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Diamondbacks Acquire Chris Johnson

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The Diamondbacks have acquired third baseman Chris Johnson from the Astros for minor league outfielders Marc Krauss and Bobby Borchering, the teams announced. Borchering, 21, was Arizona's first round pick in the 2009 draft while Krauss, 24, was taken in the second round of the same draft.

Johnson, 27, has a slash line of .279/.329/.428 with eight homers in 368 plate appearances this season. The right-handed hitter, who also played a handful of games at first base for Houston this year, won't be arbitration eligible until after the 2013 season unless he qualifies for super two status this coming offseason.

The Diamondbacks dealt from an area from strength in this trade as they are rather deep in the outfield. While Krauss and Borchering were standouts at the Double-A level, they also have prospects Adam Eaton and A.J. Pollock in Triple-A Reno. 

GM Jeff Luhnow continues to sell off Major League pieces as a part of the club's rebuilding effort. In the last ten days, the Astros have traded Wandy Rodriguez to the Pirates, Brett Myers to the White Sox, and J.A. Happ to the Blue Jays.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Outrighted To Triple-A: Cunningham, Astros

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Let's keep track of today's outright assignments right here…

  • Aaron Cunningham has cleared waivers and been assigned to Triple-A by the Indians, reports Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer (on Twitter). The 26-year-old outfielder hit .175/.245/.247 in 109 plate appearances for the Tribe before being designated for assignment last week.
  • The Astros have outrighted Aneury Rodriguez to Triple-A, reports Zachary Levine of The Houston Chronicle. The 24-year-old right-hander pitched to a 6.67 ERA in Triple-A this year but allowed three runs in six innings in his lone big league start.
  • The Astros have also outrighted Enerio Del Rosario to Triple-A according to Levine. Del Rosario, 26, allowed 14 runs in 15 relief innings for Houston this year.

Astros Claim Steve Pearce Off Waivers

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The Astros have claimed first baseman/outfielder Steve Pearce off of waivers from the Orioles, tweets Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com.  Pearce was designated for assignment last Saturday by the O’s to create room for Omar Quintanilla on the 25-man roster.

The O’s traded for Pearce in early June and posted a .254/.321/.437 slash line in 83 plate appearances for them this year.  In parts of six big league seasons, Pearce has hit .235/.304/.375 for the Orioles and Pirates.

Astros Claim Chuckie Fick

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The Astros claimed right-hander Chuckie Fick off of waivers from the Cardinals, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports (on Twitter). The Cardinals had designated Fick for assignment two days ago. Houston confirmed the move, noting that their 40-man roster is now full.

Fick, 26, appeared in two games for the Cardinals before they removed him from their roster. He spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he posted a 4.68 ERA with 4.3 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 42 1/3 innings. Astros GM Jeff Luhnow selected Fick in the 15th round of the amateur draft back in 2007, when he was the Cardinals' VP of scouting and player development.

NL Central Notes: Correia, Greinke, Hart, Ramirez

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Here’s the latest out of the NL Central as we keep a close eye on the latest Zack Greinke rumors..

  • The Pirates have moved Kevin Correia to the bullpen to make room for Wandy Rodriguez in the rotation and Correia isn't thrilled about it, tweets Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.  The Angels could be interested in acquiring the California native, who says that he hopes to get back to being a starter.
  • As it stands now, Greinke is scheduled to pitch against the Nationals on Sunday, but Nats skipper Davey Johnson doesn't expect to see the right-hander on the hill, writes Amanda Comak of the Washington Times.  "I'd be real surprised," Johnson said. "I know in the past if a ballclub's intent on making a move, you're not going to pitch him two days before the deadline."
  • Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com handicaps the most likely destinations for Greinke and the Rangers top the list with 9-5 odds.  The Red Sox are categorized as a longshot with 100-1 odds.
  • Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (via Twitter) believes that someone will bite on the Pirates' Kevin Correia as he is owed just $1MM for the rest of the year.  The Bucs are reportedly sending signals that they could part with Correia after acquiring Wandy Rodriguez.
  • Teams have expressed interest in Corey Hart and Aramis Ramirez, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. However, the Brewers would be have to be overwhelmed to trade either player.
  • Brewers relievers Francisco Rodriguez, Jose Veras, Manny Parra and Kameron Loe had been drawing interest, but their value “tanked” following a poor showing in Philadelphia this week, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter).
  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow suggested to Rosenthal that absorbing salary can help Houston obtain better prospects in trades. “In this environment, you’re limited in how much money you can spend on the draft, how much you can spend internationally,” Luhnow said, referring to the rules regulating amateur spending in baseball’s new collective bargaining agreement.
  • Pitching prospect Shelby Miller is available in trade talks, yet the Cardinals don't appear anxious to make an impact deal, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports (on Twitter).

Zach Links contributed to this post.

http://sulia.com/post/pittsburgh-pirates/795c948c-f69e-4815-87f1-5ea8808a54e6/

Stark On Greinke, Headley, Indians, Wells

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The market for Zack Greinke appears to consist of the Rangers, Angels, White Sox and Braves, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark reports. Rival teams say the Red Sox, Blue Jays and Dodgers aren’t involved on Greinke, and the Indians and Orioles have limited interest in pitchers headed for free agency, Stark writes. Here are more notes from Stark:

  • The Yankees are exploring their third base options with Alex Rodriguez out, Stark reports. Marco Scutaro could be an option for New York.
  • There’s an expectation that Chase Headley will be traded, but the Padres continue saying they’re happy to keep him, Stark writes.  One team says the Padres are looking for a Mat Latos-like return if they trade the third baseman.
  • The Phillies are looking for a proven, young setup reliever and a young outfielder or third baseman for Victorino, Stark reports. They’ve asked about relievers Brad Lincoln, Wade Davis and Logan Ondrusek in trade talks.
  • It’s already been a busy month for the Astros, but they’re still willing to consider trades for anyone but Jose Altuve.
  • The Indians and Cardinals have talked to the Rays about James Shields, Stark reports.
  • The Angels are telling teams they’d rather trade Vernon Wells than keep him when he returns from the disabled list. They’re looking for a trade partner and saying they don’t want to eat all of his salary, Stark reports. It’ll be challenging to find a taker for Wells’ salary; he earns $21MM per season through 2014.
  • The Indians aren’t likely to deal Chris Perez or Shin-Soo Choo, but they’ll listen on either player.

