Mining the News (4/15/26)
Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images
American League
Orioles
• Jackson Holliday was removed from his rehab assignment.
Jackson Holliday recalled from rehab assignment due to wrist soreness.Will be shut down for a few days, then sent back on new rehab assignment.
— MLB Daily News (@insidemlbnews.bsky.social) 2026-04-14T18:44:38.719Z
The actionable item here is that Jeremiah Jackson (.318/.326/.545, 3 HR) will continue to start at second base.
Red Sox
• Connor Wong is healthy and will see more playing time.
Last season, as he battled through a broken finger early in the year, Wong never found his rhythm at the plate, hitting .190 with a .500 OPS in 63 games.
Through an admittedly small sample to start the season, Wong has gone 6-for-16 (.375) with three doubles.
Narvaez has started 10 games compared to Wong’s five, but a more even split behind the plate figures to keep both healthier and more productive.
And Carlos Narváez will start fewer games.
Twins
• The team is letting it’s pitchers throw longer into games.
On average so far this season, the Minnesota Twins’ new manager has allowed his starters to make 89 pitches per outing — up five through the first 13 games from 2025.
Even more noteworthy, Shelton has allowed a Twins starter to cross the 100-pitch threshold FOUR times already this season. Under Baldelli last year, that had happened just once in the first baker’s dozen games.
I’m not sure if the news really moves any pitcher’s value, but it could be a tie-breaker when making roster decisions.
White Sox
• The plan is for Noah Schultz to remain in the major league rotation for the entire season.
Schultz will have a workload watch after throwing 73 innings in ‘25 and 88 1/3 innings in ‘24.
“We’ll monitor that as we go,” Venable said. “As far as the exact number, not something that we’ve outlined to this point. We’ll monitor it knowing that there is going to be thoughtfulness on what he gets to, but we’ll talk about that as we get going.
“The plan is not to bring him up and send him back out here, right? The thought is that we bring him up here when he’s ready, and go and let him do his thing.”
Yankees
• Anthony Volpe will need about 55 PA in his rehab assignment before coming off the IL.
“When he first went down to Tampa right after the new year, he almost immediately started making big gains and feeling better,” Boone said. “I know he’s excited to get back, and I know how he works. He’s taken a ton of at-bats and gotten a ton of reps in the field.”
The goal, according to general manager Brian Cashman, is to have Volpe log about 55 plate appearances before he reclaims his role as the starting shortstop.
“That’s always been the plan, but ultimately it’s the manager’s call,” Cashman said.
That should work out to about two weeks.
National League
Braves
• Eli White is dealing with plantar fasciitis.
… Eli White has been dealing with plantar fasciitis since doubling in Tuesday night’s win over the Angels.
Mets
• Jorge Polanco is dealing with bursitis of the Achilles tendon.
There is reason for his optimism. The Mets sent Polanco for an MRI on Thursday, which revealed no structural damage. Instead, Polanco is suffering from bursitis, or inflammation around the ligament. He took full batting practice on the field the following afternoon and could be back in the starting lineup as soon as Saturday.
“The good news is the tendon’s healthy,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “There’s nothing wrong. … We’ve just got to kind of limit the defensive side, how much pressure he puts there.”
Polanco has been dealing with a sore left Achilles tendon, a problem since the opening weekend of the season. The Mets have spent weeks treading carefully with Polanco, who began feeling Achilles soreness in the second game of the season and has been limited to DH duties ever since. The Mets previously defined his issue as Achilles tendinitis, but now that they have an updated diagnosis of bursitis, they can treat Polanco with anti-inflammatory medication.
They believe Polanco can play through the issue and still heal, though he will remain limited to DH reps for the time being.
Jeff, one of the authors of the fantasy baseball guide,The Process, writes for RotoGraphs, The Hardball Times, Rotowire, Baseball America, and BaseballHQ. He has been nominated for two SABR Analytics Research Award for Contemporary Analysis and won it in 2013 in tandem with Bill Petti. He has won four FSWA Awards including on for his Mining the News series. He's won Tout Wars three times, LABR twice, and got his first NFBC Main Event win in 2021. Follow him on Twitter @jeffwzimmerman.