Fair Territory: Mets place Robert Jr. on IL, Justin Steele setback, Marlins win in LA

00:00:02
Speaker 1: Welcome everyone to the Thursday edition of Fair Territory. I'm Ken Rosenthal here with my friend Alana Rizzo. And Alana we want to move on, we want to talk about something different, but this same struggling team keeps commanding our attention.

00:00:17
Speaker 2: Ken, always good to be with you on this Thursday. Yes, we want to stop talking about the Mets, at least in a negative light, but Ken, they're not giving us the opportunity to do so. They just got throttled by the Nationals.

00:00:31
Speaker 1: This is the homestand from you know what, and it was supposed to be much different. If you recall, this was a homestand where the Mets were thinking, well, maybe we'll get some momentum. It's Minnesota, it's Colorado, it's Washington. Three teams that are not at the top of anyone's wishless for the World Series or expectation, i should say, for the World Series. And we're the Mets on this homestand a home stand that a lot of us thought they had to go maybe sixtion three or seven and two on to kind of take the heat off. They're three and five right now and the injuries are mounting. Luis Robert Junior placed on the IL this morning with backtightans. I know, shocker that Luis Robert is hurt, Jorge Polanco's still on the IL, and of course Francisco Lindor is as well. And it's interesting, Alana. We had the two firings this week, Alex Cora and Boston Rob Thompson in Philadelphia, and the expectation of a lot of people was that Carlos Mendoza would be first. And yet I am starting to wonder whether the injuries now will maybe prevent the Mets from making that move, a move they clearly don't want to make because they haven't made it yet. But with all these players out, it's even more difficult to say it's Mendoza's fault than it was before, when really this was a situation created by the President of Baseball Operations, David Stearns.

00:01:56
Speaker 2: And not only that, Steve Cohen has said he continues to say that he has confidence in Mendoza, in Mendy and it's not just the injuries that are piling up for the Mets. Ken they have some serious pitching issues as well. What more can you tell us about.

00:02:10
Speaker 1: That they do? And we saw it on display last night, David Peterson goes back in the rotation, and what happens, he gets rocked again. They've got Peralta, they've got McLean, they've got Holmes beyond that in their rotation. It's quite the mess. And when you look at them, you look down the list. Well, Peterson had to go to the bullpen. Mania Sean Manaiah free agent signing big money a couple of years back, had to go to the bullpen. Codei Sanga, another big free agent signing several years back before Stearns. He is again on the injured list. They've got Christian Scott set to go tomorrow. He's coming off Tommy John surgery. He's a promising guy, was right before he got hurt. And they got also Jonah Toom remember him struggling a triple A. Brandon Sprote traded for Peralta. He's in Milwaukee. So this deep pitching group that they thought they had isn't there anymore. And again, what happens in a situation like this is it becomes difficult to see how they're going to come out of it. They've got players or hitters that they're counting on who are hurt. They've got pitchers that aren't performing, and again, where are they They are the last place team in the East. They've got the worst record in the league.

00:03:29
Speaker 2: I can't even believe that Ken the last place team in the East at ten and twenty ten games below five hundred are the New York meant a lot of problems in Queens. They're not the only ones Ken that are having some pitching issues in terms of injury. The Boston Red Sox, that whole situation is a mess, with the core situation and all of that. But now they're ace. Garrett Crochet is on the IL, a six to three tora and six starts. It just keeps getting worse In Boston.

00:03:56
Speaker 1: It does a lot, and they're hoping, obviously it's not serious, expect Sonny Gray to come off the IL relatively soon. Brian Bayo a horrible start last night. Again, he has been not what they envisioned him being. And it's interesting with the Red Sox. They built the team what on run prevention. The danger in doing that, and this is true really for every team, is that when you're relying on run prevention, you're relying on pitchers, and pitchers frequently get hurt it's a problem, and it's a problem because the Red Sox offense remains a rather stagnant outfit, and I don't know where they're going with this. We talked about Senga being injured, there are two others I want to mention as well, justin Steal with the Cubs, they were hoping he come off his major elbow surgery in late May or perhaps June, and it's clear now and he acknowledged this this week, as did the team, that he's going to be pushed back, probably to the second half. So that's a blow to the Cubs, who have had their own pitching injuries. And then finally, Trevor Rodgers the Orioles. Here's a guy who had a tremendous run last year and was really their best pitcher, looked like ace potential. He hasn't started this season as well. Perhaps some regression was inevitable with him. Now he is on the injured list with a horrible case of the flu, so you would assume he'll come back in relatively short time. But the question with the Orioles again this season was do they have enough at the top of their rotation. Rogers was a big part of the supposed answer, as was Kyle Bradish who was doing it okay first full season coming off Tommy John and they've got Shane Boss who has been a little up and down, but pretty good. So with the Orioles, it's still the same question with the rotation, and of course they have not hit the expectations either, So a lot of things going on in the game as always, and with some of these teams you expect them to play better where not even it may yet May starts tomorrow. But at the same time, with the Mets in particular and the Red Sox offense in particular, those are legitimate, real concerns.

