Athletics Rumors

Quick Hits: Soria, Bourn, Transactions, Wilson

By Zachary Links | August 28, 2011 at 10:34pm CDT

Sunday linkage..

A look at Royals closer Joakim Soria's contract situation shows that his $6MM option vested on July 30, when he pitched his 110th game between the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Soria's option vesting merely locks in his salary for 2012; he'd have been arbitration-eligible at any rate.
David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution wonders if the Braves should extend Michael Bourn, and what the cost of it would be. As O'Brien points out, it's hard to come by comparables for Bourn, and the best may be Juan Pierre, whose contract is widely regarded as a tremendous mistake.
Baseball America's Matt Eddy runs down the week's minor league transactions.
Recently, impending free agent C.J. Wilson said that now is not the time to look ahead to the offseason and his next contract. In an interview on 103.3 FM ESPN (audio link), Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine seemed to agree and said that the club isn't looking to negotiate mid-season, writes Bryan Dolgin of ESPNDallas.com.
Infielder Felipe Lopez will report to the Brewers' Triple-A affiliate on Monday after being outrighted on Wednesday. The veteran didn't impress on Milwaukee's big league roster this year, batting .182/.245/.182 in 51 trips to the plate.
It's time for Athletics GM Billy Beane to move on to a different challenge, writes Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle. While he's been linked extensively to the Cubs job, Jenkins wonders if Beane could be a fit for the Dodgers if GM Ned Colletti winds up being hired by Chicago.
The Marlins have begun the process of looking at managerial candidates and there is still interest in some corners of the Florida organization in Ozzie Guillen, writes ESPN.com's Buster Olney. The White Sox skipper has another year on his current deal but it remains to be seen whether Guillen will be invited back.

MLBTR's Steve Adams contributed to this post.

Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the contract information used in this post.

Quick Hits: Red Sox, Indians

By Dan Mennella | August 27, 2011 at 10:42pm CDT

A couple notes regarding the Red Sox and Indians, who both won on Saturday night (in Boston's case, twice) …

The Red Sox wanted to trade for both Erik Bedard and Rich Harden once their attempt to acquire Hiroki Kuroda from the Dodgers fell through, tweets Peter Gammons. Bedard, of course, ended up in Boston, while the acquisition of Harden was nixed by Red Sox medical staff.
It's unclear whether the Indians were the team that placed a waiver claim on the Rays' B.J. Upton, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer, but it'd make sense for the Tribe to do so. Outfielders Michael Brantley and Shin-Soo Choo are banged up, and the Indians were one of the teams interested in Upton prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, according to Hoynes.
Lost in the shuffle of Jim Thome's first homer since rejoining the Indians was the Major League debut of reliever Nick Hagadone, writes Hoynes. Hagadone, a lefty, was acquired along with Justin Masterson in the deal that sent Victor Martinez to Boston in 2009. That doesn't look like such a bad swap in retrospect, especially if Hagadone turns out to be a solid member of the Tribe's bullpen.

A Look At Notable Moves Of August 2010

By Dan Mennella | August 27, 2011 at 9:46pm CDT

August transactions don't boast the same excitement as their July counterparts, but they can still have ramifications for contenders and non-contenders alike. Teams readying for the postseason will often fine-tune their rosters by adding a specialty piece — a LOOGY or power bat off the bench, for example — and ones looking ahead to next year will look to shed payroll.

There's still a few days left before September arrives, and prominent players such as the Rays' B.J. Upton was claimed as recently as Friday. But in the meanwhile, here's a look back at some of the bigger names who were on the move — whether by trade or waiver claim — in August 2010, and the subsequent fallout (for the complete list, check out MLBTR's Transaction Tracker):

