Clayton Mortensen Clears Waivers
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here..
- Red Sox reliever Clayton Mortensen has cleared waivers, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). Boston designated Mortensen on Saturday to make room for the call-up on Jonathan Diaz. The 28-year-old posted 5.34 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in 30 and 1/3 innings for the Sox this season. Last season, Mortensen had a 3.21 ERA in 42 innings for Boston with 8.8 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9.
Yankees Sign Luis Cruz
The Yankees announced that they have signed infielder Luis Cruz. The veteran is represented by John Boggs & Associates, as shown in the MLBTR Agency Database.
Cruz, appeared in 45 games this season with the Dodgers before being designated for assignment on June 28th. The 29-year-old made 30 starts for L.A., 20 at third base and ten at shortstop, but had an abysmal .344 OPS in 128 plate appearances. For his big league career, Cruz has a .240/.277/.328 slash line, but he is valued more for his defense than his bat. The veteran boasts a career 25.6 UZR/150 at third base and 10.8 UZR/150 at shortstop.
Rangers Sign Manny Ramirez
The Rangers have agreed to sign Manny Ramirez to a minor league deal, a major league source tells Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. The 41-year-old recently left his Taiwanese club, the EDA Rhinos, to try to get back to the big leagues for the first time since 2011. The move has been confirmed by Texas via press release.
Ramirez, a Barry Praver client, will report to Triple-A Round Rock. Late last month, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe spoke with a scout who watched Ramirez and was told that he can "still hit with the best of them." The slugger told the Rhinos that he missed his family in New York, but in June, Praver told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that his client wanted to free himself in order to play in MLB once again.
Ramirez played in just five games for the Rays in 2011 before testing positive for elevated testosterone, which would have netted him a 100-game suspension. He agreed to retire instead and when he returned in 2012 in the A's system, he served a 50-game suspension in the minors. Unable to get into a groove, he eventually took his release from Oakland.
Texas needs a big right-handed bat given Lance Berkman's recent struggles and they're hoping that Ramirez, who comes with minimal risk, could be the answer.
White Sox Place Jesse Crain On 15-Day DL
The White Sox have placed one of their most desirable trade chips — setup man Jesse Crain — on the 15-day disabled list with a right shoulder strain, the team announced via press release.
Crain's DL stint is retroactive to June 30, so he will be eligible for activation well in advance of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. However, a recent stint on the DL and a questionable shoulder certainly don't do any favors to his trade value.
The 31-year-old Crain has enjoyed far and away the best season of his career and arguably the best season of any reliever in Major League Baseball this year. He boasts a 0.74 ERA with 11.3 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 36 1/3 innings and recently went on a historic scoreless streak. Crain rattled off 29 straight scoreless appearances, and even when that streak came to an end, it was due to three unearned runs. He allowed his first earned run since April 12 in his final appearance before hitting the DL (June 29). Fangraphs pegs his value to date at two wins above replacement, leading all Major League relievers.
Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune tweets that Crain warmed in last night's game and adds that he could return after the All-Star break. There are 12 games that fall after the All-Star break but before the deadline, so Crain will have a bit of time to showcase his health if activated immediately. Crain was recently linked to the Red Sox, Orioles and Yankees, though nearly every contender in baseball could use some additional bullpen help.
The Sox also placed Paul Konerko on the DL with a lower back strain, but even though he's in the final year of his contract, the team has said it won't trade the long-time team captain.
Dodgers Sign Lucas Tirado
The Dodgers have signed Dominican shortstop Lucas Tirado for an even $1MM bonus, according to Dionisio Soldevila of ESPNDeportes.com (on Twitter). The 16-year-old switch-hitter was ranked 19th among international prospects according to MLB.com, though he failed to crack the Top 30 of Baseball America's Ben Badler.
MLB.com writes that Tirado has "one of the better left-handed swings in the entire class – a line-drive stroke to all fields – and good bat speed." Both MLB.com and Badler praise Tirado's baseball IQ, though Badler writes (subscription required) that he has a fringy arm and lacks the range to stick at shortstop in the long run.
As reported by Baseball America, the Dodgers began the signing period with a $2,112,900 bonus pool. However, they acquired an additional $209,700 in yesterday's Carlos Marmol–Matt Guerrier swap. Even so, they spent about 43 percent of their total bonus pool on Tirado.
Jon Rauch Opts Out Of Orioles Contract
Right-hander Jon Rauch has opted out of his minor league deal with the Orioles, who have granted him his release from Triple-A Norfolk, according to Rich Dubroff of CSN Baltimore (on Twitter). The veteran setup man and former closer signed a minor league deal with the O's back on June 1.
