Phillies In Contact With Cole Hamels’ Agent
10:10pm: As of early this afternoon, there's no evidence of progress in the Phillies' talks with Cole Hamels, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
8:49pm: Phillies General Manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said he remains in contact with Hamels' agent, John Boggs, as free agency approaches, according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter). While the two sides are keeping dialogue open, they have yet to set any deadlines or target dates in their discussions.
"It's been pretty open. We've kept it open. We haven't made any timelines. I haven't gotten any from them," said the GM.
Hamels is set to be one of the top talents on the open market this winter and at least one team inquired about the hurler early in the year as the Phillies struggled. The Phillies currently sit at 21-21 and at the bottom of the National League East.
Rangers Will Consider Roy Oswalt
Rangers General Manager Jon Daniels said the club will consider signing pitcher Roy Oswalt in the wake of Neftali Feliz’s elbow injury, writes T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. The Rangers watched the veteran throw on Friday.
Texas has long been linked to Oswalt but there was no room for the 34-year-old in the starting rotation. Feliz's injury could create an opening for Oswalt as the club isn't ready to ready to promote Martin Perez or Neil Ramirez from Triple-A. Scott Feldman is set to replace Feliz in the rotation and while Alexi Ogando is also a candidate he is not stretched out like Feldman.
Oswalt wouldn't be ready to step in to the rotation immediately for the Rangers but could provide depth in the event of another injury.
Rays Designate John Gaub For Assignment
The Rays have designated left-hander John Gaub for assignment, according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). The move will allow the Rays to make room on the 40-man roster for the recently-acquired Drew Sutton.
Gaub, 27, appeared in four games for the Cubs last season and was picked up off of waivers by the Rays in early April. The lefty owns a 3.81 ERA with 11.8 K/9 and 6.3 BB/9 across parts of four Triple-A seasons.
Quick Hits: Blue Jays, Lind, Ellis, Indians, Damon
Sunday night linkage..
- Blue Jays manager John Farrell would not comment on last night's news that Adam Lind was placed on outright waivers and spoke as though the slugger will remain with the organization, writes Chris Toman of MLB.com. The skipper believes that Lind can find his way back to Toronto with a "controlled aggressiveness" at the plate.
- The Indians plan to stick by Johnny Damon despite his struggles so far with the team, writes MLB.com's Justin Albers. Damon has a clause in his contract which would allow him to be released if he isn't getting enough playing time or isn't a good fit for the team.
- Offseason acquisition Mark Ellis has been a tremendous clubhouse influence and will be sorely missed by the Dodgers after undergoing emergency surgery on Saturday, writes Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times. Had the surgery been put off for six or seven hours, the veteran could have potentially lost his left leg, Dilbeck writes.
Rosenthal On Saunders, Guthrie, Indians, Blue Jays
Highlights from the latest edition of Full Count from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..
- The Diamondbacks are deep in starters and won't wait to see if they fall out of contention before exploring a trade involving one of their arms. Don't be surprised if Arizona entertains offers for Joe Saunders before the trade deadline, regardless of where they are in the standings.
- Rockies right-hander Jeremy Guthrie is also likely to be in play. The club is looking at their younger pitchers and they've got Jorge De La Rosa set to come back soon. Teams thinking of trading potential free agents might want to act sooner rather than later in order to save a bit more money and get a better return.
- The Indians need a right-handed hitter and another starting pitcher, as they still don't know if they'll see Roberto Hernandez (formerly Fausto Carmona) this season. The problem for the Tribe is that they rank last in attendance in the majors and likely can't increase payroll significantly. They'll have to ask for cash in deals and that means giving up better prospects in return.
- The Blue Jays are deep in prospects and could be a major player at the deadline. They could be in on the Brewers' Zack Greinke and could even be involved with Matt Garza of the Cubs if his contract talks break down.
Cafardo On Red Sox, D’Backs, Nats, Oswalt, Ichiro
The Red Sox and Phillies, two teams that played each other this weekend, took very opposite paths, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The Phillies spent $50MM over four years for Jonathan Papelbon while the Red Sox went for the low-cost approach with arbitration-eligible Andrew Bailey. So far, things have worked out for both clubs, but in different ways. Papelbon has converted all of his save opportunities while Boston saved themselves a nice chunk of change while filling in for Bailey just fine with Alfredo Aceves. Here's more from Cafardo..
- The Diamondbacks are now among the teams that may have interest in Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis, as GM Kevin Towers is looking to upgrade offensively at the infield corners. The Reds and Giants are also in need of upgrades. Of course, the Sox would have to decide whether Will Middlebrooks can handle the position.
- The Red Sox called the Nationals after catcher Wilson Ramos went down, but they said they would stay in-house. Lately, the Nats have been scouting teams who have depth behind the dish, and Boston is one. Kelly Shoppach would be available, as the Sox could call up Ryan Lavarnway.
