Rays Rumors

Draft Signings: Red Sox, Rays, Royals

By Mike Axisa | August 1, 2011 at 11:07pm CDT

Now that the trade deadline is behind us, the next big event is the draft signing deadline on August 15th. We'll keep track of any draft signings here…

The Cubs have signed ninth rounder Garrett Schecht for an above-slot $235K, reports Callis on Twitter. The high school outfielder from Illinois received the largest bonus in the ninth round so far.
The Red Sox have signed third rounder Jordan Weems according to Baseball America's Jim Callis (on Twitter). Weems, a catcher from a Georgia high school, received a $500K bonus. MLB.com's slot recommendation was $275K.
Callis tweets that the Rays have signed fourth rounder Riccio Torrez for $180K, just above MLB's slot recommendation of $169K. Torrez is a third baseman from Arizona State.
The Royals have signed their second-round pick, catcher Cameron Gallagher, according to a team press release. Callis says (on Twitter) he received a $750K signing bonus, well above MLB's slot recommendation of $563K. The club has now signed 26 of their 50 selections in this year's draft.

Minor Moves: Flores, Stokes, Ward, Carson

By Mike Axisa | August 1, 2011 at 9:30pm CDT

Let's keep track of the day's minor moves here…

The Yankees will release Triple-A left-hander Randy Flores tomorrow according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). Both sides agreed to the move. Flores pitched to a 2.54 ERA in 28 1/3 innings for New York's top minor league affiliate, but he gave up 14 hits in 14 innings against lefties.
The Diamondbacks have signed Brian Stokes and assigned him to Triple-A Reno according to the team's Twitter feed. The righty reliever spent last season with the Angels organization, throwing 16 2/3 innings in the majors and 17 2/3 innings in the minors.
The D'Backs also signed infielder Daryle Ward according to the club's Twitter feed. The 36-year-old had been playing with the independent Newark Bears, and he hasn't appeared in the big leagues since 2008. He's headed to Double-A Mobile.
The Rays have acquired Matt Carson from the Athletics according to the Triple-A Pacific Coast League transactions page. The 30-year-old outfielder hit .285/.338/.538 with 19 homers and 11 stolen bases in exactly 400 plate appearances for Oakland's Triple-A affiliate this season. He's seen time with the A's in each of the last two seasons, posting a .200/.210/.370 batting line with five homers in 105 plate appearances from 2009-2010.
The Astros have released right-hander Brad Hennessey according to Zachary Levine of The Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). The 31-year-old pitched to a 7.76 ERA in 26 2/3 innings for Houston's Triple-A affiliate,

AL East Notes: Rays, Bedard, Hairston, Jimenez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | July 31, 2011 at 10:05pm CDT

The deadline has passed and the Yankees are the only team in the AL East that didn't make a deal. The Rays were pretty quiet, too, but there may have been a reason for that…

Rays executive VP of baseball operations Andrew Friedman underwent an appendectomy last night, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. However, that didn't stop Friedman from conducting business from his hospital room this afternoon.
The Red Sox and Mariners will each cover some of the incentives on Erik Bedard's contract, GM Jack Zduriencik told Larry Stone of the Seattle Times (Twitter link).
The Red Sox had interest in Scott Hairston, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter). However, the Mets weren't interested in minor salary relief or a marginal prospect.
Boston wasn’t the only interested team, by the way. The Braves talked to the Mets about acquiring Hairston as a bench bat, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).
Jack Curry of the YES Network hears that the Yankees wanted a shoulder MRI for Ubaldo Jimenez, but the Rockies declined (Twitter link).

AL East Trades

By Zachary Links | July 31, 2011 at 7:00pm CDT

This month's AL East trades..

Blue Jays

Acquired center fielder Colby Rasmus and pitchers Trever Miller, Brian Tallet, and P.J. Walters from the Cardinals for starter Edwin Jackson, relievers Marc Rzepczynski and Octavio Dotel, outfielder Corey Patterson, and three players to be named later or cash considerations.
Acquired starter Edwin Jackson and third baseman Mark Teahen from the White Sox for reliever Jason Frasor and starter Zach Stewart.
Will receive a player to be named later or cash considerations from the Dodgers for outfielder Juan Rivera.

Orioles

Acquired minor league first baseman Aaron Baker from the Pirates for Derrek Lee.
Acquired Chris Davis and Tommy Hunter from Texas for Koji Uehara and $2MM.
Acquired lefty reliever Zach Phillips from the Rangers for Nick Green and cash considerations.

Rays

Received cash considerations from the Brewers in exchange for Felipe Lopez.

Red Sox

Acquired starter Erik Bedard and reliever Josh Fields from Seattle in a three-way deal also involving the Dodgers. Boston sent catcher Tim Federowicz, reliever Juan Rodriguez, and starter Stephen Fife to Los Angeles and outfielder Chih-Hsien Chiang to Seattle. The M's also got outfielder Trayvon Robinson from the Dodgers.
Acquired infielder Mike Aviles from the Royals for infielder/outfielder Yamaico Navarro and reliever Kendal Volz.
Will receive a player to be named later or cash from Florida for outfielder Mike Cameron.

