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Odds And Ends: Nats, Bruce, Padres, Halladay

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Congrats to All-Star Game starters Roy Halladay and Tim Lincecum. What a matchup. Here are some more links to look through…

  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Nationals "will remain an embarrassment" unless they give Mike Rizzo and Stan Kasten more power.
  • Jay Bruce will miss 6-8 weeks, according to Brian Kollars of the Dayton Daily News, but the young outfielder didn't suffer any ligament or tendon damage in his right wrist. 
  • One talent evaluator told Tom Krasovic that it will be five years before the Padres are good again, so Krasovic creates a blueprint for the team.
  • Some of his suggestions: Make the most of every dollar, go after high upside pitching, find out how much Adrian Gonzalez and Heath Bell would bring in a trade.
  • WEEI.com's Alex Speier reports that Roy Halladay does not have a list of teams he would accept trades to. Last week Joe McDonald of the Providence Journal reported that Halladay had such a list, but it is not the case.

Odds And Ends: Acta, Cubs, Halladay

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Some links to start the week off…

  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post doesn't believe the Mets would fire Jerry Manuel and call on Manny Acta.
  • ESPN.com's Keith Law says Acta's firing reflects worse on the Nats than it does on Acta.
  • Jon Heyman of SI.com says Acta will get another managerial job somewhere.
  • Brandon Inge told Chris Iott of MLive.com that the Tigers haven't played their best, even though they're in first place.
  • John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Daily News says the Phillies have a much better chance at repeating as World Series champions if they acquire Roy Halladay.
  • Sherman points out that the Mets would have to play .640 ball the rest of the way to win 90 games. Doesn't seem likely.  
  • Bloomberg.com reports that the Cubs could file for bankruptcy to complete the sale of the team.
  • Check out the first part of an ongoing series at NESN.com in which I discuss hot rumors around the majors. Click the link for thoughts on Roy Halladay, the Red Sox and the Yankee rotation and check back tomorrow for more.

Jim Riggleman Will Manage The Nationals

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Jim Riggleman will replace recently-fired Manny Acta as manager of the Nationals, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. The news comes as no surprise, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first said Riggleman was the Nats' choice to replace Acta a month ago.

Riggleman has already managed the Padres, Cubs and Mariners. Since he started managing in 1992, he's won 522 games and lost 652.

Nationals Fire Manny Acta

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Nationals manager Manny Acta got the boot tonight, based on comments Acta made to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes:

"I thank the Nationals for giving me this opportunity and I'm sorry that things didn't work out as expected. It's normal for the manager to pay the price when the team is not doing well," Acta said.

The writing was on the wall in mid-June, when Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports learned of the team's plan to replace Acta with bench coach Jim Riggleman.  That this information leaked a month early reflects poorly on the organization, as Acta was left twisting in the wind.  Maybe Rosenthal's report caused the Nationals to delay the move as an attempt to save face.  Talk about mixed messages – on June 26th team president Stan Kasten talked about hoping Acta could serve as the club's long-term manager (Chico Harlan and Mark Viera of the Washington Post reporting).

Let's hear it from the Nationals fans – was this the right move?  The expectations are different for the manager of a rebuilding club.  How did Acta perform in young player development?

Olney On Nats, Rockies, Halladay

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ESPN.com's Buster Olney likes the looks of the Mariners, especially with a top three of Felix Hernandez, Erik Bedard and Jarrod Washburn. Here are Olney's latest rumors:

  • Nats GM Mike Rizzo says he doesn't have to dump payroll, which gives the team flexibility when considering deals for Nick Johnson, Austin Kearns and others. If they find a worthwhile deal, the Nationals could likely contribute money to make it work.
  • As much as the Rockies would like to add a reliever, there are few desirable options out there now, so they may have to wait until closer to the deadline.
  • No team has come forth with an aggressive offer for Roy Halladay so far.  
  • Olney hears that the Phillies would like to add two starters. Halladay and Pedro Martinez are the names they've been connected to recently.  

Rizzo: “Not Trading Dunn”

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Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post has a transcript of Nationals GM Mike Rizzo's chat with ESPN Radio's Kevin Sheehan today. At first, Rizzo says Dunn is "not on the trading block," but then implies the Nationals would think about it if they were overwhelmed. So Sheehan lays it on the line:

Sheehan: Do you understand that without a definitive statement on that it's a little bit surprising to some of the fans?

Rizzo: We are not trading Adam Dunn. That's as definitive as I can be.

Steinberg admits to being a fan of Dunn, saying "Dunn has the potential to capture casual D.C. sports fans in a way hardly anyone else on that roster does."

Rizzo may call his words "definitive," but anything can happen. Keep up with the latest rumblings on Dunn here.

Jesus Colome Becomes A Free Agent

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Jesus Colome, who was just designated for assignment by the Nationals, has chosen to become a free agent, according to Pete McElroy of MASN.com. The 31-year-old allowed nearly two baserunners per inning with the Nats for an ERA of 8.40 with 12 strikeouts.

Yesteday Colome's former teammate Kip Wells also chose free agency after being designated for assignment by the Nats.

Kip Wells: Free Agent

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According to Bill Ladson of MLB.com, right-hander Kip Wells has cleared waivers and elected to become a free agent. 

Wells was designated for assignment on June 24 after posting a 6.49 ERA and an 18/18 K/BB ratio in 26 1/3 innings out of the Nationals' bullpen.  The 32-year-old will hope for a minor league contract with another club.  He has a 4.71 career ERA, a 1.52 career WHIP, and one of the meanest-looking player profile pictures we've ever come across.

Odds And Ends: Kepler, Rangers, Hairston

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More links for the afternoon…

  • MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo reports that the Twins awarded Max Kepler a bonus of about $800k. That's close to the record for a European player.
  • Ben Klayman of Reuters reports that the Rangers are likely to make financial information available to potential buyers. Owner Tom Hicks would like to see bids for the team by mid-August, but negotiations won't necessarily be complete by the end of the season.
  • Byron Kerr of MASN.com argues that the Nyjer Morgan acquisition shows why the Nats need to award Mike Rizzo the permanent GM job.
  • Ben Badler of Baseball America reports that the Rockies signed five international players, including Dominican shortstop Rosell Herrera.
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs says the Scott Hairston deal was an "easy win" for the A's.
  • MLB.com's Corey Brock says the move could work for the Padres in the future. 

Nationals DFA Jesus Colome

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According to the Associated Press, via ESPN.com, the Nationals have designated right-handed reliever Jesus Colome for assignment.

Colome, 31, had an 8.40 ERA, 1.93 WHIP and 12/6 K/BB ratio in 15 innings of relief for the Nats this season.  He allowed 29 total baserunners during his short time in Washington and will either be traded, released or outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse within the next 10 days.  We're thinking he probably won't draw much interest on the trading block.

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