Brewers Designate Maysonet, Perez For Assignment
The Brewers announced that they designated infielder Edwin Maysonet and left-hander Juan Perez for assignment. The moves create roster space for Livan Hernandez, who's now officially a Brewer, and Cesar Izturis, who has been activated from the 15-day disabled list.
Maysonet, 30, appeared in 30 games for the Brewers this year, posting a .250/.297/.350 batting line in 66 plate appearances and playing shortstop, second and third base. Perez, 33, has appeared in ten games for this year's Brewers team and ten games for the organization's Triple-A affiliate.
Outrighted: Repko, Chiang
The latest outright assignments from around MLB…
- The Red Sox announced that they activated outfielder Jason Repko from the 60-day disabled list and outrighted him to Triple-A.
- The Mariners outrighted outfielder Chih-Hsien Chiang to the Double-A Jackson Generals, the team announced on its website. The Mariners designated Chiang for assignment earlier this month to create roster space for Oliver Perez. The 24-year-old, who was acquired from the Red Sox in last summer's Erik Bedard trade, has a .238/.269/.336 batting line in the upper minors this year.
Gammons On Marlins, Kurt Suzuki
The latest from Peter Gammons of MLB Network (Twitter links)…
- Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria told Gammons that he’s prepared to make additions to his team if necessary. "We still need a couple of parts, and in time we'll go get them," Loria said. The Marlins' offense ranks 14th in the National League in runs scored, so it won’t be surprising if president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest pursues a bat or two this summer.
- Athletics catcher Kurt Suzuki could make sense for the Marlins, Mets or Rays, Gammons tweets. The Marlins have John Buck and Brett Hayes behind the plate, the Mets have Josh Thole and Mike Nickeas, and the Rays have Jose Molina and Jose Lobaton. The A’s called up prospect Derek Norris, so they could be positioned to listen to offers for Suzuki.
Brewers To Sign Livan Hernandez
The Brewers agreed to sign right-hander Livan Hernandez, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. The Brewers could use help in the bullpen, and their rotation is thinning out now that Shaun Marcum could join starters Chris Narveson and Marco Estrada on the disabled list.
The Braves released Hernandez three days ago after calling other teams about possible trade scenarios. Hernandez signed a Major League deal with the Braves in March, not long after the Astros released him. The Praver/Shapiro client posted a 4.94 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 31 innings out of the bullpen for Atlanta.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Soler, Dodgers, Dickey, Cubs
On this date in 2007, Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada sat out a game against the Diamondbacks. It ended his consecutive games played streak at 1,152, the fifth longest streak in baseball history. Tejeda has suffered an injury on a hit-by-pitch two games earlier but tried to play through it. Here's the latest from around the blogosphere…
- Seedlings to Stars wrote about the Cubs and their gamble on Jorge Soler.
- MLB Prospect Watch says the Phillies have limited trade options with Cole Hamels.
- Through the Fence Baseball doesn't see Hamels as a fit for the Dodgers.
- Cole on L.A. believes the Dodgers should target Chase Headley in a trade.
- Dodgers Nation listed the pro and cons of the Dodgers trading for Kevin Youkilis.
- Sports of Boston wrote about the Youkilis-Will Middlebrooks dilemma.
- Rising Apple wonders what the Mets could get for R.A. Dickey right now.
- FanSpeak thinks the Orioles could turn to Erik Bedard for pitching help.
- Burning Down the Yard looked at the Cubs as a potential trade partner for the O's.
- Tomahawk Take lists some starting pitcher trade targets for the Braves.
- I-70 Baseball put together a list of pitching trade targets if the Royals decide to buy.
- Twins Fan From Afar explains why the Twins should not trade Josh Willingham.
- Yanks Go Yard isn't sure that Wandy Rodriguez is a fit for the Yankees.
- Yankees Fans Unite tries to figure out what would help the Yankees at the deadline.
- MLB Reports wrote about Adeiny Hechavarria's future with the Blue Jays.
- The Futurists broke down first overall pick Carlos Correa.
- 85% Sports analyzed the risk and reward of the amateur draft (part one, part two).
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.
NL West Notes: Lincecum, Bauer, Rockies
The Dodgers, who have averaged 85 wins per year in six seasons under GM Ned Colletti, are on pace for 97 wins despite their poor showing against the Athletics this week. Here are the latest NL West links…
- Giants right-hander Tim Lincecum told Bob Nightengale of USA Today that he intends to make some changes to his pitching approach "It's almost like I'm pitching backwards now," he said. "Like I'm a wuss thrower. I've got to start utilizing my fastball." Nightengale discussed the differences between this version of Lincecum and the two-time Cy Young Award winner in a detailed piece. "It's hard to believe it's the same guy,” one scout said.
