Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Cardinals Rumors

Nats Rumors: Storen, Clippard, Desmond, Gorzelanny

By | at

The Nationals are listening on top relievers Drew Storen and Tyler Clippard, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but such a trade would have to fill a specific long-term need such as center field.  Teams are calling on Storen, Clippard, and Todd Coffey.

Potential center field targets for Washington include B.J. Upton, Michael Bourn, Colby Rasmus, and Denard Span, writes Rosenthal.  He believes that a reliever alone probably would not bring back a center fielder, but the Nats could also trade shortstop Ian Desmond since some club officials would like to move Danny Espinosa to shortstop.

Storen is under team control through 2016, Clippard and Desmond through '15.  Desmond would be an interesting name for teams seeking shortstop help, though he's limped to a .226/.269/.311 line in 361 plate appearances this year. 

The Nationals also have starting pitching to spare, as ESPN's Jerry Crasnick tweets that they will move Jason Marquis, Livan Hernandez, and Tom Gorzelanny.  Gorzelanny is a bit of a surprise, as he's got strong strikeout and walk rates and is under team control through 2013.

NL Central Rumors: Cubs, Astros, Brewers, Rasmus

By | at

The NL Central lead seems to change hands on a daily basis, meaning we can expect plenty of trade talk over the next two weeks as the Brewers, Cardinals, Pirates, and Reds attempt to gain an edge in a tight race. Here's the latest from out of the division:

Quick Hits: Romero, Melky, Michael, Mondesi, Bailey

By | at

Saturday evening linkage..

  • The Mets have signed infielder Niuman Romero to a minor league contract, reports Adam Rubin of ESPN New York (on Twitter). Romero appeared in two games for the Red Sox last season and hit .222/.294/.244 in 159 plate appearances in the Phillies' and Blue Jays' farm systems this year.
  • Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports report that the Giants, Angels, and Phillies are among the teams with some level of interest in Melky Cabrera. The Melkman has delivered a .293/.332/.452 line for the Royals this season.
  • The Twins are making progress in talks with first round pick Levi Michael, tweets LaVelle E. Neal III of The Star Tribune. Michael was the 30th overall pick, which carries a slot recommendation of $1.1MM or so.
  • Adalberto Mondesi, the 16-year-old son of Raul Mondesi, is expected to sign for $1MM when eligible in two weeks according to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes (link in Spanish). Rojas says the Royals have the inside track, but the Yankees, Mets, Giants, and Athletics are also interested. Make sure you tell your friends about our Spanish-language sister site Rumores de Beisbol.
  • Yesterday we learned that the Athletics have received calls on closer Andrew Bailey.  Two sources tell Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News that the Rangers are among those teams and the A's have at started looking more in-depth at Texas' farm system.
  • The Braves are in search of a bat, but Athletics outfielder Josh Willingham isn’t high on their list, a source told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter).  Earlier today, ESPN's Buster Olney wrote that Willingham "is going to be traded at some point".
  • With their payroll already at an all-time high, the White Sox might be better off making in-house moves rather than deals, writes MLB.com's Scott Merkin.  If GM Ken Williams & Co. do make a deal they may look to land a right-handed reliever, despite the emergence of Brian Bruney.
  • Rival evaluators say that the degree of separation in the standings could impact the the aggressiveness of the Phillies, Braves, and Giants before the deadline, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com.  
  • The Cardinals have been one of the most aggressive teams in baseball as far as looking at starters, a source tells Morosi (via Twitter).

Cardinals Have Checked In On Blue Jays Relievers

By | at

Earlier today we heard that the Cardinals are aggressively looking for a starting pitcher, but that doesn't mean they aren't trying to add bullpen help either. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports that St. Louis has checked in on the availability of several Blue Jays relievers, according to sources (on Twitter).

