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Waiver Trade Candidates: AL East

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Last year, Ronnie Belliard, Jose Contreras, Jon Garland, Scott Kazmir, Jon Rauch, Billy Wagner, Bill Hall, Ivan Rodriguez, Aubrey Huff, Alex Gonzalez, David Weathers, Carl Pavano, Chad Gaudin, and Gregg Zaun were traded in August.  Alex Rios and Russ Springer also changed teams as waiver claims.  Here's our primer on the rules.  Let's take a look at candidates to be traded or claimed in 2010, starting with the AL East.

The Orioles traded Miguel Tejada and Will Ohman last week, but kept Ty Wigginton and Luke Scott.  Both could be moved, but the O's don't have an obvious replacement for Wigginton.  Scott is under team control through 2012, and dealing him in August would limit the trade talks to the one team winning the claim.  Jeremy Guthrie isn't going anywhere.  Kevin Millwood will probably clear waivers, as he's earning $12MM and has given up five earned runs in each of his last five starts.  Cesar Izturis could be dealt if the Orioles don't mind starting Julio Lugo at shortstop the rest of the year.  Mark Hendrickson has been better against lefties than Ohman or Javier Lopez; I'm surprised there wasn't more July interest.

The Red Sox discussed sending Mike Lowell to the Yankees via the Rangers on Friday, reported Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  Lowell would clear waivers, and Rosenthal feels that the Phillies, Rays, and Twins are potential matches.  The Sox seemed willing to part with Manny Delcarmen in July; he could be claimed by a non-contending AL team willing to tender him a contract for 2011.

If Nick Johnson somehow takes a positive turn and comes off the DL this month, perhaps the Yankees would look to move him.  Marcus Thames could be the odd man out with Austin Kearns now in the fold.

The Rays optioned Dioner Navarro to Triple A in June and could try to move the remainder of his $2.1MM salary.  Lance Cormier or Gabe Kapler could be dumped if the Rays find suitable replacements.

One Blue Jay certain to clear waivers is Vernon Wells, even though his power has returned this year.  Lyle Overbay is a reasonable trade candidate, though the Jays seemingly didn't get too far in July discussions.  Edwin Encarnacion already cleared waivers in June.  Brian Tallet has handled lefties well, and will probably clear waivers given his $2MM salary.  Scott Downs, Jason Frasor, Kevin Gregg, and John Buck will probably be retained for future draft pick compensation.

Marlins Acquire Will Ohman

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The Marlins aggressively pursued bullpen help on deadline day, and ultimately acquired veteran lefty Will Ohman from the Orioles for 25-year-old righty Rick Vanden Hurk.

Ohman, 33 in August, has a 3.30 ERA, 8.7 K/9, and 5.4 BB/9 in 30 innings this year with three home runs allowed.  He came a long way since signing a minor league deal in February, even spending a few days as the Orioles' closer.  He hasn't displayed any special ability to retire lefties since the '08 season.

Vanden Hurk seems an acceptable return for two months of Ohman.  This year at Triple A he posted a 4.68 ERA, 8.0 K/9, and 3.7 BB/9 in 98 innings, allowing 11 home runs.  He's had multiple stints at that level and also has 155.6 big league innings under his belt.  Strikeouts have been there, but everything else has been an issue (including health).  Baseball America ranked Vanden Hurk 13th among Marlins prospects before the '07 season, noting that he was signed at 17 out of the team's Dutch academy.  Did you know the Marlins had a Dutch academy?  BA described Vanden Hurk as "smart and coachable."

Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun first tweeted that Ohman was traded, and Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel tweeted that Vanden Hurk was the return.

Rays Pursuing Luke Scott

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2:21pm: Teams haven't been too aggressive on Scott, tweets Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.  The Orioles would want a solid return since Scott is under team control for two more seasons beyond this one.

2:08pm: Scott is getting play but not from the Dodgers, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown.

1:55pm: The Dodgers are making a push for Scott and the Rays are in the mix, tweets Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse.

1:02pm: The Rays and Orioles are in trade talks, tweets Ed Price of AOL FanHouse.  He wonders if Luke Scott or Will Ohman would be the Rays' target.  However, MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli tweets that an Orioles trade before the deadline is highly unlikely.

Twitter Rumors: Lowell, Ross, Dotel, Heilman

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A home for today's random Twitter rumors…

Orioles May Be Done Dealing

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The Orioles shipped Miguel Tejada out of town yesterday, and they might be done dealing according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.  Connolly doesn't anticipate more trades, but he ranks the Orioles most likely to go: Ty Wigginton, Will Ohman, and Luke Scott.

The Orioles lost a suitor for Wigginton when the Rangers acquired Jorge Cantu, and they like Wiggy's instruction of young players.  Connolly says to forget about starter Jeremy Guthrie being dealt – he's been told it's a near impossibility and that the O's would have to be blown away.

