MLB Thread

[Lowerdeck]

How much does Delgado got on a deal?

And let's see. I think this would end up displacing Kevin Millar out of the lineup - not like he hasn't done shit this year anyway.

The Sox are on a losing streak. The players don't care. Francona's taking the heat because of it, and because he's an idiot. Your pitching staff gives up hits to Miguel Cairo and John Flaherty of all people. Oy.

[reyrey619]

getting Delgado would be really stupid. We can barely find enough playing time for Millar and Ortiz. Adding another 1B would definitley not help. If that deal went down, I wouldn't be happy.

EDIT: the catch was good, but I think people overrate it because of the fact that he dove into the stands. I'm not saying it wasn't a great play, cuz it was, but it was the fact that he dove into the stands and got up that made it amazing.

Edited July 2, 2004 by reyrey619

[sahyder1]

hell of a pitching matchup going on between the Jays and A's. It's the 8th inning. 0-0. Each team has just 1 hit. David Bush had a no-hitter through 7.1 in only his 3rd MLB start.

[Guest kijlhumt]

If I were the Red Sox, I'd much rather have Carlos Delgado (a guy that is averaging about 37 homers, 116 RBI, and almost 100 runs scored) playing first than Kevin Millar. I don't care if Millar is a "fun-loving guy" or whatever he's being called these days. He's not a player that I would want on my team if I wanted them to win a World Series.

David Ortiz is a great DH. He can hit, but he's slower than frozen sand. Let him hit his 35+ homers, and drive in his 100+ runs and put him in front of Delgado and Manny. Imagine that line up?

Jesus

Mueller

Ortiz

Delgado

Manny

Nixon

Varitek

Bellhorn

Reese

Only one real short spot there in Reese, but he's the only one that provides consistant defense on the team in a regular position capacity.

That line up with, say...

Martinez

Schilling

Wakefield

Lowe

Arroyo

That's a good rotation with three excellent starters, an above-average starter, and Derek Lowe.

Couple that with their bullpen, and they might actually WIN instead of falling apart at the wrong time, like they always do.

[DMN in the House]

Last I heard, Delgado is predicted to go to LA, which would be great. We're really hot right now too, 13 of 14, and starting to pull away a bit in the West.

[Guest kijlhumt]

Talk of him coming here too...

With Choi playing hot and cold, I'd welcome his bat. Seems like the Marlins are overrun with rightys in the lineup

Lowell, Cabrera and Conine are their big RBI producers and they're all rightys.

[sahyder1]

David Wright makes his long awaited debut tonight for the Mets. I haven't seen this much hype for a rooke in local papers for a long time.

[gunnar hendershow]

Is it basically official Nomar will not be in Boston come the trade deadline?

I've heard so many rumors of him going so many places. Delgado is going to be traded also. Probably to LA. Steve Finley's probably going to San Diego or Florida and Randy Johnson is staying in Arizona.

Edited July 21, 2004 by damshow

[syck]

I think that Johnson WON'T be in Airzona come trade deadline and the two most likely places he will go is either the Yanks or the Angels, which would be smart so the D-Backs won't have to deal with the Big Unit if they trade him away. But the Cubs and the Mets both have interest, along with my beloved BoSox, but we won't get Johnson. Now the Yanks sure as hell have the money, but they don't have prospects "good enough" to deal to the D-Backs but the Angels do have the prospects, just not the money. Now, if the D-Backs and Yanks were to make a deal, the D-Backs have said they want Jorge Posada, which they might get if Geogre really dose want Johnson. Now, with Finely, the Marlins have interest in him and C Brent Mayne, thats all I know about that.

[Guest kijlhumt]

I don't understand the thing with Finley, I mean, the Marlins don't need him. Their outfield is fine, if not a tad banged up right now. They need a first baseman more than anything, as Damian Easley just isn't cutting it for me.

[sahyder1]

BOX SCORE LINE OF THE WEEK

Forget line of the week. This may be the line of the decade.

