Cubs Rumors

Odds & Ends: Cubs, Strasburg, O’s

By Eddie Schmid | August 13, 2009 at 9:42pm CDT

Some more links on a slow night in Rumorville:

A reader points us to a report out of Korea that says two amateurs have been signed out of Korea. CF Kyung-min Na was signed by the Cubs for 725k and is called "the fastest player in Korean high school baseball," while IF Chan-jong Moon was signed by the Astros for 350k.
According to MASN Sports' Steve Melewski, Orioles head of scouting Joe Jordan sees recent 22nd-round signee Cameron Coffey as "top two rounds" talent and expects him to pitch next season despite recent surgery.
Count in Ryan Zimmerman as a fan of Stephen Strasburg. He hopes the Nationals sign the fireballer, says Bill Ladson at MLB.com.
Roch Kubatko at MASN Sports says that Orioles president Andy MacPhail doesn't have much interest in the recently DFA'd Bill Hall.
Kubatko also reports that the Orioles are set to determine the player to be named from the Rays in the Gregg Zaun deal this coming Monday.

Stark On Smoltz, Reds, Strasburg, Thome

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 13, 2009 at 1:05pm CDT

ESPN.com's Jayson Stark adds the Astros to the list of teams interested in John Smoltz. Here are the rest of his rumors:

The Cubs could look for another bat and another starter, but it depends on how healthy Aramis Ramirez, Ted Lilly and Carlos Zambrano are.
Stark points out that Aaron Harang's 2011 club option becomes a more expensive $14MM mutual option if he's traded. The Reds haven't seemed willing to take on cash in a trade involving Harang or rotation-mate Bronson Arroyo.
The Yanks don't appear to have interest in either Reds starter, or John Smoltz, for that matter.
Don't expect any serious negotiating to occur between the Nationals, Scott Boras and Stephen Strasburg before the last minute. Most execs who Stark surveyed expect Strasburg to sign in the end.
The Braves could re-sign Adam LaRoche after the season, when the first baseman will hit free agency.
Jim Thome still impresses scouts and should be able to find work as a DH after the season.
Some teams doubt Vicente Padilla's character because the Rangers are ready to part with him even though they need pitching.
Some of Alex Rios' former teammates question the outfielder's work ethic and desire.
Stark hears that Andy Sonnanstine and Jeff Niemann were claimed on waivers and quickly pulled back by the Rays.
The Braves made a quick run at Victor Martinez before the Red Sox acquired him, but didn't get very far.
Though their negotiations with Aaron Crow could theoretically continue into late spring, the Royals may impose a deadline of their own to sign their top pick.

Odds & Ends: Draft, Moyer, Cubs

By Tim Dierkes | August 13, 2009 at 9:46am CDT

Links for Thursday…

RotoAuthority looks at the worst closers in baseball.
Indians first-round draft pick Alex White is "seeking top five money," according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Hoynes says the Indians are optimistic about signing him before Monday's deadline.
As you might expect, Chico Harlan of the Washington Post says the Stephen Strasburg talks between the Nationals and Scott Boras will go down to the wire. MLBTR will be covering the signing deadline intensely, as we did last year.
Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer has a source saying the Phillies' bullpen demotion of Jamie Moyer was "not in any way influenced by money." The team's timing of the move was impeccable, regardless.
Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times talked to Cubs GM Jim Hendry, who isn't anticipating any waiver moves for his team.
ESPN's Buster Olney (Insider link) speculates on a handful of teams that could use recently-designated third baseman Bill Hall.
Reliever Justin Speier was gracious about his release from the Angels, according to Kevin Baxter of the L.A. Times.

