Arizona Diamondbacks

Arizona Diamondbacks broadcaster Bob Brenly apologized and announced he will undergo sensitivity training after making a comment about New York Mets starting pitcher Marcus Stroman wearing a do-rag:

During Tuesday's broadcast on Bally Sports Arizona, Brenly noticed the do-rag and said he was "pretty sure that's the same do-rag that Tom Seaver used to wear when he pitched for the Mets."

Stroman made it clear after the game he didn't find the attempt at humor at all funny:

Mets manager Luis Rojas called the comment "completely inappropriate" on Wednesday:

Brenly previously drew criticism in April 2019 when he commented that San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. might run faster around the base paths "if he didn't have that bike chain around his neck."

Tatis brushed the observation aside:

Byrdie's Saleam Singleton wrote about the history of the do-rag, which originated as "a necessary tool for Black men, used to train their curl patterns or to lock down hairstyles during sleep."

Through the years, the piece has evolved to become a more general fashion statement.

For some MLB players such as Stroman, the do-rag can be a valuable tool to keep a long head of hair in place over the course of a game.

New York Mets pitcher Marcus Stroman was unhappy with comments made by Arizona Diamondbacks broadcaster Bob Brenly during Tuesday's game. 

Brenly attempted to make a joke about a do-rag Stroman wore under his hat, suggesting it was the same one "Tom Seaver used to wear when he pitched for the Mets."

Stroman tweeted after the game that the comments contained "racist undertones."

Brenly, who is white, has been the color commentator for Diamondbacks games since the 2013 season. 

Stroman also retweeted the Washington Post's Chelsea Janes, who called Brenly's comments "racist and unacceptable" and that the Mets pitcher "deserves an apology."

Mets manager Luis Rojas also took exception to Brenly's comments, per Deesha Thosar of New York Daily News:

Per Saleam Singleton of Byrdie.com, the do-rag became "a necessary tool for Black men, used to train their curl patterns or to lock down hairstyles during sleep" in the 1970s. 

Singleton added in the 1990s that do-rags "started to become a symbol of inner-city Black culture."

Stroman, who has dreadlocks, uses a do-rag to keep his hair in place under his hat. The right-hander tossed six innings against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday. 

Madison Bumgarner's seven-inning no-hitter won't be officially recognized, but that won't stop the Arizona Diamondbacks southpaw from treating it like one.

"I didn't give up any hits today," Bumgarner told reporters after holding the Atlanta Braves hitless in a 7-0 victory Sunday. "I'm not in control of how many innings we're playing."

Arizona and Atlanta were playing the second game of a doubleheader.

MLB and the MLB Players Association agreed in February to limit each leg of a doubleheader to seven innings for the second straight season. MLB.com's Matt Kelly noted last August those games would need to extend to at least nine frames for Elias Sports Bureau to consider them in the no-hitter or perfect game categories.

There are plenty examples of a pitcher—Bumgarner included—losing a no-no or perfect game in the eighth or ninth innings.

Bumgarner's achievement has the possibility to become baseball's version of "Is a hot dog a sandwich?" but his comments underline how nobody is beholden to follow the official ruling.

Perhaps the Braves would've gotten a hit on the four-time All-Star. His pitch count had climbed to 98 through seven, and he hadn't gone more than five innings in any of his previous four starts.

But Bumgarner went as far as he possibly could Sunday. If not formally a no-hitter by rule, it certainly qualifies under the spirit of the classification.

Madison Bumgarner is back on track.

The Arizona Diamondbacks southpaw allowed 17 earned runs in his first three starts of the 2021 campaign but bounced back in his fourth while allowing one run in five innings. All he did in his fifth start was throw a no-hitter.

Well, sort of.

Bumgarner threw seven hitless innings in Sunday's 7-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves. Unfortunately for the veteran, it isn't recognized as an official no-hitter. 

Matt Kelly of MLB.com explained in August that when seven-inning doubleheaders were added to the rulebook, Elias Sports Bureau, which is Major League Baseball's official statistician, ruled that an individual or team has to pitch at least nine hitless innings for it to count as an official no-hitter. The decision to enforce the rule in such a way adhered to a 1991 ruling by a committee led by then-Commissioner Fay Vincent.

