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Braves Release Julio Lugo

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The Braves released Julio Lugo, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman (on Twitter). Atlanta activated the recently-acquired Jack Wilson from the disabled list in a corresponding move.

Lugo, 35, appeared in 22 games for the Braves, backing up at short, second and third without contributing anything on offense (.136/.208/.136 line in 48 plate appearances). The 12-year veteran has a career .269/.333/.384 line, but he hasn't produced at the plate since 2009.

The Braves have now released two infielders in two days; they cut Wes Helms loose yesterday.

Quick Hits: Brewers, August Winners, Free Agents

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Twins minor leaguer Kyle Gibson, the No. 22 overall draft pick in 2009, will undergo Tommy John surgery, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. Best wishes to Gibson on making a full recovery and perhaps debuting in the Majors late in 2012.

Here are a few other items of note on this Thursday afternoon:

  • The Brewers were interested in acquiring lefty reliever Mike Gonzalez from the Orioles before Baltimore dealt him to Texas, writes Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. “We had the irons in the fire,” Milwaukee GM Doug Melvin said. The Brew Crew remains without a southpaw in their bullpen.
  • The Diamondbacks were among the five winners of August's post-deadline trade period, opines Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com. Arizona shored up its infield by acquiring infielders John McDonald and Aaron Hill from Toronto in exchange for Kelly Johnson. Morosi's other winners: The Rangers, Tigers, Braves and Indians.
  • Impending free agents, however established they may be, should still be scouted dilligently, writes Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required). For example, though some of us may take it for granted that Albert Pujols' fractured wrist is fully healed, scouts from interested teams will be watching all of his final at-bats for even the slightest change in his swing or approach. After all, Bowden explains, with tens, and sometimes hundreds, of millions of dollars at stake, every bit of info helps.

Outrighted To Triple-A: Richardson, Quintanilla

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The latest players to get outrighted to Triple-A…

  • The Braves outrighted left-hander Dustin Richardson to Triple-A after he cleared waivers, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter). Richardson, 27, has spent the season at Triple-A, where he has a 4.79 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 6.1 BB/9 in 62 innings.
  • The Rangers announced that they outrighted Omar Quintanilla to Triple-A (Twitter link). The 29-year-old has spent most of the season at Round Rock , where he has a .298/.369/.452 line in 234 plate appearances.
  • Fred Lewis cleared waivers and the Reds outrighted him to Triple-A, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. Lewis has a .230/.321/.317 line since signing a $900K deal with the Reds in January. He has played both corner outfield positions and spent time on the disabled list with a strained right oblique muscle.

Braves Release Wes Helms

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The Braves released Wes Helms barely two weeks after signing him, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter). The infielder's heel is bothering him and he told Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez that he wouldn't be able to help as anticipated.

Helms hit .191/.276/.236 in 124 plate appearances for the Marlins before they released him. The 35-year-old has spent most of his 13-year career at first and third, but he also has some experience at second base and in the outfield. He has a .276/.350/.446 career line against left-handed pitching.

The Braves acquired Jack Wilson from the Mariners yesterday to provide middle infield depth.

Braves Notes: Carroll, Wilson, Diaz

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Congratulations to Chipper Jones, who hit his 450th career home run tonight. Here’s the latest on the franchise that selected the switch-hitter first overall 21 years ago… 

  • The Braves, who had interest in Jamey Carroll before acquiring Jack Wilson, could likely have acquired Carroll for a low-level prospect, according to Steve Dilbeck of the LA Times. It’s believed that the Dodgers would have covered the remainder of Carroll’s $2.3MM salary, Dilbeck writes.
  • The player to be named in the Matt Diaz trade will be a low-level prospect from an agreed-upon pool of players, according to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter).
  • The Braves added Diaz because they’re looking ahead to a possible playoff matchup against the Phillies, ESPN.com's Buster Olney writes (on Twitter).

Braves Acquire Jack Wilson

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The Mariners announced that they sent Jack Wilson to the Braves for a player to be named later. Wilson, 33, is currently on the disabled list with a bruised heel and is eligible to return to action this Friday.

