Rosenthal On White Sox, Pedro, Baker
The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…
- The White Sox are still trying to figure out their center field situation, but they are not involved on pricey veterans such as Juan Pierre and Gary Matthews Jr.
- Fantasy alert: Rosenthal names David Aardsma as the likely leader for the Mariners closer job, with Chad Cordero and Brandon Morrow lingering.
- The Dodgers "continue to balk at Pedro Martinez's $5MM asking price."
- Rockies utility man Jeff Baker, who is out of options, is drawing interest from the Phillies, Astros, and Pirates. Rosenthal suggests recently-demoted Kyle Kendrick as a possible target for Colorado, assuming the Phils can move Geoff Jenkins or Matt Stairs to clear a spot. Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post says the Yankees are unlikely to acquire Baker.
- The Blue Jays have been scouting shortstops Chin-Lung Hu, Juan Castro, and others in hopes of finding someone they can stash at Triple A for insurance.
- Was Willy Taveras a bad move for the Reds? Rosenthal says rival executives think so.
Mariners Agree To Terms With Four
According to a report by The Sports Network on the Miami Herald’s website the Mariners have agreed to terms with four pre-arbitration players, including Brandon Morrow. David Aardsma, Franklin Gutierrez and Cesar Jimenez are the three other players to agree to terms with the M’s.
Mariners Acquire David Aardsma
According to Ryan Divish, the Mariners acquired reliever David Aardsma from the Red Sox for minor league lefty Fabian Williamson. Aardsma had been designated for assignment on Thursday.
Aardsma, 27, posted a 5.55 ERA in 48.6 innings for the Red Sox last year. Control was a problem, but he did rack up Ks. Aardsma’s average fastball velocity was 94.5 mph.
Kotsay Signing Official, Aardsma Designated
7:38pm: The AP has the details: Kotsay makes a base salary of $1.5MM, but he gets $200K if he makes 300 plate appearances and an additional $200K for every 50 times up after that, up to 500 plate appearances. He could make up to $1MM on top of his base salary.
3:59pm: According to Art Martone of the Providence Journal, the Red Sox announced the Mark Kotsay signing today. He gets a one-year deal. The Sox also designated reliever David Aardsma for assignment.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Reed, Aardsma, Cueto
Rumor king Ken Rosenthal has the latest at FOXSports.com.
- Looks like the Padres will give near-regular playing time to Jody Gerut, at least until Jim Edmonds returns. If Gerut performs, Kevin Towers may be able to stop his outfielder search. Still, Rosenthal notes the Padres’ interest in Seattle’s Jeremy Reed. Reed has two options left, by the way.
- Rosenthal names three Boston players who are out of options and probably available for little: David Aardsma, Bryan Corey, and Kyle Snyder. The O’s are known to be eyeing Corey. You can check out our running out of options list here.
- The A’s wanted spring sensation/top pitching prospect Johnny Cueto from the Reds for Joe Blanton – no deal.
David Aardsma Traded To Red Sox
According to the Boston Globe, the Red Sox acquired reliever David Aardsma today from the White Sox for minor league pitchers Willy Mota and Miguel Socolovich.
Aardsma, 26, was a first-round pick of the Giants in ’03. He started a bit in the minors in ’03 but has mostly pitched as a reliever. If nothing else, Aardsma still throws hard. Maybe John Farrell can fix him up.
Odds and Ends: Howard, Aardsma, Odalis
Here we go, another random collection of links.
- The Red Sox inked a couple of former closers to minor league deals: Dan Kolb and Dan Miceli. No need to run out and pick them up for your fantasy team. I think Papelbon is secure.
- Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says the Red Sox are hunting for a lefty bench bat. Tony Clark emailed him to say he’d love a return to Boston, but Cafardo says he’s not on the top of the list. Clark hit .207/.265/.291 for the ’02 Sox.
- A few comments from Pat Gillick on the Ryan Howard situation. He says the Phillies are "open to anything." Gillick also claimed arbitration hearings really aren’t all that contentious. I guess that could be true, I’ve never been in the room for one.
- The official acquisition of Octavio Dotel meant the White Sox DFA’d David Aardsma. Aardsma, 26, has whiffed about a batter per inning over his last two seasons. He has to have a little bit of trade value.
- Impacto Deportivo says the Mets will meet with Odalis Perez. Two left-handed O. Perez’s might confuse opponents, giving the Mets an advantage. Really though it’s a good idea for Omar to stockpile some arms even if Odalis doesn’t have much left. One thing’s for sure, he won’t be earning $7.75MM again. (Hat tip to MetsBlog).
- Looking for an MLBTR reader forum? I offer you our Facebook discussion board.
White Sox May Deal Young Hurlers
This winter, Kenny Williams may shop three hard-throwing, recently acquired White Sox pitchers. Nick Masset, David Aardsma, and Andy Sisco have disappointed the Sox in their first seasons in the organization, and none earned September call-ups. Aardsma and Masset are out of options, so the Sox will probably lose them if they fail to earn spots with the big club next spring. Once a player is out of options he must clear waivers before he can be sent to the minors.
Masset will turn 26 next season. He came over from Texas in the Brandon McCarthy trade. The right has good command and can touch 96 on the gun. Masset struggled as a reliever with the Sox, and has been working as a starter in Triple A since July. He hasn’t impressed in that role either.
Aardsma was acquired from the Cubs in November for Neal Cotts, a trade that worked out for neither team. Aardsma turns 26 in December; he’s posted massive strikeout rates at both Triple A and the Majors this year. He was lights out for the Sox in April, whiffing 23 in 15.2 innings before it all fell apart. He’s been closing for Charlotte. I’m surprised the Sox soured on him so easily, especially after since they’ve fallen out of contention.
Sisco, a southpaw, will turn 25 in January. He’s among the tallest men ever to take a big league mound at 6-9. Like Masset, he failed in the Major League pen and was switched to starting this summer. His control has been a problem so far. "Wild Thing" came up in the Cubs’ system, gaining notoriety when he broke his left hand punching a clubhouse wall in anger in ’03. The Royals pilfered him in the Rule 5 draft in December of ’04. He made the jump from A ball to the bigs in ’05 and did a respectable job despite too many walks. But he bombed in ’06 and the Royals saw fit to ship him to Chicago for Ross Gload.
Masset, Aardsma, and Sisco form an interesting albeit disappointing trio. I imagine many teams will be willing to take a shot on them.