Toronto has a cache of right-handed relievers available, namely Jason Frasor, Jon Rauch, Octavio Dotel, and Frank Francisco. The first three have affordable club options for next season, $3.75MM or less. Morosi notes that Frasor has never pitched in the NL, so there's an element of surprise there. The Cardinals are currently without setup man Eduardo Sanchez, and their 4.04 bullpen ERA is the third highest in the National League. The Jays and Cards don't get together for trades very often as our Transaction Tracker shows, but both clubs have relatively new GMs. 

Make sure you check out our sister site dedicated to fantasy bullpens, Closer News.

Quick Hits: Cardinals, Tigers, Rays, Peacock

By | at

That terrified gasp you heard earlier this evening was from Blue Jays fans and Jose Bautista fantasy owners.  The star slugger was forced to leave Toronto's 16-7 win over the Yankees due to a twisted right ankle suffered in the fourth inning.  X-rays were negative and Bautista will likely undergo an MRI tomorrow, reports Shi Davidi of Rogers Sportsnet.

Some news from around the majors…

  • The Cardinals are shopping for both starting and relief pitching, but their trade efforts are complicated by the Albert Pujols negotiations looming this winter, writes MLB.com's Matthew Leach.  There's also pressure on the club to win now since this could be the last season for both Pujols and Chris Carpenter in St. Louis.
  • Speaking of pressure, it "might be higher than ever" in Detroit since GM Dave Dombrowski and manager Jim Leyland are both in the last year of their contracts, notes MLB.com's Jason Beck.  The Tigers are also looking to add starting pitching and possibly a right-handed reliever, though Beck says the club will look internally (possibly the returning Carlos Guillen) to solve its second base problem.
  • With their next seven games against the Red Sox and Yankees, the Rays may know by next week if they will be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline, writes MLB.com's Bill Chastain.  If the Rays are in contention, however, Andrew Friedman says it doesn't mean the Rays will deal prospects for big upgrades since "because of our situation, our prospects mean more to us than any other team in baseball."
  • Brad Peacock is now represented by the ACES agency, reports MLBTR's Tim Dierkes (Twitter link).  The Nationals right-hander was a 41st-round pick in the 2006 draft but was recently ranked as the 42st-best minor leaguer in the game on Baseball America's midseason prospect list. 
  • The White Sox have signed third-round draft pick Jeff Soptic, tweets Jim Callis of Baseball America.  Soptic's contract bonus was worth $320K, $40.1K over MLB's recommended slot price for the 110th overall pick.
  • Baseball America's Matt Eddy runs down the week's minor league transactions.
  • A source tells Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles that the Angels are "pinching pennies" and won't be looking to add payroll at the trade deadline.

Rays, Cards Had ‘Serious Talks’ About Rasmus In 2010

By | at

The Rays and Cardinals had serious talks about a trade that would have sent Colby Rasmus to Tampa Bay last year, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). The center fielder appeared to request a trade last summer, though he later denied doing so.

The Cardinals might be willing to move Rasmus now, though Strauss and colleague Bernie Miklasz suggest a deal is unlikely. Rasmus is the most attractive trade chip GM John Mozeliak has, but Miklasz expects the Cardinals and their center fielder to be “stuck with each other” for a while.

The Cardinals would most covet Jeremy Hellickson in a trade, according to Strauss. However, Tampa Bay doesn't necessarily covet Rasmus, especially at that price. Rays center fielder B.J. Upton homered in three of five games leading up to the All-Star break and his .239/.325/.427 line resembles Rasmus' .246/.329/.413 line.

Soria Can Block Trades To Dodgers, Rockies, Braves

By | at

The Dodgers, Rockies and Braves have replaced the Tigers, Cubs and Cardinals on Joakim Soria's no-trade list, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.com (on Twitter). The reliever can still block trades to the Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies with his no-trade clause, which would provide him with leverage in the unlikely event of a proposed deal.

The asking price for Soria is "exorbitant," according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star, who hears that Royals officials have never had upper-level talks about the closer with the Yankees.

Soria, 27, has a 4.03 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 38 innings this year. He had a difficult May during which he briefly lost the closer's job, but has recovered to post a 14K/2BB ratio since with just one earned run allowed in 16 innings in June and July.

