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AL Central Notes: White Sox, Willingham, Indians

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Former White Sox exec Dave Wilder received a two-year federal prison sentence today for his role in taking kickbacks from international signings, as first reported by Larry Yellen of FOX 32 (via Twitter).  From December 2004 through February 2008, investigators said that Wilder orchestrated a kickback scheme in which he and other White Sox scouts artificially inflated the value of international players, signing them to bonuses beyond their value and taking a cut for themselves, writes Ben Badler of Baseball America.  In total, there were kickbacks involved with 23 signings, according to the federal investigation.  The White Sox released a statement calling the scandal a "painful betrayal".  The good news for the White Sox is that Wilder was ordered to pay the club roughly $441K in restitution, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.  Here's more out of the AL Central..

  • An unknown team claimed Twins outfielder Josh Willingham off waivers, but Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer reports that it wasn't the Indians.  The Indians negotiated with Willingham when he was a free agent before the 2012 season. Willingham wound up signing a three-year deal with the Twins after the Tribe would only go to two.
  • Hoynes adds that while Willingham won't be coming to the Indians, the recently DFA'd Jason Kubel could be of interest to them.  The Tribe liked Kubel when he played for Minnesota and there were reports that they claimed him on waivers in August of 2011, right around the time they acquired Jim Thome from the Twins.
  • Twins GM Terry Ryan confirmed that Minnesota will receive cash from the Royals in the Jamey Carroll trade, tweets Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.  The Twins had the choice of cash considerations or a PTBNL in the swap.

Minor Moves: Neshek, Wood, Perdomo

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Here are today's minor moves from around the league…

  • Right-hander Pat Neshek has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Sacramento from the Athletics, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). Neshek, who was designated for assignment on Monday, has a 3.58 ERA with 6.7 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 37 2/3 innings this season. He does come with significant platoon splits, however.
  • The Twins unconditionally released Triple-A right-hander Tim Wood, according to Twins director of communications Dustin Morse (on Twitter). Wood, 30, was dominant enough with the Pirates' Triple-A affiliate in 2012 that Minnesota inked him to a one-year, $675K Major League deal despite the fact that he didn't throw a pitch in the Majors last year. He pitched to a 2.19 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 70 1/3 innings for Triple-A Indianapolis last year, but injuries limited him to nine appearances between High-A Fort Myers and Triple-A Rochester prior to his release this season. He allowed nine runs in 9 1/3 innings between those two levels.
  • The Twins also released right-hander Luis Perdomo from Rochester, according to the International League transactions page. The 29-year-old posted a 5.95 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 6.0 BB/9 in 65 innings at the Triple-A level this season.
  • Edinson Volquez, Edgmer Escalona Aaron Harang, Russ Canzler and Jason Kubel are each currently in DFA limbo, and you can track their statuses using MLBTR's new DFA Tracker.

Quick Hits: Kubel, Athletics, Twins, Harper

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The Athletics should consider claiming outfielder Jason Kubel, InsideBayArea.com's John Hickey argues. The Diamondbacks designated Kubel for assignment Tuesday afternoon. After losing Josh Reddick to a wrist injury, the A's are short an outfielder. Their current plan is to slide Brandon Moss to the outfield and have Daric Barton play first base, but Hickey thinks it might be better to keep Moss at first and play Kubel in an outfield spot instead. He notes that exchanging Barton for Kubel would be a defensive downgrade, however, and it's questionable how much more offense Kubel might provide. He hit .220/.288/.324 for the Diamondbacks this year, and would have to make a significant rebound in the direction of his 2012 form to be an upgrade. Here are more notes from around the Majors.

