White Sox's Clayton Richard: Joins White Sox on minors deal
Rotowire
Richard signed a minor-league deal with the White Sox on Monday, LaMond Pope of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Richard has been a useful pitcher at times in his career, but he's coming off a season in which he recorded a 5.96 ERA in 10 starts for the Blue Jays. His lowest ERA in the last three seasons was his unimpressive 4.79 mark for the Padres back in 2017. The White Sox will see if the 36-year-old lefty has anything left in the tank at their alternate training site.
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Clayton Richard: Cut loose
Rotowire
Richard was released by the Blue Jays on Thursday, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.
Richard, who has been sidelined since mid-July with a lat injury, hasn't appeared in a game since returning from the injured list at the beginning of September. According to Mike Wilner of Sportsnet 590 The Fan, the veteran southpaw threw a simulated game at the team's spring training facilities Thursday before the Blue Jays decided to part ways with him to free up a spot on their 40-man roster for Elvis Luciano (elbow).
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Back from injury
Rotowire
Richard (lat) was activated from the 10-day injured list Monday.
Richard has been out of action since mid-July. He's only made one rehab appearance, allowing three runs over two innings, so it's not clear that he's ready to handle a starter's workload just yet.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Works two frames in rehab start
Rotowire
Richard (lat) tossed two innings Saturday in his rehab start for Triple-A Buffalo, giving up three earned runs on four hits and a walk while striking out one.
Richard covered 47 pitches in the outing, his first at any level since July 13. The Blue Jays may want Richard to up his pitch count in another simulated game or minor-league rehab start before the team considers reinstating him from the 10-day injured list. Once activated, Richard could help plug a hole in a Blue Jays rotation that currently has only three traditional starters.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Rehab start on tap
Rotowire
Richard (lat) is scheduled to make a rehab appearance for Triple-A Buffalo on Saturday, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Richard has been sidelined for most of the second half due to a lat injury but is finally ready for game action. The southpaw may not have enough time to build back up to a normal starter's workload, though there's hope he can return in some capacity before the end of the season.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Throws bullpen session
Rotowire
Richard (lat) threw his first bullpen session Friday, Alexis Brudnicki of MLB.com reports.
Richard will continue to throw bullpens in the coming days before potentially embarking on a rehab assignment.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: To resume throwing soon
Rotowire
Richard (lat) will begin a throwing program this week, Alexis Brudnicki of MLB.com reports.
Richard has been out for 10 days with a left lat strain. Given that he'll be back throwing within two weeks of landing on the injured list, he shouldn't be in line for a particularly lengthy absence, though the Blue Jays have yet to provide a target return date.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Lands on IL
Rotowire
The Blue Jays placed Richard (lat) on the 10-day injured list Sunday, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Richard's lat injury was labeled merely as tightness when he exited Saturday's start against the Yankees after two innings, but a follow-up MRI revealed that he was dealing with a strain. The grade of the strain hasn't been revealed, making it difficult to gauge how much longer than the 10-day minimum Richard might be sidelined. Edwin Jackson (back) was activated from the IL to fill Richard's spot on the active roster, but Toronto seems likely to delve into its minor-league ranks to replace the lefty when his next turn in the rotation comes up July 18 in Boston.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Headed for MRI
Rotowire
Richard will undergo an MRI to determine the extent of his left lat injury, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Richard was only able to make it two innings Saturday against the Yankees before tightness in his lat muscle forced him from the game. Scott Mitchell of TSN.ca speculates that Richard will head to the injured list, which isn't really a stretch given the nature of the injury. Sean Reid-Foley is a candidate to replace Richard in the rotation.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Leaves with lat tightness
Rotowire
Richard left Saturday's game against the Yankees with left lat tightness.
Manager Charlie Montoyo appeared to be pointing to his ribs as he removed Richard from the game, but the issue is evidently with the lefty's lat. It's not yet clear how much time the Blue Jays expect Richard to miss.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Leaves with apparent rib injury
Rotowire
Richard left his start Saturday against the Yankees with an apparent rib injury, Mike Wilner of Sportsnet 590 The Fan reports.
Richard had thrown a pair of scoreless innings, striking out one and giving up two hits, before exiting the game. The exact nature and severity of the injury are not yet clear. Nick Kingham, who replaced Richard as a long reliever, is one of a handful of options who could take Richard's spot in the rotation should he be forced to miss time.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Captures first win
Rotowire
Richard (1-4) allowed three runs on seven hits with one walk and four strikeouts across six innings to earn a victory against the Royals on Monday.
