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Odds And Ends: El Duque, Feliz, Cubs

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More links for Wednesday afternoon…

  • CBS Sports reports that Orlando Hernandez is set to begin pitching for the Rangers' Triple A team in Oklahoma City.
  • The Rangers are preparing another Triple A pitcher for the major league staff, but this one's two decades younger than El Duque. Neftali Feliz is now pitching out of the bullpen, according to Evan Grant of D Magazine.
  • Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports says the Cubs hope to get Aramis Ramirez back in action before determining whether they will make a deadline deal.
  • Who knew the Braves added John Halama to their minor league system? Check out Baseball America's latest minor league transactions for more.  
  • MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo breaks down the pro debuts of some 2009 draftees.
  • Phillies prospect Jason Donald isn't letting the rumors about his future distract him, according to Scott Lauber of the News Journal.  
  • Be sure to follow MLBTR on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook while you're at it.

Cubs Agree To Terms With Brett Jackson

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FRIDAY: PGCrossChecker.com tells us that Jackson signed for $972k.

TUESDAY: According to an MLB.com press release, the Cubs have agreed to terms with frist round pick Brett Jackson. The 20-year-old outfielder bats left-handed and received praise from Baseball America on his athleticism. The Cubs selected him with their first pick in the draft, 31st overall.

Vesting Options For 2010

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Magglio Ordonez's 2010 vesting option has created a small stir in the last week or so, but there's a group of players with less-publicized vesting options. Here are updates on a few of them, and please add anyone I missed in the comments below:

  • Freddy Sanchez will earn $8MM in 2010 if he makes 635 plate appearances this year. The option will also kicks in if he makes the All Star team and bats 600 times. With 290 plate appearance already, it looks like Sanchez will make $8MM next year.
  • Kevin Millwood has a $12MM option that kicks in after 180 innings pitched. He hasn't pitched that much since 2006, but with a league-leading 106.2 innings logged already, Millwood will likely see his option vest.
  • It's no surprise that we've heard little about Dmitri Young's $6MM option for next year. It only vests if he bats 500 times, but he hasn't hit yet in 2009. It's safe to say the Nats won't be stuck paying him that much next year.
  • Josh Beckett's $12MM 2010 option will kick in if he starts 28 games this year. He's already at 14, so that number seems attainable. 
  • Milton Bradley's 2011 option will vest if he plays 75 games in 2009. In other words, Bradley will earn $12MM in 2011 if he plays 22 more games this year.

Gammons’ Latest: Red Sox, Washburn, DeRosa

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In his latest blog post at ESPN.com, Peter Gammons writes that "unless someone comes up with a Justin Smoak, Matt LaPorta or Brett Wallace," the Red Sox will hold on to Brad Penny and enjoy the depth. He says no one will offer up a prospect like that for a few months of Penny.

Here's the rest of Gammons' rumors:

  • Takashi Saito is the pitcher on Boston's staff most likely to be traded.
  • Jake Peavy and Erik Bedard "probably won't be tradeable before Aug. 1" because of their injuries.
  • Jarrod Washburn could be had.
  • The Red Sox have talked to the Angels about infielder Maicer Izturis, but the talks haven't gone anywhere
  • Mark Mulder "made considerable progress refinding his delivery after one session with pitching coach Rick Peterson."
  • The Mets are looking for an outfield bat. They made a run at Mark DeRosa, but wouldn't discuss Bobby Parnell.
  • The Cardinals wouldn't discuss Jason Motte or Chris Perez in exchange for DeRosa.
  • The uncertain situation surrounding the Cubs' ownership will likely prohibit any major additions.

Pedro Martinez Rumors: Friday

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7:12pm: George A. King III reports that the Yankees have informed Pedro that they will pass on signing him.

6:17pm: Jon Heyman tweets that the Rangers Brewers and Cardinals also watched Pedro work out today. He also mentions that the Cubs' uncertain ownership situation hurts their chances to sign the veteran righthander.

8:42am: Pedro Martinez says he's in great shape, but the Yankees are only interested in signing him to a minor league deal. Here are some specifics on today's Pedro rumors:

  • Pedro told Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald that his arm feels good enough to "throw and throw and throw and throw," he just needs to polish his breaking pitches.
  • Pedro said he's in "tippy-top shape," and joked about starting another career soon: "I'm thinking of becoming a swimsuit model," he said.  
  • Pedro will play winter ball in hopes of playing in 2010 if he doesn't sign this year.  
  • He said money doesn't motivate him.  
  • Ken Davidoff and Steve Zipay of Newsday report that the Yankees are only interested in signing Pedro to a minor league deal.
  • The Yankees will watch him pitch today, along with the Cubs, Rays and Angels. 
  • Jon Heyman of SI.com presents a revised list of Pedro's suitors. In order: the Cubs, Angels, Dodgers, Rays and the two New York teams.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Sano, Pedro, Sabathia, Lopez

