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Odds and Ends

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Some random links I’ve come across, best categorized as Odds and Ends.

  • Tim Marchman of the New York Sun discusses why the Yankees can’t practically pull off any kind of fire sale.  Bobby Abreu is the one big name they can move, though Andy Pettitte is worthy of consideration.  Marchman likes the Angels, Diamondbacks, and Dodgers as fits for Abreu.
  • Shea Hillenbrand was waived today; insert "ship is sinking" reference here.  I guess Bill Stoneman couldn’t find a taker for Hillenbrand even while eating most of his remaining salary.  Now the Angels will foot the bill while some team picks up the opinionated DH for the league minimum.  The Twins are often cited as a team in need of a DH, but Hillenbrand might disrupt the clubhouse chemistry.  And of course, the Yankees have been connected to him since this winter.
  • RotoAuthority lays out a plan for starting your own keeper fantasy baseball league.
  • Torii Hunter would consider playing for the White Sox, for what it’s worth.  It’d take a franchise-record contract to sign him. 
  • Indians reliever Fernando Cabrera is a fine candidate to be traded to a rebuilding team. The Tribe can’t option him to the minors without losing him, but his performance isn’t helping the team and he’s taking up a roster spot.  As a 25 year-old with a K/9 over 10 in 129 career innings, there should be plenty of interest.  Swapping him for a seasoned reliever like Octavio Dotel, Eric Gagne, or Al Reyes makes sense to me.  By the way, the Indians’ Rafael Betancourt is quietly one of the five best relievers in baseball this year.

Yankees To Offer Up Abreu?

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Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record talked to one Major League executive who believes the Yankees are likely to shop outfielder Bobby Abreu to the NL this month.  The key would be the Yankees paying a portion of the $10MM coming to Abreu this year.

Abreu still has a $16MM option for 2008 with a $2MM buyout attached.  If he has a few more months like June – .290/.408/.470 – the option could still be picked up.  The Yanks could exercise it and then look to trade him during the offseason.  The cost certainty and one-year commitment might be attractive to some teams, even if Abreu is basically now Brian Giles.  The Yankees are currently 12 games out in the AL East and 8.5 out in the Wild Card race.  Nonetheless, their playoff chances fall in the 11-18% range based on the various simulations out there.  It’s not quite time to fold it in and play for next year. 

However, if the Yankees keep losing and are more officially out of it in three weeks, Abreu seems the most logical choice to be traded.  Kyle Farnsworth is a no-brainer as well.  Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, Jorge Posada, and Mariano Rivera could all become free agents after the season, but I can’t see any of them getting traded.

Abreu would be a nice fit in Arizona as a summer rental, in my opinion.

Gagne/Otsuka Suitors

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Teams are lining up to pluck away the top two members of the Rangers’ bullpen, and Jon Daniels is in "listening mode."

MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan has the scoop: the Diamondbacks, Cubs, Red Sox, and Yankees are the top suitors for Eric Gagne.  The Mets, Braves, Phillies, Tigers, and Brewers are focused on Akinori Otsuka.  And the Tribe likes both relievers. 

Benefits of Gagne: he can be unhittable and he’ll give you two good draft picks after the season.  Plus he seems to be finally healthy.  The Indians, despite their interest, are not on Gagne’s list of 12 teams he can be dealt to without his consent.    

The benefit of Otsuka is that you have him through 2009.  That’s why the Rangers are more likely to hang on to him.  Conversely, a team like the Mets would prefer him because he’s not a rental.

Hillenbrand To Be Designated For Assignment

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UPDATE: Sure enough, the Yankees are in "serious talks" to acquire Hillenbrand.

Ah, finally a rumor of the non-Buehrle/Jacque variety.  Unfortunately all I’ve got is the latest on Angels (former) DH and malcontent Shea Hillenbrand.

Hillenbrand is to be designated for assignment on Friday, giving Bill Stoneman ten days to trade or release him.  Another year, another DFA.  I imagine there’s a slight chance of pawning him off on the Yankees, who seem to have an odd infatuation with Hillenbrand.  Once they experience him firsthand, that’ll change.  How about Hillenbrand and salary relief for Kyle Farnsworth?  Not that the Angels need him, but the Yankees sure don’t want him.

Hillenbrand at $6.5MM was a bad idea from Day 1.  On the plus side, it’s only money.  The Giants traded away Jeremy Accardo for a couple months of Hillenbrand last year (though to be fair, they received Vinnie Chulk too.)

