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Quick Hits: Delgado, Top Prospects, Byrd, Relievers

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The Blue Jays will add Carlos Delgado to the Level of Excellence at the Rogers Centre this weekend — an honor bestowed upon the greatest Jays in franchise history. Delgado spent a dozen seasons with the Jays, hitting .282/.392/.556 with 336 homers in 6,018 plate appearances. He will join Roberto Alomar, Joe Carter, Tony Fernandez, George Bell and Dave Stieb as players to receive the distinction. Here's more from around the league…

  • ESPN's Keith Law unveiled the latest edition of his Top 50 prospects (ESPN Insider required and recommended), and it's fronted by Twins Class A Advanced center fielder Byron Buxton, though Law cautions that even he is a little uncomfortable with the amount of hype Buxton is receiving. Oscar Taveras, Xander Bogaerts, Miguel Sano and Francisco Lindor round out Law's Top 5.
  • The Mets will need to be "overwhelmed" to trade Marlon Byrd, writes Jorge Castillo of the Newark Star Ledger. "Overwhelmed," of course, is a relative term, and manager Terry Collins states things more lightly later in the article: "Right now, Marlon Byrd’s a huge piece. If Marlon Byrd’s going to get moved, we’re going to get something good back." Castillo's article meshes with previous reports that the Mets may simply stand pat at the deadline.
  • A team official tells Mike Puma of the New York Post that the Mets haven't had any action yet on Byrd or closer Bobby Parnell (Twitter link).
  • ESPN's Jim Bowden examines the trade market for relievers (video link), naming all of the usual suspects that have been mentioned previously but also adding Jared Burton, Huston Street and Luke Gregerson, who haven't been mentioned often this summer. All three are controlled beyond 2013. Bowden's colleague Buster Olney tweeted earlier today that the Diamondbacks continue to be players on the relief pitching market.
  • Uncertainty surrounding Clay Buchholz's injuries hasn't changed Boston's approach to the trade deadline, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. The Red Sox still plan to be "selective" as they debate possibilities to upgrade what they consider to be strong rotation depth. The team is also still interested in upgrades at third base and in the bullpen.

Royals Outright Pedro Ciriaco

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THURSDAY: The Royals have outrighted Ciriaco to Triple-A Omaha, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star (on Twitter). It seems likely that the Royals were interested in adding Ciriaco as organizational depth but didn't want to use a 40-man roster spot on him and placed him on waivers. This time, he cleared and was assigned to the minor leagues.

TUESDAY: The Royals claimed shortstop Pedro Ciriaco off waivers from the Padres, according to a team press release.  Ciriaco had been designated for assignment on Friday.  The Royals now have 39 players on their 40-man roster.

Ciriaco, 27, hit .228/.288/.342 in 126 plate appearances for the Red Sox and Padres this year, spending most of his time at shortstop.  Ciriaco was signed by the Diamondbacks out of the Dominican Republic in 2003.  He went to the Pirates in a trade deadline deal three years ago, was granted free agency after the 2011 season, signed as a minor league free agent with Boston in January 2012, and was acquired in trade by the Padres in June of this year after they had designated him for assignment.

Prior to the 2011 season, Ciriaco was ranked 27th among Pirates prospects by Baseball America.  They noted his "plus speed, smooth glove, and strong arm," suggesting his bat would determine whether he could land an everyday role.  The Royals' middle infield mix currently consists of Alcides Escobar, Johnny Giavotella, Miguel Tejada, and Elliot Johnson.

Padres Not Seeking Rentals

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In case there was any doubt, the GM for the last-place Padres made clear he's not in the market for rental players.  "I think the one thing our recent play has done is it doesn’t make sense for us to go for a rental," Josh Byrnes told Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune.  Byrnes added, "To say that we make a trade to bring in somebody who is on our team now and helping us but we also have beyond this year, we’re certainly knocking on those doors."

As Sanders notes, Byrnes' stance seems to take the Padres out of the market for the Cubs' Matt Garza, who will be eligible for free agency after the season and had been linked to San Diego.  For a look at the controllable starting pitchers on the trade market, check out my Tuesday post.

Yankees Inquired On Chase Headley

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The Yankees recently called the Padres to ask about third baseman Chase Headley and, in a brief discussion, were told there wasn’t a deal to be made, sources told Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.  The Padres are willing to listen on any of their players, but Headley appears to be on the edge of untouchable.

