Odds & Ends: Penny, Yankees
Some bullet points from around the internet:
- Despite immensely enjoying his experience with the Red Sox, Brad Penny is not letting the trade rumors distract him, says Rob Bradford of WEEI.
- Chris Gimenez was promoted to replace Grady Sizemore who hit the 15-day disabled list today. Gimenez can play corner outfield and serve as a backup catcher, says Anthony Castrovince.
- River Ave. Blues takes a look at the Yankees 25-man roster and suggests better options for the bench.
- The Mets and Phillies are both seeking a starting pitcher. The Phillies want a front-of-the-rotation guy while the Mets want a bottom-of-the-rotation guy. New York Post columnist Larry Brooks wonders in jest which role Pedro Martinez could fill.
White Sox Acquire Ramon Castro, DFA Miller
SATURDAY, 9:57am: According to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune the White Sox will designate catcher Corky Miller for assignment today. The 33-year-old career backup batted 42 times this year, hitting .205/.262/.282.
FRIDAY, 10:06pm: Mets GM Omar Minaya just announced that the Mets shipped Castro to the Sox for pitcher Lance Broadway. Sox Machine says this makes Broadway an official first-round bust.
8:59pm: SI's Jon Heyman says the White Sox are talking to the Mets about their catchers, probably Castro, and "it appears there's a decent chance a trade can be reached."
4:41pm: According to Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News, the Mets are trying to trade catcher Ramon Castro before Saturday's game (hat tip to MetsBlog). They've spoken to the Mariners, who just lost Kenji Johjima for a couple of months. Rubin says the Mets are not prepared to eat Castro's remaining $1.79MM. Castro is a solid offensive catcher, so he should draw interest.
Odds And Ends: Rangers, Brewers, O’Dowd
A few links for Saturday morning…
- Nolan Ryan could buy into the Texas Rangers according to this MLB.com article by T.R. Sullivan.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney points out that the Rangers have the resources to "out-bid others for the likes of Erik Bedard" if they decide to trade for pitching help.
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin said once again that he's not looking outside the organization for second base help, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Melvin said he's happy with Craig Counsell at second in the absence of Rickie Weeks.
- Now that the Phillies hope to acquire an impact pitcher, Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog.com wonders whether the Mets might decide to get in the Phillies' way and go after an arm, too.
- As Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe reports, the Red Sox aren't about to implement a six-man rotation. The Sox will still have arms to spare so we'll continue to hear Brad Penny's name in trade rumors.
- Dave Krieger of the Denver Post says the next four months will be a "referendum" on Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd and his front office.
- As MLB.com's John Schlegel reports Stephen Strasburg struck out 15 in his most recent start, walking no one and allowing two earned runs on eight hits.
- Check out a discussion I had about the Jays and other MLB teams on TorontoSportsMedia.com.
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff likes the Lance Broadway–Ramon Castro swap for the Mets.
- Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle takes a look at Ed Wade's Kaz Matsui signing and doesn't like what he sees.
Mets Acquire Emil Brown
According to SI's Jon Heyman, the Mets acquired outfielder Emil Brown from the Padres today for a player to be named later. He's hitting .260/.345/.432 in 41 Triple A games. The Mets are probably just adding minor league depth here.
Stark On Peavy, Oswalt, Phillies, DeRosa, Giants
Let's take a look at the latest Rumblings and Grumblings column from ESPN's Jayson Stark.
- The Padres' recent winning streak has not changed their intention of trading Jake Peavy. The Dodgers and Cubs are in Peavy's first tier of choices, follwed by the Giants, Cardinals, and Astros. The Angels would be the one AL team he'd consider. The East Coast is a long shot. Also, Peavy will want his 2011-13 partial no-trade clause to become a full no-trade. Peavy's friend Roy Oswalt has been unsuccessful in lobbying Astros owner Drayton McLane, as the 'Stros can't take on Peavy's contract. As for the Dodgers, GM Ned Colletti told the L.A. Times he hasn't talked to the Padres about Peavy since the pitcher vetoed the White Sox deal.
- Stark talked to scouts who believe Oswalt has "lost his edge" and needs a change of scenery. The Phillies have inquired on him, but they've asked about everyone: Peavy, Brandon Webb, Roy Halladay, Doug Davis, Erik Bedard, Cliff Lee, Aaron Harang, Brad Penny, Chris Young and Jason Marquis. Popular Phillies trade targets include Lou Marson, Jason Donald, Carlos Carrasco, Travis D'Arnaud, Freddy Galvis, Kyle Drabek, Dominic Brown, and Antonio Bastardo.
- The Braves are interested in bringing Mark DeRosa back to Atlanta. He came up with them and was non-tendered in '04 after tearing his ACL. But to deal young arms, the Braves would want an impact bat. Stark says they're "mostly listening" rather than shopping Jeff Francoeur. His trade value is difficult to gauge.
