Odds and Ends: Botts, Red Sox, McLouth
Roundup of links!
- According to Jamey Newberg, Jason Botts has cleared waivers. He probably won’t get another chance with the Rangers though.
- Gordon Edes notes that the Red Sox have five picks in the first three rounds of the June draft. Even though they don’t start until the 30th pick, the Sox have had much success in recent years.
- No extension talks have begun with Nate McLouth, but Dejan Kovacevic does expect it to happen.
- I updated the fantasy baseball closers depth chart over at RotoAuthority.
- SI.com’s Jon Heyman says Freddy Garcia is "progressing nicely" in rehab and will throw off a mound about a week from now.
- Marc Topkin wonders if the Rays should consider Jason Michaels (among others) if they aren’t satisfied with their current right field options.
Rockies Looking For Starting Pitching
7:22pm: Walt Jocketty did not deny the Fogg-Rockies rumor when asked. Maybe he’ll be a little more loose with the rumors than Krivsky was.
9:18am: Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has details on the Rockies’ pursuit of starting pitching. Their search includes some familiar names.
- Josh Fogg seems like the most likely acquisition; he’s a DFA candidate for the Reds. Fogg received an early one-year offer from the Rockies this winter that was later pulled back.
- Julian Tavarez, another former Rockie, is on the radar again. The Red Sox don’t seem to have much use for him.
- Kevin Millwood figures to be a popular name in the coming months. Renck says the Rangers want "the right players in return, not salary relief." Millwood makes $8.5MM in ’08, $11MM in ’09, and $12MM in ’10 (if he reaches certain innings incentives). He also has a limited no-trade clause.
- Rich Harden may come off the DL soon, but he’d have to remain healthy for probably a month before teams become seriously interested.
- Renck says Joe Blanton is "currently not available." The A’s are the current Wild Card leader, after all.
Odds and Ends: Doue, Furcal, Kuroda
Here are today’s links.
- Dave Cameron notes Nelson Cruz‘s video game numbers in Triple A and suggests he deserves another shot.
- Japanese catcher Hayato Doue was expected to join the Red Sox organization, but visa problems have gotten in the way.
- Buster Olney notes that Rafael Furcal will test free agency if he can’t hammer out an extension with the Dodgers by midseason.
- Shigetoshi Hasegawa denies the notion that he pushed Hiroki Kuroda toward the Dodgers.
- Athletics Nation sees Billy Beane targeting pitcher Tanner Scheppers if he’s available with the 12th pick. Also, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com has an overall look at the ’08 draft class.
Gammons’ Latest: Bradley, Griffey, Padilla
ESPN’s Peter Gammons has a new blog post to discuss.
- Gammons says Cubs manager Lou Piniella would like to add a left-handed hitting right or center fielder to bat fifth. Milton Bradley and Ken Griffey Jr. seem like long shots though. It’s odd that the Rangers wouldn’t want to move Bradley.
- Gammons notes that the Rangers wanted Mike Pelfrey, Aaron Heilman, and Deolis Guerra for Vicente Padilla in the offseason. Even as a negotiation starting point, that’s a ton for Padilla.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Hudson, Turnbow, Laird, Kershaw
Rumorland Ambassador Ken Rosenthal has posted yet another Full Count video. Let’s get sifting:
- Rosenthal thinks Orlando Hudson could be shown the money this offseason if he opts to explore free agency. Hudson most likely won’t be offered market value by the Dbacks. Rosenthal posits the Orioles, Cards, Dodgers, and Mariners as potential buyers.
- 4 unnamed teams are interested in Derrick Turnbow, who is making $3.2MM this year. According to KR, the Brewers would need to throw money in a deal or get a comparable salary in return – as the saying goes, you trade contracts, not players. Turnbow needs a fresh start and middle relief is always in demand; however, a lot of teams have better internal options and could see Turnbow as a project for better or worse.
- Gerald Laird update: Reds, Yankees, and Brewers all passed. But Rosenthal still expects Laird to end up somewhere and notes that whoever gets him has him through 2010.
