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Nationals Sign J.C. Romero

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The Nationals signed lefty reliever J.C. Romero to a minor league deal, reports Mark Zuckerman of Nats Insider.  The 35-year-old had been released on Friday.

Romero posted a 3.86 ERA, 5.5 K/9, and 6.6 BB/9 with no home runs allowed in 16 1/3 innings for the Phillies this year, missing time with a calf injury.

The Nationals have one lefty reliever on the active roster in Sean Burnett, and he's struggled.  Doug Slaten is on the DL for an elbow injury.

NL East Notes: Rollins, Nationals, Johnson

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The Mets ended their grand slam drought in style tonight. Jason Bay and Carlos Beltran both went deep with the bases loaded, giving the Mets their first grand slams since 2009. Here’s the latest on their division… 

  • Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins told John Gonzalez of the Philadelphia Inquirer that his contract status will take care of itself after the season, when he hits free agency. "If I have a good season, more than likely I'll be here,” Rollins said. “If I have a bad season, that will definitely make for some hard decisions."
  • Nationals manager Davey Johnson named Pat Corrales the team's bench coach, according to Quinn Roberts of MLB.com. Corrales served as Washington's bench coach from 2007-08 and for part of the 2009 season.
  • Dr. James Andrews will examine Josh Johnson's injured pitching shoulder tomorrow, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. Johnson's right shoulder doesn't feel fully healthy, so the team wanted to check it out before deciding what to do next, according to Marlins president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest.

Sherman On Yankees, Padres, Clippard

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Joel Sherman of the New York Post dishes all kinds of Yankees rumors today; let's check it out.

  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman admitted the team's weakness is left-handed pitching, but says, "I can't force it.  I can't make it happen if it is not there." Another Yankees official said that a lefty would help, "But I don't think it is live or die."  Sherman believes Wandy Rodriguez and Francisco Liriano might be the two best available southpaw starters, but both bring concerns.  Relief-wise they could go for the Marlins' Randy Choate or consider higher-priced names in August like Brian Fuentes and Mike Gonzalez.
  • In general, Cashman said he doesn't think he can trade for a starter better than Bartolo Colon or Phil Hughes or a reliever better than Rafael Soriano, and all three could be back in July.  According to Sherman, the Yankees "have shown no interest in high-cost veterans with dubious stuff such as the Brett Myers, Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, Edwin Jackson, Livan Hernandez, and Jason Marquis."
  • Hoping for the Yanks to acquire Jair Jurrjens or Derek Lowe?  We're not sure if either is available, but Sherman says "the Yankees' policy has become pretty much to run away from Atlanta pitching after having successful Braves hurlers blow up on them."
  • The Yankees would not offer an extension to Hiroki Kuroda, if the righty were to make that a condition of a trade.  We know Kuroda will require some form of compensation.
  • The Padres "want to get out in the market quickly" with relievers Heath Bell and Chad Qualls, writes Sherman.  The Yankees, however, prefer Mike Adams, who is considered much less available.
  • The Nationals are willing to trade setup man Tyler Clippard, but are looking for a center fielder and have their sights on B.J. Upton.

Quick Hits: Mitre, Bedard, Cron, Joaquin

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It was an ugly day for the Dodgers off of the field (they filed for bankruptcy), but they defeated the Twins 15-0 in a one-sided rematch of the 1965 World Series today. Here's the latest from around the Major Leagues…

  • The Brewers have gotten multiple calls on Sergio Mitre, the recently-designated right-hander, according to MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes (on Twitter).
  • Larry Stone of the Seattle Times says the question of whether the Mariners will be buyers or sellers this summer comes down to whether or not they trade Erik Bedard. The lefty has a 2.93 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 83 innings this year after missing the entire 2010 season. He makes just $1MM in '11 and would have substantial value on the trade market.
  • Top Angels draft pick C.J. Cron will start his pro career instead of undergoing surgery on his throwing shoulder immediately, according to Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times. The powerful prospect took batting practice in Angel Stadium today and hit a number of home runs. Keep track of which top picks have signed with MLBTR's list.
  • Waldis Joaquin, a right-hander who pitched for the Giants in 2009-10, can opt out of his contract with San Francisco this Friday if the Giants don't put him back on their 40-man roster, MLBTR has learned. The 24-year-old has recovered from offseason back surgery to post a 2.12 ERA with 3.7 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 17 innings at Triple-A. The Giants have one of the best bullpens in baseball and a full 40-man roster, so finding room for Joaquin won't be easy.
  • New Nationals manager Davey Johnson told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he's open to staying on after 2011 (Twitter link).

Minor Moves: Hinckley, Scales, Perez

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Here's a summary of the day's minor moves…

  • The Blue Jays released former top prospect Mike Hinckley, MLBTR has confirmed. The 28-year-old left-hander posted a 5.68 ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 4.7 BB.9 in the upper minors before the Blue Jays let him go. Hinckley made it to the Major Leagues in 2008 and 2009 with the Nationals. Dave Gershman first reported the move.
  • Utility player Bobby Scales is leaving the Cubs for a Japanese team, according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat (on Twitter). Scales, a 33-year-old with two years of MLB experience with Chicago, has signed with the Nippon Ham Fighters. He had a .304/.424/.535 line in 283 plate appearances at Triple-A Iowa this year.
  • The Pirates announced that they have acquired minor league catcher Miguel Perez from the Nationals for a player to be named later or cash considerations. Perez, 27, played for Pirates affiliates in 2008-09 and has two games of MLB experience with th '05 Reds. He has appeared in just two games this year and has a .270/.323/.343 line as a minor leaguer.

