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Contenders Scouting The Athletics

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The Athletics' record stands at exactly .500 after 92 games, but they sit seven games back of the molten hot Rangers in the AL West. GM Billy Beane said he didn't anticipate being that active before the non-waiver trade deadline, but that hasn't stopped contending teams from checking out his roster for potential fits. 

Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle brings us the latest and greatest from the East Bay…

  • Ben Sheets is a potential target for both the Phillies and Twins, though the A's have no desire to move the righthander. He is still owed $4.3MM for the remainder of this season, and he is currently on pace to earn the full $2MM worth of incentives in his contract, which are based on innings pitched. $6.3MM total is pricey for a guy with a 6.66 ERA away from his home park.
  • Slusser says that Vin Mazzaro's emergence (3.50 ERA in 64.1 innings) could make Sheets expendable, ditto healthy returns by Brett Anderson and Dallas Braden.
  • Detroit scouted reliever Michael Wuertz this weekend, which is not the first time they've done so this season. They also have their eye on Craig Breslow. Slusser says Oakland might not want to sell low on Wuertz, who's gone from a 2.63 ERA and 11.67 K/9 last year to 5.30 and 6.75 this year, respectively.  

Odds & Ends: Sheets, Padres, Scutaro, Nationals

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A few links to check out while the Yankees play their first game without George Steinbrenner at the helm since 1972…

  • Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the Phillies have had a "top scout" on hand for the A's last four series, though Oakland isn't going to move Mark Ellis and Ben Sheets isn't scheduled to pitch this weekend. 
  • James Schmehl of MLive.com says that Sheets could be a "rather inexpensive" trade option for the Tigers if they're looking to add a starting pitcher. 
  • MLB.com's Corey Brock reports that Padres' GM Jed Hoyer told reporters he would like to make a move to improve the team, not just a cosmetic one (all Twitter links). He says the prices must first come down, and that he has the resources to add multiple pieces.
  • WEEI.com's Rob Bradford says (via Twitter) that the Braves did not talk to the Red Sox about a potential Yunel Escobar–Marco Scutaro deal. He says that the Blue Jays were the only team Atlanta spoke to about an Escobar trade.
  • Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo ranked the team's international free agent signings for MASNSports.com's Ben Goessling.
  • Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times tweets that the Tokyo Giants have a scout attending tonight's Dodgers-Cardinals game. If nothing else, it shows that Japanese teams scour the U.S. for talent just like MLB teams do in Japan.

Odds & Ends: Marlins, Wigginton, Rockies, Wood

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It was on this day in 1905 that Shirley Povich, one of the great sportswriters of all time, was born in Bar Harbor, Maine.  Povich, who passed away in 1998, would've been 105 today and no doubt still would've been keeping an eye on Stephen Strasburg for the Washington Post.

Some news items….

Minor League Transactions: Meyer, Colome

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The latest minor league transactions from Baseball America's Matt Eddy…

  • The Astros released second baseman Drew Meyer, who was then signed by the Angels.  Meyer has already racked up 39 plate appearances for the Salt Lake Bees.
  • The Dodgers released reliever Jesus Colome.  They'd signed him on June 24th, but he made only three appearances for the Isotopes before being let go.
  • Other familiar names were cut, including Brian Buscher (Indians), Ruddy Lugo (Tigers), and Mike Koplove (Mariners).  The Red Sox signed Argenis Reyes, who had been playing independent league ball.  

Cafardo’s Latest: Arroyo, Carmona, Garza, Lilly

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In this week's installment of his Baseball Notes feature, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe discusses the 2006 deal that sent Bronson Arroyo to Cincinnati for Wily Mo Pena. "I'm sure it's not one [trade] that Theo has on his mantle at home," Arroyo jokes, before going on to say that he'd love to stay with the Reds past this season. The team holds an $11MM 2011 option ($2MM buyout) for Arroyo. Here are Cafardo's other notes of interest:

  • The Brewers and the Rangers, before they acquired Cliff Lee, were among the teams "sniffing around" Fausto Carmona.
  • Cafardo wouldn't be shocked if the Rays were willing to discuss trading Matt Garza, with Jeremy Hellickson waiting in the wings (2.21 ERA in 105.2 Triple-A innings). In exchange for an impact bat, the Rays appear more inclined to deal major league players than prospects. A National League scout tells Cafardo that the team has been "very willing to include B.J. Upton in trade talks" and may even think about moving Wade Davis, if the price was right.
  • The Rays also have some interest in Ted Lilly, who could be a fit for the Twins and Tigers as well.
  • Cafardo thinks the Red Sox should pursue Evan Meek if the Pirates make him available.
  • Lou Piniella's agent Alan Nero says that the Cubs' skipper will definitely finish out the season, but isn't sure about Piniella's future past this year.

