Problem Positions For Contenders
SI.com's Tom Verducci applauds Braves GM Frank Wren for making a deal early in the summer and suggests early deals for five other teams with obvious needs. Verducci doesn't suggest deals like these will happen, but he offers them up as possible fits:
- The Twins could improve at second base. What about Freddy Sanchez, Clint Barmes or Jamey Carroll?
- The Giants aren't getting much production from Travis Ishikawa at the plate, though the plus/minus system ranks him as the best defensive first baseman in the league. Verducci wonders if the Giants would use Jonathan Sanchez to acquire a player such as Jorge Cantu, Nick Johnson, Miguel Tejada or Garrett Atkins.
- The Mets would look much better with Brad Hawpe, Matt Holliday or even Mark DeRosa roaming the outfield.
- Ryan Spilborghs could help the White Sox in the outfield, as one reader suggested in today's chat.
- The Reds could use help in the outfield and at third base. Mark DeRosa can only play one position at a time, but he could be a useful addition for Cincinnati.
Would these suggestions work? Many of the players Verducci lists aren't on the block yet, but what if they were available?
Draft Updates: Jays, Twins, White Sox
Let's take a look at what the Jays, Twins and White Sox are saying about the draft:
- MLB.com's Jordan Bastian says James Paxton is an "intriguing possibility" for the Jays with their 20th pick, but says his agent, Scott Boras, probably takes the Jays "out of the mix." Drew Storen and Chad Jenkins could be options for Toronto, which has five of the first 104 picks.
- As MLB.com's Kelly Thesier reports, the Twins are expected to draft a young arm with the 22nd pick in the draft.
- The White Sox, who follow the Twins at 23rd overall, have five of the first 102 picks. Last year's first round pick, Gordon Beckham, is about to debut for the Sox. This time around MLB.com's Scott Merkin suggests we shouldn't be surprised if they go for a "leadoff-type athletic outfielder."
MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo has all three teams taking high schoolers in his latest mock draft. He has outfielder Everett Williams going to the Jays, pitcher Matt Hobgood going to the Twins and outfielder Michael Trout going to the White Sox.
Rosenthal On A’s, Hart, Byrd
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports argues that now is not the time for the A's to shop their veteran hitters. Here are the details and some other rumors from his column:
- Matt Holliday, Jason Giambi and Orlando Cabrera have low trade value because they're hitting poorly so Rosenthal says it wouldn't make sense to trade the veterans away now. Instead, the A's could hold onto Holliday and obtain compensation picks or deal him if he keeps hitting better.
- Orlando Hudson wanted to join the Mets this offseason, but he understands why Luis Castillo's manning second base for them.
- Rosenthal wonders why AL teams aren't going after Jake Fox as a DH.
- The two clubs that called the Brewers on the weekend to see if Milwaukee really was making Corey Hart available heard that he is not on the block.
- Paul Byrd has yet to hear from anyone.
- Mark Mulder could be ready to return after the All-Star Break.
- Delmon Young "surfaced on the Braves' radar," but just briefly. An unnamed GM said acquiring Young would be a bad move when free agent hitters could be just as productive.
- The Blue Jays are more likely to pursue a left-handed slugger than a number two starter.
Joe Mauer’s Next Contract
If the Twins don't sign him to an extension, Joe Mauer will hit the free agent market after 2010 as a 27-year-old catcher with at least two batting titles and two All-Star Game selections to his name. Already, some writers are starting to speculate on the sort of contract Mauer could command. In the last week heavyweights Peter Gammons and Nick Cafardo both suggested Mauer could sign a deal worth over $180MM and Charley Walters of the Pioneer Press made a similar suggestion today. Here are some of the reasons Mauer could command the biggest contract in baseball history not signed by Alex Rodriguez or Derek Jeter.
- At 27, Mauer will have plenty of good years left when he becomes a free agent. Remember Jorge Posada signed a four-year deal after his age 35 season.
- Most teams- we'll exclude those with talented young catchers like the Orioles, Braves and Dodgers- could upgrade at catcher. This should leave Mauer with many suitors, including high bidders like the Red Sox and possibly the Yankees.
- Most importantly, he's one of the game's best players. Even if you set aside his Bonds-esque 2009 OPS of 1.344, he's always had good strikeout to walk ratios and entered this year with a career OPS of .856.
- Throw in his defense and teams will be lining up for Mauer.
But a lot has to go right for him to be in a position to command close to $200MM.
- He has to stay healthy.
- Since he's most appealing as a catcher, teams will have to be confident that Mauer can catch long-term if they're going to offer him Mark Teixeira-type money.
Odds & Ends: DeRosa, Bruney, Cooper
Let's kick it off today with some odds and ends.
- RotoAuthority discusses responding to lame trade offers in your fantasy league.
- Reliever Mike MacDougal will join the Nationals tomorrow, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Who knows, he could be closing for them by next week.
- Talking to Fred Mitchell of the Chicago Tribune, Cubs GM Jim Hendry defended the Mark DeRosa trade. Here is my problem with it: it was a financially-motivated deal made by a big-market team, and did not bring back players who could help in 2009.
- According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the White Sox acquired journeyman minor league infielder Anderson Machado from the Pirates for a player to be named later.
- Padres exec Paul DePodesta explains the Jody Gerut for Tony Gwynn Jr. swap. DePodesta's third bullet point, money, had to be the overriding factor given Gwynn's negligible value around the league.
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle sees Bobby Crosby as perhaps a more pressing trade situation for the A's than Matt Holliday.
- Dr. James Andrews found no structural damage in Brian Bruney's elbow, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Given the uncertainty, though, a bullpen acquisition would still make sense.
