Archives for 2011

Arbitration Eligibles: Boston Red Sox

By Tim Dierkes | August 24, 2011 at 10:02am CDT

We looked at the Orioles yesterday; now it's time to discuss Red Sox players who will be eligible for arbitration after the season.

First time: Andrew Miller, Alfredo Aceves, Mike Aviles, Daniel Bard, Jed Lowrie, Franklin Morales
Second time: Jacoby Ellsbury, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Rich Hill
Third time: Matt Albers

Aceves and Bard seem likely to be arbitration eligible as Super Two players. My non-tender candidates are Miller, Aviles, and Hill. Miller projects to an arbitration salary around $1.7MM; I'm not sure how his club option compares to that. Aviles hasn't done much with Boston, and I'm not sure whether they value him around $1.5MM. Hill, who had Tommy John surgery in June, is probably someone the Sox could non-tender and then re-sign to a minor league deal.

Ellsbury is easily the team's biggest case. His MVP-caliber campaign, coupled with his stolen base tally, could result in a salary over $6MM by our calculations. That'd exceed even Hunter Pence's second-time raise won through a hearing last year. The Boras Corporation probably won't be shy about trying to set a new precedent. Most of the team's other arbitration eligibles project to make less than $2MM.

Twins Place Jim Thome On Waivers

By Tim Dierkes | August 24, 2011 at 9:20am CDT

WEDNESDAY, 9:14am: The White Sox were one of several teams putting in a claim for Thome, reports Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that "there is a high expectation among executives that the White Sox will be awarded the claim." For that to happen, Thome would have to get past the Orioles, Royals, Mariners, and Athletics. That seems feasible, though it's possible one of the four would put in a claim with an eye on a potential draft pick.

MONDAY, 2:15pm: The Twins placed designated hitter Jim Thome on trade waivers today, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Rosenthal says the Phillies want Thome back in their organization, but there's almost no chance the slugger gets to them. Since the Phillies have the best record in the National League, the 28 other teams would have to pass on Thome first.

Thome, 40, is hitting .256/.365/.503 with 12 home runs in 230 plate appearances this year. He cranked his 600th home run a week ago. Now that Thome has reached the milestone, the Twins might be more inclined to trade him if he would like to join a playoff race. Rosenthal notes that Thome has a full no-trade clause.

Thome's salary should not pose a problem, as he has about $610K remaining plus incentives. As of a week ago Thome wasn't too far from Type B status, so if he continues producing there could be a shot at a draft pick. So there is the possibility that American League non-contenders could place claims. If the Twins want to give Thome freedom to play for any team but don't mind getting nothing in return, they could release him, notes Rosenthal.

Elias Rankings Update

By Tim Dierkes | August 24, 2011 at 8:39am CDT

After the season the Elias Sports Bureau will take all players over the 2010-11 period, divide them into five groups for each league, and rank them based on various statistics. Then each player will be labeled a Type A, B, or none. Those designations and the possible accompanying arbitration offers determine draft pick compensation (click here for a refresher).

Eddie Bajek has reverse-engineered the Elias rankings, and he's providing that information exclusively at MLB Trade Rumors. Here's a look at how the players rank for the period beginning with the 2010 season running through August 22nd, 2011. Click here to go to the rankings directly if they don't appear below.

We've updated the rankings to reflect Kelly Johnson landing with the Blue Jays and Aaron Hill with the Diamondbacks. Hill maintains his Type B status, though he's close to none. Johnson climbs to Type A status, though he could easily fall to B. Johnson accepting arbitration wouldn't be all that desirable, and I can see that happening if he's a Type A, so it's not necessarily true that the Blue Jays made this trade to take a shot at two draft picks.

Nationals Don’t Intend To Pursue Prince Fielder

By Tim Dierkes | August 24, 2011 at 7:53am CDT

The Nationals don't intend to go after Prince Fielder once he reaches free agency, a team source told MLB.com's Bill Ladson. The primary reason is that first basemen Michael Morse and Adam LaRoche are already under team control for 2012. Instead, the Nats may be more focused on finding a center fielder and a leadoff hitter.

