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Odds and Ends: Wolf, Indians, Ensberg

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Random items for today…

  • MLBTR live chat, today at 2pm CST.  Right after I finish my corned beef sandwich.
  • RotoAuthority takes a look at the fantasy value of Randy Wolf.
  • On Sunday I joined the guys from Drunk Jays Fans for part of their podcast.  A button to listen to the show can be found here.
  • Paul Hoynes says the Indians’ Mark Shapiro will need "at least a month to narrow the field of suitors for players such as C.C. Sabathia and Paul Byrd to see if he really wants to trade them."
  • RotoWorld says the Yankees have released Morgan Ensberg.

Strasburg To Be Advised By Boras?

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From Buster Olney’s blog today:

Heard this: Stephen Strasburg, the hard-throwing right-hander at San Diego State who is expected to be among the very top picks in the 2009 draft, has selected Scott Boras to be his advisor.

Dave Cameron wrote about Strasburg at FanGraphs on Friday.  If the season ended today, the first four picks in ’09 would go to the Mariners, Rockies, Nationals, and Royals.  None of these clubs seem particularly Boras-phobic, and the Mariners and Royals are on good terms with him.  I wouldn’t expect Strasburg to drop much for financial reasons, but it’s way too early to call anything.

Jays Cool On Bedard?

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There’s a long-running rumor that Canada native Erik Bedard will sign with the Blue Jays when he reaches free agency after the ’09 season.

However, Geoff Baker writes today:

But sources in Toronto indicated on Monday that the team has cooled on Bedard and may no longer be interested in acquiring him — now or later. The Jays have had some public-relations issues the past few seasons with A.J. Burnett, a pitcher expected to use an escape clause to opt out of his five-year deal with Toronto after this season.

Baker is suggesting the Jays may be reluctant to do another long-term deal with a media-unfriendly pitcher.  Burnett and Bedard both tantalize, underachieving despite ace repertoires.  Bedard’s next contract will be a risky one, perhaps five years at top dollar like Burnett’s. 

Back in February, John Hickey wrote that he expected the Mariners to sign Bedard to an extension.  Bedard’s mediocre results through 11 starts may give them pause. 

No Dunn Talks Yet

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C. Trent Rosecrans has the latest on Adam Dunn.  He reminds us that Dunn’s no-trade clause switches from all teams to 10 teams on Sunday.  GM Walt Jocketty is aware of Dunn’s veto teams, even if the public is not.  Ken Rosenthal has suggested that Dunn strategically chose the high-revenue teams (Dunn makes $13-16MM this year).

Despite the upcoming change in Dunn’s no-trade clause, Rosecrans quotes Walt Jocketty as saying "there have been no discussions."  Negative on extension talks too, even when Wayne Krivsky was GM.

Dunn, 28, is hitting .240/.406/.531 in 251 plate appearances (in line with his career numbers).  It’s been suggested by both Rosecrans and Rosenthal that Dunn would make sense in Boston if David Ortiz has complications.  For Jocketty to trade his slugger, he’d need a bounty superior to two ’09 draft picks.

Ivan Rodriguez To Lose Playing Time

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Ivan Rodriguez, the Tigers’ $13MM catcher, will now be used in a platoon with Brandon Inge.  They’ll alternate starts behind the plate.

Rodriguez, 36, is hitting .245 (AVG)/.286 (OBP)/.349 (SLG) in 208 plate appearances.  This didn’t come out of nowhere – PECOTA had him at .267/.295/.390.  PECOTA is a projection system developed by Baseball Prospectus.  The PECOTA system uses comparable players to make its estimates.

Hot stove implications of Jim Leyland’s new plan: the Tigers will learn if Brandon Inge can be their everyday catcher in 2009 (Inge is signed through 2010).  If not, the Tigers seem more likely to explore the free agent market than to re-sign Pudge.  What a difference a few months can make – last offseason the Tigers exercised Rodriguez’s $13MM option and tried to trade Inge.

Braves Purchase Brian Lawrence’s Contract

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32 year-old righty Brian Lawrence made six starts for the Mets last year and 16 in Triple A.  He’d missed all of ’06 due to rotator cuff and labrum surgery.  Before that, he’d been a useful innings eater.

This year Lawrence found himself playing independent ball for the Camden Riversharks playing alongside familiar names such as Ryan Drese and Jamal Strong.  He posted a 3.21 ERA in eight starts.  Today, the Braves purchased Lawrence’s contract and assigned him to Triple A.

Danks Brothers Leave Boras

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According to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune, John and Jordan Danks have left the Scott Boras Corporation in favor of Jeff Berry.  Gonzales notes that Berry represents Mark Buehrle and Josh Fields as well.

This development may make a long-term deal for John Danks more likely.  The 23 year-old southpaw is in the midst of a breakout year with a 3.13 ERA through 74.6 innings.  Historically, the White Sox haven’t been huge fans of Boras. 

Danks will be eligible for arbitration in 2010.  The going rate for a good young pitcher’s three arb years is around $14MM, sometimes with a club option on the third.  Several years ago the Sox signed Buehrle to a three-year deal covering his arb years plus an option on his first of free agency.

Brewers Not Interested In Brian Roberts

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According to Ken Rosenthal today:

Here’s a deal that makes sense: Brian Roberts for Rickie Weeks. The Brewers, who recently had two scouts watching the Orioles, are interested in Roberts, but it remains to be seen whether they are ready to give up on Weeks.

Brewers GM Doug Melvin denies the report, stating that his scouts "were watching the Orioles as part of their normal assignments."  The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Tom Haudricourt has mentioned before that Melvin has always been frank and honest with him, and this is no exception.  Melvin even revealed that the Orioles tried to get the Brewers involved during the spring as competition for the Cubs.

Erik Bedard Speculation

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So far, we haven’t read any actual rumors suggesting the Mariners will shop Erik Bedard.  However, it’s become a prevalent discussion topic among the team’s beat writers.  John McGrath even suggests Phillies GM Pat Gillick should acquire Bedard as his last hurrah.  The Phils do have a history of interest in the lefty.

Though they don’t get much press, the Phillies have three Top 100 prospects in Carlos Carrasco, Adrian Cardenas, and Joe Savery.  Gillick could certainly pull off a trade, though it’s interesting to note that the Phils have used the same five starters all year.

Almost half the teams in baseball had interest in Bedard last winter.  That list has narrowed, but there should be healthy competition for his services if the Mariners make him available.  I wonder if Bill Bavasi would get to call the shots this time around. 

Odds and Ends: Bowden, Strasburg, Draft

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