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Athletics Sign Lenny DiNardo

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The Athletics have signed Lenny DiNardo according to Mike Ashmore of The Hunterdon County Democrat (on Twitter). He will report to Triple-A.

DiNardo, 31, had been pitching with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League after the Red Sox released him from his minor league contract at the end of Spring Training. He had a 5.09 ERA in 17 2/3 innings with the Ducks before catching back on with the A's, with whom he spent 2007-2008. DiNardo last appeared in the big leagues in 2009 and owns a 5.36 ERA in 257 MLB innings. 

The A's are dealing with injuries to Dallas Braden (shoulder), Rich Harden (lat), Brandon McCarthy (shoulder), and Tyson Ross (oblique), so DiNardo will serve as rotation depth in Triple-A.

AL West Notes: Ross, Lee, Faulkner

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Craig Breslow has a 3.02 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 through 146 innings with the Athletics. It was on this date two years ago that the A's claimed the left-hander off of waivers from the Twins. Here's the latest on the A's and their division…

  • Tyson Ross is injured and Dallas Braden is out for most or all of the season, so the A’s could use rotation help. Assistant GM David Forst told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that the A’s are likely to fill the void in their rotation internally. "I don't know a lot of teams that'll give away starting pitchers this time of year," Forst said.
  • As much as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports likes Cliff Lee, he thinks the Rangers are better off long-term without the left-hander. GM Jon Daniels tells Rosenthal that the Rangers still have depth, though they weren't happy to miss out on Lee last winter.
  • The Rangers are interested in high school left-hander Andrew Faulkner for the MLB draft, MLBTR has learned. The 6’4” southpaw has an 88-92 mph fastball and a commitment to the University of South Carolina.

AL West Notes: Ackley, Braden, Weaver

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It's still a little early to be thinking about trades, but the Mariners are contemplating a big mid-season addition nonetheless. Here's the latest…

  • Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times hears that the Mariners aren't in a rush to promote Dustin Ackley, though they like what they've seen from him at the plate. Baker says the Mariners don't want to risk paying Ackley for four years of arbitration when his glove isn't ready. Despite Ackley's hitting, they don't feel he's ready defensively.
  • Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner hears that the Mariners could call on Ackley as soon as tomorrow. The hot-hitting prospect homered today and the Mariners aren't worried about the possibility that Ackley will qualify for super two status, according to Cameron. Ackley would have a good chance at qualifying for arbitration four times if he gets the call tomorrow and stays in the Majors.
  • Dallas Braden underwent successful surgery to repair a torn capsule in his left shoulder, the A’s announced. The left-hander is expected to miss the remainder of the season.
  • As Tom Verducci of SI.com explains, Angels ace Jered Weaver has become a strikeout pitcher in spite of his "pipe cleaner legs" and 90 mph fastball. Weaver could double his $7.365MM salary in 2012 thanks to those strikeout numbers, as MLBTR's Tim Dierkes explained in detail earlier this month.

Gammons On A’s, Pirates, Royals, Rays

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Starting pitching is one of the most valuable assets in the game and, as Peter Gammons explains at MLB.com, small-market teams usually have to rely on the draft to obtain it. Here are Gammons’ latest notes from around the league…

  • A's GM Billy Beane says his current rotation, a group that’s more or less untouchable, could be as good as Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder and Barry Zito were. Trevor Cahill has “become one of the best pitchers in the game,” according to Beane.
  • "Let's face it, no small-market team can afford to go into the market to get starting pitching,"  Beane told Gammons. "To survive and compete, you have to draft and develop pitching, or go out and get it before it's on the Major League radar screen."
  • Gammons reports that some expect the Pirates to take Virginia left-hander Danny Hultzen with the first overall pick this June. Click here for MLBTR's Q&A with Hultzen.
  • Georgia Tech Lefty Jed Bradley will likely disappear within the first ten picks of the draft, and Connecticut righty Matt Barnes will likely be a top-15 selection.
  • The Royals are looking for a college starter who can arrive in the Major Leagues and make an impact in the rotation soon.
  • Royals GM Dayton Moore agrees that you need pitching to go along with premium position players. “They're not going to win if we don't find young, affordable pitching," Moore said.
  • The D’Backs, who hold two of the first seven picks this year (#3, #7), will take at least one arm early on and the Rays are also likely to take a number of pitchers with some of their many high picks.

