We should have drafted Sale in Pomeranz's spot. No secret. I was a Sale fanatic. If things would have worked out right, the Rockies would have had Sale rather than Pomeranz

Of no surprise to most anyone:

Red Sox optioned RHP Steven Wright to Triple-A Pawtucket; reassigned OFs J.C. Linares and Jeremy Hazelbaker to minor league camp.
Wright got a lot of attention this spring coming off a 2.54 ERA with 119 strikeouts over 141 2/3 innings last season between Double- and Triple-A, but the knuckleballer posted an 8.59 ERA and 6/7 K/BB ratio over 7 1/3 innings during Grapefruit League play. Still, he'll be an interesting name to monitor this season

Damn, I thought they were preparing his bust for the Brian Barton wing of the Hall of Fame.

Mattingly in awe of Puig's continued tear

By Ken Gurnick / MLB.com | 03/16/2013 2:20 AM ET

GLENDALE, Ariz. --

Yasiel Puig, the Dodgers' Cuban sensation, put on his most dazzling display yet on Friday night, leaving manager Don Mattingly empty for a comparison.

"I don't know if I've seen anybody do something like this," Mattingly said after Puig went 3-for-3 with a homer, stolen base, three runs scored and two RBIs, raising his spring average to .459 in an 8-1 win over the Royals. "You don't see this kind of package, a Bo Jackson-type package."

Puig's night was so impressive it overshadowed a 4-for-4 effort from Juan Uribe, who finally appears to be getting his game back together.

Puig doesn't seem to lack confidence or courage, but he said he's a little surprised by his success.

"I didn't think I would do this well," he said. "That's why I went to Puerto Rico [Winter League] and I've worked hard."

When a writer jokingly asked Mattingly how Puig would be introduced Opening Day -- Mattingly said on Thursday he expected Puig to be in the Minor Leagues -- the manager wasn't arguing.

"Bring him in by helicopter," he said. "He can parachute in, with Cuban and American flags on both sides. Scary is right. He was amazing tonight."

Puig did it with more than the bat. He cut off a ball in the gap to hold Willy Taveras to a single. He hustled out of the box to beat right fielder Jeff Francoeur's throw after stinging the ball so hard on a bounce that Francoeur tried to throw him out at first. Puig also hustled home from third base when a ball got away.

"That's just instinctual," Mattingly said. "Seeing a ball get away, you can't wait for a coach to tell you to do that."

With Matt Kemp in center field and Andre Ethier in right, the only possible spot for Puig would be left field, and that's only if Carl Crawford's elbow isn't ready. Crawford has resumed throwing after sustaining a post-surgery setback, and he's optimistic he will be ready for Opening Day.

And Puig?

"I'm not worried about that," said the 22-year-old Puig, who has only 95 professional at-bats. "Wherever I go, I can't do nothing about that. I play hard no matter what."

Is Puig the only non-Tribesman to follow?

Sorry about that Civ. I guess it's a personal thing. I've watched a lot of the Cubans play over the last 3 1/2 to 4 years now and I've come to like their style of play as well as the talent that country generates.

It was no secret how much I valued Yoenis Cespedes and hoped the Indians would have made an honest effort to sign him.

I've seen Puig as well as Soler. I became a big fan of both. I was hoping that the Indians would sign them.

I'll keep it a personal thing and will move on.

Desperate Yankees throw big money after overprice used merchandise

EMPE, Ariz. -- The Angels and Yankees are closing in on a deal that would send Vernon Wells to the Bronx, sources confirmed to MLB.com on Sunday.

How much money is exchanged in the deal and whom the Angels get back -- if anyone -- is still unknown. The Angels have not made any official announcements, but the deal could be done by Sunday. The Angels are expected to get a Minor Leaguer back, a source told MLB.com's Bryan Hoch.

Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto confirmed that the two sides are talking, though he wouldn't go into any detail.

"We have discussed a deal with the Yankees," he said, "but nothing definitive."

Wells has a full no-trade clause and is owed $42 million over the next two seasons, but he comes into the season as the fifth outfielder on the depth chart -- behind Mike Trout, Peter Bourjos, Josh Hamilton and designated hitter Mark Trumbo.

The 34-year-old outfielder had the day off Sunday and was leaving the Angels' facility at Tempe Diablo Stadium close to 2 p.m. PT -- but with all his bags in the truck. Asked if he had approved a deal to the Yankees, Wells had a big grin on his face and said, "Possibly."

The right-handed-hitting outfielder said his goodbyes before the game ended, but hadn't spoken to anyone with the Yankees yet. He couldn't say much because the deal still had to go through some hurdles before completion.

"It'd be a huge change," Wells said of joining the Yankees. "I don't think it's ever easy saying goodbye, but at the same time, if this were to happen, it's a good group of guys over there. I'll just get to know a new family."

Wells has enjoyed a nice spring, batting .361 (13-for-36) with four homers and 11 RBIs. The Yankees have Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira and Curtis Granderson slated to start the season on the disabled list.

