MLB Rumors: Should Red Sox consider reuniting with former prospect to help bullpen?
Former Boston Red Sox prospect Denyi Reyes was designated for assignment by the New York Mets last Tuesday, making his future in the MLB somewhat murky.
Given his years-long history in Boston, there's an inkling of a chance that the Red Sox would reunite with Reyes to shore up the bullpen. Reyes signed with the Red Sox back in 2014 and played a plethora of minor league games hoping to one day make the leap to the majors. That day never came, but Reyes still compiled a neat resume of stats including a 1.45 ERA in 2017 and a 1.89 ERA in 2018 with the Low-A Lowell Spinners and Greenville Drive respectively.
With his future up in the air, Reyes could make a return to the first home he's ever known.
After Reyes crawled to a 6.14 ERA in six games for the Mets, the Red Sox rightfully have concerns.
The pros for acquiring Reyes are: he has familiarity with the Red Sox farm system, has shown flashes of high-upside talent in his nearly decade-long professional career, and if the signing pans out, could turn into a pivotal member of the bullpen.
On the other hand, Reyes' minor league stints are littered with inconsistency and he's far from a reliable arm at this point.
All things considered, this low-stakes gamble on Reyes doesn't have too many detriments. It's all about what the Red Sox see in Reyes, who could be characterized as either a developmental dud or a modest arm with plenty left to give.
MLB Rumors: New mock draft has Florida's Wyatt Langford going first overall
Well, this is a shocker.
In MLB Pipeline's last-minute draft predictions, analysts Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis both have Florida's Wyatt Langford going first overall to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Mayo explained how he ended up picking Langford despite Dylan Crews and Paul Skenes being the frontrunners of the draft.
There's a growing sense that the Pirates are leaning toward a bat over an arm (Paul Skenes), and despite the buzz, I think Dylan Crews is still in play. That said, the chatter that he wasn't their guy was hard to ignore. So if he's off the table, that likely leaves Langford and Max Clark, and it could come down to whatever combination of agreement on talent and cost.
Per Mayo's sentiments, Langford would potentially sign for less, which could be the deciding factor for the Pirates. Recent reports say the signing bonus difference between Langford and Crews could be at least half of a million dollars.
In his junior season in 2022, Lanford hit .373 with 21 homers; if he does get taken first, he would make history as no Florida player has ever gone No. 1 overall in the MLB Draft.
Assuming the Pirates want a hitter and not a pitcher, and that they want the best bang for their buck, Wyatt Langford could be their pick on Sunday. Stay tuned for more pre-draft buzz.
Also, there's this, so the draft could be a total shocker right from the get-go tonight:
MLB Rumors: Latest update on Bryce Harper elbow injury scans
The Philadelphia Phillies' Superman is going to be okay.
In Saturday's loss against the Marlins, Phillies star Bryce Harper was drilled on his surgically repaired right elbow with a 90 mph fastball and left the game due to soreness. It was just revealed that his X-rays came back negative — he really is a superhero in disguise.
Saturday's loss snapped the Phillies' franchise-record 13-game road winning streak, but Philly can come away from that game thanking the baseball gods Harper didn't suffer an injury setback.
Harper has beaten every timeline in his 2023 return from Tommy John surgery, taking just 160 days to get back to the plate. Harper entered the game against the Marlins with a slash line of .287/.381/.392 and was hoping to improve his production (he has not homered in 160 consecutive plate appearances since May 25, the longest drought of his career).
Despite his unexpected power outage, Harper is still making a positive impact on a rising Phillies team and doing his best to get back into the swing of things.
The Phillies' future trade deadline plans hinge on whether the slugger can continue to play first base. The team's playoff hopes, too, hinge on Harper's ability to rediscover his power-hitting and step back into his glittering form.
