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Archives for September 2008

Perrotto’s Latest: La Russa, Offseason Moves

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John Perrotto at Baseball Prospectus has his Every Given Sunday column up. Here’s the highlights from the Rumors and Rumblings section (with some added speculation here and there from yours truly):

  • There’s a growing rumor that Cardinals manager Tony La Russa could step down after this season and pursue a job as a general manager. We all know Seattle’s looking…
  • The Diamondbacks love Adam Dunn’s production so much that they are considering re-signing him and possibly having him play first base. Dunn’s racked up a .474 OBP since coming to Arizona… what’s not to like about that?
  • The Padres seem willing to move Kevin Kouzmanoff once again. Perrotto doesn’t say, but it would make sense for young starting pitching to be the target for the Padres, and a move would allow Chase Headley to move back to his natural position, third base. The Giants are looking for help at third, but I doubt the Pads would trade him within the division. Minnesota, perhaps?
  • The Marlins are considering playing Jorge Cantu at first next season, using Dallas McPherson at third, and trading Mike Jacobs in the offseason.
  • The Royals will not re-sign Mark Grudzielanek this offseason, but will likely target both Rafael Furcal and Raul Ibanez. Given Mike Aviles’ emergence at the plate, shifting him to second base and putting Furcal at shortstop would make for a very good middle of the infield in Kansas City. The Royals will also explore options for trading Jose Guillen. I personally didn’t like the contract they gave him at the time, and I doubt many clubs like it now either. Moving him could be difficult.
  • The Rangers will try to trade Gerald Laird for pitching, given their surplus at catcher. The Yankees could use some help behind the plate if Jorge Posada is unable to catch…
  • Jeff Kent, Frank Thomas, and Kent Mercker are all mentioned as possibilites for retirement this offseason, with Jeff Kent being almost a certainty, regardless of how his knee reacts to surgery.

Gillaspie Promoted To Giants

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Chris Haft of MLB.com reports the Giants have promoted first round draft pick Conor Gillaspie after just 24 games at the pro-level, making him the first of his class to reach the show:

Manager Bruce Bochy said that Gillaspie wouldn’t start a game immediately but might be available sooner for pinch-hitting. The 21-year-old spent the previous few weeks batting a combined .269 with no home runs and 15 RBIs for the Giants’ Rookie-level Arizona League affiliate and short-season Salem-Keizer, so playing in the Majors would be an ambitious leap.

Gillaspie is a left-handed bat and if he shows anything this month and/or in spring training, he could earn a spot at a position with no given regular projected for 2009. This may be a speculative call up, however. Hitting only .269 with no homeruns, Gillaspie hasn’t shown a whole lot in pro-ball to merit this call up for competitive reasons, and the Giants certainly want to try to be competitive next season, don’t they?

Clay Timpner was sent down to Triple-A to make room for Gillaspie.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Mets, Brewers, Astros

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Ken Rosenthal has a lot to offer in his latest Full Count video:

  • The Mets will prefer to pickup Carlos Delgado’s $12MM option rather than buy him out for $4MM. That’s a guarantee for a guy who should finish the year around 35-100 despite not contributing for the first two months.
  • According to sources, Manny Ramirez is unlikely to go the Mets. They will more likely focus their spending on pitching. John Maine has a bone spur in his right shoulder. Pedro Martinez and Oliver Perez are free agents. The Mets will need to go after starting pitching.
  • If the Mets go after Francisco Rodriguez, would they dangle Billy Wagner on the trade market in his contract year?
  • If the Astros sign Ben Sheets and Randy Wolf, they’d become immediate contenders, if not division favorites.
  • To recoup the loss of Ben Sheets and C.C. Sabathia, the Brewers might want to trade J.J. Hardy or even Prince Fielder for a pitcher to join Yovani Gallardo, Manny Parra, and Dave Bush. I can’t see them trading Fielder and a lot will be determined by how they fare in the playoffs.
  • Casey Blake will be in high demand this offseason. As a third baseman, his only real competition is the fragile Joe Crede. Blake can play 1B, 3B, RF and LF. He’s a good fit for the Dodgers to re-sign but, according to Rosenthal, he may want to go closer to his Iowa home.

Tigers Offseason Plans

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John Paul Morosi discusses the Tigers’ potential plans for the offseason. They spent roughly $134MM on a fourth place team this season and project at another $130MM next year assuming no free agent signings or extensions. According to Morosi,the Tigers can sustain $110MM payroll based on revenue alone. Owner Mike Ilitch already approved a $40MM payroll increase to make this year’s team, so can they possibly go any higher? It doesn’t seem likely.

Still, Morosi notes that Ilitch wants a World Series and the Tigers need pitching to get it. After Justin Verlander and Armando Galarraga, the Tigers have tied up $29.5MM in 2009 and $34.5 million in 2010 in Jeremy Bonderman, Dontrelle Willis, and Nate Robertson,  none of whom are guarantees to even make the rotation out of spring training. Considering how little these long term signings have contributed, Morosi wonders if spending on more pitching is the best solution.

