Pirates Rumors

Odds & Ends: Millar, Yankees, Royals, Darvish

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 20, 2010 at 4:03pm CDT

Links on a memorable Thursday afternoon for Brooks Conrad and the Braves…

Kevin Millar will join NESN as an analyst, according to Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). Millar signed with the St. Paul Saints earlier this month.
The Yankees signed utility player Jeff Natale and assigned him to Triple A, according to Pete Cava of the Times Leader via River Ave. Blues. The 27-year-old posted a .298/.432/.446 line in five seasons in the Red Sox organization.
Royals GM Dayton Moore says winning the World Series is an eight or ten year process, according to MLB.com's Dick Kaegel.
Sam Miller and Dan Woike of the Orange County Register run through some players the Angels could target, including Miguel Tejada and Will Ohman.
Top Japanese pitcher Yu Darvish says his father has known agents like Arn Tellem and Scott Boras for years, according to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker who translated from Chunichi. Darvish says he wants to keep playing in Japan.
Tom D'Angelo of the Palm Beach Post wonders if the Marlins should trade Hanley Ramirez. It's a hypothetical question as the Marlins aren't looking to move their shortstop.
Gene Collier of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says Pirates manager John Russell deserves an extension, especially now that some top Pirates prospects are nearing the major leagues.
ESPN.com's Rob Neyer understands why Ken Griffey Jr. wants to play, but questions whether Junior deserves a roster spot on the Mariners.
Adam LaRoche explained in March that he didn't reject a two-year $17MM offer from the Giants, even though they were interested in him last winter. He repeated as much to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle, adding that he has no hard feelings towards the Giants.

Pirates Sign Six From Latin America

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 18, 2010 at 4:47pm CDT

The Pirates signed six Latin American players including Venezuelan outfielder Willy Garcia, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pirates Latin American scouting director Rene Gayo says the club believes Garcia, who received a $280K bonus, has "an athletic body with a chance to develop five tools."

The club also signed five other players, including four pitchers. The new additions include right-handers Brayan Almonte, Oderman Rocha and Jose Luis Acosta and left-hander Angel Sanchez. The Pirates also signed first baseman Jose Roman.

Odds & Ends: Pirates, Yankees, Storen, Mets

By Zachary Links | May 16, 2010 at 9:40pm CDT

Links for Sunday night..

The Pirates have promoted Bryan Morris to Double-A after a sensational start to the season, writes Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. The 23-year-old starter, who has a 0.60 ERA, could earn another promotion by August according to GM Neal Huntington. Morris was one of the main pieces the Pirates received in the Jason Bay trade in July of '08.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter) points out that three former Yankees set-up men have been released in the last 24 hours: Chad Gaudin, Edwar Ramirez, and Brian Bruney.
Nats pitching coach Steve McCatty says that the club has not yet determined Drew Storen's role and that they will "ease him in", tweets Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com writes that Mets GM Omar Minaya will accompany the team on their trip to Atlanta, though a team official insists that he will be there just to lend support.

Odds & Ends: Storen, Duchscherer, Johnson

By Luke Adams 2 | May 16, 2010 at 2:56pm CDT

Links for Sunday, as we wait to see if the Dodgers can extend their six-game winning streak….

Ken Rosenthal writes that the Nationals promoted the 10th overall pick from the 2009 draft, Drew Storen, today. Storen had annihilated minor league hitters across two levels this season.
Ozzie Guillen understands the reasoning behind GM Kenny Williams' recent public confirmation that he's losing patience with his ballclub, writes Ken Falkoff on MLB.com.
Two players signed to one-year deals, Justin Duchscherer and Nick Johnson, could require surgeries that would sideline them for most or all of this season. MLB.com's Jane Lee and Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork have the details.
Bill Ladson of MLB.com tweets that Willy Taveras may not accept a minor league assignment if he clears waivers. Taveras was DFA'd by the Nationals last night.
Luis Ayala has exercised the opt-out clause in his contract, according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter). The Dodgers will have to add Ayala to their 25-man roster by Monday afternoon or release him.
Earlier in the week, MLB.com's Chris Haft floated the idea of the Giants moving Aubrey Huff to left field to make room at first base for Buster Posey. According to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, Huff is open to the idea and thinks Posey would do well at first base.
Speaking of Posey, John Sickels asks who you'd rather have: the Giants' prospect or Carlos Santana of the Indians.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer's Paul Hoynes details the Indians' changing draft strategy, and fields readers' Tribe-related questions in a mailbag.
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette lists the top ten best investments made by the Pirates' current regime.

Brian Bass Clears Waivers

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 15, 2010 at 12:47pm CDT

SATURDAY, 12:47pm: MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reports that Bass has cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A.

