Mike Axisa | MLB Trade Rumors

Athletics Sign Doug Mathis

By Mike Axisa | June 18, 2011 at 12:22pm CDT

The Athletics have signed Doug Mathis to a minor league deal according to the Triple-A Pacific Coast League transactions page. He signed a minor league deal with the Giants back in April, but apparently became a free agent at some point since then.

Mathis, 28, made 13 starts for San Francisco's Triple-A affiliate and posted a 3.60 ERA in 65 innings. He struck out 7.5 batters per nine innings while walking 4.3 per nine. Mathis appeared in 45 games (six starts) for the Rangers from 2008-2010, pitching to a 4.84 ERA in 87 1/3 innings. The Athletics have a full five-man rotation on the disabled list right now (Brett Anderson, Dallas Braden, Rich Harden, Brandon McCarthy, and Tyson Ross), so Mathis will give them some much needed depth.

Olney’s Latest: McCourts, Reyes, Bell

By Mike Axisa | June 18, 2011 at 11:10am CDT

In today's Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Buster Olney wrote about Vanderbilt catcher Curt Casali, who one evaluator called an "absolute steal" by the Tigers as a tenth round pick in this year's draft. "He's a smart guy, and he's been calling his own pitches," said the evaluator. "You don't see that a lot in college baseball these days, because the pitches are called from the bench."

Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…

No matter what happens with the McCourts' divorce settlement, the Dodgers will be weakened. If Frank McCourt keeps the team, he'll be forced to use millions of dollars from the proposed FOX television deal to pay off the settlement. If he sells, the new owner will be stuck with a deal that is designed to infuse cash for McCourt now rather than help the franchise long-term.
Two executives told Olney that they can't imagine being able to give up what the Mets would require in return to trade Jose Reyes. The Mets will be criticized no matter what, whether they trade Reyes, re-sign him, or let him walk as a free agent.
Teams are beginning to "accelerate talks" with the Padres about Heath Bell, and multiple sides are preparing to exchange trade proposals.

Rizzo On Trades, Leadoff Hitter, Draft, Harper

By Mike Axisa | June 18, 2011 at 9:56am CDT

Nationals GM Mike Rizzo sat down for a Q&A with MLB.com's Bill Ladson, so let's round things up…

Rizzo didn't rush out to make a trade following Ryan Zimmerman's injury because "panic shows a lack of confidence in the rest of the players." He believes they have a strong bench with Laynce Nix, Jerry Hairston Jr., and Alex Cora, but unfortunately those players were pressed into everyday duty.
The Nationals are "always looking" for ways to improve their starting pitching and want front-line starters. They're also looking for "two-way players," guys that can contribute on offense and defense.
They want someone within the organization to step up and be the leadoff hitter, a role that Jayson Werth has filled recently. "If we can’t find that guy within the organization, we will look elsewhere."
"We are both buyers and sellers," said Rizzo. "We always have been, always will be. If we have a chance to acquire a player that is going to help us in 2011 and beyond, we are not going to shy away from that. If there is a trade to be made that will help us down the road, we will trade a player away to get a piece for the future. But we are not in sell mode. There are a lot of games to play, a lot of games to win. We are here to win games."
Rizzo says the Nationals are doing well when it comes to signing their draft picks. They have about 15 players with pending contracts, and they are in communication with their top picks.
As you'd expect, the Nationals are very happy with Bryce Harper's development, and Rizzo emphasized that he "will be developed at a rate that allows him to be an impactful guy."
Manager Jim Riggleman's option for 2012 will be addressed "when it needs to be addressed."

Yankees Sign Dante Bichette Jr.

By Mike Axisa | June 18, 2011 at 9:03am CDT

The Yankees have signed top draft pick Dante Bichette Jr., reports Marc Carig of The Star-Ledger (on Twitter). He received a $750K signing bonus, above MLB's slot recommendation of approximately $695K.

Bichette, a third baseman/outfielder from a Florida high school, was selected with the compensation pick the Yankees received for the loss of Javier Vazquez (51st overall). Baseball America (subs. req'd) says Bichette's "profile will wind up being that of a power-hitting left fielder." His father, Dante Sr., hit .299/.336/.499 with 274 homers in a big league career that spanned five teams and parts of 14 seasons.

Pirates Release Blaine Boyer

By Mike Axisa | June 18, 2011 at 8:32am CDT

The Pirates have released Blaine Boyer according to the Triple-A International League transactions page. He signed a minor league deal with Pittsburgh back in April after electing free agency when the Mets designated him for assignment.

