Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Dodgers Rumors

LSU Coach Discusses Zach Lee

By | at

Louisiana State head football coach Les Miles seems to think the Dodgers will not be signing their first-round pick Zach Lee this year.  In a statement on the LSU football website, Miles said:

"Zach wants to come to LSU, get a degree and play football and baseball for the Tigers.  I met with Zach and his parents today and I think that they are looking at LSU as a great opportunity both academically and athletically.  Zach is an outstanding student and he's excited about the college experience."

Lee begins summer classes today, though the Dodgers technically have until the August 16th deadline to sign him.  Dodgers assistant GM Logan White told Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times on Monday that he's cautiously optimistic about signing Lee and the team did not purposely select an unsignable player to save money.  ESPN's Keith Law wrote recently that the "rumor of the day had the kid saying $6 million wouldn't get him signed."

Keith Law’s First-Day Draft Reactions

By | at

ESPN's Keith Law found yesterday's first round insane.  To fully understand why you should join ESPN Insider and read his piece, which I heartily recommend.  A few highlights:

  • Law found it interesting that the Brewers snagged high school righty Dylan Covey at #14, because they are a team in need of more immediate rotation help.  GM Doug Melvin explained to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that scouting director Bruce Seid deserves credit for not taking the easy path in the form of a college hurler.  On yesterday's conference call, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith learned that Covey feels there's a "really good chance" he'll sign rather than attend the University of San Diego.
  • Law felt that the Reds took the best player available at #12 in college catcher Yasmani Grandal, and having strong catching depth in the system will not be a bad thing.
  • The Cardinals drew praise for landing college third baseman Zack Cox, who surprisingly fell to #25.
  • The Red Sox and Angels' many first-round picks were lauded by Law.  College righty Anthony Ranaudo was an intriguing choice by the Red Sox.  The Boras client was considered one of the draft's top talents before suffering a stress reaction in his forearm.  WEEI's Alex Speier has more on Boston's three picks.
  • The biggest surprise of the draft had to be the Cubs taking college righty Hayden Simpson at #16, who was not considered a first rounder by most draft gurus.  Cubs scouting director Tim Wilken told Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune he had it confirmed that other clubs would've taken Simpson before the Cubs picked again at #65.  The Yankees' selection of high school shortstop Cito Culver at #32 was another surprise.
  • The Dodgers took a very tough sign in high school pitcher Zach Lee, who has a commitment to play football at LSU.  Dodgers assistant GM Logan White insisted to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times that the team did not purposely take an unsignable player to save money.

Draft Links: Ruffin, Pomeranz, Grandal, Wolters

By | at

The draft is underway, and we've got another round of links.

  • Mayo hears that the Indians will take Drew Pomeranz and the D'Backs will take Barret Loux (Twitter link).
  • Heyman hears that the Nationals will take Harper, the Pirates will take Jameson Taillon and the O's will take Manny Machado (Twitter link).
  • The White Sox could take Grandal if he's available when they select 13th overall, according to MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo (via Twitter).
  • In what would be a surprising move, the Reds appear ready to take Chance Ruffin 12th overall, according to Law.
  • Law hears that Pomeranz is sliding and that teams are having "uh-oh" moments because they didn't discuss him enough (Twitter links).
  • Padres executive Paul DePodesta explains that the draft has slowed down over the years. That gives teams the chance to breathe a little more easily between selections.
  • An Orioles official told Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun that the team will likely pick Manny Machado third overall.
  • It looks like the D'Backs will take a college pitcher with their first round pick, but Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic hears they aren't likely to take lefty Drew Pomeranz.
  • The Indians have topped the Royals' predraft offer of $2.9MM to Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal, reports Frankie Piliere of AOL Fanhouse.  Piliere still believes the Royals will take Grandal at #4, but the original agreement is off.  ESPN's Keith Law, meanwhile, heard that the Royals and Grandal had not even discussed money as of Saturday evening.  Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star tweets that the Royals prefer Grandal but are "taking a hard look" at Florida Gulf Coast lefty Chris Sale.  Law has the Royals taking Sale, in a recent chat comment. 
  • Baseball Prospectus' Kevin Goldstein tweets that high school infielder Tony Wolters is in play for the Angels, Blue Jays, and Braves in the late first round or the first compensation round.  Piliere sees the Braves at #35.
  • Goldstein tweets that high school outfielder Drew Vettleson looks like a potential first-round pick, maybe to the Dodgers at #28 (matching the prediction of Baseball America's Jim Callis).  Law has heard Vettleson as a possibility for the Dodgers, Rays, and Yankees.
  • FanGraphs' David Cameron explains that Bryce Harper doesn't necessarily have more value as a catcher than an outfielder.
  • Cameron's colleague Bryan Smith looks at recent draft picks that were questioned at the time they were made.
  • Alex Speier of WEEI outlines Boston's shift toward drafting for impact players starting in '06.
  • SI's Jon Heyman names the biggest booms and busts in draft history. 

Draft Links: Machado, Blue Jays, Dodgers

By | at

The first round of the MLB draft kicks off at 6pm CST today.  Links to start you off, with new ones being added to the bottom of the post:

Odds & Ends: Green, Gonzalez, Berkman, Stanton

By | at

Links for Saturday….

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Lowell, Padres, Sale, Buehrle

By | at

On this date last season, Randy Johnson threw six innings of one run ball to beat the Nationals and earn his 300th career victory. The Big Unit called it career in January with 303 career wins despite having just 64 on his 30th birthday. His 4,875 strikeouts are the second most all time, though his 10.61 career K/9 is the best mark in history.

