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Rosenthal On Phillies’ Infield Options

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7:30pm: According to MLB.com's Bill Ladson, the Phillies haven't talked to the Nationals about Kennedy.

1:31pm: The Phillies learned today that Chase Utley will be out for several weeks due to thumb surgery, and Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com chimes in with some possible replacement options. He notes that the replacement doesn't necessary have to be a second baseman (Twitter link), because the team can use Placido Polanco at that position once he's healthy. That opens up the possibility of a trade for a third baseman.

Rosenthal says that former Phillie Pedro Feliz is an unlikely target, citing a scout who says his bat speed is "gone." Feliz has hit just .229/.255/.317 in 255 plate appearances this year, and his trademark defense has declined back to a -4.3 UZR this season. The Fox Sports scribe throws the names of Miguel Tejada, Ty Wigginton, Jhonny Peralta, Adam Kennedy, and Jose Lopez into the mix (Twitter links). The Mariners are actively trying to move Lopez, according to Rosenthal. 

For the now, Philadelphia will try to tread water with the combination of Wilson Valdez and Greg Dobbs at second and third, respectively. They've combined to hit just .222/.252/.338 in 222 plate appearances this season, and Jack Moore at FanGraphs chronicled just how big of a downgrade this is for the Phillies.

Mike MacDougal Opts Out Of Nationals Contract

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Mike MacDougal has opted out of his minor league contract with the Nationals, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The right-hander is now a free agent and will attempt to find a spot on another team's major league roster.

The Nationals signed MacDougal in March, shortly after he was released by the Marlins. At the time, MLB.com's Bill Ladson reported that the contract would include an out clause if the 33-year-old wasn't in the majors by a certain date. MacDougal didn't crack the Nationals' 25-man roster this season, instead spending time at the club's Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. He posted a 4.71 ERA in 18 appearances between the two levels.

Given his dwindling strikeout rate (5.6 K/9) and his continued control issues (4.7 BB/9), it's unlikely MacDougal lands more than another minor league deal from a team searching for bullpen help.

Olney’s Latest: Sabean, Dunn, Red Sox

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ESPN.com's Buster Olney has a new Insider-only blog entry up, so let's dive in and take a look at the highlights….

  • One American League general manager says that many of the trades we see this July will look like the Bengie Molina deal, in which the Giants picked up the remaining cost of Molina's salary. "There's going to be a lot of salary relief," the GM predicted.
  • Expanding on a point from an earlier column, Olney writes that rival general managers consider Brian Sabean the most difficult GM to trade with simply because they can't get him on the phone. According to Olney, many GMs contact assistant Bobby Evans rather than Sabean, since the Giants GM doesn't return calls.
  • Sometime this month, the Nationals will have to decide whether to trade Adam Dunn or to fully commit to locking him up with an extension. Olney speculates that four years for about $48MM would get it done.
  • Replying to a Nick Cafardo piece for the Boston Globe in which Theo Epstein addresses how the Red Sox will replace Dustin Pedroia, Olney says Mike Aviles, Mike Fontenot, or Ty Wigginton might be good fits for the Sox. If Epstein makes a move, he'll be looking for a player who will have value elsewhere on the field when Pedroia returns to second base.

Nationals Expressed Interest In Haren, Quentin

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The Nationals have expressed interest in Dan Haren and inquired on Carlos Quentin, according to Bill Ladson of MLB.com. Quentin isn't available, but the Nats' interest in that pair of players, plus Edwin Jackson and David DeJesus shows that GM Mike Rizzo has an aggressive approach to the trade deadline. The 34-44 Nationals could be buyers or sellers, but Rizzo has identified the organization’s most pressing need.

"Our biggest need now and at the trade deadline is starting pitching," Rizzo said. 

Like most GMs, Rizzo is reluctant to describe his team as sellers or buyers at this point. Perhaps the Nationals will be neither and continue making deals like the Nyjer Morgan trade, which was completed one year ago today. Adam Dunn and Josh Willingham are among the Nationals drawing interest on the trade market, so Rizzo will have chances to buy and sell over the course of the next month.

