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Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Gonzalez, Thome, Hinske, Red Sox, D’Backs, Twins

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On this date 64 years ago, the Dodgers announced the signing of Jackie Robinson, who would become the first African-American to play major league baseball since the 1880s. Robinson would spend the '46 season with Triple-A Montreal, hitting .349. The next season he would hit .297/.383/.427 and help the Dodgers to the National League pennant. With the Hot Stove season only days away, let's take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…

  • Sox and Pinstripes looks at what it would take for the Red Sox to land Adrian Gonzalez.
  • Phlavio's Corner attempts to fix the Diamondbacks in three moves or less.
  • Around the Majors takes a look at the free agent class of shortstops.
  • MLB Notebook breaks down the market for Jim Thome.
  • Nick's Twins Blog makes an off-season blueprint for the Twins and projects next season's roster.
  • Capitol Avenue Club examines what the Braves can do to reload the bullpen in 2010.
  • Talking Chop says the Braves need to add a power-bat this off-season, in part to protect Chipper Jones.
  • Marlin Maniac sees Eric Hinske as a good fit for the Marlins.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here, and followed on Twitter here.

Odds & Ends: Ng, Thome, Blue Jays

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Despite the threat of rain pretty much all day, the Yanks and Angels are playing in the Bronx. Here's a few links to check out between pitches…

  • SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that Dodgers' assistant GM Kim Ng interviewed for the Padres GM job today. She's vying to become the first female GM in history.
  • The NLCS is bringing Jim Thome back to Philadelphia for just the second time since the trade that sent him to the White Sox prior to the 2006 season, and as MLB.com's Ken Gurnick explains, the Phillies were "somewhat divided internally" about whether to deal Thome, or the up-and-coming Ryan Howard back when the deal was made.
  • We still don't know if Cito Gaston will be back to manage the Blue Jays next year, but The Toronto Star's Richard Griffin provides some circumstantial evidence that Buck Showalter could end up replacing Gaston if he and the team part ways.
  • MLBTR is on Facebook and Twitter, so make sure you hit us up that way if you haven't already.

Odds & Ends: Thome, Anthopoulos, 2010 Draft

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Here's a few links to check out while the Cardinals try to stave off elimination…

  • Prior to this evening's game, Jim Thome said he would "still love to come back" to the White Sox, according to Chris DeLuca of The Chicago Sun Times. ''I want to come back to the American League,'' said the 39-year-old Thome, who is making $13MM in the final season of the monster six-year, $85MM contract he signed with the Phillies prior to 2003.
  • Ken Fidlin of The Calgary Sun writes that new Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopolous "would do well to foster" what he calls the "Twins Way" in Toronto. He's referring to a "culture of professionalism and attention to detail."
  • Forgive the self-promotion, but if you're looking for a way to keep track of where each team's draft picks go once free agency starts, make sure you check out our 2010 Draft Order Tracker at River Ave. Blues. I'll keep that baby updated all winter as signings are make official, so make sure you check back in often.

Gammons’ Latest: Iglesias, Magglio, Valentine

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In his latest blog post at ESPN, Peter Gammons writes that the NL West has quietly become very competitive thanks to three California pitcher's parks that make it such a pitching dominated division. Through the help of scouts and team executives, he points out all the great young talent in the division, highlighted by the likes of Ubaldo Jimenez, Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, Tim Lincecum, Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, Pablo Sandoval, Troy Tulowitzki, and Mark Reynolds.

