Royals Open To Moving Jonathan Broxton
The Royals have indicated to other teams that they are willing to trade closer Jonathan Broxton, reports Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. They list the bullpen-challenged Mets as one potential suitor.
Broxton, 28, is owed approximately $2MM for the rest of the season and will become a free agent this winter. The burly right-hander has pitched to a 2.05 ERA with 20 saves in 23 chances, though his strikeout rate (6.8 K/9) is way down compared to his glory years with the Dodgers. Broxton took over as closer after Tommy John surgery shelved Joakim Soria.
Royals To Release Humberto Quintero
The Royals announced that they have requested unconditional release waivers on catcher Humberto Quintero (Twitter link). Kansas City designated Quintero for assignment on June 27th.
The Royals acquired Quintero and Jason Bourgeois from Houston for Kevin Chapman and minor league outfielder D'Andre Toney back in March. The backstop posted a .232/.257/.341 line in 144 plate appearances for the Royals before being removed from the roster. Once Quintero clears release waivers, teams will be able to sign him for a pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum salary.
International Signings: Royals, Rockies
MLB teams have been signing top international prospects since Monday, when a new class of players became available. Here are the latest signings from around MLB…
- The Royals signed Venezuelan third baseman Samir Duenez for $425K, Ben Badler of Baseball America reports. The 16-year-old bats left-handed and has projectable power, Badler writes.
- The Rockies signed Venezuelan left-hander Luis Guzman, Badler reports. The 16-year-old is a strike-thrower with a feel for secondary stuff, Badler adds.
Royals Designate Mitch Maier For Assignment
The Royals announced that they designated outfielder Mitch Maier for assignment (Twitter link). They recalled Nathan Adcock and Louis Coleman from Triple-A and optioned Vin Mazzaro to the minor leagues in corresponding moves. Kansas City now has two open spots on its 40-man roster.
Maier, 30, appeared in 32 games for the Royals this year, playing right and center field and pitching one scoreless inning. He posted a .172/.260/.313 batting line in 74 plate appearances. Maier's earning $865K as a first-time arbitration eligible player in 2012.
Int’l Free Agency Links: Puig, Rangers, Royals
There's been no shortage of signings on this, the first day of 2012's international signing period, but there's also plenty of chatter around the league. Here's some links for your perusal…
- In the latest edition of Ask BA, Jim Callis relays some Yasel Puig-related notes from his colleague Ben Badler. Giving the caveat that it's difficult to compare the 21-year-old Puig to 15- and 16-year-olds, Badler notes that he'd only have ranked Puig 11th on his Top 20 international free agents. Beyond that, Badler says that the consensus from his talks with teams was that Puig would've gone in the third round of the 2012 Amateur Draft. Puig signed a seven-year, $42MM deal with the Dodgers just prior to July 2, narrowly avoiding the new CBA's spending limitations.
- Badler tweets that the Rangers could be a fit for Wendell Rijo now that the Yankees have used up most of their $2.9MM cap. Badler ranked Rijo 10th on his Top 20.
- Despite Badler's comment, Rangers GM Jon Daniels told MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez that his club isn't likely to be active on the international front because they're awaiting resolution on the Jairo Beras situation (Twitter link).
- Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow told reporters (including MLB.com's Brian McTaggart) that his team is prepared to spend on international players in the coming days. Luhnow though, is more excited for the 2013-2014 classes, when bonus pools will be based on the previous year's standings. "…that's when things will be more interesting, and you'll see more unique strategies like we saw in the Draft this year," said Luhnow.
- Badler doesn't think the Royals will be shy with signing someone they like, despite not having been active yet (Twitter link).
Dodgers Notes: Cubs, Brewers, Dempster, Lee
Earlier today the Dodgers officially announced the signing of Cuban outfielder Yasel Puig to a seven-year deal. The news of the agreement sent shock waves through baseball this week and clearly shows that the club is very serious about getting back into signing top Latin American players. Here's more out of Los Angeles..
