Rangers Would Trade Within Division
Rangers fans hoping for a Cliff Lee acquisition can breathe a sigh of relief. GM Jon Daniels told Anthony Andro and Jeff Wilson of the Dallas Morning News that the team would be willing to deal within the AL West.
"I'm not opposed to trading in the division, if it's the best thing for our club," Daniels said.
MLB.com reported last week that the Rangers had inquired on Lee. The Mariners don't appear to be shopping him and there's no guarantee that they would trade within the division if they make him available. Lee will become a free agent after the season, so the M's would presumably be open to trading with the Rangers if they don't see themselves contending in 2010.
Rangers manager Ron Washington said he's happy with the team's current rotation, which features Colby Lewis and C.J. Wilson along with Scott Feldman, Tommy Hunter and, in Rich Harden's absence, Dustin Nippert. But that doesn't mean Washington would be opposed to adding an ace.
"If we don't, we can't concern ourselves with something we don't have," Washington said. "But certainly we want a front-line starter."
Lee currently profiles as a Type A free agent, so his team will have the chance to obtain a pair of top picks in next year's draft.
Odds & Ends: Mejia, O’s, McGuire, Rangers, Valverde
Links for Sunday….
- ESPN's Adam Rubin tweets that the Mets have optioned Jenrry Mejia to Double-A Binghamton, where he will start their game on Wednesday.
- Jeff Zrebiec tells us that Buck Showalter will interview for the Baltimore managerial job this week, and Eric Wedge will likely receive a second interview. The club has yet to ask the Mets for permission to interview Bob Melvin.
- MLB.com's Jordan Bastian quotes Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos saying that despite first-round pick Deck McGuire's lack of participation in a media conference call, he's excited to have been drafted by Toronto. Anthopoulos says that negotiations, however, could go down to the wire as they did in 2009 with Chad Jenkins.
- Rangers manager Ron Washington feels that his team could use another front-line starting pitcher, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Texas has recently seen both Derek Holland and Rich Harden land on the disabled list.
- Nick Piecoro tweets that the D'Backs offered Jose Valverde a two-year deal worth about $10MM before he signed for two years and $14MM with Detroit. The story spawns from some heated comments that were exchanged between Valverde and former teammate Miguel Montero.
- Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times thinks Dan Haren would be a "perfect fit" for the Angels.
- The Cubs will soon face a decision on whether to become buyers or sellers, writes Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune.
- Within a mailbag for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Paul Hoynes says that a little salary relief is the best the Indians could hope for in a Kerry Wood trade.
- Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch details how the Cardinals will handle their starting rotation for the time being. Even after signing Jeff Suppan, the club will be short-handed while they wait for Brad Penny to get healthy.
- The Tigers should exercise patience when it comes to acquiring a shortstop, according to Lynn Hennig of the Detroit News.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that the Tigers will have to think about trading for a starting pitcher, with Rick Porcello heading to Triple-A.
Cafardo’s Latest: Oswalt, DeJesus, Aardsma, LaRoche
There are a handful of big names that could be moved before this July's trading deadline, and Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe opens his latest column by taking a look at some of the possibilities. Let's check out the highlights from Cafardo's piece….
- There's skepticism within the Astros' organization that owner Drayton McLane would want to trade Roy Oswalt to the Rangers, baseball's other Texas team.
- The return the Royals are requesting in exchange for David DeJesus is higher than any team is willing to pay for now.
- Mariners closer David Aardsma is "already drawing a lot of interest."
- Pedro Feliz, Willie Bloomquist, and Jay Payton could be small-scale trade bait.
- Adam LaRoche on his brief time as a Red Sox: "The ballpark was perfectly suited for the way I swing, and it would have been nice to have stayed there and see what would have happened over a full year."
Olney On Lee, Carmona, Rockies, Torre
In his newest blog post at ESPN.com (Insider-only link), Buster Olney tells the story of a phone call Michael Young made to Rangers GM Jon Daniels last summer. Just before the trade deadline, Young dialed up Daniels to tell him the players were happy with the young talent on the roster, suggesting that giving up the farm for someone like Roy Halladay wasn't necessary.
"Do what you have to do," Young told Daniels. "But don't do something just to appease us down here."
Here are Olney's other hot stove notes:
- The Mariners have yet to shop Cliff Lee, but will soon make a decision about his availability (Twitter link).
- The Mets are interested in Fausto Carmona, who is under contract beyond this year, unlike many of the oft-mentioned pitchers on the trade market. Olney warns that the "Oliver Perez factor" is in play, meaning that if the Mets acquired Carmona, it's unclear how he'd adjust to pitching in baseball's biggest market.
