Ed Wade – GM Trade History
Next up in our GM Trade History series: Ed Wade of the Astros and formerly the Phillies. You can download the spreadsheet here. All of these GM spreadsheets were compiled by MLBTR contributor Brendan Bianowicz.
Wolf Trade Reactions
The Padres found an unlikely suitor for lefty starter Randy Wolf in the Houston Astros. Here are the reactions:
- Paul DePodesta thinks Chad Reineke might be able to help the Padres soon.
- Richard Justice calls it a stubborn move for the Astros, who "threw $3.5MM at a lost season."
- MLB.com’s Jim Molony wonders if the Astros could shop Wolf in August if the team falls further out of contention. An Ed Wade quote reveals part of the motivation for the acquisition – the GM says the Astros get their foot in the door in case they want to sign Wolf beyond this season.
Astros Acquire Randy Wolf
TUESDAY: The Astros acquired Wolf for minor league pitcher Chad Reineke, according to Tom Krasovic. Baseball America wondered if Reineke could eventually become another Chad Qualls, a guy who blossoms with a move to the bullpen.
What are the Astros thinking here? This team is still playing to win, even with their backs against the wall. Perhaps they hope to convince Wolf to stick around in ’09. Might be hard though – he just bought Slash’s house in L.A.
MONDAY: According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, the Astros are "engaged in serious discussions to acquire veteran left-hander Randy Wolf of the San Diego Padres." Olney notes that the Astros are not included in Wolf’s no-trade clause.
It seems that Ed Wade’s Astros are playing for 2008, even at ten games out of the wild card. Wolf will be a free agent after the season. He has a 4.74 ERA in 21 starts this year, with a healthy 7.9 K/9. The 31 year-old southpaw has struggled away from PETCO.
Perrotto’s Latest: Reliever Rumors, Bard, Cooper
John Perrotto from Baseball Prospectus has his Sunday column up. Here’s the highlights:
- The Marlins have recalled Jesus Delgado, a right handed reliever, from Double-A Carolina with the intention of showcasing him for trading possibilities.
- The Cardinals have narrowed their search for a reliever and are now focusing on either Ron Mahay or Brian Fuentes.
- Detroit would be willing to include Fernando Rodney in a trade for a starting pitcher.
- The Orioles don’t want to trade George Sherrill unless they are overwhelmed by an offer.
- San Diego is expected to activate Josh Bard from the DL this week, and will immediately place him on the trading block.
- Perrotto feels that Houston manager Cecil Cooper’s job could be in danger after this season if the Astros fail to come up with a strong finish.
Astros Looking For Reliever
The Astros won’t give up and are aggressively pursuing trades "specifically looking for relievers" according to Krysten Oliphant of MLB.com. Oliphant notes that GM Ed Wade’s decisions will be determined by the clubs success over the next few series:
"’We’d like to get some late-inning bullpen help to help with Doug Brocail so we’re not wearing Doug out,’ Wade said prior to Friday’s win against the Cubs. ‘And obviously we’re always trying to see if there are ways to upgrade our starting rotation, but that doesn’t put us in exclusive company with anybody.’"
There are a lot of names on the reliever market. I’d be surprised to see them land one of the big fish.
Sherman’s Latest: Adenhart, Burnett, Niese, Ibanez
Joel Sherman of the New York Post has been digging up rumors left and right – here, here, and here in recent days. Let’s discuss.
- The Angels have "hinted at a willingness to build a deal around pitching prospect Nick Adenhart." This would apparently involve Mark Teixeira or Matt Holliday.
- The Phillies made an initial offer last week for A.J. Burnett, and the Jays were thoroughly unimpressed. The Phillies won’t discuss prospects Carlos Carrasco, Lou Marson, or Greg Golson in trades.
- The Yankees have zero interest in Burnett.
- The A’s are willing to move Joe Blanton. He’s not perfect, but he can eat innings and is under team control through 2010.
- Six games out of the wild card with a league-best offense, the Rangers don’t look like sellers.
- At least ten teams watched Mets’ Double A starter Jon Niese pitch Saturday. He’s their top trade chip given the unavailability of Fernando Martinez.
- The Pirates have their eye on the Yankees’ Ross Ohlendorf, if the Yanks become buyers for players like Damaso Marte or Xavier Nady.
