Mining the News (2/13/24)

American League

Angels

• Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com still sees Carlos Estévez as the closer.

Estévez is expected to be the closer again this season, although he did struggle in the second half. Stephenson was the club’s biggest addition in the offseason, signing for three years and $33 million. He’ll be the club’s top setup reliever, and could take over as closer if Estévez falters.

Astros

• Jake Meyers hasn’t looked the same since a 2021 playoff injury.

Meyers has slashed .227/.287/.360 in 164 regular-season games since suffering a gruesome shoulder injury during the 2021 playoffs. Former general manager James Click has acknowledged the team rushed Meyers back during his recovery and Meyers hasn’t looked the same since.

Long lauded for his elite defense and speed, Meyers will need to maintain some semblance of offensive continuity and become a better on-base threat to keep his spot in the everyday lineup, especially if prospects Jacob Melton and Joey Loperfido produce in the minor leagues.

Guardians

• Tyler Freeman has been working in the outfield after playing all but one game in the infield so far in the majors.

Bench/utility (3): David Fry, Deyvison De Los Santos, Tyler Freeman

Fry brings as much versatility as you could as for in a utility guy between the outfield, infield and behind the dish. Freeman has been working on his versatility, too, practicing in the outfield this winter.

Orioles

• Jackson Holliday will play some second base thereby adding some position flexibility.

“I see Jackson being able to bounce back and forth between second and short, depending on the day’s alignment,” Elias said. “I think you’re going to see him at second base a lot during Spring Training, and I know [manager] Brandon Hyde is going to try to put the kid in a position to make the team and give him a real shot for that.”

• Jorge Mateo will start the season as the team’s utility bat.

Elias told The Fan that Mateo will see a decent amount of outfield run in Spring Training as he prepares for a utility role. While Baltimore has played Mateo mostly in the middle infield over the past two seasons, he has seen action in center field during his career.

Tigers

• Riley Greene is still recovering from his Tommy John surgery.

Greene was the team’s positional leader in fWAR at 2.3 and looked the part of one of the game’s best young hitters when healthy. But injuries have plagued Greene in the early days of his career. He will begin this season able to play but is still recovering from Tommy John surgery on his non-throwing arm.

• Justyn-Henry Malloy is moving to the outfield.

After playing third base in college and at the start of his pro career in 2021, Justyn-Henry Malloy now looks to be on more or less a full-time path as a corner outfielder, and the Tigers prospect told Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press that he has spent the winter preparing for this role. “Every day, I’m out here shagging fly balls and making throws to bases,” Malloy said. “I want to be a player that my pitchers can trust….It’s something that I circle on my day, that we’re going to do some defense and get better. That’s been my mentality all offseason

White Sox

• Michael Kopech will remain a starter.

But the Sox are still chasing the maximum outcome for Michael Kopech to start the spring.

“The goal is for him to be a starter,” Getz said. “He’s very comfortable doing that. The beauty of Michael is that he’s got the ability to pitch in multiple roles. Not everyone has that floor, so to speak. But right now, he’s had a very smooth offseason, smoother than he’s had in the past. He’s going to be right on time to be able to be a starter on Opening Day or come the beginning of the season.”

National League

Brewers

• Joe Trezza of MLB.com thinks Brice Turang will start the season in the minors.

Second baseman (1): Joey Ortiz

One of two talented prospects acquired from Baltimore in the Corbin Burnes trade, Ortiz is a natural shortstop, but a plus defender anywhere on the infield. He has little left to prove at Triple-A and could fit nicely here, giving Milwaukee two elite defenders up the middle. Also in the mix is Brice Turang, who performed defensively but struggled at the plate during his rookie season in 2023.

Dodgers

• Walker Buehler has been sitting 92 to 94 mph in his bullpens.

The goal for Buehler this spring is to stay healthy and get back to what made him one of the best pitchers in the National League in 2021. In his lone rehab appearance with Triple-A Oklahoma City last season, Buehler sat at 96 mph with his four-seam fastball.

Throughout the offseason, Buehler said he’s been around 92-94 mph during bullpens. He threw his first official bullpen of the spring on Friday, one that “wasn’t as good” as some of the others Roberts has seen in past weeks. Those ups and downs are part of the process, but all the Dodgers will care about is having Buehler healthy and contributing by the time the postseason rolls around.

First, I have no idea where the “sat 96” came from with his average being 94.6 mph in that appearance. Here is Buehler’s average fastball velocities:

Season: AvgFB Velo
2020: 96.9
2021: 95.4
2022: 95.2

The 94.6 mph is still a decline.

As for the “92-94 mph”, he might not be trying as hard in his bullpens. It’s tough to know for sure. I’m sure his fastball velocity will be closely monitored this spring.

• Clayton Kershaw will not return to the majors until late summer at the earliest.

Kershaw isn’t expected to return to a big league mound until the late summer, with Toribio noting that “sometime in July” is the earliest he could pitch for L.A. in 2024.