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Odds & Ends: Duncan, Draft, A’s

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A couple of links as we head toward an afternoon of baseball…

  • As Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports, manager Tony La Russa doesn't believe Chris Duncan, who was recently released from the Red Sox, will want to rejoin the Cards. "That's his call," the skipper said Friday. "It's not ours. My guess is he's not real pleased with us."
  • Maury Brown of "The Biz of Baseball" has a review of MLB's draft slot recommendation system.  His conclusion?  It needs fixing.
  • Matthew Pouliot of NBCSports.com continues his "Restoring the Rosters" series with a look at the Oakland A's. It's a must-read for all of you Moneyball fans.
  • MLBTR's own Mike Axisa takes a closer look at the Dustin Pedroia–Robinson Cano debate over at River Ave. Blues.  Joel Sherman first drummed up the discussion with this piece in the New York Post, in which he asked seven MLB executives to choose between the two second basemen.

Odds And Ends: Padres, Jays, Pineiro

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More links for Friday…

  • Padres beat writer Tom Krasovic hears that the Padres agreed to sign Fabel Filpo, a 16-year-old Dominican outfielder, for $450k.
  • Padres GM Kevin Towers says the Padres have now spent over $10MM on amateur talent this year.
  • Commissioner Bud Selig tells Shi Davidi of the Canadian Press that he'd like to see Paul Beeston stay on as the Blue Jays' CEO on a long-term basis (via the Toronto Sun).
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs wonders if anyone will offer Joel Pineiro a four-year deal as a free agent. He's in the midst of a career-year, but will teams believe in it?
  • Here's a look at the upcoming class of free agent pitchers. Other than John Lackey and Brandon Webb (who may not hit free agency) Pineiro figures to be among the most coveted starters out there.

Stark On Wagner, Padres, Crawford

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ESPN.com's Jayson Stark shows that a number of contenders have vulnerable-looking closers. The Cubs and Phillies two of many teams with shaky arms at the back of the 'pen. Here are the details and the rest of Stark's rumors:

  • At least one scout believes John Smoltz would have been the perfect arm for the Marlins to add to their 'pen.
  • However, clubs pursuing Smoltz heard that he wanted to start, at least for now.    
  • A scout who watched Billy Wagner throw has "no doubt" that Wagner could help a team win. The Rays and Marlins are thought to have interest in Wagner, but neither team would be likely to give up much of a prospect unless the Mets picked up salary.  
  • Stark hears that the Padres pulled Heath Bell and Adrian Gonzalez back off waivers after multiple teams claimed them.
  • Mark Hendrickson cleared waivers, and can now be traded to any team. The Rockies were interested before the deadline, but they may decide to see where the Billy Wagner bidding goes before pursuing Hendrickson again.
  • One rival GM considers the Cards "the best team in the league right now."  
  • The Royals don't seem interested in trading their top pitchers. They pulled Brian Bannister back from waivers and though Joakim Soria and Gil Meche are on waivers now, they aren't likely to be dealt.
  • Clubs eyeing Carl Crawford believe the Rays are becoming less likely to deal him. Desmond Jennings could become the Rays' left fielder, but they'd probably have to be overwhelmed to part with Crawford.
  • It's possible that Jamie Moyer could draw interest as a trade candidate after the season. 
  • One AL exec isn't sure Bryce Harper's the guarantee people perceive him to be.  
  • Stark points out that the Astros traded Ivan Rodriguez just as his incentives were about to start kicking in.
  • An official of a team that inquired about Stephen Strasburg before the draft says that Scott Boras invoked Daisuke Matsuzaka's name without specifically saying he wanted $50MM for his client.

Odds & Ends: Tejada, Rays, Yankees

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A roundup of links before the evening comes to a close:

Odds And Ends: Tejada, Varitek, Smoltz

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Some afternoon links…

Smoltz Clears Waivers, Reaches Deal With Cards

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The Cardinals continued a summer-long streak of big-name acquisitions this afternoon, agreeing to a deal with the recently-released John Smoltz, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Cards, who have already added Mark DeRosa and Matt Holliday, are exptected to slot Smoltz into their rotation. They'll only be responsible for the pro-rated portion of the major league minimum, a total of about $100k at this point.

As Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch shows, the Cards' rotation will be imposing if Smoltz can recover from an ugly stint with the Red Sox. Nick Steiner of the Hardball Times says such a recovery is possible and David Golebiewski of FanGraphs agrees.

Smoltz To Sign With Cardinals

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10:59pm: From Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Smoltz will accept the Cardinals' offer to join the club as its fifth starter after clearing waivers at noon CST [Wednesday], barring an unforeseen waiver claim."  The Cards will be on the hook for only about $100K.  Smoltz will work as the team's fifth starter, at least initially.

8:18pm: Jayson Stark of ESPN is reporting that Smoltz is "strongly leaning" toward signing with the Cardinals. He has told friends that he is planning to make a decision on Wednesday.

Stark writes that the Dodgers, Marlins, and Rangers were also in pursuit of Smoltz. He adds that the Cards will use Smoltz as a set-up man for Ryan Franklin.

5:10pm: MLB.com's Todd Zolecki confirmed the Cardinals' interest in Smoltz on Twitter and added that the Phillies "aren't interested."

9:04am: Cardinals GM John Mozeliak confirmed to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he has "legitimate interest" in John Smoltz. Another official described the team's interest as "very serious." The Red Sox released the righty yesterday, and he's set to become a free agent tomorrow, at which point any team can sign him for the pro-rated major league minimum.

Smoltz has a history of success out of the 'pen, but Strauss suggests via his Twitter that the future Hall of Famer could become the Cardinals' fifth starter. We could hear about Smoltz's decision as soon as today. 

Miller Agrees To $2.9MM Deal With Cards

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MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo hears that Shelby Miller has agreed to sign with the Cardinals for $2.9MM. They selected him 19th overall in the June draft. Jim Callis of Baseball America reports that Miller receives the biggest bonus of any first rounder to sign so far this year. It's the second-biggest bonus in Cardinals history.

Law On Miller, Purke, Jays

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ESPN.com's Keith Law wrote last night that the Cardinals seem to be on their way to signing top pick Shelby Miller, who could receive top-ten money. Signing the righty would be "a huge coup" for the Cards, Law says. Here are the rest of his rumors:

  • The Rangers and Matt Purke are still over $1MM apart so the club isn't optimistic about signing the first rounder.
  • The Blue Jays have a good shot at signing third rounder Jake Marisnick, a high schooler who had first round potential heading into the spring.
  • The Jays aren't likely to sign Canadian lefty Jake Eliopoulos. 

Odds And Ends: Reds, Alvarez, Holliday

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Some links for Monday morning…

  • John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer believes the Reds should be quiet on the free agent market after the season because they have many needs and very little money. And why don't they have enough money? They've spent too much on big contracts already.
  • But Scott Miller of CBS Sports says small-market teams can still contend. He points to recent winners such as the Twins, Indians, Rays and Rockies to show that low-budget teams can succeed.
  • A year ago this time, Pedro Alvarez was the center of attention as he signed with the Pirates. Now, he's heating up in the minors, but he won't make his MLB debut this year, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
  • Erik Manning of FanGraphs says he was wrong to assume the Cards gave up too much to acquire Matt Holliday, who's been on an extended tear since joining his new club.
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