- A hitter like Aaron Hill or Dan Uggla would fit very nicely in Colorado right now, though neither the Blue Jays or Marlins have indicated yet that they're willing to sell. Olney figures that the Rockies will try to avoid making a trade, moving forward with their current roster until Troy Tulowitzki returns.
- As we heard earlier in the week from SI.com's Jon Heyman, Joe Torre appears unlikely to manage the Dodgers next season. "There are a couple of folks in power who are ready to turn the managerial page," according to Olney.
Remembering the 1992 Trade Deadline
Ah, who can forget 1992? The Boutros Boutros-Ghali Era begins at the United Nations. Lisa Simpson captivates a nation with her uncanny knack for picking football games. Johnny Carson retires, giving Jay Leno the chance to host The Tonight Show for some unspecified period of time. And Brett Favre makes his first start for the Green Bay Packers, leading to a career that will end around the same time that Jay Leno stops hosting The Tonight Show.
Meanwhile, baseball teams still found the time to trade with one another! Here are some of the highlights from those deals…
- The fun started on July 21, when the Braves traded Juan Berenguer to the Royals for a real-live Cy Young Award winner, Mark Davis. Just three years removed from the award-winning performance (1.85 ERA, 44 saves, 92 strikeouts in 92.2 innings), Davis was floundering with Kansas City, posting a 7.18 ERA with 28 walks and 19 strikeouts in 36.2 innings. He didn't do much better in Atlanta, with a 7.02 ERA after the deal. The Braves won the NL West anyway.
- On July 30, the Toronto Blue Jays solidified their bullpen by acquiring Mark Eichhorn, who'd begun his career in Toronto, from the California Angels for Rob Ducey and Greg Myers. Both Ducey and Myers went on to long careers with many teams, while Eichhorn was merely adequate for the Jays- a 4.35 ERA after the deal, compared to a 2.38 mark prior to it. His two scoreless postseason innings, however, helped Toronto capture its first World Series.
- On August 27, a day after Fernando Tatis and Chris Truby signed their first professional contracts, the New York Mets traded David Cone to the Blue Jays for Jeff Kent and Ryan Thompson. Why the Mets thought it a good idea to deal a 29-year-old Cone is hard to fathom- Cone would go on to rack up 114 of his 194 wins after this trade. Thompson, alas, never figured out the strike zone. And while Kent became one of the best to ever play his position, he did most of his damage after the Mets traded him to land Carlos Baerga (who did most of his damage prior to arriving in New York).
- On the penultimate day one can acquire a player to be added to the postseason roster (a fancy way of saying "August 30"), the Braves traded Sean Ross and Nate Minchey to the Red Sox for Jeff Reardon. Though he was 36 years old, Reardon still had something left in the tank. He pitched to a 1.15 ERA in Atlanta, then added three scoreless innings and a save during the NLCS. He faltered in the World Series, however, blowing the save in Game 2 on a home run by Ed Sprague.
- The biggest trade of the 1992 season came on August 31, when Oakland shipped Jose Canseco to the Texas Rangers for a huge package: Jeff Russell, Ruben Sierra, Bobby Witt and cash. Canseco was finished being one of the best players in the game- he'd posted a career OPS+ of 139 before the trade, but 124 after it, even though he was just 28 at the time of the deal. Meanwhile, the bounty proved to provide little in the way of production. Russell was quickly shipped to Boston, Sierra's post-trade career OPS+ dropoff was even steeper, from 118 to 92, and Witt's control got better, but his strikeout rate collapsed, leaving him with a career 4.57 ERA before the trade, 5.07 ERA after the trade. Even the inflation rate rendered the cash from 1992 progressively worth less over the remainder of the decade.
Odds & Ends: White Sox, Lewis, Oswalt, Mets, Lee
Links for Saturday..
- White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter) that the team has the financial freedom to add pieces, though he added the team "might be good enough the way it is". Meanwhile, Reinsdorf said that GM Kenny Williams has the power to fire the manager, though that isn't in his plans, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.
- Fred Lewis told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that his improved performance in Toronto isn't a result of a change of scenery. Lewis is OPSing .799 for the Blue Jays, a marked improvement over his OPS of .738 for the Giants in 2009.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter) wonders aloud if Nolan Ryan's recent comments regarding Roy Oswalt could be considered tampering.
- Ken Davidoff of Newsday tweets that a Mets scout was on hand to watch Lee last night, though it was said to be part of "normal coverage".
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post says that despite all the talk about Cliff Lee, the Yankees might need to fixate on adding a bat between now and the trade deadline.
- Speaking of Lee, Ryan Divish of The News Tribune mentions that the lefty shrugs off all the trade talk. “It’s out of my control,” said Lee. “That’s a better question for Jack [Zduriencik]. He’s the one who makes those decisions, but I don’t.”
