Red Sox Tried To Re-Acquire Justin Masterson
The Red Sox tried to reacquire Justin Masterson before the July 31st trade deadline, according to the MLB Network's Peter Gammons on Twitter. The Indians, who obtained Masterson from Boston in the 2009 Victor Martinez deal, told the Red Sox 'no thanks.' Last night, Masterson pitched five strong innings and beat his former teammates, who are now 6.5 games out of a playoff spot.
For the season, Masterson has a 5.40 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9. With those numbers, Masterson could start for many teams (Masterson's numbers are eerily similar to those of Edwin Jackson). Still, it's likely that the Red Sox, who have a full stable of starters, had interest in bringing Masterson back as a reliever and spot starter. The 25-year-old has a clearly-defined role in Cleveland's rotation and he seems to enjoy the stability.
"It’s a good spot to be in," Masterson told MLBTR over the weekend. "It has given me a great opportunity to be a starter and hopefully be one of the integral parts here."
The sides didn't necessarily come close to a deal, even if Masterson's name came up in conversation. Cleveland controls his rights through 2014 and Masterson figures to be a part of the team's rotation for a while, so it's no surprise that the Indians weren't motivated to move him.
American League Team Claims Papelbon
An unknown American League team claimed Jonathan Papelbon, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Red Sox could trade Papelbon to the claiming club, but are unlikely to do so. Instead, they’ll likely pull their closer back from waivers and hold onto him.
Papelbon makes $9.35MM this season and will head to arbitration this winter. He will earn more than $10MM in next year and will hit free agency after 2011. Even though Papelbon appears headed for an eight-figure salary in 2010, the Red Sox don't necessarily have any interest in trading the four-time All-Star.
Teams often put players on waivers to determine interest even if they have no intention of making a deal. Papelbon has a 2.98 ERA with a career-low 7.7 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9. His 25 saves put him on track for a fifth consecutive 35-save campaign.
American League teams have the chance to claim AL players before NL teams. The Orioles have the league's worst record, so they currently have the top waiver claim. The Rays have the league's best record, so they pick last before National League teams get their chance. Click here for more on trading in August.
Mike Lowell Placed On Waivers
The Red Sox placed last night's hero, Mike Lowell, on waivers, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. Lowell, who returned from a rehab assignment yesterday and promptly homered on the first pitch he saw, will not necessarily be traded. Still, he will likely clear waivers since $3.9MM remains on his 2010 contract. That's much more than teams want to commit to an infielder with ongoing hip issues, despite last night's home run.
However, the move could be a prelude to a trade. Since Lowell is likely to clear waivers, the Red Sox will presumably have the option to trade him to any MLB team. We'll know within a couple days whether a team claims Lowell and if no club makes a claim, the Red Sox will be free to deal.
At this point, Kevin Youkilis is hurt, so Lowell is a valuable piece for the banged-up Red Sox. If Youkilis returns to form and David Ortiz and Adrian Beltre are still healthy and hitting, the Red Sox could consider dealing Lowell. The Yankees, Rangers, Angels, Twins, Tigers and Blue Jays are among the teams that have reportedly shown interest in Lowell this year.
Here's our primer for August trades.
Odds & Ends: Waivers, Lowell, Taschner, Sale
Alex Rodriguez hit his 600th home run today off Shaun Marcum. A-Rod is now the seventh player in MLB history to reach the milestone; up next is Sammy Sosa at 609. Links for Wednesday…
- Chat today, 2pm CST.
- Players on the disabled list can't pass through waivers in August, reports ESPN's Buster Olney.
- The Yankees, Rangers, and Red Sox nearly reached a deal on Friday that would've sent Mike Lowell to New York, Jarrod Saltalamacchia to Boston, and prospects to the Rangers, reports WEEI's Alex Speier. A Lowell deal with the Blue Jays had been discussed in April and June, but both potential trades were killed due to health concerns.
- Lefty Jack Taschner filed for free agency, according to MLB.com's transactions page. Taschner had been designated for assignment by the Dodgers on Friday.
- First-round pick Chris Sale will join the White Sox today as a reliever, reports Baseball America's Jim Callis, making the lefty the first to reach the bigs from the 2010 draft class.
- With Thomas Diamond's MLB debut yesterday, Joe Pawlikowski of FanGraphs looks at what's come of the DVD trio.
Daniels On Hamilton, Vlad, Lee, Scheppers
Rangers GM Jon Daniels chatted with ESPN readers yesterday afternoon. A few nuggets:
- Daniels explained that Josh Hamilton will not be eligible for free agency until after the 2012 season, and "a lot can happen between now and then that could keep him in Texas beyond that point." Hamilton reportedly turned down a four-year, $24MM offer in 2009. Rangers president Nolan Ryan recently testified that Hamilton's salary could jump to $8-10MM in 2010 if he wins the MVP award.
