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Archives for June 2010

Rosenthal On Yankees, Oswalt, White Sox, Beltre

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The Yankees are not actively looking for a utility infielder, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Rosenthal names Willie Bloomquist, John McDonald and Jayson Nix as options the Yanks could consider should they decide that they want more experience than Kevin Russo and Ramiro Pena can offer. Here are the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:

  • Adrian Beltre will almost certainly reject his player option after the season and re-enter free agency. He has been one of the game's best players this year, rating characteristically well on defense (according to UZR) and hitting .336/.371/.528.
  • The Mariners won't necessarily get a first round pick in next year's draft if they hold onto Cliff Lee. First of all, a losing team could sign Lee (the first 15 picks are protected). Secondly, a team could sign Lee and a free agent who ranks higher under the Elias system. That would mean the Mariners get a supplementary rounder and a second rounder.
  • If the Rangers are sold before the winter, they could be a potential landing spot for Carl Crawford, one executive suggested.
  • Rosenthal hears that Astros owner Drayton McLane is not against the idea of trading Roy Oswalt to Texas, though the Rangers' ability to take on payroll and the pitcher's no-trade clause could prevent a deal from going through.
  • The Marlins inquired on Matt Thornton back when the White Sox were sellers. Now, the White Sox would not consider dealing the left-hander.
  • If White Sox GM Kenny Williams becomes a buyer, he may pursue a left-handed bat.
  • The Mariners want major league or major league-ready hitters for Cliff Lee, but the Dodgers' best prospects are a few years away from the majors.
  • The Rockies are interested in Ty Wigginton, according to Rosenthal's colleague, Tracy Ringolsby.
  • The Rays will look for impact players at the trade deadline.

Using Postseason Odds To Identify Sellers

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Buyers and sellers can be hard to identify this time of year, since so many teams are often within a few games of a playoff spot. It's not even July yet, but a number of clubs have extremely slim odds of becoming contenders and appear likely to sell. Here are the teams that have less than a 1% chance of making the playoffs in 2010, according to the postseason odds report at Baseball Prospectus.

  • Orioles
  • Royals
  • Indians
  • Mariners
  • Nationals
  • Astros
  • Pirates
  • Diamondbacks

Other than those eight clubs, the A's (7% chance of making the playoffs), White Sox (6%), Cubs (5%) and Brewers (2%) are potential sellers to watch. The White Sox, winners of ten of their last 12, have dramatically improved their chances of playing meaningful games down the stretch. They have shown that anything is possible, but the eight teams listed above seem like good bets to become sellers within the next six weeks. 

In case you're wondering, BP suggests the Rangers (81%) are the safest bet to make the playoffs.

Rangers Would Trade Within Division

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Rangers fans hoping for a Cliff Lee acquisition can breathe a sigh of relief. GM Jon Daniels told Anthony Andro and Jeff Wilson of the Dallas Morning News that the team would be willing to deal within the AL West.

"I'm not opposed to trading in the division, if it's the best thing for our club," Daniels said.

MLB.com reported last week that the Rangers had inquired on Lee. The Mariners don't appear to be shopping him and there's no guarantee that they would trade within the division if they make him available. Lee will become a free agent after the season, so the M's would presumably be open to trading with the Rangers if they don't see themselves contending in 2010. 

Rangers manager Ron Washington said he's happy with the team's current rotation, which features Colby Lewis and C.J. Wilson along with Scott Feldman, Tommy Hunter and, in Rich Harden's absence, Dustin Nippert. But that doesn't mean Washington would be opposed to adding an ace.

"If we don't, we can't concern ourselves with something we don't have," Washington said. "But certainly we want a front-line starter."

Lee currently profiles as a Type A free agent, so his team will have the chance to obtain a pair of top picks in next year's draft.

Some Interest In Iwamura

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Pirates GM Neal Huntington told Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that "a handful of clubs have expressed some level of interest" in Akinori Iwamura. When the Pirates designated the infielder for assignment last week, it became apparent that they would eat most of the $2.4MM owed to Iwamura in any deal.

Realistically, the Pirates have to absorb salary if they want to move Iwamura. The 31-year-old hit .182/.292/.267 in 193 plate appearances this year. That's a steep drop from his established level of production (.281/.354/.393 entering the season), so teams could think of Iwamura as a good buy-low candidate, or a player in steep decline.

The Rockies, Angels and Twins are among the teams that could use infield help. Most clubs have not been interested, but Huntington said he expects some closure early this week.

Poll: Are The White Sox Contenders?

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Two weeks ago, the White Sox appeared to be open for business. But something unexpected has happened in Chicago. In spite of the apparent tension between manager Ozzie Guillen and GM Kenny Williams, the team has gone on an extended hot streak and won ten of its last 12 games, including its last six. Sure, that six-game streak came at the expense of the Pirates and Nationals, but wins are wins. The 34-34 White Sox are 5.5 games behind the Twins in the AL Central and Guillen and Williams are presumably asking the same question everyone else is:

Are the White Sox for real?

Click here to take the survey and here to view the results.

Odds & Ends: Sale, Astros, Shealy, Orioles

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Links for Sunday night..

  • Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune points out that even though Sale signed for less than anticipated, a quick promotion to the majors would start his service time clock sooner.
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America tweets that more teams should be willing to test the resolve of college juniors, like the White Sox were with Chris Sale.
  • The moves the Astros made earlier this evening will make them younger, faster, and possibly better defensively, writes Alyson Footer of MLB.com.
  • Ryan Shealy believes that his new club will afford him a better opportunity to make a big league roster, writes Paul Kenyon for The Providence Journal.  Shealy was signed by Boston and placed in Triple-A after exercising his opt-out clause with the Rays.
  • O's scouting director Joe Jordan is hopeful that the club's agreement with fourth-round pick Trent Mummey will get the ball rolling for the rest of the team's top draftees, writes MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli.  Baltimore has now agreed to terms with 26 of their 49 selections.

