If claimed, can Manny Ramirez help the White Sox?

July 04, 2010 - Phoenix, ARIZONA, UNITED STATES - epa02237018 Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Manny Ramirez placed on the Designated Injury List (DL) watches from the dugout during the regular season game at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, 04 July 2010.

Due to a calf injury that has sidelined him for the better part of a decade, Manny Ramirez has completely fallen off the baseball map over the last couple of months.

ESPN’s Buster Olney reports that the Dodgers will likely put Manny on waivers sometime this week, which would end his brief stay in “Mannywood.” Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says that if L.A. does put the aging outfielder on waivers, the White Sox plan to claim him for the stretch run.

But does Ramirez have anything left to give a contender?

Let’s get this out of the way first: the Dodgers have little to know need for him at this point. He’s a free agent at the end of the year and seeing as how Scott Podsednik (picked up in a mid-season trade) gives the club three quality starters in the outfield, L.A. might as well get something for Manny while they still can.

Despite the general consensus that Ramirez is washed up, keep in mind that he’s still hitting .312 this year with a slugging percentage north of .500. Yes, injuries are a major concern, but if he can stay healthy for the final 35-plus games then he could give a team like the White Sox a shot in the arm.

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Five new playoff contenders for the 2010 MLB season

While some enthusiasts will argue otherwise, there’s usually not a lot of change from one year to the next in baseball. Most pundits expect the Yankees, Phillies, Red Sox, Angels, Cardinals, Twins, Dodgers and Rockies (all eight teams that made the playoffs in 2009) to be good again this year. MLB isn’t like the NFL where teams make unexpected playoff runs every year.

That said, that doesn’t mean there aren’t a couple of sleepers to watch out for in 2010. Below are five clubs that didn’t make the postseason last year that have the best odds (in my estimation) of making the playoffs this season.

1. Chicago White Sox
If you read the 2010 MLB season preview, you’re not surprised to see the White Sox at the top of this list. As long as Jake Peavy stays healthy, Chicago arguably has the best starting rotation one through five in the American League. (Boston fans may argue otherwise, but Boston fans can also shove off…just kidding…although not really.) But the key to the Chi Sox’s success this season lies in their offense. Yes, I’m banking on veterans Carlos Quentin, Alex Rios, Mark Teahen, Paul Konerko and Mark Kotsay to have productive years and yes, that may be asking a lot. But Gordon Beckham looks like a star in the making and the addition of Juan Pierre gives the Sox a solid leadoff hitter. I’m well aware that Chicago could finish third in a three-team race in the AL Central, but their pitching is going to keep them competitive all season and I’m willing to bet that their offense won’t be as bad as many believe.

2. Seattle Mariners
The Mariners have all the pieces in place to not only compete for the AL Wild Card, but also unseat the Angels in the AL West. Along with Felix Hernandez, the acquisition of Cliff Lee now gives Seattle the best 1-2 punch in the American League outside of Boston’s Josh Beckett and John Lackey. The problem is that the lineup lacks major punch. Chone Figgins and Ichiro give the M’s quality bats at the top of the order, but can this team score enough runs on a nightly basis? The club has been built on pitching and defense but if they want to make the postseason, the Mariners will have to prove that they can overcome a powerless lineup.

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2010 MLB Preview: AL Central

In order to help get you ready for the MLB season, we’re doing division-by-division rankings with quick overviews on how each club could fair in 2010. Next to each team, you’ll also find a corresponding number written in parenthesis, which indicates where we believe that club falls in a league-wide power ranking. Be sure to check back throughout the next two weeks leading up to the season, as we will be updating our content daily. Enjoy.

All 2010 MLB Preview Content | AL East Preview | AL Central Preview | AL West Preview | NL East | NL Central | NL West

Next up is the AL Central.

