Tag: Jonathan Sanchez (Page 5 of 6)

MLB Trade Rumors: Lee, Dye, Atkins & Sanchez

– After trading Mark DeRosa to the Cardinals over the weekend, many speculate that the Indians could be setting up for a fire sale soon and would look to deal ace Cliff Lee. But according to MLB.con’s Anthony Castrovince, the Tribe aren’t keen on dealing Lee, who the club has an $8 million option with a $1 million buyout option on in 2010. Cleveland might be inclined to part with Lee if the right deal comes along, but they’re not going to just give the ace of their staff away because they’re out of contention this season.

– Garrett Atkins started at third base for the Rockies on Monday and while manager Jim Tracy said it’s because of his hot bat, ESPN’s Buster Onley believes the club is trying to drum up more trade interest for the 29-year old by getting him on the field. Colorado is in need of some bullpen help and already have Ian Stewart to man the hot corner if they’re successful in trading Atkins.

– The Giants seem to be heating up their pursuit for White Sox outfielder Jermaine Dye, who would have to waive his no-trade clause if Chicago were to work out any deal involving him. San Fran, who leads the NL Wild Card race by a game and a half over the Rockies, are desperate for a middle-of-the-order bat and would love to put a package together to acquire a hitter with some pop.

– Speaking of the Giants, the club would seemingly love to trade former starter Jonathan Sanchez now that they have found a replacement for him in the rotation in 26-year old Ryan Sadowski, who pitched masterfully in his big league debut against the Brewers on Sunday. The problem is that Sanchez’s trade value has never been lower as he’s struggled with his command all season and has been demoted to the bullpen. Still, he was once viewed as a potential No. 3 behind Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain in the Giants’ rotation, so some team may still be intrigued by his potential.

– The Mets are apparently reluctant to part with reliever Bobby Parnell according to the New York Daily News.

Is Matt Holliday the answer to the Giants’ offensive woes?

It’s been five years since the San Francisco Giants have made a postseason appearance, so you’ll have to pardon their fans if they’re overly optimistic about the chances of their club possibly making the playoffs this year despite a lineup that often employs Edgar Renteria as its two-hole hitter.

The G-Men are currently 8.5 games back of the Dodgers in the NL West and with the PED Predator coming back from his suspension soon, L.A. is surely to stay well ahead of San Fran in the division. But the Giants are currently one game up on the Brewers for the NL Wild Card and if GM Brian Sabean could add a player or two before the July 31 trade deadline to help mask San Fran’s biggest flaw, then the five-year playoff drought could end.

What’s the Giants’ biggest flaw you ask? Well if anyone can look at their lineup without doubling over in side-splitting laughter, then some kind of award is deserved.

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Giants interested in Marlins’ Dan Uggla

Apparently the near-Jake Peavy deal between the Padres and White Sox woke up other general managers in baseball, because trade rumors are starting to kick up around the league.

One of the bigger rumors is that the Giants are interested in Marlins’ second baseman Dan Uggla. According to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, the offense-needy Giants would have to give up a young starter to swing a deal for Uggla, and both Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez’s names were brought up in the report.

Even though San Fran has one of the worst offenses in baseball (they currently rank dead last in the NL in runs scored, on base percentage and slugging percentage), Giants’ GM Brian Sabean should be kicked repeatedly in the stones if he trades Cain for Uggla straight up.

Cain is pitching in his fourth year already and he’s only 24. His career record of 35-44 suggests he’s light years away from becoming a productive pitcher, but his career ERA of 3.63 paints a better picture. He’s a pitcher that has been cursed with poor run support over his career, but that has changed this season and he’s now finally getting the attention he deserves while posting a 5-1 record and 2.40 ERA so far in ’09.

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Three MLB teams that will make you want to rip your hair out

Most of the baseball world is chirping about the Yankees’ nine-game winning streak, the return of Dice-K in Boston and the possible landing spots for Jake Peavy now that he’s rejected a trade to the White Sox, but I’m feeling a little more pessimistic myself. That’s why I’ve compiled a list of three of the most frustrating, punch-a-hole-through-your-wall teams to watch so far in baseball this season.

