Blue Jays Notes: Rauch, Francisco, Rasmus
Colby Rasmus is making his Blue Jays debut in Toronto, where he’s batting second and starting in center field tonight. Here’s the latest on a Blue Jays team that could make another move or two before Sunday afternoon…
- Though the Blue Jays have said they're likely done making deals, other teams believe they may still trade Jon Rauch and/or Frank Francisco, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
- The Diamondbacks, who had interest in some of the relievers the Blue Jays traded, aren't willing to mortgage the future for middle relief, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (on Twitter). Octavio Dotel, Jason Frasor and Marc Rzepczynski were dealt yesterday.
- Rasmus' father, Tony, says Cardinals manager Tony La Russa pushed his son out of town. “Tony needed pitching and wanted to force the GM into making a trade, so he belittled Colby to the fans,” the elder Rasmus told Bob Eilliott of the Toronto Sun.
- One MLB executive told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that the only thing he's sure of is that Toronto GM "Alex Anthopoulos is the smartest dude in the game." Rosenthal warns his readers that forming snap judgments about trades is dangerous, but most of his sources like the deal for the Blue Jays.
Phillies Targeting Pence, Quentin, Adams
Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. is working aggressively to improve his club before Sunday afternoon’s non-waiver trade deadline. And according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com, Amaro’s shopping list has been established.
Hunter Pence is his top priority (latest rumors here), Carlos Quentin is his second choice (latest rumors here) and Mike Adams is his third choice (latest rumors here). Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer confirms that Pence is Philadelphia's top target. The Phillies are interested in several other players, but their hope is to acquire Pence, Quentin or Adams, according to Salisbury.
Multiple Teams Interested In Jamey Carroll
4:40pm: The D'Backs and Pirates are also looking at Carroll, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
11:48am: The Brewers would like to acquire Dodgers infielder Jamey Carroll more than ever with Rickie Weeks hitting the DL for an ankle sprain, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today. However, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that the Indians are continuing to show interest in Carroll.
Though they acquired outfielder Kosuke Fukudome earlier today, Indians president Mark Shapiro tweeted that the front office is "still working to improve the team with other additions." Potential targets vary from Ryan Ludwick to Ubaldo Jimenez, based on tweets from Jon Heyman and Troy Renck.
Stark On Quentin, Pirates, Braves, Indians, Reds
Another must-read column from ESPN's Jayson Stark…
- Stark has updated his take on Carlos Quentin's availability. He says there is "increasing evidence the White Sox are talking to several teams about Quentin, one of which is believed to be Atlanta." An executive of a team that has talked to the Sox says that while they are not "bound and determined" to trade Quentin, they would do it.
- The Pirates are focused on finding a professional hitter, but aren't hot on Carlos Pena or Josh Willingham. They're eyeing the Twins' Jason Kubel, but GM Bill Smith considers his team a contender at six games out.
- Stark hasn't heard much that suggests the Braves are still bullpen shopping.
- The Indians are turning their attention to starting pitching, but players Drew Pomeranz, Alex White, Lonnie Chisenhall, and Jason Kipnis appear to be untouchable.
- The Astros continue to shop Wandy Rodriguez, and Stark wonders if he'll fit for the Yankees as a salary dump type.
- The White Sox dangled Adam Dunn. Dunn has over $48MM remaining on the four-year, $56MM deal he signed in December.
- The Reds have "stepped up their calls this week on controllable middle-of-the-order bats," although it's hard to name any available hitters of that nature.
Brewers Acquire Felipe Lopez
The Brewers acquired infielder Felipe Lopez from the Rays for cash considerations, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. He'll head to Triple-A Nashville for the time being. Brewers GM Doug Melvin moved quickly to add infield depth after Rickie Weeks injured his ankle yesterday. Melvin told Tom Haudricourt that no second basemen are on the market at a price he'll meet so he'll probably mix and match a variety of players.
Lopez, 31, was a July addition for Milwaukee back in 2009 as well. He struggled with the Rays this year but hit .305/.357/.474 in 207 plate appearances for their Triple-A club. Lopez was designated for assignment and cleared waivers twice already this year, so the cash the Brewers are considering sending shouldn't amount to much.
Rafael Furcal Drawing Interest
1:52pm: The Brewers are doing background work on Furcal and are also interested in Jamey Carroll, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but the Dodgers will only trade one.
1:30pm: The Giants have talked to the Dodgers about Furcal, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. Before the two rivals matched up on a 2007 deal involving Mark Sweeney, they hadn't made a trade since 1985.