Pirates Acquire Adam Davis

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The Pirates have acquired Adam Davis from the Indians, according to the MLB.com Transactions page.  Davis, 25, has been assigned to the Bradenton Marauders.

The former third-round draft pick spent the bulk of this year in advanced-A Kinston, posting a slash line of .225/.333/.375 with three homers.  He also had a five game stint for Double-A Akron where he had an OPS of .498.

Chris Sale, White Sox Reach Agreement

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The White Sox have come to terms on a deal with first-round pick Chris Sale, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America.  The pitcher, who was taken 13th overall, agreed to a bonus of $1.656MM.

The bonus figure is surprising as it is equal to MLB's bonus recommendation for his No. 13 slot in the 2009 draft.  The Florida Gulf Coast University product was considered by teams to be the first or second-best college pitcher in the draft.

While Sale will get less money than anticipated, Callis writes that he will be given every opportunity to join the big league bullpen, perhaps as early as August.  Sale will start off in high-A in Salem with the goal of jumping to Triple-A Charlotte in mid-July. 

Sale's agent, B.B. Abbott of Jet Sports Management, conceded that deal will be "perceived in the industry" as a victory for the White Sox, but believes that it is in the best interest of his client.

"While we felt extremely confident that a larger bonus would be available later in the summer, we think Chris not only has a viable opportunity to pitch in the big leagues this year, but a very good chance to do so. As we did with Zack Wheeler last year, we considered the opportunity, the risk and the reward. As clear as it was that Zack should wait, it is equally clear that this is a legitimate opportunity for Chris to pitch in the big leagues in six weeks or less with a contending team. While this was not an easy decision, we believe it is the right decision," Abbott said.

Sale is now the highest-drafted player to agree to a deal thus far.  You can keep track of the bonuses that first rounders, supplemental rounders, and other noteworthy picks obtain right here.

Angels Agree To Terms With Lindsey, Bolden, Soto

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SUNDAY, 6:31pm: Lindsey's bonus is worth $873K, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America.  The shortstop's bonus matches MLB's estimated recommendation for the No. 37 slot in 2009.

MONDAY, 9:02pm: The Angels have agreed to terms with three of their top seven picks from the June Amateur Draft.  Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times reports that supplemental pick Taylor Lindsey (the 37th overall selection) and third-rounder Wendell Soto (111th overall) agreed to deals with the club. Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com also broke the news that another supplemental round pick, 40th overall selection Ryan Bolden, had signed.  

No terms were announced, though DiGiovanna believes that Lindsey and Bolden received bonuses worth roughly $800K, or the standard amount for sandwich-round picks. Bolden gets an $830K bonus, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America.

All three players are high-schoolers.  Scottsdale native Lindsey was drafted as a shortstop but "will probably" move to second or third base (as Angels scouting director Eddie Bane told Lyle Spencer of MLB.com).  Bolden is a Mississippi outfielder who Saxon notes (via Twitter) has been "compared to Rickey Henderson."  Baseball America wasn't nearly as high on Bolden's potential, rating him as the 141st prospect overall in their pre-draft top 200 ranking.  Neither Lindsey or Soto, a switch-hitting shortstop from Florida, made Baseball America's ranking at all.  

Saxon heard from LAA general manager Tony Reagins that the Halos have signed "more than 20" other draft picks, though negotiations with third baseman Kaleb Cowart (18th overall) have been "complicated."  As Saxon notes, Cowart has signed a letter of intent to attend Florida State and was rumored to be looking for a $3MM contract offer to begin his professional career.  Reagins is "still optimistic something gets done" with Cowart.

Mets Will Transition Mejia To Starting

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ESPN's Adam Rubin reports that the Mets have optioned Jenrry Mejia to Double-A Binghamton, where he will make the transition back into a starting pitcher.

Mejia, still just 20 years old, worked exclusively as a starter across two minor league levels last season, posting a 3.14 ERA in 94.2 innings (19 starts) and notching an 8.7 K/9 to go along with a 3.7 BB/9. So far, pitching out of the New York bullpen in 2010, he's held his own, though he hasn't pitched quite as well as his 3.25 ERA following today's game suggests. He's allowed 15 free passes in just 27.2 innings of work, while striking out 17.

Much has been made of the Mets' starting pitching woes. After receiving next to nothing from the combination of Oliver Perez and John Maine, they've turned to Hisanori Takahashi and R.A. Dickey, both of whom have excelled to this point in their respective rotation roles. However, it's likely a tall order to expect those trends to continue.

Mejia certainly has the makings of a successful major league starter. Baseball America ranked him as the Mets' top prospect coming into the 2010 season, and ranked him as the #56 prospect in all of baseball. So far this season, he's averaged 95.1mph on his fastball, and has a 66.7% ground-ball rate.

Those numbers mesh with this report from Baseball America's Ben Badler last November, stating that Mejia routinely sat in the mid-90's with a fastball that he could both cut and sink. That same pitch helped him induce grounders on 71% of his outs on balls in play during the 2009 minor league season.

We've heard the Mets mentioned in connection with available starters such as Roy Oswalt and Cliff Lee, but stretching out Mejia gives them added depth in the event that their current starters falter, or Omar Minaya is unable to facilitate a trade.

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