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Cafardo On Stanton, Red Sox, Ramirez, Willingham,

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No one would have predicted it this time a year ago, but Red Sox–Dodgers series next week in Los Angeles could very well be a prelude to the World Series, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.  It's not a surprise to see that L.A. has benefited from the swap early on, but few expected the Red Sox to be this strong in 2013.  Does Dodgers GM Ned Colletti see this intriguing World Series matchup happening?  “That’s something you can dream about. I’m worried about Tampa Bay,” Colletti said, referring to the Dodgers’ weekend opponent.  Here's more from today's column..

  • The Twins and Red Sox might be in the best position to acquire Giancarlo Stanton this offseason if the Marlins make him available since both teams have the organizational depth to make a blockbuster deal.  A few teams like the Rangers have inquired about Stanton and were consistently told he wasn’t available, but Miami would have to listen if someone offered a handful of top prospects. “The Red Sox might be in a better position than the Twins because the Twins have to rely on their top players to come up and man several positions,” said one baseball exec. “The Red Sox have veteran players so their need to keep their best guys isn’t as severe. So if they can trade them off for a young player like Stanton, they wouldn’t have to fear about thinning out as a result.”
  • The Yankees could turn out to be the best fit for White Sox shortstop Alexei Ramirez as they eventually will need a replacement for Derek Jeter, who could wind up DHing a lot in 2014. The Bombers' weak farm system could be a stumbling block, however. 
  • Now that he's back from knee surgery, Twins outfielder Josh Willingham could be moved before the end of August.  Willingham hasn’t had a good season but last year he hit .260/.366/.524 with 35 homers last year.  The 34-year-old is signed for one more year at $7MM.
  • ESPN analyst and Hall of Fame shortstop Barry Larkin has been one of the most interesting names bandied about as a possible replacement for Nationals manager Davey Johnson. Another candidate is Houston manager Bo Porter, but he says he's not returning to the Nats.
  • Even though the Red Sox are looking for a right-handed power bat, they don’t see Mark Reynolds as a fit because of his poor defense and high strikeout rate. 

Rosenthal On Norris, Lincecum, Rios, Utley

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Let's take a look at the latest from FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal in this week's edition of Full Count:

  • The Diamondbacks were the runner-up among teams vying to acquire Bud Norris from the Astros. The Snakes planned to keep Norris in the rotation for the remainder of the season, then shift him to the bullpen through the end of his contract, Rosenthal says, noting the team's wealth of young starting pitching and contracts for relievers Heath Bell and J.J. Putz that will expire after 2014. However, the Orioles were able to offer Houston the superior compensation pick.
  • Tim Lincecum is pushing his free agent stock up with his recent run of strong starts, but the Giants haven't initiated contract talks yet with the hurler. An executive cited by Rosenthal pegged a potential deal for Lincecum in the three-year range with a $13MM-14MM annual salary. Though that initially appears high considering the right hander's poor performance last year and at the beginning of this one, the qualifying offer the Giants are likely to extend will probably be in the same $13MM-14MM range.
  • Though the White Sox weren't able to find a taker for Alex Rios' contract before the deadline, Nelson Cruz's suspension changed the thinking in the Rangers' front office, according to Rosenthal. Texas was previously asking for significant cash back in any trade, while the Pirates weren't even interested enough to discuss specific names, Rosenthal reports. However, the Sox will likely eventually get infielder Leury Garcia from their deal with the Rangers, which could give them the flexibility to trade either second baseman Gordon Beckham or shortstop Alexei Ramirez. 
  • The dearth of hitters reaching the open market could have made Chase Utley quite popular in free agency. Rosenthal cites the Dodgers, Athletics and Orioles as potential suitors. The two years and $27MM of guaranteed salary that Utley received from the Phillies is comparable to guarantees that David Ortiz, Torii Hunter and Carlos Beltran got in free agency, Rosenthal notes.

This Date In Transactions History: Alex Rios

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Ever get the sense of deja vu?  It's a feeling that Alex Rios probably experienced this week.  On this date in 2009, the White Sox selected Alex Rios off of waivers from the Blue Jays.  At the time, Rios was 28 and was owed $60MM more on his contract.  For the rebuilding Toronto club, it was an opportunity to shed payroll with an eye on the future while the White Sox took a gamble to help bolster their club for the short and long-term. 

At the time, Rios was hitting .264/.317/.427 with 14 homers in 479 plate appearances for the Blue Jays.  While the Blue Jays weren't having a dismal season, their 54-57 mark at the time was good for fourth in the American League East and had them 14.5 games behind the first place Yankees.  And while Rios' offensive production wasn't anything to sneeze at, it wasn't on a par with the .299/.352/.505 combined slash line that he turned in during his All-Star seasons in 2006 and 2007.

