Heyman On D’Backs, Astros, Royals, Soriano
You thought Cliff Lee was drawing a lot of interest now? One GM told Jon Heyman of SI.com that 12-15 teams could show interest in the Mariners lefty before the July 31st trade deadline. Here are the rest of Heyman’s rumors, as we wonder which teams are going to be calling Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik about Lee:
- The D’Backs, who just fired their GM, are talking to clubs about five players, including Dan Haren. Rival GMs agree that Arizona would have to be “overwhelmed” to move Haren, but the D’Backs are seriously considering dealing Adam LaRoche, Kelly Johnson and Chad Qualls. They are also listening to offers for Edwin Jackson, who authored a no-hitter over the weekend.
- Interim manager Kirk Gibson and interim GM Jerry Dipoto appear to be candidates to take on their responsibilities on a more permanent basis.
- An executive told Heyman that “just about everyone but Hunter Pence” is available on the Astros. Not surprisingly, one GM told Heyman that no team will take on Carlos Lee and his contract.
- A rival GM believes the Royals would deal Joakim Soria and another GM believes David DeJesus is better than Curtis Granderson or Johnny Damon.
- The Cubs would love to move Alfonso Soriano, according to a GM.
- There has been no noticeable progress between the Brewers and Prince Fielder on an extension, but at least one executive doubts that Prince would fetch much of a return in a trade.
Reactions To The Changes In Arizona
The changes in Arizona have baseball writers buzzing from coast to coast. The D'Backs announced last night that they have replaced GM Josh Byrnes and manager A.J. Hinch with Jerry Dipoto and Kirk Gibson – at least for now. Here are some reactions to the D'Backs' dismissals:
- Bob Nightengale of USA Today says the D'Backs fired Byrnes because of his decisions, not because he was backing Hinch (Twitter link).
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic says the relationship between Byrnes and D'Backs CEO Derrick Hall may have contributed to the GM's dismissal.
- Chris Snyder told MLB.com's Steve Gilbert that it was "definitely time for a change." Brandon Webb says he's sure interim manager Kirk Gibson will do well.
- Frankie Piliere of FanHouse hears that Yankees scouting director Damon Oppenheimer will get serious consideration for the GM opening in Arizona (Twitter link).
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney hears that A.J. Hinch is well-respected in the game and won't have trouble getting another job (Twitter link).
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan has a new twist on Byrnes' phrase 'organizational advocacy.'
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs says the D'Backs "royally screwed up" if they made changes because of their record over the course of the past few years.
- Vote on the decision here and tell us what you think in the comments.
Poll: The D’Backs’ Decision To Fire Byrnes & Hinch
The D'Backs announced yesterday that they fired manager A.J. Hinch and GM Josh Byrnes, replacing them with Kirk Gibson and Jerry Dipoto, at least on an interim basis. There's no question that the 31-48 D'Backs are having a disappointing season, but that doesn't mean baseball fans agree with their decision to dismiss the ones in charge.
Were the D'Backs right to fire Byrnes and Hinch?
Click here to take the survey and here to view the results.
Diamondbacks Fire Josh Byrnes And A.J. Hinch
USA Today's Bob Nightengale reports that Arizona has fired general manager and executive vice-president Josh Byrnes, as well as manager A.J. Hinch. Jerry DiPoto, the team's vice-president of player personnel, will be the interim general manager while Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com tweets that bench coach Kirk Gibson has been promoted to manager.
Byrnes was hired by Arizona in October 2005, and the team recorded a 349-378 mark under his stewardship. Following the club's 2007 NLCS appearance, Byrnes signed an eight-year contract extension that would've kept him in the desert through 2015. According to Cot's Baseball Contracts, that extension included a small ownership stake in the Diamondbacks. ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter) predicts that the highly-respected Byrnes will be out of work for "0.2 seconds" since another team will hire him as a consultant while the Snakes pay out his existing contract.
