Astros Notes: Luhnow, DeShields Jr., Altuve
Astros General Manager Jeff Luhnow wrote the club's season ticket holders this afternoon to encourage them to stay on board as they look to build for future seasons. Houston is dead last in the standings but Luhnow pointed to the club's commitment to building through the draft, international free agents, and the trade market as evidence of better things to come. More on the Astros..
- While the Astros weren't expecting to contend this year, new owner Jim Crane told the Associated Press that he wasn't expecting the team to be struggling this much. "We made a lot of trades and once we made that decision — Jeff started moving some of the talent — we knew we might slide back a little bit, but we didn’t think it would be this bad," Crane said.
- Prospect Delino DeShields Jr. is on a path to reach the majors in the near future, but Luhnow says that the club isn't yet concerned about what to do with him and All-Star Jose Altuve, writes Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. "If we get to the point we have two guys up here and they're blocked, or one guy here and one guy [at Triple-A], maybe then you make an adjustment. That's how we're going to approach it," the GM explained.
- The Astros' rebuilding project is a gift to the rest of the contending teams that are scheduled to face them in the coming weeks, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Of the seven teams in the hunt for the Wild Card (including the division-leading Reds), five have games remaining against Houston.
Mets Notes: Shoppach, Thole, Alderson, Payroll
A look at the latest on the Mets as they take on the Reds in Cincinnati..
- The Mets view the recently-acquired Kelly Shoppach as a player that they might want to bring back for 2013, tweets Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger (via Twitter). The catcher is hitting .250/.327/.471 in 158 plate appearances this year with a career .270/.364/.530 against lefties.
- The Mets will audition Shoppach for the rest of the year to see if he might be a worthy platoon mate for Josh Thole next season, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The former Boston catcher was the club's third or fourth choice at catcher as they favored both Ramon Hernandez and Kurt Suzuki, Sherman tweets. Shoppach could make sense for the Mets in 2013 as they will look to steer their payroll space elsewhere with a focus on the outfield and bullpen, tweets Sherman.
- When asked about the team payroll for 2013, General Manager Sandy Alderson said to check back in a few weeks as the club has yet to talk it over, McCullough tweets. Alderson went on to add that the organization is focused on the season at hand.
Red Sox Notes: Valentine, Shoppach, Gonzalez
Earlier today, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported that Red Sox players met with owners John Henry and Larry Lucchino in late July to voice their displeasure with manager Bobby Valentine. Adrian Gonzalez and Dustin Pedroia were said to be among the most vocal in the meeting and GM Ben Cherington confirmed that the pow-wow took place. Here's the latest out of Fenway..
- Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter) opines that the trade of Kelly Shoppach in order to give Valentine favorite Ryan Lavarnway more playing time can't be a bad sign for Bobby V. Boston will receive a player to be named later from the Mets in exchange for the backstop.
- Valentine told reporters, including Tim Britton of The Providence Journal, that he is glad to have the reported unrest behind him. "Wow. Is that what was said really? That's what Dustin and Adrian said? It did say that? I didn't hear that. I'm glad that July is over because they're still playing for me," said the skipper.
- The Red Sox players haven't kept an open mind about Valentine ever since his remarks about Kevin Youkilis back in April, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com. In an interview, Valentine said that he didn't think the veteran was "as physically or emotionally into the game as he has been in the past for some reason.”
Orioles Designate Miguel Socolovich For Assignment
The Orioles have designated right-hander Miguel Socolovich for assignment, according to Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com (via Twitter). The move will allow the Orioles to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for J.C. Romero.
The native of Venezuela pitched ten and one-third innings for the O's this season, allowing eight earned runs with six strikeouts and six walks. In 28 games for Triple-A Norfolk in 2012, Socolovich posted a 1.90 ERA with 9.0 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.
Blue Jays Sign Jeff Mathis To Extension
The Blue Jays announced that they have signed Jeff Mathis to a two-year contract extension worth $3MM with a club option for 2015 worth $1.5MM. The deal marks a lateral move in compensation for the catcher, who made $1.5MM this season after avoiding arbitration with Toronto over the winter.
Mathis, 29, is hitting .215/.252/.415 with six homers in 147 plate appearances this season. The backstop spent the first seven years of his big league career with the Angels before being traded to the Blue Jays for left-hander Brad Mills. While Mathis is far from an elite slugger, he has stepped up his offensive production in 2012 and currently has his best OPS of any full campaign.
Earlier today, it was reported that the Blue Jays were on the verge of acquiring fellow veteran catcher Yorvit Torrealba off of waivers.
Quick Hits: Mets, Gerrit Cole, Aviles
The Games of the XXX Olympiad came to a close today in London. Nearly 11,000 athletes from 204 nations took part in over 300 events in 26 sports. But, none of the Olympic pagentry involved baseball. So, let's celebrate America's National Pastime with the latest news, notes and quotes:
- Not everyone in the Mets front office is sold that they can be a sustained contender moving forward with Ike Davis at first base, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. One internal option would be moving Lucas Duda in from the outfield and some believe that he would be more comfortable at first.
