Roto Riteup April 15, 2017

Do you think Archie Bradley’s beard arrives a few minutes before he does? Not entirely sure, but that thing is epic. I caught a glimpse of it in the bullpen when the Diamondbacks were taking on the Dodgers.

He’s also been impressive on the mound and wants to solidify himself this time around heading into his third big league season and he’s doing everything right so far. The 24-year-old has increased his velocity summing a few miles per hour to his fastball and slider. He’s also showing significant increases in his changeup’s consistency this season which just adds to his value.

He’s currently sitting at a 38.5% strikeout rate facing 26 batters over the season with a 46.2% groundball rate. I wouldn’t say he’s a “brand new” pitcher, just the pitcher he was always supposed to be.

On the Agenda

1. News and Notes
2. Obsessed with Inciarte
3. Bush League

News and Notes

I wrote about both Jon Gray and Josh Donaldson’s injuries earlier when there were a few more questions than answers.

-When it comes to Jon Gray it was originally a situation regarding his toe that he re-irritated from spring training. It not only landed him on the disabled list, but he could be out for over a month.

-In regards to Josh Donaldson, he too lands on the D.L (10-day.) with his calf injury that seems to be recurring. Darwin Barney will get most of the starts at the hot corner and had a tendency to get on base quite a bit.

–Noah Syndergaard broke a nail in his abbreviated game against the Marlins Friday night. Kind of.

TC said Noah Syndergaard’s fingernail was torn back. It wasn’t that blister.

— James Wagner (@ByJamesWagner) April 15, 2017

He should be fine for his next outing, however. Unless it’s a similar situation to Rich Hill, but I doubt that’ll happen. It’s Syndergaard, the numbers speak for themselves. Play him in every format.

-Outfielder Jesse Winkler was promoted from Triple-A Louisville to the Reds Friday. According to Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer, we shouldn’t get attached. The 23-year-old could be sent down as soon as Sunday. For future references, however, he does possess power and had an above average 128 wRC+ last season so, in regards to making appearances on-base, he’s your man.

Obsessed with Inciarte

via GIPHY

Everyone was obsessed with Dansby Swanson in the trade that will not be talked about, but remember that Ender Inciarte dude? He’s pretty awesome and was a part of history Friday night when he homered for the first time ever at SunTrust Park, the new home of the Atlanta Braves.

His walk/strikeout ratio isn’t phenomenal, but he’s showing a lot of increases in power. His ISO has increased to .189 and yes, it is a small sample size, but expect him to display that more this time around as his flyball rate continues to climb the latter.

Bush League

According to Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram, Matt Bush could be back this weekend after being out a few days wth a shoulder issue. This means either Saturday or Sunday you could see him in action.

Bush maintains his velocity with his fastball sitting at 97 mph and shows signs of progression in most of his pitches with a bit of a snag in his slider this season, but he’s only faced 16 batters thus far.

He continues his path of positivity after dealing with some off-the-field issues in recent years and still adds value coming out of the bullpen.

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