Odds & Ends: Draft, Cardinals, Mets
A dosage of mostly vague, speculative links to calm the nerves before tomorrow's draft:
- Derrick Goold at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch gives part 2 of his rundown of potential picks for the Cardinals.
- Nick Cafardo at the Boston Globe talked to one former scouting director who says the Nats should think "long and hard" before selecting Stephen Strasburg.
- The Phillies have to wait until the 75th pick for their first draft selection, and David Gurian-Peck at MLB.com says they're leaning toward a high school player.
- Dan Connolly at the Baltimore Sun dishes on the Orioles' draft options at pick no. 5. President Andy MacPhail says he's not afraid to dole out a large bonus.
- Mark Bowman at MLB.com talked to Braves head of scouting Roy Clark and speculates the Braves will pursue pitching with the seventh pick.
- Paul Hoynes at the Cleveland Plain-Dealer relays the opinion of Indians director of amateur scouting Brad Grant that the MLB draft needs a medical combine.
- Matthew Cerrone at MetsBlog is fielding questions for an exclusive interview with Mets skipper Jerry Manuel.
D’Backs Claim Blaine Boyer Off Waivers
According to the Arizona Republic the D'Backs claimed pitcher Blaine Boyer off waivers from the Cardinals, who designated him for assignment last week. The 27-year-old had a 4.41 ERA in 15 appearances with the Cards. It's been a hectic year for Boyer, who was traded from Atlanta to St. Louis back in April.
Odds And Ends: Huff, Ackley, Strasburg
Some more links to pass along…
- Steve Melewski of MASN.com reports that Orioles president Andy MacPhail is "open" to talking with Aubrey Huff about a possible extension. Huff, a free agent at the end of the year, has been the subject of many trade rumors.
- ESPN.com's Rob Neyer agrees with a suggestion Howard made on this site yesterday: Jon Rauch would be a good fit for the Rays.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Cards GM John Mozeliak was among those watching as two college hitters worked out at Busch Stadium this morning. Josh Phegley and A.J. Pollock took some swings in front of the Cardinals' scouting staff.
- As Ian Browne of MLB.com points out, the Red Sox have drafted well in recent years even when they haven't had early selections.
- MLB.com's Jim Street writes that it would be shocking for the Mariners to pick someone other than Dustin Ackley.
- As ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports, Angels scouting director Eddie Bane is amazed by Scott Boras because he intimidates, but "never says a price."
- Tim Keown of ESPN the Magazine passes along one scout's thoughts on Stephen Strasburg: "He'd be a front-of-the-rotation guy for almost every team right now."
The Cardinals And The Economy
The Cardinals are one of the surprise stories of the baseball season so far. Even after losing three straight by a combined score of 28-7, St. Louis is just two games behind Milwaukee in the National League Central.
But based on this item in a new column by Scott Miller of CBSSportsLine.com, the Cardinals better hope Tyler Greene is the answer at shortstop and Brad Thompson is able to fill in for Kyle Lohse.
"3. Tony La Russa, Twitter settle dispute: Too bad, too. Because had La Russa won the suit he wound up withdrawing, it probably was going to be the only way St. Louis could secure the money to add another bat to its lineup this summer."
It's an interesting piece less talked about in trade circles. Plenty of teams are assumed to be willing to dump salary once they fall out of the race, with an imperative to do so sooner in this difficult economic climate.
It may be, however, that many of the teams in a position to contend may not be adding salary, due to that very same economy.
In a season when even the Yankees claim they can't add salary, it will be fascinating to see if the glut of players expected to hit the market between now and July 31 fetch huge packages of prospects, if the few teams that can add payroll are bidding against themselves.
Olney on Reyes, McLouth, Holliday
ESPN.com's Buster Olney wonders if the currently injured Jose Reyes has already peaked, quoting a scout who says "I don't see a lot of evolution there … Jimmy Rollins struggled early in his career, but then he just kept getting better and better, and I'm not really seeing that in Reyes." Olney likens the situation to Mark Prior's, who seemingly held the Cubs hostage with his potential. Reyes will turn just 26 next week, but Olney says that going forward "the Mets should not assume that Reyes is going to be an unmovable foundation piece," however he is not advocating a trade just yet.
