Quick Hits: Upton, Greinke, Escobar, Managers
Stephen Strasburg may not be there, but the Nationals are going to the playoffs. The Nats clinched a postseason berth with tonight's 4-1 win over the Dodgers and now have a magic number of eight to clinch the NL East. This is the franchise's first postseason appearance since reaching the NLCS (as the Expos) in 1981, and the first time a Washington baseball team has made the postseason since the Senators played in the 1933 World Series.
Here's the latest from around the majors…
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic talks to several executives and scouts about Justin Upton's trade value, with the general consensus being that the Diamondbacks can still command a high price for the outfielder, though Upton's disappointing 2012 campaign has hurt his value. Opinion was split on whether the D'Backs or Rangers would have to add players in such a possible Upton-for-Elvis Andrus deal.
- Upton discusses his season, his career development and his feelings about the trade rumors in an extensive profile by Robert Sanchez of ESPN The Magazine.
- John Axford believes the Zack Greinke trade was the inspiration for the Brewers' surprising turn-around, reports MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Since Greinke was dealt to the Angels on July 27, the Brewers have surged back into the NL wild card race with a 32-18 record, including today's win over the Pirates. "Personally, I thought it was going to be more motivation for certain guys," Axford said. "There wasn't ever a thought on this team that this was a lost season. It was disappointing for a while….But there's no guy on this team that's going to lie down and give up. It's shown recently."
- "The sense now is that some teams would still be willing to take [Yunel Escobar] on provided he delivers a proper penance first," writes Sportsnet.ca's Shi Davidi. Escobar is scheduled to return on Friday from his three-game suspension for wearing eye black that contained a homophobic slur. This incident could spur Escobar's departure from Toronto, especially since the Blue Jays have promising shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria waiting in the wings.
- ESPN's Jim Bowden lists ten of the top managerial candidates, a compilation that includes nine men who have never managed at the Major League level and two-time World Series winner Terry Francona. Two names on Bowden's list (Tim Bogar and Dave Martinez) are reportedly the top candidates to become the Astros' new manager.
- Jim Thome's quest for a World Series ring has surprisingly taken him to the Orioles instead of the Phillies, writes MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince, but the slugger has dropped hints that 2012 may not be his last season.
- Derek Jeter told ESPN's Rick Reilly (passed on by Anthony McCarron of the New York Daily News) that he would potentially be open to playing for a team besides the Yankees once his current contract expires. "Well, if I wanted to keep playing, yes," Jeter said. "It's a business. People forget that." Jeter is under contract through the 2013 season with an $8MM player option for 2014; the shortstop turns 40 years old in June 2014.
D’Backs Designate Cole Gillespie For Assignment
The Diamondbacks have designated Cole Gillespie for assignment, the team announced. The move creates room on the roster for Mike Jacobs.
Gillespie, 28, hit .308/.390/.494 with 13 homers in 510 plate appearances for Arizona's Triple-A affiliate this season. He's a career .236/.292/.391 hitter in 120 big league plate appearances, which span the 2010-2011 seasons. The D'Backs originally acquired Gillespie from the Brewers for Felipe Lopez back in 2009.
NL West Notes: Hudson, Kennedy, Dodgers
The Rockies have never lost 100 games and despite a disappointing season that has them last in the NL West, they'll likely avoid the 100-loss threshold again in 2012. Here's the latest from their division…
- The Diamondbacks offered Daniel Hudson a contract extension this spring, but didn’t make Ian Kennedy an offer, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports. GM Kevin Towers approached both pitchers and expressed interest in discussing long-term contracts. They were instructed to have their agents call Towers if they were interested. Hudson’s agent, Andrew Lowenthal of Proformance, called, but Kennedy’s agent, Scott Boras, did not. “I never heard anything from that, and I took that to mean [Kennedy and Boras] didn’t have interest,” Towers said.
- The Dodgers’ starting pitchers have an assortment of health issues, so the team could find itself spending on free agent pitching this offseason, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. The Dodgers won’t rely on prospects in 2013, so their “only choice is to spend and spend some more.” Zack Greinke wasn’t one of the team’s midseason targets, but he could appeal to GM Ned Colletti as a free agent.