With the Class A Lancaster JetHawks trailing Rancho Cucamonga(Anaheim's affiliate) last week, pitcher Mike Schultz entered the game and struck out leadoff hitter David Gates. Then he struck out Adam Pavkovich, but strike three was a wild pitch and Pavkovich reached first. Next, Schultz hit a batter and gave up a single, and the next batter reached base on an error before Reggie Willits struck out for the second out. After another single, Greg Porter whiffed for Schultz's fourth strikeout of the inning; but he, too, reached first base on a wild pitch.

One single later, Schultz finally ended the inning with his fifth strikeout, giving him this incredible line:

1 IP, 3 H, 5 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 1 HBP, 2 WP

LIES, DAMN LIES AND STATISTICS

Since trading for Carlos Beltran, the Astros have gone 7-13, dropping from five games back to 14 back and in fifth place ...

INFIELD CHATTER

"Didn't hurt. He got me in the fat."

-- Seattle's 270-pound rookie Bucky Jacobsen, when asked whether he was hurt by a pitch that hit him last Sunday.

Jim Caple is a senior writer for ESPN.com

Edited July 22, 2004 by sahyder1

[Lowerdeck]

5 strikeouts in an inning, that's pretty nuts.

And wow, have the Astros collapsed or what?

[sahyder1]

Yanks/Red Sox Brawl

http://home.comcast.net/~rekilcoyne/soxyanksbrawl.mpg

If someone has a link to another video....link me

[naiwf]

Eric Milton of the Phillies is no-hitting the Cubs through 8. ESPN will go back to the game when he comes out to pitch the 9th.

[Lowerdeck]

Milton lost the no-no. And the Sox-Yanks game already seems crazy.

[sahyder1]

Giambi illness potentially fatal?

Sports Ticker

7/26/2004

BRISTOL, Connecticut (Ticker) -- The parasite problem that has slowed New York Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi could be more serious than first thought.

The Newark Star Ledger is reporting that Giambi is being tested for a potentially fatal condition sometimes caused by internal parasites and could miss the rest of the season.

The newspaper reported that Giambi, who last played in Friday's 8-7 win over the Boston Red Sox, will return to New York on Tuesday for further tests.

Giambi's trainer, Bob Alejo, told the newspaper that Giambi is being tested for a parasite called entamoeba histolytica, which can be transmitted through water and food and get embedded in the intentistal lining, making it difficult to detect.

"He told me, 'I don't care about hitting .220, I just want to feel better,'", Alejo told Newsday. "He's exhausted, and it's not getting any better."

The 34-year-old Giambi has played in only 70 games this season, batting .221 with 11 homers and 36 RBI.

[gunnar hendershow]

Wow. I hope Giambi gets better.

[thuganomic]

Wow. Poor Jason......

Forget baseball, just get better.

[sahyder1]

Wednesday, July 28, 2004

Associated Press

TAMPA, Fla. -- Three days after being released by Tampa Bay, Fred McGriff worked out Wednesday for the New York Yankees, the team that launched his career 23 years ago.

The Devil Rays designated the 40-year-old first baseman for assignment on July 17 after he hit .181 with two homers and seven RBI in 27 games. Seven homers shy of 500, McGriff is eager for another chance to reach the milestone this season.

"I hope so," McGriff said. "We'll see. I'm just working out, taking ground balls and hitting a little bit."

McGriff was taken in the 1981 amateur draft by the Yankees, but was traded to Toronto the following year. Now it appears his career has taken him full circle.

"It would be awesome," McGriff said about the possibility of joining the Yankees. "You couldn't ask for anything better."

McGriff took batting practice and grounders in front of team officials at the Yankees' minor league complex. New York, the AL East leader, could be in the market for an extra first baseman depending on test results regarding ailing starter Jason Giambi.

Giambi has felt fatigued since early June because of an intestinal parasite. Yankees manager Joe Torre has said the team will know more about Giambi's status later this week.

Tony Clark has started at first in place of Giambi, who left the team for additional tests Monday night.

McGriff signed a minor league contract with Tampa Bay in February, hoping to show enough during spring training that a major league team would give him an opportunity to continue his quest for 500.

McGriff didn't begin the season with the Devil Rays, but joined them on May 28 for his second stint with the team.