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On this date 14 years ago, Darryl Strawberry signed a one-year deal with the Yankees for $675K, four months after being released by the Giants and five years after leaving New York to sign with the Dodgers as a free agent. Interestingly, this would be the most lucrative season of his career as it marked the final year of his Dodgers contract that would pay him $5.3MM in '95. Straw was never traded, but we are a little over one month from this year's trade deadline. Let's take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…

  • Around the Majors spoke with Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus about Miguel Sano and the international signing period.
  • River Ave. Blues doesn't feel the Yankees will be able to find a spot for Pedro Martinez and doubts he could still be effective in the AL East.
  • Bleacher Nation finds the Cubs' interest in Pedro Martinez "strange," noting that they have no money to spend and that the Cubs need bats, not arms.
  • Jorge Says No! puts together a list of the teams that could be sellers over the next six weeks.
  • MLB Notebook looks at when it may be best for teams to deal specific players, including Erik Bedard, Juan Pierre and Matt Holliday.
  • Capitol Avenue Club goes back and reevaluates the C.C. Sabathia trade now that the Brewers have used the draft picks acquired for losing Sabathia as a free agent.
  • Goat Riders of the Apocalypse feels that Felipe Lopez would be a "cheap and quick upgrade" for the Cubs offense.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here, and followed on Twitter here.

Odds And Ends: Cuban, Harper, Sano

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More links for the afternoon…

  • ESPN.com reports that Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has no plans to bid on the Chicago Cubs.
  • Yankees and Red Sox scouts are assembling teams of high schoolers to face off in an exhibition game at Fenway Park this August. And Bryce Harper will be suiting up in pinstripes, according to Peter Abraham of the Journal News.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASN.com hears that the Orioles are hesitant to offer Miguel Angel Sano big money. Kubatko would be surprised to see the Orioles become frontrunners for the Dominican prospect.
  • Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle says Shawn Chacon isn't expected to be an option in Oakland. Instead, he's there to provide the A's with depth.
  • The Baltimore Sun relays an AP report informing us that David Walters, a college senior, signed a free agent contract with the Orioes. The righty was drafted by the Braves in 2008 before returning to school for his senior year.
  • MLB.com's Jason Beck reports that the Tigers have agreed to terms with 16 of their draftees.
  • Speaking on ESPN Radio, Peter Gammons suggests the Cubs, Rays, Rangers, Angels and Yankees should make moves before July 31st. Joe Haggerty has the transcript up at Hacks with Haggs.
  • Diamond Leung reports that the Dodgers released Val Pascucci, who had an OPS of .715 at Triple A.

Odds And Ends: Webb, Doumit, Blanks

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Links for Friday morning…

Cubs May Not Need Hitter After All

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Rumblings after Wednesday's game coming from the often-rumbling Lou Piniella centered around changes in the lineup.

But as Carrie Muskat reported, the Cubs kept the status quo in place, particularly Alfonso Soriano at the top of the lineup, despite a sub-.300 on-base percentage.

Of course, the storyline from Thursday's 6-5 win is that Soriano had the game-winning hit as Chicago's bats came alive.

But while much of the focus will be on the rejuvenated offense, the questions surrounding ownership transfer may be the real barrier to the Cubs bringing in a bat. Tip of the hat to Carrie Muskat again.

The two questions here: do the Cubs have their finances set enough to add payroll? And does Carrie Muskat ever sleep?

Pedro Too Expensive For Rays, Cubs?

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1:28pm: Yahoo's Gordon Edes hears the Cubs are serious about Pedro, even though they don't like his demands. "We wouldn't be [watching him] just to waste our time," a Cubs source said.

12:37pm: Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald says Lou Piniella has not discussed Pedro with GM Jim Hendry. Miles adds that the righty's likely too expensive for the Cubs, anyways.

11:13am: Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times reports that the Rays are a long way from completing a deal with Pedro. Andrew Friedman did not comment on the Rays' interest.

10:15am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Rays were eyeing Pedro Martinez as a reliever, but cannot meet his salary demands. Sherman says Pedro seeks a "significant amount of money" and the Rays can't afford a pricey addition to their team.

Meanwhile, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times says it's "doubtful" the Cubs have the payroll flexibility to add Pedro, even if he's asking for $5MM prorated. Cubs GM Jim Hendry says he has "a lot of respect" for the three-time Cy Young Award winner. Wittenmyer says an injury to a Cubs starter would add urgency to the team's interest in Pedro.

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