People who have spoken with San Diego have gotten the impression it would take a special prospect to make the Padres even think about trading their star player.  In the case of the Yankees, they don’t have that kind of prospect to give and they’ll probably have to seek out a bat elsewhere

Other teams had been hoping the Padres would consider moving Headley since Jedd Gyorko is a natural third baseman and could slide over without issue.  Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reported earlier this week that the Padres would listen on Headley, but it doesn’t seem like he’ll be changing uniforms this summer.

2014 Competitive Balance Lottery Results

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The Competitive Balance Lottery for the 2014 MLB Draft took place today. Twelve competitive balance picks are awarded, with the first six taking place after the first round's conclusion and the next six taking place following conclusion of the second round. Here are the results, per MLB.com (Twitter links)…

Competitive Balance Round A

  1. Rockies
  2. Orioles
  3. Indians
  4. Marlins
  5. Royals
  6. Brewers

Competitive Balance Round B

  1. Padres
  2. Diamondbacks
  3. Cardinals
  4. Rays
  5. Pirates
  6. Mariners

As explained by MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo, the teams in the 10 smallest markets and teams with the 10 lowest revenues were eligible to be entered into the Round A lottery. This doesn't mean there were 20 teams in the lottery, as there's overlap in that criteria. All teams who don't win a pick in the first round are re-entered into the second round, along with any team that received revenue sharing this year, which accounted only for the Mariners.

These picks are eligible to be traded, as we saw in 2012. Last year, the Tigers and Marlins swapped Competitive Balance picks as part of the Anibal Sanchez trade. The Marlins received a second Competitive Balance pick when they traded Gaby Sanchez to the Pirates in the offseason.

The A's and Reds are the two eligible teams from this year's selection that were not awarded a Competitive Balance pick.

Mike Dee Hired As Padres CEO

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The Padres announced that they have hired Miami Dolphins CEO Mike Dee as their new president and CEO. The announcement was made by lead investor Peter Seidler and executive chairman Ron Fowler. Seidler and Fowler issued the following joint statement:

“We are ecstatic to bring Mike back to San Diego as our president and CEO. He has the experience, passion and intellect to drive this organization to great success. All of these qualities, combined with his familiarity with our community and his legendary energy, are going to assure exciting times for Padres’ fans.”

Dee began his professional sports career by spending eight seasons with the Padres, ascending to senior vice president of business affairs in 2001. He left the Padres to become executive vice president of business affairs for the Red Sox in 2002 before being named Dolphins CEO in 2009. Dee offered the following quote, via press release:

"I am thrilled to be coming home to San Diego – an extraordinary community that has always been very special to me. The Padres organization is where I started my sports career nearly two decades ago, and I am grateful to Ron and Peter for the opportunity to return to my roots."

The Padres have been on the lookout for a new president/CEO since Tom Garfinkel stepped down from the position in early June. It's been a busy year for the Padres, who last August were sold to a group fronted by former Dodgers owner Peter O'Malley as well as Seidler and Fowler.

NL West Notes: Puig, Kershaw, Rockies, Garfinkel

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Dodgers phenom Yasiel Puig has hired Radegen Sports Management to handle his sponsorship and marketing contracts, Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan reports (via Twitter).  The move doesn't affect Puig's baseball representation, which is handled by agent Jamie Torres, though it ends speculation that Puig would hire Jay-Z's Roc Nation Sports agency to represent him in both on- and off-the-field ventures.

Here are some more items from around the NL West…

  • The Dodgers' inability (so far) to sign Clayton Kershaw to a contract extension is the biggest surprise of the first half, CBS Sports' Jon Heyman writes.  We heard about a month ago that the two sides were making progress on a seven-year deal that would pay Kershaw at least $180MM, and the prospect of a 12-year, $300MM contract had also been discussed.
  • Joc Pederson doesn't seem to have a place in the Dodgers' crowded outfield and could become trade bait before the deadline, Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times writes.  The 21-year-old center fielder entered 2013 ranked as the 83rd-best prospect in the sport by MLB.com and has improved his stock by hitting .296/.386/.516 with 14 homers and 26 steals in 353 Double-A plate appearances this season.  Dodgers GM Ned Colletti praised Pederson's development but declined to say whether the outfielder's name had surfaced in trade talks.
  • "I treat the trade deadline kind of like reading US Weekly or People magazine — entertainment value," Michael Cuddyer tells CBS Sports' Danny Knobler. "I do follow it, but I don't take everything to heart."  Cuddyer could be a trade candidate if the Rockies decide they're out of the NL West race, though since they're only 4.5 games out of first, Cuddyer and Troy Tulowitzki both hope the team doesn't give up on the season.
  • Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune examines Tom Garfinkel's resignation as Padres president and CEO as part of a reader mailbag.  Center doesn't think Garfinkel's departure will lead to Josh Byrnes or Bud Black being fired, as interim president/CEO Ron Fowler told Byrnes that no changes were coming in the baseball operations department.  Center also hears that Mike Dee, the CEO of both the Miami Dolphins and Miami's Sun Life Stadium, could be a contender to fill Garfinkel's old jobs.
  • In NL West news from earlier today, Giants righty Tim Lincecum has drawn interest from the Tigers and other clubs as a relief pitcher, Hanley Ramirez said he wanted to stay with the Dodgers, and the Rockies acquired Armando Galarraga from the Reds.

