• Scout.com's Kiley McDaniel reports that Jerry Sands has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Durham by the Rays (Twitter link). The 26-year-old Sands was designated for assignment earlier in the week when the club claimed Pedro Figueroa.
• The Brewers and lefty Brad Mills have agreed to a minor league contract, according to MLB Daily Dish's Chris Cotillo (on Twitter). Mills, 29 in March, posted a 3.87 ERA with 6.7 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 97 2/3 innings for Triple-A Round Rock in the Rangers' organization in 2013. He requested his release midseason to sign with Nippon Professional Baseball's Orix Buffaloes. Mills has a 7.76 ERA in 53 1/3 career big league innings.
• Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post reports that the Nationals have signed Mike Fontenot to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training (Twitter link). Last year marked the first season since 2006 in which Fontenot didn't appear at the Major League level. He spent the duration of the campaign with the Rays' Triple-A affiliate, batting .264/.335/.379 in 120 games.
• The White Sox have signed infielder/outfielder Eric Patterson to a minor league contract, tweets Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune. The 30-year-old began last season with the Atlantic League's York Revolution, batting .275/.342/.527 with 13 homers in 294 plate appearances. That production led to him getting picked up by the Brewers, but he slashed just .204/.291/.235 in 111 plate appearances at Double-A Huntsville. Patterson has not appeared in the Majors since 2011.

• The Brewers have signed utilityman Eric Patterson to a minor league deal and plan to assign him to the club's Double-A affiliate, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The 30-year-old Patterson is not only the younger brother of long-time big leaguer Corey Patterson — who was recently released from his own minor league deal – but has seen MLB action in parts of five seasons (2007-11). Over 575 career plate appearances spread across 226 games with the Cubs, A's, Red Sox, and Padres, Patterson has managed a cumulative .217/.294/.343 line to go with ten home runs and 35 stolen bases.
• Four players currently reside in DFA limbo: Pedro Ciriaco of the Padres, Jair Jurrjens of the Orioles, Travis Ishikawa of the Yankees, and Cole Gillespie of the Giants.

• The Tigers released utility player Eric Patterson, Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus tweets. Patterson, 29, posted a .244/.365/.317 line in 267 plate appearances at Triple-A before getting released. He has experience with the A's, Cubs, Red Sox and Padres in five MLB seasons.
• The Rockies signed free agent right-hander Jason Bergmann, according to the team's website. Bergmann, 30, had been pitching for the Camden Riversharks of the independent Atlantic League before signing with the Rockies, who are in need of pitching depth. He has a career ERA of 5.04 with 6.9 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 in six seasons with the Nationals, most recently in 2010.

• The Pirates announced that they signed right-hander Logan Kensing to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to Spring Training.  The 29-year-old spent the 2011 campaign with the Yankees' top affiliate after recovering from elbow surgery in 2010.
• The Reds signed catchers Brian Esposito and Brian Peacock to minor league deals, tweets Matt Eddy of Baseball America.
• The Tigers signed utility player Eric Patterson to a minor league deal, tweets Eddy.
• The Mets signed right-hander Jeff Stevens and utility player Corey Wimberly to minor league deals, tweets Eddy.
• The A's signed right-handers Travis Schlichting and Merkin Valdez and left-hander Fabio Castro to minor league deals, Eddy tweets.
• The Yankees signed right-hander Adam Miller and outfielders Cole Garner and Dewayne Wise to minor league deals, Eddy tweets.
• The Diamondbacks signed first baseman Mike Jacobs to a minor league deal, tweets Eddy.  Before playing, Jacobs still must serve a 50-game suspension for positive a HGH test in August.  He was cut by the Rockies following the test.
• The Marlins picked up right-handers Chad Gaudin and Rob Delaney on minor league deals, Eddy tweets.  In nine big league seasons, Gaudin has a 4.63 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9.  Delaney spent most of 2011 with the Rays' Triple-A affiliate, posting a 1.86 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.
• The Dodgers signed third baseman Josh Fields, according to Goldstein (via Twitter).
• The Cubs signed Joe Mather as Triple-A outfield insurance, according to Goldstein (via Twitter).  Mather spent 36 games on the Braves' major league roster in 2011.
• The Nationals have signed right-hander Dan Cortes, according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus (via Twitter).
• Speaking of the Braves, Atlanta released former Rangers draftee Marcus Lemon, Goldstein tweets.  Lemon was acquired in a March trade for a PTBNL.
• P.J. Phillips, the younger brother of Brandon Phillips, agreed to a deal with the Reds, tweets Goldstein.  The younger Phillips' career never got going due to plate discipline issues.
• The Blue Jays signed former Angels/Braves relief prospect Stephen Marek, Goldstein tweets.  The right-hander was outrighted by Atlanta in November and underwent Tommy John surgery in May.
• The White Sox signed 2000 first-round pick Corey Smith, Goldstein tweets.  The 29-year-old has never reached the Majors.

