Luis Hernandez Drawing Trade Interest
Mets infielder Luis Hernandez is drawing trade interest, according to ESPN's Adam Rubin. The Mets appear poised to give the backup middle infield job to Chin-lung Hu instead. Hernandez is out of options, and Rubin does not think he would clear waivers. The Mets signed Hernandez to a minor league deal back in February of last year.
Hernandez's trade value is limited, as glove-only middle infielders are not hard to come by in most organizations. MLB.com's Corey Brock can envision the Padres having interest (Twitter link). The Padres are known to be eyeing Alberto Gonzalez and Robert Andino, who are both out of options. For our full list of out of options players, click here.
Olney On Shortstops, Juan Cruz, Mets
The latest from the blog of ESPN's Buster Olney…
- Olney muses on who the Giants might look at as a midseason acquisition if Miguel Tejada does not work out at shortstop. He comes up with Jose Reyes, Marco Scutaro, and Jack Wilson as possible trade candidates. I can see Stephen Drew, J.J. Hardy, and Ronny Cedeno as other possibilities.
- Evaluators tell Olney Rays reliever Juan Cruz looks excellent. Apparently recovered from shoulder surgery, Cruz has allowed one run in eight spring innings. He's whiffed nine and allowed only two hits, but also walked seven.
- The Mets intend to keep Rule 5 picks Brad Emaus and Pedro Beato, according to Olney. With Justin Turner being cut today, Emaus certainly appears to be the second base starter. Joel Sherman of the New York Post digs into the Mets' logic with Emaus here. The infielder, 25 on Monday, hit .298/.395/.495 at Triple-A last year.
A’s Could Extend Daric Barton
"It's a good bet" that A's pitcher Trevor Cahill "will be signed through at least his arbitration years soon," according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. What's more, first baseman Daric Barton "is a strong possibility" to be signed through at least his arbitration years as well. MLBTR's Luke Adams looked at the Cahill possibility last September, so let's focus on Barton.
Barton, 25, hit .273/.393/.405 in 686 plate appearances last year, leading the American League with 110 walks. The A's also consider Barton's defense and durability to be positives, according to Slusser. The first baseman did deal with a few injuries in 2009, and also spent a good portion of the season in the minors due to Jason Giambi's presence. He'll be arbitration eligible for the first time after the 2011 season.
Barton is a very unique first baseman, and new agent Dan Lozano would have a hard time getting him properly compensated through the arbitration system. Barton's value is tied to his OBP and defense; he only has 26 home runs and 136 RBI in 1,485 career plate appearances. How unique is it for someone to play 150 games at first base and post an OBP of at least .390 with a SLG under .410, as Barton did last year? According to the Baseball-Reference play index, the only other player to do it in the last 30 years was Mike Hargrove for the Indians in 1980.
If my theory that a player like Barton would be a bargain in arbitration is correct, the A's should only extend him if they're getting a big discount or control of free agent years. From Lozano's point of view a great comparable would be Billy Butler, who is a also a little short on power but still signed for $30MM over four years ($19MM for his three arbitration years, $8MM for one free agent season, and a club option for a second). The A's might argue that Barton better resembles a healthier Nick Johnson, though Johnson's three-year extension came at a much different point in his career. Both Butler and Johnson, though, have at least flashed 20 home run power in their careers.
Farm System Rankings
Baseball America's annual farm system rankings are out, with a few changes from their 2011 Handbook due to the Matt Garza trade. The Rays' haul pushed them to #2 over the Braves, while the Cubs' losses knocked them from #8 to #16.
For more farm system rankings, check out ESPN's Keith Law and Baseball Prospectus' Kevin Goldstein. Keep in mind that graduating prospects to the bigs is a bad thing for a team in these rankings, which as Law notes represent a snapshot. Also, Goldstein provides haikus.
If you look at rankings from all three side-by-side, you'll see that there is a consensus that the Royals, Rays, and Braves should be ranked #1, 2, and 3. The Blue Jays, Yankees, and Reds have consensus top ten systems, with Toronto placing no worse than fifth. There is also agreement that the Astros, Marlins, and Brewers belong in the bottom five. Outliers: BA dislikes the A's and Angels more than the others, Law isn't as high on the Indians but likes the Cardinals and D'Backs, and BA likes the Dodgers more than the others.
AL East Links: All Five Teams
Plenty of storylines in the AL East this year; here are a few…
- Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos talked to Jeff Blair on the Fan 590 yesterday, and Andrew Stoeten of Drunk Jays Fans has highlights. Anthopoulos talked about Aroldis Chapman, Frank Francisco, Brett Lawrie, and Juan Rivera among other things.
