MONDAY, 4:06pm: The Red Sox will not trade for Napoli, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com. A source familiar with the situation told Speier that the Angels were "not really looking to move" the catcher.
SUNDAY, 6:29pm: The Angels will likely pull Napoli back as they can create more of a trade market for him over the winter, a league source told John Tomase of the Boston Herald.
3:38pm: ESPN's Joe McDonald tweets that the Red Sox have claimed Napoli on waivers, but in a separate tweet says it's unlikely the two teams work out a deal for the slugging catcher.
Sitting 5.5 games back of the Wild Card and first place in their division, the Red Sox are a logical fit to claim Napoli. His right-handed power would fit well in Fenway, and his presence would also serve as an insurance policy to Jarrod Saltalamacchia beyond the 2010 season. The claim also blocks Tampa Bay from getting their hands on Napoli.
Ken Rosenthal points out (via Twitter), that if the Angels are intent on trading him, they could likely get more for Napoli in an offseason deal when they can incorporate more teams into the bidding.
9:23am: Mike Napoli has been claimed on waivers by an unknown team, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Angels have until Monday afternoon to work out a trade with the claiming team, which Morosi speculates is an American League club.
Napoli, 28, has been a consistent source of power for the Angels, hitting 61 homers in his last three seasons, including a career-high 21 this year. However, Mike Scioscia seems to prefer Jeff Mathis, a superior defensive backstop, behind the plate. Since Mathis came off the disabled list in June, Napoli has seen far more playing time at first base, replacing the injured Kendry Morales, than at catcher.
As Morosi notes, most American League contenders could use some help at catcher, first base, or designated hitter, and Napoli may also appeal to non-contenders like the Tigers, since he's under team control through 2012. As they exhibited on Friday by dealing Brian Fuentes, the Angels aren't averse to making August trades, but the bet here is that Napoli remains in Anaheim.
My speculation its the Texas Rangers
no they already got bengie molina
Yes they do, but he is a free agent after this year and the Rangers have no once else to play C. And Cantu hasn’t done jack at 1b.
they wont give up enough prospects for a guy who will split the time with bengie molina. and the rangers can resign molina at the end of the year
Napoli could be a 3/4 to full-time guy, though. He would take Cantu’s place as the RH-1B bat, and spell Molina as well. Plus, Napoli is under team control for next year, so TEX wouldn’t need to sign Molina if they didn’t want to. I don’t think the Angels will ask for a king’s ransom for Napoli anyway – for some reason, Scioscia hasn’t fully utilized Napoli, nor does he plan to, so if they got a spare arm or MI prospect (not a top guy, either), I think they’d move Napoli in a heart-beat.
Cantu hasn’t done much, but Mitch Moreland has.
As they should keep him. Napoli has the most power in that organization other than Kendry Morales, and they wouldn’t have anyone to play first base.
It just makes a ton of sense, as John Tomase said, to trade him over the winter.
if napoli were traded who play first for the angels the rest of this year? McAnulty?
Juan Rivera and Howie Kendrick can play 1st
Rivera’s been playing 1B often the past week-10 days. And he’s looked pretty good defensively.
They could call up Trumbo…
Red Sox… please
The Sox could use Napoli. He seems to hit well whenever the Sox play the Halos. Maybe Theo’s thinking “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em”.
I’ve always loved Napoli. The guy is a solid hitter and can field too. Throw him in the Sox line-up and we may have a legit shot.
It would be nice to have both Napoli and Salty next year….one can only hope.
Are they going to bring back V Mart? Even offer arbitration?
He won’t likely get the money in Boston he can get elsewhere . Also if he isn’t projecting to play at C then he loses value as a purely 1B/DH.
It is possible but I don’t see it happening.
They’ll definitely offer arbitration, I don’t know about him long term though. The guy is at best a league average 1B/DH, but is a top offensive catcher when playing the position. I think they’d be comfortable offering a 3yr/36 deal but I think he’ll want more in years and annual money.
Interesting story.. Had to clear AL 1st and Tigers likely to put in a claim well before Boston like it said, but isn’t there system fairly bare at the upper levels and Anaheim is NOT going to give him away very cheap.
Odds are this was only done to determine interest in Napoli. Angels won’t trade him because they’ll be contenders next year.
This is right on. Napoli isn’t some sort of salary dump. He has serious value and is cheap. The Angels should be able to extract a premium talent for him. Those kind of deals rarely happy through the Waiver process.
If he gets traded it will be in the off-season.
Speculating that it’s an American League club…Detroit, Boston? If it’s a NL club, it could be the Brewers or the Cubs.
No way Napoli clears the AL.
All of Boston/Detroit/Seattle/Toronto/ChiSox have every reason to claim him, even if they aren’t 2010 contenders.
im guessing tigers
Why do they have until Monday, yet Manny can go until Tuesday?
