According to the team's official Twitter, the Reds have designated outfielder Darnell McDonald for assignment. McDonald, 30, was hitting .175/.250/.225 for Cincinnati in 44 plate appearances. McDonald played all three outfield positions for the Reds, but managed just one extra base hit, a triple.
Archives for May 2009
Jake Peavy Not A Fit In Boston
According to Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald the Red Sox are reluctant to go after Jake Peavy because he's owed lots of money and they question his durability and how well he'd transition into the AL East. The Red Sox have a deep rotation anyways, especially with Daisuke Matsuzaka set to return and John Smoltz rehabbing, so I doubt they were that interested to begin with.
In the aftermath of the failed White Sox-Padres swap that would have sent Peavy to Chicago, there are other reactions from around the majors:
- MLB.com's Todd Zolecki wonders if it would be smart for the Phillies to acquire Peavy. Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. declined to comment on the chances of making such a deal happen.
- Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that Cubs GM Jim Hendry didn't comment when asked about re-starting talks to acquire the righty. Ryan Theriot sounds excited about pursuing Peavy.
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan writes that Peavy made the right call, since the White Sox are no sure thing.
Cardinals Waiting For Glaus, Could Deal Later
According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch the Cardinals are waiting to see how much Troy Glaus can contribute to the team before deciding whether to deal for a third baseman or rely on the current roster. Brian Barden, Tyler Greene, Brendan Ryan and Joe Thurston are all options for the Cards at third. Brett Wallace, last year's first round draft pick, just started at Triple A and isn't about to be called up soon.
GM John Mozeliak says the team won't look to make a trade until Glaus's future is more certain. However, if Glaus won't be able to contribute, Mozeliak says he has the chips to make a deal.
"Do we have the resources to do it? I think we do."
Cardinals officials were mum on the possibility of acquiring Mark DeRosa from the Indians.
Gammons On Indians, Nationals, Mauer
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.
Astros DFA Jason Smith Again
Jason Smith, who has already been designated for assignment and re-signed by the Astros this month, was designated for assignment once again, according to MLB.com's Alyson Footer. Edwin Maysonet was called up to play a utility role. Smith, 32 in July, had no hits or walks in 27 plate appearances for the Astros.
Rockies Rumors: Hurdle’s Job, O’Dowd’s Plan
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has the latest on the Rockies, who are in last place, 12 games back of the Dodgers in the NL West, with a 16-24 record:
- Manager Clint Hurdle's job security depends on how well his team plays in its upcoming games, according to this article.
- GM Dan O'Dowd said there's no timeline for a turnaround, but the Rockies have to respond better to Hurdle.
- Renck also reports that the Rockies aren't likely to make a deal soon.
- O'Dowd: "At this point, you would be trading an undervalued player for another undervalued player."
- Opposing executives say Garrett Atkins has to hit better before he attracts interest.
Mariners, Padres Discuss Betancourt
9:36pm: Larry LaRue of the Tacoma News Tribune outlines the difficulties the Mariners face in trying to deal Yuniesky Betancourt. "No one is offering any talent back, and everyone wants Seattle to eat a big part of his salary," LaRue writes.
LaRue also cites Betancourt's reputation for mental lapses and a "slow learning curve" as deterrents for teams looking for infield help.
6:20pm: Ryan Divish of the Tacoma News Tribune cites a source close to the Padres who says that Headley is "off the table" in trade talks. He writes, "Yuni may be traded, but it won't be for Chase Headley."
Furthermore, Divish writes that any deal for Betancourt is unlikely, since the Padres are trying to dump payroll.
8:26am: Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says Mariners shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt is being showcased for a possible trade. He mentioned the Jack Wilson idea on Monday, though that seemed lopsided. Baker says the Padres have also discussed acquiring Betancourt:
Two names I've heard mentioned as trade returns for the Mariners would be either a package of, or choice between switch-hitting left fielder Chase Headley and Class AAA second baseman Matt Antonelli. I'm trying to pin down whether it is one or the other, or both, being offered up.
Baker says the Padres dangled the names of Headley and Antonelli, though moving Headley to get Betancourt seems highly unlikely. Plus there is the matter of the $10.5MM coming to Betancourt through 2011.
Peavy Explains Veto
8:40pm: Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune has the reaction from White Sox GM Kenny Williams. "Anyone who follows our club knows we still have championship aspirations for this season," he said.
7:19pm: The Associated Press has a full recap of the short press conference. Peavy said he will answer more questions after his start against Carlos Zambrano and the Cubs Friday night.
7:07pm: Jake Peavy read a statement to reporters, confirming that he will not accept a trade to the White Sox. "San Diego is the place for us," Peavy said of him and his family. "We've made that decision for the time being."
The White Sox are not likely to be the last team to make an offer for Peavy, and he seems to be leaving the door open for a future trade.
To recap, the White Sox and the Padres agreed to a deal that would send Peavy to Chicago in exchange for four Sox pitchers, including prospects Clayton Richard and Aaron Poreda. But Peavy, whose conract includes a full no-trade clause through this season, nixed the deal. For a blow-by-blow account of how this deal came together and then fell apart, see our thread from earlier today.
Odds & Ends: Sano, Kieschnick, Strasburg
A few links for Thursday night:
- In a Q&A, Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette discusses the Pirates' chances of signing Dominican prospect Miguel Angel Sano, how they might replace Adam LaRoche at 1B if he is traded, and whether they might seek frontline starting pitching via trade.
- Todd Coppernoll at Brewersfan.net has an interview with former major leaguer Brooks Kieschnick, the first player to hit a home run as a pitcher, a pinch hitter, and as a DH. This is a fascinating account of the rise and fall of a ballplayer. Key quote: "I knew my career was in trouble the minute the Cubs drafted me."
