Twins Sign Kyle Gibson
The Twins signed 22nd overall pick Kyle Gibson for $1.8MM, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America. Slot for the position: $1.287MM. Gibson's predraft stock dropped when he suffered a stress fracture in his throwing arm. Gibson is a college righty from the University of Missouri. Click here for MLB.com's scouting report.
Giants Sign Zack Wheeler
The Giants signed sixth overall pick Zack Wheeler for $3.3MM, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America. BA has slot at about $2.34MM for that position. Wheeler will make his pro debut in 2010, says Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News. Wheeler is a high school righty from Georgia; click here for MLB.com's scouting report.
Miscellaneous Draft Pick Signings
With apologies to the players lumped into this post, I'm going to toss the notable non-first round signings here.
- The Orioles signed second-rounder Mychal Givens, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. Givens is a high school shortstop. Baseball America's Jim Callis says he gets $800K (slot for the #54 overall pick is $663K according to BA).
- The A's signed high school lefty and seventh-round pick Ian Krol, according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus (via Twitter). Krol missed the 2009 season due to an alcohol-related suspension, as reported by the Chicago Tribune's Matt Lynch. He'll get $925K, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America.
- The Mets signed second-round lefty Steven Matz for $895K, according to ESPN's Keith Law. Slot: $507K.
- The Blue Jays failed to sign lefty Boras client James Paxton, chosen 37th overall, reports BP's Kevin Goldstein. That was one of the compensation picks for A.J. Burnett.
Odds & Ends: Draft, Moyer, Cubs
Links for Thursday…
- RotoAuthority looks at the worst closers in baseball.
- Indians first-round draft pick Alex White is "seeking top five money," according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Hoynes says the Indians are optimistic about signing him before Monday's deadline.
- As you might expect, Chico Harlan of the Washington Post says the Stephen Strasburg talks between the Nationals and Scott Boras will go down to the wire. MLBTR will be covering the signing deadline intensely, as we did last year.
- Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer has a source saying the Phillies' bullpen demotion of Jamie Moyer was "not in any way influenced by money." The team's timing of the move was impeccable, regardless.
- Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times talked to Cubs GM Jim Hendry, who isn't anticipating any waiver moves for his team.
- ESPN's Buster Olney (Insider link) speculates on a handful of teams that could use recently-designated third baseman Bill Hall.
- Reliever Justin Speier was gracious about his release from the Angels, according to Kevin Baxter of the L.A. Times.
Justin Duchscherer May Return Tuesday
Oakland pitcher Justin Duchscherer may make his big league season debut Tuesday against the Yankees, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Duchscherer, 31, had arthroscopic elbow surgery on March 31st.
Slusser says other teams have been scouting Duchscherer's rehab appearances, and the Tigers and Red Sox are among the clubs expected to be represented tonight. Whether these scouting missions fall outside of the teams' normal coverage and imply trade interest, I don't know.
Back on July 31st, Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports suggested salary relief (about $1.06MM remains) and a "modest prospect" might be an acceptable return for the A's. As of right now, Duchscherer projects as a Type B free agent in the American League. Could the Rangers be a match? Here's what ESPN's Buster Olney wrote in today's blog:
I'd guess that the Rangers will claim him on waivers, whenever he passes through.
The Brewers and Dodgers are a couple teams seemingly on the lookout for pitching, though their interest level in Duchscherer is unknown.
Marlins Interested In John Smoltz
The Marlins are interested in recently-designated veteran pitcher John Smoltz, according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Smoltz refused a minor league assignment; the Red Sox will trade or release him soon. Boston will be on the hook for the vast majority of the money remaining on Smoltz's contract.
The Marlins are currently tied with Smoltz's former team, the Braves, for second place in the NL East. They're three games out of the wild card. The Marlins' rotation is 11th in the NL with a 4.67 ERA. Perhaps Smoltz would be more at home back in his old league and division. At least a few analysts feel he still has something left to contribute despite an 8.33 ERA in 40 innings this year.
Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said last week he was not interested in Smoltz, "but things can change." ESPN's Buster Olney named the Rangers as an interested party but admitted Boston might be unwilling to deal with a competitor.
Elias Rankings Update
At the end of each season, The Elias Sports Bureau ranks all MLB players numerically based on a bunch of stats. Every player is categorized in one of five position groups and by league. The rankings cover a two-year time period. They are used to determine whether free agents are Type A, Type B, or neither. If you'd like a reminder on how draft pick compensation works, read up here.
