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In July, we saw a pair of extensions for second basemen, with Dustin Pedroia (seven years, $100M) and Jose Altuve (four years, $12.5MM plus two club options) receiving significant financial commitments from their clubs. August has proven to be a bigger month for extensions in recent years. While many of the recent August extensions have been small, one-year renewals for veteran role players and innings eaters, there's been at least one massive extension signed in August in each of the past three seasons. Let's take a look, with an assist from MLBTR's Extension Tracker…

2012

• Starlin Castro — The Cubs guaranteed Castro $60MM over seven years on the strength of back-to-back All-Star nominations for their pre-arbitration shortstop. After hitting .297/.336/.425 over his first three seasons, Castro is hitting just .245/.281/.354 this season.
• Jake Westbrook — The Cardinals kept their No. 5 starter away from free agency for at least one more season, signing Westbrook for an additional year at $8.75MM with a $9.5MM mutual option for 2014. The option looks unlikely to be a factor, as Westbrook has walked more batters (41) than he's struck out (39) in 98 1/3 innings this season. Mutual options are rarely exercised by both sides anyhow.
• Jeff Mathis — Mathis signed a small two-year, $3MM extension with the Blue Jays, but he'll spend the entirety of those two years with a different team, as Toronto included him in this offseason's blockbuster deal with the Marlins.
• Mark Kotsay — Kotsay received a one-year, $1.3MM extension from the Friars based largely on his veteran leadership. He's hit just .207/.264/.252 this season and been used almost exclusively as a pinch-hitter.

2011

• Jered Weaver — The Angels locked up their ace through the 2016 campaign by signing him to a five-year, $85MM contract that looks to be a below-market rate given the mammoth contract extensions signed by Felix Hernandez and Justin Verlander recently. Weaver's fastball velocity has continued a downward trend, but he's still posted an ERA under 3.00 since signing the new deal.
• Jose Tabata — The Pirates, considering Tabata to be a core player at the time of the deal, signed him to a six-year, $15MM extension with three club options that could push the deal's value north of $37MM over nine years. Tabata hit poorly enough to be demoted to Triple-A last season and for much of this year, though he's now slashing a respectable .265/.339/.401 in the bigs. He's still just 24 years of age.
• Jeff Francoeur — The Royals would probably take a mulligan on their two-year, $13.5MM extension for Francoeur if they could. After a surprising 20-20 campaign with an .805 OPS, Frenchy has hit just .228/.275/.358, some of which has come with the Giants after being released by Kansas City.

2010

• Ricky Romero — Speaking of mulligans, Romero's five-year, $30.1MM deal with the Blue Jays is assuredly one that GM Alex Anthopoulos would like to have back. Romero was masterful in 2011, posting a sub-3.00 ERA and getting some Cy Young votes, but he's posted a 5.92 ERA since and been outrighted off the 40-man roster. He currently has a 5.67 ERA at Triple-A Buffalo.
• Corey Hart — Hart signed a three-year, $26.5MM contract with the Brewers that looked like a bargain until injuries prevented him from taking the field this season. He batted .277/.344/.509 with 26 homers from 2011-12.
• Brett Myers — Rather than trade Myers, the Astros locked him for an additional two years and $21MM. Myers regressed but was solid in Houston's rotation in 2011 before stepping into the closer's role and ultimately being traded to the White Sox in 2012.
• Wes Helms — The Marlins tacked on an additional one year and $1MM to Helms' contract in a move that proved to be forgettable. Helms hit .191/.276/.236 for the Fish in 2011 and was released the following August.
• Livan Hernandez — Like Helms, Hernandez received an additional one year at $1MM. He ate up 175 1/3 innings for Washington in 2011 with a 4.47 ERA, proving to be an absolute steal for GM Mike Rizzo.

If you're curious about what to expect on the trade front this August, MLBTR's Zach Links did a rundown of last season's noteworthy August trades over the weekend.

The non-waiver trade deadline is in the rearview mirror, but MLB teams can continue making deals until August 31st.  What kind of trades can we expect in August?  Of course, last year brought us the massive blockbuster between the Dodgers and Red Sox that sent Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett, and Nick Punto to L.A. and brought James Loney, Ivan De Jesus, Allen Webster, and two players to be named later who became Rubby De La Rosa and Jerry Sands.  Let's take a look back at the rest of last August's notable deals using MLBTR's Transaction Tracker to get an idea of what might be in store..

