Justin Duchscherer May Return Tuesday
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
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
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
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
Some more links as we unwind from yesterday:
- Bob Ryan at the Boston Globe doesn't like the trade deadline, as he thinks it creates an unfair market for richer teams.
- Aaron Rowand is comfortable with the Giants' additions and thinks the lineup can lead to a playoff appearance, reports Andrew Baggarly at the San Jose Mercury-News.
- Lynn Henning at the Detroit News says that the Tigers still have much on their to-do list after acquiring Jarrod Washburn, which would include plugging in some "muscle" into their batting order.
- Kevin Kaduk at Yahoo Sports wonders what the Indians should do with their two planned Victor Martinez stadium giveaways now that he's a goner.
- The Orioles mostly held on to their veteran free-agents-to-be at the deadline, notes Spencer Fordin at MLB.com.
- Adam McCalvy at MLB.com has more on the three-team trade that fell through yesterday, where the Brewers would have acquired a pitcher. One clue to the unnamed pitcher: He reportedly would not have been able to start for the Brewers today.
Roy Halladay Not Traded
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.
Deadline Roundup: Mets, Washburn, Nats, Rays
Two Cy Young Award winners were traded this deadline and neither one of them was Roy Halladay. It's been a wild few days. Here's a recap of the action and here are some more details and reactions:
- Omar Minaya told Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post that the Mets couldn't find a trade partner because of what other teams were asking for.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo says Aaron Thompson is a pretty good return for Nick Johnson. it sure beats losing him for nothing after the season.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Mariners told the Yankees they had to give up an Austin Jackson-type player for Jarrod Washburn, who was dealt to Detroit.
- The Brewers were told they'd have to surrender Manny Parra, Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel for Washburn, Sherman reports.
- Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that Washburn is open to returning to the Mariners in the offseason, when he hits free agency.
- Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski tells MLB.com's Jason Beck that the Tigers were "not close at all" to completing any other moves.
- Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times says the Rays will look for help on the waiver wire in August.
- Any bobblehead collectors? Tomorrow night is still Victor Martinez bobblehead night in Cleveland, according to MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince.
- The Phillies, Cardinals, Red Sox and Tigers are Jon Heyman of SI.com's deadline winners. His losers? The Nats and Royals.
Mariners Rejected Offers For Felix Hernandez
12:22pm: SI's Jon Heyman says the Tigers and Red Sox were among the teams inquiring on King Felix. Rays too, says Joel Sherman of the New York Post via Twitter.
11:14am: The Mariners rejected offers from six different teams for young ace pitcher Felix Hernandez, according to ESPN's Jayson Stark and Peter Gammons. GM Jack Zduriencik admitted he listened, but didn't find anything even worth discussing.
Hernandez, just 23 years old, has a 2.79 ERA in 145.3 innings this year. He's under team control through 2011, but has yet to sign a long-term contract.
Tigers Eyeing Luke Scott
Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal and FOX Sports say the Tigers may not be done after getting Jarrod Washburn – they "have remained in contact with the Orioles about outfielder Luke Scott." The Tigers technically still have the prospects to pull it off, though the Orioles are asking a lot. Scott is under team control through 2012, and he's hitting .275/.356/.528 on the season.
Tigers Acquire Jarrod Washburn
The Tigers acquired pitcher Jarrod Washburn from the Mariners, according to Mike Salk of ESPN radio in Seattle. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports agrees, saying the Mariners will get pitcher Luke French and another prospect. MLB Network tells us the other prospect is pitcher Mauricio Robles. Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse (via Twitter) suggests the Tigers may not be done. They'd like to add a hitter.
Washburn, a Scott Boras client and free agent after the season, projects as a Type B. If the Tigers offer arbitration to Washburn after the season and he signs elsewhere, they'll get a supplemental draft pick. The risk is that he could accept and the Tigers would owe him more than $10MM in 2010. Washburn has about $3.8MM left on his current contract, and the Tigers will presumably take all of that.
Washburn has a 2.64 ERA in 133 innings this year, so if he keeps it up to any extent he'll give the Tigers a strong front three with Justin Verlander and Edwin Jackson. The Tigers have a two-game lead over the Twins in the division, so every win counts.
SI's Jon Heyman reports that the Yankees are pessimistic about making a big move, with Washburn off the table.