Stark On Lee, Prince, Braves, Nationals
ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark debated the pros and cons of moving back the trade deadline with a number of MLB general managers. The group was divided on whether to move the deadline to August, but Stark suggests we’re not likely to see MLB make such changes any time soon. Here are some more hot stove updates from around the league:
- One source told Stark that Cliff Lee will follow the money this winter: “Cliff would go to Siberia if they offered him the biggest contract."
- Rival teams expect the Brewers to look into trading Prince Fielder this winter. One executive told Stark that the Brewers were “shocked” not to see more interest in Prince before the trade deadline.
- Braves GM Frank Wren has often jokingly told Billy Wagner that it’s too soon for him to retire. The lefty maintains that his playing days are over after 2010.
- Wren says the Braves are assuming that Chipper Jones, who is under contract next year, will be back in 2011.
- Nationals president Stan Kasten told Stark that Washington will be "more aggressive than we've ever been" this offseason. Presumably that means they’ll try to re-sign Adam Dunn and offer Carl Crawford a contract.
Dave Bush Clears Waivers
Dave Bush cleared waivers earlier in August and can now be traded to any team, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Bush, 30, hits free agency after the season, but could provide value as an innings eater in September. He has a 4.71 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 147 innings this year.
Bush earns $4.215MM in 2010 plus incentives based on innings pitched, but just $760K of his base salary remains. The right-hander doesn't currently project as a Type A or B free agent, so the Brewers aren't likely to obtain any form of compensation for him after the season.
This is speculation, but the Padres, who have shown interest in pitching this month and want to limit their young starters' innings, could call the Brewers about Bush. Click here for MLBTR's complete list of players to clear waivers and here for Tim Dierkes' list of potentially available starters.
Brewers Will Prioritize Pitching In Offseason
The Brewers' number one goal this winter will be upgrading their pitching staff, Mark Attanasio told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Specifically, the team hopes to improve their starting rotation, according to the Brewers' owner.
"We know we've got a problem, which is starting pitching," said Attanasio. "We, as an organization, need to face that reality and address it, as opposed to shrink from it or excuse it."
Attanasio goes on to say the free agent market isn't "the perfect answer," and that the team may have to look into trading a position player for pitching. Haudricourt interprets Attanasio's comments to mean the Brewers will explore the possibility of moving Prince Fielder for an impact arm. 2011 is the slugger's final arbitration-eligible season, and GM Doug Melvin has said in the past that he prefers to trade position players in the offseason, when there are more potential suitors.
If the Brewers don't receive any offers they like for Fielder, turning to the free agent market should still be an option. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe estimates that Milwaukee may clear as much as $47MM off the books this winter, which could make them "huge players" in the Cliff Lee sweepstakes. Cafardo adds that the club also "should be in on Bronson Arroyo," who has an $11MM club option for 2011.
Earlier this month, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith examined the Brewers' 2011 rotation, touching upon potential trade and free agent options.
Odds & Ends: Johnson, Figgins, Pineda, Ross
Saturday night links, as Joey Votto, Adam Dunn, and Paul Konerko belt their 32nd home runs…
- Nick Johnson's 2011 option is very unlikely to be exercised, as Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News writes. Heading into the season, controlling Johnson for $5.5MM in 2011 looked reasonable for the Yankees. But a disappointing, injury-plagued season for the 31-year-old means that money could be better spent elsewhere.
- Joe Girardi and Doug Melvin told Chad Jennings of The Journal News and MLB.com's Adam McCalvy, respectively, that they're not expecting their clubs to make any trades.
- Chone Figgins, the subject of a few trade rumors this summer, tells Doug Miller of MLB.com, "I don't want to go anywhere. I chose to come here, because I like the direction and I like the guys that are here."
- The Mariners have shut down pitching prospect Michael Pineda for the year, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. Pineda is fine physically and will compete for a spot in the rotation next spring, according to Jack Zduriencik.
- Cody Ross told Jim Bowden on Fox Sports Radio (Twitter link) that he was "shocked" the Marlins moved him.
- Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer conducts a Q&A with Drew Pomeranz, the Indians' fifth overall pick in this year's draft.
