Ben Nicholson-Smith | MLB Trade Rumors

Quick Hits: Pirates, Verlander, Camp

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 8:31pm CDT

On this date 14 years ago, the Mets sent pitching prospect A.J. Burnett to the defending World Series champion Marlins for Al Leiter. New York's other team was also busy that day — the Yankees acquired Chuck Knoblauch from the Twins. So far today we've seen one major trade take place and here are some assorted links to read as we await the next significant move…

The Pirates made Edwin Jackson a substantial three-year offer, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (Twitter links). Pittsburgh offered a three-year deal in the range of $10MM per season, but Jackson signed with the Nationals for $11MM. The Pirates also made a one-year offer worth less than $11MM, Rosenthal reports.
Ryan Madson, Hiroki Kuroda and Reed Johnson are among the best under-the-radar signings of the winter, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes.
Speaking of under-the-radar moves, Matt Eddy of Baseball America has the minor league transactions for January 26th-February 1st.
Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander said yesterday morning on WXYZ-TV that he wants to stay in Detroit forever, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports. "I think that it's a very unique city, the people here are fantastic, it's unbelievable,” Verlander said.
Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner says newly signed Mariners right-hander Shawn Camp could be pretty decent if the Mariners use him mostly against right-handed hitters.

Jeremy Guthrie Trade Reactions

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 7:21pm CDT

The Orioles agreed to send Jeremy Guthrie to the Rockies for Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom in a deal that was announced earlier today. The trade provides the Rockies with an innings eater atop a rotation filled with uncertainty and gives the Orioles two players who are under team control through 2013. Here are some reactions to the deal:

Guthrie wrote on Twitter that Nick Swisher's batting average is one of the 'losers' of the trade. Swisher has a .448 average in 29 career plate appearances against Guthrie.
The Orioles should have traded Guthrie at or before last year's July 31st trade deadline, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Rosenthal says Guthrie had more trade value when he was further away from free agency. The Tigers, Rangers and Cardinals had interest in Guthrie last summer, Rosenthal tweets.
Guthrie told reporters, including Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com and Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, that he was surprised to be traded since he and the Orioles had been preparing for an arbitration hearing.
ESPN.com's Buster Olney hears arbitration talks between Guthrie and the Orioles were contentious leading up to today's scheduled hearing (Twitter links). Olney hears the Orioles and Rockies started discussing Guthrie at last year's trade deadline and continued talks at the November GM Meetings.
Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd joined Jim Duquette and Kevin Kennedy on MLB Network Radio and said the Rockies have admired Guthrie for a while. O'Dowd had discussed the right-hander with Andy MacPhail before the Orioles' recent regime change.
Connolly hears that Eric Young Jr. came up in trade talks, before the Orioles decided he wasn't a fit. The infielder is out of options and the Orioles have a full 40-man roster.
Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com explains that Guthrie could be better off in Denver, since NL West teams play in a number of big ballparks and Guthrie lives in Utah.
The Rockies' offer was 'by far' the best one the Orioles received, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets.
Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette weighed in on the trade earlier today.

Yankees In Serious Discussions With Raul Ibanez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 6:12pm CDT

The Yankees are in serious discussions with free agent Raul Ibanez, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. The ACES client is willing to take less money to play for the Yankees.

ESPN.com's Buster Olney reported earlier tonight that the Yankees could add a left-handed hitter such as Ibanez, Johnny Damon or Hideki Matsui within a week. Yankees manager Joe Girardi said last week that he would like to see GM Brian Cashman add a bat before Opening Day.

Ibanez posted a .245/.289/.419 line with 20 home runs in 575 plate appearances as the Phillies' everyday left fielder last year. The 39-year-old could provide the Yankees with an option at designated hitter or in the corner outfield positions. He owns a .286/.351/.488 line against right-handed pitching in 16 MLB seasons and appears to be a possible platoon partner for Andruw Jones.

Yankees Could Add Lefty Bat Soon

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 5:31pm CDT

The Yankees are considering adding a left-handed hitter and could sign Raul Ibanez, Johnny Damon or Hideki Matsui within a week, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes. Adding one of the veterans would provide the Yankees with a weapon against right-handed pitching for their open DH spot.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said last week that he would like to see GM Brian Cashman add a bat before Opening Day. The skipper suggested he'd prefer a lefty hitter, someone who can complement the right-handed hitting Andruw Jones. The Yankees will explore alternatives before the July 31st trade deadline if they aren’t getting enough production from their DHs, Olney tweets.

