Steve Lombardozzi Rumors

NL Central Notes: Brewers, Cubs, Cardinals

By Tim Dierkes [December 5, 2012 at 8:56pm CST]

Today in NL Central news, the Cardinals reached a three-year agreement with lefty reliever Randy Choate, the Pirates traded for wild power lefty Andy Oliver, and the Cubs signed right fielder Nate Schierholtz to a one-year deal. The latest from the division:

Speaking of lefties, the Brewers are in the market for one, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Haudricourt can see Tom Gorzelanny as a fit, since the recently non-tendered 30-year-old can retire righties as well as lefties. Gorzelanny, though, has been some combination of wild and homer-prone against righties the last few years.
J.P. Howell is a name to watch for the Brewers, as MLB.com's Adam McCalvy notes that GM Doug Melvin met with agent Greg Genske today at the Winter Meetings. Genske's agency also represents free agents Edwin Jackson, Francisco Liriano, Brad Penny, and Joe Saunders.
"I don’t see this being one of our more active years at this point," Melvin told Haudricourt today.
The Cubs were in on Jeff Keppinger and Eric Chavez before they signed with the White Sox and Diamondbacks, respectively, GM Jed Hoyer told reporters. The Cubs are seeking someone who can help at the hot corner.
The Cardinals want to upgrade with a utility infielder, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. They've discussed free agent Alex Gonzalez and trade options Chris Getz of the Royals and Steve Lombardozzi of the Nationals.

Quick Hits: Alfonso Soriano, Cubs Draft, Mets

By Daniel Seco [June 3, 2012 at 10:44pm CST]

The Nationals rewrote Major League history on Sunday in yet another sign that the beleaguered franchise has turned the proverbial corner. Bryce Harper and Steve Lombardozzi became the first rookies to hit back-to-back home runs to lead off a game in the modern era. Here's the latest odds and ends from around the league as we look forward to Monday's amateur draft...

Alfonso Soriano is open to being traded to a contender as he concedes his career is winding down at 36, reports Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. Soriano has made himself an attractive trade candidate with a 2012 slash line of .267/.311/.460, but remains unlikely to be moved thanks to his hefty contract. The Cubs owe Soriano the remainder of his $18MM salary for this year and $36MM over the next two seasons.
Cubs manager Dale Sveum hasn't seen team president Theo Epstein or scouting chief Jason McLeod in days and that's because they are in lockdown mode for Monday's amateur draft, says Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. "Theo and Jason and Jed (Hoyer), they've had a whole different system in the draft, and obviously it's worked pretty well," Sveum said. "The high picks they had in Boston panned out pretty good." Equipped with the sixth pick in the draft, the Cubs are expected to take high school center fielder Albert Almora or Puerto Rican shortstop Carlos Correa based upon projections from Baseball America.
Look for the Mets to consider making minor moves at the trade deadline rather than taking on salary to acquire an expensive veteran, writes Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog.com. Cerrone points to Buster Olney's comments on Sunday night in which he stated that the team is focused on the big picture when Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler arrive in Queens in as soon as 14 months.