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Amateur Draft Signings: Tuesday

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Here's the round-up of today's mass signings and individual agreements between teams and players from the 2010 Amateur Draft.  The list of first-rounders and supplemental round picks to sign can be found here.

  • Pittsburgh has signed 14th-rounder Bryce Weidman and 22nd-rounder Adalberto Santos, reports Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.
  • John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds have signed two more of their picks.
  • Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times tweets that the Dodgers signed their second and seventh round selections — namely, right-hander Ralston Cash and right-hander Ryan Christenson. 
  • The Cubs agreed to terms with five draft picks today, according to a team press release.  Third-rounder Micah Gibbs was the highest-drafted player amongst the new Cubs.
  • Corey Brock of MLB.com tweets that the Padres signed fifth-round pick Rico Noel and eleventh-rounder Brian Guinn.
  • A Padres team press release confirmed the signings of Noel and Guinn, and also announced that the club had agreed to terms with six other draft picks.
  • Anthony Andro of the Dallas Morning News reports that Texas agreed to terms with sixth-rounder Brett Nicholas.
  • According to an Angels press release, the team has signed second-rounder (81st overall) Daniel Tillman, a right-handed pitcher from Florida Southern College.
  • Chris Sale passed his team physical and thus his contract with the White Sox was officially announced by the club today, via press release.

Using Postseason Odds To Identify Sellers

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Buyers and sellers can be hard to identify this time of year, since so many teams are often within a few games of a playoff spot. It's not even July yet, but a number of clubs have extremely slim odds of becoming contenders and appear likely to sell. Here are the teams that have less than a 1% chance of making the playoffs in 2010, according to the postseason odds report at Baseball Prospectus.

  • Orioles
  • Royals
  • Indians
  • Mariners
  • Nationals
  • Astros
  • Pirates
  • Diamondbacks

Other than those eight clubs, the A's (7% chance of making the playoffs), White Sox (6%), Cubs (5%) and Brewers (2%) are potential sellers to watch. The White Sox, winners of ten of their last 12, have dramatically improved their chances of playing meaningful games down the stretch. They have shown that anything is possible, but the eight teams listed above seem like good bets to become sellers within the next six weeks. 

In case you're wondering, BP suggests the Rangers (81%) are the safest bet to make the playoffs.

Some Interest In Iwamura

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Pirates GM Neal Huntington told Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that "a handful of clubs have expressed some level of interest" in Akinori Iwamura. When the Pirates designated the infielder for assignment last week, it became apparent that they would eat most of the $2.4MM owed to Iwamura in any deal.

Realistically, the Pirates have to absorb salary if they want to move Iwamura. The 31-year-old hit .182/.292/.267 in 193 plate appearances this year. That's a steep drop from his established level of production (.281/.354/.393 entering the season), so teams could think of Iwamura as a good buy-low candidate, or a player in steep decline.

The Rockies, Angels and Twins are among the teams that could use infield help. Most clubs have not been interested, but Huntington said he expects some closure early this week.

Pirates Acquire Adam Davis

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The Pirates have acquired Adam Davis from the Indians, according to the MLB.com Transactions page.  Davis, 25, has been assigned to the Bradenton Marauders.

The former third-round draft pick spent the bulk of this year in advanced-A Kinston, posting a slash line of .225/.333/.375 with three homers.  He also had a five game stint for Double-A Akron where he had an OPS of .498.

Jack Taschner Declares Free Agency

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Pitcher Jack Taschner has declared free agency after refusing an outright assignment to the minors from the Pirates, tweets Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.  The left-hander was DFA'd by Pittsburgh early last week.

In 17 appearances this season, Taschner posted an ERA of 6.05 with 7.9 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9.  The 32-year-old threw his fastball at an average of 89.6 mph in 2009 but has seen that dip to 88.8 in 2010.  His pitch velocity has steadily declined across the last three seasons.

Amateur Draft Signings: Friday

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Here are the updates on which picks have signed with the clubs that selected them in last week's draft. Keep tabs on which first rounders and sandwich picks have signed by checking out our detailed breakdown.

  • Top selections that were locked up today: Cito Culver signed with the Yankees, Taijuan Walker agreed to terms with the Mariners, and the Rangers signed Mike Olt.
  • In addition to reaching an agreement with Walker, the Mariners signed ninth-rounder Luke Taylor and nine other players. The M's have now locked up 28 of their 50 selections, per a team release.
  • The Diamondbacks signed two of their top three picks, according to Steve Gilbert of MLB.com (via Twitter). Right-handed pitchers James Bradley (56th overall) and Robert Rowland (88th) signed with the D'Backs. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic tweets the financial details.
  • MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reports that the Pirates also agreed to terms with a pair of right-handed arms, fifth-round pick Tyler Waldron and 12th-rounder Vincent Payne.
  • The Orioles agreed to terms with their fourth-round pick, writes Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun.
  • The Giants signed eight draft picks, according to the team's official transactions page.

