Renck’s Latest
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has a host of trade rumors in his recent column. Let’s break it down:
- Time to restart those Todd Helton rumors, as the first baseman is hitting a robust .360/.473/.533. Renck thinks a trade to Detroit is unlikely, but that the Yankees, Red Sox, or Braves could make a play for him this summer. The Yanks came up recently via Mark Healey. Maybe with Helton’s strong start, the Rockies can get their part of Helton’s $90MM contract down to $30MM.
- Renck likes the Rockies, Braves, and Red Sox as suitors for Rocco Baldelli. Rocco hopes to return in early June from a strained left hamstring. I wouldn’t expect a deal until at least late June.
- The Astros apparently are not making Chris Burke available despite his demotion. That’s a shame, because the Rockies like him. The Rox are hoping to see Kaz Matsui return from a back strain this week, so we’ll see how that goes first.
- The Angels still have interest in Garrett Atkins but talks haven’t been serious. Seems odd that Dan O’Dowd would sell low on Atkins at this point, but I guess it depends on the return and the Rockies’ projections for him.
The Salt of New York?
As far as Retrosheet and I can tell, the last time the Mets and Braves hooked up for a trade was November 25, 1996, when the Mets sent Paul Byrd and a PTBNL (the inestimable Andy Zwirchitz) to the Braves for Greg McMichael. Over the years John Schuerholz has preferred to trade with Milwaukee, Kansas City or Oakland over the Mets.
But with a friendly new GM in Omar Minaya and a player with all the promise and last name of Jarrod Saltalamacchia (Salt-uh-la-ma-chee-a) on the board, anything is possible. As was pointed out in this space a week ago, the young catcher is a good fit with the Detroit Tigers. But with the Braves’ obvious dilemma of having one good young catcher too many, combined with the recent freak double-injury of Brian McCann and Brayan Peña forcing the Braves to give the youngster a major league debut for his 22nd birthday, other catching-starved organizations are bound to stand up and take notice.
The Mets’ 2008 catching situation was the subject of this MLBTR post. Without repeating what was said there, I’ll add that the Mets committed a big blunder by keeping single-A catcher Jesús Flores off their 40-man roster, allowing him to be taken by the Washington Nationals in the Rule 5 draft. While he is seriously overmatched in the big leagues, he could still develop into a solid, power-hitting backstop.
What, then, would it take for the Mets to acquire Salty? A Mets/Braves trade wouldn’t happen this year, so we shouldn’t be talking about improving the Braves’ 2007 rotation, at least not in this context. But would Philip Humber be of interest? The Braves also lack a solid left fielder, and will likely be short a center fielder come 2008. The Mets have three great prospects for these positions in Lastings Milledge, Carlos Gomez and Fernando Martínez. Finally, at first base the Mets could offer Mike Carp, who was so impressive this spring that he spent most of it with the big league Mets before being sent to AA-Binghamton.
If it took both Humber and Milledge to do it for the Mets, I think it would be worth it.
John Peterson writes for the Mets blog Blastings! Thrilledge.
A’s Acquire Ryan Langerhans
According to Baseball Digest Daily, the A’s acquired outfielder Ryan Langerhans from the Braves for a player to be named later or cash considerations. Given the recent trade for Chris Denorfia, the A’s will have decent outfield depth in 2008. Perhaps this means they won’t be re-signing Milton Bradley.
Langerhans, 27, was off to a 2 for 41 start this year. The trade should leave Matt Diaz and Craig Wilson with some extra playing time for Atlanta. It could also make Scott Thorman a full-timer.
Langerhans posted an excellent 13.7% walk rate last year, but he’s still well below average offensively for a left fielder. His defense is his main asset. The Indians had expressed interest in Langerhans in the past.
Braves Extend John Smoltz
John Schuerholz, the Braves’ "homeboy upstairs," came through with a contract extension for ace pitcher John Smoltz today. A March report questioned whether Smoltz would remain a Brave, and the pitcher publicly considered moving on from the Braves last August. But now he’ll finish his career with Atlanta, which just feels right.
Basically Smoltz is guaranteed a fair-market $14MM next year, with additional options based on innings pitched. He said in the past he wouldn’t sign any more team-friendly deals, but this one does lean towards the Braves. They’re only obligated to him if he stays healthy and makes 30+ starts. He probably could’ve gotten two years guaranteed on the open market despite his age.
Smoltz seems a lock for the Hall of Fame, as he’ll have 200+ wins and 154 saves to his name.
There’s one less free agent starter to be had; check out the updated list here.
Let’s Make A Deal: Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Double A catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia is a rare player: a bona fide top prospect at the position. The Braves might be able to maximize his value not by switching Salty or Brian McCann to first base, but by trading the minor leaguer. Saltalamacchia is off to a hot start after a lost ’06, and one team especially interested in acquiring a young catcher is the Tigers.
As a 22 year-old in Double A, Salty is at the perfect stage in his career as the Tigers would be able to exercise Pudge’s 2008 option and have Saltalamacchia ready to take over in 2009. So what do the Braves need?
So far Atlanta is getting on base well and hitting for power, and whatever regression Kelly Johnson experiences will be matched by Andruw Jones hitting his stride. With a healthy Chipper Jones and an improved Jeff Francoeur, this team can hit.
John Schuerholz already went all-in to improve the bullpen, leaving starting pitching as the most glaring weakness. It’s looking good on the front end – two possible aces plus a solid third in Chuck James. Still, giving 40% of the starts to Kyle Davies/Mark Redman/Lance Cormier is undesirable.