One expected cost cutting measure would be to decline Edgar Renteria’s $9MM option and try to sign him for less. If they can’t, why not give Ramon Santiago a shot?  That’s a start.

Padres Were “Livid” When Giles Nixed Trade

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San Diego Union Tribune’s Bill Center talked to Padres manager Bud Black about Brian Giles, who could be a free agent after the season.

And do you pick up Giles $9 million option for 2009 or let him walk into free agency with a $3 million buyout?

“Brian still gets it done,” Padres manager Bud Black said last night after the Brewers snapped a four-game losing streak and inched to within four games of the plummeting Chicago Cubs in the National League Central race.

“Brian is a mainstay player.”

While Black thinks Giles is a mainstay, the Padres front office obviously feels differently. Buster Olney says he heard that "the Padres were livid when Giles vetoed the trade that they pursued with the Red Sox in August."

Will San Diego buy out Giles after this season? If you believe the rumors that the franchise is looking to cut payroll, then it makes sense that they would.

Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com. You can reach him here.

Odds And Ends: Rogers, Myers, Hosmer, Reynolds, Dunn

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Here’s some loose change found underneath the cushions of the hot stove couch:

  • Kenny Rogers was scratched from his start and Buster Olney wonders if Rogers will retire after this season.
  • Philly Inquirer columnist Bob Ford says the Phillies didn’t do enough to improve the team before the trade deadline. Umpbump thinks Brett Myers has been a great trade deadline pickup – and the Phils didn’t have to surrender a thing.
  • The Royals are hoping the contract issues surrounding first baseman first round draft pick Eric Hosmer are resolved in time for him to participate in the Arizona Instructional League. Hosmer remains in limbo as a result of a grievance filed by the players’ union. The central issue is whether the Hosmer and Pirates draft pick Pedro Alvarez agreed to terms prior to the 11 p.m. deadline on Aug. 15.
  • Right-hander Greg Reynolds was officially added to the Rockies roster on Friday. His addition was delayed because he started Monday and needed the off time before he could be used in a game. The Rockies are unbelievably only five games back in the NL West.
  • Adam Dunn says winning will be his number one priority when he signs with a new team this winter. Sorry, Pirates fans.

Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com and can be reached here.

Odds And Ends: Bradley, Rodriguez

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Some links this Saturday morning; I’ll add more to the list as the day’s news progresses.

Alejandro A. Leal writes for UmpBump.com. Comments? Rumors? alexo05 (at) umpbump (dot) com

Heyman’s Latest: Padres, Lowe, Manny, Minaya

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Let’s take a look at what SI.com’s Jon Heyman has for us today.

  • The Padres might be looking to slash their already-low payroll. With Kevin Towers, Paul DePodesta, and Sandy Alderson on staff, they might be able to do it. The question is of how competitive they’ll be in ’09.  For more on the topic, check out our Padres Offseason Outlook.
  • Towers thinks that when it comes to free agents, no one does it better than Pat Gillick.
  • Will the Dodgers retain Manny Ramirez? Tough to say. Owner Frank McCourt might not want to spend the dough. Then again, with Manny’s jersey going for over $300 at Dodger Stadium — no, that’s not a typo — he might keep him on as an attraction. If only they weren’t so committed to Juan Pierre.
  • It doesn’t appear likely Derek Lowe will don Dodger blue next season. He’s had a few rough starts this season, but is still pitching to a 3.69 ERA, and his walks are low. He’ll get a nice contract somewhere, and won’t cost a draft pick.
  • The Mets want to extend Omar Minaya’s contract, which expires after the 2009 season.

Odds and Ends: Bass, Astros, Beltre, Marlins

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A roundup of links for your afternoon reading:

A Tale Of Two Second Basemen: Hudson, Castillo

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Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News, via MetsBlog, notes that the Mets are looking to shop Luis Castillo this off-season. This comes just one year after the team signed him to a four-year, $25MM deal. His aching knees have limited him to just over 300 plate appearances this year. It’s not clear who would want Castillo, nor how much salary the Mets would need to eat.

One speculated target is Orlando Hudson, who sits atop an uninspiring class of free agent second basemen. He’ll be in high demand, of course. The Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro talks about Hudson’s fate. He doesn’t seem optimistic that Hudson will return to the Diamondbacks next season. He talks about the team’s options, including moving Mark Reynolds to second and signing a third baseman, or acquiring a second baseman in a trade, possibly Mark Ellis or Robinson Cano.

In my own speculation, I can see the D’backs going for a one-year stopgap like Mark Grudzielanek or Ray Durham, rather than trading away even more of their farm for a longer-term solution. The Yankees would likely ask the moon for Cano, despite his disappointing season. Ellis does sound intriguing, though. Billy Beane and Josh Byrnes hooked up successfully this past off-season in the Dan Haren trade.

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