Indians Prefer Infield Acquisition?
Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer believes the Indians’ preference to be to acquire an infielder, if they are to explore the trade market. If so, they might pass on discussing potentially available outfielders such as Ken Griffey Jr., Adam Dunn, and Jason Bay. However, Hoynes notes the Indians’ past interest in Dunn.
Hoynes believes the Brian Roberts rumblings could resurface, perhaps a month or two from now. Peter Gammons suggested in April that the Orioles’ decent start might cause Peter Angelos to mandate retention of Roberts.
Some other possibly available infielders: Garrett Atkins, Nick Johnson (perhaps six weeks from now), Aubrey Huff, Mark Grudzielanek, Jose Castillo, Cristian Guzman, Felipe Lopez, Melvin Mora, Chad Tracy, and Mark Ellis (once he recovers from a strained hamstring). It seems easier to acquire an impact outfielder. Regardless, Hoynes believes the Indians would use their starting pitching surplus to engineer a trade.
Odds and Ends: Hanley, Salcedo, Torrealba
Time to round ’em up…
- Rob Neyer guesses B.J. Upton is the next to get a long-term deal from the Rays. Back on April 24th, Jayson Stark wrote that the Upton family "has its own ideas about the market value of both brothers."
- Expect a Hanley Ramirez press conference today, or this weekend at the latest.
- Tribe Report walks us through the Edward Salcedo confusion.
- Yorvit Torrealba‘s agent has filed a grievance against the Mets over their nearly-signed three-year deal.
- Jon Heyman says nothing’s imminent with Ken Griffey Jr. Buster Olney wrote today that the Mariners are "not especially gung-ho" about trading for Junior.
- The Indians DFA’d Jason Tyner.
- A.J. Pierzynski attempts to dispel all those negative stories about his time with the Giants.
Odds And Ends: Rusch, Griffey, Myers, Brewers
A few more notes for your ogling…
- This morning we told you that Glendon Rusch declined his assignment to AAA and chose to become a free agent. Troy E. Renck says that the Rockies are already expressing interest in the lefty.
- Brewers owner Mark Attanasio has given Doug Melvin permission to trade for a starting pitcher noting that there is enough flexibility in the payroll to take on another contract. However, Attanasio also indicated that it was too early to explore those possibilities.
- The Delaware News Journal takes a look at this past offseason’s crop of free agent starting pitchers and how they are performing so far in ’08. They wonder if any of those arms would have been a better option for the Phillies rotation than moving Brett Myers back from the bullpen.
- Doug Harris says that the smart move for the Reds is trading Ken Griffey Jr, noting that if they are waiting for him to hit his 600th home run, they could be in for a long wait.
Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.
Jocketty: No Talks To Trade Griffey
In a new twist to the Ken Griffey Jr saga, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Reds may have no interest in trading Griffey. When asked about the subject, GM Walt Jocketty said that he has had no discussions with other teams about trading Griffey and that Griffey does not want to be traded.
"I’ve had no trade discussions," Reds general manager Walt Jocketty said. "I’ve talked with him…Not knowing Junior that well, I wanted to make sure we had a line of communication open. He assured me that he’d like to play here and hopefully win a championship."
Griffey is a "10 and 5" player (10 years exp. and 5 years with current club) and would have to approve any trade.
This seems to contradict recent reports of the Mariners interest in Griffey. Hal McCoy reported that the M’s sent an executive (not a scout) to watch Griffey play last week. And it was later reported that Seattle had no problems with acquiring Griffey’s ’09 option at $16MM with a $4MM buyout. It is hard to imagine the M’s would express this much public interest in Griffey without at least preliminary discussions with the Reds.
Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.
Mariners OK With Griffey’s Salary
According to Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News, Ken Griffey Jr.‘s remaining $8MM this year and his $16MM option/$4MM buyout next year will not deter the Mariners. The revelation that Junior may not require his ’09 option exercised and the chunk of deferred money could indeed make the money a non-issue.
One question is whether the Reds will treat this as a salary dump or if they’ll want a decent prospect in return. The other is whether Griffey would want to join the last place Mariners.
Griffey Rumors From Rosenthal
Yesterday we ran through various complications the Reds face in trading Ken Griffey Jr. Today, Ken Rosenthal addresses many of them.
- Rosenthal says Griffey "would not necessarily require a team to exercise his $16.5MM option for 2009 as a condition of a deal." On May 5th ESPN’s Peter Gammons had written that Griffey was "unlikely to agree to a deal without that option being guaranteed."
