Dodgers Interested In Paul Maholm
The Dodgers are interested in Pirates lefty Paul Maholm, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Yahoo's Tim Brown wrote yesterday that the Dodgers "have been very aggressive in their pursuit of pitching."
Maholm, 28, has a 4.03 ERA, 4.5 K/9, and 3.2 BB/9 in 114 innings, with nine home runs allowed. With so few strikeouts, it's likely that Maholm's ERA will be higher from here on out. On the plus side, his 50.3% groundball rate ranks 12th in the National League according to FanGraphs. That rate has been higher in previous seasons.
Maholm signed a three-year, $14.5MM extension in January of 2009. He's got only $1.86MM remaining this year, $5.75MM in 2011, and a $9.75MM club option for '12 with a $750K buyout. That's $8.36MM guaranteed through '11, which has to be enticing for the Dodgers given their financial constraints.
Xavier Nady’s Contract Bonuses
Cubs outfielder/first baseman Xavier Nady has $1.36MM remaining in base salary on the contract he signed in January. Additionally, it's important to look at the $2.05MM worth of bonuses Nady can potentially earn. MLBTR has obtained the breakdown:
Plate Appearances
- 300: $125K
- 350: $250K
- 400: $250K
- 450: $275K
- 500: $300K
- 525: $175K
Games Started
- 70: $100K
- 85: $125K
- 100: $200K
- 110: $250K
Nady has tallied 158 plate appearances and 33 starts for the Cubs so far, with a .221/.291/.343 line. If installed as a regular, it's possible he hits the 300 and 350 benchmarks, and 400 isn't out of the question. The 70 and 85 games started marks are also within reach. A maximum of $850K in bonuses must be considered in trade discussions, though I think Nady is likely to end up with $475K or less.
Talking to CSNChicago's Patrick Mooney, Nady said he thinks he could tolerate playing every day, though there might be setbacks depending on how many hard throws are required of his surgically-repaired elbow. The Rangers, Angels, Yankees, and Padres might make sense, assuming the Cubs send cash to cover most of the contract.
The Prince Fielder Market
Earlier this month we learned that the Brewers are listening to offers for first baseman Prince Fielder. One school of thought is that Fielder's value is at its highest since, as one GM told ESPN's Buster Olney, "he can impact two pennant races." Another is that Brewers GM Doug Melvin can get more teams involved in the offseason and drive up the price. At any rate, let's summarize the current Fielder situation.
Contract
Fielder, a Scott Boras client, signed a two-year, $18MM extension in January of 2009. $4.34MM remains on that contract through the end of the season, and then Fielder will be arbitration-eligible for 2011. One exec I spoke to feels the slugger could earn around $15-16MM in '11 before reaching free agency and seeking $100MM+ on a multiyear deal.
Performance
Fielder's power is down overall this year, as he's hitting .265/.396/.509 and striking out more than ever. However, he's slugging .618 since June 1st – more in line with his '09 performance. And even though doubles and triples are down, Fielder leads the NL with 23 home runs.
Asking Price
In today's blog Olney writes that "the Brewers' clear preference will be for young power pitching." The deal would have to be built around a household name – a hurler found on Baseball America's midseason top 50 prospects list or a flamethrower who was recently promoted. I'm guessing the Brewers would want a top 100 prospect as well, and those two players would form the foundation of the deal.
Interested Teams
- White Sox: GM Kenny Williams says "only a small group of players" can help him, and many baseball writers feel that Fielder is probably on Williams' list. Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel notes that the Brewers scouted Daniel Hudson last night. Is Hudson the type of player you can build a Fielder deal around? It may be a moot point, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Sox are "not on Fielder."
- Rays: They certainly have the goods, with pitchers such as Jeremy Hellickson and Wade Davis. However, a source of Yahoo's Jeff Passan says the Rays "won't go near" Fielder, perhaps because of his likely 2011 salary.
- Giants: With Madison Bumgarner or Jonathan Sanchez, Passan feels the Giants could swing a Fielder deal. They've also got Zach Wheeler, who is further away but rates very highly. On the other hand, ESPN's Buster Olney tweeted on July 3rd that there had been no recent trade talks between the teams. That same day Olney opined that he didn't think the Giants could acquire Fielder without Matt Cain.
