By Tim Dierkes | at
The White Sox signed infielder Luis Rodriguez to a minor league deal, reports Baseball America's Matt Eddy. Rodriguez had signed with the Indians earlier in the offseason, but was recently released.
Rodriguez, 29, hit .202/.319/.260 in 251 plate appearances for the Padres last year, with the fourth-worst OPS in baseball for a player with that many PAs. He was considered the team's starting shortstop at one point, but lost his job to Everth Cabrera.
By Tim Dierkes | at
The Marlins signed first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz to a minor league deal, according to Baseball America's Matt Eddy. Mientkiewicz didn't play much in '09, as he went down for shoulder surgery in April.
The Dodgers re-signed Mientkiewicz to a minor league deal in December of last year. He sought his release after being told he wouldn't make the team, and the Dodgers waited a week before granting it. Mientkiewicz declined a chance to coach for Joe Torre, and later passed on Bret Boone's recruiting efforts for his independent league club.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Back on April 14th, the Red Sox claimed 26-year-old righty Santo Luis off waivers from the White Sox and optioned him to Double A. However, Luis was designated for assignment ten days later when the Sox acquired Jonathan Van Every from the Pirates. Today, Baseball America's Matt Eddy reports that the Red Sox were able to sneak Luis through waivers successfully.
Luis posted a 4.34 ERA, 12.7 K/9, and 3.7 BB/9 in 56 High A relief innings last year, allowing 11 home runs. He saved 14 games for Joe McEwing's Winston-Salem Dash. The Sox had claimed Luis from the Astros in '07 in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Kevin Millar has signed with the St. Paul Saints, according to a press release from the team. Millar began his career with the Saints in '93 before the Marlins purchased his contract. He'll presumably still work for the MLB Network as an analyst this year.
Millar was signed by the Cubs to a minor league deal in February, but released in March. He posted a solid .274/.358/.452 line in 12 big league seasons for the Marlins, Red Sox, Orioles, and Blue Jays. Millar banked about $20MM along the way, according to Baseball Reference.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Padres GM Jed Hoyer is prepared to add players if his team remains in the race, reports SI's Jon Heyman. The 17-10 Padres sit atop the NL West with 83% of their season remaining. Their Pythagorean expectation suggests a 13-14 record, but those extra four wins are in the books. If the Padres play .473 ball from here on out, as their runs scored and allowed totals suggest, they'd be projected to finish right at .500.
Padres starters have the third-best ERA in the league at 3.03, and their shut-down bullpen checks in at 2.65. As a team they have a 1.79 ERA at Petco and a 4.12 mark on the road.
The Padres rank 10th in the NL with 4.44 runs scored per game, better than I expected before the season. They've managed this despite a disappointing start from Kyle Blanks and no production out of the shortstop position. Where would the Padres add a bat? The middle infield would make sense. Left field could also work, though it may be difficult to improve upon Scott Hairston without a blockbuster deal. Dan Uggla, Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, Jose Guillen, Luke Scott, and Miguel Tejada are some potentially available names to toss around a month from now. One player who could be surprisingly absent from the trading block: Adrian Gonzalez.
By Tim Dierkes | at
The Royals face four contractual options after the season:
The Royals also have four free agents in Jose Guillen, Willie Bloomquist, John Parrish, and Bruce Chen. They're earning a total of $14.7MM this year. Take another $6.25MM off the books for Farnsworth and Ankiel and $4.85MM for buyouts the Royals won't be paying in '11, and the team has $25.8MM coming off the books.
Increases to players under contract total $11.4MM, assuming DeJesus and Podsednik are retained. Zack Greinke has the biggest raise at $6.25MM. First-time arbitration-eligibles include Luke Hochevar, Josh Rupe, Billy Butler, Alberto Callaspo, Brayan Pena, and Josh Fields. Robinson Tejeda and Alex Gordon would go for a second time, while Brian Bannister, Kyle Davies, and Brad Thompson could go for a third. A good portion of the remaining freed up cash will go to arbitration-eligible players, especially Butler, Callaspo, and Bannister.
If the Royals decline their options on Farnsworth and Ankiel and let their other free agents go while holding payroll steady, they may have a few million left to work with after giving raises. Significant free agent spending would require a payroll increase.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Matt Capps and Kelly Johnson signed one-year deals during the offseason, yet they're both under team control for 2011 as well. How did that happen? It's the beauty of signing a non-tendered player who has fewer than five years of service time. Both players will be arbitration-eligible after the 2010 season.
