Quick Hits: Beltran, Angels, Mercedes, Cruz
The Nationals reinstated Michael Morse from the disabled list today in a move that should help the team score a few more runs. Morse hit 31 homers and posted a .910 OPS last year, so he should help a Nationals offense that ranks 13th out of the 16 NL teams in scoring. Here are today's links…
- Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger reconstructs the trade that sent Carlos Beltran to San Francisco for Zack Wheeler in a must-read piece that includes the recollections of the baseball people who helped shape the deal.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle suggests the Giants are more likely to add bullpen or bench help than make a blockbuster move this summer (via Sulia).
- Angels GM Jerry Dipoto reflected on the season's first two months with Barry Bloom of MLB.com.
- Edgar Mercedes was arrested in the Dominican Republic on charges of smuggling Cuban players into the D.R., Ben Badler of Baseball America reports. However, a Dominican judge released Mercedes from jail without charges, Listin Diario reports (via Badler). Mercedes is a prominent trainer who represented players such as Yoenis Cespedes.
- The Pirates announced that they've activated Juan Cruz from the restricted list. They placed the right-hander on the restricted list earlier in the week.
NL West Notes: Kemp, Montero, Giants, Youkilis
Two of the NL West's biggest stars were sidelined today as Matt Kemp (left hamstring strain) and Troy Tulowitzki (strained left groin) were both placed on the 15-day disabled list. It's a particularly tough blow for Kemp, who had just returned on Tuesday from a DL stint due to the same injury.
Some other news from around the division….
- With the Diamondbacks making a $60MM commitment to Miguel Montero, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic looks at that deal's long-term impact on the Snakes' payroll.
- The Giants look like the clear winners of their offseason trades for Angel Pagan and Melky Cabrera, writes John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. Jonathan Sanchez and Andres Torres (who were sent to the Royals and Mets, respectively, in those trades) have both struggled, while Pagan and Cabrera have helped anchor the Giants' lineup.
- "I never think about that," Cabrera told MLB.com's Chris Haft and Jay Lee in regards to a possible in-season extension. "I leave that to my agents. They're they ones who know. I never think about contracts, just about staying focused on baseball." ESPN's Buster Olney reported earlier today that the two sides hadn't made progress on a new contract. Earlier this month, I examined what a possible Cabrera extension could cost the Giants.
- The Giants, Diamondbacks and Dodgers are among the teams interested in Kevin Youkilis, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Los Angeles might be the most intriguing of these three, as the Dodgers are looking for position player help and would be the most able to absorb Youkilis' salary thanks to their new ownership group. The Phillies and Indians have also been scouting the Red Sox infielder, while the Reds don't seem interested.
Quick Hits: Cabrera, Escobar, Astros
Links for Thursday, as we await a particularly light schedule of games…
- Melky Cabrera and the Giants haven’t made progress toward a long-term deal, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports wonders if the Blue Jays could trade Yunel Escobar when prospect Adeiny Hechavarria gets the call to the Major Leagues. The A’s, Mariners and Pirates could be positioned to trade pitching for Escobar, Morosi writes. Personally, I doubt the Blue Jays trade Escobar in the near future.
- Houston GM Jeff Luhnow told ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick that it'll take more than one draft to add talent throughout the Astros organization. "I feel like there's a lot of pressure to do it in one draft," Luhnow said. "That's not going to happen." The Astros have the first overall selection on Monday.
- Any bonus that exceeds $100K counts against a team’s bonus limit, even if it goes to a non-drafted free agent, Jim Callis of Baseball America tweets.
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.
Giants Won’t Rule Out Mid-Season Talks For Cabrera
Giants General Manager Brian Sabean said that the "stars would have to align" for the club to extend Melky Cabrera during the season, according to Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com (via Twitter). However, the GM wouldn't completely rule out the possibility either.
Cabrera, 27, recently told reporters that he's happy playing in San Francisco and could be open to mid-season contract talks. The outfielder is enjoying a strong start to the 2012 season, hitting .363/.409/.542 with three homers through 46 games.
The Giants already have $80MM committed to next year's payroll and with possible extensions for Tim Lincecum and Buster Posey looming, the club may not have a great deal of room to retain Cabrera. When and if the club sits down with Cabrera to hammer out a new deal, Sabean doesn't expect Adam Jones' impending six-year, $85MM extension to impact talks, Baggarly tweets.
Giants Notes: Melvin Mora, Orlando Hudson
The Giants signed Brad Penny to a minor league contract last night, bringing the right-hander back as possible bullpen help. Here is the latest news out of San Francisco…
- The Giants had one text conversation with Melvin Mora's agent according to Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter), but there was "absolutely no offer made." Mora recently told a Venezuelan newspaper that he had received offers from both the Giants and Reds.
