Minor Moves: Gonzalez, Hill, Barfield
Today's minor moves..
- The Cubs released Triple-A Iowa right-hander Edgar Gonzalez, tweets ESPN's Doug Padilla. Gonzalez, who had a 4.09 ERA and 12-to-2 K/BB in 11 innings will pursue opportunities in Asia.
- The Reds signed catcher Koyie Hill, according to CBSSports.com's transactions page. The 33-year-old signed with the Cardinals in January but was let go just over a month ago. For his big league career, Hill owns a .211/.275/.298 slash line across parts of eight seasons.
- The Orioles released Josh Barfield from Triple-A Norfolk to make room for right-hander Jason Berken, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. The utility player has a .274/.313/.387 slash line in parts of six seasons at the Triple-A level. The O's signed the 29-year-old to a minor league deal in late March.
Bronson Arroyo Obtains Ten And Five Rights
Bronson Arroyo didn’t play in yesterday’s game against the Giants, but it was a significant contest for the right-hander nonetheless. Arroyo now has ten and five rights and cannot be traded without his permission.
Arroyo began the year with nine years and 150 days of MLB service and yesterday marked the 22nd day of the Reds’ season. Nine years and 172 days equates to ten years of service for the 35-year-old, and his last six-plus seasons have been spent in Cincinnati.
Players who have accumulated ten years of Major League service time can't be traded without their permission if they have spent the last five years with their current club. If the Reds trade Arroyo, deferred payments on his current contract are voided and paid up-front by his new team, so it’s especially hard to imagine a trade in his case.
Quick Hits: Padres, Jurrjens, Reds, Angels
Here are some links from around the league as Tuesday turns into Wednesday…
- "We’re open-minded and we’re seriously considering it," said Padres interim CEO Tom Garfinkel to Bill Center of The San Diego Union-Tribune when asked about moving the fences in at Petco Park. “We’d have to submit plans by the end of the season," he added. "I don’t think a final decision needs to be made until October."
- The Braves were close to trading Jair Jurrjens and Jairo Asencio to the Reds for Chris Heisey and Juan Francisco this offseason, reports MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Jurrjens is a potential non-tender candidate after being sent to the minors this week.
- The Angels' first pick in this summer's draft with be #114 overall, writes Lance Pugmire of The Los Angeles Times. Anaheim surrendered their first and second rounders to sign Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson respectively.
- ESPN's Keith Law conducted a 2002 redraft with the benefit of hindsight. Curtis Granderson, Brian McCann, and Cole Hamels were his new top three picks. Bryan Bullington, B.J. Upton, and Chris Gruler were the actual top three picks that year.
Rosenthal On Halladay, Royals, Wandy
Roy Halladay is pitching differently this year, according to pitch f/x data and team officials who spoke to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Though Halladay remains effective, he’s relying on different weapons than the ones he used in the past. Here are Rosenthal’s latest rumors:
- The Royals have lost ten consecutive games, but GM Dayton Moore says it’s not always bad to scuffle. “I’m not shocked that we’re struggling out of the gate,” Moore told Rosenthal. “Although you expect good things to happen, we’re very young.” Rosenthal cites a scout who was “decidedly unimpressed” by the Royals’ play this weekend.
- Rosenthal suggests the Padres might be inclined to trade Carlos Quentin if he hits well once he returns from knee surgery in May. Rosenthal wonders if the Padres might look to sign Quentin to a two-year deal in the $18-20MM range if he has a decent season.
- Many teams are intimidated by Wandy Rodriguez’s contract, Rosenthal reports. The left-hander earns $10MM in 2012 and $13MM in 2013. The Astros hold a $13MM club option for 2014, but it becomes a player option if they trade him.
- Some executives were surprised the Reds committed $72.5MM to Brandon Phillips when some of their best prospects (Billy Hamilton and Didi Gregorius) are middle infielders.
- Adam Dunn looks more comfortable at the plate this year, one scout says.
Upcoming Ten And Five Rights
Players who have accumulated ten years of major league service time can't be traded without their permission if they have spent the last five years with their current club. Here's a list of players whose ten and five rights kick in in the near future (service time through 2011 in parentheses):
- Bronson Arroyo, Reds ( 9.150) – Arroyo will obtain ten and five rights late this month. If the Reds trade the right-hander, deferred payments are voided and paid up-front by his new team. It’s hard to imagine a trade involving Arroyo.
- Brian Roberts, Orioles (9.131) – Roberts’ ten and five rights will kick in by the middle of May. However, his contract already provides him with full no-trade protection and no team would trade for him at this point.
- Travis Hafner, Indians (9.009) – Hafner's rights will kick in this September, replacing the limited no-trade clause he currently enjoys. If the Indians retain Hafner for 2013 by exercising their club option or re-signing him as a free agent, he'll have full no-trade protection.
Rosenthal On White Sox, Mets, Reds
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports had his doubts about rookie managers Robin Ventura and Mike Matheny heading into the season, but both appear to be doing well so far. Here are more of Rosenthal’s notes from around the league…
- An unnamed rival executive says former White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was an “inefficiency” who prevented his team from reaching its full potential in Chicago.