- Mets owner Fred Wilpon wouldn't speak with reporters following a rare on-field appearance before last night's game against the Braves, but he'll have to start answering questions soon, writes David Lennon of Newsday. There are a lot of unknowns surrounding the Mets, including what their projected payroll will be for 2013 and if the franchise is on the rebound financially.
- Pirates GM Neal Huntington says Gerrit Cole, last year's top draft pick, will not be a September callup, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (via Sulia). "We've not talked about it internally. My gut (feeling) is no." Huntington said. "To drop him into bullpen up here in September is not something we have lot of interest in doing. We have a lot of other options, instead of rushing a young prospect." Cole is currently starting at Double-A Altoona.
- The A's had interest in Mike Aviles prior to the trade deadline, but a deal is unlikely now the Red Sox have placed the shortstop on waivers, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Slusser says the chances are slim the A's will acquire a shortstop before the August 31st deadline for playoff-roster eligibility.
Edward Creech contributed to this post.
Padres, Mark Kotsay Agree To Extension
2:40pm: Kotsay's extension is worth $1.3MM, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
10:33am: The Padres announced via press release that they have agreed to terms on a contract extension with Kotsay. “Mark provides versatility and a very good late-game at-bat,” General Manager Josh Byrnes said. “He brings invaluable leadership to our club and has become one of the key members of our team.”
9:20am: The Padres are set to extend veteran Mark Kotsay through the 2013 season today, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter). San Diego has been impressed by the veteran's clubhouse presence and his bat off of the bench, according to Brock.
Kotsay, 36, has a .275/.333/.363 slash line with one home run in 111 plate appearances. The outfielder/first baseman made just $1.25MM this season and earned trade interest from multiple clubs in July, including the Reds. Kotsay owns a .278/.334/.409 batting line across his 16-year career.
Minor Moves: McClung, Zawadzki
Today's minor moves..
- The Cubs have signed pitcher Seth McClung to a minor league deal and assigned him to Triple-A Iowa, tweets Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald. The right-hander was released by the Brewers roughly two weeks ago and has not appeared in the majors since 2009.
- The Cardinals signed infielder Lance Zawadzki to a minor league contract, according to the Pacific Coast League transactions page. The 27-year-old was previously with the Braves' Triple-A affiliate where he hit .231/.271/.340 with three homers in 157 plate appearances.
Cafardo On Damon, Braves, Youkilis, Saunders
Dan Duquette was out of baseball for ten years and wasn’t sure if he’d find his way back, but the Orioles GM has surprised many by putting together a strong club for 2012, writes Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe. The GM was quick to credit the work of manager Buck Showalter for the team’s success and also pointed to some good breaks for the club as they dealt with a young and oft-injured rotation. Here’s more from Cafardo..
- Johnny Damon could be a fit for the Braves as they are in need of a lefthanded pinch hitter. Atlanta is looking all around for a part-time lefthanded bat and they are scouting almost every team out of the race. Damon posted a posted a .222/.281/.329 batting line with four home runs in 224 plate appearances for the Tribe this year.
- The Braves aren’t optimistic that they can re-sign Michael Bourn when he becomes a free agent, in part because they don’t seem to do well with Scott Boras clients. Given that, it also seems unlikely that they’ll aggressively pursue Jacoby Ellsbury this offseason.
- Atlanta will have to replace both Bourn and Chipper Jones, and one Braves official didn’t rule out Kevin Youkilis if the White Sox don’t pick up his $13MM option. Of course, the Braves would be looking to spend considerably less than that to sign him.
- D’Backs pitcher Joe Saunders would be an interesting trade piece if they feel they can’t make the playoffs. The left-hander has looked strong as of late and is headed towards free agency, but Arizona doesn’t expect to resign him. With Patrick Corbin, Tyler Skaggs, and Trevor Bauer all in the fold, Kevin Towers & Co. could easily part with him.
Quick Hits: Astros, Braves, Indians, Choo, Marlins
The Braves beat the Mets at Citi Field tonight to remain atop the Wild Card chase in the National League. Atlanta found their way into the playoff chase as expected, but with a different cast of characters than planned. Here's today's look around the league..
- The Astros announced that they have named Mike Elias their new amateur scouting director in a press release. Bobby Heck, who filled the same role since October 2007, will not have his contract renewed. Elias worked with Astros GM Jeff Luhnow in the Cardinals' front office.
- David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution gives Braves GM Frank Wren credit for not only managing to plug the rotation's holes on the cheap, but making it as formidable as it was supposed to be when the season began. While it's unknown how well free agent pickup Ben Sheets and recent acquisition Paul Maholm will hold up, both have looked strong through seven combined starts. Regardless, both pitchers will cost the Braves less than $4MM in 2012.
- Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer looks at how the Indians can position themselves to contend in 2013. Hoynes suggests that the Tribe starts by parting ways with Travis Hafner and Grady Sizemore, who are both eligible for free agency at the end of the year. Beyond that, he writes that trading Shin-Soo Choo could bring Cleveland some solid pieces in return. So far, the rightfielder has rebuffed the club's efforts to keep him in the fold beyond next season.
- Carlos Lee has done exactly what the Marlins hoped he would when they acquired him from the Astros last month, tweetsJuan Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel. In 32 games with Miami, Lee has a .291/.382/.355 slash line and an OPS not far off from what he posted in Houston earlier this year.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.