Bryce Harper

Edes On Tejada, Nationals, Shapiro

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 17, 2009 at 4:28pm CDT

Yahoo's Gordon Edes updates us on the Cardinals' search for a bat and more in his most recent column. Here are the details:

The Cardinals aren't interested in Miguel Tejada, but they are looking to add offensive help at third or in the outfield.
Some have criticized the Pirates for taking Tony Sanchez fourth overall, but Edes hears they chose him because they like his tools and believe he's polished enough to reach the majors before most players in the draft.
The Nationals would move Elijah Dukes or Lastings Milledge. Ryan Zimmerman is their only untouchable player.
The Rangers have interest in Nick Johnson.
There is speculation that Indians GM Mark Shaprio could be promoted to club president, with Chris Antonetti becoming GM. Edes hears that we won't see an in-season shake-up.
Bill Lajoie, one of the decision-makers behind the deal that sent Hanley Ramirez to Florida, doesn't second guess the move.
Edes heard from one scouting director who believes Bryce Harper is stronger than Chipper Jones, Alex Rodriguez or Manny Ramirez when they were in high school. However, some scouts wonder whether Harper would be better if he didn't rush to the majors.

Odds And Ends: Sosa, Harper, Pedro, Ibanez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 16, 2009 at 3:57pm CDT

Links for Tuesday evening…

Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times reports that lawyers with knowledge of MLB's 2003 drug tests say Sammy Sosa tested positive for PEDs that year. Not our domain here at MLBTR, but easily the biggest baseball story of the day.
Tom Verducci of SI.com reports that Bryce Harper has been flooded with interview requests since being profiled on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star believes the Jays should pursue Pedro Martinez.
ESPN.com's Jayson Stark profiles Raul Ibanez and the hot start to the 37-year-old's season.
Not only did the Rockies agree to terms with Tim Wheeler, they made progress with Rex Brothers and signed 27 players in total, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post.

Odds And Ends: Harper, Pirates, Hanley

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 16, 2009 at 10:13am CDT

Some links for Tuesday morning…

Be here at 2pm CST for this week's chat.
Chico Harlan of the Washington Post says one Nationals official broke into a broad grin after describing Bryce Harper's ability.
In a piece that's worth reading completely, Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tries to determine when the Pirates expect to contend. Some within the organization can imagine results by 2011 and Neal Huntington says Pirates fans won't have to wait until 2015.
Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says top pick Matt Purke expects to complete a deal with the Rangers.
Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle says the Rangers have a better, younger, cheaper team than the Astros, but that doesn't mean Houston couldn't make things interesting this year.
Eric Chavez told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that he's "dreading" his upcoming back surgery.
Carlos Guillen may not play again this season, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
Tom Haudricourt of the Milwuakee Journal Sentinel says it's clear the Brewers need a starter.
Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle notes that Torii Hunter talked with the Giants when he was a free agent after the 2007 season.
Hanley Ramirez doesn't think Theo Epstein wanted to trade him to the Marlins, according to John Tomase of the Boston Herald.

Odds And Ends: Crow, Willis, Bay

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 15, 2009 at 3:05pm CDT

Olney On Wilson, Johan, Harper

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 15, 2009 at 11:42am CDT

ESPN.com's Buster Olney says the Red Sox could take advantage of the shortage of teams willing to take on payroll by offering little more than salary relief to their trading partners. Rival executives told Olney that the Red Sox could offer to take on the salary owed to players like Jack Wilson, without including any highly touted prospects in proposed deals. Here are a couple more details from Olney's column:

It's looking more and more like Bryce Harper will be eligible for next year's draft and it's looking more and more like the Nationals will again select first. Olney wonders how the Nationals would cope with talks of record-setting deals for two straight years.
Olney shows that Johan Santana is throwing slower fastballs, and not as many of them.
Cause for concern? Jon Heyman of SI.com asked a Mets "bigwig" and heard that the team is "not at all" worried about their ace pitcher.

Odds And Ends: Peavy, Acta, Harper

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 15, 2009 at 10:24am CDT

Some links for Monday morning…

Scott Miller of CBS Sports says the Padres made a mistake last offseason when they rejected the package the Braves offered for the now-injured Jake Peavy.
Chico Harlan of the Wahington Post goes through the pros and cons of firing Manny Acta. More than half of his readers don't think it's time for a firing yet.
ESPN.com's Jason A. Churchill says Bryce Harper will be the "clear No. 1 talent" if he's eligible for next year's draft, as planned.
Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the A's haven't started contract talks with their first round draft pick, Grant Green.
Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe asks his readers what the Red Sox should do with their excess pitching. We broke down several of their options last week, which Massarotti considers. He adds one of his own: Tim Wakefield could pitch out of the 'pen.

Bryce Harper Enrolls In Junior College

By Mike Axisa | June 14, 2009 at 11:56am CDT

According to Matt Youmans of The Las Vegas Review-Journal, 16-yr old phenom Bryce Harper has enrolled at the College of Southern Nevada, and plans to attend classes this August. He will also get his GED this fall. Because CSN is a two-year institution, the move allows Harper to be eligible for the 2010 draft rather than waiting for 2011, when he would graduate high school.

Harper was introduced to the masses in a SI feature last month, and at the moment is the odds on favorite to go first overall in either the 2010 or 2011 drafts.

Bryce Harper, 16-Year-Old Phenom

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 4, 2009 at 10:15am CDT

Tom Verducci of SI.com introduces us to a 16-year-old so tantalizing multiple MLB scouting directors say he would be a top-five pick if eligible for this year's draft. Bryce Harper, a high school sophomore, has drawn comparisons to Justin Upton, Alex Rodriguez and Ken Griffey Jr.. The entire article's worth reading, but here are some of the reasons Harper's attracting so much attention:

He hit the longest home run in Tropicana Field history, at 502 feet.
He's reportedly hit balls as far as 570 feet.
His throws have been clocked at 96 mph.
He's fast enough to have scored from second on six wild pitches this year.

Scott Boras is one of Harper's advisers, so look for big demands once he's drafted. That won't likely happen until 2011, but his parents would like Harper to be available in next year's draft. It would be hard not to think highly of your skill if you were labeled the "LeBron James of baseball," and Harper has no shortage of ambition.

He wants to reach the majors by the time he's 18 or 19.
Among his goals: "to be in the Hall of Fame" and to "be considered the greatest baseball player of all time."

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