Earlier this month Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington.com expressed similar feelings about the Nationals sitting out the Fielder bidding. He provided additional reasons: GM Mike Rizzo loves defense at first base, and the team might need to earmark money for a future Ryan Zimmerman extension.

Now, as I mentioned on Monday, having LaRoche under contract for a year at $8MM wouldn't be a huge roadblock if the Nationals wanted Fielder, and Morse could play left field. Scott Boras has been cozy with Rizzo in recent years, and the agent will probably try his damnedest to get them involved on Fielder. However, if the two beat writers are correct and the Nationals don't get involved, that's one less team capable of doing a $150MM+ contract in a market that probably already excludes the Red Sox, Yankees, and many others.

Quick Hits: Rangers, Weaver, Rodriguez, Thome

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 23, 2011 at 10:35pm CDT

We saw one trade completed today and, as our list of players to clear waivers shows, there are more potential deals on the horizon. Here are the latest links from around MLB…

Rangers GM Jon Daniels told Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he doesn't expect to make a trade this month, though he's considering waiver trade candidates every day.
Angels ace Jered Weaver had a refreshing take on his team friendly five-year, $85MM extension, as Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times writes. “If $85 million is not enough to take care of my family and other generations of my family, then you’re stupid," he said. "I play baseball for the love of the game, for the competitive part of it.”
A's GM Billy Beane told Tyler Kepner of the New York Times that the gap between baseball's haves and have-nots has widened. "The window for small-market clubs is shorter and shorter,” Beane said.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports breaks down some possible trade scenarios between the Rockies and Astros involving the recently-claimed Wandy Rodriguez.
Rodriguez drew interest at the trade deadline, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter). The Yankees were prepared to give up a player for the left-hander, who they valued at $21MM.
White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen says he'd love to bring Jim Thome back to Chicago, according to MLB.com's Scott Merkin. Thome hit waivers yesterday.

Marlins Designate Dewayne Wise For Assignment

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 23, 2011 at 9:52pm CDT

The Marlins designated Dewayne Wise for assignment to create roster space for Logan Morrison, who will be recalled tomorrow, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post (on Twitter). The move opens up a spot on the Marlins' 40-man roster, which now sits at 39.

Wise has signed with the Marlins twice this year, first in January, then in June. In 72 plate appearances, Wise posted a .239/.278/.269 line for Florida, appearing in left and center field. The 33-year-old has a .223/.261/.373 line in his nine-year MLB career.

GM Candidate: Mike Radcliff

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 23, 2011 at 9:28pm CDT

MLBTR’s list of general manager candidates introduced 20 people who were identified by their peers as potential Major League GMs. We’re now going to bring you closer to the candidates with a series of pieces. Today the series continues with Twins executive Mike Radcliff.

When Mike Radcliff joined the Major League scouting bureau in 1982, the best player he would ever draft hadn’t actually been born yet. And it wasn’t until 2001, after years as an area scout, cross checker and scouting director, that Radcliff actually selected Minnesota high schooler Joe Mauer (pictured) with the top pick in the nation over Mark Prior and Mark Teixeira.

Radcliff, who joined the Twins as an area scout in 1987, has worked for Minnesota ever since. He was the team’s scouting director from 1994-2007 before assuming his current role, vice president of player personnel.

The Twins’ roster features many players Radcliff selected in his 14 years as scouting director, including Michael Cuddyer (1997), Justin Morneau (1999), Jason Kubel (2000), Mauer (2001), Nick Blackburn (2001), Denard Span (2002), Scott Baker (2003), Glen Perkins (2004), Brian Duensing (2005), Kevin Slowey (2005), Danny Valencia (2006) and Ben Revere (2007). Former Twins such as A.J. Pierzynski (1994), Jesse Crain (2002) and Matt Garza (2005) are also products of his drafts.

