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Nationals Sign Drew Ward

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The Nationals have signed third-round pick Drew Ward to a deal worth $850K, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (via Twitter).  The Oklahoma high schooler was set to attend Oklahoma University, but the allure of joining the Nats' system coupled with the lucrative deal was apparently too much to resist.

The third baseman boasts serious power and a strong arm according to  Baseball America, who has Ward ranked as the 87th best prospect in the draft.  The prospect is a unique case as he graduated high school in three years and was granted special permission to enter the 2013 draft rather than 2014.  Because he was pegged for '14, scouts didn't bear down on him last summer, making it difficult to evaluate him. 

Ward got considerably more than the slot recommendation as the value of the No. 105 pick is $491K.  The youngster is advised by The Legacy Agency.

Cubs Acquire Henry Rodriguez

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The Nationals announced that they have traded Henry Rodriguez to the Cubs in exchange for fellow right-hander Ian Dickson.  The Nats designated Rodriguez for assignment last week in order to make room on the roster for Anthony Rendon.

Rodriguez, 26, has a 4.23 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 6.1 BB/9 across parts of five big league seasons with the A's and Nats. He pitched 18 innings in relief for Washington this season, posting a 4.00 ERA with eleven strikeouts and 16 walks.  While he has yet to find sustained success in the big leagues, Rodriguez has impressed with a 100 mph fastball in recent outings.

Dickson, 22, was taken in the 35th round of the 2011 draft by the Cubs.  The youngster has a 6.88 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in three starts and eight relief appearances for Chicago's Single-A affiliate this year.

July 2 International Prospect Update

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It's been a busy time for the minds at Baseball America recently with the MLB Draft taking place last week, but BA's Ben Badler has a different focus in his most recent piece, profiling more of the top names available in this year's class of July 2 international prospects. Here's a look at some of the highlights, though Badler's actual piece offers far more depth and information, as well as scouting videos…

  • The Red Sox have shown heavy interest in left-handed hitting Venezuelan outfielder Freddy Rodriguez, who is training at Carlos Guillen's baseball academy. Rodriguez runs the 60-yard dash in 6.8 seconds and some scouts think he projects well enough to play center field.
  • The Nationals have shown strong interest in Dominican third baseman Anderson Franco, although he will have to wait until Aug. 15 to sign due to the fact that he's not yet 16 years of age. The switch-hitter has big raw power and a strong throwing arm.
  • Dominican shortstop Lucas Tirado has become one of the Dodgers' main targets. The 16-year-old played in the Under Armour All-American game at Wrigley Field last season and figures to be in line one of the summer's biggest bonuses. Badler notes that he has a nice left-handed swing, but his other tools are questionable.
  • The Brewers are very intrigued by Dominican outfielder Nicolas Pierre, who many project to be able to stay in center field. Badler notes that he doesn't have one standout tool but is solid across the board.
  • Badler also profiles shortstop Carlos Hiciano and right-hander Mayky Perez, though he doesn't list specific suitors for any of those highly regarded talents.

Nationals Sign Mark Lowe

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The Nationals announced (via Twitter) that they have signed veteran right-hander Mark Lowe to a minor league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Syracuse. The Nationals mark the third organization that Lowe, a client of Frye McCann Sports, has been a part of this calendar year.

Lowe was signed and released by both the Dodgers and Angels earlier this year. He saw big league action with the Angels — his third Major League team — but allowed 12 runs in 11 2/3 innings on 11 hits and 11 walks with only seven strikeouts.

Lowe used to sit at 95-96 mph with his fastball as a member of the Mariners and Rangers from 2009-11, but his once blazing heater averaged 92.9 mph this season. In 274 1/3 innings for the Mariners, Rangers and Angels, Lowe has a 4.17 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9.

Nationals Release Zach Duke

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The Nationals have released left-hander Zach Duke, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post (on Twitter).

Duke, 30, was designated for assignment last week after posting an 8.71 ERA in 20 2/3 frames for the Nationals this season. He was an asset for the team in the final month of 2012, allowing just two runs in 13 2/3 innings of work out of the bullpen in September. The former Rookie of the Year candidate has just a 4.84 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 990 2/3 innings since his tremendous 2005 debut campaign.

East Notes: Phillies, Harper, Marrero, Cano

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In the aftermath of a 20-inning loss to the Marlins, the Mets designated Rick Ankiel for assignment and recalled Kirk Nieuwenhuis. However, the team's biggest concern was the health of young ace Matt Harvey, who left the game with stiffness in his lower back. But as Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reports, Harvey is apparently fine and will make his next scheduled start on Friday. Here's more news from around MLB's East divisions:

  • The Phillies' recent hot streak may have turned the club from sellers to buyers, argues Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Brookover notes the discussion just last week was about which top players would be unloaded, whereas now it is about what pieces could be added to the young core. 
  • Nationals GM Mike Rizzo downplayed Bryce Harper's visit to orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion regarding the bursitis in the outfielder's left knee, according to MLB.com's William Ladson. "There's no worry," Rizzo said. "It is our protocol that players get a second opinion on any part of the body that we feel is a disabled list-type of injury. Guys get second opinions all the time here, and every guy that we put on the disabled list has gotten a second opinion." Harper is eligible to be activated from the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday and is expected to rejoin the team then.
  • Chris Marrero may be up to stay, although the first baseman is temporarily serving as the Nationals' 26th man for today's doubleheader reports Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. The former first rounder may help the Nationals' disappointing offense get going, as Marrero has hit for a .306/.355/.502 line in 228 plate appearances.
  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that the Alex Rodriguez saga hurts Robinson Cano in his negotiations with the Yankees in a way you might not expect.  While Rodriguez’s record deal looks like it has soured from a value perspective, Sherman argues that the negative attention the contract has gotten has been even more detrimental. Cano is the top ranked free agent on MLBTR'S 2014 Free Agent Power Rankings.   