00:06:06
Speaker 2: Can good on you for finding out what Trevor Rodgers the situation was with him, because when we were having our production meeting, going to the IL with an illness, that's not something that you hear often in our game. Obviously in the NHL, is just a lower body injury. They don't give you much but a severe case of the flu. Hopefully Trevor Rodgers is okay, And you mentioned Justin Steele. Of course with the Cubs, he was very evident Ken in terms of his frustration. He posted on x this is obviously frustrating on many levels. It's hard to put into words the emotions and mental state that something like this can leave you in. Nor do I want to really, I just know I have given one hundred percent and have done everything that's been asked of me. It's just frustrating for them. But how do you think that impacts the Cubs moreover, the fact that he's still going to be delayed.

00:06:52
Speaker 1: Well, the Cubs are an interesting team. I wrote about them today with regard to their offense. They don't have a dominant slugger now Steele. They don't have an ace. They got Matthew Boyd and m and Naga and ty Onne. They're okay, decent, but they could use a guy like Steel, and yes, Edward Cabrera has that potential. Certainly, he's also a health question, always a health question, And I wonder at the deadline if ultimately they're in the market for another starting pitcher as good a starting pitcher as they can get. Obviously, they've invested quite a lot in this team already. They've made some trades over the years to supplement themselves and do some big things. Cam Smith is in Houston. Ohen Casey is in Miami. That was the price for Cabrera, but with Steel so uncertain, and even when he comes back, you don't know what he's going to be. He probably won't be the version of Justin Steele he was before, at least not right away. So yes, they have some pitching questions and they're not going to be the only team in that position at the deadline either. Father.

00:08:00
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00:08:09
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00:08:37
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00:09:00
Speaker 2: All right, we're moving on here in the Lead. The Lead is powered by game Changer. More on game Changer. In just a moment, Ken, you were on the Marlins, maybe not as a World Series team, but you more than most were on the Marlins in terms of a team that you saw some improvement and a team perhaps that was going in the right direction. They take two of three at Dodger Stadium, the first series win at Dodger Stadium since twenty eighteen. What is making the Marlins work.

00:09:27
Speaker 1: Well? They're pitching is pretty good, and their offense still kind of questionable. Their league average offense for the most part a little bit below right now. But they're ninth in the majors in er and that rotation is quite promising. It's Sandy Alcantra, of course, he is not promising. He is the real deal. Juri Perez, Max Meyer, Jansen Junk. They've gotten good work out of all four of those guys, and their bullpen has been a bit of a surprise. Now it's going to be tested because Fairbanks went on the injured list this week with an numbness issue that he's had before. That's a concern for them. But so far, so good. And what I like about them is just the way they play. They play kind of in a Brewer's style, sort of fundamentally sound, not always fundamentally sound, but they play hard and they try to do things to disrupt the other team. And I just kind of like what Clayton McCullough has done with them. Are they a playoff team? I don't know about that, but they won seventy nine games last year, and when you win seventy nine games, you're not far off from the playoff picture in a twelve team expanded field. So if they stay together, and what I mean by that is if they keep their team together, because of course al Contra will be a guy that they perhaps look the trade at the deadline regardless of where they are. But if they stay together and maybe add to their team, imagine that maybe they're a playoff type club, because of course the Phillies and Mets are down perhaps for the season as well as just the first month.

00:11:01
Speaker 2: Yeah, what a concept. The Miami Marlin's adding at the deadline versus getting rid of some of their guys. A very favorable upcoming schedule the next twelve games. The Lead is powered by Game Changer, the number one youth sports app that helps you coach smarter, connect live and replay the action. Learn more at GC dot com. Get those questions, and everybody for Ken Rosenthal. We will be back with Grill and Ken. I'll tell you what I'm digging this new look of fair territory with Ken Rosenthal, new graphic package, new things.

