Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Rays Rumors

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Yankees, Maddon

By | at

Links from the AL East before some of the division's top pitchers – Josh Beckett, C.C. Sabathia and Ricky Romero – start for their respective teams…

  • Red Sox owner John Henry told John Tomase of the Boston Herald that chatter about GM Theo Epstein and the Cubs shows "how highly regarded Theo is by the media and baseball in general.”
  • Prospective free agent David Ortiz tells Yahoo’s Jeff Passan that his ability to tune criticism out helps him perform on the field. “I’m not a five-tool player. I may be a two-tool player. But one of them tools is this one right here,” he said, pointing to his head.
  • Bartolo Colon has slowed down, so the Yankees figure to rely on Phil Hughes and Ivan Nova more than ever, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes.
  • MLB players consider Joe Maddon of the Rays the manager they'd most like to play for, according to a recent Sports Illustrated poll. Red Sox manager Terry Francona placed second in the poll and Yankees manager Joe Girardi placed seventh. Having a popular manager in place no doubt helps teams trying to attract free agents or sign players to long-term extensions.

Quick Hits: Davis, Marlins, Draft

By | at

The Rangers beat the Orioles 30-3 on this date four years ago. In one of the most bizarre statistical quirks in recent memory, Rangers reliever Wes Littleton actually picked up a save in the game. Here are today's links, starting with an update on Texas and Baltimore… 

  • Rangers GM Jon Daniels reached out to Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail when he heard about Chris Davis' strained shoulder, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. The Orioles, who obtained Davis from Texas in a trade late last month, haven't had serious talks about reworking the deal, according to Sullivan. Daniels says the sides could revisit the trade at some point, though.
  • Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun Sentinel says it's doubtful that the Marlins would allow president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest to interview for the Cubs' GM opening (Twitter link). 
  • The Nationals, D'Backs, Red Sox, Pirates and Rays had the best drafts this year, Jim Callis writes at Baseball America.

Cubs Notes: GM Search, Ramirez, Dempster

By | at

The search for a general manager will likely dominate Cubs headlines for the rest of the regular season, but don't count on the hunt continuing past that point. According to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Insider-only link), the team would like to name Jim Hendry's replacement by October 1st, in preparation for the offseason. Here's the latest from Chicago's north side:

  • Within the same blog post, Olney discusses the candidacy of Rays GM Andrew Friedman for the Cubs' opening, concluding that this could be Friedman's opportunity to play on a "relatively level playing field in the years ahead."
  • Ex-Ray Matt Garza had high praise for Friedman, telling Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune that the man who traded him to the Cubs would "do great" in Chicago.
  • SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that the new Cubs GM will be given the opportunity to choose his manager, leaving Mike Quade's job very much in jeopardy.
  • Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune wonders if Tom Ricketts' recent comments suggest a reluctance to hire a current assistant GM.
  • Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times examines the likelihood of Ned Colletti becoming the next Cubs general manager.
  • You can criticize his moves and decisions in Chicago, but Hendry's work ethic and experience will land him another job as soon as he wants one, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
  • The Cubs' problems go higher up than the GM, according to Tracy Ringolsby at FOX Sports.
  • Newsday's Ken Davidoff takes a look at a few team and player options for 2012, predicting whether or not they will be exercised. Aramis Ramirez and Ryan Dempster are two names Davidoff mentions.

Rosenthal’s Full Count: Cubs, Zimmerman, Minor, Rox, Span

By | at

Ken Rosenthal has his weekly Full Count Video up over at FOXSports.com, so let's take a look:

  • All GMs — past, present, and prospective — would love a crack at the Cubs' recent opening, says Rosenthal. Some GMs who are in their last contractual year, like Brian Cashman of the Yankees, line up better than others. Rosenthal feels the Rays might let Chicago interview Andrew Friedman, but finds it highly unlikely that the Red Sox would allow the Cubs to interview Theo Epstein, who is under contract through 2012.
  • While the Nationals have spent almost $40MM on the Amateur Draft in the past three seasons, Rosenthal says they'd be wise to check in with their first draft pick ever: Ryan Zimmerman. Zimmerman is controlled through 2013, but Rosenthal likens him to another prominent young star, saying that Zimmerman is to the Nats what Troy Tulowitzki is to the Rockies. He feels the Nats should approach their cornerstone about a similar extension before he gets so close to free agency that he considers testing it.
  • The Mets were far from the only team interested in Mike Minor at the July 31st trade deadline. The Indians offered the Drew Pomeranz to the Braves in exchange for Minor, thinking that with Atlanta trying to acquire Hunter Pence at the time, the Astros may prefer Pomeranz to Minor. Cleveland would get a more Major League-ready arm in return, but the Braves had no intention of dealing Minor.
  • The Rockies will look to add a big bat this winter, preferably at third base or a corner outfield spot. If they can find a third baseman despite a weak market, they may be inclined to pursue a leadoff hitter like the Twins' Denard Span. Rosenthal says the Rox have long coveted Span, and almost drafted him in 2002, but instead took Jeff Francis due to concerns over Span's asking price. Minnesota grabbed Span 11 picks later at No. 20 overall, though they showed a willingness to move him at this year's deadline when negotiating with the Nats.