- Baggarly says (on Twitter) there is no consensus within the organization about signing the recently released Orlando Hudson. The Giants infield is short at the moment, but Pablo Sandoval will return soon and the club expects to get Freddy Sanchez back from his shoulder problems at some point.
Giants Sign Brad Penny
SATURDAY: Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com reports that Penny will make the pro-rated portion of a $500K salary while with the big league team (Twitter links). He says the contract language is open-ended, but the target date to have Penny on the roster is May 30th.
FRIDAY: The Giants have signed Brad Penny to a minor league contract reports John Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). The Legacy Sports Group client will head to Extended Spring Training next week and is considered a bullpen candidate.
Penny, 33, threw for GM Brian Sabean, manager Bruce Bochy, and pitching coach Dave Righetti today according to Shea (on Twitter). The right-hander started the year with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks but requested his release after just one start. Penny pitched to a 5.30 ERA in 31 starts for the Tigers last season and spent the second half of 2009 with the Giants, posting a 2.59 ERA in six starts.
Stark On Myers, Phillies, Wang, Giants, Appel
There will be interleague games throughout most of the season, starting next year, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark reports. MLB will limit the number of interleague contests during the last five weeks of the season to ensure that most teams play within their own league down the stretch. Here are more of Stark’s rumors…
- Brett Myers told Stark he doesn’t want to be traded, but realizes it’s beyond his control. Though Myers doesn’t have a no-trade clause, he obtains a $500K bonus if dealt.
- The Phillies have “zero” interest in trading Cole Hamels or Shane Victorino, according to an executive who looked into the possibility of trading for the free agents to be. "They'd have to be really out of it to trade anybody,” the exec said.
- Some teams have expressed interest in rehabbing right-hander Chien-Ming Wang. The Nationals don’t seem interested in trading him, however.
- The Giants are sending signals that they’re in the market for a corner outfield bat, Stark reports. The Giants, who are also monitoring the infield market, may not have much selection since few power bats seem to be available.
- Rival teams believe the Astros are leaning toward selecting Stanford right-hander Mark Appel with the first overall selection in this June’s amateur draft. One person said Astros GM Jeff Luhnow seems to want to select someone close to the Major Leagues.
- The loss of pitching coach Dave Duncan entered into the Cardinals' thinking when they extended Yadier Molina earlier in the year, GM John Mozeliak told Stark. "With the fact that Dunc was gone, it was a subtle way of still keeping that same presence on our staff,” he said.
Giants Monitoring Infield Market
The Giants have “put out feelers” for players on the trade market, VP Bobby Evans told Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com. Baggarly suggests the Giants will take a hard look at Orlando Hudson, who will be a free agent once he clears release waivers.
The Padres released Hudson yesterday and despite his declining defensive and offensive skills, the switch-hitter could be a fit for the short-handed Giants. Emmanuel Burriss, Brandon Crawford, Joaquin Arias and Charlie Culberson are currently contributing for San Francisco with Freddy Sanchez, Pablo Sandoval and Ryan Theriot on the disabled list.
NL Links: Giants, Diamondbacks, Mets, DeWitt
The Padres placed Orlando Hudson on release waivers earlier today, and the veteran second baseman figures to draw some interest once he clears and becomes a free agent. Here's the latest from around the so-called Senior Circuit…
- Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com hears from a source that available infield options are "not great" and the Giants must remain patient with Charlie Culberson (Twitter link). Hudson could make sense for San Francisco, though that is just my speculation.
- Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers has spent the last few days with his staff looking over ways to improve his club, reports MLB.com's Steve Gilbert. "I can't tell you if there's going to a move or not," said the GM. "Maybe none, but we just kind of want to re-evaluate where we're at, and if there are any other options out there that might make us better and kind of spark the club a little bit."
- "The bullpen has been a frustration. There's no question about that," said Mets GM Sandy Alderson to reporters (including MLB.com's Spencer Fordin and Ethan Asofsky) after designating D.J. Carrasco for assignment last night. "At some point, you have to start making changes, and [this] was a step in that direction. It's not that we have outstanding candidates in the minor league system at this point. We've got some good candidates, but like a number of our other prospects, perhaps they're not ready to pitch at this level."
- Blake DeWitt accepted his outright assignment and will head to Triple-A tomorrow, reports Doug Padilla of ESPN Chicago. The Cubs designated DeWitt for assignment then outrighted him off the 40-man roster, but he could have refused the assignment and elected free agency.