Heyman On Blue Jays, Royals, Bradley, Reyes

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The trade that sent Vernon Wells from Toronto to Anaheim was the “Holy Grail” of deals for the Blue Jays and the best move of the winter, writes Jon Heyman of SI.com. Jose Bautista's five-year, $65MM contract places second on Heyman's list of teams' top offseason moves. As Heyman says, Bautista could have been in position to earn $100MM or more as a free agent after the season if the Blue Jays hadn't signed him long-term. Here are the rest of Heyman's rumors:

  • Royals GM Dayton Moore is pleased with Jeff Francoeur's production so far and says the outfielder does a lot of things well, though he “doesn't have a knack for getting on base.” As I showed last week, the Royals are getting lots out of their free agent acquisitions so far in 2011.
  • Can Milton Bradley find another job? Five MLB executives expressed at least strong doubt about Bradley's future job prospects in the Major Leagues. His fading offense and poor defense don't make up for the distractions he creates, which led one exec to predict that the outfielder's “career is over” now that Seattle designated him for assignment. Others expect Bradley to get one last chance.
  • It's early, but Heyman suggests the White Sox, Tigers and A's look like possibilities for Carlos Beltran this summer. Beltran has a no-trade clause and is impressing scouts early on this season.
  • The Red Sox and Blue Jays could be interested in catcher Jordan Weems, a high schooler who is moving up some draft boards.
  • Heyman hears that it's “highly unlikely” that the Red Sox would be willing to meet the Mets' asking price for Jose Reyes this summer.

A’s Young Starters Basically Untouchable

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The A's will explore ways of upgrading their roster this season, but the youngest members of their rotation are 'basically untouchable,' according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). Brett Anderson, Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez and Tyson Ross are likely staying put this summer, Olney reports.

Dallas Braden, now on the 15-day DL and Brandon McCarthy round out Oakland's rotation, which could be a constant for years to come. The A's have Anderson and Cahill under team control through 2015 and 2017, respectively. Ross isn't eligible for free agency until after the 2016 season, Gonzalez isn't eligible until after 2015 and Braden is under team control for 2012-13.

A's starters are first in the majors in ERA (2.59), second in innings pitched (236) and third in BB/9 (2.48) and xFIP (3.29). The early results are good and it wouldn't be hard to argue that Gonzalez (25), Ross (24), Cahill (23) and Anderson (23) have yet to reach their prime.

MLBTR's Luke Adams recently looked at Gonzalez as an extension candidate and I explained why the A's may choose to go year-to-year with Gonzalez and Braden instead of extending the left-handers.

2012 Contract Issues: Oakland Athletics

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The Athletics are next in our 2012 Contract Issues series.  Here's what the team faces after the 2011 season:

Eligible For Free Agency (7)

  • David DeJesus, Mark Ellis, Josh Willingham, Coco Crisp, Hideki Matsui, and Conor Jackson have accounted for 729 plate appearances this year, about 54% of the team's total.  Throw in non-tender candidate Kevin Kouzmanoff and that rises past 60%, so the offense could see huge turnover.  Jackson is getting on base, and Willingham is showing some pop, but so far this large group of position players is failing offensively.  There is plenty of time to turn things around, and players such as Ellis, Crisp, and DeJesus are also valued for their defense.  Still, the team's top outfield prospects are not ready to make an impact in 2012, so offense could again be a problem.
  • Rich Harden is also eligible for free agency.

Contract Options (1)

  • Michael Wuertz: $3.25MM club option with a $250K buyout.  Wuertz missed time with shoulder and hamstring injuries, but he's been sharp in the early going.  The A's will probably pick up his option.

Arbitration Eligible (14)

There might be a few non-tenders here, such as Kouzmanoff, but this is a huge arbitration class for Oakland.  Bailey will not have the 100 career saves that Bobby Jenks and Jonathan Papelbon did, but he could still get $3MM+.  Barton may also be in that range, Braden should stay there, and Gonzalez could reach $4MM.  Sweeney, Breslow, and Ziegler could get close to $2MM each.  McCarthy is tough to predict, and keep in mind that these are just rough estimates in all cases.  Assuming only Kouzmanoff is cut loose I'll put this group in the $25MM range.    

2012 Payroll Obligation

The Athletics' 2012 payroll obligation, according to Cot's, is $24.238MM if Wuertz is retained.  Double that number to account for the arbitration eligibles, and the A's are about $17MM below this year's payroll.  Jemile Weeks could take over at second base, but the team would need to figure out third base, DH, and all three outfield spots.  GM Billy Beane will probably have to work the trade market to find affordable, useful players for some of those openings.

