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Odds and Ends: Bass, Astros, Beltre, Marlins

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A roundup of links for your afternoon reading:

A Tale Of Two Second Basemen: Hudson, Castillo

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Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News, via MetsBlog, notes that the Mets are looking to shop Luis Castillo this off-season. This comes just one year after the team signed him to a four-year, $25MM deal. His aching knees have limited him to just over 300 plate appearances this year. It’s not clear who would want Castillo, nor how much salary the Mets would need to eat.

One speculated target is Orlando Hudson, who sits atop an uninspiring class of free agent second basemen. He’ll be in high demand, of course. The Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro talks about Hudson’s fate. He doesn’t seem optimistic that Hudson will return to the Diamondbacks next season. He talks about the team’s options, including moving Mark Reynolds to second and signing a third baseman, or acquiring a second baseman in a trade, possibly Mark Ellis or Robinson Cano.

In my own speculation, I can see the D’backs going for a one-year stopgap like Mark Grudzielanek or Ray Durham, rather than trading away even more of their farm for a longer-term solution. The Yankees would likely ask the moon for Cano, despite his disappointing season. Ellis does sound intriguing, though. Billy Beane and Josh Byrnes hooked up successfully this past off-season in the Dan Haren trade.

Mariners President: No Big Signings

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The Seattle Mariners need to go better than 8-15 the rest of the way to avoid being the first 100-loss club to spend over $100 million on payroll. Given this grave disappointment of a season, one might think that the team will go out and add parts to help contend in ’09 and beyond.

Not so fast. Geoff Baker caught up with team president Chuck Armstrong, who said, paraphrased, read my lips: no big name free agents. So if you’re in Seattle and were hoping for a savior in the form of CC Sabathia or Mark Teixeira — or even in the form of Griffey Jr. — you might find yourself a little disappointed this winter. The team already tried that route, and it didn’t pan out so well. So they’re trying a different approach.

The team will hire a new GM soon, and Armstrong wants to see a "comprehensive plan" out of each candidate. This invovles a rigorous rebuilding process that will enable the team to sustain itself without having to pick from high-ticket free agents. Of course, the Ms still have a shot in 2009. As Baker points out, there’s plenty of talent on the roster. If both Felix Hernandez and Erik Bedard pitch how they’re capable, if Jeff Clement and Brandon Morrow realize their potential, if Carlos Silva and Jarrod Washburn can be league-avearge, then yeah, maybe they’ve got a shot. But that’s a whole lot of ifs.

It seems as if any new GM in Seattle will have a number of tough decisions to make. Is this an omen of a full-out rebuild?

Wolf Will Consider All Destinations In ’09

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When Astros lefty Randy Wolf reached free agency after the 2006 season, he made his desire to play closer to home, on the West Coast, well known. He signed with the Dodgers, and managed a little over 100 innings amid shoulder issues. His ERA, 4.73, wasn’t too impressive. Yet the Padres, considered before the season to be contenders, decided to take a flier. They signed him to a one-year, $4.75MM deal with a number of incentives.

Back in July, the Astros acquired Wolf in a trade. GM Ed Wade had been fond of the lefty since his days as general manager in Philly. He had even courted Wolf last winter, but the pitcher chose to stay out west. As Wolf once again reaches free agency after this season, he says that geography won’t quite play the role it did over the past two off-seasons.

"It doesn’t matter anymore," Wolf said. "I played on the East Coast for so long, and you’re like, ’I wonder what it would be like [to play closer to home].’ I’ve done it. It didn’t change my world."

Wolf says he’ll consider the Astros, but his foremost concern is signing with a contender. He has been pitching in the majors since 1999, and hasn’t yet made the postseason. Will the Astros sate that desire? Personally, I’m not so sure. Any ’Stros fans out there think that next year could be the one?

Over at ESPN, Rob Neyer writes about how well Wolf has pitched for the Astros, and how he was wrong in his initial judgment of the trade.

Odds And Ends: Guerrero, Sheffield, Wells, Lincecum

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Here are a few tidbits from around the ’Net this morning.

  • Vlad Guerrero wants to spend the rest of his days with the Angels. The question is, will the Halos pony up for a deal for the slugger’s latter years? They hold a $15 million club option ($3 million buyout) for next year, Vlad’s age-33 season. Will they work out an extension this off-season, or will they let Future Vlad and Future Reagins figure it out after ’09?
  • Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe mentions a player who wouldn’t mind being traded: Gary Sheffield. The 39-year-old hasn’t enjoyed his time at DH, saying that he needs to play the field to be a vocal leader. A few obstacles stand in the way, including his limited no-trade clause, his chronically ailing shoulder, and the $19 million owed to him over the next two years. He’d easily clear waivers, though, and might have already. Tampa Bay, anyone?
  • The Rockies have DFA’d Kip Wells to make room for Livan Hernandez. Wells had a 5.27 ERA over 27.1 innings for the Rockies.
  • Looks like Tim Lincecum is content going with year to year contracts, according to his agent. The Giants have a monopoly on his services through the 2013 season.
  • With Carlos Lee likely out for the season, Richard Justice urges the Astros to sign Barry Bonds.
  • With the August 15th draftee signing deadling approaching, the Pirates have a major league deal on the table for first round pick Pedro Alvarez. 