- Angels: It's believed they prefer a rental at first base, since Kendry Morales will be ready for the '11 season. For what it's worth, Torii Hunter would like to see the Angels acquire Fielder or Adam Dunn.
- You could dream up various other scenarios, though we haven't seen anything about the Mets, Dodgers, or Rangers being interested in Fielder. Things could open up in the winter, as a surprise team could splurge for a year of Fielder in the way that the Athletics acquired Matt Holliday.
Teams Scouting John Buck?
A slew of scouts attended last night's Blue Jays-Royals game in Kansas City, reports Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun. The Tigers, Red Sox, Yankees, Twins, and Phillies were represented. The Reds and Mets scouted the Jays over the weekend. Clearly some of this scouting extends beyond normal coverage. Toronto's roster is littered with trade candidates: Scott Downs, Kevin Gregg, Jason Frasor, Jose Bautista, and Lyle Overbay. But several of the aforementioned teams need catching and may have been on hand to observe All-Star catcher John Buck.
Buck had a pair of doubles in the contest, bringing his line to .278/.309/.504 through 265 plate appearances. He's flashed power before, but in this season he's slugged at least .462 in every month. Buck recently turned 30 and will be a free agent after the season. He just sneaks in as a Type B right now. It's not difficult to imagine Buck receiving and turning down an arbitration offer, so his status boosts his trade value. Asher Wojciechowski (Blue Jays) and Drew Vettleson (Rays) were compensation picks at #41 and #42 overall this year, so GM Alex Anthopoulos will presumably aim for a player or package he likes more than that level of draft pick.
Elliott feels that the Tigers, Red Sox, and Reds are teams that might have interest in Buck.
Red Sox Rumors: Relievers, Beltre
Red Sox rumors from those covering the team…
- GM Theo Epstein said he isn't close to any trades, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Cafardo lists Scott Downs, Kerry Wood, Kyle Farnsworth, and David Aardsma as potentially available relievers, but says "the Sox aren’t crazy about bringing Aardsma back unless they could do so cheaply." Cafardo lists familiar names on the outfield front in David DeJesus and Cody Ross, while noting that Corey Hart "is likely out of Boston's range." Cafardo does not see the Sox pursuing a starting pitcher.
- MLB Network's Peter Gammons chimes in on Downs, tweeting, "before [the Yunel] Escobar deal, [the Blue Jays] wanted [Jose] Iglesias for Downs." That gives you an idea of the Jays' initial asking price for one of the best available relievers; the Dodgers, Yankees, and Phillies are also known to be interested.
- Gammons also tweets that the Rockies turned down an offer of Jed Lowrie for Chris Iannetta. We learned last night that the Sox are not currently pursuing Iannetta, however.
- Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald confirms yesterday's report that the Sox are interested in Florida's Leo Nunez. However, Lauber writes that, "they believe the Marlins will require a hefty return" for the righty reliever.
- Adrian Beltre is not thinking about his next contract yet, learned WEEI's Alex Speier.
Odds & Ends: Guthrie, Ross, Ranaudo
A year ago today, the Brewers acquired Felipe Lopez from the Diamondbacks for prospects Roque Mercedes and Cole Gillespie. Lopez raked after the trade, but was not offered arbitration by the Brewers. Gillespie and Mercedes ranked among Arizona's top 30 prospects heading into the season according to Baseball America, with the former now playing for the big league club. On to today's links…
- The Mets scouted Jeremy Guthrie's last start, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Guthrie could make for an interesting project, as one scout told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, "He should be better than he is."
- The relief trade market is "absolutely terrible," one talent evaluator told ESPN's Buster Olney (Twitter link).
- The Padres are not a fit for Marlins outfielder Cody Ross, according to Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse. The Padres prefer David DeJesus instead, tweets Dan Hayes of the North County Times.
- Astros owner Drayton McLane "seems paralyzed by indecision," writes Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle.
- SI's Jon Heyman ranks the 24 best available position players, starting with Prince Fielder.
- Red Sox draft pick Anthony Ranaudo is done pitching in the Cape Cod League, reported Brian Foley of The College Baseball Blog yesterday. The consensus among prospect gurus is that Ranaudo had nothing left to prove. An elbow injury and representation by Scott Boras caused Ranaudo to drop to the Sox at #39 in the June draft.
