Odds and Ends: Big Papi, Ray, Murphy
The night in baseball so far…
- David Ortiz finally homered after 149 regular-season at-bats without a home run dating back to September 22, 2008. Home runs tend to come in bunches, so if Ortiz quickly follows with a few more, consider the Red Sox less interested in hitters like Aubrey Huff or Nick Johnson.
- Chris Ray is throwing with desired velocity, but still doesn't have his location, according to Spencer Fordin or MLB.com. Watch Ray's walk rate. He's walked nine in 12 2/3 innings. But with 15 strikeouts in that time, he's a bit of control away from helping the Orioles-or perhaps a contending team, come the trade deadline.
- All those thinking the Mets will trade for a first baseman, watch the next four games carefully. The Mets are giving Daniel Murphy a chance to grab the position, and Murphy, a natural third baseman, should have an easier adjustment there than in left field.
Heyman On Mets, Trades, Billingsley
The latest from SI's Jon Heyman…
- Heyman wonders why the Mets aren't giving Daniel Murphy a chance as their regular first baseman. He names trade possibilities, in order of likelihood: Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff, Russell Branyan, Victor Martinez/Mark DeRosa, and Garrett Atkins.
- Heyman names 22 players who might hit the trading block this summer, headed by Jake Peavy, Matt Holliday, and Erik Bedard. The A's could potentially have a lot of veterans to spin off.
- Heyman says "the Dodgers briefly tried to lock up Chad Billingsley this winter, and probably wish they had." Billingsley will be eligible for arbitration for the first time after this season, so his salary figures to jump up past $4MM.
Indians Fielding Offers For Mark DeRosa
According to SI's Jon Heyman, the Indians are now fielding offers for infielder Mark DeRosa. DeRosa, 34, is hitting .242/.312/.412 on the season in 170 plate appearances as the Tribe's third baseman. He has about $4.15MM left on his contract.
Heyman says the Indians "are looking mainly for pitchers who can help them now." Heyman believes DeRosa is below Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff, and Russell Branyan on the Mets' wish list. What other teams would make sense – the Braves, Cubs, Brewers, or Cardinals perhaps? You can discuss it in the comments here, and also head over to our Facebook fan page and jump into that discussion.
Over at the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Paul Hoynes says Indians GM Mark Shapiro "is talking to general managers, but it's not about subtracting players in preparation for next year."
Odds & Ends: Mets, Cubs, Astros
Links for Monday…
- Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Baseball America's Jim Callis that the team's #10 overall draft pick will not be influenced by signability. MLB.com's Bill Ladson's source believes negotiations between Rizzo and Scott Boras for Stephen Strasburg will go well, given their past history.
- Regarding Friday's call for MLBTR writers, I still have many applications to review. I will keep you updated here on the site.
- McCovey Chronicles discusses The Jonathan Sanchez Paradox.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post names Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff, and Mark DeRosa as the most probable trade targets for the Mets if Carlos Delgado is out for an extended period of time. Check out MLBTR's discussion of this topic from Saturday. SI.com's Jon Heyman also weighed in today.
- Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal has an update on progress made on the sale of the Cubs.
- On Sunday, Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote that Freddy Sanchez's current contract clause will likely cause the Pirates to avoid vesting options in the future.
- On June 1st, Alyson Footer will begin a new job working for the Astros. The new MLB.com beat writer will be Brian McTaggart, who covered the team for the Houston Chronicle.
Gammons On Ackley, Red Sox, Relievers
ESPN's Peter Gammons has a new blog post up. Let's take a look.
- Gammons writes in praise of North Carolina's Dustin Ackley, who is likely to be chosen by the Mariners at #2 in June. Ackley may wind up at center field or second base.
- The Red Sox don't appear willing to trade young pitchers like Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden, and Nick Hagadone. The Sox have looked at bats such as Colorado's Matt Murton and Ryan Spilborghs, but for now aren't desperate enough to trade pitching. Gammons wonders if, for the right bat, Boston would part with Manny Delcarmen. He believes Delcarmen could close in the NL.
- Gammons says the Mets think they could have Carlos Delgado back by August if he has hip surgery, allowing them to stay in-house for his replacements.
- The Dodgers, Indians, Yankees, and Twins are looking for relief help. Gammon names Jose Valverde, Huston Street, Danys Baez, Russ Springer, and John Grabow as future trade candidates.
Heyman On Lee, Martinez, Green
A look at the latest from SI.com's Jon Heyman…
- Heyman addresses the issue of whether the Indians will trade staff ace Cliff Lee. GM Mark Shapiro isn't thinking about it (not under consideration, according to Ken Rosenthal), and rival execs are divided. Heyman says neither side made a contract extension proposal during the offseason. The Indians will have Lee through 2010 once they exercise his option.
- The Mets mulled calling up Fernando Martinez, but they'll stick to their plan of keeping him in Triple A until at least June.
- The Orioles are "seriously considering" drafting USC shortstop Grant Green with their #5 pick. However, the Padres are said to be eyeing Green at #3.
Stark’s Latest: Willis, Peavy, Astros, O’s
A summary of Jayson Stark's latest "Rumblings and Grumblings" column…
- Why did the Tigers bother giving Dontrelle Willis another shot? Frustration, perhaps. "It was pretty obvious, wasn't it?" said one longtime front-office man. "They invested $29 million in the guy. They had $22 million left… They'd already eaten Gary Sheffield's money."
- As for a possible Jake Peavy-to-the-Cubs deal, Stark writes "The Cubs' ownership limbo now looks as if it might stretch until Christmas Eve. So who knows whether Cubs GM Jim Hendry will even be released from captivity in time to pursue another Peavy deal come July."
