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Rizzo On Trades, Leadoff Hitter, Draft, Harper

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Nationals GM Mike Rizzo sat down for a Q&A with MLB.com's Bill Ladson, so let's round things up…

  • Rizzo didn't rush out to make a trade following Ryan Zimmerman's injury because "panic shows a lack of confidence in the rest of the players." He believes they have a strong bench with Laynce Nix, Jerry Hairston Jr., and Alex Cora, but unfortunately those players were pressed into everyday duty.
  • The Nationals are "always looking" for ways to improve their starting pitching and want front-line starters. They're also looking for "two-way players," guys that can contribute on offense and defense.
  • They want someone within the organization to step up and be the leadoff hitter, a role that Jayson Werth has filled recently. "If we can’t find that guy within the organization, we will look elsewhere."
  • "We are both buyers and sellers," said Rizzo. "We always have been, always will be. If we have a chance to acquire a player that is going to help us in 2011 and beyond, we are not going to shy away from that. If there is a trade to be made that will help us down the road, we will trade a player away to get a piece for the future. But we are not in sell mode. There are a lot of games to play, a lot of games to win. We are here to win games."
  • Rizzo says the Nationals are doing well when it comes to signing their draft picks. They have about 15 players with pending contracts, and they are in communication with their top picks.
  • As you'd expect, the Nationals are very happy with Bryce Harper's development, and Rizzo emphasized that he "will be developed at a rate that allows him to be an impactful guy."
  • Manager Jim Riggleman's option for 2012 will be addressed "when it needs to be addressed."

Rangers Hope To Improve Bullpen Soon

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Rangers GM Jon Daniels is having "active discussions with other teams" with the aim of improving his bullpen via trade, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.  Said Daniels:

"It's something that we're open to, but it's easier said than done.  There are not a lot of clubs eager to move quality arms right now. We've got to be able to address it right now."

Sullivan names Koji Uehara, Jim Johnson, Kevin Gregg, Joakim Soria, Kerry Wood, and Heath Bell as several relievers who could become available.  He also notes that the Rangers have discussed Todd Coffey and Tyler Clippard with the Nationals.  And the Giants are scouting Rangers catcher Taylor Teagarden, so there could be a match.

If The Nationals Become Sellers

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Nationals GM Mike Rizzo made one significant trade last July, sending closer Matt Capps to the Twins for catcher Wilson Ramos.  After a hot start the 23-year-old Ramos is hitting an acceptable .248/.320/.410 on the season, and he belongs in the NL Rookie of the Year discussion with Danny Espinosa, Darwin Barney, Josh Collmenter, Brandon Beachy, Fernando Salas, Craig Kimbrel, Dillon Gee, and Mark Melancon.  Let's see who Rizzo might part with this year, with his team ten games out in the NL East and 6.5 out in the wild card.

Marquis

  • Trading Jason Marquis (pictured) at the deadline would enable the Nationals to save about $2.4MM in salary.  Marquis is showing career-best control, and an ERA under 4.50 from here on out would be a reasonable expectation.  Though Marquis would probably be willing to turn down an arbitration offer again to help the team, he's nowhere near Type B status.  Livan Hernandez is a free agent after the season as well, but given his ties to the organization he is more likely to stay put.
  • Ivan Rodriguez's value can't be quantified by his .200/.273/.322 batting line, or at least that's probably what Rizzo is telling teams about the catcher.  Rizzo said last month he'd want some kind of long-term piece for Pudge.  Rodriguez is earning $3MM this year.
  • Reliever Todd Coffey, non-tendered by the Brewers last offseason, has a 2.13 ERA, 8.5 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 0.4 HR/9, and 44.1% groundball rate in 25 1/3 innings this year.  The Rangers appear interested, and Coffey should be popular at the deadline.  He's a free agent after the season and looks like a Type B in the National League.  Coffey is earning $1.35MM this year plus incentives.
  • Laynce Nix is an intriguing platoon bat, as he's hitting .275/.324/.506 with 28 home runs in 613 plate appearances against right-handed pitching since the beginning of the 2009 season. Type B status is a possibility once he reaches free agency after the season.
  • Jerry Hairston Jr., Rick Ankiel, Alex Cora, Matt Stairs are veterans on one-year deals who could be shipped to contenders for bench roles.
  • Click here to read articles about other potential sellers.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Jason Marquis Wants To Stay With Nats