• Nationals acquire Kurt Suzuki
• Dodgers acquire Joe Blanton
• Tigers acquire Jeff Baker (later DFA'd and traded to the Braves at the end of the month)
• Red Sox acquire Danny Valencia
• Orioles acquire J.C. Romero
• Mets acquire Kelly Shoppach
• A's acquire Stephen Drew
• Diamondbacks acquire Matt Lindstrom
• Yankees acquire Steve Pearce
• Orioles acquire Joe Saunders
• Rays acquire Ben Francisco

I'm putting my fantasy baseball reputation on the line for the second week in a row. DraftStreet is offering $2000 in cash prizes for an exclusive "beat the expert" MLBTR/DraftStreet league using Friday night's MLB games. The entry fee is $11, but DraftStreet is raising the pressure on me (Tim Dierkes) by offering $5 back to anyone who beats my team, separate from the regular prize pool.  Last week's 200 slots filled quickly, so we brought back another.

Pick one player from each of eight tiers. You'll be competing based on the stats your eight players accumulate in Friday night's games. There are only 200 slots in this league, so sign up early.  Tier one starter Jose Fernandez was an easy call for me, as he's been quietly dominant.  One mistake I made last week was taking Jose Bautista over Jose Reyes; Reyes seems more of a multi-category contributor.  You can see a screenshot of my team in the making below.

Be sure to sign up as soon as possible, before the 200 slots are all taken quickly again. DraftStreet has raised the stakes by challenging you to beat me; are you up to it?

This is a sponsored post from DraftStreet.

After one of the slower non-waiver trade deadlines in recent history, we're into August, which doesn't mean that trades are off the table. Teams can still conduct trades in August, but they're more complicated. Here's a rundown of how August trades work…

• Teams have to pass players through revocable waivers to trade them after the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline. Those revocable waivers last 47 hours.
• Players who go unclaimed after those 47 hours are eligible to be traded to any team for the rest of the season.
• A team has three options if one of its players is claimed off revocable waivers. That team can either pull the player back without penalty, work out a trade with the claiming team, or simply hand the player and his salary over for nothing. Recent examples of this include the White Sox's acquisition of Alex Rios and the Giants' acquisition of Cody Ross.
• Teams will often put most of their players on waivers to determine interest. There's no risk in doing so, as they don't have to actually give up a player that is claimed by another team.
• Regardless of the day of the week (Saturday and Sunday are treated as normal days), clubs have two days (48.5 hours) to deal claimed players. They can only negotiate a trade with the team that was awarded the claim on that player.
• If only one team claims a player, he can only be dealt to that team.
• If more than one team claims a player, he can only be traded to the claiming team in the same league with the worst record.
• If a player is only claimed by teams in the other league, he can only be dealt to the claiming team with the worst record.
• If a team places a player on waivers a second time after pulling him back, the waivers are no longer revocable. A claiming team would be awarded the player at that point. Obviously, the risk in placing a player on waivers a second time is significant.
• Teams cannot pass players on the disabled list through waivers. If a player is placed on waivers and then placed on the disabled list the next day, his team must cancel the waiver request.
• Players acquired after August 31st can't play in the postseason.

There are a few factors that could make this August (and future Augusts) more active on the trade front. The addition of a second Wild Card seems to have made teams less inclined to sell in July. Teams that may have sold in recent years have instead stayed the course and chosen to stand pat, likely with a hope of an August winning streak to push them into contention for one of the newly created playoff spots.

Additionally, the fact that the new CBA prevents teams from receiving draft pick compensation for rental players has made trades more difficult to work out. The CBA states that only players who are with their team for the entire season can receive qualifying offers at season's end. Teams are even more hesitant to part with top prospects for rentals now, as compensatory draft picks no longer soften the blow of dealing premium minor league talent. Because fewer impact players were on the move in July, more teams may be looking to make incremental (or in some cases, major) upgrades in August.

For proof that significant trades are likely still on the horizon, look no further than 2012. Last year, one of the largest trades of the past decade occurred on August 25 when the Red Sox traded Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto to the Dodgers for James Loney, Allen Webster, Rubby De La Rosa, Jerry Sands and Ivan De Jesus.

This post is based on an MLBTR post that was originally published by Ben Nicholson-Smith on June 25, 2009. Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts and this article by ESPN.com's Jayson Stark.