Pirates Acquire Wandy Rodriguez

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The Pirates have acquired left-handed starter Wandy Rodriguez from the Astros in exchange for minor leaguers Rudy Owens, Robbie Grossman, and Colton Cain. 

The Astros will also pay some of the remaining salary owed to Rodriguez at least through 2013 and perhaps through 2014, as the club option for that year became a player option when Rodriguez was traded, per a stipulation in his contract. The Astros' yearly contributions to Rodriguez's salaries break down as such: $1.7MM in 2012, $8.5MM in 2013, and potentially $7.5MM in 2014.

Rodriguez, 33, has posted a 4.04 ERA, 7.5 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in a little over 1,300 career innings, all with the Astros. The Wasserman Media Group client signed a three-year, $34MM extension with Houston prior to the 2011 season.

Grossman, an outfielder, is the best of the three prospects acquired by Houston, according to Jim Bowden of SiriusXM ESPN radio (Twitter). A 22-year-old switch-hitter, Grossman was a sixth-round draft choice of the Bucs in 2008. He's hit .262/.374/.403 with seven homers in 413 plate appearances this season with Double-A Altoona.

Owens, 24, had a 3.14 ERA in 19 starts with Triple-A Indianapolis this season. He has been added to Houston's 40-man roster.

Tom Singer of MLB.com first broke that the trade was close. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com confirmed that it was official and added in financial details (via Twitter), as did Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Twitter). And club press releases added which players the Astros received.

Rosenthal On Hamels, Giants, Brewers

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Talks between Cole Hamels and the Phillies will accelerate this week, as the sides consider the possibility of a mid-season extension, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Hamels must decide whether to accept an offer from the Phillies with the trade deadline looming and free agency just a couple of months away. The left-hander is “conflicted” about how to proceed, Rosenthal writes. The Phillies will almost certainly trade Hamels if they don’t sign him to a long-term deal, Rosenthal reports. Here are more notes from around MLB…

  • The Giants’ biggest offensive need might be a right-handed hitting outfielder.
  • A rival executive notes that the Nationals have relied heavily on their bullpen and suggests it’d make sense for Washington to add a starting pitcher this summer.
  • The Twins would want a major return if they trade Josh Willingham, who has a reasonable three-year, $21MM contract.
  • Some teams like Asher Wojciechowski, a right-handed pitching prospect acquired by the Astros from Toronto in last week’s ten-player deal. Overall the trade wasn’t considered a blockbuster, however.
  • Brewers relievers Manny Parra and Kameron Loe are drawing interest.
  • The Phillies might need to include cash if they trade Shane Victorino. Including salary relief could help the team obtain better prospects for the prospective free agent.

Quick Hits: Upton, Red Sox, Yankees, Dempster

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The Yankees have inquired on Diamondbacks outfielder Justin Upton and Joel Sherman of the New York Post opines that GM Brian Cashman should make it happen.  Sherman argues that three of their best trades of the past two decades involved landing outfielders in their 20s who had fallen out of favor with their clubs: Paul O’Neill, Curtis Granderson, and Nick Swisher.  Upton would fit the profile as some in the D'Backs organization have questioned his heart and motivation.  Here's more from around baseball..

  • With the Red Sox possibly eyeing some major acquisitions before the deadline, Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal runs down the movable pieces and the near untouchables in their farm system.
  • One National League official told Ken Davidoff of Newsday (via Twitter) that he expects Ryan Dempster of the Cubs to be the "first domino to fall", followed by the Twins' Francisco Liriano.
  • The new collective bargaining agreement and the altered free agent compensation system has made this year's deadline harder to figure out that most, writes Tim Britton of The Providence Journal.
  • Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter) opines that while the Astros' purge might make sense from a baseball perspective, it is harmful from a business perspective as it will turn off a large section of fans.

Texas Links: Scutaro, Lee, Wandy, Astros

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The Rangers have the second best record in baseball (55-37) while the Astros have the worst record in baseball (34-60). Here's the latest from Texas…

  • The Rangers would have interest in Marco Scutaro as a utility man if the Rockies were to put him on the market, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
  • Cliff Lee does not have the Rangers on his 21-team no-trade list according to Heyman. There is still no indication that the Phillies will move their veteran left-hander, even to free up payroll to sign Cole Hamels long-term.
  • Carlos Lee, Brandon Lyon, J.A. Happ, and Brett Myers have all been traded already, but Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that it "will be a while" before the Astros deal Wandy Rodriguez (Twitter link).
  • In an Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Keith Law says the two pitchers the Astros received in exchange for Myers – Matt Heidenreich and Blair Walters – "barely qualify as prospects." He says Walters has a chance as a lefty specialist.
  • ESPN's Buster Olney hears from rival executives that the Astros seem to be following the old Devil Rays strategy, meaning they'll accumulate top draft picks for several years because their big league team will be so bad (Twitter link).
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