- Rosenthal adds that Junior is open to more teams than he was previously, as being closer to his Orlando home is a less pertinent need than it once was.
- A big league source of Rosenthal’s says Reds GM Walt Jocketty recently asked Griffey if he wanted to be dealt. Griffey would reportedly prefer to stay but would consider a deal if that’s what the Reds want. Griffey may be able to maintain his Type A status, but would the Reds offer him arbitration?
Mariners Send Exec To Scout Griffey
According to Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News, the Mariners sent consultant to the GM Duane Schafer to Shea Stadium this weekend to watch Ken Griffey Jr. Junior finds himself with a .254/.333/.384 line in 156 plate appearances. He’s three homers shy of 600.
There are plenty of complications with the Griffey-to-Seattle scenario:
- The Mariners are eight games back, seven out in the Wild Card, and in last place with a .385 winning percentage. The Reds are doing about the same, making it tough to say the Ms will offer a better chance at a ring.
- Raul Ibanez would probably have to move to DH to open up an outfield spot for Griffey.
- Griffey needs a big May to prove he can actually help a team’s offense.
- Griffey would be moving farther away from home to play for the Mariners.
- It’s not known whether Griffey would ask that his $16.5MM option for ’09 be exercised upon a trade. Even with the hefty $4MM buyout and salary deferral, the option would be hard for any team to stomach.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Wells, Griffey, Olney, Tavarez, Edmonds
A lot of links today, so let’s get to what is being said about some trade and signing possibilities in the Blogosphere…
- The Darth Boss George Brigade wants Hank Steinbrenner to sign David Wells to prove that Hank is indeed his father’s son.
- River Ave. Blues says the Yankees are too smart to sign Wells and then goes on to list about 87 pitchers that should be given a shot in the Highlanders’ rotation before Wells.
- Redlegs Rant feels that Ken Griffey Jr. is behind the recent stories that speculate on him being traded.
- Mariners Central speculates on some of the names that it might take to land Ken Griffey Jr., noting that the M’s are not likely to part with either of their top two prospects, Wladimir Balentien and Jeff Clement.
- The Tribe Time Report sees plenty of holes in Buster Olney’s recent theory that Garret Atkins would be a good fit for the Indians.
- Brewers Nation agrees with Olney that the Brewers should trade Ben Sheets.
- Sox & Pinstripes doesn’t want to just give away Julian Tavarez but they also note that the bullpen needs help and Tavarez isn’t the answer.
- Batter’s Box says Brad Wilkerson should fit in well with the rest of the Jays lineup, which also lacks the ability to hit for average or power.
- One writer at Fanhouse doesn’t understand why Kevin Towers is so disappointed in the play of Jim Edmonds. They feel it was pretty obvious that the Pads were getting a player well past his prime.
Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.
Stark’s Latest: Griffey, Daniel Cabrera, Lidge
ESPN’s Jayson Stark has a new column up; it’s a must-read.
- Stark examines the impact of ten deals made last offseason; check it out.
- Because of last year’s surprise playoff clubs, teams may wait extra long this year before throwing in the towel and trading veterans.
- As Peter Gammons has noted, Ken Griffey Jr.‘s 2009 option will be an impediment in dealing him. Even if the Reds find a suitor Griffey will probably want that $16.5MM guaranteed for ’09.
- Daniel Cabrera will be available again this summer. The Orioles should trade him as soon as possible; the .213 BABIP and 1.62 K/BB ratio indicate that his 3.54 ERA is a fluke.
- The Royals will have pitching to spare this summer, with guys like Ron Mahay, Jimmy Gobble, and Brett Tomko on the block. Might make sense to shop Gil Meche, too.
- The Phillies may want to explore an extension with impending free agent Brad Lidge before season’s end. Three years might be their max, though. The extension subject has not yet been broached with Pat Burrell.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Reds, Marlins, Turnbow
Ken Rosenthal has a new column; let’s take a look.
- Aside from Adam Dunn and Ken Griffey Jr., Rosenthal suggests Walt Jocketty could look to trade veterans Paul Bako, Scott Hatteberg, David Weathers, Jeremy Affeldt, and Kent Mercker.
- Most of the Marlins’ best players will reach arbitration for the first time after this season, which could prompt a trade or two.
- Rosenthal expects collusion investigations to go nowhere.
- The Brewers don’t plan on paying any of the $2.5MM remaining on Derrick Turnbow‘s contract in order to trade him. They might end up losing him and paying it anyway, however.