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According to Scott Lauber of the Wilmington Journal, the Phillies have released 34-year-old infielder Pablo Ozuna.
Ozuna was batting .294/.342/.396 with no home runs and 15 RBI in 187 at-bats at Triple-A Lehigh Valley before he was suspended for a positive PED test in June. He appeared in 68 major league games last season during stays with the White Sox and Dodgers.
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2:46pm: It's a straight waiver claim, according to Slusser, so the A's will receive nothing in return (besides a small payroll cut). Here's A's assistant GM David Forst:
"We felt like it was a good opportunity to see some guys in Triple-A the last month of the season, and it gives Russ the chance to pitch in a pennant race. That's something he deserves at this point in his career. He's done a great job for us and he's been a great mentor for our youngsters."
2:31pm: According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Rays have claimed reliever Russ Springer off waivers from the Athletics.
Springer, a 40-year-old right-hander, had a 4.10 ERA and a 47/14 K/BB ratio in 41 2/3 innings out of the Oakland bullpen this season.
By Eddie Schmid | at
Earlier today, Ray Ratto at the San Francisco Chronicle decried Billy Beane's propensity to sign aging former stars to one-year deals, citing the recent release of Jason Giambi as another failed experiment:
"The final point here is that Beane is finally going to have to make his next stand without the benefit of 35-plus hope-and-a-prayer guys whose only benefit is that they're available. It's a short-stack strategy whose failures far exceed all the benefits of the one time it worked."
With many players facing team budget crunches, there were no shortage of these types of deals this past offseason. Using Ratto's criteria of "35-plus hope-and-a-prayer guys," let's check out the performances of some of this past year's veteran one-year gambles, sticking specifically to hitters and starters who once flashed star-level success at the big league level, and deals with guaranteed major-league money:
HITTERS
STARTING PITCHERS
Hampton has had his moments and Anderson, Varitek and Cabrera have been passable, but it looks like the only real win from this group was Bobby Abreu, and he was probably less of a "gamble" in the sense that he had a fairly clean bill of health and success up to his signing. Gambling on veteran stars has been like playing roulette for many teams this season. Let me know if you think I missed anyone notable in the comments and we'll add them to the list.
By Eddie Schmid | at
On this day last year, Brian Giles invoked his no-trade clause in a deal that would have sent him to Boston. Some links:
By Eddie Schmid | at
According to Rick Brown at the Des Moines Register, the Mets acquired outfielder Jason Dubois from the Cubs last night for cash considerations. Dubois, 30, hasn't played in the majors since 2005, but has put up a solid .302/.390/.502 line for AAA Iowa this year. He could find time from the big-league bench with the Mets' injury issues.
By Eddie Schmid | at
According to Marc Topkin at the St. Petersburg Times, the Rays have designated backup catcher Michel Hernandez for assignment. He'll make room for the newly-acquired Gregg Zaun. The 30-year-old Hernandez put up a .242/.292/.343 line in 107 plate appearances for the Rays this year.
By Mike Axisa | at
When the Red Sox designated John Smoltz for assignment earlier today, it was only a matter of time before we started hearing if clubs were interested in his services or not. Matt Baker at The News Leader caught up with Cardinals GM John Mozeliak, who said "Right now I would say no, but things can change,” when asked if he had interest in the future Hall of Famer.
St. Louis added $6.6MM to their payroll with their deadline acquisitions, but the Red Sox would be on the hook for all but the pro-rated portion of the minimum should he be released. Perhaps more importantly, Smoltz would have to decide to continue his career first.
Mozeliak also said that he's "very optimistic we’ll get something worked out" with top pick Shelby Miller, who remains unsigned.
By Mike Axisa | at
More odds, more ends, more links…
By Mike Axisa | at
Evan Grant of D Magazine reports that the Rangers have designated righthander Vicente Padilla for assignment. Grant says the team has "no plans on bringing him back." Padilla went unclaimed when the team placed him on waivers in early June.
With a 4.90 ERA in 103 starts for Texas, it's safe to say the Rangers didn't get the return they were seeking on the three year, $33.75MM deal they gave Padilla before the 2007 season. There is roughly $4MM left on Padilla's contract for this season, not to mention a $1.75MM buyout for next year's option.
By Ben Nicholson-Smith | at
6:04pm: Baseball America's Jim Callis reports that Cain received a $1.125MM bonus.
1:23pm: Via Twitter, Mayo reports that Cain's bonus is worth more than $1.1MM and less than $1.2MM.
12:45pm: The Pirates are set to sign eighth round pick Colton Cain for at least $1MM, according to MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo. We heard the sides were close to a deal this morning, but there was no indication that it would reach seven figures. After shedding over $7MM in salary at the deadline, the Pirates appear to be re-investing in their system. It's safe to say the commissioner's office won't be pleased to hear of a late-round bonus this high.
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