Franklin Morales Rumors

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Maddon, Darvish, Ortiz

By [November 17, 2011 at 9:22pm CST]

Some interesting items to pass along from around the AL "Beast" …

  • The Red Sox were gauging trade interest in some of their out-of-options pitchers at the GM Meetings this week, a source tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Franklin Morales, Andrew Miller, Felix Doubront, Michael Bowden and Scott Atchison are all out of options but aren't locks to make next year's bullpen, according to Speier, so Boston may decide to add or remove some of these players from the 40-man roster based on relative trade interest.
  • The Rays are hopeful of extending the contract of manager Joe Maddon, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.com. Maddon is entering the final year of a three-year extension he signed in 2009.
  • The Yankees may shy away from pursuing Japanese right-hander Yu Darvish if he's posted because of the club's history with busts Hideki Irabu and Kei Igawa, opines Heyman (Twitter link), although owner Hal Steinbrenner told reporters, such as the New York Post's Joel Sherman and Newsday's Ken Davidoff, that the team will evaluate each player on a case-by-case basis.
  • The Blue Jays are interested in free agent DH David Ortiz, tweets Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.
  • Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano said that last month's rumors that he was angling for a contract extension was the result of a joke gone awry, according to Spanish-language Web site DiarioLibre.com. “I’m not thinking about the contract. My lawyer told a journalist as a joke that I was looking for a contract extension, and that’s what got published… I’m not thinking about that. The team has a $14MM option for next year." Thanks to MLBTR's Nick Collias for the translation.
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Full Story | Comments | Categories: Andrew Miller | Boston Red Sox | David Ortiz | Felix Doubront | Franklin Morales | Michael Bowden | New York Yankees | Scott Atchison | Tampa Bay Rays | Toronto Blue Jays | Yu Darvish

Red Sox Notes: Millwood, Morales, Okajima

By [May 20, 2011 at 8:36am CST]

The Red Sox made a pair of moves yesterday and won again, boosting their record to a season-best 23-20. Here’s the latest on Boston as they prepare to take on the Cubs…

  • If recent signing Kevin Millwood reaches the Major Leagues, he’ll earn a pro-rated portion of $500K, plus incentives, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com. In other words, he's guaranteed slightly more than the MLB minimum.
  • If the Rockies had sent Franklin Morales to the Pirates instead of the Red Sox, Colorado would have asked for a prospect rather than former Rockie Joe Beimel, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
  • The Red Sox designated Hideki Okajima for assignment to create roster space for Morales, but the Japanese left-hander says re-signing in Boston this offseason was not a mistake, according to Speier.
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Red Sox Acquire Franklin Morales

By [May 19, 2011 at 9:50pm CST]

The Red Sox have acquired Rockies left-hander Franklin Morales for a player to be named later or cash considerations, according to Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald (via Twitter).  In order to make room for Morales, Hideki Okajima has been designated for assignment by the BoSox.

Boston has until November to either agree on a player in the Morales trade or pay a nominal amount of money to the Rockies, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.

Morales was ranked as the eighth-best prospect in baseball by Baseball America prior to the 2008 season.  The left-hander throws the ball extremely hard as evidenced by his 94.4 mph fastball last year.  Across parts of five big league seasons, he owns a 4.83 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 5.1 BB/9.

The 25-year-old is out of options and the Rockies have reportedly been concerned about losing him to waivers.  Yesterday we learned that the Rockies were measuring trade interest in Morales as well as fellow fireballer Felipe Paulino. 

Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe (via Twitter) first reported that the two sides were close to an agreement while Troy Renck of The Denver Post (via Twitter) reported that a deal was completed.

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Full Story | Comments | Categories: Boston Red Sox | Colorado Rockies | Franklin Morales | Hideki Okajima | Transactions

Rockies Measuring Trade Interest In Paulino, Morales

By [May 18, 2011 at 11:37am CST]

The Rockies are "expected to continue measuring trade interest" in hard-throwing pitchers Felipe Paulino and Franklin Morales, reports Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.  At least one NL Central team has expressed interest in Morales, he adds.  Both pitchers are out of options, so the Rockies can't demote them without exposing them to waivers.

Paulino, 27, was acquired from the Astros in November for Clint Barmes.  He throws hard and gets strikeouts, but allows tons of hits and plenty of walks and home runs.  He's relieving now, but has 34 career starts to his name.  Paulino missed a good chunk of 2010 with a shoulder injury. 

Morales, 25, was considered the eighth best prospect in all of baseball prior to the 2008 season, according to Baseball America.  He has a higher profile than Paulino, having made a couple of playoff starts in '07 and served as the Rockies' closer at times.  There might be five or six lefties in the Majors who throw harder than Morales.  However, he's prone to flyballs and walks and has also battled shoulder injuries.  Paulino and Morales are projects, so they make the most sense for non-contenders.

