Giants Haven’t Contacted Other Teams About Catchers
Giants GM Brian Sabean said he hasn't contacted any other clubs about finding a replacement behind the plate for Buster Posey, though several teams have made contact with him, reports Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News. For now, Sabean said the Giants are content to give backup catcher Eli Whiteside a chance to prove himself as an everyday player.
"[Whiteside has] been around the block," Sabean said. "And quite frankly, I don’t think anyone will trade us a catcher who’s any better than Whiteside. If someone is an all-around catcher, you’re not going to get that player in a trade."
Whiteside, 31, has been the backup in San Francisco for the last three seasons and has a career slash line of .229/.281/.363 in 316 plate appearances. While Whiteside's numbers aren't impressive, Sabean has a point about the shallow catching market and the lack of clear upgrades available. Washington is one of the few teams with catching depth, and the Giants reportedly contacted the Nationals about Ivan Rodriguez. As Baggarly notes, it may have been the Nats who made first contact if Sabean indeed hasn't made any calls.
Mets Notes: Wright, Alderson, Giants, Fossum
In the wake of Fred Wilpon's already-infamous New Yorker interview, David Wright tells Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link) that he wants to "close the book" on the incident, and that Wilpon contacted him to say that he "misspoke." Wright also seems to have a sense of humor about the situation, saying "My parents texted me and told me I was their superstar." (Quote from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports).
Some other news from the Mets camp….
- In light of Wilpon’s comments, Joel Sherman of the New York Post asks whether Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes should care for anything but “padding their free-agent resumes” at this point. Sherman also says Wright has been handed an opportunity to step down from his unofficial position as team spokesman.
- GM Sandy Alderson said he hasn't spoken to Wright, Beltran or Reyes about Wilpon's statements, reports Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com. “They’re professionals, and things happen from time to time and they’re able to take that in stride,” Alderson said. “I don’t think this has been a major issue for them." The link also contains Alderson's thoughts on next season's payroll and his first impressions of new Mets minority owner David Einhorn.
- The Giants need a big bat more than ever in the wake of Buster Posey's season-ending injury, but a source tells Andy Martino of the New York Daily News (Twitter link) that San Francisco hasn't been in contact with the Mets about any of their available hitters.
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Casey Fossum is "not inclined to pitch right now" and has been placed on the restricted list at the Mets' Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo, reports Adam Rubin. (Twitter link) Despite this, the veteran southpaw has no plans to retire, and Buffalo manager Tim Teufel said that Fossum is trying to "reinvent himself" (via the Twitter feed of The Buffalo News' Mike Harrington). Fossum, who last pitched in the majors in 2009 and pitched in Japan last season, signed a minor league deal with the Mets in February. He has a 6.56 ERA in nine games (six of them starts) with Buffalo this year.
MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith also contributed to this post
Stark On Giants, Padres, Pence
Now that Buster Posey is on the disabled list for the foreseeable future, the Giants are looking around for catching, according to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark. Ivan Rodriguez, a player the Giants have asked about, and Bengie Molina, a player who would like to return to San Francisco, are the team’s most viable options at this point. Here are the details from Stark, plus other notes from around the league:
- The Nationals have been shopping Rodriguez since Spring Training and one executive says they would love to move him.
- The Padres are starting to give indications that they’ll be willing to move Heath Bell, Ryan Ludwick and Chad Qualls in a few weeks.
- However, rival teams say the Padres are “not motivated” to talk about players who are under control through 2012 or later, such as reliever Mike Adams.
- The Astros keep saying that they imagine Hunter Pence on Houston’s next winning team, which would presumably make him difficult to obtain this summer.
Quick Hits: Gonzalez, Cardinals, Posey
On this date in 1968, MLB announced two new expansion teams: the Montreal Expos and the San Diego Padres. The Expos’ ancestors (the Nationals) and the Padres occupy last place in their respective divisions this year. Here’s the latest from the Major Leagues:
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports hears that the Tigers kicked around the idea of trading for Adrian Gonzalez when he was with the Rangers in 2004-05 (Twitter link). However, talks never got very far and the Rangers dealt the first baseman to San Diego.
- A rival GM told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that he expects the Cardinals to make a “major push” to acquire talent this summer, since this could be St. Louis’ last playoff run with Albert Pujols.
- Giants catcher Buster Posey would be “infinitely safer” at first base because he’d stay fresher, according to Gwen Knapp of the San Francisco Chronicle (she acknowledges that Posey adds plenty of value as a catcher).
- An NL executive who could benefit from Posey’s absence was rattled by the catcher's injury because he's good for baseball, according to EPSN.com’s Buster Olney.
Heyman On Sandoval, Mets, Dodgers, Rangers
Pablo Sandoval has catching experience, but the Giants won’t attempt to re-position him behind the plate when he returns from the disabled list, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. Here’s Heyman’s latest from around the league:
- Mets minority owner David Einhorn is expected to have a say in major team decisions, though he won’t have the final call. If the Wilpons have to sell the team, Einhorn will have the first opportunity to buy it.