Odds & Ends: Dunn, Dodgers, Lee, Tigers

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Links for Saturday night, after Roy Halladay and Travis Wood traded zeros for nine innings….

Tigers Interested In Stephen Drew

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SATURDAY, 11:22am: Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic heard from a Diamondbacks' source that there have been no discussions with the Tigers regarding Drew in the past week.

MONDAY, 1:12pm: The Tigers are looking for middle infield help and are interested in Stephen Drew, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Tigers could use a shortstop and Drew is one of the many Diamondbacks interim GM Jerry Dipoto will consider dealing before July 31st.

Drew, who won’t hit free agency until after 2012, makes $3.4MM this year. The 27-year-old is hitting .268/.336/.409 and appears to be an above-average defender. Drew has made just four errors this year and UZR/150 suggests he defends better than most shortstops.

However, Drew has missed time with a sore left knee, so the Tigers would likely need to be assured that the shortstop is healthy before making the D’Backs a compelling offer. Since Adam Everett's release, Ramon Santiago and Danny Worth have been playing short for the Tigers, who are tied for first place with the Twins.

Rick Porcello Could Become A Trade Chip

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10:16pm: Jason Beck of MLB.com reports that Jim Leyland categorically denied the Porcello trade rumor this afternoon.  "There's not a chance that Rick Porcello is going to be traded," Leyland said.  "That's a lie. That's not even speculation." 

1:33pm: The Tigers haven’t ruled out trading Rick Porcello, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. They pushed the 21-year-old's next Triple A start back a day, though it’s not because of an injury. GM Dave Dombrowski said he doesn’t plan to move Porcello, but acknowledged that anything could happen.

“I don’t ever use the word ‘untouchable’ on any players,” Dombrowski said. “But he’s not a guy we’re looking to trade.”

The Tigers have tens of millions coming off the books after the season, since Jeremy Bonderman, Nate Robertson and Dontrelle Willis all have contracts that expire. That could make it easier for the Tigers to add a top starter this year.

Cliff Lee won’t likely be on the market for long and Roy Oswalt would not accept a deal to Detroit, but the Tigers could pursue Dan Haren. The Tigers have sent Edwin Jackson and Willis to Arizona in recent trades, though that was when Josh Byrnes was running the D’Backs.

Porcello followed up his breakout 2009 season with a disappointing 13-start stint in the Tigers' rotation. He posted a 6.14 ERA in the majors and has since posted a 4.29 mark in three minor league starts.

Odds & Ends: Lee, DeJesus, Padres, Drew

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Some news from around the majors tonight, including a bit more on (you guessed it), Cliff Lee joining the Rangers…

Reactions To The Cliff Lee Trade

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Now that we know for sure that Cliff Lee is headed to the Rangers, the pundits are already chiming in about the big swap — both about what it means for Texas and Seattle, and about what it means for the teams that fell short in the Lee sweepstakes.

  • Since the Rangers didn't have to give up any of their blue-chip pitching prospects, the trade is "a huge, huge 'win' for" Texas, tweets Evan P. Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
  • Grant also tweets that he was told that one of those young pitchers, Martin Perez, "was deemed untouchable" by the team.
  • Jim Bowden of Sirius XM Radio thinks "both teams win on this deal," though the Rangers are the "biggest winner" since it helps their chances in October.  Bowden also compliments the Mariners for getting more talent back for Lee than they dealt to acquire him in the winter.  (Twitter link).
  • USA Today's Bob Nightengale writes that last night, the Rangers thought that Lee was going to the Yankees.  (Twitter link)  Nightengale also thinks this trade makes Texas GM Jon Daniels the executive of the year.
  • The Phillies are taking some heat for not getting as much minor league talent for Lee when they dealt him over the winter.  ESPN's Jayson Stark tweets that one scouting director rated Philadelphia's haul for Lee as "last by a long shot" compared to what Seattle and Cleveland both got for the pitcher within the last year.
  • John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds "made what they thought was a serious offer" for Lee today, though Fay thinks both "the Rangers and Yankees offered a better package than the Reds could have put together."
  • Ed Price of Fanhouse.com comments that the Rays didn't want to give up any significant prospects for Lee (via Twitter), while the Mets simply didn't have the caliber of prospects that Seattle was looking for.  Price notes, however, that Jeremy Guthrie could be on the Mets' radar screen.
  • The Mets could use this Lee deal as a guideline, however, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.  The Mets could follow the Rangers' example and try to get a trading partner to add money into a deal, since Olney reports that New York won't be able to add to their payroll before the deadline.
  • Rays manager Joe Maddon is unsurprisingly happy that Lee isn't in Yankee pinstripes, reports Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
  • Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski says his team "had interest [in Lee], but we didn’t come close to a deal," reports John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.
  • Alyson Footer of MLB.com tweets that the Lee trade may help Houston move Roy Oswalt, since the "more attractive pitcher is off the table & Roy is the next best option."
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