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At Least Ten Teams Scout Anthony Reyes

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According to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, scouts from at least ten teams observed Anthony Reyes’ fine start against Washington yesterday.  He says the Cards have made Reyes’ availability known.

Reyes, 26, already has 250 Triple A innings and 200 big league innings under his belt.  Despite an awful ERA and record last year for the Cards, his strikeout and walk rates weren’t too bad.  Everyone seems to believe there’s something more here, but the potential won’t be realized in St. Louis.  He’s not getting much encouragement from the Cardinals right now.

Teams that have shown interest in Reyes in the past: the Indians, Padres, and Phillies.

Cards To Sign Wainwright Long-Term

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I mentioned on Monday that Cards ace Adam Wainwright seemed a prime candidate for an extension.  Today, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says a contract is done, pending a physical.  According to Goold:

The guaranteed part of the new contract is four years and expected to be worth around $15 million, and it will buy out Wainwright’s arbitration years, through 2011. The deal has an option that would cover the first two years of his free agency, sources said.

MLB.com’s Matthew Leach writes that Wainwright’s $448K renewal for ’08 will be overwritten and is one of the four guaranteed years of the deal.  As such this would be in line with other young starter deals.  And not all of the others got the third arb year guaranteed so Wainwright’s agent did well there.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Rule 5 Draftees

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Last year the Reds selected Josh Hamilton in the Rule 5 draft despite only 23 games above Single-A and only 15 games anywhere since 2002 (actually the Cubs picked Hamilton and traded him to the Reds the same day). Hamilton went on to hit .292-19-47 in 90 games. This year, 18 players were chosen in the Rule 5 draft (14 pitchers). These players must remain on the 25-man roster all season or be offered back to their original club for $25K. By my count, three players (Sergio Valenzuela, Lincoln Holdzkom, Jose Capellan) have already been offered back to their original clubs (Capellan was picked up on waivers by a third team during the process). Hamilton is the rare case of a position player sticking with his new club as it is far easier to hide a developing pitcher and still get him playing time in the bullpen than it is on the bench.While it is rare for position players to stick, we have already learned that the Cardinals may keep Brian Barton as a fifth outfielder. As opening day rosters begin to take shape, let’s take a look at what is being said in the Blogosphere about the chances for the Rule draftees.

  • Tim Lahey (RHP, CHC/MIN): Bleed Cubbie Blue sees the Cubs working out a trade with the Twins that would allow them to send Lahey to AAA. In fact, they speculate that Lahey will be the PTBNL in the Craig Monroe deal.
  • Evan Meek (RHP, PIT/TB): Bucs Dugout predicts that Meek will at least start the season with the Pirates before being offered back to the Rays.
  • Randor Bierd (RHP, BAL/DET): Bird Brain projects Bierd to make the roster and hopes the O’s give him every chance to stick.
  • Jose Capellan (LHP, CIN/BOS): Capellan was originally selected by the Giants but was just placed on waivers. The Reds picked him up (Rule 5 rules still apply) and Obsessive Giants Compulsive is surprised the Giants let him go.
  • Sergio Valenzuela (RHP, CIN/ATL): Valenzuela was sold back to the Braves after not making a single appearance in a spring game. The Braves then traded Valenzuela to a team in the Mexican League. Which begs the question…Are "future considerations" from the Mexican League worth the $25K the Braves dropped to bring him back? Talking Chop finds the entire situation funny and is not surprised that Valenzuela did not stick with the Reds.
  • Brian Barton (OF, STL/CLE): Cardinals GM is predicting Barton to be on the opening day roster with Juan Gonzalez starting the season in AAA.
  • R.A. Dickey (RHP, SEA/MIN): Detect-O-Vision is infatuated with the knuckleballer but notes that Dickey "has a looooooooooong way to go".
  • Steven Register (RHP, NYM/COL): Mets Fever thinks Register might actually stick by earning the final spot in the bullpen.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

Cafardo’s Latest: Fuentes, Sowers, Laffey

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Boston Globe baseball writer Nick Cafardo’s Sunday column has new hot stove material, as usual.

  • Cafardo notes that Kyle Snyder, Julian Tavarez, and Bryan Corey have all been heavily scouted by other clubs.  Snyder is out of options, so he’s a good trade candidate.  Cafardo mentioned on Thursday that the Orioles were taking a look at Corey, who might return to Japan if he doesn’t join a big league ’pen.  I imagine the Sox are going to want the insurance Tavarez provides.
  • The Phils are hunting for a southpaw reliever and another starter. Brian Fuentes remains on their radar, but they’re competing with the Tigers and Yankees for him. 
  • The Indians could make southpaws Jeremy Sowers and/or Aaron Laffey available, if Cliff Lee maintains his spring success.  Cafardo says the Cardinals, Phillies, and Astros are eyeing them.