9:57am: Multiple teams are showing interest in Dodgers infielder Rafael Furcal, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney, though L.A. would have to eat a major portion of the $4.8MM owed to him. Though he's having a terrible season, Furcal is a good hitter when he's right and looks better in a weak market for middle infielders. The Cardinals are known to be focused on middle infield help.
Furcal, 33, is hitting .195/.267/.241 in 147 plate appearances. He was hampered by a broken thumb and oblique strain, each injury knocking him out for about a month.
Erik Bedard Rumors: Thursday
Mariners southpaw Erik Bedard will be a popular man tomorrow night, as he faces off against the Rays in his first start in over a month and last before the trade deadline. The latest:
- The Mariners like Bedard and he loves Seattle, tweets SI's Jon Heyman, so they haven't ruled out re-signing him.
- The Tigers are very unlikely to acquire Bedard, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports.
- The Red Sox and Yankees will have scouts in attendance, report Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports, who say the Sox are "all over" the lefty. The Mariners have been scouting Boston's Double and Triple-A affiliates, according to the FOX writers.
- As I mentioned yesterday, it wouldn't be surprising if the Indians, Rangers, Pirates, Reds, and Diamondbacks scout this game as well. Despite Bedard's fragility, the Mariners' asking price is said to be high.
Tigers Rumors: Starting Pitchers
The Tigers acquired Jhonny Peralta a year ago today, but this year they're trying to hold off the Indians rather than make trades with them. Who will they add before Sunday's deadline? The latest:
- It sounds like the Tigers' three options for a starting pitcher currently are Hiroki Kuroda, Aaron Harang, and Jeremy Guthrie, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports.
- The Dodgers, Mariners, Astros, and Rays had scouts assigned to watch the Tigers' Low-A team last night, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The game was postponed due to rain, however. At any rate, Nick Castellanos and Bruce Rondon are a couple of notable prospects on that club.
Carlos Beltran Trade Reactions
The Giants acquired Carlos Beltran and $4MM from the Mets yesterday for pitching prospect Zack Wheeler, in a deal that became official today. The latest reactions:
- ESPN's Adam Rubin has notes from Mets GM Sandy Alderson from today's conference call. Alderson said there was a possibility of sending Beltran to an AL team, but it was contingent on him playing right field and the available NL options.
- Giants GM Brian Sabean said today that vice president of player personnel Dick Tidrow assured him the team has enough pitching talent in the minors to withstand the loss of Wheeler, tweets Andrew Baggarly.
- Though Wheeler is no sure thing, ESPN's Keith Law says the Giants risked "an enormous long-term cost" for about 60 games of Beltran.
- The Beltran trade is the Mets' "most meaningful July 2011 victory," writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Sherman says it helped that the Giants "do almost no statistical analysis" and are not active in talking to many other teams. They simply go after the players their scouts like "with disregard to how it will be viewed by the rest of the sport."
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan praises Giants GM Brian Sabean for going for it, but was not a fan of the win-now deal in which the Cardinals sent Colby Rasmus to Toronto.
Indians Acquire Kosuke Fukudome
The Cubs' first-ever Japanese player is heading to Cleveland. The Indians acquired right fielder Kosuke Fukudome and about $3.9MM from the Cubs today for minor leaguer outfielder Abner Abreu and reliever Carlton Smith. With Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore on the DL, the Tribe has a clear need for outfield help, and Fukudome was willing to waive his no-trade clause to join the AL Central contender. For the second summer in a row, Cubs GM Jim Hendry is taking on salary to ship out overpaid veterans.
Fukudome, 34, is hitting .273/.374/.369 in 345 plate appearances for the Cubs this year. He leads the NL with 4.34 pitches per plate appearance. Though his right field defense drew praise initially, Fukudome has been below-average per UZR over the last few years. He is owed almost $4.7MM for the balance of the season, and the Cubs will pay all but $775K of that. Fukudome signed a four-year, $48MM free agent deal with the Cubs in December of '07 after spending his career in Japan with the Chunichi Dragons.
Fukudome cannot be offered arbitration after the season, so draft pick compensation was not a factor.
Abreu, 21, is hitting .244/.294/.429 in 367 plate appearances in his second stint at High-A. Prior to the 2010 season, Baseball America ranked him 23rd among Indians prospects, describing him as a player who has offensive tools but "remains raw at the plate." Smith, 25, has a 4.50 ERA, 9.0 K/9, 3.9 BB/9, and 0.8 HR/9 in 46 Triple-A relief innings, his second stint at the level.
Ken Rosenthal broke the story, with Danny Knobler, Buster Olney, Jon Heyman, Paul Hoynes, and SportsTime Ohio adding details.
Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.