- The Dodgers have not explored possible trades for Andre Ethier or Matt Kemp and rival teams haven’t called to express interest in the outfielders, according to Heyman. The Dodgers would like to lock both up long-term instead of allowing them to hit the open market after next year.
- One Dodger who won’t be getting a long-term contract offer: James Loney. The first baseman is a likely non-tender after the season, according to executives around the league.
- The Rangers are looking for a reliever and would prefer a right-hander. Heyman hears they’ll consider Francisco Rodriguez of the Mets.
- The Cubs don’t plan to exercise Aramis Ramirez’s $16MM option for 2012, according to Heyman.
Molina Open To Return With Giants
Free agent catcher Bengie Molina told Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News that he could catch for the Giants, who are without 2010 Rookie of the Year Buster Posey for an extended period of time. Molina hasn’t played since last year, so he wouldn’t expect to be placed on the Giants roster without getting into playing shape first.
"If I get it in my mind to do this, I would go,” Molina said. “If they need me and want me and they ask me to spend two weeks in the minors, I'd do it. Do I expect them to ask? I'd love to say yes, they will, but I don't think so because of the way things happened at the end."
As Baggarly explains, Molina had critical comments for Giants general manager Brian Sabean after the GM commented publicly on his decision to deal the catcher last summer. The Giants have already inquired on Ivan Rodriguez of the Nationals, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Nationals Notes: Harper, Rodriguez, Werth
The latest on the Nationals, who rest today before hosting the last-place Padres this weekend…
- Top prospect Bryce Harper is hitting his way through the South Atlantic League with the help of his coaches and teammates and as Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com writes, last year's number one pick is just beginning his baseball odyssey.
- As Adam Kilgore points out at the Washington Post, Ivan Rodriguez could appeal to the Giants, who lost Buster Posey to the disabled list, possibly for the rest of the season. The Nationals are one of few teams with catching depth to spare.
- Jayson Werth, who signed a $126MM contract with Washington over the winter, has raised his OPS above .800 for the first time since April 14th and he tells Kilgore that he's feeling good. “I’m working in the right direction," he said. "I’m hitting balls hard, and I’ve got some confidence. I like where I’m at.”
Giants Designate Rohlinger, Sosa For Assignment
The Giants announced that they have designated Ryan Rohlinger and Henry Sosa for assignment to create 40-man roster space for Brandon Crawford and Chris Stewart (Twitter links). In related moves, the Giants called up Brandon Belt, placed Mike Fontenot on the disabled list with a groin strain, placed Darren Ford on the DL with an ankle sprain and placed Buster Posey on the DL with a fractured bone in his lower left leg.
Rohlinger, 27, appeared in one game with the Giants this year, but he has spent most of his season at Triple-A Fresno, where he has a .174/.294/.331 line with more walks (19) than strikeouts (14) in 144 plate appearances. Sosa, who is also at Triple-A, has a 10.41 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 6.6 BB/9 in 23 1/3 innings this year. The 25-year-old was more effective at Fresno last year, when he posted a 4.07 ERA in 115 frames as a swingman.
Bay Area Notes: Geren, Posey, Molina
Oakland's manager recently faced criticism from current and former relievers and San Francisco catcher Buster Posey suffered an apparently serious leg injury last night. Here's the latest from the Bay Area…
- A's owner Lew Wolff told MLB.com's Jane Lee that manager Bob Geren is "fantastic" and said he likes "the way he deals with everyone." The manager recently faced criticism from relievers Brian Fuentes and Huston Street.
- If Posey is out for an extended period of time, the Giants will have few alternatives, according to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney. There’s not much catching available other than Bengie Molina, who has expressed a reluctance to prepare for the season in the minor leagues.
- Olney says it’s not worth it for catchers to risk injury by blocking the plate when one run isn’t going to make or break a 162-game season.
NL West Notes: Rizzo, De La Rosa, D’Backs
Giants catcher Buster Posey appeared to suffer a serious leg injury while blocking the plate in extra innings last night. Posey's agent, Jeff Berry, says he's going to call Joe Torre about changing rules for plays at the plate to make collisions safer for catchers, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney. "It's brutal," Berry said. "It's borderline shocking. It just stinks for baseball." Here are some other notes from the NL West:
- Padres GM Jed Hoyer told Bill Center of of the San Diego Union-Tribune that top first base prospect Anthony Rizzo is "not yet" ready for the Major Leagues. The Padres want Rizzo to stay in the Majors once he arrives, so "the timing and situation has to be right."
- Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd told Dave Krieger of the Denver Post that he has the financial freedom to make a trade. "I have some flexibility that we saved for opportunities that may come up," O'Dowd said. "It would be hard to do multiple things, so we're probably going to have to prioritize what that is if something should come available." Though the Rockies aren't about to make a sudden move, they'll keep talking to teams about possible deals.
- The Rockies will call on internal options to replace Jorge de la Rosa, who will miss the rest of the season with Tommy John surgery, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Rockies owner Dick Monfort says the team didn't have insurance on the left-hander's contract.
- The D'Backs continue to eye other teams' arms as they look to bolster their Triple-A pitching depth, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.