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Archives for June 2009

Nady’s Season Over

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UPDATE 7:17pm: The New York Post's George A. King III says Nady needs Tommy John surgery and is done for the season. King adds,

"Quietly the Yankees were hoping to have Nady's right-handed bat to help out in right field, where switch-hitter Nick Swisher is playing every day. Now that won't happen. And though GM Brian Cashman said this week 'a bat isn't needed,' knowing that Nady isn't returning might change the Yankees' mind."

6:07pm: During an International league game in Syracuse, Xavier Nady reported "significant discomfort" in his right arm after completing two throws from the outfield. Bryan Hoch of MLB.com says Nady could be done for the season which, if true, would snuff out any flickering speculation that the Yankees would or should consider dealing him or Nick Swisher upon Nady's return.

"Yankees manager Joe Girardi exchanged text messages with Nady and said there is discussion of flying the outfielder to California to visit with Dr. Lewis Yocum, who performed Nady's original September 2001 Tommy John surgery. A repeat procedure would wipe out Nady's 2009 season."

Benjamin Kabak at River Ave. Blues has more. Buster Olney recently noted the Yankees were not looking to deal either Nady or Swisher.

Jamie Burke DFA’d Again

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According to Larry LaRue of the Seattle News Tribune, reserve Jamie Burke was designated for assignment by the Marines today to make room for Kenji Johjima. This marks the third time this season that the veteran catcher has been DFA'd. Says LaRue,

Over the next 10 days, Burke, 37, will either be traded, claimed by another team or offered a minor league deal. LaRue writes,

"He still wants to play, thinks he can still help a pitching staff, still do the small things a reserve is asked to do. Will he ever get another chance? That's uncertain, and he knows it. If he returns to the Seattle minor league system, he could be brought up in September – but the Mariners by then could want to look, instead, at Adam Moore."

Option Years

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Teams use options to shuttle players on their 40-man roster to and from the minor leagues risk-free. Here are a few specifics to round out this MLBTR Glossary entry:

  • Once a player is on his team's 40-man roster, his club has three separate seasons over the course of which it can promote and demote the player without exposing him to other teams.
  • Minor leaguers on the 40-man roster are on an optional assignment.
  • They can be promoted and demoted an unlimited number of times within an option year. 
  • Once a player's three option years are up, he must clear waivers before going to the minors.  
  • Options aren't used on players who spend less than 20 days in the minors.  
  • Players with five years of service time can't be optioned to the minors without consent.  

Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts.

Elias Rankings

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At the end of each season, The Elias Sports Bureau ranks all MLB players numerically based on a bunch of stats.  Every player is categorized in one of five position groups and by league.  The rankings cover a two-year time period.  They are used to determine whether free agents are Type A, Type B, or neither.  If you'd like a reminder on how draft pick compensation works, read up here.

Eddie Bajek of Detroit Tigers Thoughts reverse-engineered the Elias Rankings last year.  Eddie's incredible work was made possible in large part due to information provided by ESPN's Keith Law.  Eddie is now providing the rankings exclusively to MLB Trade Rumors.  Today's snapshot covers the beginning of the 2008 season through June 25th of 2009.  So the rankings will obviously change over the next few months. 

Click here to see the latest Elias Rankings.

Odds And Ends: Sano, Rays, Mateo

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More links for your Friday afternoon…

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Harper, A-Rod, Dice-K, A’s

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On this date 45 years ago, in the final year before Major League Baseball instituted the amateur draft, Rick Reichardt was signed by the Los Angeles Angels for $200K. At the time, it was the largest signing bonus ever given to an amateur baseball player. Reichardt would only play 57 minor league games before making his big league debut later that year. He would go on to play 11 seasons with four franchises. With this year's draft class starting to sign their first contracts, let's take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…

  • Jorge Says No! says MLB should consider moving the trade deadline since the introduction of the wild card leaves more teams in contention in July.
  • Sully Baseball says it is hypocritical to criticize Bryce Harper for wanting to turn pro at age 16.
  • River Ave. Blues suggests that if the Yankees could have one contract absorbed by MLB it would be Alex Rodriguez's.
  • Around the Majors takes a look at Scott Boras' upcoming free agent class, which includes Eric Gagne, who has been converted back to a starter.
  • MLB Notebook wonders who the A's can trade outside of Matt Holliday.
  • Fire Brand of the American League looks at whether Daisuke Matsuzaka has been worth the contract he signed.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here, and followed on Twitter here.

