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Draft Signings: Skoglund, Rays, Helmink, Bukauskas

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Here are today’s notable draft news and signings:

  • The Royals have agreed to terms with third-round pick Erik Skoglund, who will get the bonus pool amount of $576K, MLB Daily Dish’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Skoglund is a projectable lefty and a junior out of Central Florida.
  • The Rays have signed their sixth- through ninth-round draft choices, the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin tweets. Sixth-rounder Mac James, a catcher from Oklaholma, is a junior, but the other three players (RHP Mike Franco of Florida International, 3B Daniel Miles of Tennessee Tech, and RHP Chris Pike of Oklahoma City University) are all seniors, so the Rays will likely save money against their bonus pool with those picks.
  • The Diamondbacks have agreed to terms with 12th-round pick Holden Helmink, a righty from a Texas junior college, on a deal worth $100K, Cotillo tweets. $100K is the maximum a team can pay a player drafted after the tenth round without it counting against the team’s bonus pool.
  • The Dodgers have agreed to terms with fifth-rounder Jared Walker, a lefty-hitting third baseman from a Georgia high school, on a deal for the bonus pool value of $297K, Cotillo tweets. Walker was committed to Kennesaw State.
  • The Rangers have signed sixth-round pick Jose Trevino, Trevino himself tweets. Texas selected the Oral Roberts junior third baseman at No. 186 overall. The bonus pool value of that pick is about $229K.
  • The Rockies have agreed to terms with sixth-rounder Max George, Neil Devlin of the Denver Post tweets. The 5-foot-9 shortstop is a local product, hailing from Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora. There was no immediate word on George’s bonus, but the pool value of the pick is about $259K.
  • The Blue Jays have announced the first signings of their 2014 draft class: prep catcher Matt Morgan (4th round) and Florida right-hander Justin Shafer (8th round). No terms were released, but the slot value (per Baseball America) for the two picks are $458K and $159.9K, respectively.
  • Right-hander J.B. Bukauskas tweeted he will honor his commitment to the University of North Carolina and not sign with the Diamondbacks. Bukauskas, rated #33 by Baseball America and #38 by MLB.com, lasted until the 20th round (#600 overall) after asking teams last month not to draft him because he wanted to attend UNC.

Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.

Blue Jays To Sign Luis Ayala

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8:39am: Zach adds that Ayala’s contract with the Jays does not contain an opt-out clause, as his previous Orioles contract did (Twitter link).

8:26am: The Blue Jays have agreed to a minor league deal with right-hander Luis Ayala, MLBTR’s Zach Links reports (on Twitter).

Ayala, who is represented by Paragon Sports International, signed with the Nationals in Spring Training but was granted his release after it became clear that there wouldn’t be a spot for him in the Washington ’pen. He then inked a minor league deal with Baltimore and pitched 5 1/3 innings for their Double-A affiliate in Bowie before opting out of that deal as well.

The 36-year-old Ayala has been a solid bullpen piece for the past three seasons after it looked like his career was beginning to fade. He’s pitched for the Yankees, Orioles and Braves from 2011-13, posting a strong 2.58 ERA with 6.1 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a ground-ball rate north of 50 percent. He’s a logical fit with the Blue Jays, who, despite their first-place standing in the AL East, have posted the second-worst bullpen ERA in the Majors at 4.62. Given the carousel of arms they’ve cycled through — Toronto has already used 16 different relievers this season — it wouldn’t be surprising to see Ayala pitch for the big league club at some point this summer.

