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Cafardo On Lowe, Blue Jays, Ross, Pirates, Norris

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A few notes from Nick Cafardo's latest column in the Boston Globe:

  • Free agent Derek Lowe seems to have retired, telling Cafardo that he asked agent Scott Boras not to look for opportunties for him. Lowe pitched in nine games for the Rangers this year before being released in late May.
  • The Blue Jays' situation is "a nightmare," Cafardo says, noting that some in the organization don't know whether GM Alex Anthopoulos will stick with the team he has. Toronto is 27-35 after bringing in R.A. Dickey, Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle and others last offseason.
  • Catcher David Ross says the Rays, Yankees and Rangers pursued him, and the Pirates would have been interested in him if they hadn't signed Russell Martin instead. Ross signed a two-year, $6.2MM contract with the Red Sox in the offseason.
  • The Pirates, whose rotation depth has been damaged by injuries to Wandy Rodriguez, Jeanmar Gomez, James McDonald, Jeff Karstens, Kyle McPherson and Phil Irwin, "would now have to be interested in" Astros pitcher Bud Norris, Cafardo says. Cafardo also notes that talent evaluators wonder how Norris, a competitive player currently pitching for a last-place team, will do if placed on a competitive team.
  • It's unclear what the Tigers would do if they lost Jhonny Peralta to a suspension. Peralta has been connected to the Biogenesis scandal, and his production at shortstop would be tough to replace internally or in the trade market, Cafardo notes.
  • The Dodgers have already received calls about Andre Ethier's trade availability, Cafardo says.

Rosenthal On Roenicke, Freese, Ethier, Mets

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Here are some notes from a new video by FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal …

  • Despite the Brewers' 23-37 record, manager Ron Roenicke does not appear to be in immediate danger, Rosenthal says. The Brewers have struggled with injuries, and Rosenthal suggests that Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio and GM Doug Melvin don't like firing managers during the season.
  • Second baseman Matt Carpenter of the Cardinals is emerging as a top hitter for the Cardinals, who have another second baseman, Kolten Wong, waiting in the wings. That leads Rosenthal to wonder about the possiblity that the Cardinals could deal David Freese in the offseason and move Carpenter to third. Freese will make $3.15MM this season, and will almost certainly receive a raise in arbitration in the offseason.
  • The Mets would make sense as a destination for Andre Ethier of the Dodgers, Rosenthal says. With Johan Santana, Jason Bay and Frank Francisco coming off the books, the Mets could have the financial flexibility to deal for Ethier and a chunk of the four years and $71.5MM that will be left on his contract by the time this offseason rolls around.

Stark On Miguel Cabrera, Kershaw, Nolasco, Stanton

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Jayson Stark's latest Rumblings & Grumblings column for ESPN came out yesterday; here are some highlights.

  • There have been enough informal conversations between Miguel Cabrera and the Tigers on a contract extension that both sides expect a deal to get done, a friend of the player tells Stark.  The tricky part is that a new deal would begin with the 2016 season, at which point Cabrera will be 33.  It seems likely that Cabrera would need an average annual value in the $30MM range, but Stark's sources picture anywhere from three to five additional years.
  • Some of Stark's sources don't consider Yankees second baseman and #1 2014 free agent Robinson Cano the type of player to build a team around.  One exec, though, told Stark, "I can't imagine him leaving."
  • Stark hears Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw seeks a ten-year deal, which would be the first for a pitcher since Wayne Garland signed a ten-year, $2.3MM deal in 1977 (those were different times).  One exec can't possibly see Kershaw leaving L.A., and could picture $200-210MM over seven years.  Even that would be well beyond C.C. Sabathia's record seven-year, $161MM deal, which was signed on the open market with the Yankees after the '08 season and included an opt-out clause.  I feel that Kershaw's agents at Excel Sports Management have to score an opt-out in any new deal, especially with the Dodgers giving them to Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu.
  • One exec suggests the Angels offer Mike Trout the Buster Posey deal, which amounted to eight years and $159MM in new money.  Stark says "folks around the game" do not see Trout signing, however.
  • The Orioles and Yankees are "leading the parade of teams that already have interest" in Miami's Ricky Nolasco.  The 30-year-old is easily the highest-paid Marlin, and should have about $7.7MM remaining on his contract at the trade deadline.  Nolasco has a 3.61 ERA in 82 1/3 innings, and sports his best strikeout rate since 2010.
  • Would anyone sign Alex Rodriguez, if the Yankees end up releasing him?  "No chance," says one executive.
  • The Marlins have shown no interest in dealing right fielder Giancarlo Stanton midseason, say clubs that have inquired, though Stark thinks Marcell Ozuna's emergence could push them toward trading Stanton this winter.  Stanton should return from a hamstring injury next week.  

Dodgers To Sign Tom Windle

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The Dodgers have agreed to terms with second-round pick Tom Windle, and the left-handed pitcher will sign for the slot value of $986,500, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (Twitter links). Windle is advised by SFX.

