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Draft Updates: White Sox, Tigers, Royals, Phils

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4:33pm: John Manuel of Baseball America reports that the Phillies will sign Colvin for $900k, or six times as much as the commissioner recommends. The Phillies have now signed everyone they drafted through the first 13 rounds.

4:22pm: More updates, with under seven hours remaining before the deadline to sign picks…

  • ESPN.com's Keith Law says the White Sox won't sign third rounder Bryan Morgado unless there's a last-minute turn of events.
  • Law reports that the Phillies are working towards an agreement with seventh round pick Brody Colvin. However, Law hears that the Phillies aren't on the brink of signing the righty.
  • The Tigers had their top three unsigned picks, including first rounder Jacob Turner, undergo physicals today, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck.
  • It's too early to tell how their picks will work out, but J.J. Cooper of Baseball America says the Royals are spending aggressively on the draft for the second straight year.  

Tigers Acquire Aubrey Huff

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2:47pm: According to a team press release, the Tigers acquired Huff for minor league righty Brett Jacobson. The Orioles will assign Jacobson, who entered the year as the Tigers' 10th best prospect according to Baseball America, to Class-A Frederick.

2:43pm: Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports that the Tigers are close to acquiring Aubrey Huff from the Orioles. The Tigers, who have been looking for a bat, can now play Carlos Guillen in the field, which gives them more flexibility. Huff makes $8MM and becomes a free agent after the season.

Draft Updates: Ackley, Cards, Tigers, Rangers

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Here's a few looks at some clubs who are still working to sign their top picks…

  • Ryan Divish reports that the Mariners have requested that first-round pick Dustin Ackley take a physical. Divish speculates that this could signal the two sides becoming closer to a deal.
  • The Cardinals are still optimistic that they'll reach a deal with first-rounder Shelby Miller, according to Matthew Leach from MLB.com. The commissioner's recommended slot is $1.386MM for the 19th overall pick, but it's clear that Miller will receive more than that, Leach says. Miller himself was quoted, saying: "Right now, I'm definitely looking to sign a contract with the St. Louis Cardinals. It feels good." Sounds like good reason to be optimistic to me. UPDATE: B.J. Rains tweets that Miller is on his way to St. Louis for a physical as well.
  • Jason Beck writes that the Tigers have 21 picks that remain unsigned, including first-rounder Jacob Turner and second-rounder Andrew Oliver. Both Turner and Oliver are being advised by Scott Boras, which could complicate the signings. Turner was rumored to be seeking a deal similar to Rick Porcello's $7.285MM deal before even being drafted by the Tigers. Oliver is coming off a rough season which dropped him to the second round. Beck writes that he could raise his stock by returning to Oklahoma State for another season.
  • The Rangers are "doing everything they can" to sign first-rounder Matthew Purke, says T.R. Sullivan. Purke passed his physical, and has met with club president Nolan Ryan. According to Sullivan though: "all indications from both sides are there is still a substantial gap to bridge before a deal gets done."

The Tigers And Magglio Ordonez

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After today's game against the Red Sox, only 81 plate appearances stand between Magglio Ordonez and an $18MM payday next year. The Tigers, who will have to pay at least $3MM to buy out Ordonez's 2010 option, face a $15MM decision: what to do with Magglio?

He's not hitting this year, especially against righties, against whom he has a .658 OPS and just two homers. As for his glove, Maggs has been slightly below average defensively since the beginning of last year if you go by UZR/150. So why not limit Ordonez's at bats against righties in favor of Clete Thomas (.771 career OPS vs. RHP) and Ryan Raburn (.735 career OPS vs. RHP)?

Two reasons. First, Magglio has started hitting. Coming into today's game, he was hitting .295/.340/.523 since July 4th. Secondly, his agent, Scott Boras would be sure to remind the Tigers of his client's recent hot streak if they benched him, and Boras could file a grievance.

So what should the Tigers do? Are they stuck paying Magglio $18MM next year? Or can they wiggle out from under the 2010 option without compromising their playoff chances or infuriating the players' union?

Here's what a couple of analysts are saying: R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs says the idea of paying Magglio $18MM next year is extremely unattractive from the Tigers' perspective. Rob Neyer of ESPN.com expects the option to vest, so he says the Tigers have to win the division this year and get reasonably good production from Ordonez next year or someone needs to be fired. 

Justin Duchscherer May Return Tuesday

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Oakland pitcher Justin Duchscherer may make his big league season debut Tuesday against the Yankees, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.  Duchscherer, 31, had arthroscopic elbow surgery on March 31st.

Slusser says other teams have been scouting Duchscherer's rehab appearances, and the Tigers and Red Sox are among the clubs expected to be represented tonight.  Whether these scouting missions fall outside of the teams' normal coverage and imply trade interest, I don't know.

Back on July 31st, Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports suggested salary relief (about $1.06MM remains) and a "modest prospect" might be an acceptable return for the A's.  As of right now, Duchscherer projects as a Type B free agent in the American League.  Could the Rangers be a match?  Here's what ESPN's Buster Olney wrote in today's blog:

I'd guess that the Rangers will claim him on waivers, whenever he passes through.