Rauch, 34, agreed to a one-year, $1MM contract that contained $750K of incentives with the Marlins this offseason, but the Fish designated him for assignment in late May. Rauch posted a 7.56 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in 16 2/3 innings for Miami. His 3.48 FIP suggests that he was considerably better than his ERA indicated during his brief stint with Miami.
Rauch excelled in a small 9 1/3 inning stint with Norfolk, allowing just three runs with 10 strikeouts and four walks. That was his first minor league action since 2005, as the 6'11" hurler had been able to hold down a Major League bullpen job in each year since that time.
AL East Notes: Yankees, Red Sox, Young
Yesterday, the Orioles made the first significant splash of the trade season by acquiring Scott Feldman and Steve Clevenger from the Cubs in exchange for Jake Arrieta, Pedro Strop and additional international bonus money. Here's more from the AL East…
- The Yankees' haven't gotten a lot of production out of their younger players, and that's a big problem, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Sherman writes that the Bombers may have less 20-something talent than any AL East team.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com looks at how the Red Sox are getting ready for the trade deadline at the end of this month. While they'll look to upgrade when a deal makes sense, they'll also try to keep things in-house where ever possible. "We've had some turnover at [third base] and in [the bullpen]," GM Ben Cherington said, "but right now we believe there is a good chance the solutions are internal. We'll keep an eye out in these areas and any other that crops up between now and the deadline."
- The entire baseball world is trying to guess what Phillies GM Ruben Amaro might do at the deadline, but rival scouts and execs expect him to at least move Yankees trade target Michael Young, writes Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.
- The Red Sox weren't in the mix for Matt Guerrier despite lacking a ground ball-oriented reliever, WEEI.com's Rob Bradford reports via Twitter, citing an industry source.
- Potential trade targets for the Yankees include Justin Morneau and Marlon Byrd, and Matt Warden of River Ave. Blues breaks down what they could bring to the Bronx. Warden included Josh Willingham on his list as well, but that was before the news that the Twins' slugger will miss four to six weeks following arthroscopic knee surgery.
Aaron Steen and Steve Adams contributed to this post.
Blue Jays Designate Chien-Ming Wang For Assignment
WEDNESDAY: Wang would accept an assignment to Triple-A Buffalo instead of electing free agency, agent Alan Chang of Octagon told Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.
TUESDAY: MLB.com's Gregor Chisolm reports (on Twitter) that the Blue Jays have designated right-hander Chien-Ming Wang for assignment. Toronto has confirmed the move and announced that a corresponding roster move will be made tomorrow, and Chisholm tweets that it will be Todd Redmond who is promoted.
The 33-year-old Wang pitched to a 2.61 ERA with 10 strikeouts and five walks in 20 2/3 innings over his first three starts for the Jays, but his last two outings have been disastrous. Wang allowed six earned runs in 1 2/3 innings against the Tigers tonight, giving him 13 earned runs in 3 1/3 innings over his past two outings. He's been solid in Triple-A this season, posting a 2.33 ERA in 58 innings for the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate.
Alex Rios’ No-Trade List
The seven-year, $69.835MM extension that Alex Rios signed with the Blue Jays back in 2008 didn't initially contain no-trade protection, but a limited no-trade clause allowing Rios to block trades to six teams kicked in starting in 2009. Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports that the six teams to which Rios can block a trade are the Yankees, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Royals, Astros and Athletics.
The Rockies, Diamondbacks and A's are likely set on outfielders, and the Astros certainly aren't looking to buy at this time. However, the no-trade protection against the Yankees and (to a lesser extent) the Royals is significant, as both teams would make sense as suitors for Rios.
The struggling Yankees scored fewer runs than any team in baseball last month (88) and have a dearth of right-handed power. Offense is said to be New York's primary need in trades. The Royals opened the season with Jeff Francoeur in right field but have since designated him for assignment. Recent reports did state that the chances of Kansas City making a big move were "slim," and David Lough has played well in place of Francoeur.
Nationals Sign Kelly Shoppach
The Nationals announced on Twitter that they have signed Kelly Shoppach to a minor league contract. Shoppach, who was designated for assignment and ultimately released by the Mariners, will report to Triple-A Syracuse.
Shoppach, 33, hit just .196/.293/.346 in 125 plate appearances for the Mariners this season. However, he's a .224/.314/.413 career hitter in parts of nine seasons with the Indians, Rays, Red Sox, Mets and Mariners. He's particularly effective against left-handed pitching, having hammered southpaws to the tune of a .266/.355/.501 triple slash line throughout his career.