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Rangers Seek Pitching For Borbon

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The Rangers are looking for a “pitcher with options” in any trade for outfielder Julio Borbon, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.  The Rangers are expected to trade the 27-year-old in the next few days, but one source said they are seeking a high return.

The Rangers had expressed confidence in being able to find a trade for Borbon that would bring back at least some value.  However, as Evan Grant of the Dallas News notes, it's not clear how ready Borbon would be to help a team if he’s received in a trade or claimed.  The outfielder has just one at-bat this season and has been at home since being designated for assignment.

Rays Acquire Jeff Beliveau

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The Rays acquired lefty Jeff Beliveau from the Rangers for cash considerations, according to a team press release.  Jeff Niemann was placed on the 60-day DL to create a 40-man roster spot for Beliveau, noted Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.  

Beliveau had been designated for assignment by the Rangers on April 8th, upon their acquisition of catcher Robinson Chirinos from Tampa Bay.  Beliveau is not the player to be named later that the Rangers owe the Rays for Chirinos, tweets Topkin.  

Beliveau, 26, posted a 3.89 ERA, 10.6 K/9, 3.7 BB/9, and 0.82 HR/9 in 44 relief innings for the Cubs' Triple-A affiliate last year, making his big league debut in July.

Quick Hits: Robinson, Andrus, Profar, Appel

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Sixty-six years ago today, Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier when he made his Major League debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers. After an 0-for-3 debut, Robinson went on to hit .297/.383/.427 with 12 home runs, a league-leading 29 stolen bases and won Rookie of the Year honors. As MLB.com's Richard Justice writes, the movie "42" introduces Robinson to a new generation of Americans and helps to immortalize the legacy of one of America's most courageous figures: "Robinson paid an incomprehensible price in the pain he endured and the responsibility he carried," writes Justice.

Baseball as we know it would not be the same were it not for Robinson's courage, talent and perseverance. Here's a look at some news from around the league on Jackie Robinson day…

  • In his latest MLB.com mailbag, T.R. Sullivan writes that the Elvis Andrus extension, while risky for the Rangers, is still beneficial to the team. He credits Scott Boras for "astutely putting risk" on Texas.
  • Within that same piece, Sullivan writes that the Rangers would trade a package of prospects highlighted by Jurickson Profar "in the blink of an eye" if it meant landing David Price from the Rays or Giancarlo Stanton from the Marlins.
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America feels that Mark Appel has plenty of leverage in the upcoming draft and will likely sign a bonus in the $6MM neighborhood. As Callis notes, teams can't risk offering something like a $5MM "take it or leave it" offer and signing the rest of their picks. Doing so could ultimately lead to paying over slot to sign Appel, costing them future picks. It's in the best interest of whoever drafts Appel to sign him first, and doing so could prove highly expensive.
  • Callis also notes that Appel and Oklahoma right-hander Jonathan Gray have established themselves as the clear-cut top two prospects in the draft.
  • Major League Baseball is making progress on its investigation of the Biogenesis scandal, writes Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. However, it appears MLB is looking for "a smoking gun" before taking what could be its only chance to question players such as Alex Rodriguez and Ryan Braun who have been connected to the Miami clinic. Heyman confirms that MLB has purchased Biogenesis documentation, but notes that the MLBPA will be sure to question documents that were produced after a cash transaction.

Marlins “Not Interested” In Trading Giancarlo Stanton

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Teams that have inquired about Giancarlo Stanton have been told by the Marlins they are "not interested" in dealing their star outfielder, tweets Peter Gammons of MLB Network. Gammons specifically lists the Red Sox, Mets, and Rangers as teams who have checked in with Miami.

Yesterday, we learned the Rangers are reportedly doing early reconnaissance and prep work for what it would take to land Stanton while Mets GM Sandy Alderson said he hasn't had any conversations with the Marlins since early spring. Stanton has become the hottest name on the pages of MLBTR and more than 70% of our readers feel the Marlins will trade the 22-year-old sometime before Spring Training opens next year.

Rangers Notes: Stanton, Borbon, Orioles

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Yesterday, we learned that the Rangers are "growing confident" that they'll be able to find a taker for Julio Borbon after designating him for assignment last week.  We already know that the Twins are among the teams with interest in the 27-year-old, but another interested club has emerged.  Meanwhile, the Rangers are in the early stages of plotting what would be a much bigger move.  Here's the latest out of Arlington, courtesy of ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Insider sub. req'd).

  • The Rangers are doing early reconnaissance and prep work on what it would take to land Giancarlo Stanton down the road, according to Olney.  In a poll last week, roughly 70% of MLBTR readers said that the Marlins star would be traded either this season or following the 2013 season.  Only 4% see Stanton signing a long-term deal to remain with Miami.
  • The Orioles have interest in trading for Borbon, but the asking price is high.  The out-of-options outfielder posted a .304/.349/.433 slash line for Triple-A Round Rock in 2012.  Recently, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan suggested that the Rangers might get a reliever in return for Borbon.

West Notes: Helton, Borbon, De La Rosa

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Todd Helton says he won't play for anyone but the Rockies, reports MLB.com's Barry M. Bloom. It sounds like Helton is considering retirement: "I have other interests in my life besides baseball, even though I enjoy everything about it," he says. "… I do have other things in my life — kids, family — and a lot of things that the game has given me the chance to enjoy." Helton is in his 17th season playing for only the Rockies, and Bloom points out that Helton holds records in homers, doubles, hits, RBIs and runs scored for the young franchise. He is set to become a free agent after the season. Here are more notes from the two West divisions.

