Few Waiver Claims Contributing So Far
A number of non-tenders are adding value in the Major Leagues this year, as I showed earlier today. Waiver claims – at least so far – haven’t had close to the same success. Former top prospects such as Brandon Wood and Max Ramirez haven’t produced and neither have most of the 30-plus players who have been claimed since last season. Here’s a look at the few waiver claims who have made an impact in the Majors this year:
- Phil Humber (White Sox, from Royals, via Athletics) – The 28-year-old former top draft pick has a 3.18 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 through 45 1/3 innings. Now a member of Chicago's six-man rotation, Humber is finally providing value in his sixth MLB season.
- Pat Neshek (Padres, from Twins) – Neshek is back on the Padres' active roster after a quick stint in the minors. He posted a 1.86 ERA with 10 strikeouts in 9 2/3 innings earlier this year. Padres reliever Samuel Deduno (from Rockies) gets an honorable mention, though he's not on San Diego’s active roster.
- Joe Mather (Braves, from Cardinals) – A longtime favorite of the Braves, Mather has a .747 OPS after 24 plate appearances and has appeared at three positions. With respect to Mather, his presence on this list shows how little other waiver claims have impacted MLB rosters so far in 2011.
White Sox Notes: Negron, Williams, Rotation
On this date in 1991, the White Sox signed Magglio Ordonez as an amateur free agent. Though he's now on the Tigers' DL with right ankle weakness, Ordonez has been consistently productive these past 20 years, posting a .310/.370/.507 line in 15 MLB seasons. Here are today’s White Sox-related links…
- The White Sox released center fielder turned left-handed pitcher Miguel Negron, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America (on Twitter). The 2000 first rounder struggled through seven relief appearances at Class A, walking more than he struck out and posting a 6.23 ERA.
- Meanwhile, White Sox GM Kenny Williams has ideas for possible moves, but isn't revealing any details just yet, according to MLB.com's Scott Merkin.
- Brett Ballantini of CSNChicago.com responds to Chicago's six-man rotation with some alternative ways for manager Ozzie Guillen to structure his starters' work.
AL Central Notes: Royals, McPherson, LaPorta
Harmon Killebrew passed away today at the age of 74 after a battle with esophageal cancer, the Twins announced. MLBTR extends its condolences to the Hall of Famer's family and friends and the Twins organization. Here are today's notes on the AL Central…
- Royals analyst Rany Jazayerli checks in on nine top Kansas City prospects, including Danny Duffy, who will be called up tomorrow. For more on Duffy's promotion, click here.
- Former top prospect Dallas McPherson is returning to the Majors to replace Mark Teahen on the White Sox, the team announced. The White Sox added McPherson to their 40-man roster (they still have four empty spots).
- Joe Pawlikowski of FanGraphs asks where Matt LaPorta's power has disappeared to this month. The Indians' first baseman hasn't homered in May and has just four home runs for the season, but his batting line is a healthy .274/.354/.487 thanks to ten doubles. The centerpiece in the 2008 C.C. Sabathia trade, LaPorta could still become a useful player, according to Pawlikowski.
Transactions History: Sergio Santos
When the Twins claimed a shortstop off of waivers on this date in 2008, they probably wouldn’t have guessed that Sergio Santos would go on to become a closer for their division rivals. Yet that’s exactly what’s happened since Minnesota claimed Santos from the Blue Jays three years ago.
Santos, selected in the first round of the 2002 draft by the D’Backs as a shortstop, arrived in the Toronto organization late in 2005, when the Blue Jays sent Orlando Hudson and Miguel Batista to the D’Backs for Troy Glaus. The Twins then claimed Santos on May 16th, 2008, before he had ever pitched in a professional game. After Santos posted a .242/.279/.374 line in the minors, the Twins let the infielder go.
Later in the offseason the White Sox signed Santos and within months, he was on the move again. The White Sox traded Santos to San Francisco late in Spring Training on the condition that the Giants would find him an everyday job in Triple-A. Unable to provide Santos with a regular role, the Giants sent him back to Chicago less than two weeks later.
Once the 2009 season began, Santos began the transition to the mound, as Yahoo's Jef Passan explained last year. The right-hander posted an 8.16 ERA through 28 2/3 innings for four different White Sox affiliates and allowed 37 hits and 20 walks, while striking out 30.
By 2010, Santos had graduated to Chicago's 'pen. He posted a 2.96 ERA in 51 2/3 innings with 9.8 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9 as a rookie. Armed with a 95 mph fastball, Santos has posted similar numbers through 19 frames this year. He has yet to allow an earned run and he has 10.4 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 as Ozzie Guillen’s most effective reliever – almost certainly not what the Twins were envisioning when they claimed the former shortstop off of waivers on this date in ’08.
Mariners Claim Jeff Gray
The Mariners claimed Jeff Gray off of waivers from the White Sox, according to Larry Stone of the Seattle Times (on Twitter). The White Sox designated the right-hander for assignment earlier in the week. Seattle has yet to announce a corresponding move.
