Royals Acquire John Whittleman
The Royals have acquired John Whittleman from the Rangers in exchange for a player to be named later, reports Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (via Twitter).
Whittleman, 24, was selected by Texas in the second round of the 2005 amateur draft, but had yet to play above Double-A in the Rangers' system. In over 2,800 minor league plate appearances, the corner infielder has hit .242/.353/.389.
Doug Davis Throws For Eight Teams
The Angels, Mets, Orioles, Rangers and Rockies were among the eight teams that sent scouts to Doug Davis' throwing sessions in Tempe today, reports MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez (Twitter link). Davis threw a 45-pitch bullpen session and said his arm "felt great" afterwards, according to Sanchez. As per recent reports, the three unnamed teams don't include the Astros or Davis' most recent team, the Brewers.
It isn't clear whether Davis expects a Major League or minor league contract, though given his injury history, the latter is much more reasonable. Of the named teams, Texas is the club with most sudden need for starting pitching, given that Tommy Hunter suffered a groin injury this afternoon and Neftali Feliz has been slotted back into the closer's job. The Rangers could sign Davis to a minor league deal to see how he performs in regular work, while putting Dave Bush into their rotation as Hunter's temporary replacement.
Rangers Keep Neftali Feliz In The Bullpen
The Rangers will open the season with a rotation of C.J. Wilson, Colby Lewis, Tommy Hunter, Derek Holland and Matt Harrison and Neftali Feliz will return to the bullpen after an extended spring stint as a starter, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan (on Twitter). The decision provides manager Ron Washington with the proven closer he sought and lessens the chances that the Rangers have to look outside of the organization for relief help.
The Rangers considered moving Feliz to the rotation because of his potential to be a shutdown starter. He won last year's AL Rookie of the Year as the Rangers' closer, saving 40 games and posting a 2.73 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 69 1/3 innings. Last week, 55% of 6,681 MLBTR readers said they would return the 22-year-old to the bullpen.
Olney On Harang, McClellan, Feliz
As Spring Training winds down and teams make their final roster cuts, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney has the latest from around the majors…
- Aaron Harang signed with the Padres because he has family ties to San Diego, but there’s another reason the right-hander’s a good fit for his new club. Olney and Scott Regan estimate that 13 of the 43 home runs Harang gave up in Cincinnati from 2008-10 would not have been home runs in San Diego. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes identified the Padres as a good match for Harang last October.
- The Cardinals like what they’ve seen from Kyle McClellan in the rotation. "It's what we would've expected," GM John Mozeliak said. "He has a strong repertoire of pitches. The big challenge for him is going to be going through a lineup multiple times." For more on McClellan's new role, click here.
- Olney reports that the Rangers will probably decide whether to use Neftali Feliz as a starter or as a closer by the weekend. A week ago, 55% of 6,670 MLBTR readers said Feliz belongs in the ‘pen for 2011.
American League Links: Orioles, Francisco, Indians
Links from the Junior Circuit, as Bartolo Colon comes closer to earning a spot in the Yankees' rotation…
- Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun previews the Orioles' Opening Day roster and checks in on some 2010 Orioles who have since joined other organizations.
- Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas asks whether the Rangers made a mistake when they traded Frank Francisco for Mike Napoli. Rangers GM Jon Daniels says Francisco was "very good" out of the bullpen when healthy, but notes that Francisco isn't completely healthy at the moment. The right-hander is set to visit Dr. James Andrews.
- The Indians are almost ready to announce their starting rotation, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
- Meanwhile, Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer says the Indians didn't draft well enough from 2004-07.
West Rumors: Beltre, Hultzen, Neshek, Rockies
Some links from the left coast…
- Adrian Beltre told Scott Miller of CBS Sports that he signed with the Rangers instead of the Angels because he felt Texas gave him "the best chance to put a ring on [his] finger." The third baseman wouldn't elaborate on the talks he had with the Halos before signing.
- ESPN's Keith Law hears that the Diamondbacks love Virginia left-hander Danny Hultzen, a projected first round pick (Twitter link). Arizona holds the third and seventh overall picks in this year's draft, and Hultzen owns a 62:4 K:BB ratio in 34 1/3 innings this spring.
- Dan Hayes of The North County Times tweets that new Padre Pat Neshek isn't guaranteed to make the team because he still has a minor league option remaining.
- Troy Renck of The Denver Post (via Twitter) could see the Rockies checking in on Michael Young now that the Rangers are reportedly willing to eat half of the veteran's salary.
- Renck also tweets that if Chone Figgins were made available, Colorado would be interested in him as a player but disinterested overall because of his hefty contract. Figgins is entering year two of a four-year deal worth $36MM, plus a vesting 2014 option for $9MM.
Quick Hits: Putz, Castillo, Varitek, Pirates, Ortiz
Links for Saturday evening..
- New to Arizona, J.J. Putz tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that he's a perfect fit for the Diamondbacks.
- Second baseman Josh Barfield is competing for a utility spot on the Phillies but isn't concerned with talk of Luis Castillo, writes Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com.
