I missed Masterson's latest start for the Cardinals but I see it was his 3rd non-quality-start in 4 tries. 4 runs in 5 innings against the Reds. He has proved to St.Louis that he can shut down the Marlins. His NL ERA is 6.30 including the 7 innings of shutout ball vs. Florida.

JOE will want to know about this:



Red Sox finalizing deal with Cuban star Castillo
Sources: Outfielder will complete $72 million deal through 2020 with Boston

By Jesse Sanchez and Ian Browne / MLB.com | 8/22/2014 12:03 P.M. ET


The race to sign Cuban outfielder Rusney Castillo is about to come to a record-breaking conclusion in Boston.

A deal between Castillo and the Red Sox is in place, an industry source said Friday. Castillo is no longer negotiating with other teams as the sides finalize details of the deal, which will run through 2020. Another source said that the deal will be worth more than $72 million and will be completed in the next few days.

The Red Sox have not confirmed that a signing is imminent.

"There's obviously been attention on this," Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington said Tuesday. "He's a player that we've seen and have talked to, but we're just one of several teams that have done that. There's nothing more I can say than that. I'm not going to get into our evaluation [of Castillo] in public. Again, we've seen him, we've talked to him and we're one of several teams that have done that. There's not really anything else I can say."

Jose Abreu's six-year, $68 million contract with the Chicago White Sox is currently the largest deal signed by an amateur player, from Cuba or any other country.

It's already been quite a journey for Castillo.

The 5-foot-9, 205-pound outfielder left Cuba six months ago and established residency in Haiti. He was cleared by the U.S. government to sign with a team last month and was later declared a free agent by Major League Baseball.

Approximately 28 teams scouted Castillo during his workout in Miami last month. The Red Sox, Yankees, Cubs, Phillies, Mariners, Reds and Tigers were among the teams to hold private workouts for the outfielder.

Known as an athletic outfielder with surprising power, Castillo has drawn comparisons to Ron Gant, Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury in terms of style of play, and he is seen as close to big league ready. Whether the 27-year-old would provide that type of impact this season is up for debate. He's an older and a more seasoned talent than most amateurs, but he also hasn't played competitive baseball in more than a year.

Castillo is represented by Roc Nation Sports, a joint venture between rapper Jay Z's Roc Nation and CAA Sports.

That's a lot of money for Castillo. Sox are taking a huge risk here. Abreu is a much better all-around hitter and Puig is a much better all around defender. Another one bites the dust. It's quite obvious that the Indians can't afford these types of ballplayers.

The well is drying up. Not too many players left. The only other two position players that I would be interested in at this time is Alfredo Despaigne and Guillermo Heredia. There's a few pitchers (Yasmany Hernandez, Vladimir Garcia, and Ismel Jimenez to mention a few) that I might include in the sweepstakes but we won't be able to afford any of them. The time to gamble has come and gone.

How many third world folders do we need ?

Go back to bed!

Jiminez bumped from Orioles rotation. That was a good investment

Masterson with his fourth stinker start in 5 tries for the Cards. Not helping his FA case or his new team's pennant chase.

Scott Kazmir's August ERA 6.28.

It looks like last year's Tribe rotation is doing a lot worse than this year's.

A happy reliever:

“I felt good,” Jimenez said. “I was pretty happy to be out and be able to be out there for the bullpen. … Being with the guys is always fun, but being in the bullpen is kind of different. It’s different because you have to wait for such a long time. You never know when you’re going to be able to pitch, so it’s different than being a starter.

August 25, 2014 8:13 pm ET

Shin-Soo Choo will miss the rest of the season.

Another member of the 2014 Texas Rangers bites the dust. Outfielder Shin-Soo Choo will miss the remainder of the 2014 season, as he's scheduled to have surgery to remove a bone spur from his left elbow within the next two weeks, the club announced Monday.

Choo, 32, hit .242/.340/.374 (100 OPS+) with 19 doubles, 13 homers, 40 RBI, 58 runs and three steals in his first season with Texas. He signed a seven-year, $130 million with the club this past offseason.

After having been decimated by injuries pretty much throughout the season -- beginning in the spring and never really letting up -- the Rangers head into the week 50-79, the worst record in baseball by two games.

Soler called up, to join Cubs on Wednesday

By Carrie Muskat / MLB.com | 8/26/2014 12:27 A.M. ET

CHICAGO --

Cubs fans have had a chance to see a glimpse of the future with recent callups of Javier Baez, Kyle Hendricks and Arismendy Alcantara. Now, Jorge Soler will join the group.

Soler, 22, will join the Cubs in Cincinnati, and he's expected to be at Great American Ball Park on Wednesday.

Ranked No. 5 on MLB.com's top 20 Cubs Prospects list, Soler belted a three-run homer in the third inning Monday in Triple-A Iowa's game against Tacoma, then was replaced in the field in the bottom of the frame.

The right fielder was batting .282 with eight home runs and 29 RBIs with Iowa, including a .373 average with runners on base.

Soler began the season with Double-A Tennessee, but he suffered a leg injury after his first game on April 3. He went on the disabled list and later returned in May, but he again played sporadically. After rehabbing in Mesa, Ariz., he rejoined the Smokies in July, and batted .463 in 15 games before he was promoted to Triple-A. In nine games in July with Iowa, he hit .304 and was batting .271 this month.

The Cuban outfielder signed a nine-year, $30 million contract in June 2012, and he's on the Cubs' 40-man roster. He's part of the so-called "core four" that also includes Baez, Kris Bryant and Albert Almora. Bryant is at Iowa and leads all Minor League hitters with 43 home runs, while Almora is playing for Tennessee.

JOE: Did you see what Jorge Soler did in his first AB with the Cubs?

YEP !

To think we couldn't afford 30 mil over 9 years

Hey, we had Kevin Kouzmanoff, and he had an even more impressive debut!