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Odds And Ends: Brewers, White Sox, Astros, Harden

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A few minor notes from around the MLBiverse…

  • Jon Heyman came up with a list of 19 pitchers that could be made available prior to the trade deadline. He also presents a list of 12 candidates that the Mariners may consider for their vacant GM position.
  • The Brewers’ assistant GM indicated the team would like to add a starting pitcher to give the pitching staff more depth.
  • Ken Williams says that he is happy with the White Sox’ roster and has not assigned scouts to specific players on other teams that could be available.
  • Richard Justice says that the Astros will not ship off veterans before the trade deadline, but also notes that they might not be able to even if they wanted to be active sellers.
  • Rich Harden struck out 11 in eight shutout innings in front of a number of scouts two nights ago.  Also at this link, Joe Blanton and Chad Gaudin have heard trade rumors about themselves.  Gaudin is "convinced that he’s going to be traded."
  • Derek Jeter vouched for Shawn Chacon’s character.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex and can be reached here.  Tim Dierkes also contributed to this post.

Billy Beane To Step Down In ’09?

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According to Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News, the A’s assistant general manager David Forst has turned down all interview requests. The feeling is that Forst is expected to take over for Billy Beane as Oakland GM as early as next season.

It has been reported previously that Beane would like to test his Moneyball strategies in soccer. A’s owner Lewis Wolff also owns the San Jose Earthquakes of MLS and Beane may decide to focus his attention on the soccer franchise in ’09. It is unclear whether Beane will remain involved with the baseball operations.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex and can be reached here .

GM Trade History – Billy Beane

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A student from Villanova University, Brendan Bianowicz, emailed me asking if he could help with the site in any way.  I had always wanted a full trading history of all 30 GMs.  Brendan jumped at the opportunity to compile this data. 

Today we have Billy Beane’s Trade History for you to download in Excel form.  Brendan gets extra credit for putting free agent and draft pick info in the spreadsheet as well.  Thoughts on this spreadsheet or the endeavor in general?

Rosenthal’s Latest: Sabathia, Blake, Greinke, Tejada

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And now…a fresh Ken Rosenthal column.

  • An opposing viewpoint: Rosenthal says "any team that acquires C.C. Sabathia would gain an exclusive window to sign him long-term before he reaches free agency."  Rosenthal notes that the Brewers and Rays are stacked enough to acquire Sabathia and wouldn’t mind taking draft picks for him after the season.
  • Casey Blake is drawing trade interest; his versatility is a plus.  Rosenthal likes the fit for the Dodgers, Mets, and A’s.
  • An anonymous general manager tossed out this "trade concept": Adam Dunn to the Dodgers for Juan Pierre, Chin-lung Hu, and cash.  Thoughts?
  • Teams such as the Braves, Phillies, and Brewers have expressed interest in Zack Greinke at some point, but the Royals plan to keep him.  He’ll be eligible for free agency after the 2010 season.
  • Earlier this year the Cubs inquired on David DeJesus, but now they seem content with their Jim Edmonds–Reed Johnson platoon.  Maybe talks will be rekindled after the season?
  • The Astros will talk about any player on the roster without a no-trade clause, which would include Miguel Tejada.  Does that mean Jose Valverde, Hunter Pence, and Wandy Rodriguez aren’t off limits?

Rockies Scout A’s-Phillies Series

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According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Rockies had two scouts at the recent A’s-Phillies series.  The Rox are currently eight games out in the NL West despite a 32-47 record.

The following Rockies have popped up in past rumors: Matt Holliday, Brian Fuentes, Garrett Atkins, Kip Wells, and Willy Taveras.  Fuentes has been linked to both the A’s and Phillies.  Ken Rosenthal wrote on Tuesday that the Rockies are willing to trade Fuentes regardless of whether they’re in the playoff race.

A’s Talk Extension With Mark Ellis

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According to MLB.com’s Mychael Urban, A’s second baseman Mark Ellis instructed his agent Jamie Murphy to talk to the team about an extension.  Murphy is talking to A’s assistant GM David Forst.  They haven’t discussed money or years yet but both sides would like to reach a resolution before season’s end.

Ellis, 31, is hitting .261/.349/.432 in 296 plate appearances.  In a Free Agent Stock Watch piece, I wrote that Ellis might be this offseason’s affordable alternative to Orlando Hudson.  Now it looks like he might not make it to the open market.

Odds and Ends: Bautista, Uehara, Pavano

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I tried busting out my old Super Nintendo last night, to see if I am still the Mario Kart stud I once was.  The console didn’t work right though, so I ordered something called the FC Twin.  It’s a console that came out a few years ago when Nintendo’s patent expired; it plays both NES and SNES games.  I’m excited!  On to the hot stove links.

Michel Inoa Ignites Three Team Bidding War

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A week ago, we summed up the reports about 16 year-old Dominican righty Michel Inoa.  He’s considered the equivalent of a top ten draft pick here in North America.  It’s only fitting that the bidding could creep past $3MM.

Today, ESPN’s Enrique Rojas has a new update on Inoa.  Rojas says the Rangers and Reds have joined the Athletics in a three-team bidding war for Inoa’s services.  The kid is not interested in a big league deal.  As the bonus amount rises, many teams are bowing out (all 30 teams have evaluated him).  The international signing period begins on July 2nd.

Baseball America has a slightly different take on Inoa.  They say the Yankees are still in it, but the A’s are the frontrunner.  His bonus will be "at least $4 million."

A’s, Four Others Interested In Fuentes

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At third place and seven games out, the Rockies are not a lock to become sellers. If they do throw in the towel, closer Brian Fuentes figures to become a hot commodity.

Back on June 15th, multiple sources reported the Mets’ interest in Fuentes.  The Yankees have liked him for years.  The Red Sox and Phillies have been known Fuentes fans for a while now also.  Yesterday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post added one more suitor: the A’s.  Ken Rosenthal recently suggested the A’s could be buyers, perhaps chasing big fish like Matt Holliday, Jason Bay, or C.C. Sabathia.  The A’s are just three games out of the wild card behind the Rays.   

Rosenthal’s Latest: Athletics, Phillies

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From his Full Count video update, Ken Rosenthal brings us a couple bullet points:

  • In contention, the A’s suddenly could become a buyer. Rosenthal cites the big names: Matt Holliday, Jason Bay or even C.C. Sabathia, and that the A’s certainly have the prospects to pull it off.
  • The Phillies could enter the mix for Sabathia as well; however, they’d have to give up top pitching prospect Carlos Carrasco. Carrasco is the top rated Phillies prospect for the second straight year by Baseball America.

By Nat Boyle

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