"He's a veteran, a leader, a good guy who's got power and can play the outfield real well," Yankees third baseman Kevin Youkilis said. "I've always respected Vernon as a player. It'd be great. I never complain about getting guys on a team. I always find good things guys can do on a team. If he were to come here, I bet he'd do a good job helping us try to win."

If the deal does go through, it would relieve some of the pressure off Bourjos, who came in as the everyday center fielder but had some pressure to succeed early with Wells on the bench.

The Angels dangled Wells in the offseason, but weren't able to find anyone willing to take on much, if any, of his contract in a trade. They also felt trading Wells meant replacing him on their bench.

Wells, who plans to retire after the 2014 season, has been very accepting of his role all spring, saying he understands he comes in as a reserve and just wants to fight for playing time.

"My offseason was geared towards getting back to what I'm capable of doing," Wells said Sunday. "That was my goal coming into spring -- the work I put in the offseason, the work I've been doing in Spring Training was to get my swing back to where it's supposed to be. That's short and through the ball. When I can do that, I can still put up the numbers that I'm supposed to be putting up."

With the Blue Jays from 2002-10, Wells posted a .279/.330/.478 slash line, won three Gold Gloves and made three All-Star teams. But he hasn't been able to duplicate that success since coming to Anaheim in a January 2011 deal that saw the Angels send Juan Rivera and Mike Napoli to Toronto while picking up $81 million of the $86 million owed to Wells.

Wells hit 25 homers in 2011, but posted the lowest batting average (.218) and on-base percentage (.248) in the Majors. He batted .244 with six homers in the first two months of 2012, then missed the next two months with thumb surgery and, with Trout producing, hardly played the rest of the way.

Deals like this, with money likely changing hands and approval needed by Major League Baseball, usually have several hurdles to overcome. Last spring, the Angels and Indians talked extensively about a deal for Bobby Abreu that ultimately fell through.

This one, however, appears close to a resolution.

"I have some good friends in there, great teammates," Wells said. "Goodbyes are never easy."

Salcedo's two late homers carry Braves to victory

DUNEDIN, Fla. --

The Blue Jays bashed three home runs off Braves lefty Sean Gilmartin, but Edward Salcedo hit two homers in the final two innings, leading Atlanta to a 10-5 victory on Saturday at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium.

With the game tied at 5-5 in the eighth frame, Salcedo drove a solo shot to left field against Esmil Rogers to give the Braves the lead.

In the ninth, Jose Martinez hit an RBI single that scored Ramiro Pena before Salcedo made it a 10-5 game with a three-run shot against Clint Everts.

Gilmartin, the Braves' No. 5 prospect, got off to a shaky start but kept the initial damage to a minimum. Gilmartin served up a one-out homer to Rajai Davis, his first of the spring, then loaded the bases on a Melky Cabrera double, an infield single by Jose Bautista and a walk to J.P. Arencibia. But Gilmartin induced a quick 1-2-3 double play to get out of the inning.

The Braves evened it up in the second inning, when Justin Upton doubled off the left-field wall against Blue Jays starter Brandon Morrow and later scored on a throwing error by Emilio Bonifacio, making his first start of the spring in center field.

Gilmartin, who's slated to begin the year in Triple-A, allowed three more runs in the third inning. Cabrera crushed a towering home run to left field, then Gilmartin once again loaded the bases with two walks and a single. Maicer Izturis came through with the big hit, a two-run single to left field.

Gilmartin exited after five innings of work, having allowed five runs on 10 hits, three homers and three walks while striking out three.

Meanwhile, Morrow worked perfect first, third and fourth innings but got hit around by the Braves in the fifth. After retiring nine straight, Morrow gave up four straight base hits, including a two-run single by Reed Johnson, and a wild pitch that allowed Atlanta to tie the game at 4. He went on to walk Jason Heyward and give up a run-scoring single to Upton before finally retiring Chris Johnson to end the inning.

Morrow allowed five runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out two over 5 1/3 innings. In 15 innings this spring, Morrow has given up 13 earned runs on 21 hits and four walks with eight strikeouts.

joez wrote:

Salcedo's two late homers carry Braves to victory

DUNEDIN, Fla. --

The Blue Jays bashed three home runs off Braves lefty Sean Gilmartin, but Edward Salcedo hit two homers in the final two innings, leading Atlanta to a 10-5 victory on Saturday at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium.

With the game tied at 5-5 in the eighth frame, Salcedo drove a solo shot to left field against Esmil Rogers to give the Braves the lead.

In the ninth, Jose Martinez hit an RBI single that scored Ramiro Pena before Salcedo made it a 10-5 game with a three-run shot against Clint Everts.

Gilmartin, the Braves' No. 5 prospect, got off to a shaky start but kept the initial damage to a minimum. Gilmartin served up a one-out homer to Rajai Davis, his first of the spring, then loaded the bases on a Melky Cabrera double, an infield single by Jose Bautista and a walk to J.P. Arencibia. But Gilmartin induced a quick 1-2-3 double play to get out of the inning.

