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Wily Mo Pena

Mariners Sign Wily Mo Pena

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The Mariners have signed Wily Mo Pena to a minor league deal, the team announced in a press release. WEEI.com's Alex Speier reports (on Twitter) that the deal includes a September opt-out if he is not called to the majors. He will join their Triple-A affiliate in a few days.

Pena, 29, had been released by the Diamondbacks earlier this week. He hit five rather majestic homeruns in 46 plate appearances for Arizona, but he also struck out 19 times and walked not once. Pena hit .363/.439/.726 with 21 homers in 271 plate appearances for their Triple-A squad before being called up for interleague play. 

AL West Notes: Fister, Rangers, Pena

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On this date last year, the Angels acquired Dan Haren from Arizona for Patrick Corbin, Tyler Skaggs, Rafael Rodriguez and Joe Saunders. The Angels finished with a losing record in 2010, but they're in contention now and Haren has been excellent, posting a 3.01 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 239 innings for the Halos. Meawhile, Skaggs has developed into one of the top prospects in the game and Corbin is highly-regarded as well. Here's the latest from the AL West… 

  • Mariners starters Felix Hernandez and Doug Fister told Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com that they don't want to be traded.
  • Rangers manager Ron Washington confirmed to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com that he'd like to see the Rangers fortify their bullpen before the trade deadline.
  • The Mariners appear to believe Fister is better than Jason Vargas, so they may not want to deal Fister, according to Knobler (on Twitter). 
  • Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine told Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio that Texas continues discussing a contract extension for left-hander C.J. Wilson (Twitter links). Wilson, who hits free agency after the season, received a contract offer from the Rangers in March.
  • Levine also confirmed that the Rangers are looking for bullpen help and a left fielder. 
  • The Mariners, A's, Brewers and Giants have looked at free agent slugger Wily Mo Pena, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The Diamondbacks recently released Pena, who hit five homers in 46 plate appearances this year.

Diamondbacks Release Wily Mo Pena

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The Diamondbacks have released Wily Mo Pena, according to the team's official Twitter feed. The club designated the 29-year-old for assignment ten days ago.

Pena's all-or-nothing approach at the plate resulted in no walks, 19 strikeouts, and five homers in his 46 plate appearances for the D'Backs this season. Pena, who is now free to sign with any club, drew interest from the Tigers, White Sox, Orioles, and Astros this past winter before he agreed to a minor league deal with Arizona.

D’Backs Designate Wily Mo Pena For Assignment

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The Diamondbacks have designated Wily Mo Pena for assignment, reports Jack Magruder of FOX Sports Arizona (Twitter link).  In corresponding moves, the D'Backs also optioned Juan Miranda to Triple-A and called up Brandon Allen and Geoff Blum.

Arizona signed the slugger to a $675K minor league deal in December and called him up last month to serve as a DH during interleague play.  Pena hit .196/.196/.522 in 46 plate appearances with the Snakes and hit five homers, two of which were game-winners.  Before this year, Pena's last appearance in the Major Leagues came in 2008 with the Nationals.

D’Backs To Sign Wily Mo Pena

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The Diamondbacks will sign Wily Mo Pena to a minor league deal with an invitation to major league Spring Training, MLBTR has learned. The outfielder drew interest from multiple major league teams, including the Tigers, White Sox and Orioles. He also drew interest from clubs in Japan before signing in Arizona, where he expects to compete for the starting left field job.

Pena's deal is worth $675K, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com, who notes that the Astros also had interest.

The slugger hit 26 home runs and posted an .843 OPS as a 22-year-old on the 2004 Reds. He followed that up with 19 homers in 2005, but his impressive power hasn’t translated into big league homers since. He did post a .324/.390/.556 line with nine home runs in 159 plate appearances in the Padres minor league system this year, so the 28-year-old still has a potent bat.

Five Teams Interested In Wily Mo Pena

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It's been awhile since he's seen time in the big leagues, but after a strong finish to 2010 with San Diego's Triple-A affiliate in Portland, five teams have expressed interest in Wily Mo Pena, MLBTR has learned.

Pena, 29 in January, was once a top prospect with the Yankees and the Reds. In 2004, the right-handed slugger belted 24 home runs as a 22-year-old and notched an impressive .843 OPS. Injuries limited his playing time in 2005, but he still hit 19 homers in just 335 plate appearances.

In 2006, he was traded to Boston for Bronson Arroyo, where he hit .301/.349/.489 over 304 plate appearances. Wrist surgery and other injuries limited Pena's playing time again that year, and he started off slowly the following year in 2007. He was then traded to Washington for a player to be named later.

Pena's time with the Nats got off to a great start, as he hit .293/.352/.504 with eight home runs over 145 plate appearances to close out the 2007 season. He started off terribly in 2008, however, hitting just .205/.243/.267, and hasn't appeared in the Majors since.