This is Richard's second straight quality start and first win of the year. The big key to the win was keeping the ball in the park. Richard had allowed at least one homer in six straight starts coming into Monday. He has numerous problems, though, as opposing hitters are also batting .303 against him, and he has only 19 strikeouts versus 17 walks. Overall, Richard is 1-4 with a 6.51 ERA and 1.63 WHIP as well in 37.1 innings this season. He will pitch one more time before the All-Star break Saturday at home against the Orioles.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Handed fourth loss
Rotowire
Richard (0-4) took the loss Tuesday against the Yankees after giving up three runs on eight hits over six innings. He had one strikeout and one walk.
Richard served up three homers Tuesday, and was extremely fortunate all three were solo shots -- he managed to escape with the quality start. The 35-year-old has a 6.89 ERA, 1.69 WHIP and 15:16 K:BB through 31.1 innings, and he will look to break into the win column Sunday versus Kansas City.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Yields four in no-decision
Rotowire
Richard surrendered four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out two over five innings Thursday against the Angels. He didn't factor into the decision.
Richard's offense spotted him an early 3-0 lead, but he gave up a two-run blast in the second inning, followed by a run in the fifth and another in the top of the sixth. He ultimately exited with a 5-4 lead, though the Angels tied the contest in the seventh to ensure Richard wouldn't take home the win. The 35-year-old lefty has had a rough June to this point, allowing five and seven runs in each of his last two starts entering Thursday's appearance. Richard owns a 7.46 ERA and 1.74 WHIP with 14 strikeouts across 25.1 innings this season.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Yields seven runs in loss
Rotowire
Richard (0-2) allowed seven runs on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts across 2.2 innings while taking a loss against the Diamondbacks on Sunday.
The 35-year-old showed promise despite control issues during his first three starts of the year, but on Sunday, he actually threw more pitches in the strike zone, and the Diamondbacks crushed him. Because of the small sample size, Richard now owns a 7.04 ERA and 1.76 WHIP in four outings. He also has 11 strikeouts, a .271 batting average against and 11 walks in 15.1 innings this season. Richard will look to bounce back at the Astros on Saturday in his next scheduled outing.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Takes no-decision
Rotowire
Richard allowed two runs on four hits with four strikeouts and three walks across 4.2 innings during a no-decision against the Yankees on Tuesday.
The Blue Jays were trailing by two when Richard departed with two outs in the top of the fifth, but if he had recorded one more out, and everything else happened the same, Richard would have been in line for the win because the Blue Jays took the lead in the bottom of the inning. Instead, Richard settled for the no-decision. He is still looking for his first win of the year; of course, he needs to last at least five innings first -- Richard has yet to complete five innings in any of his three starts. He is 0-1 with a 3.55 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and nine strikeouts in 12.2 innings this season. His next outing is scheduled for Sunday at home against the Diamondbacks.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Four respectable innings in debut
Rotowire
Richard (knee) allowed one run on two hits and two walks across four innings in a no-decision Thursday against the Red Sox. He struck out two.
Making his season debut after recovering from an injury, Richard kept a dangerous Red Sox lineup in check, with the only tally against him coming on a groundout in the third inning. The veteran is clearly still building up his stamina and was limited to just 54 pitches in what amounted to an efficient outing. Richard's next start should come next week against the Rays, when he'll presumably look to work deeper into the game.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Confirmed for season debut Thursday
Rotowire
Manager Charlie Montoyo confirmed Richard (knee) will be activated off the 10-day injured list for his Blue Jays debut Thursday against the Red Sox, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.
Montoyo previously indicated Richard could serve as the primary pitcher behind an opener in Thursday's series finale, but it instead looks as though he'll be deployed as a traditional starter. The 35-year-old may be limited to 50-to-60 pitches, which makes it very unlikely he could complete five innings to qualify for the win, assuming he starts as expected. Richard had a 5.33 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 15.8 percent strikeout rate and 8.8 percent walk rate in 27 starts for the Padres last season.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Excels in rehab start
Rotowire
Richard (knee) tossed 3.1 no-hit innings in a rehab start Saturday for Triple-A Buffalo. He issued two walks and struck out four in the 48-pitch outing.
Sidelined since late in spring training with a stress reaction in his right knee, Richard looked sharp in his return to competitive action. Because he's been sidelined for nearly two months, Richard will likely require another rehab outing or two before rejoining the Toronto rotation without any pitch-count restrictions. The Blue Jays have yet to officially finalize their plans for Richard, however, so there's a slim possibility that he returns from the 10-day injured list early to make an abbreviated start during the upcoming week. For now, Ryan Feierabend tentatively slots in as the Blue Jays' No. 5 starter.
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Blue Jays' Clayton Richard: Next rehab start coming Saturday
Rotowire
Richard (knee) will throw around 45 pitches in his rehab start Saturday with Triple-A Buffalo, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.
It was rumored that Richard could return to the big leagues over the weekend, but he'll first have to make at least one start in the minors before being activated. Assuming Richard feels good following Saturday's outing, he could rejoin the active roster as to start at soon as Thursday against the Red Sox, though he may be subjected to a restricted pitch count.
