Archives for April 2012

Dombrowski On Avila, Pudge, V-Mart

By Mark Polishuk | April 20, 2012 at 5:30pm CDT

Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski joined Jim Bowden and Casey Stern of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM this afternoon. Here are a few highlights from Dombrowski's appearance…

When asked about signing Alex Avila to a multiyear contract, Dombrowski hinted that the team will wait until the offseason before deciding about extensions for the Tigers' young stars. "We've got a lot of guys who are in that two-to-three year [of service time] group. You need to look at your whole group and see how things fit. You're probably talking about a lot of guys that warrant those type of long-term deals," Dombrowski said, citing Avila along with Brennan Boesch, Doug Fister, Austin Jackson, Rick Porcello and Max Scherzer. "For us right now we're in a situation where we're very comfortable to go throughout the year and we can address those situations as we approach the wintertime."
The recently-retired Ivan Rodriguez holds "a special place in the hearts" of the Tigers front office. Rodriguez signed with the Tigers in the 2003-04 offseason, going from the World Series champion Marlins to a Detroit team coming off an AL-record 119 losses. Dombrowski credits the Rodriguez signing as the first move that helped return the club to respectability.
From Bowden's Twitter account, Dombrowski said that Victor Martinez could possibly return to action in August or September based on his latest medicals. Martinez suffered a torn ACL in January that was expected to cost him the entire 2012 season, and also spurred the Tigers' acquisition of Prince Fielder.

Quick Hits: Callaspo, Cubs, Canseco

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | April 20, 2012 at 4:15pm CDT

As the Red Sox celebrate 100 years at Fenway Park today, here are some links and rumors from around the league…

The Athletics had interest in Angels third baseman Alberto Callaspo this spring, so Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle wonders if Oakland might revisit the possibility of a trade in light of Josh Donaldson’s slow start (Twitter link).
The Cubs are struggling, but ESPN.com’s Buster Olney suggests the team’s slow start could enable Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer to make midseason moves that will pay off in the long term.
Former Cy Young winner Orel Hershiser says he’s “not interested” in buying an MLB team at this time, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). Hershiser, now an analyst for ESPN, had expressed interest in buying the Dodgers when they were for sale.
The independent league Worcester Tornadoes announced that they signed 47-year-old Jose Canseco to a one-year contract, ESPNBoston.com reports.

Minor Moves: Pettit, Hester, Miner

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | April 20, 2012 at 3:12pm CDT

We'll keep track of the day's minor (and Miner) moves right here…

The Mariners have signed outfielder Chris Pettit to a minor league deal, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnicktweets. Pettit, who has MLB experience with the Angels, was released by the Dodgers at the end of Spring Training.
The Orioles released minor league catcher John Hester, Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com tweets. Baltimore’s Norfolk affiliate let Hester go to create roster space for the recently claimed Luis Exposito.
The Tigers have acquired right-hander Zach Miner from the Royals, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star tweets. The Royals confirmed the deal, noting that they'll obtain cash for Miner (Twitter link). The 30-year-old pitched in the Royals' minor league system last year after pitching for the Tigers from 2006-09. Miner has a 4.24 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 as a big leaguer, but posted a 5.26 ERA with 5.9 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 as a minor leaguer in 2011.

Red Sox Close To Acquiring Marlon Byrd

By Mike Axisa | April 20, 2012 at 2:23pm CDT

2:23pm: The deal remains probable but timing issues remain, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The Cubs are likely to pay most of Byrd's remaining $6.5MM salary and Red Sox pitcher Michael Bowden is in play.

2:19pm: The structure of Byrd's deal could help the Red Sox' payroll for luxury tax purposes, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com. If the Cubs sent $5.5MM to Boston to offset the outfielder's salary, then it would actually decrease the Red Sox' payroll number that sum would be subtracted from Byrd's $5MM average annual salary.

The veteran is set to earn $6.5MM in the final year of a three-year, $15MM deal.

1:34pm: Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine acknowledged to reporters that the club's talks with the Cubs are advanced, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. “The talks have been good talks, from what I gather,” Valentine said. “Ben [Cherington] will try to get as good a player as he can get.”

