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Will Brad Hawpe Be Traded?

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Rockies outfielder Brad Hawpe was placed on waivers yesterday, reported Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  That means the window to claim Hawpe will expire Wednesday afternoon at the latest.  The Rockies "want to move" Hawpe, writes Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.

The first question is whether Hawpe will be claimed by one of the other 29 clubs.  His playing time has dwindled in recent months, and his .252/.341/.430 line is his worst since 2005.  Hawpe has consistently posted poor UZR defensive numbers in right field.  This year, for the first time, he's played a few games at first base.

Hawpe has shown enough offense over the past several seasons that he would still appeal to several contenders.  The problem is that a claim could compel the Rockies to dump his contract on another team.  That club would pay the prorated portion of his $7.5MM salary (currently $1.96MM) plus a potential $500K buyout of his $10.15MM club option for '11 (unless Hawpe voids it, which seems unlikely).

The White Sox were linked to Hawpe in July, and they came up empty looking for a bat last month.  The Padres and Braves made additions, so a National League claim seems unlikely.  The White Sox would have first crack in the AL, before the Twins, Red Sox, Yankees, or Rays.  The Red Sox and Rays may at least consider Hawpe, but I suspect he'll make it through waivers unclaimed.  That'd open up trade possibilties for the Rockies, who probably won't get draft pick compensation for the Type A free agent.  It'd only be possible if they declined Hawpe's option and then offered arbitration, an unlikely scenario.

Barret Loux To Be Granted Free Agency

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Press release from the Diamondbacks and unsigned draft pick Barret Loux:

"We have reached an agreement regarding Barret Loux’s status that is mutually beneficial to the parties. Today Commissioner Selig has announced that Loux will become a free agent on September 1. As such, he will be free to sign with any Major League Club at that time. In addition, the Arizona Diamondbacks will receive a Supplemental Selection in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft. The agreement also provides an opportunity for the Commissioner’s Office and the Players Association globally to the address the issues that can arise from questions concerning a drafted player’s health. Given the private nature of the underlying disagreement here, neither party will be making any further public comments about this situation."

Chosen sixth overall by the D'Backs, Loux's July physical revealed a labrum tear and elbow issues according to Yahoo's Jeff Passan.  The D'Backs backed out of a $2MM agreement, as was their right, and will receive the seventh overall pick as compensation in 2011.  With the money freed up the Diamondbacks went over slot yesterday to sign draft picks such as Ty Linton ($1.25MM), Tyler Green ($750K), and Blake Perry ($500K).

Once Loux reaches free agency, Yahoo's Kendall Rogers wouldn't be surprised to see the White Sox pursue him (Twitter link).  The Astros will look into signing Loux, GM Ed Wade told Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle.  Free agency is a very positive outcome for Loux, as one MLBTR commenter explains here.

Market For Craig Counsell

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Brewers infielder Craig Counsell recently cleared waivers, suggesting no team was willing to take on the prorated portion of his $2.3MM salary (currently $600K).  Counsell can now be traded to any team, and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Brewers seek "a legit return."  Rosenthal notes that the Brewers received Chris Dickerson for Jim Edmonds, though I'll point out that Edmonds was having a stronger season at a lower salary and did get claimed on waivers by multiple clubs.  In terms of the Counsell market, Rosenthal says the Cardinals inquired and backed off while the Braves have yet to inquire.

Counsell, 40 in a few days, is hitting .246/.317/.305 in 188 plate appearances this season.  He's mostly played on the left side of the infield this year, but has plenty of career experience at second base.  Counsell has had a disappointing season, though it seems to amount to a dip in playing time and batting average.  He's not a clear upgrade for a contender, so he could stay put unless the asking price drops in the 15 days leading up to the waiver trade deadline.

Non-Tender Candidate: J.J. Hardy

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My listing of Twins shortstop J.J. Hardy yesterday as a non-tender candidate inspired much debate in our comments section.  Let's dig deeper into the situation.

In terms of Wins Above Replacement, Hardy's 1.8 this year ranks fifth in the American League on the FanGraphs leaderboard.  Hardy's done this in only 70 games, as he's missed time due to a bruised wrist.  His bat his been about league average for AL shortstops, while much of his value is derived from what UZR/150 suggests is well above-average defense.  Hardy has been strong in UZR every year of his career, not just the 580 innings in 2010.

However, I am guessing the Twins will not look closely at WAR when making the decision on whether to tender Hardy a 2011 contract in December.  They'll first need to determine how much Hardy will seek or earn for next year, his final season before free agency.  It's promising that Twins only needed to give Hardy a $450K raise coming off a disappointing 2009 season.  They might be able to sign him for less than $6MM one last time.  Hardy can't be too aggressive in his salary demands, as his agent Mike Seal surely knows that UZR numbers probably won't help his client in front of an arbitration panel and weak offensive counting stats would hurt him.

The Twins probably haven't decided yet whether Hardy is worth $6MM or so to them in 2011.  They'll be considering alternatives.  Trevor Plouffe is an internal option, though his work in a second Triple A stint doesn't stand out.  Alexi Casilla will be around next year as well.  The free agent market is weak, with Juan Uribe one of the better options the Twins can consider.  The trade market could offer Stephen Drew, Jamey Carroll, Jack Wilson, or even a second round with Jason Bartlett.

