Odds And Ends: Rolen, Butler, Braves, Yanks
More links for the morning…
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports hears that Reds will pay Scott Rolen $11MM next year without help from the Blue Jays.
- Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star wonders if the Royals should lock Billy Butler up long-term. The 23-year-old has hit well this year, but he doesn't figure to be a free agent until after 2013, so the team has time to deliberate.
- Bill Rankin of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the Braves reached an agreement with an insurance company for an undisclosed settlement. The Braves sought compensation after paying an injured Mike Hampton last year.
- Tom Verducci of SI.com says the Yankees are the best team in the AL right now.
Odds & Ends: Sandberg, Indians, Red Sox, Yankees, McCoy
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.
Odds & Ends: White Sox, Rolen, Halladay
Some late-night links to peruse as we wonder how the Phillies can fit in both Pedro Martinez and J.A. Happ into their pitching staff:
- The Red Sox signed 11th-round pick, high school SS Jason Thompson, to a deal worth $300k, says Jim Callis at Baseball America.
- Evan Brunell at the Hardball Times defends the rationale behind the widely-panned Scott Rolen trade.
- Scot Gregor at the Daily Herald wonders if any of the three recently-defected Cuban talents might land on the White Sox. They all share the same agent, Jaime Torres, as current Sox Dayan Viciedo, Jose Contreras and Alexei Ramirez.
- Joe Cowley at the Chicago Sun-Times posits the question: Do the White Sox keep Scott Podsednik for another year or go after Chone Figgins as their speedy lead-off man for 2010?
- Craig Calcaterra at the Hardball Times questions whether J.P. Ricciardi actually "botched" the Roy Halladay negotiations, as he has been criticized for doing.
Odds & Ends: Reds, Rangers, Bedard
Some fairly interesting nuggets to scope out this Wednesday evening:
- Despite the Reds' abysmal play as of late, team CEO Bob Castellini has given manager Dusty Baker a vote of confidence for this year and next, says John Fay at the Cincinnati Enquirer.
- Doug Miller at MLB.com reports that Spring Training has been a huge boon for Florida, generating over $750MM for the state. "Major League Baseball has a following that transcends economic downturns," researcher Dr. Mark Bonn said. Haven't heard that from team owners too often.
- The Rangers designated minor-league RHP John Bannister for assignment to make room for Esteban German on the big-league roster, says Evan Grant at D Magazine.
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty says that the team is getting closer to a deal with their first-round pick, RHP Mike Leake.
- Erik Bedard's rehab has been shut down indefinitely as he experienced more pain in his shoulder, says Geoff Baker at the Seattle Times, which effectively ends any trade value he might've had for the Mariners.
Odds And Ends: Volquez, Hamilton, Pirates
Time for some afternoon links…
- Over at SI.com Jonah Keri looks back at a win-win trade that lost its luster. Josh Hamilton and Edinson Volquez seemed like perfect fits for their new teams just last year, but injuries have shelved both.
- In his MLB.com chat, Pirates president Frank Coonelly defended the organization's choice to flip Jason Bay for prospects last summer. FanGraphs values Andy LaRoche's 2009 performance more than Bay's, believe it or not.
- Coonelly says the Pirates are the only club to have offered Miguel Angel Sano "significant dollars." Don't expect Sano to sign until the investigation into his age is complete, however.
- Brandon Phillips would consider playing short if the Reds want him to, according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Reds Rumors: Rolen, Harang, Arroyo
John Fay at the Cincinnati Enquirer caught up with Reds GM Walt Jocketty and got him to spill out some fairly interesting hot stove info. Let's dig in:
- From Jocketty's words, Fay believes that the Blue Jays may have kicked in more money to the Scott Rolen deal than originally thought. Fay was told it was $3MM for this year and next. The Cardinals are already on the hook for a $4MM signing bonus in 2010. The deal has been oft-maligned, but extra cash involved might make it slightly more palatable.
- With Edinson Volquez likely on the shelf for a large chunk of next season, Jocketty indicates that a trade to beef up the pitching staff could be on the horizon this offseason.
- Jocketty claims he's "not soliciting offers" for Bronson Arroyo or Aaron Harang, whose names have come up as potential waiver trade targets.
- Fay notes that the Reds have little wiggle room as far as payroll goes next year–more than $57MM is committed to six players.
Olney On Parity, Waivers, Rolen, Encarnacion
ESPN.com's Buster Olney shows that the economic downturn has widened the gap between rich teams and poor ones after a decade of relative parity. As he shows, seven of the eight teams with the biggest payrolls would make the playoffs if they began today. The Mets have the game's second-biggest payroll, but wouldn't make it. Here are a few others notes from Olney's blog:
- We could start hearing about waiver claims today, since teams have stared putting players on waivers.
- The Reds' acquisition of Scott Rolen is "without question the most widely panned pre-deadline trade within the industry."
- The Reds gave up Josh Roenicke and Zach Stewart, a pair of highly-regarded young arms.
- One talent evaluator believes the Jays will release Edwin Encarnacion after the season. Even if the third baseman's $4.75MM salary is too much for the Jays, they'd presumably try to trade him first.
Odds And Ends: Pirates, Bard, Padres, Rolen
More links for the afternoon…
- MLB.com's Ian Browne says Daniel Bard has essentially become "untouchable." Of course few players other than Tim Lincecum and Evan Longoria really are untouchable, but it sounds like the Red Sox really like their young reliever.
- ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick hears from some people within the game who credit the Pirates for gutting the team and amassing prospects instead of continuing with the "lipstick on a pig" approach they tried for years.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock shows that the Padres improved their pitching depth and suggests they could pursue a free agent hitter this offseason.
- Reds assistant GM Bob Miller said in his MLB.com chat that the reports on the amount the Reds owe Scott Rolen are "incorrect." So how much are the Reds paying Rolen? Miller can't say.
- Peter Abraham of the Journal News shows that Andy Pettitte could double his $5.5MM salary if he has a strong enough finish and his incentives kick in.
Odds And Ends: Rockies, Volquez, Pirates
More links for the morning…
- At the Hardball Times, Adam Guttridge uses his trade evaluation system to break down some of last week's deals. He says the Phillies, Red Sox and White Sox overpaid to acquire star players.
- Todd Helton tells MLB.com's Thomas Harding it's nice to see the Rockies adding, rather than subtracting at the deadline.
- Via Twitter, MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reports that Edinson Volquez had Tommy John surgery and will miss a year. What a blow for the Reds.
- MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reviews the new-look Pirates organization.
More Trade Reactions
A few more trade discussions on a calm Saturday afternoon…
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer believes the Scott Rolen deal has left the Reds with no payroll flexibility heading into 2010. "That's not good," he writes, "when you need a shortstop and an outfielder with some pop — among other things."
- Tracee Hamilton of the Washington Post writes the Nationals "did absolutely the right thing" in shipping off left-hander Joe Beimel and first baseman Nick Johnson.
- Longtime Padres beat writer Tom Krasovic has a look at the Jake Peavy trade: "This looks like a potentially big victory for the Padres and new CEO Jeff Moorad — if, and it's a big if, the club can parlay the $56 million saved into good investments throughout its baseball operations and future payrolls."
- Michael Salfino of SNY thinks the Mets should have made a move or two at the deadline. "The frustrating thing for Mets fans," Salfino writes, "is that catcher Victor Martinez was there for the taking. The cost reportedly was one of two Double-A pitchers Brad Holt or Jenrry Mejia plus Jon Niese."
- For all full look at the deals that went down Friday, check out MLBTR's transactions-only archive.