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Quick Hits: Soriano, Nationals, Angels, K-Rod

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Alfonso Soriano of the Cubs is on the Yankees' radar as a possible trade target, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. If any deal were to take place, though, it might not happen in July, since the $25MM remaining on Soriano's contract means he's sure to pass through waivers in August. Soriano has a full no-trade clause, but says he will consider a trade to a contending team. Wittenmyer writes that the Yankees view another Cubs outfielder, Nate Schierholtz, as more of a platoon type.

  • The Nationals shouldn't be buyers at the trade deadline, the Washington Post's Thomas Boswell writes. The Nats are now 48-50, and are now seven games back of the Braves in the NL East, as well as seven games back of the Reds for the second Wild Card. Boswell points out that their chance of making the playoffs is less than 20 percent, and for a team in that position, the value of a rental player like Matt Garza or Ervin Santana is questionable. Boswell argues that even if the Nats acquire a player who is also under contract for 2014, like Jake Peavy or Yovani Gallardo, they need to do so mostly because those players can help next year, not because they can help down the stretch this season.
  • The Angels are now ten games back of the Athletics in the AL West, and it looks like they should sell at the trade deadline, FOX Sports' Jon Morosi tweets. (Note that Morosi isn't predicting the Angels will sell, only saying that they should.) If the Angels were to sell, Erick Aybar and Scott Downs are two players they could trade, Morosi writes. Aybar is in the first year of a four-year, $35MM deal, and he's hitting .287/.305/.388 as the Angels' starting shortstop. Downs, who is in the last year of a three-year, $15MM contract, has a 1.32 ERA, albeit with a more pedestrian 6.9 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9.
  • The Dodgers have heavily scouted Brewers reliever Francisco Rodriguez recently, Danny Knobler of CBS Sports reports. Milwaukee also has two other veteran relievers in Mike Gonzalez and John Axford, and Knobler notes that the Tigers and Red Sox have also been scouting the Brewers. Still, the Brewers might opt not to trade any of their relievers before the deadline.
  • The Yankees have signed left-handed pitcher Artur Strzalka, Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues notes (via Baseball America's Matt Eddy). Strzalka is the first born-and-raised Polish player ever to sign with a Major League team. As Axisa notes, one likely purpose of this signing is to help the Yankees establish themselves as bidders for talent in a new part of the world.

Nationals Notes: Detwiler, Peavy, Rizzo

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Nationals starter Ross Detwiler's lingering lower back strain could lead the Nats to acquire a starting pitcher before the deadline, according to Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post, who says some rival executives have expected the team to try to acquire a starter since Detwiler hit the DL early this month. The White Sox's Jake Peavy could be a potential target, some close to the club say, as the righty is under control beyond 2013 and GM Mike Rizzo tends to avoid trading prospects for only a few months of a player's services.  Some more Saturday evening Nationals links:

  • Johnson confirmed that the club isn't interested in a rental, tweets Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington.com (link). Rizzo also adds that he plans to monitor Detwiler's progress for awhile longer before deciding on whether the Nats need to make a move. “If Detwiler is healthy, that helps me make any and all decisions we have to make," he said. 
  • Rizzo has no plans to acquire a replacement for struggling left-handed bench bat Chad Tracy via trade, Kilgore Tweets. "Tracy is a good left-handed pinch hitter," Rizzo said. "Theres no doubt about that."
  • In an article for MASNSports.com, Dan Kolko suggests that Rizzo should try to put together a deal for a left-handed version of Scott Hairston, whom the Nats acquired from the Cubs earlier this month. Tracy's .149/.187/.276 line represents a significant drop from his production in 2012, when he hit .269/.343/.441 off the bench and provided the team with several big hits. "I'm a veteran guy, I've been through it before," Tracy said of his struggles. "I should be able to make the adjustment and I just haven't done it."

