NL EAST NEWS AND NOTES

ATLANTA BRAVES

As upset as the Braves were when Marlins pitcher Jose Urena hit Ronald Acuna Jr. with the first pitch Aug. 15 at Sun-Trust Park, they were every bit as excited when Acuna returned to the lineup the next day against the Colorado Rockies.

Acuna told manager Brian Snitker he wouldn’t be sidelined by the Urena pitch, which hit him just above his left elbow. He then went 5-for-11 in the first three games against the Rockies, extending a streak in which he was 21-for-45 (.467) with eight home runs and 15 RBI in a 12-game span.

Acuna scored 15 runs in the first 10 games of the Braves’ homestand, the most by a Braves player in a homestand since the team moved to Atlanta in 1966, according to Stats Inc.

❚ The Braves had resisted the trend of using position players to pitch, something Bobby Cox never had to do in his 21 years managing the team. But Snitker reluctantly called on Charlie Culberson when the Braves trailed the Rockies 10-2 in the ninth inning Aug. 17. Culberson hadn’t pitched since he was in high school, but his fastball was clocked as high as 93.7 mph by MLB.com’s Statcast.

MIAMI MARLINS

Jose Urena appealed his six game suspension for throwing at Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr., but manager Don Mattingly said Urena won’t pitch in a four-game series against the Braves on Aug. 23-26.

Mattingly said Elieser Hernandez will replace Urena against the Braves. Hernandez started five games for the Marlins in May and June.

Urena, who was tied for the National League lead in hit batters with 11, insisted he wasn’t trying to hit Acuna.

❚ The Marlins promoted first baseman Austin Dean, who had a combined .922 OPS (onbase plus slugging percentage) in 109 games at Class AA Jacksonville (Fla.) and Class AAA New Orleans. Dean homered Aug. 17 at Washington for his first major league hit.

NEW YORK METS

Finally, the talk about Jacob deGrom has moved on from how the Mets could never win despite his brilliant pitching. He won his third consecutive start Aug. 18 in Philadelphia, and it was impressive enough to boost his already strong case for the NL Cy Young Award.

DeGrom didn’t allow an earned run in throwing his first complete game of the season and lowering his ERA to 1.71. He threw his three hardest fastballs of the night — two at 99 mph and one at 98 — to the final batter of the game.

DeGrom has allowed more than three runs just once in 25 starts, and that came on April 10, when he gave up four in his third start of the season.

❚ Even before September call-ups, the Mets tied the franchise record (set in 1967) when they added their 54th player of the season, reliever Daniel Zamora.

Only the Los Angeles Angels, with 57, had used more players in 2018. Zamora was the 29th pitcher used by the Mets, tying the franchise record.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

Right-hander Aaron Nola has pushed his way into the Cy Young race with a 14-3 record and 2.24 ERA, but his hopes ebbed when he lost to the Mets’ Jacob deGrom on Aug. 18.

DeGrom and Nationals righthander Max Scherzer are considered the favorites for the award, but Nola has given up only four earned runs in his last four starts, covering 27 innings.

Nola’s ERA is the lowest by a Phillie through 25 starts since Chris Short in 1964.

❚ Manager Gabe Kapler has not hesitated to use position players to pitch, and he strongly defended his decision to use Roman Quinn and Scott Kingery for the final three innings of a 24-4 loss to the Mets in the first game of an Aug. 16 doubleheader. “We used strategy to best position the Phillies to win games,” he said. “We’re going to continue to do that. My job is to protect the Phillies. That’s it. That’s what I did.”

WASHINGTON NATIONALS

The Nationals were down to their fourth-choice closer with Sean Doolittle, Kelvin Herrera and Ryan Madson all on the disabled list.

Right-hander Koda Glover, just back after a long DL stay himself, took over temporarily, but Herrera was expected back in late August.

Herrera looked like a solid acquisition when the Nationals picked him up in a June 18 trade with the Kansas City Royals. But after compiling 14 saves and a 1.05 ERA in 27 games with the Royals, he had a 4.76 ERA in his first 19 games with the Nats. He went on the DL on Aug. 8 because of a sore shoulder.

The Nationals have leaned heavily on their bullpen because their starters other than ace Max Scherzer rarely pitch deep into games. The Nats also have been hit by injuries in the rotation — Jeremy Hellickson (sprained right wrist) joined Stephen Strasburg (cervical nerve impingement) on the DL.