Cardinals Leaning Towards Keeping Barton

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Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch notes that Brian Barton is one player that may not switch teams prior to the regular season. Barton was selected by the Cardinals with the 10th pick of the Rule 5 draft from the Indians. The Cardinals are said to be deciding between keeping Barton or 2-time MVP Juan Gonzalez who is battling an abdominal injury.

"When you have a (Rule 5) guy, if there’s a way that guy can fit on your ballclub, you try to figure a way if you see a legitimate major-league future," La Russa said.

While Gonzalez’ spring numbers are solid (.308-1-5), Barton has also played well (.350) and offers the team more position flexibility as Gonzalez has been used primarily as a DH in the spring.

Barton must be offered back to the Indians for $25K or be kept on the 25-man roster all season. The Cardinals could try to work out a trade with the Indians that would allow them to option Barton to the minors, but Strauss says this path is unlikely considering how well Barton is playing.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

Lohse/Cardinals Deal Official

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TODAY: Lohse passed his physical; it’s official.

THURSDAY: According to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals signed Kyle Lohse to a one-year deal (pending a physical).

The deal is worth $4.25MM plus incentives, a fine deal by John Mozeliak.  The Cardinals needed some depth, and Lohse offers upside beyond just innings (especially under Dave Duncan).  Lohse has to be bummed – he was looking for ten times what he received.  On the other hand, he’s still set for life.

Nats To Pass On Weaver

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Scott Boras found a deal for Kyle Lohse; will he now focus on getting Jeff Weaver a job?  On Monday, Jeff’s brother Jered said the Nationals and Cardinals had expressed interest.  The Cards are surely out of the mix now, and MLB.com’s Bill Ladson says Weaver has seemingly "priced himself out of the Nats’ pay range."  I’ll guess the Nats were thinking $2MM or so.

So if the Nats and Cards are both out, what’s the elder Weaver to do?  Baltimore seems to be his best option.  Toronto could work.  Perhaps the Astros as a long shot.

In a note at the bottom of his article, Ladson also quashes a short-lived Felipe Lopez to the Cubs rumor.  He adds that the Dodgers have legitimate interest in Willie Harris.

Odds and Ends: Mirabelli, Lohse, Spring Stats

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Here are some links I’ve cobbled together.

Astros To Pass On Lohse

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This morning, Brian McTaggart of the Houston Chronicle suggested the Astros’ rotation picture looked like this:

1. Roy Oswalt
2. Brandon Backe
3. Wandy Rodriguez
4. Woody Williams
5. Shawn Chacon as the frontrunner, with Chris Sampson, Felipe Paulino, Runelvys Hernandez, Jack Cassel, Mark McLemore, and Brian Moehler in the mix

Now Paulino is out a month with a pinched nerve.  Williams has been destroyed this spring.  So now it’s looking like Oswalt/Backe/Rodriguez/Chacon/Sampson. 

Not exactly playoff quality nor likely to stay healthy all year.  However, Ed Wade said today he doesn’t see Kyle Lohse as a fit for around $4MM.  Scott Boras called him up last week to pitch his client.  Wade has been quite open in the press about his free agent discussions.

Given the uncertainty around everyone besides Oswalt and Rodriguez, Wade might do well to reconsider Lohse if he has room in the budget.  Otherwise, Jeff Blair says the Cardinals, Rangers, and Giants have Lohse on the radar (but not the Jays).

Cardinals Interested In Lohse

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Joel Pineiro’s second bout of shoulder tightness this spring has the Cardinals scrambling for pitching help.  Fortunately there are still a few names left on the market who are probably as good as Pineiro.  One such pitcher is Kyle Lohse; the Cardinals put in an inquiry with Scott Boras recently.

GM John Mozeliak was upfront in saying that Pineiro’s uncertainty changes the landscape for his team.  If Lohse truly goes in the $4-5MM range we’ve been hearing about, that’s a fine signing.  Hell, Pineiro got two years and $13MM and was more questionable than Lohse at the time of the signing.  Jeff Weaver and David Wells are the other two names we’ve heard linked to St. Louis this winter.  A few people have asked me about Eric Milton.  He had Tommy John surgery on June 15th, so he’d be of no help to the Cards right now. 

Rockin’ The Red gives five reasons why they think the Cards should sign Lohse, if you’re interested.

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