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Archives for August 2009

Odds & Ends: Duncan, Draft, A’s

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A couple of links as we head toward an afternoon of baseball…

  • As Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports, manager Tony La Russa doesn't believe Chris Duncan, who was recently released from the Red Sox, will want to rejoin the Cards. "That's his call," the skipper said Friday. "It's not ours. My guess is he's not real pleased with us."
  • Maury Brown of "The Biz of Baseball" has a review of MLB's draft slot recommendation system.  His conclusion?  It needs fixing.
  • Matthew Pouliot of NBCSports.com continues his "Restoring the Rosters" series with a look at the Oakland A's. It's a must-read for all of you Moneyball fans.
  • MLBTR's own Mike Axisa takes a closer look at the Dustin Pedroia–Robinson Cano debate over at River Ave. Blues.  Joel Sherman first drummed up the discussion with this piece in the New York Post, in which he asked seven MLB executives to choose between the two second basemen.

Discussion: Johnny Damon

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On the first three years of his four-year, $52MM deal, Johnny Damon had been an above-average outfielder for the Yankees, worth roughly $36MM of the $39MM he was paid according to Fangraphs' metrics. This year, however, Damon is on pace for a career season at age 35, and is set to surpass his career high in homers while currently holding a stout .284/.364/.517 slash line. It's got all the makings of the infamous "contract year," and Damon has recently expressed an interest in staying with the Yankees.

Earlier in the year, Damon said he'd prefer to get a two-year deal, but said he'd settle for a one year deal with a vesting option if need be. He also said back in May he didn't expect to be brought back in pinstripes, but now it looks like the Yankees may consider taking him on in a one-year deal through arbitration as Damon is set to become a Type A free agent. 

Damon has a .979 OPS at the new Yankee stadium and .785 away from there, and much has been made of the park being a haven for left-handed batters, so perhaps it'd behoove him to stay there. Arbitration is a possibility for the Yankees, but Damon is probably due for a large raise and the Yankees have been uncharacteristically stingy of late. They also declined to go into arbitration with Bobby Abreu last season. And perhaps a multi-year offer could tempt him out of New York, despite his desire to stay.

So a couple questions here: If you're the Yankees, would it be an easy call to offer Damon arbitration? Or should they hand him a multi-year contract instead? If the Yankees do offer arbitration, do you see Damon accepting or opting for greener pastures? Have at it in the comments.

Odds & Ends: Padres, Rockies, Second Basemen

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Some links to peruse this morning:

  • Joel Sherman at the New York Post asked seven top team executives who they'd rather have manning second base over the next five years: Dustin Pedroia or Robinson Cano? Click over for the results.
  • Bill Center at the San Diego Union-Tribune hears that the the Padres are interested in keeping impending free agent backstop Henry Blanco.
  • The Rockies' newly-signed lefty phenom Tyler Matzek said a "gut feeling" led him to ink his $3.9MM deal with the team with only 10 minutes left till deadline, forgoing his career at the University of Oregon, according to the Associated Press. My gut says that $3.9MM is kind of a lot of money, but that could be just me.

Cubs Rumors: Sale, Hendry, Piniella

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The Cubs' sale to the Ricketts family has been finalized, which should bring some shred of optimism amidst the already-defeatist tone some of these stories have taken during the Cubs' current slump:

  • Gordon Wittenmyer at the Chicago Sun-Times talked to 3B Aramis Ramirez, who gave the oft-maligned GM Jim Hendry a vote of confidence. "I hope he stays…He's done his job," Ramirez said.
  • In the same article, Hendry says he won't use the previously looming uncertainty of ownership as an excuse for the Cubs' problems, acknowledging the Cubs' high payroll of around $140MM in recent past.
  • Wittenmyer also heard that Lou Piniella intends to return to manage the Cubs in 2010, the final year of his contract, despite not giving hard answers on his return earlier this season. He cites the sale as a reason to stay.
  • Rick Morrissey at the Chicago Tribune says that there are "no quick fixes" with this Cubs team and that fans should temper their expectations with the new ownership group.

Brewers Not Prepared To Sell

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Tom Haudricourt at the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel got word from Brewers GM Doug Melvin that the team is not prepared to go into "selling mode" as the August 31 waiver deadline approaches. The Brewers have fallen to 10 1/2 games behind the first-place Cardinals in the NL Central. Says Melvin:

"Teams aren’t interested in giving up good players at this point on waiver claims…I don’t see getting anything back in return that would make it worth doing."

