NL West Notes: Bell, Romero, Giants, Hernandez
Let's take a look at some items out of the NL West..
- After a potential August trade to San Francisco failed to come to fruition, Padres closer Heath Bell believes that he will still be a member of the club next season. "I think I'm coming back next year. We're not talking, but I feel like something is going to happen," the closer said, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter).
- The Rockies will have to make some roster moves after activating closer Huston Street and setupman Matt Lindstrom. The game of musical chairs could end with J.C. Romero being designated for assignment, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
- An unknown team claimed catcher Ramon Hernandez before he was pulled back off of waivers and Reds skipper Dusty Baker guesses that the Giants were the team to claim him, writes Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News.
What The Padres Can Do About Heath Bell
Against all odds, Heath Bell is still a Padre. He was a trade candidate last summer, last offseason, this July and again this August. But the Giants and Padres weren’t able to work out a deal following San Francisco’s claim, so Bell remains in San Diego.
Here are the Padres’ options regarding their closer:
- Put Him Back On Waivers – San Diego GM Jed Hoyer could put Bell on waivers in an attempt to save $1.4MM or so in salary. This option seems unproductive – all they would get is salary relief – and unlikely. If the Padres put Bell on waivers again this month, they'd be irrevocable.
- Work Toward An Extension – Bell has consistently said that he’d accept less money to stay in San Diego. ‘Less’ would still be expensive in this instance, so Hoyer and CEO Jeff Moorad may decide the small-market Padres have more pressing needs given their strong bullpen.
- No Arbitration Offer – The Padres could simply let Bell walk after the season and thank him for five years of excellent relief. This seems unlikely, but it’s too early to rule it out.
- Offer Arbitration And Keep Him If He Accepts – This would mean the Padres are stuck paying a relief pitcher about 20% of their payroll and it would also mean no compensatory draft picks in 2012.
- Offer Arbitration And Trade Him If He Accepts – If the Padres want draft picks for Bell, they’ll have to offer arbitration. Bell has said he’d accept and Moorad has said he wouldn’t mind if that happened, so an arbitration offer seems likely. Even if the Padres don’t like the idea of paying Bell $10MM or so in 2012, they could offer a contract and then trade him if he accepts, like the Rangers did with Frank Francisco last year.
There’s also the possibility that Bell will turn down arbitration, leaving the Padres with two top picks in next year’s draft. That’s essentially out of their control once the offer of arbitration is out there, though.
Nearly half of 6,500 MLBTR readers said in a recent poll that they would sign Bell to an extension. While that would appease some Padres fans and the right-hander himself, it would create as many problems as it solves for a team with such a modest payroll. It’s doubtful that the Padres would give Bell up for nothing though, so at this point it seems likely that they’ll offer arbitration after the season and go from there.
Giants Claim Bell On Waivers; No Deal Reached
FRIDAY: Bell is staying put, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
WEDNESDAY: The Giants have been awarded the waiver claim on Padres closer Heath Bell, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney. Olney expects the Giants' level of concern with closer Brian Wilson's elbow to be a factor in the ensuing trade talks. If the teams cannot reach an agreement, the Padres can pull Bell back, but then won't be able to trade him elsewhere. A trade is unlikely, hears Dan Hayes of the North County Times.
Though Bell projects as a Type A free agent, National League non-contenders elected not to claim the righty with an eye on draft pick compensation. With the Padres at least, Bell has said he'd accept an arbitration offer.
Bell, 33, has a 2.55 ERA, 6.8 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 0.34 HR/9, and 43.2% groundball rate on the season. He has $1.44MM remaining on his contract.
The two division rivals last struck a deal in July of 2003, when the Giants traded Clay Hensley and cash to the Padres for Matt Herges. Before that, they hadn't made a deal since '92.
Heyman On Cubs, Valverde, Bell, Hernandez
Jon Heyman of SI.com runs through the Cubs’ options for their open GM position and concludes that White Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn is “perhaps the most logical choice” for chairman Tom Ricketts. Click here for more rumblings about the Cubs and keep reading for Heyman’s other notes from around MLB…
- Manager Mike Quade is seen as a “long shot” to return as the Cubs’ manager next year.
