Roto Riteup: July 13, 2020

Please make this happen!

Retweet if Catcher Cam should be a thing. pic.twitter.com/hsfqcOjgV0

— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) July 11, 2020

On the Agenda:
1. COVID IL and Opt Outs
2. Quick Hits
3. Various News and Notes
4. Beat Justin Mason

COVID IL and Opt Outs
Aroldis Chapman has tested positive for COVID-19. Chapman is only experiencing minor symptoms and is apparently doing well. Manager Aaron Boone has already given Zach Britton a vote of confidence if Chapman is not back and ready to go to start the season.

Both Anthony Santander and Dwight Smith Jr. have not shown up for summer camp as of yet. Both are suspected to have tested positive for COVID at this point and would shine a light on why the Orioles seem to have some interest in signing Yasiel Puig.

Buster Posey opted out of the 2020 season on Friday. Posey and his wife adopted newborn twins that are going to spend some time in the NICU due to being premature and he made the decision to stay home this season to keep them safe. The Giants will likely roll with Rob Brantly as their main catcher, but there is a long shot chance that top prospect Joey Bart could make a debut. However, with the Giants unlikely to compete this season, it seems unlikely they would want to give him any Major League service time.

Kenley Jansen returned to Dodgers camp on Sunday. This is great news as he should now have plenty of time to get ready for the start of the season.

Tommy Pham played in an intersquad game on Friday. He was the Padres DH in the game, but he is now clear of COVID and sounds like he should be ready to go to start the season. Pham does still have injury risk as he played through a sprained UCL last year.

Joey Gallo has been cleared to return from the IL as he has passed two straight COVID tests.

Yoan Moncada has been placed on the IL for undisclosed reasons. Moncada had not reported to camp yet so it sounds like he likely has tested positive for COVID.

Michael Kopech has opted out for the 2020 season. This is not surprising news as he had not reported, but was reportedly healthy. Kopech will now miss a second straight season, but should be completely healthy for the 2021 season.

Scott Kingery has returned to the Phillies. Kingery had tested positive and was symptomatic so it is good to see that he is back and playing.

Starling Marte returned to Diamondbacks camp on Friday. Marte missed four straight days of camp and there were rumors that he may have tested positive, but his return likely means he was either attending to personal issues or he came into contact with someone that was positive and the team needed to get two negative tests back before he could report.

Yordan Alvarez has yet to report to Astros camp. Alvarez was fantastic in his call up with Houston last year, but he has had a rough offseason, dealing with knee issues and now what appears to be an issue with COVID-19.

Robinson Cano has yet to report to Mets camp. There has been no reason given which tends to point to a COVID-19 issue, Cano is expected to bat in the middle of what is a pretty good lineup on paper for the Mets.

 

Quick Hits
Drew Pomeranz injured his knee during Sunday’s intrasquad game. He is considered day-to-day at this time.

The Padres have released Brian Dozier. This is not surprising as San Diego did not include him in the 60-man player pool.

Aaron Judge was unable to play in intrasquad games this weekend because of stiffness in his neck. He is expected to be available for Tuesday’s game, but this is another issue in a long line of issues that have plagued the Yankees outfielder.

 

Various News and Notes
Vladimir Guerrero Jr is moving to first base according to manager Charlie Montoyo. This is not surprising news in the sense that it was always expected that he would eventually end up at first or as a DH. However, it is a bit surprising that he is making the move now as opposed to in the offseason, but from a fantasy perspective, it is nice to know he should gain first base eligibility pretty quickly this year.

Zach Eflin has been sidelined during summer camp due to back spasms. Eflin has great stuff when he is on, but struggles to keep the ball in the yard. He was expected to be in the Phillies rotation this season, but if the back issues continue, he will either be relegated into the bullpen or he will start the year on the IL.

According to manager Bob Melvin, the A’s will likely use multiple players at second base. This sounds like a crowded platoon situation which will make all of the guys in line for the position (Franklin Barreto, Chad Pinder, and Tony Kemp) unusable in fantasy unless injury or someone’s play allows them to grab the role full time.

 

Beat Justin Mason

Think you are better than me? Take me on in the NFBC Online Championship on 7/22 at 6pm EST