Quick Hits: Orioles, Beane, Bourn, Beltran
The Cardinals acquired Woody Williams from San Diego on this date ten years ago. The right-hander pitched 75 innings of 2.28 ERA ball and helped the Cardinals reach the postseason, where they lost to the eventual World Champion Diamondbacks. Here's the latest from around MLB…
- As Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun points out, Buck Showalter took over the Orioles one year ago today. In 162 games under Showalter, the Orioles are 76-86. The honeymoon is over, but Showalter is "the most prepared and observant person [Connolly has] been around in this game."
- The Phillies may tinker with their roster in August by calling up a reliever or acquiring a bat in a minor trade, Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes.
- Yahoo's Steve Henson looks back at the 13 most lopsided trades in baseball history. If you guessed that Jeff Bagwell, Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek would appear on the list, you're right.
- Moneyball has become a "period piece," Tom Verducci writes at SI.com. The advantages Billy Beane once had in Oakland have been neutralized by stadium revenue for other clubs and savvy front offices around baseball. "The biggest problem we have is that until we get a stadium it's going to be treading water for us," Beane said. "There cannot be any long-term planning. It's likely to get worse before it gets any better. It's going to be more than challenging."
- GM Jon Daniels says the Rangers checked in on Michael Bourn without pursuing him seriously, according to Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (on Twitter).
- ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick examines the Giants' feeble offense and the impact that Carlos Beltran will have on it.
- As Scott Miller of CBSSports.com shows, the Diamondbacks have once again become relevant in the NL West thanks, in large part, to an improved pitching staff.
Rangers Designate Arthur Rhodes For Assignment
The Rangers designated Arthur Rhodes for assignment, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter). The move creates roster space for newly-acquired right-hander Mike Adams.
Rhodes, 41, has a 4.81 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 24 1/3 innings this year. He earns $3.9MM in 2011 and the Rangers have a $4MM option for 2012. If he appears in 62 games this year – he has 32 appearances so far – and is not on the disabled list at the end of the season, the club option will vest. Rhodes could draw interest from teams looking for lefty relief help despite his so-so 2011 stats.
Rosenthal On Yankees, Wandy, Ubaldo, Bailey
The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…
- Yesterday's push by the Yankees to acquire Astros lefty Wandy Rodriguez came from ownership, not GM Brian Cashman. SI's Jon Heyman wrote yesterday that the Yankees offered to pay $21MM of the $38MM left on Rodriguez's contract, implying they feel that Rodriguez is worth less than $7MM a year. Rosenthal says the Astros were willing to pay $2MM of Rodriguez's salary this year (essentially all of it) "or $5MM if his [player] option for 2014 were exercised." I'm in the minority, but I'm with the Astros in thinking paying Wandy down to the range of Ted Lilly's contract is reasonable. At any rate, Rosenthal says the Astros and Yankees never even got to the point of discussing names.
- Cashman has seven untouchables in trade discussions, a rival GM told Rosenthal.
- More than a handful of teams called the Indians "to gauge the club’s willingness to flip Ubaldo Jimenez less than 24 hours after acquiring him." The Indians wanted Jimenez for themselves though. Rosenthal adds that the Indians entertained a "flurry of offers" for starter Fausto Carmona before the deadline.
- Rosenthal says he was unfair to print a rival executive's quote last week about how Astros GM Ed Wade was trying to make a "job-saving" deal for Hunter Pence.
- Athletics GM Billy Beane explained to Rosenthal that "ultimately a trade is a bilateral and not a unilateral process," suggesting that teams were not engaging in back-and-forth negotiations for his players. Also, Rosenthal hears that the Rangers offered Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland (who ultimately got them Mike Adams) plus shortstop prospect Leury Garcia for closer Andrew Bailey.
Trade Reaction: Ubaldo, Rangers, Furcal, Mariners
We've seen dozens of deals completed this month. To help you make sense of it all, here are some reactions to the moves from around MLB…
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan breaks down the deadline for all 30 teams. The Astros might receive Passan's harshest criticism. Passan's response to this morning's Michael Bourn trade: "To send him to Atlanta without getting at least Mike Minor or Randall Delgado, let alone Julio Teheran or Arodys Vizcaino, shows a deep misunderstanding by GM Ed Wade of the proper way to rebuild." Ouch.
