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Quick Hits: Colvin, Olsen, Lackey, Astros

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On this date 15 years ago, Sammy Sosa became the first Cub to homer twice in one inning. Here's the latest from around the league, including a note on a less productive Cubs bat…

  • The Cubs optioned Tyler Colvin to the minors after today's game and GM Jim Hendry told Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune that he wants the outfielder to get regular playing time in Triple-A. As Hendry says, MLB teams are in the "production business."
  • Scott Olsen made about $108K with the Pirates before they released him, according to Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter).
  • John Lackey's DL stint probably won't affect Boston's 2015 option for the right-hander, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. Though the option will be worth the MLB minimum if Lackey misses extended time because of a right elbow injury that existed before he signed with the Red Sox, he'd have to miss the rest of the season for the option to be affected, according to Bradford.
  • Brian McTaggart of MLB.com looks back at Drayton McLane's 19 years of ownership in Houston. McLane has agreed to sell the Astros to Jim Crane; for details on the sale and how it could impact the franchise, click here.

Astros Notes: Crane, Smith, Wade

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Longtime owner Drayton McLane has agreed to sell the Astros to a group led by Houston businessman Jim Crane. Both McLane and Crane addressed the media today, though the sale hasn't been approved by MLB owners. Here's the latest:

  • Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle guesses that president of business operations Pam Gardner and president of baseball operations Tal Smith, two of McLane’s most trusted advisors, “will be fired within six months.” 
  • Justice says he doesn’t know if Rays exec and Houston native Andrew Friedman will want to come home and run the Astros, but he points out that the opportunity could very well arise. If Friedman stays put, the Astros will likely pursue an assistant general manager “out of the same mold.”
  • Crane says the Astros "will try to be smart and spend money wisely,” according to Alyson Footer of the Astros (on Twitter). “It starts with the draft," Crane said. "We need to make sure we're building a team for the future." 
  • GM Ed Wade introduced himself to Crane after today’s press conference, according to Stephen Goff of the Houston Astros Examiner (Twitter links). Wade had never met Crane before.
  • Wade told Goff that if the sale is approved on time, it could have a “major effect” on the Astros’ approach to trades this July.

Rosenthal On Chapman, Braves, Rockies, Norris

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Aroldis Chapman went on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation today, after Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported on the Reds’ options for proceeding with the struggling Cuban left-hander. Here’s the latest on Chapman plus notes from around the league:

  • A veteran scout insists that the Reds need to demote Chapman and make him a starter, but pitching coach Bryan Price isn’t so sure that a demotion is the way to go. He points out that Sandy Koufax and Randy Johnson took time to develop. “Both struggled with command until they got enough work to figure out how their body works, how to put their hand in the right position to throw quality strikes,” Price said.
  • The Braves would ideally add a leadoff hitter and put Martin Prado second in the order, according to Rosenthal. He suggests the Braves could target leadoff options Jose Reyes, Grady Sizemore, Denard Span or David DeJesus via trade or free agency after the season.
  • The Rockies appear to be concerned about losing out of options relievers Felipe Paulino and Franklin Morales to waivers.
  • Astros GM Ed Wade says Bud Norris has become a much more mature pitcher. The 26-year-old right-hander has 60 strikeouts in 50 innings this year.

Quick Hits: Dodgers, Cardinals, Inglett, Broderick

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Saturday evening linkage…

  • Frank McCourt told Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times that the Dodgers' roster would look the same even if the team didn't have financial problems. He was also vague about future payroll plans if the multi-billion dollar deal with FOX were to be approved (Twitter link).
  • B.J. Rains of FOXSportsMidwest.com points out that the Cardinals will have to make room for Brian Tallet when the lefty comes off the disabled list next week (Twitter links). He doesn't think they'll cut ties with the struggling Ryan Franklin, but he says it's "debatable." 
  • MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports that Joe Inglett has accepted his outright assignment and will join the Astros' Triple-A affiliate (on Twitter). Inglett could have elected free agency after clearing waivers earlier in the week.
  • Nationals GM Mike Rizzo believes that pitcher Brian Broderick has a bright future in the big leagues, despite being DFA'd by the club earlier today, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
  • Manager Dusty Baker is curious to see if the newly activated Jose Arredondo can provide the Reds with the kind of pitching they expected upon signing him.
  • Dave Gershman of Beyond The Box Score examined the market for Padres pitcher Dustin Moseley.

Rosenthal’s Full Count Video: Astros, Twins, Braves

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports has a new Full Count Video up, so let's recap…

  • Hunter Pence is getting expensive – he'll earn $6.9MM this year with two more arbitration years ahead of him – but Astros GM Ed Wade said that he wants to build around his young players, namely Pence, Brett Wallace, J.A. Happ, and Bud Norris. As much as they need to rebuild, it's unlikely that new owner Jim Crane will want to blow up the nucleus as his first act.
  • If things don't turn around for the Twins, this could be the year that they become sellers. Jason Kubel, Michael Cuddyer, Jim Thome, Matt Capps, and Joe Nathan are all among the team's upcoming free agents, though some in the organization would like to see them re-sign Capps.
  • The Braves' starting pitching depth could give them an advantage at the trade deadline. They could move a veteran like Derek Lowe or a younger starter because they have more arms on the way. Lowe is the perfect piece to dangle to a contender such as the Yankees, but Atlanta doesn't have an obvious need right now.
  • Starting pitching depth is the Red Sox's one glaring weakness, and Rosenthal says an injury to one of their top five starters would leave the team "seriously unsettled."