12:17pm: The Cubs have been actively attempting to trade Byrd according to WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. A trade with the Red Sox is not final, but Bradford hears that it is "probable." Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter) that Boston has looked at other outfield options as well.

10:59am: The Red Sox are close to acquiring Marlon Byrd from the Cubs, reports Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe. Boston has been actively exploring the outfield market following Jacoby Ellsbury's shoulder injury.

Byrd, 34, has just three singles and one walk in 47 plate appearances this season, resulting in a .070/.149/.070 batting line. He hit .276/.324/.395 in 482 plate appearances last season while missing time with multiple fractures after taking a pitch to the face, an injury that occurred in Fenway Park. Byrd is in the final season of his three-year, $15MM contract and will earn $6.5MM this year. He is not in Chicago's lineup this afternoon.

Ellsbury's subluxed his right shoulder last week and there is still not timetable for his return. Carl Crawford is also on the shelf with wrist and elbow problems, leaving the Red Sox with an outfield of Jason Repko, Ryan Sweeney, Cody Ross, and Darnell McDonald. Byrd has played center field exclusively during his time with the Cubs, though he has experience in all three outfield spots.

If completed, this will be the first real trade between the two teams since Theo Epstein left the Red Sox to take over as Chicago's president of baseball operations. The two sides did work out the compensation package for Epstein, however.

Athletics Claim Rich Thompson

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | April 20, 2012 at 2:04pm CDT

The Athletics announced that they claimed right-hander Rich Thompson off of waivers from the Angels. The A's will announce a corresponding move once Thompson reports to Oakland.

The Angels designated the native of Australia for assignment six days ago, apparently because his velocity had dropped and they no longer trusted him in high-leverage situations. Thompson's average fastball has been checking in at 89 mph so far in 2012, according to FanGraphs. Last year, he averaged 90.7 mph and he was hovering above 92 mph in 2009-10.

The 27-year-old struggled through two appearances this year, but posted a 3.00 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 54 innings a year ago. It's not surprising that the Athletics put in a claim — they had an open 40-man roster spot and Thompson pitched quite well as recently as 2011.

Stark On Nationals, Trumbo, Abreu, Orioles

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | April 20, 2012 at 1:55pm CDT

Earlier today, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reported that MLB and the MLBPA have agreed to stop including personal services deals and milestone bonus clauses in player contracts. He offers some reaction and detail in today’s column to go along with more rumors from around the league. Here are the highlights:

One prominent agent says the aforementioned changes more make it more difficult to add dollars to contracts without counting them against the luxury tax.
The Nationals still want to move John Lannan, but his slow start at Triple-A (7.50 ERA in three starts) is limiting his trade value.
The Nationals aren’t trying to trade Roger Bernadina, Stark reports. Right now Washington is thin on outfield depth, so they’re probably not in a position to trade outfielders away.
Some teams wonder if the Angels should shop Mark Trumbo for a controllable reliever. There’s no indication the Angels are looking to trade Trumbo, but they’re “trying feverishly” to move Bobby Abreu, Stark reports.
Scouts say the Orioles would “do anything” to trade third baseman Mark Reynolds and right-handed reliever Kevin Gregg.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Giants, Damon, Red Sox

By Mike Axisa | April 20, 2012 at 12:30pm CDT

Six years ago today, Julio Franco hit a pinch-hit home run for the Mets against the Padres in Petco Park. At 47 years and 240 days old, the blast made Franco the oldest player to ever hit a homer. He went on to hit two more homers in his career, extending his own record. Here's the latest from the baseball blogosphere, which hopefully ages as gracefully as Franco did…

