Mariners, Rangers, White Sox Interested In Lowell
The Angels are not going to trade for Mike Lowell, but a couple of their division rivals are interested. Joe McDonald of ESPNBoston.com hears from a Red Sox source that the Mariners, Rangers and White Sox are among the teams that have contacted the Red Sox about Lowell. Nothing is imminent, but if the Red Sox deal Lowell, they will almost certainly pay most of the $8MM or so remaining on his contract.
The 20-31 Mariners have not seen Casey Kotchman and Jose Lopez provide much offense at the corners, though Lopez homered yesterday and has been hitting better recently. Their designated hitters have combined for a .207/.266/.318 line, so Lowell's numbers (.239/.329/.358) look good in comparison, even though his power and on base percentage are lower than usual.
The Rangers, who are in a virtual tie for first place in the AL West, have seen Justin Smoak struggle through 136 plate appearances this year (.190/.301/.353 line). They had interest in Lowell last winter, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see them pursue him once again.
White Sox GM Kenny Williams says he doesn't expect to start making moves, but third baseman Mark Teahen is out with a broken finger, so the Sox are short an infielder. The White Sox could bring Lowell aboard to play third if they aren't comfortable with Jayson Nix, Omar Vizquel and Brent Lillibridge at the hot corner.
Angels Have Not Shown Interest In Mike Lowell
The Angels have not yet shown any interest in acquiring Mike Lowell in the wake of Kendry Morales' injury, according to WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. Bradford's source indicated that the team has begun looking for a replacement, however.
Morales fractured his leg celebrating his walk-off grand slam yesterday, a big blow to the team considering his .290/.346/.487 batting line. Lowell has played sparingly this month because of David Ortiz's resurgence, and he's hitting just .239/.329/.358 on the year. The 36-year-old former World Series MVP has indicated that he will likely retire after the season.
We looked the Angels' options to replace their injured first baseman earlier today.
How Will Angels Replace Morales?
4:28pm: The Boston Globe's Peter Abraham wonders (via Twitter) if Mike Lowell will be traded to the Angels in light of Morales' injury. He notes that the Red Sox would likely have to eat a large portion of Lowell's salary.
2:16pm: ESPN's Mark Saxon tweets that the Angels are saying Morales' injury is not season ending, though he doesn't provide a timetable for the slugger's return. As Saxon points out in another tweet, Mike Napoli will start at first base today for the first time since his minor league days.
10:57am: Following one of the more unusual injuries in recent years, the Angels now face the problem of how to replace their most productive hitter. Kendry Morales, who was hitting .290/.346/.487 with 11 homers, fractured his leg while celebrating a walk-off grand slam last night, and could miss the rest of the season.
Robb Quinlan and Mark Trumbo are in-house candidates to step in for Morales, but the defending AL West champs will likely consider acquiring an impact player to boost an offense that, even with Morales, has hit just .248. After all, despite playing sub-.500 ball so far, they're very much in contention, sitting only 3.5 games out of first place.
Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times writes that the Angels have plenty of options when it comes to finding a new first baseman. He suggests that Paul Konerko and Lance Berkman are the two most attractive and realistic trade targets for the Angels, though he acknowledges that the club won't have much leverage, given their desperate need for a middle-of-the-order bat. The Chicago Tribune's Mark Gonzales agrees that Konerko could be a fit for the Angels, noting that the White Sox first baseman has a relationship with Mike Scioscia that dates back to their days with the Dodgers.
DiGiovanna names a handful of other possible targets for the Angels, including Adam Dunn, Adam LaRoche, Russell Branyan, and Prince Fielder. Obviously, some of those sluggers are less available than others. Jermaine Dye, Ryan Garko, and Carlos Delgado (when he's healthy) are a few more available, low-cost options the team could look at, according to DiGiovanna.
Even if the Angels decide to make a move, it may not happen for a month or two, coming closer to the trade deadline. However, in the wake of Morales' injury, it's safe to put them near the top of the list of teams who will be shopping for a power hitter this summer.
Stark On Oswalt, Braves, Carmona, Yankees
Astros scouts haven't been told to watch specific teams or players, so Roy Oswalt doesn't need to start preparing for life after Houston just yet. ESPN.com's Jayson Stark has the details on Oswalt and more rumblings from around the major leagues:
- Oswalt has told friends he'd love to play in St. Louis and it's believed that he would be interested in joining the Dodgers and Braves.
- We've heard lots about the $29MM remaining on Oswalt's deal, but the Angels have some money, according to an official Stark spoke to. The Nationals may be "the one team that would pay the whole freight on the contract."
- GM Andrew Friedman says he wasn't sure how Rafael Soriano's National League experience would translate to the American League East when the Rays dealt for him last offseason. Needless to say, the Rays have been pleased with Soriano's dominant start to the season.
- Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. tells Stark that other teams offered Jose Contreras "much more money" last winter.
- Braves GM Frank Wren says he's pleased with Eric Hinske's play and notes that teams probably don't pay enough attention to their benches.
