Indians Release Scott Lewis
The Indians have released lefthander Scott Lewis, tweets Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer. The 26-year-old had a 2.12 ERA with an 18/4 K/BB ratio in 17 innings for Triple-A Columbus this year, so it doesn't seem like recent performance factored into the move.
Lewis made five starts for the Indians over the last two years, winning four games in as many outings back in 2008. Baseball America ranked him as the team's 21st best prospect as recently as last year. I suspect he won't be out of a job very long.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Greinke, Blalock, Berkman
Lots of cool things have happened on May 14th throughout baseball history. Mickey Mantle joined the 500 homerun club in 1967 (just the sixth player to do so at the time); Reggie Jackson passed Mantle on the all-time homer list with his 537th on the same 1986 day that Cardinals' utility player Jose Oquendo became the first non-pitcher in history to get a decision when he took the loss in extra innings; Doc Gooden threw his no-hitter in 1996, and the Mets set a single game franchise record with seven steals against the Giants in 2009 without the help of Jose Reyes. Also, this happened in 2008.
Here are a few links from around the web…
- Royals Authority thinks about the unthinkable: trading Zack Greinke.
- Pittsburgh Lumber Co. busts the myth that Neal Huntington can't spot talent.
- DRays Bay wonders if the Rays should cut Pat Burrell and replace him with Hank Blalock.
- The Crawfish Boxes looks at Lance Berkman's trade value.
- Feeling Dodger Blue says that Garret Anderson may not be long for the Dodgers.
- At Home Plate says that Carl Crawford's future is uncertain.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
Odds & Ends: Jenkins, Orioles, Molina, Lee, Konerko
Links for Saturday…
- Geoff Jenkins told Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel that he received several offers in Spring Training this year, but they were all jobs in Triple-A, which "wasn't in [his] heart." Earlier tonight we learned that Jenkins is close to announcing his retirement.
- Despite his team's poor start, Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail believes his team is on the right track with their rebuilding effort, says Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun.
- Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News provides a follow-up to today's Bengie Molina discussion in a series of tweets. Baggarly says service time will not factor into Buster Posey's potential promotion, and doesn't think the Giants will shop Molina after Posey arrives. Baggarly adds that Molina's hamstring injury is not serious and no roster move will be needed.
- Molina told Kevin Burkhardt of SNY that he wanted to sign with the Mets and was ready to move his family to New York, but was upset that they refused to increase their offer to two guaranteed years. (hat tip to Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog.com)
- In a CMSB radio interview, Newsday's Ken Davidoff suggests that Cliff Lee and Paul Konerko will be two of the most interesting players to monitor as the trade deadline approaches.
- John Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle has some quotes from Eric Chavez, who admitted feeling pressure to perform since this is the last year of his contract. He also understands that the A's need a productive DH, which he hasn't been. Through 91 plate appearances, Chavez is hitting .220/.275/.305.
- CC Sabathia doesn't believe that Victor Martinez's impending free agency is the reason behind his former battery mate's slow start, according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier. V-Mart is hitting just .267/.330/.381 on the year, though he's picked it up of late.
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post wonders why the Yankees would do business with the injury prone Nick Johnson instead of waiting out Johnny Damon. Johnson left last night's game with a sore right wrist and appears headed for the disabled list.
- Ever wonder what happened to the six players that went to Florida in the Miguel Cabrera–Dontrelle Willis blockbuster? The Detroit Free Press has the answer.
Teams That Could Look For An Upgrade At DH
Designated hitter usually isn't a position that you'll see teams go out and spend big bucks to fill. Most of the 14 AL clubs have an older and fading player still under contract that can't play the field anymore, so a lot of times he'll get the spot by default. Think David Ortiz and Eric Chavez. Even when a team does go into the free agent market for a DH, they usually won't commit more than one year to a player.
Here are a few a clubs getting below average production from a roster spot designed to do nothing but hit…
- Angels: After a hot start, Hideki Matsui has tailed off, and overall the team's DH's are hitting .207/.305/.342.