Odds & Ends: Zambrano, Royals, Phils

By Eddie Schmid | August 11, 2009 at 6:17pm CDT

Game time? It's time for some more links, me thinks:

Anthony Castrovince at MLB.com pays tribute to Hall-of-Fame reporter Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News, who will soon be out of a job.
Dick Kaegel at MLB.com says that the Royals are still negotiating with their top picks, despite reports they had come to terms with their second- and fourth-round selections.
David Kaplan at ChicagoNow stakes the claim that Carlos Zambrano is the most overpaid player in baseball. Jorge Says No! says, well… no.
Jame Moyer has been sent to the bullpen in favor of Pedro Martinez, and he isn't happy. The ageless Moyer claims he was assured by GM Ruben Amaro before he signed a two-year deal that this "type of situation would not happen," reports Andy Martino at the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Henry Schulman at the San Francisco Chronicle asks fans if they'd let Barry Zito go on a waiver claim. Easy call, right? Schulman offers up some bullet points to consider before you answer.

Several Clubs Interested In Smoltz

By Mike Axisa | August 9, 2009 at 9:21pm CDT

We touched on this earlier tonight, but let's expand on it a bit. ESPN's Buster Olney is reporting that the Texas Rangers and some National League clubs have expressed interest in acquiring the recently DFA'd John Smoltz, which is an indication that he'll have another opportunity to pitch this year if he's up to it. The other night we heard from Cardinals GM John Mozeliak that they were unlikely to pursue the future Hall of Famer, and it seems unlikely that Boston would made a deal with Texas since the two clubs are in a tight race for the American League Wildcard.

The Red Sox would not only like Smoltz to accept a minor league assignment so he could transition to the bullpen, but they also want to restructure a clause in his contract that pays the righty $35K for every day he's on the Major League roster. Olney mentions that teams like the Dodgers, Cubs, Brewers, and Astros were looking for pitching, but he says that it's "highly unlikely that any NL team would be willing to take Smoltz in a trade without some financial adjustment from the Red Sox, perhaps with Boston kicking in money to pay off a large portion of his base salary and roster bonus." Interested clubs could also wait it out and see if Boston releases Smoltz, when they could sign him for nothing more than the pro-rated minimum.

The 42-yr old Smoltz pitched to an 8.32 ERA in six starts with Boston, but teams will line up to take a chance on a player with his track record and pedigree. Of course, before anyone goes and acquires him, Smoltz will first have to decide if he wants to keep pitching.

Odds & Ends: Julio, Cubs, Springer

By | August 8, 2009 at 4:26pm CDT

A fresh batch of links as we move into the evening…

According to Adam Sobsey of The Independent Weekly, the Rays have released 30-year-old reliever Jorge Julio. The right-hander had a 5.96 ERA and a 24/15 K/BB ratio in 22 2/3 innings this season with Triple-A Durham.
Cubs GM Jim Hendry told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times Saturday that he is open to a waiver deal if it will make his club better. "We'll see," said Hendry. "If we find something that makes us better, we'll try.''
Need a refresher on the way waiver deals work? Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus has you covered.
The San Francisco Chronicle's Susan Slusser gathered a quote from Russ Springer moments after he learned he was headed to the Rays: "It will be nice to play in some playoff-race type games and hopefully I can go to Tampa Bay and carry my load."

Odds & Ends: Sandberg, Indians, Red Sox, Yankees, McCoy

By Brian Shephard | August 6, 2009 at 6:25pm CDT

A few links for Thursday evening.

Ryne Sandberg, the only Hall of Famer currently managing in the minors, wants to make it back to The Show, according to the Associated Press.
Chris Shelton cleared waivers and reported to AAA Tacoma Rainiers, according to Larry LaRue of the Tacoma News Tribune. The first baseman was designated for assignment by the Mariners to make room for pitcher Luke French.
Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes that the Indians have used 28 different pitchers this year, the most of any team in the majors.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that the Red Sox have a thin lead over the Yankees in July trades in the AL from 2000 to 2009. The score stands at 26 to 25.
And on a sad note, Hall of Fame baseball writer Hal McCoy announced today that he will retire from the Dayton Daily News, which has decided to stop covering the Reds.

Cubs Release B.J. Ryan

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 5, 2009 at 4:18pm CDT

B.J. Ryan asked for his release and the Cubs gave it to him, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Cubs signed him to a minor league deal last month after the Blue Jays released him. Apparently, Ryan's velocity and sharpness did not return during his brief stint in the Cubs' system.

