Athletics Designate Rich Thompson For Assignment
The Athletics have designated Rich Thompson for assignment, the team announced. The move creates room on the 40-man roster for Jim Miller, who was recalled from Triple-A.
Thompson, 27, was claimed off waivers from the Angels last week. He faced three batters during his brief time with Oakland, allowing a single in between two outs. The Angels designated the Australian-born right-hander for assignment after he allowed four runs in his first 2 1/3 innings of the season. Thompson pitched to a 3.00 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 54 innings last season and is out of options, meaning he can't be sent to the minors without first clearing waivers.
Quick Hits: Padres, Jurrjens, Reds, Angels
Here are some links from around the league as Tuesday turns into Wednesday…
- "We’re open-minded and we’re seriously considering it," said Padres interim CEO Tom Garfinkel to Bill Center of The San Diego Union-Tribune when asked about moving the fences in at Petco Park. “We’d have to submit plans by the end of the season," he added. "I don’t think a final decision needs to be made until October."
- The Braves were close to trading Jair Jurrjens and Jairo Asencio to the Reds for Chris Heisey and Juan Francisco this offseason, reports MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Jurrjens is a potential non-tender candidate after being sent to the minors this week.
- The Angels' first pick in this summer's draft with be #114 overall, writes Lance Pugmire of The Los Angeles Times. Anaheim surrendered their first and second rounders to sign Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson respectively.
- ESPN's Keith Law conducted a 2002 redraft with the benefit of hindsight. Curtis Granderson, Brian McCann, and Cole Hamels were his new top three picks. Bryan Bullington, B.J. Upton, and Chris Gruler were the actual top three picks that year.
Mets Links: Mike Pelfrey, Jason Bay
Jose Reyes played his first game at CitiField as a Marlin tonight after leaving New York for Miami and $106MM this offseason. Here's the latest on the Amazin's…
- Right-hander Mike Pelfrey was placed on the DL with an elbow injury today, and ESPN New York's Adam Rubin hears he suffered a partial tear of his UCL and could be out for the season. Pelfrey is headed for a second opinion and was a non-tender candidate even before the injury.
- Jason Bay was also placed on the DL today, and Rubin points out that the outfielder's 2014 option vests if one of two conditions are met: 500 plate appearances this year and next or 600 plate appearances in 2013. Bay currently has 57 plate appearances and the injury could impact the first condition.
- Earlier today we had some notes about the left side of the Mets' infield, shortstop Ruben Tejada and third baseman David Wright.
Make Or Break Year: Jair Jurrjens
The Braves boast an enviable collection of young pitchers, enough that they were able to trade Derek Lowe this offseason, lose Tim Hudson to injury, and still go 10-7 early on. Mike Minor, Brandon Beachy, and Tommy Hanson have carried the bulk of the workload while Randall Delgado cuts his teeth as the fifth starter and Julio Teheran bides his time in Triple-A. One guy who has not carried his weight so far is right-hander Jair Jurrjens.
Jurrjens, 26, made a fourth straight disaster start last night – five runs in three innings to the Dodgers – and was demoted to Triple-A after the game. He's allowed 17 runs and put 38 men on base in 16 1/3 innings across those four starts after posting a 2.96 ERA and being named to the NL All-Star Team last year. Jurrjens did finish last season on the disabled list though, missing a total of 44 games with right knee inflammation. He had surgery on the same knee after the 2010 season and has made a total of five trips to the disabled list since his debut in 2007.
The biggest physical concern with Jurrjens is not necessarily his knee, but his declining fastball velocity. PitchFX data says he averaged between 91.2 and 91.9 mph every year from 2007-2010 before dropping off to 89.1 mph last season and 88.4 mph in the early going this season. The start-by-start plot of his fastball velocity range is troubling, especially since he had shoulder problems in 2007 (inflammation) and 2010 (stiffness). Only once in his four years had Jurrjens topped 200 innings (2009) and only twice has he topped 160 innings (2008 and 2009).
Although his ERA has fluctuated through the years, Jurrjens has maintained a steady walk (3.2 BB/9) and strikeout (6.1 K/9) rate through his career. He started his time in the big leagues by getting a healthy amount of ground balls (49.6% from 2007-2008), though he's become more susceptible to fly balls in recent years (41.7% from 2009-2012). After producing 3.7 and 3.9 wins above replacement in 2008 and 2009 according to FanGraphs, respectively, he's produced just 2.2 WAR total in the two years and three weeks since.
