Hiroki Kuroda Rumors: Thursday
Righty Hiroki Kuroda tossed six innings of one-run ball against the Rockies yesterday, lowering his ERA to 3.11 in what might have been his last start for the Dodgers this year. Yesterday we heard from Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi that the Yankees' interest intensified, with the Red Sox, Rangers, Indians, and Tigers also in the mix. Kuroda has yet to be presented with a formal trade to approve. The latest:
- The Dodgers are not currently taking offers for Kuroda, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff.
- The Dodgers are telling teams they want a "significant piece" for Kuroda, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
- The Dodgers sent a scout to see third base prospect Nick Castellanos, writes Danny Knobler of CBS Sports, but they doubt the Tigers would move him for Kuroda.
- Kuroda's contract stipulates that he will be eligible for conventional Article XX(B) after the season, writes Jon Paul Morosi, so he is a candidate for draft pick compensation if he maintains Type B status.
- A friend of Kuroda told ESPN's Jayson Stark the pitcher can finally focus on the trade possibility with last night's start out of the way. The Yankees have strong interest, Kuroda tops the Tigers' wish list, and the Red Sox were the only contender scouting last night's game. Stark says the Indians and Rangers remain involved. The Dodgers want a true baseball deal, and would prefer a starting pitcher close to the big leagues.
- The Dodgers are "acting like they can trade Kuroda, and not just to the Yankees or Red Sox," tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. The Dodgers have a scout watching the Tigers' A-ball team.
- Uncomfortable with the price tag of Ubaldo Jimenez, as well as concerned about their current rotation, the Yankees are in regular contact with the Dodgers about Kuroda, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- "My honest feeling is that I can't fathom wearing another uniform than the Dodgers uniform right now," Kuroda told MLB.com's AJ Cassavell last night through a translator. He'll go over options with his agent, Steve Hilliard of Octagon.
- Three factors limiting Kuroda's trade value: since his signing bonus is yet to be paid, he's still owed almost $6.8MM of his $12MM contract. Second, he possesses leverage with a full no-trade clause, which I think may require additional compensation to waive. Third, he's never pitched in the American League.
Multiple Teams Interested In Jamey Carroll
4:40pm: The D'Backs and Pirates are also looking at Carroll, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
11:48am: The Brewers would like to acquire Dodgers infielder Jamey Carroll more than ever with Rickie Weeks hitting the DL for an ankle sprain, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today. However, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that the Indians are continuing to show interest in Carroll.
Though they acquired outfielder Kosuke Fukudome earlier today, Indians president Mark Shapiro tweeted that the front office is "still working to improve the team with other additions." Potential targets vary from Ryan Ludwick to Ubaldo Jimenez, based on tweets from Jon Heyman and Troy Renck.
Stark On Quentin, Pirates, Braves, Indians, Reds
Another must-read column from ESPN's Jayson Stark…
- Stark has updated his take on Carlos Quentin's availability. He says there is "increasing evidence the White Sox are talking to several teams about Quentin, one of which is believed to be Atlanta." An executive of a team that has talked to the Sox says that while they are not "bound and determined" to trade Quentin, they would do it.
- The Pirates are focused on finding a professional hitter, but aren't hot on Carlos Pena or Josh Willingham. They're eyeing the Twins' Jason Kubel, but GM Bill Smith considers his team a contender at six games out.
- Stark hasn't heard much that suggests the Braves are still bullpen shopping.
- The Indians are turning their attention to starting pitching, but players Drew Pomeranz, Alex White, Lonnie Chisenhall, and Jason Kipnis appear to be untouchable.
- The Astros continue to shop Wandy Rodriguez, and Stark wonders if he'll fit for the Yankees as a salary dump type.
- The White Sox dangled Adam Dunn. Dunn has over $48MM remaining on the four-year, $56MM deal he signed in December.
- The Reds have "stepped up their calls this week on controllable middle-of-the-order bats," although it's hard to name any available hitters of that nature.
Indians Acquire Kosuke Fukudome
The Cubs' first-ever Japanese player is heading to Cleveland. The Indians acquired right fielder Kosuke Fukudome and about $3.9MM from the Cubs today for minor leaguer outfielder Abner Abreu and reliever Carlton Smith. With Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore on the DL, the Tribe has a clear need for outfield help, and Fukudome was willing to waive his no-trade clause to join the AL Central contender. For the second summer in a row, Cubs GM Jim Hendry is taking on salary to ship out overpaid veterans.