Heyman On Tigers, Lee, Holliday

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Jon Heyman of SI.com says Joe Girardi and Jim Tracy have no guarantees beyond this year. Manny Acta and Eric Wedge, who have both been on the hot seat lately, have no guarantees either. Here are Heyman's latest rumors:

  • The Tigers could acquire a pitcher, a hitter, or both. For now, GM Dave Dombrowski says they're "monitoring" the market.
  • Heyman applauds the Tigers for drafting Rick Porcello and trading for Edwin Jackson. 
  • Indians GM Mark Shapiro on the chances he deals Cliff Lee: "unlikely to almost impossible."
  • The Rangers and Phillies are two contenders who could overwhelm the Indians with a prospect-rich offer for Lee.  
  • Matt Holliday, who Heyman calls "the most likely star to be traded," makes $13.5MM this year, so the A's may have to pick up some salary if they deal him, especially if they want to receive top prospects in return.  
  • The Mets deserve credit for finding Fernando Nieve on the Astros' scrap heap.  

Cardinals To Sign Wagner Mateo

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FRIDAY, 2:42pm: ESPN.com's Jorge Arangure reports that the Cardinals will sign Mateo for $3.1MM. GM John Mozeliak solidified the agreement at Mateo's house. The Giants nearly offered him $3.5MM, but backed off at the last minute. 

THURSDAY, 7:42pm: According to Baseball America's Ben Badler, the Cardinals are "zeroing in" on 16-year-old outfielder Wagner Mateo, and are prepared to offer him a $3MM signing bonus. 

The international signing period begins July 2.  If Mateo does indeed land $3MM, it would be the second-highest chunk of money ever tendered to a Latin American amateur.  Oakland right-hander Michael Ynoa (or Inoa, depending who you ask) set the all-time record last year when he landed a $4.25MM bonus.  The Cardinals began negotiations with Mateo in late May.

Where Will Mark DeRosa End Up?

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There aren't many hitters available, Mark DeRosa would help just about any team and the Indians are 11.0 games out of a playoff spot, so DeRosa's naturally been the subject of recent rumors. But it's hard to predict where he'll end up, because there are so many choices. Here are some of the teams rumored to have interest in the free agent-to-be

  • DeRosa would be a great fit for the Cardinals or Mets and both clubs have interest in him.
  • DeRosa could play third for the Cardinals and shift positions if Troy Glaus returns.  
  • The Cubs have thought about reacquiring him.
  • The Brewers are hoping Casey McGehee can be their own version of DeRosa and he's certainly impressed so far, with an OPS of .925 accumulated at three different positions. However, McGehee has only played 46 career games.
  • The Marlins have interest in DeRosa. 
  • The Giants are looking for a bat, and DeRosa could fit their needs. 
  • The Reds are buyers and DeRosa could play third base and left field for Cincy. 
  • Could he fit on the Tigers? The Indians might prefer not to deal within their division. 
  • And Cleveland could always decide to keep him. 

Where do you see DeRosa and his $5.5MM contract ending up on August 1st? 

Norris Hopper Traded For Corky Miller

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Tim Curtis of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds traded Norris Hopper to the White Sox in exchange for Corky Miller. Miller, a 33-year-old catcher, began his career with the Reds and played four seasons in Cincinnati from 2001-04. He's played for four major league teams since, most recently for the White Sox. He'll restart his Reds career in Triple A.

Hopper, 30, has played parts of three seasons for the Reds, but hasn't played in the majors so far in 2009.

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