On this date three years ago left-hander Mark Buehrle pitched a perfect game against the Rays with an impressive effort punctuated by the most memorable catch of Dewayne Wise's career. Here are today's links…
- Colby Lewis is expected to miss the rest of the season for the Rangers with a torn flexor tendon in his right arm, according to Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com. It seems logical that this will accelerate the Rangers' desire to add a starting pitcher. They've been linked to names such as Zack Greinke and Cole Hamels, and have very enticing trade chips thanks to their deep minor league system.
- Cubs lefty Paul Maholm told Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that it'd be "ironic" for the Pirates to want him back at the deadline after letting him walk as a free agent (Sulia link). Maholm's next two starts are scheduled to come against his former teammates.
- The Padres’ asking price for Chase Headley remains high, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports (on Twitter). The Pirates have discussed the third baseman with the Padres, according to Olney. The A's are interested, but remain reluctant to part with top prospects, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter).
- Evan Longoria’s reign as the most valuable trade chip in baseball has ended, Dave Cameron of FanGraphs writes. Longoria still figures prominently on Cameron’s list of baseball's top assets, as expected.
- Agent Bobby Barad has joined Excel Sports Management, Liz Mullen of the Sports Business Journal reports. Barad, formerly of TWC Sports Management, represents players such as Lance Lynn and Jerry Blevins. Check MLBTR’s Agency Database for updated data on which agents represent which players.
Where are all my friends at on this one. I told all you that Beane wouldn’t be willing to part with choice in a headley deal. You guys were dreaming. I dont think headley is a good fit for the A’s, much rather go after escobar at shortstop. We need a shortstop much more then we need a third baseman.
Still alot of time duder, no one has said no to anything yet
Once again, no one claimed to know what the Padres wanted or the A’s are willing to give up, except you. Right now, they are said to be reluctant to give up their top guys. That doesn’t mean They aren’t willing and it doesn’t mean they wont. The point all along has been that they must be willing to give up top prospects if they are serious about Headley. I’m not sure what you don’t understand about that, bro. He isn’t going to be traded for nothing. He has 2+ years of control left, he’s cheap, young, and most importantly good.
Why these Oakland homers think they are gonna get value for nothing is beyond me. They have been on the receiving end of many a prospect haul, they know what it takes to get talent.
Ive always thought that Wise dropped that ball from his glove into his hand on purpose to make it look more spectacular than it was. He just lets it roll out while he stares at it.
My personal preference would be to go after Yunel Escobar (if he’s available) since we have Scott Sizemore returning next year and Inge…as much as this pains me to say because it seems kinda ridiculous…has actually been a key component to the team’s chemistry and at least is doing well defensively.
There’s also the issue that 3rd base at the coliseum is cursed by the ink that Eric Chavez signed his huge contract with, and that pretty much means something bad would happen to Headley if he were to come to Oakland….
Okay San Diego, what do you want for Headley?
I’m just hoping they can real in someone’s top OF prospect plus 1-2 other prospects with it.
Thing is they gave Maybin that 5 year year 25 mill deal and just resigned Quentin. Liriano has the highest upside of all pad prospects as he max’s out as a 30/30 guy, he can play RF and just moved up to AA. Prob ready eta 2014.
Liriano is so far away he doesn’t even need to be brought up in conversation, with that said that he is our best OF prospect shows the lack of depth of Outfield prospects we have. I would honestly try to pluck away 1-2 OF’s prospects that are closer and a pitcher or 2 with Headley and Street. I’m ready to say good bye to Venable and Deno next season as well.
