Archives for 2010

Odds & Ends: Cordero, Murphy, Red Sox, Griffey

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 3, 2010 at 5:55pm CDT

Links for Thursday, as Armando Galarraga receives a new Corvette (but no perfect game)…

Reliever Chad Cordero has been called up to the Mariners roster, according to a team news release. Cordero hasn't pitched in the majors since undergoing labrum surgery in July 2008. He signed a minor league deal with Seattle last winter and has a 4.12 ERA and 5.50 K-BB ratio in 17 appearances for Triple-A Tacoma this season. In six seasons with the Expos/Nationals organization, Cordero posted a 2.78 ERA and racked up 128 saves, including a league-best 47 in 2005.
2009 first rounder Jared Mitchell told reporters that he is recovering well from his ankle injury. The White Sox prospect, who will represent the team at this year's draft, does underwater drills and is progressing towards baseball activities.
Daniel Murphy will miss four to six months with an MCL tear, so the Mets have reduced infield depth, according to Newsday's David Lennon (via Twitter). Murphy, who has not played in the majors this year, has missed significant time because of his right knee.
MLB.com's Ian Browne wonders if the Red Sox will have to trade Boof Bonser.
The A's claimed Triple A infielder Adam Heether off of waivers from the Brewers, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy (via Twitter). Heether, 28, was hitting .245/.343/.440 in Nashville.
J.D. Drew and Jason Varitek told Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that agent Scott Boras does not pressure them to return from injuries any earlier or later than they want to. Boras says he does not draw medical conclusions for any of his clients, including Jacoby Ellsbury.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wonders if Ken Griffey Jr. felt pressure from Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu to retire. Wakamatsu says it was "Ken's decision."
Stephen Strasburg, who debuts against the Pirates next week, pitched five shutout innings at Triple A and even got a hit, writes MASN.com's Ben Goessling.
Strasburg's a star now, but college coach Tony Gwynn says the phenom was "sweating like a hostage" before his San Diego State debut, according to Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse. The entire piece is worth reading.

Nelson Figueroa Clears Waivers

By Tim Dierkes | June 3, 2010 at 1:43pm CDT

THURSDAY: Figueroa cleared waivers and accepted a Triple A assignment, according to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki (via Twitter).

MONDAY: The Phillies designated pitcher Nelson Figueroa for assignment to make room for Brad Lidge, reports MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that Figueroa isn't sure whether he'll accept a minor league assignment if he clears waivers. Figueroa, 36, was claimed off waivers from the Mets on April 7th and tallied nine games for the Phils.

Last year for the Mets Figueroa compiled a 4.09 ERA, 7.5 K/9, and 3.1 BB/9 in 70.3 innings. Figueroa has spent most of his second career Phillies stint in the bullpen, and the strikeouts disappeared.

Evan Englebrook Clears Waivers

By Tim Dierkes | June 3, 2010 at 1:38pm CDT

THURSDAY: Englebrook cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple A, according to Footer (via Twitter).

TUESDAY: The Astros designated minor league reliever Evan Englebrook for assignment to make room for Casey Daigle, tweets Alyson Footer.

Englebrook, 28, has a 6.46 ERA, 8.7 K/9, and 5.3 BB/9 in 23.6 Triple A relief innings this year. Baseball America ranked him 23rd among Astros prospects heading into the season, noting that his mid-90s fastball is his only above-average pitch.

Royals Claim Kanekoa Texeira

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 3, 2010 at 1:13pm CDT

The Royals claimed pitcher Kanekoa Texeira off of waivers from the Mariners and designated right-hander Brad Thompson for assignment to make room for Texeira, according to a team press release.

The Mariners designated Texeira and Jesus Colome for assignment two days ago. The Yankees acquired Texeira in the 2008 deal that brought Nick Swisher to the Bronx, but they saw the Mariners claim the 24-year-old Hawaiian in last winter's Rule 5 draft. The Royals have to expose Texeira to waivers if they decide to take him off their active roster this year. If no team were to claim Texeira on waivers, the Royals would have to offer him back to the Yankees.

Kanekoa relied on a 90 mph fastball, a change-up and a slider in Seattle, where he posted a 5.30 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9 in 16 appearances this year. He has a 2.49 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in four minor league seasons.

Celebrating Ken Griffey Jr.

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 3, 2010 at 10:15am CDT

After 22 seasons and 630 home runs, it's over - Ken Griffey Jr. has announced his retirement. Here are some links that start evaluating Griffey's place in the game's history:

Tom Singer and Doug Miller of MLB.com note that Griffey and the 1995 Mariners may have "saved baseball in the Emerald City and basically built Safeco Field."
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says fans will remember Griffey for being clean. Junior was never linked to performance enhancing drugs.
Scott Miller of CBS Sports says Griffey had two lives in Seattle: the "very first baseball all-timer Seattle could call its own" and the elder statesman.
Danny Knobler of CBS Sports points out that Griffey retired 75 years to the day after Babe Ruth did.
Tim Lincecum tells Steve Kroner of the San Francisco Chronicle that Junior was "the epitome of Seattle baseball."
Jay Bruce grew up idolizing Griffey and eventually became his teammate, as MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reports.
Yahoo's Tim Brown says Griffey "had no peers" on the baseball diamond.
ESPN.com's Rob Neyer says "maybe [Griffey] wasn't as good as he could have been. But he was better than almost everyone else."

Cubs Haven’t Begun Serious Trade Talks

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 3, 2010 at 9:38am CDT

Whether or not the Angels want to acquire a Cubs bat may not matter just yet. Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that there has been very little trade talk recently for the 24-29 Cubs. That could change, but GM Jim Hendry says he’s still waiting for his team to get hot.

