Nick Green Rumors
Minors Notes: Jennings, Transactions, Red Sox
The Phillies' Domonic Brown became the latest prospect to get the call up to the big leagues today (although he debuted in 2010), but some blue-chippers remain down on the farm. Here's a note about one of them, and some other interesting items ...
- Rays manager Joe Maddon said Desmond Jennings wasn't called up after Dan Johnson was designated for assignment because Tampa wants the speedy outfielder to play every day, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. Of course, Maddon was implying that the decision was not related to Jennings' service time.
- The Phillies' signing of 17-year-old Australian catcher Liam Bedford was among last week's notable minors transactions, compiled by Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Another noteworthy move: The Angels have finally signed UC Irvine catcher Francis Larson, their 22nd-round pick in last year's draft.
- The Red Sox have a unique sales pitch for minor league free agents, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Boston has a recent track record of awarding promotions to players like Nick Green and Darnell McDonald, which is appealing to guys like Drew Sutton who are looking to latch onto organizations that will give them a legitimate shot of playing in the Majors.
Orioles To Sign Nick Green
5:47pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman reports that Green will earn $600K if he makes the big league team (Twitter link).
3:24pm: The Orioles have agreed to sign Nick Green to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to Spring Training, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link). The sides appeared to be close to a deal in December, when the Orioles re-signed Cesar Izturis.
Green appeared in 14 big league games for the Blue Jays and Dodgers last year. The 32-year-old has a .237/.305/.348 line in 1131 big league plate appearances over the course of six big league seasons. Green figures to compete with Robert Andino and Brendan Harris for a utility job.
Orioles Rumors: Hardy, Matsui, Thome, Uehara
The O's are talking about a J.J. Hardy trade with the Twins. Here are some more Orioles updates from Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun...
- The team did not offer Carlos Pena or Paul Konerko contracts before the first basemen signed in Chicago, according to president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail.
- It's likely that the team's shortstop will be Hardy, Jason Bartlett, Brendan Ryan or Cesar Izturis, MacPhail said. The Padres appear to be close to a deal for Bartlett, which would limit the Orioles' options.
- MacPhail says the club has expressed interest in a number of DH types. Vladimir Guerrero, Hideki Matsui and Jim Thome are believed to be among the team's targets.
- The team, which selects fourth in tomorrow's Rule 5 draft, is considering a number of players.
- There are no updates on Kevin Gregg, but Zrebiec reported yesterday that the team has offered the former Blue Jays closer a two-year deal.
- Troy Renck of the Denver Post hears (on Twitter) that Nick Green could end up in Baltimore.
Padres Sign Nick Green
The Padres have signed Nick Green to a minor league deal, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter). Green was DFA'd last Saturday by the Blue Jays in order to make room for the returning Shaun Marcum. Brock adds that the move was made in order to give San Diego organizational depth.
The infielder, who will report to Triple-A Portland, has a career slash line of .237/.305/.348. Known mostly for his glove, Green has made major league cameos for seven different teams.
Blue Jays Designate Nick Green For Assignment
The Blue Jays have designated utility infielder Nick Green for assignment, tweets MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. The move frees up a roster spot for Shaun Marcum, who is coming off the disabled list.
The 31-year-old Green hit .154/.214/.154 in 14 plate appearances with Toronto. They signed him last month after he opted out of his minor league contract with the Dodgers.
Blue Jays Sign Nick Green
The Blue Jays signed Nick Green to a major league contract and optioned Mike McCoy to Triple A, according to the team. Green, 31, became a free agent this month after opting out of his deal with the Dodgers.
Green appeared in five big league games this year before the Dodgers designated him for assignment. He picked up one hit in eight at bats and reached base a second time when Dontrelle Willis plunked him. The utilityman spent most of the season at Triple A Albuquerque, where he batted .204/.235/.398 and played shortstop, second, third and (for one game) center field.
Not only can Green play around the infield and outfield, he pitched for the Red Sox last year. The White Sox couldn't get a hit or run off of Green, who threw an 88 mph fastball, in two innings. Green has also played for the Braves, Devil Rays, Yankees and Mariners in his six-year MLB career.
Odds & Ends: Green, Gonzalez, Berkman, Stanton
Links for Saturday....
- Nick Green, who was designated for assignment by the Dodgers, has cleared waivers and accepted a minor league assignment, writes MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.
- WEEI's Alex Speier explains why trading for Adrian Gonzalez appears less and less likely for the Red Sox.