- Brian MacPherson and Tim Britton of The Providence Journal wonder how much longer Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek will continue to play. Varitek could be asked to backup Jarrod Saltalamacchia in 2011 but could still be given plenty of playing time in a platoon. McPherson set the over/under at 2.5 years but Britton takes the under, pointing out that the list of catchers who have played the most games is chock full of players who retired before reaching 40-years-old. The team captain will celebrate his 39th birthday in less than a month.
- Pirates left-hander Joe Beimel was scratched again due to elbow pain today, which seems to contradict what GM Neal Huntington said yesterday after picking up Garrett Olson off of waivers, tweets Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Huntington insisted yesterday that the addition of Olson was not motivated by concern about Beimel or Scott Olsen.
- Pittsburgh right-hander Kevin Hart was on the bubble for a roster spot with the club and out of options for 2011, but the club will now have more time to consider him after a shoulder injury sent him to the 60-day DL, writes Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.
- Dave Cameron of Fangraphs rallies against the tyranny of the corner label.
- Red Sox veteran David Ortiz told Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com that the pressure isn't off, even with the new additions.
- ESPN's Buster Olney (Insider req'd) hears from a talent evaluator that the best way for Kevin Millwood to get back to the big leagues is by signing with a team and pitching in games. "That's no way to win a job — sitting at home," said the source. Millwood's fastball was clocked at 85 mph during a recent workout.
- The Rangers ackowledge that Chris Davis has opened some eyes with his strong Spring Training, writes MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. He's under consideration for a roster spot, though teams have inquired about his availability.
- Now without star second baseman Dan Uggla, the Marlins are once again in a transitional phase, writes Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
- While he really enjoyed his time in Houston, Lance Berkman is happy to be with the Cardinals, writes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.
Rangers Willing To Eat Half Of Young’s Contract
The Rangers are calling teams about Michael Young and are willing to eat about half of the $48MM remaining on his contract, tweets Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports. As we've been hearing in recent weeks, the club is still asking for top-end prospects and not getting any bites.
Several teams have been linked to the veteran slugger but it doesn't appear that anyone is close to making a deal for him. The Diamondbacks rekindled talks with Texas a little more than a week ago but there has been little word on that front since. Some have suggested that the Cubs and Phillies could look to acquire Young, but neither club has yet to make a move.
General Manager Jon Daniels & Co. could generate some interest in the infielder if they are in fact willing to eat a significant portion of his contract. Young is owed $16MM per season through 2013.
Heyman On Phillies, Tigers, Manny, Rays
The Phillies have “tapped out” their payroll and have “nothing brewing” on the Michael Young front, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. Here’s the latest from Heyman as the Phils contemplate whether or not to pursue new free agent Luis Castillo…
- The expectation is that Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski, whose contract expires after the season, will be back. Dombrowski declined to comment on the matter.
- Manny Ramirez wanted to play for the Rays or the Blue Jays this year, according to Heyman. Rumors linked Ramirez to Toronto early in the offseason, partly because of the slugger’s affinity for incoming manager John Farrell and partly because he rooted for the great Dominican Blue Jays of the 1980s.
- Team officials say Rays infielder Elliot Johnson has been very impressive this spring.
Extension Candidate: C.J. Wilson
C.J. Wilson is not going to sign for Cliff Lee money when he hits free agency this offseason. Nine-figure deals are out of reach to any pitcher who doesn’t threaten to win the Cy Young every year, so Wilson can forget about matching the contract his former rotation-mate signed.
But Wilson is likely due for a raise next year, whether the Rangers give it to him or someone else does. The left-hander will hit free agency for the first time in his career and though the Rangers are open to extending him before the season ends, it’s starting to look like Wilson will hit the open market.
In the last year-plus, comparable left-handers including Wandy Rodriguez, Ted Lilly, Jorge de la Rosa and Randy Wolf have signed deals that pay them an average of just over $10MM per free agent season. That appears to be the going rate for those who have proven themselves as number two or three starters.
Wilson had a breakout 2010 season in which he pitched like a top-of-the-rotation starter. He led his team, the eventual AL Champions, in ERA (3.35), ground ball rate (49.2%), starts (33), wins (15), complete games (3) and innings (204) and placed in the top ten in the American League in ERA, wins and opponents’ average
Those numbers are impressive, but Wilson also placed among the league leaders in some other categories. He led the league in walks (93) and placed sixth in the league in hit batsmen (10). Opponents hit just .266 against him on balls in play last year, sixth-lowest among AL starters. That figure suggests he could be due to regress in 2011, as does his tough-to-sustain home run to fly ball rate of 5.3%.
The Rangers are taking a risk either way. Either they take it now and invest tens of millions in a pitcher who could regress and has just one year of experience as a starter. Or they postpone the risk until after the season and hope to do what they couldn’t do when Lee hit the market: convince the free agent left-hander to choose Texas over his other suitors.
Photo courtesy Icon SMI.