Odds and Ends: Lieber, Tavarez, Oswalt
We’ve got mostly smaller stuff today, so let’s kick it off with an odds and ends.
- The Mets designated Claudio Vargas for assignment. I’m a bit surprised, I think he’s still a useful pitcher.
- Pitcher Jon Lieber may retire after the season. 130+ wins, that’s a nice career.
- With Tom Gordon‘s shoulder barking, the Phillies’ desire to add a reliever has intensified. Here’s a look at the relief market.
- When a 2.93 ERA is considered underperforming, expectations were never reasonable. Anyone else get the impression that if Johan Santana‘s record was 10-3 instead of 7-6, there wouldn’t even be a discussion? Joel Sherman believes the Yankees (if under Brian Cashman) would not go six or seven years to sign C.C. Sabathia in light of the Barry Zito and Santana deals. He wonders whether Sabathia could be lured with a shorter term and higher average annual value.
- Julian Tavarez chose to become a free agent, surprising the Brewers.
- Roy Oswalt reminds us that he has a no-trade clause and hasn’t been approached by management about any deals.
- The Adam Dunn-J.P. Ricciardi saga continues.
- I chatted with Ryan Henning about the Twins recently.
- T.J. Simers and Ned Colletti argue about the GM’s trading track record.
- The Pirates are looking for pitching. Brett Tomko anyone? Anyone?
- Evan Grant discusses the Rangers’ trade options in his mailbag.
Salisbury On Phillies’ Trade Chips
Back on June 19th, ESPN’s Jayson Stark said the Phillies had "at least kicked the tires on C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Bronson Arroyo, and Jarrod Washburn." He also expected them to inquire on Erik Bedard. Scott Lauber says the Phils have scouted Sabathia, Burnett, Ben Sheets, and Greg Maddux recently.
Jim Salisbury of the Philadelphia Inquirer weighs in this morning on the Phillies’ trade chips. He names Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth, Carlos Carrasco, Lou Marson, Greg Golson, and Adrian Cardenas as Phillies players other teams may covet. However, Salisbury believes Pat Gillick might opt for a midlevel acquisition and hang on to his top young players. Check out our starting pitcher trade market post for ideas.
Salisbury speculates on possible targets aside from the aforementioned names: Roy Oswalt and Rich Harden. Salisbury is speculating with these names, but notes that "the Astros had a high-ranking scout in Philadelphia on Sunday."
Rosenthal’s Latest: Cashman, Fuentes, Braves, Fielder
Time for a new Ken Rosenthal column.
- Rosenthal reminds us that, among other things, Adam Dunn played with a broken hand for a couple of months in ’05. So maybe he does like baseball. It’s not fair to criticize a player’s passion simply because he doesn’t make the right facial expressions or throw tantrums (not saying J.P. Ricciardi did this, but many fans do).
- Mark Teixeira might be looking for eight years and $160MM. Rosenthal says not to count his hometown Orioles out, though they aren’t the most likely suitor.
- Brian Cashman "seems likely to sign a contract extension" with the Yankees. Omar Minaya’s job is safe.
- The Rockies might trade Brian Fuentes even if they’re in contention. Add the Rays to the list of teams interested in him. The Rox still like the Mets’ Aaron Heilman, by the way.
- The Braves are out of the starting pitching market, content with internal options.
- If the Brewers are to shop Prince Fielder, they’ll likely wait until the offseason. Could be a fun rumor to follow this winter.
- Orioles relievers Jamie Walker and Chad Bradford both can be had (both are signed through ’09).
Michel Inoa Ignites Three Team Bidding War
A week ago, we summed up the reports about 16 year-old Dominican righty Michel Inoa. He’s considered the equivalent of a top ten draft pick here in North America. It’s only fitting that the bidding could creep past $3MM.
Today, ESPN’s Enrique Rojas has a new update on Inoa. Rojas says the Rangers and Reds have joined the Athletics in a three-team bidding war for Inoa’s services. The kid is not interested in a big league deal. As the bonus amount rises, many teams are bowing out (all 30 teams have evaluated him). The international signing period begins on July 2nd.
Baseball America has a slightly different take on Inoa. They say the Yankees are still in it, but the A’s are the frontrunner. His bonus will be "at least $4 million."
Odds and Ends: Lowe, Arroyo, Chacon
Here’s today’s link roundup.
- Jacque Jones has elected free agency. Does he have anything left?
- Derek Lowe, Scott Boras, Ned Colletti, and Joe Torre had some kind of cryptic meeting.
- Draft nugget: the D’Backs were eyeing Allan Dykstra as their first-round pick until the Padres took him.
- Jason Rosenberg interviewed agent Matt Sosnick.
- Bronson Arroyo commented on the recent trade rumors. I think this rumor, in particular.
- Shawn Chacon, demoted to the pen, is not a happy camper.
- Koji Uehara is also going to the bullpen.
- Brandon Webb was affected by his contract negotiations.
- ESPN’s Keith Law joined the Drunk Jays Fans podcast to chat about the recent turmoil in Toronto.
- Joe Saunders, originally drafted by the Phillies, had a bad experience (as he tells it).
Cafardo’s Latest: Buyers & Sellers
Nick Cafardo kicks the tires in a full page spread in today’s Boston Globe, listing a handful of teams who are winding up to buy and sell. To paraphrase Cafardo’s recap:
Phillies: Smelling World Series, they see C.C. Sabathia, Erik Bedard, A.J. Burnett, Bronson Arroyo, and Derek Lowe as potential targets.
Braves: Still deciding whether to shop or re-sign Mark Teixeira, or neither, and in turn whether to trade for a starter to win a division, as Cafardo says, "nobody is running away with."