I would like to hang on to Deno as a 4th outfielder next year because he is an all around solid player but that being said he is not a starter. Venable needs to be gone. He has had his shot. I have been following Choice since he was U Texas Arlington (brother played with him). He rakes. I was hoping the Friars were going to draft him a couple years ago. I like Choice as the answer for RF. He plays center now but is figuring to move over to a corner outfield slot, but in Petco we need multiple center fielders so he fits that. He is a lot closer than Liriano despite what some are saying he has been playing in AA all year versus Liriano’s recent call-up, and honestly its better to have a surplus of good outfielders to fight for one job thanonly saving room for one outfielder and finding out he cant hack it in the big leagues. If the Friars got Choice he would go straight to Tucson and possibly get a september call-up.
What team are we talking about dealing with? 🙂
Sorry bout that….Oakland
I’m not real sure how well the Padres and A’s match up. The Padres want first and foremost MINF and pitching prospects, and I don’t see too many MINF high in Oakland’s system. If we’re talking young players/prospects, I could see San Diego starting their asking offer with Jarrod Parker along with someone like Brad Peacock or Sonny Gray and maybe Colin Cowgill. If it’s just minor leaguers, then I bet they’ll ask for Choice first, and then probably Cole, a player-like Cowgill/Michael Taylor, and then one more, like AJ Griffin.
*I understand this may seem like a lot, but the Padres will demand a ton in any return. And given the 3B market, they should.
With Cabrera, Amarista, and Forsythe playing well, I don’t see MINF as the main target anymore. They need another big bat in the middle of their lineup and the best place for that is RF. Choice would fill that need. They have some pitchers that could complete that deal.
I am gonna have to disagree. I like Amarista, however I don’t think he has the range to play SS on a consistent basis. Cabrera or Forsythe are not convincing as long term answers and don’t project as such, although I do think Forsythe deserves more AB’s.
MINF’ers especially SS’s are premium position players, and currently the closest thing we have to prospects in those departments are Peterson and Spangy, one at A and the other at Hi A. With how much emphasis this club has put on finding athletic talent and being strong up the middle, I think we need help.
I don’t see Amarista or Forsythe as a long term answer at SS, but I do think either could be a starting 2B. I do think Cabrera is the answer at SS. I’m not saying we shouldn’t go after middle infielders. I’m just saying that it doesn’t seem like a necessity like it did earlier in the year. I don’t see us getting a premium SS for Headley. I can see us filling other needs I believe are just as important if not more important.
I understand, we just agree to disagree, probably most on Cabrera. IMO, if we can get the Bucs to include Alex Hanson for Headley, it would be enticing. Additionally our lack of depth up the middle is a cause for concern (in my eyes).
Pads are now deep with infielders…Amarista and Forsythe have impressed with less than 1 year playing time and Cabrera is fine until J. Peterson can challenge. Don’t forget to throw Gyorko (2b, 3b) and Spangenberg (2b) into that mix. The immediate need is for a corner or CF powerbat. R. Liriano is too far away and no guarantee…
IMO, the more immediate need is a legit leadoff hitter… .350 + on base skills with 40 sb potential
Deep? Amarista and Forsythe have both impressed yes, but you’re working with a sample size of less than 150 AB’s for each player. IMO, that’s not enough to determine that we’re deep at the ML level, not even close. Additionally, Gyorko is the only one of those of three (Peterson and Spangy) included above A ball (you support them yet you called Liriano who is at AA not a guarantee???) You’re working with six players, only of one of whom has enough MLB experience to not be considered a rookie. The MINF in this system is not deep by any means.
Dont discount Galvez and Spangenberg at 2B. And Gyorko has been playing 2B too. Unless Headley is traded he will play some 2b for PAds.
Hanson would be a good start.
Hanson + Marte
I think the Padres should target the upside players like remato nunez and cole. Choice would be ok but not my first choice, I think he is a bit overrated, If he could get on base and draw more walks I might get on board. The Padres can afford to take a gamble on upside impact prospects and they also need a legit leadoff hitter.
Spangenberg was ranked #1 2b option by mlb going into 2012. Galvez should be a stud and if they don’t trade Headley Gyroko can play 2b and he should be top 5 offensive 2b in NL at worst in 2013. He led the AFL last season in hitting and rivaling Rizzo’s AAA numbers of last season, if they trade Headley he starts at 3b.
