Corey Koskie Retires
According to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune Corey Koskie is retiring. Koskie has struggled with concussion-related problems over the last few years and he felt light-headed this week after diving for a ball at third base.
Koskie says he's reitiring because he no longer wants to worry about getting another concussion. He still sounds confident in his abilities.
Odds And Ends: Gonzalez, Hill, Koskie
Links for Saturday…
- According to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch, the Yankees demoted righty Phil Hughes. He had a nice spring and figures to be the first in line when the team needs another starter.
- Tracy Ringolsby of Inside the Rockies reports that Diamondbacks CEO Derrick Hall spoke with Luis Gonzalez about re-joining the D'Backs once he retires as a player.
- Dave Perkin of Baseball America highlights some amateur players worth keeping an eye on.
- Check out Tim's Interview over at 6 Pound 8 Ounce Baby Joba.
- Cameron Smith of the Washington Post thinks Shawn Hill and the Blue Jays should work out a deal because it would benefit both sides.
- Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports that Corey Koskie's baseball future could be in jeopardy. Koskie felt light-headed after diving for a ball yesterday in Spring Training.
- ESPN.com's Peter Gammons spoke with Matt Holliday about his home-road splits and his new Oakland teammates. Like Buster Olney, Gammons suggests the Red Sox, Yankees and Angels are possible fits for Holliday after the season.
Odds & Ends: Wade, Baker, Catalanotto
Links for Friday…
- RotoAuthority advises how to manage information during your fantasy draft.
- Something's not right with Corey Koskie, and the Chicago Tribune's Paul Sullivan says he'll decide about his future by Saturday.
- Former Blue Jays assistant GM Bart Given has a blog, and it's pretty good from what I've read (hat tip: Drunk Jays Fans).
- Sidearmer Mark Worrell, acquired by the Padres for Khalil Greene, needs Tommy John surgery according to Bill Center of the San Diego Union Tribune.
- Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune says the White Sox "traded infielder Sergio Santos to San Francisco for future considerations." Santos was picked 27th overall by the D'Backs in the 2002 draft.
- Chico Harlan of the Washington Post wonders whether $5MM first baseman Dmitri Young will be willing to accept an assignment to Triple A.
- MLB.com's Alyson Footer says Astros GM Ed Wade never lied to her and doesn't owe her an apology about Ivan Rodriguez. Wade just changed his mind after talking to Footer.
- Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune doesn't see the Cubs releasing $4MM reliever Luis Vizcaino.
- Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies believes Jeff Baker is the team's most likely infielder to be dealt. ESPN's Jayson Stark mentioned Baker yesterday as a trade candidate, and the Denver Post's Troy E. Renck has wondered if he'd fit for the Yankees or Astros.
- MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan says the Rangers have discussed Frank Catalanotto with other clubs but found no takers. Catalanotto has $6MM coming to him.
- Rany Jazayerli discusses the Royals' signing of Sidney Ponson and release of Jimmy Gobble.
Miles On Koskie, Schilling
After speaking with Jim Hendry, Bruce Miles has more on a couple of today’s Cubs rumors: the Cubs’ signing of Corey Koskie, and their possible connection to Curt Schilling.
According to Miles, Hendry "seems excited" about adding Koskie. The Cubs could use Koskie as a backup third baseman, Miles writes, despite Hendry’s assertion that the team is "very happy with [Mike] Fontenot and [Aaron] Miles and what they’re doing in getting looks at third base."
As for the Schilling rumor, Miles says the Cubs have not heard directly from the pitcher, but are open to the idea of potentially adding him. Says Miles’ source within the Cubs’ organization: "Why not?"
Cubs To Sign Corey Koskie
According to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times the Cubs agreed to sign Corey Koskie to a minor league deal. He’ll compete for a backup job with the Cubs this spring. Koskie, who has agreed to play for Canada in the WBC, has missed large chunks of time because of concussions.
