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AL West Notes: Ryan, Jaso, Rosales

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Here's a look at the latest from the AL West:

  • Nolan Ryan met with reporters ahead of the Rangers' matchup with the Astros tonight and said he doesn't anticipate changes in regard to his position as the club's CEO. “Things have settled down and I feel good about the ballclub and the way things are going," Ryan is quoted as saying in an article by TR Sullivan of MLB.com. "You just get through each season and see how you feel and how your health is."
  • The hall-of-famer said he's happy with the club's position following GM Jon Daniels' acquisition of Alex Rios from the White Sox to replace the suspended Nelson Cruz. Ryan also told reporters that he's "thrilled" with Ron Washington's stewardship of the club.
  • John Jaso's absence and the lack of other catchers on the Athletics' 40-man roster mean that Oakland might have to start monitoring the waiver wire for backstops, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. Jaso has been out since July 25 with a concussion.
  • The A's recently designated Adam Rosales for assignment, but Jane Lee of MLB.com notes that the club is a fan of his defense and would probably like to retain him. In the last 11 days, the 30-year-old has been DFA'd twice by the A's and once by the Rangers.

AL Notes: Longoria, Rangers, Reynolds

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You'll want to give a read to this excellent piece from Tyler Kepner of the New York Times on outlasting the decade-long saga of Alex Rodriguez and the Yankees. Elsewhere in the American League …

  • Fellow AL East third bagger Evan Longoria discussed the recent PED suspensions in pointed terms, reports SI.com's Cliff Corcoran. Longoria's most interesting observations, however, relate to the possibility of the players approving (or even seeking) enhancements to the penalties for PED use. "I definitely feel the risk needs to outweigh the reward," said Longoria, who went on to explain that a 50-game suspension was inadequate. "[I]t seems more players are starting to come forward and voicing their opinion negatively about cheating and PEDs," he continued. "If it comes to this offseason or the next, where we have [a] formal meeting [take] place where everybody in the union is there, and we have keynote players in the game today speaking adversely, then policy could get changed. The penalties could get more severe because guys want it out of the game." 
  • GM Jon Daniels "did his part," according to Rangers manager Ron Washington. As MLB.com's Richard Justice reports, Daniels utilized a blend of aggressiveness and patience in scooping up two players — Matt Garza and Alex Rios — who Justice says were "probably the best" starter and outfielder available.
  • If the Orioles are interested in the recently-designated Mark Reynolds, GM Dan Duquette isn't letting on. As Eduardo Encina writes for the Baltimore Sun, Duquette refused to comment on Reynolds, but did note that the O's "have a credible right-handed hitter in Danny Valencia, who is already on the [40-man] roster and would be available to us."
  • Meanwhile, the Red Sox are not interested in Reynolds, according to a tweet from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. With power-first, strikeout-prone players like Mike Napoli and Will Middlebrooks already in the BoSox infield mix, the lack of interest from Boston is not surprising.

Reactions To The Alex Rios Trade

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With Nelson Cruz's suspension leaving the Rangers thin in the outfield, Texas acquired Alex Rios from the White Sox today for a PTBNL (widely reported to be infielder Leury Garcia) and $1MM. Now, several hours after news of the trade broke, here are reactions to the deal from around the web.

  • Assuming the player to be named later in the deal does turn out to be Garcia, the Rangers paid a reasonable price for Rios, Eno Sarris of Fangraphs.com writes. With Rios only under contract for one more guaranteed year after 2013, the Rangers aren't assuming too much risk. Garcia didn't rank as a top prospect entering the season, and the Rangers have several infielders around for the long term and therefore could afford to part with him.
  • The Rios trade is "a great move" for the Rangers, argues Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com. The deal addresses the Rangers' needs both now and in the near future, since Rios is under contract in 2014 and Cruz and David Murphy are eligible for free agency after this season.
  • The deal makes sense for both teams, says CBS Sports' Jon Heyman. The Rangers get an average player who adds depth to their lineup, Heyman says, and the White Sox avoid paying Rios' salary through 2014, when they didn't figure to compete anyway.
  • Rios says he will remember fondly, MLB.com's Scott Merkin writes (on Twitter). "It was a great ride," says Rios. "I enjoyed my whole time here. I had many great moments here. So, I’m going to miss this place."

Rangers Claim Alex Rios; Trade Unlikely

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FRIDAY: A source involved in the trade talks between the two sides told Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio that the chances of a deal are "smaller than a bread basket."

