Marlins Actively Seeking Relief Help
The Marlins have been looking for relievers all season long and they're still hoping to add to their bullpen, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. Even after trading Jorge Cantu away, the 51-51 Marlins are apparently looking to make an acquisition. Frisaro suggests the team has a particularly strong need for left-handed relievers.
Many consider the trade market for relief pitching thin and overpriced, and the Marlins have avoided it so far. They signed Armando Benitez, only to release him soon afterwards, and relied on their own arms. Marlins relievers have combined for a 4.51 ERA this season.
Twitter Rumors: Lowell, Ross, Dotel, Heilman
A home for today's random Twitter rumors…
- The Red Sox might not activate Mike Lowell today because they're trying to trade him, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
- The Marlins are getting tons of calls on Cody Ross but aren't inclined to move him, tweets Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. ESPN's Jayson Stark says the Marlins are wavering on their stance not to deal Ross, and the Braves are making a push.
- The Sox made a run at the Cubs' Sean Marshall and were shot down, tweets ESPN's Jayson Stark. Marshall is having a dominant year out of the Cubs' pen.
- Though the Giants have inquired on Orioles lefty Will Ohman, a deal is unlikely according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
- Action has been light on Octavio Dotel so far, tweets Morosi.
- The Diamondbacks aren't sure about trading Aaron Heilman, reports Ken Rosenthal, but could move Chad Qualls and Adam LaRoche. SI's Jon Heyman says the D'Backs have gotten nibbles on Qualls but nothing is close yet.
- The Indians are getting "significant hits" on Jake Westbrook, says ESPN's Buster Olney. The Cardinals and Yankees have checked in, reports Stark.
Rangers Inquired On Josh Johnson
While the Rangers and Marlins were working out the trade that sent Jorge Cantu to Texas, the Rangers also took a chance to "reach for the sky" and inquired on the availability of Josh Johnson. According to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro, the Rangers were willing to offer their top three prospects, but were told the Marlins' ace is "unmovable."
Johnson, 26, signed a four-year extension worth $39MM with Florida in January, virtually eliminating him as a possible trade chip for the near future. Given his performance this year, which includes a 1.72 ERA over 141.1 IP, Johnson figures to be even more untouchable now than he was at the time of the extension.
Rangers Acquire Jorge Cantu
After months of rumors and speculation, the Marlins finally traded Jorge Cantu. They sent him to the Rangers for AA righties Evan Reed and Omar Poveda in a deal that became official this evening. The Marlins will pay $600K of the $2.2MM remaining on Cantu's salary.
Cantu, 28, is hitting .259/.308/.408 this season with ten homers. The 28-year-old becomes a free agent after the season and has said he would like to sign with the Marlins. At this point, the club is considering multi-year deals for some of Cantu's former teammates.
Reed, 24, has a 1.76 ERA as a reliever in the upper minors this year. He has posted 7.9 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 across two levels so far in 2010.
Poveda is now on the disabled list, recovering from Tommy John surgery, but Baseball America ranked him 20th among Rangers prospects entering the season. BA explained then that Poveda "profiles as a back-of-the-rotation starter."
Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports and Joel Sherman of the New York Post contributed to the story as it broke.
Giants, Not Rockies Considering Jorge Cantu
9:11pm: The Rockies are out on Cantu, according to Rosenthal (via Twitter).
3:49pm: The Giants are "not heavily considering" Cantu, a source told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). The Rockies are still looking at Cantu, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
8:25am: The Giants are making a strong run for Marlins corner infielder Jorge Cantu, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. They may hold an edge over the Rangers and Rockies, who remain involved. He says the Fish are believed to be seeking a young lefthander. The Giants have been using Travis Ishikawa at first base lately, while third baseman Pablo Sandoval is set to return from personal leave tonight.
In terms of young lefties, the Giants have reliever Dan Runzler on the DL with a knee injury and starter Eric Surkamp at High A. Clayton Tanner and Craig Clark also fit into their Baseball America top 30 prospect list heading into the season. Joe Martinez cracked the list the prior year. The Marlins asked about Tanner during the Winter Meetings, writes Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.
Yesterday ESPN's Jayson Stark wrote that the Rangers and Marlins' talks for Cantu appeared hung up over dollars. The Rangers want the Marlins to assume all of the $2.22MM remaining on Cantu's contract.
Cantu, by the way, names the Marlins as his first choice when he hits the free agent market (ESPN's Amy K. Nelson via Twitter).
Dan Uggla Switches Agencies
Heading into his final season of arbitration, Dan Uggla has switched agents. The second baseman left Jeff Borris and the Beverly Hills Sports Council and joined Terry Bross at Gaylord Sports Management, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Uggla makes $7.8MM this season and will earn more than that in 2011 before becoming eligible for free agency. The Marlins may not let him hit free agency, however. President of baseball operations Larry Beinfest told Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun Sentinel that the team has interest in locking up some players to long term deals. Uggla, who just reached the 20-homer plateau for the fifth consecutive season, is a prime candidate for an extension.
