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Scott Kazmir Rumors: Thursday

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27-year-old lefty Scott Kazmir was released by the Angels yesterday.  The team ultimately received 188 innings of 5.31 ball, plus 10 2/3 postseason innings, since acquiring him on August 28th, 2009.  The Angels gave up prospects Alexander Torres and Matt Sweeney that day, and infielder Sean Rodriguez was included as a player to be named later.  The Angels still owe Kazmir over $9MM to cover his salary for the rest of the season and the buyout on his club option.  Today's Kazmir links…

  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman said he hasn't looked into the possibility of acquiring Kazmir but will eventually, tweets MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez.  Cashman commented, "I know he's struggled."
  • Kazmir is a "possibility" for the Mets, GM Sandy Alderson said in response to a question on WFAN's Benigno and Roberts (MetsBlog has more info).  However, when pressed on the topic by Andy Martino of the New York Daily News, Alderson admitted his interest in Kazmir is the same as it is for everybody who hits the wire (Twitter link).  Kazmir, of course, is a former first-round pick of the Mets who was traded by former GM Jim Duquette to the Devil Rays in '04.  Kazmir's history with the organization is a factor, Alderson told Dan Martin of the New York Post.
  • My take: signing Kazmir is a low-risk proposition that almost any team could justify, taking him on as a minor league project for the next several months similar to what the Nationals are doing with Oliver Perez.  But that's only if Kazmir wants to sign right now and finds a good fit.
  • "I don't have any regrets," Angels GM Tony Reagins said of the '09 Kazmir trade, speaking to Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times.  Explained Reagins, "You make decisions in this business and live with the consequences."
  • Angels manager Mike Scioscia remarked to ESPN's Mark Saxon and the AP, "He's still young and I'm sure at some point we hope he can unlock that secret of where he needs to be."

Quick Hits: Orioles, Miller, Maybin, Bedard

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Congratulations to the Boston Bruins on winning their first Stanley Cup since 1972.  This year's major sports champions have now come from Boston, the Dallas/Fort Worth area and Wisconsin.  All three of those regions could be gunning for their second championship parade of the year come November — the Red Sox, Rangers and Brewers are all in first place in their respective divisions.

Some news and items from around the majors….

  • The Orioles have a lot of pieces that can be moved this summer, writes Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun.  He lists Koji Uehara and Jeremy Guthrie as possible trade candidates, but Schmuck predicts Vladimir Guerrero and Derrek Lee will finish the season in Baltimore since "neither…has done enough to create real value for the club."  Schmuck also notes that Andy MacPhail may not pursue a full fire sale since finishing with a .500 record would be a positive step for a team that hasn't had a winning record since 1997.
  • Andrew Miller has indeed opted to remain with the Red Sox and he will start for the team against San Diego on Monday, reports Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston.
  • David Villavicencio of FOX Sports Florida has the story of Marlins first-round pick Jose Fernandez, who escaped to the United States from his native Cuba on his fourth attempt.  Florida took the right-hander with the 14th overall pick and though Fernandez has committed to the University of South Florida, the story makes it sound as if he's eager to sign.
  • Erik Bedard still carries too much risk for the Yankees to make a play for at the trade deadline, argues Mike Axisa of the River Avenue Blues blog.  Also, as Axisa notes, the Mariners aren't likely to deal the Canadian southpaw since they're contending in the AL West.
  • "China, as well as India, Taiwan, and South Korea, represents one of the next great market inefficiencies," writes Bradley Woodrum for Fangraphs.  A team that establishes a foothold in East Asia will have first dibs on a huge, untapped area for finding future baseball talent.

