Odds & Ends: Fukudome, Kemp, Lowell, Harang
Links for Friday, as the Rangers keep streaking…
- A few Cubs people told Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald that they're not trying to move Kosuke Fukudome as aggressively as it seems. The Cubs would still like to trade him, though.
- In a piece for the New York Times, Baseball-Reference creator Sean Forman says the Padres may be one above-average bat away from sustaining their surprisingly good start.
- Should the Dodgers trade Matt Kemp? Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports answers that question with a definite 'yes.'
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com reports that Mike Lowell's hip issues, which have landed him on the disabled list, prevented the completion of the deal that would have sent Lowell to Texas over the winter. Lowell tells Speier he knows his DL stint will hurt his trade value.
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer wonders if the Reds could trade Aaron Harang.
- The Padres need to add a bat, writes Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
- Check out my appearance on Bloomberg Sports' Ballpark Figures series right here.
- Joe Torre told Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times that he would have room for Robinson Cano on his all-time Yankees team (Twitter link). Torre also managed All-Star second basemen Chuck Knoblauch and Alfonso Soriano in the Bronx.
- Kevin Kernan of the New York Post says it's the Mets' turn to make a big mid-summer acquisition. Kernan would like to see the Mets bring Cliff Lee back to the NL East.
- A person close to Lee told Andy Martino of the New York Daily News that the lefty would not mind playing in New York.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post strongly endorses Bobby Valentine and Buck Showalter as managers. Sherman writes that the two skippers "are both fantastic at running a game" and would fit well in Florida and Baltimore, respectively.
Padres Interested In Starting Pitching
The Padres have allowed the fewest runs in the majors thanks to a strong rotation and a phenomenal bullpen, but they could pursue starting pitching next month, according to Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse. Krasovic hears that the 42-30 Padres are “extra interested” in potential free agents, since they’re confident those pitchers would want to re-sign in San Diego.
Orioles starter Jeremy Guthrie isn’t a potential free agent until after 2012, but he’s open to playing for the Padres.
"Yes, I'd love to play in San Diego," Guthrie, said, before saying that he won’t ask the Orioles for a trade. Guthrie says he loves Baltimore, but wouldn’t mind if Padres GM Jed Hoyer traded for him. The Padres front office wants to be careful with young starters Mat Latos, Wade LeBlanc and Clayton Richard, so they're interested in adding pitching depth. Veterans Kevin Correia and Jon Garland are also part of a Padres rotation that has combined for a 3.36 ERA in 2010.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Jenkins, Twins, Eveland
On this date 11 years ago, Orioles lefty Jesse Orosco set the Major League record for career relief appearances when he came into the 8th inning of a game against the Yankees to face Tino Martinez and Paul O'Neill. It was his 1,051st career appearance, surpassing Kent Tekulve's record. The then-42-year-old Orosco went on to pitch another four years after setting the mark, and retired with 1,252 career appearances, 74 more than anyone else.
Here are a few links from around the baseball blogosphere…
- 1 Blue Jays Way interviewed Jays' prospect Chad Jenkins.
- Nick's Twins Blog doesn't think Minnesota needs to add relievers from outside the organization.
- Pittsburgh Lumber Co. wonders what the Pirates were thinking when they acquired Dana Eveland.
- The Friarhood says it's time for the Padres to reinforce their lineup with a big bat.
- 6 Pound 8 Ounce Baby Joba tries to predict some upcoming transactions.
- Prospect Insider looks at some blocked prospects the Mariners could target in a trade this summer.
- Mets Paradise says Elmer Dessens has added a lot of depth to the Amazins' bullpen.
- Capital Avenue Club wonders who the odd man out of the Braves' rotation will be once Jair Jurrjens is healthy.
- Future Redbirds rounded up a bevy of prospect and draft reference links.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
The 12-Player Trade
Look, here at MLBTradeRumors, we treasure every transaction, from that second lefty who gets picked up on waivers to the free agent signing of that minor league slugger. But it is undeniable that some trades get us more excited than others, and it is a shame that MLBTR wasn't around back on December 28, 1994, when the Houston Astros and San Diego Padres exchanged 12, yes 12 players.