(This list is in no particular order – they’re all frustrating to watch.)

1. New York Mets
I’ve never seen a team squander so much natural talent than the Mets do on a near nightly basis. I know they’re battling some injuries right now, but there’s no excuse for a lineup so chockfull of talent should be giving games away because of stupidity in the field and on the base paths. Johan Santana and the rest of the pitching staff must close their eyes and start praying every time a batter puts the ball in play because there’s a good chance that circus the Mets call a defense will blow the play somehow. And blind elephants (they exist – I looked it up) would be better on the base paths right now than most of New York’s runners.

2. Washington Nationals
Forget for a moment that this club has lost 28 of its first 40 games – the most frustrating thing about the Nationals is that they’d easily be a .500 team if they had anything resembling a pitching staff. Don’t believe me? Washington has scored the third most runs in the National League and the 11th most in all of baseball, but the pitching staff is giving up over a touchdown a game in runs. Even if the pitchers could hold opponents to five runs a game (which is certainly not unreasonable) the Nats would win most nights. Watching this team is like getting two robots for Christmas. One of the robots (let’s call him Ryan Zimmerman) functions great and does everything you want it to do, like build things. The other robot (let’s call him Scott Olsen) barely starts, you constantly have to change its batteries and even the times it does work, it only works long enough to ruin what Ryan Zimmerman Robot built.

3. San Francisco Giants
The Giants have the opposite problem of the Nationals – their pitching staff is solid, but their offense couldn’t score runs if every batter started with a 3-1 count. In Jonathan Sanchez’s last start, he gave up two hits and lost. Barry Zito has gotten a whopping 2.5 runs a game when he pitches. Not even NL Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum can cure what ails the Giants’ offense this season. San Fran is also the only team in baseball that doesn’t have a home run yet from its first base position. When any combination of Rich Aurilia, Eugenio Velez and Emmanuel Burriss is due up in the ninth inning, Giants fans might as well just turn the channel because a rally isn’t coming. Manager Bruce Bochy should start forfeiting games as soon as the Giants get down 2-0, because there’s no conceivable way that they’re going to come back from that insurmountable deficit and he might as well save his pitching staff. Watching the Giants try to hit is the equivalent to taking a nail gun and shooting it through your eyelids.

I’m sure Astros, Pirates and Rockies fans will have something to say about this, which I welcome in the comments section. Come on – get out your frustrations!

Do the Giants have the most to gain from Manny’s suspension?

For at least a moment, let’s put away all of the Manny-Ramirez-disgraced-the-game headlines and talk a little baseball, shall we?

Who stands to gain the most from Manny’s 50-game suspension? Your answer might be the San Francisco Giants.

The Dodgers are the best team in the NL West regardless whether or not Ramirez is in their lineup. Andre Ethier is absolutely raking at the plate, Orlando Hudson is getting on base like it’s his life mission and 24-year old Chad Billingsley (5-0, 2.21 ERA, 42 Ks) is pitching like a Cy Young candidate.

The loss of Manny certainly hurts, but it’s not like the Dodgers have been a one-man wrecking crew in amassing the league’s best record to this point. Guys like Ethier, Hudson, James Loney and a couple of live arms in the starting rotation are good enough to compete in a weak NL West with or without Ramirez.

But there’s no question that having Manny in the lineup makes Ethier, Hudson and Loney better, while Juan Pierre (Ramirez’s sub in left field) is a massive drop off in every offensive category outside of stolen bases. The bottom line is that the Dodgers are a better offensive club with Ramirez in the lineup – much better.

Heading into Friday’s action, the Dodgers own a 5.5-game lead over the Giants, a 7.5-game lead over the Padres and 8.5-game leads over the Diamondbacks and Rockies in the NL West. Arizona can’t hit and is in turmoil after firing manager Bob Melvin, Colorado still has plenty of young talent but has been inconsistent to this point and one has to wonder if San Diego will stay competitive long enough not to be tempted to trade ace Jake Peavy in order to start building for the future.

That leaves San Francisco, who at 14-13 certainly isn’t a powerhouse, but it has enough pieces to make a run at the Manny-less Dodgers.

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