Cafardo On Blue Jays, Kemp, Red Sox, Stanton
In today’s column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes that the waiver deadline period could produce some significant deals around baseball. The Phillies probably won’t find deals for Jonathan Papelbon (contract) and Cliff Lee (health concerns plus contract) but A.J. Burnett could conceivably be moved. Meanwhile, the Blue Jays continue to, as one executive said to Cafardo, “kick the tires on just about everything but never seem to do anything.” More from today’s column..
- The Red Sox may have been scouting Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp, but their dialogue with the Dodgers was virtually nonexistent despite the constant rumors connecting the two. The Dodgers, Cafardo writes, were never going to deal Kemp, who has been one of their best right-handed hitters.
- The Dodgers were also never really in on Red Sox hurlers Jon Lester or John Lackey but really wanted Andrew Miller and came close to giving Boston one of their best pitching prospects for him.
- It seems as if the Red Sox and other teams have finally come to the realization that Marlins star Giancarlo Stanton isn’t going anywhere and that could be a reason why the Red Sox obtained Yoenis Cespedes, who obviously isn’t as good but has the power and athleticism to improve. For now, he seems to feel that Miami is moving in the right direction and appears to be all in on staying with the Marlins.
- The buzz around baseball is that the Cubs will be all in on Jon Lester. Cubs president Theo Epstein, GM Jed Hoyer, and Jason McLeod were in Boston with Lester during his trying times. Also, the Cubs will have to rebuild their rotation at some point and adding Lester would be a major, major step in that direction.
Released: Gonzales, Cavazos-Galvez, Roberts, Tejada
Here are the day’s minor moves:
- The Blue Jays released right-handed pitcher Tyler Gonzales, tweets Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The 2012 supplemental first rounder did not pitch this season. He never advanced past the GCL where he posted a 9.24 ERA in 25.1 innings.
- The Dodgers released Triple-A right fielder Brian Cavazos-Galvez, according to Eddy (via Twitter). The former 12th round pick, now 27 years old, has seen his power decline in recent seasons. He spent most of the 2014 season in Double-A, where he posted a tepid .227/.261/.330 line.
- The Twins released injury prone left fielder Nate Roberts from their High-A roster (also Eddy on Twitter). Roberts was taken as a fifth rounder in the 2010 draft and combined to hit .305/.434/.460 over 945 professional plate appearances. Unfortunately, injuries have derailed his career.
Earlier
- Former MVP Miguel Tejada has been released by the Marlins, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun-Sentinel. The longtime MLB veteran had a comeback bid derailed by a shoulder injury, but plans to play winter ball and weigh another attempt.
- The Reds have released pitcher Ryan Rowland-Smith, according to the International League transactions page. According to Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com (via Twitter), Rowland-Smith opted out of his deal. The veteran lefty has not managed to find his form this year, and owns a 4.66 ERA in 29 Triple-A innings for the Reds and Blue Jays. He also spent time with the Diamondbacks at the MLB level, allowing four earned runs in 7 1/3 innings.
- The Giants have released lefty Jose De Paula, according to the MLB transactions page. He had recently been designated for assignment. The 26-year-old has a 4.21 ERA over 51 1/3 frames in his first attempt at the Triple-A level, backed by 7.2 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9.
Brad Johnson contributed to this post.
July Trade Recap: NL West
We’re on to our last installment of this year’s July trade recaps. You can read the rest here: AL West, AL Central, NL Central, AL East and NL East.