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Nats right-hander Jason Marquis is in the final year of a two-year, $15MM deal and he says that he wants to continue his career with the club beyond this season, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com.  The two sides have not talked about a contract extension, but Marquis is looking for a multiyear deal.

"Anybody would want a multiyear deal. That's how the game works," the veteran said. "I don't think anyone would turn down a four for a one."

Marquis has long been looked at as a trade candidate due to the expected lack of top-notch arms to be available at the trade deadline.  Last week, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wrote that Marquis could be had in a deal if Washington received enough young talent in return.

In 13 starts this season, Marquis has a 3.67 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9.

Cafardo On Capps, Clippard, Athletics, Cabrera

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There are indications that Cubs owner Tom Ricketts could be considering a management overhaul in Chicago, and Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe thinks Ricketts would do well to hire as many Red Sox people as possible. Cafardo suggests that Allard Baird, Ben Cherington, and DeMarlo Hale are among the names that should be attractive to the Cubs. Here are some other highlights from the Globe's Sunday Notes:

  • Matt Capps should draw plenty of trade interest if the Twins decide to move him. However, the closer likely won't become available until the Twins are absolutely sure they're out of the race, as the defending AL Central champs will be reluctant to give up on their season.
  • If the Nationals are willing to deal him, there will be a strong market for setup man Tyler Clippard. Cafardo speculates that Clippard would be a good fit for the Yankees or Phillies.
  • An AL GM on the Athletics' decision to replace manager Bob Geren with Bob Melvin: "[GM Billy] Beane made the move now because he thought there was something to salvage. They still have the pitching. So it’s not out of the realm of possibility."
  • Any contenders with interest in Orlando Cabrera may be able to acquire him sooner rather than later, after the Indians' promotion of Cord Phelps reduced Cabrera to a part-time role.
  • Jason Bay's most recent slump had the Mets' $66MM man out of the lineup this week. "His bat is slow and he’s just not himself," said one veteran scout. "The ballpark [Citi Field] isn’t good for him, but the way he hit his home runs, I never thought that was a big issue."

Stark On Rollins, Fielder, Pujols, Olivo, Tigers

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A number of iconic players are in contract years, so ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark looks ahead to their free agent stock and provides other rumors from around the league. Here are the details:

  • No one Stark spoke with predicts David Ortiz will leave the Red Sox for another team.
  • Jose Reyes will be the number two free agent on the market this winter behind only Albert Pujols, according to one executive.
  • Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. acknowledges that it wouldn't be easy to replace Jimmy Rollins, even though the shortstop is no longer an MVP-caliber player. The Phillies ‘poked around’ for possible alternatives at short last offseason, according to Stark, who predicts a two-year deal for Rollins and the Phils this winter.
  • Prince Fielder will no doubt sign a lucrative free agent deal, but one executive says the first baseman’s body will be an issue: "It has been since high school, and it always will be." Fielder is 27 now, so an eight-year deal would expire after his age-35 season.
  • Pujols will test the market, but Stark and his sources find it hard to believe that he’d leave St. Louis for any old team. One executive predicts that the Cubs are the Cardinals’ main threat.
  • The Cubs aren’t ready to start selling and haven’t started shopping Carlos Zambrano, despite his recent outburst.
  • The Red Sox offered Miguel Olivo a one-year deal before re-signing Jason Varitek last offseason. Olivo eventually signed a two-year deal with the Mariners.
  • The Rangers are ‘stepping up’ their search for a right-handed setup man and maintain interest in Nationals reliever Todd Coffey.
  • Rival teams say the Tigers are looking for a left-handed reliever. Southpaws Daniel Schlereth, David Purcey, Charlie Furbush and Adam Wilk are currently in Detroit’s bullpen.