I understand, however Spangy is not doing anything special in Hi A (a hitters league nonetheless), and I don’t completely buy into Gyorko’s stats given how big of a launching pad Tucson is. (Ex: look what happened with Rizzo when he got here) I think Jedd will be a solid player, but his AA output IMO is more reflective of what he’ll do at the ML level. Also Galvez is interesting, but with him and Peterson, that’s about it. My point in this whole discussion is that the Padres lack that true blue chipper up the middle (someone like Machado, Profar, Starlin Castro), and in a park like Petco, that is imperative. Because of that, that’s what they should focus on in player acquisitions, whether it’s the draft, free agency, a Headley trade, or something else. Hence they wanted Carlos Correa in this year’s draft.
What blue chip SS prospect do you think we can realistically get for Headley? You mentioned Hanson and I agree that he would be a good addition, but i’m not sure he’s a blue chip prospect. You aren’t getting a Machado, Profar, Castro etc. for Headley. Who are you suggesting other than Hanson?
I don’t know if we can get a “blue chip” prospect for Headley, however I never said we could. My whole point in this entire discussion is the Padres lack MINF’ers throughout the entire organization and that’s who we should ask for (first and foremost) in any type player acquisition.
Well you obviously implied it. Why else would you even bring it up? Of course we should be looking for blue chip prospects especially at premium positions. Every team should be and that goes without saying, but we’re talking about what we can realistically get for Headley
Just for kicks, I’ll throw a deal out there. With the way the Cubs are targeting young pitching prospects (Randall Delgado and Zach Lee), I think a package of Headley, two of the three (Erlin, Kelly, Hedges), and maybe a lesser prospect (Fuentes, Rincon, Galvez) would be an intriguing get for Castro.
Currently Trey McNutt is the best pitching prospect the Cubs have, which is a pretty pathetic situation. Give them at least two+ years of Headley (who will most likely hit 25-28 HR’s/year playing in Wrigley), and another prospect to put in the rotation (Erlin or Kelly) and a catcher of the future (Hedges) and I think they’d take a look at it. They also have Junior Lake in the system who has shown promise at SS. Castro has been inconsistent this year and his focus along with maturity has always been a question. I think he’d flourish playing in Petco.
I also don’t think that Choice fills a position of need. IMO, I think the front office likes Liriano as the RF of the future. Pitching is always useful, however I’m not impressed with the A’s crop. Except for Straily. He interests me. Cole is a project.
Straily + Parker could get it done. The pads don’t need a 2b but maybe a SS or RF. I see Straily as the A’s most enticing prospect. Maybe they can match him with Cole or Peacock instead of Parker but I’m just saying I bet Straily + Parker would get it done. That’s probably around the level of how high their asking price is imo
I agree, I’d be thrilled with Straily and Parker. Parker could win an ERA title or two pitching in Petco.
Liriano may be the future, but we have an immediate need. Liriano is going to take some more time to develop. I’ll be shocked if he’s anything more than a Sept. call up next year. He seems to be developing pretty slowly and struggling each time he’s promoted. The Padres need another run producer in the middle of their lineup and RF would be the perfect place for that. Choice could be that guy as early as next year. I’d send him straight to Tucson if we aquired him.
100% agree
Choice is further along, but they’re both in Double A. I don’t think Liriano is more than year behind, so you wouldn’t have room for him when he’s ready. Of course you can always trade Liriano/Quentin when he’s ready, to make room for him, but it still would be nice to fill SS if at all possible.
Liriano is no way near the thoughts of even how the team can use him or what kind of player he is going to be. Choice would be a great fit and also the Padres dont need another Minf, no matter what your line of thought is Amarista is going to start for along time, 2b and i like that buddy is getting him used to CF.
