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Quick Hits: Oswalt, Dempster, Diamondbacks, Jones

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Sunday afternoon linkage..

  • ‪The Dodgers‬ inquired on Roy Oswalt at one point but don't appear involved now, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).  This morning we learned that Oswalt would still rather play for the Rangers or Cardinals than the Red Sox.
  • Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster hopes to stay in Chicago even though he knows that he could be trade bait, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.  "I want to be here and be part of what’s going to be a bright future," Dempster said.  "Sometimes you have to endure some of the tough times in the present to get to that. We’ll just see how it goes."
  • At certain points, Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers put out feelers with other teams to see what another catcher might cost in trade and didn't like what he heard, writes Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic.  Arizona realized what they have in catcher Miguel Montero and locked him up to a five-year extension over the weekend.
  • Orioles center fielder Adam Jones told reporters that securing a no-trade clause in his six-year, $85.5MM contract was important to him, tweets Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com.
  • The Nationals could be interested in bringing back Erik Komatsu, who was DFA'd by the Twins earlier today, tweets Amanda Comak of the Washington Times.

Minor Moves: Maine, Hernandez, Lindsay

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The latest minor moves…

  • The Yankees will sign right-hander John Maine to a minor league deal, Evan Drellich of MLB.com tweets. The Red Sox recently released the 31-year-old, who has missed considerable time with shoulder injuries. He posted a 7.43 ERA in 46 innings with the Rockies' top affiliate in 2011 before signing with the Red Sox this January.
  • The Cubs signed infielder Diory Hernandez, Matt Eddy of Baseball America tweets. The Astros had released Hernandez earlier in the week.
  • The Diamondbacks signed right-hander Gaby Hernandez from the independent Frontier League, Eddy tweets. The 26-year-old pitched at Triple-A for the Diamondbacks and White Sox last year.
  • The Dodgers released right-hander Shane Lindsay, Eddy tweets. The reliever had walked more than one batter per inning at Triple-A this year.

Minor Moves: Gathright, Dodgers, Phillips, Benitez

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The latest minor moves from around MLB…

  • The Reds have signed Joey Gathright to a minor league deal according to the CBSSports.com transactions page. The 31-year-old outfielder was hitting .240/.348/.365 in an independent league. He appeared in seven games for the Red Sox last season.
  • The Dodgers announced that they have signed or are in the process of signing more than 20 Latin American players. The group includes at least 10 position players and 10 pitchers and reflects a new approach to the international market from the one adopted under the ownership of Frank McCourt. “With our renewed resources in that area and the upcoming first-year player draft next month, we look forward to adding many talented young players to the Dodger family,” GM Ned Colletti said.
  • The Blue Jays acquired catcher Paul Phillips from the Brewers for cash, according to Mike Vassallo of the Brewers (on Twitter). Phillips had been playing at Triple-A Nashville and owns a .269/.317/.369 batting line in 13 minor league seasons.
  • The Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League signed former MLB closer Armando Benitez, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. The 39-year-old has 289 career saves in 15 MLB seasons. He last appeared in the Major Leagues with the 2008 Blue Jays.

Los Angeles Notes: Angels, Hunter, Ethier

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Shawn Green of the Dodgers hit four home runs in one game on this date in 2002. Green picked up 19 total bases against the Brewers in Milwaukee, setting an MLB record. Here are the latest links from Los Angeles:

  • Though the Angels have not been required to pay Torii Hunter during his absence, he is receiving his full salary, a person familiar with the situation told Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.  Assuming Hunter returns for Monday night's game against the Yankees, he will have been away for two weeks which works out to $1.5MM for that span with his $18MM salary.
  • Andre Ethier said he doesn’t plan to set a deadline for extension talks with the Dodgers, Bill Shaikin of the LA Times writes. Ethier, who is on track to hit free agency this coming offseason, said he doesn’t expect to put extension talks on hold at any point this season. "We'll take a look at whatever they bring to us," Ethier said. "I don't look at it any other way. I'm not going to sit here and play what-ifs and what-nots."
  • Manager Mike Scioscia said Hunter will "likely" re-join the Angels early next week, Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times tweets. The Angels placed Hunter on the restricted list due to personal reasons last week.

Quick Hits: Blue Jays, Lind, Ellis, Indians, Damon

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Sunday night linkage..

  • Blue Jays manager John Farrell would not comment on last night's news that Adam Lind was placed on outright waivers and spoke as though the slugger will remain with the organization, writes Chris Toman of MLB.com.  The skipper believes that Lind can find his way back to Toronto with a "controlled aggressiveness" at the plate.
  • The Indians plan to stick by Johnny Damon despite his struggles so far with the team, writes MLB.com's Justin Albers.  Damon has a clause in his contract which would allow him to be released if he isn't getting enough playing time or isn't a good fit for the team.
  • Offseason acquisition Mark Ellis has been a tremendous clubhouse influence and will be sorely missed by the Dodgers after undergoing emergency surgery on Saturday, writes Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times.  Had the surgery been put off for six or seven hours, the veteran could have potentially lost his left leg, Dilbeck writes.

Colletti Expects To Have Flexibility At Deadline

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The Dodgers have the best record in baseball at 25-13 and they currently lead the NL West by six games over the Giants. GM Ned Colletti told Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times that if he needs to make a move to improve his club at the trade deadline, he expects to have the financial flexibility to do so.

