Rumors for Toronto Blue Jays
Roger Clemens pleads not guilty to purjury charges
Posted by: | Comments
The Associated Press reports that former Major League right-handed pitcher Roger Clemens has entered a not guilty plea Monday to charges of lying to Congress about whether he used steroids or human growth hormones.
If convicted, Clemens could face up to 30 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine in addition to damages to his reputation, future earning potential and chances of getting into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
In 24 seasons with the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees and Houston Astros, Clemens was 354-184 with a 3.12 ERA.
Colorado Rockies looking for a reliever?
Posted by: | Comments
The Colorado Rockies sit 4 1/2 games out in the Wild Card and it looks like they may be on the look out for relief help to make a run. According to Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated, the Rockies are looking for a relief pitcher. Heyman adds that they may settle for a “change-of-scenery” type of reliever.
Last week, Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun said pitchers Jason Frasor, Scott Downs, Kevin Gregg and Shawn Camp of the Toronto Blue Jays did not clear waivers. It still is unknown which team or teams were awarded the waiver claim. Unless the Rockies were one of the claiming teams, it’s unlikely that they will be able to acquire of the Jays’ pitchers.
The Chicago White Sox and the Philadelphia Phillies are also known to be actively looking for relief pitching. The deadline to set your postseason rosters is August 31st, so teams have a little more than 24 hours to make the moves to get them into the playoffs.
Brewers Trevor Hoffman is available
Posted by: | Comments
Teams have only two days left to acquire that last player that they need before the deadline. Players acquired after the deadline can only help the team reach the playoffs as they will be ineligible for the playoffs. Recently, we have heard that the White Sox, Reds and Phillies were looking to upgrade their respective bullpens. At this time of the year though, every playoff team is looking for a new arm either for the rotation or for the bullpen.
The Blue Jays have many bullpen arms that intrigue other clubs. The problem is Jason Frasor, Scott Downs, Kevin Gregg and Shawn Camp did not clear waivers. So unless the claiming team is a contending team that needs bullpen help, they won’t be able to acquire any of these arms.
Here is an idea. Why not go after a future Hall of Famer who has cleared waivers and can be traded to any team. Why not go after one of the greatest closers in the history of the game. The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the Brewers Trevor Hoffman, has cleared waivers and is available. The problem is no one is calling Brewers GM Doug Melvin’s phone.
Hoffman this year has been up-and-down with more downs than ups. He sports a 6.21 ERA. One thing interested clubs should look at is in his last 10 outings, he has not given up a run in 8 of those appearances (9 innings, 4 runs).
Hoffman is making $7.5mm this season and has a limited no-trade clause to 25 teams. Hoffman does have a career ERA of 2.87.
Update-Several Toronto Blue Jays relievers do not clear waivers
Posted by: | Comments
8/228 08:48: According to Buster Olney of ESPN recently added this comment about the Blue Jays players that were put on waivers: “At this point, the Jays probably will not be moving any of their relievers. About 85 hours remain for teams to acquire players for October.”
8/27 18:13: According to Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun, relief pitchers Jason Frasor, Scott Downs, Kevin Gregg and Shawn Camp do not clear waivers. It is unknown which team or teams were awarded the waiver claim.
Both Frasor and Downs are scheduled to become free agents after the season. The Blue Jays made both pitchers available last month before the July 31st Trade Deadline, but they ultimately were not traded.
Join PRO Rumors on ESPN 1420am with The Sports Animals
Posted by: | Comments
Join PRO Rumors on ESPN 1420 AM Honolulu, Hawaii tonight at 8:35pm PST (5:35pm Hawaii Time) with The Sports Animals Chris Hart and Gary Dickman. You can listen live at http://www.espn1420am.com
Are the Toronto Blue Jays trading Lyle Overbay?
Posted by: | Comments
Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports had an interesting tweet this evening, “Overbay left #Jays game. Source says there has been trade interest lately. Stay tuned.”
Could the Toronto Blue Jays be working on a trade involving Lyle Overbay? Overbay cleared waivers earlier this month, so the Blue Jay are free to negotiate with other teams regarding a trade. Morosi previously said that he would be a good fit for the Tampa Bay Rays, but now that the team signed Brad Hawpe, they may not have a need for Overbay’s bat.