  • Josh Willingham of the Twins says August waivers are "no big deal," Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports (via Twitter). The Twins placed Willingham on recovable trade waivers earlier today, raising the possibility (even if it isn't an incredibly likely one) that Willingham could be dealt. Willingham tells Miller he's in no hurry to leave Minnesota. The outfielder is hitting .214/.348/.393 this season.
  • It's still not impossible that the Twins could trade Justin Morneau. But Morneau is a free agent after the season, so even if the Twins dealt him, they could bring him back for 2014. That decision could be based on how often they want Joe Mauer to play first base, 1500ESPN's Phil Mackey argues (on Twitter). Mackey argues that, in any case, the Twins shouldn't consider more than a one-year deal for Morneau, who appears to be past his prime and doesn't stack up particularly well against other first basemen.
  • Scott Boras, who represents the Nationals' Bryce Harper and Stephen Strasburg, half-jokingly says he prefers "12-year deals" for his players, MASNsports.com's Dan Kolko reports. "I'm more into 12-year deals for young players," says Boras. "The M.O. is that you want to keep within the franchise, you want him there for a long time and you want to be there for the fans and be a marquee for them. … You're going to have to do something different if you're going to be a team of distinction." Boras was in Washington for the Nationals' game against the Marlins, and he seemed to be talking about Harper, although he did not name him directly.

Pirates Still Interested In Justin Morneau

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4:45pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that multiple teams are inquiring on Morneau. He notes that the Orioles are still seeking a DH, though he stops short of stating that Baltimore is interested in Morneau, specifically.

4:41pm: Apparently not content to stand pat after acquiring Marlon Byrd and John Buck from the Mets earlier today, Pirates GM Neal Huntington is now eyeing Twins first baseman Justin Morneau once again, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. He adds that the Yankees, another team once linked to Morneau, aren't currently pursuing the Canadian slugger.

The Bucs were said to have interest in Morneau prior to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, but a dreadful slump from the 2006 AL MVP coupled with a hefty amount of money remaining on his $14MM salary deterred interested parties from striking a deal. Now, Morneau is owed roughly $2.6MM through season's end and has seen his bat come back to life in August, hitting .270/.318/.550 with seven homers and seven doubles on the month.

Heyman also adds that there are indications that the Twins would include some cash in a potential trade to improve the return. The Pirates showed a willingness to deal respectable prospects in today's Byrd/Buck trade, dealing Dilson Herrera and a player to be named later to the Mets. Herrera ranked as the team's No. 11 prospect per MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo on his midseason Top 20, and Mayo also ranked him as the ninth-best second base prospect in all of baseball.

With Starling Marte currently on the disabled list, the Pirates could use both Byrd and Garrett Jones in the outfield to accommodate Morneau at first base, Heyman points out. As Michael Sanserino of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweeted earlier today, it will be at least two weeks before Marte can even swing a bat, so that arrangement could work out for several weeks.

In a second tweet, Sanserino adds that the Pirates have been skeptical that the Twins would actually part with Morneau, but they are indeed interested if the price is right. Because Morneau has already cleared waivers, Morneau is free to be traded to any team, but he must be on a new team prior to Sept. 1 to be eligible for postseason play.

Placed On Waivers: Santana, Rodriguez, DeJesus, Willingham

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Here's Tuesday's list of players who have been placed on revocable trade waivers…

  • Ervin Santana — Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that Ervin Santana has been placed on waivers. He instantly becomes one of the most desirable pieces on waivers, but the Royals are likely not inclined to move him. Santana, 30, has a 3.21 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 in what has been a tremendous rebound campaign with the Royals. He's owed about $2.23MM this season and is a free agent at season's end. However, Kansas City is still within striking distance of a Wild Card spot and will be making Santana a qualifying offer following the season, so a return would likely have to overwhelm them.
  • Francisco Rodriguez — Rosenthal's tweet also reported that K-Rod has been placed on waivers by the Orioles. This is likely nothing more than a procedural move, as he's been solid for the O's, and they're just 2.5 games back from a Wild Card spot.
  • Wesley Wright, David DeJesus — Rosenthal also noted that the Rays have put both of their most recent waiver pickups back on waivers. However, in a second tweet he cautions that DeJesus needn't be worried this time, as the Rays are merely putting all of their players through waivers as a procedural move right now, which explains Wright's placement as well.
  • Josh Willingham — Peter Gammons of the MLB Network tweets that the Twins have placed Willingham on waivers. Minnesota was expecting big things out of Willingham following a 35-homer season in 2012, but knee injuries diminished his production at the plate and he ultimately underwent arthroscopic knee surgery in early July. Since being activated on Aug. 9, he's batting just .177/.316/.371 with a pair of homers and six doubles. Willingham's walk rate (13.4 percent) and power (.179 ISO) remain strong, but his strikeout rate is up (26.7 percent) and his average is down due to a decrease in line drives and an increase in pop-ups. He's owed roughly $1.3MM for the remainder of the season and is owed $7MM in 2014 — the final season of a three-year, $21MM contract.
  • Earlier today, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York reported that Marlon Byrd, Pedro Feliciano and John Buck of the Mets were all on waivers, and at least one trade is likely. Byrd was claimed by an unknown NL team shortly thereafter.