Fukudome, 34, is hitting .273/.374/.369 in 345 plate appearances for the Cubs this year. He leads the NL with 4.34 pitches per plate appearance. Though his right field defense drew praise initially, Fukudome has been below-average per UZR over the last few years. He is owed almost $4.7MM for the balance of the season, and the Cubs will pay all but $775K of that. Fukudome signed a four-year, $48MM free agent deal with the Cubs in December of '07 after spending his career in Japan with the Chunichi Dragons.
Fukudome cannot be offered arbitration after the season, so draft pick compensation was not a factor.
Abreu, 21, is hitting .244/.294/.429 in 367 plate appearances in his second stint at High-A. Prior to the 2010 season, Baseball America ranked him 23rd among Indians prospects, describing him as a player who has offensive tools but "remains raw at the plate." Smith, 25, has a 4.50 ERA, 9.0 K/9, 3.9 BB/9, and 0.8 HR/9 in 46 Triple-A relief innings, his second stint at the level.
Ken Rosenthal broke the story, with Danny Knobler, Buster Olney, Jon Heyman, Paul Hoynes, and SportsTime Ohio adding details.
Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.
Indians Designate Travis Buck For Assignment
The Indians announced they've designated outfielder Travis Buck for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot for new acquisition Kosuke Fukudome.
Buck, 27, hit .228/.275/.342 in 160 plate appearances for the Indians, playing both outfield corners. Buck had signed a minor league deal with the Tribe in December.
Indians Very Close To Acquiring Kosuke Fukudome
11:02am: A Cubs source told ESPN's Jim Bowden the prospects are outfielder Abner Abreu and reliever Carlton Smith (Twitter link).
10:30am: Hoynes tweets that the Indians are paying $775K of Fukudome's remaining salary, which would leave about $3.9MM for the Cubs.
9:35am: The prospects the Indians are sending are "one upper level, one lower level," tweets Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He says one is a pitcher and the other is a position player.
9:13am: The Cubs will receive two prospects for Fukudome, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney, and a deal is likely to be done by today's game at 1:10pm central time. Olney adds that the Cubs are picking up more than half of the $4.7MM owed to Fukudome, while SI's Jon Heyman tweets that they'll pay the "vast majority." Jayson Stark tweets that the only hangup is determining minor perks for Fukudome in exchange for waiving his no-trade clause, and Jon Paul Morosi notes that the Indians are indeed on the outfielder's 15-team no-trade list.
The Indians are still working on other things, tweets Olney. Bastian expects a push for another outfielder.
8:57am: The Indians are in serious talks for Cubs right fielder Kosuke Fukudome, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The deal is "very close to happening," tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. With Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore on the DL, the Tribe has a clear need for outfield help.
Fukudome, 34, is hitting .273/.374/.369 in 345 plate appearances for the Cubs this year. Throughout his Cubs career, Fukudome has been able to draw walks but has shown limited power. Though his right field defense drew praise initially, he's been below-average per UZR over the last few years. Since Fukudome is owed almost $4.7MM for the balance of the season, the Cubs will likely have to kick in money to make a deal happen. He cannot be offered arbitration after the season, so draft pick compensation is not a factor. Fukudome has a limited no-trade clause, which MLB.com's Jordan Bastian thinks he may have waived to come to the Indians (Twitter link).
Los Angeles Notes: Carroll, Ethier, Kuroda, Angels
The Angels are buyers and the Dodgers are sellers, but what are the Angels looking to acquire and who are the Dodgers willing to part with? Here are the latest rumors…
- The Indians are discussing Kuroda and Carroll with the Dodgers, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (on Twitter).
- The Brewers have had continued dialogue with the Dodgers about Jamey Carroll, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter).
- Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports report that interest in Hiroki Kuroda is intensifying, with the Yankees at the forefront. The Red Sox, Rangers, Tigers, and Indians remain in the mix. Kuroda has not yet been presented with a formal trade offer to accept or decline.
- The odds of an Andre Ethier trade are "very slim" and the Dodgers would have to be blown away to move the outfielder, according to Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Red Sox haven't had serious discussions with the Dodgers about a deal for Ethier, who isn't eligible for free agency until after the 2012 season.
