Amateur Draft Signings: Saturday
Here are the latest updates on which picks have signed with the clubs that selected them in last week's draft. Keep tabs on which first rounders and sandwich picks have signed by checking out our detailed breakdown.
- Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies reports that Colorado has signed fourth round pick Russell Wilson, though terms of the deal are unknown.
- The Cubs have signed 15 players according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat, including seven of their first 14 selections. They also finalized their deal with first rounder Hayden Simpson.
- MLB.com's Ken Gurnick reports that the Dodgers have signed three more draft picks, and that the club remains optimistic that they will be able to get first rounder Zach Lee under contract.
- Bill Shanks of FoxSportsSouth.com passes along word of two more draft pick signings by Atlanta, bringing their total to 28.
- The Orioles have agreed to a deal with fourth rounder Trent Mummey, tweets MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli. He still has to pass a physical.
Brewers Release Mike Jones
The Brewers have released minor league righthander Mike Jones according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Jones was the team's first round pick in the 2001 draft.
The 27-year-old Jones has battled major arm injuries throughout his career, including shoulder surgery in 2004 and Tommy John surgery in 2007. Despite more than eight full years in the minors, Jones only threw 623.1 innings and never reached the big leagues. He owns a career 3.75 ERA, though he's dealt with control issues in recent years.
Milwaukee gave Jones a $2.075MM signing bonus when they selected him 12th overall back in 2001.
Odds & Ends: White Sox, Lewis, Oswalt, Mets, Lee
Links for Saturday..
- White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter) that the team has the financial freedom to add pieces, though he added the team "might be good enough the way it is". Meanwhile, Reinsdorf said that GM Kenny Williams has the power to fire the manager, though that isn't in his plans, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.
- Fred Lewis told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that his improved performance in Toronto isn't a result of a change of scenery. Lewis is OPSing .799 for the Blue Jays, a marked improvement over his OPS of .738 for the Giants in 2009.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter) wonders aloud if Nolan Ryan's recent comments regarding Roy Oswalt could be considered tampering.
- Ken Davidoff of Newsday tweets that a Mets scout was on hand to watch Lee last night, though it was said to be part of "normal coverage".
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post says that despite all the talk about Cliff Lee, the Yankees might need to fixate on adding a bat between now and the trade deadline.
- Speaking of Lee, Ryan Divish of The News Tribune mentions that the lefty shrugs off all the trade talk. “It’s out of my control,” said Lee. “That’s a better question for Jack [Zduriencik]. He’s the one who makes those decisions, but I don’t.”
- The Astros are pleased with how negotiations with top draft pick Delino DeShields Jr. are going, reports Bernardo Fallas of The Houston Chronicle. Houston selected DeShields with the eighth overall pick last week.
- Daric Barton told Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he's grateful for being included in the Mark Mulder trade because it created an opportunity for him. "For me, it was probably the best move that could have happened to me," said Barton. "I was catching then and (Yadier Molina) was back there then, and some guy by the name of (Albert) Pujols was at first. Obviously, I could never fill his shoes."
Phillies Designate Scott Mathieson For Assignment
3:06pm: Mathieson has been placed on optional waivers, according to Gelb. Assistant GM Scott Proefrock is hopeful that the club will be able to retain the righthander. Because optional waivers are revocable, they should be able to keep him in the organization.
The Nationals made a similar move in May when they placed pitcher Matt Chico on waivers while still holding options on his contract. The transaction was made to clear a roster spot for Doug Slaten.
12:36pm: Gelb confirmed with assistant GM Scott Proefrock that Mathieson was indeed designated for assignment even though he has minor league options remaining (Twitter link). Proefrock said it was a "procedural move," but would not elaborate.
12:13pm: The Phillies have designated reliever Scott Mathieson for assignment, tweets Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The move frees up a roster spot for catcher Dane Sardinha, who was recalled from Triple-A.
The 26-year-old Mathieson appeared in just one game for the Phillies this year, giving up two runs while recording just two outs against the Twins yesterday. The two-time Tommy John surgery survivor struck out 34 batters in 29.2 innings in Triple-A this year, and is best known for a fastball that flirts with triple digits.
Baseball America’s Minor League Transactions
J.J. Cooper of Baseball America posted a special edition of minor league transactions today, listing all of the draft picks that have signed so far plus any undrafted free agents who caught on with a team. Any player that is not selected in the draft and does not have any college eligibility remaining is free to sign with any team.
Mets Came Close To Acquiring Manny After 2004
Manny Ramirez was no stranger to the trade rumor circuit during his time in Boston, long before the team actually went ahead and shipped him to the Dodgers in 2008. The deal that would have sent him to the Rangers in exchange for Alex Rodriguez is perhaps the most well known Manny non-trade, but WEEI.com's Rob Bradford says the team also came very close to shipping Ramirez to the Mets following the 2004 season.
