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Odds & Ends: White Sox, Lewis, Oswalt, Mets, Lee

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Links for Saturday..

  • White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter) that the team has the financial freedom to add pieces, though he added the team  "might be good enough the way it is".  Meanwhile, Reinsdorf said that GM Kenny Williams has the power to fire the manager, though that isn't in his plans, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.
  • Fred Lewis told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that his improved performance in Toronto isn't a result of a change of scenery.  Lewis is OPSing .799 for the Blue Jays, a marked improvement over his OPS of .738 for the Giants in 2009.
  • ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter) wonders aloud if Nolan Ryan's recent comments regarding Roy Oswalt could be considered tampering.
  • Ken Davidoff of Newsday tweets that a Mets scout was on hand to watch Lee last night, though it was said to be part of "normal coverage".
  • Joel Sherman of The New York Post says that despite all the talk about Cliff Lee, the Yankees might need to fixate on adding a bat between now and the trade deadline.
  • Speaking of Lee, Ryan Divish of The News Tribune mentions that the lefty shrugs off all the trade talk. “It’s out of my control,” said Lee. “That’s a better question for Jack [Zduriencik]. He’s the one who makes those decisions, but I don’t.”
  • The Astros are pleased with how negotiations with top draft pick Delino DeShields Jr. are going, reports Bernardo Fallas of The Houston Chronicle. Houston selected DeShields with the eighth overall pick last week.
  • Daric Barton told Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he's grateful for being included in the Mark Mulder trade because it created an opportunity for him. "For me, it was probably the best move that could have happened to me," said Barton. "I was catching then and (Yadier Molina) was back there then, and some guy by the name of (Albert) Pujols was at first. Obviously, I could never fill his shoes."

Rosenthal On Twins, Lee, Dodgers, Nats

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Let's dive into the latest edition of Full Count from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..

  • A major league GM told Rosenthal that he expects the Twins to be the most active team at the deadline.  While many in the industry expect the club to be players for Cliff Lee, their officials are telling teams that they have other priorities.  Their greater need is at third base while they may also shop for bullpen help.  However, the Twins are in a very strong financial position as they had insurance on Joe Nathan's contract.  If they can recover half of that deal, they'll take in $5.6MM.  On top of that, the box office numbers in their new home, Target Field, are very solid.
  • Speaking of Lee, Seattle is telling clubs that they want young hitters in return for the ace.  It's a desire that could be a hurdle for several interested clubs.  The Mets, for example, wouldn't part with Ike Davis in order to land the hurler on a rental.  Meanwhile, the Dodgers wouldn't want to give up Matt Kemp or James Loney. 
  • Rosenthal adds that the Dodgers may have a hard time landing the elite starter that they seek.  The Astros are looking for financial relief and top prospects in return for Roy Oswalt.  Pulling off a deal for Dan Haren of the Diamondbacks could prove to be difficult as Arizona likely doesn't want to trade him within the division.
  • Nats GM Mike Rizzo told Rosenthal that the team could be both buyers and sellers at the trade deadline.  Rizzo says he's under no orders to trim payroll and could take on salary if it meant taking on a long-term asset.  Right now, the Nats have five starters on the disabled list, including Jordan Zimmermann.  Once he comes back, the club will have two young power pitchers and more depth to work with.
  • If the Rockies make a move to fill the void at shortstop after losing Troy Tulowitzki to injury, they might only sign someone like Adam Everett to serve as insurance in Triple A.

Olney’s Latest: Rockies, Lee, Diamondbacks, Royals

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In today's blog post at ESPN, Buster Olney speculates about some possible trade targets for the Rockies now that Troy Tulowitzki is going to miss the next six to eight weeks with a fractured wrist. Among those mentioned: Dan Uggla, Craig Counsell, Julio Lugo, and Cesar Izturis. Uggla would obviously be the most expensive, but Colorado would boast a dynamic offensive middle infield once Tulo returns.

Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…

  • Sources tell Olney there is no clear signal from the Mariners indicating that they're ready to trade Cliff Lee, but presumably that will come soon. He compares a potential Lee trade to the CC Sabathia trade, meaning that the sooner he's dealt, the more Seattle will receive in return.
  • The Diamondbacks continue to gather intel about possible trades, but they are not close to making another deal at the moment.
  • The Royals have a pair of outfielders in Rick Ankiel and David DeJesus who could be fits for the Red Sox. J.D. Drew suffered a hamstring injury yesterday, and Boston was already without Jacoby Ellsbury and Jeremy Hermida, who are both on the disabled list. Mike Cameron is playing through an abdominal tear as well.

Amateur Draft Signings: Friday

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Here are the updates on which picks have signed with the clubs that selected them in last week's draft. Keep tabs on which first rounders and sandwich picks have signed by checking out our detailed breakdown.

