Orioles Rumors

Odds And Ends: O’s, Phillies, Braun, DeRosa

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | July 7, 2009 at 12:45pm CDT

Odds And Ends: Bedard, Astros, Marquis

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | July 7, 2009 at 10:08am CDT

Links for Tuesday morning…

Be here at 2pm CST for this week's chat.
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette profiles controversial acquisition Lastings Milledge, who seems energized and motivated.
It would be hard to argue with Amber Theoharis of MASN.com, who says the Orioles won the Erik Bedard deal since they acquired two All-Stars in George Sherrill and Adam Jones.
As MLB.com's Christian Caple reports, Bedard will be on a 60 pitch limit as he returns to the hill tonight against his former team.
Nomar Garciaparra told Mike McDermott of the Providence Journal that he didn't turn down $60MM from the Red Sox.
Experts consider the Astros' system weak, but at least they have Bud Norris and Yorman Bazardo in Triple A, as Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle reports.
The Jason Marquis deal has worked out better-than-expected for the Rockies, but, as Dave Krieger of the Denver Post notes, the Rockies have made plenty of smart deals over the years.

Miguel Angel Sano Rumors: Monday

By | July 6, 2009 at 9:25pm CDT

9:25pm: Arangure also notes that the Aroldis Chapman defection could have a major impact on Sano's negotiations. As he tweets,

"Certain teams will save money for run at Aroldis. Last minute offer (for) Sano less likely now."

9:04pm: Seeking more information, I asked Arangure whether the Twins and Pirates also see Sano as a guy not worth a $4MM signing bonus. He was kind enough to respond:

"For me, the Twins aren't real contenders anymore. The Pirates won't give record money because they won't have to."

8:58pm: ESPN's Jorge Arangure, who's been on the ball since the international signing period began on July 2, just rattled off a couple of interesting "tweets" involving 16-year-old shortstop Miguel Angel Sano:

"Am convinced Sano will not get record money. Orioles see him as late-first-round talent, which does not equal $4 million. More like $1-$1.5."

"Those who think Orioles will give record $ for Sano remember: They gave $3.2m to No. 4 pick [Brian] Matusz last year. Gave [Matt] Hobgood $2.4 this yr."

"There's no way Orioles are giving more to Sano than they gave Matusz and Hobgood."

If Arangure is correct, and the other teams tracking Sano follow suit, Wagner Mateo, singed July 2 by the Cardinals for $3.1MM, will go down as the highest-paid international prospect from 2009. Sano has been courted this summer by the Twins, Pirates and O's, who are awaiting the results of an MLB investigation into his age and identification.

Odds & Ends: Grabow, Yankees, Orioles

By Mike Axisa | July 4, 2009 at 8:33pm CDT

One more roundup of links for the night…

George. A. King III of The New York Post mentions that the Pirates had two scouts watch the Yankees earlier this week, possibly in advance of a deal involving lefty reliever John Grabow.
He mentions that the Dodgers and Rockies had scouts on hand as well. The Yanks have already expressed interest in Huston Street earlier this season.
King also says that the Yanks refuse to talk about prospects Austin Jackson and Austin Romine in trade talks according to other organizations.
Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun recaps the first half of the Orioles' season and says they're building towards something, he's just not quite sure what. He does however praise the performance of young players like Nolan Reimold.
On the day of his tragic and untimely death, let's not forget that Steve McNair was quite the baseball player as well, getting selected by the Mariners in the 35th round of the 1991 Draft. (hat tip: Jesse Spector of The NY Daily News)

Twins A Distant Third For Sano

By Mike Axisa | July 4, 2009 at 7:03pm CDT

ESPN's Jorge Arangure tweets that the Twins are now just a distant third behind the Pirates and Orioles in the sweepstakes for Dominican megaprospect Miguel Angel Sano. He notes that the Twins don't have unlimited funds, and instead are "simply moving on."

Earlier today we recapped everything we know about Sano, the top prospect on this year international market.

Edes’ Latest: Giants, Teahen, Relievers

By Mike Axisa | July 4, 2009 at 10:02am CDT

Currently standing atop the National League wildcard standings, the Giants are looking for a lefthanded bat to add to their lineup according to Gordon Edes of Yahoo Sports. He cites a major league executive who says that San Francisco has focused their efforts on three first baseman: Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff and Adam LaRoche. Edes also says that the Giants have spoken to the Padres about a potential Jonathan Sanchez–Scott Hairston swap.