For a reminder on how revocable trade waivers and August trades work, check out MLBTR's August trades primer. You can see who is available to be traded to any team by checking MLBTR's list of players who have cleared waivers.

Quick Hits: Mets, Harvey, Indians, Morneau, Twins

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The Mets got some difficult news today as they learned that young star Matt Harvey has a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow.  GM Sandy Alderson said that Harvey is unlikely to pitch again this season and they'll need two to three weeks to determine if he will require Tommy John surgery, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.  Here's more from around baseball..

  • If the Indians are going to have a chance at making the postseason, they're going to need their three of their highest-paid players to step it up, writes Dennis Manoloff of The Plain Dealer.  Manoloff says that Nick Swisher, Michael Bourn, and Asdrubal Cabrera will need to produce if they plan on catching the Tigers for the AL Central crown or the A's for the second wild card spot.
  • Agent Scott Boras emphasized that surgery isn't an automatic for Harvey, Rubin writes.  "When you're talking about the term 'partial tear,' you're talking about 5 percent to 95 percent," Boras said of the Mets pitcher. "You have to get in and get the specifics and get more information medically before we can really make a determination as to what we're dealing with."
  • One Mets official acknowledged that losing Harvey for a significant amount of time would impact their timetable for contention, writes Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.  With "another bat or two," Zack Wheeler, and a healthy Harvey, the official felt that the Mets could have had a puncher's chance at a strong season in 2014.
  • In a fan mailbag, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com explains that a Justin Morneau trade is highly unlikely as he is still owed roughly $3MM through the end of the season and the Twins probably won't get much for a one-month rental.  Bollinger also tackles questions on top prospects Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton as well as a possible reunion with Johan Santana.

International Notes: Mets, Tanaka, Twins

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Many international players have generated quite a bit of buzz, which should lead to some hefty paydays when they become available to Major League clubs via free agency. Jose Dariel Abreu, Alexander Guerrero and Masahiro Tanaka are just some of the big names that could jump to the Majors next year. Here's the latest on the international market, with updates on each of those three…

  • The Mets signed Dominican outfielder Ricardo Cespedes for a $725K bonus on his 16th birthday over the weekend, Baseball America's Ben Badler reported. Badler writes that Cespedes has a good, loose swing and a nice gap-to-gap approach with the speed to start his pro career as a center fielder. As Badler notes, the Mets have spent a total of $2.465MM, so they still have some room in their $3.025MM international bonus pool.
  • In a subscription-only piece, Badler also profiles Tanaka's most recent start in Japan, during which he whiffed eight hitters over seven scoreless innings to improve to 18-0 and drop his ERA to 1.15. Badler notes that Tanaka has "arguably the best splitter in the world," and reached 97 mph with his heater on his 108th pitch of the night. Tanaka would have to be posted by the Rakuten Golden Eagles to make the jump to MLB.
  • Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN reports that Abreu's lofty price tag will likely lead the Twins to "loosely monitor" him rather than become serious players for his services. He adds that the Twins are still in on Guerrero but not as deeply as other suitors (Twitter links).

