Jefferies was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento on Monday.
Jefferies was clobbered for nine runs (five earned) over two innings in a spot start Sunday in San Diego and now finds himself back in the minors. He dealt with hip soreness during the outing, but the fact that Jefferies was optioned and not placed on the injured list suggests the hip is a non-issue. He'll go into Sacramento's rotation.
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Giants' Daulton Jefferies: Dealing with hip discomfort
Rotowire
Jefferies left his start against the Padres on Sunday a little worse for wear, as he is dealing with left hip discomfort, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Jefferies had a rough go of it against San Diego, allowing nine runs (five earned) on nine hits while striking out a batter over two innings. To make matters worse, he's now dealing with an injury that will be evaluated again Monday.
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Giants' Daulton Jefferies: Contract selected ahead of start
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Jefferies had his contract selected by the Giants ahead of his start against the Padres on Sunday, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.
The 28-year-old will make his first appearance in the big leagues since 2022 as he spent last season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. Jefferies pitched well during spring training with a 2.57 ERA and 16:3 K:BB across 14 innings to earn the early-season look in the rotation. He may be in line for just a spot start, however, as the Giants could have offseason signing Blake Snell available to make his team debut the next time Jefferies' turn in the rotation would come up next weekend versus the Padres.
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Giants' Daulton Jefferies: Starting Sunday
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Jefferies will be called up to start for the Giants on Sunday in San Diego, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.
The Giants will need to make moves on their 26-man and 40-man rosters to clear a spot for Jefferies. The 28-year-old hasn't pitched in the majors in nearly two years after having a second Tommy John surgery, but he impressed this spring in allowing four earned runs with a 16:3 K:BB over 14 innings. Jefferies could earn additional starts, depending on when Blake Snell is ready.
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Giants' Daulton Jefferies: Sent to minors
Rotowire
The Giants reassigned Jefferies to Triple-A Sacramento on Thursday.
During the early part of spring training, the Giants viewed Jefferies as a candidate to handle a swingman role for the big club, but the team ultimately didn't have a spot for him after Keaton Winn healed up from an elbow injury and after the team added reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell to its pitching staff. Jefferies missed the entire 2023 season while recovering from his second career Tommy John surgery, but since he had the procedure in May 2022, he shouldn't face any major restrictions during the upcoming campaign. The 28-year-old right-hander turned in quality results in Cactus League play, striking out 16 while allowing four earned runs on 14 hits and three walks over 14 innings.
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Giants' Daulton Jefferies: Possibility for swingman role
Rotowire
Jefferies is a candidate to fill a swingman role for the Giants early in 2024, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Jefferies is a non-roster invitee in the Giants' camp, but he's done well so far. He's allowed two runs on five hits over four innings, striking out five and walking none. Jefferies' role is far from set in stone -- he could be a candidate for spot starts given the uncertainty around the Giants' rotation with Keaton Winn (elbow) struggling to get up to speed, Alex Cobb (hip) still on the mend, and Tristan Beck (arm) expected to miss multiple months. Nonetheless, Jefferies seems to have a realistic path to the major-league roster.
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Giants' Daulton Jefferies: Opportunity could knock
Rotowire
Jefferies could be needed in the Giants' rotation sooner rather than later if Keaton Winn (elbow) is sidelined, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
A non-roster invitee, Jefferies threw to hitters Tuesday for the first time since May of 2022 following a long rehab after his second Tommy John surgery. Given the length of time that he's missed, the expectation is that Jefferies will head to Triple-A Sacramento to begin the season. However, if he gets off to a nice start with Sacramento he could be needed on the big club in short order, particularly if Winn's elbow injury lingers. Jefferies posted a 5.75 ERA and 37:14 K:BB over 56.1 innings for the Athletics from 2020-22.
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Giants' Daulton Jefferies: Full-go at start of camp
Rotowire
Jefferies (elbow) will not have any restrictions at the beginning of spring training, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Jefferies has been sidelined for the past year and a half while rehabbing from his second Tommy John surgery, but he's fully recovered now and will throw a bullpen session Wednesday. The right-hander inked a minor-league contract with the Giants in December and seems likely to open the 2024 campaign in Triple-A Sacramento's rotation.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Loses 40-man spot
Rotowire
The Athletics outrighted Jefferies (elbow) to Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday.
Oakland removed Jefferies from the 60-day injured list last week, but it was strictly a procedural move while the team weighed whether or not to tender him a contract for the 2023 season ahead of Friday's deadline. Given that Jefferies underwent the second Tommy John surgery of his career back in September and had turned in poor ratios (5.75 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 9.5 K-BB%) over his 56.1 innings in the big leagues, it likely wasn't a tough decision for the Athletics to remove him from their 40-man roster. He'll stick in the organization and while he spends the entire 2023 season rehabbing from elbow surgery.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Gets Tommy John surgery
Rotowire
Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that Jefferies underwent Tommy John surgery Friday to repair UCL damage in his right elbow.