- Athletics: Chavez isn't getting the job done, posting a .235/.284/.318 batting line.
- Mariners: Mike Sweeney and Ken Griffey Jr. have gotten most of the DH at-bats, and overall the team has gotten just .189/.250/.207 worth of production. They've been rumored to have interest in Jose Guillen.
- Rays: In the second year of his two year deal, Pat Burrell is hitting .222/.321/.375, which is actually an improvement from 2009.
- Red Sox: Ortiz has gotten most of the action at DH, but is hitting just .178/.265/.411.
- White Sox: Chicago's DH spot has been a revolving door, but overall they've hit just .204/.297/.310.
- Yankees: Nick Johnson was signed in the offseason to fill this spot, but he hit .167/.388/.306 before landing on the disabled list with a wrist issue.
If any of those teams want to upgrade their current DH situation, they could turn to the free agent market, where Carlos Delgado (recovering from hip surgery), Jermaine Dye, and Gary Sheffield reside. The trade market could also prove fruitful, as players like Guillen, Lance Berkman, and Luke Scott could be made available.
Geoff Jenkins Close To Announcing Retirement?
Geoff Jenkins has yet to officially announce his retirement, but he tells MLB.com's Adam McCalvy that "the writing's on the wall." The link goes to Twitter.
Jenkins, 36 in July, hasn't played since the 2008 season, when he hit .246/.301/.392 with nine homers in 322 plate appearances for the Phillies. They released him at the end of Spring Training last year. Prior to that, Jenkins spent ten seasons with the Brewers, where he's fifth on the team's all-time list with 1,221 career hits.
If he does in fact all it quits, Jenkins will retire as a .275/.344/.490 hitter with 221 home runs. Not to shabby at all. Baseball Reference says he's earned more than $46MM during his career, so it should be a happy retirement.
Mariners Show Signs Of Interest In Jose Guillen
The Mariners have shown "signs of interest" in Jose Guillen according to Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star, but exactly just how much interest is tough to gauge. Royals' officials indicated that they have yet to receive a formal inquiry.
Guillen, 34 this month, is having a resurgent year with the bat. He's hitting .275/.318/.542 with eight doubles and eight homers in 129 plate appearances, though he's almost exclusively a DH nowadays. This season is the final one on his contract, which is putting $12MM in his pockets this summer.
The Mariners have made no secret about their desire to add offense, especially since their DH spot has been a non-factor – just a .189/.250/.207 batting line with just two extra base hits (both doubles). Mike Sweeney (.172/.273/.172) and Ken Griffey Jr. (216/.266/.243) have been the main culprits. For comparison's sake, NL pitchers are hitting .164/.205/.202, less than a 40 point difference in OPS.
Kansas City would assuredly have to eat some money to make a deal happen, and generally speaking, the more money a team eats, the more they get in return. They've been said to be looking for any kind of pitching, just like everyone else.
Olney’s Latest: Oswalt, Berkman, Rays, Wood
In today's blog post at ESPN, Buster Olney discusses the trade value of Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman, which might not be as good as owner Drayton McLane would like. One GM noted that Houston's ace battled back trouble last year, which makes him a scary investment because of the potential to underperform and/or breakdown.
Another executive noted that the contracts of both players might be prohibitive. Oswalt is guaranteed $33MM through 2011, while Berkman is making $15MM this season with a $2MM buyout of his $15MM club option for next season. It's also worth noting that the first baseman is hitting just .185/.290/.352 in 62 plate appearances since coming off the disabled list. If McLane decides to move one of his franchise players, it might be a tough pill to swallow since the return is expected to be less than stellar.
Here's the rest of Olney's rumors…
- Despite having the game's best record and run differential, the Rays need a righthanded reliever and lefty hitting designated hitter. The latter will likely have to come from outside the organization, and the opportunity to acquire such a player will assuredly arise during the summer. Remember, the Rays do have Hank Blalock hitting .388/.448/.541 in Triple-A.