- The Tigers will “surely” exercise Jose Valverde’s $8MM option for 2012, Heyman writes.
- No one with the Giants or Padres saw a Heath Bell trade as a likely possibility, according to Heyman. The Giants won the claim for Bell earlier in the week.
- The Reds are believed to be open to trading Ramon Hernandez, since catching prospect Devin Mesoraco could replace him. Hernandez hit the waiver wire this week.
Waiver Notes: Thome, Kubel, Bell
Earlier this evening the Indians worked out a deal with the Twins to bring Jim Thome back to the Tribe. Here are some thoughts on the deal plus news on other waived players..
- Tribe GM Chris Antonetti says that the Twins have "a relatively narrow list of players" to choose from by the October 15th deadline, tweets Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.
- The reason why the White Sox didn't block Thome from going to the Indians was that they had no playing time for him with Paul Konerko limited to DH, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter) thinks that the White Sox should have put a claim in on Thome anyway. After all, he points out, they claimed Jason Kubel for the same reason.
- Speaking of Kubel, the Twins outfielder says that the rumors have weighed on him and he's looking forward to having a definite answer on the matter, according to the Associated Press. Based on what White Sox GM Ken Williams said earlier today, it doesn't sound as though he'll be changing teams.
- As of right now, it looks like a Heath Bell deal between the Padres and Giants isn't going to happen, tweets Hank Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. There are no serious talks taking place, if there are any talks at all.
Waiver Rumors: Thome, Bell, White Sox, Wright
The waiver wire is heating up with one week remaining for teams to trade for postseason reinforcements. Here’s a refresher on how August trades work and here are the latest rumors…
- The Indians placed a claim on Jim Thome, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (on Twitter). However, the White Sox, who have a worse record than Cleveland, also placed a claim, so they would have priority over the Indians.
- It appears unlikely that the Giants, who won the claim on Heath Bell, will complete a trade for the reliever, Jon Heyman of SI.com reports (on Twitter).
- Though the Padres would find if difficult to accept a weak offer for Bell, it might beat the alternative of keeping him and potentially paying him big money in 2012, Ken Rosenthal writes at FOX Sports.
- The White Sox placed John Danks, Gavin Floyd, Paul Konerko and Matt Thornton on waivers, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.
- The Giants are a fit for the recently waived Ramon Hernandez, but the catcher will likely be a Type A free agent so a different team could claim him for draft picks, ESPN.com's Buster Olney notes (on Twitter).
- Hoynes suggests the Indians likely claimed one of Thome and Jason Kubel (Twitter link). Unknown teams claimed both Twins sluggers this week.
- The Rockies were one of the teams that put in a claim on David Wright this month, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Though it's unclear which team won the claim, it probably doesn't matter at the moment, since the Mets aren't trading their third baseman. As Renck points out, it's a reminder that the Rockies will be interested if the Mets ever make Wright available.
Heath Bell, Carlos Pena, Kubel Placed On Waivers
Heath Bell, Jason Kubel, and Carlos Pena were placed on trade waivers today, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Rosenthal tweeted earlier about Jim Thome being placed, also. The placement on waivers starts a 48 hour period during which teams can put in claims. Hundreds of players are placed on waivers in August, but these four are notable because they do appear to be trade candidates.
Bell, the Padres' closer, sports a 2.60 ERA, 6.6 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, 0.35 HR/9, and 42.9% groundball rate in 52 innings this year. That's a big dropoff from his typical strikeout rate. The 33-year-old has $1.5MM left on his contract. He projects as a Type A free agent, but has said he'd accept arbitration if the Padres offer. Owner Jeff Moorad said this month that Bell accepting arbitration would be preferable in some ways, but if the Padres aren't actually interested in a potential eight-figure one-year deal for Bell, they've got two days to move him. Dan Mennella took a look at the fantasy impact of the move at CloserNews.
Kubel, 29, is hitting .295/.350/.456 in 326 plate appearances for the Twins, playing right field and DH. The left-handed hitter has about $1MM plus incentives left on his contract and currently profiles as a Type B free agent in the American League. He earns more than Thome, but not so much that we can rule out a team claiming him mostly for the draft pick.