The Tommy John procedure is the second of Jefferies' career; he previously had the reconstructive elbow surgery in 2017. The elbow surgery comes just three months after he underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, and the cumulative effects of the two procedures in quick succession cast significant doubt about his future. At a minimum, Jefferies will be sidelined for the 2023 season, and he may not be a safe bet to receive full clearance for spring training in 2024. The 27-year-old could be a non-tender candidate this winter.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Requires surgery
Rotowire
Jefferies will undergo surgery to address his thoracic outlet syndrome, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Jefferies received a second opinion Tuesday after being diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome, and he'll ultimately require a procedure. The Athletics won't provide an update on the right-hander's status until after he undergoes surgery Monday, but the procedure often carries a recovery timetable of several months. While it's possible that Jefferies will be cleared for game action in the final few weeks of the season, it wouldn't be surprising to see the team exercise caution with his rehab process since Oakland is unlikely to be in playoff contention late in the year.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Getting second opinion
Rotowire
Jefferies will visit Dr. Gregory Pearl on Tuesday in Dallas to get a second opinion on his thoracic outlet syndrome diagnosis, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
If the diagnosis is confirmed, we likely won't see Jefferies pitch again until 2023. Durability has been a major issue for him throughout his career, and he registered a 5.72 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 28 strikeouts in 39.1 innings this season.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Cleared to play catch
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Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said Jefferies (arm) played catch Wednesday, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Jefferies has yet to receive a second opinion regarding whether he'll require thoracic outlet syndrome surgery to address the irritation he had been experiencing in his right arm, but the Athletics' willingness to have him start throwing again suggests that he's at least made some progress since being placed on the injured list May 20. Even if he ends up avoiding surgery, Jefferies could require a lengthy buildup program that will likely include multiple minor-league rehab starts, so he shouldn't be expected to rejoin the Oakland rotation anytime soon.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Moves to 60-day IL
Rotowire
Jefferies (arm) was transferred from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list Sunday, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The 26-year-old landed on the 15-day IL last week with right arm nerve irritation, but shortly thereafter he was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome. Jefferies was headed to receive a second opinion, and the shift to the 60-day IL appears to confirm the injury. It remains unclear whether or not the right-hander will require surgery to address the issue, but he'll be unavailable for the foreseeable future regardless.
Jefferies (1-6) took the loss during Friday's 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Angels, allowing two runs on five hits with four strikeouts in six innings.
Despite posting his second quality start, Jefferies was saddled with the loss as Oakland failed to score. The 26-year-old was tagged for both runs the second time through Los Angeles' lineup and impressively retired the heart of the order during his sixth and final frame. He'll look to get back in the win column against Minnesota next week.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Knocked around in loss
Rotowire
Jefferies (1-4) allowed six runs on 11 hits while striking out four over five innings to take the loss against Tampa Bay on Monday.
Jefferies was constantly in trouble in the outing, allowing at least one run in all but one of the five frames in which he pitched. The right-handed hurler opened the campaign with a win but has since taken four straight losses, and he has given up 11 earned runs over his past nine innings. He'll try to right the ship his next time out.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Downed by Jays
Rotowire
Jefferies (1-1) took the loss Friday, allowing two runs on seven hits and a walk over 4.1 innings as the A's fell 4-1 to the Blue Jays. He struck out two.
The right-hander worked with runners in scoring position in each of the first four innings Friday, and while Jefferies was able to minimize the damage, a sluggish Oakland offense still left him on the hook for the loss. The 26-year-old has a sharp 1.93 ERA through his first 9.1 innings this season, but his 1.29 WHIP and 4:3 K:BB suggest that mark won't be that impressive for long. Jefferies lines up to toe the rubber at home against the Orioles next week.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Set to start Sunday
Rotowire
Jefferies lines up to start the third game of the season Sunday against the Phillies, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The 26-year-old had a 10.45 ERA over three appearances during spring training but will still open the season in the starting rotation with James Kaprielian (shoulder) sidelined and Sean Manaea shipped to San Diego. Jefferies made only one start in five big-league appearances last year but pitched well with a 3.60 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 8:4 K:BB over 15 innings.
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Uneven in first two spring starts
Rotowire
Jefferies has allowed eight runs (seven earned) on 11 hits over 5.2 innings in his first two Cactus League outings while also recording six strikeouts.
As those numbers and the .379 average Jefferies has allowed in the sample indicate, the young right-hander has pitched to no shortage of meaningful contact. However, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports that Jefferies' sinker was particularly impressive in Saturday's outing against the Guardians, sitting consistently between 94 and 96 mph while being deployed on 36 of his 54 pitches. The 26-year-old, who's projected for a spot on the back end of the starting rotation to open the season, is satisfied with where he is at this point in his ramp-up, despite the crooked numbers. "I feel like everything is pretty consistent," Jefferies said. "Velo is there. I'm ramping up pretty well. I can go out there and pitch with confidence knowing that my arm is going to feel good. That hadn't been the case in 2018 and 2019."
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Athletics' Daulton Jefferies: Fully healed
Rotowire
Jefferies is fully healed from the flexor strain that ended his 2021 season, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Jefferies is competing for one of the back-end rotation slots for the A's, though that slot could move up depending on whether the A's trade another frontline starter like Frankie Montas or Sean Manaea. That said, even if Jefferies is healthy now, he has to be considered an injury risk given his historical injury issues.
