Stark On Lilly, Indians, Astros, Dodgers
The starting pitching market may be ‘mediocre’ if you ask officials around the major leagues, as ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark did, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t tons of rumors out there with just over a week before the deadline. Here they are:
- Six teams or more are interested in Ted Lilly, who will almost certainly get traded. The Tigers, Mets and Dodgers have interest, but the Yankees probably won’t be involved. The Cubs are not willing to pick up any of Lilly’s salary and probably won’t have to.
- The A’s, on the other hand, will pick up much of the $4MM or so remaining on Ben Sheets’ salary and are ready to deal him.
- The Indians are willing to deal one of Jake Westbrook or Fausto Carmona for a “compelling” package, but not both.
- They’re also growing more and more confident that they’ll be able to trade Kerry Wood. If they don't strike a deal before the deadline, they could do so after Wood clears waivers in August.
- The Yankees are kicking tires on many starters, including Westbrook and Dan Haren.
- The Astros would have to be “overwhelmed” to move Brett Myers (as FOX Sports reported) or Wandy Rodriguez. Myers has a mutual option, so there’s no guarantee he returns in 2011. I find it hard to believe that the Astros wouldn’t deal him for a good-but-not-great group.
- The Marlins appear to have decided to focus on extending Dan Uggla, instead of trading him.
- The Dodgers have told rival teams that they have $2-3MM to play with.
Olney On Phillies, Bautista, Dodgers, Red Sox
Rumors from the blog of ESPN's Buster Olney…
- Olney suggests the Phillies acquiring Roy Oswalt and trading Jayson Werth would in large part be about positioning the team for 2011. Oswalt would still be under contract next year, while Domonic Brown would get big league seasoning.
- Some teams feel that the Blue Jays are bluffing by asking for elite young players for MLB home run leader Jose Bautista. Rival executives feel that Bautista's salary will jump to eight figures in his final arbitration year, and the Jays would be reluctant to pay.
- The Dodgers expect they'll be able to add a starter and reliever in the next ten days, giving up better prospects while the other team pays the player's salary. Not the best long-term strategy. The Dodgers have been linked to Paul Maholm, Roy Oswalt, Ted Lilly, Jake Westbrook, Fausto Carmona, David Aardsma, and the Blue Jays' relievers.
- Some teams believe the Red Sox will be aggressive on the waiver wire next month, placing strategic claims at a time when few teams are willing to take on salary. Today on the Dennis & Callahan show, Red Sox president Larry Lucchino said the team has "money set aside to acquire talent if we can find it," at that they're at the "bottom end of the tax threshold."
Dodgers Interested In Paul Maholm
The Dodgers are interested in Pirates lefty Paul Maholm, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Yahoo's Tim Brown wrote yesterday that the Dodgers "have been very aggressive in their pursuit of pitching."
Maholm, 28, has a 4.03 ERA, 4.5 K/9, and 3.2 BB/9 in 114 innings, with nine home runs allowed. With so few strikeouts, it's likely that Maholm's ERA will be higher from here on out. On the plus side, his 50.3% groundball rate ranks 12th in the National League according to FanGraphs. That rate has been higher in previous seasons.
Maholm signed a three-year, $14.5MM extension in January of 2009. He's got only $1.86MM remaining this year, $5.75MM in 2011, and a $9.75MM club option for '12 with a $750K buyout. That's $8.36MM guaranteed through '11, which has to be enticing for the Dodgers given their financial constraints.
George Sherrill Clears Waivers
TUESDAY, 8:01am: Sherrill cleared waivers, reports MLB.com's Evan Drellich. If the Dodgers attempt to send him to the minors, he can consent, reject the assignment, or declare free agency. Said manager Joe Torre recently, "Sherrill doesn't have a situation. He's still in our bullpen. I think he's throwing the ball better."
WEDNESDAY, 5:01pm: The Dodgers put George Sherrill on outright waivers, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Price suggests Sherrill, who makes $4.5MM this season, will clear waivers, which would enable the Dodgers to option the reliever to the minor leagues. The 33-year-old lefty has a 7.32 ERA and nearly as many walks (16 BB) as innings (19.2 IP) so far in 2010.
