Odds And Ends: Gotay, Register, Haynes
A couple of minor pickups this afternoon:
- The Rays have claimed left-hand-hitting Nathan Haynes off waivers from the Angels. Rocco Baldelli will be moved to the 60-day DL to make room on the 40-man. Marc Lancaster speculates that Haynes, who is out of options, will take a roster spot that was presumed to be Eric Hinske’s.
- The Mets have given up trying to trade for Rule V pick Steven Register, and are letting him go back to Colorado. He’ll report to Triple A.
- Ruben Gotay, who had been DFA’d by the Mets, has been picked up by the Braves. Adam Rubin also notes that Anderson Hernandez has been optioned to AAA. UPDATE: To make room for Gotay on the 25-man, the Braves have asked for waivers on Scott Thorman. He has cleared, and will report to Triple A Richmond.
Posted by Joe Pawlikowski
Mets Interested In Vargas
The Mets are currently considering Orlando Hernandez, Mike Pelfrey, and Jorge Sosa for their fifth starter job. A little more depth wouldn’t hurt. According to Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post, Omar Minaya said the Mets "will have a strong interest" in Claudio Vargas. Minaya once traded for Vargas as GM of the Expos.
My gut says Vargas could be solid with the Mets. His strikeout rate and control never seemed to match up with his ERA. If Rick Peterson could help him keep the ball in the yard, a low 4s ERA over 180 innings seems possible. There doesn’t seem to be much downside to signing him.
Mets Place Register, Gotay On Waivers
The Mets have placed second baseman Ruben Gotay and pitcher Steve Register on waivers. MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone explains the situation (Register was a Rule V pick from the Rockies). Gotay, 25, would be a mildly interesting pickup.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Reed Johnson
On Sunday the Jays released Reed Johnson, but he will not remain unemployed long as several teams need help in the outfield or on the bench. Ken Rosenthal notes that the Cubs, Red Sox, Rays and Rangers have shown interest in Johnson, while Jim Baubach added the Mets to the equation. That is a lot of interest in a player that has 42 home runs, 28 steals and a career OPS+ of 95 in 4.5 seasons. Then again, with one week prior to the regular season, there are not a lot of options available. It’s not like a player that posted a 170 OPS+ in 2007 is available…Oh wait…Never mind…Let’s take a look at what is being written about Johnson in the Blogosphere.
- Mets Geek believes that Johnson is exactly what the Mets need, noting that he would be the right-handed bat that the bottom of the Mets order desperately needs. They also like his defense and the fact that he comes without having to surrender players.
- MetsBlog is not convinced that Johnson is much of an upgrade over Angel Pagan or Brady Clark and feels the Mets prefer Xavier Nady but are content with Pagan if Nady cannot be acquired.
- MetsMerized was against trading for Johnson but doesn’t see how Omar Minaya can pass on signing him now.
- Baseball Crank sees Johnson as a good fit for the Mets, noting that he has a solid career line against lefties, but concedes that what little power he has shown came at the hitter-friendly Skydome, or whatever they are calling it these days.
- Cobra Brigade sees the Cubs signing either Johnson or Jeff DaVanon, whichever comes at the cheaper price.
- Crawley’s Cub Kingdom feels the Cubs are going to make a deal and that a player like Johnson may fit better than a Coco Crisp or Marlon Byrd, both of whom may complain about playing time and impede the progress of Felix Pie.
Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.
Odds and Ends: Giles, Crisp, A-Rod
Nothing huge cooking this morning, so here are some odds and ends.
- Doesn’t look like the Dodgers will acquire Marcus Giles.
- Rany Jazayerli writes about how Kansas City is home to many of the country’s best baseball journalists. On a related note, the Star’s Sam Mellinger has a chat with Brian Bannister on his blog.
- Coco Crisp rattles off the trade rumors he’s heard: Cubs, Sox, A’s, Padres. No deal appears imminent, though Crisp was healthy enough to pinch-run this morning.
- John Harper snags an exclusive with Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod admitted he chose the Rangers over the Mets for money and feared he was going down that road again this past winter.
- Roch Kubatko writes that Brian Roberts was pulled from the lineup today for back pain, hoping to nip trade speculation in the bud.
- The Phillies have to make a decision on Kris Benson today.
- Aaron Gleeman weighs in on the Joe Nathan extension. Buster Olney talked to baseball execs who felt the Twins should’ve added Nathan’s money to their Johan offer.
Mets Like Reed Johnson
Yesterday both Ken Rosenthal and Jayson Stark named the Cubs as the team in hardest on Reed Johnson. Meanwhile Joel Sherman and Bart Hubbuch indicated the Mets weren’t terribly interested.
Jim Baubach of Newsday sings a different tune this morning. He says the Mets had internal discussions about Johnson planned for yesterday, and Omar Minaya admitted he was an attractive, affordable option.
Johnson makes sense for both clubs, though the Mets may have better internal options for a fourth outfielder.
Who Wants Reed Johnson?
