Cafardo On Dodgers, Hardy, Wandy, Twins
The latest from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe…
- The Dodgers are not ready to become sellers quite yet, but Cafardo reports that the team's scouts are already compiling lists of other teams' better prospects. Ted Lilly, Hiroki Kuroda and Jamey Carroll are among the players who would be made available — Kuroda is already attracting the attention of several teams and MLBTR's Tim Dierkes looked at Carroll's trade candidacy two weeks ago.
- Cafardo reports that the Indians looked into Casey Blake as a depth option at third base before Lonnie Chisenhall was called up. Blake, Jonathan Broxton and Jon Garland are all currently on the DL but would be shopped by L.A. if they can prove they're healthy.
- The Dodgers don't appear to be interested in moving higher-profile players like Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier or James Loney since "the feeling is Dodgers fans would rebel if some of their star players were sold off." I don't think Loney falls into this category at all — he has just a .678 OPS this season and could be a non-tender candidate after the season, so the Dodgers would love to get something back for him.
- J.J. Hardy will be "a major trade chip" for the Orioles if the two sides can't work out a contract extension before the deadline. Hardy would become the top option for shortstop-needy teams, particularly if the Mets don't shop Jose Reyes.
- "It’s no secret that [Wandy Rodriguez] is being watched closely by the Yankees, who have sent a few people to watch some of his starts," Cafardo writes. As FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal noted a few weeks ago, the Yankees would want Rodriguez at the back of their rotation while the Astros would want a trade package befitting an ace, so there may not be a fit between the two teams. Cafardo notes that Brett Myers "also remains on the Yankees' radar."
- The Twins are more likely to deal Carl Pavano or Francisco Liriano than they would Scott Baker, though "there are teams that would love to get their hands on Baker."
- The White Sox recently sent assistant general manager Dave Yokum to scout some Braves games for pitching. Cafardo specifically cites Brandon Beachy as a starter the Sox were watching and says that Beachy or Derek Lowe could be shopped by Atlanta in exchange for a hitter. I think it's obvious the Braves would prefer to move the expensive Lowe rather than a young, controllable pitcher like Beachy, but if the Braves wanted to pick up a big bat like Carlos Quentin (as Cafardo speculates), Atlanta certainly has the pitching depth to spare.
Quick Hits: Mariners, Rangers, Astros, Hendry
Some Quick Hits for Saturday night..
- The Mariners are looking for bullpen help in addition to bats and they've shown interest in what the Padres have, sources tell Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). However, the M's aren't likely to overpay for a rental and they'd much prefer players under who are under control for '12 (also via Twitter).
- The Rangers appear to be close to another international signing, writes Enrique Rojas for ESPNDallas.com. The club is nearing a deal with Dominican pitcher Pedro Payano for $500-600K.
- A few inexpensive international signings went down today. The Astros signed Venezuelan shortstop Arturo Michelena for $220K according to Ben Badler of Baseball America. The Braves signed Iosif Bernal, a Panamanian outfielder, for a $230K bonus and the Indians inked Dominican outfielder Francisco Miguel for $200K, writes Badler. The Cardinals signed Venezuelan catcher Jose Godoy for $200K, says Badler.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry said that he's not concerned about what other people have to say about his job security in an interview on ESPN1000.
Potential Suitors For Mike Cameron
The Red Sox cut ties with veteran outfielder Mike Cameron yesterday, designating him for assignment after he hit just .149/.212/.266 in 105 plate appearances this year. "Rest assured I'll play again," said Cameron to Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe (Twitter link). "I'm not going out that way."
Despite his poor season and last year's injury riddled campaign (just 48 games), Cameron figures to draw interest based on his track record. He hit .250/.342/.452 with 24 homers as a full-time player just two seasons ago, and he went deep at least 20 times every year from 2006 through 2009. That power might be gone at 38 years old, but his three homers this year suggest that he might still be able to provide double digit long balls given enough playing time.
With approximately $3.625MM left on his contract this year, it's very likely that Cameron will clear waivers and hit the open market. Any team would then be able to sign him for the pro-rated league minimum, which is attractive to clubs on a budget. Let's look at some teams that could be potential suitors for Cameron…
- Braves – Martin Prado is dealing with a staph infection and temporary fill-in Jordan Schafer is hitting just .222/.295/.310. Wilkin Ramirez, Atlanta's current righty outfield bat off the bench, has been unimpressive in limited playing time.
- Cardinals – There's no way to replace Albert Pujols, but St. Louis was able to slide Lance Berkman over to first and stick Jon Jay in right field. The lefty bat is hitting .289/.340/.356 against southpaws, but Cameron could replenish some outfield depth.
- Giants – This one is probably a long shot because their outfield is already crowded, but the game's worst offense (just 285 runs) is in desperate need of help, particularly in the power department.
- Indians – Shin-Soo Choo will miss a substantial amount of time after having thumb surgery, and the incumbent righty hitting outfielder (Austin Kearns) has been ineffective both overall (.194/.282/.265) and against lefties (.244/.292/.267).
- Mariners – Jeff Sullivan of Lookout Landing tackled this one.