"If we have a chance to improve our club, [ownership is] open-minded to doing it and everything that it entails," said the GM.

Guggenheim Baseball Management's first major expenditure could involve retaining one of their own, however. Colletti acknowledged that he's spoken to the ownership about parameters for an Andre Ethier contract extension, and in fact the two sides have been talking since last month.

"I'm not going to get into where it is, but we've discussed it," he said.

Los Angeles has already picked up Bobby Abreu on the cheap, but Colletti could look for reinforcements at first base, third base, and as always, on the mound. Although the GM acknowledged that they will have to deal with Dee Gordon's growing pains – .207/.247/.264 this year – the club could potentially look for an upgrade at shortstop as well.

Olney On Tigers, Cardinals, Oswalt

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MLB executives are looking ahead to the summer trade deadline and, according to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney, there’s an expectation that certain teams will be particularly aggressive in trade talks this July. Here are the details…

  • Executives expect the Tigers, Dodgers and Cardinals to be among the most aggressive teams this summer. As one person pointed out, the Tigers figure to be aggressive after committing $214MM to Prince Fielder. Detroit could use pitching help or could consider trading for a second baseman or left fielder.
  • Rival GMs say the Cardinals will be active when a need emerges.
  • Some people with the Phillies expected Roy Oswalt to eventually find his way back to Philadelphia, Olney tweets. The Phillies placed Vance Worley on the disabled list today, which could create an opening for Oswalt. However, the Phillies haven’t determined whether to be buyers or sellers this summer.

Dodgers Designate Trent Oeltjen For Assignment

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The Dodgers have designated outfielder Trent Oeltjen for assignment, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter).  The club also promoted utility man Elian Herrera from Triple-A and placed Juan Uribe on the disabled list.

Oeltjen, 29, appeared in 61 games for the Dodgers in 2011.  The Australian owns a slash line of .301/.360/.473 across parts of six Triple-A seasons with the Twins, D'Backs, Brewers, and Dodgers.

Quick Hits: Quentin, Nationals, Hamilton, Phillies

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This morning, the Nationals learned that catcher Wilson Ramos will miss most, if not all, of the 2012 season.  It was an unfortunate piece of news for the club, but it did create an opportunity for 23-year-old catcher Sandy Leon, who was promoted to support Jesus Flores behind the plate.  When Leon found out, he called his parents to let them know that he was Washington-bound, tweets Bill Ladson of MLB.com.  The catcher, who was previously with the club's Double-A affiliate, said it was the best Mother's Day gift that he could possibly give to his mom.  Here are some links from around baseball..

  • The San Diego Union-Tribune's Sharon Annie Heilbrunn conducted a Q&A with Carlos Quentin. The new Padres outfielder discussed what it was like to be traded to his hometown team and how he's grown through the trades he's been a part of.
  • As of right now, there is no talk of the Nationals bringing Ivan Rodriguez in as the backup catcher, according to Bill Ladson of MLB.com (via Twitter).  The 40-year-old announced his retirement from baseball last month.
  • Some believe that the Rangers' knowledge about Hamilton's history would make them less likely to sign him than other clubs, but Buster Olney of ESPN.com believes that it makes them more likely to sign him.  The Rangers know the ins-and-outs of the outfielder's past and have an idea of how to best support him.
  • Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer wants to see Phillies General Manager Ruben Amaro channel Pat Gillick in order to turn things around.
  • Steven Cohen, hedge-fund billionaire and runner-up in the bidding for the Dodgers, is thought to be one of at least five potential buyers scoping out the Padres' financial data, writes Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times.  The O'Malley family is also interested in buying the club.

Cafardo On Red Sox, Youkilis, Beckett, Nationals

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In today’s column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders what is at the root of the Red Sox’s pitching woes.  Some around baseball feel that the club’s hurlers are missing catcher Jason Varitek.  “He did a lot for that team in terms of getting the staff ready for each team,’’ said an American League GM. “They depended on him like no team depended on a catcher anywhere in baseball, with the possible exception of St. Louis, where Yadier Molina seems to have that effect.’’  Here’s more from Cafardo..

  • An AL GM told Cafardo that there could be a market for embattled Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett, but the club would have to be willing to eat more than half of his contract.  Beckett will earn $15.75MM each year through 2014.
  • If Red Sox Kevin Youkilis can show he’s healthy, there’s a strong third base market out there for Boston. A National League special assignment scout told Cafardo that the Giants and Phillies are looking while the Rays could factor in, even though they say they aren’t in search of an answer at third base.
  • The Nationals would like to deal left-hander John Lannan but teams appear more interested in Chien Ming-Wang. The Nationals also have a good thing going and have created competition on their staff, as Wang and Lannan could push the other five. 
  • One American League GM doesn’t see the Phillies parting with Cole Hamels via trade.  “The [Blue] Jays are looking to do something big,” said an American League GM. “I just don’t see the Phillies bailing out on Hamels. They can still win it.“
  • The Rangers probably won’t let Josh Hamilton leave in free agency, but if he does look elsewhere, the Dodgers could be a fit for him with their new-found dollars.  Signing Hamilton would also allow the club to let Andre Ethier head into the market.
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