Stark’s Latest: Teixeira, Lamb, Ibanez, Blake
Hot stove highlights from Jayson Stark’s latest…
- Stark sees the Mets picking up Carlos Delgado‘s $12MM option for ’09, taking them out of the Mark Teixeira sweepstakes. He sees the Yankees in the mix for Tex. Will Teixeira top the $140MM the Rangers offered him?
- The Yanks will also pursue a top flight starting pitcher, with C.C. Sabathia and Ben Sheets as Plans A and B.
- Stark does not see the Braves diving into megadeals for Sabathia, Sheets, or A.J. Burnett. They’ll have payroll room, but could pursue trades or mid-tier free agents.
- Stark says friends of Tom Glavine and John Smoltz indicate they both want another go at it in ’09. They’re hoping the Braves will offer low-base incentivized deals. If the Braves spurn Glavine, I wonder if he’ll sign with the Nationals.
- Mike Lamb and the Phillies have mutual interest. A trade might make more sense than awaiting his release, so that he’d be eligible for the postseason roster.
- A friend of Raul Ibanez says the Mariners are unlikely to convince him to re-sign. They’ll snag a couple of draft picks if they offer arbitration and he signs elsewhere. The prospect of losing a draft pick makes Ibanez less attractive to other teams though.
- The Dodgers are considering re-signing Casey Blake and moving Blake DeWitt to second base.
Mike Lamb Designated
TUESDAY: MLB.com’s Jim Molony suggests Lamb could be a fit for the Phillies, Cubs, Mets, or Brewers.
MONDAY: According to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, third baseman Mike Lamb was designated for assignment today to make room for Eddie Guardado. Manager Ron Gardenhire questioned Lamb’s energy level.
Lamb is owed another $690K this year plus $3MM in ’09 and a $100K buyout for ’10. Several moves and near-moves made by the Twins in recent months have shown a willingness to spend some dough midseason.
Lamb’s move back to the AL didn’t work out; he hit just .233/.276/.322 in 261 plate appearances. Maybe he can help out in a utility role for a team like the Phillies.
Odds and Ends: Ricciardi, Guardado, Alvarez
Let’s round ’em up…
- Chat today, 2pm CST.
- Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star tries to view J.P. Ricciardi’s tenure from both sides. Drunk Jays Fans gives their take on the article.
- Aaron Gleeman takes a closer look at Eddie Guardado, while Jamey Newberg tells us about Mark Hamburger.
- Inspired by Nelson Cruz‘s excellent ’08 MLB debut, Rob Neyer and Sam Mellinger discuss cheap talent and "4A" players. Do Jeff Bailey, Mike Hessman, Joe Koshansky, Scott McClain, Terry Tiffee, and Josh Whitesell fit the bill? It’s always fun when these guys get a legitimate shot.
- The Pirates are getting frustrated with Scott Boras’ games regarding Pedro Alvarez – he’s signed, so let him take his physical already. Is Boras anti-winter ball for some reason? Speaking of Alvarez, Matt Bandi strikes back at Bob Smizik for his article regarding the scoop on the signing.
- If the Padres have the #1 overall pick next June, will they pass on Boras-repped phenom Stephen Strasburg due to signability?
- Andrew Baggarly wonders if the Giants should sign Mark Mulder this winter.
- Ken Rosenthal examines the Yankees’ upcoming offseason challenges. River Ave. Blues responds to the piece.
- Tigers reliever Francis Beltran was designated for assignment after 13 innings. The 28 year-old had been hittable in Triple A as well.
Twins Acquire Eddie Guardado
3:30pm: The Rangers will receive minor league reliever Mark Hamburger. La Velle E. Neal III expects the Twins to pick up the rest of Guardado’s salary.
2:13pm: According to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, the Twins have acquired Eddie Guardado from the Rangers. Joe Christensen wrote on Friday that the Twins would make a claim but didn’t expect a deal.
Guardado has been useful for the Rangers, posting a 3.65 ERA in 49.1 innings. The ERA is a bit deceiving, but it’s still a helpful addition for the Twins. Guardado is a familiar face, having spent a decade in the organization. He’s still owed roughly $620K this year.
Rockies To Shop Atkins?
Everyone expects the Rockies to move Matt Holliday for pitching this winter, but Troy E. Renck suggests it might be Garrett Atkins instead. Atkins is expected to make around $8MM in arbitration next year, and with Ian Stewart developing at third and Todd Helton returning to first, Atkins becomes readily expendable.
Renck points out that the third basement free agent market is sorely lacking, boosting Atkins value in a trade. Atkins can also play first base, making him a valuable player for ball clubs like the Twins and Angels. From those teams, Renck lists Glen Perkins, Kevin Slowey, Nick Adenhart, and Ervin Santana as young pitchers with huge upsides that could be a good fit. Santana, however, has realized that upside so I wouldn’t consider him on the list.
Twins Interested In Guardado
Everyday Eddie Guardado, a Twins mainstay for a decade, has apparently been placed on waivers by the Rangers. Joe Christensen says the Twins are interested and will probably make a claim, but don’t expect to make a deal. He says the Twins were eyeing Guardado in July but wouldn’t meet the Rangers’ price.
Guardado is currently closing for the Rangers, getting it done with a 3.21 ERA. A deeper look at his numbers indicates rougher waters ahead, but he’s certainly a useful reliever. As far as I can tell, Guardado only has about $680K left on his contract this year. I’d imagine several teams will put in a claim, but I would’ve said the same for David Weathers.
Odds and Ends: Kazmir, Thomas, Sweeney
We’ll kick it off with a few links today and add more bullets periodically.