00:11:37
Speaker 1: I love it. All Right.

00:11:37
Speaker 2: We have a question, our first one here on Grill and Ken in regards to the Oakland Athletics. I love this because we don't get a lot of a's question, So here we go. As far as that question is concerned with the emergence of Carlos Cortes and other options, like is that Jeel, how do you say that Ken Geloff, Zach gilf at Gelop, Okay, Thomas and both. Is there a chance Nce Butler gets moved for pitching at some point this season? I made I mentioned Oakland Athletics. I apologize my bad.

00:12:11
Speaker 1: That's a good question. I don't see that happening. Lawrence Butler is a guy that they consider to be part of their future. But the A's are going to need pitching. What's interesting about them is they're at the top of the AL West and yet they really haven't hit yet twenty first in the league in runs scored, and that is not where we thought the A's would be. We thought, and this still could turn out this way, that they'd be one of the top offenses in the game, and that with league average pitching, they'd be Okay. So far, so good. On kind of the pitching front, they're doing okay. It's not great, sever A Rena was much better last night, but certainly at the deadline, if they are in this position where they feel their competitive it's going to be interesting to see how they go about getting pitching. And as is a fascinating emergence here. This guy was not anywhere anticipated to do what he is doing. But he has been an absolute revelation and it's real. At least according to the stackcast metrics. He is not getting lucky. He is actually hitting the ball hard and doing all the things you want in this day and age. So I don't know that leads to a trade of Lawrence Butler. I believe they signed him to an extension. He's one of the guys they signed to an extension. So I don't see that. But at some point, yes, do they use some of their offensive depth to maybe get some pitching? Sure, that's possible.

00:13:35
Speaker 2: All right, thank you for that question. Boom Must Die thirty four h six. The next question here on Grill and Ken is in regard to the Diamondbacks. The Dbacks have several top prospects raaking down in Triple A, most notably Ryan Waldschmidt. Do you see them calling him up soon? Look at the slash line there heading into today? That question from Wicked Better fifty four.

00:13:54
Speaker 1: Good question, and I wrote about this recently. He is knocking down the door now. They the defense of Alec Thomas in centerfield. Alec Thomas hasn't hit, and I don't know that he's going to hit, So at some point Walt Schmidt might be the answer there. Now, he wouldn't be the defender that Thomas is, and they do value defense greatly, but at the same time, he can't deny the offensive potential. And they've got Guriel back. They are still missing, of course, they're catcher Gabriel Moreno, and they have had some amazingly unexpected contributions from Jose Fernandez, from Idelmaro Vargas, who has a twenty two game hitting streak to start the season. These are guys that weren't considered to be part of their primary mix, if they're mixed at all, and yet here they go. So I kind of like where they are. And I don't know that they're going to push it with Walt Schmidt. There's no guarantee he comes up and tears it up. But at the same time, that question identifies something that definitely is an issue with them, or not an issue or concern, but something that we're going to be talking about and something that they're considering.

00:15:04
Speaker 2: I am sure right now, all right, from a gold Schmidt to perhaps a Waldschmidt to the Diamondbacks, all right, So be forty four to forty three wants to know Ken Well, the Rangers consider firing their hitting coach early this year with all the offensive struggles that they have with runners on.

00:15:21
Speaker 1: They keep saying that they feel they're going to hit, and granted why at Langford's been out, so that's a problem, and Seeger hasn't gotten hot, and all these things are happening. At some point, Yes, they do have to look at the hitting and what's going on and how it's all falling apart. This was something actually they were looking at last year and fretting over and not understanding. So I don't know if firing the hitting coach is the answer. Better performance from the hitters that would be the answer. And for all these talks of firings, somebody made the point to me this week, and it's worth reinforcing, not just with managers, but with hitting coaches, pitching coaches, anyone you want to talk about. Ultimately, this is the players. It's on the players. It's always on the players. And with the Phillies in particular, and I know I'm diverging here, but the Phillies got their manager fired by flying so poorly. And that's a manager they liked and respected. He's a good man and at some point, yeah, the fingers got to be pointed at them as well.

00:16:22
Speaker 2: Yeah, no question about that. It's interesting too, though the I'm interested in your opinion on this. I'm perhaps more of the drive line approach on certain things. And we'll get into this a little bit later too, but it seems like everyone's kind of going that way, Ken, I mean, look at Boston in terms of who they're bringing up and those types of things. Is that kind of more of the trend in the industry.

