Odds & Ends: Ibanez, Pettitte, Fontenot
Your Saturday evening links, with more to come…
- ESPN's Keith Law has made some significant changes to his Top 100 MLB Draft Rankings. It's subscriber-only, but a great read for those looking to catch draft fever.
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times asks (and attempts to answer) a popular question: "What is going on with Raul Ibanez in Philadelphia?"
- Benjamin Kabak of River Ave. Blues takes another look at Andy Pettitte's incentive-laden deal with the Yankees.
- Cubs manager Lou Piniella is high on Mike Fontenot at third base. "Fontenot is honestly our best option there," Piniella told the Chicago Sun-Times. "When we get Aaron Miles back [from the disabled list] it will help the situation too. But we feel very comfortable with Fontenot at third, and we can use [Bobby] Scales and [Andres] Blanco at second."
Odds & Ends: Draft, Rangers, Feliz
Another collection of random links…
- A fresh fantasy baseball mailbag over at RotoAuthority, where I address David Ortiz, Francisco Liriano, and more.
- The Orioles claimed pitcher Dave Davidson off waivers from the Marlins and sent him to Triple A, according to Roch Kubatko of MASN.
- Matt Belisle cleared waivers and accepted his Triple A assignment, according to Jack Etkin of Inside the Rockies.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo predicts the top 20 picks in the June draft. Mike Minor to the Padres, Aaron Crow to the Pirates?
- Rangers owner Tom Hicks might be willing to sell his controlling interest in the team, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.
- Scott Lauber of The News Journal thinks Pedro Feliz is changing the Phillies' mind about his $5MM option for 2010 with his .307/.373/.433 start. His 10% walk rate is a career best.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues discusses the Mark DeRosa-Yankees rumor.
- Alexei Ramirez is being sued for $20MM in the Dominican Republic "for allegedly violating a contract he signed with local talent scouts before inking a major league contract." Not sure how they arrived at that figure.
Yankees Considering Mark DeRosa?
ESPN's Buster Olney suggests that the Yankees are at least considering Mark DeRosa internally:
Imagine DeRosa as a big hunk of tuna, bait on a hook. One of the looming shadows circling below is that of the New York Yankees, who are weighing options and haven't decided whether to take a shot at the versatile veteran.
For his part, DeRosa is trying to put the trade chatter out of his head. The Indians seek Major League-ready pitching for DeRosa. The Mets and Cardinals may be suitors (but not the Brewers). The 34 year-old impending free agent is hitting .266/.333/.446 in 205 plate appearances this year.
Odds & Ends: DeRosa, Bruney, Cooper
Let's kick it off today with some odds and ends.
- RotoAuthority discusses responding to lame trade offers in your fantasy league.
- Reliever Mike MacDougal will join the Nationals tomorrow, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Who knows, he could be closing for them by next week.
- Talking to Fred Mitchell of the Chicago Tribune, Cubs GM Jim Hendry defended the Mark DeRosa trade. Here is my problem with it: it was a financially-motivated deal made by a big-market team, and did not bring back players who could help in 2009.
- According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the White Sox acquired journeyman minor league infielder Anderson Machado from the Pirates for a player to be named later.
- Padres exec Paul DePodesta explains the Jody Gerut for Tony Gwynn Jr. swap. DePodesta's third bullet point, money, had to be the overriding factor given Gwynn's negligible value around the league.
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle sees Bobby Crosby as perhaps a more pressing trade situation for the A's than Matt Holliday.
- Dr. James Andrews found no structural damage in Brian Bruney's elbow, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Given the uncertainty, though, a bullpen acquisition would still make sense.
- It looks like the writing is on the wall for Astros manager Cecil Cooper. Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle lists his offenses.
- Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is skeptical the Cardinals will make a big move.
- Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus agrees that the Pirates are the favorite for Dominican talent Miguel Angel Sano, and says the Rays, Cubs, A's, Blue Jays, Yankees, Rangers, and Twins are also after him. It's speculated by McDaniel and elsewhere that the Pirates could budget less toward their fourth overall pick in June to compensate for Sano. John Perrotto of Inside Pittsburgh Sports says they like Kyle Gibson, Aaron Crow, Bobby Borchering, and Wil Myers. Tanner Scheppers did not give the Bucs permission to redraft him.
Heyman On Adrian Gonzalez, Peavy, Sabathia
The latest from SI's Jon Heyman…
- Heyman believes the Padres could bring in a haul for Adrian Gonzalez beyond what the Rangers received for Mark Teixeira. However, when asked if he's considering trading his slugging first baseman, Padres GM Kevin Towers responded, "Not at this point in time."
- The Cubs don't seem anxious to make a deal for Jake Peavy, and the Dodgers have the same-division hurdle. The Brewers might not have the pitching (or inclination) to get it done. Towers will continue to try to find a team Peavy likes while also matching the package offered by the White Sox: Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, and two minor league pitchers.
- Heyman says the Angels bid about $140MM for C.C. Sabathia last winter, making the Yankees' $161MM winning bid appear more appropriate.