The Astros received the following players: Derek Bell, Doug Brocail, Ricky Gutierrez, Pedro Martinez (but not THE Pedro Martinez), Phil Plantier and Craig Shipley.
The Padres received, in return: Andujar Cedeno, Ken Caminiti, Steve Finley, Roberto Petagine, Brian Williams and Sean Fesh.
But while a simple 12-player swap is about the most exciting thing possible to people like us, there's so much more that may have made this the most complicated player swap in baseball history.
Consider that not only were 12 players involved, but 11 of them- all but Fesh- played in the big leagues.
Consider that of the six players San Diego traded, they re-acquired five of them, three of them within a calendar year.
Consider that of the six players Houston traded, they eventually re-acquired four of them.
And consider that Brad Ausmus, who was not in this deal, was eventually traded with two of the players above, one of them twice, in three separate deals.
Confused yet? Good. Now let's look at value. We'll start with what Houston got from their acquired players.
Derek Bell was an immediate star for the Astros, hitting .334/.385/.442 in his first season with Houston at age 26. Over six seasons, his OPS+ was 104 with Houston, and he drove in more than 100 runs twice.
Doug Brocail provided a couple of mediocre relief seasons before getting traded with Brad Ausmus to Detroit, then, four years later, getting traded with Brad Ausmus from Detroit. Brocail went on to pitch until 2009, making additional stops in both San Diego and Houston.
Ricky Gutierrez provided value, most of it defensively, in five seasons at second base, shortstop and third base before leaving via free agency. His final stop in the majors lasted 17 days for the 2006 Padres.
Phil Plaintier was only in Houston for a short time, but it was productive. He posted an OPS of .805 in 22 games before San Diego decided to re-acquire him in July 1995 for Rich Loiselle and Jeff Tabaka.
Pedro Martinez posted a 7.40 ERA in 20.2 innings with Houston, before the Padres re-acquired him, too, following the 1995 season. The price? Ray Holbert.
Craig Shipley played all four infield positions for the Astros in one season. After that year, he was signed, via free agency… by the Padres.
So there you have it: three players of value, especially Bell.
And yet, it appears that San Diego won. The simple reason is Ken Caminiti.
Caminiti was a dominant player in San Diego. In four seasons, he hit 121 home runs, won the MVP in 1996, three Gold Gloves and played on three All Star teams. His OPS+ for those four years? 146. After those four years, Caminiti signed as a free agent with… the Houston Astros.
Other players the Padres got included:
Andujar Cedeno, a shortstop whose offense fell dramatically after the trade. His OPS+ in his last Houston season: 100. In his first year with San Diego, it dropped to 55. Cedeno eventually got traded by the Padres to the Tigers with Brad Ausmus in a deal that did not involve Doug Brocail. Cedeno finished his career with a handful of plate appearances for… the Houston Astros.
Steve Finley, a Gold Glove center fielder on two occasions for San Diego, who hit 30 home runs in one season, 28 in another. After a .249/.301/.401 age-33 season, the Padres elected not to re-sign him- much to Arizona's delight, in retrospect.
Roberto Petagine, a minor league slugger who managed a .937 OPS in his minors, but just a .722 mark in the major leagues. However, this came on 438 plate apparances spread over seven seasons, so it is quite possible Petagine simply never got his chance.
Brian Williams, a middling middle reliever and occasional starter, who wasn't any better in San Diego (6.00 ERA) than he'd been in Houston (5.74 ERA). After stops in San Diego, Detroit and Baltimore, he signed again with… the Houston Astros.
And attention must be paid to Sean Fesh, the minor leaguer in the deal, who went on to pitch 17 seasons in the minor leagues, compiling an ERA of 3.33 in 849.2 innings. Naturally, he went on to spend another season later in his career back with the Astros.
All in all, December 28, 1994 was a glorious day in transaction history. We may never see the likes of it again.
Amateur Draft Signings: Tuesday
Here's the round-up of today's mass signings and individual agreements between teams and players from the 2010 Amateur Draft. The list of first-rounders and supplemental round picks to sign can be found here.