Poll: Jim Riggleman’s Option

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Jim Riggleman's resignation last week has been an interesting study in discourse. Typically, it's advanced metrics that fuel our debates about players, but the recurring talking points with respect to Riggleman's acrimonious departure from Washington have been professionalism and ethics more so than wins and losses.

Riggleman tendered his resignation moments after a galvanizing win for the Nats, when they moved one game over .500 (38-37) with a walk-off victory over the Mariners. Apparently, Riggleman had been angling for Washington to pick up his 2012 club option for a while, but the team was not especially interested in considering that at that juncture.

Jon Heyman of SI.com tweeted that it made no sense for the Nats not to pick up Riggleman's option. The team had played well under him, after all. The Nats, however, merely viewed Riggleman as a place-holder manager until the team was ready to win, wrote Scott Miller of CBSSports.com. After all, Riggleman has just a .445 winning percentage in parts of 12 seasons as a big league manager.

If you were the Nats, would you have exercised Riggleman's option, or would you have allowed him to resign?

Would You Have Exercised Riggleman's Option?
Yes - the team was playing well, and he earned it. 68.65% (7,276 votes)
No - he didn't have a track record of winning, and there was no reason to exercise it before the offseason. 31.35% (3,323 votes)
Total Votes: 10,599

Manager Notes: Riggleman, McLaren

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Jim Riggleman's sudden resignation from his post as Nationals manager continues to elicit some interesting responses across the baseball landscape. Here's a couple items of note:

  • Former Royals and Cardinals skipper Whitey Herzog, who was shocked by Riggleman's decision, shared some interesting opinions with Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  • Herzog points out that Riggleman carried himself well when he was fired by the Padres and Cubs — the difference now is that Riggleman feels Nationals president Stan Kasten tried to low ball him by paying him less than what most managers are paid.
  • As for Riggleman's future, Herzog told Hummel: If there's a team looking for a manager, they would be crazy not to hire him.That sentiment seems to be the exception among industry insiders and pundits, but it's worth noting that Herzog gave Riggleman his first coaching job in the bigs, so it seems like there's a personal relationship there.
  • Interim manager John McLaren, who yielded to new manager Davey Johnson after Sunday's game, will become a West Coast scout for the balance of 2011, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
  • McLaren considered leaving the Nats when Riggleman resigned, according to Ladson, but he decided to stay at Riggleman's behest and after having productive talks with GM Mike Rizzo.
  • McLaren admitted he was hurt that he was not allowed to finish out the season as Nats skipper but harbors no ill will after patching things up with the organization.

NL East Notes: Mets, Fish, Phillies, Johnson

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A roundup of NL East-centric links for those who are so inclined…

  • Steve Popper of NorthJersey.com writes that it's time for the Mets to begin dealing, as pieces like Jose Reyes, and especially Carlos Beltran, can only lose value from here.
  • Bobby Valentine and Ozzie Guillen top Marlins' owner Jeffery Loria's list of preferred managerial candidates, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post.
  • As the Phillies and Red Sox get set to square off this week, the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo takes a look at some of the high points (rotation, bullpen) and low points (right-handed hitting, plate discipline) for the Phillies. He names Josh Willingham and Beltran as logical targets for the Phils this July, though notes that their payroll constraints may not allow it.
  • Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post says (via Twitter) that he believes Davey Johnson will be managing the Nationals in 2012.
  • MLB.com's Bill Ladson tweets that former bench coach and current interim manager John McLaren will be a scout for the Nationals after Johnson takes over. Today is McLaren's last game in uniform.

Nationals Hire Davey Johnson As Manager

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SUNDAY, 12:01pm: The Nationals have officially announced that Johnson will manage the team for the rest of the season, according to a press release. Johnson also agreed to a three-year consulting contract, so while he won't necessarily manage the team past 2011, he'll remain in the organization and will play a role in the hiring of his successor.

SATURDAY, 11:50am: MLB.com's Bill Ladson reports that the Nationals will announce the hiring today (Twitter link). Interim manager John McLaren is managing the team today according to Mark Zuckerman of Nats Insider.

FRIDAY, 10:45pm: Johnson's contract runs through 2013, according to Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter).

9:47pm: The Nationals will name Davey Johnson as their new manager, a source familiar with the situation tells Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com.  The 68-year-old will manage the team for the rest of the season and next season, pending league approval.

Johnson's first game as manager will be Sunday afternoon when the Nats wrap up a three-game series with the White Sox, a source told ESPNChicago.com's Bruce Levine.  An official announcement could come as soon as tonight.

Johnson, who is a senior adviser with the Nationals, last managed in the majors in 2000 for the Dodgers but served as the skipper for the United States baseball team in 2003.  Johnson won a World Series in 1986 as the manager of the New York Mets and has a career MLB managerial record of 1148-888.

Giants Have Shown Interest In Yorvit Torrealba

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The Giants have scored the fewest runs in baseball in part due to Buster Posey's season-ending injury, so it's not surprising that both Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports are reporting that a catcher upgrade is the team's focus right now. They've specifically shown interest in Rangers' backstop Yorvit Torrealba, who started his career in San Francisco.

There are two significant roadblocks to a deal according to the FOX scribes. First, Texas can not seriously consider moving Torrealba until Mike Napoli comes off the disabled list, at the very least. Secondly, the Giants are reluctant to pay the $3.25MM he's owned next season. The Rangers would want a bullpen arm in return, but San Francisco is hesitant to part with any of their relievers other than Guillermo Mota.

Rosenthal and Morosi say that Ivan Rodriguez, Ronny Paulino, and Ramon Hernandez have also been discussed internally by the Giants. The Reds are unikely to part with Hernandez even though Ryan Hanigan gets the majority of the playing time behind the plate.

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