  • Top selections that were locked up today: Cito Culver signed with the Yankees, Taijuan Walker agreed to terms with the Mariners, and the Rangers signed Mike Olt.
  • In addition to reaching an agreement with Walker, the Mariners signed ninth-rounder Luke Taylor and nine other players. The M's have now locked up 28 of their 50 selections, per a team release.
  • The Diamondbacks signed two of their top three picks, according to Steve Gilbert of MLB.com (via Twitter). Right-handed pitchers James Bradley (56th overall) and Robert Rowland (88th) signed with the D'Backs. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic tweets the financial details.
  • MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reports that the Pirates also agreed to terms with a pair of right-handed arms, fifth-round pick Tyler Waldron and 12th-rounder Vincent Payne.
  • The Orioles agreed to terms with their fourth-round pick, writes Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun.
  • The Giants signed eight draft picks, according to the team's official transactions page.

Odds & Ends: Oswalt, Reds, Lowell, Lopez

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Links for Friday night, as Barack Obama takes in a Nationals/White Sox game….

  • Nolan Ryan confirms rumblings we've been hearing for a few weeks now, telling Brian McTaggart of MLB.com that the Rangers are interested in Roy Oswalt.
  • Reds GM Walt Jocketty tells MLB.com's Mark Sheldon that his club is considering available pitching options, but that he doesn't know "how many bullets we're going to have, so we'll have to be careful how we use them."
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports clarifies (via Twitter) that the Red Sox are willing to pay all of Mike Lowell's salary in a potential trade, but would like a better prospect in return in that case. The Twins and Rangers aren't budging so far.
  • FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi tweets that, unsurprisingly, there isn't much trade interest in Jose Lopez.
  • Jamie Moyer's son Dillon Moyer doesn't know whether or not he'll sign with Minnesota after the Twins drafted him in the 22nd round last week, according to Zach Schonbrun of MLB.com.
  • ESPN.com's Rob Neyer thinks that whatever offense the Angels gain by playing Mike Napoli at first base is negated by playing Jeff Mathis behind the plate every day. The Angels are playing Napoli at first for now, rather than acquiring another impact bat.

Mariners Agree To Terms With Taijuan Walker

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The Mariners agreed to terms with supplemental rounder Taijuan Walker, according to the team. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds (via Twitter) that Walker will receive a bonus of $800K. Soon after the Mariners selected Walker with the 43rd overall pick in the draft, it became apparent that he would sign before long. The high school right-hander told reporters that he wanted to get started right away.

Mariners amateur scouting director Tom McNamara said in a prepared statement that Walker has an "above-average fastball and a high ceiling," potentially as a "top-of-the-rotation type of pitcher." Baseball America ranked Walker 70th among draft-eligible players and noted that he has "taken off" since he began focusing on his pitching.

Walker becomes the ninth player drafted in the supplemental round to come to terms with his team; you can check out the complete list here.

Odds & Ends: Aybar, Haren, Hughes, Jackson

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Links for Friday, before the Subway Series, Stephen Strasburg's third MLB start and Manny Ramirez's return to Fenway…

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Lee, Orioles, Gomes, Loewen

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On this date back in 1996, catcher Chris Anderson delivered a run scoring single for the Hudson Valley Renegades of the short season New York-Penn League. It was the first hit ever recorded by a member of the then-Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization. Anderson was the team's 66th round draft pick that year, but he never made it out of A-ball and hit just .170/.236/.298 in 432 plate appearances before calling it a career in 1999. Every team starts somewhere.

Here are a few links from the baseball blogosphere…

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

Rangers Inquiring On Starting Pitching

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The Rangers have called the Mariners to inquire about the availability of Cliff Lee, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Citing industry sources, Sullivan reports that the Mariners are one of many teams the Rangers have contacted in their search for starting pitching.

Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine confirms the team's interest in making a deal, while reiterating that nothing is imminent:

"We've had some preliminary discussions with clubs…. But to compel teams to move this far ahead of the [July 31st] trade deadline, it would take a very attractive package. We're still in the inventory stage and the information-gathering stage rather than the execution phase."

We heard earlier today that the Mariners have received a few calls from teams interested in Lee, but that the M's aren't ready yet to consider trading away their ace. According to Sullivan, the Rangers pursued the left-hander aggressively last summer as well, before the Indians traded him to Philadelphia.

Texas has also frequently been linked to the Roy Oswalt sweepstakes lately, though SI.com's Jon Heyman said earlier this week that acquiring the Astros' ace looks like an "extreme long shot." Still, it looks as though the Rangers hope to add a major piece to their starting rotation, if it's financially possible.

Teams Are Calling About Cliff Lee

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GM Jack Zduriencik told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that teams are calling the Mariners to see if Cliff Lee is available. Those clubs see the Mariners’ 25-41 record and hope that they’re ready to sell, but that’s not how Zduriencik sees it.

“I say, ‘Look, I appreciate the phone call, but what we’re trying to do is get back in this thing,’” Zduriencik said.

The M’s are in last place in the AL West, 12.5 games out of a playoff spot, but Zduriencik has not taken names of potential trade targets from other teams. He says he’s not going to “wave the white flag just yet,” but knows that a number of teams will want to chat if that changes.

Lee, 32 in August, has a 2.88 ERA in nine starts since returning from an abdominal injury. He has 7.9 K/9 and a stingy 0.5 BB/9 in 68.2 innings. His $9MM salary is a bargain and he projects as a Type A free agent after the season. That means his team will get two top picks if Lee turns down arbitration to sign elsewhere. Offering arbitration is risky in some cases, but Lee will almost certainly turn it down.

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