Rumors for May, 2011
Royals trade Gregor Blanco to the Nationals
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According to DeportesTiburon (a radio show in Venezuela), center fielder Gregor Blanco has been traded to the Washington Nationals. Blanco was traded for a player to be named later according to the Nationals official Twitter account.
Blanco will report to the Nationals Triple-A team (Syracuse Chiefs) next Tuesday adds the source.
Back in April we learned that the Nationals were looking for help at center field, and although Blanco is not an offensive threat, he is a very good defender, with good range and arm.
In three Major League season, Blanco is a lifetime .258/.358/.324 with 2 HR’s and 53 RBI’s with the Atlanta Braves and the Kansas City Royals.
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Should the Padres consider trading relievers for offensive help?
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The San Diego Padres have a crowded bullpen, but also have a lacking offense. As Tim Sullivan of the San Diego Union-Tribune points out, they should “consider re-balancing their portfolio to reduce risk through diversification.”
What Sullivan means with this, is that the Padres should trade some of their relievers to get an offensive boost. They were shutout on Saturday night for the eight time in 33 games, so it doesn’t matter how many good late-inning pitchers you have, with an offense like that they won’t have too many leads to protect.
One of the pieces in the Padres’ bullpen that has been the target of many trade rumors is their closer Heath Bell. The right hander will be eligible for free agency at the end of the 2011 season.
Before Friday’s night blown save, Bell converted 41 straight saves. A closer with that kind of record for reliability should get the attention for teams with problems in that area like the Cardinals or the White Sox.
Even though Bell said earlier this year that he’d be willing to take a discount to stay with the Padres after the 2011 season, the team might not have enough money to keep him around.
In five seasons with the Padres, including 2011, Bell is 25-15 with a 2.50 ERA and 98 saves in 324.1 innings throughout 303 games.
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Red Sox make contact with Bengie Molina – no deal imminent
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According to sources close to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports, the Boston Red Sox have made contact with free agent catcher Bengie Molina, but they are not ready to make a move on him.
The Boston Red Sox are in need of catching help to replace the unreliable Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
Other candidates the team may be looking are are Ivan Rodriguez of the Washington Nationals, Jason Kendall of the Kansas City Royals, Jeff Mathis of the Los Angeles Angels or Ryan Doumit or Chris Snyder of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Molina has been on the fence about officially retiring all winter, but his brother, Jose Molina, was quoted in the Spring as saying that Bengie still has the desire to play.
Nick Cafardo on Rays, Fisk, Pudge and Jose Reyes
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Here’s the latest from The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo:
– There’s speculation that Tampa Bay Ray’s GM Andrew Friedman might leave for Houston where his father is heading a group of local investors seeking to buy the Astros. Executives in Tampa Bay are not given written contracts, so they can leave at any time.
– Carlton Fisk wants to work with catchers, but has not received a formal offer either the Boston Red Sox or Chicago White Sox.
– Los Angeles Angels catcher Jeff Mathis could be available.
– Washington Nationals catcher Ivan Rodriguez is still good defensively and appears to be a pretty good risk for a team that needs a veteran catcher.
– Giants general manager Brian Sabean said his interest in Jose Reyes is “total b.s.” Cafardo suggests that Marco Scutaro could be a cheaper alternative than Reyes.
– Tyler Flowers, a catcher with the Chicago White Sox, could be trade bait and has been scouted by several teams in Spring Training including the Boston Red Sox.
– Red Sox outfielder Josh Reddick has generated a lot of chatter among scouts this season. If the Sox made him available, they would have willing trade partners if he could lure a need such as catching.
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Justin Verlander throws second no-hitter of the season and his career
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This week has been the week of pitchers, as we saw Francisco Liriano throw a no-hitter against the White Sox. It was a unique no-no as his final line included six-walks. Never the less, it still goes down as a no-hitter.
On Saturday, most people turned their attention to Yovani Gallardo as he had a no-hitter going into the 8th against the Cardinals. He ended up losing the no-no to the first batter he faced in the 8th, but went on to finish the game allowing only the lone one base hit.
After Gallardo lost his no-hitter, Justin Verlander who was throwing a perfect game in the 8th against the Blue Jays demanded baseball’s attention. Verlander went to a full-count on Jonathan Arencibia (1 out already) and eventually walked him on a questionable ball-four call. Verlander was quick to put that behind him as he got Edwin Encarnacion to ground into an inning ending double-play.
In the end, Verlander lost his perfect game but was able to secure his second no-hitter of his career. Verlander faced the minimum number of batters (27) and completed his no-no with just 108 pitches (compared to Liriano at 123).