Gray, 29, had pitched 13 1/3 innings for the White Sox this year, with 4.7 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9. He has a 4.36 ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 53 2/3 career innings with the Athletics, Cubs and White Sox.
Heyman On Blue Jays, Royals, Bradley, Reyes
The trade that sent Vernon Wells from Toronto to Anaheim was the “Holy Grail” of deals for the Blue Jays and the best move of the winter, writes Jon Heyman of SI.com. Jose Bautista's five-year, $65MM contract places second on Heyman's list of teams' top offseason moves. As Heyman says, Bautista could have been in position to earn $100MM or more as a free agent after the season if the Blue Jays hadn't signed him long-term. Here are the rest of Heyman's rumors:
- Royals GM Dayton Moore is pleased with Jeff Francoeur's production so far and says the outfielder does a lot of things well, though he “doesn't have a knack for getting on base.” As I showed last week, the Royals are getting lots out of their free agent acquisitions so far in 2011.
- Can Milton Bradley find another job? Five MLB executives expressed at least strong doubt about Bradley's future job prospects in the Major Leagues. His fading offense and poor defense don't make up for the distractions he creates, which led one exec to predict that the outfielder's “career is over” now that Seattle designated him for assignment. Others expect Bradley to get one last chance.
- It's early, but Heyman suggests the White Sox, Tigers and A's look like possibilities for Carlos Beltran this summer. Beltran has a no-trade clause and is impressing scouts early on this season.
- The Red Sox and Blue Jays could be interested in catcher Jordan Weems, a high schooler who is moving up some draft boards.
- Heyman hears that it's “highly unlikely” that the Red Sox would be willing to meet the Mets' asking price for Jose Reyes this summer.
White Sox Designate Jeff Gray For Assignment
The White Sox designated righty Jeff Gray for assignment to open a spot on the 25-man roster for Jake Peavy, tweets MLB.com's Scott Merkin. The move leaves the Sox with 35 players on their 40-man roster.
Gray, 29, tossed 13 1/3 innings for the Sox this year, including a nice three-inning effort yesterday. The team had signed Gray to a minor league deal in December after he'd been outrighted by the Cubs. Gray had been part of the December '09 deal that sent Jake Fox and Aaron Miles to Oakland.
AL Central Notes: Danks, Indians, Draft
Links from the AL Central, as Francisco Liriano and Justin Verlander share the American League player of the week award in recognition of their respective no-hitters…
- John Danks told MLB.com's Scott Merkin that he loves playing for the White Sox and hopes he doesn't face the "harsh reality" of being involved in a deadline deal. However, the left-hander realizes trades are a part of the game.
- MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian provides a clear-headed look ahead to how the Indians might approach the trade deadline if they’re still contending in July.
- UCLA right-hander Trevor Bauer will not get past the Indians, who select 8th overall in this June's draft, according to Keith Law on ESPN.com's Baseball Today podcast. Bauer and teammate Gerrit Cole are among the most highly-touted draft eligible pitching prospects.
- Earlier tonight, I took a look at the development of Tigers catcher Alex Avila.
Cafardo On Rays, Mathis, Flowers, Red Sox
Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe opens this week's Sunday Notes column by taking a look at how the Rays have succeeded this year depite losing many key players in the offseason. Cafardo points out that the AL East looks like a "very flawed division" so far, meaning the Rays could once again be bunched up with the Yankees and Red Sox in the standings. Here are some other notes from Cafardo:
- Jason Varitek praised the defensive abilites of Jeff Mathis, who may be a trade candidate: "He’s a very athletic catcher. He has a good arm. He creates a good situation for his pitching staff. You can tell the pitchers really enjoy throwing to him. He’s fun to watch back there because he does things so easily. He’s one of the best."
- Tyler Flowers, the catcher for the White Sox' Triple-A club in Charlotte, could be available and was scouted by the Red Sox and a handful of other teams in Spring Training.
- Red Sox minor leaguer Josh Reddick has "generated a lot of chatter among scouts," according to Cafardo, who speculates the outfielder would draw plenty of interest if Boston made him available. One scout on Reddick: "He’s a major league player and he’d be playing for a lot of teams in the big leagues right now."
- Former Red Sox and White Sox catcher Carlton Fisk would like a chance to instruct young players for either organization, but says he's never received a serious offer to do so.
White Sox Not Ready To Make Major Changes
The White Sox are off to an 11-22 start and are already 11 games back of the Indians in the AL Central, but the team isn't ready to start making major changes just yet. ESPN's Buster Olney reports (on Twitter) that the club's decision makers will give the team time to turn things around before making adjustments.
Ozzie Guillen's squad has a bottom five ERA in the AL as both starters (4.08) and relievers (5.27), and their .667 team OPS is fourth worst in the league. To make matters worse, their team -10.1 UZR is second worst in the AL. That's a lot to turn around, though it's still plenty early in the season. Earlier today we heard from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that Edwin Jackson, Mark Buehrle, John Danks, and Carlos Quentin are all candidates to be moved, should the team decide to sell.