Will The Yankees Still Look For Starting Pitching?
It's not often that the Yankees miss out on a player, but after their seemingly all-but-finalized negotiations for Cliff Lee fell through earlier today, Lee is now property of the Texas Rangers. While it's been reported that the Yankees have some hard feelings towards the Mariners over how the M's pulled out of their proposed deal, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that some members of the Yankee front office have put Lee behind them.
The question is, will the Bronx Bombers move on to any other starting pitchers that are on the trade market? Dan Haren, Ted Lilly and Roy Oswalt are among the big-name hurlers who could be wearing different uniforms by July 31, but just because New York didn't acquire Lee doesn't mean that the Yankees are still in the hunt for rotation help.
There is, after all, Javier Vazquez. After a disastrous start to his second go-around with the Yankees, Vazquez seems to have gotten on track; he posted a 3.23 ERA in six June starts and held opponents to a .189 batting average over the month. Had the Yankees picked up Lee, Vazquez either might have been traded, become the most over-qualified long reliever in baseball, or possibly stayed in the rotation had New York made a less-obvious move (like keeping Phil Hughes' innings under control by having Hughes replace the struggling Joba Chamberlain as Mariano Rivera's set-up man).
As ESPN's Jayson Stark observes, Lee has dominated the Yankees in recent years, most notably beating them twice in last year's World Series. If anything, it seems like New York's pursuit of Lee was more about keeping the left-hander away from other teams than it was about adding a needed piece. It's one thing to add a proven ace with an expiring contract like Lee, but quite another to add a starter with an expensive long-term deal (like Oswalt or Haren) or a pitcher like Lilly who isn't a clear enough upgrade over Vazquez to justify trading the prospects that the Cubs would want in return.
Rangers Acquire Cliff Lee For Smoak, Prospects
Cliff Lee is joining his fourth team in 12 months and the Rangers are hoping he can lead them to the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. The Rangers pried Lee away from the Mariners and multiple suitors today in a blockbuster deal that makes the 50-35 Rangers clear favorites to win the AL West.
They obtained Lee, Mark Lowe (who is out for the season with back surgery) and cash considerations from the Mariners for Justin Smoak, Blake Beavan, Matthew Lawson and Josh Lueke.
Though the Rangers' ownership is uncertain, GM Jon Daniels was able to add Lee and his $9MM salary with some creative deal-making. The Mariners will cover about $2.5MM of the $4.2MM remaining on Lee's salary, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter), presumably because the Rangers included an appealing group of prospects. But giving up Lee wasn't easy, even for top young talent.
“This is a bittersweet day for us,” Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik said. “While we are excited about the group of young players we have acquired from the Rangers, it’s never easy to trade a player like Cliff Lee, who has been outstanding here.”
Justin Smoak has yet to stand out at the big league level, but has star potential. Baseball America ranked Smoak second among all Rangers prospects before the season, behind 2010 All-Star Neftali Feliz. The publication suggested Smoak, 23, has "a chance to be a switch-hitting slugger in the Mark Teixeira mold." So far, Smoak's big league performance has been less than Teixeira-esque. He has a .209/.316/.353 line with eight homers in half a season.
Beavan, 21, was the Rangers' first round pick in 2007 and is now pitching at AA. He has a 2.78 ERA with 5.6 K/9 and a Cliff Lee-like 1.0 BB/9. Baseball America ranked Beavan 17th among Rangers prospects before the season, explaining that he could become a back-of-the-rotation innings eater, even if his stuff doesn't improve.
Lawson, a 24-year-old second baseman is hitting .277/.371/.438 at AA, along with Lueke and Beavan. Lueke, 25, has a 3.86 ERA with 12.5 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 as a reliever this year.