- Wren says the Braves would not have interest in adding a starting pitcher. Besides their current rotation, they have the injured Jair Jurrjens and Triple A pitcher Chris Resop.
- GM Jon Daniels says the Rangers saw "a guy with major league ability and pedigree" when they scouted Colby Lewis in Japan last year.
- One scout says the Blue Jays are definitely tracking Fausto Carmona and have watched his last 12 starts.
- The Red Sox have tried trading Mike Lowell unsuccessfully, but they aren't eager to eat the $8MM-plus remaining on his salary.
- Rival clubs say the Yankees haven't decided what their trade deadline needs are, though they're showing some interest in versatile outfield bats.
Cafardo On Ortiz, Iannetta, Atkins, Lowell
The key to the Rays' success so far has been their pitching staff, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, who praises Tampa Bay for playing so well despite a few slumping bats. Cafardo says that it may be hard for the club to add another piece or two before the trade deadline, since their budget is already maxed out. However, Cafardo acknowledges that with Carl Crawford and Carlos Pena facing free agency, the Rays may go all-out this year and stretch their budget a little in hopes of winning a championship. Here are some of Cafardo's other notes:
- After this season, David Ortiz is probably "done in Boston unless he takes a massive pay cut." Ortiz might have trouble catching on anywhere next year, since there's virtually no market for one-dimensional players, and he may not be willing to accept a role similar to Jason Giambi's in Colorado.
- If Ortiz and Victor Martinez continue to hit, the Red Sox are very unlikely to pursue Chris Iannetta.
- One of the winter's most disappointing new additions has been Garrett Atkins, who is homerless and sports a .221/.261/.283 slash line in 119 plate appearances. The Orioles will have to consider releasing him if he doesn't turn things around.
- The Rangers are looking for a starting pitcher and a productive right-handed bat. A Rangers official tells Cafardo that he'd still love to see Mike Lowell in Texas.
- Cafardo thinks that if the Red Sox fall out of playoff contention and become sellers, they could replenish their farm system, acquiring multiple players for Martinez, Lowell, Ortiz, Adrian Beltre, Marco Scutaro, and Jeremy Hermida. I'm less optimistic than Cafardo about the caliber of talent the Sox could land for most of those guys.
Odds & Ends: Green, Oswalt, Mets, Gaudin, Werth
Links for Saturday….
- With Rafael Furcal returning to the Dodgers, the out-of-options Nick Green is a candidate for demotion, writes Evan Drellich of MLB.com.
- Roy Oswalt told Houston owner Drayton McLane that he wouldn't mind coming back and finishing his career with the organization, tweets Alyson Footer of the Astros.
- More on Oswalt: Footer (via Twitter) is skeptical about the Mets' chances of acquiring Houston's ace. Meanwhile, manager Brad Mills doesn't expect Oswalt's trade request to be a clubhouse distraction, according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.
- At MLB.com, Peter Gammons takes a look at a few underachieving teams who are under pressure to make changes.
- Scott Olsen has been placed on the disabled list, but Stephen Strasburg won't be the pitcher called up to take his roster spot, tweets Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
- Jack Curry of the YES Network (via Twitter) asked Mets GM Omar Minaya if Jerry Manuel is managing to save his job. Minaya answered, "I don't want to say that. I wouldn't say that's the case."
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that Chad Gaudin received and turned down a minor league assignment offer from the A's.
- Mike Lowell told Scott Lauber of The Boston Herald that he has no regrets about passing on a four year, $37.5MM contract offer from the Phillies after the 2007 season.
- Jayson Werth said he's "played [his] entire career for this year," according to David Murphy of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Werth, of course, is referring to his contract year and impending free agent payday.
- Chris Iannetta remains the one who got away for the Red Sox, who almost drafted the catcher back in 2004 according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier.
- Joe Christensen of The Star Tribune analyzed the Carlos Gomez–J.J. Hardy trade now that we're six months out.
- John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer notes that the Reds have gotten tremendous production out of their bargain basement left field combo of Jonny Gomes and Laynce Nix ($1.4MM combined salary).
Rosenthal’s Full Count Video: Oswalt, Lowell, Griffey
With FOX airing Saturday evening games this weekend rather than afternoon games, Ken Rosenthal's new Full Count video showed up on their website a little later in the day too. Now that it's been posted, let's recap Rosenthal's latest hot stove tidbits….
- Roy Oswalt is making $15MM this year and $16MM next year, which will make it difficult to trade him. Making it even trickier, owner Drayton McLane won't want to include money in a deal, even if it means getting better prospects in return.
- If the Mariners become sellers, that would further diminish the chances of an Oswalt deal, since the M's could make Cliff Lee available. Lee is the much more affordable ace, earning only $9MM this season.
- The Red Sox don't want to release Mike Lowell, since he provides injury protection at both corner infield spots, and can DH against left-handers. Additionally, if the Sox were to release Lowell, many of their AL rivals, such as the Angels, Rays, and Twins, could have interest in him.