Diamondbacks
- Acquired outfielder Zach Borenstein, righty Joey Krehbiel from Angels in exchange for lefty Joe Thatcher, outfielder Tony Campana
- Acquired outfielder Mitch Haniger and lefty Anthony Banda from Brewers in exchange for outfielder Gerardo Parra
- Acquired catcher Peter O’Brien from Yankees in exchange for infielder/outfielder Martin Prado
- Acquired lefty Vidal Nuno from Yankees in exchange for righty Brandon McCarthy
Dodgers
- Acquired second baseman Darwin Barney from Cubs in exchange for righty Jonathan Martinez
Giants
- Acquired righty Jake Peavy from Red Sox in exchange for lefty Edwin Escobar and righty Heath Hembree
- Acquired cash from Yankees in exchange for lefty David Huff
Padres
- Acquired infielder Taylor Lindsey, righty R.J. Alvarez, shortstop Jose Rondon, righty Elliot Morris from Angels in exchange for righty Huston Street, righty Trevor Gott
- Acquired outfielder Abraham Almonte, righty Stephen Kohlscheen from Mariners in exchange for outfielder Chris Denorfia
- Acquired infielder Yangervis Solarte, righty Rafael De Paula from Yankees in exchange for third baseman Chase Headley and cash
Rockies
- Acquired right-hander Jair Jurrjens from Reds in exchange for first baseman Harold Riggins
- Acquired cash from Yankees in exchange for lefty Chris Capuano
Synopsis
The buyers didn’t do much buying, and only two of the sellers did much selling. All said, the division supplied five players to the Yankees alone, moving out salary while bringing back relatively little in terms of talent. Ultimately, the sharp division of contenders and non may have contributed to the outflow of talent, with the cellar-dwellers perhaps hesitant to further enrich the bigger-budget clubs at the top.
We’ll start in Los Angeles, where the Dodgers were rumored to be in on several high-profile players, including David Price of the Rays. But GM Ned Colletti warned that he was disinterested in allowing a raid of the team’s top farmhands, and followed through on that by essentially standing pat at the deadline. The minor deal for Barney notwithstanding, the Dodgers will take their roster as it came … unless, of course, an August trade is in the offing. A move of some kind for a starter still seems likely, with Dan Haren continuing to scuffle and Paul Maholm out for the year. It’s been a rollercoaster of rumors for the club’s three costly veteran outfielders, and a deal for one of them remains a possibility as well.
The Giants have had leaks spring up all over the roster, and managed to plug one by adding Peavy. With Matt Cain seemingly destined to miss the rest of the year, another starter moved from “want” to “need.” But that’s more a patch than an upgrade. And left unremedied, thus far, is San Francisco’s gaping hole at second. The club has cycled through several veteran options, and will now give a try to some younger players, but still seems in need of an August addition of some kind at the keystone.
For San Diego and Arizona, the playbook was fairly similar: move off some future salary and add some prospect depth in return. It would probably be a stretch to say that either club added impact talent, but certainly both picked up players with value who should have a future role at the major league level.
The Padres decided not to move two possible trade pieces in Joaquin Benoit and Ian Kennedy — in part, perhaps, due to the fact that the team is still working to hire its new general manager — but both players are under control going forward. It was largely a fond farewell for Street, who pitched well, delivered a nice return, and had a replacement to take over. The same could not be said of Headley, who the team (rightly or wrongly) failed to cash in on each of the last two years before dealing him for a pittance. San Diego will take solace in the fact that he was not inked to an extension at the height of his value.
The Diamondbacks, meanwhile, dealt away a player who likewise seems emblematic of a missed opportunity. Prado, the key piece of the Justin Upton deal, was expected to be an anchor in Arizona. Instead, he never hit his stride and was packed off for a decent but flawed prospect. McCarthy, too, never provided what had been hoped for. While some have questioned the return for Parra, it is far from clear that more should have been expected; his poor performance and rising salary make him a possible non-tender. It remains to be seen whether the D’backs will find a taker for Aaron Hill (San Francisco?), but he would deliver only some salary relief. The club seems somewhat curiously unwilling to part with its remaining bullpen pieces, though several would figure to bring a decent return.
And in Colorado … well, the Rockies did nothing. Owner Dick Monfort said at various times that he wanted to retain pending free agents like Michael Cuddyer and Jorge De La Rosa, and continue to employ players with one more year of non-guaranteed control, such as Brett Anderson, LaTroy Hawkins, and Drew Stubbs. Of course, there are few indications — beyond a BABIP-fueled early start to the year — that the club’s current mix is particularly likely to result in true contention. Bringing back the above-mentioned players will likely account for all of the team’s payroll space, if it does not require salary to be shed elsewhere. And failing to move any names from an already-crowded roster (especially among position players, outfielders in particular) will reduce team’s flexibility. The focus has always been on whether the Rockies will ultimately move stars Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez — speculation seems to go with whichever happens to be healthy — but perhaps the real issue lies with the organization’s seeming inability to conceive of bold, well-thought-out action in any particular direction. It could be an interesting winter for the Rockies, if the team decides to re-analyze its approach to building a roster and decisively pursue a new course.