Pena, 33, is hitting .222/.342/.455 with 23 home runs in 480 plate appearances this year for the Cubs. Though he projects as a Type B, teams might be reluctant to offer arbitration given his salary. He's owed about $1MM for the rest of the year, and the Cubs will be on the hook for a deferred $5MM in January even if they trade him.
Two players who will not be traded this month: Oakland's Rich Harden and Coco Crisp, who were claimed on waivers but pulled back according to this report yesterday from Rosenthal. Today, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the Indians won the claim on Harden, but could not work out a deal.
Hoyer Talks Adams, Bell, Draft, Petco Park
Padres GM Jed Hoyer appeared on XX1090 Sports Radio with Darren Smith yesterday, and you can listen to the interview right here. Let's recap the important stuff…
- "No one liked watching Mike Adams pitch the eight inning more than I did," said Hoyer, who added that trading the setup man was about getting better in the long-term and maintaining payroll flexibility. "You can't have the back end of your bullpen taking up a third of your payroll space."
- Hoyer has spoken to Heath Bell's agent a number of times since the trade deadline, but said the nature of those talks will remain private. He did acknowledge that he cleared the air with Bell.
- "We're going to be aggressive and make them good offers, but we're not going to do anything ridiculous," said the GM in reference to the team's unsigned draft picks. "I think we'll get all these guys signed, I hope we do." The Padres have already signed top pick Cory Spangenberg.
- Hoyer spoke about Petco Park, and how his team is third is scoring on the road but 15th at home. "[Moving in the fences is] something that's always under consideration. I don't think it's imminent. I think it's something … we need to get over the Petco hurdle without moving the fences in."
Gaslamp Ball recapped the rest of the interview, in which Hoyer discussed injuries, the surging Jesus Guzman, and more.
Quick Hits: Astros, Bell, Tigers, Angels, Rays
On this date last year, the Brewers sent Jim Edmonds to the Reds. Tonight, Milwaukee starter Shaun Marcum will look to extend his club's division lead against Edwin Jackson and the Cardinals. Here's the latest from around MLB…
- Zachary Levine of The Houston Chronicle reports that the official transfer of ownership of the Astros from Drayton McLane to Jim Crane is likely to take place on August 22nd if the other 29 owners approve the sale at next week's owners' meetings.
- Executives believe Wandy Rodriguez will clear waivers, but not Heath Bell, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Neither player had been sent through waivers yet as of this morning.
- The Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies are in one tier and the rest of MLB is in another, Tom Verducci writes at SI.com.
- The Tigers’ deep rotation and strong attendance led to extensions for GM Dave Dombrowski, John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press writes.
- Yahoo's Tim Brown suggests Mike Scioscia deserves credit for keeping the light-hitting Angels in the race (they trail the Rangers by 1.5 games).
- It's unlikely that the Rays will make any moves this month, ESPN.com's Buster Olney writes.
Stark On Reyes, Bell, Astros, Slowey
Jose Reyes’ injuries have hurt his free agent stock, as we saw earlier today. ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark surveys people around MLB to determine what kind of contract the shortstop will obtain in free agency. Here are the details and the rest of Stark’s rumors:
- There’s buzz that the Mets were prepared to offer Reyes $100MM over five years earlier in the summer, Stark reports. It’s not hard to imagine the Mets scaling back their offer or replacing guaranteed years with vesting options now.
- One of Stark’s sources estimates that each day on the disabled list costs Reyes $500K. However, there's no doubt that Reyes will see some substantial offers this winter.
- Rival teams expect the Padres to trade Heath Bell this month, Stark reports. The Cardinals and Diamondbacks are the serious NL contenders with the worst record (62-53), which makes them prime candidates to make a claim on Bell. Assuming he does get claimed, the Padres will only be able to trade with the claiming team, so they’ll want to time his placement on waivers carefully.
- The Astros’ sale is just a week away, Stark writes. Other clubs are hearing that incoming owner Jim Crane may drive payroll down to $50MM or below from $71MM.
- One executive expressed his surprise at the Twins’ decision to keep Kevin Slowey, a non-tender candidate who’s currently earning $2.7MM at Triple-A. “If they'd traded him, at least they would have gotten something,” the person said. At least they would have gotten rid of the money. So I'm just not sure why he's still there."