Pirates Shopping Kevin Correia
The Pirates have let teams know that pitcher Kevin Correia is available, tweets Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The right-hander is making $3MM this season on the backend of a two-year, $8MM pact.
Correia, 31, has a 4.12 ERA with 3.3 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 through 13 starts this season. It seems likely that Pittsburgh will look to use their pitching surplus, which includes Correia, to net some offense via trade. The Bucs' pitching has been banged up recently but will be replenished with the returns of Jeff Karstens and Chris Leroux.
Orioles Release Jamie Moyer
Jamie Moyer has asked for and received his release from the Orioles, the team announced. The left-hander had the option to get out of his contract if his contract wasn't selected from Triple-A.
Moyer, 49, has a 1.69 ERA with a 16K/0BB ratio in three starts for Triple-A Norfolk this year. The Rockies released the veteran earlier this month shortly after designating him for assignment. Moyer made ten starts for Colorado this year, posting a 5.70 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 53 2/3 innings.
Astros To Sign Rio Ruiz
The Astros are set to sign fourth-rounder Rio Ruiz for $1.85MM, according to Keith Law of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Houston was able to spend big on the third baseman after signing first-overall pick Carlos Correa for well under the slot recommendation.
Ruiz, who comes out of Bishop Amat High School in La Puente, California, was pegged to be a first-round selection before his season was ended prematurely by a blood clot in his neck. The youngster was believed to be one of the toughest signs out of Houston's 2012 class, along with Lance McCullers Jr. (signed last weekend) and eleventh-round pick Hunter Virant.
Quick Hits: Lee, Pirates, Ortiz, A’s, Royals
The Dodgers are in need of a run producer and the Astros' Carlos Lee is the latest name to surface on the club's radar, writes Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. The veteran has the ability to block trades to 14 teams, and the Dodgers are on that list. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that Lee doesn't want to play in Los Angeles Almost all of the teams on that list are high-revenue teams, providing the first baseman with leverage. More from around baseball on this Thursday night..
- With the Pirates on the lookout for offense, Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com (via Twitter) wouldn't be surprised to see them check in on Ryan Kalish or Cody Ross when Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford return to the Red Sox.
- David Ortiz hasn't been happy with the Red Sox for some time and people that have heard his complaints strongly doubt that he would want to return to Boston after this year, writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.
- Both the A's and the Giants have had a revolving door at first base for some time, writes John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Giants have used 24 players at first since J.T. Snow left, and the A's have used 41 since Jason Giambi left the first time.
- A's skipper Bob Melvin insists that the promotion of Derek Norris isn't about creating trade bait when it comes to Kurt Suzuki, writes Jane Lee of MLB.com. Earlier this week, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wrote that Oakland would probably like to move the catcher and his $6.45MM salary.
- Carlos Beltran says that the Royals never made him a concrete, multi-year offer to keep him during his time there, writes MLB.com's Dick Kaegel. "I don't really recall getting a real offer. I knew they talked about having something done, but we never got to the point where we were serious about it," the outfielder said.
Pirates Looking To Deal For Offense
The 35-32 Pirates have the third-best ERA in the National League but are dead last in runs scored. Unsurprisingly, manager Clint Hurdle says that the club will be on the lookout for offense as the deadline approaches, write MLB.com's Tom Singer and Mark Emery.
"We'd like to first look for ways to impact the offense," said Hurdle. "We do feel like we're in a competitive position on the mound. We do have a couple of areas where we've got some surplus, some depth that might be attractive to somebody else."
The skipper has met with GM Neal Huntington this week to discuss possible moves, both internal and external. However, Hurdle emphasized that it will take some more time for the trade market to develop. The Pirates' pitching depth has taken some hits as of late but it will be restored somewhat with the impending returns of Jeff Karstens and Chris Leroux.
AL East Notes: Ortiz, Red Sox, Conrad, Blue Jays
A look around the American League East as the Red Sox take on the Marlins at Fenway..
- David Ortiz defended the atmosphere around the Red Sox locker room and lashed out at a report saying that there was a "toxic" atmosphere in Boston, writes Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. When asked if he wants to return next season, the slugger said "I don’t know. I’ll think about it." Ortiz is earning $14.575MM this season and is set to hit the open market after this season.
- Rays skipper Joe Maddon said that the club was interested in Brooks Conrad during the offseason, according to Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Tribune (via Twitter). Tampa Bay claimed Conrad off of waivers from the Brewers earlier today.
- The Blue Jays promoted Brian Parker to director of amateur scouting, writes Zack Meisel of MLB.com. Parker will take over for Andrew Tinnish who was promoted to assistant GM yesterday.
Draft Notes: Phillies, Red Sox, Chargois, Rays
This morning we learned that the Red Sox are close to reaching agreement with first-round pick Brian Johnson for $1.575MM, the recommended bonus for the 31st overall selection. Here's the latest draft news, with the latest updates up top..