00:16:44
Speaker 1: It is with certain teams, and Craig Breslo, Red Sox chief Baseball Officers certainly is leaning in that direction, and teams have done this with mixed success. Some teams have succeeded with it, some teams not so much. But at the same time, drive line is great and has done a lot of great things to help make players better pitchers and hitters. Not always the answer in terms of purely numbers and purely going about it in that way. There's a feel element involved, and that is the criticism I've had of the Red Sox. They lack feel. And I'm not saying the drive Line coaches lack feel in particular. I'm talking about Breslo and John Henry in that group, and there has to be a combination of all the tools available, both the objective tools and the subjective tools scouting and the things that you do along those lines. Some teams have gotten away from that. A lot of teams have gotten away from that. A lot of teams are so reliant on their projections and their numbers that, in my opinion, it's a little counterproductive. There are other elements to consider. There are other ways to instruct to play the game that aren't necessarily related simply to projections and numbers.

00:17:57
Speaker 2: Yeah, not just one linear approach. Sometimes social side of it, the human side of it is just as important. Thank you all for your questions here on Grill and Ken. We're going to take a short break and we'll be back with Dude and Dork of the Week right after this.

00:18:10
Speaker 1: I'm the dude, so that's what you call me.

00:18:18
Speaker 2: The dude abides, Welcome back to Fair Territory with Ken Rosenthal. Time now for our Dude and Dork of the Week. We'll start with the dude and I will go first on this. I have always appreciated the work ethic and just the baseball mindset of Rob Thompson, and he was recently, of course, as we all know, fired let go of his duties by Dave Debrowski the Philadelphia Phillies because to your point, Ken, the Phillies weren't playing well and Rob Thompson was the one that took the fall for that. But he made himself the day after he was let go, he made him safe available to reporters, and that, to me is such a classy move by a man that certainly didn't need to do so. He did a twenty minute call with reporters. He said he could watch some hockey playoffs, probably not, he'll watch the Phillies, of course, he's a Canadian. Hockey is big there. Actually, I'm going to watch our game. So Rob Thompson, kudos to you, sir for taking the time to talk to reporters about the situation. He certainly didn't need to do that, Ken, And I just I just find that such a classy move in a world in which that doesn't that doesn't happen oftentimes, that does not happen.

00:19:23
Speaker 1: Yes, a lota. And he was asked why he was doing it, and he said, when you're a leader, you have to be accountable. That's it in a nutshell. And Rob Thompson one of the great class acts in the game. Even toward the end when it was becoming clear he was going to be fired, his quotes were so on point as far as just understanding the situation. Now, he worked twenty eight years for the New York Yankees, the majority of them under George Seinbrenner. He gets it. That said, it's still not easy to handle a situation like that, and he could not have handled it, really, in my opinion, any better. My dudes of the week, and it's plural, all the Toronto Blue Jays for the Circle of Gratitude that they've started, gratitude circle, however they want to phrase it. It started with Okamoto and he's something or he's someone that brought this over, but the Blue Jays have embraced it. And what they do you can see it right there. They share a moment before the game and they talk about something they're grateful for that day, and then they bow to each other after each guy issues his statement of gratitude. I guess you would call it, and it's just a team bonding thing. And really what it's done for the Blue Jays is make Okamoto feel more welcome, and that is something that is not always easy to do with foreign players, and it's not easy for the foreign players to adapt when it's a new culture and a new team and a new sport essentially, well, the same sport, but a new league. And it's just cool saying that the Blue Jays have done. They've always been a group that has embraced people and players from all over. Remember the hint, the the neighborhood, the jacket that they wore. I just think they have a cool vibe about them. And hey, they're playing much better too. They've won three straight series, seven of ten. You Savage is back, Springer is back. They're going to get Burrios back in short order. And they're still missing, of course Barger and Kirk and Nathan Lucas, but they are common and they in my estimation, by the time this thing gets going, this season gets going, they're going to be in a good place, provided that they don't suffer further injuries.

00:21:32
Speaker 2: Have they righted the ship since their early struggles? Do you think that they're riding that ship and moving in a good trajectory forward.

00:21:41
Speaker 1: They're getting there, and it's good to see the way that they're playing now, it's better. They're not where they want to be just yet. And of course Max Schurzer just went on the injured list. They've had all kinds of pitching issues the entire season, but so far, or at least lately, so good.