Let's round up the rest of Edes' rumors…

Royals GM Dayton Moore has heard from multiple teams about Mark Teahen, including the Red Sox, Cubs, Angels and Giants.
The Braves "might be inclined to take a look at" Jose Guillen. The Royals would love to discuss Yunel Escobar.
We've heard this before, but if Boston moves a reliever, it will most likely be Takashi Saito.
Padres' closer Heath Bell may command the most attention amongst relievers.
The Astros are likely to hold on to LaTroy Hawkins and Jose Valverde, barring a collapse before the trade deadline.
The Blue Jays would love to move BJ Ryan, but are more likely to see interest in Jason Frasor and Scott Downs.
Bronson Arroyo is back on the trade block.

Miguel Angel Sano Rumors: Friday

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | July 3, 2009 at 10:16am CDT

The Orioles will likely make Miguel Angel Sano an offer in the coming days, though they haven't yet done so, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. Orioles president Andy MacPhail said the team wants to see how MLB's investigation into Sano's age turns out. The O's have decided Sano's worth a certain amount, but, obviously did not disclose the number.

Another Orioles note: they have scouted Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman, but aren't likely to engage in a bidding war to acquire the lefty prospect.

Meanwhile, Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette repeats that the Pirates have offered Sano a deal, which they followed up with a visit to his family home. However, nothing will likely be finalized until next week, when MLB could finish its investigation.

O’s Grant Livingston His Release

By | July 2, 2009 at 6:31pm CDT

According to Dean Jones Jr. of the Baltimore Sun, minor leaguer Bobby Livingston exercised a clause in his contract this afternoon to gain his release from the Orioles.

Livingston, 26, was 6-2 with a 3.62 earned-run average this season in 13 appearances (12 starts) for the Double-A Bowie Baysox. The clause in his contract allowed him to ask for his release if he wasn't on the major league roster by July 1. Livingston last appeared in "the bigs" with the Reds in 2007, and holds a 6.31 career ERA in just over 56 major league innings.

Miguel Angel Sano Rumors: Thursday

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | July 2, 2009 at 5:16pm CDT

5:16pm: According to La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the Twins have offered a deal around $3MM, contingent on verification of Sano's age and identification. It seems most of these clubs are willing to hold off until both have been verified.

3:34pm: Arangure Jr. says he's been assured the Pirates haven't offered Sano a deal. As he says, the difference between an offer and the parameters of a deal may just be "semantics," especially since Sano's age is still under investigation.

2:55pm: Kovacevic hears from multiple sources that the Pirates offered Sano a deal yesterday morning. However, nothing will likely materialize before MLB completes the investigation into Sano's age.

2:27pm: Roch Kubatko of MASN.com reports that the Orioles won't be signing Sano in the immediate future.

1:25pm: Arangure Jr. hears that the MLB investigation into Sano's age won't be completed today. Safe to say he won't sign today then.

12:24pm: MLB.com's Jen Langosch reports that the Pirates have not yet made Sano an offer.

9:47am: ESPN.com's Jorge Arangure Jr. hears that the Pirates haven't made Sano an offer yet.

8:56am: Today marks the beginning of the international signing period, when teams can start signing the latest crop of young international stars and the Pirates are starting the day off aggressively. Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports they are believed to have offered Miguel Angel Sano a contract, the terms of which are still unknown.

The Pirates will have to overcome a number of obstacles to sign Sano, however:

The Twins and Orioles are still in the mix and Baltimore could out-spend both teams.
The Pirates have a Latin American budget of $2MM, but Sano will likely command a bonus north of $3MM and could approach Michael Ynoa's record of $4.25MM. GM Neal Huntington says the Pirates could expand the budget under special circumstances, something they'd almost certainly have to do to sign Sano.
There are lingering questions about the shortstop's age which must be resolved.

In spite of this, Huntington says he expects to do "very well" internationally this year.

Rosenthal Discusses George Sherrill

By Tim Dierkes | July 1, 2009 at 11:56pm CDT

Orioles closer George Sherrill sports a 2.51 ERA with 17 saves, and had been lights out recently until today's outing against the Red Sox. The 32 year-old southpaw is under team control through 2011. Since the Orioles are 10.5 games out of the wild card, it's only natural to expect a few trade rumors involving Sherrill.

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports discusses the possibility of a deal in an article tonight. His source speaks of talks with Florida that have "tiny legs" that "could grow given time." The Marlins' closer, Matt Lindstrom, is currently on the shelf with an elbow sprain. Rosenthal says the Fish would not be willing to part with Chris Coghlan for Sherrill, though the O's like the rookie. The Orioles have a clear organizational need on the left side of the infield.

A trade of Sherrill is no sure thing, according to Rosenthal. He speaks of Sherrill's stabilizing presence on the team's young pitching staff. I imagine it would be easier for the Orioles to part with Danys Baez, especially with over $2.8MM remaining on his contract.

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