Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe profiles Red Sox minor-leaguer J.T. Watkins, a 25-year-old backstop who hopes to become the first West Point grad to make it to the Majors. Watkins has spent two years in military service since being drafted, but was given the chance to pursue a baseball career by the Army. Of course, his odds of cracking the majors are somewhat longer those of, say, his 2012 teammate Mookie Betts — who just happened to be signed by Watkins’ father Danny. Here are more quick notes from the American League.
- Mariners starting pitcher Kevin Correia has an April 1 opt-out date in his minor-league deal, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman writes. Correia almost surely won’t crack the Mariners’ rotation (which looks like it will be Felix Hernandez, James Paxton, Hisashi Iwakuma, J.A. Happ and Taijuan Walker), but given the number of pitching injuries elsewhere, Heyman is of the opinion that there could be plenty of interest in him.
- Due to a roster crunch, the White Sox have made lefty reliever Eric Surkamp available in a trade, Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com writes. Given the presence of Zach Duke and Dan Jennings, the White Sox don’t have an immediate spot for Surkamp. The reliever will be 28 in July and doesn’t have a strong big-league track record, but he’s pitched reasonably well at Triple-A and has an option remaining, so perhaps the White Sox will be able to get something in return for him.