Manny was fresh off being named World Series MVP, but the idea behind trading him was to use the savings for then free agents J.D. Drew and Adrian Beltre. Drew went on the sign with the Dodgers, Beltre the Mariners, though both found their way to Boston eventually.
There were several variations of the deal with the Mets, but the two constants were hotshot prospect Lastings Milledge and the veteran Cliff Floyd. At various other times, the package of players included Heath Bell and Ian Bladergroen, who the Mets eventually traded the the Red Sox for Doug Mientkiewicz.
The deal fell apart because of money. The Mets wanted to the Red Sox to kick in some of the $77MM left on Manny's deal, but Boston "wanted to get money back in the deal to pursue the available free agents." Bradford goes through some what-could-have-been scenarios in his article.
Ramirez went on to hit another 120 home runs and win another World Championship with the Red Sox, while the Mets fell just a game short of qualifying for the 2006 Fall Classic. They did, however, land one superstar responsible for helping the Red Sox end their World Series drought that offseason, signing Pedro Martinez to a four year, $53MM deal in December of 2004.
Might The Mets Designate Maine For Assignment?
John Maine started the second game of the season for the Mets, but he hit the disabled list with shoulder weakness following 39.2 innings of 6.13 ERA, 1.82 WHIP ball. He is currently on a rehab assignment and is close to returning to the team, but manager Jerry Manuel seemed to indicate that there was no spot for Maine during today's pre-game press conference.
"I won't take [Hisanori Takahashi] out of rotation," said Manuel. "I don't see [Maine] as a candidate for the bullpen." Both quotes come courtesy of SNY's Kevin Burkhardt (Twitter links). David Lennon of Newsday believes the team may opt to simply designate Maine for assignment once his rehab clock expires (Twitter link).
Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, and Jonathon Niese front the Amazin's rotation, while Takahashi and R.A. Dickey have been holding down the back end during the last few weeks. Takahashi has a 3.15 ERA in six starts, while Dickey has been even better, posting a 2.82 ERA in his six starts.
Maine's velocity has been down noticeably since his string of shoulder issues began in 2008, and he simply hasn't been effective since. He is owned just a touch under $2MM for the remainder of the season, but also has one more year of team control ahead of him.
Olney’s Latest: Rockies, Lee, Diamondbacks, Royals
In today's blog post at ESPN, Buster Olney speculates about some possible trade targets for the Rockies now that Troy Tulowitzki is going to miss the next six to eight weeks with a fractured wrist. Among those mentioned: Dan Uggla, Craig Counsell, Julio Lugo, and Cesar Izturis. Uggla would obviously be the most expensive, but Colorado would boast a dynamic offensive middle infield once Tulo returns.
Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…
- Sources tell Olney there is no clear signal from the Mariners indicating that they're ready to trade Cliff Lee, but presumably that will come soon. He compares a potential Lee trade to the CC Sabathia trade, meaning that the sooner he's dealt, the more Seattle will receive in return.
- The Diamondbacks continue to gather intel about possible trades, but they are not close to making another deal at the moment.
- The Royals have a pair of outfielders in Rick Ankiel and David DeJesus who could be fits for the Red Sox. J.D. Drew suffered a hamstring injury yesterday, and Boston was already without Jacoby Ellsbury and Jeremy Hermida, who are both on the disabled list. Mike Cameron is playing through an abdominal tear as well.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Lee, Orioles, Gomes, Loewen
On this date back in 1996, catcher Chris Anderson delivered a run scoring single for the Hudson Valley Renegades of the short season New York-Penn League. It was the first hit ever recorded by a member of the then-Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization. Anderson was the team's 66th round draft pick that year, but he never made it out of A-ball and hit just .170/.236/.298 in 432 plate appearances before calling it a career in 1999. Every team starts somewhere.
Here are a few links from the baseball blogosphere…
- U.S.S. Mariner dubs the Twins as the favorites to land Cliff Lee this summer.
- Camden Chat likes the Orioles' draft haul, but thinks it could have been better.
- Bernie's Crew uses Milwaukee's roster to show that the later rounds of the draft can be productive as well.
- More Hardball looks at the bang Jonny Gomes has provided for the Reds' buck.
- Liam McGuire's Blog wonders if Adam Loewen is the second coming of Rick Ankiel.
- 1 Blue Jays Way interviewed Tom Filer, former big leaguer and current pitching coach for the Altoona Curve, Pittsburgh's Double-A affiliate.
- Baseball Opinion examines the best and worst picks of the 2005 draft.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
Marlins Designate Renyel Pinto For Assignment
The Marlins have designated lefty reliever Renyel Pinto for assignment, tweets MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. The move clears a roster spot for reliever Tim Wood, who was recalled from Triple-A.
Pinto, 27 next month, had a 2.80 ERA in 15.2 innings for Florida this year, striking out 16 to eight walks. He has actually fared better against righthanded batters in his career than lefties. Pinto is owed approximately $640K for the remainder of the season, and he will be under team control for both the 2011 and 2012 seasons.