The reliever’s 2012 option vests at $6MM if he finishes 55 games this year (he has finished 26 games so far). The Royals also have an $8MM option for Soria in 2013 ($750K buyout) and an $8.75MM option for  2014 ($750K buyout). Keep up with Soria and every other MLB closer at closernews.com.

NL Central Notes: Sandberg, Pirates, Rasmus

By | at

On this date three years ago, the newly acquired C.C. Sabathia homered and pitched a complete game to help the Brewers beat the Reds 3-2. The Brewers' latest acquisition, Francisco Rodriguez, probably won't get too many chances to swing the bat this summer, but he could help Milwaukee reach the playoffs again…

  • Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg told ESPN Chicago's "The Waddle & Silvy Show" that he wants to manage in the Major Leagues and would consider returning to Chicago if the Cubs asked him to manage at some point. Sandberg, who was a candidate for the Cubs' managerial opening over the winter, now manages Philadelphia's Triple-A affiliate. ESPNChicago.com has highlights from the conversation. 
  • The Pirates announced that they have signed fourth round pick Colten Brewer and eighth round pick Jason Creasy. Now that they've signed the pair of high school right-handers, Pittsburgh has locked up 16 players from last month's draft. 
  • The Rockies like Colby Rasmus, but don't match up well with the Cardinals on a potential trade, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter). The Cardinals might be willing to trade Rasmus, who ranks 41st on Dave Cameron's annual list of players with the most trade value at FanGraphs.com.
  • Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said in a chat today that the Cardinals would most covet Jeremy Hellickson in a potential trade involving Rasmus and the Rays.

Cardinals Sign Jaime Garcia To Four-Year Deal

By | at

The Cardinals announced that they signed Jaime Garcia to a four-year deal with two club options, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN).  Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the deal is worth $27.5MM in guaranteed money (Twitter link).  Michael Golde of KTRS 550 AM first tweeted a rumor of the Garcia extension last Thursday, with the contract details included.

Garcia, 25, is enjoying another fine season with a 3.22 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, 0.6 HR/9, and 54.5% groundball rate in 117 1/3 innings.  He was set to become arbitration eligible for the first time after the season, so it appears that the contract covers his three arbitration years (2012-14) and his first free agent year, with options on two additional free agent years.  Garcia is represented by Melvin Roman of MDR Sports Management, having made a change this year.

The deal falls a bit short of the contracts earlier this year for Clay Buchholz and Trevor Cahill, which also featured a pair of club options.  Keep in mind that Garcia's first-year arbitration earning power would have been limited by time missed due to '09 Tommy John surgery.

Cardinals Might Be Willing To Trade Rasmus

By | at

The Cardinals "might reconsider [their] stance" on trading center fielder Colby Rasmus, reports Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  He adds that GM John Mozeliak "would have to acquire a significant return for Rasmus but may be willing to plumb long-standing interest from the pitching-rich Tampa Bay Rays."

Rasmus, 24, is showing "only halting development" in Strauss' opinion.  He's hitting .246/.329/.413 with nine home runs in 360 plate appearances this season.  That's solid for a center fielder, but a decline from last year's numbers.  Defensively, Rasmus put up a strong UZR in '09 but has been below-average in over 1,800 center field innings since then.  If Rasmus were to be traded, Jon Jay would become the Cardinals' starting center fielder.

Even with his stock slightly down, Rasmus would be a hot commodity on the trade market.  I can see why he'd interest the Rays, who control center fielder B.J. Upton through 2012 but could control Rasmus through '14.  Rasmus could jump past $3MM in arbitration next year against perhaps $7MM for Upton.  Upton could be moved in a separate deal, though the Nationals would probably be interested in both center fielders.  It'd be a big win for the Cardinals to somehow pry James Shields loose in a Rasmus deal, but with Shields' ace performance and his contract offering options through '14, a direct swap doesn't seem to benefit Tampa Bay enough.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top