"You always got to prove yourself every day," McGriff said. "For 18 years I've had to prove myself, so it's no different."

Meanwhile, right-hander Steve Karsay (rotator cuff surgery) has made good progress since having a minor setback last week after throwing consecutive games for the first time during a minor rehab assignment with Triple-A Columbus. He could resume pitching in minor games soon and is expected to rejoin the Yankees later this season.

ESPN.com news services

The Diamondbacks believed they were close enough to trading Randy Johnson to the Dodgers that they actually went to him this week and asked if he would be willing to waive his no-trade clause to be dealt to Los Angeles. But Johnson declined, according to a baseball official with knowledge of the deal.

At this point, with the trade deadline just a few days away, Arizona believes its alternatives are either to deal Johnson to the Yankees or keep him.

Randy Johnson

Starting Pitcher

Arizona Diamondbacks 

Profile

2004 SEASON STATISTICS

GM  W  L  Sv  K  ERA

22  10  8  0  174  2.68

Dodgers general manager Paul DePodesta told ESPN.com's Jayson Stark he wouldn't comment on any particular trade and said only that he and Arizona GM Joe Garagiola Jr. "continue to talk, on various topics, as we have over the past couple of weeks. But at this stage, there is still nothing imminent."

The Diamondbacks and Dodgers are known to have spoken about deals involving both Johnson and outfielder Steve Finley. But it's believed the package that would have headed to the Diamondbacks from L.A. for Johnson would have included reliever Guillermo Mota and outfielder Jayson Werth, plus two Dodgers pitching prospects -- Chad Billingsley and Chuck Tiffany.

The two teams also discussed a variation of the trade which would have sent catcher Paul Lo Duca to Arizona.

However, Johnson turned the deal down and told the Diamondbacks again that the only team he wants to be traded to is the Yankees, ESPN's Peter Gammons reports. However, clubs that have spoken with Arizona's baseball people continue to report that the Diamondbacks aren't happy with what they've seen in the Yankees' farm system. So they're prepared to hang onto Johnson, no matter how unhappy he might be.

And the clock is ticking. Johnson had asked Arizona to move up the trade deadline by three days -- to Wednesday -- so he can properly prepare for his next start Friday, wherever it might be.

He is 10-8 with a 2.68 ERA with 174 strikeouts in 151 innings. The D-Backs' losing ways have cost him several victories, including Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Rockies after the Big Unit left with a lead. Arizona had lost 14 straight before Monday's victory over Houston.

One Yankee whom Arizona is thought to have interest in is pitcher Jose Contreras, but Contreras has about $17 million left on his contract. And if the Yankees attempted to include even half that amount in a deal to help pay Contreras' salary, there is no assurance that commissioner Bud Selig would approve it.

Meanwhile, every indication is that Arizona still plans to trade Finley by the deadline. But all indications Wednesday were that the Finley derby was down to just the Padres and Dodgers.

The Phillies and Marlins were told Tuesday that Finley wouldn't go to a team on the East Coast -- leaving the Padres, Dodgers and Giants still in the running.

But the word around baseball Wednesday was that the Diamondbacks were concentrating on the two southern California teams, and that the Giants were believed to be heading in a different direction.

The Diamondbacks are reported to have asked San Diego for reliever Akinori Otsuka, plus at least one other player. And it's believed they've asked the Dodgers for some combination of the players who would have been involved in the Johnson deal, as well as highly regarded first-base prospect James Loney.

Information from ESPN.com senior writer Jayson Stark was used in this report.

The Yanks definitely don't have enough to put together a team. They're gonna have to go for a 3-way deal here.

By Bob Klapisch

Special to ESPN.com

NEW YORK -- Will today be the last time Randy Johnson puts on a Diamondbacks uniform? Of all the scenarios hatched during the Johnson vigil, there's a new, wild one adrift: The Big Unit has asked Arizona to move up the trade deadline by three days -- to today -- so he can properly prepare for his next start Friday, wherever it might be.