Odds & Ends: Moseley, Reds, Prior, Nationals

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Links for Wednesday, as Dustin Pedroia gets an early start on his rehab assignment…

White Sox, Angels Targeting Adam Dunn?

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WEDNESDAY, 1:48pm: Nationals GM Mike Rizzo never talked to White Sox GM Kenny Williams about Dunn, tweets MLB.com's Bill Ladson.  Meanwhile Ladson's colleague Scott Merkin passes along via Twitter a Rizzo comment made on ESPN's Waddle & Silvy show today: "For us to move [Dunn] will be very painful and it will probably be very painful for the team that wants to acquire him." Here's the audio from ESPN Radio.

TUESDAY, 8:00am: The White Sox are targeting slugger Adam Dunn, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.  Cowley says the Nationals are willing to part with Dunn and names have been discussed, but the Angels are providing competition.  Cowley does not feel the $6.3MM remaining on Dunn's contract would be a problem for the White Sox, based on a recent comment by owner Jerry Reinsdorf.

Back on June 22nd, Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he's been talking about an extension since spring training with Dunn's agent.  That same day, Dunn told MLB.com's Bill Ladson he does not want to be traded and hates this side of baseball.  Dunn does not have no-trade protection, however.

The 30-year-old Dunn is hitting .276/.366/.559 with 17 home runs in 314 plate appearances this season.  The batting average would be the highest of his career, his 11.5% walk rate the lowest.  The White Sox have gotten just a .218/.293/.371 line out of the DH spot, with Mark Kotsay getting the most starts there.

One other factor to consider is that as of June 21st, Dunn projected as a Type A free agent.  An arbitration offer seems possible, so the Nationals would probably want to exceed the value of two draft picks.

Revisiting The Burnett-Morgan-Hanrahan-Milledge Trade

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On June 30th, 2009, the Pirates traded reliever Sean Burnett and outfielder Nyjer Morgan to the Nationals for reliever Joel Hanrahan and outfielder Lastings Milledge.  With exactly one year in the books, which side is ahead?

Hanrahan has tossed 63 innings for the Pirates with a 3.00 ERA, 11.9 K/9, 4.6 BB/9, and 0.43 HR/9.  He's totaled 1.0 WAR for the Pirates.  His fastball velocity has increased since the trade, to the point where he's averaging 95.4 mph this year.  Hanrahan will be arbitration-eligible for the first time after this season, and he's under team control through 2013.  He's part of a strong late-game relief trio in Pittsburgh, along with Evan Meek and Octavio Dotel.

Milledge is hitting .281/.339/.384 in 490 plate appearances for the Pirates.  He's played 928 innings in left field, but has moved to right field since Jose Tabata's promotion.  He's totaled 1.2 WAR for the Pirates.  Like Hanrahan, Milledge is arbitration-eligible for the first time in 2011 and under control through 2013.

For the Nationals, lefty reliever Sean Burnett has a 2.96 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 4.0 BB/9, and 0.70 HR/9 in 51.6 innings.  He's totaled 0.4 WAR for the Nats.  That value came entirely from 2010, as he's increased his K/9 to 8.1.  He's earning $775K this year after losing an arbitration hearing in February.  Burnett is under team control through 2012.

Morgan is hitting .291/.345/.368 in 530 plate appearances with 41 stolen bases in 59 attempts for the Nationals since the trade.  His 2.7 WAR comes entirely from 2009, as he's actually had negative value in 2010.  Morgan's '09 season ended in late August with a broken wrist.  It's been a rough 2010 season offensively, and Morgan leads the league with 11 times caught stealing.  Morgan has tallied 1,000 innings in center field in his time with Washington.  After the season it appears that he'll miss the Super Two cutoff by a few days, meaning he will not be arbitration-eligible until after the 2011 season.  Morgan is under team control through 2014.

I'd rather have Hanrahan than Burnett at this point, and the Pirates' reliever is under team control for an extra season.  Morgan's last two months have been discouraging, but he might be better than Milledge defensively and is under control for an extra year.  While the Nationals are ahead 0.9 in WAR, this challenge trade remains something of a toss-up a year later.

