According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the A’s released DH/good guy Mike Sweeney today. He signed a $500K deal in February, and played pretty well in April. However, the A’s signed Frank Thomas and Sweeney went down for eventual knee surgery in May. He tried to come back last week, but probably needs to go under the knife again.
Athletics Rumors
McGwire Open To Idea Of Playing Again
Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch interviewed Mark McGwire about the 10th anniversary of breaking Roger Maris’ single-season home run record. At the end of the article McGwire indicates that he thinks he can still play.
Today, McGwire says, he works out twice a day and still weighs 245 pounds. "I can still hit, if somebody wants me," he said. "Now, wouldn’t that be a shocker?"
Let me say that McGwire may have been joking. However, Hummel gives us no indication that this is the case.
Earlier today, Joe Stiglich reported that the A’s would seek to add power to the lineup this off-season and that they would be more likely to acquire a power-hitter through free agency. Would Billy Beane try to coax McGwire out of retirement? McGwire did play 11 seasons for the A’s and they do have an opening for a DH in ’09 along with a dire need to add an impact bat.
The possibility does seem far-fetched, but this is the type of move that Beane would not shy from. And if McGwire did decide to lace up the sneakers for one more season, this is the exact situation under which it would have to happen.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
A’s To Seek Power This Offseason
Joe Stiglich of the Contra Costa Times reports that the A’s will look to add power to the lineup this off-season.
Though Beane is pleased with the [speed] the A’s have shown, he doesn’t think it holds the key to long-range prosperity…"There’s no question that moving forward, short-term and long-term, we have to get some power," he said. "Obviously you’d like to have young power, but in the short term we have to look at something for next season, too."
Stiglich says the A’s will look for an impact bat in the free agent market noting that Beane added that he is reluctant to trade prospects from the system for a power hitter.
Second base (Mark Ellis) and DH (Frank Thomas) are Oakland’s only positions with a pending free agent. However, the A’s could probably find upgrades at several other spots. Knowing how Beane values draft picks, he is unlikely to go after any Type A free agents.
So let’s hear it in the comments. Who are some free agents the A’s could pursue this off-season?
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
Gammons’ Latest: Martin, Dunn, Quentin
Here’s the latest blog post from ESPN’s Peter Gammons…
- Takashi Saito is mentioned as a free agent this winter, but I believe it’s a situation where he can only re-sign, return to Japan, or retire.
- Gammons heard talk that Russell Martin could be switched permanently to third base. In that scenario, the Dodgers would sign a pitching-oriented catcher such as Jason Varitek. Would that be a good move?
- Adam Dunn knows it’s cliche, but he intends to prioritize winning over money when he hits free agency.
- The D’Backs were asking a lot for Carlos Quentin last winter, with the White Sox, Red Sox, and Indians interested. Josh Byrnes was not able to get Michael Bowden, Jed Lowrie, or Cliff Lee. Arizona ended up getting Chris Carter from Chicago and flipping him to Oakland in the Dan Haren deal. Carter mashed 39 home runs in A ball this year. You can’t say the Diamondbacks gave Quentin away for nothing, since they acquired a crucial component for the Haren trade.
- A year ago, Yankees GM Brian Cashman asked Joe Torre and his coaches their opinion on a Robinson Cano for Orlando Hudson swap. Don Mattingly and Larry Bowa were heavily in favor of keeping Cano.
Odds and Ends: Burnett, Inoa, Minaya, Glavine
Today’s links…
- Pablo Ozuna…designated for assignment again. Additionally, the Phillies cut Andy Tracy. The 34 year-old hit .288/.377/.516 in Triple A this year.
- Eddie Bajek added AL infielders to his Elias rankings. Orlando Cabrera and Edgar Renteria are Type As, while Mark Ellis and Mark Grudzielanek are Type Bs. Cabrera could net the Sox some picks.
- The Phillies would like to bring Jamie Moyer back next year, but so far they’ve only had informal talks. Earlier this month Moyer spoke of an obligation with the Phillies, but he is not under contract for ’09. The Phillies have also had informal talks with Pat Burrell, who’s said he wants to stay.