Teams Scouting Yankee Pitching Prospects

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According to Jim Baubach of Newsday, Yankee farmhands Ian Kennedy and Joba "The Hutt" Chamberlain have become quite popular.  The stands become packed with scouts each team either pitches for the Yanks’ Double A Trenton club.

The White Sox sent one of their top pro scouts to watch the Trenton Thunder recently, despite the Yankees’ insistence that Kennedy and Chamberlain are not available. 

All sorts of other teams have been scouting both pitchers, including the A’s, Rockies, and Orioles.  Chamberlain is the upside choice, while Kennedy is the back-rotation command guy.

White Sox Planted Buehrle To Boston Rumor

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Keith Law, on ESPNEWS yesterday, reported that the Mark Buehrle-to-Boston rumor is bogus and almost certainly planted by the White Sox front office.  Couldn’t hurt to try, unless the plant damages relations with the Red Sox in the future.  This type of practice is probably more common than we realize, though.

Furthermore, Tony Massarotti of the Boston Herald says the Red Sox are out of this thing (if they were ever really in it).  By the way, the reason for the refusal to allow a 72-hour negotiating window:  Buehrle’s likelihood of signing with St. Louis after the season.    

A loyal MLBTR reader, summing up Ken Rosenthal’s recent comments on WEEI, noted that the Yankees are not actually involved on Buehrle.  A GM always wants the Yankees and Red Sox involved when conducting a player auction, but it looks like that’s not the case with Buehrle.  Perhaps the Mets-Braves rivalry can be exploited instead.

Another Buehrle note – R.J. Anderson of D-Rays Bay informs me that radio host Dan Sileo of 620 WDAE has a source indicating that the Devil Rays are interested in Buehrle.  This doesn’t make much sense on the surface with the Rays out of contention.  However, maybe Andrew Friedman and Co. will offer players that they value less than the two compensatory draft picks.  That could be the main motivation, with the ancillary benefits of sparking the fanbase and having Buehrle around for three months to work with the younger pitchers.      

Latest Mark Buehrle Trade Rumors

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Mark Buehrle is a popular man right now, and I’ve decided to cover today’s trade rumors in a bullet point format.

  • Barry Rozner of the Daily Herald thinks the Dodgers would be a fine fit for Buehrle, given the loss of Jason Schmidt and their bevy of top prospects.  Given that ten teams are looking at Buehrle and we’ve only confirmed five, talks may already be occurring between Ned Colletti and Kenny Williams.
  • Ozzie Guillen tries to defend against detractors: "A lot of people say, ’Oh, they quit. Oh, they should make an offer to Buehrle.’ They did, I think."  The Daily Southtown notes that the offer was a meager three years, $30MM.  The Sox made that offer at the height of Buehrle’s ineffectiveness.
  • The New York Post says the Mets will only trade for Buehrle if they get a 72-hour window to sign him.  Rosenthal said on Friday that that’s not happening.  The Mets’ urgency to acquire a starter is related to how Pedro Martinez looks in coming weeks.
  • Ken Davidoff of Newsday says that while the Mets and Yankees are confirmed among the ten interested clubs, neither plans to offer "serious prospects" for Buehrle.  That seems to mean that Lastings Milledge, Philip Humber, Mike Pelfrey, Joba Chamberlain, and Phil Hughes are out.  Davidoff shows that Omar Minaya and Kenny Williams have clearly been talking, and confirms Omar’s interest in Jose Contreras.   
  • Joel Sherman thinks the Mets are in on Buehrle for two reasons: in case the price surprisingly plummets, and to raise the price for Atlanta.
  • Adam Rubin says all veteran Sox pitchers are available – except Jon Garland.
  • You may have noticed that Kenny Williams recently issued a nondenial of the Buehrle-to-Boston rumor, saying "Not today."  The Red Sox weren’t amused by that, and a deal is not close.  The Boston Globe agrees, adding that Boston won’t part with Clay Buchholz or Jacoby Ellsbury.  Nonetheless, Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post thinks the Red Sox are the favorite for Buehrle, and they’d sign him to a contract extension.
  • Bryan Burwell of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports on chatter that the Cardinals have offered Anthony Reyes, John Rodriguez, and one prospect for Buehrle.  Burwell would make the deal, even if that prospect is Bryan Anderson.
  • GM Doug Melvin in response to Ken Rosenthal’s Buehrle-to-Brewers rumor: "This is the month for Internet rumors."  Damn straight, Doug.  Actually, July and December are the big ones.  Melvin says he hasn’t talked to Kenny Williams, in reality.  Maybe Melvin wouldn’t part with Yovani Gallardo or Ryan Braun for Buehrle, but another prospect has emerged in Manny Parra.  Parra tossed a perfect game in Triple A last night.

