Royals Like Jeff Francoeur
The Royals 'like' Jeff Francoeur, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The Mets would like to trade Francoeur, and Royals GM Dayton Moore was in the Braves front office when the right-fielder made a name for himself in Atlanta, so the Mets and Royals could become trade partners. About $2MM remains on Francoeur's salary, and that's an obstacle for the Royals, according to Rosenthal.
The 26-year-old told Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork that he wouldn't mind getting traded. Even if he stays in New York for the rest of the season, Francoeur may get a change of scenery this winter, since he's a non-tender candidate. Francoeur has hit .247/.297/.380 this year, though he did post an .836 OPS after the Mets traded for him in 2009.
Royals Notes: DeJesus, Trades, Ankiel, Gordon
David DeJesus left tonight's Royals/Yankees game with a sprained right thumb, suffered after colliding with the wall in an attempt to catch a Derek Jeter fly ball. MLB.com's Tim Britton reports that DeJesus will miss the rest of the four-game series, and Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star tweets that DeJesus will see a hand specialist on Friday. "He might be out a while," Dutton warns.
With Kansas City's luck, would it be any surprise if the team's most attractive trading chip had to go on the DL in the week before the deadline? Here are some (possibly now moot) DeJesus trade chatter and other Royals-related items…
- Royals GM Dayton Moore appeared on Jim Bowden's XM 175 radio show today, and told Bowden that teams interested in DeJesus were looking at him to play left or right field, not center. (Twitter link)
- Bowden also tweeted Moore's comment that he's talking to 3-6 teams about trades but also "checking in" with others. The Royals are focusing on moving players in the last year of their contracts.
- One such player is Rick Ankiel, who has a $6MM mutual option for 2011 that K.C. is unlikely to pick up. Ankiel has been called up by the Royals in what Craig Calcaterra of NBCSports.com thinks is a showcase for a possible trade, but still a bad roster move given how Alex Gordon's Triple-A numbers make him far more worthy of a return to the majors.
- ESPN.com's Rob Neyer also comments on the Ankiel call-up, and notes that "suddenly the Royals have some of the best prospects in the minors." The issue, as Neyer explains, is that these prospects are blocked by underperforming veterans.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter) quotes a Royals source who says that K.C. would have to "win the deal" for the team to move DeJesus.
- Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News writes that the Giants "continue to keep tabs" on DeJesus, "but the asking price remained high." Baggarly says San Francisco has more interest in Washington's Adam Dunn and Josh Willingham.
- The Padres have been connected to DeJesus in trade rumors, but MLB.com's Corey Brock tweets that "not everyone in the Padres camp is sold on [Corey] Hart or DeJesus. Regardless of asking price."
Angels Acquire Alberto Callaspo
Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star is reporting (via Twitter) that infielder Alberto Callaspo has been dealt from the Royals to the Angels in exchange for right-hander Sean O'Sullivan and minor league left-hander Will Smith.
Callaspo has a modest .275/.308/.410 line in 373 plate appearances this season, though that still represents a big upgrade over the .411 OPS of Brandon Wood, who has seen most of the action for the Halos at third base. Callaspo was originally signed by the Angels as a free agent in 2001, and spent four years in the club's system before being dealt to Arizona for Jason Bulger in 2006. With Callaspo now in L.A., it potentially opens up a spot at third base for Mike Moustakas should the Royals want to give their top prospect a look over the last two months of the season. Moustakas has an OPS of 1.067 in 326 plate appearances at Double-A and Triple-A this season.
O'Sullivan, 22, has spent most of his year at Triple-A Salt Lake City, where he has posted a 4.76 ERA in 15 starts. A third-round pick in the 2005 amateur draft, O'Sullivan was the Angels' organizational pitcher of the year in 2007 and has a 5.15 ERA in 17 career major league games (11 of them starts).
The Royals rejected a previous offer for Callaspo two days ago that consisted of O'Sullivan and "a fringe prospect," so presumably K.C. was more attracted to Smith, a seventh-round pick in the 2008 amateur draft. Smith has a 4.24 ERA and a 3.47 K/BB ratio in 55 games (52 of them starts) in the Los Angeles minor league system, though his numbers have worsened this season as he's been elevated from high-A ball to Triple-A.
Olney On Hart, Bautista, Soria
The White Sox would love to trade for a big bat, but rival executives don’t see much depth in their system, according to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney. That may make it tough for GM Kenny Williams to create an enticing offer for Prince Fielder without including Gordon Beckham (that kind of offer just doesn’t seem likely). Here are the rest of Olney’s rumors:
- Lots of teams are interested in Corey Hart.
- Yesterday Olney reported that some executives thought Jose Bautista could earn an eight-figure salary through arbitration next year. We crunched the numbers and concluded that it would be a surprise to see him make much more than $6MM. Other officials contacted Olney to say that they would be “stunned” if the slugger made more than $5-6MM in 2011.
- Rival executives say Joakim Soria’s contract is so team-friendly that it would be difficult for the Royals to trade him. The team has affordable options for 2012, 2013 and 2014.
Giants Interested In Bautista, Hart, DeJesus
The Giants are interested in MLB home run leader Jose Bautista, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (via Twitter). ESPN.com's Buster Olney reported today that the Blue Jays are asking for elite young players in exchange for Bautista, but the Giants must be getting used to such demands, since they're eyeing other top hitters.
The Giants remain interested in Corey Hart and David DeJesus, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Adam Dunn and Jorge Cantu are also on the team's radar.
