Paul Sewald is nearing a return, as he threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts for the Diamondbacks’ Complex League affiliate on Saturday. Manager Torey Lovullo told reporters that Sewald felt good after throwing, but they’ll wait to see how he’s feeling the next day before any next steps. Before Friday night’s game, Lovullo hinted at the possibility his closer could return as early as the start of the next road trip in Friday’s media session. Sewald is dealing with a “low Grade 2” oblique strain suffered right before the regular season.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Paul Sewald felt good after his sim game earlier today, manager Torey Lovullo said.
There is no firm determination yet on his future. How he responds tomorrow is an important next step, Lovullo added.
— Jesse Friedman (@JesseNFriedman) May 4, 2024
Geraldo Perdomo, who’s been recovering from meniscus surgery on his right knee, has been taking ground balls at shortstop and throwing but has not been hitting. Perdomo tore the meniscus in his right knee on April 3rd and underwent a meniscectomy three weeks ago. The typical recovery timetable from a meniscectomy is six to eight weeks, according to the Cleveland Clinic. That likely means Perdomo will return to the lineup around the end of May.
Torey Lovullo said Geraldo Perdomo has been taking live ground balls, not hitting yet but has been throwing.
"Three weeks post surgery, so he's gotta be careful with his next steps. It's getting close to him getting to full baseball activities and I'm excited about that."
— Alex Weiner (@alexjweiner) May 4, 2024
The team has struggled to get much value out of the shortstop position in Perdomo’s absence. Blaze Alexander is hitting .299 with three home runs and a .897 OPS, but his poor defense has taken away much of his value produced with the bat and playing time this season. Kevin Newman has been solid defensively but is hitting .157 with two home runs and a .502 OPS. The pair have collectively produced 0.5 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) according to Baseball Reference, although the obvious flaws for each player speak to why they weren’t considered the starting shortstop over Perdomo.
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Michael McDermott is the lead writer covering the Arizona Diamondbacks for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