The four year, $53.4MM deal the Diamondbacks gave Johnson prior to the 1999 season might be the greatest free agent signing of all time. All he gave them in return was 1030 innings, 81 wins, 1,417 strikeouts, four Cy Young Awards and a World Championship. I'd call that one a win.

Here are a few links from around the world wide netweb…

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

Several Teams Interested In Luis Heredia

By | at

Seven teams are interested in Mexican right-hander Luis Heredia, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The 6'4'' teenager is part of this year's July 2 class, so he will be able to sign exactly one month from today if the Mexican team that controls Heredia's rights makes him available. The Pirates, Yankees, Dodgers, Giants, Blue Jays, Rangers and Mariners are interested, but acquiring the 15-year-old pitcher could cost as much as $2MM.

The Pirates have pursued international free agents aggressively under GM Neal Huntington. The club nearly signed Miguel Sano last summer, before the Dominican signed with the Twins. Alex Anthopoulos has also pursued international talent aggressively since taking over as Blue Jays GM last fall.

2006 Draft Throwdown

By | at

There is little that is more dismaying than looking back at old draft lists, with the benefit of hindsight, and seeing which players your favorite team missed out on while settling for players who either failed to make much of an impact, or who never even reached the major leagues. Think Reggie Jackson and Steve Chilcott, Robin Yount and David Clyde, Dwight Gooden and Bryan Oelkers. Often, this is driven less by player talent, and more by positional need.

But even more fascinating is to look at some recent draft picks and some of their immediate counterparts, to see how teams fared picking players, one over another, who played the same position. In other words, straight-up scouting choices led to these decisions. Let's take a look at how those worked out in 2006.

  • LHP Andrew Miller (Tigers) vs. Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers): This one is more complicated than it might seem at first. Clearly, Miller, drafted sixth overall, has not been nearly as effective as Kershaw, drafted seventh overall. Miller has a 5.50 ERA in 261 2/3 major league innings, and is currently having trouble throwing strikes in the minor leagues, with an astonishing 30 walks in 28 innings. Kershaw has a 3.28 ERA in 342 major league innings, and shows signs of being a good deal better than that moving forward. But Miller isn't with the Tigers; Detroit dealt him in the move that brought Miguel Cabrera to Detroit. Still, advantage has to go to Kershaw on this one, and the Dodgers as well.
  • RHP Tim Lincecum (Giants) vs. Max Scherzer (Diamondbacks): Is this one about to turn? Obviously, as of this date, Lincecum, drafted tenth, has worked out as well as one could hope any draft pick could, while Scherzer, drafted eleventh, is still a work-in-progress who has already been traded once. But Lincecum has had uncharacteristic struggles with his control lately, even though his season ERA (3.14) and strikeout rate (10.4/9 innings) are not far off of his career marks. And Scherzer is coming off of a 14-strikeout performance, though four walks meant that he did so in just 5 2/3 innings. For now, though, a big edge to Lincecum, the two-time Cy Young Award winner.
  • OF Tyler Colvin (Cubs) vs. Travis Snider (Blue Jays): Based on 2010 season line alone, this battle of the lefty-hitting outfielders would have to go to Colvin, drafted thirteenth, over Snider, drafted fourteenth. After all, Colvin has an OPS of .991 in 83 plate appearances this season, while Snider's stands at .806. But overall, it seems clear that the Blue Jays did better here. Snider came out of high school, while Colvin was a collegiate player. Yet Snider posted significantly better offensive numbers than Colvin as each player climbed their respective system ladders- a .916 to .785 edge in minor league OPS. Snider was holding down a regular job at age 22 before he hit the DL, while Colvin is struggling for a regular spot as his 25th birthday approaches. This one is debatable, but the smart money gives Toronto and Snider the edge.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Manny Ramirez

By | at

It's never just about the numbers with Manny Ramirez. Whether it's dreadlocks, PED suspensions or oddly-timed high fives, the Dodgers' left fielder stands out. When Manny becomes a free agent after the season, numbers will only tell part of his story, but agent Scott Boras is probably hoping for a little more production in the season's final four months.

It's not that Manny has played poorly. His .289/.395/.443 line is considerably better than average, though his defense has been underwhelming once again. This year has fallen short of the monster seasons we're used to seeing from Manny, but that .395 on base percentage would be 18th-best in the majors if he had enough plate appearances to qualify. Despite his injury history, Nick Johnson (who doesn't have Manny's power) turned a high OBP into a 5.75MM guarantee last winter.

That's a lot less than the $20MM Manny will pocket this season, but let's face it: 38-year-olds who don't play defense aren't going to command $20MM contracts in this market. Boras can point to Manny's drawing power (he could reach 600 homers next year), his on-base skills and his power and that would presumably be enough to develop interest in Ramirez.

If it were as simple as comparing Manny to other DH-types like Johnson, Hideki Matsui and Vladimir Guerrero, Ramirez would appear to be in line for a modest one-year deal, perhaps in the $7-8MM range. But if we've learned anything about Manny, it's that he's tough to predict. Does he still want to play five more years? Does he want to return to Cleveland? Is this really his last season in a Dodgers uniform? Until those questions are answered, predicting the market for Manny isn't much easier than predicting his next quirky move.

Dodgers Designate Nick Green For Assignment

By | at

Nick Green has been designated for assignment by the Dodgers, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.

The Dodgers signed Green to a minor league deal in January, hoping he could back up Rafael Furcal at shortstop. However, even when Furcal was on the disabled list, Green received limited playing time. The success of Jamey Carroll (.380 OBP) and Furcal's return to the lineup made the ex-Red Sox expendable.

In nine plate appearances for Los Angeles, Green singled once and was hit by a pitch. The 31-year-old hasn't fared much better in the minors, hitting .219/.242/.438 in 67 Triple A plate appearances.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top