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Draft Update: Strasburg, Ackley, Miller

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ESPN.com's Jason A. Churchill has an update on some of the most coveted draft-eligible players:

  • Stephen Strasburg left his Wednesday night start holding his back. The San Deigo State staff reported a "minor back cramp." Strasburg still managed to strike out six, allowing only four baserunners in 7.2 innings.
  • Vanderbilt lefty Mike Minor pitched well yesterday and though he's projected to go after the first round now, he could improve his standing. 
  • Dustin Ackley hit two home runs against Duke and he has now "all but cemented himself as the No. 2 overall prospect in the draft." The Mariners have the second overall pick.
  • Texas high schooler Shelby Miller pitched a four-hit shoutout in front of a number of scouts and Rangers President Nolan Ryan. Miller is expected to be selected within the first five picks.

For the hottest prospects already with a major league organization, check out Baseball America's Prospect Hot Sheet.

Gammons On Peavy, Greene, Holliday

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More rumors from ESPN.com's Peter Gammons in his latest column:

  • Gammons says it made sense for Kenny Williams to try to deal for Jake Peavy because the AL Central is winnable and Gordon Beckham wasn't part of the deal.
  • Gammons expects teams to be wary of no-trade clauses after seeing Peavy thwart the Padres' plans to deal him.  
  • Nats GM Mike Rizzo wants to deal now, while more teams are in the pennant race and remain possible buyers.  
  • Rizzo would like to improve his bullpen, which has an ERA nearing 7.00. 
  • The Red Sox want to wait on David Ortiz and plan on giving him the chance to start hitting. He finally homered this week, but has struck out in seven of his last 20 plate appearances. 
  • Gammons believes it makes sense for the Cardinals to see if the Red Sox have interest in Khalil Greene.  
  • Billy Beane may face a limited market for Matt Holliday if he decides to trade the left fielder in July. 

Gammons On Indians, Nationals, Mauer

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Here are the highlights from Peter Gammons' analysis on Mike and Mike in the Morning. Joe Haggerty of the Boston Metro has the interview transcript on his blog, Hacks with Haggs.

  • The Padres will have a hard time dealing Jake Peavy because there aren't many takers who have the resources to acquire him. The Braves don't figure in now that they have enough pitching and the Cardinals aren't a likely fit either. 
  • "Victor Martinez and Cliff Lee are not on the trade block," according to Gammons.  
  • The Indians would deal Mark DeRosa for "major league ready pitching."
  • Washington would like to deal Nick Johnson, Austin Kearns and some of their "semi-attractive" relievers. 
  • The Nationals offered Johnson to the Red Sox for Manny Delcarmen.
  • Gammons says he believes it's in the best interest of the buyer and the seller to deal earlier, rather than later.
  • The Yankees and Red Sox could offer Mark Teixeira money ($180MM) to Joe Mauer if the catcher hits free agency after the 2010 season.  

Rosenthal On Atkins, Red Sox, Webb

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It's time for a new Ken Rosenthal column.  He's cranking these out daily now?

  • Add Rosenthal to the list of columnists who don't understand why the Mets don't just use Daniel Murphy at first base.
  • The Rockies have kicked around a Garrett Atkins for Mark DeRosa swap, but it doesn't work from the Cleveland side.  Rosenthal likes the Brewers and Mets as possible fits for DeRo.
  • If the Red Sox are to trade Clay Buchholz or Michael Bowden, they'd want an elite hitter under similar team control (for example, Justin Smoak or Brett Wallace).  Players aren't eligible to be traded until a year after signing, anyway.
  • Given his injury situation, Rosenthal does not see Brandon Webb as a viable trade candidate this summer.  More likely, a Jon Garland deal.
  • Rosenthal sees Joe Beimel as a trade chip for Washington if he starts pitching decently.

Odds & Ends: Bray, Fox, Manny, Crow

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Links for Wednesday…

Heyman On Mets, Trades, Billingsley

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The latest from SI's Jon Heyman…

  • Heyman wonders why the Mets aren't giving Daniel Murphy a chance as their regular first baseman.  He names trade possibilities, in order of likelihood: Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff, Russell Branyan, Victor Martinez/Mark DeRosa, and Garrett Atkins.
  • Heyman names 22 players who might hit the trading block this summer, headed by Jake Peavy, Matt Holliday, and Erik Bedard.  The A's could potentially have a lot of veterans to spin off.
  • Heyman says "the Dodgers briefly tried to lock up Chad Billingsley this winter, and probably wish they had."  Billingsley will be eligible for arbitration for the first time after this season, so his salary figures to jump up past $4MM.

Nick Johnson Rumors

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The Nationals' injury-prone first baseman, Nick Johnson, is off to a .333/.432/.468 start in 169 plate appearances.  He hasn't played a full season since '06, so it might make sense for GM Mike Rizzo to trade him while he's healthy and hitting.  Johnson has about $4.2MM left on his contract.

On Saturday, ESPN's Peter Gammons wrote:

The Nationals have let it be known that Nick Johnson is available, but Boston won't trade Clay Buchholz.

I think MLB.com's Bill Ladson was responding to that Gammons sentence when he wrote today:

Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson has been mentioned in trade rumors of late. The Red Sox are said to be scouting Johnson, but the truth is, according to a baseball source, Washington and Boston haven't talked since April.

Ladson goes on to say that the Nationals would want a pitching prospect in a Johnson trade, and the player had kind words for the Red Sox.

How about the Giants, who are 14th in the NL with 3.97 runs scored per game and have gotten a .228/.275/.272 line out of first basemen Travis Ishikawa and Rich Aurilia?  Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News says "I heard Nick Johnson's name on the lips of more than one uniformed person Tuesday."  Aurilia might be on the way out, but to make room for Jesus Guzman.

The Mets are another team often speculated as a suitor for Johnson.  GM Omar Minaya will stay in-house for now for Carlos Delgado's replacement, but maybe he'll make a deal if Delgado has a setback.

Strasburg Unlikely To Skip Minors

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Yahoo's Jeff Passan talked to Nationals acting GM Mike Rizzo, who said that he doesn't see any pitchers in the 2009 draft class jumping straight to the Majors.  Knowing that Rizzo plans to draft Stephen Strasburg, the implication is that the righty won't join Washington's rotation right after signing.  If you've been holding your fantasy league's #1 waiver pick for him, it's time to think about Plan B.  Passan and Chico Harlan of the Washington Post both suggest the most we'd see from Strasburg would be a September cameo as part of a contractual obligation.

Ryan Wagner Retires

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According to Pete McElroy of MASN, 26 year-old pitcher Ryan Wagner retired.  He'd been attempting to battle back from a torn labrum in the Nationals organization.  Wagner was drafted 14th overall by the Reds in 2003, after the Blue Jays took Aaron Hill and before the White Sox snagged Brian Anderson.  Wagner did his best work as a rookie the year he was drafted; he finishes his career with a 4.79 ERA in 165.3 innings.

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