• The Padres announced that both Aaron Poreda and Eric Patterson have cleared waivers and accepted their assignments to Triple-A, reports MLB.com's Corey Brock (on Twitter). Patterson was designated for assignment last week, Poreda earlier this week.
• The Twins outrighted second baseman/corner outfielder Brian Dinkelman to open a 40-man spot for Joe Mauer, according to the team.  The move also cleared room on the active roster for Mauer.

Patterson, 28, was the player to be named later in the Adrian Gonzalez trade. He started the season on the disabled list, but returned in April and has hit just .180/.272/.292 in 103 plate appearances. Patterson played all over the field for San Diego, seeing time at all three outfield spots as well as at second base.

Patterson, 27, has played second base, left field and center field in his four-year major league career. Given the Padres' outfield depth and need for a second baseman, it seems likely that they've acquiRed Patterson for infield depth. In 204 plate appearances for the A's and Red Sox last year, Patterson hit .214/.272/.406 with 11 stolen bases in 12 attempts.

• The Yankees will soon add Dustin Moseley to their roster, probably at the expense of Chan Ho Park or Chad Gaudin, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News (via Twitter). Moseley's opt-out clause kicks in tomorrow.
• Reds GM Walt Jocketty told MLB.com's Mark Sheldon that he's looking at pitching, though the team has a limited number of 'bullets' to fire this summer.
• A veteran scout told Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse that Mark Prior was "just all right" in his workout today (Twitter link). Prior, who last pitched in the majors in 2006, is attempting a comeback.
• Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he would like the Nats to become “younger, better [and] more athletic” if they make trades this summer.
• Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times notes that the Phillies scouted last night's Yankees-Mariners game and wonders if the Phils are eyeing Jose Lopez, who could fill in for Chase Utley and Placido Polanco.
• The Nationals appear satisfied with hot-hitting Roger Bernadina in right field, but they did have interest in David DeJesus at one point, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson (via Twitter).
• Two executives told MLB.com’s Peter Gammons that there's no way the Twins will give up pitcher Kyle Gibson this summer. Like Cardinals prospect Shelby Miller, Gibson is a 2009 draft pick who signed late, so he would have to be dealt as a ‘player to be named later’ in any July trade.
• Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that the Padres had interest in Eric Patterson before the Red Sox acquired him over the weekend (Twitter link).

The Red Sox have called Castro up twice this year, but manager Terry Francona has yet to bring the 25-year-old into a game. In 17 Triple A appearances, he has a 6.65 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9. Castro last appeared in a major league game as a member of the 2007 Phillies.

• FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal tweets that the Red Sox's acquisition of Eric Patterson came together quickly; they had yet to inquire about him as recently as noon Eastern time today.
• Marlins' first base coach Dave Collins abruptly resigned today, reports Joe Capozzi of The Palm Beach Post. He wonders if the move may be related to an imminent Bobby Valentine hiring, but president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest said that was not the case (all Twitter links).
• Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com says (via Twitter) that Brandon League is the Mariners' second best trade chip behind Cliff Lee. The hard-throwing righty reliever is owed approximately $590K the rest of the season, and is under team control for two more years.
• With the Yankees facing off against the Dodgers, Tyler Kepner from the New York Times reminds us that Alex Rodriguez was almost a Dodger back in 1993. Fortunately for the Mariners, the first pick still alternated yearly between the AL and NL back then.
• In the comments of his blog, the Atlanta Journal Constitution's David O'Brien says that conversations with people across the Braves organization yesterday have him convinced more than ever that Fredi Gonzalez will be the Braves' next manager.
• Gordon Wittenmyer of The Chicago Sun-Times says the Cubs may have reached the "breaking point" with Carlos Zambrano, and says they're probably better off eating the $45MM left on his contract and trading him away.
• WEEI.com's Alex Speier says that Dustin Pedroia's foot injury is going to test Boston's less than stellar infield depth.
• Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer says that the Indians will probably be able to make smaller deals like they did last year with Rafael Betancourt (to the Rockies) and Ryan Garko (to the Giants).

The Red Sox just lost Dustin Pedroia for as much as six weeks with a fracture in his foot, and the 27-year-old Patterson has considerable experience playing second base. He's a career .224/.301/.340 hitter in 378 big league plate appearances, and is capable of playing all three outfield positions in addition to the keystone spot. 

Boston originally acquired Williamson from the Mariners for David Aardsma last January. The 21-year-old has a 3.72 ERA with a 5.5 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 this season, playing for the team's High-A affiliate. 

Patterson joined the A's in 2008, coming from Chicago as a part of the Rich Harden trade.  Patterson had a slash line of .221/.299/.339 in 325 plate appearances with the team over the last three seasons.  With a .641 lifetime OPS and a below-average UZR/150, it's hard to see another club making a move for Patterson unless they need a pinch-runner — Patterson is 22-for-24 in career stolen base attempts.