Outrighted To Triple-A: Scott Atchison

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 4:41pm CDT

The latest outright assignments from around MLB…

The Red Sox outrighted Scott Atchison to Triple-A after he cleared waivers, Maureen Mullen of CSN New England tweets. The Red Sox had designated the 35-year-old for assignment late last month. He posted a 3.26 ERA with 5.0 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 in 30 1/3 innings for the 2011 Red Sox and logged 61 1/3 more innings at Triple-A with a 2.64 ERA, 10.6 K/9 and 1.3 BB/9.

Astros Sign Justin Ruggiano

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 4:31pm CDT

The Astros signed free agent outfielder Justin Ruggiano to a minor league contract that includes an invitation to Spring Training, the team announced. Ruggiano elected free agency one week ago today, after the Rays designated him for assignment.

Ruggiano appeared in 46 games for the Rays last year, playing all three outfield positions. The 29-year-old posted a .248/.273/.400 line in 111 plate appearances. Ruggiano, who also played for the Rays in 2007-08, is not yet arbitration eligible. The native of Austin, Texas has a .295/.376/.486 in eight minor league seasons.

Dodgers Designate Russ Mitchell For Assignment

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 4:21pm CDT

The Dodgers designated infielder Russ Mitchell for assignment, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. The Dodgers confirmed the move, which will presumably clear 40-man roster space for right-handed reliever Todd Coffey.

Mitchell appeared in 25 games for the 2011 Dodgers, playing first base, third base and right field. He has struggled through his first 101 MLB plate appearances, but he posted a .283/.372/.503 line in 392 Triple-A plate appearances last year and has a .784 OPS in nine minor league seasons.

Cubs Claim Adrian Cardenas

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 4:02pm CDT

The Cubs claimed Adrian Cardenas off of waivers from the Athletics, the A's announced. Oakland had designated the infielder for assignment on January 26th.

Cardenas, 24, spent the 2011 season with Oakland's Triple-A affiliate, where he posted a .314/.374/.418 line in 545 plate appearances and played left field, shortstop, second and third. In six minor league seasons, the 2006 first rounder has a .303/.368/.413 batting line. However, he is a sub-par defender, Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus tweets. The A's acquired Cardenas from the Phillies in the 2008 trade that sent Joe Blanton to Philadelphia.

Rangers Sign Conor Jackson, Joe Beimel

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 6, 2012 at 3:07pm CDT

The Rangers signed outfielder/first baseman Conor Jackson and left-handed reliever Joe Beimel to minor league contracts, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan tweets. The deals include invitations to big league Spring Training.

Jackson posted a .244/.310/.341 line in 390 plate appearances with the Athletics and Red Sox in 2011. The 29-year-old SFX client played all four corner positions last year. Jackson, a right-handed hitter, owns a .283/.381/.436 career line against left-handed pitching, so he could spell left-handed hitters such as Mitch Moreland, Josh Hamilton and David Murphy if he makes the MLB roster.

Beimel, 34, posted a 5.33 ERA with 6.0 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 and a 41.2% ground ball rate in 25 1/3 innings in 2011. The Pirates signed the Joe Sroba client to a minor league deal last January and released him in August. The Rangers don't have much in the way of experienced left-handed relief after losing Darren Oliver and Mike Gonzalez via free agency.

Indians Acquire Russ Canzler

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 4, 2012 at 8:49am CDT

SATURDAY: The Rays received $100K from the Indians to complete the trade, reports MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter).

TUESDAY: The Indians announced that they acquired Russ Canzler from the Rays for cash considerations. The Rays had designated the 25-year-old for assignment on Friday.

Canzler made his MLB debut in 2011, appearing in three games with the Rays as a September callup. He spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he posted a .314/.401/.530 line with 18 home runs and 40 doubles in 549 plate appearances, and won the International League MVP.

Canzler appeared at all four corner positions in 2011. The right-handed hitter figures to add balance to an Indians lineup that features more than its share of left-handed hitters at third base and in the corner outfield spots. It's unclear whether the addition of Canzler will affect the Indians' interest level in free agent first baseman Casey Kotchman.

The Cubs selected Canzler in the 30th round of the 2004 draft. He has options remaining, so the Indians aren't obliged to keep him in the Major Leagues, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian tweets.

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