- Daniels has let the agents for Vladimir Guerrero and Cliff Lee know he'd like to re-sign their clients, but he feels it's best to talk specifics in the offseason.
- It's "certainly possible" Tanner Scheppers will make his MLB debut this year, and Daniels says the Rangers "don't really make decisions based on service time." The 23-year-old righty sports a 3.76 ERA, 9.2 K/9, and 3.4 BB/9 in 52.6 Triple A innings this year.
- The Rangers were discussing Cristian Guzman with the Nationals prior to Ian Kinsler's injury; Daniels viewed Guzman as a luxury at that point.
- The expectation is that the Rangers will be able to announce the player to be named received from the Red Sox in the Jarrod Saltalamacchia deal shortly.
- Daniels has a clause in his contract that allows him to leave if the Rangers are sold to a group other than the one fronted by Chuck Greenberg, but he said yesterday that "leaving the Rangers is not remotely on my mind" and "I love it here."
Odds & Ends: Westbrook, Beltre, Oliver Perez
Eight years ago today, the Diamondbacks signed amateur free agent Carlos Gonzalez out of Venezuela. Two major trades later, CarGo is establishing himself as a star in Colorado. Links for Tuesday…
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick runs through a slew of August trade candidates, including Manny Ramirez, Johnny Damon, and Chone Figgins.
- The Padres originally intended to acquire Jake Westbrook for themselves, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs wonders how teams will value Adrian Beltre on the free agent market this winter.
- The Mets won't try to convince Oliver Perez to accept a minor league assignment again, according to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. The Mets still don't plan on releasing Perez, preferring him to take a roster spot.
- The Braves released Willy Taveras from their Triple A club, according to the International League transactions page.
Odds & Ends: Lowell, Cardinals, Mets
On this date in 2001, the Cardinals acquired Woody Williams from the Padres for Ray Lankford. Lankford was useful for the rest of that season, but Williams went on to have an excellent Cardinals career. Links for Monday…
- WEEI's Alex Speier runs through Boston's options with Mike Lowell.
- SI's Jon Heyman lists 31 players he expects to clear waivers.
- The St. Louis Post-Dispatch gathers the opinions of many journalists on the deal that got the Cardinals Jake Westbrook but cost Ryan Ludwick.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post describes various types of deals the Mets could have considered.
- The Pirates are likely to cover $750K in bonuses for traded players, tweets Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. They also chipped in $500K in the Octavio Dotel deal.
- Tom Krasovic gives background on pitching prospect Corey Kluber, who the Padres used to facilitate the deal for Ryan Ludwick.
Minor League Transactions: Lumsden, Red Sox
The latest minor league transactions from Baseball America's Matt Eddy…
- The Padres acquired lefty Tyler Lumsden from the Astros for future considerations. The former first-round pick has already tossed over ten innings for the Double A San Antonio Missions. Lumsden was well-regarded a few years ago, ranking fifth among Royals' prospects in BA's '07 Handbook.
- The Red Sox released pitchers Randor Bierd and Kason Gabbard. Bierd came to the Sox in the January '09 David Pauley trade, while Gabbard was sent to Texas in July of '07 in the Eric Gagne deal and later reacquired.
- The Diamondbacks released reliever Saul Rivera. He'd been designated for assignment on June 8th.
Waiver Trade Candidates: AL East
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.
Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Rangers, Maya, Lowell
Sunday night linkage..
- The three newest members of the Dodgers are happy to be in Los Angeles, writes MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.
- The Rangers were the biggest winners at the deadline, writes Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.
- Yunesky Maya tells Jorge Ebro of El Nuevo Herald (Spanish link) that he has been training hard and "in about three weeks" the Nationals can save him a spot on the roster (translation courtesy of Nick Collias). Earlier today the Nats confirmed that they have inked the 28-year-old hurler to a four-year deal.
- Major league sources tell Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that a three-way trade was discussed in which Mike Lowell could have landed with the Yankees. In the discussed deal, the Red Sox would have sent Lowell to the Rangers, who would then send the veteran to the Yankees.
- Daniel Barbarisi of The Providence Journal writes that despite his strong first half, Clay Buchholz still couldn't bring himself to relax at the deadline.
- The Giants haven't talked to Carlos Delgado's people since this winter, tweets Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com.
- MLB.com's James Hall writes that Indians manager Manny Acta is happy to have July 31st in the rear view mirror. Jake Westbrook, Kerry Wood, Austin Kearns, and Jhonny Peralta were all shipped out in advance of the deadline.
- The future of Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu is clearly in doubt, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
- Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos had his eye on center fielder Anthony Gose for quite some time, writes Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Anthopoulos finally got his man in exchange for first baseman Brett Wallace.