Radcliff’s selections have helped Minnesota acquire a steady stream of affordable talent that has led the Twins to six division titles since 2002. He doesn't necessarily get much recognition outside of Minnesota, but his peers in the game consider him a GM candidate.

Photo courtesy Icon SMI.

NL East Notes: Braves, Morrison, Rodriguez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 23, 2011 at 8:40pm CDT

Jason Heyward hit his first MLB grand slam at Wrigley Field tonight, helping the Braves in their attempt to strengthen their hold on the NL Wild Card. Here are the rest of today’s links from Heyward’s division…

As Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution explains, the Braves' late-inning combination of Jonny Venters and Craig Kimbrel is the kind of shutdown late-inning tandem most teams can only dream of having.
The Marlins are calling Logan Morrison back to the Major Leagues tomorrow, a week and a half after demoting him to the minors, according to MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro (on Twitter). Morrison can still receive credit for a full year of service this year, so the demotion probably won’t affect his service clock.
Agent Scott Boras says the Nationals should re-sign Ivan Rodriguez when the veteran catcher hits free agency after the season, according to Ben Goessling of MASNsports.com.

Minor Moves: Jason Stevenson

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 23, 2011 at 7:57pm CDT

Here’s where we’ll keep track of today’s minor moves…

The Giants signed left-hander Jason Stevenson from the independent Chico Outlaws and assigned him to Triple-A, according to the Pacific Coast League Transactions page. The Expos drafted Stevenson in back to back years, 1999 and 2000, signing him as a 12th rounder in 2000. He has a 4.58 ERA with 5.6 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 505 minor league innings since 2001, including one start with the Giants' top affiliate this year. Stevenson allowed eight hits, two walks and four earned runs in 6 1/3 innings, striking out seven for Fresno.

D’Backs Wanted Defense, Infield Depth

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 23, 2011 at 7:08pm CDT

Talk of draft pick compensation, club options and future salaries is valid after any trade, including the one the Diamondbacks just made with the Blue Jays. But the D’Backs didn’t make this move with an eye on future seasons or drafts.

“This deal was really made with a focus on ‘how do we get better for the next five weeks and stay ahead of the Giants’,” GM Kevin Towers explained this evening on a conference call with reporters.

Ever since Stephen Drew’s season ended, the D’Backs have been short-handed up the middle. They wanted to rely on Willie Bloomquist less, so Towers and the Blue Jays discussed Aaron Hill, someone the D’Backs have been eyeing for a while. The second baseman isn’t having much of a season at the plate, but Towers says his power could return against National League pitching.

“We’re hoping that a change of scenery can not only spark our club, but spark these two guys,” Towers said, referring to Hill and John McDonald.

Even if Chase Field doesn’t coax extra base power out of Hill, who has a 36-homer season to his name, Towers won’t mind. The deal, which included the versatile McDonald, was about defense. Though Towers didn't express disappointment in Kelly Johnson’s defense, he did say he's looking forward to adding the pair of former Blue Jays to his infield.

Hill has two $8MM team options for 2012-13, yet they aren't a major consideration for the D'Backs at this point at this point. It was “doubtful” that Johnson (pictured) would have returned after 2012, according to Towers, so the D’Backs were willing to part with him for Hill, regardless of whether Hill returns to Arizona in 2012.

That Hill and McDonald strike out less than Johnson (132 Ks this year) is a bonus for Towers, who has been looking to reduce Arizona’s strikeout totals since last year. Plus, they’re two “great guys” who drew personal praise from Diamondbacks people and others in baseball.

For the two nice guys to finish first, the D’Backs will have to maintain their current one-game lead over the defending World Champion Giants. Arizona could even obtain more help this month, since Towers may not be done dealing yet.

“We’ll keep working the phone lines until the end,” he said.

Photo courtesy Icon SMI.

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