Olney On Hamilton, Tigers, Posey
MLB executives don’t question Josh Hamilton’s ability on the field, but they’re hesitant to commit long-term to the outfielder, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports. Hamilton figures to ask for $20-25MM per season and executives are wary of guaranteeing that kind of salary to a player with off-field questions, Olney writes. Here’s Olney’s latest on the market for Hamilton, who hits free agency for the first time this offseason:
- The Rangers have their doubts about how long they want to invest in Hamilton, Olney writes. They’ve done background work on outfielders such as Justin Upton and Jacoby Ellsbury since they realize they could be in the market for an impact outfielder within a few months.
- The Dodgers had no intention of bidding for Hamilton even before they acquired Carl Crawford. The Angels, Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, Braves, Nationals and Orioles don’t seem like logical destinations for Hamilton, Olney writes.
- One GM said the Tigers could surprise rival teams and enter the bidding for Hamilton. Owner Mike Ilitch has a history of spending aggressively on free agents such as Prince Fielder and Magglio Ordonez.
- The Giants could have interest in Hamilton, but Olney suggests it’d probably be conservative. The Giants will make an effort to sign Buster Posey long-term, according to Olney. Mark Polishuk recently previewed a possible extension for the San Francisco catcher.
Olney On Upton, Young, Wilson
Buster Posey has a legitimate chance at the NL MVP this year, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes. Posey has 20 home runs and a .327/.402/.531 batting line with nearly six wins above replacement (5.8 according to FanGraphs, 5.5 according to Baseball-Reference). Here are more of Olney’s notes from the NL West…
- Rival executives expect the Diamondbacks to trade Justin Upton this winter, Olney reports. Some team officials believe the Diamondbacks will also trade center fielder Chris Young, possibly for a shortstop. Young earns $8.5MM next year and his contract includes an $11MM club option for 2014, so he'd represent a more affordable alternative to free agents such as B.J. Upton, Michael Bourn and Shane Victorino. Arizona could then enter the 2013 season with a projected outfield of Gerardo Parra, Jason Kubel and Adam Eaton.
- Olney suggests the Giants will move on from Brian Wilson this offseason. Wilson, who appeared in two games this year before undergoing Tommy John surgery, will be arbitration eligible this coming offseason. He’ll be expensive if the Giants tender him a contract, as he earned an $8.5MM salary in 2012. It’d make sense for the Giants to see if there’s trade interest in the 30-year-old, Olney writes.
Quick Hits: Yankees, Guthrie, D’Backs, Brewers
The Yankees are faced with a number of issues in the short-term and long-term, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Among their long-term issues is the fact that their position player average age is 32.7 years. One scout is also concerned that Robinson Cano hasn't looked like himself lately which is an unfortunate development for the Yanks as they appear to be intent on locking him up for the long-term. Here's more from around baseball.
- Royals General Manager Dayton Moore says that the club will "probably" wait until after the season to explore contract talks with pending free agent Jeremy Guthrie, tweets Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star. Moore recently said that he will be focusing on the rotation this offseason, which includes trying to re-sign Guthrie. The 33-year-old is earning $8.5MM this season.
- One has to imagine that Diamondbacks pitchers Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson regret not signing lucrative extensions when they had the chance prior to this season, writes Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic. It's not known how much Arizona was offering to each pitcher, but Piecoro estimates that for Kennedy it was something close to $30MM and around $15MM for Hudson.
- A source tells Ben Badler of Baseball America that the Brewers are not planning to renew the contract of Fernando Arango, who has been one of the team's top scouts in Latin America since 2003. The club is looking for more production out of their Latin American department as they continue to work with a low-to-mid-range budget.
Quick Hits: Astros, Putz, Soriano, Giants
A hearty congratulations goes out to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus who bid farewell to the internet today as he will be joining the Astros as a Pro Scouting Coordinator. Houston also announced that they will be bringing Oz Ocampo on board as Director of International Scouting. More from around baseball..
- Diamondbacks General Manager Kevin Towers spoke very highly of closer J.J. Putz, tweets Steve Gilbert of MLB.com. Arizona holds a $6MM option on Putz for 2013, but Towers (Twitter link) made it sound as though it's a price he's ready to pay. "$6MM for an experienced closer is probably not a bad number," said the GM.
- Alfonso Soriano made it clear this summer that he would not accept a trade to the Giants due to the climate there, but the outfielder brought some clarity to the situation this evening. Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com tweets that the outfielder explained that the weather in San Francisco would be detrimental to his knee. Earlier reports suggested that Soriano did not like the idea of hitting in colder weather.
