Odds & Ends: Indians, Pirates, Zambrano
Some links to wrap up a relatively busy weekend, with more on the way:
- ESPN's Jorge Arangure says the Yankees, Red Sox, Reds and Padres in on 16-year-old Dominican RHP Cristopher Cabrera.
- John Perrotto at Pirates Report says if he were Neal Huntington, he'd go ahead with the rumored swap of Nyjer Morgan for Lastings Milledge with the Nationals.
- Phil Rogers at the Chicago Tribune is fed up with Carlos Zambrano and thinks the Cubs should waive him and take anything another club is willing to give. Not a great week for Cubs fans, eh?
- Bud Shaw at the Cleveland Plain-Dealer notes that the Indians have had more success making deals than with their draft picks.
- Paul Hoynes at the Plain-Dealer gets some more player reactions to the Mark DeRosa deal.
- Andrew Baggarly at the San Jose Mercury News wonders if Jermaine Dye and Mark Teahen could be on Giants GM Brian Sabean's radar screen.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Bradley, Red Sox, Nady, Corcoran, Giants
Let's take a look at what some fans are writing about their favorite teams around the worldwide netweb…
- Bleed Cubbie Blue says Milton Bradley must go. Bradley is hitting just .237-.355-.379, but the riff with Lou Piniella and off-the-field issues are the real problem.
- Fire Brand of the American League wonders if shortstop might end up being a position of strength for the Red Sox.
- River Ave. Blues looks back on the Xavier Nady trade, and says that even though Nady and Damaso Marte are hurt, it was the right move because the Yankees were just one game back of a playoff spot at the time.
- USS Mariner says it's time for the team to wave goodbye to reliever Roy Corcoran. Considering he's allowed 37 baserunners in just 13.2 IP, can you blame them?
- McCovey Chronicles muses about trade philosophies for the Giants.
Odds & Ends: Moore, Schmidt, Atkins
On this date back in 2003, Johnny Damon hit a single, a double, and a triple in a 14-run first inning against the Marlins. The Red Sox set a league record by scoring ten runs before making an out.
On to the linkage…
- Matthew Pouliot of Circling The Bases says that Dayton Moore's moves over the last season and a half are enough to warrant his dismissal. He notes they have a more than qualified replacement already in-house in senior advisor Mike Arbuckle.
- Ben Bolch of The LA Times notes that Jason Schmidt threw 104 pitches over 7.2 shutout in a rehab start yesterday. We know the Dodgers are looking for pitching, but a healthy and reasonably effective Schmidt could lessen that urgency.
- Tracy Ringolsby writes that Garrett Atkins' recent hot streak creates "more of a possibility of another team having interest in acquiring him." Atkins is hitting .340-.415-.553 in June.
- The Rangers have been getting good production from unexpected sources like Jason Jennings, says Ken Sherrington of The Dallas Morning News.
- Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez says he's happy to be in Colorado, according to Susan Slusser of The SF Chronicle.
- Joe Cowley tweets this Ozzie Guillen quote: "The people that run baseball teams now are soft." I wonder what Kenny Williams thinks about that.
- Marc Carig writes that the Rockies had begun combing through the Yankees' farm system in advance of a potential Huston Street trade back in May.
Nady’s Season Over
UPDATE 7:17pm: The New York Post's George A. King III says Nady needs Tommy John surgery and is done for the season. King adds,
"Quietly the Yankees were hoping to have Nady's right-handed bat to help out in right field, where switch-hitter Nick Swisher is playing every day. Now that won't happen. And though GM Brian Cashman said this week 'a bat isn't needed,' knowing that Nady isn't returning might change the Yankees' mind."
6:07pm: During an International league game in Syracuse, Xavier Nady reported "significant discomfort" in his right arm after completing two throws from the outfield. Bryan Hoch of MLB.com says Nady could be done for the season which, if true, would snuff out any flickering speculation that the Yankees would or should consider dealing him or Nick Swisher upon Nady's return.
Benjamin Kabak at River Ave. Blues has more. Buster Olney recently noted the Yankees were not looking to deal either Nady or Swisher.
Odds And Ends: Draft, Nady, Kinsler, Snell
A few links to start the morning off…
- Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star says the draft picks who ask for big bonuses aren't always the bad guys.
- The biggest bonus so far belongs to Tony Sanchez of the Pirates ($2.5MM). Check out our updated list of first rounders to sign.
- Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News reports that Xavier Nady suffered a setback during his rehab assignment.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic shows how the D'Backs missed out on Ian Kinsler even though they drafted him twice.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette suggests we shouldn't expect Ian Snell to be dealt soon.
- SI.com's Tim Marchman calls Willy Taveras and Edgar Renteria this year's biggest free agent busts.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post hears that the Red Sox are hesitant to deal a starter, since Tim Wakefield and John Smoltz are the only two starters over 40 in the AL.
- Definitely not a trade rumor, but WEEI.com's Rob Bradford reports that Smoltz received 71 text messages after his start last night.
Casey Fossum Becomes A Free Agent
Casey Fossum has opted out of his contract to become a free agent, according to The Scranton Times-Tribune. He was pitching for Triple A Scranton in the Yankees organization after the Mets designated him for assignment in April.
Fossum, 31, has good numbers in ten starts for Scranton. He's averaging just five innings per start, but has allowed less than a hit per inning with 43 strikeouts and 16 walks. Fossum also pitched briefly for the Mets and their Triple A affiliate.
Yankees Not Looking For Bats
Marc Carig at the Newark Star Ledger tweeted a quote from GM Brian Cashman earlier today on the possibility the Yankees are looking for a bat:
"We don't need a bat… We have a tremendous offense that's scuffling right now," Cashman said.
Before an 8-4 victory tonight over the Braves, the Yankees had scored a total of 18 runs in 7 games, and their team OPS was .614. The spotlight was particularly on Alex Rodriguez, who went 1 for 15 in that stretch, where they lost five of seven.
Was the victory tonight enough to be convinced that the Yankees' offensive woes have come to an end? Was it ever worthy of concern in the first place, or did somebody unnecessarily hit the panic button? If you think the Yanks need a bat after all, who do you pursue? Share your thoughts.
Yankees Designate Angel Berroa For Assignment
According to Peter Abraham at the Journal-News, the Yankees have designated infielder Angel Berroa for assignment to make space for utilityman Cody Ransom.
Berroa, 31, put up a rough .356 OPS in 22 at-bats for the Yanks. He's notable for his Rookie of the Year campaign for the Royals in 2003, but he's been on a pretty steep decline since then.
Indians Acquire Jose Veras
The Indians have acquired reliever Jose Veras from the Yankees for cash considerations, according to a team press release. The Yankees designated Veras for assignment last week after he disappointed in 25.2 innings of work. Veras struck out 18, but allowed 37 baserunners.
Odds & Ends: Orioles, White Sox, Nady, Indians
Some links to check out while watching game one of the College World Series …
- MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko spoke to Orioles mastermind Andy MacPhail about plenty of topics, including the scuffling Felix Pie and fifth overall pick Matt Hobgood.
- South Side Sox breaks down the White Sox players who won't (or can't) be traded.
- Xavier Nady is set to begin a rehab assignment, however Buster Olney recently said the Yankees will not look to trade one of their spare outfielders once he returns.
- Indians president Paul Dolan says he is concerned about the team's direction, but will not make any "rash decisions" according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. It certainly sounds like Eric Wedge's days are numbered, and his number is coming up.
- The Dallas Morning News' Kevin Sherrington writes that even though they're in first place, the Rangers aren't in a position to go all out and need to keep focusing on the future.