Waiver Trade Notes: Hosmer, Maholm, Skaggs, O’s, A’s, D’backs, Castillo
As we explained yesterday, the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline does not spell the end of wheeling and dealing. Several teams are expected to continue shopping over the coming month as well. Here are some notes that relate to the upcoming August trade period:
- Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer could miss much of the rest of the regular season with a stress fracture of his right hand, tweets Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star. Though he is expected to avoid surgery, Hosmer could be out for up to six weeks. It would not be surprising to see the club look to add a first baseman to hold down the fort in his absence.
- Paul Maholm of the Dodgers has suffered a torn ACL and will miss the rest of the season, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports ( Twitter links). That only serves to increase the team’s need for rotation depth; though Maholm was operating out of the pen, he had been perhaps the likeliest option to step into a starting role if the struggling Dan Haren was demoted.
- Angels hurler Tyler Skaggs left in the middle of a no-hit bid Thursday with a flexor tendon strain in his left forearm, as Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times explains. Skaggs has already been placed on the 15-day DL, and the team will surely exercise caution with the young starter, as forearm strains have been linked to more significant elbow injuries. Though the Halos can fill his spot in the immediate term by keeping Hector Santiago in the rotation, the injury leaves even more questions about the team’s overall starting pitching depth. With a two-month pennant race still to come, Los Angeles will likely take a hard look at the market for arms.
- Before he was dealt to the Nationals, the Orioles made an effort to acquire Indians infielder Asdrubal Cabrera, reports Roch Kubatko of MASN.com. Presumably, Baltimore would have utilized him as the Nationals will, at second base, which indicates some likelihood of the club exploring an alternative over the coming month.
- Similarly, the Athletics opened pre-deadline conversations with the Phillies regarding Jimmy Rollins, but talks did not progress, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. Like the O’s, the A’s could still be looking for a middle-infield addition.
- After making several deadline deals, the Diamondbacks expect to have more work to do in the coming month, reports Zach Buchanan of the Arizona Republic. While he is not sure if any deals will be consummated, GM Kevin Towers says he anticipates that claims will be made on several players. Among the possible chips left in Arizona are second baseman Aaron Hill and several relievers, though Towers says it will take an “overpay” to pry loose any of the club’s pen arms, as Jack Magruder of FOX Sports Arizona reports.
- The Red Sox remain interested in Cuban outfielder Rusney Castillo despite adding Yoenis Cespedes and Allen Craig at the trade deadline, reports WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford. While the club is expected to face stiff competition in the bidding, it just held a private workout for Castillo. If he goes to the non-contending Red Sox, it would certainly increase market demand for some of the pricey outfielders who stayed put at the deadline (such as Alex Rios of the Rangers and Marlon Byrd of the Phillies).
NL West Links: Miller, Sabean, Rockies
Here’s the latest from around the NL West…
- The Dodgers were the runner-up for Andrew Miller, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe tweets. This seems to run counter to an item from earlier today when Ken Rosenthal reported that it was the Brewers and Tigers who were the other finalists to obtain Miller from the Red Sox. The Orioles, of course, were the ones who actually landed the left-hander.
- Giants GM Brian Sabean didn’t make any last moves before the deadline and felt good about keeping his team’s prospects, Sabean told reporters (including Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle). The Giants felt it didn’t make sense to meet the high asking prices of some teams, though Sabean said he was pleased that a number of clubs were interested in his pitching prospects.
- Sabean said he was “homing in on two” second basemen in possible deals, though a source says that these weren’t necessarily Asdrubal Cabrera or Emilio Bonifacio, two middle infielders who changed teams yesterday.
- The Rockies also had a quiet deadline day, which assistant GM Bill Geivett told reporters (including Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post) was due to a lack of offers that would’ve helped Colorado reload for next year. “I think the big thing was — our posture — is probably one that we would entertain a deal as far as making us better in 2015. Although we were active and had some talks, we really weren’t moved to the point where we had anything that would significantly affect us next season,” Geivett said.
- Jorge De La Rosa and Brett Anderson drew some trade interest, and though De La Rosa is a free agent and Anderson has a $12MM club option to be exercised, it seems as if the Rockies have an interest in retaining both. “If we didn’t feel like they would potentially be part of our future, we would have traded them,” Geivett said.