Windle was selected 56th overall out of the University of Minnesota. He ranked No. 47 on Baseball America's Top 500 list, No. 60 on Keith Law's Top 100 and No. 32 on Jonathan Mayo's Top 100. Windle's three-pitch mix features a fastball in the 93-94 mph range as well as a slider and a changeup.

Draft Links: Day One Winners, Appel, Dodgers, M’s

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Yesterday was the first day of Major League Baseball's amateur draft, and the Astros kicked things off by selecting Houston native Mark Appel with the No. 1 overall pick. MLBTR covered the draft extensively last night; Zach Links kept track of the first round results as well as the results from the first competitive balance round, and I hosted a draft chat that ran for nearly four hours, covering the entirety of the first round. Here's more on the first day of the draft…

  • ESPN's Keith Law (Insider required and recommended for Law's draft work) lists the Rays' selection of Ryne Stanek at No. 29 atop his list of picks he "loves" from yesterday's selections. He also lists his top 10 remaining talents, headlined by high school right-hander Kyle Serrano.
  • Appel gives the Astros a "native son to build the organization around," writes Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle. Appel told Smith that being selected by the Astros was "incredibly special" and "very exciting." He recalls the opening of Minute Maid Park as a child in 2000, and adds that most of his family still lives in Houston. GM Jeff Luhnow said Appel won't be rushed to the Majors, and Smith adds that late 2014 or early 2015 are realistic goals for his MLB debut.
  • Dodgers vice president of scouting Logan White told reporters, including MLB.com's Ken Gurnick, that the team views top picks Chris Anderson (Jacksonville University) and Tom Windle (University of Minnesota) as starters (Twitter link). The pair will not be rushed to the Majors as relievers like Paco Rodriguez was in 2012.
  • ESPN's Jerry Crasnick looks at some of the stories from day one of the draft, including the friendly rivalries between Georgia outfielders Clint Frazier and Austin Meadows and California infielders Dominic Smith and J.P. Crawford. "[Crawford is] just a great guy and a great person," Smith told Crasnick. "We're pretty tight. He's like my baseball brother."
  • Mariners scouting director Tom McNamara says that he doesn't prefer any specific type of player, but Dave Cameron of the U.S.S. Mariner points out that he leans toward polished college players. In four of his five drafts as scouting director McNamara has chosen Dustin Ackley, Danny Hultzen, Mike Zunino and now D.J. Peterson — all of whom were regarded as "safe bets."

Dodgers Interested In Cuban Right-Hander Gonzalez

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10:24pm: The Rangers, Red Sox, and Cubs are also interested in Gonzalez, a source tells Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com (via Twitter).  As it stands, there are seven teams in total that are in on the right-hander.

1:48pm: The Dodgers are one of the teams interested in Cuban right-hander Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez, Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times reports.  Gonzalez, who formerly pitched for Cuba's national team, defected earlier this year and is now living in Mexico.  At age 26, he is old enough to be signed without his salary counting towards a team's international spending cap.

Gonzalez "is said to be 6-foot-3 with a fastball in the 90s, a changeup, forkball and curveball" and at least one Major League scout thinks the righty could reach the Majors this season.  Gonzalez hasn't pitched much in Cuba over the last two seasons as he was suspended by the country's top league for a previous attempt to escape.

Gonzalez is expected to be declared eligible by MLB this week and will become a free agent upon clearance by the U.S. Treasury Department.  A showcase for scouts is tentatively scheduled for around June 20, a source tells Hernandez.

Mets Notes: Ethier, Davis, Murphy, Feliciano

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Acquiring Andre Ethier "would be a solid gamble" for the Mets, Metsblog.com's Matthew Cerrone opines.  Ethier could be forced out of the Dodgers outfield by Yasiel Puig and Scott Van Slyke, making him expendable at a discount price since it is believed the Dodgers would have to absorb at least half of the roughly $80MM remaining on Ethier's contract.  The Mets would be paying around $10MM per season to a player Cerrone sees as "a nice compliment to Lucas Duda in left field," but it would be the first step in the Mets upgrading their outfield now and this winter in the free agent market.

Here's some more on the Amazins from ESPN New York's Adam Rubin, who covered a number of topics during a live chat with readers today…

  • Ike Davis could be a trade candidate if the Mets thought he wouldn't be worth his growing salary over his arbitration years.  A Rubin source on another team projects Davis to earn $6.1MM in his second year of arbitration eligibility this winter, "assuming his production normalizes somewhat the rest of the way."  This could be a big if, as Davis has managed only a .509 OPS through 201 PA this season.  Davis signed a one-year, $3.125MM deal last winter in his first taste of arb-eligibility.
  • Rubin isn't sure if the Mets see Daniel Murphy as an extension candidate since "a New York team doesn't normally have to be consumed with locking up a player's arbitration years."  Murphy signed a one-year, $2.925MM deal last winter and is arbitration-eligible for the second time this winter.  The second baseman has been a bright spot for the Mets this season, hitting .290/.323/.439 and tying for the NL lead with 19 doubles. 
  • Pedro Feliciano has been on the minor league disabled list since May 9 with a "very serious" type of food poisoning that "can affect the person off and on for years."  The southpaw hasn't pitched in the Majors since 2010 after suffering a variety of arm injuries as a member of the Yankees in 2011-12.  Feliciano signed a minor league deal with the Mets in January.

