Minor Moves: Phillies, Barfield, Dodgers, Smit
A look at today's minor moves..
- The Phillies released former Rangers first-round pick Kasey Kiker, tweets Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus. The left-hander spent six seasons in the Texas farm system, posting a 4.53 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 5.2 BB/9.
- The Orioles signed second baseman Josh Barfield to a minor league deal, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Barfield, 29, last appeared in the majors with the Indians in '09.
- More from Eddy (via Twitter), who reports that the Dodgers signed right-hander Kyle Smit. Los Angeles originally drafted Smit in ’06 and sent him to the Cubs in the Ted Lilly deal in 2010.
- The Rays released a number of minor leaguers, including left-handers Sergio Espinosa and Robert Dickmann, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.
Quick Hits: Wuertz, Cespedes, Helton, Dodgers
On this day in 1991, the Royals released leftfielder Bo Jackson after he suffered a serious hip injury in the NFL playoffs against the Cincinnati Bengals. That was Jackson's final NFL game but the iconic athlete eventually returned to baseball in 1993 with the White Sox and played 75 games for the Angels in '94 before the players strike brought the season to an end. Here's a look at what's happening today..
- Angels outfielder Torii Hunter would "love to stay" with the Halos but understands that at age 37, and with Los Angeles having plenty of money on the books, this season may be his last, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. The five-year, $90MM deal that Hunter signed prior to the 2008 season expires after this year.
- Free agent starter Javy Vazquez is not considering coming out of retirement, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com.
- Free agent reliever Michael Wuertz will throw for teams on Thursday in Tempe, Arizona, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Twins are expected to be among the clubs in attendance.
- Outfielder Yoenis Cespedes was willing to sign with the Cubs and had reason to believe that he might wind up in Chicago, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. Ultimately, the Cubs offered six years for $36MM while the Athletics offered that same number for four years. The Cuban star also said that he was seeking either a four-year deal or one that was for eight years or more. Through a translator, Cespedes said that he probably would have wound up in Chicago had the Cubs offered him the same deal before the A's did.
- Rockies first baseman Todd Helton insists that he hasn't thought about retirement, writes Troy Renck of The Denver Post. The 38-year-old has two years remaining on his contract.
- More from Renck as he writes that Esmil Rogers is a trade candidate for the club. Rogers, Edgmer Escalona, and Josh Outman are battling for the final spot in the bullpen. Rogers is out of options and could be moved.
- Dodgers play-by-play announcer Vin Scully addressed the club's ownership situation prior to yesterday's broadcast and said that he doesn't believe it is having any effect on the players at all, writes J.P. Hoornstra of the LA Daily News.
Latest On Gerardo Parra
The Nationals remain interested in Diamondbacks outfielder Gerardo Parra, but word is that Arizona is asking a lot for him, tweets Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Meanwhile, MLB.com’s Bill Ladson tweets that the D’Backs have told the Nationals that Parra is not available.
Arizona GM Kevin Towers told reporters early last week that he doesn’t want to trade Parra, but this is the first we have heard of the club telling the Nats that he is not up for discussion. A baseball source told Ladson that he believes the Nationals will now turn to an in-house option in center field to open the season.
AL East Notes: Garcia, Shoppach, Red Sox, Hughes
Items out of the American League East..
- Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com writes that Freddy Garcia could wind up as trade bait for the Yankees but there are a number of complications, including his $4MM salary.
- The Marlins are a possible fit for the Yankees if they look to trade Garcia, as Miami has the payroll flexibility to take him on and the pitcher has a good relationship with manager Ozzie Guillen, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com. However, Olney notes (via Twitter) that all five Marlins starters are looking good at the moment.
- The Red Sox have no plans to deal back-up catcher Kelly Shoppach, a source told Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. As a free agent signing, Boston would have to get approval from Shoppach in any trade made prior to June 15th.
- In an interview on WEEI, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said that the club has been working diligently to find ways to make the new Collective Bargaining Agreement work for them, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
- In addition to Garcia, Phil Hughes could quickly emerge as a trade candidate for the Yankees as well, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
Week In Review: 3/11/12 – 3/17/12
It's time to take a look back at the week that was here at MLBTR..
