Padres To Designate Matt Palmer For Assignment
We'll keep track of the day's minor moves here…
- The Padres will designate right-hander Matt Palmer for assignment prior to Tuesday's game against the Giants, tweets Dan Hayes of the North County Times. The move will allow the club to activate Huston Street off the disabled list on Tuesday. Palmer, 33, had struggled in three relief appearances with San Diego after having his contract selected from Triple-A Tucson on May 20.
Draft Notes: Phillies, White Sox, Brewers, Nationals
The first round of the MLB draft takes place tomorrow night. Here are the latest notes on the draft:
- The Phillies intend to spend their entire draft pool of $4.9MM on their first ten picks and will draft a position player early, Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes.
- White Sox scouting director Doug Laumann told the Chicago Tribune's Dave Van Dyck he doesn't expect to find an immediate impact player in the draft. “It’s probably as thin as I've seen in a decade,” Laumann said. “We see that it's pretty thin right now in the college ranks."
- Brewers amateur scouting director Bruce Seid doesn't think there much of a talent dropoff after the first ten picks, according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. The Brewers have the 27th, 28th, and 38th selections.
- Nationals GM Mike Rizzo isn't letting the new CBA impact his draft strategy, says MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- The Padres will keep an eye out for shortstops in the draft, says Corey Brock of MLB.com.
- The Astros have the first overall pick in the draft for the first time in 20 years. MLB.com's Brian McTaggart recalls how that missed pick (Phil Nevin) affected the franchise.
Padres Designate Jeff Suppan For Assignment
The Padres have designated right-hander Jeff Suppan for assignment, according to a team press release. The move will allow the club to recall catcher Yasmani Grandal from Triple-A Tucson.
Suppan, 37, has a 5.28 ERA with 2.1 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in 30.2 innings of work this season. The veteran inked a minor league deal with San Diego in February in a deal that paid just $950K for his promotion to the varsity roster. Suppan spent 2011 with the Royals' Triple-A affiliate where he posted a 4.78 ERA with 5.1 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9.
Heyman On Brewers, Liriano, Castro
Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com lists 45 potential trade candidates in anticipation of this summer’s deals. Here are some highlights, starting with a team that could be a buyer, rather than a seller:
- One GM questions Zack Greinke’s ability to thrive in major markets. Keep in mind that Brewers owner Mark Attanasio has a buyer’s mindset as the deadline approaches. Greinke and others on Milwaukee’s roster may not be available.
- Fellow Brewers starter Shaun Marcum is no better than a fourth starter in the American League, according to a GM. It's worth noting that Marcum posted a 3.85 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in five seasons in the American League East when he pitched for the Blue Jays.
- An American League executive said Padres starter Edinson Volquez “has good value,” Heyman reports.
- One person said Twins left-hander Francisco Liriano is worth a short-term look.
- Royals GM Dayton Moore may like Jeff Francoeur more than any other team does.
- Jeremy Guthrie will have to string together some quality outings to restore his trade value, one executive said.
- Heyman hears from a Cubs official who says the team hasn't mentioned Starlin Castro's name in trade talks (Twitter link). The Cubs appear to be willing to listen on most of their players, including Castro.
Trade Candidate: Carlos Quentin
If Carlos Quentin keeps hitting and the 17-35 Padres continue struggling, contending teams figure to call about the left fielder this summer. In a trade market that seemingly features little power, Quentin’s right-handed bat will have considerable value.
The 29-year-old recently returned to the Padres’ lineup after missing nearly two months to recover from arthroscopic knee surgery. So far, the results have been remarkable. He has seven hits, including three home runs, in 12 trips to the plate. It’s a small sample, of course, but in more than 2400 career plate appearances the two-time All-Star has a .254/.347/.496 batting line. In other words, Quentin offers an attractive combination of on-base skills and power as a hitter. On defense, he’s sure-handed and has decent range with a below-average throwing arm, according to The Fielding Bible Volume III.
Quentin will earn $7.03MM this season before hitting free agency. Similar players — think Josh Willingham, Jason Kubel and Luke Scott — are worth $6-8MM on the free agent market, which means a qualifying offer in the $12-3MM range seems highly unlikely. The Padres won’t be getting draft picks for Quentin, so a trade appears to be the only way for the team to obtain a long-term asset for the left fielder.
When GM Josh Byrnes acquired Quentin last December, he sent minor league left-hander Pedro Hernandez and right-hander Simon Castro, a former top-100 prospect, to the White Sox. The Padres may be able to acquire better prospects if Quentin’s knee holds up and his bat returns to form. As I mentioned before, there doesn’t seem to be much power on the trade market (Alfonso Soriano could probably be had, but he earns $18MM in 2013 and 2014, which makes things messy). And it could take a while for bats to become available because more teams than ever are within striking distance of a playoff berth.
Once Quentin plays enough to show he is healthy, Byrnes could make him available and wait for other teams to start making offers. The Indians, Orioles and Dodgers are among the teams that might have interest in adding a right-handed hitting outfielder with power in the next eight weeks. If Quentin is healthy the Padres may come out ahead this summer and trade him for better prospects than the ones they surrendered to acquire him.