Quick Hits: Scully, Martinez, Twins, Phillies

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The Dodgers' latest move is one we can all celebrate: the team announced yesterday that incomparable broadcaster Vin Scully will return to the Dodger booth next year for the 65th straight season. As usual, Scully dropped some wisdom on the occasion: "Just the thought of walking away from it to retirement — and looking out the window or something? It's just too good." Indeed, it is. Elsewhere around the game …

  • With starting backstop Alex Avila still working back from a concussion after scuffling for most of the year, the division-leading Tigers might have found themselves scrambling to add catching depth. Instead, the club made a risky move that could pay long-term dividends, putting primary DH Victor Martinez back behind the dish for the first time since August of 2011. The initial returns were positive, and the club could suit Martinez up for interleague matchups down the stretch or in a hypothetical World Series.
  • Always productive on Saturday mornings, Phil Mackey of 1500ESPN.com offered a spirited defense of the Twins' decision not to bring in any high-priced starters last year. (All links to Twitter.) Rejecting the suggestion that Minnesota should have signed Anibal Sanchez and pointing to the Royals' acquisition of James Shields as an ill-advised, premature plunge, Mackey summed things up with a broader philosophy for a small-market team like the Twins: "Draft. Develop. Sell high. Supplement your core with smart spending. Lock players in before arbitration. Avoid stupid contracts." 
  • For next season, Mackey further tweets, Phil Hughes could be a nice target for Minnesota. The suggestion could make sense, given Hughes' youth, the potential to buy low, and Target Field's home run suppression.
  • The Phillies, needless to say, face a number of questions as they finish out a second-straight disappointing season with an aging core. Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer took an interesting look at one major forthcoming task for GM Ruben Amaro Jr.: "completely rebuilding one of baseball's worst bullpens." In his tenure as GM, Brookover notes, Amaro has signed seven free-agent set-up men or middle relievers for a combined $22.85MM (not including year two of the Mike Adams deal). They have combined for a 4.76 ERA. Neither has the organization been successful at developing its own bullpen arms, says Brookover, who does note that some current youngsters — in particular, Jake Diekman — offer hope. 
  • Looking ahead to 2014, Amaro seemed to imply that the Phils will likely be shopping for turnaround candidates in the free agent market. "Sometimes you have to be lucky to get those guys," Amaro said. "There are times when even a change of scenery can help someone. Those are the kinds of things we will look for."

AL Central Notes: Morneau, Ryan, Konerko, Indians

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Happy birthday to Hall-of-Famer Paul Molitor, who turns 57 years old today.  Though Molitor only spent the final three of his 21 seasons with an AL Central team, the St. Paul native has been closely tied to the Twins franchise and currently serves as a special assistant within the organization.  Here's the latest from around the division…

  • The Twins don't have any trade talks percolating about Justin Morneau right now, Minnesota general manager Terry Ryan tells Sid Hartman of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.  “I can put that out there,” Ryan said. “I don’t see [a trade], but there is always a possibility."  Morneau has cleared waivers and has revived his trade value after hitting .303/.326/.618 in 92 PA in August.  The former AL MVP has drawn varying levels of interest from the Yankees and Orioles in recent days.
  • Ryan added that "I don’t think you have to worry about" Glen Perkins being traded.  The closer drew attention before the July 31st deadline, but it's hard to see how Minnesota could get Perkins through waivers without another club blocking the move.
  • The Twins GM also covers a number of topics with Hartman, including his own future with the team.  Ryan said he's still enjoying all aspects of his job, except for the Twins' poor record on the field.
  • Adam Dunn thinks there is "zero chance" his White Sox teammate Paul Konerko will retire after this season, Dunn tells Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link).  Konerko has hinted at retirement throughout the season, as this is the last year of his White Sox contract and the veteran has struggled with injuries and a .662 OPS in 393 PA.
  • The Indians recently gathered several front office members to discuss September promotions and any possible August trades, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.  "We're looking at opportunities to improve, internally, externally, whatever those might be," GM Chris Antonetti said. "I continue to like the group of guys we have, but if there is an opportunity to improve, we'll pursue it."

AL Central Notes: Hoynes, Morneau, Twins, Tigers

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Congratulations to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, who has been selected to join the Cleveland Journalism Hall of Fame. "Hoynsie" took the time to answer some questions from Bill Lucey of the blog Newspaper Alum about the 33 years he has spent covering the Indians. Hoynes discusses the transition from print to web, recounts several stories about players and offers his take on instant replay. Lucey's piece is an excellent look at the life of a beat writer and is a fantastic read start to finish. Here's more out of the AL Central…

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