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Odds & Ends: Jays, Haren, Nolasco, Lee, Hunter

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Some links before Cliff Lee makes his Rangers' debut this evening…

Yankees Still Seen As Favorites To Sign Lee For 2011

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The city of New York has missed out on both LeBron James and Cliff Lee over the last two days.  In the latter star's case, however, another chance to acquire Lee will likely be coming soon, and many seem to think it's already a fait accompli.

As Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com puts it, "there is still a feeling around baseball that it is a matter of when, not if, Cliff Lee will become a Yankee."  Lee is a free agent at the end of the season and given the uncertainly surrounding the Rangers' ownership situation, it's unknown exactly what the club's payroll or overall financial status will be come winter.  Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports (via Twitter) that the Rangers feel they can sign Lee to a long-term deal should the sale of the team be settled, but even with this stability, it means that the Rangers will still need to face the Yankees in a bidding war — a daunting task for any club when pursuing a player that New York truly seems to want.

Even by losing out on Lee now, the Yankees can still win in the long run.  The Bronx Bombers can keep top prospect Jesus Montero and promising infielder David Adams (who would've gone to Seattle in a Lee deal) and still possibly get Lee for nothing but money in the offseason.  Also, New York's rotation will have more room for Lee in the winter since Javier Vazquez is probably unlikely to be re-signed and Andy Pettitte may retire.

There is one possible short-term downside for the Yankees, however, best summarized in a tweet by Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News: "..this worked out quite well for the Yankees. Unless they have to play Texas in the playoffs, of course."

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Mets, Red Sox, Meek, Giants

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On this date eight years ago, Major League Baseball's 73rd All Star Game ended after 11 innings in a 7-7 tie when both sides ran out of pitchers. Shortly thereafter, commissioner Bud Selig ruled that the All Star Game will determine home field advantage in the World Series, a still unpopular decision. The American League has won every Midsummer Classic since then, and 12 of the last 13 overall (the tie being the one exception).

This year's All Star Game is still four days away, so here are some links to keep you occupied until then…

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

Will The Yankees Still Look For Starting Pitching?

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It's not often that the Yankees miss out on a player, but after their seemingly all-but-finalized negotiations for Cliff Lee fell through earlier today, Lee is now property of the Texas Rangers.  While it's been reported that the Yankees have some hard feelings towards the Mariners over how the M's pulled out of their proposed deal, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that some members of the Yankee front office have put Lee behind them.

The question is, will the Bronx Bombers move on to any other starting pitchers that are on the trade market?  Dan Haren, Ted Lilly and Roy Oswalt are among the big-name hurlers who could be wearing different uniforms by July 31, but just because New York didn't acquire Lee doesn't mean that the Yankees are still in the hunt for rotation help.

There is, after all, Javier Vazquez.  After a disastrous start to his second go-around with the Yankees, Vazquez seems to have gotten on track; he posted a 3.23 ERA in six June starts and held opponents to a .189 batting average over the month.  Had the Yankees picked up Lee, Vazquez either might have been traded, become the most over-qualified long reliever in baseball, or possibly stayed in the rotation had New York made a less-obvious move (like keeping Phil Hughes' innings under control by having Hughes replace the struggling Joba Chamberlain as Mariano Rivera's set-up man).

As ESPN's Jayson Stark observes, Lee has dominated the Yankees in recent years, most notably beating them twice in last year's World Series.  If anything, it seems like New York's pursuit of Lee was more about keeping the left-hander away from other teams than it was about adding a needed piece.  It's one thing to add a proven ace with an expiring contract like Lee, but quite another to add a starter with an expensive long-term deal (like Oswalt or Haren) or a pitcher like Lilly who isn't a clear enough upgrade over Vazquez to justify trading the prospects that the Cubs would want in return.

Rangers Acquire Cliff Lee For Smoak, Prospects

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Cliff Lee is joining his fourth team in 12 months and the Rangers are hoping he can lead them to the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. The Rangers pried Lee away from the Mariners and multiple suitors today in a blockbuster deal that makes the 50-35 Rangers clear favorites to win the AL West.

They obtained Lee, Mark Lowe (who is out for the season with back surgery) and cash considerations from the Mariners for Justin Smoak, Blake Beavan, Matthew Lawson and Josh Lueke.

Though the Rangers' ownership is uncertain, GM Jon Daniels was able to add Lee and his $9MM salary with some creative deal-making. The Mariners will cover about $2.5MM of the $4.2MM remaining on Lee's salary, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter), presumably because the Rangers included an appealing group of prospects. But giving up Lee wasn't easy, even for top young talent.

“This is a bittersweet day for us,” Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik said. “While we are excited about the group of young players we have acquired from the Rangers, it’s never easy to trade a player like Cliff Lee, who has been outstanding here.”