Anthopoulos On Starters, Rasmus, Cabrera

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In an excellent interview with Sportsnet.ca’s Prime Time Sports (video link), Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos addressed a number of topics. A full listen is highly recommended, but here are some of the highlights:

  • Young righty Marcus Stroman will get a chance to hold down a rotation spot, Anthopoulos said. The GM hopes that Stroman will benefit from the fact that he has already worked through the nerves of receiving his first call-up.
  • It was a tough decision, but the club will demote Liam Hendriks to clear away an excess starter from the active roster. Though he could have taken a bullpen role, the team decided it wanted to keep him stretched out in the minors, MLB.com’s Jamie Ross reports.
  • After a few extra days off, Drew Hutchison tossed a nice game tonight upon returning to the rotation. Anthopoulos explained that the team is just looking to “be preemptive” with finding rest early in the season for the 23-year-old. While there are no hard inning limits, the GM said that the club wants to take advantage now of opportunities to keep the staff fresh.
  • The Jays will face touch choices with two outfielders set to hit the free agent market in Colby Rasmus and Melky Cabrera. Anthopoulos said that he would not rule out the possibility of in-season extension talks with either of those two players, though he said that his preference is always to avoid the distraction that comes with talking during the year.
  • More generally, Anthopoulos emphasized that the Blue Jays’ flexible and substantial payroll capacity gave the team an advantage in extension scenarios. Because it can afford to wait to decide whether to attempt a new deal without being quite as concerned with rising prices, he said, the team is better able to limit risk and avoid sunk costs on the roster.

AL East Notes: Cano, Yankees, Cruz, Francisco

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Robinson Cano told reporters, including the New York Daily News’ Andy Martino, that he wasn’t bothered by the boos he received in returning to Yankee Stadium. Martino goes on to opine that the booing of Cano seems to be the only emotion the Yankee fanbase can muster due to the team’s lackluster performance. He asked Brett Gardner how the club could be more consistent at the plate and received a frustrated reply: “Well, if we knew that, we would have done it two days ago.” More on the Yankees’ decision to let Cano walk and the AL East…

  • Martino’s colleague, John Harper, wonders if the Yankees would let Cano walk again if they had a mulligan on the offseason. As he notes, there’s virtually no certainty next season in the infield with Derek Jeter retiring, Brian Roberts on a one-year deal, Mark Teixeira’s injuries, an unproven track record for Yangervis Solarte and Alex Rodriguez’s suspension. While the back-end of any Cano deal would surely look poor, he asks if that would be an acceptable price to pay for chasing greatness in the short term.
  • Rangers GM Jon Daniels appeared on The Afternoon Show with Cowlishaw and Moseley in Texas yesterday and discussed Nelson Cruz’s hot start with the Orioles. Daniels said he’s not surprised to see Cruz thriving — though they wouldn’t have expected 20 homers through this point in the season. He adds that Texas made multiple attempts to sign Cruz, making a qualifying offer and offering a multi-year deal at the Winter Meetings. Daniels adds: “…by the time it came down to Spring Training, when he was signing, there was some other factors at play. We made the decision that we did to give our own guys an opportunity and keep the draft pick.”
  • Shi Davidi of Sportsnet breaks down Juan Francisco’s strong play for the Blue Jays and wonders if the Jays could possibly have struck gold on a third low-cost slugger acquisition. Davidi points out that Toronto stumbled into franchise cornerstones Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion, and Francisco is cut largely from the same cloth. Davidi looks at improvements to Francisco’s pitch selection — though his strikeout rate remains high — and changes to his approach made by the team’s coaching staff. Francisco, a close friend of Encarnacion, says he feels at home with the Jays. Davidi also reports that Toronto tried to acquire Francisco last season as well before Atlanta traded him to Milwaukee, suggesting he’s been on their radar for quite some time.