Edward Creech contributed to this post.

Quick Hits: Myers, Hamilton, Span, Hawpe

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The Rays are likely to promote Wil Myers in the next ten days, says ESPN's Jim Bowden (on Twitter). Myers has not yet appeared in the Majors. Myers, 22, is currently hitting .279/.354/.486 for Triple-A Durham. He is rated as the No. 4 prospect in baseball by Baseball America, Keith Law and Jonathan Mayo. The cutoff point for Super Two eligibility is not entirely clear, but we're now at a point in the season where it's unlikely Myers would be eligible for Super Two status if he were to earn a callup and stick. Regardless, the Rays would maintain his rights through 2019. Here are more notes from around the Majors.

  • David Ortiz thought the Red Sox would sign Josh Hamilton this offseason, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports. "I thought it was going to happen," says Ortiz. "It didn’t happen, but I thought it was going to happen. We let some guys go that was like $300 million, so I thought there was a chance." Bradford cites a source who says Hamilton and the Red Sox never came close to an agreement. Hamilton later signed with the Angels for five years and $125MM.
  • Denard Span was surprised when the Twins traded him to the Nationals for Alex Meyer last offseason, MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger reports (via Twitter). "I thought I was one of the cornerstones of the team. When I signed my contract, I thought I’d be there for five years," says Span, who's hitting .267/.318/.360 for the Nats this season.
  • Brad Hawpe of the Angels is back in the big leagues after nearly two years away, MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez notes. The Angels promoted Hawpe from Triple-A Salt Lake on Saturday after he hit .305/.405/.504 in 131 at bats there. His last appearance in a big-league game was June 18, 2011 with the Padres. Hawpe says he had resigned himself to the idea that he might not play in the Majors again. "I was OK with it," he says. "I've had a bunch of good memories in this game. I've been very fortunate and blessed. It doesn't mean I wouldn't like to make some more memories, but I've been very blessed, and if that was the end of it, I was OK with it."

Draft Notes: Angels, Cubs, Whitson

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The Angels took pitchers with their first seven picks in this weekend's draft, William Boor of MLB.com notes. Boor also points out that ESPN and Baseball America both recently ranked the Angels' system the worst in baseball, and that the reason the system has been so poor is because of the team's free agent signings. With the signings of Jeff Weaver, Gary Matthews Jr., Justin Speier, Torii Hunter, Scott Downs, Albert Pujols, C.J. Wilson and Josh Hamilton, the Angels have been missing either a first-round or a second-round selection, or both, in six of the last eight drafts. That includes 2013, when they went without a first round pick due to the Hamilton signing. The Angels made their first pick of the draft, Kentucky high school lefty Hunter Green, with the No. 59 overall selection. Here are more notes from the draft.

  • The Cubs are happy with their draft haul, Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago reports. "We definitely wanted to have a pitching-heavy draft again this year. After the (first 10 rounds) Theo (Epstein) and I were sitting there looking at the board and I felt really good about it," says vice president of scouting and player development Jason McLeod. After taking San Diego third baseman Kris Bryant with the second overall pick, six of the Cubs' next seven selections were college pitchers. That was a deliberate strategy, McLeod says, to infuse their system with advanced starting pitching prospects.
  • The Nationals took Karsten Whitson in the 37th round. As Jim Callis of Baseball America notes (on Twitter), the Padres picked Whitson ninth overall in 2010. Whitson opted to go to the University of Florida instead, and he pitched two seasons there before missing 2013 with a shoulder injury. Whitson turned down a signing bonus of over $2MM from the Padres.
  • Earlier today, MLBTR highlighted some stories of teams drafting players with big-league bloodlines. It's not uncommon for teams to draft such players, particularly in the later rounds, and there were so many on Saturday it would be difficult to name them all, but here are a few: Ben Verlander (brother of Justin; Tigers, 14th), Mike Yastrzemski (grandson of Carl; Orioles, 14th), Jonah Arenado (brother of Nolan; Giants, 16th), Torii Hunter Jr. (Tigers, 36th), JaVon Shelby (son of John; Brewers, 37th), Josh Pettitte (son of Andy; Yankees, 37th), Jon Nunnally Jr. (Blue Jays, 38th) and Jacob Heyward (brother of Jason; Braves, 38th).

Nationals To Sign Jake Johansen

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The Nationals have agreed to terms with Jake Johansen, the last pick in the second round of the 2013 Draft (No. 68 overall). The Nats did not have a first-round pick due to their signing of Rafael Soriano, so Johansen was their first selection of the draft. The Washington Post's Adam Kilgore tweets that Johansen signed for "slot." The bonus pool value for the No. 68 overall pick is $820K.

Johansen, a college senior, was the Friday-night starter for Dallas Baptist. Keith Law ranked Johansen the No. 63 prospect in the draft, while Baseball America ranked him No. 182. MLB.com notes Johansen's four-pitch mix but says he's currently "more of a thrower," and his future might be in the bullpen.

Nationals Claim Tyler Robertson

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The Nationals have claimed Tyler Robertson off of waivers from the Twins, the clubs have announced.  Robertson was designated for assignment by Minnesota on Monday.

The left-hander is the son of Jay Robertson, who works within the Nats' front office as a special assistant to the GM.  Robertson owns a 5.54 ERA with 9.7 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9 across 26 innings of work over the last two seasons for the Twins.  The 25-year-old has also spent parts of three seasons at Triple-A where he posted a 3.64 ERA with 9.8 K/9 and 5.1 BB/9.

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