Rosenthal On Reds, Nunez, Edwin Rodriguez

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Here's the latest from FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal in this new Hot Corner video…

  • Of the NL Central contenders, Rosenthal thinks the Reds will be the most active before the trade deadline.  They can deal one of their top prospects (Zack Cozart, Yonder Alonso, Devin Mesoraco) for help, or perhaps promote one or more of those youngsters.  The Reds also have Aroldis Chapman and Homer Bailey's returns on the horizon.
  • The Cardinals will rely on reinforcements in the form of injured players returning from the DL, and while the Brewers are looking for "a hard-throwing reliever," Rosenthal doesn't think Milwaukee will be able to make any major trades since the farm system is thin after the Zack Greinke deal last winter.
  • The bright side of Derek Jeter's injury is that it gives the Yankees a look at Eduardo Nunez, their possible shortstop of the future.  Rosenthal also notes that Nunez could be a potential trade chip.
  • In regards to the rumored realignment plan, Rosenthal says concerns about interleague games being played throughout the year would be addressed by having the majority of AL vs. NL matchups take place towards the middle of the season, as per tradition.  Rosenthal, for his part, is a big supporter of realignment since it will create a more fair playing field in regards to scheduling and the divisional setup.
  • In another video clip, Rosenthal argues that the Marlins shouldn't be quick to fire manager Edwin Rodriguez even though the team is struggling.  The injuries to Hanley Ramirez and Josh Johnson have hampered the team, though as Rosenthal notes, even with this excuse for Florida's slump, it's hard to predict Jeffrey Loria's actions.

Minor Moves: Wade, Thomas, Diamond

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Minor moves for Wednesday…

Quick Hits: Bautista, Brian Gordon, Kuroda

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A year ago today, the Athletics traded reliever Sam Demel to the Diamondbacks for first baseman/outfielder Conor Jackson and cash.  Demel is on the DL with a shoulder injury, though the groundballer should prove useful for Arizona.  Today's links:

Draft Notes: Lamb, Bichette, Josh Bell, Beede

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Two months away from the signing deadline, we won't be seeing over-slot signings anytime soon.  Still, here's the latest.

  • Clemson lefty Will Lamb, chosen 83rd overall in the second round by the Rangers, signed at slot for $430,200, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
  • Dante Bichette Jr., drafted 51st overall by the Yankees in the supplemental round, tweeted that he'll "officially a Yankee very very soon."  The Yanks received that pick as compensation for the loss of Javier Vazquez.  Slot for that pick is around $695K.  You can learn more about Bichette over at River Ave. Blues, where Mike Axisa profiled the slugger.
  • ESPN's Keith Law tweets that he's told there is no dollar figure that would change Josh Bell's mind about going to college.  Bell, drafted 61st overall by the Pirates, was one of the top draft talents but has made it clear he will honor his commitment to the University of Texas.  Of course, he also hired Scott Boras as his advisor, so clearly the Pirates think there's a chance he can be signed.
  • The Blue Jays' first pick (21st overall) was high school righty Tyler Beede; Baseball Prospectus' Kevin Goldstein tweets of rumors that the Jays had a pre-draft deal done with him.  Law tweeted a few days ago that Beede is going to sign for about $3MM, which would be about $1.7MM over slot.
  • The Rays exceeded slot on second round pick Granden Goetzman, signing the prep outfielder for $490K according to Baseball America's Jim Callis.  The Rays went over slot by less than five grand, though, and Callis says teams can exceed slot by up to five percent without going through the commissioner's office.  Goetzman went 75th overall but was actually the Rays' 11th pick.
  • If you have ESPN Insider, Law has a post up with names to watch for the 2012 draft.

Yankees To Sign Brian Gordon

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Brian Gordon has opted out of his contract with the Phillies and will sign with the Yankees, according to to Ken Davidoff of Newsday (via Twitter, courtesy Bob Brookover of The Philadelphia Inquirer). There is a condition in Gordon's contract that stipulated he be added to an acquiring team's Major League roster should he opt out, as Davidoff recently reported.

Gordon began his professional career as an outfielder with the Diamondbacks, by whom he was drafted in the seventh round in 1997, according to Brookover. Not progressing as a position player, Gordon made the conversion to pitching with the Rangers organization in 2007 and appeared in four games with Texas in 2008, but that was his only stint in the bigs. In 55 1/3 innings (12 outings, nine starts) with Triple-A Lehigh Valley this season, Gordon has a 1.14 ERA, 9.1 K/9 and 1.1 BB/9.

Yankees Sign Greg Smith, Cory Wade

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The Yankees have signed southpaw Greg Smith and right-hander Cory Wade to minor league contracts, according to the International League's transactions page.  Both pitchers will report to Triple-A Scranton.