- The Diamondbacks are "in no rush" to promote Trevor Bauer, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic notes. Bauer visited with some Diamondbacks officials yesterday to familiarize himself with the organization. But the team is “not trying to clone people here” GM Kevin Towers said in reference to Bauer’s quirks.
- Rockies manager Jim Tracy told Jake Kaplan of MLB.com that it's hard to get a read on the effectiveness of the team's four-man rotation so early on. “What we've seen the first two days is real similar to what I've been dealing with an awful lot this season," Tracy said.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs proposed an alternate method of managing a pitching staff earlier in the week, in case you missed it.
Tigers Notes: Martinez, Porcello, Turner, Castellanos
The 34-35 Tigers trail the AL Central-leading Indians by 2.5 games, but owner Mike Ilitch remains confident in the people running his team, Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press reports. “I know we’ve got the right foundation,” Ilitch said, “the right people in place.” Here are more notes on the Tigers from Sharp…
- Ilitch expects the Tigers to enjoy a boost in offense and leadership if Victor Martinez returns this season. “He was really our leader, and he’s starting to come around again,” Ilitch said.
- Sharp wonders if the Tigers would consider trading Rick Porcello for a veteran starter or a right-handed bat with power. GM Dave Dombrowski could make Porcello available now or in the offseason if Jacob Turner is ready for a full-time starting role in 2013. Porcello, 23, has a 4.95 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 80 innings this year and will remain under team control through 2014.
- Turner, Nick Castellanos and Avisail Garcia are as close to untouchable as minor league prospects get, Sharp writes.
Draftstreet Baseball Championship (Sponsored Post)
An MLBTR reader now has a shot at $200,000 in cash prizes! On Wednesday, we had a freeroll with DraftStreet.com where the winner received a free spot in Friday's $109 qualifier league. Congrats to "thatteamfromcle," who took home first place and now has a shot to win a seat in the Draftstreet Baseball Championship Main event. He lived up to his username by taking Indians players such as Justin Masterson and Lonnie Chisenhall.
If you missed out, you can still enter Friday's qualifier. After Friday's qualifier there are only 15 spots left for the main event, which will award $200,000 in cash prizes. Get on to DraftStreet, start playing, and claim one of those final 15 spots! DraftStreet is offering MLBTR readers an additional $350 freeroll for Friday night to get your practice in. Click here to join!
Minor Moves: Mills, Carrasco, Ambriz
The latest minor moves..
- The Indians traded first baseman Beau Mills to the Reds for cash considerations, tweets Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer. The former first-round pick has been assigned to Double-A Pensacola.
- The Braves signed reliever D.J. Carrasco to a minor league deal. The Mets, who are responsible for the majority of Carrasco's $1.2MM salary, released the 35-year-old in late May after he allowed six hits, including two home runs, in 3 2/3 innings, according to the CBSSports.com transactions page.
- The Astros signed right-hander Hector Ambriz to a minor league deal. The Indians released Ambriz this past Sunday after he posted a 3.55 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 in 33 Triple-A innings, according to CBSSports.com.
Quick Hits: Lee, Pirates, Ortiz, A’s, Royals
The Dodgers are in need of a run producer and the Astros' Carlos Lee is the latest name to surface on the club's radar, writes Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. The veteran has the ability to block trades to 14 teams, and the Dodgers are on that list. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that Lee doesn't want to play in Los Angeles Almost all of the teams on that list are high-revenue teams, providing the first baseman with leverage. More from around baseball on this Thursday night..
- With the Pirates on the lookout for offense, Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com (via Twitter) wouldn't be surprised to see them check in on Ryan Kalish or Cody Ross when Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford return to the Red Sox.
- David Ortiz hasn't been happy with the Red Sox for some time and people that have heard his complaints strongly doubt that he would want to return to Boston after this year, writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.
- Both the A's and the Giants have had a revolving door at first base for some time, writes John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Giants have used 24 players at first since J.T. Snow left, and the A's have used 41 since Jason Giambi left the first time.
- A's skipper Bob Melvin insists that the promotion of Derek Norris isn't about creating trade bait when it comes to Kurt Suzuki, writes Jane Lee of MLB.com. Earlier this week, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wrote that Oakland would probably like to move the catcher and his $6.45MM salary.
- Carlos Beltran says that the Royals never made him a concrete, multi-year offer to keep him during his time there, writes MLB.com's Dick Kaegel. "I don't really recall getting a real offer. I knew they talked about having something done, but we never got to the point where we were serious about it," the outfielder said.