Justin Smoak has yet to stand out at the big league level, but has star potential. Baseball America ranked Smoak second among all Rangers prospects before the season, behind 2010 All-Star Neftali Feliz. The publication suggested Smoak, 23, has "a chance to be a switch-hitting slugger in the Mark Teixeira mold." So far, Smoak's big league performance has been less than Teixeira-esque. He has a .209/.316/.353 line with eight homers in half a season.

Beavan, 21, was the Rangers' first round pick in 2007 and is now pitching at AA. He has a 2.78 ERA with 5.6 K/9 and a Cliff Lee-like 1.0 BB/9. Baseball America ranked Beavan 17th among Rangers prospects before the season, explaining that he could become a back-of-the-rotation innings eater, even if his stuff doesn't improve.

Lawson, a 24-year-old second baseman is hitting .277/.371/.438 at AA, along with Lueke and Beavan. Lueke, 25, has a 3.86 ERA with 12.5 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 as a reliever this year.

A lot of talent is heading to Seattle, but the Rangers will have the chance to reclaim some young players, even if Lee departs as a free agent after the season. Lee currently ranks as a Type A free agent, so the Rangers can obtain two top picks in the 2011 draft if they offer Lee arbitration and he turns it down to sign elsewhere.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post first reported that a deal was close and first reported that the Rangers had agreed to acquire Lee. Buster Olney, Jon Heyman, Ken Davidoff, Mark Feinsand, Bob Nightengale, Ken Rosenthal, Jon Paul Morosi, Ed Price, Evan Grant, T.R. Sullivan, Frankie Piliere and others added updates and details.

The Rangers outbid the many other clubs connected to Lee, including the Rays, Tigers, White Sox, Twins, Phillies, Mets, Cardinals, Dodgers and Reds. Oh yeah, and the Yankees.

So much for the Yankees’ unwillingness to hand over prospects for three month rentals. Brian Cashman & Co. offered Jesus Montero, David Adams and another prospect, possibly Zach McAllister, for Lee and were 'on the brink' of acquiring him earlier today. The Yankees thought they had a deal for the left-hander, according to Rosenthal (Twitter link), but it wasn't the case. The Mariners re-opened discussions with the Rangers, learned that Smoak was available, and the sides reached a deal.

For the deal that sent Lee to the Phillies click here; for the deal that sent Lee to the Mariners click here.

Reactions To The Cliff Lee Trade

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Now that we know for sure that Cliff Lee is headed to the Rangers, the pundits are already chiming in about the big swap — both about what it means for Texas and Seattle, and about what it means for the teams that fell short in the Lee sweepstakes.

  • Since the Rangers didn't have to give up any of their blue-chip pitching prospects, the trade is "a huge, huge 'win' for" Texas, tweets Evan P. Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
  • Grant also tweets that he was told that one of those young pitchers, Martin Perez, "was deemed untouchable" by the team.
  • Jim Bowden of Sirius XM Radio thinks "both teams win on this deal," though the Rangers are the "biggest winner" since it helps their chances in October.  Bowden also compliments the Mariners for getting more talent back for Lee than they dealt to acquire him in the winter.  (Twitter link).
  • USA Today's Bob Nightengale writes that last night, the Rangers thought that Lee was going to the Yankees.  (Twitter link)  Nightengale also thinks this trade makes Texas GM Jon Daniels the executive of the year.
  • The Phillies are taking some heat for not getting as much minor league talent for Lee when they dealt him over the winter.  ESPN's Jayson Stark tweets that one scouting director rated Philadelphia's haul for Lee as "last by a long shot" compared to what Seattle and Cleveland both got for the pitcher within the last year.
  • John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds "made what they thought was a serious offer" for Lee today, though Fay thinks both "the Rangers and Yankees offered a better package than the Reds could have put together."
  • Ed Price of Fanhouse.com comments that the Rays didn't want to give up any significant prospects for Lee (via Twitter), while the Mets simply didn't have the caliber of prospects that Seattle was looking for.  Price notes, however, that Jeremy Guthrie could be on the Mets' radar screen.
  • The Mets could use this Lee deal as a guideline, however, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.  The Mets could follow the Rangers' example and try to get a trading partner to add money into a deal, since Olney reports that New York won't be able to add to their payroll before the deadline.
  • Rays manager Joe Maddon is unsurprisingly happy that Lee isn't in Yankee pinstripes, reports Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
  • Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski says his team "had interest [in Lee], but we didn’t come close to a deal," reports John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.
  • Alyson Footer of MLB.com tweets that the Lee trade may help Houston move Roy Oswalt, since the "more attractive pitcher is off the table & Roy is the next best option."

