D-backs Preview #59: 6/4 @ Brewers

Roster moves

The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves:

• Reinstated INF Asdrúbal Cabrera (right hamstring strain) from the 10-day injured list.
• Placed RHP Seth Frankoff (right forearm soreness) on the 10-day injured list.

The last time we saw Asdrubal Cabrera, was May 13, in agony on the Chase Field turf. He had been pole-axed by a right hamstring strain - just another in the base-running injuries that have affected the team this year. Surgery was contemplated, and for a 35-year-old player, it could have been the end. But instead, barely three weeks later, he returns to the team, providing a welcome boost. It’s perhaps as close as the Diamondbacks have come to being able to put out their “best” starting line-up of position players since Opening Day, with now only Kole Calhoun missing from that list. Of course, the pitchers are a different matter: Bumgarner, Gallen, Weaver, Widener and now Frankoff. And those are just starters.

This evening’s alternative to the D-backs game.

Friday night is, of course, Hammer night, and I’ll be watching Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde. Regardless of the film’s quality, this is one of the finest titles in the studio’s history. It’s part of their fondness in the seventies to sex-up their genre staples. They did sexy vampires (Lust for a Vampire) and even sexy mummies (Blood From the Mummy’s Tomb), so why not have Dr. Jekyll turn into an attractive woman when he metamorphoses? Of course, any parallels are merely coincidental, between the classic tale, and the 2021 D-backs, who started off the year a very Dr. Jekyll-esque 15-13, before transforming into Sister Hyde and going 5-25 since then. 2021 seems unlikely to end well either. Here’s the trailer.

Torey Lovullo notes

Asdrubal Cabrera activated: When the injury first happened it looked pretty bad, and just yesterday Torey said he was just running at 75-80% and hadn’t run at full speed yet. He’ll still be going through progressions, (but not “rehabbing” on the MLB roster) and will most likely be used more strategically to start out. He’ll also most likely be in a similar situation as Ketel Marte was, they won’t have him running as hard as he can to start out. But Torey said it speaks volumes about the work he put in, the amount of therapy he got and how relentless he was to get back quickly.

It’s almost unbelievable considering the type of injury, the pain that he had to work through early, knowing there was a light at the end of the tunnel. I think we’re at that point right now. So I couldn’t be more happy to have him back active with us.

• Humberto Castellanos, called up yesterday, will be used in a long bullpen role
• Seth Frankoff, IL with forearm strain is still being evaluated
• Madison Bumgarner will be “down and resting” for at least a few more days until the shoulder can receive more treatment. They still do not have a time table for his throwing schedule. Torey admitted he was being “optimistic” when we spoke yesterday, but with further information coming in, time zone, ZOOM duties, he didn’t have all info yesterday and was speculating some.
• Sunday starter still TBA until later tonight or tomorrow morning

Torey Lovullo audio [or link]