The Brewers and Dodgers are a couple teams seemingly on the lookout for pitching, though their interest level in Duchscherer is unknown.

Rosenthal On Angels, Rangers, Rockies

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that the Angels are looking for rotation upgrades and have no budget limitations. GM Tony Reagins says he's constantly evaluating the benefits of adding an expensive piece to the team. Here are the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:

  • The Rangers have claimed several cheap bats off waivers, but have yet to acquire any of them.
  • At least one GM expects the Rockies to win the NL West and the Cards to win the World Series. 
  • The Rockies are still looking for a reliever and a bench bat. 
  • Rosenthal says the Tigers have no choice but to keep playing Magglio Ordonez, even though his expensive 2010 option will vest after 90 more trips to the plate. 

Odds And Ends: Webb, Tazawa, Morgan, Aurilia

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A few links for the morning…

  • Today's chat starts at 2pm CST.
  • Brandon Webb says he'll pitch next year and he hopes it's with the D'Backs, according to Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic. The team has the option of paying Webb $8.5MM or buying him out for $2MM.
  • MLB.com's Jason Beck says the Tigers, who had interest in Junichi Tazawa last Winter, now have to face the righty as he makes his first MLB start.
  • How about this stat, from Tracee Hamilton of the Washington Post: The Nats were 21st in the majors in runs before Nyjer Morgan's arrival. Since trading for him, they're third.
  • MLB.com's Chris Haft wonders if the Giants may be about to release Rich Aurilia.
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America reports that the Red Sox agreed to sign 10th rounder Brandon Jacobs for $750k, which exceeds the recommended bonus by about $600k.
  • Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle hears that the A's have budgeted first round money for fourth rounder Max Stassi. However, there appears to be a 50% chance he accepts a scholarship at UCLA instead of going pro.

Odds & Ends: Red Sox, Irabu, Draft

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Some links to start the morning off…

  • Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders if the Red Sox would pull back John Smoltz and Mike Lowell if either veteran was claimed on waivers.
  • Hideki Irabu is closing in on a deal with an independent Japanese team, according to CBS Sports.
  • MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo points out that there are usually a lot of unsigned draft picks this time of year. He also has a league-wide update on those who have yet to sign this season.
  • If you heard that someone determined the return on investment of top draft picks, you'd probably think it was someone in a front office. But, as Mayo reports, Pirates pitcher Ross Ohlendorf did just that as a student at Princeton.  
  • Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun reports that the O's haven't made progress with second rounder Mychal Givens.
  • New acquisition Jarrod Washburn told David Mayo of MLive.com that he "felt like a rookie" in his Tigers debut last night. Washburn lost to Brian Matusz, a real-life rookie who won his MLB debut.
  • Like the early 90s Braves, the Padres are building around young arms, according to Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune. 

Odds & Ends: Giants, Tigers, Brewers

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Some more links as we unwind from yesterday:

Roy Halladay Not Traded

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5:38pm: Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski says his team was not involved with Halladay, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck.

5:10pm: The Blue Jays and Rangers were talking last night when they found that Halladay wouldn't approve a deal to the Rangers, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. The sides weren't close to a deal when they found out.

The Jays, like other teams the Rangers spoke with, coveted Derek Holland, Neftali Feliz, Justin Smoak and Pedro Borbon. Holland's now in the majors and the other three rank on Jonathan Mayo's updated list of top prospects.

4:20pm: Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail reports that Ricciardi was "never moved by a club" to trade Halladay, though two or three teams were serious about acquiring him and ten inquired. 

3:25pm: Halladay has not been traded, according to Sherman on Twitter.  So many wasted words.

10:12am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post has a slew of comments from Ricciardi about a Halladay trade today being highly unlikely.  Ricciardi admitted he'd listen again in the offseason, but says keeping Doc today signifies an attempt to contend in 2010.

Meanwhile, MLB.com's Jason Beck reports via Twitter that the Tigers never got to the point of exchanging names on Halladay.  Instead, they've reportedly acquired Jarrod Washburn.

10:01am: MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan says the Rangers' talks for Halladay "appear to have broken off" and are "somewhere between dead and on life-support."  Seems like the Rangers are unwilling to trade pitcher Derek Holland, especially after last night's gem.

9:53am: Yahoo's Tim Brown says the Red Sox will "engage Ricciardi early" today on Doc before going after Adrian Gonzalez or Victor Martinez.  However, when quizzed by Brown earlier this morning about the Halladay talks, Ricciardi replied, "Nothing going."

8:34am: One way or another, pitcher Roy Halladay can get some peace of mind about six hours from now when the trade deadline passes.  Until then, it's rumor-mania.  Yesterday night, things seemed to heat up with the Rangers, but Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi labeled trade talks "dead" in a general sense.  Earlier in the day the Red Sox and Dodgers were considered the frontrunners.

This morning, SI's Jon Heyman tells us the Rangers "may have come the closest" to acquiring Halladay.  Even more so than the Phillies?  Heyman says the Rangers talks hit "a snag or two late Thursday," decreasing the chances for a trade.

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