- Pittsburgh has signed 14th-rounder Bryce Weidman and 22nd-rounder Adalberto Santos, reports Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds have signed two more of their picks.
- Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times tweets that the Dodgers signed their second and seventh round selections — namely, right-hander Ralston Cash and right-hander Ryan Christenson.
- The Cubs agreed to terms with five draft picks today, according to a team press release. Third-rounder Micah Gibbs was the highest-drafted player amongst the new Cubs.
- Corey Brock of MLB.com tweets that the Padres signed fifth-round pick Rico Noel and eleventh-rounder Brian Guinn.
- A Padres team press release confirmed the signings of Noel and Guinn, and also announced that the club had agreed to terms with six other draft picks.
- Anthony Andro of the Dallas Morning News reports that Texas agreed to terms with sixth-rounder Brett Nicholas.
- According to an Angels press release, the team has signed second-rounder (81st overall) Daniel Tillman, a right-handed pitcher from Florida Southern College.
- Chris Sale passed his team physical and thus his contract with the White Sox was officially announced by the club today, via press release.
Odds & Ends: Grandal, Red Sox, Salazar, Rockies
A few links to check out while we wait to see if the Rays can avoid falling out of first place for the first time in nearly two months…
- The Reds have made initial contact with the representatives for Yasmani Grandal according to John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer. GM Walt Jocketty said they will continue talks this week with 2010's 12th overall draft pick.
- WEEI.com's Alex Speier mentions that when Felix Doubront started for the Red Sox last night, he became the first Latin American player signed and developed by the Theo Epstein regime to reach the big league. ESPN's Jorge Arangure mentions (via Twitter) the Boston hasn't had a homegrown Latin American position player since the early 1990's.
- Meanwhile, MLB.com's Peter Gammons says (via Twitter) that only two teams were willing to take Manny Ramirez off Boston's hands two years ago even if they footed the bill: the Marlins and Dodgers. The Red Sox's requests for Mike Stanton and Andre Ethier were met with "no thank yous."
- MLB.com's Corey Brock, Brittany Ghiroli, and Gina Mizeli spoke to Oscar Salazar, who reflected on the trade that send him from the Orioles to the Padres last year.
- The Rockies will look at the middle infield market, but ESPN's Buster Olney tweets they're likely to just ride out Troy Tulowitzki's absence with what they have in house. He does however mention that Dan Uggla is one name to watch.
- Both Jhonny Peralta and Kerry Wood offered up the stock "it's out of my control" response when asked about the possibility of being traded, according to Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain-Dealer.
- Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post says the idea of the Rockies' acquiring Cliff Lee is wishful thinking. The team would have to get back in the playoff race and show it can compete without Troy Tulowitzki before ownership would consider adding Lee's salary to the payroll.
- The Cardinals had interest in signing Ben Sheets this winter according to Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, but the righthander's price was too high. “If he wants to prove his value here, we’d have interest,” said manager Tony La Russa. “It turns out he had value that wasn’t going to work.”
Odds & Ends: Chipper, Cubs, Lowell, Mets, Tigers
Links for Thursday, as Ubaldo Jimenez keeps winning…
- Chipper Jones may have decided on his future; David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports (via Twitter) that the Braves will hold a press conference for Chipper at 5pm CST today.
- The Cubs seem close to signing first rounder Hayden Simpson, according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat.
- Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports that the Red Sox are not close to dealing Mike Lowell to the Rangers or Twins.
- The Red Sox want the Twins and Rangers to pick up salary in a Lowell deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The Twins and Rangers are still reluctant to pay much of the $7MM remaining on Lowell's contract.
- Pat Andriola of FanGraphs says Jake Westbrook could be a good fit for the Mets, who are looking for starting pitching.
- A Tigers official tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that things have been “quiet” on the trade front so far.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry told Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune that he has "no intention of firing Lou Piniella."
- Miguel Montero tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com that he was flattered by the interest Boston had in trading for him after the 2008 season. Speier hears that the Red Sox and D'Backs, who were never on the brink of a deal, were discussing a swap based around Michael Bowden or Daniel Bard.
