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Archives for May 2013

Brewers Sign Tim Dillard

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The Brewers have signed right-hander Tim Dillard, according to Chris Cotillo of CLNSRadio.com.  Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (on Twitter) confirmed that the Brewers have inked the Icon Sports Management client.

Dillard, 30 in July, posted a 4.38 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 34 relief appearances last season for the Brewers.  For his career, the hurler has a 4.70 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 across four big league seasons for Milwaukee.

Stark On Wilson, Stanton, Price, Phillies, Utley, Norris

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In his latest edition of Rumblings & Grumblings, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark looks at what we've learned around the 30-game mark of the season.  The Red Sox have spent their money better than any team in baseball as Mike Napoli, Ryan Dempster, Koji Uehara, and Shane Victorino (before his back issues) have gotten off to excellent starts.  Meanwhile, it looks like the Braves have made the best trade of anyone so far as they landed Justin Upton and Chris Johnson for Martin Prado and four players that aren't currently in the majors.  Here's more from today's column..

  • Teams that have checked in on Brian Wilson have been told that his target date to throw for interested clubs should be around the All-Star break.  Wilson wants to ensure that he's fully recovered from Tommy John surgery before auditioning again.
  • Giancarlo Stanton's hamstring injury should probably put any talk of a July trade to rest.  "If they trade him in-season, they probably wouldn't get any major league talent," said one exec. "So given everything that's happened with their team and their attendance, are they really in a position to make a deal for him where they just get back prospects?  Probably not."  The exec concluded that the Marlins are better off waiting until the offseason and getting big league ready talent back for their star.
  • The Rays may be the most closely-watched team in the league by contenders over the next few months.  Teams know the Rays will keep David Price in July if they're alive in the AL East, and will listen hard if they're out of contention. If they're caught in between, one exec believes that the Rays still might move him if they feel like they're not good enough to win it all.  The hurler's price tag is expected to by skyhigh if he hits the open market after the 2015 season.
  • The buzzards are already starting to circle over the Phillies, Stark writes, but club officials have told teams that have checked in that they still expect their club to contend and won't even think about selling for another two months.  
  • If a Phillies sell-off happens, the biggest buzz would include impending free agent Chase Utley.  One exec who has checked into things says his impression is that the Phillies would approach Utley first and get a feel for whether he wants to go elsewhere.  Utley, who will be just short of 10-and-5 rights at the deadline – can block trades to 21 teams. 
  • Execs say they'd rather trade for Lucas Harrell than Bud Norris if they had a choice between the Astros pitchers.  Harrell has two more years of control and one scout says that the big knock on Norris is that he's still basically a "two-pitch guy".  Quite a few teams also think he profiles more as a bullpen weapon on a contender even though he's the Astros' ace.
  • The Yankees want a right-handed bat, but one scout feels that they don't have enough pieces to land an impact deal.  The Bombers added one right-handed hitter when they traded for Chris Nelson earlier this week.  

Minor Moves: Figueroa, Antonelli

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Here's a look at today's minor moves, courtesy of Baseball America's Matt Eddy..

  • The Diamondbacks released right-hander Nelson Figueroa.  The 38-year-old spent 2012 with the Yankees and Red Sox's Triple-A affiliates before hooking on with Arizona in December on a minor league deal.  The veteran posted a 3.89 ERA with 5.4 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 15 starts and ten relief appearances last season but has allowed 26 earned runs through four starts this year.
  • The Indians released second baseman Matt Antonelli.  The former first round pick spent time with the Yankees and Orioles Triple-A affiliates last season.  This year, the 28-year-old saw times in just three Triple-A games for Cleveland before being cut loose.

Blue Jays Designate Justin Germano For Assignment

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The Blue Jays have designated Justin Germano for assignment, according to the club's official transactions page.  In a related move, Toronto has recalled fellow pitcher Ricky Romero from the minors.

The 30-year-old Germano has appeared in one game for the Jays this season after signing a minor-league deal with the club in the offseason.  Toronto promoted him on April 27 after they designated fellow pitcher Aaron Laffey for assignment.

Germano pitched 23 innings for Triple-A Buffalo this year while posting a 6.65 ERA, 5.9 K/9, and 0.8 BB/9.  The righty has also pitched for the Padres, Reds, Indians, Red Sox, and Cubs over the course of his big league career, compiling a 5.29 career ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 along the way.

The Blue Jays optioned Romero to High-A Dunedin in late March in an effort to get his mechanics ironed out.  The pitcher is owed $7.5MM in each of the next three seasons and Toronto was willing to be patient with him as he worked through his issues.

Shi Davidi of Sportsnet (on Twitter) reported yesterday that the Blue Jays were gearing up to designate Germano for assignment in order to make room for Romero.

Rockies Sign Roy Oswalt

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FRIDAY: Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets that Oswalt will be able to earn more than $4MM should he reach all of the incentives in his contract.

THURSDAY: The Rockies have signed pitcher Roy Oswalt to a minor-league contract, the team tweets. Oswalt had previously tweeted to expect "exciting news."

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The Rockies will send Oswalt to extended spring training, the Denver Post's Troy Renck tweets. It appears likely that the Rockies will eventually promote him if he pitches well in the minors, although that is not certain.