- The chances of Roy Oswalt, along with a few other of Houston's high profile stars being placed on the trade market this summer? "Based on the history?" an executive of one club said, laughing. "I'd say zero."
- The Orioles should have relievers available come July. Scouts are drooling over Danys Baez, who seems to have regained his form this year with a 2.37 ERA and 0.84 WHIP. Closer George Sherrill could also draw plenty of interest.
Odds & Ends: Oliver, Amaro, Scheppers
Links for Thursday…
- ESPN's Keith Law has the latest on the battle between Andy Oliver and the NCAA over whether players can have agents and still be eligible for the draft.
- Yahoo's Gordon Edes writes about the ascension of Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. Edes notes that the Phils still do not have a full-time statistical analyst.
- Former D'Backs pitching coach Bryan Price landed a minor league consulting gig with the Phillies, according to MLB.com's Steve Gilbert.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says it's "believed though not confirmed" that Tanner Scheppers has granted the Pirates permission to draft him again if they choose. The Pirates did not sign him last year due to health concerns, but now he's looking like a top-ten pick.
- A couple of powerful prospects got the call: Nolan Reimold with the Orioles and Mat Gamel with the Brewers. For the Brewers, Brad Nelson now has to decide whether to accept a Triple A assignment. The Orioles and Brewers are risking Super Two status with these call-ups, but only if the players are not sent back down.
Orioles Trade Candidates
The Orioles are currently in last place, eight games out in the AL East. The offense has been OK, the pitching lousy. This comes as no surprise; 2009 was viewed as a rebuilding year for Baltimore heading into the season. This is entirely speculative, but let's take a look at possible veteran trade candidates a month or two from now.
- Melvin Mora, 3B - $9MM this year, $8MM club option for '10 with a $1MM buyout. Mora, 37, caught fire in July and August of '08. He has a no-trade clause and has dealt with a hamstring injury this year. Could he help the Reds, if he starts hitting and shows a willingness to accept a trade? Walt Jocketty and Andy MacPhail matched up on the Ryan Freel–Ramon Hernandez deal last winter.
- Ty Wigginton, 3B - $2.5MM this year, $3.5MM in '10. Wiggy has been awful at the plate so far in 106 plate appearances, rendering him immovable.
- Adam Eaton, SP – signed through 2009, Phillies paying most of his salary. Eaton's had one good start this year, against the White Sox. He needs to find his way back to the NL.
- Aubrey Huff, DH/1B – $8MM this year. This year he's looked more like the pre-2008 Huff. Did MacPhail miss his chance last winter to move the entire $8MM?
- Danys Baez, RP – $5.5MM this year. He missed all of '08, but Baez is having a nice year in his first 18 innings. The O's have handled him carefully, as he ranks fourth in their bullpen in Leverage. He appears to be the most likely trade candidate on the team, and the cost shouldn't be much beyond paying his salary.
- Koji Uehara, SP – $5MM this year, $5MM in '10. Uehara has been the team's best pitcher, combining a decent strikeout rate with a tiny walk rate. Is this MacPhail's chance to sell high, despite the risk of making the '09 rotation even worse? Given the hoopla about Uehara being the team's first Japanese-born player, it's unlikely he's dealt a few months into the contract.
- Jamie Walker, RP – $4.5MM this year. Walker's been solid overall this year, but he's surprisingly been rocked by lefties.
- George Sherrill, RP – $2.75MM this year, under team control through 2011. Sherrill is trying to hang on to the team's closer job. He may be best-served back in a lefty-specialist role. He's similar to Guthrie in that he's past 30 but under team control for a while.
- Cesar Izturis, SS – $2.4MM this year, $2.6MM in '10. Izturis probably isn't a trade candidate unless an adequate replacement emerges, perhaps through a separate deal. Robert Andino hasn't gotten much of a look yet.
- Luke Scott, OF – $2.4MM this year, under team control through 2012. Scott's shoulder injury may knock him out for an extended period of time, keeping him off the trade market.
- Mark Hendrickson, SP/RP – $1.5MM this year. He at least takes the ball every fifth day, so the O's may keep him around just to eat up innings. Maybe they'll feel the same way about Eaton.
- Gregg Zaun, C – $1.5MM this year, $2MM club option for '10 with a $500K buyout. The contract could be a nice bargain if Zaun rediscovers his .340 OBP ability. The O's probably prefer he stays on to tutor Matt Wieters when the prospect comes up this summer.
- Jeremy Guthrie, SP – $650K this year, under team control through 2012. The O's are not in a position to trade away pitching, but Guthrie is already 30 years old. 3.5 years of Guthrie could be appealing on the trade market. Maybe he could be cashed in for multiple young players.
Odds And Ends: Manny, Rangers, Pie
Links for Saturday morning…
- On ESPN Radio, Keith Law says no team would pass on Manny Ramirez if he's available for $5MM in the near future, regardless of his suspension. He won't be available at that rate this offseason, as he has a $20MM player option for 2010.
- Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News passes on a quote from Dodgers GM Ned Colletti: "My concern is still with the pitching."
- Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune believes the Dodgers' pitching will carry them while Manny serves his suspension.
- Jamey Newberg suggests on the Newberg Report that the Braves would deal the haul they received for Mark Teixeira– Casey Kotchman and Stephen Marek– for any one of four players they gave up to get Tex- Elvis Andrus, Matt Harrison, Neftali Feliz or Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
- The Chicago Tribune suggests the Orioles may try to sneak Felix Pie to Triple-A through waivers.