Mariners Release Joe Nelson
The Mariners released Joe Nelson, according to the transactions page for the Pacific Coast League. The Mariners signed Nelson in June and stashed the 35-year-old in Triple A after the Red Sox designated him for assignment.
Nelson had a 9.72 ERA in 8.1 big league innings this year, walking six and striking out nine. The 35-year-old has often posted high strikeout and walk rates in his MLB career and that trend didn't stop in the Mariners organization. The right-hander struck out a batter per inning at Triple A Tacoma, but allowed ten hits in eight innings, walking seven for a 6.75 ERA.
Odds & Ends: Cubs, Phillies, White Sox, Tigers, Lilly
Links for Saturday evening..
- The Cubs signed second-round selection Reggie Golden for a bonus of $720K, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America. Golden, the 65th overall pick in the draft, received a bonus $157K more than MLB's recommendation for his draft position.
- Scouts from the Astros, Tigers, Rays, Red Sox, and Pirates were all in attendance at Phillies-Rockies today, tweets Jayson Stark of ESPN.
- During FOX's telecast of Mets-Dodgers, Ken Rosenthal reported that the Phillies have scratched Double-A starter J.C. Ramirez from his Sunday start, though he is not injured. The move, he says, could be an indication that a trade is in the works.
- White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen thinks clubs are asking for too much in trade talks, writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- Tigers manager Jim Leyland wants to hang on to his young talent unless the club can get something special in return, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
- Despite some recent reports to the contrary, Cubs officials told Carrie Muskat of MLB.com that there is nothing imminent regarding Ted Lilly.
- The Mets are "near-certain" to non-tender John Maine this winter, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. The right-hander underwent season-ending surgery on his right shoulder yesterday.
- It's unlikely that the M's move Jason Vargas, a Seattle official told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter).
Red Sox Acquire Jack Hannahan
Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe writes that "various reports" have indicated that Boston has acquired Jack Hannahan from Seattle in exchange for either money or a player to be named later. Pawtucket Red Sox radio announcer Dan Hoard was the first to break the news via his Twitter feed.
Hannahan has a .658 OPS in 981 career major league plate appearances with Detroit, Oakland and Seattle, though the injury-plagued Red Sox no doubt value Hannahan's versatility over his bat. Hannahan has played at least 10 games at shortstop, third base and second base this season for Triple-A Tacoma, and also has significant experience playing first in both the minors and majors. He has spent the entire season in Tacoma and was actually designated for assignment by the Mariners last month.
Crasnick On The Bullpen Market
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick does a nice job profiling the underwhelming market for relievers. The Red Sox, Tigers, Angels, Dodgers, Yankees, Rays, Phillies, and Twins could be looking to make an acquisition. A few tidbits…
- The Astros "will gladly talk about Brandon Lyon, but aren't so interested in discussing Matt Lindstrom." Lyon is still owed $12.48MM through 2012.
- Crasnick points out that Octavio Dotel is not a pitcher you want facing lefties. How about D.J. Carrasco? He's quietly having another decent year, he's cheap, and he's under team control through 2012. Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweeted yesterday that at least five teams have inquired.
- Crasnick finds "the consensus" to be that Mariners closer David Aardsma will be dealt before the deadline. The Tigers have been linked to the hard-throwing righty, whose ERA is up several runs this year despite his strikeout and walk rates remaining stable. Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times feels the Mariners would need their socks knocked off to move Aardsma.
- Chad Qualls, Clay Hensley, and most of the Brewers' and Royals' pens also merit consideration as trade bait.
Red Sox Rumors: Relievers, Beltre
Red Sox rumors from those covering the team…
- GM Theo Epstein said he isn't close to any trades, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Cafardo lists Scott Downs, Kerry Wood, Kyle Farnsworth, and David Aardsma as potentially available relievers, but says "the Sox aren’t crazy about bringing Aardsma back unless they could do so cheaply." Cafardo lists familiar names on the outfield front in David DeJesus and Cody Ross, while noting that Corey Hart "is likely out of Boston's range." Cafardo does not see the Sox pursuing a starting pitcher.
- MLB Network's Peter Gammons chimes in on Downs, tweeting, "before [the Yunel] Escobar deal, [the Blue Jays] wanted [Jose] Iglesias for Downs." That gives you an idea of the Jays' initial asking price for one of the best available relievers; the Dodgers, Yankees, and Phillies are also known to be interested.
- Gammons also tweets that the Rockies turned down an offer of Jed Lowrie for Chris Iannetta. We learned last night that the Sox are not currently pursuing Iannetta, however.
- Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald confirms yesterday's report that the Sox are interested in Florida's Leo Nunez. However, Lauber writes that, "they believe the Marlins will require a hefty return" for the righty reliever.
- Adrian Beltre is not thinking about his next contract yet, learned WEEI's Alex Speier.