Mariners: The decision of whether or not to release Richie Sexson is imminent, and the M’s are expected to start shopping Raul Ibanez, Jose Vidro, Carlos Silva, and Bedard.
Blue Jays: Can their pitching carry them back into contention when Alex Rios and Vernon Wells aren’t producing as expected? The Jays can sell Burnett, Matt Stairs, David Eckstein, and maybe Scott Rolen.
Reds: On their way to last place, Arroyo can be dealt and replaced, perhaps, by Homer Bailey next year. Ken Griffey Jr. is still wearing red.
Indians: Will find it very difficult to deal Sabathia for a package comparable to what the Mets got for Johan Santana. Paul Byrd could also go.
Dodgers: Could perhaps deal Matt Kemp or Chad Billingsley for Sabathia. They’re also looking at Bedard. They need to get back to .500 to really compete and will need pitching to get them there.
Yankees: Giving up Melky Cabrera may be the only way the Yankees can land a front line starter to replace Chien Ming Wang, but Brian Cashman is not keen to do so.
Pirates: Looking for righthanded power, the Pirates still have Jason Bay (among others).
Be sure to check out Tim’s thorough Trade Market Summary for more insight.
By Nat Boyle
Phillies Trade Strategy Mired By Parity
Scott Lauber of the Delaware News-Journal writes in the Phillies/baseball blog about the team’s trade strategy in the looming trade-deadline season.
He spoke to Phillies Assistant GM Ruben Amaro Jr. and GM Pat Gillick, both of whom reiterated the notion that it’ll be tough to trade this year because of the parity among some clubs. There are 15 teams with a .500 record or better, which means some of those teams may still be in contention in mid July. Of course, it also means some of those teams will be out of it by the trade deadline.
To wit: The Brewers reportedly have told teams that they aren’t willing to move Ben Sheets, even though they’re 6-1/2 games behind the Cubs in the NL [Central]. Of course, one losing streak could force them to change their strategy. Within the past week, Gillick has dispatched scouts to evaluate Cleveland’s C.C. Sabathia, Cincinnati’s Bronson Arroyo and Toronto’s A.J. Burnett, a former pupil of pitching coach Rich Dubee in Florida.
This echoes what Buster Olney wrote in his blog about some of the teams contending in the C.C. Sabathia Sweepstakes and how some of them may think they’re in it, but may actually be testing the waters.
***
Speaking of Ruben Amaro Jr., Doc at Balls, Sticks & Stuff writes that a new book by Bob Gordon introduces Amaro Jr. as "currently the club’s general manager." Last year, the actual, current GM, Pat Gillick, said he may step down at the end of the season. Typo? Food for thought?
Alejandro A. Leal writes for UmpBump.com. Rumors? Comments? Email me, alexo05 [at] umpbump [dot] com.
Jocketty Names Five Untouchable Reds
Bob Hunter of the Columbus Dispatch relays a Walt Jocketty radio show appearance. Jocketty reportedly named five untouchable Reds players: Jay Bruce, Joey Votto, Edinson Volquez, Johnny Cueto, and Edwin Encarnacion. Hunter is surprised to see Encarnacion labeled off-limits. The 25 year-old third baseman has a career line of .268/.344/.450 in 396 games. With several .900+ OPS months on his resume, EE has shown flashes of star potential offensively.
Veterans Francisco Cordero, Aaron Harang, Bronson Arroyo, and Brandon Phillips apparently did not make the list. Only Arroyo has been mentioned in trade rumors this year; the rest seem unlikely to go anywhere. But it should be noted that Jocketty wasn’t with the organization when the Cordero, Harang, and Arroyo contracts were signed and might be more willing to move them.
Odds and Ends: Kouzmanoff, Ricciardi, Wilson
Today’s linkage…
- Athletics Nation proposes a couple of deals for the A’s.
- RotoAuthority looks at Reds rookie pitcher Daryl Thompson, who draws a tough debut assignment on Saturday.
- CBS Sports’ Scott Miller expects Padres third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff to be traded this summer. Kouzmanoff, 27 in July, is hitting .268/.328/.476 in 42 games following another lousy April.
- J.P. Ricciardi apologized for his comments about Adam Dunn.
- From the What Might’ve Been File: the Tigers offered Jair Jurrjens for Jack Wilson about a year ago. Nice to see that .500 will not be a goal for the Bucs, by the way.
- Ken Rosenthal says "a potential selloff of veterans is on hold" for the Orioles right now, as the team is only 5.5 games out of the wild card.
Stark’s Latest: Sabathia, Bedard, Phillies, Freel
It’s Thursday, and you know what that means. Time for another installment of Jayson Stark’s Rumblings and Grumblings at ESPN.com.
- Stark runs through a laundry list of candidates for the Mariners’ and Mets’ manager and GM vacancies.
- The Indians will not be giving a negotiation window for a team hoping to sign C.C. Sabathia while acquiring him.
- Erik Bedard is "now officially on the market." Bedard’s value has diminished since the Mariners acquired him, however.
- The Phillies have already inquired on Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Bronson Arroyo, and Jarrod Washburn. Stark sees Bedard joining that group, but believes it’d require Carlos Carrasco and Antonio Bastardo.
- Ryan Freel is drawing strong interest; Stark names the Phillies, Braves, Mets, and Marlins as suitors.
- Ken Griffey Jr. apparently still wants to finish his career in Seattle.
- Stark agrees with Ken Rosenthal – Mark Teixeira is not available. Nor is Ben Sheets, by the way.
- The Marlins are looking for center field, catcher, and bullpen help. Stark believes they’d be willing to give up a near-arb Josh Willingham type for players with less service time.
- The Yankees seem open to bringing back Jason Giambi next year, after they buy out his option. Giambi is currently third in the AL in OPS at .979.