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Archives for June 2010

Rays Release Ryan Shealy

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The Rays have released first baseman Ryan Shealy according to the International League transactions page. Tampa signed Shealy to a minor league deal back in December. 

The 30-year-old hit .238/.354/.512 with ten homers in 206 plate appearances for the Rays' Triple-A affiliate, so performance wasn't the issue. Shealy last appeared in the big leagues back in 2008 with the Royals, and he's a .271/.335/.429 career hitter in the show.

Odds & Ends: Chipper, DeJesus, Rincon

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A few links to check out as you celebrate Kansas City being awarded the 2012 All-Star Game…

  • Chipper Jones isn't ready to talk about his future yet, reports Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. A settlement of the $28MM left on his contract is one issue that has to be cleared up before Jones can announce any retirement plans, if any.
  • Rustin Dodd of The Kansas City Star says the Royals should find a way to maximize David DeJesus' value, either through trade or letting him leave as a free agent and receiving compensation draft picks. DeJesus currently projects to be a Type-B free agent, assuming the team declines his $6MM option for 2011.
  • Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post mentions that Rockies' manager Jim Tracy indicated that Juan Rincon would likely be the reliever to bounce back and forth between the big leagues and Triple-A this year, however he's out of options and would need to clear waivers each time he is sent down.

Athletics Sign Jamey Wright

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The Athletics have signed righthander Jamey Wright and assigned him to Triple-A Sacramento, according to the Pacific Coast League's transaction's page. The Indians released Wright late last week.

The 35-year-old threw 21.1 innings for Cleveland, posting a 5.48 ERA with as many walks (nine) as strikeouts. Oakland would be Wright's eighth big league team if he were to join them at some point. He's got a 5.03 ERA in 1723.1 career innings, a sneaky high total.

Royals Release John Parrish

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The Royals released John Parrish, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). The lefty has been sidelined with shoulder problems and last pitched on April 24th. 

The Royals signed Parrish to a minor league deal in January and got six relatively productive innings out of the him. He struck out four and allowed as many hits in six innings, walking five. The 32-year-old has big league experience with the Orioles, Mariners and Blue Jays; until he joins his next franchise he's a free agent.

The move frees up a 40-man roster spot for Anthony Lerew, who has been recalled from Triple-A according to Daniel Paulling of The Kansas City Star.

Third Base Options For The Twins

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The Twins are a good team, but it's in spite of the production they're getting at the hot corner. Ron Gardenhire's third baseman have combined to hit just .213/.283/.280 with a pair of home runs. Nick Punto and Brendan Harris each have slugging percentages below .300, so the Twins recently called on top prospect Danny Valencia. That move gives the Twins more power than the Punto-Harris combination, but it doesn't assure them of anything. Let's take a look at the Twins' options as they try to get some offense from their third basemen:

  • Hope that Valencia hits - Baseball America named Valencia an untouchable before last year's trade deadline, and ranked him sixth among Twins prospects heading into the year. At that point, Valencia had a promising bat, but was an inconsistent defender because of "subpar concentration and footwork." Valencia, 25, has hit .323/.364/.323 since arriving in the majors in early June, so his bat is no sure thing either.
  • Call up the Red Sox - Ken Rosenthal reported over the weekend that the Twins' field staff would like to add Mike Lowell, though the front office has concerns about his durability. The $7.1MM remaining on Lowell's 2010 salary would also be an obstacle.
  • Trade for an Oriole – The Twins could call the Orioles about Miguel Tejada (.676 OPS, $6MM salary) or Ty Wigginton (.854 OPS, $3.5MM salary). Tejada is playing third for the O's and Wigginton has spent most of his career at the hot corner and has recent experience there.
  • Ask about LaRoche – There's no room for Andy LaRoche in Pittsburgh, now that the Pedro Alvarez era has begun. LaRoche has just a .232/.295/.316 line, but the 26-year-old posted a .731 OPS and played solid defense last year. 
  • Turn to the free agent market - Joe Crede defended well and hit 15 homers for the Twins in 2009. However, he had back, shoulder, hand, knee and hamstring issues last year and hasn't faced MLB pitching since.
  • Hope that the Blue Jays keep slumping – There's no guarantee that the Blue Jays keep slumping or that they'll have interest in moving Jose Bautista if they do fall out of contention. Those 18 homers and the fact that Bautista doesn't become a free agent until after 2011 mean the Jays could ask for a highly-touted prospect or two. It wouldn't be the first time the Twins picked up a former Blue Jay with power to play third; the club added Tony Batista back in 2006.

Odds & Ends: Lee, Orioles, Cubs, Oswalt, Chipper

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Links for Wednesday, before Pedro Alvarez makes his MLB debut…

Blue Jays Sign Asher Wojciechowski

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The Blue Jays have signed sandwich pick Asher Wojciechowski, according to a team press release. Wojciechowski is the third and final of the Jays' supplemental round selections to reach an agreement with the club, following the signings of Aaron Sanchez and Noah Syndergaard.

Wojciechowski gets a $815K bonus, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America. That's in line with MLB's recommended bonuses.

The right-hander from The Citadel hits 96 mph on the radar gun and is considered a potential workhorse starter or closer. When Toronto nabbed him 41st overall on draft day, John Manuel of Baseball America praised the value, speculating that Wojciechowski's workload late this season may have caused him to slip a little.

Joe Nelson Clears Waivers

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WEDNESDAY, 2:28pm: ESPNBoston's Joe McDonald tweets that Nelson has cleared waivers, so we should find out tomorrow whether or not the righty will accept a minor league assignment.