00:21:57
Speaker 2: All right, Well, it's good to see them going in that certainly. Of course, the reigning al champs, the Toronto Blue Jays, all right, coming back, we are having our dork of the week. Boo, that's the same old front end. We want a new dork of the week front end on fair territory. All right, Ken, who is your dork of the week? Sir?

00:22:24
Speaker 1: I don't know that there's any choice other than the rection. And they're chief baseball officer, Craig Reslo, their whole operation. And two things I want to mention here. We can talk endlessly about the Red Sox, and they're moved to fire Alex kra Okay, it wasn't just Cora. It was six coaches. Six coaches less than a month into the season. It's a disruption to your operation that we'll see how it goes. But I can't remember a team firing its manager and that many coaches. This early in the season. I don't know that that's happened. And again, when you fire a manager this early, you probably shouldn't have brought them back in the first place. And that's true of the Phillies and the Red Sox. It's an overreaction in many ways, and we'll see again how these teams respond to their new managers. But the Red Sox, not just the extent with what they did, but the way they went about it. I'm letting players speak in the meeting. I know Craig Greslow met with them individually afterward. But I've talked about this a lot lately, and maybe I'm banging the drum too hard, but feel you gotta show more feel, and I don't see the Red Sox doing that.

00:23:36
Speaker 2: Yeah, it doesn't seem like they have much feel, Ken, especially when it looks like they're just taking a very robotic approach in terms of how they are dealing with things. My Jork of the Week, same thing. It's an organization that I have a lot of faith, and I just don't like the way that they handled the firing of Rob Thompson. I'm talking about the Philadelphia Phillies. It's very interesting, Ken, because they actually extended Thompson just in December of last year. So to give him the extension showing you know, a bit of faith in him obviously, and then turning around and firing him less than thirty games into the season is crazy. And then kind of going about it in a strange way asking Alex Coorra if he wants to be the manager and then that doesn't work out. You're like, hey, Don Mattingley, are you doing anything? And I know that Preston Mattingly Don Sun is there, so it's the first, you know, GM manager father son duo. But it just kind of the approach of how they let Rob Thompson go and then Alex Corra said, you know what, I'm going to take the time and then Don Mattingley is kind of the interim for the remainder of the season. Just that whole thing, to me is just kind of a weird way to go about it.

00:24:39
Speaker 1: It's been a weird start for them, And I don't disagree with you, Alana. Here's a team and a manager coming off four STRAT playoff appearances, ninety five and ninety six wins the past two seasons, and now three weeks into it, a month into it. It's the manager's fault. Again. It seems to me in both cases there was an overreaction and you have to let these things play out. Usually in the past, managerial dismissals come about a quarter of the way into this season. At that point, okay, you've seen forty games. It's a little bit different. These teams, in my estimation, needed a chance to recover, and the Red Sox, I don't know that they are going to recover, and I don't know that they are good enough to recover. The Phillies certainly are, so you're right. It didn't sit well that they did that, but you could see it coming a mile away, and that's why it was. I don't know. The Monday before these firings, I wrote about it because already the rumblings were starting, and already the frustration and the noise was building. And Britgie Rolli wrote a great column in The Athletic the other day. I encourage people to read it, and she asked a key question, in my opinion, why do front offices ask for and need patience when they don't give that same kind of respect to the managers. Front offices are always saying, hey, trust the process, give us time. Managers don't get that same affordability, and it's it's not cool.

00:26:11
Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely not, Rob Thompson. We'll have another job if he wants it. And I doubt, I don't doubt at all that Alex Korra will be the manager of the Phillies to come the twenty twenty seven season. Well, that's going to do it for us. Here on Fair Territory with Ken Rosenthal. Goth Territory is coming up at one pm Eastern Courtney Turner, Jim Bowden, Ricky Romero, stop by aj Prizinski and Eric Kratz host with me. Scott Ron is back on Friday. Ken is back on Monday. See you next time when it's gonna be may see you later, guys. I looking to take your MLB action to the next level this season. Boosted Odds are here to crank up every pitch, swing and home run bet MGM and hooking you up with your very own MLB Odds Boost token to get things started all season long. Just add any MLB bet to your bet slip, activate your Odds Boost token and lock it in. If your bet hit, you're catching out with an even bigger payout. Gambling problem, Call one eight hundred Gambler or one eight hundred my Reset