Haudricourt mentions Mike Cameron, Jason Kendall and Trevor Hoffman as pieces that could potentially attract teams. Cameron is the most expensive of the three, with a base salary of $10MM this season and a number of incentives that are likely to vest before he's a free agent after this year. He seems like a piece that could have some value to other teams as the deadline approaches and represents a solid chunk of salary that could ease up Melvin's payroll.

Odds & Ends: Duchscherer, Clark, Wagner

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Friday Night Lights Links…

  • Justin Duchscherer will miss the rest of the season with clinical depression according to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. He's been on the disabled list just about all season with an elbow issue, but this is just sad, sad news. CSN California first had the scoop earlier tonight. Duke is scheduled to become a free agent after the season.
  • MLB.com's Steve Gilbert reports that Tony Clark has had discussions with the Diamondbacks about possibly joining the team in a baseball operations role. The club released Clark last month.
  • Joel Sherman of The NY Post spoke to an AL executive who speculates (key word) that the Red Sox "claimed (Billy) Wagner over worries that (Jonathan) Papelbon's mechanics and control are off." Remember, the key word is speculates.
  • LeVon Washington, Tampa Bay's unsigned first round pick, has choosen to attend JuCo powerhouse Chipola College next season according to Marc Lancaster of The Tampa Tribune. The school has produced Buck Showalter, Mat Gamel, and Russell Martin, among others. Washington will be eligible for the draft again next year.

Discussion: Akinori Iwamura

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The Rays lost starting second baseman Akinori Iwamura to a knee injury earlier in the season, but the defending AL Champs haven't missed him too much because Ben Zobrist has been nothing short of amazing as his replacement. With Aki on a rehab assignment (six games with Triple-A Durham this week, including tonight), the Rays are close to getting him back just in time for September call-ups.

While carrying both players in September won't be much of a problem, next season may be a different story. The team holds a $4.25MM options for Iwamura's services next year, but could choose to buy him out for $250K. There has been talk of Tampa needing to shed some salary after the season, possibly by moving someone like Scott Kazmir or Carl Crawford, and the team could stand to save themselves a nice chunk of change by buying Iwamura out. Of course, they always have the option of keeping both players given Zobrist's versatility.

What do you think they should do with Iwamura? Perhaps the best option would be to pick up his option then trade him, similar to what the Yankees did with Gary Sheffield a few years ago. Should they let him go, keep him, or do something else all together?

Odds & Ends: Cubs, Sheffield, Brewers, Relievers

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Here's a few links to take in as you recover from the work week…

  • Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball reports that The Tribune Co. has reached an agreement to sell a 95% interest in the Cubs to The Ricketts Family
  • Bart Hubbuch of The NY Post tweets that Omar Minaya said the Mets "have no intentions of releasing Gary Sheffield or putting him on irrevocable waivers."
  • Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel reports that the Brewers have designated catcher Carlos Corporan for assignment. Corporan singled in the only big league plate appearance of his career back in May.
  • Cliff Corcoran at SI.com ranks the top ten setup men in the league. Two of them were acquired not long before this year's trade deadline, one signed as a free agent last winter, and another signed a long-term extension before the season. A fifth player wasn't even in the big leagues at the start of the year.
  • Make sure you follow MLBTR on Twitter. It's the future, man. 

Billy Wagner Claimed On Waivers By Red Sox

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6:08pm: Rosenthal updated his post to say the Mets "will be reluctant to include money in a deal, according to a source with knowledge of the club's thinking."

5:05pm: Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com reports that the Red Sox claimed Wagner. The two clubs have until 1pm ET on Tuesday to work out a deal. Earlier today we noted that Boston would like to add the veteran southpaw to their bullpen.

4:55pm: MLB.com's Todd Zolecki says the Phillies didn't claim Wagner.

3:06pm: Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel says it's "almost inconceivable" that the Marlins would commit to about $3.5MM for a six week rental.

2:28pm: Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that an unknown team has claimed Billy Wagner on waivers. Wagner, who has $2.5MM coming his way before the end of the season, will make $8MM next year if his team doesn't buy him out for $1MM. The Mets now have three days to work out a trade with the claiming team. Afterwards, they can either pull him back off waivers or allow the other team to take him and pay his contract, Alex Rios-style.

The Mets placed Wagner on waivers two days ago and we have since learned that the Rays and Marlins are thought to have interest. Wagner, 38, was sharp in his return from the DL yesterday, hitting 96 mph in a  quick inning of work.

Newsday's David Lennon checked in with Wagner and the lefty sounds open to a deal.

"Might be the closest I ever get to a World Series," he said.

Odds And Ends: Astros, Mets, Phillies, Wagner

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Links for the afternoon…

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