Dodgers Acquire Shane Victorino
Shane Victorino is returning to the organization that drafted him in 1999. The Dodgers acquired Victorino from the Phillies today for starting pitching prospect Ethan Martin and reliever Josh Lindblom, according to Yahoo's Tim Brown (Twitter link). The deal has been officially announced by both teams, and the Phillies also received a player to be named later or cash considerations. It's been another active summer for Dodgers GM Ned Colletti, who also acquired Hanley Ramirez, Randy Choate, and Brandon League this month.
Victorino, 31, has $3.3MM remaining on his contract and will be eligible for free agency after the season. The center fielder has a .261/.324/.401 line in 431 plate appearances for the Phillies this year. It seems likely he'll play left field for the Dodgers, despite less than 200 career innings at that position. For the Phillies, Domonic Brown will come up to play left field with John Mayberry Jr. becoming the regular center fielder.
The Flyin' Hawaiian was drafted by the Dodgers in the sixth round in 1999. Former Dodgers GMs Dan Evans and Paul DePodesta let him go twice in the Rule 5 draft, claiming him back from the Padres the first time in '03 but not from the Phillies in '05. Victorino went on to become a star for the Phils, snagging three Gold Gloves, two All-Star appearances, and even some MVP votes in his time with the club. With the team's surprising last place performance this season, Victorino was dealt to a contender a few months prior to free agency. The Reds, Orioles, and Giants had also reportedly been in the mix. The Dodgers announced they've designated lefty Michael Antonini to open a 40-man roster spot for Victorino.
Martin, the Dodgers' first-round draft pick from 2008, owns a 3.58 ERA, 8.5 K/9, 4.7 BB/9, and 0.38 HR/9 in 118 Double-A innings this year. Drafted as a raw high schooler, Baseball America ranked Martin 17th on their Dodgers prospect list prior to the season. They wrote that Martin "maintains the ceiling of a No. 2 starter but has a long way to go."
Lindblom, 25, has a 3.02 ERA, 8.1 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, 1.70 HR/9, and 38% groundball rate in 47 2/3 relief innings this year, so he's had some issues with the longball. He doesn't have much big league service time, and is technically under team control through 2017. Drafted in the second round in '08, Lindblom was once considered one of the team's top prospects. Lindblom was made more expendable by the Dodgers' acquisition of League from the Mariners last night.
Photo courtesy of US Presswire/Robert Mayer. Jon Heyman first reported a deal was very likely.
Rangers Designate Torrealba For Assignment; Nats Interested
11:45am: The Nationals and Rangers discussed Torrealba, but one person involved told Kilgore “it doesn’t look like a fit.”
TUESDAY, 8:49am: The Rangers and Nationals are expected to discuss Torrealba today, tweets Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
MONDAY, 10:25pm: The Rangers have designated catcher Yorvit Torrealba for assignment, Troy Renck of the Denver Post reports (on Twitter). Torrealba became expendable with the acquisition of Geovany Soto.
The Rangers are likely to trade Torrealba, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan reports. The 34-year-old has a .236/.302/.342 batting line in 182 plate appearances this year.
Pirates Close To Acquiring Gaby Sanchez
The Pirates are close to acquiring first baseman Gaby Sanchez from the Marlins for outfielder Gorkys Hernandez and a competitive balance pick, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Giants Closing In On Deal For Pence
Phillies right fielder Hunter Pence holds extra appeal since he's under team control for 2013, even if he could earn more than $14MM next year. The latest:
- The Giants are closing in on a deal for Pence, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
- The Pence to the Giants talk is pretty hot, tweets Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com.
- Just prior to the Dodgers wrapping up their deal for Shane Victorino, ESPN's Jerry Crasnick tweeted that the Phillies were still discussing a Pence deal with the Giants. They apparently are willing to trade two starting outfielders.
Nationals Interested In Shoppach
11:20am: The Brewers aren't in on Shoppach, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reports (on Twitter).
8:21am: The Nationals and Brewers have interest in Red Sox catcher Kelly Shoppach, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The 32-year-old backstop has performed well as Jarrod Saltalamacchia's backup, hitting .261/.343/.513 in 136 plate appearances. Shoppach has about $470K remaining on his contract this year.
Latest On Athletics’ Search For Infielders
11:18am: It doesn't look like the Athletics will acquire a shortstop today, ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports (on Twitter).
TUESDAY, 10:55am: MLB Network's Peter Gammons is a hearing a flat "no" on the idea of Drew going to the A's.
