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Odds & Ends: D’Backs, Youkilis, Mets, Cubs

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Links for Tuesday, 16 years after the Giants signed Yorvit Torrealba as an amateur free agent. Torrealba, a longtime Rockie, is a key part of the Padres team that's barely holding off San Francisco and Colorado.

A’s Designate Jeff Lyman For Assignment

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The A’s designated Jeff Lyman for assignment to create space on the 40-man roster for Eric Sogard, according to the team. The A’s also recalled Vin Mazzaro, Josh Donaldson and Chris Carter.

The A's claimed Lyman, a 23-year-old right-hander, off of waivers from the Braves in July. The 2005 second rounder struggled with control in Oakland's system, as he has throughout his minor league career. Lyman posted a 3.32 ERA last year, but in 2010, his ERA ballooned to 6.50 in 63.2 innings. Though he has started occasionally, Lyman is mostly a reliever. This year he posted 7.4 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9 at three stops in the upper minors.

Rosenthal On Rangers, Helton, D’Backs

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Ozzie Guillen is under contract through 2012, but he would be a good fit in Miami, if you ask Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Marlins want a “passionate and fiery” manager, and Guillen certainly qualifies. Here are the rest of Rosenthal’s rumors: 

  • So far, the Rangers have not engaged GM Jon Daniels in serious discussions about an extension. To be fair, the team is in the midst of a pennant race and may prefer to discuss an extension later. Daniels has maintained that he wants to stay in Texas, though he can leave because of the team’s recent ownership change.
  • The Rockies will “almost certainly” want to complement Todd Helton with a right-handed hitting first baseman this offseason. Troy Renck of the Denver Post agrees (Twitter link).
  • Padres hitting coach Randy Ready may be a candidate to manage the Diamondbacks if they hire Kevin Towers as their next GM.

Nine Teams Likely To Add Starters For 2011

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Some teams can relax because their 2011 rotations are more or less set, but that's not the case for every club. That's why the nine teams below will be eyeing the starters that become available through trades and free agency. They'll either have to re-sign their own free agents or acquire a starter if they'd prefer not to rely on younger in-house options.

Nine Rotations Already Set For 2011

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There are no sure things when it comes to starting pitching, but some teams are better-positioned than others for 2011. These nine clubs don't have to worry about Cliff Lee or any other starters this winter. As long as their pitchers stay healthy, they'll enter 2011 with strong rotations one through five.

These aren't necessarily the best rotations (or else you'd see the Cardinals here), they're the groups that will require the least maintenance this offseason. Also note that all the players below are under team control next year and that some of the teams below (Rays, Braves) have more than five viable options.

Aramis Ramirez “Staying” In Chicago

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Aramis Ramirez will be back in Chicago next year. The third baseman had suggested he might not return, but he told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times on Monday that he’s not considering opting out of his contract.

''I'm staying here,'' he said. ''Put it that way.''

Ramirez has a 2011 player option for $14.6MM and the Cubs will have to pay him $2MM more even if they buy him out in 2012. That's a lot of money, likely more than Ramirez would be able to find as a free agent, but the Cubs are getting a player who has recovered from a slow start to hit well in the second half. Ramirez had a .550 OPS heading into July, but has since posted a .940 mark and now has 22 home runs in total.

Odds & Ends: Cardinals, Diamondbacks, Mets, Harang,

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Here are some links to check out on a very muggy Monday night in New York..

Poll: Will Boston Re-Sign Beltre?

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Earlier this evening, Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal wondered if Adrian Beltre will figure into Boston's plans this offseason.  The third baseman, who will earn just $10MM for his outstanding play in 2010, is seeking a multi-year commitment in his next deal.  Beltre has exceeded all expectations this year by turning in a .326/.369/.563 slash line with 27 homers and a strong defensive play (15.1 UZR/150) at third.

The Red Sox would obviously love to have Beltre back but he may very well command more money and years on the open market than they would be willing to yield.  Tim Dierkes believes that the Scott Boras client may seek $50MM over four-years at the outset of this offseason.  And, as Ben Nicholson-Smith pointed out, there are plenty of potential suitors who could up the bidding for his services.  If Theo Epstein & Co. feel that Beltre is too rich for their blood, they could turn over the third baseman gig to either Jed Lowrie or Kevin Youkilis (if a new first baseman is found).  Of course, there would still be a void to fill in the absence of the 31-year-old Beltre.

Will Boston re-sign Adrian Beltre?

Click here to take the poll, and here to view the results.

Hisashi Iwakuma Wants To Join MLB

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It seems that Japanese pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma wants to try and head to MLB via posting after the season, according to Jason Coskrey of the Japan Times (via Twitter).  According to Patrick Newman in a piece for Fangraphs, the Rakuten Eagles standout is the second best MLB pitching prospect in NPB.

The 29-year-old right-hander is described by Newman as a "fairly standard fastball/slider/forkball" pitcher who can reach 95 mph on the gun but typically stays around 90-91 mph.  Iwakuma has a rather lanky frame, standing at 6"3' and weighing just 170 pounds.

While Rakuten won't be eager to part with their star hurler, he is set to be eligible for international free agency after 2011.  Newman tells MLBTR that the club may find it more palatable to cash in on him rather than lose him for nothing.

Torre Would Support Padilla’s Return

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While Joe Torre's future with the Dodgers is still uncertain, he told the press that he would recommend bringing starter Vicente Padilla back next season, according to Richard Dean in a piece for MLB.com. 

"When we got him about a year ago, there were so many stories that followed him," said the 70-year-old skipper. "But he's been a good teammate.  I don't think there's anybody who doesn't like what he does. It's tough to find stuff like he has. When he gets out there he can still do it. He knows what he's doing. He has not been a [negative] issue baseball-wise. I like him."

Padilla hooked on with the Dodgers with two months remaining in 2009 and re-upped with the club over the winter, signing a one-year, $5.025MM deal.  The soon-to-be 33-year-old was released by Texas who reportedly considered him to be a bad teammate.  Torre's backing suggests that there has been no such issue in Los Angeles.

The righthander missed a great deal of time in 2010, turning in just 16 starts.  In 95 innings of work, he registered a 4.07 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9, numbers that are a step above his career averages.  Padilla was scheduled to return to action yesterday, giving him a chance to audition himself, but will instead be shut down for the year due to a neck injury.  He will be joined in free agency by fellow Dodgers starters Hiroki Kuroda and Ted Lilly.

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