Rosenthal On Cliff Lee, MacDougal, Dunn, Valentine

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Cliff Lee starts tonight at Yankee stadium, and it figures to be one of his last outings in a Mariners uniform.  Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports leads his column with an examination of the market for Lee, noting that "the acquisition cost should be lower than the last two times he was traded."  Rosenthal sees no obvious favorite for the lefty at this time, though Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times believes "the buzz about a possible deal with the crosstown Mets is growing louder and louder."  Rosenthal's other rumorage:

  • The Nationals have until Thursday to decide whether to promote Mike MacDougal.  Otherwise, he can elect free agency.  The hard-throwing righty has a 4.71 ERA, 5.6 K/9, and 4.7 BB/9 in 21 minor league innings.
  • Rosenthal confirms other reports that the White Sox and Angels like Nationals slugger Adam Dunn.  He notes that Dunn "does not want to become a DH."
  • One executive feels that Jose Guillen will continue to hit well with the contract year carrot dangling.  Yesterday we learned from ESPN's Buster Olney that the Royals are pushing hard to move Guillen and will eat much of the $6.3MM remaining on his contract.  As for David DeJesus, an exec told Rosenthal the Royals "want to hit a home run" in any trade.
  • The Giants seek stability in their left-handed relief crew (currently Jeremy Affeldt and Dan Runzler), but the need could be addressed internally.
  • The Cardinals "likely will wait until at least the All-Star break to fully assess their needs."  The starting pitching situation will depend on the recoveries of Brad Penny and Kyle Lohse.
  • At another link, Rosenthal updates the Bobby Valentine-Marlins situation.

Cafardo On Baylor, Haren, Konerko, Bedard

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With the Marlins and Orioles searching for new managers, Don Baylor wonders why he isn't being considered for either job, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Baylor would love a chance to manage Baltimore, the franchise that drafted him over four decades ago, in the second round of the 1967 amateur draft. Let's check out Cafardo's other notes….

  • The Yankees, Twins, Nationals, Cardinals, and Tigers had scouts watching Dan Haren's most recent start.
  • There were a few teams hoping Paul Konerko would be available this summer, but with the White Sox suddenly just a game and a half out of first place, they obviously don't plan to trade their home run leader.
  • Cliff Lee may not be the only Seattle left-hander on the trade block next month. Erik Bedard is due back soon, and Cafardo thinks that the Mariners could try to move him if he looks healthy in July.
  • Scott Schoeneweis would like to catch on with a club as a situational lefty, but "his phone isn't ringing."
  • D.J. Carrasco could be traded before the deadline. Carrasco's numbers this season haven't been overly impressive (4.12 ERA, 1.76 K/BB), but if the relief market is as thin as Buster Olney indicated this morning, the right-hander should draw some interest.

Rosenthal’s Full Count: Zambrano, Angels, Brewers

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Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com has a new Full Count video up, so let's dive in…

  • The fact that Carlos Zambrano is a 29-year-old pitcher still capable of winning 12-15 games a year should be enough to allow the Cubs to trade him, but of course the team will have to a eat a large chunk of the $45MM left on his deal. Rosenthal reminds us that the Cubbies came ahead financially when they moved Milton Bradley this winter.
  • The Angels still want to add a first baseman, and Adam Dunn is on their list of potential targets. If they do make a move for Dunn or perhaps Adam LaRoche, incumbent first baseman Mike Napoli could become trade bait. 
  • The Nationals have yet to get serious in any discussions about a contract extension with Dunn. 
  • The Brewers are still searching for pitching, and the Blue Jays could be a potential match. Toronto likes Double-A infielder (and Canadian) Brett Lawrie, but the Brewers would be reluctant to trade him. They would have to consider it if he could land them someone like Brett Cecil or Shaun Marcum, though.
  • Arizona will probably not want to keep both Dan Haren and Edwin Jackson since they combine to make over $20MM next year, but Haren's value isn't what it once was. One baseball person told Rosenthal that "[Haren]'s not at the top of anyone's list, he's just another name."
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