❚ Bryce Harper reached two milestones when he got to 30 home runs for the second time in his career and drove in his 500th career run.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

WILSON RAMOS, PHILLIES

Ramos was on the disabled list because of a left hamstring strain when the Phillies acquired him from the Rays at the July 31 deadline, so he didn’t make his Philadelphia debut until Aug. 15. He made it count, with three extra-base hits and three RBI in a 7-4 win over the Red Sox. The last player to have three hits in his Phillies debut was Ed Freed in 1942.

NL WEST NEWS AND NOTES

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

If the Diamondbacks are to win their first National League West title since 2011, they need left-hander Robbie Ray to return to his 2017 form.

Ray was an ace-like No. 2 starter last year but will lug a 4.91 ERA into his start Aug. 24 at home against the Seattle Mariners. He will be working on extra rest thanks to the team’s two open dates this week.

Plagued by walks, Ray said he’ll try to find a groove by studying video of his best work and matching that technical form in bullpen sessions. “I just need to get back to what I do best and that’s pound the zone,” he told “The Arizona Republic.”

His average of 4.9 walks is up a full walk from last year. He has allowed three or more walks in 10 of 16 starts.

Ray, 26, has maintained his 2017 fastball velocity of about 93-94 mph, and he’s averaging 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings.

❚ A toughening schedule is perhaps Arizona’s No. 1 obstacle through season’s end. Beating the last-place Padres six out of seven recent games had Arizona atop the division entering this week, but teams with winning records are the opponents for 29 of 37 games to the finish line.

COLORADO ROCKIES

Dominant reliever Adam Ottavino is shouldering his heaviest workload in four years. Will his performance wane in September as a result? A year after finishing with 53 1 ⁄ 3 innings, Ottavino had logged 60 1 ⁄ 3 innings this season entering this week. He was limited to 27 innings in 2016 after recovering from Tommy John elbow surgery performed in May 2015.

Ottavino, 32, has looked sharp, not fatigued, in almost every outing. He carried a 1.64 ERA into this week.

If Ottavino maintains his home-field dominance, the Rockies are more apt to claim their first NL West title. He began the week with a 1.07 home ERA and had held hitters to a .111 batting average and just one home run in 25 1 ⁄ 3 innings at Coors Field.

❚ Reliever Mike Dunn’s rehab assignment this week doesn’t portend a quick return. Dunn will need “multiple” outings, manager Bud Black said.

LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The tight race in the NL West could tempt the Dodgers to have

Walker Buehler pitch more innings than they otherwise would prefer.

The rotation’s only righthander, Buehler will go into his start Aug. 22 against the St. Louis Cardinals having thrown 103 1 ⁄ 3 innings, a career-high total for a season.

He logged 98 innings last year in his only other professional season with a significant workload. In 2016, he threw only five innings because of an elbow injury suffered in college that required Tommy John surgery in 2015.

Buehler, 24, has a 3.19 ERA over 15 starts and one relief outing. He was on the disabled list for most of June because of a rib injury.

He has allowed two runs or fewer in his last four starts and twice has gone seven innings with no more than one run allowed. Hitters had just a .255 on-base percentage against him over the 25 1 ⁄ 3- inning span.

❚ Closer Kenley Jansen said he was feeling better and was activated Aug. 20. The team nosedived after Jansen was sidelined Aug. 9 by an irregular heartbeat.

SAN DIEGO PADRES

Wil Myers has looked comfortable at third base, his new position.

He had nine assists and a putout in his first game, and the challenge of throwing from different angles hasn’t been a problem for the former outfielder.

The Padres want to see more of Myers at third so they can make better decisions about their 2019 roster. They have six other candidates for the outfield, and Eric Hosmer is a fixture at first base.

Getting Myers’ bat into the lineup is important. That his salary will quadruple in 2020 to $22.5 million adds urgency to fleshing out what he can and can’t do.

❚ Shortstop Freddy Galvis is another key piece to the offseason puzzle. Galvis is a standout defender, recently homered in three games in a row and could be this team’s MVP, but he’s eligible for free agency in November and figures to be in demand. If the Padres keep Galvis, shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr., their top prospect, might have to move to third.

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS

When right-hander Dereck Rodriguez strained his right hamstring during the Giants’ Aug. 14 scrum with the Dodgers, it cost him two starts against teams with losing records. But he might not have pitched much more this season anyway.

Rodriguez was a candidate to get shut down in September because of his workload. He already has pitched 130 1 ⁄ 3 innings, just 13 fewer than his career high last year.

And it’s not as if the Giants are charging toward the top of the division. When they got swept over the weekend at Cincinnati, it put a damper on their already faint playoff hopes.

Rodriguez has had a season to build on, however. He has allowed two runs or fewer in his last nine starts.