- The Puig deal could be just the start of major moves to come from the Dodgers, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. According to major league sources, they have talked multiple times to the Cubs, Astros, and Brewers. They've also touched base with a number of other teams, including the Mariners, Royals, Twins, Blue Jays and Padres, sources said. The Dodgers would like to add a hitter, a starting pitcher, and a left-handed reliever.
- Speaking of the Cubs, the Dodgers are viewed as a favorite to land Ryan Dempster once he returns from the disabled list, sources suggest to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The two sides haven't talked since the week before Dempster went down but a person familiar with the situation says Los Angeles has a very good chance to land the right-hander.
- The Dodgers are lukewarm to the idea of signing Derrek Lee, and would prefer to explore other options first, a major league source told Rosenthal. Lee would require time at Triple-A and the Dodgers seem to prefer more certainty and perhaps a more immediate solution at first base.
Royals Designate Humberto Quintero For Assignment
The Royals announced that they have designated Humberto Quintero for assignment. In a related move, the team is set to recall outfielder Jason Bourgeois from Triple-A Omaha.
Kansas City acquired the catcher from Houston in March along with Bourgeois for left-hander Kevin Chapman and a player to be named later. The trade was completed just over two weeks ago when the PTBNL turned out to be minor league outfielder D'Andre Toney.
Quintero, 32, hit .232/.257/.341 in 144 plate appearances for the Royals this season.
Quick Hits: Byrd, Royals, Youk, Padres Sale
Marlon Byrd was suspended for 50 games today after testing positive for performance enhancing drugs, according to MLB's official PR department (on Twitter). Byrd issued the following statement:
“I made an inexcusable mistake. Several years ago, I had surgery for a condition that was private and unrelated to baseball. Last winter, I suffered a recurrence of that condition and I was provided with a medication that resulted in my positive test. Although that medication is on the banned list, I absolutely did not use it for performance enhancement reasons. I am mortified by my carelessness and I apologize to everyone who loves this game as I do. I will serve my suspension, continue to work hard and hope that I am given an opportunity to help a Club win later this season.”
Here are some additional links for your Monday evening…
- Royals general manager Dayton Moore told Jon Heyman of CBS Sports that he has received zero calls on Jeff Francoeur, Bruce Chen, and Jonathan Broxton (Twitter link).
- Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com tweets that the reason the Red Sox didn't get more for Kevin Youkilis is because some offers from interested parties simply stated that they would take Youkilis "for nothing," if the Sox were willing to pick up the entire contract.
- The imminent sale of the Padres could have a positive impact on the Mariners, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. The sale price is said to be $800MM — $600MM for the Padres and $200MM for a stake in their upcoming $1.2 billion TV deal with FOX. The Mariners can opt out of their current TV deal in 2015, and could be sitting on top of a "financial windfall," writes Baker. He writes that Mariners "should be able to get more in any pending sale if everything remains equal."
- Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports writes that yesterday's Youkilis trade has kicked off the trade season, and runs through some big names that could be trade candidates at this year's deadline.
Minor Moves: Fox, Royals
Some of today's minor transactions from around the league…
- The Pirates released Jake Fox from Triple-A Indianapolis in order to make room for infielder Jordy Mercer, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Twitter). Fox, 30 in July, hit .236/.309/.366 in 139 PAs at Triple-A this season. He's seen Major League time with the Cubs, A's, and Orioles. His big league experience has come at catcher and all four corner positions.
- Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star tweets that the Royals released three minor leaguers (Twitter link): right-hander Parker Bangs, outfielder Runey Davis, and third baseman Jake Kuebler. Bangs was selected in the 31st round in 2010 and has just 27 2/3 innings of minor league action. Davis was selected by the Cubs in the 12th round of the 2009 draft, and Kuebler was a 17th round pick of the Royals in 2008.
Outrighted To Triple-A: Roman Colon
We'll keep track of today's outright assignments right here…
- The Royals have outrighted Roman Colon to Triple-A the team announced (on Twitter). The 32-year-old accepted his assignment after being designated for assignment on Saturday. Colon appeared in three games for Kansas City and allowed six runs in eight relief innings.