THURSDAY, 4:51pm: A trade is unlikely to be reached, writes MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Prior to the deadline, the White Sox were interested in lefty Martin Perez, right-hander Luke Jackson and infielder Rougned Odor, and the Rangers aren't keen on giving up those players in a trade for Rios.

3:29pm: The Rangers and White Sox "weren't even close" on an agreement when discussing Rios prior to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Knobler also tweets that Rios was placed on waivers on Monday, and the deadline to work out a deal for him is tomorrow. That would suggest that Rios was claimed earlier in the week, but the news only broke today.

2:45pm: The Rangers are the team that claimed Rios, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter). Grant cautions that claiming Rios and actually striking a deal to acquire the 32-year-old are very different things.

12:58pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that Alex Rios has been claimed on revocable waivers by an unknown team (Twitter link).

Because he is on revocable waivers, the White Sox have 48 hours to work out a trade with the claiming team or pull him back off waivers.  Chicago could also let the claiming team have Rios for nothing and be content to dump his salary — the very manner in which Chicago acquired Rios from the Blue Jays in 2009 — but that seems unlikely given his .277/.328/.421 batting line. Rios is controlled through 2014 and owed $12.5MM next season with a $13.5MM club option, though each of those salaries will increase by $500K if he is traded.

It seems likely that an American League team was awarded the claim on Rios, as waiver priority at this point in the season is determined by league and record. All 15 AL teams would have the opportunity to claim Rios before an NL team. The Rangers and Pirates were both connected to Rios prior to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.

Athletics Claim Adam Rosales

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Adam Rosales' stay in Texas was brief, to say the least. The Athletics announced on Twitter that they have re-claimed the infielder off waivers from the Rangers after he was designated for assignment last week. Oakland will make a corresponding 25-man roster move tomorrow.

The Rangers claimed Rosales off waivers from the A's on Aug. 2, and he was only property of Texas for three days before being designated for assignment once again. Rosales, 30, is hitting .193/.268/.319 on the season. He didn't receive an at-bat during his three-game tenure with the Rangers. The A's could potentially need the extra infield depth, as new acquisition Alberto Callaspo suffered what was thought to be a minor injury in a home-plate collision yesterday.

AL West Notes: Wilhelmsen, Smoak, Green, Rangers

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Earlier today, the Mariners released Jason Bay after the outfielder hit .204/.298/.393 in 68 games for the club. Meanwhile, the Rangers announced that Colby Lewis will undergo hip surgery that will end his 2013 season. Here's more out of the AL West…

  • The Mariners recently demoted struggling closer Tom Wilhelmsen to Triple-A Tacoma, and MLB.com's Greg Johns tweets that the team is going to experiment with him as a starter. Seattle isn't officially announcing that Wilhelmsen will convert to a starting role at this time, but he did start for Tacoma today with unsuccessful results. Wilhelmsen allowed three runs on three hits (two homers) with four strikeouts in two innings.
  • Justin Smoak's turnaround has transformed him from one of the Mariners' problems to part of the solution, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. The Mariners still have plenty of decisions on their hands this offseason to produce a winning season, however, he adds.
  • The Angels have called up infielder Grant Green in place of Daniel Stange and inserted him into the lineup, tweets Angels director of communications Eric Kay. Green, a former first-round pick, was acquired from the Athletics for Alberto Callaspo last week in a rare intra-division trade.
  • In an appearance with Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio, Rangers GM Jon Daniels shot down previous reports that the team was willing to trade Matt Garza for a bat. He also said reports that the team wouldn't welcome Nelson Cruz back in 2014 after accepting his 50-game suspension were inaccurate (Twitter links).

Colby Lewis Out For Season; Rangers Want Him Back In 2014

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Rangers right-hander Colby Lewis will undergo surgery to remove bone spurs from his hip that have hampered him for multiple seasons, general manager Jon Daniels told reporters (including Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram) via conference call today.

Daniels said that he would "absolutely" like to have Lewis back with the Rangers in 2014. Lewis told the group that he wants to pitch next season, and the torn flexor tendon in his right arm that's kept him off the field since last July has healed completely.

The 34-year-old Lewis revived what looked to be a lost career with a pair of stellar seasons in Japan from 2008-09. He signed a two-year, $5MM contract with a $3.25MM option that proved to be a tremendous bargain for the Rangers. Following last year's season-ending injury, Texas signed him a to a one-year, $2MM extension that clearly didn't pay off, as Lewis hasn't thrown a pitch at the Major League level in 2013.