Mike Sweeney, acquired by the Phillies from the Mariners on Aug. 4: Seattle sent the right-handed-hitting veteran and what remained of his $650K salary to Philly, where he hit .231/.310/.385 down the regular season's stretch and went 1-for-1 in his lone postseason at-bat. The M's later received cash from the Phils for Sweeney, who signed a one-day contract with the Royals in March and retired.
Jim Edmonds, acquired by the Reds from the Brewers on Aug. 9: Cincinnati added Edmonds for its postseason push, sending Chris Dickerson back to Milwaukee in exchange. Edmonds didn't do much, hitting .207/.281/.586 in the regular season before being left off the Reds' postseason roster due to an Achilles injury. He retired this spring after signing a minor league deal with the Cards, while Dickerson was traded in March to the Yankees for Sergio Mitre.
Mike Fontenot, acquired by the Giants from the Cubs on Aug. 11: The Lads scooped up Fontenot for infield depth during their run to the World Series in exchange for minor league outfielder Evan Crawford. Fontenot remains in San Francisco is under team control for through 2013, though he could be a non-tender candidate this offseason, as he was last.
Derrek Lee, acquired by the Braves from the Cubs on Aug. 18: Lee joined Atlanta after his long tenure in Chicago, the Cubs acquiring three prospects in return. Lee was one of the better acquisitions of this period, posting a fine .287/.384/.465 line for the Braves to help them reach the postseason, though he went just 2-for-16 in their NLDS loss to the Giants. He signed with the Orioles before this season.
Pedro Feliz, acquired by the Cardinals from the Astros on Aug. 19: St. Louis sent David Carpenter and cash to Houston in exchange for Feliz, who was added to help out at the hot corner when David Freese was injured. Feliz's already declining bat didn't improve for the Redbirds, who missed the postseason. Feliz signed a minor league deal with the Padres this month, while Carpenter is currently in the Astros' bullpen.
Cody Ross, acquired by the Giants from the Marlins on waiver claim on Aug. 22: The Giants added an eventual World Series hero in acquiring Ross from the Marlins, who had little interest in retaining Ross, as he was becoming expensive with his final year of arbitration-eligibility looming.
Brian Fuentes, acquired by the Twins from the Angels on Aug. 27: Minnesota added Fuentes to bolster its bullpen, and the lefty threw 9 2/3 shutout innings in the regular season and 2 2/3 shutout innings in the postseason before signing with the Athletics this offseason. The Angels acquired Loek Van Mil from the Twins as a player to be named.
Manny Ramirez, acquired by the White Sox on a waiver claim from the Dodgers on Aug. 29: This was arguably the most notable move of the August post-deadline period, but it didn't amount to much for either teams or the player. The White Sox missed the postseason, the cash-strapped Dodgers got some salary relief, and Manny hit a quiet .261/.420/.319 before signing with the Rays this offseason (and eventually retiring).
Manny Delcarmen, acquired by the Rockies from the Red Sox on Aug. 31: The Rox, still in contention for the wild card, needed bullpen depth, so they sent Chris Balcom-Miller to Boston for Delcarmen. The righty didn't pan out in Colorado, posting a 6.48 ERA in 8 1/3 innings for a team that missed the playoffs before being non-tendered this offseason. He's kicked around since then.
Jeff Francoeur, acquired by the Rangers from the Mets on Aug. 31: Texas sent Joaquin Arias to the Mets for Frenchy, who played well in his brief time in Texas, hitting .340/.357/.491 down the stretch and seeing playing time during the postseason. Arias was waived by the Mets, while Francoeur signed the Royals this offseason and recently inked a two-year extension.

A’s Designate Jerry Blevins For Assignment

By Dan Mennella | August 27, 2011 at 6:03pm CDT

The Athletics have designated lefty Jerry Blevins for assignment, tweets Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.

As with Blevins' previous three DFAs this season, he is removed from Oakland's 25-man roster but remains on its 40-man, so the move is procedural and does not expose him to other teams. Blevins was removed from the active roster to make room for Graham Godfrey, who was slated to start Game 2 of the Athletics' doubleheader in Boston.

Blevins has shuttled between Oakland and the minors for parts of five seasons, posting a 4.00 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 8.5 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9.

Quick Hits: Harden, Thome, Weaver, Carroll

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 26, 2011 at 5:56pm CDT

Links for Friday, before Jim Thome makes his return to Cleveland as the Indians host the Royals…

Athletics pitcher Rich Harden thought he was Boston-bound on the night of July 30th, writes Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal.
Jim Bowden of ESPN.com breaks down Cleveland's trade for Thome, calling it a "tremendous acquisition by [Indians GM Chris] Antonetti."
Paul Swydan of FanGraphs says Thome's arrival in Cleveland may be just what the Indians need, since he’ll provide some much-needed pop.
ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick says Jered Weaver's extension with the Angels is mostly unrelated to the contracts similar pitchers will sign. Weaver is simply a terrific pitcher who decided to stay close to home, not a trailblazer or a benchmark, Crasnick writes.
Tom Verducci of SI.com points out that the cases of Carlos Zambrano and Brandon Webb can help us understand Weaver's deal.
Steve Dilbeck of the LA Times argues that the Dodgers should trade Jamey Carroll to a contender to give him another shot at the postseason.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says he favors expanded playoffs, two 15-team leagues and balanced interleague schedules for teams in the same division. However, MLB owners don't appear to be ready to go to two 15-team leagues by next year.

Cubs Notes: Evans, Beane, Garza, Pena

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 26, 2011 at 10:13am CDT

Here’s the latest on the Cubs, including an update on their search for a successor to Jim Hendry…

Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times says former Dodgers general manager Dan Evans fits all the criteria chairman Tom Ricketts has established for his new GM. Friends and associates of Evans tell Wittenmyer that the executive has always considered the Cubs' GM job his dream position.
A’s owner Lew Wolff told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that he wouldn’t prevent GM Billy Beane from exploring job opportunities elsewhere, though he hopes to retain him for a long time. "I would never inhibit anybody from bettering themselves because of a contract," Wolff said, noting that no teams have called regarding the "indispensable" Beane.
Wittenmyer says Matt Garza's presence at the front end of Chicago's rotation seems critical to any Cubs turnaround. The Cubs can retain Garza as an arbitration eligible player through 2013, though he won't be cheap.
Meanwhile, Carlos Pena told Wittenmyer that he was "pleasantly surprised" that the Cubs pulled him off of waivers after the Yankees claimed him earlier in the week.

