Yankees Sign Russ Ortiz
According to Tyler Kepner at the New York Times, the Yankees have signed RHP Russ Ortiz to provide minor-league depth at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Ortiz was released by the Astros in July after putting up a 5.57 ERA and 65/48 K/BB ratio in 85.2 innings as a starter.
Yankees DFA Cody Ransom
The Yankees designated Cody Ransom for assignment to make room for Anthony Claggett, according to Tyler Kepner of the New York Times. Ransom, 33, hit .190/.256/.329 in 31 games for the Yankees, mostly as a third baseman.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Deadline Deals
On this date nine years ago the Rangers traded Dave Martinez to the Blue Jays. It was the third time Martinez had been traded since the beginning of the season. That night, Martinez would tie a big league record by playing for his fourth franchise in one season. He also appeared with the Devil Rays and the Cubs. Martinez' current club, the Rays, did not make any trade deadline deals, but plenty of other teams did. Let's take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…
- MLB Notebook hosted a round-table discussing the trade deadline winners and losers.
- Sully Baseball says declaring winners and losers this soon is meaningless.
- Zells Pinstripe Blog says the trade deadline was not as bad for the Yankees as many think.
- Rays Revolutionary explains why it was not important for the Rays to make any deadline deals.
- UmpBump wonders how Adam LaRoche makes the Braves better in 2010, as some have suggested.
- Capitol Avenue Club explains the reasoning behind the Adam LaRoche deal for the Braves.
- Talking Chop looks at what the Adam LaRoche trade means for Chipper Jones' future in Atlanta.
- Dodgers Rumors looks at some August waiver-wire trade targets for the Dodgers.
- MLB Insights makes a case that J.P. Ricciardi's tenure has been a successful one.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here, and followed on Twitter here.
Odds & Ends: Yankees, Pirates, Rays
Some links on this not-necessarily-manic Monday:
- Jen Langosch at MLB.com has a nice scorecard put together of the Pirates' recent acquisitions and how they've performed so far, as well as a rundown of the players they were dealt for.
- Fred Mitchell at the Chicago Tribune has an amusing piece about the lengths what MLB general managers go to keep their stress levels low this time of year.
- MLB.com beat reporter Lyle Spencer answers fan questions, including why they let Roy Halladay get away.
- Jim Callis at Baseball America re-ranks the Pirates' and Indians' systems after their major prospect acquisitions.
- Brian Hoch at MLB.com answers Yankees fans' questions, specifically about the trade deadline and why the team was mostly inactive.
- R.J. Anderson at Fangraphs re-visits the circumstances that led to the Rays obtaining Wade Townsend, who was released today.
Odds And Ends: Pirates, Bard, Padres, Rolen
More links for the afternoon…
- MLB.com's Ian Browne says Daniel Bard has essentially become "untouchable." Of course few players other than Tim Lincecum and Evan Longoria really are untouchable, but it sounds like the Red Sox really like their young reliever.
- ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick hears from some people within the game who credit the Pirates for gutting the team and amassing prospects instead of continuing with the "lipstick on a pig" approach they tried for years.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock shows that the Padres improved their pitching depth and suggests they could pursue a free agent hitter this offseason.
- Reds assistant GM Bob Miller said in his MLB.com chat that the reports on the amount the Reds owe Scott Rolen are "incorrect." So how much are the Reds paying Rolen? Miller can't say.
- Peter Abraham of the Journal News shows that Andy Pettitte could double his $5.5MM salary if he has a strong enough finish and his incentives kick in.
Which Teams Took On Salary At The Deadline?
As the trade deadline approached, we heard many writers and executives suggest teams would be unable to add payroll this year. Here's a breakdown of the teams that added at least $1MM in salary to their 2009 payrolls this summer. All totals are approximate:
- The Cardinals added $2.9MM to the team's payroll when they traded for Mark DeRosa and $3.7MM when they added Matt Holliday for a total of $6.6MM.
- The Red Sox added $4.5MM between the Victor Martinez and Adam LaRoche deals.
- Acquiring Jarrod Washburn added about $3.6MM to the Tigers' payroll.
- The White Sox added $2.8MM in salary when they made the Jake Peavy deal.
- The Giants added $2.1MM in the Freddy Sanchez trade.
- The Phillies added $2MM in the Cliff Lee deal.
- The Rockies added $1.9MM in the Rafael Betancourt and Joe Beimel deals.
- The Brewers took on $1.4MM by dealing for Felipe Lopez.
- The Braves took on $1.3MM to add Nate McLouth.