A lot of talent is heading to Seattle, but the Rangers will have the chance to reclaim some young players, even if Lee departs as a free agent after the season. Lee currently ranks as a Type A free agent, so the Rangers can obtain two top picks in the 2011 draft if they offer Lee arbitration and he turns it down to sign elsewhere.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post first reported that a deal was close and first reported that the Rangers had agreed to acquire Lee. Buster Olney, Jon Heyman, Ken Davidoff, Mark Feinsand, Bob Nightengale, Ken Rosenthal, Jon Paul Morosi, Ed Price, Evan Grant, T.R. Sullivan, Frankie Piliere and others added updates and details.
The Rangers outbid the many other clubs connected to Lee, including the Rays, Tigers, White Sox, Twins, Phillies, Mets, Cardinals, Dodgers and Reds. Oh yeah, and the Yankees.
So much for the Yankees’ unwillingness to hand over prospects for three month rentals. Brian Cashman & Co. offered Jesus Montero, David Adams and another prospect, possibly Zach McAllister, for Lee and were 'on the brink' of acquiring him earlier today. The Yankees thought they had a deal for the left-hander, according to Rosenthal (Twitter link), but it wasn't the case. The Mariners re-opened discussions with the Rangers, learned that Smoak was available, and the sides reached a deal.
For the deal that sent Lee to the Phillies click here; for the deal that sent Lee to the Mariners click here.
Reactions To The Cliff Lee Trade
Now that we know for sure that Cliff Lee is headed to the Rangers, the pundits are already chiming in about the big swap — both about what it means for Texas and Seattle, and about what it means for the teams that fell short in the Lee sweepstakes.
- Since the Rangers didn't have to give up any of their blue-chip pitching prospects, the trade is "a huge, huge 'win' for" Texas, tweets Evan P. Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
- Grant also tweets that he was told that one of those young pitchers, Martin Perez, "was deemed untouchable" by the team.
- Jim Bowden of Sirius XM Radio thinks "both teams win on this deal," though the Rangers are the "biggest winner" since it helps their chances in October. Bowden also compliments the Mariners for getting more talent back for Lee than they dealt to acquire him in the winter. (Twitter link).
- USA Today's Bob Nightengale writes that last night, the Rangers thought that Lee was going to the Yankees. (Twitter link) Nightengale also thinks this trade makes Texas GM Jon Daniels the executive of the year.
- The Phillies are taking some heat for not getting as much minor league talent for Lee when they dealt him over the winter. ESPN's Jayson Stark tweets that one scouting director rated Philadelphia's haul for Lee as "last by a long shot" compared to what Seattle and Cleveland both got for the pitcher within the last year.
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds "made what they thought was a serious offer" for Lee today, though Fay thinks both "the Rangers and Yankees offered a better package than the Reds could have put together."
- Ed Price of Fanhouse.com comments that the Rays didn't want to give up any significant prospects for Lee (via Twitter), while the Mets simply didn't have the caliber of prospects that Seattle was looking for. Price notes, however, that Jeremy Guthrie could be on the Mets' radar screen.
- The Mets could use this Lee deal as a guideline, however, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney. The Mets could follow the Rangers' example and try to get a trading partner to add money into a deal, since Olney reports that New York won't be able to add to their payroll before the deadline.
- Rays manager Joe Maddon is unsurprisingly happy that Lee isn't in Yankee pinstripes, reports Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
- Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski says his team "had interest [in Lee], but we didn’t come close to a deal," reports John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.
- Alyson Footer of MLB.com tweets that the Lee trade may help Houston move Roy Oswalt, since the "more attractive pitcher is off the table & Roy is the next best option."
Jayson Werth Rumors: Friday
The Yankees, Red Sox and Rays have told the Phillies that they would have interest in Jayson Werth if he is available, according to George A. King III of the New York Post. We heard yesterday that the Phillies, who would like to add a proven starter, are discussing possible Werth trades with ‘a lot of teams.’