- Scott Miller of CBSSports.com looks back at the dismissal of Angels scout Eddie Bane, the man responsible for landing Mike Trout, Jered Weaver, Mark Trumbo, and many other key Halos pieces. Bane admitted that he and then-General Manager Tony Reagins did not get along overall.
Angels Acquire Barry Enright
AUGUST 31: The Diamondbacks announced that they have acquired first baseman Frazier Hall as the player to be named later. The 24-year-old spent 2012 with Single-A Cedar Rapids where he hit .254/.322/.386 with 13 homers in 510 plate appearances.
JULY 24: The Angels announced that they acquired right-handed pitcher Barry Enright from the Diamondbacks in exchange for a player to be named or cash considerations. He'll report to Triple-A, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports (on Twitter).
Enright, 26, started 21 games for Arizona's Triple-A affiliate this year. The right-hander posted a 5.87 ERA with 5.9 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 in 110 1/3 innings. Enright has a 4.87 ERA with 4.6 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 over the course of 136 2/3 career innings with the Diamondbacks.
Diamondbacks Claim Cody Ransom
The 2012 season will conclude as it began for Cody Ransom, who has been claimed off of waivers by the Diamondbacks from the Brewers (Twitter link). The Diamondbacks will activate the infielder when rosters expand tomorrow.
Ransom appeared in 17 games for the Diamondbacks before being claimed off of waivers by the Brewers on May 23rd. He appeared in 64 more games for Milwaukee and has a season batting line of .214/.305/.400 in 252 total plate appearances. Ransom, 36, has played all four infield positions this year.
Quick Hits: Swisher, Utley, Hamilton, Hairston
Chris Corrigan of the High-A ball Palm Beach Cardinals made history tonight by throwing a perfect game in his start against the Charlotte Stone Crabs. Corrigan, 24, was a 30th-round selection for the Cardinals in the 2009 amateur draft and carried a career 4.04 ERA in 102 minor league games (25 starts) entering tonight. Corrigan's gem was the first minor league perfect game since Jeanmar Gomez threw a perfecto for Double-A Akron in 2009. As for the Stone Crabs, they're an affiliate of (who else?) the Rays, who have been perfecto'd three times in the last four years at the Major League level.
Some news and notes from around the baseball world…
- “Every team needs a guy like [Nick] Swisher,” an AL executive tells Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. “You watch him play every day and you can see how much he cares. I wish every player cared that much.” Feinsand suggests that the Yankees could re-sign Swisher and move Brett Gardner to center field, thus creating room to trade the more expensive Curtis Granderson. MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith recently looked at Swisher's free agent stock.
- Chase Utley took some groundballs at third base before today's game and he told reporters (including MLB.com's Todd Zolecki) that he had approached the Phillies about getting some reps at third in order to "create some more flexibility as far as the organization is concerned." Utley spent a season playing third in 2002 in Triple-A before but hasn't played at the hot corner since.
- Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. commented on Utley's trial, noting that "in a perfect scenario," Utley could hold down third base until prospect Cody Asche is ready, theoretically for the 2014 season. Amaro cautioned reporters (including Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer) that it's hypothetical since Asche has yet to play above Double-A.
- Billy Hamilton will "probably not" be called up for September, Reds general manager Walt Jocketty tells MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. Jocketty noted that the decision wasn't finalized yet, however, and that he was going to watch Hamilton play in person this weekend.
- Mets outfielder Scott Hairston believes the Diamondbacks claimed him off waivers, he tells Adam Rubin of ESPN New York (Twitter link). The Giants were known to be interested in outfield help and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports speculated earlier this month that the D'Backs would likely try to block Hairston or Juan Pierre from getting to their NL West rivals. Rosenthal also reported that the team that claimed Hairston did so as a blocking maneuver.
- Roger Clemens is planning to start again for the Sugar Land Skeeters on September 7, according to a text the pitcher sent Mark Berman, sports director of FOX 26 KRIV (Twitter link). Clemens, 50, threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings in his first start with the Skeeters on August 25.
- Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston suggests a few moves the Red Sox should make this offseason, including re-signing David Ortiz and Cody Ross and trying to add Justin Upton and a top-tier starting pitcher.
- Major League Baseball is investigating whether agents Sam and Seth Levinson arranged for former client Paul Lo Duca to meet with PED distributor Kirk Radomski, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today.