- The Rangers, Phillies, Braves, Giants and Mets are winners for ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. The Yankees, Angels, Reds and Cubs are losers, Stark writes. The Astros face harsh criticism once again: "They're basically starting to shape themselves for 2015," one NL executive told Stark. "It's almost like they're doing an expansion team."
- Brian Sabean (Giants), Jon Daniels (Rangers), Dan O'Dowd (Rockies) and Jed Hoyer (Padres) are among the general managers on Jim Bowden's list of top deadline deal-makers at ESPN.com.
- In a separate piece, Passan looks back at flameout rates for pitching prospects and concludes that the Indians made a great deal in acquiring Ubaldo Jimenez for a package of players including Drew Pomeranz and Alex White.
- One front office polled its members about winners and losers and the Rangers were the unanimous top choice, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter).
- ESPN.com's Keith Law says Rafael Furcal is an upgrade for the Cardinals at short because St. Louis didn't have any legitimate alternatives. Furcal, Law writes, is an average defender with a plus arm.
- The Mariners did well to acquire Charlie Furbush, Francisco Martinez, Casper Wells and one of the Tigers' top three picks from the 2010 draft for David Pauley and Doug Fister, who benefit from spacious Safeco Field, Law writes.
- Law says the Mariners did well to obtain Trayvon Robinson for two months of Erik Bedard and Josh Fields ("a throw-in"), but he isn't sure what the Dodgers were doing in this deal.
- The Rangers' bullpen will be substantially better with Mike Adams and Koji Uehara, Law writes at ESPN.com. San Diego gets Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland from the Rangers, two pitchers who "make up in probability for what they might lack in upside."
AL West Trades
Everyone in the AL West made a trade this month, with the exception of the Halos..
Angels
- No trades completed.
Athletics
- Acquired first baseman Brandon Allen and reliever Jordan Norberto from the Diamondbacks for right-hander Brad Ziegler.
Mariners
- Acquired outfielders Trayvon Robinson from the Dodgers and Chih-Hsien Chiang from the Red Sox in a three-team deal. Boston received starter Erik Bedard and reliever Josh Fields from Seattle. Meanwhile, Boston sent catcher Tim Federowicz, reliever Juan Rodriguez, and starter Stephen Fife to Los Angeles.
- Acquired third baseman Francisco Martinez, outfielder Casper Wells, southpaw Charlie Furbush, and a player to be named later from the Tigers for starter Doug Fister and reliever David Pauley. The PTBNL is reportedly one of the Tigers' top three picks from the 2010 draft, meaning that it's either Nick Castellanos, Chance Ruffin, or Drew Smyly.
- Received cash considerations from the Diamondbacks for Ryan Langerhans.
Rangers
- Acquired reliever Mike Adams from the Padres for pitching prospects Joe Wieland and Robbie Erlin.
- Acquired Koji Uehara and $2MM from the Orioles for Chris Davis and Tommy Hunter.
- Acquired Nick Green and cash considerations from the Orioles for lefty reliever Zach Phillips.
AL Central Notes: Hunter, Thornton, Rauch, Indians
The American League Central welcomed a handful of new players this week – most notably right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez. Yet many other trades didn't materialize. Here are the details on some deals that could have impacted the division…
- The Tigers tried to acquire Tommy Hunter from the Rangers before the Orioles obtained him in the Koji Uehara deal yesterday, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The Tigers did acquire Doug Fister for their rotation.
- The Brewers called on every good left-handed relief option out there, including White Sox southpaw Matt Thornton, according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (on Twitter).
- The Twins talked to the Blue Jays about re-acquiring Jon Rauch, but talks went nowhere, according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
- The Indians discussed as many as 75 players leading up to the deadline, according to MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter).