Werth, 31, will hit free agency after the season and is projected to be a Type A free agent. That ranking likely boosts his value in the long-term. For now, Werth boasts a .278/.365/.514 line and plays solid defense in right field. Check back throughout the day for the latest rumors on Werth:
- The Red Sox have shown interest in Werth, but no deal is imminent, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.
- An official of one team the Phillies discussed Werth with told ESPN.com's Jayson Stark that he would be very surprised to see the Phils trade him. Stark reports that the Phillies appear to have evaluated the market for Werth, Ibanez and Shane Victorino. The Phillies would have interest in Vazquez if the Yankees make him available.
- There’s no reason to believe that the Phillies will trade Werth to the Yankees for Javier Vazquez, according to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. The Phillies would want major league-ready players who are under team control after 2010 if they deal Werth, Zolecki confirms.
- The Phillies would part with Werth in the right deal, but aren't sure how they would do without a comparable right-handed bat, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (via Twitter).
- The Phillies would prefer to move Raul Ibanez than Werth, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter). The chances of that happening seem slim.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Phillies would be looking to obtain players who can contribute instantly and who are under team control after 2010 (Twitter link).
- Rosenthal puts the odds of a Javier Vazquez-Werth swap at 50-1 and says the Rays are not likely to acquire the Phillies' outfielder (Twitter link).
Reyes Open To Playing Other Positions
Jose Reyes told Constantino Viloria at the Spanish-language New York paper La Opinion that he is open-minded about his future with the Mets. As in past interviews, Reyes dismissed the possibility that he would play anywhere but with the Mets, the organization that scouted and signed him as a teenager in the Dominican Republic. The team holds an $11MM option on Reyes for 2011, which seems a no-brainer given the options on the free agent market.
However, Reyes added a new twist by telling Viloria that while he would prefer to stay at short, he "hasn't ruled out" changing positions. More specifically, Reyes mentions that "I played several games at second base for the Mets," referring to the 43 games he logged at the keystone in 2004.
Reyes' preferences aside, there is an argument to be made for bumping the 27-year-old one slot to the right. First of all, one of the team's top position prospects (along with Fernando Martinez and others) is 18-year-old shortstop Wilmer Flores, who has been showing promise at the lower levels of the Mets system—though some see his future outside of the infield. In any event, once the Mets are free of their commitment to Luis Castillo at the end of 2011 (or sooner by trade), there is no ready replacement within the upper levels of the system save Ruben Tejada, a natural shortstop like Reyes but without his speed or offensive ceiling.
In terms of offense, Reyes' .735 OPS this season compares little better to other second basemen than it would have back in 2004, when the likes of Jeff Kent and Alfonso Soriano were setting the power bar. For now, his production puts him firmly on the Orlando Hudson watershed line (.729 OPS), well below boppers like Cano/Pedroia/Kinsler/Utley but still above the slappy types like Schumaker/Theriot/Barmes.
However, after a few more months of an injured Castillo, Alex Cora and fliers like Tejada, Reyes' willingness to switch could resurface as a topic of discussion, especially as it may give the team the flexibility to either finally trade Castillo or package one of the shortstop prospects for pitching, as has been bandied recently.
Poll: Which Team Will Acquire Cliff Lee
We asked this a month ago, but given everything that has happened today, I'd say this question is worth asking a second time. It's a simple one:
Which team will acquire Cliff Lee?
Click here to take the survey and here to view the results.
Phillies Interested In Scott Downs
The Phillies have shown interest in Blue Jays left-hander Scott Downs, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Teams have had interest in Downs all year, though it has picked up recently, according to one of Morosi’s sources.
Downs projects to be a Type A free agent after the season, according to our latest Elias rankings. This means the Blue Jays will have the chance to obtain draft picks for him after the season. Downs, arguably the best left-handed reliever on the market, has substantial trade value.
The 34-year-old has a 2.65 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 37.1 innings this year. He earns $4MM in 2010, about $1.9MM of which remains.