In 506 1/3 innings for the Rangers from 2010-12, Lewis pitched to a 3.93 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9. He had issues with the long ball in that time, as his 35 homers allowed in 2011 were the most in the American League. I'd imagine that the ceiling for Lewis on the upcoming free agent market would be a similarly small guarantee to the one he received for 2013 and plenty of incentives, but he could have to settle for a minor league deal as well.

Quick Hits: Flores, Rowland-Smith, Cherington, Cruz

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Top Mets prospect Wilmer Flores will be promoted to the Majors on Tuesday, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York reports. Flores, an infielder, didn't rank in any major outlets' top 100 prospect lists at the beginning of the season, but he might if those lists were published now — he's hitting .322/.358/.532 in Triple-A (albeit in the excellent hitting environment of Las Vegas), and today is his 22nd birthday. Newsday's Marc Carig notes (on Twitter) that with David Wright on the disabled list, the Mets will likely use Flores at third base. Here are more notes from around the Majors.

  • Pitcher Ryan Rowland-Smith had an August 5 out clause in his minor-league deal with the Red Sox, but he will not exercise it, and will instead stay with Triple-A Pawtucket, Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish tweets. Rowland-Smith has a 1.58 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 for Pawtucket this season. His opt-out date had been pushed back to August after he missed most of July following an appendectomy. ESPN's Jerry Crasnick tweets that, now that the August 5 date has passed, Rowland-Smith can opt out of his deal if any team offers him a spot on its active roster.
  • Red Sox GM Ben Cherington has emerged as one of baseball's best executives, WEEI.com's Mike Salk writes. After an awful 2012 season, the Sox have the third-best record in the Majors, behind only the Pirates and Braves. Salk chalks that up to the addition of more depth, character and chemistry to the roster, as well as to Cherington's hiring of John Farrell as the Red Sox's manager.
  • The Rangers are preparing to be without Nelson Cruz now that Cruz has been suspended for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal, T.R. Sullivan and William Boor of MLB.com report. The Rangers have promoted outfielders Joey Butler and Engel Beltre, and on Monday they started Beltre along with Leonys Martin and David Murphy, giving the Rangers an all-left-handed outfield. That left three righties — Butler, Craig Gentry and Jeff Baker — on the Rangers' bench, suggesting the possibility of platooning all three outfield spots. "We're going to use the whole roster and continue to play Texas Rangers baseball," says Rangers manager Ron Washington. The Rangers are still trying to trade for an outfielder, but GM Jon Daniels suggests that the waiver rules governing August trades will make it difficult for Texas to pull off a deal.

Rangers Don’t Envision Re-Signing Nelson Cruz

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Outfielder Nelson Cruz has spent the last seven years as a member of the Rangers but his tenure could come to an end this winter when he hits the open market.  Texas feels that it would be quite difficult to re-sign Cruz, who accepted a 50-game suspension for his ties to the Biogenesis PED clinic earlier today, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter).

For his part, Cruz says he wants to play for the Rangers again this season if they make the postseason and he hopes to finish his career in Texas, tweets Jim Bowden of ESPN.com.  Barring a serious change of heart in Arlington, it doesn't seem like the 33-year-old will get his wish.

Cruz is coming off of a two-year, $16MM deal that he signed in February of 2012 which paid him a $500K signing bonus, $5MM in year one, and would have given him $10.5MM this season.  Whatever deal he signs next season will be negotiated by the Wasserman Media Group, whom he hired today after parting ways with ACES.

How will the missed time and the stain of PED allegations effect Cruz's value this winter?  As a free agent, he won't have to worry about his weakened stats playing a direct role in his salary for 2014, unlike arbitration-bound Everth Cabrera.  However, if Jon Daniels & Co. don't agree to forgive and forget, he'll have one less suitor for his services on the open market, which certainly hurts his value.  On top of that, if Texas is unwilling to even consider a reunion with the longtime Ranger, one has to imagine that will send up another red flag for clubs seeking a right-handed outfield bat.  

Rangers Designate Adam Rosales For Assignment

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The Rangers have designated Adam Rosales for assignment to clear a roster spot for Joey Butler, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Round Rock, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter).

The Rangers just claimed the 30-year-old Rosales off waivers from the division-rival Athletics this past Friday. The Rangers recalled Butler and Engel Beltre today after it was announced that Nelson Cruz will miss the remainder of the season as he serves a 50-game suspension for his involvement in the Biogenesis PED investigation.

Rosales didn't get an at-bat for the Rangers and batted .193/.268/.319 in 153 plate appearances for the A's this season. He is a career .220/.289/.334 hitter in parts of six seasons with the Reds and A's.

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