Odds & Ends: Glaus, Prospects, Mariners

By Eddie Schmid | August 4, 2009 at 6:27pm CDT

Some evening appetizers as (most) games commence this evening:

Marc Hulet at Fangraphs gives part two of his rankings of the prospects moved this past deadline.
A "back issue" has sidelined Troy Glaus yet again, reports Joe Strauss at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. This would seem to lessen the chances he gets traded this month even further.
Matt Eddy at Baseball America has a comprehensive list of the most recent minor league transactions.
Ben Badler at Baseball America gets official confirmation on all the Mariners' international signings, including the highly-touted Guillermo Pimentel, who received a $2MM bonus. In all, they signed ten amateurs, eight from Latin America and two from Korea.
Impending free agent Adrian Beltre is back in the Mariners' lineup, says Geoff Baker at the Seattle Times, and says he's not concerned about his contract going forward.
The Cubs signed their sixth-round pick, LHP Brooks Raley, for $750k, reports Jim Callis at Baseball America. That's a notable figure, as it's $600k more than the recommended slot and the highest figure above-slot we've seen before the deadline, Callis says.

Cubs Acquire John Grabow, Tom Gorzelanny

By Tim Dierkes | July 30, 2009 at 4:50pm CDT

4:50pm: The Pirates' return of Hart, Ascanio, and Harrison is confirmed by a press release from the Cubs. Gorzelanny will head to Triple A Iowa. The Pirates keep adding arms; I guess this means they like Hart more than Gorzelanny.

4:47pm: ESPN Chicago says the Cubs sent pitchers Kevin Hart and Jose Ascanio to Pittsburgh for Grabow and Gorzelanny. Ed Price, via Twitter, says the Cubs are also sending third baseman Josh Harrison.

4:43pm: Finally a possible name as part of the package going to Pittsburgh. Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus, via Twitter, hears pitching prospect Jay Jackson may be in the deal. Jackson, a starting pitcher, was a ninth-round pick last year and ranked ninth on Baseball America's list of Cubs prospects.

3:22pm: Via Twitter, Kovacevic says Grabow and Gorzelanny to the Cubs is almost or "just about" done, while Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times says they closed the deal for Grabow. ESPNChicago's Jon Greenberg says the Cubs are "in the process of finalizing" the deal for Grabow. Heyman terms the deal for both hurlers as "very close."

Gorzelanny, who is from Evergreen Park, IL, has a 2.48 ERA in 15 Triple A starts this year. He won 14 games in the bigs in '07, but was derailed by back, shoulder, and finger problems in '08. We still don't know what the Pirates will get back in this deal, but it ought to be something decent.

2:56pm: Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the Cubs and Pirates are discussing a deal that would send Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny to Chicago. No deal is in place and other teams remain interested in Grabow.

2:21pm: Heyman (via Twitter) thinks the Cubs are getting closer on Grabow, and could acquire another pitcher as well.

1:27pm: SI's Jon Heyman says the Cubs and Pirates are in "serious discussions" about Grabow.

11:58am: ESPN's Jayson Stark says the Cubs are "strictly mining the lefthanded reliever market" and not looking for a bat. Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald concurs.

10:51am: Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports say the Cubs prefer Pittsburgh's John Grabow over Washington's Joe Beimel, and they continue to discuss the lefty reliever with the Pirates. The FOX report suggests the Cubs will stay internal for their Reed Johnson replacement.

Grabow currently ranks as a Type A free agent in the wacky world of Elias, but for his team to have a chance at draft picks they'd have to offer him arbitration and risk paying him more than $2.3MM if he accepts.

9:02am: The Cubs are looking for a left-handed hitter who can play right field, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. While they're not optimistic about a deal, the plan would be to create a platoon with the disappointing Milton Bradley. Wittenmyer says the Cubs have about $2-3MM of payroll room to work with.

Two players on the radar: Mark Teahen of the Royals and Jeremy Hermida of the Marlins. The Royals are looking for a center fielder in return, however. Teahen has $1.37MM left on his contract. Hermida has $847K remaining. Both players can be under team control through 2011. Either player would still leave some wiggle room for the Cubs to acquire a left-handed reliever.

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