Archives for January 2013

Yankees Designate Chris Dickerson For Assignment

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 4:07pm CDT

The Yankees have designated outfielder Chris Dickerson for assignment, Chad Jennings of the Journal News reports. The move creates 40-man roster space for Russ Canzler, who was claimed off of waivers from the Indians.

Dickerson appeared in 25 games for the Yankees this past season, playing all three outfield positions. The 30-year-old hit two home runs in his 17 trips to the plate with New York. A left-handed hitter, Dickerson posted a .316/.417/.515 batting line in 321 plate appearances at Triple-A in 2012.

Outrighted To Triple-A: D.J. Mitchell

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 2:51pm CDT

The latest outright assignments from around MLB…

The Mariners outrighted right-hander D.J. Mitchell to Triple-A Tacoma after he cleared waivers, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. The Mariners designated Mitchell for assignment on December 26th to create roster space for Raul Ibanez. The Mariners originally acquired the 25-year-old from the Yankees in the deal that sent Ichiro Suzuki to New York.

Yankees Claim Russ Canzler

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 2:10pm CDT

The Yankees have claimed Russ Canzler off of waivers from the Indians, ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports (on Twitter). This marks the third time this winter that the first baseman/designated hitter has been claimed. The Blue Jays claimed him on December 21st before Cleveland claimed him back on January 2nd.

Canzler will provide the Yankees with another right-handed bat, assuming he remains on New York's roster. The 26-year-old appeared in 26 games for the Indians this past season. He posted a .269/.299/.398 batting line in 97 MLB plate appearances while playing first base and left field. He spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he posted a .265/.328/.487 batting line with 22 home runs and 36 doubles in 539 plate appearances.

Cardinals Notes: Lohse, Diaz, Alvarez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 1:40pm CDT

The Cardinals have reached the postseason in three of the five seasons since John Mozeliak became the team's general manager. Mozeliak, who was named St. Louis’ GM following the 2007 season, is now in the midst of a comparatively quiet offseason. Here are some details on the Cardinals from Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch…

The Cardinals have not revisited signing free agent right-hander Kyle Lohse since extending him a qualifying offer. Lohse declined the offer, preferring the free agent market. However, the 34-year-old hasn’t received an official offer to this point in the winter. It appears that teams are hesitant to surrender the draft pick required to complete a deal.
The Cardinals are keeping tabs on the market for Cuban free agents Aledmys Diaz and Dariel Alvarez, Goold reports. Diaz, a shortstop, turns 23 next week, while Alvarez is a 24-year-old outfielder. The Cardinals plan to have a front office member in attendance at an upcoming workout for the players. Jesse Sanchez introduced us to Diaz and Alvarez in a piece at MLB.com back in November.

Blue Jays Claim Chad Beck

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 1:20pm CDT

The Blue Jays claimed right-hander Chad Beck off of waivers from Pittsburgh, the Pirates announced. The 27-year-old had been designated for assignment on December 26th.

Beck spent the 2012 season in the Blue Jays' organization, appearing in 14 games at the MLB level. The Pirates had claimed him off of waivers from Toronto on October 25th. Beck posted a 6.32 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 15 2/3 innings with Toronto this past season. He spent the majority of the year at Triple-A Las Vegas, where he posted a 1.31 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 48 innings out of the bullpen.

Orioles Claim Luis Martinez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 1:18pm CDT

The Orioles announced that they claimed catcher Luis Martinez off of waivers from the Rangers. Baltimore's 40-man roster is full after claiming Martinez, who had been designated for assignment on December 26th.

Acquired by the Rangers from San Diego last offseason, Martinez appeared in ten games with Texas this past season. He spent most of the year at Triple-A, where he hit .270/.350/.386 in 247 plate appearances. The 27-year-old also appeared in 22 games with the Padres in 2011, his first campaign in the Major Leagues.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Stanton, Ethier, Gallardo

By Mike Axisa | January 4, 2013 at 12:20pm CDT

On this date five years ago, the Royals signed Hideo Nomo to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training. The then-39-year-old right-hander had not pitched in MLB since 2005 and missed all of 2007 with arm surgery. Nomo made the team but was released after allowing 14 baserunners and nine runs in 4 1/3 innings spread across three relief appearances. He retired later that summer. Here's the latest from around the web in 2013's first installment of BBWI.