“Liriano is no way near the thoughts of even how the team can use him or what kind of player he is going to be.”
What does this mean?
Liriano is 21, possesses a better arm, better average hit tool, and better speed than Choice, whose real only plus tool is power.
And by the way, I didn’t realize I was speaking with Josh Byrnes here. Personally, I’d like you to justify how we don’t need any more MINF’ers considering Forysthe, Amarista, and Cabrera have only 2 combined years of MLB experience and marginal stats at-best in those combined seasons supplemented with Gyorko, Peterson, and Spangy, with only one in the latter three who has played at the Double-A level.
Again, is it really mind blowing that they wanted Carlos Correa in this year’s draft?
Ya dude, those tools are Venable 2.0 and who knows if he can even make it up by 2014 the way he is playing, i mean look at his numbers and compare with the guys they have already. He is not doing very well and a upgrade in CF or RF is what they need. If they get Choice or Marte, either would give us a guy that will play sooner and if he pans out Liriano would have to compete with Maybin to get playing time and would be a 4th guy like Venable is now.
Justifying that they do not need more SS or 2B: Of course a stud SS would be awesome, Cabby is actually pretty solid and I like him for the future, we traded Freiri for Amarista and maybe he will be our Chone figgins where he plays everywhere you tell him or maybe he plays 2B forever who knows. I am just saying OF is the bigger need and thats a fact.
By the way, why do you think it is all the Padre fans on here dislike your comments? No one ever wants to be “That guy” but somehow you are “That guy”
You know what man, you’re exactly right, he’s EXACTLY like Will Venable. Tools? Exact same. Projection? Exact same. Didn’t Venable receive MWL’s Prospect of the Year and MVP when he played in Fort Wayne like Liriano did? And of course Venable represented the Padres in the Futures Game like Rymer right? Also, who can forget that Venable was named as one of the Top 50 prospects in the game via Baseball America during his in the minors, as Liriano was named this season. Correct? I mean c’mon. Who cares if Liriano did all this when he was only 20, three years younger than Venable was when he played for Fort Wayne. They’re basically the same player. You know what? Let’s forget the fact that Liriano has never played a major league game. He’s just like Venable and we should just give up on him. No reason to give him a shot. Did I mention he made the Cal League All-Star team this season as well?
Finally, it’s amusing that you resort to the claim that all the “Padre fans” dislike my comments on here, it really pains me to see. However, what’s even more hilarious is that you claim that your posts and opinions are all “facts” although I haven’t seen one statement of yours in this entire conversation based on any type of statistics or scouting reports. Or any credible evidence for that matter. All I got is that you think Amarista may be our Chone Figgins, so I’ll take that for what it’s worth.
Thanks for coming out.
Michael choice. Lower Pitching prospect
Michael Choice and Pitching
sorry for double post. First message didnt go through until the second one did.
From whoever they trade with: 1 top 3 prospect, 1 back end top 10 prospect, and 1 lower level minor leaguer with potential. 3 prospects total.
Start with a ML player (Griffin?), + Choice, + Cole.
Funny how “Fans” of every team talking about Chase Headley don’t seem to want him and don’t want to trade anything to get him. The guy is going to hit well anywhere he goes, don’t let the the Petco numbers fool you. Secondly the Padres if they do trade him are going to get one or 2 of those guys you don’t want to trade. Proven talent trumps unproven every day of the week.
Nice article on Fangraphs.. I gotta’ see trout and Harper do it another year.. Joe Charbaneau still rings in my head..For this year? trout.. he can do it all. He hustles all the time and Anaheim hasn’t had it this good in years. They would be in deep doo doo without him.
Stanton is my pick. he isn’t as bad with the glove as Fangraphs IMO, but what he can do with the bat alone and with -0- protection in the lineup earlier in the season is what sets him apart. Longo is good and a much superior defender, but he doesn’t set the opposing pitcher’s knees to chattering when he steps to the plate. Stanton can hit a ball out of the park when he is totally fooled, hitches his swing and with nothing but his arms.. I have seen *3* people do that in all my years.. Stanton, Jim Rice and Pujols.