- A year after retiring, 39-year-old Andy Pettitte is back with the Yankees on a minor league contract. Pettitte, a Hendricks Sports client, can potentially earn $2.5MM on the deal, which doesn't include incentives.
- The Royals signed shortstop Alcides Escobar to a four-year extension through 2015. The deal includes club options for 2016 and 2017. The contract guarantees Escobar $10.5MM through 2015 and the shortstop could earn a total of $21.75MM if the Royals exercise both of their options.
- John Lannan has drawn interest from the Red Sox, Tigers, and Astros and a deal involving the left-hander is "likely".
- The Indians and Roberto Hernandez (a.k.a. Fausto Carmona) have restructured the right-hander's contract and his 2012 salary will now be "far less" than the $7MM he was scheduled to earn. An option year in his contract has also been eliminated.
- Blue Jays hurlers Brett Cecil and Kyle Drabek are drawing attention from scouts of other teams, though the team is reluctant to move Drabek while his value is down.
- The Orioles are considering possible trades for Kyle McClellan but t's not clear if the Cardinals are ready to move the right-hander.
- The Red Sox agreed to sign Dominican right-hander Simon Mercedes to a deal including an $800K bonus. For the agreement to become official, Mercedes must pass MLB’s investigation into his age, identity and visa. Mercedes formerly presented himself as two years younger and went by the name of Jeffrey Tapia, so he has a history of identity issues.
- Extension talks between the Padres and catcher Nick Hundley have heated up this week, and an agreement could be close.
- The Royals reportedly offered Ivan Rodriguez an invitation to camp this spring. The Rays aren't considering Pudge.
- The Red Sox announced that they released pitcher Carlos Silva.
- The Rockies are on the lookout for pitching and considering Dontrelle Willis. Willis was released by the Phillies earlier in the week.
- Mets reliever D.J. Carrasco could be a trade candidate.
- The Cubs claimed right-hander Frankie De La Cruz off of waivers from the Brewers, leaving Milwaukee with one open spot on their 40-man roster.
- The Astros signed catcher Landon Powell to a minor league deal and invited him to big league camp. The A's recently released the 29-year-old SFX client.
- The A's claimed infielder Brandon Hicks from the Braves.
- The Indians re-acquired left-hander Kelvin De La Cruz from the Rangers for cash considerations.
Dodgers Release Alberto Castillo
Today's minor moves..
- The Dodgers released left-hander Alberto Castillo today, according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com (via Twitter). The 36-year-old reliever has 60.1 innings of big league work to his credit since 2008.
Rosenthal On Dodgers, La Russa, Cahill, Angels
The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..
- If Steve Cohen winds up buying the Dodgers, Tony La Russa would reportedly become a key decision-maker for the club. According to rival executives, La Russa's strong personality might diminish the Dodgers’ chances of hiring one of the top current general managers. It's far from certain that Cohen will get the team or that he would in fact hire LaRussa in a top role, but GMs like the Rays’ Andrew Friedman or the Diamondbacks’ Kevin Towers likely would not leave their current situations for limited autonomy in L.A.
- Rival executives still find it curious that the Athletics traded Trevor Cahill and one told Rosenthal that GM Billy Beane "must have known something." Beane was likely troubled by what he saw out of the right-hander's advanced metrics. Cahill, who is under a club-friendly long-term contract, had an abnormally low BABIP of .237 in 2010, his breakout year. When Cahill’s BABIP increased to .306 in 2011, his performance suffered accordingly.
- Angels manager Mike Scioscia said at the start of spring training that Bobby Abreu could get 400 plate appearances, but that doesn't seem likely with Kendrys Morales on track to be the team’s designated hitter. The Halos have been looking to move the 38-year-old for quite some time and he hasn't helped his case by coming into camp overweight. The veteran would likely have been cut by now if he wasn't guaranteed $9MM for 2012.
