Scott Diamond Rumors
Twins Retain Scott Diamond Through Trade
The Twins have retained Rule 5 pick Scott Diamond by working out a trade with the Braves, tweets MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger. The Twins are sending righty relief prospect Billy Bullock to the Braves in the deal. Diamond was assigned outright to Triple-A, according to the Twins.
Diamond, a 24-year-old southpaw, posted a 3.46 ERA, 7.0 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, and 0.3 HR/9 in 158 2/3 innings across 27 starts at Double and Triple-A last year. Baseball America ranked him 29th among Twins prospects, noting that his ceiling is as a fourth or fifth starter.
Bullock, 23, put up a 3.53 ERA, 12.8 K/9, 5.2 BB/9, and 0.6 HR/9 in 74 relief innings for the Twins' High-A and Double-A clubs last year. BA ranked Bullock 15th among Twins prospects, praising his repertoire but questioning his command. Having swapped their #15 prospect for their 29th best, the Twins clearly don't agree with Baseball America's rankings in this case.
Twins Trying To Work Out Deal To Keep Diamond
The Twins announced their 25-man Opening Day roster today, and one player who didn't make the cut was left-hander Scott Diamond. Manager Ron Gardenhire told MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger that they're now trying to work out a deal with the Braves to keep the Rule 5 Draft pick in the organization (Twitter link).
Diamond, 24, allowed one run in six innings this spring, but he walked six and struck out just two. Baseball America ranked him as the 29th-best prospect in the Twins' system in the 2011 edition of their Prospect Handbook, saying Diamond throws four pitches but has the ceiling of a fourth or fifth starter. They predicted that he'd fill a long relief or lefty specialist role had he made the club.
Atlanta originally signed Diamond as an undrafted free agent back in 2007. If the Twins are unable to work out a trade to keep him, he would have to first clear waivers and be offered back to the Braves before he could go to the minors.
Central Notes: Barmes, Indians, Royals, Diamond
Let's check out some items concerning the Central divisions..
- Astros GM Ed Wade told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter) that the club will explore outside options with Clint Barmes sidelined for four-to-six weeks. Morosi notes that Houston has Angel Sanchez and Tommy Manzella in-house as well.
- The Indians' projected payroll for 2011 is roughly $48.5MM, writes Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer. This marks the third straight year that the payroll has declined and the lowest it has been since 2005. In that year, the Indians opened with a $41.5MM payroll.
- More from the Tribe as skipper Manny Acta said he'll likely meet with GM Chris Antonetti today to discuss remaining decisions that need to be made, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com tweets.
- The Royals cut four minor league players today, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Right-handers Aaron Hartsock and Scott Kelley and infielders Justin Figueroa and Tom Zebroski were given their walking papers. Kansas City has already made a handful of minor league transactions this week.
- Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com (via Twitter) spoke to Twins manager Rod Gardenhire about Rule 5 pick Scott Diamond. The skipper said that he hasn't haven’t seen enough of him to really evaluate him, though he noted that he's not speaking for the organization. The 24-year-old left-hander was plucked from the Braves.
- Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter) applauds the Cubs for telling Carlos Silva that they will look to trade him. Heyman suggests that the Mariners should do the same with Milton Bradley.
Quick Hits: Overbay, Accardo, Diamond, Astros
Links for Sunday, as Opening Day inches a little closer....
- Ken Fidlin of The Toronto Sun spoke to Lyle Overbay, who said several teams showed interest in him this offseason, but "Pittsburgh was real aggressive." Overbay joined the Pirates on a one-year deal worth $5MM.
- Jeremy Accardo told Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun that the Orioles made it obvious how highly they valued him when they pursued him this offseason. "I'm happy to get a new, fresh start, a fresh look, a fresh mindset," said Accardo. "I think I stumbled into something pretty special here."
- The Twins are high on Scott Diamond, their Rule V Draft pick, and could swing a trade with the Braves to keep Diamond but send him to Triple-A, tweets Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
- Jordan Lyles could win the Astros' fifth starter job out of Spring Training, writes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. Lyles, just 20 years old, was selected 38th in the 2008 draft -- a supplemental pick for losing Trever Miller to free agency. His main competition includes Nelson Figueroa and Ryan Rowland-Smith.
- Jason Giambi may have been joking when he informed Troy Renck of the Denver Post that he was going to try to stick around until teammate Troy Tulowitzki's contract expires in 2020. However, Giambi told SI.com's Jon Heyman that he does plan to play for as long as he can (Twitter links).
- After his two-year extension with the White Sox was announced, Matt Thornton spoke about the deal and expressed a desire to finish his career in Chicago. Scott Reifert has the details and quotes at MLB.com.
- In his latest Indians mailbag, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer discusses the signings of Orlando Cabrera and Chad Durbin, as well as the possibility of a Fausto Carmona trade.
- One of the minor leaguers the Marlins acquired in last summer's Jorge Cantu trade saw his first game action today since returning from Tommy John surgery, writes Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.
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