David O’Brien says there are no good pitchers on the trade market for Atlanta, but a month or two from now some opportunities will probably appear. One nice fit could be Carlos Zambrano; Michael Barrett is a free agent after this season. I’ll discuss Rich Harden in another post, but the A’s have Kurt Suzuki waiting in the wings.
Back to the Tigers – I doubt Justin Verlander or Jeremy Bonderman can be had. Could Nate Robertson plus a good prospect be enough to snag Salty? The 29 year-old southpaw doesn’t reach free agency until after 2009, and he’s been a healthy 32 start guy. Bring him over to the National League, and we could see the Ted Lilly/Bronson Arroyo/Kyle Lohse effect.
The White Sox have A.J. Pierzynski signed through 2008, which gels nicely with Saltalamacchia’s ETA. If Mark Buehrle has another solid month or two, the Braves might covet the lefty and his playoff experience. Plus, an acquisition and possible extension could keep Buehrle away from the NL rival Cardinals. Moving Salty to the Marlins for Dontrelle Willis could work as well.
Really, with a commodity like Saltalamacchia, one could devise many different scenarios where he’s swapped for a frontline starter.
Cameron To Reach Free Agency
For a while, it had seemed that the Padres would be able to reach a three-year agreement with 34 year-old center fielder Mike Cameron. I had expected the years to be the sticking point, and the Padres seemed open to three. However, Ken Rosenthal tells us that contract talks have broken off between the two parties and Cameron is very likely to explore the open market.
Rosenthal likes the Braves as a possibility in 2008, as Cameron lives outside of Atlanta. The star class of free agent center fielders includes Andruw Jones, Ichiro Suzuki, and Torii Hunter. None of the three are expected to stay with their respective teams, meaning the Braves, Mariners, and Twins could explore the second tier. That seems to include Cameron, Eric Byrnes, Corey Patterson, Milton Bradley, and Aaron Rowand.
Cameron is hitting just .164/.257/.197 in 61 ABs on the young season. He could be distracted by the contract situation, or it could just be a coincidental rough patch.
Ken Rosenthal’s Latest
Ken Rosenthal has a new update up over at FOX Sports. The trade rumor highlights:
- Plenty of teams are interested in Brewers reliever Jose Capellan: the Giants, Rockies, Devil Rays, and Nationals. I’m surprised that Capellan was deemed unworthy of the Brewers’ pen; he gave them 70 decent innings last year. Rosenthal mentions that the Nats might convert Capellan back to a starter. A fine idea, as that’s how Capellan came up with the Braves. He just needs to get his curve and changeup tuned up.
- The story on Mike Cameron remains the same: the Padres don’t want to go past two years. A few days from now the team should know whether a compromise can be reached. Maybe a middle-ground vesting option for 2010. He’s a good athlete; he’s not going to age as poorly as some guys. If he leaves, maybe the Pads would sign Aaron Rowand. UPDATE: Just saw Mr. Rosenthal on television, and he mentioned the Braves as a mighty fine fit for Cameron if he hits the market.
- Rosenthal seems to hint that the Cubs should still get a five-year, $80MMish deal done with Carlos Zambrano, perhaps within a few months. At least, he’s urging them to close the deal despite the team being up for sale this summer.
Royals Acquire Tony Pena Jr.
Yesterday we learned that the Royals had a list of 20 shortstops in their sights; today they made a deal. Dayton Moore nabbed Tony Pena Jr. from his former employer, the Braves.
Pena, 26, is the son of the former Royals manager. I’m not sure he’ll be of much value offensively, but at least he’ll play good defense. Pena’s PECOTA calls for a Berroa-like .244/.279/.337 line.
Yankees Won’t Renegotiate With A-Rod
In case you missed Jon Heyman’s scoop yesterday: Brian Cashman won’t renegotiate Alex Rodriguez‘s contract after this season. I imagine he went public with it in attempt to put the onus back on A-Rod when he leaves after the season. For once, Rodriguez is not biting and won’t discuss it further with the media. Heyman reiterates that Rodriguez will not consent to a trade if the Yankees are in contention. Other notes from the column:
- Out of all the relievers on the market, Jorge Julio seems the most likely to be dealt.
- Heyman thinks John Smoltz is done with team-friendly contracts and will leave the Braves after 2007. Could the Red Sox replace Curt Schilling with him?
- Devil Rays "second baseman" Jorge Cantu is on the block. I think he has been for some time. I believe there is a federal law mandating mention of his 117 RBI season in any Cantu trade rumor. Ooh boy, look at all those ribbies! Perhaps the Rays would shift Akinori Iwamura or B.J. Upton to second base. In any case, I don’t think Cantu is part of the long-term plan.
Braves Sign McCann For Six Years
In a first for the Braves, they’ve signed a pre-arbitration player to a long-term deal. Brian McCann signed a six year, $27.8MM deal today. There’s an additional $2MM in incentives. In comparison, Joe Mauer recently signed a four-year, $33MM deal.
McCann’s contract is a record for a player with less than two years of service time. It represents a change in Braves’ philosophy, and they’ve talked to Jeff Francoeur‘s agent as well.
McCann will be a Brave through 2012, with a $12MM club option for 2013. McCann requested the ’13 option for $12MM be the Braves’ decision, in case his performance is not up to par at that point. If my math is correct, the deal buys out one year of free agency. But I wasn’t told there would be math.
Ranked by OPS, McCann’s 2006 season was the best ever for a catcher at age 23 or younger. Among the great under-25 catcher seasons, only Rudy York‘s 1938 was better.
I’m not sure where this leaves Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Maybe as the team’s best trade bait, if he bounces back this year.