Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Mets, Red Sox, Meek, Giants
On this date eight years ago, Major League Baseball's 73rd All Star Game ended after 11 innings in a 7-7 tie when both sides ran out of pitchers. Shortly thereafter, commissioner Bud Selig ruled that the All Star Game will determine home field advantage in the World Series, a still unpopular decision. The American League has won every Midsummer Classic since then, and 12 of the last 13 overall (the tie being the one exception).
This year's All Star Game is still four days away, so here are some links to keep you occupied until then…
- Mets Paradise examines some trade scenarios for the Mets involving Ted Lilly and Octavio Dotel.
- The Bottom Line finds some relievers on the trade market that could entice the Red Sox.
- MLB Depth Charts lists (almost) every club's nearly big league-ready trade chips.
- Pittsburgh Lumber Co. looks at the possibility of the Pirates turning Evan Meek, an All Star, into a starting pitcher.
- The Dugout Report wonders if the Bengie Molina trade means the Giants are going for it, or packing it in.
- Meanwhile, More Hardball catches up with the three Molina brothers.
- River Ave. Blues lays out the case for the Yankees to acquire Kerry Wood.
- Examiner looks at the consequences of Jake Peavy's injury for the White Sox.
- The Baseball Opinion reviews the Mark Mulder trade following the lefty's retirement.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
2011 Vestings Options Update
The season started with nine vesting options to watch, but we're down to just five a little beyond the season's halfway point…
- Trever Miller, Cardinals. The southpaw's $2MM option vests with 45 appearances. He's appeared in 31 of the team's 85 games, so he's on pace for 59. He should get there easily.
- Alex Cora, Mets. Cora's $2MM option vests with 80 games (not necessarily starts), and he's already appeared in 48. He's on pace for 91 games. Luis Castillo's foot and Ruben Tejada's emergence could stand in Cora's way.
- Darren Oliver, Rangers. His $3.25MM option will lock in with 59 appearances. He's already appeared in 37 games, so he should get there without a problem.
- Ramon Hernandez, Reds. Hernandez must play in 120 games for his $3.25MM option to vest. He's appeared in just 57 of Cincinnati's first 86 contests, putting him on pace for 107 games.
- Magglio Ordonez, Tigers. Ordonez's $15MM option vests with 135 starts or 540 plate appearances. He's on pace for 141 and 615, respectively, so it'll take a lengthy stint on the disabled list to knock him off track.
The vesting options for Kerry Wood, Brian Fuentes, Billy Wagner, and Matt Cain have already been addressed.
Wood, Westbrook, Kearns Drawing Some Interest
Kerry Wood is among the Indians drawing interest on the trade market, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Multiple teams are interested in the big right-hander, who has eight saves, 8.7 K/9, 4.3 BB/9 and a 6.27 ERA. Wood’s 2011 option vests at $11MM if he finishes 39 more games, but that seems unlikely given his current pace (16 finished so far). The Indians aren’t close to dealing Wood, but rival teams are interested in other players.
Jake Westbrook and Austin Kearns are drawing interest, though clubs are more interested in Westbrook than Kearns. Jhonny Peralta is drawing ‘little’ interest so far, even though many teams could use veteran infielders.
The Indians started trading early this year, shipping Russell Branyan back to Seattle, but the 2010 deadline will probably not compare to 2008, when they dealt C.C. Sabathia or 2009, when they dealt Cliff Lee and Victor Martinez.
This Date In Transactions History: C.C. Sabathia
This year's trade deadline is all about Cliff Lee and last year's deadline was all about Lee and Roy Halladay, but the star pitcher of the 2008 trade deadline was dealt long before July 31st. Two years ago today, the Indians sent C.C. Sabathia to the Brewers for Rob Bryson, Zach Jackson, Matt LaPorta and a player to be named (eventually Michael Brantley).
C.C. pitched well – probably even better than the Brewers could have imagined. He made 17 starts, finishing seven of them, and ended up with an 11-2 mark and a 1.65 ERA. Remarkably, Sabathia led both leagues in shutouts in 2008 and pitched the Brewers to their first postseason appearance since 1982. The eventual World Series champion Phillies ousted the Brewers in four games and Sabathia didn't pitch well in his lone playoff start, but the Brewers would not have made the postseason without their ace.
The Brewers also received two compensation picks for losing Sabathia to free agency after offering arbitration. Last year they used those picks to select Kentrail Davis (ranked 6th among Brewers prospects by Baseball America preseason) and Maxwell Walla (ranked 28th).
