Marlins & Pirates Talking Capps; Aren’t Close
The Marlins, who have signed three relievers this week, are talking with the Pirates about trading for another. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports that the Marlins have maintained contact with the Pirates about closer Matt Capps, though the two sides are not close to a deal.
Rosenthal On Vazquez, Hairston, Teahen
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Javier Vazquez has more value than any available hitter. Here are the details and the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:
- Not even Matt Holliday or Corey Hart would be fair value for Vazquez, so Rosenthal asks why the Braves would want to trade him at all.
- The Mets inquired on Scott Hairston, who could have been an affordable stopgap, but balked when the Padres asked for Bobby Parnell.
- The Marlins offered Gaby Sanchez for Manny Delcarmen, but the Red Sox weren't interested.
- The Mariners, Tigers and Rays weren't far from agreeing to a deal that would have sent Edwin Jackson to Seattle and J.J. Putz to Detroit last offseason.
- Kevin Towers compares Rule 5 pick Everth Cabrera to Rafael Furcal.
- The Royals "do not seem terribly inclined" to deal Mark Teahen.
- The Pirates covet Eric Young Jr. of the Rockies.
- Some predict that the distribution of amateur talent- through the draft and international signings- will be the biggest issue in the next Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Odds And Ends: Bedard, Astros, Marquis
Links for Tuesday morning…
- Be here at 2pm CST for this week's chat.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette profiles controversial acquisition Lastings Milledge, who seems energized and motivated.
- It would be hard to argue with Amber Theoharis of MASN.com, who says the Orioles won the Erik Bedard deal since they acquired two All-Stars in George Sherrill and Adam Jones.
- As MLB.com's Christian Caple reports, Bedard will be on a 60 pitch limit as he returns to the hill tonight against his former team.
- Nomar Garciaparra told Mike McDermott of the Providence Journal that he didn't turn down $60MM from the Red Sox.
- Experts consider the Astros' system weak, but at least they have Bud Norris and Yorman Bazardo in Triple A, as Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- The Jason Marquis deal has worked out better-than-expected for the Rockies, but, as Dave Krieger of the Denver Post notes, the Rockies have made plenty of smart deals over the years.
Miguel Angel Sano Rumors: Monday
9:25pm: Arangure also notes that the Aroldis Chapman defection could have a major impact on Sano's negotiations. As he tweets,
"Certain teams will save money for run at Aroldis. Last minute offer (for) Sano less likely now."
9:04pm: Seeking more information, I asked Arangure whether the Twins and Pirates also see Sano as a guy not worth a $4MM signing bonus. He was kind enough to respond:
"For me, the Twins aren't real contenders anymore. The Pirates won't give record money because they won't have to."
8:58pm: ESPN's Jorge Arangure, who's been on the ball since the international signing period began on July 2, just rattled off a couple of interesting "tweets" involving 16-year-old shortstop Miguel Angel Sano:
"Am convinced Sano will not get record money. Orioles see him as late-first-round talent, which does not equal $4 million. More like $1-$1.5."
"Those who think Orioles will give record $ for Sano remember: They gave $3.2m to No. 4 pick [Brian] Matusz last year. Gave [Matt] Hobgood $2.4 this yr."
"There's no way Orioles are giving more to Sano than they gave Matusz and Hobgood."
If Arangure is correct, and the other teams tracking Sano follow suit, Wagner Mateo, singed July 2 by the Cardinals for $3.1MM, will go down as the highest-paid international prospect from 2009. Sano has been courted this summer by the Twins, Pirates and O's, who are awaiting the results of an MLB investigation into his age and identification.
Odds And Ends: Escobar, Sanchez, Beimel
Some odds and ends to start the week off…
- Carroll Rogers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution hears the Royals "covet" Yunel Escobar. As O'Brien says, Mark Teahen alone would not likely be enough to acquire the Braves' shortstop.
- Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus reports that the Tigers signed a pair of shortstops from Panama.
- Almost 70% of Cleveland Plain Dealer readers don't think Eric Wedge should be around for the rest of the year.
- Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle tells us how some well-placed calls by Ryan Sadowski's mother helped the Giants starter make the big leagues.
- Remember that Freddy Sanchez's All-Star Game berth means he only needs 600 plate appearances for his $8MM option to vest in 2010. He needs just 271 more.
- As Ben Bolch of the LA Times reports, Joe Beimel would return to the Dodgers if he could.
- Scott Hairston had a tough departure from his Padres teammates last night, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock.
