Mets make playoff push; ‘Gingergaard’ called up
Milwaukee Brewers
RHP Jordan Lyles paid an immediate dividend after coming back to the Brewers.
Lyles allowed one run in five innings on July 31 to beat the Athletics at Oakland. He was acquired two days earlier from the Pittsburgh Pirates in a trade for a minor leaguer.
Lyles made 11 relief appearances at the end of last season to help the Brewers win the NL Central, though he was left off the postseason roster. He then signed a one-year, $2.05 million contract as a free agent with the Pirates in December and went 5-7 with a 5.36 ERA in 17 starts this season.
❚ LHP Drew Pomeranz was acquired from the San Francisco Giants in a July 31 trade and is being used as a reliever. He pitched a perfect inning in his Brewers debut Aug. 2 against the Cubs at Chicago, striking out two.
Pittsburgh Pirates
3B Jung Ho Kang, who began the season as a starter but played his way out of the lineup, was designated for assignment Aug. 2.
While Kang hit 10 home runs, his batting average was .169. He lost his starting job to 3B Colin Moran after beating him out during spring training.
Kang became the first native South Korean hitter to make the jump from the Korean Baseball Organization to the major leagues in 2015 when he signed a four-year, $11 million contract as a free agent. He didn’t play in the majors for all of 2017 and all but three games of 2018 because of visa issues related to a DUI arrest in South Korea.
❚ RHP Keone Kela will be out through Aug. 13 as he serves a 10-game suspension from Major League Baseball for his part in a fight with the Reds on July 30 at Cincinnati. Kela admitted he intentionally threw a pitch near the head of Derek Dietrich.
St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals got a big bat back in their lineup to help in their three-team battle with the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central when LF Marcell Ozuna was activated from the injured list Aug. 3.
Ozuna had been out since June 29 because of two broken fingers on his right hand. Though he missed 28 games, Ozuna still led the Cardinals with 62 RBI when he returned from the IL. He was hitting .259 with 20 home runs through 78 games.
In his first two games back, Ozuna went 1-for-6 with a walk.
❚ C Yadier Molina (sprained right thumb) began a rehab assignment Aug. 2 with Class AAA Memphis (Tennessee). He could be activated by the end of the week.
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Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks will rely on RHP Mike Leake and rookie RHP Zac Gallen to shoulder the void left by the trade that sent former ace Zack Greinke to the Houston Astros.
Leake, 31, acquired from the Seattle Mariners, went 9-8 with a 4.27 ERA in 137 innings before the deal. Gallen, 24, obtained from the Miami Marlins, was 1-3 with a 2.72 ERA in seven starts.
As a result, RHP Zack Godley was designated for assignment one year after he was a 15-game winner. He was 1-5 with an 8.08 ERA in nine starts this season and had a 6.39 ERA overall.
❚ OF Yasmany Tomas’ stay in the majors after two years in the minors was a short one. In four games, Tomas, who is making $15.5 million this season, was 0-for-6 before being optioned to Class AAA Reno (Nevada). IF Kevin Cron also was sent to Reno after recovering from a sore right elbow and being reinstated from the injured list.
Colorado Rockies
RHP Scott Oberg took over as closer in place of RHP Wade Davis, who set a club record with 43 saves last season but had a 6.82 ERA with 15 saves in 17 opportunities this season.
Manager Bud Black made the change after Davis entered a scoreless game in the ninth inning and allowed two homers and five runs overall in a July 31 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Oberg has been one of the league’s top relievers. He had a 1.53 ERA in 53 innings through Aug. 4 and hadn’t allowed a home run at home.
❚ SS Trevor Story’s 17 home runs against the San Francisco Giants since 2017 are the most by any player against any team during that span. On Aug. 2-4, he extended his homer streak against the Giants to five games.
Los Angeles Dodgers
LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu’s trip to the injured list because of a sore neck paved the way for the major league debut of the Dodgers’ top pitching prospect, RHP Dustin May.
May, nicknamed “Gingergaard” because his curly mane makes him look like the redhaired version of the New York Mets’ Noah Syndergaard, was effective over 52⁄3 innings, giving up three earned runs.
His outing was praised by manager Dave Roberts and his teammates and also earned him another start, Aug. 7 against the St. Louis Cardinals.
May was a third-round pick in the 2016 draft out of high school. He went 6-5 with a 3.38 ERA with 110 strikeouts in 1062⁄3 innings at Class AA Tulsa (Oklahoma) and Class AAA Oklahoma City before being called up.
❚ RF/1B Cody Bellinger reached 100 career home runs faster than any player in franchise history when he achieved the milestone in his 401st game. Mike Piazza held the record of 422.
San Diego Padres
Trading RF Franmil Reyes eased the jam in the club’s outfield and meant more playing time for Wil Myers, Manuel Margot and Josh Naylor.
Myers, who had been benched recently, batted .435 during a six-game hitting streak. The trio is expected to rotate in left and center.
OF Hunter Renfroe, who already has a career high in home runs (30 through Aug. 4) and led NL outfielders with 11 assists, is slated to be the everyday starter in right.
❚ Rookie SS Fernando Tatis Jr., 20, has a chance to become the youngest batting champion in major league history. He began the week at .323, 13 points out of the lead, and figures to have enough plate appearances to qualify for the leaderboard by the end of the month. The other 20-year-olds to win a batting title: Hall of Famers Al Kaline and Ty Cobb.
San Francisco Giants
The Giants hope the acquisition of 2B Scooter Gennett, who homered for the first time this season when he connected against the Rockies on Aug. 3 at Colorado, boosts their offense.
Gennett, who missed the first three months of the season because of a severe groin strain, hit .310 with 23 home runs and 93 RBI last year.
Gennett’s addition resulted in Joe Panik losing his starting role. Panik, who has struggled offensively for much of the season, took ground balls at third base and also might play first, manager Bruce Bochy said.
❚ OF Jaylin Davis, acquired from the Minnesota Twins in the trade for RHP Sam Dyson, went 5-for-7 with two doubles, a homer and six RBI in his first two games with Class AAA Sacramento (California).