- Jonathan Mayo at MLB.com makes his predictions for the top 10 picks in June's First-Year Player Draft. Not surprisingly, Stephen Strasburg tops the list.
- Jim Callis at Baseball America says that Strasburg leaving Wednesday's game with back cramps is not cause for alarm.
- Callis also offers his predictions for which players will fall in the draft due to signability concerns. He puts OF Donavan Tate, RHP Jacob Turner, and LHP Matthew Purke on the top of the list. Tate and Turner are Scott Boras clients and Purke is advised by Select Sports Group.
Jake Peavy Will Not Accept Trade to White Sox
6:10pm: Ken Rosenthal argues that Peavy's decision to nix the deal was justified, saying, "If I were Jake Peavy, I would not go to the White Sox."
Rosenthal thinks back to the offseason, when the Padres "blew two chances" to trade Peavy. "The Braves clearly offered a better package than the White Sox. The Cubs' deal might have turned out better, too." He writes tha the longer the Padres take to deal Peavy, the less they will get in return.
Rosenthal has doubts about the White Sox's ability to compete in the future, and he says that this may have been on Peavy's mind when he rejected the trade.
5:53pm: Jon Heyman writes that Peavy will speak to the media shortly after 6pm CST. He also mentions that the White Sox were asked by the Padres earlier in the day if they had "any ideas on how to persuade" Peavy to accept the deal.
5:41pm: Joe Cowley and Toni Ginnetti of the Chicago Sun-Times are reporting that sources close to Peavy say that he has notified the Padres that he will not accept a trade to the White Sox. Peavy talked it over with his family and decided not to make the move. Manager Ozzie Guillen admitted he was surprised the Sox were willing to take on the $60MM commitment.
5:25pm: Via Twitter, Jon Heyman reports that the White Sox will not try to convince Peavy to agree to the deal by committing to pick up the $22MM option in his contract for 2013. This is still in Peavy's hands.
1:27pm: Gonzales has more from Linebrink about his conversation with Peavy. Linebrink didn't see the AL/NL thing as a big concern for Peavy.
Also, Diamond Leung passes along a Ned Colletti interview with Dan Patrick today. The Dodgers GM spoke to Towers about a Peavy trade as recently as a month ago but the asking price was too high. Meanwhile the Red Sox have not been involved, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
12:47pm: Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune says Peavy will likely not be traded to the White Sox, presumably because he'll veto the deal if it reaches that point. Krasovic notes that in addition to Poreda and Richard, Lance Broadway has been discussed.
Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times explains why the trade would make sense for the Sox and why it wouldn't.
12:21pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says beyond Poreda and Richard, the Padres would choose two players to be named later from a list of four. Axelrod explained the situation to Rosenthal:
"Approval or disapproval is not necessarily black or white. Depending on what is involved could make it more desirable or less desirable. There may be certain things he has to have as conditions. We're not near the point of talking about that, what he would want to see adjusted if he were to approve."
11:52am: ESPN's Jerry Crasnick talked to Axelrod, who gave the impression that Peavy is leaning against accepting the trade:
"If I had to make a bet on it, I would guess that Jake would say he's not ready to take that step today. But he wouldn't necessarily preclude it at any time in the future."
Peavy maintains his strong preference for the NL.
11:31am: Brock talked to Peavy's agent Barry Axelrod. Axelrod hasn't spoken to Peavy yet today, but was asked by the Padres "about Jake's feeling about the possibility of (playing for) the White Sox."
10:11am: ESPN's Peter Gammons says Beckham is not part of the deal. CBS' Danny Knobler says it would be Poreda, Richard, and one or two others. The others would also be pitchers, says Knobler. Yahoo's Gordon Edes says the White Sox have agreed to send four pitching prospects including Poreda and Richard.
ESPN's Bruce Levine talked to White Sox pitcher and former Peavy teammate Scott Linebrink, who gave Peavy a 50-50 chance of accepting the deal.
9:39am: MLB.com's Corey Brock and Scott Merkin say Poreda and Clayton Richard are believed to be part of the deal.
9:19am: Jon Heyman says the White Sox and Padres have agreed to a Peavy trade, and await the pitcher's approval. MLB.com's Corey Brock agrees. Ken Williams, always operating under the radar. Now we get to see just how much Peavy hates the AL.
Peavy is owed an additional $8.35MM this year, $15MM in '10, $16MM in '11, $17MM in '12, and a $4MM buyout for '13. Total: $60.35MM guaranteed through 2012. It is surprising to see the White Sox willing to take on such a commitment to a pitcher.
No idea if he's involved, but yes, the Sox could trade Gordon Beckham in this deal as a player to be named later.
9:09am: Via Gonzales on Twitter: "Waiting for approval from Peavy on SD trade, according to source."
6:51am: Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that the Padres are in discussions to send Jake Peavy to the White Sox.
According to Padres personnel, Peavy met with Padres manager Bud Black late Wednesday night to discuss a trade overture from the Sox.
It is apparently a four-player offer, which would presumably gut Chicago's farm system. Peavy would have to approve any trade and according to Krasovic Peavy is telling people that the trade is "something to think about." However, Krasovic says Peavy "may have reservations about pitching for Ozzie Guillen."
MLB.com's Corey Brock asked Peavy about the rumor. He said, "I only know what you guys [media] know." Brock expects the Padres would require a frontline pitcher like Aaron Poreda. Scot Gregor of the Daily Herald makes the Poreda link as well, but finds Peavy's contract prohibitive. Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune says the Padres had a scout watching the White Sox last weekend in Toronto. Meanwhile, SI's Jon Heyman says Peavy still prefers the West or Midwest and the NL. Heyman likes the Cubs or Brewers.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here. Tim Dierkes also contributed to this post.