Hired on May 8, 2009 to replace Bob Melvin, Hinch amassed an 89-123 record with the D'Backs in his first stint as a major league manager. We heard a few weeks ago that Byrnes was "fighting hard" to save Hinch's job, and Fanhouse.com's Ed Price reports (via Twitter) that Byrnes was fired for refusing a demand from upper management to make a managerial change.
Conor Jackson's trade to Oakland was the first of many moves expected from the underachieving Snakes, though the team stopped short of saying that an outright fire sale would take place. It remains to be seen if this perspective will change with DiPoto now running the team. The club will definitely pay a price for the firings — Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com reports that the D'Backs owe more than $7MM to cover Byrnes' deal and Hinch's contract, which ran through 2012.
Gibson, best known for his walkoff homer in Game One of the 1988 World Series, has been Arizona's bench coach since 2007. He previously served as a bench coach and hitting coach for the Tigers, though this is Gibson's first time managing on any level. DiPoto, also a former player, has been a member of the Arizona organization for four seasons, and previously worked as Colorado's director of player personnel and as a scout with Boston.
Rumors are already flying about who the Diamondbacks might hire as their next full-time general manager. Morosi's story notes that Dodgers assistant GM Logan White and former Padres GM Kevin Towers will be given "serious consideration" for the job. Jim Bowden of Sirius XM Radio has those two plus three other assistant GMs (Kim Ng of the Dodgers, Ben Cherington of the Red Sox and "Avila," who is presumably Al Avila of the Tigers) on a top-five list collected from a variety of sources. As for DiPoto, Morosi tweets that a D'Backs official made "no commitment to the duration" of DiPoto's reign as GM, so it appears as if his assignment truly is on an interim basis.
Phillies Interested In Dan Haren
The Phillies have Dan Haren "on their radar," according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. Crasnick tweets that the Diamondbacks are scouting Phillies' prospects for a possible deal.
ESPN.com's Buster Olney reported (via Twitter) earlier in the week that the Phils would like to add an arm "higher in caliber" than Jeremy Guthrie, and Haren certainly qualifies. However, Philadelphia is far from the only team looking into acquiring the 29-year-old. We heard yesterday that the Nationals expressed interest in Haren, and that the Cardinals also covet the right-hander. Those two clubs, along with the Yankees, Tigers, and Twins, have scouted the Diamondbacks' ace recently.
The Phillies' fourth and fifth starters behind Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, and Jamie Moyer have had their struggles this year. Kyle Kendrick has posted a 4.88 ERA in 15 starts, and even after three straight quality starts, Joe Blanton's ERA still sits at 6.19. Given the question marks in their rotation, the Phillies have made starting pitching depth a priority as the trade deadline approaches.
Super Two Cutoff Less Than Expected
The next Super Two cutoff will require fewer days of service time than usual, MLBTR has learned. Last year's Super Two cutoff was at two years and 139 days of service time. In previous years, the cutoff was never less than two years and 130 days. However, MLBTR has confirmed with two different team sources that the 2010 cutoff will be two years and most likely 123-125 days. Service time projections may change over the next three months, but the cutoff is likely to be in that range.
The abnormal cutoff is described by one source as an anomaly. But since the cutoff is percentage-based, the reduced service time needed for Super Two in 2010 may be the result of the recent trend in teams holding back MLB-ready prospects until late May or early June. Perhaps once Super Two-based service time manipulation became widespread, it lost its effectiveness.
The top beneficiary of the reduced Super Two requirement is Reds right fielder Jay Bruce. After this season Bruce will have two years and 125 days, and MLBTR has confirmed he'll be the Super Two with the least amount of service time. The Reds delayed his MLB debut until May 27th back in 2008, but he's still going to arbitration four times – starting after this season. Instead of earning $450K in 2011, he'll get millions. Diamondbacks second baseman Tony Abreu is another winner, at two years and 127 days after the season. Abreu can credit agent Scott Boras for fighting for an extra 30 days service time with last year's grievance. Chase Headley, at two years and 123 days after the season, will be the player with the most service time to miss Super Two status.
Looking ahead, a similar early Super Two cutoff after the 2011 season could affect a player like Matt Wieters, who could be at two years and 129 days. However, the collective bargaining agreement expires on December 11th, 2011, and the Super Two process figures to be one issue on the table.