AL West Notes: Barton, Angels, Wilhelmsen

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Happy birthday to Rangers manager Ron Washington, who turns 59 years old today.  Let's celebrate by taking a look at some items from Washington's division…

  • Daric Barton admits that he has been thinking about his multiyear contract negotiations with the Athletics, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.  "It's always in the back of your mind," Barton said. "It's not something you like to think about, but realistically, it happens."  We heard about these negotiations last month, with MLBTR's Tim Dierkes noting that Barton's walk-heavy production could make him a bargain for the A's if they choose to go to arbitration with the first baseman.
  • The Angels are integrating young players into their lineup while still remaining competitive in the AL West, writes Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
  • Mike Trout is having a nice season at Double-A Arkansas, but ESPN.com's Jason A. Churchill predicts Trout will only reach the majors in 2011 if the Angels want to give him a few token at-bats in September.  Churchill speculates that Trout might skip Triple-A altogether and potentially make the Angels out of Spring Training next year, or at least be in the majors by May 2012 (or after next year's Super Two cutoff date).
  • Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports profiles Mariners right-hander Tom Wilhelmsen, who made his improbable Major League debut this season after spending five years away from the sport.

Gabe Gross Retires

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Gabe Gross has decided to retire, reports Jon Johnson of The Enterprise Ledger.  Said Gross:

"I just felt like my heart wasn’t into it.  This and quitting football are the two hardest decisions I’ve ever made."     

Gross signed a minor league deal with the Mariners in February, and after a March release he was ready to hang up his cleats.  But then he took the Marlins up on an offer last week.  When his Sunday physical was delayed, he thought about it for an extra day and decided to retire to spend time with his wife and two kids.

The 31-year-old finishes his career having earned approximately $5MM, including his signing bonus as the 15th overall pick out of Auburn by the Blue Jays in 2001.  He posted a .239/.330/.385 line in seven seasons for the Jays, Brewers, Rays, and Athletics.  Gross was involved in the 2005 deal in which the Jays also sent Dave Bush to the Brewers for Lyle Overbay.

Dodgers Takeover Links: Thursday

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Yesterday MLB made a move to wrest ownership of the Dodgers from Frank McCourt, taking over financial operations for the club.  Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles wrote, "Never in the modern history of professional sports has there been such a hostile takeover."  The decision was an accumulation of all of McCourt's missteps, writes Yahoo's Tim Brown.  The takeover is a hot topic today, so we'll be adding the latest links in the top bullets.

  • Bud Selig said the Dodgers' ownership problems are "not similar" to the Mets' financial situation, reports John Cherwa of the Los Angeles Times.  Selig made a slight comparison between Major League Baseball's takeover of the Dodgers and when the league stepped in to handle the Rangers' sale last year. 
  • History isn't on McCourt's side, as the courts have traditionally upheld the commissioner's jurisdiction over the sport, reports Victoria Kim, Chris Goffard and Dan Weikel for the L.A. Times.
  • Brewers owner Mark Attanasio "dismissed…completely" any interest in buying the Dodgers, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  • Athletics owner Lew Wolff is also not interested in the Dodgers, reports Shaikin.
  • A rival executive doubts McCourt will sue, talking to ESPN's Buster Olney.  The owner seems to have little chance at winning and is already short on cash.
  • This link is from yesterday, but Jonah Keri's article for FanGraphs on what it was like when MLB owned the Expos is a good read.  Meanwhile, Keri's colleague Dave Cameron notes that the Dodgers were already notorious for making payroll-neutral deals, so GM Ned Colletti can probably keep doing that this summer.
  • Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times says Brewers owner Mark Attanasio and White Sox executive Dennis Gilbert are "the two parties most often mentioned as interested buyers," assuming MLB tries to force a sale.  Tom Werner, part of Boston's ownership group, is not interested, learned Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.  Shaikin notes that Selig "has anticipated the possibility of a legal challenge by McCourt, which could delay any ownership change."
  • MLB "will now have approval rights over every significant expenditure by the team, including a trade or contract extension," write David Wharton and Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times.  Former Braves and Nationals executive Stan Kasten is a candidate to be Selig's point man in charge of the Dodgers, according to ESPN Los Angeles.  John McHale Jr. and Corey Busch are other possibilities.
  • Dodgers outfielders Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier reiterated to Dylan Hernandez that they want to remain with the team.  Both players are looking at eight-figure arbitration rewards for 2012, after which they can become free agents.
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