Jeff Hoffman’s demotion is slightly concerning | BSN Rockies
To hear manager Bud Black tell it, Hoffman is just taking his break from the Colorado Rockies’ rotation with his demotion to Triple-A on Friday. Even if this was a planned break, Jake Shapiro notes some negative trends in Hoffman’s last few starts, including dips in velocity and subsequent spikes in home runs allowed. Black did also note some signs of fatigue lately for the young right-handed starter.
Jeff Hoffman sent down as Rockies relieve a tired rookie pitcher; Ryan McMahon down too; Ian Desmond waiting | Denver Post
In addition to the updates on Hoffman, Nick Groke writes about the decision behind sending McMahon back down to the minors. As one might have guessed, the team didn’t have regular enough at-bats for him and don’t think it’s the best idea to use him as a pinch hitter right now. Mike Tauchmann seems better suited for that bench role, at least in the team’s eyes.
We also hear that Desmond isn’t particularly close to returning; in the meantime, it’s becoming less clear where exactly he will play when he does return given the team’s loyalty to Carlos Gonzalez and the stellar play of Gerardo Parra and Mark Reynolds. It’s a crunch they’ve had all year, but it will be especially under the spotlight in the heat of a playoff race.
Can negative WARs turn positive? | Sports on Earth
Speaking of CarGo, he makes a most unfortunate appearance on this list of players with negative WAR this season. There have definitely been some harder hit balls lately, including the line drive home run on Friday, so hopefully he’s got a good run in him this season yet and his recent improved stats aren’t just empty calories. A good CarGo would only make this playoff push that much more enjoyable.
Also, Alexi Amarista joins CarGo on this list. Depth and versatility, ya know, but maybe some of that is in the eye of the beholder.
Dodgers trade for Curtis Granderson | True Blue LA
The ridiculous Los Angeles Dodgers look to have only improved with the addition of the veteran outfielder. Eric Stephen writes about the options for Dave Roberts with Granderson and the return of Adrian Gonzalez.
Twins 10, Diamondbacks 3: Buxton/Sano give snakes a thorough whacking | Twinkie Town
The future for the Minnesota Twins did the Rockies a solid on Friday. Miguel Sano hit two bombs. Byron Buxton almost hit for the cycle and had the fastest inside-the-park home run in history. All told, the Twins blew out the Diamondbacks and helped Colorado gain a game in the standings.