3:40pm: Ken Rosenthal says the Cubs are "showing the heaviest interest" in Johnson. Johnson does make sense for the Cubs, playing center when the team faces a lefty. It might hold Felix Pie back slightly, but it’s a win-now move.
Rosenthal says the Red Sox, Rays, and Rangers are the other teams in on Johnson. It’s definitely surprising to see the Sox and Rangers in the mix as neither club is light on outfielders.
9:40am: If 31 year-old outfielder Reed Johnson clears release waivers, he’s going to be a hot commodity. Already, the expected three teams have been named as possibilities in their respective newspapers.
- On Sunday, Joel Sherman characterized the Mets’ interest as "mild at best." Bart Hubbuch says the Mets are interested but quotes Omar Minaya as saying the Mets will go with internal options.
- Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald says the Cubs have interest in Johnson, noting that Jim Hendry is likely to make an acquisition this week. Jeff DaVanon is another (less likely) option. Gordon Wittenmyer says the Cubs would have interest in Johnson if he clears release waivers.
- Joe Smith connects the Rays to Johnson and DaVanon, though only in speculation.
- I asked ESPN’s Keith Law how Johnson handled center field. He said: "I haven’t seen him since the injury, but he could play it every day when I was with Toronto, and he has a plus arm."
Odds and Ends: Papelbon, Darvish, Crisp
Let’s round up some morning links.
- McCovey Chronicles feels that the Jose Castillo signing reduces the Joe Crede threat level for the Giants.
- Jonathan Papelbon wants to drive the market for closers upward.
- Keith Law discusses J.P. Ricciardi’s decision to overrule scouting advisers and draft Ricky Romero over Troy Tulowitzki for the Blue Jays back in ’05.
- If Yu Darvish is posted after this season, will it cost $75MM just to negotiate with him?
- From Buster Olney on Sunday: "Rival teams are not entirely sure if the Red Sox are devoted to the idea of trading Coco Crisp."
- Pedro Martinez will not worry about his next contract until after the season.
Shapiro, Minaya Met Yesterday
Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes that phone buddies Mark Shapiro and Omar Minaya met in person yesterday evening. Any chance the Indians and Mets could match up for a trade?
We know the Mets may be looking to move Jorge Sosa and/or Scott Schoeneweis. The Indians are currently trying to decide whether to give their last bullpen spot to Tom Mastny, Jorge Julio, or Scott Elarton; not sure if either Met pitcher would help.
The Mets are known to be looking for outfield assistance. The Indians have two out of options outfielders: Shin-Soo Choo and Franklin Gutierrez. Choo is recovering from Tommy John surgery and may have to join the South Korean army. Gutierrez is the frontrunner to start in right field. Theoretically the Tribe could part with half of their left field platoon – David Dellucci or Jason Michaels. Dellucci is shaking off a sore forearm currently.
The Mets could also use another starter; Cliff Lee or Jeremy Sowers might be available.
Nationals Release John Patterson
6:58pm: Bart Hubbach of the New York Post says the Mets are not interested in Patterson. The Astros may take a look.
2:18pm: Today the Nationals released oft-injured starter John Patterson, who hasn’t had a healthy season since his excellent 2005. Patterson says he’s healthy, but wasn’t progressing as quickly as the Nationals had hoped. His velocity has been down this spring. Based on his comments he seems like a good guy; I’m sure he’ll find work with another club.
Patterson was drafted fifth overall by the Expos in ’96, but jumped to Arizona as a $6MM loophole free agent after Montreal didn’t offer him a contract within fifteen days. The D’Backs’ top pitching prospect needed Tommy John surgery in May of 2000, before he reached the bigs.
He made his big league debut in July of ’02 as an injury replacement for Rick Helling. He also received a September call-up to finish off that season. Patterson was named by Bob Brenly as the fourth starter heading into the ’03 season, but a poor spring performance and a cut on his thumb caused Brenly to change his mind. Patterson bounced up and down between Triple A and the Majors that year.
Out of options in ’04, the D’Backs delayed their decision on Patterson until late March and then shipped him to Montreal for nondescript reliever Randy Choate. Patterson opened the season as the Expos’ fifth starter, but tore a groin muscle and didn’t come back until July. His performance after that was erratic, but he excelled in the winter league after the season.
A Tony Armas injury helped Patterson snag a rotation spot to begin ’05, and he was masterful in 31 starts that year (despite a DL stint for back spasms). With big expectations for ’06, Patterson discovered forearm soreness in April. The injury didn’t go away, and Patterson had exploratory nerve surgery in July.
That winter Patterson lost his arbitration case but entered the season a healthy pitcher (aside from dizzy spells in spring). Biceps and elbow soreness surfaced in May; his velocity was down all year. In June he went to Canada for an injection-based nerve treatment in his elbow. Though he deemed the procedure a success, Patterson went under the knife again in September to remove upper arm scar tissue and deal with more nerve problems. While the velocity has been down this spring, Patterson hasn’t dealt with any injuries yet. After reviewing his history, I realized Patterson is a marvel of modern science. Still, it seems the man’s body was just not meant to pitch every five days.