  • The Rangers are "growing confident" that they'll be able to trade outfielder Julio Borbon, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan reports. The Rangers designated Borbon for assignment on Tuesday. Sullivan says that the Rangers aren't expecting much in return, which makes sense — Borbon is 27 and has yet to establish himself in the majors. Texas might receive a reliever in return for Borbon, Sullivan suggests.
  • For reliever Dane De La Rosa, pitching for the Angels is "a bit of a childhood dream," writes MLB.com's William Boor. De La Rosa grew up in Southern California, but spent the last three years with the Rays organization, mostly pitching thousands of miles to the east in Triple-A Durham and Double-A Montgomery before making his big-league debut in 2011. The Rays traded De La Rosa to the Angels for Steve Geltz in late March. "It's just cool being able to play on the West Coast, actually showing my family and friends that I do play baseball," says De La Rosa. "I don't think they believed me for the past few years, just because I've been so far away. It's just nice to be around family and I've had a lot of friends come out."

Quick Hits: Tigers, Harvey, Isringhausen, Int’l Money

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The Yankees turned the first 4-6-5-6-5-3-4 triple play in Major League history tonight in the eighth inning of their 5-2 win over the Orioles.  Manny Machado was the unlucky Oriole who put the ball into play and he represented the third out while he was caught between first and second base.

Here are some news items from around the majors as we head into the weekend…

  • Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski has spoken to an opposing GM about a closer within the last week, Dombrowski told Jim Bowden during an interview on MLB Network Radio (Twitter link).
  • The Mets haven't had any internal discussions about offering Matt Harvey an extension, Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal reports, and likely won't do so until after the season at the earliest.  Costa hears from a team of business students who project a four- or five-year deal worth $30-$35MM following the 2014 season as a fair possible extension for Harvey, though Costa wonders if Harvey (and agent Scott Boras) would agree to such a contract.
  • Jason Isringhausen hasn't officially retired since he is open to pitching again in the right situation, but the veteran reliever tells FOX Sports Midwest's Ben Frederickson that "as of last year, I left on my terms. So, if it never happens again, I'm perfectly happy."
  • Now that teams can trade from their pools of international bonus money, Baseball America's Ben Badler looks at which clubs might look to acquire or sell some of their funds this summer.
  • In an ESPN Insider piece (subscription required), Jim Bowden discusses why he thinks a Jurickson Profar-for-Oscar Taveras deal would work for both the Rangers and Cardinals.  Such a swap would be what Bowden calls a "challenge" trade that can shape a franchise, akin to the one he made as Reds GM in 1992 when he dealt Paul O'Neill to the Yankees for Roberto Kelly.  Of course, as Bowden notes, that deal backfired badly for him: "True, that O’Neill-for-Kelly deal will haunt me to my grave, but it was the gutsiest trade I’ve ever made."
  • A Profar-for-Taveras deal wouldn't make sense for the Rangers at this time, ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett opines.  Rather than deal for another prospect, Durrett argues Texas could move Profar as part of a package for a proven Major League star like David Price or Giancarlo Stanton.  Or, the Rangers could simply keep Profar for themselves and instead move Ian Kinsler to first base or the outfield to make room.

Twins Kicking Tires On Julio Borbon

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The Twins are kicking the tires on Rangers center fielder Julio Borbon, a team official tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN.  Wolfson senses the Twins won't trade for Borbon, but could claim him off waivers if he's available to them.  Wolfson notes that struggling rookie center fielder Aaron Hicks is a factor for the Twins.

Borbon, 27, was designated for assignment by the Rangers yesterday.  During the first month of the season, last season's records are used to determine waiver order, so the Astros, Cubs, and Rockies will have a crack at Borbon before the Twins if he does hit waivers next week.  Borbon hit .304/.349/.433 in 584 Triple-A plate appearances last year.

Nolan Ryan To Remain With Rangers As CEO

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The Rangers will announce shortly that Nolan Ryan will stay with the club as CEO, a source tells Randy Galloway of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Jeff Wilson's Twitter).  Ryan met Sunday afternoon with principal owners Bob Simpson and Ray Davis to discuss the CEO's future for the first known meeting since a March 8th pow-wow in Fort Worth. 

“After productive discussions the last several weeks with Ray Davis and Bob Simpson about the structure of our organization, together we are moving forward. In my role as CEO, I am focused on working closely with ownership and with [General Manager] Jon Daniels and Rick George to build on the success of the past five years and to bring a championship to Arlington," Ryan said in the press release.

Meanwhile, Davis and Simpson's statement in the release praised Ryan for the guidance that he has given Daniels and president of business operations Rick George over the years.  There has been talk over the last few months that Ryan was unhappy with his perceived shrinking role within the organization.  Daniels was recently bumped up to president of baseball operations, a move that Ryan believed would reduce his amount of control over personnel decisions.

Minor Moves: Juan Apodaca

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We'll keep track of today's minor moves from around the league right here…

  • The Rays have acquired catcher Juan Apodaca from the Rangers in exchange for cah considerations, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter). Apodaca, 26, is a veteran of eight minor league seasons with the Dodgers, Red Sox, Indians and Cubs. He's currently on the DL at Triple-A Round Rock with a forearm strain, but owns a .251/.337/.368 minor league batting line. Topkin notes that this move is unrelated to the recent Robinson Chirinos trade.
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