Jurrjens will make $5.5MM this season, his second year of arbitration eligibility as a Super Two. The Braves made no secret of their willingness to trade him this past offseason, most notably offering him to the Orioles as part of a package for Adam Jones. They also had talks with the Rockies, Red Sox, Royals, Orioles, Blue Jays, Tigers, and Reds. Given his relatively high salary, two more years of arbitration eligibility, his injury problems, and all the young arms in the rotation around him, Jurrjens suddenly looks like a potential non-tender candidate if he can't right the ship in Triple-A and contribute to the big league club this season.
Photo courtesy of US Presswire.
Red Sox Notes: Mike Gonzalez, Aaron Cook
Carl Crawford had his strained left elbow examined in Boston today, though the team is still "gathering information" according to manager Bobby Valentine. Crawford had been expected to rejoin the team in early-May, but the results of these latest tests are not available yet. Here's the latest from Beantown…
- The Red Sox are not interested in Mike Gonzalez, reports Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe (on Twitter). Yesterday we heard that the left-handed reliever could sign within ten days.
- “I’ll make a decision when I feel like it’s time to make a decision,” said Aaron Cook to WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. Cook is pitching well in Triple-A and can opt out of his contract with Boston on May 1st. “I haven’t made a decision yet," he added.
- In an Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Jim Bowden listed five moves that could fix the Red Sox, including trades for Miguel Montero and Huston Street.
Diamondbacks Designate Albaladejo For Assignment
The Diamondbacks have designated right-hander Jonathan Albaladejo for assignment, the team announced. The move creates 40-man roster space for left-hander Mike Zagurski, who was recalled from Triple-A.
Albaladejo, 29, allowed two hits in an inning of work last night, his only appearance of the season. He spent last season with the Yomiuri Giants and prior to that he had pitched for the Yankees and Nationals. Albaladejo owns a 4.10 ERA in 74 2/3 career innings and was part of the trade that sent Tyler Clippard to Washington five years ago.
Waiver Claims Helping Their New Teams
The Rays claimed Brandon Allen off waivers from the Athletics two days ago, improving their bench with some left-handed power. Most waiver claims have little impact, but every so often a team will dig up a useful piece. With some help from our Transaction Tracker, here's a list of players who have been claimed off waivers since the start of the offseason and are now contributing to their new team at the big league level…
- Darren O'Day, Orioles – 1.29 ERA in seven relief innings since being claimed from the Rangers.
- Alfredo Simon, Reds – 4.26 ERA in 6 1/3 relief innings since being claimed from the Orioles.
- Cody Eppley, Yankees – Allowed a single to only batter he's faced since being claimed from the Rangers.
- Justin Maxwell, Astros – Hitting .200/.250/.400 with one homer in 16 plate appearances since being claimed from the Yankees.
- Clete Thomas, Twins — Hitting .231/.286/.538 with one homer in 14 plate appearances since being claimed from the Tigers.
Brian Bixler had one hit and one walk in seven plate appearances with the Astros after being claimed from the Nationals, but he's since been removed from the 40-man roster and assigned to Triple-A.
Padres Prepared To Release Orlando Hudson
The Padres have the worst record in baseball at 3-12, and a shake-up could be on the horizon. Scott Miller of CBSSports.com reports that they are prepared to release Orlando Hudson if the veteran second baseman does not turn things around soon.
Hudson, 34, is hitting just .156/.191/.200 with one stolen base in 47 plate appearances this season, and Miller hears he has been a "non-presence" with younger players in the clubhouse. Utility infielder Andy Parrino started consecutive games at second base earlier this week. Hudson's release could coincide with the return of infield prospect Logan Forsythe, who will resume workouts this weekend after undergoing ankle surgery this spring.
Hudson signed a two-year, $11.5MM contract with San Diego last offseason. He is owed $5.5MM this season and the $2MM buyout of his $8MM club option for next season. The Padres will still have to pay him the full $7.5MM should they decide to cut ties.
Red Sox Close To Acquiring Marlon Byrd
2:23pm: The deal remains probable but timing issues remain, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The Cubs are likely to pay most of Byrd's remaining $6.5MM salary and Red Sox pitcher Michael Bowden is in play.
2:19pm: The structure of Byrd's deal could help the Red Sox' payroll for luxury tax purposes, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com. If the Cubs sent $5.5MM to Boston to offset the outfielder's salary, then it would actually decrease the Red Sox' payroll number that sum would be subtracted from Byrd's $5MM average annual salary.
