Rumors for April, 2010
Blue Jays claim 3B Shawn Bowman from Mets
Posted by: | CommentsAccording to the official Blue Jays Twitter, Toronto has claimed 25-year-old Canadian third baseman Shawn Bowman on waivers from the New York Mets. Bowman will go to Triple-A Las Vegas.
Bowman was designeated for assignment by the Mets on April 8. The team was hoping to trade the third baseman, but no deal took place.
Bowman, 25, played 91 games in AA-ball last season and had a .294 batting average and .804 OPS with 9 home runs and 44 RBIs, according to the Metslocker.com. Bowman is a former 12th round draft pick of the Mets and was on the 2009 Canadian World Baseball Classic roster.
Information from the Wikipedia was used in this article.
Aaron Miles released and Wladimir Balentien outrighted to Triple-A
Posted by: | CommentsJohn Fayman of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets that Aaron Miles and Wladimir Balentien of the Reds have cleared waivers. Miles was eventually released and Balentien was outrighted to Triple-A Louisville.
Miles, 33, is a lifetime .282 hitter in 7 seasons with the Cubs, Rockies and Cardinals. You can see Miles’ contract history and statistics here.
Balentien, 25, split time with the Mariners and Reds in 2009. He is a career .221/.281/.374 hitter in 3 seasons between the two clubs. You can see Belentien’s contract history and statistics here.
Phillies Rumors: Rollins to DL
Posted by: | CommentsJimmy Rollins is headed to the DL with what Charlie Manuel described as “between a 2 and 1 degree calf, kinda, tear.” He added, “And he’s gonna miss some time. Actually, when I go to the ballpark – I’m on my way there right now – we will go over what we’re gonna do with him today. I mean, he’s definitely going to be out some time. How much, I don’t know yet, but he’s hurt pretty bad.”
While early reports put his return at two to four weeks, Manuel’s estimation doesn’t sound all too good for the Phillies’ shortstop, who had begun the year at a .391 clip with 8 runs scored, one home run, and 3 RBI. You can see his complete stats here.
PRO Rumors: John Maine, Carlos Beltran, Orlando Hudson, Jermaine Dye
Posted by: | CommentsHere are your mid-week PRO Rumors:
- Andy Martino of the New York Daily News says that the rotation spot of John Maine of the New York Mets may be in jeopardy. Maine gave up 8 earned runs and 7 hits in 3 innings of work, raising his ERA to 13.50 in 2 starts. Manager Jerry Manuel said that Maine’s position in the rotation will be something that the team will talk about.
- Carlos Beltran of the New York Mets had hoped to return to baseball activities over the weekend, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post, but he is still awaiting medical clearance.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports disagrees with Twins second baseman Orlando Hudson’s suggestion that racism plays a role in the free-agent market. Hudson earlier on Tuesday questioned why free-agent Jermaine Dye is unemployed to Yahoo Sports Jeff Passan. Hudson continued saying, “We both know what it is. You’ll get it right. You’ll figure it out. I’m not gonna say it because then I’ll be in [trouble].”
Bengie Molina Retirement Rumors: Would retire before becoming backup
Posted by: | CommentsSan Francisco Giant’s catcher Bengie Molina was hitting .421 before Monday’s game, and then he hit 4-for-4 with four RBIs, but according to Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury he takes no pleasure in his personal statistics. Molina is still bitter that there was only mild interest in his free agent services over the off season.
“If I had trouble finding a job after five of my best years, what am I supposed to expect?” Molina said. “You are supposed to get paid for your numbers. But even if I have another good year, I know I cannot expect anything.”
Molina is on a one-year contract, and he knows he won’t be back with the Giants since the team has all but given the job to prospect Buster Posey.
Molina said that he would retire before he would become a second stringer to Posey or any one else. He would not take a job backing up his brother, Yadier Molina, in St. Louis. “It would eat away at me.”
The 35-year-old catcher is a career .276 hitter in 13 seasons with the Angels, Blue Jays and Giants. You can see Molina’s contract history and statistics here.
Carlos Delgado Rumors: Wants to play this season
Posted by: | Comments4/13 20:12: According to Mike Puma of the New York Post, when Delgado was asked point blank if he sat out the entire 2010 season if he thought he would be able to play in 2011, Delgado refused to speculate. He also added, “Let’s start by walking first and see where we are.”