- The Astros are pleased with how negotiations with top draft pick Delino DeShields Jr. are going, reports Bernardo Fallas of The Houston Chronicle. Houston selected DeShields with the eighth overall pick last week.
- Daric Barton told Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he's grateful for being included in the Mark Mulder trade because it created an opportunity for him. "For me, it was probably the best move that could have happened to me," said Barton. "I was catching then and (Yadier Molina) was back there then, and some guy by the name of (Albert) Pujols was at first. Obviously, I could never fill his shoes."
Odds & Ends: Oswalt, Reds, Lowell, Lopez
Links for Friday night, as Barack Obama takes in a Nationals/White Sox game….
- Nolan Ryan confirms rumblings we've been hearing for a few weeks now, telling Brian McTaggart of MLB.com that the Rangers are interested in Roy Oswalt.
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty tells MLB.com's Mark Sheldon that his club is considering available pitching options, but that he doesn't know "how many bullets we're going to have, so we'll have to be careful how we use them."
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports clarifies (via Twitter) that the Red Sox are willing to pay all of Mike Lowell's salary in a potential trade, but would like a better prospect in return in that case. The Twins and Rangers aren't budging so far.
- FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi tweets that, unsurprisingly, there isn't much trade interest in Jose Lopez.
- Jamie Moyer's son Dillon Moyer doesn't know whether or not he'll sign with Minnesota after the Twins drafted him in the 22nd round last week, according to Zach Schonbrun of MLB.com.
- ESPN.com's Rob Neyer thinks that whatever offense the Angels gain by playing Mike Napoli at first base is negated by playing Jeff Mathis behind the plate every day. The Angels are playing Napoli at first for now, rather than acquiring another impact bat.
Rangers Sign Mike Olt
The Rangers have signed sandwich pick Mike Olt, tweets MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Olt was the next-to-last selection in the supplemental round of this year's draft, picked 49th overall. He'll receive a bonus of approximately $717K, according to Baseball America's Jim Callis.
In their scouting report of the third baseman, MLB.com says Olt "stands out as one of the better [college hitters]… especially if a team is looking for power potential." Baseball America ranked the Connecticut product as the 98th-best player heading into the draft, citing his "agility, good glove, and power bat."
Olt becomes the third of the Rangers' top four picks to agree to terms, as the team reached agreements quickly with first-rounders Jake Skole and Kellin Deglan. Be sure to stay up to date on draft signings with our complete list of the top 50 picks.
Odds & Ends: Maybin, Blue Jays, Orioles, Oswalt
Links for Thursday night, as interleague play keeps Dan Haren's 1.000 OPS out of Arizona's lineup….
- Following tonight's game, the Marlins optioned Cameron Maybin to the minors, tweets Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. As MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith noted yesterday, the team might avoid having Maybin become a super two player after 2011 if they keep him in the minors for a few weeks.
- Not many draft signings to pass on today, but the Blue Jays announced that they've signed their 16th-round pick, Canadian Dalton Pompey. Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun says (via Twitter) that Pompey gets a $140K bonus.
- While the Orioles have yet to discuss such a plan, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports explains why he thinks the club could hire a manager and not immediately put him in the dugout.
- Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News believes the Rangers are the frontrunners for Roy Oswalt if the sale of the team moves forward by early July.
- In a Q&A with MLB.com's Bill Ladson, Nationals manager Jim Riggleman says Roger Bernadina's performance is convincing the team they don't need to acquire a right fielder.
- Cody Ross tells Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post that he hopes the Marlins become buyers rather than sellers: "We want to get somebody to help us rather than see some of us gone."
- Pirates president Frank Coonelly met with reporters today and addressed Akinori Iwamura's DFA, Pedro Alvarez's promotion, and the team's recent trades. MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch has the details.
Rangers Inquiring On Starting Pitching
The Rangers have called the Mariners to inquire about the availability of Cliff Lee, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Citing industry sources, Sullivan reports that the Mariners are one of many teams the Rangers have contacted in their search for starting pitching.
Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine confirms the team's interest in making a deal, while reiterating that nothing is imminent:
"We've had some preliminary discussions with clubs…. But to compel teams to move this far ahead of the [July 31st] trade deadline, it would take a very attractive package. We're still in the inventory stage and the information-gathering stage rather than the execution phase."
We heard earlier today that the Mariners have received a few calls from teams interested in Lee, but that the M's aren't ready yet to consider trading away their ace. According to Sullivan, the Rangers pursued the left-hander aggressively last summer as well, before the Indians traded him to Philadelphia.
Texas has also frequently been linked to the Roy Oswalt sweepstakes lately, though SI.com's Jon Heyman said earlier this week that acquiring the Astros' ace looks like an "extreme long shot." Still, it looks as though the Rangers hope to add a major piece to their starting rotation, if it's financially possible.