- The Phillies sign third-rounder Zach Green for $420K, a slight bump from the pick value of $374K, tweets Jim Callis of Baseball America. The California high school shortstop is said to have a powerful bat and a solid arm. The Phillies have now signed nine of their top ten picks with second-round pitcher Alec Rash as the only one unsigned.
- The Red Sox are close to reaching agreement with third-round right-hander Austin Maddox, multiple industry sources tell Alex Speier of WEEI.com. The University of Florida product is expected to sign for less than the $400K slot recommendation.
- The Twins gave second-rounder J.T. Chargois a bonus of roughly $712K, the full pick value for his selection, Callis tweets. The former Rice closer reached agreement with the team on Monday.
- The Rays signed third-round pick Andrew Toles, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). The outfielder played at Chipola College in Marianna, Florida after being dismissed from the University of Tennessee baseball team.
East Notes: Ortiz, Hanrahan, Phillies, Prior
Red Sox slugger David Ortiz's tenure in Boston almost ended soon after he signed with the club, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com. “When I wasn’t playing, I told [Theo Epstein] to release me or trade me, because I was better than the other guys he had here,” Ortiz said, recalling a time in May 2003. “He told me to give it some time, he’d make some moves, then I would play. And then I started playing and here I am still.” One of the moves to help ease the logjam ahead of Ortiz was sending Shea Hillenbrand to the D'Backs for Byung-Hyun Kim. More from around baseball..
- Joel Hanrahan trade rumors have died down somewhat but the Pirates could still deal the closer based on how the season unfolds, write Bob Cohn and Rob Biertempfel of the PIttsburgh Tribune-Review. However, the club would need to receive an offer that they absolutely could not refuse.
- Execs are wondering if the Phillies will go into sell mode in July if they don't get healthy and turn things around quickly, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- Pitcher Mark Prior is attempting another comeback in the Red Sox system and reliever Clayton Mortensen told Alex Speier of WEEI.com that the veteran is close to being big league ready.
Olney On Cubs, Dempster, Rockies, Betancourt
If ESPN.com's Buster Olney cast one of the 32 ballots for National League MVP, he wouldn't hesitate to vote for Ryan Braun if his production warranted it. Here's more from Olney's column (Insider subscription required)..
- The Cubs desperately need prospects and sources say they're essentially willing to buy them. Chicago is okay with eating a large portion of Ryan Dempster's salary for the rest of the year to pry good young players away from an interested team like the Red Sox or Dodgers. Dempster is being paid $13.5MM this season, which means that any team that traded for him now would owe him roughly $8MM.
- Even though the Rockies record would indicate that they are in sell mode, rival officials say that the club doesn't present blockbuster material. One evaluator said that the club has "pieces", but not major chips. Reliever Rafael Betancourt and veteran Jason Giambi could be of interest to contenders.
- Olney wonders if the Blue Jays' recent rash of injuries in the rotation will deter them from pursuing a starter or if they'll instead feel so strongly about the rest of the team that they'll pay a premium for someone like Matt Garza.
Cafardo On Youkilis, Lowrie, Manny, Red Sox
Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe asked 55 people in baseball if they'd rather have Bryce Harper or Mike Trout. The final tally: Harper 25, Trout 24, six undecided. Athletics GM Billy Beane was one of the six on the fence and likely had the best quote of anyone. "Beatles or Stones? They’re both great, aren’t they?" Here's more from Cafardo's column..
- The Pirates and Dodgers could be the teams most willing to pull the trigger on Kevin Youkilis. The recent shift from third base to first has been a plus for scouts watching him, though he hasn’t performed well enough yet to wow anyone.
- Astros shortstop Jed Lowrie has 12 homers this year and his offensive ability may make him a target at the trading deadline. However, one AL GM pointed out that health concerns will impact his value.
- Cafardo wonders if the Blue Jays might consider Manny Ramirez after letting Vladimir Guerrero go.
- While Daisuke Matsuzaka would probably like to remain in the major leagues and in Boston, Matsuzaka will be in demand in Japan since he is still relatively young and still considered a big name, according to a major league source. The right-hander could earn another multiyear deal if he does well this season.
- Some baseball people wouldn't be shocked to see the Red Sox move Daniel Bard if he gets himself straightened out. Theo Epstein has always been a big fan and Cafardo wonders out loud if something could be worked out with the Cubs for Matt Garza. Garza, he opines, would be a perfect fit for an AL East team.
- The Dodgers could pull the trigger on Ryan Dempster soon and the Blue Jays also seem to have serious interest.
- Teams are reassessing their commitment to scouting Japanese players. One GM said, “Is all the money spent and devoted to scouting really yielding any great player? You’ve had Kei Igawa, Daisuke Matsuzaka, the kid from Minnesota [Tsuyoshi Nishioka], and really, is the money spent worth it?"