Beer excited about how ‘new’ shoulder feels
For years, Seth Beer assumed that most of what he felt in his shoulder was normal. He chalked up any discomfort or instability to the rigors of a long baseball season.
After undergoing surgery last September to repair, among other things, a torn labrum, Beer realizes he might have underestimated the extent of the damage he had been living with all this time.
“Picking up a bat for even the first time, I was like, ‘Wow, this feels normal,’” Beer said. “There’s no pain, no fatigue in it. It just feels like a shoulder should feel, brand new out of the box. That’s a real confidence booster coming into spring training.”
Through the first week and a half of Cactus League play, Beer has shown that his confidence is well-placed. In 10 games, he is 9 for 19 with four doubles and a home run, a performance that represents a strong early push not just for a spot on the Diamondbacks’ Opening Day roster but for at-bats out of the National League’s newly instituted designated hitter role.
During his collegiate career at Clemson, Beer suffered an injury similar to the one he experienced in September. He dislocated his shoulder but was able to immediately slip it back into place — and he managed not only to remain in the game but to play out the rest of the season.
Over the ensuing years Beer occasionally felt fatigue in his shoulder and dealt with clicks and pops. He also dealt with a lack of stability. Having had surgery, he now knows why that was the case.
“They fixed my labrum and then they filled the hole in the back of my socket that was kind of like if you step on a ping pong ball and it compresses and has a dent in it,” he said. “They filled it so that it’s round and now it moves smoothly.”
In the past, the shoulder’s lack of stability would manifest itself in Beer’s favorite off-the-field activity: fly-fishing. The task of netting a fish would require high levels of concentration. When he would raise his rod over his head to lower a fish into his net, he would often struggle to keep his arm from bouncing around.
“It would hit an edge and kind of click, like it would pop or kind of click out,” he said, adding the job has become simplified post-surgery. “I’m like, ‘Wow, this is really easy, really stable to do.’”
Prior to the injury, Beer showed in an ever-so-brief cameo late last season, that his bat might translate to the major league level. He homered in his first career at-bat, a pinch-hit shot in Seattle. In five games, he went 4 for 9 with a double, a homer and a walk.
Few have doubts about his ability to hit at the major league level. Beer has always hit. He said he remembers hitting home runs in Little League when others could not. He remembers being able to pick up spin on pitches at an earlier age than his teammates.
“I remember at even the youngest of ages, picking up a bat and putting it in my hands and it just felt right, I guess you could say,” Beer said. “It just felt like there was something I felt confident doing out of the gate. I had a feel for it, I guess.”
He posted impressive numbers in three years at Clemson and has done the same in the minors. The only question evaluators seem to have about his bat is just how impactful it will be. Those who think the power will be big see a middleof-the-order masher. Others see more of a pure hitter with power that grades out as average to slightly above.
“You watch him and the tools don’t jump,” one evaluator said. “It’s not lightning-quick bat speed or huge power. But he has that feel to hit. He has a track record of hitting. He’s done it at every level, so I’m a little hesitant to sell him short.”
Beer’s defense remains, at best, a work in progress. Many view him as an unplayable defender at first base. In that sense, the advent of the DH comes at a perfect time for him and the Diamondbacks. Beer does not disagree.
“I think it’s not just big for me it’s big for a lot of great hitters throughout the big leagues, giving that extra spot, extra position,” Beer said. “A guy needs a day off, say he plays first, that guy can fill that role and vice versa. I think it opens up a lot of gates for a lot of guys. For me, obviously, it’s a big deal and a way to keep your foot in the door. It’s definitely exciting coming into this year.”
Thomas reassigned
The Diamondbacks decided against pushing outfield prospect Alek Thomas to the majors to open the season and instead reassigned him to minor league camp on Thursday morning.
“He showed really well during his time here,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “That’s what we were looking for, somebody that was going to be comfortable in this environment and continue to show
his ability to repeat swings, throw to the right base, make plays on defense. And he was doing that.
“I think there were some things we wanted to challenge him with as he went down from an offensive side to just be more consistent with that approach, continue to grow and learn.”
The Diamondbacks were encouraged by Thomas’ improved approach as he worked his way from Double-A to Triple-A last season, but he went just 6 for 27 (.222) with one walk compared to nine strikeouts in Cactus League play.
In a sense, Thomas getting sent down comes as little surprise. The team already has a handful of outfielders who either are established in the majors or are older and more advanced prospects. Moreover, Thomas is not yet on the 40-man roster.
That said, club officials privately sounded like they wanted Thomas to force their hand with a strong performance in camp. If he returns to Triple-A Reno and performs well, it would not be surprising to see Thomas in the majors early this season if the need arises.
The move suggests the Diamondbacks expect to go into the season with Daulton Varsho and Jake McCarthy as their primary center fielders. Varsho is hitting .174 this spring but is coming off a strong second half last season. McCarthy has had a particularly solid spring, going 9 for 26 (.360) with a 1.007 OPS.
Short hops
● Arizona optioned left-hander Caleb Baragar, right-hander Luis Frias and third baseman Drew Ellis to Triple-A. Right-hander Keynan Middleton was reassigned to minor league camp.
● The Diamondbacks acquired righthander Listher Sosa from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for infielder Josh VanMeter, whom they designated for assignment earlier this week. Sosa, 20, logged a 4.31 ERA in 31 1/3 innings with five walks and 33 strikeouts at the rookie-ball level last season.