Nationals Notes: Espinosa, Desmond

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The Nationals have already made one minor acquisition this summer by landing Scott Hairston from the Cubs, but they're likely not done yet. Manager Davey Johnson said earlier this week he'd like another bench bat, and reports said the Nats could be in the market for rotation upgrades. Here's more on the second-place Nationals, who trail Atlanta by six games in the NL East…

  • Scott Boras wants to talk with general manager Mike Rizzo regarding the future of his client, Danny Espinosa, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. Espinosa, currently in Triple-A to refine his swing mechanics, is hitting .400/.451/.667 over his past dozen games. There's no immediate spot open for Espinosa, however, given the strong play of Anthony Rendon. Boras plans to discuss the service time being missed by Espinosa with Rizzo, but wouldn't take the bait when asked by Kilgore if he was implying that a trade was the best outcome for his client.
  • Kilgore also writes that Ian Desmond received a ringing (and unprompted) endorsement from fellow shortstop Troy Tulowitzki over this week's All-Star break. Tulo called Desmond "one of the best shortstops in the game" before opining that the Nationals should give him an extension. Kilgore goes on to note that Desmond, who is controlled through the 2015 season, has the rare chance to become an elite shortstop who hits the market in the midst of his prime. As it stands, he's set to be a free agent shortly after he turns 30.

All-Star Notes: Scherzer, Harvey, Davis

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Tonight's American League All-Star starter Max Scherzer knows the best place for MLB players to find out if they're on the move.  "It's crazy how that works.  You're traded out of the blue, and the only way you find out is by MLB Trade Rumors. All of the media and all of your friends know, but you don't hear it from the people doing it," the Tigers righty told Bob Nightengale of USA Today.  Scherzer went on to describe himself as a "pretty fanatical fan" of this website, of which he is a near-daily reader.  Be sure to check out Nightengale's article, which focuses on Scherzer's experiences with former slugger and current Dodgers hitting coach Mark McGwire.  As Scherzer and other players prepare for tonight's All-Star game at Citi Field, here are your related links…

  • We learned yesterday that nothing is cooking regarding a contract extension for Scherzer, who is eligible for free agency after the 2014 season.  Talking to Nightengale, Scherzer said, "It's funny, everybody wants to speculate on teams, and X amount of dollars, but if I go out there and pitch well, everything will take care of itself."  
  • How about National League starter Matt Harvey, who fronts the Mets' rotation and is also represented by Scott Boras?  Joel Sherman of the New York Post talked to Boras, who said, "Usually the team will come to you, it is not up to the player to start negotiations.  I would also say this, where the team wants to go in these situations and what the true value of the player is are not often that close."  That's not terribly encouraging, but Mets fans can rest easy knowing Harvey will not be arbitration eligible until after the 2015 season, and will not be eligible for free agency until after the 2018 campaign.
  • Though he didn't make the American League squad, Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes took home the Home Run Derby belt last night, besting Bryce Harper.  To learn about the journey Cespedes and his family took in defecting from Cuba, check out this article from Susan Slusser and Demian Bulwa of the San Francisco Chronicle.
  • Another good read is the harrowing story of Marlins All-Star Jose Fernandez, who also defected from Cuba.  MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince has it here, and Dan Le Batard of the Miami Herald has another good look at Fernandez here.  Fernandez has not yet reached the riches Cespedes has, as he was subject to the 2011 amateur draft.
  • With 37 home runs at the All-Star break, the Orioles' Chris Davis is another of the All-Star Game's big stories.  Davis treats Roger Maris' 61 home runs in 1961 as the record, discounting the six times it was bested from 1998-2001 by Barry Bonds, McGwire, and Sammy Sosa.  Yahoo's Jeff Passan surveyed 15 All-Stars and found that most treat Bonds' 73 as the record despite his PED ties.  The Reds' Joey Votto was most critical of Davis' stance, telling Passan, "If Chris feels like 61 is the home run record, maybe he’s just selfishly pegging that number as the home run record so if he passes it he can wear a crown or something like that.  There would be a lot of money in that."
  • The Nationals were highly interested in Davis when the Rangers made him available in 2011, writes James Wagner of the Washington Post.  Instead, Davis joined the Orioles along with Tommy Hunter in a July 2011 deal for reliever Koji Uehara and $2MM. 
  • More than half of the 78 All-Stars were acquired by their current team through the draft, an international signing, or a trade while still in the minors, writes Tim Britton of the Providence Journal in his analysis.