Here's a roundup of Gammons' rumors…

  • Gammons jokes that Dodgers GM Ned Colletti "could be arrested for shoplifting," because in the last two seasons he's acquired Manny Ramirez, Casey Blake, George Sherrill, Jon Garland, Jim Thome, Doug Mientkiewicz, Ronnie Belliard, and Vicente Padilla while paying them approximately $2.7MM combined.
  • The Red Sox will get their first look at Cuban shortstop Jose Iglesias, who they signed for $8.5MM back in July, in the Arizona Fall League. Gammons spoke to an NL GM who said he would have given Iglesias $12MM if his team could afford it, because "Our scouts say he's the best defensive shortstop they've ever seen."
  • If you're interested, you can see the full Arizona Fall League rosters here.
  • Jim Leyland was never told anything about benching Magglio Ordonez so his $18MM option in 2010 wouldn't vest. "He's going to make it," Leyland says. "So anyone who said otherwise has egg on his face. Dave Dombrowski has never even mentioned the vesting option." Ordonez needs just 35 more plate appearances this season to lock in the option.
  • Bobby Valentine's name was mentioned by Nationals' ownership during every interview they hosted while searching for a permanent GM, so he might be in the mix for their managerial job.

Odds & Ends: Hillman, White Sox, Japanese Pitchers

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Let's start the evening off by rounding up a few spare links…

  • According to The Associated Press (via ESPN), Royals manager Trey Hillman will return to the team next season. Kansas City GM Dayton Moore, who originally hired Hillman, had his contract extended through 2014 earlier this week.
  • White Sox GM Kenny Williams was asked if the Jim Thome and Jose Contreras trades indicate that he was throwing in the towel according to Scot Gregor of The Daily Herald, and Williams replied "Hell no. We're still in it to win it.”
  • Patrick at NPB Tracker passes along a report saying that the Yokohama BayStars are looking to import Japanese pitchers currently playing in the States. The article mentions that players like Tomo Ohka, Yasuhiko Yabuta, and Masahide Kobayashi could interest the BayStars, while Patrick throws the names of Kei Igawa and Takashi Saito into the ring.
  • ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. writes that Miguel Angel Sano is not the only big name Latin American free agent stuck in age investigation limbo. Venezuelan pitcher Daniel Sanchez, considered one of the best pitchers available this year, is stuck in the same boat after the Brewers put in a formal request to MLB to investigate his age. An age investigation is a prerequisite to signing any player from Latin America.

Williams Discusses Thome and Contreras Trades

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ESPN's Peter Gammons has a long-awaited interview with White Sox GM Ken Williams about the trades that sent Jim Thome and Jose Contreras packing. Williams argues that the trades did not amount to "a raising of the white flag" and says he was trying "to do right by players who certainly did right by us."

Williams says that he assured Thome that he would not be traded against his wishes. "He told me he was more interested in winning another ring than hitting 600 homers," the GM said. "We wanted to accomodate [him] so that he could finish the season the way he wanted."

Regarding Contreras, Williams says that manager Ozzie Guillen was not planning to start the pitcher down the stretch. "I thought this was a way to give him the opportunity to start and rebuild his value in the free-agent market," Williams said. 

According to Gammons, Rockies manager Jim Tracy, who "dealt with" Brad Penny when both were with the Dodgers, did not want the veteran starter on his staff although GM Dan O'Dowd had interest. So, O'Dowd turned to the White Sox for the starter he needed.

Olney On White Sox, Rangers, Yankees

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ESPN.com's Buster Olney says Giants catching prospect Buster Posey is probably more likely to be on the team's Opening Day roster, now that they club started his service time clock. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors:

  • Olney says Kenny Williams has a responsibility to publicly discuss the moves that sent Jim Thome and Jose Contreras elsewhere.
  • Olney hears that the Rangers will likely consider various infielders now that Michael Young is hurt. A player like Jamey Carroll could help the Rangers, but Olney doubts they'll make a move.
  • Here's a suggestion for the Yankees from Olney: offer both Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui one-year deals after the season, but say "we'll keep whoever takes our offer first."

Dodgers Rumors: Colletti, Thome, Garland, Hudson

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The latest from Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times covers the future of Dodgers GM Ned Colletti and also reveals details from the team's acquisitions of Jon Garland and Jim Thome.

