Odds & Ends: Igarashi, Cubs, Cardinals
Links for Friday…
- Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker talks about hard-throwing Japanese reliever Ryota Igarashi, perhaps the top free agent from the country for the 2009-10 offseason.
- I did a Q&A over at Coast to Coast Baseball.
- Some doubt with the sale of the Cubs to the Ricketts family: Tribune owner Sam Zell said, "We've made it very public that the Cubs don't fit into the long-term picture of the Tribune. So if the Ricketts deal doesn't get done, I'm sure there will be other ones."
- In separate articles, Dan Uggla and Octavio Dotel comment on the possibility of being traded.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle says Edgar Renteria was a good signing for the Giants, if you ignore the actual contract. Eh?
- Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch discusses various third base trades the Cardinals could make.
- SI's Tom Verducci likes Freddy Sanchez for the Rays. What's wrong with Willy Aybar and Ben Zobrist?
- Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution talked to Braves GM Frank Wren about the team's need for a bat.
- FanGraphs' Matthew Carruth asks: Where's Odalis Perez?
Draft Roundup: Pirates, Padres, Angels
A few draft links for Friday…
- Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette talked to Pirates GM Neal Huntington and president Frank Coonelly. Huntington said signability is not "a sole driving factor," while Coonelly talked about wanting to get players signed quickly. The Pirates seem to be leaning toward pitching with the #4 pick based on comments from scouting director Greg Smith. ESPN's Keith Law predicted the Pirates will take high school infielder Bobby Borchering, Baseball America went with college righty Kyle Gibson, and MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo picked Aaron Crow. Huntington said that the team's international dealings and the draft are "independent entities." In other words, they won't go cheap in the draft in order to sign Miguel Angel Sano.
- Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune says the Padres are eyeing Dustin Ackley, Donovan Tate (Boras clients), high school righty Zach Wheeler, college lefty Mike Minor, and Crow at #3. BA predicted Grant Green (another Boras client), Law chose Crow, and Mayo went with Minor.
- The Angels have five picks in the first 48, according to Kevin Baxter of the L.A. Times. The Halos seem to be looking at prep players: Mike Trout, Everett Williams, Jiovanni Mier, and Tyler Skaggs.
- Rich Lederer of Baseball Analysts has a Q&A with Baseball America's Jim Callis.
- Callis talked to scouts about righties Crow and Tanner Scheppers.
Odds & Ends: DeRosa, Bruney, Cooper
Let's kick it off today with some odds and ends.
- RotoAuthority discusses responding to lame trade offers in your fantasy league.
- Reliever Mike MacDougal will join the Nationals tomorrow, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Who knows, he could be closing for them by next week.
- Talking to Fred Mitchell of the Chicago Tribune, Cubs GM Jim Hendry defended the Mark DeRosa trade. Here is my problem with it: it was a financially-motivated deal made by a big-market team, and did not bring back players who could help in 2009.
- According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the White Sox acquired journeyman minor league infielder Anderson Machado from the Pirates for a player to be named later.
- Padres exec Paul DePodesta explains the Jody Gerut for Tony Gwynn Jr. swap. DePodesta's third bullet point, money, had to be the overriding factor given Gwynn's negligible value around the league.
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle sees Bobby Crosby as perhaps a more pressing trade situation for the A's than Matt Holliday.
- Dr. James Andrews found no structural damage in Brian Bruney's elbow, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Given the uncertainty, though, a bullpen acquisition would still make sense.
- It looks like the writing is on the wall for Astros manager Cecil Cooper. Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle lists his offenses.
- Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is skeptical the Cardinals will make a big move.
- Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus agrees that the Pirates are the favorite for Dominican talent Miguel Angel Sano, and says the Rays, Cubs, A's, Blue Jays, Yankees, Rangers, and Twins are also after him. It's speculated by McDaniel and elsewhere that the Pirates could budget less toward their fourth overall pick in June to compensate for Sano. John Perrotto of Inside Pittsburgh Sports says they like Kyle Gibson, Aaron Crow, Bobby Borchering, and Wil Myers. Tanner Scheppers did not give the Bucs permission to redraft him.
Edes On Francoeur, Nick Johnson, Valverde
8:10pm: David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the Red Sox-Francoeur rumor:
Talked to someone in Braves organization who sort of dismissed the Red Sox rumor. Said he hadn’t heard one thing about them having any serious interest in Francoeur or scouting him recently.
9:01am: Yahoo's Gordon Edes wrote about many different trade scenarios in his column last night.
- Edes seconds Ken Rosenthal's rumor that the Red Sox have been scouting Jeff Francoeur.
- The Nationals have been scouting the Mets' Triple and Double A teams, trying to figure out a possible return for Nick Johnson. Names of interest for Washington: Jon Niese, Mike Antonini, Eddie Kunz, and big leaguer Bobby Parnell. The Red Sox also had interest in Johnson, but not for the price of Michael Bowden. Back to the Mets – Joel Sherman of the New York Post has a list of available players they could consider aside from Johnson, including Jermaine Dye, Ben Francisco, Adam LaRoche, and Eric Hinske.
- Edes likes the fit of Jose Valverde with the Rays, but speculates that the Astros could ask for Wade Davis in return. Six years of Davis would be a huge price to pay for a few months of Valverde plus possible draft picks. Edes also likes Mark DeRosa for Tampa Bay, but they seem well-equipped to handle Akinori Iwamura's injury with internal options.
- Edes names the Phillies, Brewers, Royals, and Twins as possible suitors for Brad Penny. Edes adds that the Phillies "are already making plans for life without Brett Myers" after this season.
- The shortstop market includes Jack Wilson and perhaps John McDonald, but could become more interesting for a team like Boston if the Indians make Jhonny Peralta available.
