Baseball Rumor News

Jonathan Mayo now has his predictions for the upcoming draft for picks 1-30. Some have changed, but for those of you that haven’t been keeping up with the predictions here is a list:

1. Tampa Bay Rays: Tim Beckham, SS, Griffin HS, Griffin, Ga.
2. Pittsburgh Pirates: Pedro Alvarez, 3B, Vanderbilt
3. Kansas City Royals: Eric Hosmer, 1B, American Heritage HS, Plantation, Fla.
4. Baltimore Orioles: Aaron Crow, RHP, University of Missouri
5. San Francisco Giants: Buster Posey, C, Florida State
6. Florida Marlins: Brian Matusz, LHP, University of San Diego
7. Cincinnati Reds: Yonder Alonso, 1B, University of Miami
8. Chicago White Sox: Gordon Beckham, SS, University of Georgia
9. Washington Nationals: Kyle Skipworth, C, Patriot HS, Riverside, Calif.
10. Houston Astros: Justin Smoak, 1B, University of South Carolina
11. Texas Rangers: Andrew Cashner, RHP, Texas Christian
12. Oakland A’s: Aaron Hicks, OF/RHP, Woodrow Wilson HS, Long Beach, Calif.
13. St. Louis Cardinals: Ryan Perry, RHP, University of Arizona
14. Minnesota Twins: Christian Friedrich, LHP, Eastern Kentucky
15. Los Angeles Dodgers: Zach Collier, OF, Chino Hills HS, Calif.
16. Milwaukee Brewers: Brett Lawrie, C/3B, Brookswood SS, Langley, B.C.
17. Toronto Blue Jays: Brett Wallace, 1B/3B, Arizona State
18. New York Mets: Ike Davis, OF, Arizona State
19. Chicago Cubs: Casey Kelly, SS, Sarasota HS, Fla.
20. Seattle Mariners: Shooter Hunt, RHP, Tulane
21. Detroit Tigers: Ethan Martin, RHP, Stephens County HS, Toccoa, Ga.
22. New York Mets: Jason Castro, C, Stanford
23. San Diego Padres: Daniel Schlereth, LHP, University of Arizona
24. Philadelphia Phillies: Anthony Hewitt, SS, Salisbury School, Conn
25. Colorado Rockies: Jake Odorizzi, RHP, Highland HS, Ill.
26. Arizona Diamondbacks: Josh Fields, RHP, University of Georgia
27. Minnesota Twins: Brett DeVall, LHP, Niceville HS, Fla.
28. New York Yankees: Brett Hunter, RHP, Pepperdine University
29. Cleveland Indians: Jemile Weeks, 2B, University of Miami
30. Boston Red Sox: Lance Lynn, RHP, University of Mississippi

Those are the predictions, but we’ll find out for sure in two days.

- According to The L.A. Times, there is no deal in the works that would send Chone Figgins to the White Sox. Angels GM Tony Reagins said that he hasn’t even spoken to White Sox GM Kenny Williams.

- Cha Seung Baek has been DFA’d by the Mariners. Baek was also DFA’d last season by Seattle, but he cleared through waivers and was sent to Triple-A. There are so many teams that are desperate for starters this year, that he probably won’t clear waivers again.

- MLB.com reports that the Indians have claimed a relief pitcher off waivers from the White Sox. Oneli Perez will be added to their 40-man roster, where they have an opening due to Jason Tyner being DFA’d.

- The Dallas Morning News reports that the Rangers have DFA’d Franklyn German. He had a high rate of allowing inherited runners to score, so Washington, the Rangers manager, had no confidence in the 28 year old reliever.

According to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times, the White Sox may be looking at the Angels Chone Figgins to possibly fix a couple problems on the team. In particular, the White Sox want a legitimate lead off hitter and would probably use him at 2B. This is not the first time that the Angels super utility man has been talked about in trade rumors. This offseason, his name came up several times, and was even connected to the White Sox.

Most likely, the Sox have been after Figgins for a while. At this point in the season however, Cowley points out that it may be hard to get any significant deals done. When it comes to Figgins, I disagree. The Angels have done fine this season with Figgins on the DL. They have the infield depth to make him expendable. If the White Sox offer someone up that the Angels feel can strengthen their team even more, I don’t see them being to attached to Figgins.

”That’s an interesting name, and a name that I, yeah … not sure what that means, but White Sox GM said it in reference to Chone Figgins.

Just like the NL picks, consider these standouts through about 5/10/08, not just April.

- Derrick Turnbow cleared waivers today and will head to Triple-A. Looks like nobody was interested in touching that $3.2 million owed to him.

- The Padres claimed left-handed pitcher Sean Henn off waivers from the Yankees. The 27 year old was designated for assignment last week.

- The Rays designated Nathan Haynes for assignment. He was just an extra OF that they didn’t have room for. The Rays originally got Haynes off waivers from the Angels before the start of the season.

- The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports that Twins reliever Pat Neshek will miss the rest of the season. He came into relief against the White Sox yesterday but had to leave with what was thought to be a strain in his elbow. After further examination, it became apparent that he had suffered an acute partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. This is bad news for the AL Central leading Twins. Neshek is a huge part of their pen and is probably irreplaceable this season.

The Toronto Blue Jays have granted Frank Thomas his release. Thomas had lashed out at the organization recently due to reduced playing time. It was his opinion that his time was being scaled back so that he would not be eligible to receive a $10 million dollar option next season. Toronto did not agree with the way Thomas was handling the situation so they released him. Now, he is free to try and find another team where he can get the playing time he desires.