❚ Upward-trending Heliot Ramos, the franchise’s No. 2 prospect, will finish his first full season with about 500 plate appearances for low Class A Augusta (Ga.). Through 59 at-bats in August, the 18-year-old righthanded hitter was having his best month of the season: .288 batting average, .542 slugging percentage, four triples, two homers and a double.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

David Dahl, Rockies

Consider the homegrown Dahl a “free” Rockies acquisition in lieu of trading for an outfielder last month. Recovered from a foot fracture, the outfielder has added timely hits this month. 

AL EAST NEWS AND NOTES

AL CENTRAL NEWS AND NOTES

CHICAGO WHITE SOX

Nicky Delmonico is trying to salvage something out of a lost season.

The outfielder was hitting just .229 with five home runs through 60 games. He was out from May 19 to July 19 because of a broken right hand.

As a rookie last season, Delmonico batted .262 with nine homers in just 43 games. Delmonico showed flashes of his rookie form Aug. 17 when he had a career-high five RBI, including a three-run homer, in the White Sox’s 9-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

The left-handed hitter has been platooning in left field with Leury Garcia.

❚ Right fielder Avisail Garcia is expected to undergo surgery on his right knee at the end of the season. Garcia, who spent two stints on the DL earlier in the season because of a strained right hamstring, was batting .235 with 14 homers through 62 games after being selected to the All-Star Game last season for the only time in his seven year career.

CLEVELAND INDIANS

Trevor Bauer is expected to be out until mid-September because of a stress fracture in his right leg, but the right-hander is vowing to do everything he can to beat that timetable.

Bauer started playing catch from his knees with an athletic trainer Aug. 17 while wearing a walking boot. The idea is for Bauer to keep his arm in shape while his leg heals. He was struck by a line drive off the bat of the Chicago White Sox’s Jose Abreu on Aug. 11.

Bauer’s record (12-6, 2.22 ERA in 25 starts) had made him a contender for the American League Cy Young Award. He also has 214 strikeouts in 166 innings.

Right-hander Adam Plutko was recalled from Class AAA Columbus (Ohio) to take Bauer’s rotation spot.

❚ Center fielder Leonys Martin was released from a hospital Aug. 19, 11 days after contracting a bacterial infection that affected his internal organs. There was no set plan for when Martin can begin rehabbing.

DETROIT TIGERS

The fourth time was the charm for Ryan Carpenter.

The rookie left-hander got his first major league win in his fourth career start Aug. 18 when the Tigers defeated the Twins 7-5 at Minnesota. Carpenter allowed three runs, one apiece in the first three innings, and got through 5 1 / 3 innings.

The start was Carpenter’s first since May 31. He was placed on the disabled list the next day because of a strained muscle in his right side and missed nearly two months before being optioned to Class AAA Toledo (Ohio).

❚ Right-handed reliever Zach McAllister was designated for assignment after allowing eight runs in 3 1 / 3 innings over three appearances. The Tigers signed McAllister following his release by the Cleveland Indians.

KANSAS CITY ROYALS

Danny Duffy is hoping his stay on the disabled list won’t last long.

The left-hander is sidelined by an impingement in his pitching shoulder. He felt pain during a loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Aug. 11, a game in which he allowed six runs in 5 1 / 3 innings, and then got an injection.

Duffy is 7-11 with a 4.90 ERA in 25 starts and 143 1 ⁄ 3 innings. “I felt like getting the shot would help me avoid the DL, just kind of power through it,” Duffy said. “Two hundred innings was a big goal of mine. I’m disappointed that I’m not very likely to reach that this year, but there will be another chance.

❚ Rookie right-hander Glenn Sparkman was recalled from Class AAA Omaha (Papillion, Neb.) to take Duffy’s place in the rotation. In his first career start Aug. 16, Sparkman allowed two runs in four innings against the Toronto Blue Jays and got a no decision.

MINNESOTA TWINS

Joe Mauer hasn’t had many opportunities to pinch-hit over the course of a 15-year career that has included the 2009 AL Most Valuable Player award, three batting titles and six All-Star Game selections.

But the catcher-turned-first baseman had a memorable moment off the bench Aug. 17 when he hit a three-run homer off the Detroit Tigers’ Louis Coleman in the seventh inning to give the Twins a 5-4 victory.

It was just the second pinch homer of Mauer’s career. The other came in 2009 at the since imploded Metrodome.

Mauer got a curtain call from the Target Field fans. “That was pretty special,” he said.