- The Mariners should aim to be competitive in 2012, writes Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner.
- Former Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi offered a few stories of near-deals on WEEI's The Big Show on Friday.
Red Sox, Yankees Interested In Scott Downs
The Red Sox and Yankees have "big-time" interest in Blue Jays reliever Scott Downs, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Downs, a free agent after the season, has a 2.56 ERA, 7.0 K/9, and 1.9 BB/9 in 38.6 innings this year.
Neither team's interest comes as a surprise. The Red Sox have been linked to Downs since this July 6th report from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The Yankees are known to be seeking relief help. The Phillies are also said to be interested in Downs. Last week on WEEI's The Big Show, former Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi praised Downs as a potential Red Sox acquisition but had harsh words for Jason Frasor and Kevin Gregg.
ESPN's Buster Olney had an interesting series of tweets today on Downs, where he explained that the lefty might be hurt by Type A designation if he is offered and turns down arbitration after the season. Perhaps Downs' agent at CAA will advise the pitcher to accept if offered. A look at our latest Elias Rankings projections shows that Matt Guerrier, Frank Francisco, Dan Wheeler, Arthur Rhodes, and Pedro Feliciano might be in the same boat as Type As, though I imagine many will not be offered arbitration.
Rosenthal On Iannetta, Athletics, Bautista
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports kicks off his latest column with a look at Alex Rodriguez's $30MM worth of home run incentives. The chase isn't generating the buzz the Yankees anticipated when they re-signed A-Rod. On to Rosenthal's rumors…
- Talks are on again between the Red Sox and Rockies regarding catcher Chris Iannetta. The Rockies would want to improve their big league club with an in-season deal, so perhaps we'll hear heightened Iannetta buzz during the offseason if Miguel Olivo is retained.
- The Nationals do not seem to have chosen a course with Adam Dunn in terms of trading or extending him now.
- The Athletics have no intention of trading Coco Crisp or Mark Ellis, as both players have club options for 2011.
- Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli is "a frequent trade target of rival clubs," but the team likes having depth at the catcher position.
- As part of the Yunel Escobar–Alex Gonzalez talks, the Braves and Blue Jays discussed Jose Bautista. For now, the Braves still have time to evaluate Nate McLouth's recovery from a concussion. MLB.com's Mark Bowman wrote today that the Braves have considered David DeJesus, Cody Ross, Corey Hart, and Josh Willingham as potential trade targets.
Rays Sign Baldelli To Minor League Contract
12:46pm: Baldelli has officially been signed to a minor league deal, according to a Rays press release.
12:09pm: Rocco Baldelli is expected to sign a minor league contract with the Rays this afternoon, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. Topkin says Baldelli is set to DH tonight for the team's High A club, the Charlotte Stone Crabs. The Crabs boast familiar names such as Tim Beckham, Matt Moore, and Matt Bush. Baldelli is transitioning from a special assistant role and trying to come back from a shoulder injury. He hit .253/.311/.433 in 164 plate appearances for the Red Sox last year.
Yankees Prioritizing Bench, Bullpen Help
ESPN's Buster Olney tweets the Yankees' trade deadline priorities:
"Even in the aftermath of Andy Pettitte's injury, the Yankees' focus is not on adding a starting pitcher; rather, the clear priority is improving the bench, and in order of importance, adding a reliever is priority No. 2."
On the bullpen front, the Yankees have been very loosely connected to five righties in recent weeks: Michael Wuertz, Leo Nunez, Joakim Soria, Kevin Gregg, and Jason Isringhausen. Gregg is the most viable option there, but it's likely the Yanks have inquired on a few more of these potentially available relievers. Olney tweets that one talent evaluator feels the trade market for relievers is "absolutely terrible."
The Yankees signed Chad Tracy to a minor league deal, and have also been connected to Wes Helms and Ty Wigginton as possible bench bats. The market features plenty more, like perhaps Willie Bloomquist, Russell Branyan, Adam Kennedy, Willie Harris, Xavier Nady, Jason Michaels, Craig Counsell, Jim Edmonds, Bobby Crosby, Andy LaRoche, Austin Kearns, Hank Blalock, and Augie Ojeda. All of those names are speculation on my part.