Jayson Werth Rumors: Friday

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The Yankees, Red Sox and Rays have told the Phillies that they would have interest in Jayson Werth if he is available, according to George A. King III of the New York Post. We heard yesterday that the Phillies, who would like to add a proven starter, are discussing possible Werth trades with ‘a lot of teams.’

Werth, 31, will hit free agency after the season and is projected to be a Type A free agent. That ranking likely boosts his value in the long-term. For now, Werth boasts a .278/.365/.514 line and plays solid defense in right field. Check back throughout the day for the latest rumors on Werth:

  • The Red Sox have shown interest in Werth, but no deal is imminent, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.
  • An official of one team the Phillies discussed Werth with told ESPN.com's Jayson Stark that he would be very surprised to see the Phils trade him. Stark reports that the Phillies appear to have evaluated the market for Werth, Ibanez and Shane Victorino. The Phillies would have interest in Vazquez if the Yankees make him available.
  • There’s no reason to believe that the Phillies will trade Werth to the Yankees for Javier Vazquez, according to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. The Phillies would want major league-ready players who are under team control after 2010 if they deal Werth, Zolecki confirms.
  • The Phillies would part with Werth in the right deal, but aren't sure how they would do without a comparable right-handed bat, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (via Twitter).
  • The Phillies would prefer to move Raul Ibanez than Werth, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter). The chances of that happening seem slim.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Phillies would be looking to obtain players who can contribute instantly and who are under team control after 2010 (Twitter link).
  • Rosenthal puts the odds of a Javier Vazquez-Werth swap at 50-1 and says the Rays are not likely to acquire the Phillies' outfielder (Twitter link).

Yankees Sign Chad Tracy

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The Yankees signed Chad Tracy, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Tracy will play in the minors and provide the Yankees with some of the infield depth they have been seeking. Tracy asked for and received his release after the Cubs designated him for assignment in late June.

When the Cubs signed Tracy to a minor league deal over the winter, they hoped he could replicate some of the success he enjoyed early in his career. From 2005-06, Tracy posted an .848 OPS and averaged 24 homers and 38 doubles as a corner infielder and outfielder with the D’Backs.

Tracy batted just .250/.327/.295 for the Cubs in 49 plate appearances this year. The 30-year-old provides the Yankees with some depth in case Alex Rodriguez’s hip forces him to miss time.

Odds & Ends: Nolasco, Wuertz, Vazquez, Workman

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Some links for Friday, as the Cliff Lee drama unfolds…

  • Ricky Nolasco may become trade bait, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (via Twitter). The Marlins would listen to offers for the 27-year-old righty.
  • The Yankees have Orioles infielder Ty Wigginton and A’s reliever Michael Wuertz on their radar, according to George A. King III of the New York Post.
  • The Yankees aren't close to moving Javier Vazquez and could hold onto him until July 31st even if they acquire Lee, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (via Twitter).
  • Red Sox second rounder Brandon Workman and his advisor have given clear indications that the pitcher would not accept a deal for second-round money, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Workman has turned down a six-figure bonus before and appears ready to re-enter the draft in 2011 if the Red Sox don't offer him the bonus he feels he deserves.
  • The Chiba Lotte Marines are closing in on a deal with Hayden Penn, a right-hander currently pitching in the Pirates' system, according to reports that Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker passes along.
  • The Marlins, Brewers, Orioles, Phillies, Yankees, Dodgers and Red Sox watched Mark Prior pitch, according to Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse (Twitter link). The 29-year-old Prior is making a comeback.

A Look At Jesus Montero And David Adams

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Jesus Montero and David Adams are likely the main prospects headed to the Mariners in exchange for Cliff Lee. So who are they? A 20-year-old catcher who ranks among the game’s best prospects and a 23-year-old second baseman hitting well at AA.

Baseball America ranked Montero first among Yankees prospects before the season, citing his “hand-eye coordination, keen pitch recognition, knack for barreling balls and tremendous strength.” Montero has hit .253/.329/.408 in Triple A since placing fourth overall in Baseball America’s pre-season prospect rankings and 10th on Keith Law’s list.

BA placed Montero fifth among all MLB prospects in their recently-released mid-season rankings, but they say that Montero hasn’t improved this year and has convinced scouts that he won’t stay at catcher long-term. Scouts are still convinced that Montero can hit, so he may end up playing first base like former catchers Paul Konerko and Carlos Delgado.

Adams doesn’t have the same top prospect pedigree as Montero. He ranked 22nd among Yankees prospects before the season, according to Baseball America. Adams has gap power and a good arm, but doesn’t run particularly well or have great range. Baseball America suggested he could move to third base and that seems like a real possibility now, since the Mariners have top second base prospect Dustin Ackley. 

So far in 2010, Adams has continued to hit well. He posted a .309/.393/.507 line in 173 plate appearances at AA Trenton.

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