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Rosenthal On Chapman, Braves, Rockies, Norris

By [May 16, 2011 at 4:12pm CST]

Aroldis Chapman went on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation today, after Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported on the Reds’ options for proceeding with the struggling Cuban left-hander. Here’s the latest on Chapman plus notes from around the league:

  • A veteran scout insists that the Reds need to demote Chapman and make him a starter, but pitching coach Bryan Price isn’t so sure that a demotion is the way to go. He points out that Sandy Koufax and Randy Johnson took time to develop. “Both struggled with command until they got enough work to figure out how their body works, how to put their hand in the right position to throw quality strikes,” Price said.
  • The Braves would ideally add a leadoff hitter and put Martin Prado second in the order, according to Rosenthal. He suggests the Braves could target leadoff options Jose Reyes, Grady Sizemore, Denard Span or David DeJesus via trade or free agency after the season.
  • The Rockies appear to be concerned about losing out of options relievers Felipe Paulino and Franklin Morales to waivers.
  • Astros GM Ed Wade says Bud Norris has become a much more mature pitcher. The 26-year-old right-hander has 60 strikeouts in 50 innings this year.
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Full Story | Comments | Categories: Aroldis Chapman | Atlanta Braves | Bud Norris | Cincinnati Reds | Colorado Rockies | Felipe Paulino | Franklin Morales | Houston Astros

Odds & Ends: Marlins, Wigginton, Rockies, Wood

By [July 15, 2010 at 9:12pm CST]

It was on this day in 1905 that Shirley Povich, one of the great sportswriters of all time, was born in Bar Harbor, Maine.  Povich, who passed away in 1998, would've been 105 today and no doubt still would've been keeping an eye on Stephen Strasburg for the Washington Post.

Some news items….

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Colorado Re-Signs Matt Belisle, Randy Flores

By [November 5, 2009 at 6:25pm CST]

8:42 PM: The Denver Post's Troy Renck has an update on the contract details. 

6:25 PM: The Rockies re-signed relievers Matt Belisle and Randy Flores to one-year contracts on Thursday.  Terms of the deals weren't announced, though both pitchers were eligible for salary arbitration.  Belisle, a right-hander, posted a 5.52 ERA but a strong 4.4:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 24 appearances last year with Colorado after spending his first five big-league seasons in Cincinnati.  Southpaw Flores appeared in 27 games for the Rockies last season, recording a strong 10.5 K/9.

Tracy Ringolsby believes that with Belisle and Flores back in the fold, Joe Beimel is the odd man out in the Rockies' bullpen.  Beimel had a 4.02 ERA in 26 games with Colorado after being acquired from Washington at the trade deadline, but Ringolsby thinks that Colorado will stick with Flores and Franklin Morales as their main left-handed relief options.

In other Rockies news from Thursday, the club outrighted reliever Joel Peralta and infielder Omar Quintanilla,  Peralta (who is now a free agent) is still being pursued for a minor-league contract while Quintanilla is on the Triple-A Colorado Springs roster.

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Full Story | Comments | Categories: Colorado Rockies | Franklin Morales | Joe Beimel | Joel Peralta | Matt Belisle | Omar Quintanilla | Randy Flores

Morales To Rejoin Rockies

By [April 19, 2009 at 12:41pm CST]

Franklin Morales will rejoin the Rockies on Monday and is scheduled to start on Tuesday, according to Tracy Ringolsby.

"The question is who will go to make room for Morales. The likely candidate would be Matt Belisle, who was added to the roster on April 8, when Morales was sent to Triple-A… Belisle, a non-roster invitee to spring training, is believed to have signed a 45-day clause when he was placed on the big-league roster, meaning the Rockies could send him out anytime in the first 45 days after he joined the team, and they would be responsible for only a pro-rated portion of his big-league salary, not the full amount, and he would accept a minor-league assignment if he clears waivers."

Morales was Colorado's most consistent starter in  spring training and carried over that success into his first April start where he threw six innings of one-run ball against the Diamondbacks, striking out six. He followed that start with five scoreless ones for Triple-A Colorado Springs.

The lefty was a prized prospect whose control, command and velocity problems set him back in 2008. Morales has been working on his consistency and still has front of the rotation upside. Ringolsby says "the Rockies feel they need to recall him to keep Morales moving forward."

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Rockies Agree To Contracts With 21

By [March 4, 2009 at 7:59pm CST]

Steve Foster of InsidetheRockies.com reports that the Rockies have signed 21 players to one-year contracts. Some of the more recognizable names include Chris Iannetta, Greg Smith, Ryan Spilborghs, Matt Murton and Franklin Morales.

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Renck’s Mailbag: Snell, Helton, Holliday

By [August 4, 2008 at 6:20pm CST]

Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post published a mailbag today with some good rumors.

  • The Pirates wanted Franklin Morales, Esmil Rogers, and Chris Nelson for Ian Snell.  Can’t blame ‘em for asking.
  • Last winter, the A’s asked for Ubaldo Jimenez in a deal for Dan Haren.  As good as Haren’s been, the Rockies still have to be happy they passed.
  • Renck doesn’t see the Rox picking up Shawn Chacon – reportedly he has not been working out over the past month.
  • Renck reveals that Todd Helton asked the Rockies upon signing his megadeal that money not be deferred.  Nonetheless it’d be an intriguing way to free up cash to use on Matt Holliday.  Renck feels the Rockies might offer Holliday five years, while he’ll seek seven.
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Full Story | Comments | Categories: Colorado Rockies | Dan Haren | Franklin Morales | Ian Snell | Matt Holliday | Oakland Athletics | Pittsburgh Pirates | Shawn Chacon | Todd Helton