Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reports that the Royals designated Luis Hernandez for assignment to make room for the newly-acquired Ryan Freel. Hernandez, a 25-year-old utilityman, hit .204/.235/.204 in 53 plate appearances for the Royals this year. He spent parts of two years with the Orioles before signing a minor league deal with Kansas City before the season.
Archives for July 2009
Rockies Sign Rex Brothers, Two More
The Rockies signed three picks, including supplemental rounder Rex Brothers, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. The Rockies, who selected Brothers 34th overall, haven't disclosed the terms of the bonus they awarded their new pitcher. It figures to be slightly less than the $900k they awarded Tim Wheeler, who they selected two picks before Brothers. Baseball America's Jim Callis reports that Brothers agreed to a $969k bonus.
They also signed second rounder Nolan Arenado and third rounder Ben Paulsen.
Cubs Sale Still Unresolved
TUESDAY, 1:06pm: ChicagoBusiness.com passes on a Reuters report informing us that the Tribune has not reached a final agreement with the Ricketts family or Marc Utay, who submitted a rival bid for the team.
MONDAY, 10:40am: Ameet Sachdev reports on ChicagoBreakingNews.com that Tribune Co. has reached a deal to sell the Cubs and Wrigley Field to the Ricketts family for about $900MM. The deal must now be court-approved and accepted by other MLB owners. Ben Klayman of Reuters hears that the price is slightly lower than the original bid of $900MM.
This move could give the Cubs the financial flexibility to take on salary at the deadline.
Ricciardi: Jays “Have To Listen” On Halladay
1:00pm: Ricciardi told MLB.com's Jordan Bastian that he's not shopping Halladay, he's just open to hearing offers. The Jays would have to be overwhelmed to make a deal.
8:20am: Roy Halladay might be the best pitcher in the game; he's definitely the best pitcher on the trade market. Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that he's ready to listen to offers for his ace pitcher.
"We have to see what's out there," Ricciardi said. "I'm not saying we're going to shop him. But if something makes sense, we at least have to listen. We're more toward listening than we've ever been."
We heard hints that Halladay could be available yesterday, but now there's no doubt: the Jays are ready to part with him in the right deal. Rosenthal believes "Halladay is a goner," saying it's "almost impossible to stop" the process of selling a player once it starts, but Ricciardi said the Jays won't deal Halladay if the right offer doesn't surface.
Given teams' unwillingness to take on salary and part with prospects, there's no guarantee that the Jays will receive a blockbuster offer. Halladay has a no trade clause and is under contract for this year ($14.25MM) and next ($15.75MM). The Jays also owe Alex Rios and Vernon Wells about $160MM over the next five seasons, which could make it harder to pay Halladay.
Odds And Ends: O’s, Phillies, Braun, DeRosa
More links for the afternoon…
- Today's chat will take place in a little over an hour, at 2pm CST.
- It's worth checking out this Jerry Crasnick article at ESPN.com just for the photo of Nick Markakis balancing a folding chair on his chin. As Crasnick says, Markakis, Adam Jones, Nolan Reimold and Luke Scott will be an impressive group of outfielders on improved O's teams in the near future.
- In the midst of his mid-season awards, SI.com's Tom Verducci says the Tigers and Dodgers deserve credit for well-thought-out offseason moves.
- David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News lays out five possible packages the Phillies could offer the Jays for Roy Halladay. Every deal is headed by Dominic Brown or Kyle Drabek and includes other quality prospects.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Doug Melvin and Ryan Braun will meet today to discuss Braun's recent suggestion that the Brewers need pitching.
- One of this year's big acquisitions, Mark DeRosa, will hit the 15-day DL, according to Roger Hensley of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Jesus Colome Becomes A Free Agent
Jesus Colome, who was just designated for assignment by the Nationals, has chosen to become a free agent, according to Pete McElroy of MASN.com. The 31-year-old allowed nearly two baserunners per inning with the Nats for an ERA of 8.40 with 12 strikeouts.
Yesteday Colome's former teammate Kip Wells also chose free agency after being designated for assignment by the Nats.
One Year Ago: Sabathia Trade Completed
One year ago today, the Brewers and Indians officially announced the trade that sent C.C. Sabathia to Milwaukee for Matt LaPorta and others. The deal worked perfectly for the Brewers, who made the playoffs thanks to 13 dominant starts by Sabathia, including seven complete games and three shutouts. The Brewers also received two compensation picks for losing Sabathia in free agency, which they used last month to select Kentrail Davis and Maxwell Walla.
The Indians received LaPorta, who has hit well for them in Triple A, putting up a .307/.384/.535 line with 27 extra base hits this year. He struggled in 49 big league plate appearances, hitting .190/.286/.286 with one homer. LaPorta's more valuable than the Davis-Walla combination and should be a contributor on Indians teams for years.
As this blockbuster deal shows, trades are not necessarily a zero-sum game; both teams can benefit from the right move.
Olney On Pedro, Holliday, Hairston, Manny
The Phillies are going to watch Pedro Martinez throw today, but he'll need more than an impressive workout to latch on with the NL East leaders, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney.
- Pedro will have to accept that teams are going to want to pay him "like a 37-year-old pitcher who had a 5.61 ERA last season," not a future Hall of Famer.
- Olney wonders whether Pedro's low ground ball rate might prevent him from succeeding at Citizens Bank Park.
- The A's aren't currently involved in trade talks regarding Matt Holliday or the recently-acquired Scott Hairston.
- One scout who watched Manny Ramirez this week said he looked "heavy-legged" and out of shape.
Sabean: Giants Still Looking For Bats
Giants GM Brian Sabean told Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News that there are no impact bats available for a reasonable cost. As much as he would like a true middle-of-the-order hitter, Sabean won't deal top prospects like Madison Bumgarner to acquire one.
Sabean says he's not interested in free agents-to-be, which rules out Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff and Adam LaRoche. Adam Dunn and Garrett Atkins are middle-of-the-order bats who aren't about to hit free agency, but Sabean doesn't want to surrender big prospects to acquire such a hitter.
Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News points out that Randy Johnson's injury makes Jonathan Sanchez a little less expendable in any possible deals, at least for now.
Odds And Ends: Bedard, Astros, Marquis
Links for Tuesday morning…
- Be here at 2pm CST for this week's chat.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette profiles controversial acquisition Lastings Milledge, who seems energized and motivated.
- It would be hard to argue with Amber Theoharis of MASN.com, who says the Orioles won the Erik Bedard deal since they acquired two All-Stars in George Sherrill and Adam Jones.
- As MLB.com's Christian Caple reports, Bedard will be on a 60 pitch limit as he returns to the hill tonight against his former team.
- Nomar Garciaparra told Mike McDermott of the Providence Journal that he didn't turn down $60MM from the Red Sox.
- Experts consider the Astros' system weak, but at least they have Bud Norris and Yorman Bazardo in Triple A, as Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- The Jason Marquis deal has worked out better-than-expected for the Rockies, but, as Dave Krieger of the Denver Post notes, the Rockies have made plenty of smart deals over the years.