FRIDAY, 7:49pm: Nelson hinted at retirement following the move, according to MLB.com's Ian Browne.

"I've got a flight at 7:15, and I'm going to Florida and in all likelihood, if I clear waivers, I've probably thrown my last pitch," said Nelson. "I don't anticipate myself going back to [Triple-A] Pawtucket, but that's emotion talking right now and we'll probably reanalyze it when I'm not as disappointed. I had every opportunity and I didn't produce. The thought of going to Triple-A doesn't sound that great. We'll wait and see what options present themselves."

Nelson battled major arm injuries early in his career, including a pair of surgeries to repair the labrum in his throwing shoulder. He broke through with the Royals in 2006, but has bounced around quite a bit since. Baseball-Reference.com has his career earnings at just under $1.7MM.

2:41pm: The Red Sox designated Joe Nelson for assignment as part of a flurry of moves, according to Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). The team also activated Jonathan Papelbon from the bereavement list, called up Scott Atchison and placed Jeremy Hermida on the DL.

Nelson, 35, had a 9.72 ERA in 8.1 innings this year with 9.7 K/9 and 6.5 BB/9. Those high strikeout and walk rates are characteristic of the ones the right-hander has posted over the course of his six-year MLB career. Nelson posted a 2.49 ERA in 21.2 innings at Triple A this year, with similarly high strikeout and walk numbers.

John Russell On The Hot Seat In Pittsburgh?

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WEDNESDAY, 12:52pm: Rosenthal and Morosi report that there is some sentiment among those above and below Coonelly and Huntington that Russell should be dismissed. That could mean that ownership is unhappy with Russell, though the FOX Sports duo reports that majority owner Bob Nutting has not discussed firing Russell with the team's president and GM.

TUESDAY, 9:31pm: ESPN's Buster Olney hears from sources that "there is absolutely nothing to the speculation" about Russell being fired (via Twitter).  Rosenthal also tweets that Pirates president Frank Coonelly has denied that discussions about Russell's future have taken place.

8:58pm: With Pedro Alvarez on the verge of making his debut in the black-and-gold, the young prospect might never get to play for current Pirates manager John Russell.  Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com report that the team is "holding internal discussions" about Russell's fate, though it isn't apparent if the manager might be fired soon or possibly until after the season.

Russell "has drawn criticism within the industry for his stiff, impassive demeanor," according to Rosenthal/Morosi.  With the likes of Alvarez, Brad Lincoln and Jose Tabata either on the major league roster or nearing it, Pittsburgh management might want a new face in the dugout to signify this fresh start for the organization. 

Russell has a 152-234 record since being hired as the Pirates' manager before the 2008 season, though given Pittsburgh's roster, it's hard to attribute their lack of success to Russell's managerial skills.  Rosenthal/Morosi say that the Bucs will look inside the organization for an interim manager to finish out the season, and note that former Indians manager Eric Wedge and Cardinals bench coach Jose Oquendo are long-term candidates to take over the job.

2004 Draft Throwdown

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Now that six years have passed since the 2004 draft, let's take a look at a few of the choices teams made between prospects at the same position to get a sense of who came out ahead in the great pick-by-pick spin of fate.

  • Justin Verlander (Tigers) vs. Phil Humber (Mets) vs. Jeff Niemann (Rays): Here we have a textbook study in the perils of pitching prospects. In Verlander, the second overall pick, the Tigers got a true ace. He has posted three top-seven finishes in the Cy Young voting already, and struck out an incredible 269 batters in 240 innings last year. Picking third, the Mets got an ace as well, sort of: Humber was eventually traded in the deal that landed them Johan Santana. Needless to say, Humber has not been an ace himself, pitching to an ERA over 5.00 at Triple-A for a second straight year in 2010. Niemann, meanwhile, has profiled somewhere in-between, though his 2010 so far suggests he may be fulfilling the promise of his status as fourth overall pick. He's pitching to a 2.83 ERA in 2010, though the strikeout rate (just 5.8 per nine innings) suggests that ERA will likely rise. Overall winner here? Everyone except the Twins.
  • Billy Butler (Royals) vs. Josh Fields (White Sox): Well, it certainly appears the Royals got the better of this battle of third basemen. Butler, picked 14th, didn't stick at third, but he is finally getting some attention as a legitimately excellent bat, putting up a .341/.396/.494 line in 2010 so far. Meanwhile, Fields, picked 18th, has struggled to remain on the field, and is actually now property of the Royals as well, coming over this winter in the deal for Mark Teahen. But he will miss most, if not all, of the 2010 season after having hip surgery in April. Fields, 28 in December, has had some impressive Triple-A seasons, so he may eventually fulfill his promise. Butler, however, is clearly here to stay. Overall winner? The Royals. Almost makes up for Alex Gordon!
  • Glen Perkins (Twins) vs. Phil Hughes (Yankees): Lost in the many months of Johan Santana trade talks back in 2007-2008, which centered around whether the Yankees would deal Phil Hughes, was the realization that the Twins could have drafted Hughes themselves. Instead, at pick 22, Minnesota took Glen Perkins, a college product out of University of Minnesota. The outlook isn't brilliant for Perkins at this point, with a 7.76 ERA in Triple-A, though his strikeout rate is at least relatively strong. Meanwhile, Phil Hughes has become one of the best pitchers in the American League, with a fantastic 74 strikeouts and 22 walks in 75.1 innings in support of his 3.11 ERA. Hughes won't be 24 until later this month. And among those who won't be celebrating his birthday? The Twins.

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