Photo courtesy of US Presswire. I discussed Quentin and the Padres yesterday on XTRA Sports 1360 in San Diego.
Padres To Sign Jason Marquis
The Padres will sign Jason Marquis to a minor league contract, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). San Diego has four starters on the disabled list and needs to replace the depth. He's an ACES client.
Marquis, 33, posted an 8.47 ERA with more walks (14) than strikeouts (12) in seven starts and 34 innings for Minnesota this season, but just last year he pitched to a 4.43 ERA in 132 innings for the Nationals and Diamondbacks. The Padres only have to pay Marquis the pro-rated portion of the $480K league minimum with the Twins picking up the rest of his $3MM salary.
Cory Luebke (Tommy John surgery) and Dustin Moseley (shoulder surgery) are both out for the season while Joe Wieland and Tim Stauffer are expected back from their elbow issues sometime this summer.
NL West Notes: Abreu, Dodgers, Padres, Giants
The Dodgers are sitting atop the National League West with a 32-15 record but have reason to worry with Ted Lilly sidelined due a shoulder injury. Just as the left-hander hit the 15-day disabled list, we heard tonight that the club has put an offer out to Roy Oswalt. Here's more out of the NL West..
- Newly-acquired Bobby Abreu may not have been a great locker room influence with the Angels, but the veteran has provided tremendous veteran leadership with the Dodgers, write Ken Gurnick of Alex Angert of MLB.com. Dodgers skipper Don Mattingly noted that the club was excited about picking up Abreu but didn't anticipate him playing as much as he has been.
- Three years after resisting the ownership overtures of Jeff Moorad, Phil Mickelson is joining forces with the O'Malley family in an effort to buy the Padres, writes Tim Sullivan of the San Diego Union-Tribune. If the group is successful, second-leading money-winner in professional golf history says that he hopes to get Tony Gwynn involved.
- Barry Bonds hopes to return to the Giants in some coaching capacity, writes MLB.com's Chris Haft. Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets that the club plans to bring him back into the organization once his legal proceedings are through.
Padres Seriously Considering Jason Marquis
The Padres have four starting pitchers on the disabled list at the moment, which is why they are "giving serious thought" to signing Jason Marquis according to Joe Christensen of The Star Tribune. The right-hander was both designated for assignment and released by the Twins within the last week.
Marquis, 33, posted an 8.47 ERA with more walks (14) than strikeouts (12) in seven starts and 34 innings for Minnesota this season, but just last year he pitched to a 4.43 ERA in 132 innings for the Nationals and Diamondbacks. Any team that signs Marquis will only be responsible for the pro-rated portion of the $480K league minimum with the Twins picking up the rest of his $3MM salary.
Cory Luebke (Tommy John surgery) and Dustin Moseley (shoulder surgery) are both out for the season while Joe Wieland and Tim Stauffer are expected back from their elbow issues sometime this summer.
This post was originally published on May 29th.
Padres Claim Neil Wagner
The Padres announced that they have claimed right-hander Neil Wagner off of waivers from the Athletics. The Padres optioned Wagner to Triple-A and moved James Darnell to the 60-day disabled list in related moves.
Wagner, 28, made his MLB debut last year, pitching out of the Athletics' bullpen six times. He has been pitching at Triple-A Sacramento this year and has a 5.49 ERA with 11.0 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 19 2/3 innings. He has a 3.58 ERA with 10.6 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in seven minor league seasons.
Quick Hits: McLouth, Padres, Oswalt, Hamilton
It's never a good sign for a team when its catcher has the game's best pitching line. Jeff Mathis' scoreless inning of mop-up work made him the only Blue Jay hurler to not allow a run in the Rangers' 14-3 drubbing of the Jays. Nelson Cruz swung the hottest Texas bat, going 4-for-5 with a home run and eight RBIs.
Here's some more news from around the majors…
- The Angels have "no real interest" in Nate McLouth, reports MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez (Twitter link). McLouth was designated for assignment by the Pirates earlier today.
- Major League Baseball has given approval for three ownership groups to review the Padres' financial records as a step towards possibly buying the team, reports MLB.com's Barry M. Bloom. The groups are respectively headed by Thomas Tull, Peter O'Malley and Steve Cohen. Tony Gwynn is affiliated with Tull's group, while O'Malley and Cohen also recently bid to buy the Dodgers.
- Roy Oswalt needs to show some compromise if he really wants to pitch for the Rangers, writes Evan P. Grant for the Dallas Morning News (subscription required).
- The Rangers should be willing to pay Josh Hamilton $180MM+ to keep him from leaving as a free agent, opines Randy Galloway of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "You don't let immense talent walk. Immense talent always stays. Even if you overpay, immense talent, the best talent in baseball, stays — warts, demons and all," Galloway says.
- Juan Carlos Oviedo has received his visa and will arrive at the Marlins' minor league headquarters on Monday, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Oviedo and his representatives have not decided if they will appeal Oviedo's eight-week suspension for playing under a false identity as Leo Nunez.
- The week's minor league transactions are recapped by Matt Eddy of Baseball America.