Oswalt Would Not Accept Trade To White Sox, Tigers
The White Sox and Tigers are among the teams to which Roy Oswalt would not accept a trade, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). A couple of teams are interested in Oswalt, though the market for the right-hander's services remains slow. The Astros are reluctant to pick up much of the $25MM or so remaining on Oswalt's contract, which limits the number of teams with serious interest.
It doesn't appear that Cliff Lee will be on the market for long, so teams in search of starting pitching may soon be calling the Astros about Oswalt, who has a no-trade clause. The Mets won't be one of them, at least for now. They are prioritizing Ted Lilly, according to multiple reports today.
The Tigers could use stability behind Justin Verlander, Jeremy Bonderman and Max Scherzer. The White Sox have had a steady rotation so far, but recently lost Jake Peavy to the DL. The Tigers, White Sox and Twins are all within two games of each other in the AL Central.
Giants Likely To Explore Corey Hart Trade
FRIDAY, 12:50pm: Rosenthal says the Giants aren't ready to act on a trade for Hart (Twitter link). They would prefer a left-handed bat and would rather give up prospects than a major league arm like Jonathan Sanchez.
WEDNESDAY, 8:48pm: Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com tweets that the two sides are expected to talk about a possible Hart trade before their series ends tomorrow night. Rosenthal notes that Milwaukee likes Jonathan Sanchez, but it remains to be seen if a deal can be worked out.
TUESDAY, 7:40pm: Updating his initial report, Schulman adds that the Brewers haven't decided yet whether or not they want to move Hart, so talks between the two teams aren't far along.
7:00pm: Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News says (via Twitter) that the Brewers will only deal Hart this week if a team overpays. The Giants, who don't seem entirely convinced that Hart would have as much success in their ballpark, probably aren't going to do that. Schulman, meanwhile, tweets that it would likely take "Sanchez-plus" to pry Hart from the Brew Crew.
6:24pm: The Giants could be "focusing on a possible trade" involving Corey Hart, tweets Hank Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Giants were recently reported to have interest in the Brewers' outfielder, and Schulman noted yesterday that the Giants' brass may have been scouting players at the Giants-Brewers game.
Despite Pat Burrell's success in San Francisco so far (.316/.391/.553), the Giants have still been linked to outfield bats, such as David DeJesus and Jose Guillen. Hart would be of particular interest to the Giants, since he's under contract through 2011, and Brian Sabean has said his club would like to avoid merely renting players for a couple months.
When we asked nearly two weeks ago whether the Brewers ought to deal Hart, over half of our poll respondents suggested that trading the 28-year-old would be in Milwaukee's best interest. For their part though, the Brewers aren't eager to hold a fire sale, particularly with players like Hart and Prince Fielder, who are under team control past this season. In a second tweet, Schulman cautions that Hart, in the midst of a potential career year, would not come cheaply for the Giants.
Rays Release Hank Blalock
JULY 9th: The Rays officially released Blalock, according to MLB.com's transactions page. You can now find him on our list of 2010 free agents.
JUNE 29th: The Rays designated Hank Blalock for assignment, according to the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter). Gabe Kapler returns from the disabled list tomorrow, so the Rays can afford to part with Blalock. They promoted him in mid-May, just as Pat Burrell's disappointing stint in Tampa was coming to an end. But after tearing through Triple A pitching early on in the season, Blalock hit just one homer and posted a .254/.319/.349 line in the majors.
Blalock, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Rays in March. He makes $925K plus incentives, but even at that salary, it would be a surprise to see a team claim him. Instead, Blalock could be traded or released within the next ten days.
The White Sox have been relying on Mark Kotsay to DH and could use depth at third. Blalock could be a consideration, but he may not be the answer since he has hit righties better than lefties in his career, much like Kotsay. The Twins could look to improve over Danny Valencia and the Angels could use corner infielders, but there's no guarantee either team believes in Blalock's bat or his ability to defend. Blalock was mostly a DH for the Rays, though he did appear at first, third and in right.