Discussion: Manny Parra’s Future
After three seasons of up-and-down performance as a starting pitcher, Manny Parra will reach arbitration for the first time this winter. Parra will get a significant raise from his current $440K contract in spite of his 5.29 ERA in 101 major league appearances (74 of them starts), and is probably looking at a 2011 contract in the neighborhood of $1MM.
There's a slight chance that the Brewers could non-tender Parra, a possibility raised by MLB.com's Adam McCalvy in the wake of Parra's recent demotion back to the bullpen. Milwaukee GM Doug Melvin said that any discussion of non-tendering the southpaw "are questions for the offseason" and first the team would have to "see how he does out there [in the bullpen]."
Milwaukee has already shown a lot of patience with Parra's development, McCalvy notes, and it would be odd for the team to cut him loose so early in his major league career. Parra will only be 28 on Opening Day 2011, has a ridiculously unlucky career BABIP of .351 and has impressive minor league numbers — a 3.06 ERA and an 8.6 K/9 ratio in 109 career appearances on the farm. Given all the question marks in the Milwaukee rotation heading into next season, it's probable that Parra will get another shot at winning a starting job.
What might be worth investigating, though, is whether Parra's future lies in the bullpen, not the rotation. It may not seem like a proper use of Parra's value to convert him to relief pitching forever, but in the short-term, it could be an idea to help the left-hander find some consistency in the majors.
Parra has a 4.10 ERA and 3.2 K/BB ratio in 27 career relief appearances, as compared to a 5.44 ERA and 1.71 K/BB ratio in 74 career starts. As a reliever, he would seemingly improve on both of his major trouble spots as a starter — his control issues (a 4.5 career BB/9 rate) and his problems facing batters more than once through the order (a .708 OPS the first time he faces them as a starter, an .820 OPS the second time around and a .942 OPS the third time through).
John Axford has been a great story for the Brewers, but the Canadian right-hander came from far enough off the radar screen this season that he isn't a lock to duplicate this success as their closer in 2011. If Parra did well enough in a relief role, he could even be groomed for the closer's job in the future.
Odds & Ends: Weeks, Blue Jays, Daisuke, Vazquez
Links for Wednesday, after a roller coaster win by Joey Votto and the Reds…
- GM Doug Melvin told MLB.com's Adam McCalvy that the Brewers won't discuss an extension with Rickie Weeks until the season's over. Weeks, who will hit free agency after 2011, recently switched agents.
- Scott Downs, Jason Frasor, Shawn Camp, Kevin Gregg and John Buck all hit waivers, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). There's no indication that the Blue Jays intend on moving any of their players this month.
- Over at RotoAuthority, Tim Dierkes analyzes the seasons some top second basemen are having.
- Number 18 is an 'ace number' in Japan, so Daisuke Matsuzaka has a clause in his contract ensuring that he gets to wear it. Matsuzaka explained to Alex Speier of WEEI.com that a childhood idol of his, Masumi Kuwata, wore the number for the Yomiuri Giants.
- Ben Kabak of River Ave. Blues calls the Javier Vazquez trade a "true disappointment," but hesitates to label it a "true bust."
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post argues that the Mets should make decisions with the future of the organization in mind, instead of "letting a lame-duck manager make choices" to win as much as possible.
- Manny Ramirez isn't the only Dodger on waivers. As Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times notes (on Twitter), Casey Blake, Jay Gibbons and Scott Podsednik also hit the waiver wire today.
Odds & Ends: Weeks, Cliff Lee, Cody Ross
Four years ago today, the Devil Rays traded Russell Branyan to the Padres for Evan Meek and a player to be named later (Dale Thayer). Meek would be taken from the Rays by the Pirates in the '07 Rule 5 draft but was designated for assignment the following May. Meek cleared waivers and the Rays rejected his return, taking cash considerations from the Bucs. This year, Meek represented the Pirates at the All-Star game. Today's links:
- Rickie Weeks chose Greg Genske of Legacy Sports as his new agent after his previous representative, Lon Babby, became president of the Phoenix Suns, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- A Mets official told ESPN's Adam Rubin the team won't be pursuing Cliff Lee in the offseason.
- Giants assistant GM Bobby Evans confirmed to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that they claimed Cody Ross in part to block him from going to the Padres.