Knobler On Padres, Urrutia, Cardinals, Stanton

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Here's the latest from CBS Sports' Danny Knobler:

  • The Padres, who are now 42-54, have decided they're sellers, Knobler writes. They will listen to offers for Chase Headley (who is eligible for free agency after next season), but Knobler suggests they're in no rush to deal him. Instead, they could deal Edinson Volquez and/or bullpen arms like Huston Street. 
  • The Orioles have already traded for Scott Feldman, and they might continue to be active on the trade market, but Knobler suggests their biggest addition might come from the promotion of Cuban outfielder Henry Urrutia, who is hitting .367/.406/.467 in his first 15 games at Triple-A Norfolk.
  • Knobler confirms that the Cardinals have talked to the Cubs about Matt Garza, and suggests that the two teams' front offices might not find the possibility of trading with one another quite as strange as some fans might. Knobler notes that the last significant deal between the rival squads occurred in 2002, when the Cubs sent Jeff Fassero to St. Louis.
  • Elsewhere, Knobler writes that the Marlins may be becoming less inclined to trade Giancarlo Stanton. The Marlins feel that they could improve quickly, and may want to wait to see how Stanton (who is only 23 and is not eligible for free agency until after the 2016 season) and their other top young players perform together. The Marlins will continue to shop relievers and older position players, but youngsters like Jose Fernandez, Jacob Turner and Marcell Ozuna evidently have the Marlins wondering whether they could join Stanton as part of the core of the next good Marlins team.

Padres Designate Pedro Ciriaco For Assignment

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The Padres announced via press release that infielder Pedro Ciriaco has been designated for assignment.

Ciriaco, 27, was acquired in June after being designated for assignment by the Red Sox. He appeared in 23 games for the Padres, playing mostly shortstop and hitting .238/.284/.333 in 68 plate appearances. The Padres now have 10 days to assign Ciriaco to the minors, trade him or release him.

The DFA comes as part of a flurry of moves in which San Diego also reinstated infielders Yonder Alonso and Jedd Gyorko from the 15-day DL and promoted pitcher Sean O’Sullivan from Triple-A Tucson. O’Sullivan, 25, will start tonight against the Giants. He has a 3.88 ERA in 102 Triple-A innings this year.

Padres Sign First-Rounder Hunter Renfroe

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TUESDAY, 2:04pm: The Padres have confirmed the signing via press release.

MONDAY, 9:39pm: The Padres will sign Renfroe for $2.678MM tomorrow, Baseball America's Jim Callis reports (Twitter link).  This bonus exactly matches Renfroe's assigned slot price.

4:57pm: The Padres are close to signing first-round draft pick Hunter Renfroe, as MLB.com's Corey Brock reports (via Twitter) that the Mississippi State outfielder is in San Diego today to take his physical.  Once the physical is passed and the deal is signed, Renfroe will report to the Padres' short-season A ball affiliate later this week.  Renfroe is advised by McKinnis Sports Management.

No terms of the deal are known, though the 13th overall pick carries an assigned slot value of $2.678MM.  The Padres have agreed to terms with the rest of their picks from the first 10 rounds and are roughly $83K under their assigned draft pool budget, so it's possible this extra money could be used to give Renfroe a slightly-above slot deal.  (Tip of the cap to Baseball America for the previous two links.)

Renfroe, 21, was originally a 31st-round pick for the Red Sox in the 2010 draft but he instead chose to attend Mississippi State and ended up improving his draft stock considerably.  Baseball America ranked Renfroe as the 11th-best prospect of the 2013 draft class, while ESPN's Keith Law ranked him 12th and MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo ranked him 28th.  Renfroe projects as a right fielder due to his strong throwing arm and plus speed.  The right-handed hatter has "outstanding raw power" according to MLB.com's scouting report and has "progressed tremendously at the plate" in college, though "there's still some swing and miss to his game."

Once Renfroe's deal is finalized, he will be the 29th of the 33 first-round picks from the 2013 draft to sign contracts.

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