MONDAY, 6:03pm: Trade talk about a potential deal that would send Stephen Drew from Arizona to Oakland still has life, ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports (Twitter link). However, Peter Gammons of MLB Network reported today that the Athletics have backed off their pursuit of Drew and Yunel Escobar for now, (Twitter link).
Ken Rosenthal recently reported that the Athletics aren't favored to acquire Drew if the Diamondbacks trade him. Oakland is reluctant to match Toronto's asking price on Escobar, according to Rosenthal. Drew and Escobar are Oakland's top two choices for a shortstop upgrade, Jon Heyman reported today.
The A's looked into the possibility of acquiring Jimmy Rollins, but would have had to take on his entire contract ($11MM per season through 2014 with a vesting option for 2015) to complete a deal, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports. The price in terms of prospects wasn't high, but there's no guarantee Rollins, a Bay Area native, would approve a trade to Oakland. The Dodgers are no longer a fit for Rollins, Knobler writes.
Dodgers Close To Acquiring Victorino
Roughly 10% of you feel that Phillies center fielder Shane Victorino will be the biggest name dealt today. The latest:
- A Dodgers-Victorino trade is looking very likely, tweets Heyman. ESPN's Jayson Stark tweets that the Dodgers are close to acquiring Victorino for Lindblom and a second player. Another sign a deal is imminent: outfielder Domonic Brown was scratched from today's Triple-A game and will be joining the Phillies in Washington, D.C., tweets Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
- The Dodgers are in serious talks for Victorino, reports Heyman. The Phillies have been asking for relievers.
- The Reds and Phillies have ceased talks on Victorino and Juan Pierre, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, putting the Dodgers in a good position for Victorino.
- Potential Phillies target Josh Lindblom became more expendable for the Dodgers after the team acquired Brandon League from the Mariners, wrote Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports early this morning. Lindblom, 25, has a 3.02 ERA, 8.1 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, 1.70 HR/9, and 38% groundball rate in 47 2/3 relief innings this year, so he's had some issues with the longball.
Rangers Acquire Geovany Soto
The Rangers officially acquired a former Rookie of the Year today, getting catcher Geovany Soto and cash from the Cubs for minor league pitcher Jake Brigham and a player to be named later or cash.
Soto, 29, has a .195/.278/.345 batting line in 194 plate appearances this year. The 2008 NL Rookie of the Year earns $4.3MM in 2012 and is on track to go to arbitration for the third time this offseason. However, he could be non-tendered given his salary. The Mets also had interest in trading for Soto.
The move led to the Rangers designating catcher Yorvit Torrealba for assignment. If Soto's production improves, Texas will have an in-house alternative to Mike Napoli when he hits free agency this offseason. Otherwise, the Rangers could non-tender Soto and let him test the free agent market a year early.
Brigham, a 24-year-old right-hander, had been pitching at Double-A Frisco. He has a 4.28 ERA with 8.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 124 innings over the course of 21 starts this year. Brigham is a fringe arm, Ben Badler of Baseball America writes (on Twitter). ESPN's Keith Law says he has "a plus fastball and power breaking ball but lacks the command and the third pitch to start."
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported that a trade would take place and Tim Brown of Yahoo first reported that the Rangers acquired Soto. Photo courtesy of US Presswire/Benny Sieu.
Poll: Biggest Name Traded Today
As always, there are tons of intriguing names flying around on trade deadline day. Our poll question is simple: tell us the biggest name that will be dealt today.
Biggest name traded today?
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Ryan Dempster 19% (5,018)
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Cliff Lee 17% (4,474)
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Hunter Pence 16% (4,147)
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Shane Victorino 12% (3,173)
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Matt Garza 9% (2,312)
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Josh Beckett 5% (1,251)
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Justin Upton 4% (1,160)
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Justin Morneau 4% (1,112)
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Josh Johnson 3% (785)
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Shin-Soo Choo 3% (756)
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James Shields 2% (639)
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Chase Headley 2% (619)
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Jonathan Broxton 2% (465)
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Joe Blanton 2% (414)
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Stephen Drew 1% (307)
Total votes: 26,632
No Formal Trade Request From Nate Schierholtz
3:38am: Schierholtz denied formally requesting a trade, talking to Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com.
1:15am: Giants outfielder Nate Schierholtz has requested a trade, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). Earlier this month we heard that he was unhappy with his reduced role and would welcome a move to a team with more opportunity.
Schierholtz, 28, is hitting .247/.316/.418 with five homers in 190 plate appearances this season. The left-handed hitter has been limited to spot start and pinch-hitting duties because the starting outfield trio of Melky Cabrera, Angel Pagan, and Gregor Blanco have been so good. San Francisco is seeking a right-handed outfield bat prior to Tuesday's trade deadline.