It's not yet clear what Oswalt's role with the Rockies might be, although he has said that he prefers to start. The Rockies' rotation currently includes Jorge De La Rosa, Jeff Francis, Juan Nicasio, Jon Garland and Tyler Chatwood, with Jhoulys Chacin returning from injury to start on Sunday. Oswalt's deal contains out clauses, Renck writes.

Oswalt's agent, Bob Garber of RMG Baseball, said in March that his client hoped to pitch for a contender in 2013. He had previously been connected to the Phillies and Mets. 

Oswalt pitched 59 innings for the Rangers in 2012, with a 5.80 ERA but 9.0 K/9 and 1.68 BB/9. The righty has a 3.28 ERA in his career, pitching for the Astros, Phillies and Rangers. Oswalt did not rank in MLBTR's list of the offseason's top 50 free agents.

Steve Adams contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images (Matthew Emmons).

Central Links: Motte, Martinez, Cubs, Wood

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Cardinals closer Jason Motte will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery on Monday, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louid Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). Edward Mujica has filled in admirably as the team's closer in his absence, but the Cardinals will likely be the subject of many relief rumors as the trade deadline draws near. Here's more out of baseball's Central divisions…

  • Earlier today, Goold tweeted a link to a story that he wrote nearly two years ago, chronicling the long, difficult process of signing top prospect Carlos Martinez. Martinez, who was promoted to the Majors this morning, had originally been signed by the Red Sox, but that deal fell through due to questions surrounding his documentation. Martinez, whose mother died before his first birthday, was going by the name given to him by his uncle who raised him — Carlos Matias. The Cardinals tirelessly searched for school records and his mother's death certificate to prove his identity, at which point he adopted her last name once again.
  • Cubs prospect Juan Carlos Paniagua is in a similar predicament to the one Martinez initially faced, writes Baseball America's Ben Badler. The U.S. Consulate is currently requesting school records and identification documents of Paniagua's siblings before issuing him a work visa.
  • The Twins still have two weeks to make a decision on right-hander Tim Wood, tweets Phil Miller of the Star Tribune. Wood is on a rehab assignment but appears healthy at this point. However, he only looks "so-so" according to Miller, and Minnesota's bullpen has been a strength early in the season. Because Wood is on the 40-man roster and out of options, he'd have to be exposed to waivers to be sent to Triple-A at the end of his rehab stint.
  • We also learned earlier today that the minor trade which would have sent Mark Teahen from the D-backs to the Reds fell through due to an issue with Teahen's phsyical.

Reds, D-Backs Unable To Complete Teahen Trade

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Mark Teahen has been returned to the Diamondbacks from the Reds due to an issue with his physical, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon (on Twitter). Matt Andrews, the broadcaster for Cincinnati's Triple-A affiliate in Louisville, first reported that Teahen was returning to the Diamondbacks organization (Twitter link).

On Tuesday, the two sides agreed to a deal that would send Teahen to the Reds for cash or a player to be named later. Teahen is hitting .211/.318/.254 through 85 plate appearances for Triple-A Reno thus far. The former supplemental round pick hit .287/.354/.455 for the Royals to 2006-07 but hit just .255/.315/.390 over the next four seasons. He spent the 2012 season with the Nationals' Triple-A affiliate and signed a minor league deal with the D-backs this offseason.

Yankees Designate Cody Eppley For Assignment

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The Yankees have designated right-hander Cody Eppley for assignment, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News (on Twitter). The move clears a 40-man roster spot for fellow right-hander Preston Claiborne. In a related move, Joba Chamberlain was placed on the disabled list.

The 27-year-old Eppley broke camp with the Yankees but was optioned to Triple-A on April 6 after appearing in just two games. Eppley allowed four runs in 1 1/3 innings in his outing prior to being optioned. In 102 1/3 career innings at Triple-A, the former 43rd-round pick has a 3.51 ERA, 9.5 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9.

Claiborne, 25, was the Yankees' 17th-round pick in the 2010 draft. In 204 1/3 minor league innings, the Tulane product has a 3.00 ERA, 8.8 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9. Despite a respectable minor league track record, Claiborne has never appeared on Baseball America's list of Top 30 Yankees prospect. He also failed to crack Jonathan Mayo's list of Top 20 Yanks prospects at MLB.com.

Phillies Outright Humberto Quintero To Triple-A

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Humberto Quintero, who was designated for assignment by the Phillies on Sunday, has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A, the team announced.

Quintero hit .313/.353/.438 in his 17 plate appearances with the Phils this year while serving as the backup to Erik Kratz. Quintero was designated for assignment when Carlos Ruiz, the team's primary catcher, completed serving a 25-game suspension for amphetamines.

Despite a career batting line of just .234/.267/.324, Quintero has appeared in the Majors in each season dating back to 2003. The 33-year-old Venezuela native controls the running game well, as he's caught 32 percent of base stealers as compared to the 27 percent league average in his time. The majority of his career has been spent with the Astros, though he's also appeared with the Padres and Royals.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Smith, A’s, Stanton, Floyd

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On this date in 1947, Brooklyn Dodgers manager Branch Rickey traded five players to the Pirates for Al Gionfriddo and $100K.  Some believed that the deal was made to send a message to the team about his commitment to breaking the color barrier and his support of Jackie Robinson.  Here's this week's look around the baseball blogosphere..

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Zach can be reached at ZachBBWI@gmail.com.  

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