Meanwhile, the acquisition of Rios continued a rather expensive summer for White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf as it was just days after landing Jake Peavy at the deadline for Clayton Richard, Aaron Poreda, Adam Russell, and Dexter Carter.  Between the two, Chicago agreed to take on more than $100MM in future commitments.  Strangely enough, the summer of 2013 saw both players jettisoned from Chicago.  

This time around, it was the White Sox who found themselves as sellers and it only made sense for them to purge some of their more desirable veterans from their payroll.  The August 2013 Rios deal seemed like a longshot to happen, but ultimately the outfielder was sent to Texas along with $1MM for a player to be named later.  The Rangers hope that Rios can be the big bat that they need for their playoff push and the White Sox hope that they can use their new found flexibility to help build for the future.

Quick Hits: Cubs, Bell, Garcia

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Before looking ahead, let's take a quick look back at former Braves shortstop Johnny Logan, who passed away yesterday. The four-time all-star racked up over thirty wins above replacement in his thirteen year career, most of which were accumulated during his 1953-61 run with the Braves in Milwaukee. Remaining in Milwaukee and becoming an avid supporter of the Brewers, Logan was also one of many golden era ballplayers to respond generously to letters from fans. Read Tom Haudricourt's obituary and this excellent biography from Bob Buege for more on Logan. Here are some notes from around the league:

  • Cubs GM Jed Hoyer does not sound optimistic about the chances of pulling off any August deals, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. While the team might be interested in bringing back youth in exchange for players like Kevin Gregg, Dioner Navarro, David DeJesus, and Nate Schierholtz, Hoyer says that such players "are not likely to clear [waivers]."
  • Meanwhile, Hoyer says he is pleased with the development of the club's pitching corps. "I certainly feel much better about our pitching than I did a year ago," he said. "You read the game reports and we have better arms down there than we did a year ago. We just have to keep doing that year after year after year after year." The club seems primed to get an extended look at one of the young hurlers it added in its flurry of July trades. Wittenmyer reports that Jake Arrieta –who was acquired in the Scott Feldman deal — is expected to take a spot in the team's rotation for the rest of the season. Arrieta, who has made one successful spot start for the Cubs, owns a 3.56 ERA with 39 strikeouts (against 16 walks) over 30 1/3 innings with Triple-A Iowa.
  • With the Nationals' future managerial needs becoming an increasing priority, the Washington Post's Adam Kilgore writes that Pirates coach Jay Bell could be another name to watch. Much like previously mentioned possibility Matt Williams, Bell was a hard-nosed ballplayer who has a history with GM Mike Rizzo. Given his less developed track record on the bench, however, Kilgore says he may profile more as a coaching option at this stage.
  • The White Sox are not hesitating to challenge recently-acquired youngster Avisail Garcia. After the club cleared a lineup spot by dealing outfielder Alex Rios, Garcia will make his first start for Chicago today. According to MLB.com's Joey Nowak, via Twitter, the Sox seems committed to playing Garcia in center field. His former club, the Tigers, had viewed Garcia as a corner outfielder, fellow MLB.com writer Jason Beck tweets. While opinions vary, Baseball America's Matt Eddy opines that Garcia can handle center, at least while he's young. 

AL Notes: White Sox, Vargas, Morneau

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GM Rick Hahn of the White Sox says he plans on spending more on young talent in 2014, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports. The White Sox have saved plenty of money in their recent trades of Jake Peavy and Alex Rios, and it sounds like Hahn doesn't plan on using those savings on Major League payroll right away. "It's going to go to making the big league club better for the long haul, no doubt," says Hahn. "One of the positives of an unfortunate season like this is we're going to have the opportunity in all probability to spend a lot more money on amateur talent." Before the season, Baseball America ranked the White Sox's farm system the second-worst of any organization. Hahn also says the White Sox could continue trading this August. Here are more notes from the American League.

  • The Angels are no longer in the playoff hunt, but free-agent-to-be Jason Vargas still has something to play for, the Los Angeles Times' Mike DiGiovanna writes. Vargas will soon rejoin the Angels' rotation after missing more than a month with a blood clot. Before that, he had a 3.65 ERA with 6.1 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 91 1/3 innings this season. His performance down the stretch will likely impact his standing on the free agent market this winter, says DiGiovanna, who also notes that the Angels are interested in keeping Vargas around. One possibility is that the Angels could deal Vargas this month, then attempt to acquire him again once he becomes a free agent.
  • Twins first baseman Justin Morneau isn't sure about his waiver status, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press writes (on Twitter). "I have no idea if I’ve been put through waivers or claimed on waivers or whatever it is," Morneau says. "That’s still a possibility." Morneau is making $14MM in the final year of his contract.