The Brewers weren't the only ones to add young talent, though. LaPorta, the centerpiece of the deal, hasn't had a great deal of major league success until recently. His overall season line (.242/.315/.376) is pedestrian, but the 25-year-old has homered four times in his last seven games. Bryson, 22, has posted 17.0 K/9 in high A ball this year and Brantley, who entered the season as the Indians' 6th best prospect, has a .391 OBP at Triple A.
As I suggested one year after this trade was completed, some deals benefit both teams. The Brewers ended up making the playoffs and obtaining draft choices, but the Indians added more talent than they would have obtained with a pair of top picks.
Odds & Ends: Marcum, Reds, Marlins, Munson
A few more links, on the night of Johnny Damon's 2,500th career hit….
- Shaun Marcum would like to remain a Blue Jay, but says if he gets traded, "hopefully it's [to] someone that's obviously going to be in the playoffs." MLB.com's James Hall has the full story.
- With Edinson Volquez set to rejoin Cincinnati soon, Brandon Phillips tells CBS Sports' Danny Knobler that he doesn't think the Reds need to trade for a pitcher.
- Marlins' players are battling to stay in the playoff hunt, in hopes of convincing the front office not to break up the team, writes the Palm Beach Post's Joe Capozzi. Florida's brass should decide soon whether or not they'll become sellers.
- The Indians signed a pitcher whose pre-draft arm surgery dropped him from a potential top-50 pick to the seventh round, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
- The Padres released former third overall pick Eric Munson, tweets MLB.com's Corey Brock.
- Frank Wren is biding his time when it comes to making trades, writes Carroll Rogers of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Wren reiterated what we heard a couple weeks ago: the Braves likely won't need to acquire any pitching.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link) hears that the White Sox aren't currently "heavily involved" in trade talk, but concedes that with Chicago, that could change at any moment.
- The Orioles are scouting the Phillies tonight, according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter). Gelb notes that Ty Wigginton, Miguel Tejada, and Jeremy Guthrie could all be potential targets for the Phils.
- AOL FanHouse's Frankie Piliere lists ten baseball people that ought to be considered for future general manager openings.
Price On Oswalt, Wood, Dotel, Marlins
Earlier today, we heard rumors from AOL FanHouse's Ed Price involving Cliff Lee and the Tigers' hunt for bullpen help. In his latest column, Price provides a few more hot stove notes. Let's take a look:
- According to Price, the Astros are looking for teams interested in Roy Oswalt to take on Oswalt's entire salary and give up three major-league-ready players. There have been indications lately that the Astros would be willing to pay part of their ace's salary in order to get better prospects, so it's hard to believe the team will stick to the demands described by Price.
- The Indians have been trying to drum up interest for Kerry Wood.
- Pittsburgh "seems willing" to move Octavio Dotel.
- A source tells Price that members of the Marlins' front office will meet this week to decide whether to become buyers or sellers.
- In a bullet point at the bottom of Price's piece, FanHouse's Jeff Fletcher says that the Phillies had one of their "top special assignment scouts" watching Ben Sheets' last start. As Ruben Amaro Jr. indicated today, the Phils are more likely to trade for a pitcher than an infielder.
Indians Rumors: Peralta, Wood, Westbrook
The last-place Indians are poised to become sellers this month, and have already cashed in one of their trade chips, in Russell Branyan. Paul Hoynes and Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer discuss potential upcoming moves for the Indians in a series of articles:
- Although the Indians have pieces they'd like to deal, they haven't received a whole lot of interest from other teams yet, writes Hoynes. Unlike in the past couple summers, there's no Indian on the block nearly as appealing as Cliff Lee or C.C. Sabathia.
- Despite their holes in the infield, the Phillies aren't interested in Jhonny Peralta, according to a Hoynes source.
- One scout on Kerry Wood: "He's got a power arm, but I don't like him closing. He walks too many people. But his experience is valuable."
- In a separate mini-mailbag, Hoynes says that Wood needs consistent work to be effective, and that Chris Perez is ready to be the Tribe's full-time closer.
- There haven't been any trade talks concerning Wood, and there hasn't been much interest in Austin Kearns either, according to Pluto.
- Pluto writes that a few teams have inquired about Jake Westbrook, but that "it has to be a compelling trade" for the Indians to move him. They aren't just looking for salary relief.
