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Archives for June 2010

Amateur Draft Signings: Saturday

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Here are the latest updates on which picks have signed with the clubs that selected them in last week's draft. Keep tabs on which first rounders and sandwich picks have signed by checking out our detailed breakdown.

Brewers Release Mike Jones

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The Brewers have released minor league righthander Mike Jones according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Jones was the team's first round pick in the 2001 draft.

The 27-year-old Jones has battled major arm injuries throughout his career, including shoulder surgery in 2004 and Tommy John surgery in 2007. Despite more than eight full years in the minors, Jones only threw 623.1 innings and never reached the big leagues. He owns a career 3.75 ERA, though he's dealt with control issues in recent years.

Milwaukee gave Jones a $2.075MM signing bonus when they selected him 12th overall back in 2001.

Remembering the 1992 Trade Deadline

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Ah, who can forget 1992? The Boutros Boutros-Ghali Era begins at the United Nations. Lisa Simpson captivates a nation with her uncanny knack for picking football games. Johnny Carson retires, giving Jay Leno the chance to host The Tonight Show for some unspecified period of time. And Brett Favre makes his first start for the Green Bay Packers, leading to a career that will end around the same time that Jay Leno stops hosting The Tonight Show.

Meanwhile, baseball teams still found the time to trade with one another! Here are some of the highlights from those deals…

  • The fun started on July 21, when the Braves traded Juan Berenguer to the Royals for a real-live Cy Young Award winner, Mark Davis. Just three years removed from the award-winning performance (1.85 ERA, 44 saves, 92 strikeouts in 92.2 innings), Davis was floundering with Kansas City, posting a 7.18 ERA with 28 walks and 19 strikeouts in 36.2 innings. He didn't do much better in Atlanta, with a 7.02 ERA after the deal. The Braves won the NL West anyway.
  • On July 30, the Toronto Blue Jays solidified their bullpen by acquiring Mark Eichhorn, who'd begun his career in Toronto, from the California Angels for Rob Ducey and Greg Myers. Both Ducey and Myers went on to long careers with many teams, while Eichhorn was merely adequate for the Jays- a 4.35 ERA after the deal, compared to a 2.38 mark prior to it. His two scoreless postseason innings, however, helped Toronto capture its first World Series.
  • On August 27, a day after Fernando Tatis and Chris Truby signed their first professional contracts, the New York Mets traded David Cone to the Blue Jays for Jeff Kent and Ryan Thompson. Why the Mets thought it a good idea to deal a 29-year-old Cone is hard to fathom- Cone would go on to rack up 114 of his 194 wins after this trade. Thompson, alas, never figured out the strike zone. And while Kent became one of the best to ever play his position, he did most of his damage after the Mets traded him to land Carlos Baerga (who did most of his damage prior to arriving in New York).
  • On the penultimate day one can acquire a player to be added to the postseason roster (a fancy way of saying "August 30"), the Braves traded Sean Ross and Nate Minchey to the Red Sox for Jeff Reardon. Though he was 36 years old, Reardon still had something left in the tank. He pitched to a 1.15 ERA in Atlanta, then added three scoreless innings and a save during the NLCS. He faltered in the World Series, however, blowing the save in Game 2 on a home run by Ed Sprague.
  • The biggest trade of the 1992 season came on August 31, when Oakland shipped Jose Canseco to the Texas Rangers for a huge package: Jeff Russell, Ruben Sierra, Bobby Witt and cash. Canseco was finished being one of the best players in the game- he'd posted a career OPS+ of 139 before the trade, but 124 after it, even though he was just 28 at the time of the deal. Meanwhile, the bounty proved to provide little in the way of production. Russell was quickly shipped to Boston, Sierra's post-trade career OPS+ dropoff was even steeper, from 118 to 92, and Witt's control got better, but his strikeout rate collapsed, leaving him with a career 4.57 ERA before the trade, 5.07 ERA after the trade. Even the inflation rate rendered the cash from 1992 progressively worth less over the remainder of the decade.

Jack Taschner Declares Free Agency

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Pitcher Jack Taschner has declared free agency after refusing an outright assignment to the minors from the Pirates, tweets Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.  The left-hander was DFA'd by Pittsburgh early last week.

In 17 appearances this season, Taschner posted an ERA of 6.05 with 7.9 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9.  The 32-year-old threw his fastball at an average of 89.6 mph in 2009 but has seen that dip to 88.8 in 2010.  His pitch velocity has steadily declined across the last three seasons.

Odds & Ends: White Sox, Lewis, Oswalt, Mets, Lee

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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."

Rosenthal On Twins, Lee, Dodgers, Nats

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Let's dive into the latest edition of Full Count from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..

