Links for Saturday..
- White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter) that the team has the financial freedom to add pieces, though he added the team "might be good enough the way it is". Meanwhile, Reinsdorf said that GM Kenny Williams has the power to fire the manager, though that isn't in his plans, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.
- Fred Lewis told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that his improved performance in Toronto isn't a result of a change of scenery. Lewis is OPSing .799 for the Blue Jays, a marked improvement over his OPS of .738 for the Giants in 2009.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter) wonders aloud if Nolan Ryan's recent comments regarding Roy Oswalt could be considered tampering.
- Ken Davidoff of Newsday tweets that a Mets scout was on hand to watch Lee last night, though it was said to be part of "normal coverage".
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post says that despite all the talk about Cliff Lee, the Yankees might need to fixate on adding a bat between now and the trade deadline.
- Speaking of Lee, Ryan Divish of The News Tribune mentions that the lefty shrugs off all the trade talk. “It’s out of my control,” said Lee. “That’s a better question for Jack [Zduriencik]. He’s the one who makes those decisions, but I don’t.”
- The Astros are pleased with how negotiations with top draft pick Delino DeShields Jr. are going, reports Bernardo Fallas of The Houston Chronicle. Houston selected DeShields with the eighth overall pick last week.
- Daric Barton told Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he's grateful for being included in the Mark Mulder trade because it created an opportunity for him. "For me, it was probably the best move that could have happened to me," said Barton. "I was catching then and (Yadier Molina) was back there then, and some guy by the name of (Albert) Pujols was at first. Obviously, I could never fill his shoes."
It true that the Yankees true problem has not been pitching. They simply need to get their offense going again. It’s similar to what the Phillies were going through a little while ago. The hitters will eventually come out of it. What they really need is some bullpen help. The bullpen has been quite terrible of late. Instead of using their prospects to get Lee or Oswalt, why not get some bullpen help and possibly an OF/DH.
If anything, the Yankees need a gun for anytime Joe Girardi signals Chan Ho Park into the game.
indeed sir… they need a reliable set up man, or someone that can set up until joba gets his head straight.
Not trading a top hitting prospect with Miguel Cabrera minor league numbers for a third hamstring starter salary and half a season adding to the biggest strength of the team.
For all we know a healthy Montero might be the offensive answer come September and into the playoffs
.248/.315/.390 in 200+ AAA ABs this year… So, very doubtful that he is ready to come up and be an impact player this year.