- Richard Griffin discusses A.J. Burnett quite a bit in his mailbag, suggesting this is the pitcher’s best season because of his career-high win total.
- Athletics Nation talks to A’s owner Lewis Wolff about the Michael Inoa signing.
- Omar Minaya’s job is secure.
- Aaron Harang has suggestions for the Reds to make their ballpark more pitcher-friendly.
- Tom Glavine is feeling good after somewhat minor elbow surgery, but isn’t sure about playing in ’09. Ken Rosenthal wrote recently that Glavine wants to pitch next year.
- Grant at McCovey Chronicles gives his take on pitch counts.
Week in Review: 8/17 – 8/23
Another week in the books, and we keep seeing big names moved after the July 31 non-waiver deadline. Let’s look back on the past week:
- The Dodgers acquired Greg Maddux from the Padres for two minor league players to be named later. Nice acquisition to bolster their rotation, and does anyone want to place bets on how excited 20-year-old Clayton Kershaw is to get tips from Maddux every day for the rest of the season?
- The Pirates are exploring the idea of trading Jack Wilson this offseason more and more. Given the slim free agent market for shortstops, he would likely gather a lot of interest.
- Nate Robertson’s struggles this season have lost him his spot in the rotation, but have they also lost him a spot with the Tigers after 2008?
- Orlando Hernandez needs surgery on his foot, and that could likely mean that El Duque’s career would be over.
- Lots of speculation lately about where Ben Sheets is going to land after 2008. And while there’s no way to tell right now, Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman have stepped up and said they would like the Astros front office to go out and sign him in the offseason.
- A lot of minor-league deals signed this week: Kip Wells signed with Kansas City, the Mets added Al Reyes, the Astros signed Jose Castillo, the Red Sox signed Dave Ross, and the Braves took a flyer on Rodrigo Lopez following his Tommy John surgery last year. The Jays made a trade to acquire Jose Bautista for a PTBNL as well.
- The Rangers would like Milton Bradley back in 2009, and the feeling is mutual, though negotiations will wait until after the season. Similarly, Frank Thomas would prefer to stay with the A’s in 2009.
- Eric Gagne, David Riske, and David Weathers all cleared waivers this week. The first two make sense to me, but given Weathers’ success this year, his affordable contract for the rest of the season, and all of the teams desperately seeking bullpen help, it seems strange that no one would place a claim on him. Here’s an updated list of all the players who have been confirmed to have cleared waivers this year.
Odds and Ends: Kazmir, Thomas, Sweeney
We’ll kick it off with a few links today and add more bullets periodically.
- Cole Hamels feels that he handled his contract renewal last year immaturely.
- Over at The Hardball Times, Geoff Young looks at the best compensation picks of the 20th century.
- Geoff Blum’s ’09 option vests with one more plate appearance.
- Bronson Arroyo has a plan to make the Reds competitive.
- Matthew Cerrone explains Carlos Delgado’s ’09 option.
- Jeff Passan on the Cardinals’ brilliant signing of Ryan Ludwick.
- Baseball Prospectus profiles #26-50 on their list of players to build a team around.
- Twins reliever Brian Bass accepted a Triple A assignment, so he won’t become a free agent.
- MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo takes a preliminary look at the ’09 draft order.
- Jamey Newberg wonders if the Rangers could pry Scott Kazmir loose this winter. It’s hard to see the Rays trading him.
- Susan Slusser expects the A’s to add an impact bat this winter, but free agent DHs Frank Thomas and Mike Sweeney will probably be let go. In a related note, ESPN’s Buster Olney says the A’s had a chance earlier this year to acquire Jason Bay for a package including pitching prospect Vin Mazzaro.
Odds And Ends: Mets, Embree, Olsen, Hoffman, Izzy, Phillies
A few notes from around the MLBiverse…
- Bill Madden says the Mets may be out of luck for a closer, even if Huston Street and Brian Fuentes have cleared waivers and are available. Madden says the price tags are just too high for the Mets.
