Mariners Moose Tracks, 5/11/23: Prelander Berroa, James Paxton, and Eury Pérez

Good morning everyone! It’s a Mariners off-day, so let’s get you caught up on what’s happening around the league.

In Mariners news...

• Ryan Divish at The Seattle Times broke down the Mariners’ decision to move Julio Rodríguez down in the batting order.
• It looks like the Mariners are putting Prelander Berroa on the fast-track by moving him to the bullpen. We could see him in Seattle fairly shortly.

Around the league...

• James Paxton, who has not thrown an MLB inning since his outing with the Mariners in early 2021, will be activated from the injured list to start for the Red Sox on Friday.
• Another top pitching prospect is set to make his MLB debut: the Marlins are lining up 20-year-old Eury Pérez to start on Friday.
• The warm-up hats for the 2023 All-Star Game have been leaked, and they look pretty crisp.
• Anthony Rendon acknowledged that he may not have the power stroke he once did, but he thinks he can still contribute to the Angels.
• Michael Baumann at Fangraphs breaks down Masataka Yoshida’s torrid start to the season, where the Red Sox outfielder is putting himself in pole position for American League Rookie of the Year.
• From the breakout season of A’s outfielder Brent Rooker to the Yankees being in last place in the AL East, Jim Bowden at The Athletic lists 10 surprising things that have happened in baseball so far this season. ($)
• The always-great Evan Drellich at The Athletic sums up the situation regarding the A’s and their potential move to Vegas. ($)
• The Baseball America staff provided some fuller scouting reports on the 2023 International Free Agent class now that many of the players have been seen at complexes. ($)

Anders’ picks...

• The Washington Post dropped a bombshell discovery: Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous rebuke of Malcolm X appears to have been fabricated.