Olney’s Latest: Lee, Zambrano, Dodgers, Fielder
In today's blog post at ESPN (Insider req'd), Buster Olney says that even though the Yankees already have five good starters, the tight race in the AL East is enough to keep them engaged with the Mariners about Cliff Lee. They will probably make an offer at some point, but they're unlikely to land him because they've been philosophically opposed to trading prospects for a player they could just sign as a free agent after the season.
Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…
- Olney's message to any team looking for bullpen help: Good luck with that. There are no difference-making relievers on the market, and guys like Kerry Wood, David Aardsma, and Jason Frasor are no sure things.
- Carlos Zambrano has some value as an innings eater, and the Cubs could probably get a team to absorb $10-15MM of the $45MM left on his deal. If he does get traded, Olney says it would likely be in the offseason.
- People in the Dodgers' organization say there is "little or no hope" that money will be available for the team to make moves.
- Olney doesn't see the Giants and Brewers matching up in a Prince Fielder trade. Matt Cain is a deal breaker given Tim Lincecum's recent struggles, and Jonathan Sanchez or Madison Bumgarner won't be enough.
Odds & Ends: Lee, Miller, Branyan, Phillies
There may be a lot of NBA and NHL rumors and signings floating around today, but the MLB hot stove will only get hotter as we approach the trade deadline. Here are some items from around the majors…
- Scott Miller of CBSSports.com speculates that the Angels and Reds could join the Cliff Lee sweepstakes. Perhaps one of them could be the mystery team?
- Speaking of that mystery team and the possibility that it could be the Cardinals, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch thinks it would be a bad move for the Cards to deal prospect Shelby Miller.
- Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com reports that the Russell Branyan trade was "a very popular move in the Indians' clubhouse. Branyan was great with reporters, but he was not exactly up for team captain consideration by his teammates."
- Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com says trying to replace Chase Utley is Ruben Amaro Jr.'s "next big test" as Philadelphia's GM.
- Commenting on Tom Krasovic's item about Jayson Werth possibly being on the trade market, ESPN.com's Rob Neyer uses the "pretty far-fetched" rumor as further evidence that the Phillies erred with the Raul Ibanez signing.
- Washington manager Jim Riggleman is using the trade deadline as motivation for his team to play well enough that it doesn't get broken up, reports MASNSports.com's Ben Goessling.
- With the international signing period beginning tomorrow, Baseball America's Ben Badler ranks players by their projected signing bonuses. The story also provides links to other pieces breaking down what each team is looking for and scouting reports on various international players, though these stories are only available to Baseball America subscribers.
- Dan McNeil of the Chicago Tribune thinks Carlos Zambrano is a lost cause with the Cubs and can't believe that Jim Hendry defended Zambrano's contract extension.
- With Manny Delcarmen headed to the disabled list today, Joe McDonald of ESPNBoston.com thinks this will force Boston's hand in acquiring a reliever. If the Sox do get some bullpen help, don't expect them to give up any good prospects in return.
- Speaking of bullpen deals, Jon Weisman of ESPNLosAngeles.com cites the Josh Bell-for-George Sherrill deal as proof that the Dodgers should be very wary about another trade for a reliever.
Rosenthal On Phillies’ Infield Options
7:30pm: According to MLB.com's Bill Ladson, the Phillies haven't talked to the Nationals about Kennedy.
1:31pm: The Phillies learned today that Chase Utley will be out for several weeks due to thumb surgery, and Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com chimes in with some possible replacement options. He notes that the replacement doesn't necessary have to be a second baseman (Twitter link), because the team can use Placido Polanco at that position once he's healthy. That opens up the possibility of a trade for a third baseman.
Rosenthal says that former Phillie Pedro Feliz is an unlikely target, citing a scout who says his bat speed is "gone." Feliz has hit just .229/.255/.317 in 255 plate appearances this year, and his trademark defense has declined back to a -4.3 UZR this season. The Fox Sports scribe throws the names of Miguel Tejada, Ty Wigginton, Jhonny Peralta, Adam Kennedy, and Jose Lopez into the mix (Twitter links). The Mariners are actively trying to move Lopez, according to Rosenthal.
For the now, Philadelphia will try to tread water with the combination of Wilson Valdez and Greg Dobbs at second and third, respectively. They've combined to hit just .222/.252/.338 in 222 plate appearances this season, and Jack Moore at FanGraphs chronicled just how big of a downgrade this is for the Phillies.