Rockies Acquire Kevin Kouzmanoff

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 25, 2011 at 9:05pm CDT

THURSDAY: The Rockies are paying $250K of Kouzmanoff's remaining salary, according to Troy Renck of The Denver Post (via Twitter).

TUESDAY: The Rockies have acquired third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff and cash considerations from the A's for a player to be named or cash considerations, the teams announced. Colorado's new acquisition will report to Triple-A, according to the Rockies.

Kouzmanoff, who spends his offseasons in Evergreen, Colorado, hasn't appeared in the Majors since June 6th, when the A's optioned him to Triple-A. Before getting sent down, the 30-year-old posted a .221/.262/.353 line with four homers in 149 plate appearances. Kouzmanoff hit 75 MLB homers in total from 2007-10 and led the A's with 16 last year. He has a career line of .255/.300/.421 in six seasons.

The Rockies don't have a long-term solution at third base and they figure to give Kouzmanoff a chance at the hot corner in the Majors over the course of the season's final five weeks. It's possible that Colorado will call their new acquisition up within 24 hours.

Kouzmanoff earns $4.75MM this year and will be arbitration eligible for the final time after the season. The A's were presumably looking to obtain something of value for a player who no longer figured into their long-term plans and had become a non-tender candidate.

MLBTR has learned that Kouzmanoff recently switched agents from Adam Katz of WMG to Sosnick Cobbe Sports. Check out our Agency Database for the latest on which agents represent which players.

Latest On Beane, Cubs

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 25, 2011 at 7:35am CDT

Some baseball people who know Billy Beane well say the longtime Oakland general manager might consider an offer to join the Cubs if they approach him about their vacant GM job, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Cubs fired Jim Hendry on Friday and are already considering replacements, possibly Rick Hahn, Josh Byrnes, Andrew Friedman, Ned Colletti and Brian Cashman.

A’s executives are frustrated with the slow pace at which MLB is considering a possible move for the franchise, Slusser reports. There’s concern within the organization that Beane might leave if the A’s don’t get permission to build a stadium in San Jose and the team is sold.

Slusser suggests A’s owner Lew Wolff would grant Beane permission to interview elsewhere if the GM wanted to be considered for other opportunities. Nine years ago, Beane nearly joined the Red Sox, before deciding to stay in Oakland.

Should Beane leave, assistant GM David Forst would be the logical candidate to replace him. Forst, who has declined opportunities to pursue GM jobs elsewhere, currently assumes much of the responsibility in Oakland. His name appeared on MLBTR’s list of GM candidates earlier in the month.

Quick Hits: Rangers, Weaver, Rodriguez, Thome

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 23, 2011 at 10:35pm CDT

We saw one trade completed today and, as our list of players to clear waivers shows, there are more potential deals on the horizon. Here are the latest links from around MLB…

Rangers GM Jon Daniels told Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he doesn't expect to make a trade this month, though he's considering waiver trade candidates every day.
Angels ace Jered Weaver had a refreshing take on his team friendly five-year, $85MM extension, as Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times writes. “If $85 million is not enough to take care of my family and other generations of my family, then you’re stupid," he said. "I play baseball for the love of the game, for the competitive part of it.”
A's GM Billy Beane told Tyler Kepner of the New York Times that the gap between baseball's haves and have-nots has widened. "The window for small-market clubs is shorter and shorter,” Beane said.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports breaks down some possible trade scenarios between the Rockies and Astros involving the recently-claimed Wandy Rodriguez.
Rodriguez drew interest at the trade deadline, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter). The Yankees were prepared to give up a player for the left-hander, who they valued at $21MM.
White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen says he'd love to bring Jim Thome back to Chicago, according to MLB.com's Scott Merkin. Thome hit waivers yesterday.

AL West Notes: Weaver, Mariners, Athletics

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 22, 2011 at 4:30pm CDT

The Angels extended Jered Weaver yesterday and it didn’t take long for some initial reactions to surface. Here are more reactions to the Weaver deal, plus other notes from the Angels’ division…

ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports that executives around MLB were stunned that Weaver accepted the Angels' five-year, $85MM extension offer. They expected the Scott Boras client to hold out for more or test his value on the open market.
Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles examines the Weaver deal and what it means for the Angels and their ace before concluding that "Weaver and the Angels needed each other."
Dave Cameron of FanGraphs shows that Weaver pitches in one of the best environments possible for his skills. Though Weaver probably left money on the table, Cameron says the deal is a good one for Weaver and the Angels.
Writing at U.S.S. Mariner, Cameron suggests the Mariners might want to spend their money on a third baseman this winter, even though they already have the disappointing Chone Figgins under contract for 2012. However, there's not much out there aside from Aramis Ramirez, so the Mariners will likely have to decide between so-so secondary options and in-house solutions.
The A's demoted catcher Landon Powell to Triple-A Sacramento so that he could get some regular at bats, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Coco Crisp and Rich Harden were claimed on waivers and pulled back, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. If Oakland puts the players on waivers again, they won't be able to pull them back. The A’s first placed Harden and Crisp on waivers a week ago.

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