Outright waivers are not revocable, so the Dodgers won't be able to pull Sherrill back if a rival team claims him. A claim seems unlikely, given his salary, performance so far in 2010 and early-season back tightness. If Sherrill clears waivers, the Dodgers will have an open 40-man roster spot.
Sherrill pitched well for the Dodgers after they acquired him from Baltimore last summer, though not quite as well as his 0.65 Dodgers ERA suggests. Sherrill did strike out twice as many batters as he walked and allowed less than one hit per inning pitched last year. The Dodgers paid a steep price for two quality months of Sherrill: Josh Bell and Steve Johnson.
Johnson is struggling with command at AA, but Bell, who entered the season as Baseball America's second-ranked Orioles prospect, was just called up to the majors. The 23-year-old posted a .765 OPS this year in his first stint at Triple A.
Dodgers Interested In Many Pitchers
The Dodgers are interested in a variety of starters and relievers, according to Yahoo’s Tim Brown. They are calling to inquire about Roy Oswalt, Ted Lilly, Dan Haren, Jake Westbrook and Fausto Carmona. At one point, when Josh Byrnes was running the D’Backs, the Dodgers were discussing a deal for Haren, but those talks are no longer active.
The Dodgers have also expressed interest in available Blue Jays relievers such as Kevin Gregg, Scott Downs and Jason Frasor. GM Ned Colletti is attempting to improve his team’s bullpen, since the Dodgers are within striking distance of the NL West lead, though they currently trail the Padres, Rockies and Giants.
Dodgers Have No Intention Of Trading Kemp
The Dodgers have no interest in trading outfielder Matt Kemp, GM Ned Colletti told Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. Some have suggested that the club get rid of the embattled slugger, but Colletti says that he wants to keep him for the long haul.
"I've never floated his name," the General Manager said. "He's a gifted, five-tool player. He's getting better and better. He's had a tough couple of months. It's a baseball career. It's not a baseball two months.
"I have no intention of moving him."
Teams will unquestionably inquire on Kemp as the Dodgers look to upgrade their rotation at the deadline. However, with injuries to Manny Ramirez and Reed Johnson, it wouldn't be wise to deal the 25-year-old at this time.
Kemp, who has appeared in every game this season despite being briefly benched by manager Joe Torre, is having a down year by his standards. In 400 plate appearances, the center fielder has a slash line of .258/.313/.463 with 16 homers. His defense has taken a tumble as well, as demonstrated by his -29.9 UZR/150.
Olney’s Latest: Hamilton, Trades, Myers, Sherrill
In today's blog post on ESPN (Insider req'd), Buster Olney spoke to Rangers' GM Jon Daniels about Josh Hamilton's torrid streak (.374/.404/.683 since May 12th), which has coincided with the team's run to the top of the AL West.
Here are Olney's rumors…
- A number of executives expect there to be a "fairly robust" trade deadline. "I don't think there's going to be a lot of big names on the move," said one GM, "but I think you've got a lot of teams looking to fill specific needs, and there are a lot of conversations going on."
- All of the executives Olney spoke to agreed that there are very few teams willing (or able) to add payroll, so many deals will include salary relief, similar to the $2.5MM the Mariners sent the Rangers in the Cliff Lee trade.
- The Astros have not yet indicated to other teams what they would like in return for Brett Myers.
- Olney wonders if the recently outrighted George Sherrill could land with the Phillies, given their interest in him last year.
Odds & Ends: Sheets, Padres, Scutaro, Nationals
A few links to check out while the Yankees play their first game without George Steinbrenner at the helm since 1972…
- Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the Phillies have had a "top scout" on hand for the A's last four series, though Oakland isn't going to move Mark Ellis and Ben Sheets isn't scheduled to pitch this weekend.