Sunday's game was the second of a doubleheader.

MLB Network's Jon Heyman noted the official ruling is up for debate:

It was quite the afternoon for Arizona, which won the first game 5-0 behind a seven-inning shutout from Zac Gallen. Gallen allowed just a single hit and struck out six, while Bumgarner struck out seven and rendered the bullpen moot during the course of an entire doubleheader.

The southpaw's performance would have been an unofficial perfect game, but shortstop Nick Ahmed's error in the second inning allowed Ozzie Albies to reach base.

This is just another accomplishment for Bumgarner, who has three World Series titles, a World Series MVP, a National League Championship Series MVP, four All-Star appearances and two Silver Sluggers on his resume.

Those all came during his time on the San Francisco Giants from 2009 through 2019, and he struggled on his way to a 6.48 ERA during the shortened 2020 campaign in his first year with the Diamondbacks.

He now has a memorable moment in Arizona following Sunday's brilliant showing and will look to write a new chapter by continuing to pitch like he has in his last two starts.

The Arizona Diamondbacks will be without first base coach Dave McKay in the immediate future after he suffered a broken rib and lacerated spleen from falling in the dugout.

"He's fine; everything's good," D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said Friday, per the Associated Press (h/t ESPN). "He's just going to need to step away."

Lovullo said McKay was wearing new shoes when he tripped and fell. McKay underwent a "little procedure to cauterize the spleen, and everything is thumbs-up right now," he said.

The expectation is McKay will return to the Diamondbacks in about one week. Their Opening Day game is against the San Diego Padres on April 1.

McKay has been with the Diamondbacks since 2014, per the AP. He also played for the Minnesota Twins, Toronto Blue Jays and Oakland Athletics from 1975 through 1982 as a second baseman, third baseman and shortstop.

He finished his playing career with a .229/.266/.313 slash line, 21 home runs and 170 RBI.

The Arizona Diamondbacks are reportedly "open" to dealing closer Archie Bradley and center fielder Starling Marte, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

Per that report, both players are "under club control for only one more season after this one. Team could move Ketel Marte back to center field, or possibly play Daulton Varsho in that spot."

Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported the New York Yankees have checked in on Marte, as their outfield has been impacted by injuries, with both Giancarlo Stanton (hamstring) and Aaron Judge (calf) currently on the injured list.

Bradley, 28, has been solid for Arizona this year, going 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 12 strikeouts in 10 innings. He's posted six saves in seven opportunities and could be a hot commodity on the market with bullpen arms—especially in the later innings—always a need for contenders.

Marte, 31, has had a strong start to the 2020 season, hitting .322 with two homers, 14 RBI, 23 runs and five stolen bases in 32 games. He came into the season with two consecutive campaigns with at least 20 homers, 70 RBI, 80 runs and 25 stolen bases.

He was acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates in the offseason and was one of the additions—alongside Madison Bumgarner, Kole Calhoun, Hector Rondon, Junior Guerra, Jeremy Beasley and Stephen Vogt—expected to help them contend in 2020.

Instead, the team has limped to a 14-20 start and finds itself 5.5 games behind the San Diego Padres for the second playoff spot in the NL West and three games behind the Philadelphia Phillies for the final NL Wild Card position.

So Arizona could easily reach the postseason with a stretch of strong play, though it has some ground to make up. But if the D-Backs choose to sell off some key pieces, Bradley and Marte could bring back a nice return.

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Madison Bumgarner will go on the injured list with a mid-back strain.

Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reported the news, noting general manager Mike Hazen said he hopes the southpaw is out for just a couple of starts.  

The 31-year-old is in his first season with the Diamondbacks after signing a five-year, $85 million deal in the offseason.

He has struggled in limited action, though, tallying a 9.35 ERA, 1.56 WHIP and 13 strikeouts in 17.1 innings.

Bumgarner is obviously best known for his time with the San Francisco Giants, spending parts of 11 seasons with the squad while helping it take home three World Series titles.

Though he's especially shined in the postseason during his career, he's been an elite starter in the regular season as well with four All-Star appearances and Cy Young votes in five different seasons. The question has been whether he can regain this level of production after a career-worst 3.90 ERA in 2019.

The latest injury could prevent him from reaching expectations and turning things around, especially if he is forced to miss an extended stretch.