MONDAY, 3:03pm: The Pirates designated Brian Bass for assignment, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (via Twitter). The right-hander is out of options, so he'll be exposed to other clubs, but the Pirates wanted to make room for Ross Ohlendorf.

Bass, 28, allowed nine hits and eight walks in 6.1 innings for the Pirates this season for a 12.79 ERA. The Pirates signed Bass to a minor league deal in January, a month after the Orioles non-tendered him. Bass appeared in 48 games for the Orioles last year, logging 86.1 innings. He allowed 106 hits a year ago with 5.6 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 so it wasn't a surprise when the Orioles declined to offer Bass a contract.

Within ten days we'll see Bass traded, released or, if he clears waivers, assigned to the minor leagues. Bass has been just part of the problem for a Pirates pitching staff that ranks last in the National League in runs allowed (195) and earned runs allowed (179).

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Greinke, Blalock, Berkman

By Mike Axisa | May 14, 2010 at 9:51am CDT

Lots of cool things have happened on May 14th throughout baseball history. Mickey Mantle joined the 500 homerun club in 1967 (just the sixth player to do so at the time); Reggie Jackson passed Mantle on the all-time homer list with his 537th on the same 1986 day that Cardinals' utility player Jose Oquendo became the first non-pitcher in history to get a decision when he took the loss in extra innings; Doc Gooden threw his no-hitter in 1996, and the Mets set a single game franchise record with seven steals against the Giants in 2009 without the help of Jose Reyes. Also, this happened in 2008.

Here are a few links from around the web…

Royals Authority thinks about the unthinkable: trading Zack Greinke.
Pittsburgh Lumber Co. busts the myth that Neal Huntington can't spot talent.
DRays Bay wonders if the Rays should cut Pat Burrell and replace him with Hank Blalock.
The Crawfish Boxes looks at Lance Berkman's trade value.
Feeling Dodger Blue says that Garret Anderson may not be long for the Dodgers.
At Home Plate says that Carl Crawford's future is uncertain.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

Latin Links: Alderson, Coa, Batista, Pirates

By Nick Collias | May 10, 2010 at 7:59am CDT

The latest from the Caribbean and beyond…

Sandy Alderson has been doing the rounds stateside to describe his reform efforts in the Dominican Republic. Aside from last week's lengthy interview with MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez, Alderson spoke with the New York Times' Michael S. Schmidt on Saturday and the San Diego Union-Tribune's Tim Sullivan yesterday. One interesting revelation from the most recent piece: Alderson concedes that the strongest resistance to his presence has come not from the oft-vilified independent agents known as "buscones," but rather from what Sullivan labels "MLB employees whose interests appear to be in conflict and whose income may be a product of working both sides of the street."
The Yankees signed 17-year-old Venezuelan catcher Rainiero Coa, according to Annelida Yoris Rivas at the Venezuelan paper Nueva Prensa (link in Spanish). A lengthy bio in the decidedly lo-fi Diario el Progreso gives more details: Coa is a recently converted third baseman/shortstop whose hitting in international junior tournaments drew interest from a number of clubs. However, his defense and arm behind the plate were what sealed the deal at a recent Yankees tryout in Venezuela.
Switch-hitting shortstop Jean Carlos Batista has agreed to terms with the Astros, according to the Dominican Prospect League site. Batista reportedly led the league in average and led his team in every offensive category for most of the DPL's season. Last year, Kiley McDaniel at Baseball Prospectus labeled Batista a "five-tool talent" and reported heavy interest in the prospect.
The Pirates also inked two 17-year-olds from the DPL, right-handed starter Isaac Sanchez and speedy left-handed outfielder Miguel DeAza.

Odds & Ends: Pirates, Astros, Castro, Crawford

By Mike Axisa | May 7, 2010 at 1:45pm CDT

Let's start this Friday off with some links…

Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com feels that Neal Huntington's rebuilding plan has yet to yield results.
Olney tweets that rival executives feel that both Oswalt and Lance Berkman would have trade value, but only if Houston was willing to eat a lot of money and accept secondary prospects in return. Yesterday we learned that Berkman would be willing to waive his no-trade clause.
SI.com's Melissa Segura hears that MLB will announce a pilot program that will allow international amateurs to register before the July 2nd signing period begins, which should streamline age investigations and signings (link goes to Twitter).
Meanwhile, MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez chatted with MLB's Dominican office consultant Sandy Alderson about what he hopes to achieve regarding how he hopes to improve the international market.
ESPN's Enrique Rojas tweets that the Cubs have called up top shortstop prospect Starlin Castro. The 20-year-old was rated as the 16th best prospect in the game by Baseball America prior to the season, and was hitting .376/.421/.569 in 121 Double-A plate appearances. Chicago has already pushed his free agency back a year, but he can still qualify as a Super Two after 2012.
Richard Justice of The Houston Chronicle mentions that the Astros have only $44MM in salary commitments for next season, most of which is tied up in Roy Oswalt and Carlos Lee. I respectfully disagree that Oswalt's $16MM salary "can easily be traded." How many teams have that much room in their budget?
ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that Carl Crawford has put himself in a pretty good position going into free agency. The Rays' left fielder is hitting .343/.408/.571, but is only 7-for-11 in stolen base opportunities, and there's still 83% of the season left the play.
ESPN's Keith Law and Jason Churchill go back and redo the 2004 draft. Both see Justin Verlander and Dustin Pedroia going 1-2 in a redraft.