Power is always a hot commodity, and Pena's most recent stint in the minors saw the thunder that once made him a coveted prospect return. He raked to the tune of a .324/.390/.556 line with nine home runs in 159 plate appearances and has caught the attention of teams in both leagues. Pena also saw time at first base in 2010, which could appeal to potential suitors.

Injuries and inconsistency have always plagued the slugger, but Pena's power provides a great deal of upside with minimal risk.

Padres To Sign Wily Mo Pena

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The Padres will sign Wily Mo Pena to a minor league deal and assign the former big leaguer to Triple A Portland, according to Mario Rojas of Candela Deportiva. The team has not confirmed the agreement, but Dan Hayes of the North County Times has (via Twitter). 

Pena, 28, has been playing for the Bridgeport Bluefish of the Atlantic League since late May and was in tonight's starting lineup, according to a Bluefish public relations official. Nothing is official now, but the Padres appear to be moving towards a deal with Pena.

In parts of seven major league seasons, Pena has a .253/.307/.447 line. He hasn't played in the majors since 2008, but he did hit 26 homers on the 2004 Reds. Padres outfielders have combined to hit 26 homers (one more than Jose Bautista) in 1007 at bats this season, so they may hope Pena can return to the majors and add pop to an unintimidating lineup.

Cafardo On Hart, Farnsworth, Dunn, Guillen

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The Red Sox' ability to plug holes in their roster following a slew of injuries can be attributed in large part to Allard Baird, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. After discussing Baird's importance to the Sox and listing his All-Star picks, Cafardo shares a few hot stove items….

  • The Giants are "very interested" in Corey Hart, but with Milwaukee not entirely out of the NL Central race, the Brewers haven't yet elected to become sellers.
  • Although it's unclear whether or not Boston would have any interest in Kyle Farnsworth, Cafardo thinks he could be an option for the Sox. Farnsworth's strikeout rate is down to 6.8 K/9 this season, but a National League scout opines that the right-hander's stuff is as strong as ever.
  • Cafardo speculates that the White Sox would part with a promising prospect or two in exchange for Adam Dunn, and suggests that the Braves, Giants, and Rays could be fits for Jose Guillen.
  • After being told by a couple potential suitors that they needed to see him play, Wily Mo Pena is attempting to earn another shot at the bigs by playing in the Atlantic League.
  • A friend of D'Backs interim general manager Jerry DiPoto tells Cafardo that he thinks DiPoto may not have total freedom to make moves this month: "I get the feeling the major shots will be called above Jerry. If Jerry gets a chance, he’ll do some interesting things, but we’ll see whether he’ll have some reins on him."

Bridgeport Bluefish Sign Wily Mo Pena

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The Atlantic League's Bridgeport Bluefish signed outfielder Wily Mo Pena on Saturday, according to the team.  Pena, 28, had been released by the Mets about a year ago after posting a .276/.296/.414 line in 152 Triple A plate appearances.  Pena's new team features plenty of familiar names, such as Brian Barton, Denny Stark, Jorge Julio, Antonio Alfonseca, Tike Redman, Adam Greenberg, and Esteban Yan.

Pena was once very highly regarded as a power hitter.  He has three appearances on a Baseball America Top 100 Prospects list, once for the Yankees and twice for the Reds.  He was still an interesting player upon being dealt to the Red Sox for Bronson Arroyo in '06 and to the Nationals the following year.  Shoulder surgery and a $2MM salary led to Pena's release by the Nats in March of '09.

Free Agent Update

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June isn't typically a big month for free agency, but few teams seem willing to make their players available, so we could see clubs turn to the free agent market to add depth for the stretch run. Here are updates on a few of the players who could help contending teams the most:

  • Pedro Martinez – We heard all about Pedro last week and now we have a list of teams that won't sign him. The Angels, Dodgers and Yankees aren't interested, the Nats and Brewers didn't see him throw, the Rangers think he's too pricey and the Rays only have interest in him as a starter. Could the Cubs or Cardinals offer him a deal? 
  • Ben Sheets – He's not far enough along to be talking contract, but the Rangers have maintained contact with him. The Dodgers, Tigers, Angels and, ironically, the Brewers are among the teams that could use another starter.
  • Paul Byrd – There's been little reported interest in Byrd, but he says he's ready to go and waiting for calls. Last year he averaged six innings for 30 starts and kept his walk rate under two per nine, so he could be a solid pickup. 
  • Wily Mo Pena – Not the difference maker teams dream about adding, but he has pop and is still just 27. We haven't heard anything since the Mets released him the other day.
  • Javier Valentin – Valentin, who was released along with Pena, played respectably in a part time role as a catcher in Cincinnati for the past five seasons, posting a .755 OPS in over 400 games.
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