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Kelly Shoppach, Mike Aviles On Waivers

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The Red Sox put Kelly Shoppach and Mike Aviles on waivers today, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports (on Twitter). Nick Punto and Carl Crawford have now cleared waivers, according to Cafardo.

Teams routinely place players on waivers, even if they don't plan on trading them, so this is not an indication that the Red Sox intend to move Shoppach or Aviles. If the players go unclaimed, the Red Sox will be able to complete a trade just as easily as they could have before the current waiver period began ten days ago.

If a team claims Shoppach or Aviles, the Red Sox will have three choices. They can let the player (and his contract) go to the claiming team, they can complete a trade with the claiming team, or they can pull the player back off of waivers. American League teams will have claiming priority on Shoppach and Aviles.

Players Who Cleared Waivers

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This is a running list of players who have cleared waivers, based on published reports. Once a player clears waivers, he can be traded to any team (barring a no-trade clause). This list can always be found in the sidebar under MLBTR Features. Player names are linked to the source articles.

Updated 8-31-12

Infielders

Nick Punto, Red Sox - Punto earns $1.5MM this year and will earn the same amount in 2013.

Outfielders

Carl Crawford, Red Sox - Crawford has $102.5MM remaining on his contract after 2012, so he was expected to clear waivers. Crawford can block trades to two clubs, but no team can flip him to the Yankees after acquiring him from Boston.

Alfonso Soriano, Cubs – Soriano can block any trade. He earns $18MM per season through 2014.

Juan Pierre, Phillies – Pierre earns $800K in 2012 and he'll hit free agency after the season.

Catchers

Joe Mauer, Twins – Mauer earns $23MM per season through 2018.

Starting Pitchers

Joe Saunders, Diamondbacks – Saunders earns $6MM in 2012 and will hit free agency after the season.

Roy Oswalt, Rangers – Oswalt earns $5MM in 2012 and will hit free agency after the season.

Kevin Millwood, Mariners – Millwood earns $1MM in 2012 and will hit free agency after the season.

Relief Pitchers

Carlos Marmol, Cubs - Marmol will earn $9.8MM in 2013 before hitting free agency.

Red Sox Sign Scott Podsednik

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The Red Sox have signed Scott Podsednik to a Major League contract, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Boston traded the outfielder to the Diamondbacks in the Matt Albers–Craig Breslow trade, but Arizona released him a few days later.

Podsednik, 36, hit .387/.409/.484 with six steals in 70 plate appearances with the Red Sox this year and .242/.308/.291 in Triple-A. The veteran speedster also missed a little more than two weeks with a groin strain earlier this season.

Indians To Release Johnny Damon, Jeremy Accardo

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The Indians will release Johnny Damon and Jeremy Accardo today, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports (on Twitter). The club has one more day to make a move involving Derek Lowe.

The Indians removed Damon from their roster six days ago, after he posted a .222/.281/.329 batting line with four home runs in 224 plate appearances as a left fielder and designated hitter. The club designated Accardo for assignment five days ago after he posted a 4.58 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 26 appearances.

Damon hasn't heard if any contenders are interested in signing him, but he wants to keep playing, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports (Twitter links). The Red Sox will pass on Lowe for now, Cafardo reports.

Quick Hits: Oswalt, Bourn, Hendry, Bay Area

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The Indians snapped an 11-game losing streak today with a 6-2 victory over the Twins.  The 11-game skid matched a franchise record, set four times previously in Tribe history.  Avoiding a new futility record is of small consolation to the Indians, who were in wild card contention before their streak and now can only look ahead to 2013.

Here's the latest from around the majors….

  • The Red Sox scouted Roy Oswalt and expressed interest in him earlier this season but they never made an offer, the veteran right-hander tells Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal.  Oswalt also said that he didn't insist to pitch for a team close to his home in Mississippi, noting that he was "pretty close" to signing with the Dodgers before finally settling on a contract with the Rangers.
  • Michael Bourn "strikes out a lot and doesn't have a great on-base percentage.  He's going to be 30 years old, and guys his age do not get faster. I'd be careful," a scout tells Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  The Phillies have been rumored to be interested in signing Bourn as a free agent this winter, with the Nationals and Braves also in the mix for the center fielder.
  • Former Cubs GM Jim Hendry has embraced being a special-assignment scout for the Yankees, writes Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal.  Brian Cashman said that Hendry played key roles in the signing of first-round draft pick Ty Hensley and in the team's recent trade for Casey McGehee.
  • The dispute between the Athletics and the Giants over San Jose territorial rights "might be the most difficult decision in baseball history because of the circumstances," an MLB executive tells Yahoo Sports' Steve Henson.  The executive says there is some belief that the Giants could break protocol and sue the league if the A's are allowed to move.
  • Tom Krasovic of Inside The Padres thinks the Padres made a good move in extending Carlos Quentin and Huston Street, though wonders if either player can "stay healthy in a heated pennant race."