SF Giants Rumors interviewed Madison Bumgarner.
Blue Jays Way broke down a 1990 blockbuster between the Blue Jays and Padres.
MLB Prospect Watch listed teams that match up with the Marlins for a potential Giancarlo Stanton trade.
Blue Jays Plus looked at the history of top pitchers who were traded in the wake of the R.A. Dickey deal.
Baseball Professor analyzed Aroldis Chapman's transition to the starting rotation.
Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness wrote about the Andre Ethier and Michael Bourn.
Lasorda's Lair says the Dodgers better receive top prospects if they trade Ethier.
Wahoo's on First thinks the Indians need rotation help even after signing Brett Myers.
Disciples of Uecker says the Brewers should look to extend Yovani Gallardo.
River Ave. Blues took an early look at the Yankees' payroll situation heading into 2014.
Yanks Go Yard wonders if the Yankees should swoop in to sign Mike Napoli.
Red Sox Post doesn't think the Red Sox should worry about forfeiting a draft pick for Adam LaRoche.
BoSox Banter listed some first base targets for the Red Sox.
MLB Injury News compared Javier Vazquez to Brandon Webb.
Angels Win ranked the Angels' top 50 prospects.
Puckett's Pond listed some New Year's resolutions for Twins GM Terry Ryan.
Cardinals Fan in Cubs Land says the Cardinals are still looking for an Ozzie Smith heir.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.

Commenting Policy

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 11:16am CDT

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Mets Notes: Outfield, Young, Recker

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 4, 2013 at 10:05am CDT

The Mets have been consistent for the past four seasons, but not in the way they'd like. They've finished fourth in the NL East every season since 2009, never winning fewer than 70 games or more than 79. Here’s the latest on the 2013 edition of the club…

One Mets insider told Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com yesterday that the team’s outfield could already be set. However, a second official told Rubin today that the club continues shopping for outfield help.
The Mets continue seeking a starting pitcher to replace R.A. Dickey, Rubin reports. Free agent right-hander Chris Young remains a “viable option” for the Mets.
The club also continues seeking bullpen depth, and could make a trade to address its needs.
The Mets don’t seem anxious to add a catcher, Rubin reports. This suggests a level of comfort with Anthony Recker as a potential backup, at least for part of the season. John Buck figures to be New York’s starting catcher and 23-year-old prospect Travis d’Arnaud looms as a likely 2013 contributor.
Yahoo's Jeff Passan recently discussed the state of the Mets, praising GM Sandy Alderson for his handling of the Dickey trade talks, but pointing out that the New York roster includes a number of potential weaknesses.

Quick Hits: Stanton, Indians, Blue Jays, Rays

By Zachary Links | January 3, 2013 at 11:19pm CDT

The Marlins should trade Giancarlo Stanton and the sooner they do it, the better, opines MLB.com’s Hal Bodley. The 23-year-old, he argues, really won’t make the difference between winning and losing as this team rebuilds. Stanton would obviously net the Marlins a strong package of prospects – players who would be ready to contribute down the road when Miami would hopefully be ready to contend. Here’s more from around baseball as we head into Friday..

After their next free agent signing, Indians General Manager Chris Antonetti said the team has “used the vast majority of our [financial] resources” for the offseason, tweets Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. It’s safe to assume that Antonetti was referring to Brett Myers’ one-year, $7MM deal when he referred to the team’s next signing.
Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (video link) believes that the Blue Jays had the best offseason of any team in the majors because of their blockbuster with the Marlins and their trade for R.A. Dickey. Meanwhile, the Rangers have had the most disappointing winter thus far because of their misses on their top free agent targets.
ESPN.com’s Buster Olney ranked the top ten infields in the majors and slotted the Rays in at No. 4. Olney writes that first baseman James Loney is likely getting his last full-time shot to show that he can be a consistent run producer.
Antonetti also said that the recently re-acquired Russ Canzler will be among the Indians’ internal DH options this year, Bastian tweets.
Troy Renck of The Denver Post (on Twitter) expects the Rockies to have interest in free agent Brandon Webb.

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