Links for Saturday…
- MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch writes that Pirates outfield prospect Starling Marte may require surgery on his left hand. Baseball America's Prospect Handbook called the 21-year-old "the first tangible result of the Pirates' renewed commitment to scouting Latin America."
- Matt Chico could start for the Nationals on Wednesday, writes Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. Chico was DFA'd by the club earlier this week, but only so that the club could place him in Triple-A.
- Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets that the recently-DFA'd Pat Burrell is another reason why teams won't be spending major money on designated hitter-types anymore.
- Jack Cust is on his way back to Oakland after Eric Chavez managed just a .247/.298/.355 batting line during the first six weeks of the season, tweets CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban. The A's 40-man roster is full, so a move will need to be make to accommodate Cust.
- Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer touched base with Indians' GM-in-waiting Chris Antonetti about having the fifth overall pick in June's draft. MLB's recommended bonus for that pick is in the $2.5MM-$3MM range, and Antonetti acknowledged that that money has already been set aside in the budget.
- Mike Morse is close to returning from the disabled list, which will create a bit of a roster crunch for the Nationals since he's out of options, writes MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- Meanwhile, MLB.com's Owen Perkins notes that the Rockies would have a similar problem if they were to call someone up to help fill in for the injured Eric Young Jr.
- ESPN's Buster Olney spoke to Ken Griffey Jr.'s agent, who indicated that everything that happened this past week will have no bearing on his client's relationship with the club after he retires. Both links go to Twitter.