Heyman On Dodgers, Phillies, Red Sox

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Ned Colletti says the Dodgers’ new ownership group has encouraged bold midseason deals, even if the moves require cash, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. Though the Dodgers have no intention of being reckless, they won’t hesitate to make moves that improve their roster, as evidenced by their flurry of midseason additions and waiver claim on well-compensated left-hander Cliff Lee. Here are some highlights from Heyman’s article:

  • Though player salaries matter to any GM, they are not the most important variable in Los Angeles. "We're back to thinking about players in a baseball context," Colletti said. "Salary is part of the checklist. But it's not necessarily an obstacle."
  • The Dodgers attempted to trade for Lee after claiming him, making the Phillies multiple offers before being shut down quickly. The Phillies would only have considered trades if they got significant MLB players in return, plus complete salary relief.
  • Philadelphia GM Ruben Amaro Jr. says he intends to build around Lee, Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels. "We feel like we have a better chance of being a championship club with those three guys at the top of the rotation," Amaro said.
  • The Dodgers inquired on Adrian Gonzalez, but "it takes two to make a deal," one Red Sox person told Heyman.

Olney On Buehrle, Reyes, Red Sox

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The Marlins expected about 25 percent more fans than they’ve drawn this year, according to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney. The Marlins are averaging 28,406 fans per game, an improvement of more than 10,000 people per game that amounts to the largest increase in the game since last year. Here are more notes from Olney, starting in Miami…

  • Marlins president David Samson has said the team isn’t making financially motivated trades, but Olney suggests Miami will have to manage its money carefully to field a competitive team. This could include shedding the contracts of the team's best-paid players.
  • The Marlins will likely look to dump the contracts of players like Jose Reyes at some point in the coming years, and they won’t be offered much in return. The salaries of players like Reyes and Mark Buehrle are back-loaded and will soon spike, which will reduce interest from rival clubs. Ricky Nolasco, Josh Johnson and Heath Bell are among the other Marlins who have significant money remaining on their current contracts.
  • Olney points out that Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine has as much opportunity as any manager to shape his team. Valentine shouldn’t have accepted the job if he wanted more control than he’s getting, Olney writes.

AL East Notes: Valentine, Thome, Lowe

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The Orioles defeated the Mariners tonight to draw within a half game of one of the American League's Wild Card spots. In what most consider to be a shocking season, the second-place Orioles trail the Yankees by 5 1/2 games following New York's loss to the Tigers. Here are some links pertaining to the division…

  • "We are not making a change at manager," Red Sox principal owner John Henry told WEEI.com's Rob Bradford via email. Henry wrote that managers often get too much credit and also too little credit for what happens on the field.
  • WEEI's Alex Speier tweeted a quote from Red Sox GM Ben Cherington that echoed Henry's sentiment, though Cherington stopped short of saying how long Valentine's Boston tenure would last (Twitter links).
  • Orioles DH Jim Thome was told to refrain from baseball activities for 30 days, reports MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli. With an early September return questionable at best, he may be more interested in coming back for another season, according to Ghiroli (Twitter links).
  • An Orioles team official told Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com that the team doesn't have interest in Derek Lowe, who was recently DFA'ed by the Indians (Twitter link). Cleveland is said to be exploring trade options for Lowe.

Red Sox Acquire Danny Valencia From The Twins

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The Red Sox have acquired third baseman Danny Valencia from the Twins for minor league outfielder Jeremias Pineda, both teams have announced. Valencia will report to Triple-A Pawtucket while Pineda will report to the Gulf Coast League Twins.

Valencia has struggled this season hitting .198/.212/.310 in two tours with the Twins. He has also played 69 games for Triple-A Rochester batting .250/.289/.399. Valencia, originally selected by the Twins in the 19th round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, had an impressive Major League rookie season in 2010 with a slash line of .311/.351/.448, but has seen his numbers drop steadily since. 

Pineda is a 21-year-old outfielder from the Dominican Republic who has never played above Rookie ball. Pineda, a switch-hitter, is leading the Gulf Coast League in batting (.421). Over his two professional seasons in the Red Sox organization, Pineda has a slash line of .321/.380/.423 in 70 games between the Dominican Summer League Red Sox and the GCL.

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