- Nationals – They've been looking for a center fielder basically all season, and if nothing else, Cameron would give them a platoon partner for Roger Bernadina (.208/.255/.271 vs. LHP).
- Phillies – Ben Francisco has been disappointing against lefties (.200/.317/.314) this year, plus Cameron could give them platoon partners for both Domonic Brown and Raul Ibanez.
- Pirates – It's strange to think of the Pirates as buyers, but they're over .500 and just two games back in the NL Central. Jose Tabata is on the DL and Matt Diaz has been a disappointment (.268/.297/.331).
- Rangers – Julio Borbon is back in Triple-A and David Murphy can't hit lefties (.177/.235/.194), plus they could probably use the depth since Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz are known to visit the DL from time to time.
- Rays – Matt Joyce and Sam Fuld have cooled off considerably, though the righty hitting Justin Ruggiano has done a swell job in limited playing time (.300/.328/.500). That might not last though.
- Tigers – Ryan Raburn (.207/.244/.348) and Magglio Ordonez (.200/.268/.279) have been big disappointments, and Austin Jackson isn't tearing the cover off the ball either (.248/.312/.364). All three are right-handed and could be replaced, though Jackson figures to keep the center field job.
- Twins – Injuries have decimated the Twins outfield, though at 8.5 games back of a playoff spot, they might be looking to sell off veterans rather than add one.
Jack Curry of the YES Network heard that the Yankees "probably" won't have interest in Cameron (Twitter link), but several other teams figure to come calling once he clears waivers and is available on the cheap. It's easy to see Cameron fitting on the 25-man roster of nearly even team, though the amount of playing time he'll receive is sure to factor into his decision.
Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.
Olney On Deadline Plans For NL Teams
The trade market is still developing at this point in the season, but it’s starting to take shape. Buster Olney outlines the plans for National League teams in a highly recommended insider-only piece at ESPN.com. Here are the details:
- The Dodgers can’t make long-term investments in young stars like Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier and Clayton Kershaw because of their uncertain financial status. The Los Angeles front office is now gathering information about some of their trade candidates and taking calls on some players. No teams have called on Jamey Carroll yet, though the Rockies are interested.
- James Loney and Casey Blake have next to no trade value, as Olney explains.
- No team has called about Jose Reyes, who won’t be traded for anything less than a top prospect and a solid secondary prospect.
- Rival executives expect the Phillies to acquire proven veterans this summer.
- Though the Astros will listen to offers on Hunter Pence and Wandy Rodriguez, they will be asking a lot for them.
- The Braves are checking out available hitters. Some rival executives have speculated on the possibility that the Braves will consider trading Jair Jurrjens, whose stock has never been higher.
- Some rival executives think B.J. Upton will be a borderline non-tender candidate this offseason. Upton will earn a raise from $4.825MM next year and he currently has a .223/.308/.396 line with 20 steals. I can’t envision the Rays non-tendering Upton, who would presumably have trade value if Tampa made him available.
- The Padres have told teams that they’re ready to take offers for Heath Bell and Mike Adams. Rival clubs believe Adams will be harder to obtain than Ryan Ludwick.
- The Rockies will wait a few weeks before deciding whether to buy or sell.
- The Giants are looking for catching help and Ramon Hernandez is a possible upgrade, as I explained earlier in the week.
- The Reds are concerned about starting pitching and will consider making moves for upgrades at left field or shortstop. Though rival teams don’t expect Reyes to end up in Cincinnati, GM Walt Jocketty may be aggressive enough to make a deal happen.
- GM Jim Hendry says there won’t be a fire sale, but the Cubs are “open for business,” Olney reports. Jeff Baker and Kerry Wood are “among the most coveted players in the trade market,” since they’re cheap and useful. Rival executives have mixed opinions about Carlos Pena, who is powerful but streaky.
- Wood is near the top of Arizona’s list of targets.
- The 40-39 Pirates will look for modest ways to improve and won’t be selling.
Sherman On Yankees, Padres, Clippard
Joel Sherman of the New York Post dishes all kinds of Yankees rumors today; let's check it out.
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman admitted the team's weakness is left-handed pitching, but says, "I can't force it. I can't make it happen if it is not there." Another Yankees official said that a lefty would help, "But I don't think it is live or die." Sherman believes Wandy Rodriguez and Francisco Liriano might be the two best available southpaw starters, but both bring concerns. Relief-wise they could go for the Marlins' Randy Choate or consider higher-priced names in August like Brian Fuentes and Mike Gonzalez.
- In general, Cashman said he doesn't think he can trade for a starter better than Bartolo Colon or Phil Hughes or a reliever better than Rafael Soriano, and all three could be back in July. According to Sherman, the Yankees "have shown no interest in high-cost veterans with dubious stuff such as the Brett Myers, Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, Edwin Jackson, Livan Hernandez, and Jason Marquis."
- Hoping for the Yanks to acquire Jair Jurrjens or Derek Lowe? We're not sure if either is available, but Sherman says "the Yankees' policy has become pretty much to run away from Atlanta pitching after having successful Braves hurlers blow up on them."
