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West Notes: Felix, Drew, Giants

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The Mariners have the best record in the American League since the All-Star break (23-13) after winning six consecutive games, as Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times writes. Here’s the latest from baseball’s two West divisions… 

  • In an appearance on on Sports Radio KJR this morning Felix Hernandez gave Mitch Levy a "promise" that there's nothing to worry about regarding a possible change in teams (quote via Baker). Hernandez is under contract through 2014 and Baker says the Mariners should extend him beyond that and build a better team around him.
  • The Athletics and Diamondbacks extensively discussed a possible Stephen Drew trade leading up to the non-waiver trade deadline, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports. The Athletics acquired Drew last night in a move that will reduce Arizona's payroll and provide Oakland with a shortstop who should hit.
  • Manager Bruce Bochy said on MLB Network Radio that it's fair to say the Giants are looking for left field help, according to Jim Bowden (on Twitter). GM Brian Sabean is "working on it now," Bochy said, according to Bowden. Gregor Blanco is the Giants' left fielder for the time being. Sabean says all is quiet for now, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports (on Twitter).

Athletics Acquire Stephen Drew

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10:56am: The Athletics are also responsible for the $1.35MM buyout on Drew's mutual option for 2013, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter).

TUESDAY, 7:30am: The Athletics will pay the rest of Drew's 2012 salary, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (on Twitter). Assistant GM David Forst says the A's haven't yet decided whether to pick up their side of Drew's 2013 mutual option. "Let's see how the next six weeks go," Forst told Casey Pratt of CSN Bay Area (on Twitter).

MONDAY: The Diamondbacks have traded Stephen Drew to the Athletics for minor league infielder Sean Jamieson, the team announced (on Twitter).

The Athletics were linked heavily to the 29-year-old Drew at this year's non-waiver trade deadline, but no deal was reached. Drew suffered a massive ankle injury last July that ended his season and cost him the first three months of this year's campaign. Batting just .193/.290/.311, Drew has yet to rediscover his stroke at the plate. That line is remarkably similar to the .191/.260/.304 batting line produced by Oakland shortstops as a whole this season, however. And, as a career .270/.330/.442 hitter entering this season, Drew presents considerably more upside.

It became apparent that Drew would be a trade candidate earlier this season when Diamondbacks managing partner Ken Kendrick openly expressed his disappointment with Drew's lengthy recovery time in the media. Drew has roughly $1.9MM of his $7.75MM salary remaining this season. His contract contains a $10MM mutual option for 2013, though Oakland will presumably opt for the $1.35MM buyout instead.

Jamieson, 23, was Oakland's 17th-round selection in the 2011 draft. The Ontario native is batting .234/.343/.379 in 540 plate appearances for Class-A Burlington this season, appearing almost exclusively at shortstop.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.

Athletics Designate Anthony Recker For Assignment

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The Athletics announced that they designated catcher Anthony Recker for assignment. The move creates 40-man roster space for Brett Anderson, who is being reinstated from the 60-day disabled list. The A's optioned Dan Straily to Triple-A to create roster space for Anderson.

Recker appeared in 13 early-season games for the Athletics, but he hasn't played at the MLB level since May. The 28-year-old has a .265/.358/.435 batting line in 229 plate appearances at Triple-A this year.

Non-Tender Candidate: Dallas Braden

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Two years and three months ago, Dallas Braden was on top of the baseball world. He had just thrown 19th perfect game in baseball history on Mother's Day with his grandmother in the stands. The left-hander finished the season with a 3.50 ERA in 30 starts and 192 2/3 innings, further cementing his place in the Athletics' rotation.

Uspw_4690664Braden, now 29, has made just three starts since the end of that season. He allowed seven runs in 18 innings across three starts last April, and has been on the shelf with shoulder problems ever since. Braden had surgery to repair a torn capsule one year and one week after his perfect game, and was expected to be ready in time to return to the team early this season.

Instead, the shoulder continues to give Braden problems and as Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle recently reported, he will have another procedure soon. This one will be exploratory but will cost him the rest of the season nonetheless. Fellow starting pitchers like Chien-Ming Wang, Johan Santana, and Brandon Webb have had shoulder capsule surgery in recent years with mixed comeback results.

