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Quick Hits: Mariners, D’Backs, Trades, 2013 Draft

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The Upton brothers made history tonight as both Justin and B.J. hit their 100th career home runs.  They become the sixth pair of brothers to each hit 100 Major League homers and the first to reach the plateau on the same evening.  Here are some more news items from around the majors as we head into the weekend…

Chicago Notes: Lowe, Soriano, Williams, Liriano

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Here's the latest from both Windy City teams….

  • The Cubs are "looking into what it would take to acquire" Derek Lowe, reports Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.  Lowe has a 5.52 ERA in 21 starts this season and was designated for assignment by the Indians two days ago.  The Orioles and Red Sox have also been mentioned as possible suitors for Lowe, though the Red Sox haven't been in contact with the Indians about Lowe, according to WEEI.com's Rob Bradford.
  • Also from Wittenmyer's piece, Cubs president Theo Epstein said Alfonso Soriano had one semi-legitimate suitor before the trade deadline.  ‘‘There were a few nibbles, and there was one match of a team that had expressed interest and a place that he would go,’’ Epstein said. ‘‘But they ended up never making an actual offer and addressing their needs somewhere else.’’  This team could possibly be the Dodgers, who were known to have an interest in Soriano before acquiring Shane Victorino from the Phillies.
  • White Sox general manager Kenny Williams tells reporters (including MLB.com's Scott Merkin) that he plans to monitor the waiver wire, though "we don't have a lot of positions where if you claim somebody they're going to come in and play."
  • Francisco Liriano ended up being Williams' biggest acquisition in the days before the trade deadline and the GM thinks Liriano will thrive under pitching coach Don Cooper.  "While there might be some other guys out there who were available, I just felt that Liriano's one that all he really has to do is be in the strike zone on a more consistent basis," Williams said.

Dodgers Awarded Claiming Rights On Cliff Lee

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8:43pm: Ruben Amaro didn't confirm or deny the reports of the Dodgers' claim on Lee to the media (including MLB.com's Paul Hagen) but said "It's irrelevant. [Lee] is not going anywhere."

5:16pm: The Dodgers were awarded Lee's claiming rights, tweets Jon Morosi of FOX Sports.  This means that all NL teams with a record worse than the Dodgers' 56-50 mark (every NL team except the Reds, Nationals, Pirates, Braves, Giants and Cardinals) first passed on Lee.

5:06pm: The Phillies don't see a trade as very likely, reports Jon Heyman.  The Phils also aren't likely to just let Lee leave to the claiming team without getting anything back in return.

3:46pm: Phillies left-hander Cliff Lee has been claimed on waivers, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). The Phillies can now pull Lee back off of waivers, assign his contract to the team that won the claim, or work a trade out with the claiming team. Lee can block trades and claims to 21 teams, which could limit the Phillies' flexibility, depending on the identity of the claiming team.

The team(s) that claimed Lee showed a willingness to take on approximately $95MM in future commitments. Lee earns $21.5MM in 2012 and $25MM per season through 2015. His contract includes a $27.5MM vesting option for 2016 with a $12.5MM buyout. If the Phillies can assign Lee to the claiming team without his permission, they will now have to decide whether they value Lee's performance more than the flexibility they'd obtain by letting him go. If multiple teams claimed Lee, National League teams have priority over American League teams.

Lee, who turns 34 this month, has a 3.73 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 125 1/3 innings so far this year. He has averaged seven innings per start and contributed 2.7 wins above replacement, according to FanGraphs.

The Red Sox didn't claim Lee, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports (on Twitter). More than 58% of 14,000 MLBTR readers correctly predicted that Lee would be claimed.

MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post

Minor Moves: Neshek, Wise, Mock, Hill

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Some minor transactions from around the league…

