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Not Much Trade Activity For Mike Lowell

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THURSDAY, 12:14pm: Red Sox GM Theo Epstein told Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald, "There hasn't been much trade activity, if at all," for Lowell this spring.

WEDNESDAY, 5:03pm: Bradford reports the two sides "aren’t close" to a deal and it's unlikely that Lowell is dealt before the start of the season.  Meanwhile, WEEI's Alex Speier says the Mets are not interested in Lowell despite Daniel Murphy's knee injury.

4:17pm: Talks between the Rangers and Red Sox for Mike Lowell have accelerated, reports ESPN's Gordon Edes.  Perhaps the Rangers' interest picked up after Lowell hit two doubles today.  Just two days ago Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wrote that the Rangers' interest in Lowell was "light," and the Sox didn't expect a suitable offer from any team.

Via WEEI's Rob Bradford, it was known that the Rangers would scout Lowell again today.  However, Bradford said the Rangers' interest is "tempered by their reluctance to allocate any substantial amount of money to a player who would be filling a reserve role."  Bradford says that for the Rangers to take Lowell on as a backup, the Red Sox would have to assume almost all of his $12.5MM salary.  Potentially, a bigger market for Lowell could develop once teams get a better look at him.

Pat Misch Clears Waivers

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WEDNESDAY, 1:03pm: Misch cleared waivers and was sent to Triple A, writes Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog.  This is the time of year to get guys through waivers, as 40-man roster spots are at a premium.

TUESDAY, 3:40pm: Mets pitcher Pat Misch has been placed on waivers, tweets Rich Coutinho of ESPN Radio.  The 28-year-old southpaw posted a 4.48 ERA, 3.3 K/9, and 3.2 BB/9 in 62.3 innings for the Mets and Giants last year.  He logged another 52.3 innings in the minors, with better peripherals.  Misch wasn't particularly good against lefties or righties last year, though the samples are limited.

Mets Claim Manny Acosta

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The Mets claimed reliever Manny Acosta off waivers from the Braves, tweets MLB.com's Mark Bowman.  Acosta, 29 in May, posted a 4.34 ERA, 7.7 K/9, and 4.6 BB/9 in 37.3 innings for the Braves last year.  He was better in his 27.3 minor league innings, but walked too many there as well.

Acosta throws a mid-90s fastball and racked up groundballs in his better years.  He even served as the Braves' closer in early '08 when Rafael Soriano went down.  Hamstring and shoulder injuries cut that season short, however.  The Mets snagged a quality arm from their division rivals, but now they must help his stuff translate to results.

Nationals Claim Chris Coste

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12:53pm: The Nationals claimed Coste, reports Brian Costa of the Newark Star-Ledger.

7:53am: The Mets placed catcher Chris Coste on waivers, reports Adam Rubin (via MetsBlog).  Coste signed a big league deal worth $650K back in December.  Rubin says Coste is likely to accept an assignment to Triple A if he clears waivers.

Coste, 37, hit .224/.301/.317 in 230 plate appearances for the Phillies and Astros last year, catching 352 innings.  Coste went 3 for 14 with a walk this spring.

On Saturday, ESPN's Jayson Stark said the Mets were hoping to move an excess catcher like Coste or Omir Santos for Triple A pitching depth.  The Mets have Rod Barajas, Henry Blanco, Santos, Josh Thole, and Shawn Riggans on the depth chart.

Odds & Ends: Gaudin, Mets, Cain, Parra

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Links for Sunday evening..

Stark’s Latest: Trade Block, Mets, Phillies, Tigers

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ESPN's Jayson Stark has a new blog post up with some trade rumor nuggets for us. It's behind the Insider wall (if you don't have a subscription yet, what are you waiting for?), so I can't give away too much…

  • Stark lists 16 players currently on the trade block. Among the names we haven't seen mentioned recently: Willie Harris, Andy Marte, Tim Stauffer, Omir Santos, and Brad Thomas.
  • The Mets are looking to move one of their extra catchers, either Santos or Chris Coste, and are looking to add "major league-ready triple-A pitching depth." Aren't we all…
  • The Phillies are looking to add all sorts of pitching depth, and have interest in the recently released Chad Gaudin.
  • Scott Sizemore's rocky spring has the Tigers looking for a second base upgrade.
  • Kansas City is shopping Brayan Pena in their perpetual search for starting pitching.
  • The Braves have told other clubs that David Ross is available, "possibly in a catcher-for-catcher swap for a younger backup-catcher type."