Mariners Sign Three International Free Agents
The Mariners announced the signings of Dominican righty Rigoberto Garcia and Venezuelan lefties Erick Gomez and Luis Pina today. The team also confirmed the signings of three other international prospects.
Vice president of international operations Bob Engle describes Garcia as “a tall young man who has strong arm and all the makings to become a true power pitcher.” Engle cites Garcia’s solid fastball and compares the 16-year-old to Mariners prospect Michael Pineda.
Gomez, 17, is a “poised young projection pitcher,” Engle says. Pina, 17 in December, has a “good feel for pitching,” though Engle expects him to have to adjust his delivery. The Mariners say they will continue to sign international prospects throughout the year.
Odds & Ends: Guthrie, Ross, Ranaudo
A year ago today, the Brewers acquired Felipe Lopez from the Diamondbacks for prospects Roque Mercedes and Cole Gillespie. Lopez raked after the trade, but was not offered arbitration by the Brewers. Gillespie and Mercedes ranked among Arizona's top 30 prospects heading into the season according to Baseball America, with the former now playing for the big league club. On to today's links…
- The Mets scouted Jeremy Guthrie's last start, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Guthrie could make for an interesting project, as one scout told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, "He should be better than he is."
- The relief trade market is "absolutely terrible," one talent evaluator told ESPN's Buster Olney (Twitter link).
- The Padres are not a fit for Marlins outfielder Cody Ross, according to Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse. The Padres prefer David DeJesus instead, tweets Dan Hayes of the North County Times.
- Astros owner Drayton McLane "seems paralyzed by indecision," writes Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle.
- SI's Jon Heyman ranks the 24 best available position players, starting with Prince Fielder.
- Red Sox draft pick Anthony Ranaudo is done pitching in the Cape Cod League, reported Brian Foley of The College Baseball Blog yesterday. The consensus among prospect gurus is that Ranaudo had nothing left to prove. An elbow injury and representation by Scott Boras caused Ranaudo to drop to the Sox at #39 in the June draft.
- The Mariners should aim to be competitive in 2012, writes Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner.
- Former Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi offered a few stories of near-deals on WEEI's The Big Show on Friday.
Mariners Sign Trio Of International Prospects
The Mariners signed three top international prospects, including Dominican outfielder Phillips Castillo, according to Ben Badler of Baseball America. Castillo will get a $2.2MM bonus, Colombian right-hander Jose Torres gets an $851K bonus and Venezuelan third baseman Yordyn Calderon gets a $477K bonus.
Badler describes Castillo as “one of the elite hitters” on the international market. The 16-year-old stands 6’2” and can hit for power. Torres is considered the top Colombian pitching prospect of the year and Calderon is “a good athlete who can hit for power.” Overall, the Mariners committed just over $3.5MM to the three prospects.
Odds & Ends: Gonzalez, Red Sox, Fielder, Phillies
Links for Thursday, as the second half begins…
- The Mariners released former MLB reliever Mark Worrell, according to the Pacific Coast League's transactions page. They signed the right-hander earlier in the month and assigned him to the minor leagues.
- Adrian Gonzalez and Yahoo's Jeff Passan discuss the changed atmosphere in San Diego. GM Jed Hoyer told Passan that the Padres will talk about Adrian Gonzalez's future with the team in the offseason.
- Ed Price of AOL FanHouse hears that the Red Sox aren't willing to spend significant amounts of money this July, since they want to avoid the luxury tax.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs continues ranking the MLB players with the most trade value and Carlos Santana just misses the top 20.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney wonders how the Rays would look if they obtained Prince Fielder for a package built around Wade Davis.
- As Joel Sherman of the New York Post explains, Hal Steinbrenner is driven to win championships like his father, but he's more analytical and less of a yeller than George.
- Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer argues that the Phillies need to improve before the trade deadline, especially since the Braves acquired Alex Gonzalez.
- Rockies hitting coach Don Baylor tells Adrian Dater of the Denver Post that he would like another shot at managing in the majors.
- The White Sox will fly several of their pro scouts to Chicago at the end of July to evaluate the organization's strengths and areas of need, according to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.
- The Detroit Free Press points out that National League All-Stars made, on average, $2.8MM less than American League All-Stars.
Mariners Sign Wright; Cordero Elects Free Agency
The Mariners signed right-handed reliever Jamey Wright and added him to the major league roster, according to the team. In a related move, the club optioned Chad Cordero to Triple A Tacoma and Cordero opted to become a free agent instead of accepting the assignment.
Wright, 35, had been pitching at Triple A for the A's ever since the Indians released him. He struggled through 21.1 major league innings with Cleveland, posting a 5.48 ERA and walking as many as he struck out (nine). Wright allowed nine walks and 23 hits in 14 Triple A innings, striking out 16.
Cordero appeared in the majors for the first time since 2008 this year, walking five and allowing ten hits in 9.2 innings of work for the M's. The 28-year-old struck out five, but didn't recapture the form that saw him save 113 games for the Nationals from 2005-07.