Eddie Bajek of Detroit Tigers Thoughts reverse-engineered the Elias Rankings last year. Eddie's incredible work was made possible in large part due to information provided by ESPN's Keith Law. Eddie is now providing the rankings exclusively to MLB Trade Rumors. Today's snapshot covers the beginning of the 2008 season through August 15th, 2009. The rankings will change over the remainder of the season. Keep in mind that if players change leagues, they are ranked in their new league.
Click here to see the latest Elias Rankings.
Elias Rankings
At the end of each season, The Elias Sports Bureau ranks all MLB players numerically based on a bunch of stats. Every player is categorized in one of five position groups and by league. The rankings cover a two-year time period. They are used to determine whether free agents are Type A, Type B, or neither. If you'd like a reminder on how draft pick compensation works, read up here.
Eddie Bajek of Detroit Tigers Thoughts reverse-engineered the Elias Rankings last year. Eddie's incredible work was made possible in large part due to information provided by ESPN's Keith Law. Eddie is now providing the rankings exclusively to MLB Trade Rumors. Today's snapshot covers the beginning of the 2008 season through July of 2009. The rankings will obviously change over the next two months. Keep in mind that if players change leagues, they are ranked in their new league. New Yankee Jerry Hairston Jr. is a Type B in the AL, while Adam LaRoche falls just short of B back in the NL.
Click here to see the latest Elias Rankings.
Twins Acquire Orlando Cabrera
6:59pm: Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the A's will send a total of $500k to the Twins.
12:45pm: Via Twitter, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says the Twins are also getting cash in the deal.
12:08pm: Yahoo's Tim Brown said it was a done deal, with the Twins sending shortstop prospect Tyler Ladendorf to Oakland for Cabrera.
Cabrera, 34, is hitting .280/.318/.365 on the season in 448 plate appearances. He has $1.75MM remaining on his contract, once you factor in a $250K bonus for being dealt. Though he profiles as a Type A free agent after the season, Cabrera's agent wisely negotiated a clause disallowing his club to offer arbitration. So, no draft picks for the team for the loss and no impediment to signing Cabrera from the player's point of view.
11:56am: Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle says Cabrera to the Twins is "very close." Slusser says Valencia is not part of the deal.
11:41am: La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune doesn't see the Twins as close to a deal for Cabrera. The A's apparently want third base prospect Danny Valencia. Neal wonders whether the Twins might go after David Eckstein or Kennedy instead.
FRIDAY, 1:26am: ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports that the A's and Twins are making "steady progress" as they discuss a deal that would send Cabrera to Minnesota.
THURSDAY, 11:31pm: Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports report that the Twins are making progress in their attempt to acquire Cabrera. The teams continued talking today and expect discussions to resume tomorrow.
9:30am: Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle has a few hot stove notes on the A's this morning.
- Despite interest, the A's do not intend to trade infielder Adam Kennedy. They might even try to re-sign him for 2010 eventually. The 33 year-old is hitting .296/.350/.434 in 327 plate appearances while playing second and third base. Oakland acquired Kennedy back in May from the Rays.
- Slusser debunks a Providence Journal report from Daniel Barbarisi that the Red Sox turned down a trade for Orlando Cabrera. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe agrees with Slusser, saying Cabrera "is not keen on returning to Boston."
- We do know that the Twins have talked to the A's about O-Cab. Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun says the Twins are "still chasing" Marco Scutaro as well.
Reds Acquire Scott Rolen For Edwin Encarnacion
6:09pm: Blair also hears that the Jays will send about $4MM to the Reds.
4:50pm: Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star reports that the Jays will pay all of Rolen's 2009 salary, nearly $4MM. Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi report that an undisclosed amount of cash is changing hands.
4:26pm: The Jays will pay some of the $4MM Rolen makes between now and the end of the season, according to Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail.
4:25pm: MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports that Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi says Rolen asked to be traded for "personal reasons."
3:14pm: Rolen approved the deal, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter). ESPN's Keith Law says Yonder Alonso is not in the deal. Instead, it'll be Encarnacion, Josh Roenicke, and Zach Stewart heading to Toronto according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
2:56pm: FOX Sports says the Blue Jays will get Edwin Encarnacion and a minor leaguer. Rolen is expected to approve the deal. It's a massive upgrade for the Reds defensively.
2:40pm: The Reds acquired third baseman Scott Rolen, according to SI's Jon Heyman (via Twitter). The next step is Rolen approving the trade. He's owed $4MM this year and another $11MM in 2010. The slick-gloved 34 year-old has bounced back to hit .320/.370/.476 in 373 plate appearances this year.