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Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Gonzalez, Pirates, Elias

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On this date way back in 1976, the Mariners and Blue Jays each selected 30 players in the expansion draft. Seattle drafted outfielder Ruppert Jones from the Royals with the first pick, then Toronto grabbed the versatile Bob Bailor from the Orioles with the second pick. The full results of the expansion draft can be found here.

We had to do some expanding of our own this week – get ready for what I'm certain is the largest BBWI in MLBTR history…

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O’Dowd On Payroll, De La Rosa, Gonzalez

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Rockies GM Dan O’Dowd told readers of the Denver Post that he’d like to trade for top players, but is not willing to sacrifice significant organizational depth to make an acquisition. Fans wanted to know whether Zack Greinke could be pitching in Colorado, but O’Dowd chose not to comment specifically on the Royals ace. Here are some more noteworthy comments from the GM:

  • The Rockies are likely to have a similar payroll next year, but they could go a little higher than $85MM.
  • The team is “actively engaged” in talks with Jorge de la Rosa’s representatives. It won’t be long before the lefty can negotiate with all 30 teams.
  • The Rockies would like to lock Carlos Gonzalez up long-term, but O’Dowd pointed out that it’s a “two-way street.” Scott Boras represents Gonzalez, so it probably won't be easy for the Rockies to sign him to an extension. There's no rush though – Gonzalez is under team control through 2014.

Royals Claim Joaquin Arias

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The Royals claimed Joaquin Arias off of waivers from the Mets. New York acquired Arias from the Rangers in the Jeff Francoeur trade after the Rangers designated the infielder for assignment in August.

The Rangers acquired Arias in the 2004 Alfonso Soriano–Alex Rodriguez trade. He did have a solid 2008 campaign as a reserve for the Rangers, but this year he hit just .258/.280/.320 between the Rangers and Mets. The 26-year-old is not yet arbitration eligible.

Odds & Ends: Indians, Jeter, Ellis, Giants, Chen

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Happy 92nd birthday to one of baseball's all-time great pitchers, Bob Feller.  "Rapid Robert" piled up 266 wins and 2581 strikeouts in his Hall of Fame career.  In tribute to Feller, it's only appropriate that we start this batch of news items with something from Cleveland…

  • Infielder Drew Sutton is eligible for free agency after being outrighted to Triple-A by the Indians, reports Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.  The article notes that Andy Marte is expected to be removed from the Cleveland roster before the Rule 5 draft deadline.  Also from Hoynes (via Twitter), the Phillies claimed shortstop Carlos Rivero on waivers from the Tribe.  Rivero has a .676 OPS in 2156 minor league plate appearances, none above the Double-A level.
  • Hal Steinbrenner's recent comments about the Derek Jeter talks strike ESPN's Buster Olney "as if he's preparing the NYY fans for an ugly Jeter negotiation" (Twitter link).
  • Now that the A's have exercised Mark Ellis' option for 2011, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that the team will look into an extension for the veteran second baseman.
  • Buster Posey and Brian Wilson are the key reasons why the Giants have a chance to win another World Series, says Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com.  "How many teams can say, right now, they have zero interest in upgrading at the need-to-have positions of catcher or closer?", Morosi asks.  He cites just the Phillies and Twins, and even those two clubs come with question marks.
  • Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com thinks the Giants should sign Eric Chavez to a minor-league contract.  (Twitter link)
  • Bruce Chen wants a multiyear deal but the Royals are "unlikely" to make the left-hander such an offer, tweets The Kansas City Star's Bob Dutton.
  • It could be a bad omen for David Ortiz's $12.5MM option that another slugging DH (Vladimir Guerrero) had his $9MM option for 2011 declined by Texas earlier today, writes Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe.
  • Tampa Bay added Elliot Johnson to its 40-man roster, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.  Without the move, Johnson would've become a free agent.  Johnson had a breakout minor league campaign in Triple-A last season, posting a .319/.375/.475 line and winning the International League MVP award.
  • In response to a fan mailbag question about Adam Dunn, MLB.com's Bill Ladson warns about the dangers of the Nationals offering a long-term deal to a defensively-challenged slugger.  He points out how fans were also wishing the Nats signed Alfonso Soriano to an extension, but in hindsight Washington made the right move.
  • Nationals right-hander Collin Balester is looking for members to join his 'Movember' team.  Click here to sign up and join Balester in raising money and awareness in the fight against prostate cancer.

Odds & Ends: Crawford, Thome, Rowand, Greinke

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On this date in 1974, the Braves traded Hank Aaron to the Brewers for Dave May. Today, the Braves made some less memorable moves. Here are the day's links…

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Braves, Rangers, Rays, Haren

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The Phillies won their second World Series in franchise history two years ago today, beating the Rays in the first suspended game in series history. Game Five started on October 27th, 2008, and the two clubs played to a 2-2 tie through the first five and a half innings before rain forced the suspension. The game didn't resume until October 29th due to the weather, but when it finallly did the Phillies outscored Tampa 2-1 the rest of the way for a 4-3 final score.