  • A major league GM told Rosenthal that he expects the Twins to be the most active team at the deadline.  While many in the industry expect the club to be players for Cliff Lee, their officials are telling teams that they have other priorities.  Their greater need is at third base while they may also shop for bullpen help.  However, the Twins are in a very strong financial position as they had insurance on Joe Nathan's contract.  If they can recover half of that deal, they'll take in $5.6MM.  On top of that, the box office numbers in their new home, Target Field, are very solid.
  • Speaking of Lee, Seattle is telling clubs that they want young hitters in return for the ace.  It's a desire that could be a hurdle for several interested clubs.  The Mets, for example, wouldn't part with Ike Davis in order to land the hurler on a rental.  Meanwhile, the Dodgers wouldn't want to give up Matt Kemp or James Loney. 
  • Rosenthal adds that the Dodgers may have a hard time landing the elite starter that they seek.  The Astros are looking for financial relief and top prospects in return for Roy Oswalt.  Pulling off a deal for Dan Haren of the Diamondbacks could prove to be difficult as Arizona likely doesn't want to trade him within the division.
  • Nats GM Mike Rizzo told Rosenthal that the team could be both buyers and sellers at the trade deadline.  Rizzo says he's under no orders to trim payroll and could take on salary if it meant taking on a long-term asset.  Right now, the Nats have five starters on the disabled list, including Jordan Zimmermann.  Once he comes back, the club will have two young power pitchers and more depth to work with.
  • If the Rockies make a move to fill the void at shortstop after losing Troy Tulowitzki to injury, they might only sign someone like Adam Everett to serve as insurance in Triple A.

Phillies Designate Scott Mathieson For Assignment

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3:06pm: Mathieson has been placed on optional waivers, according to Gelb.  Assistant GM Scott Proefrock is hopeful that the club will be able to retain the righthander.  Because optional waivers are revocable, they should be able to keep him in the organization.

The Nationals made a similar move in May when they placed pitcher Matt Chico on waivers while still holding options on his contract.  The transaction was made to clear a roster spot for Doug Slaten.

12:36pm: Gelb confirmed with assistant GM Scott Proefrock that Mathieson was indeed designated for assignment even though he has minor league options remaining (Twitter link). Proefrock said it was a "procedural move," but would not elaborate.

12:13pm: The Phillies have designated reliever Scott Mathieson for assignment, tweets Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The move frees up a roster spot for catcher Dane Sardinha, who was recalled from Triple-A.

The 26-year-old Mathieson appeared in just one game for the Phillies this year, giving up two runs while recording just two outs against the Twins yesterday. The two-time Tommy John surgery survivor struck out 34 batters in 29.2 innings in Triple-A this year, and is best known for a fastball that flirts with triple digits.

Baseball America’s Minor League Transactions

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J.J. Cooper of Baseball America posted a special edition of minor league transactions today, listing all of the draft picks that have signed so far plus any undrafted free agents who caught on with a team. Any player that is not selected in the draft and does not have any college eligibility remaining is free to sign with any team.

Mets Came Close To Acquiring Manny After 2004

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Manny Ramirez was no stranger to the trade rumor circuit during his time in Boston, long before the team actually went ahead and shipped him to the Dodgers in 2008. The deal that would have sent him to the Rangers in exchange for Alex Rodriguez is perhaps the most well known Manny non-trade, but WEEI.com's Rob Bradford says the team also came very close to shipping Ramirez to the Mets following the 2004 season.

Manny was fresh off being named World Series MVP, but the idea behind trading him was to use the savings for then free agents J.D. Drew and Adrian Beltre. Drew went on the sign with the Dodgers, Beltre the Mariners, though both found their way to Boston eventually.

There were several variations of the deal with the Mets, but the two constants were hotshot prospect Lastings Milledge and the veteran Cliff Floyd. At various other times, the package of players included Heath Bell and Ian Bladergroen, who the Mets eventually traded the the Red Sox for Doug Mientkiewicz.

The deal fell apart because of money. The Mets wanted to the Red Sox to kick in some of the $77MM left on Manny's deal, but Boston "wanted to get money back in the deal to pursue the available free agents." Bradford goes through some what-could-have-been scenarios in his article.

Ramirez went on to hit another 120 home runs and win another World Championship with the Red Sox, while the Mets fell just a game short of qualifying for the 2006 Fall Classic. They did, however, land one superstar responsible for helping the Red Sox end their World Series drought that offseason, signing Pedro Martinez to a four year, $53MM deal in December of 2004.

Might The Mets Designate Maine For Assignment?

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John Maine started the second game of the season for the Mets, but he hit the disabled list with shoulder weakness following 39.2 innings of 6.13 ERA, 1.82 WHIP ball. He is currently on a rehab assignment and is close to returning to the team, but manager Jerry Manuel seemed to indicate that there was no spot for Maine during today's pre-game press conference.

"I won't take [Hisanori Takahashi] out of rotation," said Manuel. "I don't see [Maine] as a candidate for the bullpen." Both quotes come courtesy of SNY's Kevin Burkhardt (Twitter links). David Lennon of Newsday believes the team may opt to simply designate Maine for assignment once his rehab clock expires (Twitter link).

Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, and Jonathon Niese front the Amazin's rotation, while Takahashi and R.A. Dickey have been holding down the back end during the last few weeks. Takahashi has a 3.15 ERA in six starts, while Dickey has been even better, posting a 2.82 ERA in his six starts.

Maine's velocity has been down noticeably since his string of shoulder issues began in 2008, and he simply hasn't been effective since. He is owned just a touch under $2MM for the remainder of the season, but also has one more year of team control ahead of him.

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