The veteran is set to earn $6.5MM in the final year of a three-year, $15MM deal.
1:34pm: Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine acknowledged to reporters that the club's talks with the Cubs are advanced, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. “The talks have been good talks, from what I gather,” Valentine said. “Ben [Cherington] will try to get as good a player as he can get.”
12:17pm: The Cubs have been actively attempting to trade Byrd according to WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. A trade with the Red Sox is not final, but Bradford hears that it is "probable." Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter) that Boston has looked at other outfield options as well.
10:59am: The Red Sox are close to acquiring Marlon Byrd from the Cubs, reports Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe. Boston has been actively exploring the outfield market following Jacoby Ellsbury's shoulder injury.
Byrd, 34, has just three singles and one walk in 47 plate appearances this season, resulting in a .070/.149/.070 batting line. He hit .276/.324/.395 in 482 plate appearances last season while missing time with multiple fractures after taking a pitch to the face, an injury that occurred in Fenway Park. Byrd is in the final season of his three-year, $15MM contract and will earn $6.5MM this year. He is not in Chicago's lineup this afternoon.
Ellsbury's subluxed his right shoulder last week and there is still not timetable for his return. Carl Crawford is also on the shelf with wrist and elbow problems, leaving the Red Sox with an outfield of Jason Repko, Ryan Sweeney, Cody Ross, and Darnell McDonald. Byrd has played center field exclusively during his time with the Cubs, though he has experience in all three outfield spots.
If completed, this will be the first real trade between the two teams since Theo Epstein left the Red Sox to take over as Chicago's president of baseball operations. The two sides did work out the compensation package for Epstein, however.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Giants, Damon, Red Sox
Six years ago today, Julio Franco hit a pinch-hit home run for the Mets against the Padres in Petco Park. At 47 years and 240 days old, the blast made Franco the oldest player to ever hit a homer. He went on to hit two more homers in his career, extending his own record. Here's the latest from the baseball blogosphere, which hopefully ages as gracefully as Franco did…
- Baseball in the Blood interviewed Natalie Niekro, daughter of the late Joe Niekro.
- Jays Journal interviewed Blue Jays prospect Noah Syndergaard.
- Rumbunter interviewed Pirates prospects Kyle McPherson and Zack Von Rosenberg.
- Marlins Nation interviewed Marlins prospect Jacob Realmuto.
- Padres Prospects has an update on Casey Kelly's elbow injury.
- I-70 Baseball says Joey Votto's deal shouldn't worry Royals fans about Eric Hosmer.
- Bay City Ball is really, really happy with the Madison Bumgarner extension.
- Giants Nirvana wrote about Brian Wilson's future with the Giants.
- MLB Reports looks at how the Giants can replace Wilson this season.
- Swingin' A's wrote about the Giants, the Athletics, and San Jose.
- Wahoo's on First tries to figure out where Johnny Damon fits with the Indians.
- Bless You Boys doesn't know why Brandon Inge is still on the Tigers.
- Over The Monster wonders if Bobby Valentine is trying to get himself fired.
- Sports of Boston is curious why Valentine relies so heavily on his bench.
- The Best Sox Blog lists some relievers who could interest the Red Sox.
- BoSox Injection wrote about Kevin Youkilis and Boston's third base situation.
- Pirates Prospects list three reasons why the Pirates should trade Joel Hanrahan.
- The Nats Blog says the Nationals are right to control Stephen Strasburg's workload.
- Puckett's Pond tries to figure out how the Twins can replace Scott Baker.
- Halos Daily analyzed Vernon Wells' new swing.
- Redbird Rants wrote about the depth of the Cardinals' bench.
- The Beanball explained the important of bench depth.
- Camden Crazies wonders if Matt Wieters is the best catcher in baseball.
- Warehouse Worthy tries to figure out who is the Orioles' worst pitcher.
- AL Eastbound & Down says Kyle Drabek is starting to look like an elite pitcher.
- Know Hitter went back and reviewed the Miguel Cabrera trade.
- The True Sports Fan's Blog mused about David Wright's future.
- The Futurists wrote about Heath Bell's rise as a non-prospect.
- Blog Red Machine thinks Scott Rolen is a Hall of Famer.
- 85% Sports wonders if the Pittsburgh Pirates are the next Tampa Bay Rays.
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