Odds & Ends: Braves, Peavy, Mets, Sabathia
Links for Tuesday…
- MLB.com's Bill Ladson reports that Mike MacDougal left the Nationals' Triple A club via an out clause, but could remain with the organization if they decide to promote him to the Majors.
- Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution speculates on some outfield options for the Braves.
- According to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Chris Duffy accepted the Brewers' assignment to Triple A. Duffy was designated for assignment on May 22nd.
- For some reason, Scott Boras weighed in on the Padres' attempt to trade Jake Peavy (talking to Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune). Boras suggested it might be a breach of contract, but Peavy's agent Barry Axelrod isn't as offended. Barry Rozner of the Daily Herald has more from Axelrod, who said, "the entire process was unfair."
- Howard Megdal of SNY campaigns for the Mets to acquire a passable shortstop, while retaining Ramon Castro and Brian Schneider as catchers.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo looks at the middle infielders in the upcoming draft. And MLB.com's Lisa Winston has a column on Grant Green.
- Talking to Jack Curry of the New York Times, C.C. Sabathia wondered about his six-year old son's possible high school future in New Jersey. Sabathia can choose to opt out of his contract after the 2011 season. Is this anything? The kid will be going to high school in eight years or so, so the contract will be up regardless. More telling might be Sabathia's comments to Jayson Stark earlier this month.
Will Bruney Injury Lead To Relief Acquisition?
Yankees reliever Brian Bruney still has an aching elbow, and he's scheduled to meet with Dr. James Andrews tomorrow. Bruney's elbow issues date back to 2004, when he was Arizona's closer of the future (they eventually designated him for assignment in May of '06, allowing him to sign a minor league deal with the Yankees).
With Bruney out indefinitely, Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues thinks the Yankees need to acquire setup man in the coming weeks. He speculates on Chad Qualls, Jose Valverde, Russ Springer, and Huston Street. Other names to consider: Danys Baez, George Sherrill, Ron Mahay, Matt Thornton, and old friends Octavio Dotel and Tom Gordon.
There are plenty of internal options as well. As Marc Carig of the Newark Star-Ledger notes, the Yanks already have a tough Phil Hughes vs. Chien-Ming Wang situation in the rotation. Wang will work out of the pen for now. Plus there's the discussion Pawlikowski wanted no part of: Joba Chamberlain to the bullpen.
Odds And Ends: Beltre, Rusch, Percival, Price
Links for Friday evening…
- As Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times explains, Adrian Beltre's trade value is diminishing because teams are no longer confident that he'll be a Type A free agent. This means the team that trades for Beltre can't expect two compensation picks for losing the third baseman to free agency.
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman argues that the Braves need to make an immediate change to their outfield and says there's an "indication that we'll begin to see it in the near future." He says the Braves must consider dealing the powerless Jeff Francoeur, or at least finding a more productive outfielder.
- According to Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post Glendon Rusch is staying at home instead of reporting to Triple A Colorado Springs. The Rockies are expected to put him on the restricted list.
- Via Twitter, Marc Lancaster of the Tampa Tribune reports that Troy Percival, who was just placed on the DL, has gone home to ponder a future "which could be in doubt." Joe Maddon has said he "wouldn't be surprised" to see Percival hang it up, according to Marc Lancaster.
- Another piece of Rays news from the same Lancaster report – With Scott Kazmir headed to the DL, it's likely that David Price will make his long-awaited season debut in Kazmir's place on Monday.
- As MLB.com's Brian Hoch reports, Chien-Ming Wang is returning to the Yankees as a long reliever because of the team's depleted bullpen.
Heyman On Peavy, Pedro, Blalock
Jon Heyman of SI.com has a number of rumors in his latest column:
- He believes the Cubs and Brewers have the best shot at acquiring Jake Peavy, because of the pitcher's preference for the National League and his desire to play in "middle America." Heyman believes Peavy would accept a deal to either team, but there are never guarantees with a no-trade clause.
- The Yankees and Indians both say they cannot add payroll.
- One AL executive believes Pedro Martinez would sign for $3MM plus incentives at this point.
- The Rangers would listen to offers for Hank Blalock and ask for relief help in return.
Gammons On Indians, Nationals, Mauer
Here are the highlights from Peter Gammons' analysis on Mike and Mike in the Morning. Joe Haggerty of the Boston Metro has the interview transcript on his blog, Hacks with Haggs.
- The Padres will have a hard time dealing Jake Peavy because there aren't many takers who have the resources to acquire him. The Braves don't figure in now that they have enough pitching and the Cardinals aren't a likely fit either.
- "Victor Martinez and Cliff Lee are not on the trade block," according to Gammons.
- The Indians would deal Mark DeRosa for "major league ready pitching."
- Washington would like to deal Nick Johnson, Austin Kearns and some of their "semi-attractive" relievers.
- The Nationals offered Johnson to the Red Sox for Manny Delcarmen.
- Gammons says he believes it's in the best interest of the buyer and the seller to deal earlier, rather than later.
- The Yankees and Red Sox could offer Mark Teixeira money ($180MM) to Joe Mauer if the catcher hits free agency after the 2010 season.