Draft Links: Padres, Ryan, Phillies, Jays

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The 2014 amateur draft is only three days away, so here’s the first batch of what will surely be a ton of draft-related items this week…

  • The Padres won’t draft Jeff Hoffman or Erick Fedde with the 13th overall pick, sources tell Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune.  Both college right-handers recently underwent Tommy John surgery and though the team “briefly kicked the idea around” of taking one of the highly-touted pitchers in hopes of a full recovery, the risk seemed too high at that point in the first round.  “We want to take someone who is healthy. There are too many good options on the board,” assistant GM Chad MacDonald said.
  • The Twins are likely to again focus on pitching in this draft, general manager Terry Ryan tells Jim Crikket of the Knuckleballs blog.  “We’ll draft a lot of pitching just because of the attrition. We need to make sure we have numbers and competition,” Ryan said.  “Actually the depth and some of the talent in our organization is starting to lean toward pitching….But we won’t have enough, so we’ll take a bunch more.”  This doesn’t necessarily mean that Minnesota will draft a pitcher with the fifth overall pick, as Ryan says the team is just focused on drafting the best possible player.  I’d recommend reading the entire interview, as Ryan also touches on such topics as his health and the Twins’ performance this season.
  • The Phillies could be altering their draft strategy of taking good athletes with high ceilings by instead opting for more proven players who are closer to making the majors, CSNPhilly.com’s Jim Salisbury writes as part of an interview with Phillies scouting director Marti Wolever.
  • Recent comments from Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos hint that his team could also be taking a somewhat more cautious approach to their draft process, Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi reports.  “I’d say a big part of refining our process is maybe we’re starting to examine the level of risk we’re willing to take….It doesn’t mean we’ll be risk-averse, but maybe not take the same level of risk,” Anthopoulos told Sportsnet Magazine.  “We’re just trying to balance it out a little bit more as we’re going through it. That’s not to say we’re not looking for talent, upside, all that kind of stuff. We’re trying to balance it.”

AL East Notes: Price, Blue Jays, Yankees

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Count FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal among those puzzled by David Price’s revived feud with David Ortiz, as Rosenthal notes that the two seemed to have buried the hatchet after last year’s controversy in the ALDS.  While Price has been no stranger to high-profile situations over his career and is widely considered to be a level-headed person, Rosenthal wonders how the Rays ace would deal with increased scrutiny if he is dealt to a more pressurized market than Tampa Bay.  Here’s some more from around the AL East…

  • The Blue Jays don’t have the prospect depth to pursue Price or Jeff Samardzija on the trade market this summer, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes (Insider subscription required).  Both aces are only under contract through 2015 and seem unlikely to sign extensions to stay in Toronto, so the Jays aren’t willing to pay the high price of several top prospects for such short-term acquisitions.
  • The Jays could look to add less-costly pitching help before the deadline, Olney writes, as well as an upgrade at second base, though the Brett Lawrie/Steve Tolleson/Juan Francisco rotation between 2B and 3B is working well.  Toronto could also add another bullpen arm (if Sergio Santos isn’t healthy or effective) either before the deadline or into the August waiver period.
  • “There’s no magic number for attendance” that will impact whether the Blue Jays make deadline deals or not, team president Paul Beeston tells Sportsnet’s Michael Grange.  “If there’s a deal it’s not going to be money that determines if it’s going to be done, it’s going to be wins. If we’re winning we’ll do it. I hope we have that opportunity,” Beeston said.
  • The big free agent deals signed by Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann and Jacoby Ellsbury last winter have yet to translate into an improved offense for the Yankees, Bill Madden of the New York Daily News writes.   Beltran has been injured, McCann has struggled and Ellsbury has been miscast as a No. 3 hitter, a lineup spot Ellsbury has often been forced to fill due to injuries.  Madden wonders why the Yankees didn’t pursue a first base backup for Mark Teixeira (again battling wrist problems) over the offseason and believes the team needs to sign Kendrys Morales to help the lineup.
  • Ken Davidoff of the New York Post also looked at the Yankees’ hitting woes and argues that the club could be better served by trading for starting pitching rather than offensive help.  If the Yankees’ veteran hitters are healthy, they’re at least known commodities, while New York has several unproven young arms in its injury-riddled rotation.

