Boston Red Sox prospect Michael Kopech will be sidelined indefinitely after fracturing his right hand in an “altercation” with a teammate.
General manager Mike Hazen said the right-hander suffered the injury during an incident with his spring training roommate a few days ago. He declined to identify which teammate was involved and also refused to reveal specifics.
But Hazen was highly upset over the situation involving Kopech, a first-round pick in 2014 and who served a 50-game suspension for violating the minor-league drug policy last season.
“It’s disappointing, very disappointing. It was stupid,” Hazen told reporters. “He’s going to have to grow up, obviously, with the things that have happened so far.”
The Red Sox are still evaluating Kopech’s injury and haven’t yet determined whether he will need surgery.
Kopech’s positive test was for Oxilofrine, a stimulant of the amphetamine class that is used to treat low blood pressure and can be found in dietary supplements.
“He’s got a long road to go to get to the big leagues,” Hazen said of the 19-year-old Kopech. “He obviously has a ton of potential, and he’s got a long way to go. These types of things, you don’t want to put more barriers in front of you than playing professional baseball already presents.”
Manager Hinch lands extension from Astros
Houston manager A.J. Hinch received a contract extension during the offseason from team management after the Astros reached the playoffs for the first time in 10 years.
Details of the deal were not revealed by Hinch or the team, but Astros owner Jim Crane and Hinch confirmed the extension that was first reported by the Houston Chronicle.
“My theory in baseball and business is don’t let good people get away,” Crane told MLB.com.
Hinch is excited about the contract and to be with the franchise.
“Jim and Jeff have both been great to me, and I’m really proud to be the manager of this group, and they treated me very well,” Hinch said. “Club policy is we’re not going to talk about the details and things like that. To say I’m thrilled to be the manager here and have them address me with the respect they have is an understatement. I love it here and how I’ve been treated.”
The 41-year-old Hinch replaced Bo Porter as manager after the 2014 season. He previously served as Arizona Diamondbacks manager for parts of two seasons and in the front office with the San Diego Padres.
In Hinch’s first season with Houston, he guided the Astros to an 86-76 record and an American League wild-card berth in the playoffs. Houston beat the New York Yankees in the AL wild-card game but lost to the Kansas City Royals in five games in the AL Division Series.
Cubs’ Arrieta, GM confirm contract talks
MESA, Ariz. — Jake Arrieta confirmed Tuesday morning that he and the Chicago Cubs recently held discussions on a long-term contract but wasn’t sure where those talks would lead.
“Financially, my family and I will be fine, regardless of signing a long-term deal,” said Arrieta, 30, who will earn $10.7 million this season and is eligible for free agency after 2017. “The money is not on my mind at all. If the front office want to talk, then I’m here. We can sit down again and try and work something out. It’s got to be something worth signing. I think (President) Theo Epstein knows that.
“That’s why we haven’t had a ton of conversations about that. I think they know where the ballpark (figure) needs to be. Whether it happens or not, we’ll see. I think both sides don’t want to deal with this much during the season. I know questions will be continued to be asked and that’s fine. I’ll answer them honestly. But as of now, we don’t have much.”
President Theo Epstein concurred with Arrieta on the state of negotiations.
“There’s no hard deadline, but there are no active talks,” Epstein said. “Jake’s priority at this time of year is helping the team come together as a unit and help prepare for a season. The last thing you want or we would want is to create any type of distraction, so there will be quiet moments out of the competitive spotlight in the future where it will make sense to talk again.
“But it’s certainly not something that is going on now or probably will as the season begins.”
Arrieta’s stock is at an all-time high. He posted a 22-6 record and a 1.77 ERA en route to the 2015 National League Cy Young Award, and his value was helped by last season’s free-agent contracts awarded to Zack Greinke by the Arizona Diamondbacks (six years, $206.5 million) and David Price by the Boston Red Sox (seven years, $217 million) this winter.
Cubs left-hander Jon Lester, 32, is in the second year of a six-year, $155 million contract. But Jason Hammel could become a free agent after this season, and John Lackey’s contract expires after 2017.