- Olney speculates that the team could use top prospect Jeremy Hellickson as that righty reliever, though it might compromise their rotation depth since he's effectively their sixth starter.
- Kerry Wood's injury probably increased the chances that he'll be traded, because now his $11MM option for next season is unlikely to vest.
Kenny Williams On Trade Chatter
The White Sox may or may not have inquired about Astros' first baseman Lance Berkman according to Scot Gregor of The Daily Herald, but there's no chance GM Kenny Williams is putting together a package to acquire him. However, that didn't stop Williams from talking about the state of the trade market…
“I don’t think anyone is really prepared to make any deals right now,” said Williams. “And any interest expressed in any players out there who are impact guys has been done so for quite some time. There really isn’t much substance to anything at this stage of the season. Another 30 games, and you’ll start to see talk pick up."
“But if you’re not playing well it doesn’t make any sense to go down those roads, anyway. You've got to warrant that.”
The White Sox are just 12-17 on the young season, and their offense has been carried by the resurgent Andruw Jones and Paul Konerko. They've gotten basically no production out of catcher (.626 OPS), second base (.554), shortstop (.557), third base (.649), and left field (.644), so there's plenty of room for improvement.
Of course, if the club continues to struggle, then the White Sox could become sellers, rather than buyers. In that case, a player like Konerko could be an attractive trading chip, as CBSSports.com's Danny Knobler points out. This is the last year of Konerko's five-year, $60MM contract, so a budget-conscious contender would just have to take on two or three months' worth of Konerko's $12MM 2010 salary without making a long-term commitment. Konerko could fit right in on a team like the Rays — they have a hole at DH with the struggling Pat Burrell, their minor league system is deep enough to spare a decent prospect even for a short-term rental player, and in Konerko, they get a veteran right-handed bat who knows AL pichers well and has lots of postseason experience. Konerko has the right to veto a trade, but he might welcome the chance to join a pennant contender like Tampa Bay.
MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post
Discussion: The Ideal Trade
Every year we see countless trades involving every kind of player, from established big leaguers to promising prospects to minor league roster filler. Most of the time, one team ends up getting the better end of the deal, whether or not that's apparent at the time of the trade is a different story all together.
Moshe Mandel at TYU posed an interesting question today: does a GM want to see the prospects he's traded away succeed? Are the Phillies rooted for Kyle Drabek or against him? What about the Yankees and Austin Jackson, or the Red Sox and Nick Hagadone? Furthermore, what about the big leaguers traded away? Does a GM want to see those players do well?
I believe that the best trades are those that benefit both teams, because they've not improved your ball club but also your reputation with other clubs as well, which can help with future deals. Some might not agree, and think that the best deals involve improving their team while hurting another.
What about you? What does your ideal trade look like; is it a win-win, or something else? Is it wrong to want to see someone you've traded away fail?
Amaro On The Impact Of Ryan Howard’s Deal
Phillies' GM Ruben Amaro Jr. appeared on the MLB Network Radio channel on Sirius XM Radio with host Rob Dibble and Jim Memolo today to discuss, among other things, how Ryan Howard's massive contract extension will impact decisions that need to be made about other players on the roster.
“Well, hopefully it’s a positive effect," said Amaro, "that the players understand that we’re trying to prolong our success … I’ll be specific, with guys like Jayson Werth who could potentially be free agents, you know, we’d love to keep him … We’d love to sign him back. It’s going to be my job to try to put all the pieces together. We don’t have an unlimited budget and we’re going to have to be intelligent about how we handle things but we’re hopeful that we can put all of the pieces together to continue the trend of being a contender.”
Werth is one of several Phillies that can be free agents after the season, but he's the only one that's going to cost big bucks to keep. Philadelphia does have outfielder and top prospect Domonic Brown hitting .347/.402/.667 in Double-A (82 plate appearances), so they do have a pretty good backup plan already in house.
Amaro is correct in saying that Howard's deal is a statement about how the team wants to prolong success, which is attractive to both possible free agent targets and players already on the roster. Then again, so are two consecutive National League pennants.