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Week in Review: 8/17 – 8/23

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Another week in the books, and we keep seeing big names moved after the July 31 non-waiver deadline. Let’s look back on the past week:

  • The Dodgers acquired Greg Maddux from the Padres for two minor league players to be named later. Nice acquisition to bolster their rotation, and does anyone want to place bets on how excited 20-year-old Clayton Kershaw is to get tips from Maddux every day for the rest of the season?
  • The Pirates are exploring the idea of trading Jack Wilson this offseason more and more. Given the slim free agent market for shortstops, he would likely gather a lot of interest.
  • Nate Robertson’s struggles this season have lost him his spot in the rotation, but have they also lost him a spot with the Tigers after 2008?
  • Orlando Hernandez needs surgery on his foot, and that could likely mean that El Duque’s career would be over.
  • Lots of speculation lately about where Ben Sheets is going to land after 2008. And while there’s no way to tell right now, Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman have stepped up and said they would like the Astros front office to go out and sign him in the offseason.
  • A lot of minor-league deals signed this week: Kip Wells signed with Kansas City, the Mets added Al Reyes, the Astros signed Jose Castillo, the Red Sox signed Dave Ross, and the Braves took a flyer on Rodrigo Lopez following his Tommy John surgery last year. The Jays made a trade to acquire Jose Bautista for a PTBNL as well.
  • The Rangers would like Milton Bradley back in 2009, and the feeling is mutual, though negotiations will wait until after the season. Similarly, Frank Thomas would prefer to stay with the A’s in 2009.
  • Eric Gagne, David Riske, and David Weathers all cleared waivers this week. The first two make sense to me, but given Weathers’ success this year, his affordable contract for the rest of the season, and all of the teams desperately seeking bullpen help, it seems strange that no one would place a claim on him. Here’s an updated list of all the players who have been confirmed to have cleared waivers this year.

Milton Bradley Hopes To Return To Rangers

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According to Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Rangers DH Milton Bradley would like to return in ’09.  Both sides are interested, but negotiations will wait until after the season. 

Bradley feels comfortable in Texas, and that’s led to a massive .314/.441/.579 line in 407 plate appearances.  He hasn’t been this healthy since ’04.  His OBP ranks first in the AL by a wide margin, and he’s third in SLG.

The 30 year-old Bradley is earning roughly $6MM this year if you include incentives.  I imagine he’d want to double that salary in free agency, though he’s pretty hard to value.

Odds and Ends: McLouth, Doumit, Eyre, Bradley

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Here’s today’s link roundup.

What’s Next For D’Backs?

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FRIDAY: Milton Bradley is also not on Arizona’s radar.

THURSDAY: D’Backs right fielder Justin Upton may hit the DL with an oblique strain, while left fielder Eric Byrnes is probably out for the season.  Will the D’Backs make an acquisition? 

The Barry Bonds idea has been dismissed.  Beat writer Nick Piecoro wonders about Kenny Lofton, but GM Josh Byrnes prefers either a trade or internal options. Byrnes’ comments:

"There’s sort of a fine line between patience and stubbornness.  But if we’re going to do something to improve our offense, it’s sort of [a question of] whose at-bats are we replacing, and what is that saying about an offense that at the end of last year, beginning of this year, looked like it was sort of taking a step forward? It’s not as simple as the last couple of months, although the last couple of months we haven’t swung the bats very well. Certainly sticking with guys who have shown it, and are young enough to start showing progress, is a consideration."

MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert notes that with those comments, Byrnes doesn’t rule out pursuing a pitcher.  Micah Owings and Randy Johnson both have ERAs over 5.00, but they’ve pitched well at times and an upgrade seems unlikely.

Wesley Baier of AZSnakepit recently asked me who the D’Backs could acquire as a platoon partner for Chad Tracy, and I rattled off some lefty-mashers.  Casey Blake is an interesting name, especially if he can fill in at right field.

Perrotto’s Latest: Sabathia, Bradley

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Time to take a spin through John Perrotto’s lastest column over at Baseball Prospectus.

