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Odds And Ends: Strasburg, Guillen, Smoltz

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Links for Wednesday afternoon…

  • Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball points out that a $5MM annual salary would place Stephen Strasburg within the top third of arbitration-eligible pitchers from last offseason.
  • John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press reports that Carlos Guillen will have to undergo season-ending surgery if his shoulder doesn't heal soon.
  • Alex Speier of WEEI.com looks at the impact John Smoltz's return will have on each of the five other Boston starters.
  • In an article for SI.com Joel Sherman argues the Indians shouldn't trade Cliff Lee this year. They can contend with Lee in 2010, if not this year, so Sherman says it makes sense to try to win with him.
  • Jorge Says No! outlines possible fire sales for the Nationals and Orioles.
  • Yankees first rounder Slade Heathcott and his agent were in New York last night, but the Yankees aren't expected to sign their selection quickly, according to Peter Abraham.

Heyman On Bedard, Valentine, Glavine

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Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the market for starting pitching continues to shrink as top pitchers encounter health issues. Here are the details, along with the rest of his rumors:

  • Unless Erik Bedard proves his shoulder is healthy, Brad Penny and Jarrod Washburn could be the most appealing starters on the market.
  • Theo Epstein, who traded Bronson Arroyo when the Red Sox seemed to have excess pitching, would rather have a pitching surplus than give Penny away.
  • The Phillies, who are still looking for a front-line starter, are a little "leery" of adding Bedard, according to one of Heyman's sources.
  • The Indians remain reluctant to deal Cliff Lee, who would be the best starter availabe if he hit the market.
  • One GM says the Nationals should add Bobby Valentine, but says they're "too cheap" to make the move.  
  • Tom Glavine's agent acknowledged that his client is becoming more likely to retire.
  • The asking price for Nick Johnson remains high.   

Odds & Ends: Buchholz, Nats, O’s, Rays

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A few bits and pieces from around the web:

  • According to Daniel Barbarisi of the Providence Journal, the Red Sox are "shrugging off" comments made by Clay Buchholz that may have been blown out of proportion. "Whenever they come to a problem, they seem like they find a way to fix it without me being in the picture. It is what it is — it's frustrating at times," said Buchholz. Terry Francona called the comment one throwaway line in "a really mature interview."
  • The AP reports Nats' manager Manny Acta has no worries about being fired despite reports that that he'll be replaced by bench coach Jim Riggleman.
  • Eight draft picks were signed by the Orioles, all players selected between rounds 12 and 45, says Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.
  • Cheng Sio of MLB.com reports the Rays signed 14 of their draft picks, all collegiate level players taken in the 12th round or later.

Rosenthal On Saito, Rangers, Hardy

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that the Red Sox discussed a trade that would have sent Takashi Saito to Texas for Hank Blalock. The idea lost traction once Josh Hamilton underwent surgery and David Ortiz began hitting better and it's not likely to be revived. However, "several" teams have interest in Saito, who the Red Sox might prefer to deal for a prospect. Here are more details from Rosenthal's column:

  • The Rangers remain the leading contenders to sign Ben Sheets.
  • They also considered going after Nick Johnson, but are more likely to replace Chris Davis internally if they decide he's not contributing enough at the plate.  
  • One scout has noticed the Brewers following Erik Bedard and believes they'll make a "strong play" for him. 
  • J.J. Hardy remains appealing to teams around the league and the Brewers are "constantly" asked about shortstop prospect Alcides Escobar.  
  • The Red Sox "sniffed around" on a Hardy-Brad Penny swap, but that deal wouldn't work for Milwaukee.
  • The Orioles are increasingly willing to deal George Sherrill and Danys Baez.  

