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Archives for August 2012

Brewers Release Randy Wolf

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The Brewers announced that they released left-hander Randy Wolf. Wolf led the National League in hits and earned runs this year, the final season of his three-year contract with Milwaukee.

Wolf, who turns 36 today, started 24 games for the Brewers in 2012, posting a 5.69 ERA with 6.1 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 and a 43.4% ground ball rate in 142 1/3 innings. His three-year, $29.75MM contract included a 2013 club option worth $10MM with a $1.5MM buyout. The Brewers won't be picking up the option, but they're still responsible for the buyout. Wolf, a Wasserman Media Group client, will be free to sign with any MLB team for a pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum once he clears release waivers.

Diamondbacks Will Seek Shortstop This Offseason

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The Diamondbacks traded Stephen Drew this week, officially acknowledging that he won’t return in 2013. The team will rely on Willie Bloomquist, Jake Elmore and John McDonald for the remainder of the 2012 season, but they’ll pursue shortstop help over the winter, GM Kevin Towers told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.

"There's not a lot on the free-agent market, so more than likely it's going to take a trade,” Towers said. “We'll probably have to trade a good player — or a couple of good players — to find one."

Towers expects to encounter an “overpay situation” in his search for shortstops because there is only so much talent to go around. “Teams tend to really horde those type of players,” he said. The Rangers have enviable depth at the position in Elvis Andrus and top prospect Jurickson Profar. GM Jon Daniels says it’s a good problem to have.

“We don't know exactly how it's going to play out long term, but I'm not really all that concerned about it,” Daniels said. “I know that all the possibilities are good ones for us."

Piecoro suggests the Diamondbacks will talk to the Rangers this offseason. The Reds have middle infield depth behind Zack Cozart (Didi Gregorius and Billy Hamilton) and the Blue Jays have Adeiny Hechavarria and Yunel Escobar. 

The Diamondbacks would like to see more of Elmore, but don’t seem convinced he’s more than a part-time player, according to Piecoro. And while they like prospect Chris Owings, they don’t expect him to be ready for the MLB level in 2013. Bloomquist and McDonald are both under contract for 2013.

Outrighted To Triple-A: Gil Velazquez

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The latest outright assignments from around MLB…

West Links: Saunders, Jaramillo, A’s

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Here are a few links out of the NL and AL West as Tuesday runs into Wednesday …

  • The Diamondbacks have placed left-hander Joe Saunders on trade waivers, a source tells Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. Saunders, whose waiver period expires on Thursday at 12 p.m. CT on Thursday, is owed roughly $1.5MM for the remainder of the season and is slated to become a free agent in the offseason.
  • The Athletics have signed catcher Jason Jaramillo to a minor league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Sacramento, according to Casey Pratt of CSNBayArea.com (Twitter link). Jaramillo appeared in the Majors for stints of various lengths with the Pirates from 2009-11. He owns a career big league batting line of .235/.293/.327.
  • Among a handful of roster moves Oakland made today was optioning second baseman Jemile Weeks to Triple-A. Weeks burst onto the scene in the second-half of last season but has struggled mightily with the bat this year (.220/.305/.302). However, the A's don't seem to have soured on Weeks overall, as manager Bob Melvin characterized the demotion as a "blip" and said the organization still thinks Weeks has a bright future ahead, according to Pratt (Twitter link).

NL Central Notes: Hart, Marcum, Garza, Clemens

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A few notes from the NL Central to pass along …

  • Brewers outfielder/first baseman Corey Hart told Milwaukee he'd like to remain with the team beyond his current contract, which expires after next season, and is willing to play whichever position he is needed at most, writes Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. Hart, slated to make $10MM in 2013, also said that if the interest in keeping him in Milwaukee is mutual, potential extension talks would be best reserved for the offseason.
  • Brewers right-hander Shaun Marcum, an impending free agent, is nearing a return from the disabled list and understands that he is auditioning for the 29 other Major League teams, McCalvy writes. He also notes that Marcum and the Brewers have not engaged in extension talks.
  • The Cubs announced that they have transferred right-hander Matt Garza to the 60-day disabled list, and though his DL stint will expire before the end of the regular season, manager Dale Sveum added that Garza's been "shut down," according to Doug Padilla of ESPNChicago.com. Ending the season on the DL won't be good for Garza's trade value, but GM Jed Hoyer has said that the right-hander will be part of the team's 2013 rotation.
  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow said he recently sent scouts to look at Roger Clemens and Scott Kazmir of the independent-league Sugar Land Skeeters, according to the Associated Press. Clemens is rumored to be mulling a return to the Majors.