- Meanwhile, fellow Halos trade candidate Mark Trumbo told Rosenthal that he is becoming increasingly comfortable at third base, though he still has much to learn.
Cafardo On Red Sox, Aybar, Lannan, Cecil
While Larry Lucchino may not have officially signed a new deal with the Red Sox, the team’s president/CEO told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he expects to be with the organization for years to come. It's widely known that Lucchino has a greater role in baseball operations than he did in years past when he worked with GM Theo Epstein. The CEO also told Cafardo that while ownership long considered Cherington to be Epstein's heir, there were brief discussions about going outside for a GM. Here's more from Cafardo..
- The Angels are working on a multiyear extension with shortstop Erick Aybar, who can become a free agent next winter. Agent Fernando Cuza is looking for a five-year deal and Aybar could land a big contract on the open market. If Jose Iglesias doesn't look like the Red Sox's long-term solution, Aybar may become an option.
- Interest in Nationals left-hander John Lannan has diminished with some teams that feel what they have is just as good. Boston, for example, feels equally comfortable with Felix Doubront and Andrew Miller. However, the Nats still have a pitching surplus and it appears that teams are more interested in lefty Ross Detwiler’s upside. It's also possible that Washington will want to keep all of their starters as insurance because of Chien-Ming Wang's hamstring injury.
- As the Blue Jays create more room for their top young pitchers, left-hander Brett Cecil could be made available in a deal. The former top prospect hasn’t lived up to expectations and hasn’t had an especially good spring. Last week we learned that Cecil and Kyle Drabek are drawing attention from scouts.
- Mike Aviles is the Red Sox's starting shortstop, but the Phillies are one team that would be interested in dealing for him as they look for an experienced backup infielder. If Boston committed to Iglesias, Aviles could be made available.
- The Indians are wading through left fielders to find a fit, and they could wind up with Johnny Damon. One Tribe exec shot down that idea yesterday, saying that Damon's lackluster defense kills any interest they might have. While the Orioles keep indicating they won’t sign Damon, the veteran would be a great fit for their lineup.
- Cafardo wonders if Ivan Rodriguez could land somewhere soon. The Orioles feel protected with Ronny Paulino if Taylor Teagarden’s back issues persist, but Cafardo writes that Paulino never seems to endear himself wherever he goes. The Royals are on the lookout for catching help due to Salvador Perez’s injury but rather solve that problem from within. Yesterday we heard that the Royals extended a camp invite to Pudge which was not accepted but the club later denied the report.
Nationals Sign Xavier Nady
9:22am: Nady's contract doesn't have any outs and the veteran will start the season with Triple-A Syracuse, tweets Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
8:49am: The Nationals have signed Xavier Nady to a minor league deal, a source tells Amanda Comak of the Washington Times (via Twitter). Nady will only attend minor league camp this spring and won't be involved with the Nats' major league camp.
Adding Nady to the minor league mix gives the Nationals additional insurance in the wake of injuries to Mike Morse and Adam LaRoche. The 33-year-old appeared in 82 games for the Diamondbacks last season and hit .248/.287/.359 with four homers.
The veteran was linked to the Giants over the winter as both clubs were said to have interest in a minor league deal. For his career, Nady owns a .275/.328/.438 slashline across ten seasons.
Royals Offer Ivan Rodriguez Invitation To Camp?
5:49pm: Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star reports (on Twitter) that no offer has been made to Rodriguez, be it a contract or invitation to camp.
3:36pm: Royals GM Dayton Moore was told that Rodriguez still wants to play "at some point,'' but is not ready to join the club now, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
1:14pm: The Royals are interested in bringing Ivan Rodriguez into camp following the injury to starting catcher Salvador Perez, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Rodriguez is currently thinking about the opportunity and hasn't decided whether he will accept the offer.
The 40-year-old has said that he wants to keep playing and has been waiting for an opportunity. Both the Rays and Mets have appeared as possibilities this offseason but neither club seems interested at this juncture.
Pudge was limited by injuries in 2011, hitting .218/.281/.323 in just 44 games for the Nationals.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.