D-Backs general manager Joe Garagiola is trying to accommodate Johnson, choosing between three possible endings to baseball's most compelling soap opera. The first would be to deal Johnson to the Yankees. The second would be to force Johnson to back down and accept a deal to Angels. The third would be letting the deadline pass and waiting until the offseason, when more teams would presumably be interested and capable of acquiring Johnson.

For now, the Yankees are still the front-runners, their need for the left-hander bordering on desperation after Orlando Hernandez left Tuesday's game against Toronto with a strained left hamstring. With Mike Mussina and Kevin Brown both already injured, the Yankees' urgency has compelled them to unveil their most trusty weapon -- money.

Randy Johnson desperately wants to pitch for a contending team.

According to Newsday, the Yankees would be willing to assume the contracts of little-used Roberto Alomar and the injured Matt Mantei, totaling nearly $8 million, and then eventually release them both. That's on top of the $22 million Johnson is owed through 2005, which the Yankees could absorb without blinking.

In addition, the Bombers are said to be choreographing a three-way deal, either with the Padres or Marlins, as a way of collecting more prospects.

Whether all of this can be completed before the passing of the artificial deadline is, while not impossible, highly unlikely. The Diamondbacks are under no pressure to make any deal -- today, or by Saturday's official cutoff date. In fact, one baseball executive whose team has been on the sidelines during the pursuit of the Big Unit believes Arizona may let the deadline pass altogether and renew talks during the winter.

That scenario would be more likely if Johnson were to reject a deal to the Angels. For now, he's "totally fixated" on the Yankees, according to one person familiar with his thinking. And through his agent, Barry Meister, the Big Unit has hinted of making life uncomfortable for all parties involved if he's still in the D-Backs clubhouse after 4 p.m. on Saturday, when the deadline expires.

But Arizona is just as committed to this high-stakes game of chicken. The D-Backs believe they -- not Johnson -- have greater leverage. According to the Newark Star-Ledger, the friction between Meister and Garagiola turned ugly on Monday, when a conversation between the two went like this:

"If you don't trade him to the Yankees, you're going to have one unhappy player," Meister said.

"And how would I tell the difference?" Garagiola responded.

That's why the Angels, who have more prospects to offer than the Yankees, still have Garagiola's ear. At the 11th hour, the D-Backs could come to Johnson with a take-it-or-leave ultimatum: accept the deal with Anaheim that benefits everyone, or else there's no deal.

The person who has spoken with Johnson recently believed that, backed into such a corner, the pitcher would accept a trade to the Angels. His desire to escape last-place in the NL West is greater than his fantasy of pitching in Yankee pinstripes.

Either way, time is running out. Arizona owner Jerry Colangelo returned Monday night from a vacation in Italy and planned to speak to the franchise's limited partners, hoping to gain a consensus on Johnson's future. From a financial standpoint, the Yankees' offer must surely be tempting, considering the D-Backs lost $60 million last year and are bleeding again in 2004. In one year they've dropped from eighth to 15th in major league attendance, with the free-fall likely to accelerate as the losing continues.

Even Johnson's star power has failed to stir the fans. In what could've been his final start for the Diamondbacks on Sunday, when he struck out 14 Rockies in eight innings, fewer than 30,000 were in the stands. Such top-to-bottom lethargy is the reason Johnson has been looking for the door, and towards the Yankees in particular.

For now, the Yankees are still waiting for a phone call from the D-Backs. None has been placed. On Tuesday, the Bombers' attention was diverted to the ailing Jason Giambi, who's awaiting the results of tests that could determine whether he'll be out for the rest of the season.

If so, the Yankees would be saddled with the extra chore of finding a backup to Tony Clark, currently their only other bona fide first baseman. Even as Giambi's mystery illness continues to haunt the Yankees, however, they remained focused on Johnson. With the deadline only days -- and possibly just hours -- away, everyone involved can at least agree on this much.

A verdict is almost here.

Bob Klapisch of The Record (Bergen County, N.J.) covers baseball for ESPN.com.

[gunnar hendershow]

I still don't see Johnson going anywhere. Unless he wants to go to Anaheim, he'll be a Diamondback the rest of the season.