Jacque Jones Trade Near?

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According to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times yesterday, the Cubs are trying to trade another position player by Monday so they can add a 12th pitcher.

That position player probably is our good friend Jacque Jones.  Wittenmyer named the Padres, Rangers, and White Sox as interested parties.  Bruce Miles adds the Mets to the mix.  The Cubs would have to eat some of the $7.2MM or so remaining on Jones’ contract, which runs through 2008.  Another option would be to move shortstop Cesar Izturis, who has about $2.6MM left on his deal (assuming his ’08 option is bought out).

Buster Olney yesterday mentioned that the Cubs were one of the teams in one Milton Bradley, in addition to the Yankees and Padres.  Bradley is still fair game, and the Cubs may be looking to replace Jones with him.

Mark Teixeira Trade Rumors

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Kat O’Brien of Newsday has the latest Mark Teixeira trade rumors for our perusal.  According to O’Brien, the Yankees, Dodgers, Orioles, Angels, and Braves as said to be interested in the first baseman.

We’ve seen the Angels connected to Teixeira plenty of times, and I still don’t get it.  Why would the Angels move Casey Kotchman, by all accounts a fine fielder, off first base?  The rumors persist, but this does not seem like a fit for the Halos.  They need a third baseman.

With the Yanks, I imagine the stumbling block remains finding a package good enough for Jon Daniels without including Phil Hughes.  I see this as a long shot, mainly because the Red Sox are not rumored to be after Teixeira.  And I just demonstrated why I don’t think the Angels will legitimately chase him.  So the Yankees wouldn’t be in competition with an AL contender for Teixeira (unless the Tigers get involved).  There is no pressing need to give up the farm, even the non-Hughes part of the farm.

The Braves are a dark horse; I think the Dodgers and Orioles will go head to head for Teixeira.  O’Brien mentions that at least eight or nine teams have expressed at least casual interest, so there are a few unknowns here.  If I had to guess, I’d say Teixeira becomes a Dodger or else stays put this summer.

Rosenthal’s Latest

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Ken Rosenthal has a new column up.  A summary appears below.

  • Rosenthal thinks the Tigers are unlikely to acquire Eric Gagne or Akinori Otsuka, perhaps preferring to look at internal options.  That’s a shame, as I think they really need to add someone.
  • The White Sox won’t be granting a 72 hour negotiating window if they trade Mark Buehrle.  Strictly a rental.  That could limit the market for him, but Kenny Williams will come up with at least one quality prospect.
  • The Dodgers don’t seem likely to trade for Adam Dunn or Jermaine Dye, but could go after Mark Teixeira.  Dye seems most likely to end up in the NL West somehow, but only if he is healthy and hitting.
  • Possible Dontrelle Willis suitors: the Rockies or Diamondbacks.  They’ve got the young trading chips, and the need in the present day.  The Rox could offer Aaron Cook plus prospects, and the D’Backs could try Livan Hernandez and youngsters.  If the D’Backs dare offer up Justin Upton, the Marlins would jump.  Of course, D-Train needs to be healthy and the Marlins would need to fall out of contention.
  • Barry Bonds’s agent really doesn’t see a trade happening.  Well, no one does, but it’s fun to speculate.  Rosenthal thinks only the Yankees could accomodate him.
  • Aside from the Pirates and Padres, the Astros, Cardinals, and Rangers could go after Milton Bradley. 
  • Rosenthal has a GM source who thinks the Reds could wait until this winter, exercise Adam Dunn’s $13MM option for ’08, and then trade him.  Dunn, however, would gain no-trade protection until June 15, 2008 and then be able to block 10 teams thereafter.
  • Troy Glaus isn’t going anywhere.  Even if the Jays wanted to trade him, his contract is prohibitive.
  • The Indians or Rockies could trade for Octavio Dotel for bullpen depth.  Dotel is developing into a fine trading chip for Dayton Moore, just as planned.  The Tribe has had interest in Dotel in past offseasons. 
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