MLB Weekly Digest 1/16/17

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The previous week in MLB was about an All-Star who won’t pitch in the World Baseball Classic, a club in the American League adds rotation depth and a team in the National League locks up a significant player to turn the franchise around.

Nats Scherzer Will Miss World Baseball Classic

Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer was looking forward to participating in the upcoming World Baseball Classic for Team USA, but he will miss it due to an injury.

He has a stress fracture in the knuckle of his right ring finger, per Dan Kolko of MASN.

Scherzer is expected to be ready for spring training.

This is terrific news for the Nats as Scherzer is the anchor of their pitching staff. He led the NL in wins, innings pitched and strikeouts last season with 20, 228.1 and 284, respectively.

The dominance he displayed on the mound allowed Scherzer to win his second career Cy Young Award.

It wouldn’t make sense for Scherzer to pitch in the WBC with the injury, considering the Nationals will need him to be at his best during the regular season and hopefully in the postseason as well.

Team USA will have to rely on other starting pitcher’s like Marcus Stroman and Chris Archer to have success in the WBC.

Rangers Sign Ross to One-Year Deal

Tyson Ross was one of the premier free agents still available, but the starting pitcher is off the board.

The Texas Rangers have inked Ross to a one-year deal, per TR Sullivan of MLB.com.

The contract is worth $6 million guaranteed, and more can be earned with bonuses, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.

The Rangers and the Chicago Cubs were the favorites to sign the right-hander.

The addition of Ross gives the Rangers’ starting rotation some depth.

Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels will be the top two pitchers in the rotation and club also signed Andrew Cashner in the offseason.

If Ross is healthy, he could be the third-best starter on the staff.

He probably won’t be ready for Opening Day, as Ross is still recovering from thoracic outlet surgery that happened in October.

He made just one start for the San Diego Padres in 2016 as he dealt with shoulder problems.

This was a wise gamble for the Rangers to take, as Ross showed in prior seasons with the Padres that he can pitch at the level of an ace.

A healthy version of Ross would benefit the Rangers going into the 2017 season.

Padres Sign Myers to Six-Year Extension

The San Diego Padres haven’t made many smart moves over the past couple of years but took a step in the right direction on Friday.

The club signed outfielder/first baseman Wil Myers to a six-year extension for more than $80 million, per Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.

This was the right move for the Padres to make with Myers coming off a solid season at the plate and he’s currently the best player on their roster.

Myers compiled a .259 batting average in 157 games with 99 runs scored, 29 doubles, 28 home runs, 28 stolen bases and 94 RBI in 2016.

It was the first time in his career that he played in more than 100 games, and it was also the first occurrence he resembled the player that won the AL Rookie of the Year in 2013 Tampa Bay Rays.

Myers is now the face of the franchise and will be part of a young core that includes outfielders Manuel Margot and Hunter Renfroe.

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Chris Lacey

Chris is a New Jersey native whose favorite sports team is the Arizona Diamondbacks. He previously attended Western New England College to study Sports Management. Chris has been following the Diamondbacks since he was 12. You can find him on Twitter at @aecanada12.
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Chris Lacey
Chris is a New Jersey native whose favorite sports team is the Arizona Diamondbacks. He previously attended Western New England College to study Sports Management. Chris has been following the Diamondbacks since he was 12. You can find him on Twitter at @aecanada12.

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