Odds & Ends: Izzy, Baez, Nationals

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Some links to peruse as you realize how lame it is when your favorite team has a scheduled off day…

Heyman On Valentine, Strasburg, Atkins

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Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the Nationals have already begun searching for a long-term manager, even though Manny Acta remains in charge. Here's what Heyman's hearing about a Nationals team that's been the center of attention recently:

  • The Nationals are considering Bobby Valentine, who has a history of transforming losing teams into winners. Valentine's managing the Chiba Lotte Marines now, but they're not expected to bring him back after the season ends in November.
  • Acting GM Mike Rizzo, is expected to become the full-time GM eventually.
  • One small-market GM said he would have been prepared to spend $15-20MM on Stephen Strasburg if the phenom has slipped to his team on draft day.  
  • Heyman says the record-setting bonus Strasburg will receive won't change bonuses as we know them because he's an exceptional player who can demand more than others.  
  • Now that Jake Peavy's hurt and the Padres won't be able to deal him soon, no-trade clauses seem less appealing to GMs. Braves GM Frank Wren doesn't hand them out, and he says it's never prevented him from signing a player.
  • It still doesn't look like Roy Oswalt will be dealt.  
  • The market for Brad Penny hasn't been great so far, but he could be more appealing to teams, without Peavy and Oswalt as options.
  • Garrett Atkins makes $7MM, so it's not likely he'll be traded, but the Rockies may decide they're buyers, rather than sellers, if they continue to win.
  • Jonathan Sanchez is on the market, but some scouts aren't impressed with his stuff.
  • The A's plan to build around their young pitching.  

Odds And Ends: Peavy, Acta, Harper

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Some links for Monday morning…

Odd & Ends: Penny, Reds, Nationals, Buchholz

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The College World Series kicked off today, with Arkansas knocking off Cal State Fullerton in Game One of the double elimination event. Virginia is taking on LSU tonight. You can see the game on ESPN.

Anyway, here's some Saturday night linkage:

  • The Angels have signed nine draft picks, including 48th overall pick Tyler Kehrer according to Mike DiGiovanna.
  • Jon Heyman tweets that teams have called the Red Sox about Brad Penny, and even though the Dodgers are looking "they wouldn't take him back."
  • John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer spoke to Reds GM Walt Jocketty, who said he's looked outside the organization for help, but "there’s not a lot going on right now." Jocketty also said that the team is not looking for a third baseman, despite reports.
  • Chico Harlan of The Washington Post says that the Nationals signed righthander Trevor Holder, their third round pick, to a below slot bonus.
  • Rockies reliever Taylor Buchholz suffered a setback in his return from a right elbow injury according to Patrick Saunders, and could be out for the year. Could Buchholz's injury impact the Rockies' decision to move closer Huston Street if they maintain their current hot streak?
  • The New York Times' Joe Brescia wrote about the Yankees and how they've used Mexico as a source of talent recently.
  • Personal fave Chris Britton caught on with the independent York Revolution according to Jim Seip. The Padres released Britton last month after allowed 47 baserunners and had a 10.45 ERA in 20.2 IP between Double-A and Triple-A. (h/t Chad Jennings)

Nationals To Fire Manny Acta

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7:31pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman has confirmed that Rosenthal's report is indeed true.  Acta will be let go, perhaps as soon as Monday.

5:17pm: Ben Goessling of The Washington Times spoke to team president Stan Kasten about Rosenthal's report. Kasten addressed the report but did not refute it, giving Acta the dreaded vote of confidence:

"We always support everyone here, and we always will. We're all in this together, trying to win everyday, trying to turn it around, and we're going to continue to try it. We know the future is bright, but we're not going to wait for the future to get here. We're going to do everything we can to speed it up. We've done that with kind of a frenetic movement of personnel pieces in the early part of the season. We're going to keep searching for the solution until we find it."

3:23pm: As a couple of commenters have pointed out, Acta is not actually the "youngest active manager in the majors."  The Diamondbacks' A.J. Hinch is 35.  Our readers are the best.

3:07pm: According to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com, the Nationals are expected to fire manager Manny Acta as soon as Monday. Bench coach Jim Riggleman will replace him. As Rosenthal reports,

Acta, who at 40 is the youngest active manager in the majors, was hired by the Nats in November of 2006.  He's gone 147-231 in two and a half seasons.  The Nats have the league's worst record this season at 15-42.

Riggleman has managed for the Padres, Cubs and Mariners, and carries a 522-652 career managerial record.  He worked as the interim skipper for the M's last season after John McLaren was dumped.

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