News of the day

Close to 14,000 Canadians have been killed by opioids ​​​​​​and more than 17,000 have been hospitalized for opioid-related poisoning over the last four years, according to new federal data.

The report, titled “Opioid-related harms in Canada” and assembled by a national advisory committee studying the epidemic of opioid overdoses, was released Wednesday by the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Canada’s chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, and Saskatchewan’s chief medical health officer, Dr. Saqib Shahab, issued a joint statement saying a bulk of the deaths were caused by illegal drugs being contaminated with toxic substances.

They say fentanyl and other potent synthetic opioids continue to be a major cause of hospitalizations and deaths.

The data also shows thousands of Canadians continue to have non-fatal overdoses each year and hundreds of thousands more are affected by problematic substance use.

In their statement, Tam and Shahab said the opioid overdose crisis is a complex problem that will take time to turn around.

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Source:: Daily Times

San Diego – General manager Al Avila tipped his hand on Wednesday night, telling reporters the player he’s taking with the first pick in the Rule 5 draft will not be somebody they need to stash on the roster but someone who can contribute.

Which almost always means, hard-throwing reliever.

The Tigers selected pitcher Rony Garcia with the first pick in Thursday’s Rule 5 draft. (Photo: Staton Rabin, Associated Press)

In this case, though, the Tigers flipped the script. They took former Yankees right-hander Rony Garcia, whose fastball tops out at 93 mph and has mostly started through his four years of pro ball.

He’s a solidly-built (6-3, 200 pounds) Dominican native who will turn 22 next week. He has advanced as far as Double-A in the Yankees system, posting a 13-30 record with a 3.50 ERA and 1.162 WHIP in four seasons.

The Tigers like that he’s a strike-thrower — walking just 38 with 104 strikeouts in 105.1 innings at Double-A last year.

Most likely, the Tigers will use him in long relief and as a spot starter.

More: More: Tigers’ Gardenhire: Let’s worry about a contract extension at end of season, not now Potential deals are ‘in the works’ for Tigers but Al Avila preaches patience

The Tigers took a hard-throwing, command-challenged reliever in Rule 5 last year – Reed Garrett. Ultimately, he was sent back to his former team, Texas.

Two years ago, when the Tigers again had the first overall pick, they selected outfielder Victor Reyes, who developed into one of the club’s most productive players last season.

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“If you have roster space, it’s a free look at a player,” Avila said. “But if your roster is tight, then you get in a situation where you have to stash a player and that’s not what we want. Maybe this is a guy who can contribute and continue to develop and we’re not taking a year of development away from him.”

A cautionary tale about Rule 5 picks, though: Over the last 10 years, the first overall pick has generated just 0.3 WAR. Eleven of the 14 Rule 5 picks last year were returned to their teams.

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Source:: Daily Times

CLOSE

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – And on the final day of the winter meetings, the Detroit Tigers made a move.

With the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s Rule 5 draft, the Tigers selected right-hander Rony Garcia from the Yankees.

Garcia, 21, has posted a 3.50 ERA and 1.162 WHIP in four minor-league seasons with the Yankees. In 2019, he combined to post a 4.01 ERA and 1.228 WHIP with 129 strikeouts in 130⅓ innings between Class A Tampa and Double-A Trenton.

According to Baseball America’s JJ Cooper, Garcia throws in the mid-90 mph range and he is a strike-thrower with an aggressive mentality on the mound.

Though Garcia has started 71 of his 75 career games, it’s a near certainty he will pitch out of relief in Detroit.

For the pick, the Tigers will pay the Yankees $100,000. Garcia must stay on the team’s 26-man roster for the duration of the regular season or be offered back to the Yankees for $50,000.

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Source:: Daily Times