Transactions Rumors

Athletics Sign Dallas McPherson

The Oakland Athletics have signed Dallas McPherson to a minor league contract, according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. McPherson, selected by the Angels in the second round of the 2001 draft, was once considered an elite prospect, but injuries and strikeout woes have slowed him in recent years. After slugging .586 in his minor league career, he has hit .245/.298/.458 in 399 major-league plate appearances, homering 18 times and striking out 126. Crasnick indicates that the 29-year-old is expected to compete for the A's third base job in the spring.   Continue Reading

---

Royals Re-Sign Vance Wilson

MLB.com's Dick Kaegel mentions that the Royals have re-signed catcher Vance Wilson to a minor league contract. The 33-year-old Wilson hit .270/.342/.461 in 229 plate appearances with Kansas City's Double-A affiliate in 2009 after not playing at all in 2008 due to injury. He last played in the big leagues back in 2006.   Continue Reading

---

Pirates Designate Two For Assignment

Friday was the deadline for teams to set their 40-man roster for next month's Rule 5 Draft, and MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reports that the Pirates cleared up two spots for prospects by designating Robinzon Diaz and Justin Thomas for assignment. They also designated Jeff Karstens for assignment yesterday. Diaz, a 26-year-old catcher, hit .279/.307/.357 in 138 plate appearances for Pittsburgh in 2009. Thomas, a 25-year-old lefty reliever, had a 4.48 ERA in 60.1 innings with Seattle's Triple-A affiliate. Among the players the Pirates added to the 40-man roster were righthanders Brad Lincoln and Bryan Morris, as well as outfielder Gorkys...   Continue Reading

---

Laynce Nix Elects Free Agency

Outfielder Laynce Nix has been outrighted by the Reds and elected free agency, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. Nix was considered a non-tender candidate, as the Reds have plenty of outfielders already. In a few weeks they must decide whether to tender Jonny Gomes a contract (seems like a good idea to me). Nix, 29, received the most playing time of his career since 2004 this year. He hit .239/.291/.476 in 337 plate appearances, knocking 15 home runs and playing left field. Reds manager Dusty Baker shielded him from left-handed pitching most of the year.   Continue Reading

---

Red Sox Claim Robert Manuel From Mariners

The Red Sox claimed pitcher Robert Manuel off of waivers from the Mariners, according to a team press release. The 26-year-old righty made his MLB debut with the Reds this year, recording 13 outs without allowing an earned run. His Triple A numbers were good, too; Manuel had a 49K/16BB ratio and an overall 2.88 ERA for the Reds and Mariners.   Continue Reading

---

Pirates Claim Jakubauskas; Karstens Designated

The Pirates claimed pitcher Chris Jakubauskas off waivers from the Mariners, according to a team press release. Jakubauskas, 31 next month, allowed 91 hits and 27 walks in 93 innings for the Mariners last year, striking out 47 for a 5.32 ERA. The Pirates designated Jeff Karstens for assignment to clear roster space. Karstens, 27, was pretty well-regarded by the Pirates when he arrived as part of the Xavier Nady/Damaso Marte trade with the Yankees in July of 2008. He pitched well in his nine starts that year but was bumped from the rotation in June for Charlie Morton.   Continue Reading

---

Rockies Sign Phillips; Interest In Torrealba

The Rockies signed catcher Paul Phillips to a minor league deal today, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Phillips will make $450K if he's on the big league roster. Last year, he posted an .818 OPS in 54 major league plate appearances. Phillips has a .702 OPS in nearly 2800 minor league plate appearances, This doesn't necessarily mean that the Rockies won't bring back free agent Yorvit Torrealba, however. Two other teams have expressed interest in Torrealba so far, but the Rockies could re-sign him. One of the interested clubs plays in the American League and the other...   Continue Reading

---

Orioles Claim Tatum From Reds

The Orioles claimed catcher Craig Tatum off of waivers from the Cincinnati Reds, according to a team press release. The O's designated lefty Chris Waters for assignment to clear space for Tatum. The 26-year-old catcher posted a .471 OPS in 77 plate appearances with the Reds this year; a considerable dropoff from his .638 OPS in Triple A. In 2008, Baseball America named Tatum the best defensive catcher in the Reds' organization.   Continue Reading

---

Cubs To Sign Grabow To Two-Year Deal

FRIDAY, 2:15pm: Wittenmyer hears that the deal is worth $7.5MM. The Cubs have officially announced it. THURSDAY, 10:53am: Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times says the deal is believed to be worth at least $7MM in total. Dave Cameron of FanGraphs calls it a "waste of cash." 9:47am: Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports that the Cubs have agreed to sign Grabow to a two-year deal. Sullivan's sources say the deal could be announced today. 8:13am: The Cubs are nearing an agreement with lefty John Grabow on a two-year deal, according to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago. It wouldn't be...   Continue Reading

---

Royals Sign Jorge Campillo

The Royals signed righty Jorge Campillo to a minor league deal, according to MLB.com's Dick Kaegel. Campillo was limited to 9.3 pro innings in the Braves organization this year due to shoulder issues, and elected free agency a month ago. In 2008 he logged 158.6 innings with a 3.91 ERA, making 25 starts.   Continue Reading

---

Top Stories

Search MLBTR

Lijit Search

MLBTR Features

Recent Posts

MLBTR Mailing List

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Rumors By Team

Monthly Archives

Live Chats

Tuesdays at 2 p.m. CST