Boyer, 29, threw eight innings across 11 relief appearances with the Pirates' Triple-A team, though he allowed 14 hits and 14 runs (12 earned) in that time. He also walked more batters (nine) than he struck out (eight) and surrendered three homers. Boyer gave up eight runs in 6 2/3 innings for the Mets earlier this season, though he did post a respectable 4.26 ERA in 57 innings with the Diamondbacks last year.

Quick Hits: Kazmir, Gordon, Jackson, Hudson, A’s

By Mike Axisa | June 17, 2011 at 11:14pm CDT

Some late night links as Friday turns into Saturday…

Brewers GM Doug Melvin told Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel that he has no interest in pursuing the recently released Scott Kazmir once the lefty clears waivers (Twitter link).
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that the Rangers had interest in Brian Gordon before the Yankees signed him. "[Texas] had been interested from the beginning, but didn't think they had a lot of room," said David Schwartz, Gordon's agent. "On Tuesday, when their pitching staff was getting beat up, they got more interested. But by then, we had come to a verbal agreement – he was going to New York."
MLB.com's Spencer Fordin wrote about Edwin Jackson of the White Sox and Daniel Hudson of the Diamondbacks, who were traded for each other last season and faced each other tonight.
ESPN's Howard Bryant brings us up to speed with the Athletics and their stadium situation.

Orioles Designate Jeremy Accardo For Assignment

By Mike Axisa | June 17, 2011 at 10:54pm CDT

The Orioles have designated Jeremy Accardo for assignment, reports MLB.com Britt Ghiroli (on Twitter). The move frees up a roster spot for infielder Blake Davis, who was recalled from Triple-A.

Accardo, 29, signed a one-year deal worth $1.08MM this offseason, though Baltimore could have controlled him as an arbitration-eligible player in 2012. He came into today with a 4.50 ERA but nearly as many walks (15) as strikeouts (20) in 32 innings. The three runs Accardo gave up in just one-third of an inning tonight appear to have been the straw that broke the camel's back.

Brewers Designate Danny Ray Herrera For Assignment

By Mike Axisa | June 17, 2011 at 10:05pm CDT

The Brewers have designated Danny Ray Herrera for a assignment, reports Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel (on Twitter). He was called up just yesterday.

Herrera, 26, pitched both yesterday and today. He gave up a homerun to Kosuke Fukudome and recorded two outs yesterday, and tonight he gave up four runs in an inning of work against the Red Sox. Herrera was claimed off waivers from the Reds just a few weeks ago, and the lefty's big league career consisted of a 3.69 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 92 2/3 innings coming into today.

Draft Pick Signings: Twins, Indians, Red Sox

By Mike Axisa | June 17, 2011 at 9:16pm CDT

Let's round up some notable draft picks signings in one convenient spot…

The Twins have signed second round pick Madison Boer, reports MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger and Jordan Schelling. The Oregon righty was taken with the 87th overall pick, which comes with a slot recommendation of $405K from MLB.
The Indians announced via press release that they have signed third rounder Jake Sisco, a right-hander from Merced College. MLB's slot recommendation for the 97th overall pick is approximately $357K.
The Red Sox announced in a press release that they've signed a dozen more draft picks, including sixth rounder Miguel Pena and ninth rounder Alex Shaw. WEEI.com's Alex Speier reports that they received $85K and $110K, respectively.

NL East Links: Isringhausen, Reyes, Marlins

By Mike Axisa | June 17, 2011 at 7:57pm CDT

Let's round up some links from the NL East…

ESPN's Buster Olney says (on Twitter) one name that has been raised by talent evaluators as a trade option if the Mets become sellers is Jason Isringhausen. Izzy has a 3.09 ERA in 23 1/3 innings as Francisco Rodriguez's primary setup man, but the advanced metrics don't like him as much: his FIP sits at 4.75.
An executive told SI.com's Jon Heyman that he believes Mets shortstop Jose Reyes will eclipse Carl Crawford's seven-year, $142MM contract as a free agent this winter because of his bat and "shutdown" defense (Twitter links). Another exec told Joel Sherman of The New York Post that "Prince Fielder is going to get at least 7 yrs with that body, so tell me how [Reyes] doesn't get at least 7 yrs."
The Marlins made a series of roster moves today, but MLB.com's Joe Frisaro hears that the team is not considering a managerial change (Twitter links). Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, meanwhile, says that manager Edwin Rodriguez is on shaky ground and the team maintains interest in Ozzie Guillen and even Bobby Valentine.
Peter Gammons hears that Marlins players believe team ownership will go over the the heads of the baseball operations department and fire Rodriguez as well as his coaches (Twitter link).

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