Unlike those three, Braden is not a power pitcher. Even before the surgery his fastball averaged a little less than 88 mph, the 15th lowest average fastball velocity among the 156 pitchers who threw at least 400 innings from 2007-2011. Braden was a classic finesse left-hander who relied on his fastball and changeup to keep hitters off balance, so perhaps a potential loss of velocity due to the surgeries will have minimal impact on his effectiveness going forward.

Either way, the Athletics have to decide if their 24th round pick in the 2004 draft is worth the investment post-surgery very soon. Braden will earn $3.35MM without throwing a pitch this season, and will be eligible for arbitration for the third and final time this winter. He doesn't figure to get any kind of raise – he didn't a raise from 2011-2012 – however that remains a hefty investment for low-budget A's.

Oakland has enviable rotation depth going forward with Tommy Milone, Jarrod Parker, and Dan Straily all in their pre-arbitration years, plus Brett Anderson potentially under contract through 2014. They could decide that sinking more money into Braden isn't a wise investment considering the potential for zero return, so a non-tender in December looks like a very real possibility for the southpaw.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

Athletics Sign Jeremy Accardo

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The Athletics have signed pitcher Jeremy Accardo, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter).  The right-hander will report to Triple-A Sacramento.

Accardo was designated for assignment by the Indians on August 4th and released on August 9th, the same day that they parted ways with Johnny Damon.  The 30-year-old posted a 4.58 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 26 appearances for the Tribe this season.  For his career, Accardo owns a 4.27 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 across eight seasons.

West Links: Athletics, Dodgers, Profar

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Here are a few odds and ends regarding three contenders out of MLB's West divisions …

  • The Athletics, only a half-game behind the Rays and Orioles for one of two wild card berths, are one of baseball's most surprising teams, prompting Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle to examine how they've done it. "It isn't blind one luck," said one Major League executive. "There is thought behind it."
  • Similarly, the Dodgers are a much deeper and balanced team after a string of unheralded but important moves, writes Christina Kahrl of ESPN's SweetSpot blog. The recent additions of Hanley Ramirez, Shane Victorino and Joe Blanton prove that GM Ned Colletti "never made the mistake of settling."
  • The Rangers may soon promote prized shortstop prospect Jurickson Profar to the Major Leagues, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. Profar, 19, is currently hitting .285/.363/.470 in 111 games with Double-A Frisco and would become the youngest position player in the Majors. Texas is currently playing with a three-man bench on its current road swing but will revert back to a four-man bench when it opens a homestand Monday. Recall that the Rangers "balked" at including Profar in any pre-deadline trades.

Quick Hits: Mets, Gerrit Cole, Aviles

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The Games of the XXX Olympiad came to a close today in London. Nearly 11,000 athletes from 204 nations took part in over 300 events in 26 sports. But, none of the Olympic pagentry involved baseball. So, let's celebrate America's National Pastime with the latest news, notes and quotes: 

  • Not everyone in the Mets front office is sold that they can be a sustained contender moving forward with Ike Davis at first base, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. One internal option would be moving Lucas Duda in from the outfield and some believe that he would be more comfortable at first.
  • Mets owner Fred Wilpon wouldn't speak with reporters following a rare on-field appearance before last night's game against the Braves, but he'll have to start answering questions soon, writes David Lennon of Newsday. There are a lot of unknowns surrounding the Mets, including what their projected payroll will be for 2013 and if the franchise is on the rebound financially.
  • Pirates GM Neal Huntington says Gerrit Cole, last year's top draft pick, will not be a September callup, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (via Sulia). "We've not talked about it internally. My gut (feeling) is no." Huntington said. "To drop him into bullpen up here in September is not something we have lot of interest in doing. We have a lot of other options, instead of rushing a young prospect." Cole is currently starting at Double-A Altoona.
  • The A's had interest in Mike Aviles prior to the trade deadline, but a deal is unlikely now the Red Sox have placed the shortstop on waivers, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Slusser says the chances are slim the A's will acquire a shortstop before the August 31st deadline for playoff-roster eligibility.

