Alex Rodriguez hit another HR last night to celebrate his 40th birthday. He is one of only four players to hit a ML home run in his teens and his 40s. The others are Ty Cobb, Rusty Staub and Gary Sheffield.
:idea: :arrow: The Dodgers will be in trade talks right up to the deadline. Their targets are still Price and Hamels. My guess is that they're working on at least one complicated, three-way trade... re: Puig The Dodgers will want a ton for Puig. He's under 25; has superhuman abilities; and his long contract makes him a financial bargain as well. He doesn't really fit in with what the management is trying to build here. They want a return to the "Dodger way to play baseball." This means pitching and defense first, with team players. Two years into their ownership, they're doing it. The last time I looked, The Dodgers had the best defense in MLB, with the two top starters and a good closer. They were also leading MLB in HRs after trading Matt Kemp, Hanley Ramirez and Juan Uribe. re: trades - Toronto and Colorado swapped two of the greatest SS in the game. Tulowitski appeared stunned when he was pulled from the game last night. I admit that I don't understand this trade. It might be part of another trade... - Angels obtain the Flyin' Hawaiian" from Boston. He broke down in tears at his press conference. He obviously didn't want to leave the Red Sox...
Rutledge, the guy coming to the Sox is a local from Cullman, Alabama. I have no idea what the trade is about other than possibly unloading some salary... I don't know. I have zero faith in either the GM or Manager at this point.
Looking at Puig's numbers, even though the Astro's could use a bat, he doesn't appear to be on the same track as he was in his rookie season. I have to wonder if what's between his ears is the problem. I hope the Astros don't make an offer, which isn't likely anyway as the Dodgers seem to be looking for a starting pitcher and we don't have one to give and I doubt if they care about minor league prospects at this point in the season.
Don't know how this one will end but the Yankees just rang up an 11 spot against the Rangers in the second inning.
:idea: :arrow: re: Josh Rutledge There's a lot more to the Rutledge family than just Cullman, Alabama. When he was with the Rockies, Vin Scully mentioned that he's from the famous Rutledge family of the south. They were among the founding families of this nation and helped to write the Constitution. They were also hip deep in the Confederate States of America, WWI, WWII, and right up to the present time with Josh Rutledge in MLB...
Local rag says the Astro's are still in it for Hammels and also have interest in the Padres Tyson Ross. The Twins Carlos Gomez is another name being thrown out there. Big win last night for the Astro's putting them back into a tie with the Angels...of course they beat them with Mike Trout out with a wrist injury. Still counts though!
8) re: Texas pitching Another courageous forecast by George...I too concur with his analysis. When I saw that score, I had to double-check it. Wow! - Dodgers obtain starting pitcher Mat Latos from Miami for three minor league pitchers. I'm beginning to lose count of how many players have been dealt between Miami and LA since last season. - Dodgers still chasing Price/Hamels.
re: Tulo HR and a double in his first three at-bats for Toronto. He's an instant hit in Canada. The Rockies management sucks. re: Dodger trades As I mentioned earlier in the week, there was probably a three-team trade involving the Dodgers and their endless supply of money and players... The Dodgers get starting pitcher Mat Latos from Miami. They will also get starting pitcher Alex Wood and relief pitcher Jim Johnson from Atlanta. The Braves will get OF Michael Morse and the competitive balance draft choice from the Marlins, along with three low-level minor league pitchers from the Dodgers... The Dodgers appear to have dropped out of the bidding for Cole Hamels (again), but they're still pursuing Price. Watch for the Dodgers to go after one or both of those guys in a few weeks, especially if Zach Greinke leaves... BTW- the Phillies management sucks too.
Is John Farrell still a genius? How's that Pablo Sandoval deal looking these days? Questions for Joel! :twisted: :twisted:
Price to the Blue Jays, looks like they are serious about making a run this year at that AL East. Got some ground to make up but adding a bat and an arm is a good first step.
as mentioned by this writer a month or 2 ago...The Panda and Hanley are both junkmen ( National League junk at that) and should never have been signed.. Blame Cherington...although both he and Farrell will be gone the day the season ends
:!: :arrow: Another part of the three-team trade is that the Braves get Cuban star Hector Olivera from the Dodgers, who never used him. It looks like the Dodgers are very happy with the 2nd baseman they already have: Howie Kendrick. I agree with their decision. Kendrick is a team leader, with impressive abilities on both offense and defense. He is also a great compliment to SS Jimmy Rollins. The two of them are obviously having fun out there and Rollins has been moved back to lead-off hitter, with Pederson sinking to the bottom of the order. The pennant races are reaching crunch time and the old guys who've been there before seem very comfortable, while the new guys look lost. Too bad about Olivera. I think the Braves got a great player there.
OK! I've finally got this trade figured out. At first glance, it looks like highway robbery. The Dodgers solved all of their problems. They get: 1. Alex Wood: flame throwing, left-handed starter who is only 24 years-old and who's a great starter right now. 2. Mat Latos: a solid #4 or 5 starter who has been pitching great the last six weeks. 3. Jim Johnson: solid relief pitcher who has returned to form like Latos. 4. Luis Avilan: another pitcher who will provide immediate help for the middle of the bullpen. 5. Michael Morse: a 1B/OF that we can't use. (salary dump saves Miami $9 million) 6. Jose Peraza: 2B/SS and the #1 prospect in the Braves farm system. Atlanta can't use him, but he has world class speed, a great glove and a high batting average. This is the base stealer to replace Gordon and the insurance policy in case Howie Kendrick tests free agency. I can see the new double-play combo now: Seager-Peraza. So how did all this happen? Money. The Dodgers have their OWN brand of "money ball." The Dodgers paid Hector Olivera's signing bonus of $28 million and he's now with Atlanta. They also agreed to take 38 year-old Bronson Arroyo who hasn't pitched in over a year and paid his salary of $11 million. This raises Dodger spending for 2015 to $297 million and they will face a salary cap penalty of $43 million to be distributed to the other teams. BTW- all the Dodgers gave up, besides money and Olivera, was four low level minor league pitchers and a Paco Rodriquez who's recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Wow almost 350 million, you'd have to add up all the Astro's opening day payrolls going back to 2010 to come up with that number. Astros BTW picked up CF Carlos Gomez from the Brewers and pitcher Mike Fiers as well. Gave up minor league prospects, Mike Phillips was supposedly the guy that they wanted. Top off the day with a walk off 3 run HR to sweep the Angels and it was a pretty good day!
:idea: :arrow: I think we're pretty much done here, except for those teams that need cash. The Dodgers bank is always open... Now come the dog days of August and September... when teams can expand their rosters. This will be when the Dodgers bring up Seager, Urias, and Peraza...