Archives for February 2012

Latest At RotoAuthority.com

By Tim Dierkes | February 7, 2012 at 9:36am CDT

Our newly-relaunched fantasy baseball website RotoAuthority is always fresh and free. The latest:

Edwin Van Bibber-Orr lets us in on the best-kept fantasy baseball secret of 2012.
If you like Buster Posey, try drafting Miguel Montero as your catcher instead, I explain.
Robinson Cano, Dustin Pedroia, and Ian Kinsler top Mike Axisa's second baseman rankings.
Frank Francisco is a sleeper and Alex Gordon might be overvalued, writes Dan Mennella.
Mike Napoli, Mark Teixeira, Dustin Ackley, Derek Jeter, David Freese, and Michael Bourn are overrated in fantasy drafts this year, declares Tom Warman.
Alex Steers McCrum analyzes the recent Edwin Jackson and Casey Kotchman signings.
Mark Polishuk looks at the battle for the Reds' left field job.
Steve Adams answered fantasy questions in a live chat; check out the transcript.

Latest On Roy Oswalt

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 10:45pm CDT

10:45pm: The Reds continue talking to Oswalt, though he'd prefer to pitch for the Cardinals or Rangers, Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports report. Cincinnati would have to clear payroll to add Oswalt and Homer Bailey would be the most likely candidate to be dealt.

9:33pm: Cardinals GM John Mozeliak acknowledges he’ll be ‘opportunistic’ about potential deals, but says he’s not expecting significant moves before Spring Training, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Though the Cardinals and Roy Oswalt had mutual interest in a deal, they couldn’t reach an agreement.

Oswalt was asking for a significant guarantee in terms of role and salary, but the Cardinals aren’t looking to add payroll. The Cardinals haven’t spoken to Oswalt’s agent in the past week or so, Goold writes. The Reds appear to be kicking the tires on the right-hander, but the Rangers aren’t likely to sign him.

Quick Hits: Pirates, Verlander, Camp

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 8:31pm CDT

On this date 14 years ago, the Mets sent pitching prospect A.J. Burnett to the defending World Series champion Marlins for Al Leiter. New York's other team was also busy that day — the Yankees acquired Chuck Knoblauch from the Twins. So far today we've seen one major trade take place and here are some assorted links to read as we await the next significant move…

The Pirates made Edwin Jackson a substantial three-year offer, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (Twitter links). Pittsburgh offered a three-year deal in the range of $10MM per season, but Jackson signed with the Nationals for $11MM. The Pirates also made a one-year offer worth less than $11MM, Rosenthal reports.
Ryan Madson, Hiroki Kuroda and Reed Johnson are among the best under-the-radar signings of the winter, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes.
Speaking of under-the-radar moves, Matt Eddy of Baseball America has the minor league transactions for January 26th-February 1st.
Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander said yesterday morning on WXYZ-TV that he wants to stay in Detroit forever, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports. "I think that it's a very unique city, the people here are fantastic, it's unbelievable,” Verlander said.
Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner says newly signed Mariners right-hander Shawn Camp could be pretty decent if the Mariners use him mostly against right-handed hitters.

Jeremy Guthrie Trade Reactions

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 7:21pm CDT

The Orioles agreed to send Jeremy Guthrie to the Rockies for Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom in a deal that was announced earlier today. The trade provides the Rockies with an innings eater atop a rotation filled with uncertainty and gives the Orioles two players who are under team control through 2013. Here are some reactions to the deal:

Guthrie wrote on Twitter that Nick Swisher's batting average is one of the 'losers' of the trade. Swisher has a .448 average in 29 career plate appearances against Guthrie.
The Orioles should have traded Guthrie at or before last year's July 31st trade deadline, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Rosenthal says Guthrie had more trade value when he was further away from free agency. The Tigers, Rangers and Cardinals had interest in Guthrie last summer, Rosenthal tweets.
Guthrie told reporters, including Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com and Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, that he was surprised to be traded since he and the Orioles had been preparing for an arbitration hearing.
ESPN.com's Buster Olney hears arbitration talks between Guthrie and the Orioles were contentious leading up to today's scheduled hearing (Twitter links). Olney hears the Orioles and Rockies started discussing Guthrie at last year's trade deadline and continued talks at the November GM Meetings.
Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd joined Jim Duquette and Kevin Kennedy on MLB Network Radio and said the Rockies have admired Guthrie for a while. O'Dowd had discussed the right-hander with Andy MacPhail before the Orioles' recent regime change.
Connolly hears that Eric Young Jr. came up in trade talks, before the Orioles decided he wasn't a fit. The infielder is out of options and the Orioles have a full 40-man roster.
Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com explains that Guthrie could be better off in Denver, since NL West teams play in a number of big ballparks and Guthrie lives in Utah.
The Rockies' offer was 'by far' the best one the Orioles received, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets.
Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette weighed in on the trade earlier today.

