Spring training notes by Maureen Mullen
Houston Astros
Dallas Keuchel made his Grapefruit League debut Sunday, pitching three scoreless innings against a representative Washington Nationals lineup. It was his first time facing hitters in a game since Aug. 27, when his season was cut short because of shoulder pain.
“It was encouraging to see him be very efficient with his pitches when he needed to be and get through three innings,” manager
A.J. Hinch said. “He had a tough time commanding his fastball, and he didn’t have his good cutter and breaking ball. But that’s probably to be expected, given the time of year and it was his first time in competition.”
Though it has not been officially announced, Keuchel is expected to be the opening-day starter.
The rotation has injury concerns. Mike Fiers skipped his scheduled start Saturday because of hamstring soreness, and Collin
McHugh has been slowed since late February by a dead arm.
Los Angeles Angels
Garrett Richards, the Angels’ likely opening-day starter, continues to improve from the partially torn right ulnar collateral ligament that ended his 2016 season May 1.
In his second Cactus League outing, he went 21⁄ scoreless 3 innings Saturday.
Rather than having Tommy John elbow surgery, Richards opted for a stem-cell injection. He expects to be limited to 100 pitches for each regular-season start.
“It’s just another thing in the back of my mind that reminds me that I need to be efficient and attack the zone,” he told MLB.com. “I only have 100 pitches a game or so to work with, and if I plan on going deep into games, then I need to catch more of the plate with my ball.”
u As if Mike Trout wasn’t a good enough athlete as it is, the reigning league MVP recorded his first hole-in-one last week when he aced the par-3 second hole at Raven Golf Club in Phoenix. “We missed the round of drinks, but he’s going to buy a couple of lunches for us,” manager Mike
Scioscia told MLB.com.
Oakland Athletics
Injuries continue to dog righthander Sonny Gray. He was shut down for three weeks after he felt discomfort during his March 7 start and an MRI detected a moderate back strain.
“I personally didn’t think anything of it,” Gray told MLB.com. “I told (manager) Bob (Melvin) before I left that day, ‘I’m not worried about this at all. It’ll be fine.’ And the next day, I found out there was a little bit of a strain there, which was kind of shocking to me.”
Gray will take medication for the injury, and a timetable for his return will be determined when the soreness goes away. He was limited to 22 starts last season because of strained muscles in his back and forearm.
Gray’s injury creates an opportunity for right-hander
Kendall Graveman to make his first career opening-day start. Graveman, the de facto staff leader last season while Gray struggled, went 10-11 with a 4.11 ERA in 31 starts.
Seattle Mariners
Right-hander Shae Simmons was taken out of Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds because of tightness in his forearm. But manager Scott Servais said the move was precautionary.
Simmons, competing for a spot in the bullpen, missed all of the 2015 season and was limited to seven appearances last season after having Tommy John elbow surgery while he was with the Atlanta Braves.
“Our trainer noticed it right away, and now is not the time to take any chances,” Servais said. “There are no heroes at this time of year. We’ll take a look at him and see how he is.”
With Felix Hernandez, Yovani Gallardo and Drew Smyly out of camp competing in the World Baseball Classic, other pitchers are getting opportunities, including right-hander Chase De Jong, acquired from the Dodgers on March 1. But Saturday, in his first start, he gave up three runs on four hits in three innings.
Texas Rangers
Right-hander Andrew
Cashner believes he is not too far behind schedule despite dealing with soreness in his right biceps.
There are no plans for Cashner to face hitters anytime soon. He will play catch and long toss before being re-examined.
“He is up against it (to be ready for the start of the season), but I’m glad he is optimistic,” manager Jeff Banister told MLB.com. “He got the answers to some medical questions for him; now we can get answers daily. It’s now about going through the process and hitting all the check marks.”
The Rangers need two starters to join Yu Darvish,
Cole Hamels and Martin Perez, but they might have enough internal options to get by until Cashner and Tyson
Ross, likely out until mid-May after rib surgery, are ready. A.J.
Griffin is a candidate.