  • The A's acquired right-hander Pat Neshek from the Orioles in exchange for cash, according to the Athletics' official Twitter page.  Neshek will report to the A's Major League bullpen, according to Joe Stiglich of the Bay Area News Group (via Twitter).  Neshek signed a minor league deal with the O's last winter and has a 2.66 ERA, a 7.00 K/BB ratio and 49 strikeouts in 35 relief appearances (44 innings) for Triple-A Norfolk this season.  Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link) was the first to report the deal.
  • The White Sox agreed to terms with Dewayne Wise to a minor league deal, reports CSN Chicago's Dan Hayes (via Twitter). Wise had a .262/.286/.492 line in 63 plate appearances for the Yankees this season before being released on Wednesday.  This is Wise's second stint with the White Sox, as he played for Chicago in 2008-09 and earned a place in team history with an outstanding ninth-inning catch that saved Mark Buehrle's perfect game in 2009.
  • The Astros acquired Garrett Mock from the Red Sox in exchange for future considerations, reports Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle.  Mock last pitched in the Major Leagues with Washington in 2010.  Mock, a Houston native, posted a 3.33 ERA, a 9.8 K/9 rate and a 2.3 K/BB ratio in 48 2/3 innings as a reliever for Triple-A Pawtucket this season after signing a minor league deal with the Sox last winter.
  • The Nationals released catcher Koyie Hill, reports Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.  Hill appeared in 11 games with the Cubs this season before being designated for assignment and choosing free agency, upon which he signed with the Nats in June.

Olney On Dempster, Athletics, Lee, Castro

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At least one baseball person wonders if Ryan Dempster hurt his free agent stock by agreeing to join the Rangers, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports. The American League, referred to by one general manager as "the big boy league," features some high-powered offenses that could have impact Dempster’s numbers and diminish his leverage in offseason contract talks. Here are more notes from Olney…

  • The Dodgers were interested in Dempster, but they never pushed for him, Olney reports. The Dodgers didn’t want to trade from their core of good prospects and they didn’t waver when the Cubs asked about their top minor leaguers.
  • Olney suggests teams like the Red Sox and Orioles could have interest in Brandon McCarthy if the Athletics place him on waivers when he returns from the disabled list.
  • Before the trade deadline, the Phillies made it clear that they would not pick up any of Cliff Lee’s salary in a trade and would also want prospects in return for the left-hander. Olney suggests it’s highly unlikely Lee will be moved in a waiver deal this month.
  • Starlin Castro’s name came up in conversations between the Cubs and Diamondbacks leading up to the trade deadline, Olney writes. However, both sides moved on quickly and a deal was never close.
  • Olney wonders if the Nationals could pursue in Derek Lowe given their interest in adding pitching leading up to the trade deadline.

Red Sox, Orioles Could Have Interest In Lowe

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6:24pm: The Red Sox are "still gathering info" before deciding whether or not to pursue Lowe, reports Scott Lauber of The Boston Herald. Meanwhile, the Nationals have no interest in the veteran right-hander according to Amanda Comak of The Washington Times (on Twitter).

3:20pm: Derek Lowe told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he just needs "a tuneup" before resuming his MLB career (Twitter links). The right-hander, who was officially designated for assignment today, would love to return to the Red Sox, where he pitched from 1997-2004. Boston GM Ben Cherington hasn't ruled out Lowe, but hasn't made a decision yet, Cafardo writes.

Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun suggests we shouldn’t be surprised if the Orioles make a big push for Lowe. “It makes a whole lot of sense,” one Orioles official told Connolly. Orioles executive Dan Duquette acquired Lowe for the Red Sox in 1997. Baltimore has been seeking starting pitching depth this summer.

Updates On Converted Relievers Now Starting

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Building a rotation through free agency can be expensive and frustrating, so teams are understandably open to alternatives. One way for teams to avoid free agent salaries and long-term commitments is to move relief pitchers to the starting rotation. Yet few relievers have the repertoire and durability to succeed in the rotation, so it's not uncommon for converted relievers to flop as starters. 

Here’s a mid-season update on four pitchers who jumped from the ‘pen to the rotation this year. None of the pitchers below had started more than three MLB games in a season before 2012 and all of them were big league relievers last year:

  • Daniel Bard – Bard walked more batters than he struck out and posted a career-high ERA as a starting pitcher before being optioned to the minor leagues in early June. The right-hander saw his fastball velocity (93.1 mph) and swinging strike rate (7.9%) dip as a starter. He's now pitching out of the bullpen at Triple-A, and the results have been mixed. This attempted transition has been a disappointment.
  • Neftali Feliz – The Rangers have successfully converted C.J. Wilson and Alexi Ogando to starting roles under Ron Washington and Mike Maddux in recent years, but Feliz's conversion didn't go nearly as well. He will miss the rest of the season and much of 2013 to undergo and recover from Tommy John surgery. Feliz's injury may be unrelated to his change in roles, but it doesn't make the reality of his elbow issues any more pleasant for the Rangers. The 24-year-old started just seven games before hitting the disabled list, and the results were acceptable, if not overwhelmingly positive: a 3.16 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 4.9 BB/9.
  • Jeff Samardzija – Credit the Cubs for putting Samardzija in the rotation this spring. He's enjoying a breakout season with a 4.19 ERA, 9.0 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 in 120 1/3 innings (he recovered from an ugly month of June to string together some strong starts in July). The 27-year-old has maintained his fastball velocity, averaging 95 mph with his heater. Among MLB starters only Cole Hamels and Tim Lincecum generate a greater percentage of swings and misses (12.0%).
  • Chris Sale – Sale has pitched to a 2.61 ERA through 124 innings with a 114K/31BB ratio and impressive hit and home run rates. The 2012 All-Star has lost some zip on his fastball (now 92.1 mph), but he continues to generate lots of swings and misses. A major success for rookie manager Robin Ventura, pitching coach Don Cooper and the White Sox.

Note: Though Lance Lynn, Anthony Bass and Felix Doubront pitched in relief last year, they also started in the minors for much of the 2011 season, so I don’t consider them converted relievers. Advanced stats via FanGraphs.

Quick Hits: Red Sox, Pena, Bay, Grades

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The trade deadline is officially behind us, but expect to see a number of waiver trades this month as teams begin to fall out of contention. Here's the latest from around the league as Wednesday turns into Thursday…

  • Alex Speier of WEEI.com reports that the Red Sox held onto Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Kelly Shoppach at the deadline despite trade interest because they wanted to keep as many impact bats as possible while David Ortiz is on the DL. They also want to maintain catching depth.
  • "Absolutely. That would be wonderful," said Hunter Pence to Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com when asked about signing long-term with the Giants (Twitter link). San Francisco acquired Pence yesterday.
  • Earlier today we heard that the Mets and Marlins discussed a trade involving Jason Bay, Heath Bell, and John Buck, but Mike Puma of The New York Post reports (on Twitter) that Bay was never asked to waive his no-trade clause.
  • ESPN's Jim Bowden graded each team's trade deadline activity, giving the Angels and Dodgers an A and an A-, respectively. The rebuilding Astros received a B+.

Quick Hits: Indians, Blum, Dodgers, Blue Jays

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The non-waiver trade deadline has passed, but August figures to be a busy month nonetheless. MLBTR has an explanation of how teams can make trades this month, plus reaction to yesterday’s deadline moves and a poll on which teams didn’t do enough. Here are today’s links…

  • It's time for the Indians to release Derek Lowe and Johnny Damon since the veterans are not producing enough to justify their roster spots, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes.
  • Geoff Blum told ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick that he’s in limbo now, but would love to play again "if the situation is right” (Twitter link). The Diamondbacks released the veteran infielder last month.
  • Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said his starting rotation remains "a concern," Alex Angert of MLB.com reports. Stephen Fife still has a rotation spot despite rumors that the Dodgers might acquire a starter such as Ryan Dempster or Matt Garza.
  • The Blue Jays voided the contract of Venezuelan shortstop Luis Castro after the prospect didn't pass his physical, Ben Badler of Baseball America writes. Castro, 16, had signed for $800K last month.
  • The Red Sox placed Nick Punto and Carl Crawford on waivers today, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). Hundreds of players will be placed on waivers this month and only a small percentage of them will be traded.

Red Sox, Rangers Talked Beckett, Ellsbury, Shoppach

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The Red Sox and Rangers discussed a trade that would have sent Josh Beckett, Jacoby Ellsbury and Kelly Shoppach to Texas, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports. It’s unclear what the Red Sox would have obtained in the potential trade, which was discussed in the days leading up to yesterday’s non-waiver trade deadline.  

Bradford’s sources are divided on how serious talks were before the Rangers moved on and acquired Geovany Soto and Ryan Dempster from the Cubs in a pair of trades. GM Ben Cherington said the Red Sox explored a lot of options before deciding to complete one low-profile deadline deal.

"We did feel empowered to do something bold, we just didn't find something bold that made sense for us," Cherington said.

Trade talks never advanced to the point where the Red Sox asked Beckett about the possibility of waiving his ten and five rights. Beckett would have provided the Rangers with some rotation depth and Texas could have paired Shoppach with Mike Napoli behind the plate. Ellsbury, who’s under team control for 2013, would have represented insurance for the Rangers in case they don’t re-sign Josh Hamilton when he’s eligible for free agency this coming offseason.

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