Odds & Ends: Penn, Veras, Beimel, Mientkiewicz
Links for Friday…
- Hayden Penn cleared waivers and now has until Monday to decide whether to report to Triple A or become a free agent, according to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter). The Pirates designated Penn for assignment Monday.
- Jose Veras, who was designated for assignment Wednesday, has been outrighted to Triple A by the Marlins, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post (Twitter link). This presumably means Veras cleared waivers.
- The Rockies called up Joe Beimel, according to the team. Beimel's deal pays him $850K in the major leagues.
- ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick heard that Bret Boone is trying to recruit Doug Mientkiewicz and Bobby Kielty for his Golden League team (Twitter link).
- ESPN.com's Keith Law offers updates on some of the top prospects eligible for this June's draft, including Bryce Brentz, an outfielder who Law considers "one of the top college bats in this draft."
- Fred Lewis and his representatives had been asking the Giants for a trade for nearly a year, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- FanGraphs' Jack Moore calls the Lewis deal a no-brainer for the Blue Jays and a head-scratcher for the Giants.
- Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun takes us on a must-read behind the scenes look at the Adeiny Hechavarria signing.
- Recent injuries to Jacoby Ellsbury and Mike Cameron will test Boston's depth, says WEEI.com's Alex Speier.
- Matt Eddy of Baseball America brings us up to date on the latest round of minor league transactions. Among the notable players released: Brady Clark and Curtis Thigpen.
A’s Acquire Curtis Thigpen
According to a press release, the A's acquired catcher Curtis Thigpen from the Blue Jays today for a player to be named later or cash considerations. They also signed catcher Eric Munson to a minor league deal.
Thigpen, 26 in April, hit .222/.267/.310 at Triple A last year. Baseball America describes him as adequate defensively. The Jays designated Thigpen for assignment on February 4th to make room for Brian Burres. Thigpen was the Jays' heir apparent at catcher three years ago, according to John Lott of the National Post. Thigpen took the place of Guillermo Quiroz, the previous "catcher of the future."
Munson, 31, spent time with the Brewers' Triple A club last year but dealt with hip and shoulder injuries. He's shown good pop in the past and was a can't-miss prospect himself a decade ago, when the Tigers picked him third overall and gave him a four-year, $6.75MM deal. Munson can also play a little bit at the infield corners.
Odds and Ends: Sisco, Murton, Thigpen
Links for Thursday…
- Lot of people tossing around the number of unsigned free agents…I have it at about 80, at least if we draw the line at players that are remotely useful. Here’s my list.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues would like to see the Yankees sign Mark Grudzielanek.
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle says the A’s will attend Andy Sisco‘s Friday workout.
- Scott Miller of CBSSports.com takes a stab at the All-Free Agent team.
- The Rockies did not acquire Matt Murton as a precursor to another deal, Troy Renck learned.
- The Blue Jays designated catcher Curtis Thigpen for assignment to make room for Brian Burres.
- Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star shows that MLB has done a nice job of keeping player salaries at 40-45% of the game’s revenue in recent years (as opposed to 62% in the NFL).
- RotoAuthority looks at how you can combine a Rich Harden type with a Randy Wolf type to create a top ten fantasy baseball starting pitcher.
Rios For Cain Or Lincecum?
UPDATE, 12-5-07 at 6:16pm: Jeff Blair says the Jays’ offer on the table is Rios for Lincecum, straight up.
UPDATE, 12-5-07 at 12:34pm: Brian Sabean wants more than just Rios for Lincecum (yes, the Jays prefer Lincecum based on service time). The Giants want an improved proposal from the Jays, and Toronto could add Robinzon Diaz, Curtis Thigpen, or Brett Cecil. Cecil would have to be a player to be named later since he was drafted in 2007. He signed on June 22nd, so he can’t even be named as a PTBNL until December 22nd.
UPDATE, 12-5-07 at 10:56am: Peter Gammons via Amy Nelson is saying it’s Lincecum for Rios currently rather than Cain.
UPDATE, 12-5-07 at 10:10am: Ken Rosenthal has some more details on these talks. He says the Jays won’t add pitching to their side of the deal. Additionally, they don’t want to move A.J. Burnett. The Jays have a potentially elite rotation for 2008 if they can get Lincecum for Rios.
FROM 12-4-07 at 10:46pm:
The San Francisco Chronicle’s John Shea verifies that the interesting proposal Brian Sabean referred to involved the Jays’ Alex Rios. The Jays want to swap him for Matt Cain. The Jays prefer Cain to Tim Lincecum, as they worry Lincecum might have durability issues.
It almost sounds like Lincecum alone wouldn’t get the Giants Rios, which is surprising. Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi is serious about trading Rios; he laid out to reporters what the Jays’ outfield would look like without him. By the way, the Giants have no interest in taking Troy Glaus in a deal. For their third base vacancy, the Giants are looking at Brandon Inge.
Meanwhile MLB.com’s Chris Haft believes the Jays want Lincecum for Rios. John, Chris – just talk to each other and sort this thing out.