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Archives for July 2013

Rays Sign First-Rounder Ryne Stanek

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The Rays have signed first-round pick Ryne Stanek for the full assigned pick value of $1,758,300, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (on Twitter). The Rays, who have confirmed the signing via press release, received the No. 29 overall selection as compensation for the loss of B.J. Upton to the Braves in free agency. Stanek is advised by Jason Wood of Arland Sports.

Stanek entered the season as a potential Top 5 pick, but his stock fell due to inconsistency througout the year. Still, MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo ranked Stanek as the No. 12 prospect in this year's draft, while Baseball America and ESPN's Keith Law each had him ranked 13th. Stanek slipped well past his expectations, and many considered the Rays' selection of Stanek to be one of the best values in the first round.

Mayo writes that Stanek "has as much arm strength as anyone, throwing a plus fastball in the mid-90s while maintaining velocity throughout his starts." Law feels that Stanek's curveball is ahead of his slider, though BA notes that his slider "has real power in the 84-87 mph range when it's right."

Stanek was one of two first-round picks for the Rays, who selected high school catcher Nick Ciuffo with the No. 21 overall pick. The Rays haven't taken a college pitcher this highly since selecting David Price out of Vanderbilt with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft. WIth Stanek's deal, 28 of the 33 first-round picks from this year's draft have signed.

Rockies Sign Carlos Herrera

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The Rockies have signed Venezuelan shortstop Carlos Herrera for a $1.2MM bonus, according to MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez (on Twitter). The 16-year-old ranked 11th on Baseball America's list of Top 30 international prospects and 15th on MLB.com's Top 30.The Rockies have the third-largest bonus pool this year at $4.21MM.

MLB.com writes that "Herrera is a line-drive hitter and capable defender with the speed to be a very good baserunner and a threat on the bases." Baseball America praises his speed, athleticism and hitting ability while projecting him to stay in the middle of the diamond.

In more Rockies-related news, Ben Badler of Baseball America reports that the team's previously reported agreement with Colombian righty Erick Julio is for $700K. Badler adds that the projectable 16-year-old isn't a power arm now, but should add velocity as he matures and "already shows the makings of a quality curveball and changeup."

Blue Jays Sign Yeltsin Gudino, Freddy Rodriguez

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The Blue Jays signed shortstop Yeltsin Gudino and outfielder Freddy Rodriguez out of Venezuela, Sportsnet's Shi Davidi reports via Twitter. Davidi says Gudino will receive a bonus of about $1.2MM, but didn't have a dollar figure for Rodriguez.

Gudino ranked eighth on Baseball America's top 30 international prospects list, while MLB.com ranked him 11th. Though he lacks a true plus tool, Gudino is a smooth fielder at shortstop and has a high baseball IQ, according to BA's Ben Badler. Rodriguez comes in at 18th on Badler's list, and wasn't ranked at all by MLB.com. He's currently a gap hitter with the potential for more power down the line, and is fast enough to play center field at the present, Badler reports.

The Blue Jays' bonus pool is $2,817,100. They appear to have about $1.6MM remaining after the Gudino signing.

Braves Interested In Joba; Giants Eyeing Twins’ Pen

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4:36pm: Schulman notes that excepting Glen Perkins, whom the Twins are unlikely to trade, the interesting reliever for the Giants in Minnesota's bullpen is Casey Fien. However, Schulman doesn't know whether the righty, who's posted a 3.55 ERA in 38 appearances, is available.

11:33am: Elder, a Giants scout, was in Minnesota last night to see the Twins' bullpen rather than Chamberlain, tweets Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.  Casey Fien,Jared Burton, Brian Duensing, and Josh Roenicke appeared for the Twins, with Burton and Duensing struggling.

10:30am: The Braves and Giants have an interest in Yankees reliever Joba Chamberlain, a pair of American League talent evaluators told George A. King III and Dan Martin of the New York Post.  The Braves' Jim Fregosi saw Chamberlain Friday night, while the Giants' Lee Elder attended last night's game "exclusively to watch Chamberlain."