Red Sox Have Explored Trades For Many Relievers

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FRIDAY, 1:03am: Theo Epstein has discussed multiple possible trades with former Red Sox assistant GM and current Padres GM Jed Hoyer, according to Peter Abraham and Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The Globe duo believes Boston could have interest in a reliever like Joe Thatcher, and, given the team's excess of outfielders when Jacoby Ellsbury returns, they may match up with San Diego.

THURSDAY, 12:59pm: Though they're on his no-trade list, the Red Sox asked the Brewers about Trevor Hoffman, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  Rosenthal adds that the Brewers are not inclined to move Hoffman.  Meanwhile they're getting calls on Carlos Villanueva and Todd Coffey.

12:05pm: The Red Sox are leaving no rock unturned in their search for relief help.  They've explored Rafael Perez, Will Ohman, Mike Gonzalez, Matt Capps, Michael Wuertz, Craig Breslow, Sean Marshall, Kerry Wood, David Aardsma, and Kyle Farnsworth, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.  Cafardo says Scott Downs looks unlikely unless the Blue Jays back down from their top prospect requests.  On a related note, SI's Jon Heyman tweets that the Jays asked the Mets for outfield prospect Kirk Nieuwenhuis and one other player for Downs and were denied. 

Marshall is the interesting name here.  The 27-year-old lefty has had a dominant year in relief, posting a 1.71 ERA, 10.4 K/9, and 2.9 BB/9 in 52.6 innings with one home run allowed.  He's been especially strong against lefties.  Marshall is under team control through 2012 and would presumably be very difficult to pry loose from the Cubs.  Gonzalez is another surprising name, since he's spent most of the season on the shelf with a shoulder injury and is still owed good money.

Cafardo adds that the Red Sox have been shopping reliever Ramon Ramirez, and offers the opinion that a National League team might want to take a look at him.  Ramirez has a 4.57 ERA, 6.5 K/9, and 3.3 BB/9 in 41.3 innings with six home runs allowed and is a potential non-tender candidate after the season.

Padres Acquire Miguel Tejada

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The Padres were supposed to be trading Adrian Gonzalez right about now. Instead, they traded for someone to hit behind him. The Padres and Orioles agreed to a deal that will send Miguel Tejada and cash to San Diego for minor league pitcher Wynn Pelzer.

Tejada, the 2002 AL MVP, is no longer an elite hitter. In fact, he's hitting just .269/.308/.362 this season. His defense has also been below-average in recent years, according to UZR, though he can play third or shot.

Tejada makes $6MM this year and the Padres and Orioles will split the $2.2MM remaining on his contract. He projects as a Type B free agent, though an offer of arbitration seems unlikely.

Baseball America ranked Pelzer seventh among all Padres prospects before the season. The 24-year-old is a power pitcher whose fastball sits in the mid-90s. As a starter, he has a 4.20 ERA with 7.9 K/9 and 5.3 BB/9 in AA this year, but BA said he could become a closer in time.

The Cardinals and Phillies also showed interest in Tejada this month.

Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun first reported that a deal seemed likely and added detail later on. MLB.com's Corey Brock and Dan Hayes of the North County Times also contributed elements of the story. The Orioles and Padres have confirmed the deal.

Orioles Hire Buck Showalter

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3:20pm: The O's officially announced the hiring and noted that interim manager Juan Samuel will once again be the club's third base coach.

1:22pm: Showalter's contract runs through 2013, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. 

12:42pm: The Orioles have hired Buck Showalter as manager, reports ESPN's Tim Kurkjian.  Showalter's first game will be Tuesday against the Angels.  Kurkjian notes that Eric Wedge, Bobby Valentine, Rick Dempsey, and current interim manager Juan Samuel also interviewed for the job.  Showalter brings an 882-833 career record and two Manager of the Year awards from his career managing the Yankees, Rangers, and Diamondbacks.

Odds & Ends: Joba, Orioles, White Sox, Mets

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Big names have traditionally been traded on July 29th, including Cliff Lee and Mark Teixeira in recent years.  Perhaps today we'll add Roy Oswalt to the list.  Links for Thursday with about 51 hours until the deadline…

Phillies, Padres Eyeing Tejada, Bloomquist

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The Padres' chief infield target is Miguel Tejada, reports CBS' Scott Miller.  They're facing competition from the Phillies, who are also said to be after the Orioles infielder.  Last we heard, the Cardinals inquired but didn't get anywhere.

The Padres and Phillies share another target in the Royals' Willie Bloomquist, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick.  Crasnick says the Angels and Yankees have also kicked the tires on the 32-year-old utility man.  Bloomquist is still owed $619K plus performance bonuses.

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