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Andruw Jones

Braves Rumors

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Talking Chop has a nice roundup of trade talks that the Braves could be exploring.

First, the White Sox are interested in Andruw Jones.  That seems like a longshot because Andruw has a no-trade and the White Sox hate Scott Boras, but who knows, maybe an extension would get that done.  Trading for Jones would make Brian Anderson expendable, and Anderson seems to me like Bobby Cox’s kind of player–young, great defense, could improve at the plate.  Maybe Anderson and one of Chicago’s starters would get that deal done.

Second, the Rangers could be looking at Braves pitching.  The Rangers could have all sorts of holes depending on how many of their free agents they are able to keep, especially in the rotation.  They don’t match up nearly so well with the Braves–this article suggests the Braves would be looking for bullpen help in a deal like that, but after trading away Francisco Cordero last season, the Rangers wouldn’t appear to have the depth to survive losing Akinori Otsuka.

In related news, Vicente Padilla’s agent doesn’t expect him to sign immediately, but notes that the Rangers are the most interested.  I’m not surprised–if both Padilla and Adam Eaton went elsewhere, Jon Daniels would be forced to do a lot of shopping in a very, very expensive store.

By Jeff Sackmann

More On Andruw Jones and Waivers

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A couple of columns shed light on the Andruw Jones situation recently.  As you know, Jones was placed on waivers, claimed, and pulled back.  Andruw called the whole affair "rude." 

According to Ken Rosenthal:

"The Braves routinely put their entire roster on waivers in August, trying to mask their intentions with the two or three players they might want to trade.

Thus, Jones likely has been on waivers every year of his 10-year career. And even though he reportedly was claimed by an undisclosed club, the Braves still couldn’t have traded him without his permission, according to major-league sources."

And then there’s the matter of which team was awarded the claim.  Speculation that it was an NL Central team has proven true, according to Will Carroll.  Carroll tells us the Astros were awarded the claim.  Well-regarded pitching prospect Troy Patton is not on Houston’s 40-man roster, so the Astros wouldn’t have had to pass him through waivers in a deal.

Braves Scouts Attended Rangers Game Thursday

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According to the Dallas Morning News Seamheads blog, two Braves scouts attended Thursday’s Rangers-Angels game.

Evan Grant theorizes that the Rangers may have claimed Andruw Jones to block the Angels.  He also described the scouts’ attendance as "unusual."

Said Buster Olney today on Jones:

"If they don’t trade him today without getting his approval then they never will be able to.  If Jones is in the lineup against the Reds this afternoon, we’ll know he’s staying, at least until the offseason."

Andruw deemed it "rude" that the Braves are keeping him in the dark about this waiver business.  But John Schuerholz did say "He should know that we would talk if a trade was imminent."

I would’ve suggested that the Braves and Rangers were discussing Chris Reitsma or John Thomson, but both look to be out for the season.  Still, waiver trades are almost never as interesting as Andruw Jones.

Which Team Was Awarded The Andruw Jones Claim?

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The Braves have until Saturday afternoon to either strike a deal with the team that was awarded a claim for Andruw Jones or pull him back.  Most likely, the Braves will hang on to Jones.  As I learned from Steve Phillips, "all 40-man roster players must go through waivers in order to change teams even if they are in the minor leagues."  The old player-to-be-named-later is an option, though that player cannot be an active Major Leaguer.

We know more than one team put in a claim on Jones.  Because he’s in the NL, NL teams get first rights to Jones.  That’s why I’d guess that the team awarded the claim is not the Angels or Red Sox.

What if it was the Cubs, with an eye towards being competitive in 2007?  Would the Brewers, Astros, Reds, or Cardinals get involved?

If a deal were made, I would have to think the team sending away younger player(s) would have a handshake deal with a team like the Cubs to let the kids through. 

Andruw Jones Placed On Waivers

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Rob Bradford of Massachusett’s Eagle-Tribune writes that Andruw Jones has been placed on waivers by the Braves.  I discovered this via Buster Olney’s blog.  Said Olney:

"In any event, I seriously doubt Jones will be playing for anybody but the Braves, despite the fact that in the next week, he’ll earn the 10-and-5 right to veto any trade. But we’ll soon know if anybody has placed a claim, and whether the Braves are willing to discuss a trade."

Jones makes $13.5MM next season in the last year of his contract.  He’ll turn 30 in the beginning of the ’07 season.  Andruw’s .350 OBP and .514 SLG are right in line with career norms.  Baseball Prospectus expects him to remain at this level until about 2009.  Remember, National League teams would get the first crack at Jones if more than one club puts in a claim.  I could see the Cardinals and Astros putting in claims.  If the Braves can’t make a deal with the team that claimed Jones, they can always just pull him back.

For a good summary of how waiver trades work, consult Steve Phillips’s article from a year ago.

 

Olney: Red Sox Discussing Andruw Jones

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According to ESPN’s Buster Olney:

"The Red Sox and the Braves have talked about a deal that would send Andruw Jones to Boston for Coco Crisp, Craig Hansen and a prospect. But according to an executive familiar with the discussions, the Braves made a counter offer, asking for Jon Lester to be the third player."

This may be the surprise blockbuster that’s been rumored; it’s a testament to Theo Epstein that there hasn’t been a whisper of this til now.  We’ve got just 2.5 hours to go.

If I’m John Schuerholz, I’d just try to get Lester involved and not worry about the rest.

UPDATE: Gordon Edes of the Boston Globe tells us that the Andruw Jones talks are dead, and that they didn’t really go anywhere.  He says the Sox may still be in on Soriano.  He also throws Chris Young of the Padres into the mix for the first time.

Gammons: Braves May Explore Andruw Jones Deal

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Interesting note from Peter Gammons’s blog a couple of days ago:

"The Braves were heavily involved in the Joey Gathright deal and still could get him from Kansas City. Yes, they need a leadoff hitter, but there is the possibility that they will explore dealing Andruw Jones at the end of the season."

A lot of folks have emailed me asking whether I thought Gathright could end up with the Braves, and my knee-jerk reaction was to dismiss the idea because of Jones.  But Gammons makes a good point.  Andruw Jones makes $13.5MM next year in the last of his deal.  He’s reaching the point where his next contract will not offer a positive return on investment for the Braves.

According to Baseball Prospectus, Jones will be worth about $9-10 mil from 2008-09 before the real dropoff begins.  Obviously John Schuerholz understands this, and it seems highly unlikely that the Braves will enter the bidding for Andruw’s next deal when you have to offer 5/65 just to get in the door.

The Braves always seem to be one step ahead.  They don’t have much in the way of top-shelf outfield talent now that Jeff Francoeur has been called up.  It’s time to snatch up a couple more Major League ready outfielders, and the Braves have what everyone wants: starting pitching.  The Yankees and Red Sox should come calling for John Smoltz and Tim Hudson.  And don’t you just have this feeling that Kenny Williams will make some phone calls, just because he understands that you can never have too much starting pitching?  He hasn’t been shy about trading his best prospects and Josh Fields is taking care of business at Triple A.

The Brewers and Nationals were scouting Philip Hughes recently, but that seems to be related to the Yanks’ outfield vacancies.  It just doesn’t seem that New York can acquire any big names while keeping Hughes.   

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