Chad Qualls Rumors
Article XX(B) Free Agents Update: Tuesday
Major League Baseball's new collective bargaining agreement contains a provision that allows certain free agents who are signed to minor league contracts to receive a $100K retention bonus if they are not on the team's 25-man roster or the Major League disabled list five days prior to the season.
Free agents who qualify for this distinction are those who have at least six years of Major League service time and had a Major League contract expire at the end of the previous season, but signed a minor league deal ten or more days prior to Opening Day.
MLBTR has confirmed with MLB that the deadline for teams to decide on these players is today at 11am central time. By the deadline, teams with these players in camp need to decide whether to:
- Add the player to their 25-man roster or Major League disabled list (or agree to do so in writing).
- Grant the player his outright release from the minor league contract so that he may pursue opportunities with other teams.
- Pay the player a $100K retention bonus to keep him in the organization beyond the deadline and send him to the minors.
Here's the latest news from around the league on Article XX(B) signees and their roster statuses with their respective teams (newest updates on top).
- Miguel Olivo has been offered the $100k retention bonus and is still deciding whether to accept it, tweets John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
- Austin Kearns and Casey Kotchman made the Marlins' 25-man roster, according to the team.
- Mets reliever Tim Byrdak will report to the minors and take the $100K retention bonus, MLBTR has learned. Byrdak is returning from August shoulder surgery.
- The Rangers told Derek Lowe that he has made the team as a reliever, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.
- Chad Gaudin's contract was purchased and added to the Giants' roster, tweets Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com.
- Chad Qualls made the Marlins' bullpen, MLBTR has learned.
- With Brandon Gomes being optioned to Triple-A, it looks like reliever Jamey Wright has made the Rays, tweets Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune. The Rays have told both Wright and Juan Carlos Oviedo they will be added to the roster, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Oviedo had Tommy John surgery in September, so I imagine he'll land on the 60-day disabled list.
- The Pirates have committed to keeping Brandon Inge on the roster, tweets Sanserino, though he may start the season on the DL after being hit by a pitch.
- Reliever Pedro Feliciano accepted a minor league assignment from the Mets, tweets Marc Carig of Newsday, so he'll snag the $100K retention bonus.
- Jonathan Sanchez made the Pirates' rotation, tweets Michael Sanserino of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The 30-year-old posted a 4.73 ERA with a 1.11 K/BB ratio in 13 1/3 innings this spring, but the Pirates saw something they liked.
- Lyle Overbay and Aaron Cook were released by their respective teams today.
Marlins Agree To Deal With Chad Qualls
The Marlins have agreed to a minor league deal with reliever Chad Qualls on a minor league deal with an invite to spring training, according to Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald (on Twitter). Qualls is represented by Jim Murray of Excel Sports Management.
The 34-year-old finished out the season with the Pirates after the Yankees traded him to Pittsburgh for Casey McGehee in July. In 52 games for the Phillies, Yankees, and Pirates last season, Qualls posted a 5.33 ERA with 4.6 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.
AL East Notes: Qualls, Blanton, Blue Jays, Beckett
The Yankees acquired Casey McGehee and the Red Sox acquired Craig Breslow, but the Blue Jays, Orioles and Rays remained relatively quiet on trade deadline day. Here’s the latest from the AL East...
- The Yankees had planned to designate Chad Qualls for assignment to create roster space for Joba Chamberlain, so trading him to Pittsburgh wasn't a problem for the club, Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News reports (on Twitter).
- The Yankees were in on Ryan Dempster, but talks "never got to crunch time," Marc Carig of the Star Ledger reports (on Twitter).
- The Orioles continued general discussions about a possible Joe Blanton trade, but never took the next step, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports (on Twitter). "We would have liked to have done a deal or two today, but I don't think we're done adding to the team," executive VP Dan Duquette said, according to Eduardo A. Encina of the Sun (on Twitter).
- The Blue Jays were discussing a trade late Monday, only to see the deal fall apart, GM Alex Anthopoulos said, according to Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star (on Twitter). Griffin suggests the deal was with the Cubs, who were discussing trades involving Matt Garza last night.
- Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said he didn’t ask Josh Beckett if he’d waive his ten and five rights, according to Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal (on Twitter).
Pirates, Yankees Swap McGehee, Qualls
The Yankees acquired corner infielder Casey McGehee and $250K from the Pirates for reliever Chad Qualls, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
For all the talk of the Yankees seeking a defense-first third baseman to fill in for Alex Rodriguez, they went with right-handed power in McGehee. Perhaps the Yanks liked McGehee's versatility, with Mark Teixeira ailing as well. McGehee, 29, is hitting .230/.297/.377 in 293 plate appearances for the Pirates. They acquired him from the Brewers for Jose Veras in December; McGehee has about $890K remaining on his contract. He's arbitration eligible for 2013, but may be non-tendered. He was made more expendable by the Pirates' acquisition of first baseman Gaby Sanchez from the Marlins earlier today.
Qualls, 33, has a 4.89 ERA, 4.9 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, 1.63 HR/9, and 54% groundball rate for the Phillies and Yankees this year. The Yankees acquired Qualls from the Phils on July 1st after he'd been designated for assignment, and Qualls was a likely roster casualty had he remained with the Yanks.