- The Dodgers are planning on "integrating" Clayton Kershaw soon to throw a limit of 150 IP; however this doesn’t (yet) make Esteban Loaiza expendable as they would alternate the two in the rotation, Kershaw starting twice, and then Loaiza twice, and so on. I say "(yet)" because Rosenthal doesn’t mention that the rotation will get crowded if/when Jason Schmidt returns in early June. I would expect they’ll explore options, but be content using Loaiza out of the bullpen. By the way, Kershaw has a 1.40 ERA with 31 K in 25.2 IP for Double-A Jacksonville.
By Nat Boyle
Rangers Not Interested In Turnbow
Deep within this Dallas Morning News piece, Evan Grant writes that the Texas Rangers are not very interested in acquiring Derrick Turnbow, the reliever who was DFAed yesterday by the Milwaukee Brewers.
Texas GM Jon Daniels said that the team would "do some due diligence" but it doesn’t appear that they plan on pursuing the righty reliever.
Aside from the anomaly that was 2005, Turnbow’s problem has always been his inability to find the plate. His terrible start in 2008 was compounded by the fact that the strikeouts, which has been Turnbow’s calling card throughout his career, became infrequent.
Posted by Paul Moro
Odds and Ends: Gallardo, NPB, Braves
Today’s link collection…
- Check out the latest MLB Roundup video. The crew hands out April awards, assesses Billy Beane’s gameplan, and looks at Jeff Ma’s third-place Tout Wars team.
- RotoAuthority helps Yovani Gallardo owners pick up the pieces and find a replacement (he has a torn ACL). The Brewers have guys they can plug in but Gallardo seemed primed for a stellar season. They’ll keep an eye on the trade market.
- Mike Hampton could retire, but it’s highly unlikely that he’ll abandon the rest of his ’08 salary.
- Nippon Professional Baseball might shorten the tenure needed for free agency, except for those looking to go overseas. Players hoping to jump from Japan to MLB would still have to serve nine years or be posted.
- In the sidebar of this article, Ken Rosenthal suggests that Frank Wren will explore the trade market for starting pitching but won’t overpay for mediocrity. Tracy Ringolsby wonders whether the Braves will consider re-acquiring Kevin Millwood.
Jason Botts Designated
WEDNESDAY: Botts wants out of Texas; he’d like a fresh start with another team. GM Jon Daniels will attempt to find a taker, but otherwise Botts will have to go to Triple A.
TUESDAY: The Rangers have given up on Jason Botts, designating him for assignment. Botts, 27, played first base and various other roles in 15 games for the Rangers this year.
I can see him passing through waivers unclaimed. Botts may have earned the dreaded Quad-A label. He’s failed to produce in 282 big league ABs but has raked Triple A pitching.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Crede, Lofton, Millwood, Dunn
Ken Rosenthal has a new Full Count video up; let’s discuss.
- Despite his .268/.330/.537 start, the White Sox would still entertain trading Joe Crede if it’d help the big league team. This is a change from their apparent springtime willingness to deal him for prospects. The most likely desire would be pitching, if the Sox can find a suitor.
- Jake Peavy put on his GM hat, suggesting the Padres sign Kenny Lofton. Rosenthal likes the idea, but notes that Kevin Towers will first turn to his farm system. I discussed some future trade candidates for San Diego in my latest video mailbag.
- Rosenthal suggests Kevin Millwood‘s contract will be an obstacle in trading him. He earns $8.5MM this year, $11MM in ’09, and a fairly achievable $12MM vesting option for ’10. Plus there’s a limited no-trade clause.
- Walt Jocketty’s biggest test this year might be deciding whether to trade Ken Griffey Jr. and/or Adam Dunn. They both have no-trade clauses to deal with; even after June 15th Dunn’s includes most high-revenue teams.
Rangers Expected To Be Sellers
At 7-15, the Rangers have the worst record in the American League. Team president Nolan Ryan doesn’t seem ready for a fire sale yet, but you have to figure the Rangers will be clear sellers come June.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post recently suggested Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla, Hank Blalock, Frank Catalanotto, and Milton Bradley as trade candidates. As Sherman says, Millwood could be a hot commodity. He looks healthy and would certainly help a contender. Gerald Laird, Marlon Byrd, Jamey Wright, and Joaquin Benoit could also be dealt.
The Rangers already have the fourth-best farm system in baseball according to Baseball America; Jon Daniels’ team could climb even higher with another bountiful July.