Odds & Ends: Maybin, Blue Jays, Orioles, Oswalt

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Links for Thursday night, as interleague play keeps Dan Haren's 1.000 OPS out of Arizona's lineup….

Pirates Extended Huntington, Russell

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2:30pm: MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch passes on a statement from Coonelly which confirms the extensions and says dismissing Russell "is not the appropriate response" to the team's struggles. Coonelly sounds confident in the team's progress, but says "a contract will not prevent us from making a change if one is appropriate and thus contract status truly is irrelevant."

2:22pm: The Pirates extended Russell and Huntington last offseason, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (via Twitter).

10:53am: The Pirates have extended GM Neal Huntington’s contract through 2011 and may have picked up manager John Russell's option for next season, according to a major league source who spoke to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Pirates president Frank Coonelly chose not to comment on the contracts of Russell and Huntington.

The timing of the extensions would be odd, but not unprecedented. The 23-42 Pirates appear headed for an 18th consecutive losing season and Russell’s job security appears anything but certain. Rosenthal reports that Huntington, whose contract was set to expire after the season, believes in Russell and shoulders much of the blame for the team’s disappointing play.

Huntington has drafted aggressively (Jameson Taillon, Stetson Allie, Pedro Alvarez) and pursued international free agents with gusto since taking over. He has acquired some promising youngsters (Jose Tabata, Tim Alderson, Bryan Morris) in deals for proven players, though he has given up many valuable players along the way (Jason Bay, Tom Gorzelanny). Like any GM who has been around for a few years, there are commendable moves and regrettable ones in Huntington's history.

The Royals, who might be the American League’s answer to the Pirates, made a similar move last summer. They extended GM Dayton Moore in the midst of a largely disappointing 2009 season.

John Russell On The Hot Seat In Pittsburgh?

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WEDNESDAY, 12:52pm: Rosenthal and Morosi report that there is some sentiment among those above and below Coonelly and Huntington that Russell should be dismissed. That could mean that ownership is unhappy with Russell, though the FOX Sports duo reports that majority owner Bob Nutting has not discussed firing Russell with the team's president and GM.

TUESDAY, 9:31pm: ESPN's Buster Olney hears from sources that "there is absolutely nothing to the speculation" about Russell being fired (via Twitter).  Rosenthal also tweets that Pirates president Frank Coonelly has denied that discussions about Russell's future have taken place.

8:58pm: With Pedro Alvarez on the verge of making his debut in the black-and-gold, the young prospect might never get to play for current Pirates manager John Russell.  Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com report that the team is "holding internal discussions" about Russell's fate, though it isn't apparent if the manager might be fired soon or possibly until after the season.

Russell "has drawn criticism within the industry for his stiff, impassive demeanor," according to Rosenthal/Morosi.  With the likes of Alvarez, Brad Lincoln and Jose Tabata either on the major league roster or nearing it, Pittsburgh management might want a new face in the dugout to signify this fresh start for the organization. 

Russell has a 152-234 record since being hired as the Pirates' manager before the 2008 season, though given Pittsburgh's roster, it's hard to attribute their lack of success to Russell's managerial skills.  Rosenthal/Morosi say that the Bucs will look inside the organization for an interim manager to finish out the season, and note that former Indians manager Eric Wedge and Cardinals bench coach Jose Oquendo are long-term candidates to take over the job.

Pedro Alvarez Called Up By Pirates

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9:24pm: Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Alvarez has been officially called up.  The prospect got the news after Indianapolis' game on Tuesday night.  ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that Alvarez will be in the lineup against Chicago on Wednesday.

6:55pm: Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports that Pedro Alvarez, the No.2 overall pick in the 2008 Amateur Draft, could make his major league debut for Pittsburgh before the end of the week.  Langosch reports that Alvarez is in the lineup tonight for Triple-A Indianapolis, and could be called up as soon as Wednesday for that evening's White Sox/Pirates game.  One might think the Bucs might announce Alvarez's first game in advance to sell a few extra tickets either against the Sox or when the Indians come to town for a weekend series.

Alvarez will play every day at third base for the Pirates, thus making current baseman Andy LaRoche into a backup or utilityman; Langosch notes that LaRoche has already been taking grounders at second base in preparation for his new role.  With Neil Walker locked into the second base job, LaRoche (who was a well-regarded prospect him not too long ago) could be made available to a team looking for an infield backup.  The Bucs would certainly have an easier time moving LaRoche than they would dealing Akinori Iwamura's big contract.

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