Smith, 27, was released by the Rockies in April and he has a career 4.51 ERA in 40 Major League starts with Oakland and Colorado.  The lefty has been part of two of the biggest trades in recent years — he was part of the package (which also included Carlos Gonzalez, Brett Anderson and Chris Carter) sent by the Diamondbacks to the A's in the Dan Haren trade in December 2007.  Smith was then moved along with Gonzalez and Huston Street to the Rockies for Matt Holliday in November 2008.

Wade signed a minor league deal with the Rays last winter which included a clause that allowed him to opt out if he wasn't in the majors by a certain date.  Wade told the Rays he was going to invoke that clause and thus Tampa Bay released him over the weekend.  Wade posted a 2.27 ERA and an 0.93 WHIP in 55 relief appearances with the Dodgers in his 2008 rookie season, but struggled in 2009 and spent 2010 in the minors.  The right-hander had a 1.23 ERA and a 5.67 K/BB ratio in 36 2/3 innings for Triple-A Durham this season.

Quick Hits: Indians, Beede, D’Backs, Giants

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On this day in 2005, the Rangers released Andres Torres, a 27-year-old outfielder who had compiled a .534 OPS in parts of four big league seasons. While things looked bleak for Torres at the time, he eventually worked his way back to the bigs four years later with San Francisco. Since then, he has hit .266/.345/.477 and played a key role on the Giants' World Champion squad in 2010. Here are today's links:

  • Indians GM Chris Antonetti isn't ready to make additions via trade, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. The club is reluctant to part with prospects like Lonnie Chisenhall and Jason Kipnis, but the solution may ultimately be to turn to those two as they did with Cord Phelps last week. Chisenhall and Kipnis were ranked 25th and 54th, respectively, on Baseball America's Top 100 Prospects list entering 2011.
  • ESPN's Keith Law tweets that he expects the Blue Jays to sign their first-round pick, Tyler Beede, for around $3MM. Beede, selected out of high school, has said his decision will come down to the money.
  • Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers has targeted "about 20 guys" who could be on the trade market over the next few weeks, according to the Arizona Republic's Nick Piecoro. While most teams aren't ready to deal yet, Towers says "that doesn't mean I don't do my due diligence and still call."
  • Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News argues that, while the Giants need to acquire a catcher at some point, there's no urgency to do so immediately.
  • Bartolo Colon's trip to the DL is a reminder that the Yankees likely won't be a championship-caliber team in 2011 without at least one more starting pitching acquisition, says John Harper of the New York Daily News.
  • All the 40-man roster moves the Cardinals have made recently could suggest there's need for a trade, tweets Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  • With labor uncertainty surrounding many other professional sports, Bud Selig is proud that baseball is avoiding similar issues, as the commissioner tells Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Hummel's piece includes a rundown of a few key items on the table during CBA talks.

Cafardo On Capps, Clippard, Athletics, Cabrera

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There are indications that Cubs owner Tom Ricketts could be considering a management overhaul in Chicago, and Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe thinks Ricketts would do well to hire as many Red Sox people as possible. Cafardo suggests that Allard Baird, Ben Cherington, and DeMarlo Hale are among the names that should be attractive to the Cubs. Here are some other highlights from the Globe's Sunday Notes:

  • Matt Capps should draw plenty of trade interest if the Twins decide to move him. However, the closer likely won't become available until the Twins are absolutely sure they're out of the race, as the defending AL Central champs will be reluctant to give up on their season.
  • If the Nationals are willing to deal him, there will be a strong market for setup man Tyler Clippard. Cafardo speculates that Clippard would be a good fit for the Yankees or Phillies.
  • An AL GM on the Athletics' decision to replace manager Bob Geren with Bob Melvin: "[GM Billy] Beane made the move now because he thought there was something to salvage. They still have the pitching. So it’s not out of the realm of possibility."
  • Any contenders with interest in Orlando Cabrera may be able to acquire him sooner rather than later, after the Indians' promotion of Cord Phelps reduced Cabrera to a part-time role.
  • Jason Bay's most recent slump had the Mets' $66MM man out of the lineup this week. "His bat is slow and he’s just not himself," said one veteran scout. "The ballpark [Citi Field] isn’t good for him, but the way he hit his home runs, I never thought that was a big issue."
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