- The Yankees would not offer an extension to Hiroki Kuroda, if the righty were to make that a condition of a trade. We know Kuroda will require some form of compensation.
- The Padres "want to get out in the market quickly" with relievers Heath Bell and Chad Qualls, writes Sherman. The Yankees, however, prefer Mike Adams, who is considered much less available.
- The Nationals are willing to trade setup man Tyler Clippard, but are looking for a center fielder and have their sights on B.J. Upton.
Joe Mather Elects Free Agency
Joe Mather has elected free agency, according to MLB.com's transactions page. The Braves had designated the utility player for assignment on Sunday.
The 28-year-old had a .213/.272/.307 line in 83 plate appearances at various positions. Mather played all three outfield positions and both corner infield positions this year. The Cardinals selected him in the third round of the 2001 draft and he made it to St. Louis for parts of two seasons, 2008 and 2010. Mather has a career line of .228/.283/.384 with nine home runs in 294 plate appearances.
Braves Claim Dustin Richardson
The Braves have claimed Dustin Richardson off waivers from the Marlins, reports MLB.com's Christina De Nicola (on Twitter). The lefty reliever had been designated for assignment last week, and he will report to Triple-A. Atlanta had an open 40-man roster spot before making the claim.
Richardson, 27, posted a 3.66 ERA with 9.8 K/9 but 5.6 BB/9 in 32 innings for Florida's Triple-A affiliate this year. Left-handed batters hit .341 with ten walks and ten strikeouts off him in 10 2/3 innings. Florida originally acquired him from the Red Sox for Andrew Miller during the offseason.
Quick Hits: Braves, Mariners, Balfour, Posting System
Today the Diamondbacks purchased the contract of Wily Mo Pena with the aim of employing him in the middle of their order as a designated hitter during the AL leg of their interleague schedule. The D'Backs had open spots on the 40-man roster for Pena, who hasn't played in the bigs since '08 but has a .363/.439/.726 line with 21 home runs in 271 Triple-A plate appearances. Today's links…
- Braves GM Frank Wren spoke to Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution about the state of the trade market, saying teams are "starting to reach out and talk to each other." He added that they "talked to a number of clubs about where they think they’re going to be going at the trade deadline, but that’s even somewhat nebulous on a lot of clubs."
- Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times explored the idea of the Mariners trading either Jason Vargas or Doug Fister for offensive help and tried to figure out what a realistic return would be.
- In today's Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Buster Olney mentions that Grant Balfour of the Athletics is among the relievers expected to be available this summer. He speculates that the Rangers could be a fit.
- Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal looked at how the Red Sox were about to snag Anthony Rizzo in the sixth round three years before he was a key piece in the Adrian Gonzalez trade.
- NPB has decided against pursuing changes to the posting system according to a Japanese report passed along by Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. Reasons include the difficulty of changing things on MLB's side, as well as the potential for large posting fees offered by the current system.
- In the wake of Andrew Miller's return to the big leagues, WEEI.com's Alex Speier listed the seven pitchers in the last 15 years that reached the Majors the year they were drafted. It's not a pretty list.
NL East Notes: Chipper, Escobar, Werth, McKeon
Tim Hudson pitched eight shutout innings and hit a two-run homer to beat the Blue Jays in Yunel Escobar's return to Atlanta tonight. Here's the latest on the Braves and their NL East rivals…
- Chipper Jones told Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he never wanted Escobar to leave, "because the guy’s a good player." Jones suggests last summer's trade worked out well for both sides, since Escobar has matured into a better player and the Braves have the steady Alex Gonzalez. I examined Escobar's recent contract extension earlier today.
- Bill Ladson of MLB.com says free agent signing Jayson Werth has "brought a spark" to Washington and helped the Nationals to a respectable record. Werth has a .232/.332/.409 line with ten home runs in his first season in D.C. – not what the Nats were hoping for when they made a $126MM commitment to the outfielder last offseason.
- New Marlins manager Jack McKeon explained to Dave George of the Palm Beach Post why he returned to the bench as an 80-year-old skipper. "I don't need this job, but I love it, and I love the people I'm working for."
- Hanley Ramirez might not love the person he's working for quite yet; McKeon benched Ramirez tonight after the shortstop showed up late to the ballpark.
Minor Deals: Castillo, Vazquez, Gotay, Carter
We'll keep track of all of the day's minor deals right here:
- The Diamondbacks have signed left-handed pitcher Alberto Castillo, according to CBSSports.com. Castillo, 35, was designated for assignment by the Orioles on June 10th. The veteran has a 2.89 ERA with 8.9 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 across four seasons of play at the Triple-A level.
- The Blue Jays signed infielder Ramon Vazquez to a minor league deal, according to the CBSSports.com transactions page. The 35-year-old last appeared in the majors in 2009 when he spent the year with the Pirates. Vazquez has experience playing shortstop, second base, and third base.
- The Braves signed infielder Ruben Gotay and outfielder Chris Carter to minor league deals and assigned them to Triple-A Gwinnett, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). Gotay last appeared in the bigs with Atlanta in 2008, while Carter played in 100 games with the Mets last season.