- Cole Hamels feels that he handled his contract renewal last year immaturely.
- Over at The Hardball Times, Geoff Young looks at the best compensation picks of the 20th century.
- Geoff Blum‘s ’09 option vests with one more plate appearance.
- Bronson Arroyo has a plan to make the Reds competitive.
- Matthew Cerrone explains Carlos Delgado‘s ’09 option.
- Jeff Passan on the Cardinals’ brilliant signing of Ryan Ludwick.
- Baseball Prospectus profiles #26-50 on their list of players to build a team around.
- Twins reliever Brian Bass accepted a Triple A assignment, so he won’t become a free agent.
- MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo takes a preliminary look at the ’09 draft order.
- Jamey Newberg wonders if the Rangers could pry Scott Kazmir loose this winter. It’s hard to see the Rays trading him.
- Susan Slusser expects the A’s to add an impact bat this winter, but free agent DHs Frank Thomas and Mike Sweeney will probably be let go. In a related note, ESPN’s Buster Olney says the A’s had a chance earlier this year to acquire Jason Bay for a package including pitching prospect Vin Mazzaro.
Odds and Ends: Elias, Izzy, Silva, Colletti
Linkage for Wednesday…
- Eddie Bajek over at Detroit Tigers Thoughts has successfully reverse-engineered the Elias Type A/Type B formula. Today he assigns statuses to the American League catchers. Jason Varitek clings to Type A, while Ivan Rodriguez has slipped to Type B. Read more about how free agent compensation works here.
- Jason Isringhausen‘s season, and maybe his career, is over due to a torn flexor tendon in his elbow.
- J.C. Bradbury puts on his GM hat for the Braves. Rather than plug in free agent signings, he’d sell off most of the infield.
- MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone extinguishes a Carlos Silva rumor.
- ESPN’s Buster Olney grades the deadline deals. He has Ken Griffey Jr., Kyle Farnsworth, and Damaso Marte bringing up the rear.
- Tim Brown explains that Ned Colletti’s job is safe.
- Johnny Damon hopes A.J. Burnett opts out of his deal. Does he just want Burnett out of the league, or is he hoping the righty joins the Yanks’ rotation next year?
- Twins reliever Brian Bass may become a free agent, if he refuses a Triple A assignment.
Week In Review: 8/10 – 8/16
Taking a look back at this week’s happenings here on MLBTR…
- The biggest move of the month was the Diamondbacks’ acquisition of slugger Adam Dunn for Dallas Buck, Micah Owings, and Wilkin Castillo. I can’t remember any August trades of this magnitude.
- Bronson Arroyo told the media Dunn would be seeking over $100MM this offseason; Dunn denied the report wholeheartedly. I’d be surprised to see him get $100MM, but I also certainly don’t think it would be the worst signing we’ve seen in the past few offseasons.
- The Red Sox acquired Paul Byrd from the Indians. Boston will pay the remaining portion of Byrd’s salary. Byrd has been very good lately, and you can never have too much pitching depth. Not a bad move for Boston, in my opinion.
- The Twins were very active in discussions this week, though nothing surfaced as of yet. Minnesota claimed Jarrod Washburn off waivers from Seattle, but a deal wasn’t worked out. Boof Bonser and salary relief was originally thought to be the offer, but that report was later denied. Passing a chance to unload Washburn’s salary makes no sense to me. The Twins also claimed Alan Embree from Oakland, but he was pulled back.
- Freddy Garcia signed a minor-league contact with the Tigers. They must have liked what they saw at his audition. If he can return to be as effective as he was in his Chicago days, that would be a great signing. Nice low-risk move for Detroit.
- We’ve seen a lot of teams signing their young talent to long-term deals, but it looks like San Francisco ace Tim Lincecum will not be one of them. He’d prefer to go year-to-year.
- Minor moves happening around baseball: The Reds DFA’d David Ross, the Blue Jays released Shannon Stewart, and the Twins signed Bobby Kielty to a minor-league deal. The Giants DFA’d Jose Castillo, and Richie Sexson’s time in New York was cut short when he was released after just 35 plate appearances. The Rockies added another arm, signing Oscar Villareal.
- And now, for the draft-pick signings! Here are all the signings and not-signings teams made with their top picks this week: The White Sox signed Gordon Beckham, the Orioles signed Brian Matusz, the Padres signed Allan Dykstra, the Rangers signed Justin Smoak, the Giants signed Buster Posey, the Pirates signed Pedro Alvarez, the Royals signed Eric Hosmer, and the Reds not only signed Yonder Alonso, but Venezuelan outfielder Yorman Rodriguez as well. The Nationals failed to sign Aaron Crow, and the Yankees failed to sign Gerrit Cole.
- And to cap things off, since we just covered a bunch of guys who probably weren’t even alive when Jamie Moyer first started pitching in the Majors… he didn’t deny the possibility of pitching until he’s 50. He’s 45 right now with 11 wins and an ERA of 3.64, who knows?
Odds And Ends: Angels, Glavine, Johnson, Santana
A few minor notes from around the MLBiverse…
- Ken Rosenthal spoke before yesterday’s national broadcast and said the Angels are looking for a veteran shortstop, though Rosenthal feels it will not be easy to find one.
- Tom Glavine may opt for retirement if Dr. James Andrews determines he needs Tommy John surgery. Glavine is a free agent at the end of the season.
- On the other hand, Nick Piecoro says another Hall of Fame-bound free agent-to-be, Randy Johnson, will most likely return in ’09.
- The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review takes a look back at the Mets-Twins trade for Johan Santana and how both teams have fared.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.