Huff, Baez on Team's Radars

Today we take a look at the Baltimore Orioles in our continuing series, "The Trade Winds are Starting to Blow". The O's are another team with "SELLER" stamped all over them. The O's got off to a pretty good start this season, but everyone knew ahead of time they would have no chance in a division as competitive as the AL East.

Aubrey Huff - The Orioles first baseman is off to a good start (7 HR 34 RBI .266/.339/.474) in the final year of his current contract. This is on the heels of his 32 HR, 108 RBI, .912 OPS season in 2008.

With Carlos Delgado felled by hip surgery, the Mets would currently be the prime candidate to go after Huff.

Danys Baez - Forget his bad outing against the Yankees last night, Baez may be pitching better than he ever has. Everyone always need relief help.

Melvin Mora - The Orioles hold an option for 2010 with a $1 million buyout. It's possible the O's will want to move in a new direction with Mora having recently turned 37. He matched his career high in RBI last season and had his second best home run total. Mora's driven in 15 runs in 25 games this season, but has posted a meek .689 OPS.

The Angels are said to be looking for a third baseman and the Mariners could be too if they decide to move Adrian Beltre.

Yankees won't be Held for Ransom

It remains to be seen whether Cody Ransom is indeed the temporary fix at third base while Alex Rodriguez convalesces. (George King of the Post has more on Ransom.) He's certainly going to get the chance based on the spring he's had thus far, but if turns out that A-Rod will miss much more time than the expected 6-9 weeks, Brian Cashman, despite public statements, will be looking elsewhere for someone to man the hot corner.

Let's take a look at who might be available if the Yankees feel a 33-yr old journeyman isn't their answer on the left side of the infield.

Mark Teahen
It's the name that has been thrown out there most often. Teahen came up as a third baseman, and has also played first base and right field. The 27-yr old has had an up and down four year career in the majors.

His rookie season was nothing to write home about it - .246-7-55 and a .685 OPS- but Teahen's sophomore year was a big improvement. A .290 average, 18 home runs, 69 RBI, and an .874 OPS gave Royals fans a player to hang their hopes on.

Teahen put up another good average .285 in year three, but his power suddenly dropped off - just 7 home runs in 2007. Of more of a concern, were a career high 127 strikeouts.

Last season was a combination of Teahen's entire career. The power returned- 15 home runs, but his average dipped back down to .255 and he had even more strikeouts, 131, than the prior year.

Teahen's career is at a crossroads right now. Is he an every day player or a high power/high strikeout guy platoon or bench player?

With Teahen making over $3.5 million a season, the Royals would like to move him.


Bobby Crosby
Crosby's career has been filled with injuries since he hit 22 home runs as a rookie 2004. He's only topped 100 games once (2008) in the ensuing four years. The A's brought in Orlando Cabrera to play shortstop this season, so Oakland is giving Crosby a look at third base, which serves two purposes.

Eric Chavez has a chronic bad back, so Crosby could see a lot of playing time at his new position. Billy Beane knows another position will also give Crosby more trade value. (Beane also knows in hindsight that he should never have signed Crosby to the long term deal that pays him $5.25 million in this final season of the deal.)

Crosby would come relatively cheap because of his salary, but do you need a high priced player, whose career batting average is .239? Ransom's career average is .251.


Chone Figgins
There have been rumors for several years now about the Angels looking to move Figgins. This could be the year though since Figgins is in the last year of his contract, and Brandon Wood has a chance to establish himself at third base. Then again it could be Woods that's moved, with Figgins signing a new deal.

Figgins would add speed to the team and also would give them a super utility player (2B, 3B, OF) if A-Rod returns to form at third base.


Chad Tracy
Another potential free agent, Tracy was relegated to a part-time role the last two seasons for Arizona after putting up solid numbers in 2004-5. He's a lifetime .804 OPS guy, who, like Teahen, would be replacing a right-handed bat with a left-handed one.

A big knock on Tracy though is the 25 errors he made in those two fine offensive seasons. That's the reason he sees significant time at first base now instead of third. Would the Yankees be willing to take a defensive hit for plus offense?

Melvin Mora
It's hard to imagine the Orioles helping out the Yankees, but Mora could bring some significant trade value to the O's. The 37-yr old is coming off the second best offensive season of his career (.285-23-104).

Mora is set to make $9 million this season and the O's have an option for next year, though the buyout is for only $1 million. A buyout the O's would likely take advantage of.

More would like to finish his career in Baltimore, but perhaps playing for a contender would sway him.


Blake DeWitt
The Dodgers second year player has been mentioned, because of being blocked at third base by Casey Blake, and at second base by Orlando Hudson.

The Yankees would have to give up a prospect of significance for DeWitt, who could still replace Hudson next season. And what do you do with DeWitt once A-Rod is healthy? Your only option would be to deal him or Robinson Cano, if Cano doesn't play to potential.

