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Nope, just bored with your personal folder of love for any foreign player.

Drew Pomeranz moves on.


Trade Central: A’s Send Anderson To Colorado For Pomeranz


December 10, 2013 by Vince Lara-Cinisomo










5






THE DEAL

The Athletics sent often-injured lefthander Brett Anderson to the Rockies for two pitchers: former Indians first-rounder Drew Pomeranz and righthander Chris Jensen. As Anderson becomes more expensive but still does not have an obvious opening in Oakland’s rotation, it made sense for the A’s to flip him for whatever younger, cheaper assets they could acquire. Pomeranz was the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft out of Mississippi by the Indians, then was traded to the Rockies in the deal for Ubaldo Jimenez in July 2011. The A’s also reportedly sent $2 million to Colorado to cover part of Anderson’s 2014 salary.



A’S ACQUIRE

3ds_athletics79
Drew Pomeranz, lhp

Age: 25.

Transactions: Selected by the Indians in the first round of the 2010 draft (fifth overall); Traded to Rockies on Aug. 16, 2011, as player to be named after Joseph Gardner, Matt McBride and Alex White went to Colorado for Ubaldo Jimenez on July 30.
Service time: 1.050.

Pomeranz ranked as Colorado’s No. 1 prospect after the 2011 season, and while he has pitched 117 innings in the big leagues, he has not yet established himself as a major league pitcher. He missed time in 2013 with biceps tendinitis and forearm tightness and made 16 minor league starts. His curveball is his best pitch, and he throws his four-seam fastball at 90-92 mph along with a sinker and a changeup. He as battled his delivery at times, which hampers his control and command. Oakland has plenty of arms, so Pomeranz will likely start the season at Triple-A and try to earn an opportunity.

Year Club Lg Class W L ERA G GS IP H HR BB SO BB/9 SO/9 WHIP
2012 Colorado NL MAJ 2 9 4.93 22 22 96.2 97 14 46 83 4.28 7.73 1.48
2013 Colorado NL MAJ 0 4 6.23 8 4 21.2 25 4 19 19 7.89 7.89 2.03



Chris Jensen, rhp

Age: 23.

Transactions: Selected by the Rockies in the sixth round of the 2011 draft.

Jensen signed for $135,000 in 2011 after being drafted out of San Diego, where he was primarily a reliever until his junior year. He has proven to be a durable starter, logging 145 innings at low Class A in his first full professional season in 2012 and 152 at high Class A in 2013. Jensen has above-average command of a fastball that consistently ranges from 92-95 mph and sits at 93 mph. Because he is still learning to use his secondary stuff, he regularly throws at least 70 percent fastballs. His slider is his most promising breaking pitch. He should pitch at Double-A in 2014.



Year Club Lg Class W L ERA G GS IP H HR BB SO BB/9 SO/9 WHIP
2013 Modesto CAL HiA 5 8 4.55 28 28 152.1 161 15 39 136 2.30 8.04 1.31



ROCKIES ACQUIRE

3ds_rockies85
Brett Anderson, lhp
Age: 25.
Remaining commitment: $8 million in 2014 with $12 million option in 2015.

Injuries have ruined Anderson’s past three seasons after a terrific 2010. He had Tommy John surgery in 2011 and missed most of 2012 as part of that recovery, and then a broken bone in his foot marred 2013. Just eight months older than Pomeranz, Anderson’s solid groundball rates and low walk totals should give him an opportunity to succeed in Colorado, provided he can stay healthy.

Year Club Lg Class W L ERA G GS IP H HR BB SO BB/9 SO/9 WHIP
2011 Oakland AL MAJ 3 6 4.00 13 13 83.1 86 8 25 61 2.70 6.59 1.33
2012 Oakland AL MAJ 4 2 2.57 6 6 35.0 29 1 7 25 1.80 6.43 1.03
2013 Oakland AL MAJ 1 4 6.04 16 5 44.2 51 5 21 46 4.23 9.27 1.61

Pomeranz to his 3rd team and expected back in AAA. Looking like a lot of Tribe No.1s. Worse than most in fact who have one decent year in the bigs (Sowers, Huff). He was supposed to be better than those previous college lefties we chose.

The Philles signed Roberto "Fausto Carmona" Hernandez depending on the physical. He'll be a part of the starting rotation if all goes well.

8:57am: The Mariners and Franklin Gutierrez are in agreement on a one-year, $1MM contract, according to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes (Twitter links). The Octagon client can earn an additional $2MM via incentives, according to Rojas, who adds that Gutierrez's incentives begin when he reaches 250 plate appearances That milestone would net him an additional $200K.

Gutierrez posted a .248/.273/.503 in 141 plate appearances in 2013 -- his age-30 season. A pair of hamstring injuries shelved Gutierrez for the majority of the season, marking the third straight year in which injuries have caused him to spend more than 60 games on the disabled list. Since Opening Day 2011, Gutierrez has appeared in 173 games but missed 283 games while on the disabled list.