“Our best opportunity is to put other guys in the lineup at this point,” Ricciardi told a hastily assembled news conference afterwards. “Obviously, reduced playing time is not something that he was interested in. In order to let him go forward and get on with his career, I think it’s fair to do it at this point.”

“I’m angry, I know I can help this team. My career isn’t going to end like this.” (Thomas)

Any way you look at this situation, one thing is certain, and that is Frank Thomas is no longer a Blue Jay. Where will he go from here? There are a few possible directions that the future hall of famer can look into.

It is always possible that he could take this opportunity to end an illustrious career, but I doubt that is what’s going to happen. As long as he feels he can play, he will look for a team that gives him the at-bats he thinks he deserves. What teams might be interested? It must go without saying that he is limited to an AL team because he is a DH only at this point. While some people may draw comparisons to Barry Bonds’ situation, I believe that Thomas will have a much easier time finding a new team. He doesn’t carry the same baggage with him as Bonds, so teams won’t be as put off.

Where will he go though…
There are several teams that could use an upgrade at DH, but the most likely destinations in my opinion, are both located in the AL West. MLB.com has already reported that the Mariners are considering Frank Thomas, which I believe would be the best fit.

“I didn’t see him play this spring,” Bavasi said. “But tonight or tomorrow, I will talk to our scouts that did.” said Mariners GM Bill Bavasi.

Another destination in the West could possibly be the Angels, but I like the Mariners the best because Anaheim might want to save the DH position for Vlad when/if his legs can’t hold up to play the field.

- The Philladelphia Enquirer reports that the Phillies have claimed reliever Tim Lahey off waivers from the Cubs. Lahey was the first overall pick in the Rule 5 draft this year, so if he doesn’t get a spot on the Phillies roster he will be headed back to the Twins.

- The Indians have released Aaron Fultz. The reliever finished with a 2.92 ERA in 37 innings last season, so it would not surprise me for him to be picked up pretty quickly. The Indians were disappointed by his 2nd half last year and he followed it with a poor spring.

- The New Jersey Star-Register reports that the Mets have returned Steven Register to the Rockies. They had planned to trade for him and keep the Rule 5 pick in their farm system, but no deal could be reached.

- The Rays have claimed OF Nathan Haynes off waivers from the Angels. The Rays have been looking for more OF help and they may be satisfied with Haynes. This does not necessarily mean that they are done looking for more outfielders though.

- Ruben Gotay can stop crying now. He has been picked up by the Atlanta Braves. If he was going to miss the Mets so much, now he can see them in NL East competition. I think the Mets may regret cutting Gotay over some older guys on the team, at least he has upside.

AL East - Boston Red Sox. They are the defending WS champs and no other team in the division has made strong enough improvement to make me think that they could unseat the Sox. Even with Schilling going down, I think the young pitching should pick up the slack.

AL Central - Detroit Tigers. This is a team that was in the WS two years ago and even though they missed out last season, it is impossible to ignore the improvements they made in the offseason. Willis is not going to help much, but Cabrera added to the middle of that lineup is a huge upgrade. They also have the starting pitching to complement the offense, so they should be able to overcome the Indians.

AL West - Seattle Mariners. The acquisition of Erik Bedard will give the Mariners the best 1-2 punch of starting pitchers in the AL. King Felix is on the cusp of breaking out into absolute dominance. While the Angels have reigned atop the division for a while, they are due to be knocked off because of all the injuries to their starting pitchers. Lackey is out for at least a month and Escobar is out indefinitely. Without those two, the Angels will fall behind the Mariners.

AL Wildcard - Cleveland Indians. It is hard to think that the Yankees won’t even make the playoffs, but Cleveland will be at least as good as they were last year which should give them an edge over New York. I think Cleveland will make it very close in the Central and is probably the 2nd best team in the AL, after Detroit.

According to the L.A. Times, Kelvim Escobar’s ‘bump in the road’ to recovery is much more serious than it was originally thought to be.

“I’m concerned, I don’t know what’s going to happen, I don’t even know if I’ll be able to pitch again,” said Escobar “This could be the end of my career…They’re not sure if I’d be able to come back after surgery.”

That sounds scary for a team who could might be losing their No.2 guy indefinitely, and their No.1 starting pitcher is already out. Who is going to tow the rope? Jon Garland? He has never had the kind of stuff that you would call ace caliber. Weaver is there, but everyone else is young or a converted reliever. It sounds like it is time for the Angels to start looking outside of the organization immediately.

MLB.com had this quote from Angels management before this story came out in the L.A. Times.
We’re being tested,” Scioscia said. “But we’ll be fine.”

Scioscia and general manager Tony Reagins have given no indications they’re actively seeking arms from other clubs or free agency, maintaining that organizational pitching depth should carry them through until all hands are back on deck.

Well, it looks like it might be a little more storm than you guys can weather. My confidence in this team came from the starting pitching. With the seriousness of injuries to the top two pitchers on the club, I think that don’t have the strength to repeat as AL West champs again.

Alright, I know this story is from yesterday, but I am chalking it up to travel. I was on my way to AZ to check out some spring training and didn’t have time to write anything.

MLB.com is reporting that Angels ace John Lackey is going to miss at least a month with a strained right tricep. This will most likely have no trade or free agent impact as the Angels are fortunate enough to be one of the only teams that has the depth to handle a loss of a starter. Kelvim Escobar would step up to take the #1 spot, but because he is also recovering from injury, other pitchers will get shots at the back of the rotation. Dustin Moseley will probably make the move from reliever to the rotation, but also in the mix are right-handers Nick Adenhart, Nick Green and Kasey Olenberger.