Yankees

The Yankees didn't make any July trades for the first year since 1999.

Nationals, Twins Not Close On Span Trade

By Tim Dierkes | July 31, 2011 at 2:46pm CDT

2:46pm: The teams are not close on a Span trade, tweets Jon Paul Morosi.

12:29pm: The Twins don't currently believe this deal can get done, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown. The Nationals so far will not include Storen, tweets Scott Miller.

9:43am: ESPN's Tim Kurkjian tweets that the chances of a Storen/Span deal are less than 50/50. The Nationals are still in the mix for B.J. Upton.

7:59am: Nationals closer Drew Storen is in the Denard Span trade with the Twins, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but the hangup is over the other players in the deal. Yesterday we heard names such as Roger Bernadina and Stephen Lombardozzi of the Nationals.

B.J. Upton Likely To Stay Put

By Tim Dierkes | July 31, 2011 at 10:39am CDT

The latest on Rays center fielder B.J. Upton, who is hitting .226/.308/.398 on the season and is owed $1.59MM prior to his last arbitration year in 2012…

Though Upton is expected to stay, the Reds, Pirates, and Indians are kicking the tires, tweets Heyman.
Upton appears likely to stay put, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.

Tigers Interested In Joel Peralta

By Tim Dierkes | July 31, 2011 at 9:50am CDT

The Tigers are still looking for bullpen help after acquiring David Pauley, and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets they're interested in Rays reliever Joel Peralta.

Peralta, 35, has a 3.75 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 1.1 HR/9, and 26.7% groundball rate in 48 innings this year. He leads the American League with 52 appearances. Peralta will be under team control for 2012 as an arbitration eligible player.

Morosi says the Tigers also have Baltimore's Jim Johnson on the radar, but a deal is unlikely.

Latest On Braves’ Outfield Targets

By Tim Dierkes | July 30, 2011 at 10:00pm CDT

The Braves are expected to add an outfielder today; here's the latest…

The Athletics' asking price for Coco Crisp was a bit much, tweets David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. We know the Braves are looking at Houston's Michael Bourn, and O'Brien says they're still in on B.J. Upton of the Rays as well.

Latest On Braves’ Outfield Targets

By Tim Dierkes | July 30, 2011 at 1:26pm CDT

The Braves offered a four-player package to the Astros for Hunter Pence, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. However, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Astros sought two of the Braves' top four pitching prospects and another good young pitcher, so a deal was not reached. With Pence and Carlos Beltran off the board, here's the latest on the Braves' hunt for a hitter…

Byrd is not going to be traded, writes ESPN's Jayson Stark, though the Braves took a run at him. Stark says the Twins are set on receiving big league-ready players for Denard Span. Bourn, Upton, Crisp, and Quentin are on the radar, while there are no signs the Braves have pursued Ludwick or Willingham of late.
The Braves are strongly in on Quentin, tweets Bob Nightengale, but the White Sox are still unlikely to move him. Chicago's asking price is very high, tweets Jon Paul Morosi, and the Braves are interested but not optimistic.
Cubs center fielder Marlon Byrd appears to be among the names on Atlanta's radar, reports David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The Braves' talks for Oakland center fielder Coco Crisp slowed Friday, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney, but he wonders if they'll be rekindled now that the Phillies got Pence.
The Braves are almost certain to land an outfielder before the deadline, reports Rosenthal. He cites the names you have been hearing for a while: B.J. Upton, Michael Bourn, Ryan Ludwick, Carlos Quentin, and Josh Willingham.
Bourn is on the Braves' radar, tweets Crasnick. Padres right fielder Ludwick is "more down the list of options." Would Astros GM Ed Wade deal another outfielder? He told reporters earlier tonight, "We’re going to be open-minded on all fronts. We’re going to be good listeners."
The Braves are targeting a center fielder, tweets Yahoo's Jeff Passan, though it doesn't rule them out on corner guys.

B.J. Upton Rumors: Friday

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | July 29, 2011 at 12:51pm CDT

The Braves, Indians, Nationals, Phillies and Pirates have all been linked to B.J. Upton this week, so it won't be surprising if the center fielder is suiting up for a National League team within a week. With Carlos Beltran and Colby Rasmus off of the trade market, Upton and Hunter Pence (latest rumors) are the top available outfielders. Here's the buzz on Upton, who hit his 16th homer last night:

Upton is “available,” but a number of teams linked to him appear to be focused on other moves at this point, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark writes. The Phillies, Braves and Pirates, for example, are working on other fronts. The Nationals remain interested.
The Rays' asking price for Upton is more reasonable than the Astros' asking price for Pence, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).

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