There's no weather-related delay for these links; here's the best from around the web this week…

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Minor League Transactions: Henn, Dodgers, Mendoza

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All of the minor league moves that took place between October 15-25 have been helpfully catalogued by Baseball America's Matt Eddy. Here are a few of the notable names involved…

  • Left-hander Sean Henn re-signed with Toronto, a week after the Blue Jays granted him free agency.  Henn spent his 2010 season pitching for the Jays' Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas, posting a 4.73 ERA in 38 games (nine of them starts).
  • The Dodgers re-signed a number of players with major league experience, such as J.D. Closser, Tim Corcoran and Travis Denker.  Los Angeles also re-signed 11-year veteran Corey Smith, who has yet to get a cup of coffee in the bigs after being drafted 26th overall by Cleveland in the 2000 amateur draft.
  • Luis Mendoza re-signed with Kansas City.  The right-hander has an 8.43 ERA in 36 career major league appearances, 14 of which were starts, with the Rangers and Royals.
  • Houston re-signed Brian Esposito and Wladimir Sutil, both of whom were recently removed from the club's 40-man roster.  In addition, the Astros re-signed Oswaldo Navarro, who picked up 25 plate appearances for Houston last season.

Amateur Signing Bonuses: Royals

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Time to take our amateur signing bonus series to Kansas City…

  1. Eric Hosmer, 6MM (2008)
  2. Alex Gordon, $4MM (2005)
  3. Mike Moustakas, $4MM (2007)
  4. Luke Hochevar, $3.5MM (2006)
  5. Christian Colon, $2.75MM (2010)

You're looking at five of the Royals' last six first round picks, with the lone exception being 2009 pick Aaron Crow. He received a $1.5MM signing bonus as part of his $3MM major league deal. 

Hosmer, the third overall pick two years ago, was touted as one of the best high school bats in recent memory. He has lived up to that hype in the minors, crushing Single-A and Double-A pitchers to the tune of .338/.406/.571 with 20 homers as a 20-year-old in 586 plate appearances this season. 

Gordon was the best college player in the country when the Royals selected him second overall in 2005, but so far he hasn't delivered on the unrealistic and unfair George Brett comparisons. In parts of four seasons with the big league team, Gordon is a .244/.328/.405 hitter in 1,641 plate appearances, moving from the hot corner to the outfield in 2010. He's still just 26 though, plenty of time left for him to figure it out.

Drafted with the second overall pick in 2007, Moustakas holds the California high school record with 52 career homers. He's continued to mash in the minors, hitting .322/.369/.630 with 36 homers split between Double-A and Triple-A as a 21-year-old this season. Moustakas is Kansas City's third baseman of the future, and he and Hosmer represent prospects 1 and 1A in the game's best farm system.

The lone pitcher on the list, Hochevar was the first overall pick in the 2006 draft after spending a year in an independent league. The Dodgers selected him in the supplemental first round the year before, but after much drama the two sides were unable to work out a contract and he went back into the draft the next year. Hochevar has made 65 starts (and four relief appearances) for Kansas City over the last three-plus years, posting a 5.60 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 387.2 innings.

Colon was the fourth overall pick in this year's draft, and his pro debut consisted of a .278/.326/.380 batting line in 271 Single-A plate appearances. His coming out party is set for 2011. 

The Royals have the best farm system in baseball, and it's easy to see why. They spend the money needed to sign elite amateur talent, and that extends beyond the first round. Over the last three years, they've spent over $24MM on draft picks, the fifth most in baseball.

Cafardo On Greinke, Arroyo, Hall, Rays, Ortiz

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In today's column for the Boston Globe, Nick Cafardo examines the possibility of a Zack Greinke trade, noting that the Red Sox should at least inquire, given Allard Baird's history with the Royals and Greinke. Here are some of Cafardo's other notes:

  • One AL GM on Greinke vs. Cliff Lee: "There may not be anyone better than Lee right now, but how long is that going to last? …. If you’re looking to build around someone, you would roll the dice with Greinke and hope that what he showed this season is an off year and not a sign of things to come. You’d have to do due diligence, but the upside with Greinke is pretty good."
  • The Reds are attempting to work out an extension with Bronson Arroyo that would keep him in Cincinnati for a few years and slightly reduce his 2011 salary ($13MM). That way, the team could have some flexibility to add free agents this winter, and would lock up one of its best arms to a long-term contract.
  • Bill Hall will look to find a full-time job at one position this offseason, but "people around Hall" are suggesting the all-purpose utility role he played in Boston might be better suited for him.
  • The Rays are expected to field trade offers for B.J. Upton, Jason Bartlett, and maybe James Shields.
  • David Ortiz and the Red Sox have had some contract discussions, but there's no resolution yet on either an extension or Ortiz's 2011 option. Boston will have until three days after the World Series ends to decide on the $12.5MM option, last month, we heard the Sox were prepared to exercise it.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Ichiro, Garza, Greinke, Bell

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On this date two years ago, the Mariners named former Brewers vice president Jack Zduriencik as their new general manager. His defense-heavy approach resulted in a 24 win increase in his first season at the helm, though team scoring dropped by 31 runs. The Mariners won just 61 games and scored a mere 513 runs in 2010, the fewest by any team in the DH era. Unsurprisingly, there's already talk that Jack Z. is on the hot seat.

These links don't have to worry about being on the hot seat, they've made this week's edition of BBWI…

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