Quick Hits: Damon, Choate, Braves

By | at

August 18th featured significant trades in 2009 (Ivan Rodriguez to the Rangers) and 2010 (Derrek Lee to the Braves). So far, today we've seen the Rangers acquire Tim Wood from the Pirates. Here are today’s links…

Teams Spend $236MM On Draft

By | at

The totals are in and Major League teams have again broken draft spending records. According to figures compiled by Jim Callis of Baseball America, MLB teams spent a combined $227.94MM on this year's draft bonuses and $235.99MM including additional guaranteed money in MLB deals for Danny Hultzen, Trevor Bauer, Dylan Bundy, Anthony Rendon and Matt Purke. 

A year ago, MLB teams spent about $35MM less: $195.78MM, or $201.83MM including additional guaranteed money in big league deals. The Pirates led the way in 2011, spending over $17MM and breaking the $11.93MM record the Nationals set a year ago. Washington also broke its previous record, spending over $15MM on Rendon, Purke, Alex Meyer, Brian Goodwin and others.

Though only seven teams had ever spent over $10MM on the draft before this year, ten teams did so in 2011, according to Baseball America. Along with the Pirates and Nationals, the Royals ($14.01MM), Cubs ($11.95MM), Diamondbacks ($11.93MM), Rays ($11.48MM), Mariners ($11.33MM), Padres ($11.02MM), Blue Jays ($11.00MM) and Red Sox ($10.98MM) spent eight figures on the draft.

The Tigers ($2.88MM), who didn’t select until the second round, and White Sox ($2.76MM) were the only clubs to spend less than $3MM, according to Baseball America.

Rays Sign Taylor Guerrieri

By | at

The Rays signed Taylor Guerrieri, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (on Twitter). The sides agreed to a $1.6MM deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The Rays selected the right-hander 24th overall in June. Guerrieri had a scholarship offer at South Carolina, but decided instead to sign with the Rays, who had ten of the top 60 picks in the draft.

You can keep track of which top picks have signed with MLBTR's list.

Rays Sign Mikie Mahtook

By | at

The Rays have signed first round pick Mikie Mahtook, according to the St. Petersburg Times (on Twitter). It's a $1.15MM deal, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (on Twitter). Mahtook, 21, is a right-handed hitting outfielder who played his college ball at LSU. The Rays, who had ten of the top 60 picks in the draft, used their second selection (31st overall) on Mahtook.

You can keep track of which top picks have signed with MLBTR's list.

Rosenthal’s Full Count Video: Wandy, Reds, Rays

By | at

Here's the latest Full Count video clip from Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com:

  • The Astros may place lefty Wandy Rodriguez on waivers next week, and it's possible but unlikely that Rodriguez will be claimed by another team. He stands to earn $36MM over the next three seasons, which could be a deterrent for teams considering a claim, but if he clears, the Diamondbacks and other teams may show interest in working out a trade.
  • The Reds have not seen a significant spike in attendance coming off last season's division title and will likely be relatively inactive this offseason.
  • The Rays considered trading center fielder B.J. Upton in July, but they may hold him this offseason and allow him to walk in free agency after 2012. The Rays value Upton highly and think they may not be able to spend his 2012 salary, which Rosenthal estimates will be roughly $7MM, any better on another player or players.
  • Tampa might be more willing to trade righty James Shields, who would probably yield a greater return than Upton.
  • The Yankees will not release catcher Jorge Posada, which is why they're having trouble squeezing prospect Jesus Montero to the big leagues. The Yanks do not want to go to an 11-man pitching staff, which they'd have to do if they called up Montero.

Quick Hits: Rhodes, Yankees, Villalona, Athletics

By | at

The A's announced that they have hired former MLB player and manager Phil Garner as a special advisor. The 62-year-old played for 16 seasons and managed for another 15. Here are the latest links from around MLB… 

  • Arthur Rhodes told B.J. Rains of FOXSportsMidwest.com that the Red Sox, Yankees, and Phillies all had interest in signing with him before he joined the Cardinals (Twitter link). The Phillies wanted the veteran lefty to pitch in the minors before adding him to the big league roster.
  • "What you see is what you’re gonna get," said Yankees GM Brian Cashman to Dan Barbarisi of The Wall Street Journal (Twitter link). Cashman doesn't expect to make any waiver trades this month.
  • The Associated Press (via ESPN Deportes) reports that former Giants prospect Angel Villalona is suing the team for $5MM, citing unlawful termination of his contract. Villalona, once ranked as the 33rd best prospect in the game by Baseball America, has not played since 2009 after being charged with murder in the Dominican Republic.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports argues that MLB needs a salary floor (a minimum payroll) because certain teams aren't going to spend any more than they have to. However, the players' union has traditionally opposed salary caps and floors. 
  • Ian Kennedy told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic that he would listen if the D’Backs approached him about a long-term deal.
  • Brewers GM Doug Melvin told Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he didn't know Ron Roenicke before interviewing him for Milwaukee's managerial opening last fall. The new skipper has the Brewers in first place, four games ahead of the Cardinals.
  • Joey Votto told Paul Daugherty of the Cincinnati Enquirer that superstars can be overrated in MLB, since they don't impact the game the way great players do in other sports. I highly recommend Daugherty's piece, in which Votto shows a strong understanding of the business of baseball.
  • Tampa Bay, Arizona, Oakland, Miami and Washington are the five worst markets in MLB for Newsday's Ken Davidoff.
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