• Angels: They moved three pretty good young players to get Scott Kazmir last season, so they might prefer to hold onto the rest of their top prospects. Their best chip is someone you may not have heard of, out of options catcher Bobby Wilson. He's on the 25-man roster but has barely played as the third stringer, yet how many teams would love to have a 27-year old catcher with a very good defensive rep, a .290/.345/.425 batting line in 820 Triple-A plate appearances, and six years of team control left? Pretty much all of them. He'll never clear waivers if the Halos try to send him back to the minors.
• Athletics: Oakland has plenty of young pitching, but Billy Beane likes to hang on to those kind of guys, and for good reason. With ten infielders on the 40-man roster, someone like Jake Fox or Eric Patterson could be moved, as could outfielders Travis Buck or Gabe Gross since Michael Taylor is coming fast. Plus there's always Ben Sheets.
• Mariners: Jack Zduriencik surrendered a good amount of prospect depth this offseason by acquiring Cliff Lee, but no one will argue with that move. Dustin Ackley, the second overall pick in 2009, will make Jose Lopez expendable in short order, and they could choose to make one of two minor league outfielders – Michael Saunders or Greg Halman – available. Seattle's best trade chip might be their potential ability to absorb some money.
• Rangers: Texas is absolutely loaded with young players, so they have plenty of pieces to offer. They can move Chris Davis because Justin Smoak is knocking on the door, or they could move Derek Holland because Martin Perez isn't too far away. They dangled Max Ramirez this winter, and outfielder David Murphy is about to get expensive through arbitration, so he could find himself on the block. Bottom line: the Rangers have the pieces to go out and get anything they need or want.

• NL offense rankings are up at RotoAuthority, courtesy of CHONE projections and the Baseball Musings lineup analysis tool.  The Rockies are on top and the Padres bring up the rear, but plenty will change as the season unfolds.
• Two closers were named in recent days, and our Twitter account @CloserNews passed along the info instantly to allow you to make the winning fantasy pickups.
• The Rangers are attempting to work out a trade with the Giants that will allow them to retain Rule 5 lefty Ben Snyder, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.  Snyder already cleared waivers, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Sullivan also notes that Matt Treanor chose not to exercise his out clause; he's headed to Triple A.
• WEEI's Rob Bradford writes that although the Rangers are scouting Mike Lowell today and they're more interested in him than any other club, a deal is unlikely now and the Rangers would want the Red Sox to pay almost all of his salary.  Bradford also notes that earlier this offseason, the Rangers expressed interest in Jed Lowrie.
• Free agent Kevin Millar hopes to continue his playing career, he explained on ESPN's Waddle & Silvy show.
• Diamondbacks second baseman Kelly Johnson strongly considered offers from the Blue Jays, Pirates, and Indians, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
• The A's feel that out of options players Eric Patterson and Jake Fox would not clear waivers, so they're likely to send Landon Powell and Adam Rosales down (Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reporting).
• Baseball America's Matt Eddy offers analysis and predictions for seven out of options pitchers.
• The Orioles are looking for a suitor for catcher Chad Moeller, who is "shocked and disappointed" about not making the team according to Dan Connolly and Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltmore Sun.  Peter Schmuck feels that Moeller was a better choice than Craig Tatum.
• Jeff Suppan explained to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy that he's not dealing with a phantom neck injury, despite the convenient timing. 
• Though they could've saved $750K, the Nationals chose not to cut Scott Olsen according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
• Dave Cameron of FanGraphs knows the Mariners, and he analyzes the organization's health in this article.

• The Brewers completed a deal for C.C. Sabathia, sending Matt LaPorta and other prospects to Cleveland in return. Sabathia’s looked great so far, and LaPorta’s already making an impact in the Indians minor league system. Looks good for both teams right now if you ask this guy.
• The Cubs answered their division rival quickly, landing Oakland ace Rich Harden along with Chad Gaudin in exchange for Matt Murton, Sean Gallagher, Eric Patterson, and Josh Donaldson. Harden was brilliant in his debut. I think this could be another win-win trade, if Harden stays healthy.
• It was once again made clear that no one has interest in Barry Bonds, even at this juncture of the season. Seems like we’ve heard this once or twice before…
• It was a long time coming: The Mariners released Richie Sexson. Could the Yankees be interested?
• With likely season-ending injuries to both Eric Byrnes and Moises Alou (possibly career-ending in Alou’s case), both the D’Backs and Mets are in the market for corner outfielders. Raul Ibanez should be appealing to both clubs, though the Mariners may not be interested in trading him, Jim Riggleman says. Carlos Beltran voiced his support of acquiring Ibanez. I personally don’t see why Seattle wouldn’t pull the trigger, but I’m not a Major League GM, I suppose.
• Tim updated both the first base and catcher markets in the Trade Market Series.
• The Twins had internal discussions on Adrian Beltre. A third base upgrade would certainly be nice, but they’re not known for making big moves at the deadline. Could Bill Smith change that reputation in his first year as GM?