''If we get it going and have a couple of good weeks, we can [get back in it],” Hendry said. “We've done that before. We need to do it now.''

It’s not clear whether the Angels are interested in Derrek Lee, but the first baseman obviously doesn’t want to talk about it. Lee declined to answer questions about his no-trade clause.

As Wittenmyer notes, Lee, Xavier Nady and Ted Lilly are free agents after the season and the resurgent Carlos Silva could appeal to teams looking at starters. For now, though, trade talks have yet to pick up.

Phillies Sign Willy Taveras

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 3, 2010 at 9:38am CDT

The Phillies signed Willy Taveras, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). Yesterday, DeWayne Wise opted out of his contract with the Phillies, who restore some minor league outfield depth by signing Taveras. The Nationals signed Taveras in February, but released him unconditionally two weeks ago after an unproductive stint in Washington.

Taveras, 28, hit .200/.243/.257 in 37 plate appearances for the Nats this year. The former stolen base champ was successful in just one of three attempts. He has had trouble reaching base for the last three seasons, but he was an above-average defender (according to UZR) as recently as last year.

Taveras will report to Triple A, where Wise was playing before he opted out, according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).

D’Backs Open To Major Changes

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 3, 2010 at 8:49am CDT

The last-place Diamondbacks, losers of ten consecutive games, are considering a major restructuring of the major league roster, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. Team president Derrick Hall said the team has to consider changes when losing like this.

"We're going to have to look at the budget and at doing business a little differently," Hall said. "Sticking with the same guys year after year when their salaries are going up and we're not getting results, that's not efficient or responsible."

D’Backs managing general partner Ken Kendrick also expressed disappointment in the team, though he didn't blame manager A.J. Hinch. Kendrick suggested the players “look themselves in the mirror.” And Kendrick says the same applies for everyone in the organization, including GM Josh Byrnes.

"We owe it to ourselves to frankly look in the mirror, for me to look at myself and say what am I doing or not doing that I should be doing as an owner," Kendrick said. "It goes for me, Derrick Hall, Josh Byrnes and right on through to all of us who don’t wear the uniform and are involved in the organization."

Yesterday, Byrnes did not deny to Jim Bowden that the D’Backs could listen on Dan Haren. Adam LaRoche is one of the other D’Backs with some trade value.

2010 Draft Prospect: Karsten Whitson

By Mike Axisa | June 2, 2010 at 9:58pm CDT

Major League Baseball's amateur draft will be held from June 7th-9th, so we're going to introduce you to some of the top players available between now and then.

The 2010 draft class features one truly elite high school righthander in Jameson Taillon, but Karsten Whitson of Chipley High School in Florida isn't far behind him. He offers a nice 6-foot-4, 195 lb. frame that scouts can dream on, but unlike most other prep pitchers, he also offers command and poise beyond his years.

ESPN's Keith Law (sub. req'd) recently ranked Whitson as the fifth best player available this year while Baseball America had him 15th. MLB.com's Draft Report says he throws his fastball in the 91-96 mph range, and also features a swing-and-miss slider, an average changeup and good command. As I already said, it's Whitson's mound presence and polish that really separates him from the pack. The MLB.com link offers video.

High school arms carry the stereotype of being the riskiest demographic among amateurs, so it's often hard to predict where they'll be selected. Baseball America's Jim Callis projected to the Cubs to take Whitson 16th overall, while Law doesn't think he'll last quite that long, instead going 11th overall to the Blue Jays (sub. req'd for both). It's tough to envision him falling past the Red Sox at 20.

Odds & Ends: Griffey, Padres, Suzuki, Pedroia, Haren

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 2, 2010 at 9:03pm CDT

Hard to believe that Ken Griffey Jr.'s retirement will only be the second biggest story of the day. Here are some more links to check out…

Speaking of Griffey, Bob Nightengale of USA Today says (via Twitter) that he will remain with the Mariners in a front office role.
Big League Stew lists ten players who could be traded before the deadline, headlined by Roy Oswalt and Cliff Lee.
Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse grades the Padres' offseason pickups.
The Red Sox almost drafted Kurt Suzuki instead of Dustin Pedroia in the second round of the 2004 draft, according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier.
D'Backs GM Josh Byrnes did not deny that Dan Haren may be dealt this summer, according to Jim Bowden of Sirius XM Radio (Twitter link).
ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick presents the nine most-hyped draft picks of all time.
Ben Goessling of MASN.com imagines what a Roy Oswalt-Nationals swap might look like, just as MLBTR's Howard Megdal did. Last night we heard that Oswalt would consider a deal to Washington.
ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports that Randy Wells switched agents "a while ago," leaving the Beverly Hills Sports Council for ACES (Twitter link).
Lynn Henning of the Detroit News believes Oswalt and Cliff Lee would cost more than the Tigers can afford to give up.
Scott Boras told Scott Miller of CBS Sports that Tony Gwynn was an "extraordinary" coach for Stephen Strasburg at San Diego State University.
Boras doesn't want Bryce Harper to catch, but ESPN.com's Keith Law points out that Harper's bat is worth much more behind the plate than anywhere else.
Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle predicts that Pat Burrell may make his Giants debut as soon as this weekend.
Yahoo's Jeff Passan describes the journey Colby Lewis took from the majors to Japan and back.
The Rangers need a reliable catcher more than anything else, writes Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
The Indians had no interest in Dontrelle Willis, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
But other teams are eyeing an Indians starter. One executive told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that Jake Westbrook is "everything you look for if you want to add an arm down the stretch."

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