- Alan Embree hopes that not being traded is a sign the A’s are going to pick up his $3MM option for next season.
- Scott Olsen said he prefers to be back with the Marlins in ’09 but conceded that the Marlins may prefer to move him due to his arbitration eligibility.
- Kevin Towers would not answer questions when asked if the Padres would bring free agent-to-be, Trevor Hoffman, back in ’09. We had heard previously that Towers wants Hoffman to end his career with the Padres.
- Jason Isringhausen’s agent said that his client’s "desire is to play [next season]," and they will wait to see if he needs surgery before deciding how to make that happen. Isringhausen is a free agent following this season.
- Jimmy Rollins made comments to reporters that suggested free agents may avoid signing with the Phillies because of the fans.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
Frank Thomas Wants To Return To A’s
According to MLB.com’s Mychael Urban, A’s DH Frank Thomas would like to return to the team for the ’09 season. Thomas likes the team’s direction and wants to play until he’s 41 or 42 (he’s turned 40 in May). He won’t be looking for big money. Thomas believes Mike Sweeney would also like to return in ’09.
Thomas had a huge month of May after the Blue Jays let him go, but then missed all of June and July with a quad injury. He hasn’t hit at all this month. I imagine the A’s would be willing to bring him back for a million bucks or so.
Week In Review: 8/10 – 8/16
Taking a look back at this week’s happenings here on MLBTR…
- The biggest move of the month was the Diamondbacks’ acquisition of slugger Adam Dunn for Dallas Buck, Micah Owings, and Wilkin Castillo. I can’t remember any August trades of this magnitude.
- Bronson Arroyo told the media Dunn would be seeking over $100MM this offseason; Dunn denied the report wholeheartedly. I’d be surprised to see him get $100MM, but I also certainly don’t think it would be the worst signing we’ve seen in the past few offseasons.
- The Red Sox acquired Paul Byrd from the Indians. Boston will pay the remaining portion of Byrd’s salary. Byrd has been very good lately, and you can never have too much pitching depth. Not a bad move for Boston, in my opinion.
- The Twins were very active in discussions this week, though nothing surfaced as of yet. Minnesota claimed Jarrod Washburn off waivers from Seattle, but a deal wasn’t worked out. Boof Bonser and salary relief was originally thought to be the offer, but that report was later denied. Passing a chance to unload Washburn’s salary makes no sense to me. The Twins also claimed Alan Embree from Oakland, but he was pulled back.
- Freddy Garcia signed a minor-league contact with the Tigers. They must have liked what they saw at his audition. If he can return to be as effective as he was in his Chicago days, that would be a great signing. Nice low-risk move for Detroit.
- We’ve seen a lot of teams signing their young talent to long-term deals, but it looks like San Francisco ace Tim Lincecum will not be one of them. He’d prefer to go year-to-year.
- Minor moves happening around baseball: The Reds DFA’d David Ross, the Blue Jays released Shannon Stewart, and the Twins signed Bobby Kielty to a minor-league deal. The Giants DFA’d Jose Castillo, and Richie Sexson’s time in New York was cut short when he was released after just 35 plate appearances. The Rockies added another arm, signing Oscar Villareal.
- And now, for the draft-pick signings! Here are all the signings and not-signings teams made with their top picks this week: The White Sox signed Gordon Beckham, the Orioles signed Brian Matusz, the Padres signed Allan Dykstra, the Rangers signed Justin Smoak, the Giants signed Buster Posey, the Pirates signed Pedro Alvarez, the Royals signed Eric Hosmer, and the Reds not only signed Yonder Alonso, but Venezuelan outfielder Yorman Rodriguez as well. The Nationals failed to sign Aaron Crow, and the Yankees failed to sign Gerrit Cole.
- And to cap things off, since we just covered a bunch of guys who probably weren’t even alive when Jamie Moyer first started pitching in the Majors… he didn’t deny the possibility of pitching until he’s 50. He’s 45 right now with 11 wins and an ERA of 3.64, who knows?