Either one can go until 1:30 pm ET on Tuesday, I believe. They could be traded after that, but a new waiver period begins on Sept 1st, and a player acquired in September is not eligible for post season.
Sad to say, but I think Napoli’s days in Anaheim are coming to a close… I don’t think he leaves THIS year, but in the offseason, I think he gets dealt.
Scioscia loves Mathis, and I guess Napoli’s team-leading 21 HR isn’t enough for him.
Simply put: if between Napoli and Rivera, Napoli’s the one that’d be easier to move, and net a greater return. But if the Angels are able to get Carl Crawford in the offseason, then they move Rivera and maybe Mathis or Wilson… who knows?
There does seem to be a disconnect between Napoli and Scioscia/Angels. Maybe because Napoli was vocal about wanting more playing time? If they can move Napoli, they should.
I agree 100%. Something happened that hasn’t been put out. I know Mathis is “superior” behind the plate, but Sosh doesn’t even play Naps everyday at 1B. His bat is missed every time he sits. I say trade them both in the offseason along with Rivera, get a few decent arms in the pen, fire Hatcher, get CC, and bring up Hank.
I would love it if the Rays put in a claim. We already know they put in a claim for manram so we know they are active on the waiver wire. I think he would be an improvement over Jaso or Shoppach and would be a great bat off the bench at the very least.
I think the Sox would try and block them. Napoli would be a big improvement at DH or catcher for the Rays. And if he Sox do get him they can use him and VMart to split time at catcher and 1B.
My bet is he wouldn’t make it past Toronto who could use a first basemen and even a cacher potentially next year.
detroit is b4 toronto so i dont think he will even get to toronto
I don’t think Napoli will even make it to a contender. The Mariners could use him, as could the Royals and even the Indians. He’s under control for 2 more years and could be claimed and then repackaged again next season. He’s an extremely valuable commodity and I think Reagins is just fishing to establish a baseline value for off season dealing.
indians dont need a cathcer ( carlos santana) the royals dont need a catcher (jason kendall)
I agree with you that the Indians have Santana who will fill the Catcher spot for a while. But what about first base and DH? Nobody as stellar as Napoli comes to mind. Meanwhile, the Royals have Butler manning first base for a while and Moustakas/Gordon to DH/3b. Napoli would be a massive upgrade over their current catcher though, as Kendall’s days in KC are numbered.
the royals dont need a catcher (jason kendall)
LOL yes they do.
Santana is a stud, however, no catcher plays 162 games and Napoli behind the dish for 40-60 games, while DHing or filling in the at 1st for a mediocre Travis Hafner makes a lot of sense to me. Since Napoli will be valuable in trade in either of the next two years or be a Type A free agent, the Indians (or whoever gets him) would get compensation.
Kendall is done, and the Royals already regret not resigning either Buck or Oliva from last season.
Angel fans are anticipating the Conger era and someone has to go. Napoli should bring in a nice piece. Also, this is only to draw interest for the offseason, as some have said.
True. If several teams put in a claim, they can simply pull him back and work the phones in the off season.
It really doesn’t matter what team claimed Napoli, he isn’t going anywhere until the off season unless the claiming team is ready to give top talent in return, and this is something most contending teams aren’t in a position to do.
Mariners, maybe for 2011… Adam Moore-Napoli looks good
C-1B-DH Perfect for the M´s, but I don´t think the Angels trade him for nothing, especially with the M´s, looks unlikely
Yeah, I think the Mariners won the claim.
Question for Boston fans: Are V Mart and Varitek both outta there after this season? Will they even be offered arby? I know that Theo likes those Arby sandwiches.
Varitek is an excellent backup catcher, I see him re-signing with the Sox at a bargain price. Salty is too much of a questionmark, it’s a shame he came down with that infection right after being called up.
He said he was going to retire after the year finishes at the beginning of the season.
Where did you see that Tek will retire? I know Lowell plans to retire after the season, but I can’t see Tek retiring unless his foot is worse than we realize.
If he did say he’s retiring, it could be a negotiating ploy. There is such a huge demand for competent catchers, and Jason was doing well in the backup role prior to his injury.
Yeah, I’m not saying you’re wrong but I never heard this either…do you have a link?
please be the whitesox. and end this AJ crap…or simply as a back up if we cant get manny, or get napoli and manny manny full time DH and napoli back up catcher the rest of the season, cut mark kotsay and andru jones…..and keep napoli for next season
Andrew Jones has 31 homers and you want to cut him?
yeah andruw jones does not have 31 home runs
Even though I doubt a deal will get down I hope the tigers put a claim in on him.
I think the reason why Napoli doesn’t get steady playing time is because he’s so streaky and is terrible with RISP. Midway through the year is BA with RISP was under .150.
Wow, you weren’t kidding about Napoli choking in the clutch. He makes JD Drew look like 2004 David Ortiz, hard to believe he’s driven in 60.