The Braves evened it up in the second inning, when Justin Upton doubled off the left-field wall against Blue Jays starter Brandon Morrow and later scored on a throwing error by Emilio Bonifacio, making his first start of the spring in center field.

Gilmartin, who's slated to begin the year in Triple-A, allowed three more runs in the third inning. Cabrera crushed a towering home run to left field, then Gilmartin once again loaded the bases with two walks and a single. Maicer Izturis came through with the big hit, a two-run single to left field.

Gilmartin exited after five innings of work, having allowed five runs on 10 hits, three homers and three walks while striking out three.

Meanwhile, Morrow worked perfect first, third and fourth innings but got hit around by the Braves in the fifth. After retiring nine straight, Morrow gave up four straight base hits, including a two-run single by Reed Johnson, and a wild pitch that allowed Atlanta to tie the game at 4. He went on to walk Jason Heyward and give up a run-scoring single to Upton before finally retiring Chris Johnson to end the inning.

Morrow allowed five runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out two over 5 1/3 innings. In 15 innings this spring, Morrow has given up 13 earned runs on 21 hits and four walks with eight strikeouts.

Just for laughs joez, would you trade Lindor for Salcedo straight up?

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Of course not Dennis. Edward Salcedo is being groomed for third base by the Braves. Like Victor Martinez, he outgrew the position. That being said, I wish we had followed through on the age thing like the Braves had the foresight to do. Salcedo lost 2 years of professional baseball experience while his age was being challenged. Gotta be tough on Salcedo knowing he's got so much catching up to do. But he's doing just fine for his age.


Atlanta Braves: Top 10 Prospects at Midseason

By Matt Powers(Featured Columnist) on June 27, 2012

6. Edward Salcedo, 3B

Prior to the 2010 season the Braves made a splash when they signed a young international free agent from the Dominican Republic. That third baseman was a very sought after prospect a few years ago but had a big money deal with the Indians nullified for age questions. That third baseman is Edward Salcedo, a raw but very toolsy 20-year-old currently playing for High-A Lynchburg.

Salcedo hit in the Dominican Summer League in 2010 and earned a promotion to Low-A Rome at just 18 years old. Salcedo didn't fare well in Rome, hitting just .197 in 54 games, but he was young for the league and adjusting to life in America.

Salcedo repeated Rome last year and had a hot start to the season before cooling off. He managed to hit .248/.315/.396 with 12 homers and 68 RBI, which are actually decent overall numbers. In the process of posting that stat line he showed fans flashes of his elite potential but also frustrated those same fans with his offensive struggles.

Salcedo moved up to High-A this year and in 72 games he is hitting .263/.308/.409 with seven homers and 30 RBI. The line is pretty similar to the line he posted a year ago, but it is at a higher level in a league that is a bit tougher to hit in.

Salcedo also has major issues on defense as well. He has made 19 errors this year after committing 40 in 100 games at third base last year. The good news here is that he has the natural ability to become at least an average defender with time and work.

Salcedo has the potential to become an All-Star third baseman, but he is also very raw at the plate. For this reason he is going to more only a level per year, to allow time for his tools to become usable skills. Even if he spent the next three seasons in Double and Triple-A, he would be making his big league debut at age 24.

[The only major issues with Salcedo's game is on defense. A lot of errors. But, the Braves are working hard with Salcedo to iron out those problems]

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2013 MLB Farm System Rankings (Updated 2/5/2013)

by John Sickels, Feb 5 2013, 2:18p

How I currently view the relative ranking of the various MLB farm systems.


http://www.minorleagueball.com/2013/1/2 ... m-rankings

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Fangraph Top 100 Prospects

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.ph ... ospects-2/

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Baseball Prospectus: Top 101 Prospects for 2013

https://baseballprospectus.com/article. ... leid=19694

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Baseball America Releases Top 100 Prospects List

http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/pro ... ects-list/

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Looks like the top ranking websites like Yasiel Puig and Jorge Soler. Too bad the Indians did not.

For a system that's lacking "punch", I find it difficult to understand why no feelers were offered. We did make a token offer to Yoenis Cespedes, but bowed out when the brass heard the price tag Oakland offered.

Now, from Ken's reports, it appears that the money was there last year.

What we found out recently, the coffers will be growing significantly this year as well as into the future. We could have afforded all three.

Of course, the chance you take is that all three might fail and you're screwed. I've tracked these players a few years now and I'm finding it difficult to believe that all three will fail. On the contrary, I think all three have a chance to enjoy successful major league careers.

The organization made great strides in landing some extremely talented middle infielders. When will they show their concerns for some talented and toolsey corner outfielders aka the above??

Their last efforts ended in futility with the failures of Nick Weglarz and Brad Mills. As far as I can tell, we're left with Jesus Aguilar and that one looks like its going nowhere.

If there are any other defectors coming out of Cuba, I have a handful of candidates I'd like to suggest.

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