Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez Declared A Free Agent
Cuban standout Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez has been officially declared a free agent, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). However, the hurler does not have U.S. Treasury clearance yet to negotiate with MLB teams yet, tweets Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times.
Late last week, Gonzalez threw for teams in Tijuana and Ben Cherington was reportedly the only GM in attendance. However, the Red Sox aren't the only team interested in the right-hander. Several other clubs are said to be in the mix, including the Dodgers, who sent their three top scouts to watch the audition on Thursday.
Rockies Acquire Hisanori Takahashi
The Rockies have acquired left-hander Hisanori Takahashi from the Cubs in exchange for a player to be named later, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (via Twitter). The veteran will report to the Rockies' Triple-A affiliate.
Takahashi made just three relief appearances for the Cubs this season and spent most of the year with Triple-A Iowa. In the minors, the 38-year-old posted an impressive 1.99 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9.
Quick Hits: Gonzalez, Cowgill, Iwakuma, Delgado
While Ben Cherington was the only GM that was in attendance for Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez's audition yesterday, the Red Sox aren't the only team with interest in the Cuban right-hander. The Dodgers sent three of their top scouts to Tijuana on Thursday to find out if they might have another exciting Cuban import to join Yasiel Puig, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. Agent Jaime Torres declined to say how many clubs sent representatives to the Tijuana showcase but said there was "a great turnout." Meanwhile, Gonzalez is scheduled to put on another display for teams next Friday where he could pitch five innings, tweets Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com. Here's more from around baseball..
- After designating him for assignment on Tuesday, Mets assistant GM John Ricco acknowledged that the club is soliciting trade offers for Collin Cowgill, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. Ricco added that the Mets would try to get Cowgill through waivers and send him to Triple-A Las Vegas if they were unable to get a suitable deal rather than release Cowgill.
- Hisashi Iwakuma's name has popped up in rumors, but the Mariners intend to hang on to him. "Trust me," M's GM Jack Zduriencik told Peter Gammons (on Twitter), "we're not going to trade him." The 32-year-old has a 2.06 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 through 15 starts this season.
- Diamondbacks right-hander Randall Delgado hired Beverly Hills Sports Council, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). You can look up agency info for just about every major leaguer with MLBTR's Agency Database.
Bootcheck Clears Waivers, Re-Signs With Yankees
Right-hander Chris Bootcheck has cleared waivers after being designated for assignment by the Yankees on Tuesday, MLBTR's Chris Cotillo has learned. Instead of accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Bootcheck elected free agency and immediately re-signed with the Yankees on a minor league deal.
The new deal includes an August 15th opt-out date if he is not in the major leagues, and he will report to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he has posted a 3.32 ERA with 7.2 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 11 starts on the season. In 91 career big league games with the Angels and Pirates, the 34-year old has a 6.55 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Huntington, Indians, Uribe
On this date in 1998, Bill Russell was let go as the manager of the Dodgers and replaced in the dugout by Glenn Hoffmann. Meanwhile, longtime GM Fred Claire was let go and Tommy Lasorda took over his job for the remainder of the season. The shakeup didn't do much to help the Dodgers situation – they were in third on June 21st and finished the season in third behind the Padres and Giants. Here's more from around baseball..
- Rumbunter Plus spoke with Pirates GM Neal Huntington on this week's podcast.
- The Tribe Daily asks if the Dolan family has smoothed things out with the Indians' fanbase.
- Lasorda's Lair sticks up for Juan Uribe.
- Pinstriped Bible looks at possible destinations for Phil Hughes.
- Blue Jays Plus discusses the rejuvenation of Brett Cecil.
- Feelin' Kinda Blue delves into the Dodgers' draft strategy.
- Baseball News Source gives some credit to Yankees reliever Shawn Kelley.
- Rays Colored Glasses dissects Wil Myers' strikeout issues.
- Sodo Mojo shines some light on Brad Miller.
- I R Fast asks if Yasiel Puig will be a superstar.
- Climbing Tal's Hill makes the case for Jason Castro getting elected to the All-Star team.
- Pinstripe Pundits sees Michael Young as a possible trade target for the Bombers.
- MLB Reports analyzes the trade market for Yovani Gallardo.
- A's Farm spoke with A's scouting director Eric Kubota.
- The Shea Faithful has ideas for optimizing Lucas Duda.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Zach can be reached at ZachBBWI@gmail.com.
