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Archives for June 2011

MLBTR’s Agency Database

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Wondering who represents your favorite players?  Here at MLBTR we are constantly updating our agency database; check it out today.  The database currently has about 1,300 players and their agencies, and you can filter by agency or team.

A few players we don't have: J.A. Happ, Brandon Beachy, Sergio Romo, James McDonald, Neftali Feliz, and Charlie Blackmon.  If you represent any of these players or know who does, an email to mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com would be much appreciated.

 

Scott Kazmir Likely To Be Released

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"It appears the Angels will have no choice but to release" lefty Scott Kazmir, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times.  That would mean eating about $7MM in remaining salary, plus a $2.5MM buyout for 2012.

GM Tony Reagins was on hand to watch Kazmir's fifth rehab start, writes DiGiovanna, and it was the lefty's fourth ugly outing.  Kazmir's recovery from back stiffness has been drawn out, as he attempts to regain his old form within the 30-day rehab window.  Last year, Kazmir's 5.94 ERA was the worst in the American League among those with 150 innings.  Kazmir led the American League in strikeouts in 2007 as a 23-year-old, but his work has gone downhill since.

Kazmir is still only 27, so don't count him out of baseball quite yet.  Perhaps another fresh start will lead to him becoming a serviceable starter in time.

As for the August trade with the Rays, the Angels sent Sean Rodriguez, Alex Torres, and Matt Sweeney to Tampa Bay.  Torres could be the gem of the deal, as he was ranked sixth among Rays prospects by Baseball America prior to the season.

How To Use MLBTR

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An explanation of the many ways to enjoy MLB Trade Rumors:

  • If the main site doesn't load perfectly on your cell phone, try the more mobile-friendly mlbtraderumors.mobi.  It's a simple page that shows you just the headlines and lets you click through to what you want to read.
  • If you're an iPhone user, be sure to pick up our app for the latest news and rumors.
  • If you want only the hard news in the form of transactions, our transactions page is the ticket.  You can also get only the transactions via Twitter or RSS. 
  • To return to the main page at any time, just click on the title or the Home button on the navigation bar below the title. 
  • The navigation bar will cover many of your needs.  Use the About dropdown to learn about this site or any of its writers. 
  • The Contact button takes you to a page where you can write an email message to the MLBTR writers.  If you have a link to a rumor we've missed, please send it in through the Contact page!  Also use the Contact page to inquire about advertising on MLBTR.
  • The Archives dropdown shows you 15 months worth.  If you need to go back further, click on Site Map at the very bottom of the page.  Site Map also lists out every MLBTR post category, including players, teams, and features.
  • The Tools dropdown takes you to a number of different places. The MLBTR Widget allows website owners to easily add a constantly updated box with all of MLBTR's headlines to their sites.
  • Also under the tools tab is our Transaction Tracker, which enables you to search about anything and everything to do with baseball trades, signings and extensions. 
  • Be sure to check out our Free Agent Tracker for a look at last offseason's free agent activity.
  • Our Arbitration Tracker is also under the Tools tab. It enables you to look back through all of the year's arbitration cases.
  • MLBTR's Agency Database lets you know which agencies represent which players. It's searchable by team, agency or player, so be sure to check it out.
  • The Forums button takes you here, to a message board community of MLBTR readers with over 8,200 members.  You can discuss any baseball-related topic on the Forums, and start your own thread too.
  • Feeds By Team is a very useful dropdown.  Hover over it to see all 30 teams.  Click on the team name to bring up a page of every post containing information about that team, with the latest on top.  These are the same pages you'll find if you go to the Rumors By Team section on the sidebar and select A's Rumors, Angels Rumors, etc.  Also under the Feeds By Team dropdown, you'll find RSS and Twitter buttons.  Those links allow you to follow a single team's rumors via RSS or Twitter.  Did you know we have a separate Twitter account for each of the 30 teams?  For example you can follow @mlbtrtigers, where you would get the latest Tigers updates.
  • You can also follow Tim Dierkes and Ben Nicholson-Smith on Twitter for more MLBTR content.
  • On the far right of the Navigation bar, you'll see buttons for Twitter, Facebook, and RSS.  MLBTR has over 80,000 Twitter followers, over 35,000 Facebook fans, and over 53,000 RSS subscribers.  Sign up for these and you'll be the first to receive all of our posts.
  • Be sure to check out your favorite team's MLBTR page on Facebook so you can receive and comment on the latest rumors.
  • On to the sidebar.  It begins with a list of our Top Stories, which our writers update any time major hard news occurs.  Go here for a quick update on the most important stories.  Below that is the site's Search Box, where you can type in any player's name and get the latest on him. 
  • MLBTR Features has all kinds of goodies, including our free agent lists, 2011 draft order, list of Scott Boras clients, and GM-related stuff.  Many of the MLBTR Features are constantly updated by our writers, so be assured that our free agent lists are always fresh. 
  • Below Features you've got headlines for all the Recent Posts, in case you'd rather not scroll to see all the headlines.  Then there's a box for our Mailing List, where you can sign up to receive a daily email containing MLBTR's posts.  Use this option if you don't need the news as soon as possible.
  • Next we have Featured Posts, where you'll find original work from MLBTR writers we consider noteworthy.  For example, read about a potentially historic arbitration case.

Quick Hits: Miller, Dodgers, D’Backs, Rays, Trades

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Here are a few items of note as Justin Verlander narrowly misses his second no-hitter of the season:

  • Red Sox lefty Andrew Miller, currently in Triple-A, will remain with Boston and not opt out of his contract, as we inferred earlier today. Now, we know why: Miller will likely soon be called up and added to the rotation, according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe.
  • With their financial future hazy, the Dodgers should take notes on how successful small-market teams like the Rays and Marlins operate, writes Tom Krasovic of West Coast Bias.
  • The Diamondbacks have agreed to terms with seven more Draft picks — bringing their total up to 30 of the 52 players they selected — including third-rounder Justin Bianco, according to a club press release.
  • The Rays signed second-round pick Granden Goetzman, writes Anthony Chiang of MLB.com.
  • This season's relative league-wide parity has led to a slow-developing trade market, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com (via Twitter). An AL executive told Morosi, "Too many teams still in it."

