Snake Bytes 4/11: Is It World Series Time Yet?

Diamondbacks News

Injuries & Moves: Mantiply to begin rehab stint

Selected contract of RHP Peter Solomon from Triple-A Reno; RHP Zach Davies (left oblique strain) placed on 15-day IL; RHP Jose Ruiz acquired from White Sox in exchange for cash considerations; RHP Mark Melancon and RHP Cole Sulser transferred to 60-day IL

Solomon will provide length in the bullpen with the D-backs shifting long man Drey Jameson to the rotation to take the place of Davies. Ruiz will not report Sunday, but spots for him and Solomon on the 40-man roster were created by transferring Melancon and Sulser to the 60-day injured list.

This week’s FREE MiLB games: Holliday, Jones, Eury vs. Chourio, more

Saturday, 9:30 p.m. ET — Rancho Cucamonga (LAD) vs. Visalia (ARI)

Druw Jones, the 2022 No. 2 overall pick and MLB’s No. 13 prospect, made a jaw-dropping play in his very first professional game last week. There’s no telling what the 19-year-old outfielder will do for the D-backs-affiliated Rawhide against Dodgers prospects Rayne Doncon (No. 12), Jesus Galiz (No. 25) and the Quakes.

MLB Power Rankings: Rays and Yankees share the throne and it’s time for some overreactions PAYWALL

17. Arizona Diamondbacks

Record: 6-4

Last Power Ranking: 19

The projections may not believe in them, and though they’ve moved up in these rankings, apparently this trio of jabroni writers doesn’t either. Not in the way this blurb dares to believe in the Diamondbacks, who just pasted the Dodgers in a four-game series at Chase Field. Arizona claimed three victories and outscored Los Angeles 28-22, and many of those Dodger runs were of the cosmetic variety. The young core is a terror, racking up hits and stolen bases. The pressure never relents! The Diamondbacks are now tied for first in the NL West, so Captain Ahab clearly has slain his hated white whale. So ignore that Madison Bumgarner remains a roster problem or that Arizona’s depth is already being tested in the rotation after an injury to Zach Davies. Ignore that it is April. These Diamondbacks may have been a trendy playoff pick, but the laws of overreaction say the division will be theirs for the first time since 2011. — ZB (Zach Buchanan)

Diamondbacks 3, Brewers 0: Gallen Wrecks ‘em

I got up early today to watch the crucial game between Wrexham and Notts County. Back in the seventies, Wrexham were one of “my teams”, so I followed their purchase by Ryan Reynolds, etc. with interest, and we loved the first series of Welcome to Wrexham. This season, the team has been fighting with Notts County all season, culminating in the two teams facing off today, in a key contest to decide who’d get promoted up a tier. [They are two of the three oldest pro clubs in the world, founded in 1862 and 1864] Wrexham came from behind to win 3-2. Their keeper, who came out of retirement after the regular guy was injured, stopped a penalty in the seventh minute of time added on, to save the win.

There’s even parts about the Diamondbacks beating the Brewers in this one too!

Baseball News

Cards phenom Walker one-ups Ted Williams

Move over, Teddy Ballgame. There’s a new kid in town, and he’s chasing a record that’s stood for over a century.

Jordan Walker extended his career-opening hitting streak to 10 games Monday in Colorado, slapping a two-out single up the middle in the top of the 7th to move past Hall of Famer Ted Williams into second place among streaks to start a career for players under 21 years old. The Cardinals trailed the Rockies 6-3 as Walker was stranded on first.

My Thoughts: I will be at the game next Monday, hoping to cheer Carroll and Moreno past Walker and the duct tape rotation St Louis thinks is competitive.

Orioles have fun(nel) with new HR celebration

Cole Irvin and Keegan Akin demonstrated their collective creative genius as they constructed baseball’s newest home run celebration sensation. Irvin purchased an orange funnel and a long, blue hose, then he and Akin came together to create a device with plenty of Baltimore flavor.

First, the left-handers covered the hose with black tape. Then, they used orange tape to give it a striped appearance.

My Thoughts: In college, we called this something different...

10-0! Rays claim best start in MLB’s Wild Card era

Pete Fairbanks is Rays manager Kevin Cash’s preferred choice out of the bullpen in the ninth inning of a tight game. But high-leverage work has been hard to find lately, considering Tampa Bay won each of the first nine games of the season by at least four runs.

In fact, Fairbanks had only pitched twice before taking the mound with a one-run lead in the ninth against the Red Sox on Monday night. So his fellow relievers had been giving him a hard time, left-hander Colin Poche said, teasing him for being “on vacation” and going so far as to call him Pete “Rarebanks.”

German Marquez Leaves Start With Forearm Tightness

Rockies hurler Germán Márquez left tonight’s win over the Cardinals after just five innings and 62 pitches. He’d come out to warm up in the sixth but called out the trainer and gestured toward the outside of his forearm. Postgame, manager Bud Black called the issue forearm tightness (link via Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post).

Adam Duvall Diagnosed With Fractured Wrist, Will Not Require Surgery

RIP many early fantasy baseball winners and Boston diehard hopefuls...

College baseball week in review: LSU’s Dylan Crews barely slowing down PAYWALL

Dylan Crews has long been thought of as the likely top pick in the upcoming MLB draft and there’s no reason to believe that will change any time soon. The LSU star is still hitting the cover off the ball with little sign of slowing down.

After top-ranked LSU went 1-1 in a series against No. 6 South Carolina this weekend, Crews remained the only player in Division I baseball batting over .500 on the season. In other words, Crews, a junior, is reaching base in more than half his plate appearances. And we’re not dealing in small samples anymore. Crews has played 31 games. He’s batting .510 with a .645 on-base percentage and .882 slugging percentage.

My Thoughts: Safe to say Crews isn’t going to be around for Arizona’s 12th overall selection. But there are quite a few excellent players in this year’s college crop. Likely another domino set into motion by Covid; many high schoolers went undrafted that year as there were only 5 rounds. I for one will be absolutely fascinated to see which route Hazen and Rebhan take with their picks at 12 & 48. My early hope is a sliding or injured college arm are available at both spots, with a high end high schooler slipping from the First Round as a backup at 48. Too soon? Probably. But I love the draft, especially now that the picks have a better than even chance at not being traded away.

MLB Releases Animated Series About The Women Of The Negro Baseball Leagues PAYWALL (maybe)

The Major League Baseball organization commissioned Carl Jones and Love Barnett to bring the hidden figures of the National Negro Female Baseball League to light in an animated series, kicking off International Black Women’s History Month. The series is available on YouTube and the MLB’s platforms. With Black history and achievements being suppressed, the engaged couple persist in telling stories of the Black American experience.