- Ken Griffey's current role of pinch-hitter, occasional DH, and clubhouse mentor is exactly what the Mariners were hoping for when they re-signed the 40-year-old this winter. For now, the club has no desire for Griffey to retire.
- Carlos Zambrano appears to be headed back to the Cubs' rotation, even though he may currently be their sixth-best starter. The team could attempt to trade Tom Gorzelanny or move him to the bullpen, but Rosenthal opines that it would make their pitching staff weaker.
Gammons On Martinez, Lowell, Iannetta
Peter Gammons made one of his regular appearances on WEEI's The Big Show on Friday afternoon to chat about the Red Sox. Matt West has the full transcript, but here are a few of the more pertinent notes….
- David Ortiz's improved play led to a question about Boston's future plans at the DH spot. Gammons thinks that it will depend on if Victor Martinez is willing to re-sign "at a DH price or at a catcher’s price. If its a catcher’s price I don’t think Victor will come back; if its a DH price I think they’ll bring him back."
- Along those same lines, Gammons notes that "a DH price" is lower since league-wide, designated hitters are producing fairly average numbers: "The DH has been devalued, there are a lot of 35-, 36-year-olds who used to have the juice of life that don’t have it anymore."
- Mike Lowell's agents have told Gammons that eight to ten teams are interested in their client, though Gammons doesn't necessarily believe them. He thinks Lowell will end up being dealt from Boston at some point, though Gammons notes that two possible contenders for his services (the Mets and Rangers) are out of the running given the production of Ike Davis and Vladimir Guerrero, respectively.
- Gammons cites Tampa Bay as a potential destination for Lowell if the Sox end up releasing him. Lowell would split time in a platoon at DH with Hank Blalock.
- In regards to the rumors about Chris Iannetta, Gammons says the Red Sox attempted to acquire the catcher two years ago and "do really love him." A deal could still happen later in the year though Gammons doesn't know if Boston could meet Colorado's trade needs.
Heyman On Lowell, Jeter, Castillo
Jason Heyward and Mike Leake top Jon Heyman of SI.com's list of top rookies so far in 2010. It's hard to argue with those choices, though Stephen Strasburg may steal the show in a few weeks. Here are Heyman's rumors:
- Mike Lowell upset the Red Sox brass when he told the media that he had no role on the team. Heyman says the Red Sox are not eager to release Lowell and eat his $12MM salary.
- The Yankees say they will "definitely" re-sign Derek Jeter, who hits free agency after the season. It is almost impossible to imagine Jeter playing for another club.
- Mets hitting coach Howard Johnson "appears to be in some jeopardy" of losing his job.
- One person connected to the Rockies says they are "not even close" to having enough money to afford Luis Castillo, who makes $6MM this year and the same amount next year. The Rockies are interested in adding infield depth, but it appears that the Mets would have to take on a considerable portion of Castillo's salary for a deal to go down.
Odds & Ends: Kearns, Lowell, Dye, Strasburg
Links for Tuesday, as Hanley Ramirez digs himself into an even bigger hole after last night's jog…
- R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs examines Austin Kearns' resurgent season and says it's possible that the outfielder appears in trade rumors this summer. It certainly wouldn't be a surprise to see the Indians shop Kearns.
- FOX Sports Arizona profiled agent Jonathan Maurer, who represents Brandon Webb, among others.
- Dave Sheinin of the Washington Post has a profile of top amateur Bryce Harper that's well worth reading. Baseball America's Nathan Rode chatted with Harper and found that the prospect loves to catch and play the outfield.
- Mike Lowell doesn't see a role for himself on the Red Sox and wonders if the team would be better off without him, according to Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald (via Twitter). Lowell explained his frustration to Rob Bradford of WEEI earlier today.
- I joined Jeff & Jeff on KFNS St. Louis earlier today; click here to listen.
- Jeff Fletcher of AOL FanHouse (Twitter link) talked to Eric Chavez, who said Jermaine Dye is "at peace being at home" and is not working out. This counters a quote from Dye's agent Bob Bry from May 11th, when Bry said Dye "continues to work out every morning and hits most days and is still waiting for an opportunity with a team that has a chance to advance to the playoffs."
- Mark Zuckerman of Nats Insider wonders if Stephen Strasburg will make his big league debut June 4th against the Reds at Nationals Park. SI's Tom Verducci contrasts the Nats' careful handling of Strasburg to the Reds' approach with Mike Leake.
- Jim Margalus of Sox Machine presents his guide to a White Sox fire sale.
- AOL FanHouse's Steve Phillips explains the many responsibilities of a general manager.
- David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News notes that "the possibility of Cliff Lee falling into the hands of a rival faction [of the Phillies] is something that, at the very least, is worth pondering."
- Free agent lefty Brian Shouse hopes to continue his Major League career, writes Stan Morris of The Journal Star.