Archives for August 2009

Week In Review: 8/2/09 – 8/8/09

By Mike Axisa | August 9, 2009 at 8:42pm CDT

Post-trade deadline lull be damned, there was still a flurry of moves and rumors last week. Let's recap…

We learned of a few failed trades in the week after the trade deadline, none bigger than a three-way deal that would have sent Felix Hernandez to Boston, Adrian Gonzalez to Seattle, and a horde of prospects to San Diego. Contrary to some reports, the Dodgers were "never close" to dealing first baseman James Loney.
Blue Jays outfielder Alex Rios was claimed off waivers, possibly by the White Sox. We won't know for sure which team won the claim until early next week, however. The 28-yr old Rios is guaranteed more than $60MM through 2014, so the Jays have a tremendous opportunity to free up some money for the future should they decide to unload him.
In the "wow, I didn't think they'd actually do it" move of the week, the Red Sox designated the struggling John Smoltz for assignment. We know one team that's unlikely to pursue the future Hall of Famer, and that's the Cardinals. In their perpetual search for a shortstop, Boston put in a waiver claim for the Nationals' Cristian Guzman, while also signing veteran Paul Byrd to a minor league deal for depth. The Sox may also listen to offers for Daisuke Matsuzaka in the future.
In need of another arm for their rotation, the Twins sent a player to be named later to the Indians for Carl Pavano. Cleveland gets some salary relief out of the deal, as Minnesota will pay what's left on his contract.
Stuck battling for a playoff spot, the Rays bolstered their roster by claiming reliever Russ Springer off waivers from the A's and trading a PTBNL or cash for backstop Gregg Zaun. One of the teams battling the Rays for a playoff spot, the Rangers, went with additon by subtraction by designating Vicente Padilla for assignment.
The Brewers acquired veteran reliever David Weathers from the Reds in exchange for prospects or cash to shore up the bullpen down the stretch, while the Yankees did the same by acquiring Chad Gaudin from the Padres.
After hitting just .193-.332-.364 in 83 games, Oakland released the injured Jason Giambi. The Cubs cut B.J. Ryan after he asked for his release.
On the amateur front, the Pirates broke the bank to sign sixth rounder Zach Von Rosenberg and eighth rounder Colton Cain to seven figure bonuses. The Braves signed first rounder Mike Minor to the largest bonus in club history, which was also the largest bonus ever given out to a seventh overall pick. We also learned that the signing deadline does not apply to Aaron Crow and Tanner Scheppers since they played in independent ball last season. They're free to sign at any point up until a week before next year's draft. The investigation into Miguel Angel Sano's age is still ongoing, while Cuban defectees Yadel Marti, Yasser Gomez, and Juan Yasser were declared free agents.

Elias Rankings Update

By Tim Dierkes | August 9, 2009 at 7:55pm CDT

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 August 15th, 2009. The rankings will change over the remainder of the season. Keep in mind that if players change leagues, they are ranked in their new league.

Click here to see the latest Elias Rankings.

Odds & Ends: Smoltz, Nationals GM, Chapman, Orioles

By Mike Axisa | August 9, 2009 at 7:26pm CDT

A couple of links on a lazy Sunday…

ESPN's Buster Olney reports that the Texas Rangers and several NL teams have expressed interest in acquiring John Smoltz. The 42-yr old is mulling his options at the moment, but Olney says it's "highly unlikely that any NL team would be willing to take Smoltz in a trade without some financial adjustment."
Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe says that there is lots of "chatter among major league sources in Washington that Diamondbacks director of scouting and player development Jerry Dipoto is the leading candidate to be Nationals general manager." He mentions that Red Sox assistant GM Jed Hoyer has also been mentioned as a candidate, and that the club is also considering giving interm GM Mike Rizzo the job on a permanent basis.
This one's a bit old, but Peter Bjarkman balances out some of the hype we've heard about Cuban defectee Aroldis Chapman, citing his lack of control in the strike zone and his pedestrian track record in the Cuban National League. (h/t Patrick at NPB Tracker)
Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun reports that Aubrey Huff, Melvin Mora, and Danys Baez have cleared waivers. Mora expressed his displeasure with Baltimore earlier in the week. Remember, you can find our list of players who've cleared waivers featured on the sidebar.

Sherman On Mets’ Offseason Needs

By Mike Axisa | August 9, 2009 at 6:00pm CDT

In his Hardball column for The NY Post, Joel Sherman examines what the Mets should do in the offseason to get the team back to being competitive next year. He notes that the club is likely to operate with a smaller payroll in 2010 because of the financial hit owners Fred and Jeff Wilpon have taken this year, but they'll still need to address positions like catcher, first base, and left field, not to mention multiple spots on the pitching staff.

Sherman suggests the Mets "protect their thin prospect base" after sacrificing so many young players in trades for Johan Santana and J.J. Putz over the last two seasons, and that creating better 25- and 40-man roster depth is imperative considering how the team's skill level thins out beyond it's elite players.

It's unlikely the club will be able to afford big ticket free agents like Matt Holliday and John Lackey, and should instead "augment with good, versatile players" like Mark DeRosa and Chone Figgins. What do you guys think the Mets need to do to get to being a contender?