- The initial reports on Roy Oswalt’s sessions with Boston and Philadelphia were good, but not great. "Not in midseason form by any means," said one scout. “His fastball was off a tick, but he’ll get that up. He wasn’t throwing too much secondary stuff, but he looked fluid. It probably would take him a few weeks to get ready, but everybody’s going to need pitching a month from now, so it’s a good investment for down the road."
- Mariners rightfielder Ichiro Suzuki is in the final year of his contract and there’s some reason to believe retirement is a possibility. Those who know him don’t think that he wants to play for anyone but the M's.
Quick Hits: Lind, Rhodes, Renteria, Hunter
Saturday evening linkage …
- The Marlins are likely to discuss acquiring Blue Jays DH Adam Lind, but their pursuit will be tempered, according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel (via Twitter). Miami optioned struggling first baseman Gaby Sanchez to Triple-A New Orleans today.
- Free agent Arthur Rhodes has remained in playing shape in case a team becomes interested in signing a lefty reliever, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Rhodes last pitched last season for the Cardinals.
- Free agent shortstop Edgar Renteria has turned down two offers and apparently wants to remain retired, according to Heyman (Twitter link). Renteria played for the Reds last year.
- Angels manager Mike Scioscia hopes outfielder Torii Hunter will return from the restricted list during the Halos' ongoing road trip, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). Hunter was placed on the RL on Monday to deal with a family matter.
- Indians closer Chris Perez suggested free agents prefer not to sign with Cleveland because of poor attendance at Progressive Field, writes Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Specifically, Perez cited Cardinals outfielder Carlos Beltran, who turned down an offer from the Indians this offseason in favor of a comparable one from the Cardinals.
- The Padres' youth movement will pay off someday, but things will be tough in the interim, writes Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. The Padres have one of baseball's top farm systems and will have the opportunity to build on it with six of the first 70 picks in this year's draft.
- Former Dodgers shortstop Rafael Furcal thinks that Dee Gordon will work out for the club in the long-term, writes Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. The Dodgers felt that they could part with Furcal last year in part because of Gordon's presence.
- Indians GM Chris Antonetti doesn't seem to have any regrets over acquiring Ubaldo Jimenez from the Rockies in last year's trade, based on what he told Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer. "Ubaldo's results continue to be inconsistent. His work, his preparation and his commitment hasn't wavered. He's worked tirelessly to solidify his mechanics with [pitching coach] Scott Radinsky, it just hasn't clicked consistently every five days. … With the work he's put in, I believe we'll see more consistency."
MLBTR's Dan Mennella contributed to this post.
Cubs Acquire Koyie Hill From Reds
The Cubs have brought back catcher Koyie Hill after acquiring him from the Reds in exchange for cash considerations, tweets Carrie Muskat of MLB.com. Hill will be with the club for tonight's game against the White Sox.
Hill, 33, was hitting just .195/.250/.341 for the Reds' Double-A affiliate so far this year. The veteran spent the previous five years with the Cubs and hit .208/.270/.295 in 252 big league games. With the retirement of Kerry Wood, Chicago’s 40-man roster still stands at 40 players.
The Reds signed Hill to a minor league deal in late April after he was let go by the Cardinals.
Minor Moves: Zavada, DeWitt, Cubs, Diamondbacks
Today’s minor moves..
- The Cardinals have signed Clay Zavada to a minor league contract and released left-hander R.J. Swindle, according to the Pacific Coast League’s transactions page. Zavada, 27, was recently let go by the Reds.
- Cubs infielder Blake DeWitt cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Iowa, tweets Carrie Muskat of MLB.com. The Cubs designated the 26-year-old for assignment ten days ago. Across parts of five big league seasons, DeWitt owns a .257/.324/.380 slash line.
- The Diamondbacks outrighted minor league outfielder David Winfree to remove him from the 40-man roster, tweets Steve Gilbert of MLB.com. Winfree, 26, has hit .285/.331/.476 in four Triple-A seasons.
Quick Hits: Reds, Youkilis, Angels, Beltran, Orioles
Links from around baseball as Wednesday becomes Thursday..
- The Reds are not seeking outside help at third base with Scott Rolen on the disabled list, writes John Fay of the Cincinnati Inquirer. General Manager Walt Jocketty also said that he hasn't had discussions with the Red Sox, shooting down any speculation that the club might have interest in Kevin Youkilis.
- Angels manager Mike Scioscia wouldn't go into much detail about the firing of hitting coach Mickey Hatcher, but it clearly wasn't his choice, tweets Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com. "Obviously the GM’s position is to try to make changes, whether it’s personnel or staffing, that he believes is going to help us [get] better, and we have to respect that," said the skipper.
- Carlos Beltran didn't feel that the Giants made a strong effort to re-sign him last season even though the club knew that he liked playing in San Francisco, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter links). However, the team did talk with agent Dan Lozano in generalities, Schulman tweets.
- Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun hopes that the Orioles will spend the money necessary to keep Matt Wieters and Adam Jones in the fold despite the team's bad luck with hefty contracts in the past.
- In a piece for Deadspin, Craig Fehrman gives an inside look at the Atlantic League's Bridgeport Bluefish.