Phillies Rumors

Quick Hits: Sabathia, Lopez, Castillo, Rangers

By Luke Adams 2 | March 25, 2011 at 9:05pm CDT

Links for Friday night, as Brandon Beachy continues to impress….

Speaking to Jack Curry of the YES Network, Yankees ace C.C. Sabathia stuck to his vow to avoid commenting on his opt-out clause until after the season. However, he added "I'm a Yankee" and said he can't see himself "playing anywhere else" (Twitter link).
Rodrigo Lopez says he has no regrets about signing with the Braves, despite not earning a spot in the rotation, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman and Alden Gonzalez.
We heard earlier in the week that the Braves were looking to deal Lopez, with MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith running through some potential suitors. Although Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Braves are more likely to trade Lopez than Kenshin Kawakami before Opening Day, he cautions that there's no rush for Atlanta – Lopez has an out in his contract, but not until June.
Within Rosenthal's piece, a scout expresses doubt about Luis Castillo's chances of making the Phillies. MLB.com's Todd Zolecki says time is running out on Castillo's spring audition.
Endy Chavez and Esteban German are among the players the Rangers sent to the minors today, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Meanwhile, with Tommy Hunter likely sidelined until May, Alexi Ogando could re-enter the Rangers' rotation mix, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.

Red Sox Seek Rotation Depth

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | March 25, 2011 at 8:29am CDT

The Red Sox have five proven starters and a handful of viable alternatives, but that’s not stopping GM Theo Epstein from looking for more possibilities for the rotation, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The Red Sox are looking for starting pitching depth and would love to add a veteran who’s open to pitching at Triple-A until he’s needed.

“We’ve learned that we can never have enough starting pitching, but we like the depth provided by [Tim] Wakefield, [Alfredo] Aceves, and [Felix] Doubront," Epstein said.

Wakefield, Aceves and Doubront are the team’s primary alternatives to the starting five of Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz, John Lackey, Josh Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka. It also appears that the Red Sox will start Andrew Miller at Triple-A and stretch him out as a starter in the minors.

Though some starting pitching is available, none of it appears to be a logical fit for the Red Sox. The $16MM remaining on Joe Blanton’s contract makes him an unattractive option; it seems doubtful that the Red Sox would meet the Twins' asking price for Kevin Slowey only to stash him in the minors and the Red Sox don’t appear to have much interest in Jeremy Bonderman.

I listed a number of potentially available starters earlier in the week.

Stark On Phillies, Marlins, Young, Morgan, Astros

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | March 23, 2011 at 7:20pm CDT

As ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark points out, the Phillies’ decision to sign Luis Castillo suggests they aren’t overly optimistic about the timetable for Chase Utley’s return. According to Stark, the Phillies heard that there is no guarantee that surgery would make Utley healthy again, so they’re hoping rehab works. Here are the rest of Stark’s rumors…

The Marlins have decided that Matt Dominguez isn’t ready for the majors, so they’re “actively exploring” outside options. Earlier tonight, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports heard that the Marlins were “unlikely” to look outside of the organization for help at the hot corner.
Though the Pirates are still shopping Ryan Doumit, teams that have spoken to Pittsburgh say the catcher/outfielder is not drawing much interest.
Multiple teams, including the Phillies, Marlins and Cubs, appear to be eyeing Michael Young. None of those clubs can afford Young’s annual salary of $16MM and the Rangers expect a “massive” return if they’re going to eat a significant amount of Young’s salary.
Scouts covering the Nationals say Nyjer Morgan is very much available. “They're trying to give him away," one scout said, before suggesting that the Nationals could release him.
Scouts watching the Yankees expect the team to add a veteran catcher in the next week.
The Phillies are looking for a veteran outfielder who’s capable of playing center field.
Teams that have spoken with the Astros say they’d like to add a veteran catcher, but have very little money to spend.

NL East Notes: Castillo, DePodesta, Braves

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | March 22, 2011 at 8:15pm CDT

Links from the NL East, as the Marlins declare that Josh Johnson is ready for the season…

After some confusion, Luis Castillo arrived in Phillies camp, according to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post de-bunks the notion that the Mets could have built up trade value for Castillo instead of releasing him.
Mets exec Paul DePodesta said in a chat at Baseball Prospectus that he likes to be aggressive in the draft and take occasional "shots where it's appropriate." However, DePodesta cautioned that it's possible to overspend on amateurs, since there is a finite number of future big leaguers out there (hat tip MetsBlog).
Joe Pawlikowski of FanGraphs predicts that the Braves will get something in exchange for Kenshin Kawakami, even if they have to eat some of his $6.67MM salary.
For the latest on the Nationals, click here.

Jimmy Rollins Talks Free Agency

By Tim Dierkes | March 21, 2011 at 12:57pm CDT

Jimmy Rollins chatted recently with Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports about his impending free agency. The 32-year-old shortstop seems at ease entering the first contract year of his career:

"If I do what I’m supposed to do and I’m healthy, I’ll get signed somewhere, if not here. I’m not worried about that part. Just having a healthy season and feeling good, that’s the only thing I’m concerned with."

