AL Central Notes: Hunter, Thornton, Rauch, Indians
The American League Central welcomed a handful of new players this week – most notably right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez. Yet many other trades didn't materialize. Here are the details on some deals that could have impacted the division…
- The Tigers tried to acquire Tommy Hunter from the Rangers before the Orioles obtained him in the Koji Uehara deal yesterday, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The Tigers did acquire Doug Fister for their rotation.
- The Brewers called on every good left-handed relief option out there, including White Sox southpaw Matt Thornton, according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (on Twitter).
- The Twins talked to the Blue Jays about re-acquiring Jon Rauch, but talks went nowhere, according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
- The Indians discussed as many as 75 players leading up to the deadline, according to MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter).
Epstein On Bedard, Harden, Fields, Buchholz
Red Sox GM Theo Epstein acquired Mike Aviles, Erik Bedard and Josh Fields in trades this weekend. He joined reporters on a conference call to discuss those moves and other issues pertaining to his first-place team this evening. Here are the details:
- The Red Sox like the way Bedard's stuff looks this year. He "really started to look like one of the best left-handers in the league again," Epstein said.
- Though Bedard was rusty in his lone start since returning from the disabled list, the Red Sox maintained interest in him since he seems healthy and has pitched in the AL East. Plus, he met Boston's biggest need – rotation help.
- The Bedard deal came together at the last minute, since the Red Sox had to acquire Trayvon Robinson from the Dodgers before completing the deal with the Mariners.
- As for the bullpen, Epstein says the Red Sox can get by without adding outside help. "We feel we have some depth, not only in the big leagues, but in Triple-A," he said.
- Epstein declined to speak about discussions for Rich Harden, but says he has no hard feelings. It appeared last night that Boston was going to acquire Harden.
- The Red Sox like Fields' "big arm" despite his command issues.
- Though Epstein didn't discuss Clay Buchholz's injury in detail, he acknowledged concern over the right-hander's health.
Pirates Designate Michael Crotta For Assignment
The Pirates announced that they designated Michael Crotta for assignment to create 40-man roster space for newly-acquired outfielder Ryan Ludwick. The 2006 draft pick made his MLB debut in April, but hasn't pitched in the Majors since May.
Crotta, 26, appeared in 15 games for the Pirates this year, posting a 9.28 ERA with 5.9 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 in 10 2/3 innings. He appeared in 12 minor league games for the Pirates' top two affiliates and has spent considerable time on the disabled list with right elbow inflammation.
Indians Designate Mitch Talbot For Assignment
The Indians activated Mitch Talbot from the 15-day disabled list and designated him for assignment, the team announced. The right-hander had been on the disabled list with a lower back strain since July 9th. The move creates 40-man roster space for the newly-acquired Ubaldo Jimenez and the Indians will make a corresponding 25-man move in the coming days.
Talbot, 27, posted a 6.33 ERA with 5.4 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 58 1/3 innings for the Indians before hitting the disabled list. He pitched 159 1/3 innings of 4.41 ERA ball last year after the Indians acquired him from Tampa Bay for Kelly Shoppach in December of 2009.
Indians Acquire Ubaldo Jimenez
The organization that sent C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee packing in high-profile summer trades is about to acquire an ace of its own. The Indians and Rockies have agreed on a deal that will send Ubaldo Jimenez to Cleveland for Joe Gardner, Alex White, Matt McBride and a player to be named, the teams announced. The deal, which will apparently include left-hander Drew Pomeranz once he's eligible to be traded in mid-August, became official today when Jimenez passed his physical.
Jimenez, 27, has a 4.20 ERA with 8.6 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 46.8% ground ball rate midway through an up and down season that has included flashes of brilliance, stretches of poor performance and a stint on the disabled list with a cuticle cut on the right-hander’s thumb. The third place finisher in last year's Cy Young voting, Jimenez broke out in 2010, posting a 2.88 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 221 2/3 innings.