Yankees In Serious Discussions With Raul Ibanez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 6:12pm CDT

The Yankees are in serious discussions with free agent Raul Ibanez, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. The ACES client is willing to take less money to play for the Yankees.

ESPN.com's Buster Olney reported earlier tonight that the Yankees could add a left-handed hitter such as Ibanez, Johnny Damon or Hideki Matsui within a week. Yankees manager Joe Girardi said last week that he would like to see GM Brian Cashman add a bat before Opening Day.

Ibanez posted a .245/.289/.419 line with 20 home runs in 575 plate appearances as the Phillies' everyday left fielder last year. The 39-year-old could provide the Yankees with an option at designated hitter or in the corner outfield positions. He owns a .286/.351/.488 line against right-handed pitching in 16 MLB seasons and appears to be a possible platoon partner for Andruw Jones.

Yankees Could Add Lefty Bat Soon

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 5:31pm CDT

The Yankees are considering adding a left-handed hitter and could sign Raul Ibanez, Johnny Damon or Hideki Matsui within a week, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes. Adding one of the veterans would provide the Yankees with a weapon against right-handed pitching for their open DH spot.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said last week that he would like to see GM Brian Cashman add a bat before Opening Day. The skipper suggested he'd prefer a lefty hitter, someone who can complement the right-handed hitting Andruw Jones. The Yankees will explore alternatives before the July 31st trade deadline if they aren’t getting enough production from their DHs, Olney tweets.

Outrighted To Triple-A: Scott Atchison

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 4:41pm CDT

The latest outright assignments from around MLB…

The Red Sox outrighted Scott Atchison to Triple-A after he cleared waivers, Maureen Mullen of CSN New England tweets. The Red Sox had designated the 35-year-old for assignment late last month. He posted a 3.26 ERA with 5.0 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 in 30 1/3 innings for the 2011 Red Sox and logged 61 1/3 more innings at Triple-A with a 2.64 ERA, 10.6 K/9 and 1.3 BB/9.

Astros Sign Justin Ruggiano

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 4:31pm CDT

The Astros signed free agent outfielder Justin Ruggiano to a minor league contract that includes an invitation to Spring Training, the team announced. Ruggiano elected free agency one week ago today, after the Rays designated him for assignment.

Ruggiano appeared in 46 games for the Rays last year, playing all three outfield positions. The 29-year-old posted a .248/.273/.400 line in 111 plate appearances. Ruggiano, who also played for the Rays in 2007-08, is not yet arbitration eligible. The native of Austin, Texas has a .295/.376/.486 in eight minor league seasons.

Dodgers Designate Russ Mitchell For Assignment

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 4:21pm CDT

The Dodgers designated infielder Russ Mitchell for assignment, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. The Dodgers confirmed the move, which will presumably clear 40-man roster space for right-handed reliever Todd Coffey.

Mitchell appeared in 25 games for the 2011 Dodgers, playing first base, third base and right field. He has struggled through his first 101 MLB plate appearances, but he posted a .283/.372/.503 line in 392 Triple-A plate appearances last year and has a .784 OPS in nine minor league seasons.

Cardinals Sign Alex Cora

By Tim Dierkes | February 6, 2012 at 4:19pm CDT

4:19pm: Cora would get $800K in the Major Leagues, the Associated Press reports (via ESPN.com).

12:00pm: The Cardinals agreed to a minor league deal with a spring training invite with infielder Alex Cora, reports Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. On Saturday, MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez reported a deal was close.

Cora will compete for a utility infield role, writes Goold. The 36-year-old Scott Boras client hit .224/.287/.276 in 172 plate appearances for the Nationals last year, spending most of his time in the field on the left side of the infield.

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