Here's the rest of Olney's rumors:
- Olney heard that the Pirates were concerned about Nate McLouth's defensive abilities, so they moved him now before his trade value diminished.
- Billy Beane will soon have to make a decision about whether or not he should trade Matt Holliday, because other teams will start inquiring soon.
- Olney speculates that the Cardinals could be interested in Holliday, which would satisfy Tony LaRussa's desire for a big bat. He also says that Cards' prospect Brett Wallace would be a good fit for Oakland, but that seems like a hefty price for just three or four months of Holliday.
Rosenthal On Guthrie, Rangers, Glaus
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that the Orioles would consider dealing Jeremy Guthrie under the right circumstances. Here are the details, along with highlights from the rest of his column:
- Teams have inquired to see if Guthrie, who makes just $650K this year, is available. The Orioles would only move him if they hear "an overwhelming offer."
- The O's are reluctant to move George Sherrill, who's pitching well and remains under team control through 2011.
- Danys Baez is more likely to be dealt.
- The Rangers could lose Josh Hamilton for an extended period, but that won't stop them from dealing a bat for a reliever. Rosenthal writes that the Rangers could replace a player like Marlon Byrd or Hank Blalock internally.
- The Rangers will consider pursuing a top starting pitcher.
- The Mariners aren't about to deal anybody away for now. "I think right now we are still in it," GM Jack Zduriencik said. The Mariners are 5.5 games out in the AL West.
- If Troy Glaus proves he can hit, but has trouble playing third upon his return, the Cardinals could deal him to a team in need of a first baseman or DH.
La Russa: Cards Seek Big Bat
According to Matthew Leach at MLB.com, Tony La Russa longs for a big bat to protect Albert Pujols. Leach notes that La Russa "spoke like a man who has expectations, rather than hopes."
The Cardinals have been linked to Mark DeRosa recently, though La Russa seems to indicate he wants something greater. He directly refers to the past Matt Holliday discussions, and Leach notes Holliday as an "intriguing name" as he has been open to a possible trade away from Oakland. La Russa indicated that the club has some financial flexibility, but wants to avoid anything "unreasonable."
Cardinals DFA Blaine Boyer
According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals have designated Blaine Boyer for assignment. Boyer, 28 in July, had allowed 19 baserunners in 16.3 innings, striking out nine.
Odds & Ends: Tejada, Lohse, LaRussa
Some late night linkage as you wait to see if Randy Johnson picks up win number 300:
- Jeff Zrebiec says that the Orioles may end up releasing Jamie Walker in the coming days.
- MLB.com's Joe Frisaro reports that the Marlins will designate reliever Hayden Penn for assignment. It's unclear who will take his place on the roster.
- MLB.com's Bill Ladson says not to expect to see Tom Glavine in a Nationals uniform, but the team wouldn't mind having him as pitching mentor/coach. Glavine and team president Stan Kasten have a long standing relationship.
- Miguel Tejada wants to finish his career in Houston. With the Astros already seven games back of first and a handful of teams looking for upgrades at shortstop and/or third base, Tejada probably won't get his wish.
- Kyle Lohse left tonight's start in the third inning when his right forearm discomfort returned. Just yesterday there was talk of the Cardinals dealing from their pitching depth to address their infield issues, but depth on the mound has a way of disappearing quickly.
- Tony LaRussa is suing Twitter. Whether Tony likes it or not, Twitter is here to stay.
Mike Axisa writes for River Ave. Blues.
Cardinals Release Former First Round Pick
According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Tyler Herron is no longer a part of the Cardinals' plans. They released the former first round pick today. Herron, 22, was the 46th selection in the 2005 draft, the same draft that produced Colby Rasmus for St. Louis. Herron pitched well as recently as 2007.
In 45.2 innings at Double A this year, Herron collected 37 strikeouts and allowed 70 baserunners for an ERA of 4.37. Not inspired numbers, but not bad for a 22-year-old. I'd expect someone to pick Herron up, especially given his history as a top prospect.