominating the Rockies all afternoon, but had to be lifted in the sixth inning due to a rising pitch count that had reached 98.

The 13 strikeouts were the most in Brewers’ franchise history for any hurler making his major league debut. It was the fourth-highest strikeout total in a pitcher’s debut in MLB history and the most since Stephen Strasburg punched out 14 in his debut back in 2010.

The young right-hander’s family had planned to be in attendance for his start at Triple-A Colorado Springs on Sunday, before Anderson’s illness forced him into emergency duty with the Brewers. It just so happened that the Brewers were in Colorado playing the Rockies, so his family was still able to attend. He put on a memorable performance.

The plan had been for this to be just a spot start for Peralta, and then he’d head back to Triple-A Colorado Springs once Chase Anderson was ready to return. With as well as Sunday’s start went though, you have to wonder if the Brewers will find a way to keep him in the rotation for awhile.

If he sticks around to make another start, he’ll do battle against the Twins next weekend.in Minnesota.

Never Give Up

While not relevant from a fantasy perspective, a pretty cool story unfolded in Houston on Sunday.

Brandon Mann, a 33-year-old left-hander, had his contract purchased by the Rangers from Triple-A Round Rock. It’s the first time that he has made it to the big leagues, 17 years after being drafted by the Rays in the 27th round of the 2002 draft.

Mann toiled in the minor leagues with the Rays from 2002-2010. He pitched in the Dodgers’ organization for part of the 2010 season, spending the rest of the year on the mound for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs in the Independent Atlantic League.

From there, his journey took him overseas. He spent the next two seasons for Yokohama in Japan’s Central League.

He returned stateside in 2014, pitching for Lancaster in the Atlantic League before finishing the season in the Pirates’ organization at Double-A Altoona.

The 2015 campaign saw him pitch for Fargo-Moorehead in the Independent American Association with subpar results overall.

The Athletics took a flier on him in 2016, but his journey got sidetracked after getting hit with an 80-game suspension for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. He remained in the Oakland organization through the 2017 season before signing on with the Rangers in January.

Working out of the bullpen at Triple-A Round Rock, he started to excel. Over 12 games, he compiled a 1.04 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 13/5 K/BB ratio across 17 ⅓ innings, hearing his long-awaited call to the show.

He didn’t have to wait long to make his debut. Mann was summoned from the bullpen in the seventh inning on Sunday in front of friends and family that made the trek to Houston to see him finally live out his dream. He retired the first two hitters that he faced to end the seventh inning, then was sent back out for the eighth. He gave up a one-out single to Alex Bregman, but retired the other three hitters that he faced without issue.

In entering Sunday’s game, Mann became the second oldest player to make his major league debut in the Rangers’ organization.

While Sunday was a heart-warming story for Mann and the Rangers' organization, it'd be even cooler to see him stick around and become a staple in the team's bullpen for the remainder of the season.

American League Quick Hits: Adrian Beltre was lifted from Sunday’s game against the Astros due to a left hamstring injury and could be headed back to the disabled list… Keynan Middleton was removed from Sunday’s outing against the Twins due to renewed discomfort in his elbow. He’ll undergo an MRI on Monday… Bradley Zimmer missed his third straight game on Sunday due to a bruised chest… Nicholas Castellanos was held out of Sunday’s series finale against the Mariners due to soreness in his left pinkie finger… Jordan Zimmermann (shoulder) won’t be ready to return from the disabled list when first eligible on Wednesday… The MRI on the injured wrist of Jeimer Candelario came back clean and he’s considered day-to-day… George Springer sat out his second straight game due to an elbow contusion suffered when he was hit by a pitch on Friday. He’s expected to return to the lineup on Monday… Yoan Moncada (hamstring) is expected to be activated from the disabled list when he’s first eligible on Tuesday… The Orioles’ claimed Renato Nunez off of waivers from the Rangers… Trevor Cahill (elbow) threw a bullpen session on Sunday but still isn’t 100 percent. The Athletics have yet to make a decision on whether or not he’ll start on Wednesday… Jose Iglesias delivered a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth to lead the Tigers past the Mariners… Jose Ramirez went 2-for-3 with a jack and a bag as the Indians crushed the Royals… Yan Gomes went 4-for-5 with a homer and three RBI in that rout… Joey Rickard homered twice and drove in five runs as the Orioles clobbered the Rays… Dylan Bundy fired seven shutout innings in that victory… J.D. Martinez clubbed his 10th home run as the Red Sox topped the Blue Jays… Matt Davidson belted his 11th long ball in a win over the Cubs… Giancarlo Stanton went 4-for-4 with a homer and three RBI, pacing the Yankees’ offense in a win over the Athletics… Luis Severino allowed only one run over six innings there, improving to 6-1 on the season… Dallas Keuchel fanned eight over seven scoreless frames in a win against the Rangers...Shohei Ohtani punched out 11 over 6 ⅓ innings of one-run ball in a no-decision against the Twins… Fernando Romero delivered another strong outing, fanning six over five innings of one-run ball against the Angels… Zack Cozart went 3-for-5 and came through with a walk-off single to defeat the Twins.

National League Quick Hits: Madison Bumgarner (finger) will throw a bullpen session on Monday. He’s about a week away from facing live hitters and could be ready to rejoin the Giants’ rotation before the end of the month… Adam Wainwright is likely heading back to the disabled list after leaving Sunday’s start in the third inning with renewed pain in his pitching elbow. Wainwright issued six walks in 2 ⅓ innings before departing… Jason Heyward (concussion) will not be activated from the disabled list when first eligible on Monday, though he isn’t far off… Jacob deGrom was removed from Sunday’s start against the Phillies after just one inning due to a high pitch count and the extended rain delay that he had to endure… Rich Hill was removed from Sunday’s start in the sixth inning due to a blister on his middle finger. He’s considered day-to-day and could make his next scheduled start…  Sean Newcomb fired six innings of one-hit shutout baseball in a victory over the Marlins… Aaron Nola improved to 6-1, allowing just one run over six innings against the Mets… Nick Williams blasted a pinch-hit three-run homer to lead the Phillies to victory in that one… Derek Holland twirled 6 ⅓ innings of shutout baseball in a victory over the Pirates… Padres’ prospect Franmil Reyes will join the big league club on Monday. Reyes was slashing .346/.440/.748 with 14 homers and 37 RBI at Triple-A El Paso… Luis Castillo fanned eight while allowing two earned runs over six innings in a victory against the Dodgers… Joey Votto homered and stole a base in the win… Billy Hamilton swiped three bases in the game and now has eight on the season… Yasiel Puig launched his first home run of the season in a loss to the Reds… Clayton Richard matched his career-high with 10 strikeouts over eight innings of two-run baseball in a win over the Cardinals… Bryce Harper clubbed his National League-leading 13th homer in a win against the Diamondbacks… Trea Turner homered and stole a base in the victory… Mark Reynolds launched a pair of home runs and plated three, leading the Nationals to victory over the Diamondbacks’ in his Nats’ debut.