Quick Hits: Wilpon, Rios, Mozeliak, Blue Jays

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National League All-Star starter Matt Harvey has become a well-known name around baseball…though not necessarily a well-known face.  Harvey personally explored his relative anonymity in a comedy bit tonight on The Late Show With Jimmy Fallon (YouTube link).  If it makes Harvey feel better, I rarely hear, "Hey, are you Mark Polishuk from MLB Trade Rumors?!" when I'm strolling around New York.  Here's some news from around baseball on the eve of the All-Star Game…

  • Jeff Wilpon promised that the Mets are willing to spend in 2014, the team COO said in an interview on WFAN radio (and partially transcribed by Newsday's Neil Best).  The Mets will be helped when the Johan Santana and Jason Bay contracts expire this winter, which will by themselves free up $43.625MM in payroll space.  "We haven't set a payroll for next year, but I can tell you we're ready to invest with those big contracts coming off the books," Wilpon said. "We have the money to invest. We're going to invest it prudently. Sandy [Alderson] is going to set a path."
  • The Rangers could avoid giving up top prospects for White Sox right fielder Alex Rios, depending on how much of Rios' contract Texas is willing to eat, ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett writes.  Rios is owed roughly $4.85MM for the rest of 2013, $12.5MM in 2014 and a $13.5MM club option for 2015 that can be bought out for $1MM.  The Rangers are one of several teams interested in acquiring Rios, though his trade stock has dipped due to a six-week slump.
  • “A lot of teams you think might normally would be breaking things up aren’t,” Cardinals GM John Mozeliak told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “There just aren’t a lot of players that are truly available. That could change. That’s my observation today.”  The Cardinals are known to be interested in acquiring starting pitching and have recently been connected to Matt Garza, though the Cards aren't too keen to trade within the NL Central and are unlikely to make a deal that would cost them one of their top prospects.
  • Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Brett Cecil all tell Sportsnet's Shi Davidi that the Blue Jays already have the talent to turn their season around.  Bautista, for one, doesn't think GM Alex Anthopoulos necessarily needs to make any further roster additions.  “Alex is not out on the field playing for us, we’re totally capable of playing a lot better baseball than we’ve shown, we just need to play better as a team,” Bautista said.  If the Jays don't make any moves, Bautista "wouldn’t look too much into it" since Anthopoulos “made plenty of moves in the off-season to make our team the best team that he could put on the field.”
  • The three prospects acquired by the Nationals in the Michael Morse trade have performed well for Washington thus far, MASNsports.com's Byron Kerr observes.  Right-handers A.J. Cole and Blake Treinen have pitched well at high A-ball and Double-A, respectively, while southpaw Ian Krol reached the Majors and delivered a 1.80 ERA, 13 strikeouts and just one walk over 15 relief innings for the Nats.
  • Chase Lambin turned 34 years last week and has played 12 years of professional baseball in the minors and in Japan, but the veteran has still yet to reach the Major Leagues.  Kent Babb of the Washington Post profiles Lambin, who currently plays for the Royals' Triple-A affiliate.
  • The Mets' infamous long-long-term deferred contract with Bobby Bonilla is actually a pair of contracts that will pay the retired slugger $42MM between 2004 and 2035, CBS Sports' Jon Heyman reports.  While the Orioles are paying part of Bonilla's ongoing salary, the Mets are solely responsible for another 25-year deferred payment plan, this one to Bret Saberhagen.  The former two-time Cy Young Award winner has received $250K per year from the Mets since 2004.

NL Notes: Pirates, Nationals, Giants, Rockies, Cubs

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The Pirates have "no clear priority" at the trade deadline, GM Neal Huntington tells Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette on SiriusXM (via Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Twitter). Huntington notes, however, that the team could look for a reliever or hitter. If they pursue a hitter, an outfielder to complement Andrew McCutchen and Starling Marte might make sense, although Jose Tabata has hit well alongside them recently. Here are more notes from around the National League.