Stanton can hit the ball out any where anytime and he can cover pretty much the entire plate..
Now, time for drooling.. I like the Fish and Boston, but if Loria doesn’t sign him? I hope he makes his way to Beantown.
Honestly the more I read about Yunel the more I don’t want him. He is def better than Cliff and Hicks but he isnt a game changer. I would rather look at the asking price for Hanley and look else where at 3b. The Padres are lit when it comes to asking for top prospects for Headley
I would love to see Hanley in a A’s uniform. That is someone who i would give up top prospects for, not headley. Hanley could play short.
You have seen Hanley’s contract right? Is that something the A’s would take on? think about it man
Also, Hanley can’t play short. And he can’t play third either. He’s even more of a mess in the field than he is at the plate.
Should the Padres askling price not be high for Headley? Why is everyone so shocked? What am I missing? He is easily the best 3rd baseman available for probably the next 2 years and comes relatively cheap. Byrnes had better not give him away.
I’m glad the GM’s don’t listen to fans or no one would apparently want Headley for anything. Thank God GM’s actually know what they are doing and talking about.
I agree, I guess people don’t understand in any type of trade- baseball or not that you start off high until you get to the point that your really aiming for.
i was at that perfect game in chicago! the pirates need to tie down and get someone big. like hanley ramirez.
Would have to start with Choice and if AJ Cole is included I think Brynes will have to seriously consider it.
Choice + Cole would be a done deal if offered.
Ya well its not gonna be offered.
You and Mr. Beene seem to share alot of information. Pretty cool man
Wouldn’t happen now since Choice is out for season.
the use of words expressing something other than their literal intention. now that. is. irony!
its like rain on your wedding day
great futurama reference
Maholm should know the Pirates at the time really didn’t have the cash to keep’m. Now that things are taking a turn there is more ‘wiggle’ room. I think i’d like to see Paul back but with Bedard having a couple pretty good outings the need isn’t as pressing as another bat in the line up.
That’s actually not true. Maholm signed a 1 yr-$4.75 million deal with the Cubs (with an option year for $6.5) and the Pirates turned around and signed Bedard for 1 year $4.5 mill to ostensibly take his place. Maholm even said he wanted to stay so I bet he would’ve signed for less than the Cubs gave him or we gave Bedard. The move was simply Huntington knowing that Maholm was a mediocre starter and choosing to roll the dice on a guy with higher upside who had fallen on hard times. That said, Maholm has no reason to be whiny about this. We gave him plenty of chances to show what he can do and he never showed anything beyond being a pretty good back-end of the rotation guy.
Bedard looked great last night, btw. Of course it was against the Cubs so there’s that… But I don’t think adding another starter is nearly as pressing as it was a month ago. If they can get a high end guy like Johnson or Greinke, awesome, but I don’t think they need any rotation filler anymore which is all guys like Maholm or Wandy Rodriquez would be for us.
In 2011 Maholm made $5.7M and would have been looking for a raise in the range of $6.5 (when has a player EVER asked to take less money). There is no way he would have signed with the Pirates for the $4.75 he got from the Cubs and no way the Pirates would have given him $6M+ knowing they could have gotten another decent starter for less than $5M. I like Maholm. He is a solid pitcher, an innings eater and a good, upstanding Christian to boot, but there is absolutely nothing “ironic” about wanting a good starting pitcher back for $2M+/yr LESS that what it would have cost to keep him in the first place.
agreed… the Pirates had a $9.75M option to keep Maholm for 2012, and wisely declined it.
Beckett to the Rangers?
How about that Rangers rotation depth?
Olt is gonna look good in red pinstripes. Olt plus, that is, with Greinke’s stock going down the tubes.