Yankees Acquire Brent Lillibridge
The Cubs announced that they have traded Brent Lillibridge to the Yankees for a player to be named later or cash considerations. The light-hitting infielder/outfielder has spent the bulk of the year with Chicago's Triple-A affiliate.
The 29-year-old saw just nine games of action on the Cubs' varsity squad this season versus 48 games in Triple-A Iowa where he hit .281/.331/.425 with five homers. Across six big league seasons, Lillibridge owns a .207/.271/.339 slash line with five different clubs.
Yankees, Robinson Cano Far Apart In Talks
Some figured that Robinson Cano's decision to join up with Jay-Z's agency venture would lead to a quick and smooth contract resolution with the Yankees, but that doesn't appear to be the case. While there's been some talk that the second baseman's people and the Yankees might pick up official contract talks sometime after the All-Star break, it's clear they are nowhere near a deal at this point, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
Even if they talk, its not clear if they will have anything to talk about, making free agency a very likely outcome for Cano at this point. The Bombers are still far and away Cano's preference, but there's a very good chance he won't have a new deal with anyone until at least November or perhaps later. There's always an outside chance that either part or both could bend leading to a quick deal, but that would signal a major change in thinking.
Cano isn't talking about his contract publicly, but he has told friends that he'd like something in the neighborhood of a $275MM deal, reminiscent of Alex Rodriguez's deal. The Yankees aren't believed to be anywhere close to that, however, and at one point they suggested something closer to David Wright's eight-year, $138MM contract.
The second baseman is the top ranked free agent on Tim Dierkes' 2014 Free Agent Power Rankings. While he's still having a strong year, his numbers are down from his 2012 campaign in which he hit .313/.379/.550 with 33 homers.
Yankees Acquire Yoshinori Tateyama
The Rangers announced that they have sent right-hander Yoshinori Tateyama to the Yankees for future considerations. The right-hander has been assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Tateyama has spent the entire season at Triple-A Round Rock, posting a 4.24 ERA with 11.6 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 23 games. The 37-year-old spent portions of the 2011-12 seasons with Texas, posting a 5.75 ERA with 9.0 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 53 relief appearances.
Mike Zagurski Elects Free Agency
WEDNESDAY: Zagurski has elected free agency, MLBTR has learned. His dominant numbers at Triple-A Indianapolis this season should lead to some interest from other clubs. In 21 innings, Zagurski pitched to a 2.14 ERA with 37 strikeouts (15.9 K/9) and nine walks (3.9 BB/9). He allowed only 15 hits in those 21 frames as well.
TUESDAY: After being designated for assignment by the Pirates on Saturday, Mike Zagurski cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A today, MLBTR's Tim Dierkes has learned. The left-hander will decide whether to elect free agency tomorrow.
The 30-year-old made six appearances for Pittsburgh this year, allowing ten runs with eight walks and five strikeouts. Zagurski was signed to a minor-league deal by the Pirates in the offseason after posting a 5.54 ERA in 37 and 1/3 innings for the Diamondbacks in 2012.
Back in late May, the Yankees called the Bucs to inquire on Zagurski's availability but were turned down.
Quick Hits: Norris, Ethier, Blue Jays, Phillies
Here's tonight's look around baseball as Tuesday turns into Wednesday..
- Bud Norris knows that he's a prime trade candidate, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Norris tells Morosi that he feels it's critical to stay informed: “I don’t think you want to be blindsided by it: One day, you come to the park and, boom, you’re gone. I don’t pay too much attention to it, but I’m definitely in the loop." Norris goes on to say that being traded to the Giants, his favorite team as a child, would be a dream come true, but he would be excited to stay with the Astros and keep helping them as well.
- Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com wonders if an Andre Ethier trade is inevitable for the Dodgers. As it stands now, the only other alternatives are Yasiel Puig getting sent down, someone other than Ethier getting traded, or Ethier becoming the club's fourth outfielder once they're back to full strength. Puig is obviously going to stay in the Majors, and trades involving Matt Kemp and Carl Crawford are unlikely, making Ethier the most likely man to go.
- Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet looks at the Blue Jays' options for making room on the roster when Jose Reyes returns to action. Their roster shuffling could lead them to expose someone to waivers and Emilio Bonifacio is a candidate.
- Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch weighs the pros and cons of the Cardinals going after Phillies pitcher Cliff Lee. Ultimately, Miklasz concludes that Cards GM John Mozeliak won't take on Lee’s full salary commitment or surrender his best pitching prospects, even if there is a surplus.
Steve Adams contributed to this post.