Rosenthal’s Full Count: Zambrano, Angels, Brewers
Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com has a new Full Count video up, so let's dive in…
- The fact that Carlos Zambrano is a 29-year-old pitcher still capable of winning 12-15 games a year should be enough to allow the Cubs to trade him, but of course the team will have to a eat a large chunk of the $45MM left on his deal. Rosenthal reminds us that the Cubbies came ahead financially when they moved Milton Bradley this winter.
- The Angels still want to add a first baseman, and Adam Dunn is on their list of potential targets. If they do make a move for Dunn or perhaps Adam LaRoche, incumbent first baseman Mike Napoli could become trade bait.
- The Nationals have yet to get serious in any discussions about a contract extension with Dunn.
- The Brewers are still searching for pitching, and the Blue Jays could be a potential match. Toronto likes Double-A infielder (and Canadian) Brett Lawrie, but the Brewers would be reluctant to trade him. They would have to consider it if he could land them someone like Brett Cecil or Shaun Marcum, though.
- Arizona will probably not want to keep both Dan Haren and Edwin Jackson since they combine to make over $20MM next year, but Haren's value isn't what it once was. One baseball person told Rosenthal that "[Haren]'s not at the top of anyone's list, he's just another name."
Nationals Exploring A Trade For Edwin Jackson?
Edwin Jackson enjoyed the finest moment of his big league career last night when he no-hit the Rays, which coincidentally came at the same time MASNSports.com's Ben Goessling heard that the Nationals "were exploring a trade" for the righthander. Current Nats' GM Mike Rizzo has plenty of ties to the Diamondbacks, having joined the franchise when they were created in 1998 and serving as their scouting director from 2000-2006.
This year, the 26-year-old Jackson has been unable to replicate the success he enjoyed during in his breakout 2009 season. He's pitched to a 4.63 ERA in 107 innings, striking out 7.1 batters per nine innings while walking 3.8 per nine. The Scott Boras client is owed approximately $2.28MM for the rest of the season, and is under contract for $8.35MM next year.
Rizzo said he has identified starting pitching as the club's biggest need, though we really haven't seen them linked to any specific names until now. Arizona has yet to indicate that a fire sale is coming, but that could change in a heartbeat.
Odds & Ends: Reds, Marlins, Athletics, Haren
Thursday night linkage..
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty came to the defense of his manager, writes John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
- Bobby Valentine is said to love the Marlins' scouting system and new ballpark, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.
- A's GM Billy Beane told Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com that skipper Bob Geren's job is safe.
- Dealing Dan Haren could help replenish Arizona's thin farm system, writes MLB.com's Steve Gilbert.
Odds & Ends: Hall, Lowell, Myers, Valentine, Lee
Some links for Thursday as Rangers GM Jon Daniels decides exactly how he wants to dye his hair…
- The Rangers released Toby Hall, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan (via Twitter). The catcher, who last played in the majors in 2008, was in extended spring training.
- Peter Gammons wouldn't be surprised to see Bobby Valentine managing the Marlins by this weekend (Twitter link).
- MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince explains that big league players such as Rod Barajas, Daniel Nava and Frank Herrmann were not drafted at all.
- The Red Sox are expected to put Mike Lowell on the DL to make room for Daisuke Matsuzaka, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. The Red Sox have not used Lowell much, leading to trade speculation, but the DL stint won't do much for his value.
- One GM tells ESPN.com's Buster Olney that he finds D'Backs hitters hard to evaluate because Chase Field is so hitter-friendly.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs wonders if Brett Myers might be a better trade chip than Roy Oswalt.
- Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News hears from a source who believes that there's a 95% chance Valentine becomes the Marlins' next manager.
- Larry Stone of the Seattle Times says Cliff Lee is becoming the "rock-solid, no-questions-asked, No. 1 trade target in baseball."
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says the Mets and Twins are frontrunners for Lee right now.
- Michael Cuddyer expressed confidence in Minnesota's front office and said Lee would look good in a Twins uniform, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.