  • C.C. Sabathia suitors named: Yankees, Phillies, Cubs, Red Sox, Rays, and Angels.  The Rays seem to be a new name; DRays Bay has a comment thread up on it.  Jon Heyman has similar names but adds the Dodgers to the mix.
  • The Rangers are apparently warming to the idea of trading Milton Bradley (they’re 7.5 games back) but they could still re-sign him in the offseason.

Odds And Ends: Bradley, Haren, Griffey, Holliday, Atkins

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A few minor notes from the MLBiverse…

  • Evan Grant wonders if the Rangers might try to trade Milton Bradley if they fall even farther back in the standings and then try to resign him in the off-season when he is a free agent.
  • The D-Backs have begun negotiations with Dan Haren on a contract extension. Haren is signed though ’09 with a $6.75MM team option in ’10.
  • Ken Griffey Jr says that he wants to win a championship in Cincinnati.
  • With the Rockies playing the Indians, it was inevitable that the Matt Holliday- or Garrett Atkins-to-the-Indians speculation would resurface.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex and can be reached here.

Odds and Ends: Bradley, Floyd, Threets

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Let’s round up some links.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Kemp, Bradley, Fuentes, Street

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New Rosenthal.  Seems like he just put a column out a few days ago.

  • Rosenthal believes the Dodgers would consider trading a young player (especially Matt Kemp) for a slugger.  He discusses what it would take to get Jason Bay, Magglio Ordonez, Adam Dunn, or Matt Holliday.  This all seems like a bad idea for the Dodgers.
  • There are certainly arguments for the Rangers to keep or even extend Milton Bradley.  But Rosenthal thinks he could net "multiple high-end prospects" if Jon Daniels goes the trade route.  He says the Rangers could shop some of their veterans while also trying to acquire a controllable reliever.
  • Rosenthal’s best guess is that the Pirates will trade Xavier Nady or Jason Bay but not both.  He says Neal Huntington is not under pressure to clear salary.
  • The Cubs are interested in Brian Fuentes, which is a new one.  Rosenthal adds that Jim Hendry plans to pursue the best available starter.
  • The Brewers have many quality minor league trade chips, and they may be looking for a starter.
  • Minimal trade interest in Huston Street, and the A’s have backed off the extension idea.
  • The Yankees are "aggressively" trying to move LaTroy Hawkins.
  • The Dodgers wanted to do an Esteban Loaiza–Juan Uribe swap, but the Sox just waited them out and signed Loaiza.
  • Rosenthal says the Phillies "lack the prospect inventory" to get an impact starting pitcher, which I don’t agree with.  He says they may look for another lefty reliever or bench bat.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Milton Bradley

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In December, Milton Bradley signed a one-year deal with the Rangers for $5.25MM guaranteed.  He can earn up to $2.75MM more based on playing time incentives.  The Padres didn’t offer him arbitration; they were afraid of a possible award nearing $10MM. 

Bradley was available at an affordable price and term mainly because of his injury history – he hasn’t played 100 games in a season since 2004.  His ’07 season ended with an ACL tear in a bizarre incident (his manager tackled him to keep him away from an umpire who had provoked him).  That Bradley was ready for Opening Day was remarkable.

Since Bradley was traded to the Padres on June 29th of last year, he’s been an elite hitter: a .981 OPS in 263 at-bats.  In that period his OBP ranks 7th in the game (.419) and his SLG ranks 15th (.563).  Bradley could be called the Rich Harden of hitters – oft-injured, but elite when he plays.  Bradley might be a hot trade commodity this July.  He won’t come cheap, since he has a decent chance of Type A status.

The smart move for Bradley in ’09 will be to choose a team with an open DH spot.  If he can remain relatively healthy and incident-free for the rest of ’08, he could ask for a $12MM salary.  He could even get multiple guaranteed years (after all, Frank Thomas did).  The Yankees, Rays, Jays, Royals, and Mariners could be possibilities if the Rangers don’t re-sign him.  Of course, we can’t rule out the NL – Bradley nearly re-signed with the Padres.

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