With those thoughts, it's time for you to weigh in.  Click here to vote on whether Hardy will be non-tendered, and here to see the results of the poll.

Giants Trying To Block Cards, Braves From Third Basemen?

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Some GMs have the perception the Giants are trying to block the Cardinals and Braves from acquiring a third baseman through a waiver trade, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.  The team with the worse record gets first crack at a player, so at the moment the Giants can't stop a player from getting to the Cardinals.  They can currently thwart the Padres, Reds, Phillies, and Braves.

Three players with the ability to play third base have already gotten through waivers unclaimed: Geoff Blum, Craig Counsell, and Edwin Encarnacion.  We haven't heard about the status of Chone Figgins, Adam Kennedy, Jamey Carroll, Jeff Keppinger, Ty Wigginton, Wilson Betemit, Mark Reynolds, Melvin Mora, Jhonny Peralta, Aramis Ramirez, Kevin Kouzmanoff, Wes Helms, Andy LaRoche, Nick Punto, Brendan Harris, Jose Lopez, or Pedro Feliz yet.  Brandon Inge is expected to hit the waiver wire this week, wrote Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch yesterday.  The Twins could theoretically claim Inge before he gets to the Cards, but they may be satisfied with Danny Valencia at the hot corner.

Pedro Feliciano, Mets Waiting On Contract Talks

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Lefty reliever Pedro Feliciano and the Mets have agreed to wait until after the season to hold contract talks, reports ESPN's Adam Rubin.  Feliciano will be eligible for free agency for the first time.

Feliciano, 34 in a few days, has been worked hard in his Mets career.  This year he's got a 3.05 ERA, 8.5 K/9, and 4.9 BB/9 with only one home run allowed in 44.3 innings.  For the third straight year, he's leading MLB in appearances.

FanGraphs splits are the best way to judge Feliciano's work against lefties and righties.  You can see he's been very strong (xFIP of 3.06 or better) against lefties the last few years but middling or worse against righties (xFIP of at least 4.49 each year).  Despite Feliciano's protestations, it's more than just groundballs getting through against righties.  He's allowing too many walks and often too many home runs against them.

Feliciano profiles as a Type B free agent in our latest Elias projections, and he's earning $2.9MM this year.  The Mets would be wise to offer arbitration, but a multiyear deal would be risky.

Draft Pick Signings

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Today's draft pick signing deadline passed at 11pm central time.  This post contains notable signings outside of the first round, with the latest up top.

Pirates Sign Jameson Taillon

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12:03am: Taillon's bonus is worth $6.5MM, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (on Twitter).

9:14pm: Taillon and the Pirates agreed on a deal worth slightly more than $5MM, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).

7:52pm: The Pirates signed second-overall pick Jameson Taillon, the pitcher's father told to Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The tall Texas right-hander has drawn comparisons to other power pitchers such as Roger Clemens and Josh Beckett. Back in May, MLBTR's Mike Axisa profiled Taillon in detail.

The specifics on Taillon's deal aren't yet known, but MLB recommended a $3.25MM bonus for the second overall pick last year. The Mariners, who chose second overall in 2009, signed Dustin Ackley to a $6MM bonus and it wouldn't be surprising to see the Pirates pay Taillon considerably more than slot, too. They already appear to have signed second-rounder Stetson Allie.

With less than three hours remaining between now and the deadline to sign picks, 13 first-rounders have yet to sign.

Orioles Sign Manny Machado

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11:43pm: The Orioles, who announced the deal via press release, agreed to a $5.25MM deal with Machado, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).

11:06pm: The Orioles agreed to sign third-overall pick Manny Machado, according to Jim Bowden of Sirius XM Radio (Twitter link). The 18-year-old shortstop is from Miami, so some have compared him to one of the best draft picks in MLB history: Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod's agent, Scott Boras, also represents Machado (and a number of top picks in this year's draft). He wasn't an easy player to sign but, Orioles scouting director Joe Jordan said after the draft that Machado has the talent to be an impact major leaguer.

“He’s going to automatically be one of the premier prospects in the organization,” Jordan said.

Last year, MLB recommended a $2.925MM bonus for the third-overall pick. Click here for the complete list of 2010 first-rounders to sign.

Nationals To Sign Bryce Harper

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For the second consecutive summer, the Nationals signed the first-overall pick to a record-setting deal. Last August, it was Stephen Strasburg, and tonight Bryce Harper made history. The 17-year-old gets a major league deal that guarantees him $9.9MM over five years - more guaranteed money than any position player in draft history. Of the $9.9MM, $6.25MM is a bonus.

The buzz surrounding Harper started last year, when he appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a 16-year-old. Harper, still just 17, got his GED early, enrolled at the College of Southern Nevada and won the 2010 Golden Spikes Award as the country’s top amateur player.

Mark Teixeira previously held the record for the biggest deal given to a position player ($9.5MM) and last year's top pick, Strasburg, holds the record for the biggest deal in draft history ($15.1MM). Scott Boras advises Teixeira, Strasburg and Harper.

The Nationals have confirmed the deal, after it broke on Twitter. Jim Bowden of Sirius XM Radio, Kendall Rogers of Yahoo Sports, Jon Heyman of SI.com, Yahoo's Tim Brown and Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post were among the reporters who contributed to the story.

Click here for the complete list of 2010 first rounders to sign.

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