Ronnie Belliard Retires

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Ronnie Belliard, currently with Lehigh Valley, the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate, is retiring, according to Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).

Belliard, primarily a second baseman, played in 13 Major League seasons, most recently with the Dodgers in 2010, when he posted a .216/.295/.327 line in 185 plate appearances. He began his career with the Brewers, by whom he was drafted in the eighth round in 1994, and was once traded for Hector Luna. He also spent time with the Rockies, Indians, Cardinals and Nationals.

Belliard signed a minor league deal with the Phils after being released by the Yankees toward the end of Spring Training but did not see a promotion. He calls it a career with a .273/.338/.415 line.

Yankees To Sign Brian Gordon

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Brian Gordon has opted out of his contract with the Phillies and will sign with the Yankees, according to to Ken Davidoff of Newsday (via Twitter, courtesy Bob Brookover of The Philadelphia Inquirer). There is a condition in Gordon's contract that stipulated he be added to an acquiring team's Major League roster should he opt out, as Davidoff recently reported.

Gordon began his professional career as an outfielder with the Diamondbacks, by whom he was drafted in the seventh round in 1997, according to Brookover. Not progressing as a position player, Gordon made the conversion to pitching with the Rangers organization in 2007 and appeared in four games with Texas in 2008, but that was his only stint in the bigs. In 55 1/3 innings (12 outings, nine starts) with Triple-A Lehigh Valley this season, Gordon has a 1.14 ERA, 9.1 K/9 and 1.1 BB/9.

Felipe Lopez Clears Waivers

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TUESDAY: For the second time this season, Lopez has cleared waivers after being DFA'd and accepted his assignment to Triple-A Durham, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (via Twitter).

SATURDAY: The Rays have designated Felipe Lopez for assignment and activated Elliot Johnson from the disabled list in a corresponding move, according to the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter).

It's been an interesting ride for Lopez and the Rays. He fell out of favor after not hustling and was DFA'd last month upon Evan Longoria's return from the DL. However, Lopez cleared waivers, accepted an assignment to Triple-A Durham and was later recalled. The Rays hope this DFA will play out similarly, writes Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.

The well-travelled Lopez owns a .265/.334/.393 in 11 Major League seasons. He signed a minor league deal with Tampa Bay prior to this season.

If The Royals Become Sellers

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The Royals sit at 29-37, seven games out and in fourth place in the AL Central.  The offense has been respectable, but the rotation has not.  GM Dayton Moore moved a couple of veterans with expiring contracts at last year's deadline in Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth; let's see who might be on the trade block this summer. 

Francis

  • Jeff Francis (pictured) is the team's nominal ace; he owns a 4.40 ERA in 14 starts, and his peripheral stats mostly support that ERA despite a low strikeout rate.  With a $2MM salary and $2MM in incentives, Francis would fit into any team's budget.  However, the Royals may not be inclined to subtract him from what is already the league's worst rotation.  If you're wondering about draft pick compensation, Francis is nowhere near Type B.
  • Kyle Davies and Bruce Chen are both on the DL currently, though they could return within a week.  Neither pitcher would really bolster a contender's rotation except perhaps at the fifth spot.  At best, the Royals could try to dump their salaries at the deadline to save about $1.7MM.
  • Jason Kendall is currently on the 60-day DL recovering from September shoulder surgery, so the Royals would need to clear a 40-man roster spot to activate him.  He could be back in mid-July.  Like Davies and Chen, the only reason to trade him is to save a little money.  Backup catcher Matt Treanor could be expendable, though he won't bring much in return.
  • Jeff Francoeur has some power, hitting .275/.316/.462 on the season.  As an affordable player who hits lefties, Francoeur would make sense for the Phillies.  The trade return would be minimal, I'd imagine, but maybe Moore could package him with Francis for some club in the vein of last year's deadline deal.
  • Melky Cabrera comes with the mild incentive of being arbitration eligible after the season.  He's showing good pop with a .453 slugging percentage, and makes just $1.25MM.  He's also capable of playing center field.
  • Wilson Betemit is useful as well, as he can play all around the infield and is hitting .289/.348/.411 on the season.  He's cheap, too.  The Marlins were said to be tracking him last month.
  • We've covered the Athletics, Cubs, Padres, Pirates, Twins, and Astros as potential sellers previously.

Quick Hits: Connor, Andrew Miller, Tigers

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A second pitching coach change occurred today, as Mark Connor resigned from the Orioles post for personal reasons.  Rick Adair will take his place.  Today's links…

Astros Notes: Arnsberg, Brocail, Wandy, Crane

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The Astros announced today that they've relieved pitching coach Brad Arnsberg of his duties over philosophical differences, with Doug Brocail taking his place on an interim basis.  The Astros' 4.69 team ERA ranks second to last in the NL this year, with Brett Myers and J.A. Happ hovering around 5.00.  A few more Astros links…

  • Starter Wandy Rodriguez, who had been out almost a month due to an elbow injury, returned last night against the Braves and picked up a win with six scoreless innings.  Though his contract will scare away some clubs, Rodriguez would be one of the better available starters if the Astros are willing to listen at the trade deadline.
  • In this Forbes article, Maury Brown takes a look at some of the more controversial aspects of Jim Crane's business dealings.  Crane may officially take over the Astros on July 7th or 8th, tweeted Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle yesterday.

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