Edward Creech contributed to this post.

Quick Hits: Oswalt, Bourn, Hendry, Bay Area

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The Indians snapped an 11-game losing streak today with a 6-2 victory over the Twins.  The 11-game skid matched a franchise record, set four times previously in Tribe history.  Avoiding a new futility record is of small consolation to the Indians, who were in wild card contention before their streak and now can only look ahead to 2013.

Here's the latest from around the majors….

  • The Red Sox scouted Roy Oswalt and expressed interest in him earlier this season but they never made an offer, the veteran right-hander tells Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal.  Oswalt also said that he didn't insist to pitch for a team close to his home in Mississippi, noting that he was "pretty close" to signing with the Dodgers before finally settling on a contract with the Rangers.
  • Michael Bourn "strikes out a lot and doesn't have a great on-base percentage.  He's going to be 30 years old, and guys his age do not get faster. I'd be careful," a scout tells Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  The Phillies have been rumored to be interested in signing Bourn as a free agent this winter, with the Nationals and Braves also in the mix for the center fielder.
  • Former Cubs GM Jim Hendry has embraced being a special-assignment scout for the Yankees, writes Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal.  Brian Cashman said that Hendry played key roles in the signing of first-round draft pick Ty Hensley and in the team's recent trade for Casey McGehee.
  • The dispute between the Athletics and the Giants over San Jose territorial rights "might be the most difficult decision in baseball history because of the circumstances," an MLB executive tells Yahoo Sports' Steve Henson.  The executive says there is some belief that the Giants could break protocol and sue the league if the A's are allowed to move.
  • Tom Krasovic of Inside The Padres thinks the Padres made a good move in extending Carlos Quentin and Huston Street, though wonders if either player can "stay healthy in a heated pennant race."

West Notes: Giants, Chavez, Dodgers, A’s

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Last night, Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley held the Cubs to four hits over seven innings en route to the club's 6-1 victory at home.  With Cliff Lee reportedly off the market and Ted Lilly perhaps out for the season, Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes that the Dodgers will have to bank on more solid pitching out of the 28-year-old.  Here's more out of the Western divisions..

  • Before the trade deadline, the Giants offered Nate Schierholtz to the Yankees in an effort to land veteran Eric Chavez, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter).  The Giants presumably pursued Chavez prior to acquiring Marco Scutaro, who has been plugged in at third base.  Chavez, 34, is hitting .269/.332..486 with ten homers on the year.
  • After trading for Joe Blanton and putting a claim in on Lee, the Dodgers continue to show that money is no object, writes Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports.  GM Ned Colletti seems to be happy with his newly-found flexibility, but it seems unlikely that the Phillies will part with Lee.
  • Catcher Kurt Suzuki was surprised to hear that the Athletics traded him to Washington but the veteran believes that the trade will work out for him as he will play every day, write John Shea and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. 

AL West Links: Millwood, Lee, Athletics

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Daniel Straily will make his Major League debut tonight in Oakland, starting for the A's against the Blue Jays.  Straily was an unheralded minor league arm heading into 2012 but exploded to lead the minor leagues with 175 strikeouts in 138 1/3 combined innings at the Double-A and Triple-A levels, plus a 2.60 ERA and a 4.73 K/BB ratio. 

Here are some more items from around the AL West…

  • The Mariners weren't eager to move Kevin Millwood at the trade deadline and put a "very high price tag" on the veteran starter, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
  • Though the Rangers asked the Phillies about Cliff Lee before the trade deadline, Texas didn't put in a waiver claim on the left-hander, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.  The Dodgers were awarded the claim on Lee earlier today.  Lee would've had to pass unclaimed through every NL team and every AL team except the Yankees for Texas to win their claim, had they submitted one.
  • With Kurt Suzuki now in Washington, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle thinks the Athletics could be in the market for a veteran catcher.  Slusser (Twitter links) suggests the A's could look at the likes of Yorvit Torrealba and Ramon Hernandez in waiver deals, as catchers are easier to find right now than shortstops, another of Oakland's needs.
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