  • Even after the addition of Scott Hairston, Nationals manager Davey Johnson would like his club to acquire another veteran bench player, MLB.com's Bill Ladson reports. Ladson notes, however, that the Nationals are more likely to acquire a pitcher, since Ross Detwiler is hurt and Dan Haren has not gotten good results.
  • Johnson, however, says doesn't think a deal for a starting pitcher is "in our plans," MASNsports.com's Dan Kolko reports. GM Mike Rizzo doesn't favor rental players, Kolko says, and the Nationals like their minor-league pitching, so they don't see much reason to pursue a longer-term rotation solution via trade.
  • The Giants have lost four games in a row and are now in the NL West cellar at 40-50, and they don't have plans right now to be buyers at the tarde deadline, CBS Sports' Danny Knobler tweets. They don't appear ready to sell yet, either, although Knobler guesses that could soon change. If they do sell, Knobler notes that Tim Lincecum and Hunter Pence could be on the market.
  • The Rockies aren't sure whether they will buy or sell, Knobler reports, noting that this weekend's series against the Dodgers could help them decide. The Rockies are just 4.5 games back in the NL West, but they're 43-48. If they do end up becoming sellers, they will not trade Troy Tulowitzki or Carlos Gonzalez, and would have to be "overwhelmed" to deal Michael Cuddyer, Knobler reports.
  • The Cubs, meanwhile, have won four games in a row, but that won't keep them from continuing to sell, writes Jesse Rogers of ESPN Chicago. The Cubs are still 14 games out of first place. "Even though we're playing really well there has to be that streak of wins to climb back into something," says manager Dale Sveum. "Especially when you have three to four teams to climb over. It still takes a 10-game winning streak to say, ‘Ok, now we have a chance.'"

Pirates Acquire Brian Bocock

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We'll keep track of today's minor moves here..

  • The Pirates have acquired infielder Brian Bocock from the Nationals to complete the May trade for catcher Brian Jeroloman, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Twitter).  The 28-year-old will report to Triple-A Indianapolis.  Bocock, who is known primarily for his defensive play, has a career .214/.290/.282 slash line at the Triple-A level.

Matt Garza Rumors: Tuesday

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Righty Matt Garza may have put the finishing touch on his Cubs career last night by allowing one run in seven innings in a win against the White Sox.  The latest on the best available starter:

  • Garza's start was scouted by the Rangers, Indians, Pirates, Blue Jays, and Padres, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  Those aren't necessarily suitors for Garza this month, however.  Morosi says the Rangers and Indians are "known to have strong interest," while the Red Sox, Nationals, and Dodgers can't be ruled out.  Morosi believes Garza probably wants to be paid like Anibal Sanchez on his next contract, which would mean a five-year, $80MM deal.  The difference is that Sanchez was coming off three consecutive healthy seasons.
  • Though Garza told reporters last night the possibility of a contract extension is 50-50, few believe it's actually a coin flip.  Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times explains, "Team sources, however, characterize the recent, brief talks as confirmation that the sides aren’t much, if any, closer than they were more than a year ago when they first engaged in talks with little progress."  Garza suggested it would be "one hell of a party" to win with the Cubs, and Wittenmyer does note that team is leaving open the possibility of trading Garza now and talking to him again in the offseason.

NL East Links: Howard, Rizzo, Hairston, McCann

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Ryan Howard will be out of action for six-to-eight weeks following surgery to repain a torn medial meniscus in his left knee.  While Howard wasn't going to be a trade candidate at the deadline (no team would touch that contract), it's possible his absence might convince the Phillies to throw in the towel on the 2013 season and become full-fledged sellers this month.  Here's the latest from around the NL East…

