Eddie Schmid | MLB Trade Rumors

White Sox Sign Freddy Garcia

By Eddie Schmid | June 8, 2009 at 6:04pm CDT

According to Buster Olney at ESPN, the White Sox have agreed to a minor-league deal with right-hander Freddy Garcia. He passed a physical and now will report to the Sox training facility in Arizona.

Garcia, who turns 33 on Wednesday, was released by the Mets April 28th after putting up an 8.18 ERA in 11 innings at Triple-A Buffalo. He hinted at retirement around that time due to persistent troubles with his shoulder. Garcia pitched for the Sox during their World Series run in 2005 and into 2007.

As reported by Mark Gonzales at the Chicago Tribune, this comes on the heels of a vintage Ozzie Guillen outburst after the Sox dropped a game to the Tigers today, their sixth loss in seven games. Guillen said changes would be coming "Pretty soon."

Odds & Ends: Zambrano, McLouth, Indians

By Eddie Schmid | June 6, 2009 at 9:58pm CDT

On this day in MLBTR history: In '08 the Dodgers picked up former ROY Angel Berroa from the Royals, while the Rangers, in a valuable lesson of history repeating itself, DFA'd Sidney Ponson.

A hearty helping of links, cooked up and served (semi-) fresh:

Paul Sullivan at the Chicago Tribune got Lou Piniella's take on Carlos Zambrano's prophecy of retirement at the end of his current contract: "I like it. We'll see how he feels next week."
In an open letter to fans, Pirates GM Neal Huntington outlines his reasons for dealing Nate McLouth. This comes on the heels of some hefty criticism from fans, as reported by Laura Keeley at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Paul Hoynes at the Cleveland Plain-Dealer notes that Indians GM Mark Shapiro has been working the phones lately as the team's injuries mount.

Mets DFA Emil Brown

By Eddie Schmid | June 6, 2009 at 9:29pm CDT

So says Mike Nichols at MetsBlog, the Mets designated Emil Brown for assignment today to make room for the recently activated Ryan Church.

Brown was just acquired from the Padres on May 29th for a player to be named later. The 34-year-old journeyman outfielder only saw two plate appearances in his cup of coffee for the Mets, but he had previously put up a line of .260/.345/.432 in 41 Triple-A games for the Pads. He might latch on to another team looking for minor league depth.

Orioles Considering Sano?

By Eddie Schmid | June 6, 2009 at 8:35pm CDT

The Baltimore Sun's Jeff Zrebiec reports that the Orioles invited 16-year-old phenom Miguel Angel Sano to a workout at their baseball academy in the Dominican Republic yesterday. Orioles Director of Player Development David Stocksill came out of the tryout "impressed."

Sano has been linked most often to the Pirates, who are rumored to be offering as much as $4MM to obtain the coveted shortstop prospect when international free agents are able to sign this July 2nd. Zrebiec notes that the Orioles have never dropped more than $1MM to acquire an international free agent.

Discussion: Josh Fields’ Future

By Eddie Schmid | June 6, 2009 at 7:23pm CDT

As recently reported by Mark Gonzales at the Chicago Tribune, with the recent slotting of top prospect Gordon Beckham at third, White Sox GM Kenny Williams admits that Josh Fields' future with the team is "undefined":

"I see it here in Chicago and certainly, this isn't an indication we're giving up on Josh, but you guys understand we're all about winning here."

Williams goes on to say there's a place for Fields "right now," though, as Gonzales notes, the surplus of Pale Hose infielders offers an opportunity to swing a deal and patch some holes. Fields has seen his share of ups and downs for the Sox–he was seen to be the future at third after he jacked 23 homers in 373 at-bats in 2007, but he hasn't flashed that potential since. He's posted a meager .626 OPS in 176 at-bats this year.

Do you see Fields staying with the Sox? Or would he make sense for a team starved for depth at the corners like, say, the Mets? Could he command any useful parts for Kenny Williams, or would he be selling too low?

Rockies Sign Adam Eaton

By Eddie Schmid | June 6, 2009 at 6:18pm CDT

Troy Renck at the Denver Post reports that the Rockies have signed righty Adam Eaton to a minor-league deal. Eaton was released in late May by the Orioles.

Eaton, 32, posted an ugly 8.56 ERA and 28/19 K/BB ratio for the O's in 41.1 innings before being cut. He'll slide in to provide depth at Triple-A Colorado Springs after the Rockies' recent promotion of Josh Fogg.

Mariners Release Tyler Johnson

By Eddie Schmid | June 6, 2009 at 6:05pm CDT

According to Ryan Divish at the Tacoma News-Tribune, the Mariners released lefty Tyler Johnson last night. Johnson had been throwing for the Triple-A Rainiers and posted a rough 27.00 ERA in 2.2 innings.

The M's inked Johnson to a minor-league deal in February in hopes he'd develop into a lefty specialist, but he's suffered command issues in his recovery from recent arm surgery.

La Russa: Cards Seek Big Bat

By Eddie Schmid | June 4, 2009 at 8:44pm CDT

According to Matthew Leach at MLB.com, Tony La Russa longs for a big bat to protect Albert Pujols. Leach notes that La Russa "spoke like a man who has expectations, rather than hopes."

The Cardinals have been linked to Mark DeRosa recently, though La Russa seems to indicate he wants something greater. He directly refers to the past Matt Holliday discussions, and Leach notes Holliday as an "intriguing name" as he has been open to a possible trade away from Oakland. La Russa indicated that the club has some financial flexibility, but wants to avoid anything "unreasonable."

Discussion: Replacing Jose Reyes

By Eddie Schmid | June 4, 2009 at 8:16pm CDT

According to SNY's Kevin Burkhardt, Jose Reyes has a tear in his right hamstring tendon. The Mets will wait till Friday to make a decision on the matter, but Burkhardt guesses Reyes will be sidelined till the All-Star break.

So what are the Mets' options? Alex Cora is currently holding the line at short. Should they pursue someone like, say, Bobby Crosby? Mark Grudzielanek is still out there as a free agent, but he hasn't played shortstop in a while. What do you think?

Odds and Ends: Glavine, McLouth, Ross

By Eddie Schmid | June 4, 2009 at 7:40pm CDT

A few links for a night that has, so far, been a tad less exciting than the one previous in our realm. Congrats to Randy Johnson on his big day.

Joe Frisaro at MLB.com confirms the discussions between the Braves and Marlins regarding Cody Ross, saying the Marlins were looking to dip into the Braves' pitching depth.
Mark Bowman reports that the decision to cut Tom Glavine was based "solely on performance" and not for financial reasons.
RotoAuthority examines the fantasy aspects of the three big weekend callups in Gordon Beckham, Tommy Hanson and Andrew McCutchen.
The Marlins promoted their 2007 second-round pick, the other Michael Stanton, to Double-A Jacksonville, according to the Miami Herald. The outfielder posted a .968 OPS for High-A Jupiter.
Dave Cameron at Fangraphs examines the Pirates' haul in the Nate McLouth deal and doesn't think it was enough.
Geoff Baker at the Seattle Times makes an interesting comparison between Adam Jones and Franklin Gutierrez.

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