Cantu has drawn interest from the Rangers and Angels; the Nationals are reluctant to trade Dunn; the Brewers want Jonathan Sanchez or Madison Bumgarner for Hart; and the Royals have a steep asking price for DeJesus but teams are still interested. None of those bats will come cheap and the Giants know that better than anyone. They're presumably willing to give up talent to improve an offensive attack that ranks ninth in the NL.
The Braves, Padres, White Sox, Rays and Rangers are among the teams that could also be bidding for hitters, so the price could remain high until the July 31st deadline.
Crasnick On The Bullpen Market
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick does a nice job profiling the underwhelming market for relievers. The Red Sox, Tigers, Angels, Dodgers, Yankees, Rays, Phillies, and Twins could be looking to make an acquisition. A few tidbits…
- The Astros "will gladly talk about Brandon Lyon, but aren't so interested in discussing Matt Lindstrom." Lyon is still owed $12.48MM through 2012.
- Crasnick points out that Octavio Dotel is not a pitcher you want facing lefties. How about D.J. Carrasco? He's quietly having another decent year, he's cheap, and he's under team control through 2012. Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweeted yesterday that at least five teams have inquired.
- Crasnick finds "the consensus" to be that Mariners closer David Aardsma will be dealt before the deadline. The Tigers have been linked to the hard-throwing righty, whose ERA is up several runs this year despite his strikeout and walk rates remaining stable. Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times feels the Mariners would need their socks knocked off to move Aardsma.
- Chad Qualls, Clay Hensley, and most of the Brewers' and Royals' pens also merit consideration as trade bait.
Angels Focused On Alberto Callaspo
The Angels don’t have the resources to trade for a big-name slugger, so they have turned their attention to Alberto Callaspo. GM Tony Reagins is targeting the former Angels minor leaguer, according to Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
Saxon reports that the Angels “are believed to have offered” Sean O'Sullivan and a fringe prospect for Callaspo, only to have Royals GM Dayton Moore turn the offer down. Callaspo, 27, has a .276/.310/.413 line this season and could play second or (more likely) third for the Angels.
Reagins considered pursuing Adam Dunn, but backed off when he realized that other teams only have “marginal interest” in the pitchers the Angels have in the upper minors. Top prospect Mike Trout is not going anywhere, though teams do have interest in him.
Odds & Ends: Guthrie, Ross, Ranaudo
A year ago today, the Brewers acquired Felipe Lopez from the Diamondbacks for prospects Roque Mercedes and Cole Gillespie. Lopez raked after the trade, but was not offered arbitration by the Brewers. Gillespie and Mercedes ranked among Arizona's top 30 prospects heading into the season according to Baseball America, with the former now playing for the big league club. On to today's links…
- The Mets scouted Jeremy Guthrie's last start, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Guthrie could make for an interesting project, as one scout told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, "He should be better than he is."
- The relief trade market is "absolutely terrible," one talent evaluator told ESPN's Buster Olney (Twitter link).
- The Padres are not a fit for Marlins outfielder Cody Ross, according to Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse. The Padres prefer David DeJesus instead, tweets Dan Hayes of the North County Times.
- Astros owner Drayton McLane "seems paralyzed by indecision," writes Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle.
- SI's Jon Heyman ranks the 24 best available position players, starting with Prince Fielder.
- Red Sox draft pick Anthony Ranaudo is done pitching in the Cape Cod League, reported Brian Foley of The College Baseball Blog yesterday. The consensus among prospect gurus is that Ranaudo had nothing left to prove. An elbow injury and representation by Scott Boras caused Ranaudo to drop to the Sox at #39 in the June draft.
- The Mariners should aim to be competitive in 2012, writes Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner.
- Former Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi offered a few stories of near-deals on WEEI's The Big Show on Friday.
Rosenthal On Iannetta, Athletics, Bautista
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports kicks off his latest column with a look at Alex Rodriguez's $30MM worth of home run incentives. The chase isn't generating the buzz the Yankees anticipated when they re-signed A-Rod. On to Rosenthal's rumors…
- Talks are on again between the Red Sox and Rockies regarding catcher Chris Iannetta. The Rockies would want to improve their big league club with an in-season deal, so perhaps we'll hear heightened Iannetta buzz during the offseason if Miguel Olivo is retained.
- The Nationals do not seem to have chosen a course with Adam Dunn in terms of trading or extending him now.
- The Athletics have no intention of trading Coco Crisp or Mark Ellis, as both players have club options for 2011.
- Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli is "a frequent trade target of rival clubs," but the team likes having depth at the catcher position.
- As part of the Yunel Escobar–Alex Gonzalez talks, the Braves and Blue Jays discussed Jose Bautista. For now, the Braves still have time to evaluate Nate McLouth's recovery from a concussion. MLB.com's Mark Bowman wrote today that the Braves have considered David DeJesus, Cody Ross, Corey Hart, and Josh Willingham as potential trade targets.
Isringhausen To Audition For Reds
Appearing on KFNS 590 The Fan with Doug Vaughn this morning, free agent reliever Jason Isringhausen said he has a tentative plan to audition for the Reds tomorrow. Isringhausen added that he expects to hear back from the Cardinals this week and implied that his agent has been in contact with the Yankees, Rays, and Royals.
Isringhausen admitted it'd be weird to pitch for the Reds against the Cardinals this summer as the teams battle for the NL Central. Walt Jocketty's Reds already count Scott Rolen and Russ Springer as organization members. Izzy, of course, tallied 217 saves in seven seasons for the Cards from 2002-08. Isringhausen's last appearance in the Majors came in June of 2009 with the Rays, after which he went down for Tommy John surgery. He said he's currently throwing three times a week and working on a changeup. He expects he'd need a couple of weeks in the minors to get ready.