Odds & Ends: Draft, Rangers, Feliz
Another collection of random links…
- A fresh fantasy baseball mailbag over at RotoAuthority, where I address David Ortiz, Francisco Liriano, and more.
- The Orioles claimed pitcher Dave Davidson off waivers from the Marlins and sent him to Triple A, according to Roch Kubatko of MASN.
- Matt Belisle cleared waivers and accepted his Triple A assignment, according to Jack Etkin of Inside the Rockies.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo predicts the top 20 picks in the June draft. Mike Minor to the Padres, Aaron Crow to the Pirates?
- Rangers owner Tom Hicks might be willing to sell his controlling interest in the team, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.
- Scott Lauber of The News Journal thinks Pedro Feliz is changing the Phillies' mind about his $5MM option for 2010 with his .307/.373/.433 start. His 10% walk rate is a career best.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues discusses the Mark DeRosa-Yankees rumor.
- Alexei Ramirez is being sued for $20MM in the Dominican Republic "for allegedly violating a contract he signed with local talent scouts before inking a major league contract." Not sure how they arrived at that figure.
Stark On Peavy, Oswalt, Phillies, DeRosa, Giants
Let's take a look at the latest Rumblings and Grumblings column from ESPN's Jayson Stark.
- The Padres' recent winning streak has not changed their intention of trading Jake Peavy. The Dodgers and Cubs are in Peavy's first tier of choices, follwed by the Giants, Cardinals, and Astros. The Angels would be the one AL team he'd consider. The East Coast is a long shot. Also, Peavy will want his 2011-13 partial no-trade clause to become a full no-trade. Peavy's friend Roy Oswalt has been unsuccessful in lobbying Astros owner Drayton McLane, as the 'Stros can't take on Peavy's contract. As for the Dodgers, GM Ned Colletti told the L.A. Times he hasn't talked to the Padres about Peavy since the pitcher vetoed the White Sox deal.
- Stark talked to scouts who believe Oswalt has "lost his edge" and needs a change of scenery. The Phillies have inquired on him, but they've asked about everyone: Peavy, Brandon Webb, Roy Halladay, Doug Davis, Erik Bedard, Cliff Lee, Aaron Harang, Brad Penny, Chris Young and Jason Marquis. Popular Phillies trade targets include Lou Marson, Jason Donald, Carlos Carrasco, Travis D'Arnaud, Freddy Galvis, Kyle Drabek, Dominic Brown, and Antonio Bastardo.
- The Braves are interested in bringing Mark DeRosa back to Atlanta. He came up with them and was non-tendered in '04 after tearing his ACL. But to deal young arms, the Braves would want an impact bat. Stark says they're "mostly listening" rather than shopping Jeff Francoeur. His trade value is difficult to gauge.
- The Mets seem content to wait out the first base trade market.
- The Giants seek a middle-of-the-order bat, and Jonathan Sanchez is being dangled. Three targets they haven't had success on are Dan Uggla, Jorge Cantu, and possibly Carlos Lee. Lee, according to one Stark source, doesn't intend to waive his no-trade for anyone.
Would Peavy Play In Philly?
Sorry, we don't have the answer yet. MLB.com's Todd Zolecki posed the question to Jake Peavy's agent Barry Axelrod, and Axelrod said:
"I have not discussed Philly with Jake because nobody has asked us to discuss Philly. He has a strong preference to play in the National League. He also wants to play for a contender. Both of those two things play into Philly's hands. The personnel is awesome. If there is one downside, it's the geographical difference for him, given that he has made his family home in the San Diego area."
Axelrod didn't talk about his client pitching in a hitter's park, which has to be a consideration as well. Do the Phillies have the goods to pull off a deal? I think so. Pitchers such as Kyle Drabek, Carlos Carrasco, Kyle Kendrick, and J.A. Happ could be appealing to the Padres to various degrees. And Jason Donald could help the Padres. Talking to David Murphy, Phils GM Ruben Amaro Jr. admitted he'd like the improve his pitching and add a bench bat.
As far as Peavy to the White Sox, the pitcher's former teammate Scott Linebrink believes that deal is dead (they spoke about a week ago).
Edes On Francoeur, Nick Johnson, Valverde
8:10pm: David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the Red Sox-Francoeur rumor:
Talked to someone in Braves organization who sort of dismissed the Red Sox rumor. Said he hadn’t heard one thing about them having any serious interest in Francoeur or scouting him recently.
9:01am: Yahoo's Gordon Edes wrote about many different trade scenarios in his column last night.
- Edes seconds Ken Rosenthal's rumor that the Red Sox have been scouting Jeff Francoeur.
