Wood solid, Susac shines in A's victory
Alex Wood appeared sharp in his final Cactus League start, striking out four and allowing just two hits and one earned run over three innings as the A's beat the Cincinnati Reds 8-6 in a split-squad game at Hohokam Stadium in Mesa.
Wood, who has been tabbed as the A's starter for Opening Night on Thursday at the Coliseum against the Cleveland Guardians, faced 12 batters as he finished Cactus League play with a 4.40 ERA.
Catcher Daniel Susac had two home runs for the A's, including a three-run, walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth inning off Reds right-hander Andrew Moore. Susac finished with five RBIs. Seth Brown and JJ Bleday also drove in A's runs.
At the A's other game at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, righthander Joe Boyle allowed seven earned runs over three innings in an 8-2 loss to the Chicago White Sox. Boyle struck out four and walked three.
Catcher Carlos Pérez hit a solo home run and outfielder Hoy Park drove in another run to account for the A's scoring.
• Friday morning, it was announced that A's right-handed reliever Trevor Gott will undergo
Tommy John surgery and miss the entire 2024 season. Per MLB. com, Gott felt discomfort after a March 16 appearance against Milwaukee and an MRI revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.
Gott was signed to a one-year, $1.5 million deal by this offseason and was expected to play a significant role in the bullpen. D-BACKS PITCHER RODRIGUEZ SHUT DOWN >> Eduardo Rodríguez will have to wait to make his Arizona Diamondbacks debut.
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo told reporters that Rodríguez has a lat strain, which means the left-hander will open the season on the injured list.
“He's going to be shut down from throwing until he's asymptomatic,” Lovullo said. “We're going to assess it daily and build it out from there.”
Rodríguez joined the reigning NL champions with an ,$80 million, four-year contract after going 13-9 with a 3.30 ERA for the Detroit Tigers last season. MARTINEZ JOINS METS >> J.D. Martinez has a new home, agreeing to a $12 million, one-year contract with the New York Mets.
Martinez hit .271 with 33 homers and 103 RBIs in just 113 games last year for the Los Angeles Dodgers, providing solid value on the one-year, $10 million contract he signed before the season. He added a National League All-Star selection to the five times he made it in the AL with Detroit and Boston.
The 36-year-old slugger was one of the top free agents left on the market. Left-hander Jordan Montgomery — another Scott Boras client — is still looking for a new team.
Martinez slots right into the middle of the Mets' lineup, giving them another much-needed power hitter to pair with Pete Alonso.
He has played the corner outfield spots only sparingly the past two seasons, but he has given every indication he can be a productive DH. The 33 home runs last season were his most since 2019.
Martinez began his career with Houston but blossomed after being released by the Astros and picked up by the Tigers in 2014. He hit a career-high 45 homers for Detroit and Arizona in 2017, then joined the Red Sox and hit 43 the following year.
He has 315 home runs over 13 major league seasons.