- Kevin Youkilis and Dustin Pedroia talked to WEEI's Rob Bradford about why they signed long-term extensions. Youkilis knows he could've made more as a free agent after this season, but he points out that he's making more money than he ever thought he would. Youk believes players should go through arbitration at least once, as he did. For more on players who would've been eligible for free agency after this season had they not signed extensions, check out our August 16th article.
- Bradford's colleague Alex Speier looks at Boston's recent history of acquiring players despite being included in their no-trade clauses.
- Joe Posnanski explains that pitchers with Hall of Fame stuff getting beaten by injuries is the rule, not the exception.
Brewers Release David Riske
The Brewers released reliever David Riske, according to the team's Twitter feed. Riske has about $1MM remaining in 2010 salary, plus a $250K buyout for 2011. The Brewers will be on the hook for that minus the prorated league minimum if Riske signs elsewhere.
Riske was activated from the disabled list in June and has posted a 5.01 ERA, 6.2 K/9, and 3.1 BB/9 with two home runs allowed in 23.3 innings. He had Tommy John surgery in June of '09. Riske has dealt with elbow issues for the duration of his Brewers career. He was signed by GM Doug Melvin in December of '07 to a three-year, $13MM deal. The Royals were the winners in that deal, as they chose Mike Montgomery with the supplemental pick received when they let Riske leave.
Odds & Ends: Heilman, Overbay, Delgado, Reds
As Nationals fans cross their fingers about Stephen Strasburg, here's some news from around the majors…
- Aaron Heilman is looking forward to his first taste of free agency, reports MLB.com's Andrew Pentis. Heilman said that he and his agent hadn't had any talks yet with the Diamondbacks about a new contract.
- Lyle Overbay thinks he has a chance of returning to the Blue Jays next season, writes Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Given the Overbay trade rumors we've been hearing all year, this would certainly be a surprise, especially since the Jays have given Adam Lind a few starts at first recently.
- Carlos Delgado has been placed on the seven-day disabled list by the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox, reports Sportsnet New York's Ben Wagner (via Twitter). Delgado is experiencing soreness in his back and left hip, not his twice-operated on right hip. The slugger signed a minor league contract with Boston on August 7.
- Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News thinks the Reds should "make signing Bronson Arroyo a priority," implies that 2010 is Ramon Hernandez's last year in Cincinnati and gives some other opinions in a fan mailbag.
- Was Khalil Greene the biggest loss for the Rangers this season? Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News thinks so, given the team's ongoing depth problems.
- Ricky Nolasco's contract extension talks with the Marlins may be on hold. Josh Friedman and Craig Mish of The Ticket 790AM radio report (via Twitter) that the Florida right-hander may miss the rest of the season with a partially-torn meniscus.
- Dontrelle Willis has been promoted to Triple-A Fresno, and Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News tweets that Willis is a candidate to join the Giants when the rosters expand on September 1.
- LaTroy Hawkins will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder, reports MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. It's unknown if the scope will reveal more severe damage, but Hawkins says he plans on pitching in 2011. Since signing a two-year, $7.5MM contract with Milwaukee last December, the injury-plagued Hawkins has made just 18 appearances for the Brewers, posting an 8.44 ERA.
Odds & Ends: Mets, Reds, Helton, Darvish, Harper
Friday Night Links..
- Despite a published report to the contrary, Phillies scouting director Marti Wolever is not headed to the Mets, according to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.
- MLB.com's Mark Sheldon spoke to a few members of the Reds who would like to see Dusty Baker sign an extension with the club.
- Brandon Inge and Johnny Damon are both okay with having been put on waivers, writes Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press.
- Reds manager Dusty Baker dismissed questions about him possibly becoming the Dodgers manager if Joe Torre retires, writes John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
- Mark Kizla of The Denver Post urges Todd Helton to call it quits.
- The Padres don't have much interest in outfielder Cody Ross, tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com.
- The Pirates will send Luis Heredia to their affiliate in Bradenton not to pitch, but to familiarize himself with the program, writes Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker (via Twitter) passes along a report from Japanese outlet Sponichi that the Yankees sent Damon Oppenheimer and scout Billy Eppler to watch Yu Darvish.
- Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (via Twitter) wonders aloud if the Brewers might make a deal in order to free a roster spot for the returning Carlos Gomez.
- Nats GM Mike Rizzo says that Bryce Harper won't be playing in any games for their Gulf Coast League affiliate this season, according to Ben Goessling of MASNSports.com.