Odds & Ends: Crawford, Raynor, Lackey, Strasburg

By Tim Dierkes | May 4, 2010 at 8:48pm CDT

Links for Tuesday, as Tim Lincecum reclaims the MLB strikeout lead…

Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times spoke to Crawford, who said he was misquoted in the upcoming Sports Illustrated piece mentioned below. "Nothing's changed, no decisions," he said. "I don't know what Carlos [Pena] is doing.''
Pirates' GM Neil Huntington told Chuck Finder of The Pittsburgh Post Gazette that he tried to made a deal with the Marlins that would allow Rule 5 pick John Raynor to remain with the Pirates, but to no avail. Raynor was returned to Florida today.
John Lackey said he wasn't surprised when the Angels let him depart as a free agent given their trade record with letting home grown players leave, according to Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles. "It's different," said Lackey. "The way they preach the team game and giving it up for the team. That's a little suspect. You're supposed to give it up for the team. When the time comes, they might not want to give it up for you. But I totally knew that was a possibility. I was prepared for that. That's the nature of the game today."
Stephen Strasburg has been promoted and will make his Triple A debut Friday against Freddie Freeman and the Gwinnett Braves, reports MLB.com's Bill Ladson. ESPN's Rob Neyer notes that Strasburg seems to be on the Mark Prior path to the bigs, perhaps delayed a few weeks for cost savings.
MASN's Ben Goessling says Nats 2006 first-round pick Colton Willems has decided to retire. The team has the pitcher on the restricted list in case he changes his mind.
An upcoming Sports lllustrated piece on Carlos Pena features this quote from Carl Crawford: "This core group is going to still be together, me and Carlos are the only two guys that are going to be leaving."
The Royals granted reliever Roman Colon his release so he can sign with the Kia Tigers of Korea, according to the team. Just three months ago, Colon and Juan Cruz were in the mix to be Joakim Soria's primary setup man. The Royals' bullpen sports an AL-worst 5.56 ERA in 81 innings.
White Sox GM Kenny Williams wouldn't rule out a fire sale at a later date, but said the team's aggressive nature will probably prevent it (Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reporting).
ESPN's Buster Olney explains that his Saturday story about Cliff Lee being likely to reach free agency was prompted by a call Olney made to Lee's agent.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Blue Jays attempted to sign Kelly Johnson to play left field during the offseason, offering more than the $2.35MM Johnson received from Arizona. Johnson told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic in March that he strongly considered offers from the Blue Jays, Pirates, and Indians.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post points out that the upon acquiring Javier Vazquez, the Yankees considered two 2011 draft picks part of the deal. Already, Vazquez's Type A status and arbitration offer are in question. We'll be able to give you Vazquez's exact Elias standing later this month, when Eddie Bajek makes his first pass at 2009-10 rankings.
Dejan Kovacevic's latest article for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette suggests the Pirates were overly optimistic about Akinori Iwamura, currently their highest-paid player.
Click here to listen to my radio appearance on KFNS St. Louis from earlier today.

John Raynor Returned To Marlins

By Tim Dierkes | May 4, 2010 at 3:53pm CDT

MAY 4th: Raynor was returned to the Marlins, tweets MLB.com's Joe Frisaro.

APRIL 27th: The Pirates designated outfielder John Raynor for assignment to make room for Jeff Karstens, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Raynor is a Rule 5 pick from the Marlins, and GM Neal Huntington told Kovacevic he hopes to work out a trade to keep the outfielder in the organization. As it is, Raynor will be placed on waivers, and any team that claims him will remain subject to the Rule 5 restriction of keeping him on the 25-man roster all season.

Raynor didn't have a chance to prove himself, with just 11 big league plate appearances. As Kovacevic says, he was a casualty of the Pirates' "epic pitching problems." Raynor, 26, hit .257/.327/.360 in Triple A last year. Baseball America noted that Raynor has the speed to play center but his arm may keep him in left.

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