2010 Options: Pittsburgh Pirates
Let's take a look at the 2010 options facing the Pirates.
- Jack Wilson – $8.4MM club option with a $600K buyout. According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Wilson "offered to renegotiate [the option] at a lower rate in exchange for a long-term deal, but there has been no formal response." Wilson is a 31 year-old no-bat all-glove guy. It would probably make more sense for the Bucs to just unload the remaning $5.75MM he has coming.
- Freddy Sanchez – $8MM club option with a $600K buyout. Vests with 635 PAs in 2009 or 600 PAs and an All-Star selection in 2009. Sanchez already has 197 PAs, and it's not inconceivable that he could represent the Pirates in the All-Star game. Barring a major injury, he's a Pirate in 2010. The whole situation has sworn the Pirates off vesting options, according to Kovacevic.
Olney On Penny, Reds, Braves
A few rumors from ESPN's Buster Olney (Insider link):
- Olney says about six teams have talked to the Red Sox about Brad Penny. Gordon Edes suggested last night that the "Phillies, Brewers, Royals and possibly the Twins look like teams that could be in play for Penny."
- The Reds are looking for outfield help. Personally I'd like to see what the Laynce Nix/Jonny Gomes platoon can do over a full season.
- Olney heard that "Atlanta hasn't gotten fully engaged yet" in their attempt to augment their outfield.
- Olney talked to execs who like the fit of Jack Wilson in Boston.
Rosenthal On Rockies, Cain, Pirates
Another column from Ken Rosenthal at FOX Sports? Sure, why not.
- The Rockies, 12 games out in the NL West, "appear headed for a selloff." Garrett Atkins isn't popular (although deep in today's chat, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch suggested there could be a match with the Cardinals), and Todd Helton is too pricey. But Brad Hawpe, who has $12MM coming to him from now through 2010, could be an appealing trade chip. Hawpe has a 2011 club option for $10MM, but he can void it if traded. Rosenthal likes the Rays; the Braves would also be a nice fit for Hawpe in my opinion.
- Rosenthal believes it would be hard for the Giants to find a young slugger who would be equal value for Matt Cain, who can be controlled cheaply through 2011. We learned earlier this week that Cain is not being dangled.
- The Pirates have no financial need to dump veteran contracts, an idea we've read in the past. They're getting calls on Jack Wilson, but teams are reluctant to take on all the $5.8MM he still has coming. They have the same problem for Adam LaRoche. And Rosenthal says the Bucs are "philosophically opposed to the idea of a low-revenue team sending money to a high-revenue team to secure better prospects in a trade, the way the Indians did last season when they moved third baseman Casey Blake to the Dodgers."
No Extension Offers For Pirates’ Veterans
According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Pirates have not approached Adam LaRoche, John Grabow, and Jack Wilson about contract extensions. All three are eligible for free agency after the season, and could be on the trading block in July. More details:
- LaRoche, 29, is hitting .222/.309/.449 in 178 plate appearances while earning $7.05MM. He avoided his typical slow April but has been awful in May. It seems excessive for the Mets to rent him for two months, in my opinion.
- Grabow, 30, has a 4.95 ERA in 20 innings while earning $2.3MM. He's not shutting down southpaws. The market may be weak for him.
- Wilson, 31, is at .260/.294/.385 in 103 plate appearances. Kovacevic says the Pirates have not formally responded to Wilson's offer to renegotiate his $8.4MM 2010 club option at a lower rate. He'd make sense for a contender seeking a defensive upgrade at shortstop.
Odds & Ends: Draft, Iwamura, Mets
Some links to tide you over this Memorial Day Eve:
- John Sickels at Minor League Ball lists last year's starters who posted a Win Share over 10 alongside their draft origins. Last week, Future Redbirds advised against risking a first round pick on high school pitchers.
- MLB.com has a fan Q&A up with Pirates GM Neal Huntington, who believes this year's draft is deep in pitching but thin on quality college position players.
- Akinori Iwamura will probably hit the DL after he suffered a nasty collision in today's game and was carted off the field. Joe Maddon will have a look at internal options to fill in for now.
- With the Mets hurting badly, Ken Davidoff at Newsday acknowledges GM Omar Minaya has his work cut out for him. With Jose Reyes' lingering tendinitis in his right knee and his injured backups, Davidoff thinks Minaya should get an appraisal on Bobby Crosby. Davidoff also thinks the Mets should "aggressively" go after the rehabbing Ben Sheets and at least discuss Erik Bedard with the M's, despite the Mets' top prospects sitting at lower levels.
Taking Stock Of The Pirates
John Perrotto of Baseball Prospectus catalogues a decade and a half of poor decisions by the Pirates in his latest column, up at ESPN.com. Some of the team's more memorable gaffes:
- Releasing Tim Wakefield.
- Signing Pat Meares to a four year $15MM deal that surprised even Meares.
- Commiting nearly $10MM to Derek Bell, then claiming the deal sent "shock waves through baseball" during the same offseason that Alex Rodriguez signed for $252MM.
- Giving Bronson Arroyo up on waivers only to have him return to Pittsburgh as an All-Star for the Reds and call the Pirates the "most inept organization in baseball."
But the Pirates have shed some contracts in recent years and appear poised to get younger and better under current GM Neal Huntington. After next year they have commitments to Paul Maholm, Nate McLouth, Ian Snell, Ryan Doumit and Pedro Alvarez, but no one else. They reportedly have a good chance of signing 16-year-old shortstop prospect Miguel Angel Sano and are considering top talent with the fourth overall pick that they hold in this year's draft.
So what's the verdict on the Pirates? They don't appear likely to end their streak of 16 straight losing seasons this year, but are they on the right track? Or do they need new direction? What moves have to take place for the Pirates to join the best teams in the NL Central?