Chamberlain, 27, has a 5.75 ERA, 9.7 K/9, 4.4 BB/9, 1.77 HR/9, and 35.5% groundball rate in 20 1/3 innings this year.  He missed most of May with an oblique strain.  Chamberlain has worked at 95-97 miles per hour as of late and seems a good candidate for a change of scenery.  Once an untouchable starting pitching prospect, Chamberlain is in his contract year and isn't expected to be with the Yankees next season.  The Braves are known to be in the market for relief help; they last matched up with the Yankees in a minor trade in November 2010.

Aaron Steen contributed to this post.

Royals Sign Marten Gasparini, Cristhian Vasquez

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4:30pm: The Royals have also signed Venezuelan outfielder Cristhian Vasquez for a $775K bonus, according to Sanchez (on Twitter). Vasquez ranked as Baseball America's No. 22 prospect, noting that he's one of the oldest players in this year's class and has an advanced offensive approach.

10:12am: The Royals signed Italian shortstop Marten Gasparini for $1.3MM today, breaking the record for a European international prospect, according to MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez.  Baseball America ranked Gasparini 12th; MLB.com had him fourth.

Badler had a full profile of Gasparini in May, noting the Royals as the frontrunner and his likelihood of breaking the European record.  Gasparini, who turned 16 on May 24th, is a speedy switch-hitter with an Italian father and Jamaican mother who grew up in London.    

The Royals have a bonus pool of $2,988,100 this year.

Cubs Sign Gleyber Torres, Erling Moreno

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3:30pm: The Cubs have also inked Colombian right-hander Erling Moreno for $800K, according to Badler. Moreno ranked as BA's No. 16 prospect and MLB.com's No. 17 prospect. The 6'3", 190-pound 16-year-old has touched 90 mph with his fastball and projects to become a power pitcher down the road.

10:59am: The Cubs made a big international signing today, inking 16-year-old Venezuelan shortstop Gleyber Torres to a $1.7MM deal according to MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez.  Torres ranked second among international prospects on the list from Baseball America's Ben Badler, and third on MLB.com's list.  The Cubs also signed Dominican righty Jefferson Mejia for $850K today, but still have plenty to spend given their $4,557,200 pool.

Torres has "the potential for five average or better tools," wrote Badler, who noted that he has drawn comparisons to Freddy Sanchez.

Rangers Designate Kyle McClellan For Assignment

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The Rangers have designated right-hander Kyle McClellan for assignment in order to clear a roster spot for Josh Lindblom, according to Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest (on Twitter).

The 29-year-old McClellan allowed eight runs in 9 1/3 innings of work for the Rangers this season with three strikeouts, five walks and a pair of homers. He allowed runs in five of his seven appearances including each of his final four outings. His 32.3 percent ground-ball rate was a far cry from his career mark of 49.3 percent.

McClellan has a 3.79 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 387 1/3 career innings, all of which came with the Cardinals prior to this season.

International Prospect Signings: Astros, Cards, Yankees, Tigers, Brewers

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Teams were able to submit contracts for this year's class of July 2nd international prospects starting at 8am central time today.  You can find rankings here from Baseball America and MLB.com, and information on each team's international bonus pool at BA.  This is the first year in which teams have different bonus pools, and as explained by BA's Ben Badler, teams can trade for up to 50% of their pools (with plenty of stipulations).  The latest deals:

  • Badler reports that the Astros have signed Dominican shortstop Joan Mauricio for $600K. The infielder didn't make the Top 30 from BA or MLB.com, but Badler lauds his defensive actions and hands.
  • The Cardinals have signed Venezuelan outfielder Carlos Talavera (No. 28 on BA's list), Badler reports. The Cardinals have announced that signing as well as three others, and Kiley McDaniel has the bonus amounts: Dominican shortstop Hector Linares received $400K, Dominican right-hander Sandy Alcantara received $125K and Nicaraguan lefty Kerrion Bennett got $30K (Twitter links).
  • The Yankees have signed Dominican shortstop Yonauris Rodriguez for $575K, according to Sanchez (on Twitter). BA noted that he's one of the best defensive shortstop prospects in Latin America.
  • The Tigers signed Venezuelan catcher Elys Escobar for $350K, reports Badler.  They also signed shortstop Hector Martinez for $400K, tweets Sanchez. MLB.com's Jason Beck adds that the team has also reached agreements with Venezuelan outfielder Hector Hernandez and Venezuelan shortstop Anthony Pereira (Twitter link).
  • The Brewers signed Dominican outfielder Nicolas Pierre for $800K, tweets Soldevila.  Badler ranked him 20th, noting the Brewers connection, while MLB.com had him 28th. The Brewers also signed shortstop Franly Mallen, Badler reports. He later tweeted that MLB.com's No. 22 prospect received the same $800K bonus as Pierre.
  • The Athletics signed Dominican shortstop Carlos Hiciano for $750K, reports Badler.  The speedy infielder was 17th on BA's rankings and 26th at MLB.com.
  • The Indians signed Dominican outfielder Junior Soto for $600K, reports Badler.  He's known for his right-handed raw power. Dionisio Soldevila of ESPN Deportes tweets that the team also signed shortstop Willy Castro for $850K
  • The Padres signed shortstop Ruddy Giron for $600K, tweets Soldevila.  Baseball America called Giron a "high-energy player with good athleticism and above-average speed."
  • The Diamondbacks signed Dominican outfielder Francis Martinez for $350K and Dominican third baseman Josue Herrera for $150K, reports Badler.  They're nearing a deal with switch-hitting Venezuelan catcher Jose Herrera worth an estimated $1MM, tweets MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez.  MLB.com ranks Herrera seventh; BA has him tenth.
  • The Cubs signed Dominican righty Jefferson Mejia for $850K, according to Badler.  Badler notes that the 18-year-old Mejia can begin playing immediately, as his contract is for the 2013 season unlike most July 2 signings.  Mejia previously had an issue with his paperwork and had been declared ineligible to sign until April.  At $4,557,200, the Cubs have the second-largest bonus pool and figure to be active.  
  • The Mets signed Venezuelan catcher Ali Sanchez for $690K, reports Badler.  BA ranked him 25th, calling him an "intelligent, high-energy player" and noting the many Venzuelan catchers in the big leagues.    The Mets also signed Venezuelan righty Luis Silva for $275K, according to Badler.  They signed Dominican shortstop Yeffry de Aza for $475K, he adds.  The Mets have a pool of $2,664,600 this year.
  • Colombian righty Erick Julio agreed to sign with the Rockies, tweets MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez.  Julio, the best prospect out of Colombia this year, was ranked 14th by MLB.com and 13th by Baseball America's Ben Badler.  The Rockies are also expected to sign Venezuelan shortstop Carlos Herrera for close to $1MM, tweets Sanchez.  He was ranked 11th by BA and 15th by MLB.com.  The Rockies have the third-largest international bonus pool this year, at $4,213,800 according to BA.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.

Jim Thome Joins White Sox Front Office

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The White Sox have announced that Jim Thome has joined the team's front office as a special assistant to general manager Rick Hahn. Thome will consult with Hahn and assistant GM Buddy Bell, work with the club's Major League staff and players, and also travel to the team's minor league affiliates to evaluate player performance.

Assuming this transition signals the official end of Thome's playing days, the 42-year-old will conclude a likely Hall of Fame career as a .276/.402/.554 hitter. In parts of 22 seasons for the Indians, White Sox, Phillies, Twins, Dodgers and Orioles, Thome blasted 612 home runs and racked up 1,699 RBIs, which rank seventh and 24th all-time, respectively.

Fangraphs pegs Thome's career value at 68.1 wins above replacement, while Baseball-Reference's version is more bullish at 72.8 WAR. According to B-Ref, he earned more than $142MM in his illustrious career.

Astros Acquire Ronald Torreyes

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The Cubs acquired two of the Astros' international bonus pool slots for minor league second baseman Ronald Torreyes, tweets Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.  The Cubs announced they received slots 2 and 3 from the Astros, which amount to $784,700.  So far the Cubs' net pool money gain is $963,100 today, bringing their total to $5,520,300 barring more moves.  They added $388,100 from the Orioles and sent $209,700 to the Dodgers.

Torreyes, 20, came to the Cubs from the Reds in the December 2011 trade that also netted Travis Wood and Dave Sappelt, for Sean Marshall.  Sappelt, coincidentally, was recalled by the Cubs today, who placed outfielder Ryan Sweeney on the 60-day DL.  Torreyes has a .260/.337/.381 line in 264 Double-A plate appearances.  Baseball America ranked the 5'7" Torreyes 13th among Reds prospects prior to the 2012 season, explaining that he is an above-average hitter with no power.

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