- In other NL West news from earlier today, Matt Cain seems likely to undergo elbow surgery and the Giants designated Dan Uggla and Tyler Colvin for assignment.
Outrighted: Scott Elbert, Jason Lane, Tony Abreu
Let’s take a look at the day’s minor moves:
- Scott Elbert of the Dodgers has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A, tweets Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. The lefty was designated for assignment on Tuesday. He has been trying to work back to form after not throwing a big league pitch over the last two seasons. Elbert had the right to refuse the assignment, but will stay with the organization, tweets Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- The Padres have outrighted lefty Jason Lane, according to the MLB transactions page. Lane had an outstanding first big league start, but will serve as depth at Triple-A if he accepts his assignment.
- Tony Abreu has also been outrighted by the Giants, per the PCL transactions page. The second baseman received only four plate appearances during his brief call-up. He will have the option of electing free agency.
Chances Of David Price Trade Increasing
David Price didn’t have his best start for the Rays yesterday, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits and a pair of walks with six strikeouts in seven innings, but that won’t curb any trade interest in the Cy Young candidate. Price may have thought that he dodged a bullet yesterday, as he admitted to reporters that he thought the trade deadline was Wednesday afternoon. As we well know around these parts, that’s not the case, and the Tampa Bay ace could find himself on the move before 3pm CT today. Indications have been that the Rays will hang onto Price, but we’ll keep track of the final developments right here…
- The Rays are actively seeking to make a deal on Price, though that does not mean that the team is lowering its asking price, reports Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. Conversations remain open with multiple teams, Stark adds.
- Talks on Price have picked up some steam since Jon Lester was dealt, tweets Jon Morosi of FOX Sports. A deal now appears more likely than it did last night.
- The Rays entered deadline day expecting to hold, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. But the team will continue listening on Price, waiting to see if a big offer comes through the door at the last minute.
- A source familiar with conversations says it is “doubtful” that the Dodgers will land Price, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. Los Angeles has long been said to be one of the possible landing spots for the outstanding lefty, though GM Ned Colletti said last night that he has no interest in dealing away his team’s three blue chip prospects (to say nothing of more than one of them) in any trade.
Jeff Todd contributed to this post.
Dodgers Trying Hard For Benoit
11:37am: The Dodgers are “fully in” on relief help and have the most interest in Benoit, tweets Sherman.
11:15am: The Dodgers are trying hard to acquire Padres reliever Joaquin Benoit, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Yesterday, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reported the Dodgers and Yankees were in on the 37-year-old reliever.
Benoit, who assumed the Padres’ closer role after Huston Street was traded to the Angels, has a 1.88 ERA, 10.7 K/9, 2.7 BB/9, 0.63 HR/9, and 38.1% groundball rate in 43 innings this year. He’s owed about $2MM more this year, plus $8MM in 2015. Benoit also has an $8MM club option for 2016 that becomes guaranteed with 55 games finished in 2015, which likely wouldn’t happen with the Dodgers given the presence of Kenley Jansen.
Cardinals Close To Deal For Lackey
11:35am: The Cardinals are getting Lackey, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
11:26am: The Red Sox are close to trading John Lackey to the Cardinals or Dodgers, tweets Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com.
Jon Lester Rumors: Thursday
As of late last night, the Pirates and the Cardinals were said to be the two teams most aggressively pursuing Jon Lester, who was scratched from Wednesday’s scheduled start. At one point yesterday, the Orioles looked close to a deal, but conflicting reports emerged on the severity of those negotiations. Regardless, Baltimore does seem to be in the mix, and a late-to-the-party mystery team was revealed to be the Athletics. We’ll keep track of the final stages of the Lester sweepstakes in this post…
- Talks with the Orioles fizzled yesterday in part due to a season-ending elbow injury to Hunter Harvey (one of Baltimore’s top pitching prospects), writes Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. With Harvey sidelined, the O’s became even more hesitant to deal from their crop of top arms.
Earlier Updates
- Hall of Fame reporter Peter Gammons tells WEEI’s John Dennis and Gerry Callahan that the Dodgers aren’t in the mix to acquire Lester at this point (Twitter link).