The update comes from Wittenmyer’s Twitter account. Remember to follow MLBTR on Twitter, too.
In a press release, the Cubs say the deal is pending a physical. Koskie will report to Cubs camp after the WBC.
The Return Of Corey Koskie?
Kelsie Smith of the Pioneer Press reports that Corey Koskie will play for Team Canada in the WBC. His appearance is motivated by a strong interest in returning to the major leagues, after a break from the game of over two years due to his experiencing symptoms of post-concussion syndrome.
We’ve mentioned the Koskie story before. Here’s to hoping that Koskie finds a way to get back into the game.
Odds and Ends: Penny, Koskie, Lowell
Links for Tuesday…
- Chat today, 2pm CST.
- RotoAuthority looks at the pitchers involved in the WBC.
- ESPN’s Keith Law weighs in on the Andy Oliver case.
- Brad Penny talked to Yahoo’s Tim Brown about his last season in L.A. UPDATE: Bowa’s amusing reaction to Penny’s comments.
- Corey Koskie is healthy and hopes to sign somewhere, says La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
- Josh Willingham‘s arbitration hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, Ryan Zimmerman‘s for Saturday.
- WEEI’s Alex Speier talked to Mike Lowell about Boston’s pursuit of Mark Teixeira.
- The Sports Business talked to former Dodgers GM Fred Claire.
Odds and Ends: Putz, Byrdak, Graves
Today’s linkage.
- J.J. Putz is out for at least a few weeks; the fantasy baseball world reacts.
- The Astros inked Tim Byrdak, selling him on an easy path to the big leagues. The 34 year-old southpaw had a 3.20 ERA last year, albeit with poor control.
- The Twins added former closer Danny Graves to their Triple A club. He’s also 34. His peripherals weren’t too impressive last year for the Long Island Ducks despite 33 saves.
- I did a Q&A with Dexter Sports.
- Unfortunately Corey Koskie doesn’t seem anywhere close to coming back.
- Joe Sports Fan looks at baseball’s "bespectacled heroes."
- Correcting an SI.com report from yesterday, MetsBlog says there’s been no contact between the Mets and Edgardo Alfonzo.
Odds and Ends: Colon, Koskie, Atkins
We take a break from your regularly scheduled Erik Bedard drama to bring you some random links.
- The White Sox made an incentive-laden offer to Bartolo Colon, but Colon apparently physically disappeared at the thought of it. There’s a joke here, somewhere. Kenny Williams also almost kind of hinted at implying that he made some kind of effort to acquire Bedard.
- A brief note from the Sun-Times – outfielder Brian Anderson may be traded to an NL team (Marlins?).
- It’s possible that Corey Koskie makes another comeback attempt. He’s gone through a postconcussion syndrome nightmare.
- The Denver Post’s Troy Renck is always going over to Rockies players’ houses and chilling in their living rooms. This time, it was Garrett Atkins. Atkins says the Rox made a multiyear offer to him a year ago more similar to Jeff Francis‘ (4/13.25) than that of Aaron Cook (3/30) or Troy Tulowitzki (6/31). That offer was to cover Atkins’ three arbitration years and have a club option for his first of free agency.
- I recently did a Q&A with Science Fiction Baseball.
- Website note: I am leaning toward doing a full redesign. New logo, widen this baby, brighten her up, increase the font size, and yes, do away with the white on black type. Lots of room for improvement with this clunky old design, we all know it.
Red Sox Considering Bench Additions
Sean McAdam writes today about some bench players on Boston’s radar. He names Russell Branyan, Ryan Klesko, Corey Koskie, Jeff Cirillo, and Olmedo Saenz as possibilities. Branyan may be toward the bottom of the list. He had an odd .196/.320/.423 line this year with 10 HR in 163 ABs.
Klesko seems the best hitter of the bunch with a .744 OPS this year. Koskie missed the ’07 season with post-concussion syndrome. He said he’ll re-evaluate in January and decide whether he can play or has to retire.