Latin Links: Liriano, Ruiz, Ramirez, Garcia

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News from sources that use subjunctive tenses. Links are in Spanish…

  • Francisco Liriano tells Hoy's Dionisio Soldevila he seriously considered retirement eight months after his elbow ligament replacement surgery in 2006. He also gives perhaps his clearest rejection yet of the idea that he take the John Smoltz route and step into Joe Nathan's slot as closer. "I don't want to be a closer," Liriano says. "I don't know if I'm ready to roll out there three or four times a week." After a dominant winter in the Dominican and a reportedly resurgent fastball this spring, Liriano is currently manager Ron Gardenhire's pick for the fifth spot in the Twins rotation.
  • Two weeks after his acrimonious split from agent Jorge Luis Toca, Cuban prospect Jose Julio Ruiz has surfaced again. Representatives from 22 teams recently watched Ruiz and fellow new Legacy Sports client Yadil Mujica at a staged tryout in the Dominican Republic, writes Jorge Ebro at the Nuevo Herald. The Blue Jays, Red Sox, Rangers, and Rays have all reportedly made offers to the left-handed first baseman this winter, all at around $2MM. The Rays at minimum can likely be crossed off the list of Ruiz's potential suitors after the team signed Leslie Anderson.
  • Rangers prospect Max Ramirez is getting more serious about moving to first, just like Mike Lowell, the player for whom Ramirez was almost traded earlier this winter. "I played a fair amount of first (base) in Venezuela," Ramirez tells Lider en Deportes' Carlos Rodriguez. "I didn't do it as much in the minors, but I've improved and I feel good." Ramirez, who is currently blocked at catcher by Taylor Teagarden and Jarrod Saltalamacchia, has been mentioned as a possible solution to the Rangers' seeming shortage of reserve corner infielders. He played 23 innings at first during a brief 2008 call-up.
  • White Sox fifth starter Freddy Garcia tells Lider's Rodriguez that retirement never crossed his mind after he was released by the Mets last spring after just two starts at Triple A. "They told me one thing and did another," Garcia says. "I came to fight for a spot and they never gave me a chance."
  • Former Twins outfielder Lew Ford has signed with the Oaxaca Warriors of the Mexican League, reports Eduardo Gonzalez Garcia at Noticias Sureste. After a one-year sojourn in Japan, Ford signed with the Reds last August and played for their Triple A Louisville affiliate. He last appeared in the majors in 2007.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Mauer, McCutchen, Guzman

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On this date back in 1974, the Red Sox released Orlando Cepeda and Luis Aparicio, both future Hall of Famers. Cepeda, then 36, signed with Kansas City and retired after the season as a .297/.350/.499 career hitter with 379 home runs. Aparicio, 39 at the time, never played again following his release, and finished his career as a .262/.311/.343 hitter and with a reputation as one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball history.

Here are some links from around the baseball blogosphere…

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

Odds & Ends: Kim, Dukes, Adrian

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Links for Thursday…

Yankees Release Chad Gaudin

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3:01pm: The Dodgers are in too, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  The D'Backs are not interested, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.

11:38am: The Mets are discussing Gaudin, tweets Newsday's David Lennon.

7:57am: The Yankees released pitcher Chad Gaudin, tweets Marc Carig of the Newark Star-Ledger.  Gaudin had been placed on waivers on Tuesday, but no team claimed his $2.95MM salary.  Since he was on a non-guaranteed contract, the Yankees will only pay a quarter ($737,500).

A year ago when Gaudin was released by the Cubs, he chose the Padres in part because of the opportunity to start.  In that role in '09 he posted a 4.76 ERA, 8.37 K/9, and 4.69 BB/9 in 134.3 innings.  The Mets, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, and Mariners are among the clubs looking a little short on arms.  Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tells us that the A's are not interested in a reunion with Gaudin.

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