Baseball in the Blood interviewed Natalie Niekro, daughter of the late Joe Niekro.
Jays Journal interviewed Blue Jays prospect Noah Syndergaard.
Rumbunter interviewed Pirates prospects Kyle McPherson and Zack Von Rosenberg.
Marlins Nation interviewed Marlins prospect Jacob Realmuto.
Padres Prospects has an update on Casey Kelly's elbow injury.
I-70 Baseball says Joey Votto's deal shouldn't worry Royals fans about Eric Hosmer.
Bay City Ball is really, really happy with the Madison Bumgarner extension.
Giants Nirvana wrote about Brian Wilson's future with the Giants.
MLB Reports looks at how the Giants can replace Wilson this season.
Swingin' A's wrote about the Giants, the Athletics, and San Jose.
Wahoo's on First tries to figure out where Johnny Damon fits with the Indians.
Bless You Boys doesn't know why Brandon Inge is still on the Tigers.
Over The Monster wonders if Bobby Valentine is trying to get himself fired.
Sports of Boston is curious why Valentine relies so heavily on his bench.
The Best Sox Blog lists some relievers who could interest the Red Sox.
BoSox Injection wrote about Kevin Youkilis and Boston's third base situation.
Pirates Prospects list three reasons why the Pirates should trade Joel Hanrahan.
The Nats Blog says the Nationals are right to control Stephen Strasburg's workload.
Puckett's Pond tries to figure out how the Twins can replace Scott Baker.
Halos Daily analyzed Vernon Wells' new swing.
Redbird Rants wrote about the depth of the Cardinals' bench.
The Beanball explained the important of bench depth.
Camden Crazies wonders if Matt Wieters is the best catcher in baseball.
Warehouse Worthy tries to figure out who is the Orioles' worst pitcher.
AL Eastbound & Down says Kyle Drabek is starting to look like an elite pitcher.
Know Hitter went back and reviewed the Miguel Cabrera trade.
The True Sports Fan's Blog mused about David Wright's future.
The Futurists wrote about Heath Bell's rise as a non-prospect.
Blog Red Machine thinks Scott Rolen is a Hall of Famer.
85% Sports wonders if the Pittsburgh Pirates are the next Tampa Bay Rays.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.

No More Personal Service Deals & Milestone Bonuses

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | April 20, 2012 at 11:13am CDT

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have agreed to put an end to personal service deals and milestone bonus clauses, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reports. Existing contracts with these deals or bonuses won’t be affected by the changes, which were agreed to this month.

Albert Pujols and Ryan Zimmerman recently signed long-term contracts which include personal services provisions and Alex Rodriguez has milestone bonuses associated with his contract. However, MLB and the union say these bonuses violate baseball’s collective bargaining agreement. The sides have agreed that the CBA doesn’t allow players to agree to deals that include obligations beyond their playing careers.

MLB is trying to prevent teams from finding loopholes that enable them to evade the luxury tax, Stark reports. Personal service deals and milestone bonuses aren’t considered guaranteed money and therefore don’t count against the luxury tax.

AL East Notes: Nunez, Valentine, Hutchison

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | April 20, 2012 at 8:48am CDT

Believe it or not, Rays left-hander Matt Moore has never started a game at Tropicana Field. The 22-year-old left-hander will take the mound at home against the Twins tonight for his first Tampa Bay start. Here are today's AL East links…

Joel Sherman of the New York Post suggests the Yankees should use Eduardo Nunez as their primary left fielder while Brett Gardner's on the disabled list. Nunez could be part of the Yankees' future, while veterans like Andruw Jones and Raul Ibanez won't be, Sherman argues.
It's too early to bet against Boston manager Bobby Valentine, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Some rival executives say Red Sox president Larry Lucchino tried to regain power by hiring Valentine, according to Rosenthal.
Ben Badler of Baseball America introduces readers to right-hander Drew Hutchison, who will make his MLB debut for the Blue Jays tomorrow. The 21-year-old could use some more minor league seasoning, but he's quite polished for his age and could fit in as a back-of-the-rotation starter not unlike Henderson Alvarez. The Blue Jays decided to rely on internal starting pitching options this offseason instead of completing trades or free agent signings.

Team Facebook/Twitter/RSS

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | April 20, 2012 at 8:13am CDT

If you prefer your MLBTR fix limited to only your favorite team, we've got you covered. Below are links to our team Facebook, Twitter, and RSS pages and feeds.

AL East