Heading into today’s game, Overbay was hitting .248/.355/.430 with 16 home runs and 56 RBIs. He’s being paid $7 million for the 2010 season, so any team that acquires him now will be responsible for about $1 million. He’ll be a free agent after this year.
Jose Bautista denies use of performance enhancing drugs
Posted by: | Comments
8/24 12:22: Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus says on his personal blog that Bautista has been drug tested at least twice this season and as many as ten times.
8/24 12:06: The mysterious surge of power has led to rumors regarding Major League leading home run hitter Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays taking steroids, but the 29-year-old outfielder denies being involved with performance enhancing substances.
“Nobody’s said anything to me, and I don’t see why they should,” Bautista said, according to Robert MacLeod of The Globe and Mail. “Baseball has a strict policy against those performance-enhancing whatever you want to call them.”
He added that there’s nothing more behind his dramatic power surge.
“It’s not a secret and I didn’t reinvent the wheel,” Bautista said. “I keep saying it because it’s the truth. It’s as simple as getting [his swing] started earlier, and I’ve got Cito and [hitting coach] Dwayne Murphy to thank for that. They kind of brought it to my attention and they worked with me extensively and it’s sort of the renaissance of my hitting. I owe it to them because without them it wouldn’t have been possible.”
Bautista is leading the Majors with 40 home runs.
Happy Sunday! Here are a few bits of news from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe to think about while you have your Sunday morning breakfast:
Cafardo wonders if the injured Jacoby Ellsbury is untradeable as a result of his rib fractures. “He’s obviously a terrific talent and one who is far more valuable to the Red Sox than anyone else, given the circumstances,’’ said an American League executive. “The Ellsbury of a couple of years ago would have been in demand. Now, you can’t justify dealing for a guy who didn’t play 20 games and ended the season injured.’’ Another AL official said teams would deal for him despite the lack of playing time.
Cafardo says the New York Mets may have to do something about manager Jerry Manuel. The team has committed about $140 million for next year already, and with the decline in attendance and murky finances, it will be unclear what GM Omar Minaya will do.
If Roger Clemens is convicted of the perjury charges and has to do prison time, Cafardo says that the Hall of Fame may have to wait or may not be there at all for the pitcher. Local attorney Harry Manion adds, “… 30 years of experience in this field tells me that Roger will be doing time — probably around a year — behind the wall.”
Cafardo wonder if the Atlanta Braves could be a possible suitor for Jonathan Papelbon in the off season.
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre will decide around Labor Day whether he wants to manage again, but Cafardo says he’s not likely to stay with the Dodgers. Cafardo says the Cubs make sense.
Three executives Cafardo spoke to this week said Carlos Beltran of the New York Mets is worth trading for. One executive said, “His skills have declined a bit, given the wear and tear the injuries have taken, but he can still play at a pretty high level.’’
The Toronto Blue Jays have not put Scott Downs on trade waivers yet. They feel the longer they go with Downs not on waivers, the better the deal they can consummate before August 31.
If the Dodgers decide to move outfielder Matt Kemp, he should receive a great deal of interest this off season.
Roger Clemens to be indicted for Perjury in Doping Testimony
Posted by: | Comments
According to two people who were briefed on the matter and close to Michael S. Schmidt of The New York Times, federal authorities have decided to indict Roger Clemens on charges of making false statements to Congress about his use of performance enhancing drugs.
The indictment comes nearly two and half years after Clemens and his former trainer Brian McNamee testified under oath at a hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, directly contracted each other about whether Clemens had used the banned substances.
Clemens, 48, last pitched in 2007 with the Yankees. He has a lifetime record of 354-184 with a 3.12 ERA in 24 seasons with the Yankees, Astros, Blue Jays and Red Sox.
16 y.o. Luis Heredia expected to agree with Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday
Posted by: | Comments
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says the Pirates are “really strong” favorites to land 16-year-old right-handed pitcher Luis Heredia of the Mexican Baseball League.
Kovacevic adds, “barring some drastic change, it is expected that there will be an agreement executed rather quickly between the Pirates, Veracruz and the player. And that agreement most likely will be completed today (Thursday).”
Other teams believed to be interested in Heredia included the New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Texas Rangers, Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants and Atlanta Braves.
On Tuesday, Kovacevic added that Heredia’s bonus could be in the $2 million – $2.8 million range.