I was really hoping the Sox would get John Buck, solid catcher who is GREAT in the clutch with a .310 RISP and .326 Men On Base and .355 in tie games. Looks like that won’t happen, at least not until the offseason.
The Red Sox are the team that claimed Napoli, have until Monday to work out a deal
” ou see that Tek will retire?”——————–It’s been said that he sees himself in a backup role for a while (where he won’t break down). He still wants those checks! VMart isn’t the strongest receiver out there but he’s played through inj and is a very good guy. He wants to stay (in Bo). I think they will likely resign him. But there’s a lot of factors in what they do this fall. Who do they think they can sign amongst the choice FA’s? What happens there, will determine what they do with VMart,Ortiz,Beltre,
*********Breaking: it’s the Red Sox, they get the claim***********
I was hoping it was the Sox. Finally Theo does something useful if he is able to acquire Napoli.
I wouldn’t mind having Napoli. Maybe the two sides can agree to something.
Did the SOx only block Napoli for TB or do they want to make a deal? They could really use him.
Both I’m sure. If they get him then that’s good but if they don’t well TB doesn’t get him.
If the trade involves another player that cleared waivers from the 40-man roster, it’s Carlos Beltran, where once again, the Halos catch the beat from off the radar.
umm you missed the redsox claim part.
Would be a good short term fix for the redsox if it happens.
might be some good insurance for next season with both salty and napoli in the mix. I don’t see them paying vmart to be mostly a DH next year and I think Tek might retire if this goes down.
Great move for sox. Has had a solid OBP every year except this one, has power, could play 1st this year and c next year, and the Angels don’t seem to be too high on him for some reason. Would love to have Salty & Napoli for 2011.
I will cut my throat if Napoli goes to Boston for a handful of magic beans. Just pull him back and, if you must, trade him to a National League team where he won’t come back to haunt us.
I highly doubt it happens but it depends how far apart the sides are on Napoli’s value.
His value is sky high. No worries. Hes not going anywhere.
Sky high? I guess you’re definition of sky high value is different than mine. He can bring back some nice talent no doubt, but he isn’t Buster Posey.
If the Red Sox got Napoli off of waivers, would that put the Red Sox over the payroll limit for luxury tax?
They’re already over.
Hey Angel fans, how does Lars Anderson sound? or maybe a Josh Reddick?
Throw in Daniel Bard and you might have a deal.
lol Bard wouldnt clear waivers
They can have Lars AND Reddick if gets us Napoli.
Angels aren’t going to get rid of Napoli yet. But with Hank Conger in AAA, its almost a given they’ll trade Napoli this winter and platoon Mathis/Budde for a year or so until Conger is done cooking in the minors.
You mean Mathis and Wilson? Budde is behind Conger in AAA. I would hope that they trade Napoli this winter and Conger gets a crack at the show. Does anybody else think that Wilson is better or about the same as Mathis? Mathis is supposed to be a good defensive catcher, but i swear it seems like people are always stealing off of him. If Conger’s defense gets better and shows Scioscia that he can handle a staff, i would suspect that he could possibly play a lot next year
He’s a perfect fit for the sox.
I’d even consider giving up Salty for him and resigning Tek in the offseason.
Let Victor go – He’s gonna want too much $$$$.
You’d consider giving up a guy you got for free for a catcher who has the highest Slg HR total and OBP since 2006? Great trade.
Napoli’s value is higher than most think, its gonna take a top prospect to get it done. Lars Anderson has basically shown to be a bust after 2 years of non performance. I am not as familiar with the Red Sox system is people here, but I’d venture to guess outside of Casey Kelley, everyone would be fair game for a straight napoli trade.
Red Sox fans what’s yours offer for Napoli I want some fair value only.
Lars Anderson, Josh Reddick, Luis Expostio, Yamaico Navarro, Dustin Richardson
Lars Anderson 1B , Josh Reddick OF , Luis Expostio C , Yamaico Navarro SS , Dustin Richardson P
Lars Anderson is one of there top prospects and Reddick has a little pop in his bat i wouldn’t trade them but definitely Expostio Navarro and Richardson
you would give all of them for naps
Yes, all of them are unporven exept Reddick, we can give away Lars Anderson since we have Youkils and there has been talks about Adrain Gonzalez and we have Anthony Rizzo and Aaron Bates in the minors. We have Dusty Brown, , Mark Wagner and Ryan Larvenway in the Minors, in the majors we have Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Victor Martinez has a chance of coming back in the off season, so what is the use of Luis Expostio? Yamaico Navarro is in no use since we have Scutero and Lowrie right now, and Jose Iglesias is coming up. Dustin Richardson in my opinion is not that good.
o.k. you have a deal for Napoli now if you want A.Gonzalez what’s your offer?
Ellsburry OF , Aaron Bates 1B , Micheal Bowden P , Mark Wagner C , Chris Balcom-Miller P.