When healthy, it's tough to deny his upside, however. The veteran inked a four-year, $20.5MM extension with the Mariners after an outstanding 2009 season in which he batted .283/.339/.425 with 18 homers, 16 stolen bases and turned in the best center field defense in the game, all totaling a stellar 6.0 WAR. Following his injuries, the Mariners made the obvious call to decline the $7.5MM fifth-year option on that contract in favor of a $500K buyout.

Gutierrez will join an outfield mix that currently includes Dustin Ackley, Michael Saunders and recent signee Corey Hart, though Seattle has other options on the 40-man roster such as Abraham Almonte, Xavier Avery and Carlos Peguero. The team has also been linked to both Nelson Cruz and Shin-Soo Choo as GM Jack Zduriencik looks to bolster a perennially low-scoring offense.

The Texas Rangers will have a big boost to their offense in 2014 after reportedly signing Shin-Soo Choo to a seven-year, $130 million contract.

Is Canine Marijuana Use Legal in California?


The Dodgers are closing in on a one-year contract with former All-Star closer Chris Perez, according to a person familiar with the situation who spoke under the condition of anonymity because the deal hasn't been finalized. Financial terms of the prospective deal aren't known. Perez, 28, was an All-Star with the Cleveland Indians in 2011 and 2012 but was released Oct. 31. Perez was arrested on marijuana charges this year and lost his job as the Indians' closer. Armed with a fastball routinely clocked in the mid- to high 90s, Perez figures to be a late-inning reinforcement in a bullpen that includes closer Kenley Jansen and setup man Brian Wilson. From Perez's perspective, the short-term deal will allow him to reestablish his value and reenter the free-agent market next off-season. Perez saved 123 games over the last four seasons, including a career-high 39 in 2012. He converted 25 of 30 save opportunities in 2013, but his earned-run average was a career-worst 4.33...

Tigers signed OF Ezequiel Carrera to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.
Carrera struggled mightily last year in the major leagues and wasn't much better at the Triple-A level, batting .248/.312/.346 in 105 games for the Indians' International League affiliate. He'll be depth for Detroit.

Source: Jon Morosi on Twitter Jan 9 - 12:38 PM



Tigers signed OF Trevor Crowe to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.
Crowe batted just .218/.287/.291 in 181 plate appearances last season for the Astros. The 29-year-old is highly doubtful to crack the Tigers' Opening Day roster.

Source: Jon Morosi on Twitter Jan 9 - 12:34 PM

Bucs' farm system ranked No. 1 by Baseball America

By Tom Singer / MLB.com | 1/9/2014 3:12 P.M. ET

Respected evaluators have been fawning for weeks over the talent load in the Pirates' Minor League system. MLB.com prospect maven Jonathan Mayo crowned it the best among the 30 Major League organizations. Colleague Jim Callis called their 2013 Draft also the overall best.

The Bucs have just picked up another significant feather to add to their cap: Baseball America's newly released 2014 Prospect Handbook tabbed their organization-wide future talent No. 1 in the Majors.

The Pirates' highest previous grade in those annual rankings was No. 8, approaching the 2013 season.

Coming in the wake of a 94-win season, is this a perfect storm for franchise renaissance?

"It is a nice honor, nice recognition from one of the more respected periodicals," Pittsburgh GM Neal Huntington said. "Otherwise, it's not something we pay a lot of attention to."

Baseball America accorded this No. 1 ranking a year ago to the Cardinals, who went on to edge the Pirates for the National League Central title with significant contributions from several prospects highlighted in that report. They included first baseman Matt Adams and right-handers Carlos Martinez, Shelby Miller, Trevor Rosenthal and Michael Wacha.

Best-of honors shifted to the Pirates, according to the publication, "for their combination of potential impact talent, depth and big league-ready prospects, plus a strong 2013 Draft class."

Right-hander Jameson Taillon and outfielder Gregory Polanco top the "big league ready" class, and 2013 first-round picks outfielder Austin Meadows and catcher Reese McGuire highlight the future depth another focus site, MLB Draft Insider, called "an absolutely absurd amount of quality and quantity in the outfield and ... right-handed pitching."

"We have said all along that maintaining success is harder than achieving it, and sustainability is what we strive for," Huntington said. "Such recognition for having a lot of talent in the system testifies to the success of that approach."

Crowe and Carera: Two more failed Tribe prospects

Carrera wasn't a first round pick.

Carrera was a rare pickup from the Mariners who flopped.

I remember he was impressive in spring training a couple years ago. I guess he's one of those AAAA guys.

We got him and Juan Diaz (also gone) for Branyan. I didn't remember that deal. No one won on that trade.