Stark On Phillies, Indians, Ross, Athletics
Today's rumblings from ESPN's Jayson Stark…
- Shane Victorino's oblique injury yesterday appears to close the door on a Jayson Werth trade. MLB.com's Todd Zolecki seems to agree, but unlike Stark he feels that the Phils "remain a top contender" for Roy Oswalt. More on Oswalt here.
- Stark writes of indications the Phillies have turned to starters such as Jake Westbrook and Fausto Carmona and relief options like Octavio Dotel. Jon Heyman of SI.com notes that the Indians are talking trades with the Phils (Twitter link).
- Speaking of the Indians, Stark senses they do want to move money off the books.
- The Marlins have told teams they could deal Cody Ross in August if they fall out of contention, but they'd have to match up only with the team that wins the claim.
- The Braves maintain strong interest in Josh Willingham, though there's a good chance they stand pat. Willingham is just one of many Nationals veterans generating interest, GM Mike Rizzo told ESPN 980.
- Athletics assistant GM David Forst told Stark "it would have to be an over-the-top deal for us to even consider it" in regard to trading relievers such as Michael Wuertz, Craig Breslow, and Brad Ziegler.
O’Dowd Talks Trade Deadline
11:39am: The Rockies were telling teams yesterday that "they're waiting until Friday to assess where they are in the standings before they decide if they're still buyers," according to ESPN's Jayson Stark.
10:25am: The Rockies are now eight games out in the NL West and 5.5 back in the wild card. Talking to Dave Krieger of the Denver Post, Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd explained that the club has been struggling across the board, and trades can't fix everything. O'Dowd also talked about the expectation that plenty of players will be available in August:
"There's really not a ton of players on the market right now in the impactful category. There's one in particular I think if we're not able to acquire by the 31st probably wouldn't be there. The rest we've come across I don't think the 31st is necessarily a firm deadline."
O'Dowd appears to be referring to Jorge Cantu as the one target who will be traded by Saturday. Cantu is actually having a pretty bad year though; he's in the same offensive range as B.J. Upton, Jhonny Peralta, Howie Kendrick, and Jeff Francoeur. The Rockies might miss out on Cantu, as the Giants are said to be stepping up their pursuit.
O'Dowd talked about the bullpen market, saying he doesn't think it's possible to acquire a reliever who's pitching well right now. He also touched on the chances of the Rockies selling:
"I don't think we're going to be a seller unless it's something that fits with us strategically short term and long term. I still think we could even add if the right player was there for us, but it's got to be the right player. If we can rearrange some furniture a little bit in the process of doing that, we certainly would look at that."
Krieger thinks that means O'Dowd is willing to tinker with the team's offense. I wonder if an Aaron Cook trade fits with O'Dowd's strategy, as Jhoulys Chacin could replace him adequately right away. Joel Sherman of the New York Post wrote yesterday that the Rockies are quietly shopping Cook.
Marlins Release Nate Robertson
The Marlins released Nate Robertson, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post (Twitter link). Robertson struggled as a starter this season and the Marlins designated him for assignment last week. Today, the Marlins designated minor league right-hander Kris Harvey for assignment, according to Capozzi (Twitter link).
Robertson’s stats (5.47 ERA, 5.5 K/9 and 3.6BB/9) aren’t pretty and the outing against the Rockies that preceded his DFA was ugly (7 ER in 5.0 innings). However, his splits suggest he could be more effective out of the bullpen against lefties. The Tigers, Robertson’s former team, don’t appear to have interest. Any club can now sign Robertson for a pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum.
Ross, Not Cantu Impacted By Coghlan Injury
3:17pm: Coghlan's injury won't prevent the Marlins from dealing Jorge Cantu, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post. Capozzi reports that the Marlins continue discussing Cantu with other teams and suggests there's a "good chance" that the club trades Cantu. The Marlins appear to be asking for a "big prospect" from the Rangers for Cantu, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (via Twitter).
10:56am: With the news that Chris Coghlan tore the meniscus in his left knee in Sunday's pie-related incident, MLB.com's Joe Frisaro says the Marlins are leaning toward keeping outfielder Cody Ross. The loss of Coghlan depletes the team's outfield depth, and the Marlins are still within spitting distance of the playoffs.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports actually tweeted two days ago, before the Coghlan injury, that a Ross deal was unlikely. Now, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark says on Twitter that trading Ross is a "definite no-go" for the Marlins.
Frisaro says Ross has drawn attention from the Braves, Dodgers, and Red Sox. He doesn't rule out a deal, but says it'd "have to completely make sense." The Phillies and Yankees have also been linked to the 29-year-old outfielder.