- The Twins added $1.25MM in salary by trading for Orlando Cabrera.
- They didn't take on much salary, but between the Eric Hinske deal and the Jerry Hairston Jr. acquisition, the Yanks added $1.1MM.
- The Dodgers added about $1MM when they dealt for George Sherrill.
In total, 12 teams added payroll, but only one took on more than $5MM. The prognosticators were right about one thing: teams didn't take on much payroll. However, few predicted 12 teams would take on salary at the deadline. Looks like many teams set economic concerns aside when presented with the chance to win.
Rosenthal’s Full Count Video: Yankees, Dodgers, Pirates
The tireless Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com has a new Full Count video up. Let's dive in…
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Rosenthal that he was "very aggressive" going after pitching help, whether it be high-end starters, low-end starters, or relievers. "I was on all of it," Cashman said.
- Cashman specifically targeted Jarrod Washburn, but the Mariners asked for top prospect Austin Jackson in return. The Yankees were also "one of several clubs" to inquire about Felix Hernandez.
- Rosenthal says Heath Bell was their primary target among relievers, as the idea was to make him the primary setup man for Mariano Rivera, and possibly put Phil Hughes or Alfredo Aceves back into the rotation.
- The Dodgers "never got close" in their attempted blockbuster for Adrian Gonzalez and Bell. The deal would have helped Los Angeles' rotation by shortening the game from the back end with another elite reliever.
- They still have issues in the rotation however, as Jason Schmidt topped out at 87 last night. Only two National League clubs have gotten fewer innings out of their starters than the Dodgers.
- We won't know the true result of the Pirates' firesale until 2011 or 2012, but the early returns on the Jason Bay trade are not good. Rosenthal says the Rays may have been willing to pay more for Bay at the time, possibly including the since-traded Jason Hammel and/or Edwin Jackson in a package.
- Hitters and relievers will be in "ample supply" during the August waiver period, but quality starting pitchers … not so much. Doug Davis might be one of the best available starters, and the Diamondbacks will need to be realistic about a return since they are unlikely to offer him arbitration after the year.
- There was "precious little action" on Davis in July. When Rosenthal mentioned to a club official that the offers for Davis might not be much better in August, the official responded "they can't be much worse."
Yankees Still Hunting For Starters?
After a drubbing to Sergio Mitre last night, Yankees skipper Joe Girardi admitted that the team is hurting for depth at the back end of their rotation, reports Marc Carig at the Newark Star-Ledger:
"I'm not sure we have a lot of options at this point," Girardi said. "[Mitre's] got to get it done."
The Yankees weren't able to make a move for pitching before the 4 p.m. deadline yesterday, but Carig provides this quote from GM Brian Cashman:
"I think over the years, this trade deadline is no longer even in existence… The waiver stuff is not going to prevent deals in August. Guys are going to get through because people are going to be afraid to claim and get stuck with money that they can't afford. And so the July 31 trade deadline is more of a fictitious one now, anyway."
Girardi reportedly said Friday he does not believe the dealing to be finished on the Yankees' end. So who would make sense in a deal? And why is Paul Byrd still unsigned?
Deadline Roundup: Mets, Washburn, Nats, Rays
Two Cy Young Award winners were traded this deadline and neither one of them was Roy Halladay. It's been a wild few days. Here's a recap of the action and here are some more details and reactions:
- Omar Minaya told Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post that the Mets couldn't find a trade partner because of what other teams were asking for.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo says Aaron Thompson is a pretty good return for Nick Johnson. it sure beats losing him for nothing after the season.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Mariners told the Yankees they had to give up an Austin Jackson-type player for Jarrod Washburn, who was dealt to Detroit.
- The Brewers were told they'd have to surrender Manny Parra, Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel for Washburn, Sherman reports.
- Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that Washburn is open to returning to the Mariners in the offseason, when he hits free agency.
- Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski tells MLB.com's Jason Beck that the Tigers were "not close at all" to completing any other moves.
- Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times says the Rays will look for help on the waiver wire in August.
- Any bobblehead collectors? Tomorrow night is still Victor Martinez bobblehead night in Cleveland, according to MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince.
- The Phillies, Cardinals, Red Sox and Tigers are Jon Heyman of SI.com's deadline winners. His losers? The Nats and Royals.
Yankees Acquire Jerry Hairston Jr.
The Yankees acquired Jerry Hairston Jr. from the Reds, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Ken Davidoff of Newsday (via Twitter) says the Reds will receive minor league catcher Chase Weems.