- If you've ever wondered what it would be like to watch a game beside Padres GM Jed Hoyer, check out this profile by Tim Sullivan of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Within the piece we hear that Hoyer would like to make San Diego an especially appealing destination for pitchers.
- ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick examines the Padres' amazing pitching and points out that manager Bud Black and Hoyer were pitchers themselves.
Amateur Draft Signings: Wednesday
It's only been ten days since the draft, but teams are quickly coming to terms with their picks. Here are the latest updates on the deals you need to know about. You can track first rounders and their bonuses right here:
- The Red Sox made ten draft pick signings official, according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier.
- John Lowe of The Detroit Free Press reports that the Tigers have signed eighth round pick Pat Leyland, the son of manager Jim Leyland.
- The Padres signed 20 players, including second rounder Jedd Gyorko, according to the team.
- The White Sox signed second rounder Jacob Petricka, third rounders Addison Reed and Thomas Royse and 19 others, according to the team.
- The St. Louis Post-Dispatch lists the 33 picks the Cardinals have signed.
- The D'Backs signed 15 picks, including ninth rounder Zachary Walters, according to the Arizona Republic.
- The A's signed fifth rounder Tyler Vail and five others, according to the team.
- James Jahnke of the Detroit Free Press reports that ninth rounder Tony Plagman and 15 other picks agreed to terms with the Tigers today.
- Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports (via Twitter) that the Indians signed their 40th rounder and three undrafted free agents.
Amateur Draft Signings: Tuesday
We'll probably have to wait a little while for Bryce Harper, Manny Machado and Jameson Taillon to sign, but teams have agreed to deals with some of the players selected later on in the draft. The players listed below signed today. Click here for the list of picks to sign yesterday and here for the updated list of first rounders to sign:
- The Rangers signed four picks, reports ESPNDallas.com, including third-rounder Jordan Akins and fourth-rounder Drew Robinson.
- As reported earlier, Toronto signed 14 picks, including supplemental rounders Aaron Sanchez and Noah Syndergaard.
- Thirteenth-rounder Robby Price is the highest-drafted of the five Rays picks who signed today, reports Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
- Eight more Orioles picks have signed, says Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. Riley Hornback (12th round) is the highest selected of the new signees.
- The Brewers have signed fourth-rounder Hunter Morris and two other draft picks, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- LoHud.com's Chad Jennings reports that the Yankees have signed 13 picks, with eight-rounder Kyle Roller the highest-drafted of the bunch.
- The Padres signed second rounder Jedd Gyorko and fourth rounder Chris Bisson pending physicals, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock (via Twitter).
- The Royals signed seven more draft picks, including eighth rounder Michael Mariot.
- The Pirates signed six late round selections, according to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter).
Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post.
Padres Reluctant To Deal Pitching Depth
The Padres are reluctant to deal from apparent pitching depth, even though it may be the easiest way to acquire the bats they clearly need. Padres GM Jed Hoyer admitted to Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune that the club needs offense, but explained that he's uneasy trading pitchers.
“Pitching depth can evaporate faster than anyone can imagine," Hoyer said. "I’m not ruling anything out, but you have to be careful when you start trading your quote-unquote ‘pitching depth.’"
When Hoyer was in the Boston front office last year, the Red Sox appeared to have more arms than they needed. But Brad Penny and John Smoltz disappointed and the club's depth disappeared. Sometimes a team truly has enough pitching to trade from depth (the 2010 Braves come to mind) but most clubs don't find themselves in that position.
“Everybody wants pitching depth," Hoyer said. "I’d rather have pitching depth than bring in one more bat that may not help us in the long run. I’m not saying I won’t do it, but it’s risky."
No winning team has scored fewer runs than the Padres this year, but they have the best run prevention in all of baseball. The team's starters have a 3.26 ERA, and the bullpen (2.66 ERA) may be more impressive. Mike Adams, Heath Bell, Luke Gregerson, Edward Mujica, Joe Thatcher and Ryan Webb have been a dominant group. Relievers like that could help Hoyer find a bat if the Padres decide they can sacrifice some pitching depth.