❚ Right-hander Ervin Santana was placed on the disabled list because of discomfort in his right middle finger. Santana had surgery on the finger in the offseason and has been limited to five starts this season.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

CODY ALLEN, INDIANS

It has been an up-and-down season for Allen, but the closer converted 24 of his first 27 save opportunities despite a 3.98 ERA, the highest of his seven year career, through 52 appearances. The 29-year-old has pitched better since the All-Star break, posting a 2.03 ERA in his first 12 games after having a 4.66 mark in 40 games during the first half of the season.

AL WEST NEWS AND NOTES

HOUSTON ASTROS

The Astros’ glide to consecutive American League West titles and a possible return to the World Series hit a rough patch. Instead of being a lock for the postseason, the defending champions are battling for a playoff berth.

The surging Athletics caught the Astros atop the division Aug. 18 after Houston squandered a six-game lead dating to July 24.

Maybe there should be after a 7-13 skid allowed the A’s to reel in Houston. The Astros players said they can shake their funk by finding ways to have fun.

The Astros won the next day to retake the division lead as right-hander Justin Verlander earned his 200th career win.

❚ Second baseman Jose Altuve (knee) was expected to be activated Aug. 21. It was the first disabled list stint of his career.

❚ Right-hander Chris Devenski (hamstring) and catcher Brian McCann (knee) were trending in the right direction in their minor league rehab stints.

LOS ANGELES ANGELS

Shohei Ohtani threw 29 pitches in a simulated game Aug. 20 at the team’s Tempe, Arizona, spring training facility, and the Angels tweeted, “All went well.”

It was Ohtani’s fifth throwing drill since he was sidelined with a sprained elbow ligament June 6, but it was the first time during his rehab he threw to hitters standing in the batter’s box.

The Angels, who were in Arizona for a series against the Diamondbacks, hope Ohtani can pitch again this season.

Center fielder Mike Trout, meanwhile, could rejoin the club Aug. 24 for a game against the Astros. Trout was with his family following the death of Aaron Cox, Trout’s brother-in-law and an Angel’s minor league pitcher. Trout, who previously had been on the disabled list because of a wrist injury, last played on Aug. 1.

❚ Left-hander Andrew Heaney’s string of 17 consecutive road starts without a win is the longest in team history. He is 7-2 with a 2.90 ERA at Angel Stadium and 0-5 with a 5.37 ERA on the road.

❚ Outfielder Kole Calhoun, in his first 50 games after returning from the DL, had 16 home runs while hitting .304. He had one homer and batted .145 in his previous 50 games.

OAKLAND ATHLETICS

The satisfaction of owning a share of the American League West lead didn’t feel that much different to some Oakland players despite a 40-13 tear that enabled them to catch the Astros.

The Athletics, who trailed by 11 1 ⁄ 2 games June 15, gained a piece of the division lead for the first time since Aug. 25, 2014.

❚ Right-hander Trevor Cahill had one of the best outings of his career Aug. 18, allowing just an infield hit through seven scoreless innings in a win over the Astros. Since he returned to Oakland in April, he has gone 4-0 with a 0.85 ERA in eight home starts.

SEATTLE MARINERS

When left-hander Marco Gonzales’ next start was pushed back to Aug. 22 against the Astros, it was another sign that the Mariners are being careful with his workload.

Gonzales is two years removed from Tommy John elbow surgery. With 142 2 ⁄ 3 innings, second most on the staff, he already has tripled last year’s total and understands the caution.

❚ Ace left-hander James Paxton was placed on the disabled list and was expected to miss a start after being struck on the left forearm by a line drive off the bat of Oakland’s Jed Lowrie. The Mariners hoped Paxton wouldn’t be out long.

TEXAS RANGERS

Jurickson Profar has started at first base, second base, shortstop and left field this year. But as Adrian Beltre continues to battle hamstring injuries and Father Time, Profar could be the heir apparent to Beltre’s spot at third base.

Profar, who started a rare 5-4 triple play Aug. 16, is doing more than flashing a steady glove. He is hitting in the middle of the lineup and is second on the club in RBI behind Joey Gallo.

While the Rangers are playing out the string in what has been a disastrous season, Profar is finally healthy and performing as if he’ll be part of the team’s attempt to rebuild.

❚ Right fielder Nomar Mazara (sprained right thumb) returned, which meant top outfield prospect Willie Calhoun was sent back down. But centerfielder Delino DeShields went back on the disabled list because of a fractured finger, soon after missing time because of concussion-like symptoms. A broken left hand kept DeShields off the field for 20 games in March and April.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

ROBINSON CANO, MARINERS

Cano started at second base in four of his first five games after serving his 80-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s policy on performance- enhancing drugs. But he was playing there for two reasons: First, Dee Gordon agreed to move from second to center field on occasion, and then Gordon had to fill in at shortstop when Jean Segura went on paternity leave.

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