Arizona has talented young pitchers ready to step up in the rotation, but the lack of experience behind Robbie Ray could create question marks going forward.

Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo told reporters Monday that right fielder Kole Calhoun tested positive for COVID-19 and is currently asymptomatic.

He is one of three Diamondbacks players to return a positive test.

Before Calhoun can return to the team, he must register two negative tests 24 hours apart, be symptom-free for three full days and receive clearance from Arizona's team doctors.

Positive tests have been coming in around baseball, and the testing protocols were further called into question Monday when the Washington Nationals, Houston Astros and St. Louis Cardinals made it now six teams to cancel workouts after not getting test results back in a timely manner.

Nationals manager Mike Rizzo was not happy with the fact that tests taken Friday still hadn't come back with results, as he told Gabe Lacques of USA Today:

"Seventy-two hours later, we have yet to receive the results of those tests. We cannot have our players and staff work at risk. Therefore, we have cancelled our team workout scheduled for this morning. We will not sacrifice the health and safety of our players, staff and their families. Without accurate and timely testing it is simply not safe for us to continue with Summer Camp. Major League Baseball needs to work quickly to resolve issues with their process and their lab. Otherwise, Summer Camp and the 2020 Season are at risk."

Major League Baseball released the following statement on the matter:

As for Calhoun, it is unclear when he will return to action. The 32-year-old was a key player for Arizona last season, hitting .232 with 33 homers and 74 RBI.

Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo confirmed that relief pitchers Junior Guerra and Silvino Bracho tested positive for COVID-19.  

"The two guys I mentioned are asymptomatic and feel great," Lovullo said, per the Arizona Republic's Nick Piecoro. "They're in the protocol, they're doing what they can, taking care of what they can at home and healing up."

CBSSports.com's Mike Axisa provided portions of MLB's 2020 operations manual, which includes COVID-19-specific language:

"Anyone who tests positive will be isolated away from the team and remain in daily contact with the team, and undergo follow up testing as necessary. "As part of its COVID-19 Action Plan, the Club also must identify and inform the Joint Committee of one or more local health care facilities to which it will refer any Covered Individuals who test positive for COVID-19 for treatment if the circumstances warrant," the Operations Manual says."

MLB also set up a separate injured list for those who test positive. Players are eligible to come off the list when they test negative twice over a period of more than 24 hours. They also have to show no coronavirus-related symptoms for 72 hours and receive the green light from team doctors.

A joint statement from MLB and the MLB Players Association confirmed Friday that 38 of the 3,185 people tested were flagged for COVID-19. Of the group, 31 were players. The other seven were team employees.

Guerra is approaching his first season with Arizona after signing a one-year, $2.7 million contract in the offseason. He made 72 appearances for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2019, finishing with 77 strikeouts and a 3.55 ERA over 83.2 innings.

Bracho missed all of last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in March 2019. He performed well in 2018 when he bounced between MLB and the minors. He allowed 11 earned runs and struck out 34 in 31 big league innings.

Arizona Diamondbacks star Madison Bumgarner is one of the few pitchers who is a capable hitter, but he won't be able to show off that skill in 2020 with the universal designated hitter in place.

Speaking to reporters about the rule change, Bumgarner offered a matter-of-fact response to not being able to step in the batter's box this season.

"Obviously my thoughts don't really matter on that deal," he said. I do what I'm told. I'll sit there and pitch and that's it for now. I think that's obviously where everybody wants the game to go so it is what it is."

Bumgarner became a four-time All-Star with the San Francisco Giants for his pitching prowess, but he developed into a legitimate power threat with the bat.

Since the 2012 season, Bumgarner has hit 19 home runs and has won two Silver Slugger awards. His power output in 2016 led to a petition for him to participate in the Home Run Derby, but the MLB Players Association nixed the idea.

"The players union doesn't want a pitcher taking a player's spot, and I don't think they were keen on the pitchers thing this year," then-Giants manager Bruce Bochy told reporters in June 2016.

Under the official rules for the 2020 season, the designated hitter will be used in the American and National Leagues to lower the potential risk of injuries for pitchers.

It is possible that Bumgarner could get some at-bats this year as a pinch hitter if Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo needs someone who can drive the ball into the gap or over the fence.