Capps, closing for the Nationals, was named MLB's Delivery Man of the Month for April after saving ten games with a 0.68 ERA. The Pirates non-tendered Capps after the '09 season, signing Octavio Dotel for the same $3.5MM. The Bucs have a $4.5MM club option on Dotel, so they've got two years of control for their new closer. The difference is that Dotel's option becomes mutual if he's traded. Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette feels that the Pirates could've signed both pitchers, and a comparison of the two misses the point.
Johnson is off to a blazing .301/.389/.677 start in 108 plate appearances, his nine home runs already exceeding last year's total. Much like Capps, the Braves couldn't find a trade suitor and cut Johnson loose for nothing. They're happy with Johnson's replacement Martin Prado, who's off to a .337/.397/.452 start. In hindsight, could the Braves have moved Johnson back to left field and thrown him into the mix? Melky Cabrera and Matt Diaz looked like solid options heading into the season.
Injured pitchers Chien-Ming Wang and Jose Arredondo were also non-tenders. The Nationals can control Wang for 2011, while the Reds can keep Arredondo through 2014.
By Tim Dierkes | at
The Astros are ten games under .500 and 9.5 games back in the NL Central. 84% of the season remains, so they've got plenty of time to right the ship. It's difficult to imagine this organization selling. Recent history: on July 22nd, 2008, they were 12 games back in the division and 11 out in the wild card. GM Ed Wade acquired Randy Wolf anyway, and the team went 40-22 from that point and finished 3.5 games out of the wild card. The Astros hate to quit on a season, but let's suspend our disbelief and look at who'd be available if they did sell.
Carlos Lee could be attractive to teams if he starts hitting, except for the $55.5MM owed to him over 2010-12 and the full no-trade clause. Here's what ESPN's Jayson Stark wrote about Lee a year ago: "One club that inquired about him over the winter says it was told Lee has already informed the Astros he's 'not going anywhere' as long as his no-trade is in place." The no-trade apparently becomes partial after 2010.
Roy Oswalt is pitching well, with his best strikeout rate in years. He's owed $31MM for 2010-11 and has a $16MM mutual option for 2012. Stark heard from an Oswalt friend last month that the pitcher's preferred destinations are Atlanta, St. Louis, and Texas, if a trade becomes necessary. The friend also opined that Oswalt might be willing to accept a trade to a team with a deep rotation, aside from those three. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports talked to Oswalt in February; he spoke about retiring after the 2011 season. Oswalt made it clear that he'd want a trade if the Astros went into rebuilding mode. Wade implied the team's asking price for their ace would be prohibitive.
Then there's Lance Berkman, who earns $14.5MM this year and has a $15MM club option for 2011 with a $2MM buyout. He also has a full no-trade. Berkman suggested in February he'd look elsewhere if the Astros decline the option, a decision they'll make toward the end of the season or after it. Stark wrote recently that "there is also a lot of buzz that assuming the Astros pick up Berkman's $15 million option for next year, they'll tack on a short extension." Stark talked to a Berkman friend who feels the first baseman is most likely to finish his career with the Astros.
Kaz Matsui has a limited no-trade clause; he's earning $5MM in the last year of his deal. He's losing playing time to Jeff Keppinger and has negative trade value. Similarly, Pedro Feliz at $4.5MM wouldn't net much.
Wandy Rodriguez is under club control through 2011; he's earning $5MM this year after losing an arbitration hearing. He's a bit of a late bloomer, and swapping him for cheaper, controllable arms would have to be considered. The Astros could also offer a rental in Brett Myers, who earns $3.1MM this year with a $2MM buyout for 2011. Myers has been hittable, but otherwise pretty good this year. Veterans such as Brian Moehler, Tim Byrdak, Geoff Blum, and Jason Michaels would probably be available.
Catcher J.R. Towles could be dealt regardless of the Astros' status. He's frustrated about being demoted to Double A, and told MLB.com's Brian McTaggart he has to talk to his agent to see what his options are. The 26-year-old has shown offensive promise in the high minors but it hasn't carried over yet. The Astros' catcher of the future, Jason Castro, is playing at Triple A Round Rock.
By Mike Axisa | at
The White Sox have acquired outfielder Buck Coats from the Royals according to 610 Sports Radio out of Kansas City (via Twitter). The Royals receive cash considerations in the deal.
Coats, 28 in June, was hitting .315/.377/.389 in 62 plate appearances for Kansas City's Triple-A affiliate, playing left field exclusively. He last played in the majors with the Blue Jays in 2008, and is a .193/.242/.333 career hitter in 62 big league plate appearances. Coats has played all three outfield spots extensively throughout out his career, and even dabbled with the infield a few years ago.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Links for Tuesday, as Tim Lincecum reclaims the MLB strikeout lead…
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