Minor Moves: Korecky, Simunic, Reineke, Overbeck

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Here are Sunday’s minor moves from around MLB:

  • Pitcher Bobby Korecky has cleared optional waivers and remains on the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster, Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star tweets. The Blue Jays designated Korecky for assignment on Friday. He is headed to Triple-A Buffalo. Korecky appeared in just one game for Toronto this year and has spent most of the year with Buffalo, posting an 0.29 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 31 innings there.
  • Outfielder Andy Simunic has been released from the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate, per the Pacific Coast League’s transaction page. The 28-year-old, Houston’s 17th-round selection in 2008, batted .263/.333/.347 in 106 plate appearances (30 games) for Oklahoma City. Simunic, who tore the ligament in his right elbow pitching in a blowout loss last year (his recovery was chronicled recently by Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle), slashed .276/.358/.340 during his seven-year minor league career, all spent in the Astros’ organization. 
  • Right-hander Chad Reineke has been released from the Reds’ Triple-A affiliate, per the International League transactions page. The 32-year-old made 11 appearances (four starts) for Louisville compiling a 9.20 ERA, 5.6 K/9, and 4.2 BB/9 in 30 1/3 innings of work. Reineke last pitched in a MLB game in 2011 for Cincinnati.
  • The Padres have announced they have signed first baseman Cody Overbeck to a minor league deal. Overbeck, a 2009 ninth-round selection of the Phillies, was playing for the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League where he posted a slash of .276/.326/.528 in 132 plate appearances through 32 games. 
  • Per MLBTR’s DFA Tracker, there are four players in DFA limbo: Vin Mazzaro (Pirates), Blake Wood (Indians), Jeremy Horst (Phillies) and Wade LeBlanc (Angels).

Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.

Cafardo On Samardzija, Arroyo, Mayberry Jr.

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In today’s column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe ran down the 20 best stories in baseball, starting with the worst-to-first (so far) Blue Jays.  Toronto has gotten great hitting out of Jose Bautista, Melky Cabrera, Edwin Encarnacion, and Adam Lind and great pitching from Mark Buehrle, R.A. Dickey, and Drew Hutchison.  Now, it remains to be seen whether the Blue Jays will be willing to part with Hutchison in a deal for Cubs’ ace Jeff Samardzija.  More from today’s column..

  • The Red Sox and Rangers have the most to offer the Cubs for Samardzija, followed by the Giants.  Of course, Cubs president Theo Epstein is quite familiar with the Red Sox’s farm system. The Cubs need pitching, but Boston will definitely not part with lefthander Henry Owens. If that’s not a deal breaker, the Sox have other pitchers like Brandon Workman, Matt Barnes, Anthony Ranaudo, Allen Webster, and Rubby De La Rosa that they can offer.  Cafardo guesses that it would take two of them, plus perhaps a catcher, to pry Samardzija loose.
  • With the Diamondbacks likely out of the race by the deadline, Cafardo says that we should look for veteran Bronson Arroyo to change uniforms again. Arroyo isn’t a shutdown guy, but he’s an experienced starter who could solidify the back of a rotation, particularly for an NL team.
  • The Phillies have made John Mayberry Jr. available and Cafardo writes that the Red Sox could be interested.  The Phillies have been scouting the Sox for a third straight series and are looking at Boston as a possible trade partner.

Rosenthal On Marlins, Rays, White Sox, Reds

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Here’s the latest on the developing trade market, courtesy of Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (video link):