The Phillies are the only team Rollins has ever known, but it's too early to determine the extent of the gap between his asking price and the commitment the Phillies are willing and able to make. As Rosenthal points out, the Phillies don't have a replacement ready at the top levels of the minors.

Despite Rollins' slipping on-base percentage, his 10.2% walk rate last year was a career-best. He still has good pop for a shortstop, and his defense remains well-regarded. If Rollins stays healthy and his batting average bounces back, he could be in line for a four or five-year deal worth upwards of $15MM a year. The 2012 free agent market potentially features at least four other starting shortstops: Jose Reyes, Rafael Furcal, Alex Gonzalez, and J.J. Hardy. That crop is better than usual, but it's still very difficult to find a quality shortstop.

Phillies Sign Luis Castillo

By Mike Axisa | March 21, 2011 at 7:00am CDT

The Phillies officially signed Luis Castillo to a minor league deal, the team announced today. He'd been released by the Mets on Friday. The Mets are on the hook for the 35-year-old's $6MM salary, less the league minimum that Philadelphia will pay him. Castillo will either make the team or be released, GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told reporters this morning.

The Phillies have a question mark at second base right now given Chase Utley's knee injury, and Castillo gives them a veteran stopgap. Although he hit just .235/.337/.267 in 299 plate appearances last season, Castillo is only a year removed from a .387 OBP. More than 2,500 MLBTR readers predicted that Castillo would join the Phillies, and Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com was first to tweet the agreement.

Nothing Going On Between Cardinals, Phillies

By Mike Axisa | March 20, 2011 at 5:40pm CDT

Earlier this week we heard that the Phillies have some interest in Cardinals' outfielder Jon Jay, though Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch hears that nothing is going on between the two teams right now (Twitter link). The Cards are looking for a right-handed reliever to replace Kyle McClellan, who will likely take Adam Wainwright's spot in the rotation, but they appear to be looking elsewhere.

The Phillies have eight righty relievers on their 40-man roster, though Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson, and Jose Contreras probably aren't going anywhere. Since the Cardinals finished with fewer wins than the Padres last year, they had a chance to claim Pat Neshek but apparently decided against it. St. Louis also passed on Kiko Calero earlier this month.

Ben Nicholson-Smith explored Philadelphia's interest in Jay last week.

Quick Hits: Astros, Neshek, Castillo, Phillies

By Zachary Links | March 20, 2011 at 3:30pm CDT

Links for Sunday afternoon..

ESPN's Jerry Crasnick says (via Stephen Goff of Examiner.com) it's unlikely the Astros will attend Doug Davis' upcoming workout. Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle reported earlier that the race for Houston's fifth starter was down to Jordan Lyles and Nelson Figueroa, with Ryan Rowland-Smith now vying for a bullpen job.
Kelsie Smith of the St. Paul Pioneer Press tweets that the Twins aren't adding anyone to their 40-man roster in light of San Diego's claim of Pat Neshek, suggesting that the team was clearly trying to trade the right-hander but failed.
David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News writes that the Phillies may not be able to add to their $165MM payroll but believes that they could make personnel moves to create payroll flexibility.
The White Sox have informed rookie Brent Morel that he's won the starting job at third base, according to Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter). This means less playing time for Mark Teahen, whom the club is open to trading.

Phillies, Marlins Not Serious About Castillo

By Zachary Links | March 20, 2011 at 12:12pm CDT

The Phillies and Marlins have both been linked to free agent second baseman Luis Castillo, but neither team appears to be serious about signing the veteran. Castillo was scheduled to officially clear waivers at 1pm EST today.

The Phillies are not high on the idea of signing Castillo to fill-in for Chase Utley at second base, writes David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News. Murphy gets the sense that the Phillies would be willing to take a look at him on a non-guaranteed deal, but there should be other suitors willing to give the veteran more playing time.

Meanwhile, the Marlins haven't completely closed the door on the idea of signing Castillo but they're also not in hot pursuit of him, writes Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. The club was considering Castillo to play second base if they decide that Matt Dominguez's bat isn't up to snuff for the big league roster.

The Marlins would have shifted Omar Infante to third base and put someone else – possibly Emilio Bonifacio – at second. Dominguez still may not make the cut out of Spring Training, but the Marlins are not presently searching for a third baseman on the trade market.

Luis Castillo Close To Joining Phillies

By Mike Axisa | March 19, 2011 at 6:46pm CDT

Former Mets second baseman Luis Castillo is close to joining the Phillies, a source told ESPN New York's Adam Rubin. Castillo was scheduled to clear waivers at 1pm ET today, and Philadelphia will only have to pay him the league minimum.

The Phillies have a bit of a question mark at second base right now given Chase Utley's knee injury, and Castillo would give them a veteran stopgap. Although he hit just .235/.337/.267 in 299 plate appearances last season, Castillo is only a year removed from a .387 OBP. The Mets are on the hook for the 35-year-old's $6MM salary, less whatever Philadelphia pays him.

More than 2,500 MLBTR readers predicted that Castillo would join the Phillies.

This post was originally published on March 20th, 2011.

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