Weekend Rumblings - News for July 30, 2022

Lynn Worthy writes about last night’s implosion with Scott Barlow.

“Anytime you’re in a tough situation, you never want to think anything negative,” Barlow said. “It’s just always about executing the next pitch and trying to get your mindset in the right place. So that way you’re always positive. I felt like I was always there one pitch away, never felt like I was out of it.”...

“It was tough conditions too,” Barlow said. “It rained, and I think the grounds crew did the best they could to dry it up. Even I fell on one. The whole infield was kind of in a little rough conditioning. But it’s the same process, do it again. I did it once, I can do it again. Always having that same process of one pitch away.”

Salvy talks about his return to the team.

Had it been entirely up to Perez, he might have rejoined the team even earlier. But the hand surgeon who repaired the ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb forbade Perez from playing in a major-league game any earlier.

“I don’t kind of understand that,” Perez said. “I think I was ready 12 days ago. I just listened to the doctor who did my surgery. That’s why he is one of the best. I don’t know what he did to my finger, but I thank him for whatever he put in my finger because it feels so good.

“After the second week, I didn’t feel any pain. I didn’t feel anything. It was kind of surprising. This was the day they put down. Sometimes I just need to follow what they tell me. I may not be happy, not agree. But I have to do it.”

Betelhem Ashame writes about Salvy’s big home run.

But when Perez connected on a near-100 mph fastball at the top of the zone, he knew it was gone.

“Yeah, I hit it pretty good,” Perez said. “Coming [into] today, I never got a hit against him. … 1-for-12 is not bad. It’s a great situation, and one of the best pitchers in the league, you know? I’m super aggressive, I like to swing and I think it’s a good pitch, too.

“One hundred is not a problem,” he added jokingly.

Maikel Garcia collected his first MLB hit, then got two more.

“We have faith in him, or he wouldn’t have been out there right now,” Matheny said. “We know the kind of position player, [the] kind of defender he is, the kind of shortstop. He knows that, too. It’s a big ask to come in and play shortstop at the Major League level. We know he’s ready for it. He’s proven that to everybody, and he’ll continue to get the opportunities.”

David Lesky at Inside the Crown reviews Brady Singer’s last start.

I’ve said in the past that I feel like Singer is showing us that he’s a mid-rotation starter. I don’t want to get too caught up in the hype of one great start in a venue where it’s tough to have that start, but those numbers are worth celebrating. His strikeout and walk rates are in the ball park of guys like Justin Verlander and Luis Castillo. This season, there are nine pitchers with a strikeout rate of 25 percent or higher, a walk rate of seven percent or lower and an ERA of 3.50 or lower. What Singer is doing needs to be talked about as that of a number two starter at worst. His last two starts have vaulted him there, so we obviously need to see more of it, but the turn to something special has to start somewhere and I’m looking forward to seeing Singer’s next time out to see if he can continue this run.

The Royals sign second-round pick Cayden Wallace and 20th-round pick Austin Charles.

Marcus Meade at Royals Farm Report thinks the Royals got a gem in the draft with David Sandlin.

The Reds trade pitcher Luis Castillo to the Mariners for four prospects.

Joe Musgrove and the Padres are close to a $100 million contract extension.

A Shohei Ohtani trade is unlikely but not out of the question.

The Mets will activate Jacob deGrom on Tuesday.

Pros and cons for the top trade candidates.

The new Jackie Robinson museum in New York City is more than about baseball.

Fangraphs ranks the top players in the game by trade value.

Rob Manfred defends the antitrust exemption arguing it prevents relocations.

Pitchers cover their face with their glove, and it may be because Will Clark read Greg Maddux’s lips in 1989.

Driver Sebastian Vettel retires from F1 to become an activist.

The Madden hotline fields thousands of calls from fans complaining about player ratings.

Lactose tolerance is an evolutionary puzzle.

South Korea will send its first mission to the moon.

The Choco Taco will be discontinued.

Your song of the day is Fine Young Cannibals with Don’t Look Back.