Mariners Rumors

Amateur Draft Signings: Friday

By Luke Adams 2 | June 18, 2010 at 8:39pm CDT

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

By Luke Adams 2 | June 18, 2010 at 8:14pm CDT

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

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 18, 2010 at 4:42pm CDT

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

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 18, 2010 at 12:10pm CDT

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

Mike Scioscia tells Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times he's "very optimistic" that Erick Aybar's left knee injury won't lead to a DL stint. That reduces the chances that the Angels will go after a shortstop.
It's been a great year for young players like Strasburg and Mike Leake, as ESPN.com's Tim Kurkjian shows.
Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports that the D'Backs often hear trade rumors from Dan Haren, who reads MLBTR. As Piecoro explains, players are generally aware of the latest rumblings in "the era of the trade rumor."
Another top pitcher, Cliff Lee, chooses to ignore the rumors, according to Larry Stone of the Seattle Times.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post asked 12 baseball insiders whether they would prefer to have Phil Hughes or Mike Pelfrey for the next five years and was surprised to see all 12 select Hughes.
Edwin Jackson and Dontrelle Willis say they have good memories of Detroit and no hard feelings over the trades that sent them to Arizona, according to the Detroit Free Press.

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

By Mike Axisa | June 18, 2010 at 11:05am CDT

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…

U.S.S. Mariner dubs the Twins as the favorites to land Cliff Lee this summer.
Camden Chat likes the Orioles' draft haul, but thinks it could have been better.
Bernie's Crew uses Milwaukee's roster to show that the later rounds of the draft can be productive as well.
More Hardball looks at the bang Jonny Gomes has provided for the Reds' buck.
Liam McGuire's Blog wonders if Adam Loewen is the second coming of Rick Ankiel.
1 Blue Jays Way interviewed Tom Filer, former big leaguer and current pitching coach for the Altoona Curve, Pittsburgh's Double-A affiliate.
Baseball Opinion examines the best and worst picks of the 2005 draft.

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

Rangers Inquiring On Starting Pitching

By Luke Adams 2 | June 17, 2010 at 5:55pm CDT

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

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 17, 2010 at 9:21am CDT

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.

Odds & Ends: LaRoche, Lee, Nationals, Simpson

By Mark Polishuk | June 15, 2010 at 8:18pm CDT

It was on this day in 1938 that Reds lefthander Johnny Vander Meer became a baseball immortal by throwing his second consecutive no-hitter. What better way to commemorate the Vanderversary than with some news items?

Adam LaRoche is prepared for another summer of hearing rumors and possibly being traded again, reports Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal.
What would be fair value for Cliff Lee? Fangraphs' Dave Cameron breaks down the question.
ESPN.com's Jayson Stark is impressed by how the entire Nationals franchise seems to have turned around in a year's time.
Hayden Simpson seemed to be a reach for the Cubs as the 16th overall pick, but Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times thinks that Chicago scouting director Tim Wilken's past drafting record "has earned [him] the benefit of the doubt." Maybe so, but implying Simpson could be "the next Roy Halladay" is a bit much.
Had the Dodgers picked up a veteran starter or two in the offseason, the L.A. Times' Steve Dilbeck says the team could've avoided using so many young arms to plug holes in their injury-plagued rotation.
Omar Minaya hinted that the Mets could add a starting pitcher, but "is reluctant" to do so at the expense of dealing promising minor leaguers, reports Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.
R.J. Anderson of Fangraphs thinks the Marlins will likely be sellers at the trade deadline. Responding to Anderson's story, Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel agrees, but thinks a potential deal could bring back more than just prospects for the Fish.
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette chats with Pirates fans and covers a few hot stove topics, including the likelihood of Zach Duke being dealt.
Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports (via Twitter) that Ozzie Guillen thinks "it was a good sign" that A.J. Pierzynski wasn't traded before his ten-and-five rights kicked in. Guillen believes the non-deal "sends a message to the Sox players that there is still time to fix things."

Odds & Ends: A’s, Reds, Murton, Maya, Chipper

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 15, 2010 at 4:00pm CDT

Links for Tuesday, as Andy Pettitte and Tim Lincecum celebrate birthdays…

A's assistant GM David Forst tells MLB.com's Jane Lee that the club would like to add depth to its lineup, even after the Conor Jackson trade (Twitter link).
Reds GM Walt Jocketty tells John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer that the club would consider trading for or signing a reliever.
The Hanshin Tigers will pick up Matt Murton's option for 2011, according to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker (via Twitter). Jack Moore of FanGraphs recently updated us on Murton's success in Japan.
Ben Badler of Baseball America hears that the Mariners will likely sign right-hander Jose Torres for $800K (Twitter link).
MLBTR has an internship opportunity for a limited number of regular readers. Any skilled and experienced writers with an eye for detail should describe their experience as writers and editors in a couple sentences and e-mail mlbtrintern@gmail.com by the end of the day.
Yunesky Maya was already unblocked, but he can sign with anyone now that he has been cleared by the FAC office, according to Enrique Rojas of ESPNdeportes.com (link in Spanish).
Chipper Jones could announce that he will retire after the season, according to Carroll Rogers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle says Nationals GM Mike Rizzo misread Stephen Strasburg and should have called him up early on in the season.
From what Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog gathers, the Mets and Mariners have talked a lot about Cliff Lee.
Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik declined to comment on whether the team would trade Lee now, according to Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com.
Jay Greenberg of the New York Post says the Mets seem likely to keep relying on R.A. Dickey and Hisanori Takahashi, as tempting as Roy Oswalt may be.
Buck Showalter and Phil Garner both told MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli that the O's have yet to contact them about managing the club.
Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times suggests the Cubs could benefit from becoming sellers. – it just wouldn't be an easy sell to the fan base.
David Ortiz tells Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that he misses Manny Ramirez, though the two didn't socialize much beyond the ballpark.

Rosenthal On Braves, Marlins, Lee, Cubs

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | June 15, 2010 at 1:40pm CDT

The Braves are interested in adding a right-handed hitting outfielder, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Melky Cabrera and Nate McLouth have not hit well for the Braves, and Jason Heyward's now slumping. Eric Hinske has played tremendously, but can't be expected to post an OPS near 1.000, so the Braves may deal from pitching depth for a bat. Here are the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:

The Marlins are actively seeking relief help.
Rosenthal says the Cardinals, Reds and Brewers – yes, the Brewers – could be interested in Cliff Lee this summer. The Brewers could provide the Mariners with a hitter like Corey Hart or Mat Gamel and trade Lee to a third team for younger pitchers.
The Cubs would love to deal Kosuke Fukudome, but he will earn more than $21MMM between now and the end of 2011, so trading him will not be easy. Click here for more from Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi on Fukudome's availability.
Red Sox GM Theo Epstein will probably look to acquire a reliever this summer.

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