- The D'Backs are making progress with first round pick Bobby Borchering and hope to sign him this month, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
Giants, Pirates Discussed Sanchez, LaRoche
From Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
The Pirates and San Francisco have had trade talks regarding second baseman Freddy Sanchez and, to a lesser extent, first baseman Adam LaRoche, each of whom can be a free agent after this season. The Giants have had a scout following Sanchez, a source confirmed yesterday, and their interest in LaRoche goes back several months. Their preference at first base, though, is for a right-handed bat.
Sanchez sports a .316/.355/.477 line, a huge improvement on the .224/.280/.276 aggregate performance from Giants second basemen (primarily the demoted Emmanuel Burriss, though Juan Uribe has snagged recent starts). The Giants have a 1.5 game lead for the Wild Card, but their .705 team OPS ranks second-to-last in the NL. Sanchez's contractual situation will be a factor in the trade talks; an $8.5MM option for 2010 appears likely to vest. Charlie Manuel's All-Star selections will affect Sanchez's contract – if Sanchez makes the team the option vests with 600 plate appearances rather than 635. It figures to be between Sanchez and Zach Duke for the Bucs' representative.
Kovacevic adds that the Pirates have discussed Jack Wilson, John Grabow, and Matt Capps with teams, noting that those talks "vary in their intensity." In another article, Kovacevic digs deeper into the Grabow/Wilson/Sanchez situations. He believes the Pirates will seek shortstops and left-handed relievers in trades. I'm guessing the Pirates would find Jonathan Sanchez desirable (he's currently serving as the second lefty in the Giants' pen).
Odds & Ends: Grabow, Yankees, Orioles
One more roundup of links for the night…
- George. A. King III of The New York Post mentions that the Pirates had two scouts watch the Yankees earlier this week, possibly in advance of a deal involving lefty reliever John Grabow.
- He mentions that the Dodgers and Rockies had scouts on hand as well. The Yanks have already expressed interest in Huston Street earlier this season.
- King also says that the Yanks refuse to talk about prospects Austin Jackson and Austin Romine in trade talks according to other organizations.
- Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun recaps the first half of the Orioles' season and says they're building towards something, he's just not quite sure what. He does however praise the performance of young players like Nolan Reimold.
- On the day of his tragic and untimely death, let's not forget that Steve McNair was quite the baseball player as well, getting selected by the Mariners in the 35th round of the 1991 Draft. (hat tip: Jesse Spector of The NY Daily News)
Twins A Distant Third For Sano
ESPN's Jorge Arangure tweets that the Twins are now just a distant third behind the Pirates and Orioles in the sweepstakes for Dominican megaprospect Miguel Angel Sano. He notes that the Twins don't have unlimited funds, and instead are "simply moving on."
Earlier today we recapped everything we know about Sano, the top prospect on this year international market.
Odds & Ends: First-Half Stars, Padres, Adams
Happy Fourth of July to all of you. Is there a more perfect day for afternoon baseball?
- D.J. Short of NBC Sports' "Circling The Bases" list his "Five Breakthrough First-Half Performers." You can probably guess a few of 'em.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock has a quote from Padres GM Kevin Towers on manager Bud Black's upcoming contract extension: "He warrants an extension. I personally feel he's done his best job this season." The Friars are 34-45, 16.5 games behind the NL West-leading Dodgers.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Dinesh Patel and Rinku Singh, the Pirates' Indian-born pitchers, made their professional debuts this afternoon for Bradenton of the Gulf Coast League.
- Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star believes Russ Adams will opt for free agency on Monday. The utilityman was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays on Friday after batting .200/.238/.200 in 20 at-bats.
- ESPN's Peter Gammons takes note of the increasing amount of parity in the baseball world, and believes it may make for a slow trade deadline.
- Join MLBTR on Twitter for even more updates and discussions.
Edes’ Latest: Giants, Teahen, Relievers
Currently standing atop the National League wildcard standings, the Giants are looking for a lefthanded bat to add to their lineup according to Gordon Edes of Yahoo Sports. He cites a major league executive who says that San Francisco has focused their efforts on three first baseman: Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff and Adam LaRoche. Edes also says that the Giants have spoken to the Padres about a potential Jonathan Sanchez–Scott Hairston swap.
Let's round up the rest of Edes' rumors…
- Royals GM Dayton Moore has heard from multiple teams about Mark Teahen, including the Red Sox, Cubs, Angels and Giants.
- The Braves "might be inclined to take a look at" Jose Guillen. The Royals would love to discuss Yunel Escobar.
- We've heard this before, but if Boston moves a reliever, it will most likely be Takashi Saito.
- Padres' closer Heath Bell may command the most attention amongst relievers.
- The Astros are likely to hold on to LaTroy Hawkins and Jose Valverde, barring a collapse before the trade deadline.
- The Blue Jays would love to move BJ Ryan, but are more likely to see interest in Jason Frasor and Scott Downs.
- Bronson Arroyo is back on the trade block.