- The Nationals have been scouting the Mets' Triple and Double A teams, trying to figure out a possible return for Nick Johnson. Names of interest for Washington: Jon Niese, Mike Antonini, Eddie Kunz, and big leaguer Bobby Parnell. The Red Sox also had interest in Johnson, but not for the price of Michael Bowden. Back to the Mets – Joel Sherman of the New York Post has a list of available players they could consider aside from Johnson, including Jermaine Dye, Ben Francisco, Adam LaRoche, and Eric Hinske.
- Edes likes the fit of Jose Valverde with the Rays, but speculates that the Astros could ask for Wade Davis in return. Six years of Davis would be a huge price to pay for a few months of Valverde plus possible draft picks. Edes also likes Mark DeRosa for Tampa Bay, but they seem well-equipped to handle Akinori Iwamura's injury with internal options.
- Edes names the Phillies, Brewers, Royals, and Twins as possible suitors for Brad Penny. Edes adds that the Phillies "are already making plans for life without Brett Myers" after this season.
- The shortstop market includes Jack Wilson and perhaps John McDonald, but could become more interesting for a team like Boston if the Indians make Jhonny Peralta available.
Rosenthal On Astros, Marquis, DeRosa, Francoeur
Let's take a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Rosenthal recommends the Astros trade veterans to improve their bottom-ranked farm system. He'd especially like to see Houston make Roy Oswalt available. They'd have take Oswalt's no-trade clause into consideration.
- The Phillies continue to seek a starter, and they made an inquiry on Colorado's Jason Marquis. Rosenthal finds Erik Bedard "perhaps the most intriguing fit" and notes that the Phils probably have flexibility to add payroll. This question came up in a recent chat…I do think the Phillies have the pieces to pull off a Bedard trade.
- The Brewers are not going after Cleveland's Mark DeRosa, as they cannot spare Major League pitching for him. Rosenthal also finds Jake Peavy unlikely, as the Brewers probably couldn't pull off a deal without creating a new need. Of Peavy, Rosenthal says, "He will not leave easily."
- The Mets are interested in Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson, who is off to a .338/.445/.471 start.
- The Royals might be the top suitor for Jeff Francoeur if the Braves shop him, but not everyone in Kansas City's front office is keen on him. The Red Sox are known to have an eye on Francoeur.
- Rosenthal's heard speculation that the Sox could trade Daniel Bard, whose value may be at a high point.
- Rather than acquire someone like Yuniesky Betancourt, the Padres will stick with in-house options at shortstop (mainly Luis Rodriguez and Everth Cabrera, once they're healthy).
Rosenthal: Phillies In Search Of Starters
Ken Rosenthal appeared on the FOX broadcast of the Yankees vs. Phillies game this afternoon and dropped this bit of information:
Jake Peavy Not A Fit In Boston
In the aftermath of the failed White Sox-Padres swap that would have sent Peavy to Chicago, there are other reactions from around the majors:
- MLB.com's Todd Zolecki wonders if it would be smart for the Phillies to acquire Peavy. Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. declined to comment on the chances of making such a deal happen.
- Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that Cubs GM Jim Hendry didn't comment when asked about re-starting talks to acquire the righty. Ryan Theriot sounds excited about pursuing Peavy.
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan writes that Peavy made the right call, since the White Sox are no sure thing.
Odds & Ends: Bray, Fox, Manny, Crow
Links for Wednesday…
- Today's chat will be at 3pm CST.
- According to Andy Martino, the Phillies claimed righty Steven Register off waivers from the Rockies today and sent him to Triple A.
- Reds reliever Bill Bray will miss the rest of the season due to Tommy John surgery, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon yesterday.
- Dave Cameron at FanGraphs says Jake Fox belongs in the Majors, given his ridiculous Triple A numbers (.431/.513/.954 in 130 ABs with 17 HR and 50 RBI). The Cubs, though, are already trying to find ways to get Micah Hoffpauir into the lineup.
- ESPN's Buster Olney pictures what would've unfolded if Manny Ramirez hadn't used PEDs.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle on the Noah Lowry situation.
- Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe speculates on possible moves for the Red Sox.
- Baseball America's Jim Callis says Nationals GM Mike Rizzo has been talking to Randy Hendricks about getting Aaron Crow's consent in the event the Nationals want to draft him again.
Phillies Sign Paul Bako
According to Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Phillies signed catcher Paul Bako to a minor league deal. Bako signed with the Cubs in January and had a nice spring, but lost the backup catcher competition to Koyie Hill and was released. Bako, 37 in June, hit .217/.299/.328 in 338 plate appearances for the Reds last year.
Miguel Cairo Designated For Assignment
According to David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News, the Phillies designated infielder Miguel Cairo for assignment to make room for tomorrow's starter, Andrew Carpenter. Cairo, 35, had two hits in 16 plate appearances for the Phils this year. They'd signed him to a minor league deal on February 15th.