Ronald Acuña Jr. had a comparatively disappointing exhibiting on the plate in 2022 coming off his season-ending proper ACL tear in July 2021, however the dynamic three-time All-Star believes he will likely be again at full energy main into 2023. “I’m feeling one hundred pc and I’m prepared to return to regular, and I positively don’t need to play DH anymore,” Acuña informed Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Structure on Saturday.
Acuña delivered a mixed .925 OPS in his first 1,764 main league plate appearances between 2018-21 earlier than sinking to a .764 OPS in 533 plate appearances final yr. He made 27 begins at DH for the Braves in 2022, after logging just one complete DH begin throughout his 4 earlier MLB seasons. He’s averaged 38 dwelling runs and 34 stolen bases for each 162 video games performed as a giant leaguer. Final yr: 15 homers, 29 steals in 119 video games. As he strikes additional and additional away from that knee harm, the reigning NL East champs ought to develop into all of the extra harmful.
Acuña goes to DH within the Venezuelan Winter League finals, per Toscano, and he has additionally said a need to characterize his native nation within the Winter Baseball Traditional. However the 25-year-old outfielder famous to David O’Brien of The Athletic that the Braves’ medical workers is unlikely to clear him to play within the upcoming WBC as a result of it’s extra of a time and bodily dedication than Winter League. Primarily, they simply actually need him to remain in camp.
Mike Clevinger signed a one-year, $12M contract with the White Sox earlier this winter. Quickly after, he obtained a platelet-rich plasma injection to help within the therapeutic of a knee harm that hampered him down the stretch with the Padres final season and led to a disappointing 4.33 ERA. Together with his knee on the mend, and his November 2020 Tommy John surgical procedure totally within the rearview, the White Sox imagine the 32-year-old right-hander can get again to being his outdated top-of-the-rotation self. “We broke down some biomechanics stuff after we signed him to sort of present him the variations,” pitching coach Ethan Katz informed James Fegan of The Athletic. “The place he was completely different in all elements of his supply, which was in all probability in correlation to the knee…Now that he’s wholesome, he’s engaged on it. His bullpens and the movies that I’ve seen, there’s been no sort of restrictions or something that’s slowed him down from having the ability to be aggressive on that again leg.”
Ryan Rolison, the Rockies’ high choice within the 2018 MLB Draft and maybe a giant rotation piece for his or her future, is alleged to be one hundred pc recovered from the left shoulder surgical procedure that knocked his professional profession off monitor final season. He didn’t pitch in MLB-affiliated ball in any respect in 2022 and in the end went underneath the knife in June. “We’re higher than we have been a yr in the past,” Rockies GM Invoice Schmidt stated to Patrick Saunders of the Denver Put up in a current chat, making word of Rolison’s rebounded well being. “Now we have created some competitors for some guys,” Schmidt added. “And, total, our organizational depth is healthier.” Germán Márquez, Kyle Freeland and José Ureña would appear to be locked into the highest three rotation spots for Colorado. Rolison might maybe battle with Austin Gomber and Connor Seabold on the again finish. Peter Lambert (elbow) can also be anticipated to be wholesome heading into camp and would possibly get one other search for MLB begins in some unspecified time in the future in 2023.