- Lance Berkman's agent is telling teams that his client will approve a trade in which his $15MM option for 2011 is picked up, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated. No teams are willing to do that but if the demand is dropped, Heyman says that the Angels are a match.
- Joe Frisaro of MLB.com says that while no exact date has been set for the major league debut of Mike Stanton, speculation is that he could get the call as soon as Tuesday when the Marlins head to Philadelphia.
- Alex Rodriguez now has some say in the fate of his former team after being named to the Rangers creditors' committee, tweets Heyman. Texas owes A-Rod $24.9MM in deferred compensation.
- Tyler Kepner of the New York Times writes that Jaime Garcia would have been an Oriole if not for a translation mishap.
- Hank Blalock is happy to be in Tampa Bay, writes Drew Davison of the Dallas Morning News.
Dodgers Designate Nick Green For Assignment
Nick Green has been designated for assignment by the Dodgers, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.
The Dodgers signed Green to a minor league deal in January, hoping he could back up Rafael Furcal at shortstop. However, even when Furcal was on the disabled list, Green received limited playing time. The success of Jamey Carroll (.380 OBP) and Furcal's return to the lineup made the ex-Red Sox expendable.
In nine plate appearances for Los Angeles, Green singled once and was hit by a pitch. The 31-year-old hasn't fared much better in the minors, hitting .219/.242/.438 in 67 Triple A plate appearances.
Odds & Ends: Green, Oswalt, Mets, Gaudin, Werth
Links for Saturday....
- With Rafael Furcal returning to the Dodgers, the out-of-options Nick Green is a candidate for demotion, writes Evan Drellich of MLB.com.
- Roy Oswalt told Houston owner Drayton McLane that he wouldn't mind coming back and finishing his career with the organization, tweets Alyson Footer of the Astros.
- More on Oswalt: Footer (via Twitter) is skeptical about the Mets' chances of acquiring Houston's ace. Meanwhile, manager Brad Mills doesn't expect Oswalt's trade request to be a clubhouse distraction, according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.
- At MLB.com, Peter Gammons takes a look at a few underachieving teams who are under pressure to make changes.
- Scott Olsen has been placed on the disabled list, but Stephen Strasburg won't be the pitcher called up to take his roster spot, tweets Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
- Jack Curry of the YES Network (via Twitter) asked Mets GM Omar Minaya if Jerry Manuel is managing to save his job. Minaya answered, "I don't want to say that. I wouldn't say that's the case."
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that Chad Gaudin received and turned down a minor league assignment offer from the A's.
- Mike Lowell told Scott Lauber of The Boston Herald that he has no regrets about passing on a four year, $37.5MM contract offer from the Phillies after the 2007 season.
- Jayson Werth said he's "played [his] entire career for this year," according to David Murphy of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Werth, of course, is referring to his contract year and impending free agent payday.
- Chris Iannetta remains the one who got away for the Red Sox, who almost drafted the catcher back in 2004 according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier.
- Joe Christensen of The Star Tribune analyzed the Carlos Gomez-J.J. Hardy trade now that we're six months out.
- John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer notes that the Reds have gotten tremendous production out of their bargain basement left field combo of Jonny Gomes and Laynce Nix ($1.4MM combined salary).
Rosenthal's Latest: D'Backs, Robertson, Pirates
Some notes from Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com...
- The Diamondbacks continue to pursue a number three or four starter in the wake of Brandon Webb's setback. A club official acknowledged that such a pickup was possible, but “I don’t think any team will be willing to give up that kind of pitcher at the start of the season.”
- Rosenthal says the team has infield depth to use in a trade, and reiterated that they'd love to move Chris Snyder and the $11.25MM left on his contract. The Rangers and Red Sox are said to be looking for infielders, and the Mariners could join them following Jack Hannahan's injury.
- The Tigers are shopping Nate Robertson, but Arizona doesn't consider him enough of an upgrade. Zach Duke and Paul Maholm are not available.
- The best available starter may be Chad Gaudin, who was released by the Yankees on Thursday.
- The Brewers considered a Jeff Suppan for Snyder trade, but didn't want to take on Snyder's 2011 salary. Suppan will earn $12.5MM this season, the final one on his contract.
- The Cubs do not expect to make a trade for a reliever before Opening Day, but they've scouted Jason Frasor and Scott Downs, plus Luke Gregerson of the Padres.
- Nick Green has an out clause in his minor league contract, but the Dodgers may add him to the roster to serve as the backup shortstop.
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