If you're a regular MLBTR reader, you'll be familiar with our chats, Week In Review posts and Baseball Blogs Weigh In feature. Here's some more detail on when you'll see our weekly features and exactly what to expect from them:

• MLBTR Chats - Join Tim Dierkes every Tuesday at 2pm CDT to chat about the latest trades, signings and rumblings around the Major Leagues.
• Baseball Blogs Weigh In - Every Friday, I feature some of the best writing from baseball blogs around the web. Whether it's opinion, stats or something else entirely, you can connect to the best of the blogosphere once a week on MLBTR. If you want to submit a post of yours, you can reach me at zachbbwi@gmail.com.
• Week In Review - It's remarkable how much happens in seven days. Every Sunday night, MLBTR summarizes the week's biggest stories in our Week In Review posts.
• MLBTR Originals - Edward Creech gathers all our original analysis and reporting in one place every Sunday night.

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I'm putting my fantasy baseball reputation on the line. DraftStreet is offering $2000 in cash prizes for an exclusive "beat the expert" MLBTR/DraftStreet league using Friday night's MLB games. The entry fee is $11, but DraftStreet is raising the pressure on me (Tim Dierkes) by offering $5 back to anyone who beats my team, separate from the regular prize pool.

Pick one player from each of eight tiers. You'll be competing based on the stats your eight players accumulate in Friday night's games. There are only 200 slots in this league, so sign up early. I decided to avoid a prominent trade candidate in tier eight in Alex Rios, instead taking Adrian Gonzalez. And although tier two starter Corey Kluber has posted three straight strong outings, I decided to take a pass given his recent hip issue. You can see a screenshot of my team in the making below.

Be sure to sign up as soon as possible, before the 200 slots are all taken. DraftStreet has raised the stakes by challenging you to beat me; are you up to it?

This is a sponsored post from DraftStreet.

Are you looking to advertise to 18 to 34-year-old males?  MLB Trade Rumors reaches tons of them this time of year (no disrespect to our many readers falling outside that demographic).  Last year, MLBTR had 5,956,590 pageviews and 895,264 unique visitors over the final two days of July, and should be in the same range in 2013. 

Our advertising packages include banner ads, sponsored Tweets, and sponsored posts, and begin at $250.  Email Tim Dierkes at mlbtradvertising@gmail.com if you're interested in learning more!

Players can be traded while on the disabled list, but it rarely happens.  Teams rarely want to acquire an injured player, especially if they're just renting a veteran.  Here are some injured players to watch this month and in August:

• Tommy Hanson, Angels: Hanson should be activated tomorrow after a right forearm strain.  He'd a non-tender candidate in the offseason.
• Ryan Madson, Angels: Madson still hasn't pitched in a big league game since 2011, after complications following Tommy John surgery.  Still, if he looks like the Madson of old on a rehab assignment, he could be a stealthy pickup for a contender next month.
• Jason Vargas, Angels: He had surgery to remove a blood clot and may be back in August.  He could certainly be moved then.
• Aramis Ramirez, Brewers: His knee injury is likely to keep him out until August, but his salary should allow him to clear waivers.
• David DeJesus, Cubs: DeJesus should return this week from a shoulder strain.  He could be moved, but the Cubs do have a club option for 2014.
• Ryan Sweeney, Cubs: Recovering from a rib fracture, Sweeney can't come off the 60-day DL until late August.  The Cubs may prefer to try to re-sign him.
• Franklin Gutierrez, Mariners: The oft-injured center fielder is currently on a rehab assignment, trying to shake a hamstring injury.  The team may not intend to exercise his 2014 club option.
• Mike Morse, Mariners: He may begin a minor league rehab assignment this week as he comes back from a quad strain.  He'd probably be claimed on waivers in August, but could still be dealt.
• Frank Francisco, Mets: Remember him?  Francisco's last minor league rehab appearance came a week ago.  If he gets his elbow right, the Mets could move him in August.
• Jason Marquis, Padres: With a recent right elbow strain, Marquis is an August trade candidate if anything.
• Roy Halladay, Phillies: Halladay, recovering from shoulder surgery, threw a bullpen session recently.  He'd clear waivers in August if the Phillies want to move him, but he'd have to show big league readiness first.  
• Josh Willingham, Twins: Willingham should return next month from a knee injury.  His offensive production has been way down this year, but he is cheap enough to be claimed on waivers in August.
• Jesse Crain, White Sox: He could be back this month from a shoulder strain, and the impending free agent will be well-scouted if so.
• Tim Byrdak, Mets: He's made a dozen minor league appearances on a rehab assignment following September shoulder surgery.  

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