Quick Hits: Astros, Lincecum, Yankees, Beltran

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Sad news in baseball today, as the Blue Jays announced the passing of player development senior advisor Mel Queen and Harmon Killebrew announced that his esophageal cancer has developed to the point that doctors don't expect a cure. MLBTR extends its sincere condolences to Queen’s family and Killebrew and his family. Here are today's links…

  • Astros manager Brad Mills was optimistic regarding the overall future of the organization after learning Drayton McLane Jr. had reached an agreement to sell the team to a group led by local businessman Jim Crane, according to Stephen Goff of Examiner.com.
  • Tom Singer of MLB.com takes an entertaining look back at some deals that didn't happen, including a possible trade that would have sent Tim Lincecum to Toronto. 
  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that he would like to add a southpaw to his team. “I’m just not going to get one right now,” Cashman said. “And I don’t know if I’ll get one this summer.”
  • Rosenthal says the Yankees shouldn't rush lefty Manny Banuelos to the Majors. "Let Manny become Manny … No sooner than 2012," Rosenthal writes.
  • Matt Klaassen of FanGraphs examines Carlos Beltran's trade value and says "it is hard to imagine the Mets getting more than a couple of C prospects in return for Beltran if they send a few million dollars along."

McLane Agrees To Sell Astros To Jim Crane

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It won't be long before the Astros have a new owner. After 19 years of ownership, Drayton McLane confirmed to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com that he has agreed to sell the Astros to a group led by Houston businessman Jim Crane. Though the sides are finalizing details and it will take weeks for MLB to approve the pending sale, McLane is confident the deal will be completed.

"We have an understanding, and Jim's an honorable person, and I am, too," McLane said. "We have an overall agreement, but things come up."

McLane had been negotiating exclusively with Crane and the sides have agreed on a price, reportedly about $680MM. McLane hopes to make an announcement by the middle of next week. Houston attorney Kenny Friedman, the father of Rays executive Andrew Friedman, also had interest in buying the Astros.

 

Quick Hits: Sabathia, Cashman, Rzepczynski

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Jason Vargas and Zach Britton both threw nine shutout innings in a remarkable pitcher's duel tonight in Baltimore.  After falling behind 1-0 in the top of the 12th, the Orioles came back to win the game in the bottom half of the inning on a bases-loaded single from J.J. Hardy.

Some news from around the majors…

  • "The C.C. Sabathia opt out situation is sure to be messy," predicts Mike Axisa of the River Avenue Blues blog, but Axisa thinks Brian Cashman's upcoming contract negotiations with the Yankees "will be messier."  Cashman is in the last year of his deal with New York and, as per club policy, the team won't discuss an extension in mid-season.  There has been some speculation about Cashman's future in the Bronx given his disagreements with upper management about the Rafael Soriano and Derek Jeter signings last winter, but Axisa thinks those signings give Cashman the leverage in negotiations, "plus the fact that there’s no ready-made, in-house replacement available."
  • As for Sabathia, Axisa thinks he will almost surely opt out of his contract, and the southpaw will look at Cliff Lee's five-year, $120MM deal with Philadelphia "as a starting point."
  • The Blue Jays lost Scott Downs to free agency last winter, but as MLB.com's Arden Zwelling writes, Marc Rzepczynski has been a superb fit as Downs' replacement in Toronto's bullpen.
  • Fangraphs' Reed MacPhail wonders why teams are still paying top-dollar for relief pitching.
  • When the sale of the Astros to Jim Crane is finalized, Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle reports that former Houston Rockets president George Postolos will be the Astros' new CEO.  Justice also speculates that Crane may try to get Andrew Friedman to return to his hometown to become the Astros' new GM, but it's extremely doubtful Friedman would leave Tampa Bay just to start another rebuilding process elsewhere.
  • In his latest chat with fans, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star would be "astounded" if the Royals didn't quickly pursue signing Eric Hosmer to a long-term extension, though it could be "a tough sell" given that Scott Boras is Hosmer's agent.  Earlier today, Dutton's Star colleague Sam Mellinger, proposed a six-year, $25MM extension for Hosmer (with three option years and possibly $40MM more added on), though MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith pointed out that Hosmer and Boras would surely turn down such an offer.

Texas Notes: Figueroa, Inglett, Ryan

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The latest on the Astros, as they shuffle their roster, plus an update on Nolan Ryan's responsibilities…

  • The Astros announced that Nelson Figueroa and Joe Inglett cleared waivers and were outrighted to Triple-A.  Inglett accepted his minor league assignment last week, according to MLB.com, while Figueroa accepted his assignment today, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link).
  • The Astros are scheduled to activate Jason Michaels from the 15-day DL before tonight's game in Houston.
  • MLB appointed team president Nolan Ryan as the 'control' person of Rangers, according to Anthony Andro of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Baseball’s owners approved the move, which makes Ryan accountable to MLB for operating the Rangers and following rules.

NL Central Notes: Pujols, Cubs, Ascanio, Hall

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Tim provided updates on all six NL Central teams earlier in the day, but plenty more news is emerging from baseball's biggest division. Here's the latest, including a follow-up on Jose Ascanio…

  • Though the Cardinals probably wish that Albert Pujols and Cubs GM Jim Hendry hadn’t exchanged a heavily scrutinized public hug, they aren’t overly concerned with it, according to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (on Twitter).
  • The Pirates recalled Ascanio and placed Michael Crotta on the DL with right elbow inflammation, according to Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter). The team had to decide whether to add Ascanio to the roster or risk losing him to another team, since he's out of options.
  • As MLB.com's Brian McTaggart explains, the Astros will have to clear up roster space when Jeff Keppinger returns from the disabled list. Bill Hall could slide into a utility role, or the Astros could part ways with him. Including the buyout on next year’s mutual option, about $2.5MM remains on Hall’s deal.
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