AL East Notes: Orioles, Longoria, Perez
Though fourth overall selection Kevin Gausman recently said he’s leaning toward returning to LSU, Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports the team intends to reach a deal with its top pick. Duquette says the sides have made progress toward an agreement and Morosi reports that the Orioles have already offered Gausman "close" to MLB's recommended $4.2MM bonus. Here’s the latest from the AL East…
- There’s lots of concern about Evan Longoria’s absence in Tampa Bay and no guarantee the Rays third baseman will return in 2012, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney tweets. Longoria has been sidelined since the beginning of May with a partially torn hamstring.
- Commissioner Bud Selig says it’s “inexcusable” to see the Rays ranked 29th in attendance, according to Bill Shaikin of the LA Times (on Twitter). “Nobody can defend that," Selig said. The commissioner added that he'll continue "discussions" with Rays ownership, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times notes (on Twitter).
- Blue Jays left-hander Luis Perez will miss the remainder of the season after tearing a ligament in his left pitching elbow, Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star writes.
Olney On Upton, Greinke, Rays, Phillies
The Diamondbacks have let other clubs know that they are willing to consider offers for Justin Upton and Buster Olney of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) writes that teams are attaching red flags to the situation. Rival clubs wonder why Arizona would look to move a 24-year-old who is signed through 2015. and there is some concern about whether Upton has a chronic left shoulder problem. The D'Backs are looking for third base help, and there aren't a lot of options at the position. Meanwhile, we learned this morning that they have talked with the Pirates about a possible deal. More from today's column..
- If the Brewers decide to deal Zack Greinke and the Orioles have a chance to land him, the question is whether Baltimore can generate an offer strong enough to top the draft pick that Milwaukee would get by hanging onto the pitcher instead. Baltimore won't part with Manny Machado or Dylan Bundy, leaving the Brewers to look beyond the club's two best prospects. Brian Matusz could be an interesting name in the talks if Milwaukee is a fan.
- It remains to be seen whether the Rays will turn into sellers, but they have assets to dangle if they decide to go in that direction, including James Shields, B.J. Upton, and Matt Joyce. Upton is making $7MM this year and Joyce is headed to arbitration for the first time this winter.
- The Phillies are already prepared to weigh any offers for Cole Hamels right now and the decision to sell continues to get easier as they fall in the standings. Headed into this afternoon's game against Atlanta, Philadelphia is 14 games behind the Nationals.
Rays Sign Jose Castillo
The Rays have signed 16-year-old Venezuelan left-hander Jose Castillo for $1.55MM, reports Ben Badler of Baseball America. The publication ranked him as the sixth best prospect on the international market this summer. Badler says Castillo has impressed with his size (6-foot-4 and 200 lbs.), delivery, and power arm.
AL West Notes: Suzuki, Rays, Hernandez, Moore
Former University of Florida catcher Mike Zunino was named the Golden Spikes Award winner today, which recognizes him as the best amateur player in the county. Zunino was the third overall pick by the Mariners in last month's draft and recently signed for $4MM. Here's the latest from his new division, the AL West…
- Athletics GM Billy Beane did not deny that he has spoken to the Rays about catcher Kurt Suzuki, reports ESPN's Jim Bowden (on Twitter). Beane did say that he speaks to Tampa GM Andrew Friedman regularly, however.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik has given no indication that he's willing to trade Felix Hernandez, but SI.com's Tom Verducci says they should make their ace available. He says the reality of Hernandez's age, workload, and contract should not make him untouchable.
- The Mariners designated Adam Moore for assignment last Sunday and have yet to make a decision about what they're going to do with him according to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (Twitter links). The backstop has battled knee problems but agent Mike McCann insists his client is healthy.
East Links: Phillies, Ortiz, Shields, Holm
Ten years ago today, the Yankees swung a three-team trade with the Athletics and Tigers. Jeff Weaver went to New York, Jeremy Bonderman and Carlos Pena went to Detroit, and Ted Lilly went to Oakland as the primary pieces. Here's the latest from baseball's two East divisions…
- "We plan on being contenders in ’13, ’14, ’15 and ’16," said Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. to reporters (including Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer) when asked about selling at the deadline (Sulia link). "So we’re not blowing this team up. That’s not going to happen, regardless of what happens over the next couple of weeks."
- "I'm going to be open to anything. My mentality is not going to be, 'I like it here.' It's going to be, 'Bring it to the table, and we'll see what happens," said David Ortiz of the Red Sox to Jorge Ortiz of USA Today while expressing his displeasure with going through the arbitration process over the winter. "It was humiliating. There's no reason a guy like me should go through that."
- The 2013 ($9MM) and 2014 ($14MM) club options in James Shields' contract will remain intact if the Rays trade their ace right-hander, confirmed ESPN's Buster Olney (on Twitter).
- The Marlins have released catcher Steve Holm, reports Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter). The 32-year-old hit .135/.256/.270 in 43 plate appearances for their Triple-A affiliate.
Rays Notes: B.J. Upton, Trade Market
Here's a look at the Rays as the celebrate their ninth-straight home win over the Yankees..
