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Vlad Guerrero Will Work Out For Diamondbacks

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Arizona general manager Kevin Towers said during today's game broadcast that Vladimir Guerrero will work out for the Diamondbacks, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.

Guerrero's lack of defensive skills at this point in his career make him a curious fit for any National League team, but if his bat is up to the task he could be used as an effective late-game pinch hitter. Guerrero registered the weakest offensive season of his career with the Orioles in 2011 but still hit a respectable .290/.317/.416 with 13 home runs. He was used exclusively as a DH by the Orioles, however, and has just 20 appearances in the field during regular season play dating back to 2009.

Even late in the offseason, Guerrero was said to be seeking $5MM, but won't sniff that figure now. Johnny Damon, also said to be seeking $5MM, recently signed with the Indians for $1.25MM. Even that will likely be more than Guerrero can hope to obtain, as Damon will play the outfield regularly in Cleveland. Guerrero switched agents late in the offseason and is now represented by Proformance.

Diamondbacks Option Albaladejo To Triple-A

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The Diamondbacks have optioned Jonathan Albaladejo to Triple-A according to the team's transactions page. Arizona had designated the right-hander for assignment earlier this week, though his unique optional waivers situation keeps him on the 40-man roster. It's a procedural move similar to what the Athletics and Jerry Blevins went through multiple times last season.

Albaladejo, 29, allowed two hits in an inning of work last week, his only appearance of the season. He spent last season with the Yomiuri Giants and prior to that he had pitched for the Yankees and Nationals. Albaladejo owns a 4.10 ERA in 74 2/3 career innings and was part of the trade that sent Tyler Clippard to Washington five years ago.

Twins, Athletics, Orioles May Have Interest In Inge

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6:05pm: The Athletics have legitimate interest in Inge, according to Joe Stiglich of the Bay Area News Group.  General Manager Billy Beane would not comment on Inge specifically, saying only that he is looking to "upgrade at third base, as well as all other positions." 

10:23am: Brandon Inge might not be on the free agent market for long despite his struggles at the plate. The Twins, Athletics, Orioles and Diamondbacks are among the teams that may have interest in the recently-released ACES client.

There are indications that the Twins will at least have a discussion about Inge, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. Minnesota could demote Danny Valencia to Triple-A and rely on Inge and Sean Burroughs at the hot corner.

The Athletics are expected to have some interest in Inge, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. However, the 34-year-old must clear release waivers before becoming eligible to sign with a new team. Joe Stiglich of the Bay Area News Group noted yesterday that he expects the Athletics to consider Inge.

The Orioles have some interest in Inge, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reported yesterday. Meanwhile, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com wouldn’t be surprised if the Diamondbacks take a look at the veteran third baseman (Twitter link).

Inge has just two hits in 20 trips to the plate so far this season and he posted a .548 OPS last year. The Tigers are responsible for his $5.5MM salary, so any team that signs him would only owe him a pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum for the remainder of the season.

Diamondbacks Designate Albaladejo For Assignment

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The Diamondbacks have designated right-hander Jonathan Albaladejo for assignment, the team announced. The move creates 40-man roster space for left-hander Mike Zagurski, who was recalled from Triple-A.

Albaladejo, 29, allowed two hits in an inning of work last night, his only appearance of the season. He spent last season with the Yomiuri Giants and prior to that he had pitched for the Yankees and Nationals. Albaladejo owns a 4.10 ERA in 74 2/3 career innings and was part of the trade that sent Tyler Clippard to Washington five years ago.

Diamondbacks Acquire Josh Bell From O’s

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The Diamondbacks have acquired infielder Josh Bell from the Orioles, a source tells Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link), and Arizona announced that Baltimore will receive a player to be named. The Orioles designated Bell for assignment earlier in the week.

Baltimore acquired Bell, 25, from the Dodgers shortly before the non-waiver trade deadline in 2009, in the deal that sent left-handed reliever George Sherrill to Los Angeles. Bell was a well-regarded prospect then but played poorly in two stints with the O's in 2010 and '11, hitting .200/.221/.264 in 226 Major League plate appearances.

Arizona was one of four teams interested in acquiring the 2005 fourth-round draft pick, according to Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com, who adds that the Dodgers were in the mix, as well (Twitter links). Bell will be assigned to Triple-A Reno, Ghiroli writes.

Minor Moves: Pelzer, Clevlen

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Keeping track of the day's minor moves…

  • The Orioles released right-hander Wynn Pelzer, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. The Orioles had acquired Pelzer from the Padres in the 2010 Miguel Tejada trade. The 25-year-old posted a 4.00 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 5.5 BB/9 in 87 2/3 minor league innings last year, his first full season in Baltimore's system.
  • The Diamondbacks signed outfielder Brent Clevlen to a minor league deal, according to the transactions page at CBSSports.com. The 28-year-old has big league experience with the Tigers and Braves, but split the 2011 season between two minor league teams and an independent league club. He owns a .265/.344/.430 line in 11 minor league seasons.