Heath Bell Rumors: Sunday
The latest on Padres closer Heath Bell, who is owed $2.47MM on the season and projects as a Type A free agent in either league…
- There has been some discussion between the Padres and Bell's agents within the last 24 hours, tweets MLB.com's Corey Brock. The Padres will not trade Bell unless the Yankees or Phillies offer an astronomical package, tweets Scott Miller.
- The Phillies still seem to be in on Bell, tweets Heyman. The Padres just traded setup man Mike Adams to the Rangers.
- The Angels have minimal interest in Bell, tweets Jon Paul Morosi.
- The Cardinals are sensing no traction for Bell, GM John Mozeliak tells Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter link).
- The Rangers appear to be losing momentum on Bell with the Cardinals still possible, tweets Rosenthal.
- The Rangers are still in on Bell, but don't want to pay big now that they've gotten Koji Uehara, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. The Yankees are in the mix, the Cardinals are on the fringes, and the Phillies have slight interest. The Yankees are still viewed as a long shot, tweets Buster Olney. The Rangers are also still in on Oakland closer Andrew Bailey, tweets Bob Nightengale.
- The Yankees are in on Bell, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. However, Joel Sherman tweets that as of this morning the two teams are not optimistic there is a common ground for a deal. Last night, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wrote that the Yankees were showing late interest in Bell, but the Rangers were the frontrunner and the Cardinals were still involved.
Rangers Acquire Mike Adams
The Rangers' bullpen may be a strength instead of a weakness for the final two months of the season. A day after acquiring Koji Uehara from the Orioles, Texas obtained Mike Adams from the Padres. Pitching prospects Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland go to San Diego in the deal, the Padres announced.
Adams, 33, has a microscopic 1.13 ERA with 9.2 K/9, 1.7 BB/9 and a 45.8% ground ball rate in 48 innings this year. The Corpus Christi native is no one-year wonder, either. Since joining the Padres in 2008, he has a 1.66 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.
Erlin and Wieland, who are both represented by Sosnick Cobbe Sports, ranked fourth and 22nd in Baseball America's preseason Rangers top 30 prospects list prior to the season. Wieland has seen his stock rise since then, with a 1.23 ERA in 44 Double-A innings – including a no-hitter his last time out. Erlin, a 20-year-old southpaw, is considered among the top 35 prospects in the game by Baseball America and Kevin Goldstein.
The Padres' asking price (which I reported two days ago) was high, since Adams is under team control through 2012. He earns $2.54MM this year and since setup men don't make as much as closers in arbitration, he'll be affordable next year. Uehara will also figure into Texas' bullpen in 2012.
Evan Grant and Corey Brock reported the deal this afternoon after I reported the Padres' asking price two days ago. Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post. Photo courtesy Icon SMI.
Rangers Acquire Heath Bell Or Mike Adams?
The Rangers acquired reliever Heath Bell from the Padres, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. However, T.R. Sullivan confirmed with a club official that they actually acquired Mike Adams.
Quick Hits: Slowey, Royals, Lee, Reddick
For a while, it seemed as though we'd have a quiet trade deadline. So much for that – today we saw Ubaldo Jimenez, Derrek Lee, Orlando Cabrera, Rich Harden, Koji Uehara, Chris Davis, Tommy Hunter, Jason Marquis, Mike Aviles, Jerry Hairston Jr., Doug Fister and David Pauley all get traded. Let's gear up for the deadline itself with another round of links…
- The Twins would like to move Kevin Slowey and the Rockies are interested, though they don't want to pay too much for him, according to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
- Teams are still calling on Bruce Chen, Jeff Francis and Kyle Davies of the Royals, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star (on Twitter). Any deal will likely come at the deadline tomorrow.
- Teams are still inquiring on Brandon League, even though top Mariners executives have said he's going nowhere, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter).
- Rangers GM Jon Daniels expects a quiet day tomorrow, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
- The Astros would love to convince Carlos Lee that there's no point in refusing to waive his no-trade clause, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark.
- The Astros wanted a package of players including Josh Reddick and Kyle Weiland from the Red Sox for Hunter Pence, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.