- Much has been written lately about Rays' manager Joe Maddon's attempt to handle Manny Ramirez. Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald has quotes from the manager today. ESPN's Jayson Stark tackled the Manny-Rays topic in depth yesterday, with one veteran big league coach and manager asserting, "I know one thing. It will end horribly."
- Despite being knocked around yesterday, Yankees pitcher Sergio Mitre told Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News, "That's one thing that never even crossed my mind – whether I'm making the team or not." Mitre seems to be battling Freddy Garcia for a long relief job.
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman talked about how Jesus Montero's defense seems to be slipping in tandem with his batting slump, in this article from Feinsand's colleague John Harper. Montero might be best served at Triple-A for development and trade value purposes.
- Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has extensive quotes from Adrian Gonzalez's agent John Boggs, as the good vibes about an April extension continue. WEEI's Alex Speier explains that trading for Gonzalez rather than signing him as a free agent gives Boston a more desirable slice of the first baseman's career and also saves them perhaps $25MM or more. I think the value of the careers of the prospects given up easily surpasses that amount of savings, but that's slightly negated by the Sox not having to give up a draft pick to get Adrian.
- Orioles president Andy MacPhail admitted to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun that service time is a factor in their decision whether to have top prospect Zach Britton break camp with the team. At least he's being upfront about it. Britton has allowed one run in 14 innings this spring.
- Here's how the AL East stacks up in Baseball America's organizational talent rankings: the Rays are #2, the Blue Jays are #4, the Yankees are #5, the Red Sox are #17, and the Orioles are #21.
Nationals Notes: Elvin Ramirez, Ivan Rodriguez
The latest on the Nationals, as John Lannan completes a strong spring start against the Astros…
- Rule 5 pick Elvin Ramirez, a reliever taken from the Mets, should start throwing light bullpens soon according to GM Mike Rizzo. The info comes from Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post, who suggests Ramirez could start the season on the DL and buy the Nationals some time. For my post on the latest on all 19 Major League Rule 5 picks, click here.
- The Nationals contacted the Red Sox about a potential Ivan Rodriguez trade, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. However, the Sox are only looking for veteran Triple-A depth at most. Previously, reports have indicated that the Nats are willing to move a catcher.
- The Nationals also have Roger Bernadina and Nyjer Morgan scrapping for a spot on the team, Rosenthal notes. Both players have minor league options remaining.
- Nationals fans, don't forget that you can follow the club's rumors via our Facebook and Twitter pages and RSS feed.
Rumores de Béisbol Reminder
In case you missed it last week, MLBTR launched a Spanish-language sister site called Rumores de Béisbol. Given baseball's international appeal, we've got a strong team of human translators posting hot stove content throughout the day. Check RDB out and spread the word to your Spanish-speaking friends!
Pirates Release Fernando Nieve
The Pirates released pitcher Fernando Nieve, reports Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The 28-year-old righty struck out eight and walked two in 7 1/3 spring innings, but somehow also managed to allow 17 hits.
Last year for the Mets, Nieve posted a 6.00 ERA, 8.1 K/9, 4.7 BB/9, 2.1 HR/9, and 37% groundball rate in 42 innings. 18.5% of his flyballs left the yard, a rate that led all of MLB among those with at least 40 innings. Nieve also made eight starts in Triple-A, posting a 5.63 ERA. He signed a minor league deal with the Pirates on December 1st.
Five years ago Nieve was the Astros' third-best prospect in the eyes of Baseball America. Back then he was said to have a plus fastball and slider, and a comparison to Ugueth Urbina was considered a positive.
Cesar Carrillo Clears Waivers
Cesar Carrillo's journey will continue in Oklahoma City, as he's been outrighted and cleared waivers according to a tweet from MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. Carrillo was claimed off waivers by the Astros from the Padres to conclude a tumultuous September for the right-hander. A January trespassing arrest probably did not help Carrillo's stock.
Carrillo, 27 next month, was drafted by the Padres with the 18th overall pick in 2005 but needed Tommy John surgery soon after. In various stints in the high minors in recent years, Carrillo's strikeout rate has been poor and he's been very hittable. He last cracked a Baseball America Prospect Handbook before the '09 season, when the publication said "his stuff is still recovering" from the June '07 surgery.
Best Arbitration Eligible Pitchers Without Extensions
Earlier today we looked at the best arbitration eligible position players without extensions, including Geovany Soto, Prince Fielder, Shin-Soo Choo, and Hunter Pence. Now let's tackle the best arbitration eligible starting pitchers currently on one-year deals. I've included agency info from our database.