Dodgers Notes: Beckett, Elbert, Draft, McCourt

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The Dodgers managed to avoid being no-hit last night by Jason Marquis but that was about the only bright spot of a 6-2 loss to the Padres.  Skip Schumaker broke up Marquis' no-hit bid with a two-out double in the sixth inning.  It was almost exactly a year ago that the Dodgers were last held hitless, when six Mariners pitchers combined for the unique no-hitter on June 8, 2012.

Here's the latest from Chavez Ravine…

  • Josh Beckett is confident that he will pitch again, though the right-hander isn't sure if he will have to undergo season-ending surgery, Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times reports.  Beckett is battling numbness in his pitching hand and has already been shut down for the next four weeks.  Beckett had been thinking about retirement in the wake of the injury, though he felt more optimistic since other pitchers had returned from similar issues.
  • Left-hander Scott Elbert will undergo Tommy John surgery, the team announced.  Elbert underwent elbow operations in September and January and appeared in eight minor league games this season as he attempted to rehabiliate his arm.  A first round pick (17th overall) in the 2004 draft, Elbert posted a 2.32 ERA, 8.6 K/9 and 2.33 K/BB rate over 66 relief innings in 2011-12.
  • The Dodgers are likely to draft a pitcher with their first round selection (18th overall) in order to help restock their farm system after dealing several young arms over the past year, MLB.com's Ken Gurnick reports.  "I feel better about our current depth than one might suspect, but I always try to get pitching and that's not going to change. We'll still try to get the highest-ceiling guy," said Logan White, Dodgers VP of amateur scouting.
  • A Los Angeles judge has ordered the Dodgers ownership group to disclose details of its financial relationship with former owner Frank McCourt, The Associated Press reports.  The Dodgers were looking to keep their connections to McCourt private as public disclosure could allegedly harm plans to build another stadium (possibly for an NFL team) on the land around Dodger Stadium, which McCourt and the Guggenheim group co-owns.

Dodgers Notes: Puig, Beckett, McCourt

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Yasiel Puig's legend grew last night after he smashed a pair of homers and knocked in five runs as part of a three-hit effort in his second big league game. That came on the heels of a game-ending outfield assist which capped a two-hit performance in his MLB debut. Here's more on the Cuban sensation and his Dodgers teammates…

  • One international scouting director recently quipped to MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez that he's signed players that can do everything Puig does for a lot less than $40MM (Twitter link).
  • A nerve specialist diagnosed Josh Beckett with nerve irritation that is affecting his arm and hand, tweets Scott Miller of CBS Sports. Beckett has been shut down and will not throw for four weeks. Last week, Beckett admitted that retirement has crossed his mind in the wake of the numbness in his pitching hand.
  • Guggenheim Baseball Management, the entity which owns the Dodgers, is lobbying to keep the details of its financial relationship with former owner Frank McCourt private, writes Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times. The belief is that details of the relationship could harm the chances of getting other sports teams to play on the land surrounding Dodger Stadium. That area has long been a preferred location for an NFL stadium, writes Shaikin. He adds that the new management's preference is to concentrate on improving the Dodgers and Dodger Stadium before turning their attention to the development of the surrounding land.

Dodgers Notes: Ethier, Puig, Beckett

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It was on this day in 1964 that Sandy Koufax threw the third no-hitter of his legendary career, blanking the Phillies in a 3-0 result.  A fourth-inning walk to Dick Allen was the only blemish on Koufax's record in the game, though that was quickly remedied when Allen was caught stealing.  Koufax finished his career with four no-hit games, second only to Nolan Ryan's seven no-nos in baseball history.

Here's the latest on the modern-day Dodgers… 

  • Three rival general managers tell CBS Sports' Jon Heyman that the Dodgers would have to eat at least half of Andre Ethier's contract in order to trade the outfielder, or take on a bad contract in return.  Ethier is a little over two months into a five-year, $85MM contract extension with the team but he has struggled this season and fallen out of favor with manager Don Mattingly.
  • As reported in January, the Mariners contacted the Dodgers about Ethier though "that never got past a couple-minutes chat," according to Heyman.
  • Yasiel Puig made an impressive Major League debut on Monday but he could've debuted on Opening Day had the Dodgers' outfield not already been full, GM Ned Colletti tells Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times.  Colletti didn't mind sending Puig to the minors since he felt the 22-year-old still needed seasoning after receiving just 95 minor league PAs in 2012 and spending more than a year away from organized ball.  “It really came down to him having to play the game,” Colletti said. “He needed repetition, game repetition, situational repetition.”
  • Josh Beckett is battling "some kind of nerve thing" but won't require surgery, Mattingly tells reporters.  Beckett's possible return didn't "feel like it's around the corner," according to the Dodgers manager (links are to Dylan Hernandez's Twitter account).  Beckett has battled numbness in his pitching hand and was considering retirement due to the problem.
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