  • Nationals GM Mike Rizzo discussed his team's acquisition of Scott Hairston with reporters (including MASNsports.com's Dan Kolko) today.  Hairston was the Nats' top target for right-handed bench help and the club had been negotiating with the Cubs for a couple of weeks, with an eye towards getting the deal finalized before the Nationals' current series with the Phillies.  Rizzo liked that Hairston was contracted through 2014 so he can be an asset to Washington next season as well.
  • Rizzo also noted that the Nats could make another move before the trade deadline but it won't be anything major.  "You never stop trying to improve your club, but with that said, we feel like we like the club that we have and we're certainly playing better and we'll see where it takes us from here," Rizzo said. "I don't see any type of big splashy moves that are remaining."
  • Dave Cameron of Fangraphs likes the Hairston trade, noting that it's the kind of shrewd low-cost move that can pay dividends if Washington ends up in the postseason.
  • Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post opines that a trade package of Danny Espinosa, Ross Detwiler, Tyler Moore and Lucas Giolito might be enough for the Nationals to obtain David Price from the Rays.  While that's not a bad offer, I think the Rays could score a lot more elite talent if they started shopping their ace lefty.
  • Braves catcher Brian McCann finally seems to be fully healthy and has been red-hot over the last two weeks, leading David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution to predict that if McCann keeps it up, he'll score a free agent contact close to Yadier Molina's five-year, $75MM deal with the Cardinals.  O'Brien notes that this deal will come from an AL team that will eventually transition McCann to a DH role, which is why I'd argue that McCann's eventual contract will fall at least $10-$15MM short of Molina's deal.  McCann's bat doesn't carry a $15MM average annual value if it's not coming from the catcher position, plus Molina brought elite defense and a less-checkered injury history into his new contract.
  • Zack Wheeler is set to face the Giants on Wednesday, almost two years after he was dealt from San Francisco to the Mets in exchange for Carlos Beltran.  ESPN New York's Adam Rubin talks to Wheeler and Giants manager Bruce Bochy about the trade, and Bochy has no regrets since his club was gunning for another World Series title.
  • The Rangers would love to acquire Cliff Lee from the Phillies, CBS Sports' Danny Knobler writes, "but at this point the Phillies seem to have most people in baseball convinced that they won't trade Lee (or maybe anyone else)."
  • In NL East news from earlier today on MLBTR, we shared some Marlins-related news and also some Mets items as part of a collection of New York Notes.

Nationals Acquire Scott Hairston

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The Nationals have acquired outfielder Scott Hairston in a trade with the Cubs, FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal writes. The Cubs received minor league righty Ivan Pineyro in return, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.  Both teams will also receive a player to be named later, but Cubs GM Jed Hoyer told reporters today that component will "not affect the balance of the deal."  Signed by the Cubs to a two-year, $5MM deal in February, the Cubs will chip in less than $500K toward Hairston's $2.5MM salary for 2014, tweets Heyman.

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Hairston, 33, has played sparingly this year, hitting .172/.232/.434 in 112 plate appearances, the overwhelming majority of them against lefties. As Amanda Comak of the Washington Times notes, the Nats are about to begin a series against the Phillies in which they'll face three straight lefty starters: John Lannan, Cole Hamels, and Cliff Lee. That means Hairston could get a fair amoung of playing time right away, but generally, the Nationals will likely use him primarily off the bench, just as the Cubs did. Hairston's opportunities will probably come at the expense of fellow righty Tyler Moore, who has hit .151/.195/.283 this season.  Hairston has a .244/.299/.447 line over ten seasons with the Diamondbacks, Padres, Athletics, Mets and Cubs.  He was drafted by the D'Backs in the third round in 2001, at which point current Nationals GM Mike Rizzo was their director of scouting.  Even after acquiring Hairston, the Nationals are looking for a second right-handed hitter to add more depth off the bench, notes MLB.com's Bill Ladson.

Pineyro, 21, was promoted to High-A in mid-June after making the South Atlantic League All-Star team.  In 15 starts overall this year, he has a 3.24 ERA, 8.3 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, and 0.58 HR/9 in 77 2/3 innings.  Prior to the season, Baseball America ranked Pineyro 27th among Nationals prospects, noting that the Dominican held his own against older competition, and "his quick arm is intriguing."  According to BA, Pineyro throws 90-94 with an average to plus changeup and a curveball that needs work.  "If he continues to pitch the way he has been, I think he will be a big league pitcher," Hagerstown Suns pitching coach Franklin Bravo told Ashley Marshall of MLB.com in late April.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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