Red Sox DFA Enrique Gonzalez

By Mike Axisa | August 9, 2009 at 5:07pm CDT

Amalie Benjamin of The Boston Globe tweets that the Red Sox have designated righthander Enrique Gonzalez for assignment to make room on the roster for Fernando Cabrera. Like Josh Towers, Gonzalez was called up yesterday as bullpen insurance following Friday's 15-inning marathon in the Bronx.

Gonzalez had spent the entire season with Triple-A Pawtucket prior to yesterday's callup, pitching to a 5.31 ERA in 21 starts. Gonzalez allowed two runs in 1.2 IP yesterday.

Knobler’s Latest: Rios, Tejada, Rays

By Steve Adams | August 9, 2009 at 4:40pm CDT

Danny Knobler from CBS Sports writes that two baseball sources have confirmed to CBS Sports that Alex Rios was claimed on waivers, and one source stated that he was claimed by the White Sox. Knobler says that the Jays will keep Rios if they're not offered enough in return.

Additionally, an unknown team placed a waiver claim on Houston shortstop Miguel Tejada. The Astros have since pulled Tejada back. Any guesses as to who the claiming team was?

Knobler also says that the Rays have been very active in placing claims on any low-salary players, in order to block them from being traded to the Red Sox or Yankees. Knobler says that the Rays, however, are not believed to be the team that claimed Tejada.

Eckstein Preferred To Stay In San Diego

By Steve Adams | August 9, 2009 at 4:07pm CDT

Corey Brock from MLB.com writes that David Eckstein told general manager Kevin Towers he'd prefer to remain in San Diego when the Twins called to ask about his availability, prior to the July 31 deadline.

According to Brock, Towers didn't want to move Eckstein but thought he owed Eckstein the chance to go to a team with some playoff hopes if he desired. Eckstein didn't:

"I want to be a guy who can help these young guys out. I don't think this club is as far off as some people think. They've got to learn how to play the game the right way, because next year, there's not going to be any excuses. These guys are starting to step up."

San Diego is in rebuild mode, with lots of young players such as Kyle Blanks, Chase Headley, and Eckstein's partner up the middle, Everth Cabrera, whom Eckstein enjoys playing with:

"Playing alongside a guy like Everth, that inspires you."

Eckstein signed a one-year deal with the Padres this offseason worth $850K, but Towers says that he'd like to talk with Eckstein about extending his contract before season's end.

Brewers Acquire David Weathers

By Steve Adams | August 9, 2009 at 3:14pm CDT

3:14pm: Fay has more on the trade. The Reds will have a pool of young players to choose from, and will have until October 15 to make a decision. They can also receive cash instead of taking a player from the pool. Fay also has comments from Weathers about the move.

2:27pm: John Fay reports that the Brewers have acquired David Weathers from the Reds for a player-to-be-named. We'll keep you updated as things develop. Tom Haudricourt confirms, via Twitter, adding that it was a waiver claim.

Weathers, 39, has pitched well this year, posting a 3.32 ERA and holding opponents to just a .199 batting average, striking out 27 through 38 innings. He has, however, allowed seven home runs this year, after allowing just six through 69.1 innings in 2008 and four through 77.2 innings in 2007.

Odds & Ends: Chapman, Pirates, Westbrook

By Steve Adams | August 9, 2009 at 2:10pm CDT

Some more links to go along with what's been a slow Sunday thus far:

If you haven't already, take a look at Jorge Arangure Jr.'s article on Aroldis Chapman. Arangure covers Chapman's journey and the decisions and sacrifices that he made when he defected from the Cuban national team. There are also two videos (one Insider only) to go along with the story. It's lengthy, but a great read. Peter Abraham offers a cautionary note regarding Chapman: "…keep in mind that the same things were being said about Jose Contreras and he’s just another guy at this point. There’s a lot more to being a great pitcher in the majors than having a good arm."
Dejan Kovacevic has some of Pirates general manager Neal Huntington's thoughts on several issues, including the club's recent losses and the need for a left-handed reliever. Jen Langosch has some of Huntington's thoughts as well, on topics including the farm system and newly-acquired Ronny Cedeno. Huntington would rather have a quality arm who can retire both left- and right-handed hitters than just a left-handed specialist.
Bad new for Indians fans: Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that Jake Westbrook experienced another setback in his recovery from Tommy John surgery, and will see Dr. Lewis Yocum this week. Westbrook isn't sure if the pain is something he should expect and work through, or if there are new issues in his arm. General manager Mark Shapiro has said that if Westbrook is healthy, he'll be Cleveland's opening day starter in 2010.
Buster Olney has a new article up, and talks about the Dodgers' shrinking lead on the NL West. Olney wonders if, with a growing need for starting pitching, the Dodgers will call on John Smoltz to try his hand back in the National League. Olney stresses that the Smoltz idea is just his own personal speculation.
Joel Sherman's Sunday Hardball column looks at how to fix the Mets for 2010. His solution begins with Mark DeRosa and Chone Figgins.

Orioles Ink Freddy Guzman

By Eddie Schmid | August 9, 2009 at 11:56am CDT

According to the Minor League Baseball transactions feed, the Orioles signed free agent OF Freddy Guzman and assigned him to AAA Norfolk. The 28-year-old Guzman last appeared in the majors in '07 for the Rangers. He'll provide some minor-league depth.

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