Yankees Close To Acquiring McGehee For Qualls
The Yankees were on the verge of acquiring third baseman Casey McGehee from the Pirates for reliever Chad Qualls as the deadline approached, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post, who is working to confirm the deal.
Yankees Acquire Chad Qualls
4:08 pm: The Yankees have designated infielder Matt Antonelli for assignment to make room for Qualls on their 40-man roster, tweets Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. The Yankees had claimed Antonelli on waivers from the Orioles in May.
3:38 pm: The Yankees announced they have acquired reliever Chad Qualls from the Phillies for a player to be named later or cash considerations. The Phillies had designated Qualls for assignment on Thursday. This is the second trade in as many days for the Phillies, who dealt Jim Thome to the Orioles yesterday for a pair of Class A prospects.
The Yankees needed to supplement their bullpen with the recent struggles of Cory Wade and the promotion of Freddy Garcia to the starting rotation because of injuries to C.C. Sabathia and Andy Pettitte. Qualls has struggled himself in 2012 with a 4.60 ERA in a team-high 35 games for the Phillies.
Quick Hits: Dodgers, Puig, Qualls, Harper
The Mets and Athletics could match up for a potential trade involving Grant Balfour, ESPN.com's Buster Olney suggests (on Twitter). Balfour, a midseason trade candidate, is pitching well and the Mets could use bullpen help. Here are today's links...
- Olney runs through some of the available and potentially available trade candidates for Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti, explaining that the options out there are less than perfect. The Dodgers have started calling around the league about potential offensive upgrades, but players like Jeff Francoeur, Vernon Wells and Alfonso Soriano have their shortcomings.
- ESPN.com’s Keith Law suggests the Dodgers’ investment in Cuban outfielder Yasel Puig “is a bizarre overreaction to the upcoming international spending cap.” The Dodgers and the outfielder agreed to terms on a seven-year, $42MM contract earlier today.
- Chad Qualls, who was designated for assignment this morning, has asked Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. to trade him, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports (on Twitter).
- The Nationals have been relying on Bryce Harper in center field, but they’re still telling teams they’re looking for a long-term answer at the position, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter).
Phillies Designate Chad Qualls For Assignment
The Phillies announced that they designated right-handed reliever Chad Qualls for assignment. The team will option left-hander Joe Savery to Triple-A and select the contracts of left-hander Jeremy Horst and right-hander Brian Sanches from Triple-A in related moves.
The Phillies signed Qualls to a one-year, $1.15MM contract in January and he started the season with six consecutive scoreless appearances. The 33-year-old now has a 4.60 ERA with 5.5 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a 54.5% ground ball rate in 31 1/3 innings out of the Phillies' bullpen. He owns a 3.82 ERA with 7.0 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 57.3% ground ball rate in nine MLB seasons.
East Notes: Loria, Johnson, Chavez, Qualls
Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman is today's headliner after agreeing to a hefty long-term contract extension that could keep him in a Washington uniform through 2020. Here are a few more odds and ends out of baseball's East divisions ...
- Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria said he intends to own the Marlins for "as long as I live," writes Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. Loria is 71 and entering his 11th season as owner of the Fish.
- The Blue Jays are open to the possibility of signing second baseman Kelly Johnson to a multiyear extension, writes Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com. Johnson was a free agent this offseason but accepted the Jays' arbitration offer after receiving underwhelming offers, likely because of his Type A status under the old collective bargaining agreement. The Jays and Johnson settled on a $6.375MM salary.
- Orioles manager Buck Showalter said there was lots of competition to sign outfielder Endy Chavez this offseason, tweets Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. Chavez said four or five teams were interested.
- The Phillies were scouting reliever Chad Qualls as early as last season, when he was with the Padres, writes Adam Berry of MLB.com. The sides were in touch throughout the offseason, and the Phils eventually signed the right-hander to a one-year deal on Jan. 31 when his asking price came "way down," according to assistant GM Scott Proefrock.
Central Notes: Qualls, Luhnow, Indians
A few items to pass along from the Central divisions as Tuesday becomes Wednesday ...
- The Cubs were interested in Chad Qualls before the right-hander eventually signed with the Phillies, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. As it stands now, the back end of the Cubs' bullpen features setup men Jeff Samardzija and Kerry Wood, and closer Carlos Marmol.
- Astros GM Jeff Luhnow has begun the process of overhauling Houston's identity during a time of transition, writes Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. Luhnow has already made several key hires toward the goal of shifting the organization's focus to a combination of better scouting and more advanced statistical analysis. A reputed ideas man, Luhnow pitched Astros ownership a 25-page plan for repairing the organization before getting the job, according to Castrovince.
- With arbitration hearings scheduled with two players - Asdrubal Cabrera and Rafael Perez - the Indians' 20-year streak of avoiding arbitration could come to end, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. However, Indians assistant GM Mike Chernoff told Hoynes that "both parties are clearly trying to get things done." Check out MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker to see where the Tribe stands with their arbitration eligibles.
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