AL East Notes: Pettitte, Torrealba, McClure

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A few notes out of the American League East, where the Yankees owned a four-game lead over the Rays entering Tuesday night's action …

  • Yankees left-hander Andy Pettitte hasn't ruled out the possibility of pitching again in 2013, writes Chad Jennings of the Journal News. "I definitely can’t tell you right now that I would say there’s no way I’m going to play," Pettitte said. The 40-year-old left-hander, who signed a one-year, $2.5MM minor league contract in March, is currently rehabbing a broken ankle he suffered in late June and hopes to return before the season's over.
  • Blue Jays catcher Yorvit Torrealba said he had several suitors after being released by the Rangers earlier this month but decided to sign a minor league deal with Toronto because he'd have more playing time, according to Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com (Twitter link).
  • Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine remained vague as to why pitching coach Bob McClure was relieved of his duties on Monday, according to Dan Duggan of the Boston Herald. McClure was hired last offseason before Valentine was, but Valentine said he was on-board with having McClure as his pitching coach during the interview process.

Cardinals Extend Jake Westbrook

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5:22pm: Westbrook will earn $8.75MM in 2013, while the 2014 mutual option is for $9.5MM with a $1MM buyout, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter link).

4:04pm: The Cardinals announced that they have agreed to a contract extension with Jake Westbrook that will keep the right-hander off of the free agent market for at least one more year (Twitter link). The deal covers the 2013 season and adds a mutual option for 2014.

Jake Westbrook - Cardinals (PW)

Westbrook's previous contract, a two-year, $16.5MM agreement signed following the 2010 season, included a $8.5MM mutual option for 2013. Shapiro, Robinson, & Associates represent Westbrook, who turns 35 next month.

Westbrook has started 24 games this year, posting a 3.50 ERA in 154 1/3 innings. His ground ball rate is characteristically high (59.2%) and his strikeout (5.5 K/9) and walk (2.4 BB/9) rates are right around his career averages. His average fastball checks in at 90.7 mph this year and he's generating slightly more swings and misses than usual (7.8%). The Cardinals acquired Westbrook two years ago in the three-team trade that sent Ryan Ludwick to the Padres. 

Westbrook projects to join Adam Wainwright, Lance Lynn, Jaime Garcia and, the Cardinals hope, Chris Carpenter in St. Louis' rotation next year. Kyle Lohse is on track to hit free agency this coming offseason.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

A’s Designate Graham Godfrey For Assignment

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The Athletics have designated pitcher Graham Godfrey for assignment, the club announced. The move was made to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for infielder Stephen Drew, who was acquired Monday from the Diamondbacks.

After a cup of coffee with Oakland last season, Godfrey, 28, appeared in five games (four starts) this year for the A's, posting a 6.43 ERA in 21 innings pitched. The right-hander was a 34th-round selection by the Blue Jays in 2006, and was traded to the Athletics in the deal that sent Marco Scutaro to Toronto after the 2007 season.

Quick Hits: Clemens, Giants, White Sox

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MLBTR extends its best wishes to Michael Weiner, who is undergoing treatment for a brain tumor. The executive director of the Players Association expects the treatment to last about one month, according to an MLBPA press release. Here are today's links…

  • Roger Clemens told reporters he’s “nowhere near” the shape he’d have to be in to pitch at the MLB level, Alyson Footer of MLB.com reports (Twitter link). The seven-time Cy Young Award winner signed a contract with the independent Sugar Land Skeeters and will pitch on Saturday. One rival executive speculated that the Astros could be a fit for Clemens, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). The exec pointed out that Clemens has a good relationship with Astros owner Jim Crane.
  • It’s unlikely but not impossible that the Giants will trade for Heath Bell this season, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (on Twitter). Bell would have to be placed on waivers for the Giants and Marlins to complete a trade. Approximately $19MM remains on Bell's contract, so it seems likely that he'd clear waivers.
  • GM Kenny Williams built the AL Central-leading White Sox, but he doesn't expect to be named MLB's executive of the year, Toni Ginnetti the Chicago Sun-Times reports. "If you don't win it when you win a World Series, you ain't going to win it,'' Williams said.

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