- It looks like the writing is on the wall for Astros manager Cecil Cooper. Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle lists his offenses.
- Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is skeptical the Cardinals will make a big move.
- Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus agrees that the Pirates are the favorite for Dominican talent Miguel Angel Sano, and says the Rays, Cubs, A's, Blue Jays, Yankees, Rangers, and Twins are also after him. It's speculated by McDaniel and elsewhere that the Pirates could budget less toward their fourth overall pick in June to compensate for Sano. John Perrotto of Inside Pittsburgh Sports says they like Kyle Gibson, Aaron Crow, Bobby Borchering, and Wil Myers. Tanner Scheppers did not give the Bucs permission to redraft him.
Edes On Francoeur, Nick Johnson, Valverde
8:10pm: David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the Red Sox-Francoeur rumor:
Talked to someone in Braves organization who sort of dismissed the Red Sox rumor. Said he hadn’t heard one thing about them having any serious interest in Francoeur or scouting him recently.
9:01am: Yahoo's Gordon Edes wrote about many different trade scenarios in his column last night.
- Edes seconds Ken Rosenthal's rumor that the Red Sox have been scouting Jeff Francoeur.
- The Nationals have been scouting the Mets' Triple and Double A teams, trying to figure out a possible return for Nick Johnson. Names of interest for Washington: Jon Niese, Mike Antonini, Eddie Kunz, and big leaguer Bobby Parnell. The Red Sox also had interest in Johnson, but not for the price of Michael Bowden. Back to the Mets – Joel Sherman of the New York Post has a list of available players they could consider aside from Johnson, including Jermaine Dye, Ben Francisco, Adam LaRoche, and Eric Hinske.
- Edes likes the fit of Jose Valverde with the Rays, but speculates that the Astros could ask for Wade Davis in return. Six years of Davis would be a huge price to pay for a few months of Valverde plus possible draft picks. Edes also likes Mark DeRosa for Tampa Bay, but they seem well-equipped to handle Akinori Iwamura's injury with internal options.
- Edes names the Phillies, Brewers, Royals, and Twins as possible suitors for Brad Penny. Edes adds that the Phillies "are already making plans for life without Brett Myers" after this season.
- The shortstop market includes Jack Wilson and perhaps John McDonald, but could become more interesting for a team like Boston if the Indians make Jhonny Peralta available.
Athletics Claim Craig Breslow
According to La Velle E. Neal of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the A's claimed lefty reliever Craig Breslow off waivers from the Twins. The Twins called up Anthony Swarzak in his place. Breslow, a 28 year-old Yale alum, posted a 6.28 ERA in 14.3 innings this year. Last year, though, he posted a 1.91 mark in 47 innings.
Swarzak, a righthanded starter, ranks as the Twins' 6th-best prospect according to Baseball America. BA says he has a plus fastball and curveball.
Gammons On Ackley, Red Sox, Relievers
ESPN's Peter Gammons has a new blog post up. Let's take a look.
- Gammons writes in praise of North Carolina's Dustin Ackley, who is likely to be chosen by the Mariners at #2 in June. Ackley may wind up at center field or second base.
- The Red Sox don't appear willing to trade young pitchers like Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden, and Nick Hagadone. The Sox have looked at bats such as Colorado's Matt Murton and Ryan Spilborghs, but for now aren't desperate enough to trade pitching. Gammons wonders if, for the right bat, Boston would part with Manny Delcarmen. He believes Delcarmen could close in the NL.
- Gammons says the Mets think they could have Carlos Delgado back by August if he has hip surgery, allowing them to stay in-house for his replacements.
- The Dodgers, Indians, Yankees, and Twins are looking for relief help. Gammon names Jose Valverde, Huston Street, Danys Baez, Russ Springer, and John Grabow as future trade candidates.
Odds And Ends: Jones, Peralta, Liriano
Lins for Saturday morning…
- As ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports, Adam Jones is pleased that the Orioles have so much pitching approaching the majors, but he wants to win now.
- SI.com's Tom Verducci calls Jones baseball's most improved player and breaks down the outfielder's hot start.
- Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that Jhonny Peralta is playing third base for now.
- Rob Neyer of ESPN.com writes that there are no guarantees for Francisco Cervelli once Jose Molina and Jorge Posada are fully healthy.
- Neyer adds that the Twins need Francisco Liriano to take his game to the next level and regain the form that saw him dominate the American League in 2006.
- In a third piece, Neyer weighs in on the White Sox, concluding that there's no reason to panic in a division that the Sox could take with 85 wins. Still, the team has issues in center field and in the middle infield.
2010 Options: Minnesota Twins
The Twins do not have any 2010 options. They do, however, have to start thinking about their course of action for Joe Mauer. 2010 is the last year of Mauer's deal; he'll earn $12.5MM. From Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe on March 8th:
While the Minnesota native would like to stay in the Twin Cities, he is expected to receive offers in the $20 million- to $25 million-per-year range. The [Red] Sox are expected to be front and center if Mauer is available.
It had been suggested by Charley Walters on March 6th that the Twins had scheduled a meeting with Mauer's agent, presumably to discuss an extension. Walters had written in December that the Red Sox were "already salivating over Mauer."
Mauer had surgery to remove a kidney obstruction in January, and was initially expected to be ready for the start of the regular season. However, discomfort lingered into March and he was diagnosed with inflammation of the sacroiliac joint. Mauer returned to action on May 1st, smacking a home run off Sidney Ponson. Mauer has also dealt with hamstring and knee issues in the past. He'll turn 28 in April of 2011 when he begins his next contract.