Minor Moves: Pendleton, Stange, Main, Canham

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Here are the most recent minor moves, via Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus and Matt Eddy of Baseball America…

  • The Rays have signed right-hander Lance Pendleton, reports Roger Mooney of The Tampa Tribune (on Twitter). The 28-year-old posted a 6.75 ERA in 18 2/3 innings split between the Yankees and Astros last season.
  • The Diamondbacks released right-hander Daniel Stange, Goldstein tweets. Stange, who pitched in the Majors in 2010, owns a 4.36 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in seven minor league seasons. Goldstein considered the 2006 seventh rounder a sleeper early on in his minor league career.
  • The Marlins signed Michael Main, Goldstein tweets. Miami has listed the 2007 first rounder as an outfielder, though the Rangers drafted him as a right-handed pitcher. Main posted a 4.95 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 305 innings in the minor league systems of the Rangers and Giants.
  • The Cardinals signed catcher Mitch Canham, Goldstein tweets. The Padres selected Canham in the supplemental first round back in 2007.
  • The Orioles released former minor league closer Winston Abreu, Eddy tweets. The right-hander signed with the Mexico City Red Devils.

Outrighted To Triple-A: Zagurski, Sosa, O’Sullivan

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The latest outright assignments from around MLB…

  • The Diamondbacks outrighted left-hander Mike Zagurski, the team announced. Arizona acquired the 29-year-old from the Phillies last September. Zagurski owns a 6.82 ERA in 31 2/3 big league innings, all with Philadelphia.
  • The Astros outrighted right-hander Henry Sosa to Triple-A, Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Sosa, 26, posted a 5.23 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 53 1/3 innings for the Astros in 2011, his rookie season.
  • The Royals outrighted Sean O'Sullivan to Triple-A after the right-hander cleared waivers, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reports (on Twitter). O'Sullivan, 24, started ten games for the Royals last year and posted a 7.25 ERA with 2.9 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 in 58 1/3 innings. His numbers were considerably stronger in 14 Triple-A starts, however.

Quick Hits: Hamilton, Axelrod, Abreu, Pelfrey, Mets

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Saturday night linkage..

  • Josh Hamilton told Richard Durrett of ESPN Dallas that he's open to talking to the Rangers about a contract extension during the season. “If they want to talk to my agent, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” he said after previously indicating an unwillingness to negotiate during the season.
  • Agent Barry Axelrod has been discussing employment opportunities with the Diamondbacks, reports Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic (Twitter links). Axelrod and GM Kevin Towers are close friends.
  • Unlike agents Jeff Moorad and Arn Tellem, Scott Boras has no desire to own a major league team, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com.
  • The Angels' deal to trade Bobby Abreu to the Indians fell apart due to salary concerns, a source familiar with the talks told Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. Cleveland wanted the veteran slugger but the two sides couldn't agree upon how much of his $9MM salary they would assume.
  • Mets pitcher Mike Pelfrey was surprised to learn that his job was on the line during spring training, writes David Lennon of Newsday. The front office was kicking around the idea of releasing the 28-year-old before Opening Day to free up roughly $4MM, the non-guaranteed portion of his one-year, $5.7MM deal.
  • Scouts covering the Giants say the club is getting nervous about rotation depth, tweets Jayson Stark of ESPN.com.
  • The Orioles cut minor league pitcher Josh Banks, tweets Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com. The right-hander spent most of 2011 with the Giants' Triple-A affiliate and posted a 7.27 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in twelve starts and seven relief appearances.

Mike Axisa contributed to this post.

D’Backs Retain Brett Lorin In Trade With Pirates

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The Diamondbacks will retain Rule 5 Draft pick Brett Lorin after acquiring his rights from the Pirates for Robby Rowland, the team announced (on Twitter). Lorin has been outrighted off Arizona's 40-man roster.

Lorin, 25, has allowed three runs in nine innings this spring. He pitched to a 2.84 ERA in 117 1/3 innings for Pittsburgh's Single-A affiliate last season, striking out 7.6 batters per nine while walking 1.5 per nine. The D'Backs would have had to place Lorin on waivers and offer him back to the Pirates had he not remained on their 25-man active roster all season.

Rowland, 20, was Arizona's third round pick in 2010. He owns a 7.01 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 122 low-level minor league innings in his brief career. Baseball America ranked Lorin as the D'Backs' 28th best prospect in their 2012 Prospect Handbook, but Rowland did not make the cut. Both pitchers are right-handed.

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