One would have to think that if Delgado does not play in 2010, his baseball days are probably over.
4/13 16:13:Anthony DiComo of MLB.com tweets, “Carlos Delgado says he never got an offer from the Mets before his second surgery. He still wants to play this year, pending rehab.”
It was speculated this off season that Delgado may wait until after the season to sign with a team. Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com said in February that Delgado will wait for the right situation, even if it means waiting until midseason to join a team. The Mariners, Blue Jays, Rays and Mets were rumored to be interested in Delgado this Winter.
Delgado underwent hip surgery back in February and may not return until June at the earliest.
Delgado played in 26 games for the Mets in 2009 before going down to a hip injury that required surgery. You can see Delgado’s contract history and statistics here.
Here’s a mixture of some fun, interesting and informative PRO Rumors:
- Ken Griffey Jr. has quit drinking soft drinks according to Larry Larue of The News Tribune. He used to drink 10-12 a day, but then Chone Figgins challenged him to give it up eight days ago.
- Former Braves star David Justice gave Jason Heyward his phone number and told him to not hesitate to use it. “He’s a left-handed hitter like I was, and I will be able to understand everything that he’ll go through. And I know that I will be able to help him from the shoulders up. Without a doubt. It’s whether or not he wants it, so I’ll just leave it up to him.” (David O’Brien, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
- Kris Benson could be the Diamondback’s fifth starter. He pitched Monday and allowed two unearned runs on four hits over five innings in the Minor Leagues. However, he does not have a spot on Arizona’s 40-man roster so the team will need to make a personnel move if they were to call him up. (Steve Gilbert, MLB.com)
- Philadelphia Phillies’ Jimmy Rollins could be headed to the disabled list with a strained right calf muscle. Rollins is scheduled to undergo an MRI on the calf today. He injured it doing warm up sprints prior to Monday’s game. (David Murphy, Philadelphia Daily News)
- Injured pitcher Kerry Wood could face hitters in a simulated game or a Minor League rehab assignment as early as this weekend. The pitcher threw a bullpen session before Monday’s game. (Paul Hoynes, The Plain Dealer)
- Cardinals’ catcher Jason LaRue could be headed to the disabled list as early as Wednesday unless he experiences “significant” improvement in his strained hamstring, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. LaRue strained his right hamstring running on a ground out in Sunday’s game versus the Milwaukee Brewers.
Bryce Harper Rumors: Nats to take Harper with first pick
Posted by: | Comments4/13 13:45: Nationals Director of Amateur Scouting Kris Kline told The Washington Post, “I don’t think that’s etched in stone,” when questioned about the National’s first pick. Kline added, “we’re going to keep scouting guys until the end of the draft.”
“We’ve spent a lot of time with Bryce,” Kline said. “We have a good feel for what he is and what he’s capable of being. But there’s other guys we like, too.”
4/13 11:39: According to Ben Goessling of MASNSports, barring an injury or a drastic change, the Washington Nationals plan to draft 17-year-old Bryce Harper with the first pick in this June’s amateur draft.
Harper is currently playing at the College of Southern Nevada, a junior college, and is batting .422 with a .516 on-base percentage, .891 slugging percentage, 15 home runs and 42 RBIs in 39 games.
The Nationals believe that Harper has the same talent has Braves’ slugger Jayson Heyward.
Harper has super agent Scott Boras advising him, so it will not be a surprise if he get a larger contract than last year’s number one pick, Steven Strasburg. Strasburg, another Boras client, signed a four-year, $15.1 million deal with the Nationals. However, according to the article, Boras does not consider Harper to be in the same class as Strasburg.
Josh Willingham Rumors: Wants to sign multi-year deal with Nationals
Posted by: | CommentsAdam Kilgore of the Washington Press tweets, “Matt Sosnick, (Josh) Willingham’s agent: “His hope is that this year, next year, whenever, he wants to stay. He wants to sign a multi-year deal.”
The right-handed outfielder avoided arbitration this winter by signing a one-year, $4.6 million contract and is under team control through 2011.
Willingham, 31, played 133 games with the Nationals in 2009. He hit .260, .367, .496 while hitting 24 home runs and driving in 61 RBIs last season. The outfielder is off to a hot start this year. He’s hitting .375 (5-for-16). You can Willingham’s contract history and statistics here.
