Quick Hits: Red Sox, Indians
A couple notes regarding the Red Sox and Indians, who both won on Saturday night (in Boston's case, twice) …
- The Red Sox wanted to trade for both Erik Bedard and Rich Harden once their attempt to acquire Hiroki Kuroda from the Dodgers fell through, tweets Peter Gammons. Bedard, of course, ended up in Boston, while the acquisition of Harden was nixed by Red Sox medical staff.
- It's unclear whether the Indians were the team that placed a waiver claim on the Rays' B.J. Upton, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer, but it'd make sense for the Tribe to do so. Outfielders Michael Brantley and Shin-Soo Choo are banged up, and the Indians were one of the teams interested in Upton prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, according to Hoynes.
- Lost in the shuffle of Jim Thome's first homer since rejoining the Indians was the Major League debut of reliever Nick Hagadone, writes Hoynes. Hagadone, a lefty, was acquired along with Justin Masterson in the deal that sent Victor Martinez to Boston in 2009. That doesn't look like such a bad swap in retrospect, especially if Hagadone turns out to be a solid member of the Tribe's bullpen.
Quick Hits: Kubel, Bell, Marlins, Upton
Hurricane Irene has resulted in the cancellation of five Saturday games, but we still have plenty of news for your to pore over..
- The Indians and Twins did exchange names on a potential Jason Kubel deal but Minnesota wanted more than the Tribe was willing to give for a short-term rental, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter).
- More from Rosenthal (via Twitter) as he says that the talks between the Padres and Giants on Heath Bell never got very far. The claim was more than just a block, but the Giants didn't want to give up real value for the closer.
- The Marlins preference is to hire a manager who they believe will hold that job for years to come rather than keep Jack McKeon, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com. McKeon will celebrate his 81st birthday this fall.
- No surprise here but Olney tweets that it's unlikely that we'll see B.J. Upton traded following the waiver claim. The Rays would probably be benefit from listening to multiple teams this winter.
Upton Feels He Won’t Be Back With Rays Next Season
Rays centerfielder B.J. Upton told reporters that he doesn't expect to be back with the club in 2012, according to Roger Mooney of The Tampa Tribune.
“I hope not, but I don’t see why I wouldn’t be with all the talks at the deadline, and with this [waiver claim], I don’t see why there wouldn’t be that possibility,” the 27-year-old said. “I don’t want to go anywhere, but if that’s what they want to do it’s out of my hands.”
This morning it was reported that Upton was claimed off of trade waivers by an unknown team. Upon hearing the news, Upton said that he wasn't concerned about it and appropriately termed the move "business as usual". Rays Executive Vice President Andrew Friedman would neither confirm nor deny the report.
Cubs Interested In Friedman, Colletti, Cashman
Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts has been gathering information about Rays executive vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Cubs, who are on the hunt for a new general manager, also appear to have interest in Rick Hahn of the White Sox and Josh Byrnes of the Padres.
The Cubs are drawn to Colletti, a Chicago native and former Cubs employee, since they believe he could bring Hall of Fame second baseman turned minor league manager Ryne Sandberg back as the team’s Major League skipper. Sandberg has said he’d return to the Cubs now that former GM Jim Hendry has been fired, according to Wittenmyer.
Ricketts has also discussed the possibility of trying to lure Yankees GM Brian Cashman to Chicago along with New York manager Joe Girardi. Cashman’s contract expires after the season, but Girardi, a Peoria, Illinois native, is under contract with the Yankees through 2013.
Wittenmyer hears from associates of Friedman that the Rays executive isn’t likely to leave Tampa Bay for Chicago.
AL East Notes: Red Sox, Yankees, Maddon
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
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
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
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
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…
- As of today Jason Giambi and Jim Thome had yet to be placed on waivers, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Rosenthal wonders if Johnny Damon, who has already cleared waivers, could be a fit for the Phillies.
- Marlins left-hander Randy Choate told Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald that he's not likely to pitch again this season. The left-hander, who is under contract for 2012, would have been an August trade candidate if healthy.
- Chipper Jones told David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the Braves have more pitching than they know what to do with. “It’s almost embarrassing how much talent we have at the minor league level that can help this ballclub,” he said (Twitter link).
Teams Spend $236MM On Draft
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.