- Jon Heyman of SI.com hears that there's little belief that Kuroda will accept a trade out of Los Angeles (Twitter link). The right-hander can block deals to any team.
- The Angels are more focused on acquiring relievers than adding third base help, according to Rosenthal (on Twitter).
Ubaldo Jimenez Rumors: Wednesday
Yesterday's Ubaldo Jimenez info: about seven teams are in on him, but the Yankees and Reds are best-positioned to make a deal if the Rockies are as motivated as has been reported. So far, the Rockies' asking price of "three sure-thing young players, including one pitcher who goes into their rotation immediately" has not dropped. The latest:
- The Red Sox are still in on Jimenez, according to Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com (on Twitter).
- The Indians have asked about Jimenez, but are a "real longshot," according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
- The Indians are strongly in the mix for Jimenez, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Indians have been working aggressively to upgrade their offense and rotation, Rosenthal writes. They're "thinking big in multiple deals."
- Though the Yankees and Reds have been the most active suitors for Jimenez, they aren’t close to a deal, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. The Yankees aren’t close to matching Colorado’s asking price and it’s hard to imagine the Reds obtaining Jimenez without surrendering Mesoraco. The Tigers and Red Sox are ‘on the fringe’ of the trade talks and the Rangers are no longer considered a candidate to acquire the right-hander.
- The Yankees have the best chance of landing Jimenez, reports Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. The Rangers are all but out, while the Tigers and Blue Jays are remote.
- The Rockies do not require Reds untouchables Devin Mesoraco or Billy Hamilton in a deal with the Reds, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- The Rockies are in active trade talks with six to eight teams, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. A source tells Stark that two NL teams, yet to be identified, are in the mix, and the guess is that one of them is the Nationals.
- As of yesterday, the Reds were the most motivated Jimenez suitor and the Red Sox were more seriously inquiring than the Yankees, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Still, the Rockies appear amenable to doing a Jimenez deal for three of these Yankee youngsters: Manny Banuelos, Dellin Betances, Jesus Montero, and Ivan Nova. The Yankees, however, are hesistant to even include two. Ownership is not pushing Yankees GM Brian Cashman to make a deadline splash, writes Sherman, and the front office is more focused on relievers.
Indians Remain Aggressive
The Indians remain aggressive after their failed run at Carlos Beltran, tweets Yahoo's Jeff Passan. Passan says the Indians are "trying to move on" Colby Rasmus, B.J. Upton, and Hiroki Kuroda.
Though a deal was never presented to Beltran, the Indians offered to pick up all of his contract and send a good player to the Mets, reported MLB.com's Peter Gammons yesterday. Rasmus, meanwhile, may be headed elsewhere.
Carlos Beltran Rumors: Wednesday
Yesterday's Carlos Beltran learnings: the Indians offered to pick up all of Beltran's contract and include a good player, but nothing was presented to the player; the Phillies won't trade Jonathan Singleton for Beltran and many other top prospects can't be had either; the Mets' asking price has come down from two weeks ago and they're talking two and three-prospect deals with suitors. The latest:
- Beltran is not going to the Rangers, tweets Rosenthal. The Giants are his presumed frontrunner. He says the Mets had asked about Giants prospects Zack Wheeler and Gary Brown. They won't get Wheeler, but Rosenthal says "we'll see" on Brown.
- Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez could go to the Mets as part of a Beltran trade, tweets Sherman.
- Some executives believe Boras is trying to direct Beltran to the Giants, a team that has the money to retain him after the season, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Meanwhile Ken Rosenthal tweets that the Rangers are offering the Mets a greater number of players for Beltran than the Giants, who are offering fewer players but more quality. The Phillies are still serious, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown.
- The Indians walked away from the Beltran talks convinced that agent Scott Boras is controlling the process, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney. They won't shut the door on Beltran but believe he won't change his mind, tweets Yahoo's Jeff Passan.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the Mets have "moved off A-level prospect requests" for Beltran, but Andy Martino of the New York Daily News has a high-level source who denies the Mets have lowered their asking price.
- The Mets are making progress in negotiations with the Rangers and Giants, reports ESPN's Buster Olney. The Braves remain involved.