Heyman On Yankees, Red Sox, Twins, D’Backs

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In the aftermath of Bob Geren’s dismissal, Jon Heyman of SI.com lists a handful of managers with suspect job security. Though 2011 probably won’t be a big year for managerial firings, Jim Riggleman of the Nationals and Edwin Rodriguez of the Marlins are on Heyman’s list. Here are the rest of his rumors:

  • Geren had "lost" the Athletics' clubhouse, according to people with Oakland ties.
  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman doesn’t expect elite starting pitching to be available this summer. "I just don't see a No. 1 pitcher you can pinpoint,'' Cashman said. 
  • The Yankees will look for starting pitching and left-handed relief. 
  • The Red Sox will also be looking to add a southpaw to their ‘pen.
  • Boston people expect top prospect Jose Iglesias to prove himself as the shortstop of the future and people don’t expect the Red Sox to “make a play” for Jose Reyes.
  • Competing executives say the Twins will “do what’s right” for the organization this summer, even if that means trading Major Leaguers for prospects. Watch out for the last-place Twins, who have won seven of eight.
  • Executives say the D’Backs, Padres, Pirates, Rays and Red Sox had strong drafts.

Orioles, Nationals Interested In Bill Hall

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For a player that hit .224/.272/.340 before being released by the Astros, Bill Hall is drawing quite a bit of interest. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that both the Orioles and Nationals have interest in Hall, and he mentions that the Yankees could get in the mix as well.

Baltimore's interest stems from Brian Roberts' injury and uncertain status while Washington sees him as a super-utility player. It's unclear how that would work, since Jerry Hairston Jr. figures to return to that role once Ryan Zimmerman comes off the disabled list. Rosenthal says New York's level of interest is unclear, but they would presumably use him off the bench.

Hall, 31, will be collecting checks for the rest of his $3MM salary from Houston, less the pro-rated portion of the league minimum that his new team (whoever that ends up being) will pay him. Despite his ugly showing with the Astros, Hall did hit .247/.316/.456 with 18 homers for the Red Sox just last year, and he can play pretty much any position on the field.

Heyman On Twins, Drew, Oswalt, Reyes

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The A’s fired Bob Geren today, but most of baseball’s new managers are doing well in 2011, as Jon Heyman explains at SI.com. Here are the rest of Heyman’s notes and rumors from around the league:

  • The Twins appear to be having second thoughts about the trade that sent Wilson Ramos to Washington for Matt Capps. Ramos is playing well and Joe Mauer has spent much of the season on the disabled list.
  • It wouldn’t surprise people if J.D. Drew and Roy Oswalt retire after the season, according to Heyman. Oswalt and the Phillies have a mutual option for 2012 and Drew is a free agent after the season.
  • Jose Reyes’ remarkable play has essentially forced the Mets to make him “a respectable offer.” The prospective free agent has been one of the best players in the game so far this season.
  • Mets right-hander Matt Harvey and Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper are too good for Class A, according to Heyman. Harvey has a 2.49 ERA with 11.1 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 and Harper has 14 home runs and a .342/.436/.619 line.

Ivan Rodriguez Not “The Answer” For Giants

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The Giants "don't consider [Ivan Rodriguez] the answer" for their catching problems, tweets USA Today's Bob Nightengale.  San Francisco at least asked the Nationals about Rodriguez when Buster Posey was lost to a season-ending injury and are known to be looking for other options behind the plate.

Rodriguez is hitting just .205/.255/.330 in 95 plate appearances this season, while the man he'd be replacing, Eli Whiteside, collected two hits today to raise his line up to .190/.284/.293 in 67 plate appearances.  While Whiteside is obviously nowhere close to Rodriguez's stature in career numbers, the negligble difference in what the two men have produced in 2011 makes it no surprise that the Giants aren't interested in matching Washington's reported high asking price for their veteran catcher.

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