Padres general manager A.J. Preller told reporters – including AJ Cassavell of MLB.com – that four to five clubs called him with interest in right-hander James Shields, whom San Diego ended up trading to the White Sox on Saturday. With the Shields trade out of the way, Preller doesn’t expect to do much else until things heat up around the trade deadline, he added.
More from San Diego and a few other NL cities:
- There’s a “pretty good possibility” righty Erik Johnson, one of the two players the Padres received for Shields, will slot into their rotation as Shields’ long-term replacement, manager Andy Green said (Twitter link via Cassavell). For now, the Padres have optioned Johnson to Triple-A El Paso, according to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (on Twitter).
- Diamondbacks chief baseball officer Tony La Russa told Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports that the club has “no regrets” about the widely panned offseason trade that sent Dansby Swanson, Ender Inciarte and Aaron Blair to Atlanta for righty Shelby Miller. Nevertheless, La Russa believes that Swanson – the top pick in last year’s draft – “will be a star” in the majors.
- Injured Dodgers starters Hyun-jin Ryu and Brandon McCarthy are unlikely to make it back before the All-Star break, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register (Twitter links here). Ryu, who had a setback last week with his surgically repaired left shoulder, will need to make at least four rehab starts before he can return to the majors. He has to resume throwing first, however. McCarthy also isn’t ready to begin a rehab assignment. In the meantime, the 2015 Tommy John recipient will throw a three-inning, 60-pitch sim game at some point in the coming days.
- Right-hander Bronson Arroyo is recovering well from partial tears in his rotator cuff tendons and hopes to pitch for the Nationals this season, Bill Ladson of MLB.com relays. Arroyo, whose injury forced him to use a sidearm delivery in early May, is now healthy enough to throw from a three-quarter arm slot, Ladson writes. “I guess my shoulder has turned the corner,” Arroyo told Ladson. “Now, the shoulder feels pretty good. It’s little less pressure throwing sidearm, but it has been OK throwing over the top. “ The 39-year-old, who hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2014, has been pitching intrasquad games at the Nationals’ spring training complex in Florida. He’s likely to make five more starts there before the team reevaluates him July 1. If all goes well, Arroyo could then begin a rehab assignment and perhaps join the Nationals down the stretch. Arroyo has started in the vast majority of his major league appearances (369 of 405), but he told Ladson he’d be willing to work out of the Nats’ bullpen.
WOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO NO MORE JAMES SHIELDS
You do realize we’re still paying more than half his contract, right?
Thats half his contract we dont have to pay plus two young players with different levels of upside
We should have to pay way less than half his contract by trading him. He is far from being a sunk cost.
Sorry Ryan. There’s no upside. They came from the white sox farm system. Look at Johnsons record and ERA in the majors. He can’t pitch up there. He’ll be great at ElPaso tho. Sox’ farm system doesn’t promote anything to the big team except a pitcher or two and Johnson wasn’t one of them. They were just flushing out their minors again.
Lol
Shelby miller is terrible..
Boy if Swanson and Blair live up to the hype and Miller doesn’t get any better that might be one of the worst trades all times
NO REGERTS
Blair isn’t good either
If LaRussa has no regrets even after admitting he thinks Swanson will be a star then it time for him to resign as he is not suited to run a baseball operations for any team if he really feels that way
Swanson will be a great shortstop/2B in the next few years. Him and that other guy who’s the triple a shortstop will be a very good duo for the braves in the future. They’re gonna be raw