- In an interview on SiriusXM's MLB Network Radio with Jim Bowden, General Manager Andrew Friedman praised the all-around ability of B.J. Upton and said that it is premature to speculate on whether the outfielder could be dealt (audio link). Speaking broadly, Friedman did concede that he is open to anything and will consider the team's present needs as well as future interests when looking at trades.
- Friedman told Bowden (via Twitter) that teams are focusing more on players with at least two years of team control rather than free agents because of the new CBA.
- The GM also opined (Twitter link) that there will be more strength/weakness deals at the deadline rather than buyer/seller pairings.
Int’l Signings: Barrera, Cruz, Esteves, Gomez, Dodgers
The 2012 international free agent signing period opened today and plenty of signings will be coming in as teams look to spend within their $2.9MM allotment. We'll be keeping track of all of the day's major agreements under $1MM right here..
- The Athletics are finalizing an agreement with Luis Barrera that would pay the Dominican outfielder $450K, tweets MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez. Sanchez's colleague Jonathan Mayo ranked Barrera as the No. 13 prospect in this year's class.
- Badler also adds that the Indians have signed Dominican shortstop Grofy Cruz for a bonus of $400K. Cruz is expected to shift to third base soon, and is praised by Badler for his strong arm and raw power.
- Dominican third baseman Kelvin Esteves signed with the Braves for a $300K bonus, Badler writes. Badler praises Esteves' bat speed and raw power from the right side.
- The Dodgers also signed Dominican shortstop Cristian Gomez to an undisclosed bonus, writes Badler. Gomez was widely expected to receive a low six-figure bonus.
- The Dodgers issued a press release to announce four international signings: right-handers Lenix Osuna and William Soto, left-hander Victor Gonzalez, as well as catcher Julian Leon. Osuna is the son of former Dodgers righty Antonio Osuna. Soto hails from Venezuela while the other three were all signed out of Mexico. Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times tweets that the club spent about $1MM total on the four players.
- The Mets, who earlier today signed shortstop Amed Rosario to a $1.75MM bonus, also signed Venezuelan shortstop Miguel Patino and Dominican second baseman Franklin Correa, tweets ESPN's Adam Rubin. Rubin also notes that Rosario's bonus is the highest the Mets have ever given to an international free agent. That honor had previously gone to Fernando Martinez ($1.3MM).
Minor Moves: Jhonny Nunez
We'll keep track of Monday's minor moves from around the league right here…
- The Rays released right-hander Jhonny Nunez from Triple-A Durham, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter). The 26-year-old Nunez, who was part of the package the Yankees sent to the White Sox to acquire Nick Swisher, had pitched to a 6.57 ERA in 37 innings for the Bulls. He struck out 29 but also walked 26 batters, hit one, and threw three wild pitches.
Rays Sign Jose Mujica
The Rays agreed to sign right-handed pitcher Jose Mujica for $1MM, according to Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com. Mujica is trained by Carlos Guillen at his academy in Venezuela.
The right-hander just celebrated his 16th birthday on June 29th and is rated by Baseball America as the best pitching prospect this year in Latin America. Mujica had a strong showing in the MLB prospect showcase alongside top talent from Venezuela and Dominican Republic last February. Guillen has said that Mujica's aggressiveness reminds him of Felix Hernandez and a young Freddy Garcia, writes Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com.
Quick Hits: Jon Daniels, Cole Hamels, Matt Kemp
Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo has delivered three game-winning RBIs in his five games since being called up from Triple-A last week. Here's the latest news and headlines from around the big leagues…
- The Rangers will take a business-as-usual approach to the upcoming trade deadline meaning Jon Daniels and his associates plan to consider the best players available, writes Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. Daniels hopes his team will benefit from getting four pitchers back from the disabled list before the end of the month. "… I’m hoping we’re not big players at the deadline. Hopefully, we get our guys back, get healthy and stay healthy. That’s the biggest thing."
- The Phillies will make at least one more attempt to sign Cole Hamels to a long-term contract before the team fully commits to dealing the left-hander, reports Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter). As mentioned earlier today, opposing clubs believe Philadelphia has an asking price of four to five prospects for Hamels, which makes a deal unlikely at this point. The 28-year-old was selected for his third All-Star team on Sunday after posting a 3.08 ERA with 9.0 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 through 16 starts this season.
- Dodgers star Matt Kemp remains confident in his team's ability to be successful on the field after Los Angeles' deal with the Astros for Carlos Lee fell through on Sunday, says Alex Angert of MLB.com. "It's always good to get people to make your team better," Kemp said. "I don't know exactly what people think we need. We did a great job with what we have here. If we get somebody, that's good. But if we don't, it keeps going on and we have to keep playing the way we have in the first half."
- The Rays, depleted by a series of injuries, will determine how they approach the trade deadline based upon the health of Evan Longoria and Matt Joyce, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. If Longoria and Joyce return from the disabled list shortly after the All-Star break, it would free up the Rays to bolster their weak spots at catcher and shortstop. More likely, Tampa Bay will pursue an offensive weapon that adds power to the lineup, such as Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano, who has 15 home runs since May 15.