  • The most likely scenario at this point is for the Marlins to be aggressive, early buyers, says Rosenthal. With the club still very much in the NL East mix and possessing confidence in the ability of its young arms to fill the void created by Jose Fernandez’s UCL tear, Rosenthal says that Miami may not to wait for the trade deadline to make moves to bolster its roster.
  • Concurring with a report from Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter), Rosenthal says that the Fish could look to add a strong reliever to slot in front of Steve Cishek. While the bullpen has not been a problem area on the whole, Cishek has easily paced the rest of the group in performance, and the potential loss of Carter Capps elevates the team’s need.
  • On the other hand, the Rays could consider moving a series of veterans if they become sellers, according to Rosenthal. Having dropped well off the pace (9.5 games back in the AL East), Tampa Bay could potentially deal away not only ace David Price but also players like Ben Zobrist and Matt Joyce.
  • Another team worth watching closely, in Rosenthal’s estimation, is the White Sox. While Chicago will surely wait to see how the team performs with Chris Sale and Jose Abreu back in action, Rosenthal says that middle infielders Alexei Ramirez and Gordon Beckham could be attractive to clubs like the Blue Jays, Giants, and others who may be in the market for second basemen.
  • Meanwhile, Rosenthal says that the underperforming Reds “could listen” on starters Mat Latos, Mike Leake, or even Johnny Cueto. That trio is under control only through next season, and it may prove too expensive to retain more than one or two of them for the long haul. Rosenthal also suggests that there is at least some possibility that Cincinnati could field offers on closer Aroldis Chapman.

Quick Hits: Wrigley, Blue Jays, Arenado, Iglesias, Opt-Outs

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In case you missed it, the Cubs’ efforts to renovate Wrigley Field have run into some snags that have stirred up controversy in Chicago. That project has frequently been cited by the team as a key factor in future payroll expansion. Club executive Crane Kenney discussed the latest in an interview with David Kaplan on The Game 87.7 FM (audio link). Kaplan also released a copy of the agreement with the neighboring rooftop owners that is at the center of the dispute (on CSNChicago.com). Today, first baseman Anthony Rizzo expressed frustration over the delays, saying that players had been told to expect significant clubhouse renovations, as Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Here’s the latest from around the league to finish up the night …

  • With the Blue Jays seemingly more interested in adding a short-term rental arm than a player who comes with more control (and a higher price), Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com says that James Shields of the Royals could be a possible target for Toronto. Heyman says that the Jays hope to avoid “gutting” the team’s prospect pool in adding a pitcher, and like that Shields has proven himself in the AL East. Of course, unless Kansas City is well out of the race by the time the trade deadline comes around, Shields may not even be available. And even if he is shopped, he would draw lots of interest from other contenders and should command a substantial prospect haul himself. Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos said earlier today that he is confident the club can take on salary to add an impact pitcher; in discussing that news, MLBTR’s Steve Adams listed several possible free agents-to-be that could become available and attractive to the Jays.
  • Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado will not require surgery on his broken left middle finger, reports Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. That is good news for a suddenly-reeling Colorado club, though Arenado still figures to miss at least six more weeks. It will be interesting to see whether an anticipated mid-to-late July return for Arenado could help encourage the Rockies to buy at the trade deadline, if they can stay afloat in the meantime.
  • The Reds were among the many clubs on hand to watch Cuban righty Raciel Iglesias throw today in Haiti, tweets C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer. The Cinci pen has struggled to the league’s third-worst ERA through the first third of the season. Iglesias is said to have the potential to be a legitimate big league relief contributor right away.
  • One aspect of the Mariners’ decision to purchase the contract of outfielder Endy Chavez today was his June 1 opt-out date, tweets Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune. The 36-year-old was carrying a .272/.346/.289 triple-slash in 134 plate appearances at Triple-A.
  • Other opt-out situations around the league are coming to a decision point. In addition to attempting to address the clause of rehabbing starter Johan Santana, the Orioles are waiting to find out whether reliever Luis Ayala will opt out of his deal tomorrow, with the expectation that he will, reports Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter links). The veteran righty has allowed three earned runs (with five strikeouts against two walks) in 5 1/3 innings at Double-A thus far in 2014.
  • Meanwhile, Brewers lefty Brad Mills has been excellent at Triple-A and is nearing a June 15 opt-out date, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com. The 29-year-old has a 1.74 ERA in 57 innings (including nine starts), with 9.0 K/9 against just 1.9 BB/9.
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