- Three Raul Ibanez suitors are named: the Diamondbacks, Dodgers, and Red Sox.
- At least nine teams are monitoring Freddy Garcia: the Yankees, Mets, Astros, Rangers, Royals, Red Sox, Phillies, Tigers, and White Sox. We’ve seen the Braves, Rays, and Cubs mentioned too. Garcia’s agent isn’t up for an ’09 option with his client. A-Rod is said to be pushing for the Yankees to sign him.
- Sherman notes a rumor around the game that has Pat Gillick becoming Mariners president next year, and Brian Cashman coming on as his GM.
State Of The Astros
The Astros are currently 12.5 games out in the NL Central and 8.5 games back in the wild card race. However, they won’t be throwing in the towel yet. Said owner Drayton McLane:
"I don’t like to give up, and I think it’s too soon to give up on this season…The Astros have been for several years a second-half team, and we’re optimistic we can start playing much better baseball."
I am not a fan of this logic, that something about putting on an Astro uniform makes a team play poorly in the first half and incredibly in the second. Even if the Astros had the exact same players from 2004-05, I still wouldn’t buy the logic. Similarly, I hate it when announcers talk about a veteran pitcher’s career performance against a certain team. It means nothing, given the roster turnover.
Moving on, the above-linked article from Brian McTaggart suggests the Astros are unlikely to trade any high-priced veterans. It sounds like Ed Wade might have to rely heavily on free agency to build a winner in ’09. I could see a big-ticket starting pitcher – here’s the ’09 free agents list.
Heyman’s Latest: Bay, Rivera, Chacon
New column from SI.com’s Jon Heyman.
- Fresh Jason Bay rumors: the D’Backs and Cardinals are in pursuit. The Mets and Rays have kicked the tires as well. Heyman believes the Pirates want Emilio Bonifacio from the D’Backs, and maybe Colby Rasmus from the Cards. At any rate, the price will be steep with Bay signed for ’09.
- Juan Rivera is a "surprise target" of the Mets, though they’ve had interest in him since March. Rivera will be hard to acquire, though, because he’s gaining playing time for the Angels.
- Heyman believes Shawn Chacon will win his grievance and get paid his full salary.
Molony’s Latest: Mahay, Loretta, Erstad, Guzman
Let’s check in with MLB.com’s Jim Molony.
- The Rays are scouting lefty relievers Brian Fuentes and Ron Mahay. The issue? The price for Fuentes seems exorbitant, and Mahay may not be available. Troy E. Renck names the Yankees, Mets, Cardinals, and Marlins as the main suitors for Fuentes aside from the Rays.
- A few contenders have inquired with the Astros as to the availability of Mark Loretta and Darin Erstad.
- As you might imagine, the Rangers are open to trading Frank Catalanotto. We mentioned yesterday that his contract is a bit of a burden.
- It seems that Jim Bowden is listening to offers for Cristian Guzman while also trying to sign him to an extension. From Guzman’s point of view, it might make sense to enter a weak shortstop market this winter.
- The Matt Capps injury apparently affects Damaso Marte‘s availability.
- The Marlins may make Mark Hendrickson available. The big lefty was replaced in the rotation by top prospect Chris Volstad.
Odds and Ends: Taveras, Kemp, Mota
Today’s random linkage.
- Correction to the Justin Duchscherer post – he only has one more arbitration year, not two. He’s set to reach free agency after the ’09 season.
- Rob Neyer points us to a quality interview with Yankees beat writer Tyler Kepner over at NoMaas.org.
- MLB.com’s Jim Molony says the Marlins have renewed interest in Rockies center fielder Willy Taveras.
- LEN3 thinks the Twins need a reliever more than anything.
- Dave Cameron wonders if Matt Kemp is overrated.
- Craig Brown of Royals Authority examines the team’s trade candidates.
- The Padres’ Paul DePodesta runs through his team’s top trade candidates as well as general considerations in trading.
- The Dodgers are close to signing their first-round pick, Ethan Martin.
- Oscar Villarreal refused the Astros’ assignment to the minors and may be released. Also at this link, the Astros have an offer out to first round pick Jason Castro.
- The Indians signed Bryan Bullington, the Pirates’ first overall pick in ’02.