- White Sox GM Kenny Williams likes that his team has pitched well and played solid fundamental baseball, Rosenthal reports. Williams prefers not to comment on Guillen, who managed the White Sox from 2004-11.
- GM Sandy Alderson suggests the Mets’ 6-3 start is an indication that the Mets’ cautious optimism was warranted earlier this spring. “We’re hoping with what happened over the first 10 days or so, people will begin to see the potential of this team differently,” Alderson said.
- Rival executives aren’t sure how the Reds will manage their payroll now that Brandon Phillips and Joey Votto have lucrative long-term extensions.
Central Notes: Reds, Votto, Pirates, Indians
A look at items out of the Central divisions..
- Reds first baseman Joey Votto told Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun that he wanted to become the highest-paid Canadian player in baseball. Votto’s ten-year, $225MM extension not only made him the top earning Canadian baseball player, but made him the country’s highest-paid athlete. There was talk about the Blue Jays targeting Votto down the line but the slugger said that it would be difficult to ever settle for a five-year deal as per their policy.
- There’s been a lot of talk about the Braves‘ low-paying television deal but Bob Cohn of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review points out that the Pirates contract is also undervalued. The Bucs are in the third year of a ten-year TV deal and will receive $18MM this year, according to industry sources.
- Even though the Indians are in need of an impact bat, Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer isn’t sure that the club should trade Chris Perez to get that done.
- Drew Stubbs has some level of trade value but the Reds wouldn’t get a whole lot back for him, tweets John Fay of Cincinnati Enquirer.
Rosenthal On Lannan, Greinke, Cardinals, McCann
Highlights from the latest edition of Full Count from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..
- The Nationals continue to look for a taker for John Lannan but his $5MM salary is only part of the problem. A rival exec points out that any team that gets Lannan might prefer to let him go this offseason rather than go to arbitration with him, further diminishing his value.
- A rival executive says that Joey Votto's ten-year, $225MM contract with the Reds could affect Zack Greinke's talks with the Brewers. In the past, a team like Milwaukee could claim that a small market team could never afford such a deal, but that no longer seems like a fair argument.
- The Cardinals talked about trading Kyle Lohse or Jake Westbrook to free up space for Albert Pujols but it now looks like they made the right decision to hang on to both. While the two pitchers will earn a combined $20MM+ this season, both reported in excellent condition this season and are off to strong early starts.
- The Braves are locked into their local TV deal for the next 20 years – a deal that could soon become the worst in the sport. Meanwhile, their payroll is stagnant and while the farm system is deep in pitchers and shortstops, it's not terribly deep in other areas. Rosenthal can't imagine that the future looks promising for catcher Brian McCann as he is two years away from free agency.
Reds Release Clay Zavada
We’ll track the latest minor moves right here…
- The Reds released left-handed reliever Clay Zavada earlier this week, according to the transactions page at CBSSports.com. The 27-year-old posted a 3.35 ERA with 52 strikeouts in 51 innings as a rookie with the 2009 Diamondbacks, but hasn't appeared in the Major Leagues since. He signed a minor league deal with the Reds over the winter after spending the 2011 season at Double-A and posting a 3.43 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 60 1/3 innings of relief.
Quick Hits: Hamilton, Baker, Phillips, Martinez
Angels right-hander Michael Kohn will have Tommy John surgery tomorrow and will miss the season according to Mike DiGiovanna of The Los Angeles Times (on Twitter). Here are some assorted links for Wednesday…
- The Rangers recently met with Mike Moye, agent for Josh Hamilton, but the two sides didn't get too deep into contract extension talks according to Jeff Wilson of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
- The Twins hope to replace Scott Baker internally, but there's a chance he might not pitch for them again according to MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger (Twitter links). Baker will miss the year with elbow surgery and the team holds a $9MM option for next season.
- Talks between the Reds and Brandon Phillips about a contract extension started last March according to ESPN's Jim Bowden. Phillips' agreed to a new deal this week.
- The Tigers have some hope that Victor Martinez will return late this season, according to Tom Gage of the Detroit News (Twitter links). The switch-hitting DH didn't need ACL reconstruction on his injured knee, and may return before the season's up. The Tigers won't know whether Martinez can play until they get MRI results in July.
- Tom Krasovic of Inside the Padres reports that Padres owner John Moores initially sought $600MM for the team in 2008 and explains why it may sell for more this time around. The Padres are up for sale again, Moores announced yesterday.
- Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has the year-by-year breakdown for Ian Kinsler’s recent contract extension (Twitter link). The Rangers have a $10MM option for 2018 with a $5MM buyout.
- Jim Callis of Baseball America reports that most teams believe Georgia high school outfielder Byron Buxton is the best prospect available in this year's amateur draft. There's a growing sense the Astros don't want to make a risky pick, yet there's no obvious second choice behind Buxton.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.