Verlander’s first no-hitter came against the Milwaukee Brewers in 2007, the season after he was named AL Rookie of the Year. That time Verlander overwhelmed the Brewers with his 100 mph fastball, striking out 12 and walking four.
When asked how it felt to throw his second no-hitter, Verlander responded, “Just as good as the first.”
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RHP Todd Wellemeyer retires
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According to Carrie Muskat of MLB.com, right handed pitcher Todd Wellemeyer has decided to retire. The Cubs agreed to a one-year $800,000 deal with the right hander back in January.
Wellemeyer was 3-5 with a 5.68 ERA in 58.2 innings throughout 13 games, 11 starts with the Giants in 2010. He was released by the team on August 17, 2010.
In eight seasons, Wellemeyer went 32-34 with a 4.83 ERA with 459 strikeouts in 614 innings.
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Boston Red Sox designate Scott Atchison for assignment
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The Boston Red Sox have designated Scott Atchison for assignment according to Maureen Mullen of CSNNE.com. Atchison was called up a couple of days ago and threw 3.2 innings against the Angels on Thursday.
Atchison though, will be unavailable to play for Pawtucket because of a little-known technical rule.
Despite the right hander still having options remaining, he can not immediately be optioned back to the Minors. Any player who made his Major League debut more than three years before and still has options remaining, he must first clear optional waivers before he can be optioned back to the minors.
Atchison made his debut July 31, 2004.
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Rosenthal on: Dodgers, White Sox and Royals
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Here is the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports via his Full Count video:
– Dodgers General Manager, Ned Colletti, is under team control until the 2012 season, but he has an out-clause after that. Rosenthal says that it is unlikely that MLB would say no if a team contacted the Dodgers sooner to interview him for a job. Also, Colletti’s future in the organization won’t be secure if a new ownership takes control.
– The White Sox are off to a horrible start, and there have been all kinds of rumors involving manager Ozzie Guillen, the coaching staff, as well as various players, but it’s too early to rule them out yet. If they keep sliding though, Rosenthal says that we should keep an eye on them as they make look to unload a number of players. Soon-to-be free agents Mark Buehrle and Edwin Jackson could be traded away, and also Carlos Quentin and John Danks could be traded also since they still are not eligible for free agency until after the 2012 season and could bring back a nice package.
– The Kansas City Royals are contenders right now, and if they keep it that way, they will have the financial flexibility to both sell and buy during the summer. The Royals traded Zack Greinke to the Brewers and with Gil Meche’s sudden retirement, they obtained that financial flexibility. Rosenthal also believes Wilson Betemit could be expendable, and that the Royals could end up trading one of their veteran outfielders Melky Cabrera or Jeff Francoeur.
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Peter Moylan likely to have surgery on his lower back
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Braves reliever Peter Moylan appears to be headed for surgery on his lower back according to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitutional. Moylan though is going to to see Dr. Robert Watkins in LA on Monday for a second opinion.
The right hander already had surgery on this area before says O’Brien, and although he’s waiting on one final opinion to decide, he’s resigned to the fact that he’ll be undergoing surgery.
Moylan is not prepared to put a timetable on his recovery just yet, but according to O’Brien, typical herniated disc surgeries require 12 months recovery. Given the fact that Moylan has had a similar surgery it could mean he’d need more time to recover.
The Australian native was 1-0 with a 4.15 ERA in 4.1 innings throughout 7 games this season with the Braves. In 2010 he was 6-2 with a 2.97 ERA in 63.2 innings throughout 85 games.
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Lenny Dykstra indicted for bankruptcy fraud
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Former Major League Baseball player Lenny Dykstra, was indicted by a federal grand jury Friday for bankruptcy fraud.
After Dykstra filed for bankruptcy in 2009, the former outfielder for the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies hid, sold or destroyed more than $400,000 worth of items from his $18.5 million mansion in Southern California. At the time, Dykstra claimed he owed more than $31 million and had only $50,000 in assets.
Dykstra is accused of one count of bankruptcy fraud, one count of obstruction of justice, four counts of concealing property from the bankruptcy estate, three counts of embezzlement from the bankruptcy estate, and four counts of making false declarations to the Bankruptcy Court.
If convicted on all 13 charges, the former All-Star could face up to 80 years in prison.
His attorney, Mark Werksman, accused the government “heavy-handed and overbearing.” “This is payback by the US government to Lenny Dykstra’s resistance to the trustee’s dismantling of his property and assets in the bankruptcy.”
Information from the LA Times was used in this article.