Wilson has a .249/.283/.295 line in 187 plate appearances for the Mariners this season. He has played second, third and short for Seattle and his glovework is generally highly thought of, so he meets Atlanta's need for infield depth. The Braves had been looking for infield help and inquired on Jamey Carroll before acquiring Wilson. They also acquired outfielder Matt Diaz from Pittsburgh today.

Wilson earns $5MM this season in the final year of the two-year, $10MM deal he signed after the 2009 season. He'll hit free agency after the season.

Braves Pursued Jamey Carroll, Seek Infield Depth

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The Braves pursued Jamey Carroll, but the Dodgers have said they're holding onto the infielder, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman (Twitter links). However, Atlanta GM Frank Wren says he could still address one area of need tonight. According to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Braves continue to pursue middle infield depth (Twitter link).

The Braves, who acquired outfielder Matt Diaz from Pittsburgh today, added corner infielder Wes Helms, two weeks ago. Carroll, 37, has a .289/.358/.347 line in 446 plate appearances for the Dodgers. He has played second and short this year and has MLB experience at third and in the outfield.

Braves Acquire Matt Diaz

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Diaz

Matt Diaz is returning to the Braves, as the Pirates announced they've traded him to Atlanta for a player to be named later or cash considerations.  Diaz fits the Braves' desire to add a right-handed hitting bench bat, and of course they had him in the organization from 2006-10 before non-tendering him last winter. 

Diaz, 33, is hitting .259/.303/.324 in 231 plate appearances for the Pirates this year while playing mostly right field.  He was signed to a two-year, $4.25MM deal in December, but hasn't shown the expected power production against left-handed pitchers.  David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes on Twitter that the Pirates are sending some cash to the Braves to offset Diaz's $2MM salary for 2012.  The Braves might not be done dealing, hears ESPN's Buster Olney (Twitter link).  

GMs Neal Huntington and Frank Wren have matched up on three prior trades according to our Transaction Tracker, most notably the June '09 deal that sent Nate McLouth to Atlanta.

ESPN's Buster Olney first reported the trade.  Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Morosi On Giants, Braves, Berkman

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Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports has been tweeting up a storm today…

Quick Hits: Soria, Bourn, Transactions, Wilson

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Sunday linkage..

  • A look at Royals closer Joakim Soria's contract situation shows that his $6MM option vested on July 30, when he pitched his 110th game between the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Soria's option vesting merely locks in his salary for 2012; he'd have been arbitration-eligible at any rate.
  • David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution wonders if the Braves should extend Michael Bourn, and what the cost of it would be. As O'Brien points out, it's hard to come by comparables for Bourn, and the best may be Juan Pierre, whose contract is widely regarded as a tremendous mistake.
  • Baseball America's Matt Eddy runs down the week's minor league transactions.
  • Recently, impending free agent C.J. Wilson said that now is not the time to look ahead to the offseason and his next contract.  In an interview on 103.3 FM ESPN (audio link), Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine seemed to agree and said that the club isn't looking to negotiate mid-season, writes Bryan Dolgin of ESPNDallas.com.
  • Infielder Felipe Lopez will report to the Brewers' Triple-A affiliate on Monday after being outrighted on Wednesday.  The veteran didn't impress on Milwaukee's big league roster this year, batting .182/.245/.182 in 51 trips to the plate.
  • It's time for Athletics GM Billy Beane to move on to a different challenge, writes Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle.  While he's been linked extensively to the Cubs job, Jenkins wonders if Beane could be a fit for the Dodgers if GM Ned Colletti winds up being hired by Chicago.
  • The Marlins have begun the process of looking at managerial candidates and there is still interest in some corners of the Florida organization in Ozzie Guillen, writes ESPN.com's Buster Olney. The White Sox skipper has another year on his current deal but it remains to be seen whether Guillen will be invited back.

MLBTR's Steve Adams contributed to this post.

Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the contract information used in this post.

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