  • Colletti faces a mutual option for 2010.  He says he'd love to be back, but hasn't discussed his future with owner Frank McCourt yet.  Sure, Colletti has been able to operate under a budget.  But his work as a GM is a mixed bag at best.  SI's Jon Heyman recently weighed in on Colletti's recent work; check that out here.
  • The White Sox are paying $1.4MM of the $2.4MM still owed to Thome.  From Chicago's point of view, the benefit was saving a million bucks.  With all the penny-pinching in the Dodgers' trades the past few years, I'm surprised they were willing to spend that million for one month of a bench bat.
  • Hernandez heard that Tony Abreu is the player to be named later in the Garland deal, as had been rumored.  Abreu, a Scott Boras client, is hitting .351/.382/.609 in 213 Triple A plate appearances.
  • Hernandez says the Dodgers are "not expected to retain" second baseman Orlando Hudson.  Hudson may not be up for a one-year, incentive-laden contract this time around.

Odds & Ends: Penny, Hardy, Hoffmann

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Some links to check out while you try to figure out what's for dinner…

  • ESPN's Keith Law says that both Jim Thome and Jon Garland have value to Dodgers in the roles they were acquired to fill, pinch hitter and innings eater. KLaw also notes that Jose Contreras is better option than anyone currently in the Rockies' organization, and that he might benefit from a move to the NL.
  • R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs says that people should be focusing more on the draft picks the White Sox gave away (Thome projects to be a Type-A free agent) than the fact that they're throwing in the towel on the season.
  • Brad Penny said he'd be willing to return to the AL East in the future, according to CBSSports.com's Danny Knobler. "I think if I make my pitches against anyone, I'll do fine…Sometimes you don't get breaks. I was making some bad pitches, and leaving some balls up. In the AL East, you can't really do that," said Penny.
  • MLB.com's Adam McCalvy spoke to Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy about whether he'll be traded this offseason or not, and got this response: "It makes sense, not that I want to be traded."
  • Diamond Leung reports that the Dodgers have designated outfielder Jamie Hoffmann for assignment. The 25-yr old hit just .182/.167/.409 in his brief stint with LA earlier this year. It's always fun when a guy has a higher batting average than on-base percentage.
  • Matt Eddy of Baseball America posted last week's minor league transactions. The Brewers signed two former big leaguers – outfielders Jon Knott and Tike Redman – out of the independent Atlantic League.
  • Make sure you follow MLBTR on Twitter for the fastest rumor updates on the web.

Thome Trade Reactions

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The White Sox sent designated hitter Jim Thome to the Dodgers last night, paying part of his remaining $2.4MM salary and receiving 26 year-old High A shortstop Justin Fuller ("just a player," according to Mark Gonzales' Dodgers source).  Thome is hitting .249/.372/.493 in 417 plate appearances on the season. 

The Sox are in third place in the AL Central, six games back (they've lost eight of their last nine).  Baseball Prospectus puts Chicago's playoff chances at about 5.6%.  Sox fans: would you have preferred to see Ken Williams focus on that 1 in 18 chance, and retain Thome?  On to our links…

  • In this ESPN story, Dodgers manager Joe Torre wouldn't rule out the idea of using Thome at first base occasionally.  But GM Ned Colletti rejected the notion, and said Thome suggested it'd have to be an emergency situation.  So Thome will mostly be a pinch-hitter, though he could DH if the Dodgers reach the World Series.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Williams "shifted from buyer to seller in record time," given the recent acquisitions of Jake Peavy and Alex Rios.  The Sox have Peavy through 2012 and Rios through 2014.  Rosenthal also praises Colletti's many trade improvements (Thome, George Sherrill, Jon Garland, Ron Belliard), again done on a limited budget.
  • Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Tribune thinks Williams threw in the towel too early.
  • Sox Machine runs through many interesting implications of the trade, including the chance to get a good look at Tyler Flowers.  South Side Sox wonders if the good vibes could compel Thome to re-sign for 2010.  Both blogs gripe about Chicago's July 7th Brandon Allen–Tony Pena deal.
  • Thome projected as a Type A free agent in the American League; we'll get you his NL status later today.  It's a moot point, as the Dodgers seem unlikely to offer arbitration.
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