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The MLB Daily Dish is a daily feature we're running here at MLBDD and rounds up roster-impacting news, rumors, and analysis. Have feedback or have something that should be shared? Hit us at @mlbdailydish on Twitter.
Good morning baseball fans!
Both Sean Doolittle and Josh Reddick are drawing trade interest for the Oakland Athletics.
Speaking of the A’s, our own Mike Bates says that general manager Billy Beane needs to embrace a rebuild.
The Red Sox are having a tough time inking their first-round draft pick, Jason Groome. A deal between the two sides doesn’t appear to be close.
Cleveland has won ten games in a row, and Francisco Lindor might be playing a big role in that.
It couldn’t possibly be any clearer when Francisco Lindor showed up. I don’t want to say this is all just about him, because any infield is always more than just the shortstop, but Lindor has been absolutely critical. Before Lindor came around, the Indians fluctuated around average. They did that for years. As soon as Lindor arrived, the Indians took off, and this year they’re on an unbelievable pace. StatCorner has the Indians on track to be about 82 runs better than average against grounders. The highest team mark in the decade is +70 runs, belonging to the 2007 Blue Jays. The 2013 Orioles are in fifth, at +51. The Indians are already at +38 — that would rank them 14th in the decade, even though they haven’t played half their schedule. You see how this is astonishing.
Extreme paces tend not to keep up. That’s the nature of extremes. So the Indians could well fall off this pace. Separately, as much as Lindor is phenomenal, the Indians’ infield contains other players, and the defenders aren’t in control of their shifts. This is a team thing, more than it’s a player thing, so I don’t want to make itall about the shortstop. But that shortstop is a true difference-maker. With Lindor at the center of it, this year’s Indians have welcomed opposing ground balls. That’s helped to drive the team’s success, and if certain paces continue, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Lindor could win himself an MVP.
Jon Jay has been placed on the disabled list with a broken forearm, crossing him off the list of potential trade chips for the foreseeable future.
Here is a roundup of news from around the American League East.
What exactly is Alex Rodriguez’s job with the Yankees?
Also, has Hanley Ramirez lost his power for good?
Since it is usually advantageous to pull for power, it is no surprise that Hanley's decreasing pull rate has coincided with his rapidly falling ISO and home run totals. Over the past three seasons, Ramirez has seen a simultaneous increase in ground ball rate and decrease in pull rate. These factors, along with increasing age, are probably the main causes of his diminishing power.
So will the power come back? Probably a little bit. As his HR/FB ratio returns to normal levels, some of Hanley's fly balls will likely turn into home runs. And since his hard hit rate has remained consistent, it is reasonable to expect a higher ISO going forward. However, if Ramirez's launch angle remains as low as it has been thus far, a steady stream of ground balls can be expected, which will put major limitations on his power. The Red Sox offense will likely rebound in some way from its recent slide; it would be unwise, however, to count on too much of a contribution from Hanley Ramirez, at least in the power department.
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Today in Baseball History: In 1916, the Cubs and Reds played a nine-inning game, with just one baseball.