Reactions To The Alex Rios Trade

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With Nelson Cruz's suspension leaving the Rangers thin in the outfield, Texas acquired Alex Rios from the White Sox today for a PTBNL (widely reported to be infielder Leury Garcia) and $1MM. Now, several hours after news of the trade broke, here are reactions to the deal from around the web.

  • Assuming the player to be named later in the deal does turn out to be Garcia, the Rangers paid a reasonable price for Rios, Eno Sarris of Fangraphs.com writes. With Rios only under contract for one more guaranteed year after 2013, the Rangers aren't assuming too much risk. Garcia didn't rank as a top prospect entering the season, and the Rangers have several infielders around for the long term and therefore could afford to part with him.
  • The Rios trade is "a great move" for the Rangers, argues Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com. The deal addresses the Rangers' needs both now and in the near future, since Rios is under contract in 2014 and Cruz and David Murphy are eligible for free agency after this season.
  • The deal makes sense for both teams, says CBS Sports' Jon Heyman. The Rangers get an average player who adds depth to their lineup, Heyman says, and the White Sox avoid paying Rios' salary through 2014, when they didn't figure to compete anyway.
  • Rios says he will remember fondly, MLB.com's Scott Merkin writes (on Twitter). "It was a great ride," says Rios. "I enjoyed my whole time here. I had many great moments here. So, I’m going to miss this place."

Rangers Claim Alex Rios; Trade Unlikely

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FRIDAY: A source involved in the trade talks between the two sides told Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio that the chances of a deal are "smaller than a bread basket."

THURSDAY, 4:51pm: A trade is unlikely to be reached, writes MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Prior to the deadline, the White Sox were interested in lefty Martin Perez, right-hander Luke Jackson and infielder Rougned Odor, and the Rangers aren't keen on giving up those players in a trade for Rios.

3:29pm: The Rangers and White Sox "weren't even close" on an agreement when discussing Rios prior to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Knobler also tweets that Rios was placed on waivers on Monday, and the deadline to work out a deal for him is tomorrow. That would suggest that Rios was claimed earlier in the week, but the news only broke today.

2:45pm: The Rangers are the team that claimed Rios, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter). Grant cautions that claiming Rios and actually striking a deal to acquire the 32-year-old are very different things.

12:58pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that Alex Rios has been claimed on revocable waivers by an unknown team (Twitter link).

Because he is on revocable waivers, the White Sox have 48 hours to work out a trade with the claiming team or pull him back off waivers.  Chicago could also let the claiming team have Rios for nothing and be content to dump his salary — the very manner in which Chicago acquired Rios from the Blue Jays in 2009 — but that seems unlikely given his .277/.328/.421 batting line. Rios is controlled through 2014 and owed $12.5MM next season with a $13.5MM club option, though each of those salaries will increase by $500K if he is traded.

It seems likely that an American League team was awarded the claim on Rios, as waiver priority at this point in the season is determined by league and record. All 15 AL teams would have the opportunity to claim Rios before an NL team. The Rangers and Pirates were both connected to Rios prior to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.

Adam Dunn Clears Waivers

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Adam Dunn has cleared waivers and is now free to be traded to any team, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. As Heyman points out, Dunn clearing waivers should come as no shock, given his contract situation. The strikeout-prone slugger is earning $15MM in 2013 and again in 2014, meaning he has about $4.2MM remaining on this year's salary and $19.2MM remaining overall.

The 33-year-old Dunn is hitting .227/.332/.465 with 26 homers this season, but his slash line masks what's been a more impressive run since summer began. Since June 1, Dunn is batting .289/.401/.532 with 14 of his 26 homers. American League contenders in need of a bat, such as the Rangers and Orioles, would seem to be logical fits Dunn. The White Sox would likely have to kick in significant cash to make a deal work out, and the more they're willing to include, the more they can expect back in a potential return.

Dunn becomes the third player to have reportedly cleared waivers (though there have likely been others that have gone unreported to this point), joining Michael Young and Jimmy Rollins of the Phillies.

Players Who Have Cleared Waivers

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MLBTR will continue to update this post as players reportedly clear revocable trade waivers, making it a running list of players that may be traded to any club in the season's final two months. Remember though, players must be acquired by Aug. 31 to be eligible for their new team's postseason roster. Click here for a further explanation of the August waiver and trade rules. Also bear in mind that a player's no-trade rights remain effective even if he clears waivers. Player names are linked to the source articles, and this article can always be found under the MLBTR Features portion of the sidebar on the right side of the page.