- The Mets seem content to wait out the first base trade market.
- The Giants seek a middle-of-the-order bat, and Jonathan Sanchez is being dangled. Three targets they haven't had success on are Dan Uggla, Jorge Cantu, and possibly Carlos Lee. Lee, according to one Stark source, doesn't intend to waive his no-trade for anyone.
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.
Mets Acquire Wilson Valdez
According to Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog, the Mets sent cash to the Indians for journeyman minor league shortstop Wilson Valdez. Based on the 31 year-old's hitting for the Columbus Clippers this year, I'd say he's the all-glove stopgap the Mets have been seeking.
Other moves: Ryan Church and Jose Reyes to the DL, top prospect Fernando Martinez promoted. Martinez, just 20, owns a .291/.337/.552 line in 42 Triple A games this year. He could accumulate as much as 132 days service time this year, meaning there's a slight chance he'll become a Super Two Player after 2011.
Odds & Ends: Braves, Peavy, Mets, Sabathia
Links for Tuesday…
- MLB.com's Bill Ladson reports that Mike MacDougal left the Nationals' Triple A club via an out clause, but could remain with the organization if they decide to promote him to the Majors.
- Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution speculates on some outfield options for the Braves.
- According to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Chris Duffy accepted the Brewers' assignment to Triple A. Duffy was designated for assignment on May 22nd.
- For some reason, Scott Boras weighed in on the Padres' attempt to trade Jake Peavy (talking to Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune). Boras suggested it might be a breach of contract, but Peavy's agent Barry Axelrod isn't as offended. Barry Rozner of the Daily Herald has more from Axelrod, who said, "the entire process was unfair."
- Howard Megdal of SNY campaigns for the Mets to acquire a passable shortstop, while retaining Ramon Castro and Brian Schneider as catchers.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo looks at the middle infielders in the upcoming draft. And MLB.com's Lisa Winston has a column on Grant Green.
- Talking to Jack Curry of the New York Times, C.C. Sabathia wondered about his six-year old son's possible high school future in New Jersey. Sabathia can choose to opt out of his contract after the 2011 season. Is this anything? The kid will be going to high school in eight years or so, so the contract will be up regardless. More telling might be Sabathia's comments to Jayson Stark earlier this month.
Rosenthal On Astros, Marquis, DeRosa, Francoeur
Let's take a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Rosenthal recommends the Astros trade veterans to improve their bottom-ranked farm system. He'd especially like to see Houston make Roy Oswalt available. They'd have take Oswalt's no-trade clause into consideration.
- The Phillies continue to seek a starter, and they made an inquiry on Colorado's Jason Marquis. Rosenthal finds Erik Bedard "perhaps the most intriguing fit" and notes that the Phils probably have flexibility to add payroll. This question came up in a recent chat…I do think the Phillies have the pieces to pull off a Bedard trade.
- The Brewers are not going after Cleveland's Mark DeRosa, as they cannot spare Major League pitching for him. Rosenthal also finds Jake Peavy unlikely, as the Brewers probably couldn't pull off a deal without creating a new need. Of Peavy, Rosenthal says, "He will not leave easily."
- The Mets are interested in Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson, who is off to a .338/.445/.471 start.
- The Royals might be the top suitor for Jeff Francoeur if the Braves shop him, but not everyone in Kansas City's front office is keen on him. The Red Sox are known to have an eye on Francoeur.
- Rosenthal's heard speculation that the Sox could trade Daniel Bard, whose value may be at a high point.
- Rather than acquire someone like Yuniesky Betancourt, the Padres will stick with in-house options at shortstop (mainly Luis Rodriguez and Everth Cabrera, once they're healthy).
Odds & Ends: Draft, Iwamura, Mets
Some links to tide you over this Memorial Day Eve:
- John Sickels at Minor League Ball lists last year's starters who posted a Win Share over 10 alongside their draft origins. Last week, Future Redbirds advised against risking a first round pick on high school pitchers.
- MLB.com has a fan Q&A up with Pirates GM Neal Huntington, who believes this year's draft is deep in pitching but thin on quality college position players.
- Akinori Iwamura will probably hit the DL after he suffered a nasty collision in today's game and was carted off the field. Joe Maddon will have a look at internal options to fill in for now.
- With the Mets hurting badly, Ken Davidoff at Newsday acknowledges GM Omar Minaya has his work cut out for him. With Jose Reyes' lingering tendinitis in his right knee and his injured backups, Davidoff thinks Minaya should get an appraisal on Bobby Crosby. Davidoff also thinks the Mets should "aggressively" go after the rehabbing Ben Sheets and at least discuss Erik Bedard with the M's, despite the Mets' top prospects sitting at lower levels.