1. Chicago White Sox (9)
Some folks will think that this is too high for the White Sox – that they should be behind the Twins and out of the top 10 in terms of the overall power rankings. Some folks will say that Jake Peavy won’t be healthy all season and that the Chi Sox will once again falter as they try to live station to station on offense. Well, I say the folks that disagree with my opinion are friggin idiots. Harsh? Yeah, but it also needed to be said. I realize that I’m taking a risk by moving the Sox to the head of the AL Central, but really, it’s hard to argue that this division isn’t a crapshoot anyway. Every team has question marks heading into the season but at the end of the day, pitching makes or breaks a team. I realize Peavy missed all of last year due to injury, but the Sox were second in the AL in pitching last season with a 4.14 ERA without him. If he stays healthy, Peavy will only add to Chicago’s solid rotation (which also features Mark Buehrle, John Danks, Gavin Floyd and Freddy Garcia) and the addition of J.J. Putz should bolster the bullpen as well. Outside of injuries, the only thing that could potentially hold Chicago back this year is its offense. What do you mean that’s kind of a big deal? I’m banking that youngster Gordon Beckham develops quickly and that Carlos Quentin and Alex Rios return to form. I also think the Sox will get key contributions from the additions GM Kenny Williams made this offseason in Andruw Jones, Juan Pierre and Mark Teahen. I’m not expecting the Sox to magically transform into the Yankees of the AL Central, but I do believe they have enough offense to get by while their pitching carries them to a playoff berth.

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White Sox believed to be team that made claim for Rios

According to a report by SI.com, the White Sox are believed to be the team that made a waiver claim for Blue Jays right fielder Alex Rios.

By rule, the Jays are also allowed to let the claiming team assume Rios’ contract — a seven-year, $69.35 million deal which still has about $60 million remaining on it — or pull Rios back and keep him and his contract.

Two competing executives, who were unaware of the identity of the claiming team, opined that they believe the Blue Jays, who have financial issues, would be wise to just let the claiming team have Rios and his contract. However, there is little evidence that the Jays are willing to do that at this point, and may instead be trying to acquire pieces of significant value in return for Rios.

Rios makes sense for the Sox, who will be able to take on salary with guys like Jim Thome becoming a free agent in 2010, and whose outfield situation could use an upgrade.

What’ll be interesting to see is if the Blue Jays try to acquire something back for Rios, or if they’ll just be happy to dump his entire contract and move on. Either way, if they clear all of his salary off the books, they might be in the running for a top free agent like Jason Bay (who is Canadian by the way) this winter.

Olney: Blue Jays place Rios on waivers

In a surprising development, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney is reporting that the Blue Jays have placed outfielder Alex Rios on waivers and an unidentified team has already claimed him.

The Blue Jays, it appears, have three options, and must make a decision by Tuesday, because the waiver period will roll through the weekend:

• They could work out a trade with the team that claimed Rios.
• They could pull him back from waivers, and keep him for themselves the rest of this season.
• They could simply allow the team that claimed him to take him, at no cost.

While this move definitely came out of nowhere, it makes sense that the Jays would want to dump Rios’ salary with his ceiling pretty much maxed out at 28 years old. He’s probably not going to play up to the $60 million that remains on his contract so if another team wants to take on all of his salary, then maybe Toronto is thinking it should jump on the opportunity and spend the money elsewhere.

What’ll be interesting to find out is which team claimed Rios. According to MLB Trade Rumors, several teams including the Mets, Red Sox, Giants, Reds and Mariners did not put a waiver claim on him, so the mystery team remains at large.

The first team that I thought of when I heard this news (and before I checked out MLB Trade Rumors) was the Giants. GM Brian Sabean foolishly toyed with the idea of trading Tim Lincecum for Rios two winters ago, so it would stand to reason that San Fran (who is still a hitter shy of making a serious World Series push) would go after him now. But with the way the waiver claims work in baseball, the Giants would be one of the last teams in line seeing as how they play in the NL (AL teams would have first crack at Rios) and they have the third best record in their league.

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