Last Updated: 8-15-2013

  • Elvis Andrus, Rangers — Andrus is under contract for an additional nine years and $124.475MM, making it no surprise that teams passed on claiming him. He was hitting .255/.317/.306 at the time he cleared waivers — a notable decline in production for the 24-year-old. The Rangers reportedly have no intention to trade him.
  • Erik Bedard, Astros — Bedard owns a 4.28 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9 in 21 starts and two relief outings in 2013 for Houston.  The southpaw, who cleared waivers on Aug. 14, would be a really cheap pickup as he is owed just $300K for the rest of the season.  
  • Dan Haren, Nationals — Haren was placed on waivers on Aug. 8 without any clubs biting on him and his remaining $3.7MM in salary.  The right-hander owns a 4.99 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 1.6 BB/9 so far in 2013 and he could be of interest to teams if the Nationals fall further back in the Wild Card chase. 
  • Brendan Ryan, Mariners — Word came down of Ryan clearing waivers on Aug. 14.  The M's were said to have him available before July 31st but couldn't find any takers.  
  • Matt Lindstrom, White Sox — Everyone needs relief help, but the White Sox were selling at the non-waiver deadline and couldn't find a suitable deal for Lindstrom.  The reliever, who has a 3.47 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9, cleared waivers on Aug. 14.
  • Justin Morneau, Twins — Morneau cleared waivers on Aug. 14, when he had roughly $3.5MM remaining on his $14MM salary. A free agent at season's end, Morneau was dreadful in July, batting .175/.266/.330. He homered six times in his first 10 games of August though, which could make teams reconsider their stance.
  • Barry Zito, Giants — Zito cleared waivers on Aug. 14, but at that point still had $5.14MM remaining on his $20MM salary. With an ERA north of 5.00 and that kind of money remaining on his deal, it seems likely that Zito will play out the rest of his widely panned contract in San Francisco.
  • Josh Johnson, Blue Jays — With more than $4MM left on his salary at the time he was placed on waivers, no team was apparently willing to take a risk that the big righty's poor results will begin to reflect his more promising peripherals. Unless Johnson hits an August hot streak, it seems likely that the Jays will hold onto him and consider whether to make him a qualifying offer when he reaches free agency at the end of the year.
  • Adam Dunn, White Sox — That Dunn cleared waivers isn't a huge surprise, given his $15MM salary in 2013 and in 2014. He's been red-hot since June 1, however, which could lead contending AL teams such as the Orioles and Rangers to show interest if the White Sox are willing to include some cash in the deal.
  • Jimmy Rollins, Phillies — Rollins has taken a big step back in production this year (especially on the power side of the ledger) and is owed $11MM for 2014 (and possibly the same for 2015 if his option vests). The 34-year-old shortstop seems discinclined to waive his full no-trade rights, making him unlikely to change hands.
  • Michael Young, Phillies — The third baseman could be an August trade candidate given his expiring contract, experience, and serviceable (if unspectacular) 2013 campaign. He is reportedly willing to waive his no-trade protection to go to a contender.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.

AL Central Notes: White Sox, Raburn, Indians, Kazmir

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As the Tigers do everything they can to run away with the division, let's check in with some of their competitors in the AL Central:

  • GM Rick Hahn's plans for the White Sox are better characterized as a "reshape" than a "rebuild," according to MLB.com's Scott Merkin. "It's not in our nature to write off any season," said Hahn. "You see too many teams make fairly quick and significant turnarounds in the course of one offseason. With that said, we have some work to do." 
  • The Indians extended utilityman Ryan Raburn yesterday; today, Max Lom posted interview excerpts on MLB.com. Raburn noted that the team aproached him before the All-Star break about a possible extension. GM Chris Antonetti explained that the team liked Raburn as a bounce-back candidate after his woeful 2012 campaign. For his part, manager Terry Francona noted that the club's relatively low payroll means that it must rely on players like Raburn and fellow benchmate Mike Aviles to compete. (Notably, the club also signed Aviles to a multi-year contract with a club option.)
  • Even if Cleveland falls out of the AL Central race, it is worth keeping an eye on the organization in the coming months. Antonetti is believed to have approached other players about extensions, reports Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer. 
  • Hoynes went on to note that another player who has revived his career with the Indians — lefty Scott Kazmir – has indicated that he might be amenable to a hometown discount. However, Antonetti implied that the sides have not talked about a new deal. 
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