Some of Jimenez's value comes from a contract that now seems team-friendly. Jimenez earns $2.8MM this year and $4.2MM in 2012. His contract includes a $5.75MM club option ($1MM buyout) for 2013 and an $8MM club option for 2014 ($1MM buyout), however Jimenez will be able to void that 2014 option with the trade.
GM Dan O'Dowd, who signed Jimenez to his extension, spent a decade in the Indians' front office from 1988-1998, working his way up to assistant GM before moving on to Colorado. He maintained throughout the negotiations that he would have to be overwhelmed to make a deal and said he'd turn down offers unless someone approached him with a Herschel Walker-type deal.
Pomeranz appears to be the key to the trade for Colorado, however the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft can not officially be traded until August 15th. He will have to be a player to be named later until then. The 22-year-old southpaw has a 1.98 ERA in 91 innings this year, most coming with Cleveland's High-A squad. Baseball America ranked him as the 14th best prospect in the game earlier this month.
White was the 15th overall pick in the 2009 draft, and he made his big league debut earlier this season. He made three starts before being placed on the disabled list with a strained finger ligament, pitching to a 3.60 ERA. White is still on the disabled list but can be traded. He was considered the 47th best prospect in the game by Baseball America before the season.
Unlike Pomeranz and White, McBride was not a first round pick. He was a second rounder in 2006, and Baseball America did not rank him among the Tribe's top 30 prospects in their Prospect Handbook before the season. The 26-year-old has hit .279/.339/.501 in 393 plate appearances this year, most coming with Cleveland's Double-A affiliate.
Gardner, 23, was a third round selection in 2009. The right-hander has a 4.99 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 97 1/3 innings as a starter in his first stint at Double-A.
Troy Renck of the Denver Post broke the news on Twitter and Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Jon Heyman of SI.com added detail. Mike Axisa contributed to this post. Photo courtesy Icon SMI.
Red Sox Deal For Harden Falls Through
10:58am: The Red Sox tried to remove the player to be named later from the deal and just send Anderson after looking at Harden's medicals, and were rebuffed by the A's, tweets Sean McAdam.
SUNDAY, 1:05am: Uncertainty after a review of Harden's medicals led to the deal coming apart, tweets Speier.
12:36am: A major league source says that the BoSox are not counting on the deal getting done, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
12:05am: Harden told the Oakland media that there is no deal and that he's staying with the A's, tweets Ian Browne of MLB.com. A Boston source confirmed Brown (via Twitter) that the deal is off.
SATURDAY, 11:47pm: A's GM Billy Beane told Harden he's still scheduled to pitch for the A's Tuesday, according to Slusser (on Twitter).
8:35pm: Anderson and a player to be named will head to Oakland in the deal, according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus and Stark (Twitter links).
8:33pm: The deal could happen tonight and may involve Triple-A first baseman Lars Anderson, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (on Twitter).
8:20pm: It looks as though the Red Sox are closing in on a deal for Rich Harden, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark on Twitter. ESPN's Buster Olney reported on the deal earlier today and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported tonight that there was a "strong chance" of a deal.
Harden, 29, has a 4.30 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 29 1/3 innings for the A's this year. The British Columbia native was on the disabled list until the beginning of July. He earns a $1.5MM base salary this year.
D’Backs Working To Acquire Reliever
SUNDAY, 12:43am: The Diamondbacks have a list of 7 or 8 relievers they are still pursuing and they're almost certain to come away with one, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Meanwhile, Arizona doesn't like their chances of landing Rockies reliever Rafael Betancourt, according to Troy Renck of The Denver Post (via Twitter).
SATURDAY, 11:07pm: D’Backs GM Kevin Towers says he’s looking at everything (bullpen, bench, starting pitching) and could take on salary under the right circumstances, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter links).
9:13pm: The D'Backs are still working to acquire a reliever and it sounds as though they expect to complete a deal, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (on Twitter). The D'Backs acquired starting pitcher Jason Marquis earlier tonight.
Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter links) reported earlier this evening that Arizona remains interested in relief help, including Jason Isringhausen. However, Isringhausen has said the Mets have told him they won't trade him, according to Andy McCullough of the Star Ledger (on Twitter).
Pirates Acquire Derrek Lee
There's no question about it at this point – the Pirates are buyers. The Pirates and Orioles announced tonight that the Pirates acquired Derrek Lee from Baltimore for minor league first baseman Aaron Baker.
The 35-year-old Lee (pictured) has a .248/.306/.409 line in 360 plate appearances this year and earns $7.25MM. His play has improved in July, however; he has a .261/.306/.533 line with six homers this month. Pirates first basemen (led by Lyle Overbay) have hit .228/.303/.343 with just eight homers this year, so their interest in Lee's power potential is understandable. The Pirates will pay Lee's remaining $2.3MM, with the Orioles covering bonus clauses.
“He is an experienced, productive right-handed hitter and solid defender who should add to our team on thefield and in the clubhouse,” Pirates GM Neal Huntington said in a statement.
Though his contract expires after the season, Lee doesn't project as a ranked free agent, so he probably won't be tied to draft pick compensation.
Baker, 23, has a .285/.353/.474 line with 15 homers in Class A Bradenton this year. The 2009 draft pick did not crack Baseball America's preseason list of the Pirates' top 30 prospects.
Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun broke the news and MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch, Rob Biertempfel and Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review also contributed to the story. Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.
Quick Hits: Slowey, Royals, Lee, Reddick
For a while, it seemed as though we'd have a quiet trade deadline. So much for that – today we saw Ubaldo Jimenez, Derrek Lee, Orlando Cabrera, Rich Harden, Koji Uehara, Chris Davis, Tommy Hunter, Jason Marquis, Mike Aviles, Jerry Hairston Jr., Doug Fister and David Pauley all get traded. Let's gear up for the deadline itself with another round of links…
- The Twins would like to move Kevin Slowey and the Rockies are interested, though they don't want to pay too much for him, according to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
- Teams are still calling on Bruce Chen, Jeff Francis and Kyle Davies of the Royals, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star (on Twitter). Any deal will likely come at the deadline tomorrow.
- Teams are still inquiring on Brandon League, even though top Mariners executives have said he's going nowhere, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter).
- Rangers GM Jon Daniels expects a quiet day tomorrow, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
- The Astros would love to convince Carlos Lee that there's no point in refusing to waive his no-trade clause, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark.
- The Astros wanted a package of players including Josh Reddick and Kyle Weiland from the Red Sox for Hunter Pence, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.
Giants Acquire Orlando Cabrera
It appears that Orlando Cabrera is headed for October baseball yet again. The infielder, who has appeared in four consecutive postseasons for four different teams, is going to San Francisco in exchange for outfield prospect Thomas Neal, the Indians announced.
With Mark DeRosa, Freddy Sanchez and Miguel Tejada on the disabled list, the defending World Champions needed infield depth. Cabrera, who will become San Francisco's primary shortstop, began the season as the Indians' everyday second baseman and has since transitioned into more of a utility role. The 36-year-old Colombia native has a .244/.277/.321 line in 344 plate appearances at second, third and short this year.
Meanwhile, the Indians will continue rely on rookie infielders Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall, two of the top prospects the Indians did not send to Colorado in the deal that will send Ubaldo Jimenez to Cleveland.
Neal, 23, has spent the 2011 season at Triple-A Fresno, where he has a .295/.351/.409 line. Baseball America ranked him 96th among all MLB prospects before the 2010 season and seventh among Giants prospects before the 2011 season. Neal, who played on a youth travel team with Mike Leake, Stephen Strasburg and the son of Giants manager Bruce Bochy, has an enviable combination of power and arm strength, according to Baseball America, which suggested he could become an everyday player. However, Neal has seen his power numbers decline this year (13 doubles, two homers, .409 slugging percentage).
Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com broke the news and Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle added detail.