With Weems on Injured List, Kaprielian Finally Getting his Major League Shot with Athletics
Right-handed pitcher Jordan Weems, who made the Oakland roster out of summer camp as a rookie, went on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a strained right latissimus dorsi (shoulder/lower back).
The A's say it's a precautionary measure and are hopeful he won't miss more than the 10 days, backdated to Aug. 1. Weems had pitched twice, most recently on July 31
Taking his place on the roster will be right-hander James Kaprielian, the one-time first-round draft pick (2015), who has been knocking on the door of the A’s roster since spring training.
Kaprielian came to the A’s in 2017 in the Sonny Gray trade with the Yankees.
New York had selected Kaprielian with its first pick (16th overall) in the 2015 draft out of UCLA. After getting told Tuesday that he was being promoted – the staff at the A’s alternate site in San Jose showed him a clip of a big-league callup from the movie “The Natural” to break the news – he got an ovation from the A’s staff before being sent north.
That was followed by a call to his father, Doug, who had coached him in his early days as a pitcher. While a sophomore at UCLA, Kaprielian’s mother, Barbara, died of breast cancer.
“It’s kind of a bummer that they can’t be here,” Kaprielian said of his Southern California-based family. “They are extremely ecstatic. My dad, he’s been through this whole thing with me. He’s the one who showed me the game of baseball, coaching me my whole life as a kid in Little League and stuff.
“My dad’s not a crier or really doesn’t show emotion like that. And when I was able to call him and surprise him and tell him I was getting the call to the show, it was one of those special moment where I could hear it in his voice how excited he was and proud of me. And you know, as a kid, there’s really nothing else you want to do than to make your dad proud.”
He pitched in just eight game in his first four professional seasons due to a series of injuries. He was slowed by an elbow injury in 2016 and on April 18, 2018 he underwent Tommy John surgery. He was still recovering from the surgery when the A’s picked him up in the Gray trade.
Asked if he was always confident that he would survive the injuries and make it to the big leagues, Kaprielian said there were times when he would sit and think. “I’m doing all the right things. Why isn’t it necessarily going my way?’”
“I’ve had an unbelievable support team,” he said. “To see so many people in my corner; that was just kind of a reminder, deep down, that I did have it in me. And there’s me knowing in the back of my head. `I’m gonna do this. I’m gonna overcome all these obstacles.’ There’s still a long way to go, obviously, but this is just the start.”
In 2019 he was mostly healthy and moved steadily from Class-A Stockton (2-2, 4.46) to Double-A Midland (2-1, 1.63) and finally landing at Triple-A Las Vegas for one start (no decision and one run allowed in four innings). He did not pitch in a Cactus League game this spring.
He threw a 91-mph fastball in college, but he’s gradually added to that to the point where he’s comfortable throwing at 95 mph. He also throws a slider and curve and gets high marks from scouts for his control. Last year he walked just 16 batters in 68 innings between Class-A and Triple-A.
As for Weems, the A’s hope to have him back by the time the next road trip starts nextw Monday. week. Clearly, in a 60-game season that has just eight more weeks to run, time is not a luxury.
On the other hand, because the move has been backdated to Aug. 1, Weems may only need to sit six more games if his health is as good as the club hopes.
"He's responded pretty well to treatment," manager Bob Melvin said. "But the last thing you want to do is to take a chance on something like that, especially a bigger muscle like that, in such a short season."
Latissimus dorsi (LD in medical parlance) injuries such as the one Weems has are common among athletes who throw overhand. Swelling and arm weakness are frequently tied to LD injuries. And hard-throwing pitchers are particularly susceptible.
Some of the best pitchers in the game have had LD injuries, including Noah Syndergaard, Jake Peavy, Roy Halladay, Kerry Wood, Stephen Strasburg, Joe Kelly, Sonny Gray, Brandon Finnegan, Huston Street and Trevor Rosenthal have all had similar injuries and came back pitching well. Of those, only Peavy’s was serious enough to require surgery, in 2010, and two years later he was an All-Star.
Follow Athletics insider John Hickey on Twitter: @JHickey3
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