- James Schmehl of MLive.com says that Sheets could be a "rather inexpensive" trade option for the Tigers if they're looking to add a starting pitcher.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock reports that Padres' GM Jed Hoyer told reporters he would like to make a move to improve the team, not just a cosmetic one (all Twitter links). He says the prices must first come down, and that he has the resources to add multiple pieces.
- WEEI.com's Rob Bradford says (via Twitter) that the Braves did not talk to the Red Sox about a potential Yunel Escobar–Marco Scutaro deal. He says that the Blue Jays were the only team Atlanta spoke to about an Escobar trade.
- Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo ranked the team's international free agent signings for MASNSports.com's Ben Goessling.
- Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times tweets that the Tokyo Giants have a scout attending tonight's Dodgers-Cardinals game. If nothing else, it shows that Japanese teams scour the U.S. for talent just like MLB teams do in Japan.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Dodgers, Giants, Fielder, Lee
On this date in 2001, Fred McGriff invoked his no-trade clause to block a deal that would have sent him from the last place Devil Rays to the first place Cubs. The Crime Dog was born and raised in Tampa, but he relented and agreed to the deal 11 days later. Tampa Bay received Manny Aybar and Jason Smith in return for McGriff, who was unquestionably the greatest player in franchise history at the time.
Hear are some links with the deadline rapidly approaching…
- Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness scouts the starting pitcher and relief pitcher market for the Dodgers.
- Bleacher Report says the Giants would be filling one hole and creating another if they trade for Corey Hart.
- Disciples of Uecker feels it is unrealistic to expect the Brewers to retain Prince Fielder long-term.
- 1 Blue Jays Way chimes in on the Yunel Escobar–Alex Gonzalez swap.
- Meanwhile, Beyond the Box Score wonders how much Yunel Escobar's bad attitude cost the Braves.
- Royals Review takes a quick look at the trade history between the Royals and Yankees.
- El Lefty Malo tries to nail down Jonathan Sanchez's trade value.
- Yankeeist looks at some solutions for the Yankees' DH vacancy.
- Gear Up For Twins Baseball has some suggestions to help improve the Twins.
- River Ave. Blues wants to see the Yanks go for the kill and acquire Adam Dunn.
- Sports: A Game of Inches analyzes the Cliff Lee non-trade to the Yanks and his eventual move to the Rangers in a four part series (parts one, two, three, four).
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
Garret Anderson’s Uncertain Future On The Dodgers
With Manny Ramirez activated today from the disabled list, the Dodgers put backup outfielder Reed Johnson on the DL to create roster space. In the opinion of Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times, Johnson's back injury might've been the "slight reprieve" that Garret Anderson needed to stay on the team. With George Sherrill put on waivers, Dilbeck thinks the Dodgers would have Anderson in mind should the club be looking to further clear the roster of under-performing veterans.
Anderson signed a minor-league contract with L.A. in March and made the club with the expectation that he would provide veteran leadership, a backup glove in the outfield and left-handed pinch-hitting help off the bench. While Dilbeck says Anderson is "great in the clubhouse," the outfielder has posted a .470 OPS in 140 plate appearances and his limited time in the field has been shaky (a -8.8 UZR/150).
Dilbeck thinks L.A. has more to gain by cutting Anderson and keeping rookie Xavier Paul as the left-handed outfield reserve. Dilbeck notes that Paul himself hasn't performed overly well (a .649 OPS in 94 PAs) but Paul at least has upside, whereas there's little evidence that Anderson will turn things around in the second half. GM Ned Colletti gave Anderson a vote of confidence in May, but if the problem, as Colletti claimed, was that Anderson hasn't yet adjusted to a backup role, then two more months of struggles would seem to imply that Anderson may never find that comfort zone. Anderson's career 103 OPS+ is a sign that he may have been a poor choice for the "professional hitter" pinch-hitting job in the first place.
In spite of Anderson's problems this season, he would likely get picked up by another team in the hopes that his experience could aid a playoff contender (and that his numbers would pick up with a change of scenery). If Dilbeck's prediction of July 24 as the Dodgers' decision day is correct, Anderson would have lots of time to catch on with another team should he actually be released.