Horacio Ramirez Traded to White Sox

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On the same night, the White Sox lost and added a pitcher. On the negative side, 36-year-old Jose Contreras ruptured his Achilles’ tendon, which could sideline him for the season. On the positive side, they traded for Royals pitcher Horacio Ramirez. In exchange, the White Sox sent minor league outfielder Paul Orlando to Kansas City. David Just of MLB.com suggests that the Sox could use Ramirez as a replacement for Contreras, but since they plan to demote reliever Boone Logan today, they could make another move to recall a starter, leaving Ramirez in the bullpen.

This will be Ramirez’s third team this year. He was released in March by the Mariners, who had previously traded Rafael Soriano for him. Despite his agent’s claims that seven teams were interested, Ramirez sat on the shelf until mid-May, when the Royals picked him up on a minor league deal. He was promoted a month later, and has posted a 2.57 ERA in 24.1 innings out of the bullpen.

Selling Off The Mariners

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So it’s been a bit Mariners heavy today at MLBTR. It makes sense, though. They currently own the worst record in baseball, yet have some chips that could be valuable to contending teams. Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times takes a look at a few teams that might be interested in buying what the M’s are selling.

  • Jason Varitek is hitting poorly. Kevin Cash is doing worse. Could the Sox pick up one of the M’s catchers? Baker notes that Jamie Burke could catch Tim Wakefield and probably hit better than Cash. Or, what about Kenji Johjima? Baker mentions that he could take over for Varitek, who will be a free agent, next year. Problem is, Johjima is hitting even worse this year.
  • With Hideki Matsui’s knee barking, could the Yanks be interested in Raul Ibanez? I think they’d opt to bring in Barry Bonds if Matsui’s knee doesn’t heal up soon. Not mentioned by Baker, but speculated by yours truly, the Yanks might show some interest in Richie Sexson as a defensive backup first baseman.
  • Plenty of teams need relievers, and the Mariners have a few. Baker names Mark Lowe, Sean Green, and Arthur Rhodes as available parties. Just about any team in contention might be interested, though Baker names the Braves and the Rays.

Rosenthal: Angels Looking Into Holliday

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The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, residing in Orange County, California, are currently the second-worst run producers in the American League. That they have the second-best win percentage in the junior circuit is a testament to their superb pitching staff, led by John Lackey and his 1.44 ERA, though with about 40 fewer innings than most of the team’s other starters.

They’d like to add a bat before the trading deadline, though there are a few problems with that. Take, for instance, Ken Rosenthal’s report that they are interested in Rockies left fielder Matt Holliday. In order to fit him into the scheme, the Angels would have to somehow unload Gary Matthews Jr, who is owed $33 million from 2009 through 2011. That’s not an easy proposition, considering the 2006 fluke is hitting just .239/.318/.361.

According to Rosenthal, this Matthews situation means that the Angels would have to go even further with their prospects and cash in order to make a deal. This might indicate that the team will stand pat and rely on its pitching going forward. Former GM Bill Stoneman was never one for a mid-season move, and his replacement Tony Reagins has expressed similar sentiments.

The Rays could also look into acquiring Holliday, which would round out a stellar outfield. They have more than enough on the farm to get something done. Both teams could also look into Jason Bay, Xavier Nady, Ken Griffey Jr., or Adam Dunn.

Odds And Ends: International Signings, Lo Duca, Ichiro, ChiSox

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Here’s a list of loose links (sink ships) from today:

  • The A’s officially inked Michel Inoa for $4.25MM.
  • Corey Brock of MLB.com has a piece on the Padres’ international signings. More here from the man himself, Paul DePodesta.
  • The Marlins are still looking for a catcher, and one of their former guys might be available. That would be Paul Lo Duca. With the Nats out of it, could they swap Lo Duca within the division? And would they assume part of Lo Duca’s remaining salary?   Keep in mind that MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro said yesterday that the Marlins were "not serious" about Lo Duca.
  • Ozzie Guillen is completely content with the current White Sox team. Other than an underperforming and injured Paul Konerko, they’re looking solid.
  • Sam Mellinger goes over the Royals trade options. It’s full of the usual suspects: Mark Grundielanek and Ron Mahay. He also mentions Esteban German, who in the past might have intrigued teams as a solid utility player, but who has dropped off considerably in 2008.
  • The best way to rebuild the Mariners? Trade Ichiro, says Scott Miller.

New Mariners GM Could Be Selected By Gillick

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Scott Miller of CBS Sportsline has an interesting tidbit today. While the Mariners are still searching for a permanent replacement for dismissed general manager Bill Bavasi, the current ownership group might not be the ones to make the call. Instead, Miller relays a rumor that Hiroshi Yamauchi, current controlling owner of the M’s and retired head of Nintendo, wants to sell off his share. Chris Larson, current minority M’s owner and Microsoft exec, is a highly interested party. The idea is for him to form an investment group to purchase Yamauchi’s shares. One of the partners, though, is a familiar face.

That is former Mariners GM Pat Gillick, he who presided over the Mariners powerhouse teams during the turn of the century. According to the rumor, he would be placed as head of baseball operations, and would select the new GM himself. Currently the general manager in Philadelphia, Gillick has announced his plans to reire at the end of the season. So it’s unlikely he names himself general manager.

Another little bit at the end of the article: The current ownership extended catcher Kenji Johjima this April because they wanted to "take care of him before getting out." It further suggests that Bill Bavasi and company were against the extension, likely because of Jeff Clement’s presence.

So, M’s fans, would you welcome Gillick back into the fray?

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