DeWitt is unlikely to land in Pinstripes.

For now, Cody Ransom is the answer, but will A-Rod or Ransom be the answer on June 1?

photos courtesy of cbc.ca and baltimoresun.com

Pavano (W 1-0)

We had the craziest dream last night. Carl Pavano pitched and won a game for the 2008 Yankees. We woke up laughing. Then we picked up the sports page and remembered that it really did happen. After a bit of a shaky start, fragile Carl threw 5 yeoman-like innings to earn his first win since April 9, 2007.

The Orioles had three runs and a number of runners on base by the end of the second inning, but Pavano began to pitch better after that and the Yankees got enough runs off O's starter Jeremy Guthrie to get Pavano a 5-3 win.

With two away in the third inning, Guthrie tattooed Alex Rodriguez in the left arm with a 96 mph fastball. The next hitter, Jason Giambi, tattooed the baseball into the seats in right-center field for his 25th home run of the season and a 4-3 Yankees lead.

Hideki Matsui's 9th home run of the year, and the second since his return from the DL, gave the Yankees a big insurance run in the seventh inning. It wouldn't be needed as Brian Bruney, Jose Veras, and Mariano Rivera easily put the O's away over the final four innings. Rivera reached the 30 save mark for the 11th time in his career. (A 28-save 2002 season stopped it from being 12 years in a row).

But all eyes were on Pavano in this one, and it seemed to affect him in the early going. The Yankees handed him a 2-0 lead in the first with the help of the Orioles defense, but it appeared Pavano would give it right back. A fine defensive play by Robinson Cano, however, bailed him out.

Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis led off the bottom of the first with singles, but Melvin Mora hit a blooper up the middle that Cano grabbed and, in one motion, tagged out Roberts, who was returning to second base. Roberts put up a mild protest to umpire Ed Hickox, but manager Dave Trembley didn't argue the call. The play proved to be huge when Aubrey Huff followed with what would have been a run-scoring single to center field. Pavano then retired Ramon Hernandez on an inning-ending ground out.

The injury prone right-hander wasn't so lucky in the second inning. Luke Scott led off the inning with a double and Pavano, who struggled with his control early on, walked Kevin Millar. Jay Payton's single then loaded the bases with no one out. Juan Castro's deep fly to left-center brought home one run and both runners advanced when the weaker-armed Johnny Damon called off Xavier Nady, who was poised to throw to second base. Instead, Payton easily moved into scoring position. A Roberts ground out brought home the tying run and Markakis' single to center gave the Orioles a 3-2 lead.

The inning ended in controversy when Mora struck out on a pitch in the dirt. He started to walk away and then- realizing the ball had bounced in the dirt- ran towards first base. Both he and Markakis advanced another base as the Yankees continued off the field. The umpires were going to allow it at first, but Joe Girardi came out and vehemently argued with home plate ump Joe West, who then gathered the other umpires for a conference. It resulted in Mora being called out for the final out, which sent Trembley into a rage that would get him ejected from the ball game.

“The hitter walked toward the dugout to throw his bat and helmet away. He, in doing so, has abandoned his effort to reach the next base,” West said. “He’s called out, according to the rule.”

Given the lead back in the third, Pavano retired the O's in order, for the only time, in the bottom of the third. He got in trouble in the fourth, hitting Millar, possibly in retaliation for A-Rod being hit, and allowed a single to Payton. But then he struck out Castro, Roberts, and Markakis in order, getting the latter two looking at beautifully located pitches on the outside corner. Pavano hit Mora to start the fifth, but retired the final three batters he faced to give the Yankees a chance to gain ground on Boston in the wildcard race.


News and Notes

Jason Giambi's home run was the 389th of his career. Between Japan and the U.S., Hideki Matsui now has 444 home runs.

Alex Rodriguez is 3-8 in the series with all three hits being doubles. Derek Jeter picked up hit number 2,501 and is just 17 hits away from Babe Ruth and second place on the all-time Yankees hit list.

Phil Hughes was hammered in his start Friday night for Scranton. He allowed 8 runs in just 3.1 innings pitched.

August 23, 2008

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
NY Yankees	2	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	0		5	8	0
Baltimore	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		3	9	0

NY Yankees	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Damon, CF	4	1	1	0	1	0	1	.311
Jeter, SS	4	0	1	0	0	1	1	.296
Abreu, RF	4	0	0	0	0	2	3	.293
Rodriguez, A, 3B	3	2	1	1	0	1	0	.309
Giambi, 1B	4	1	2	3	0	0	0	.253
Ransom, 1B	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.000
Nady, LF	4	0	1	0	0	1	0	.327
Matsui, DH	4	1	1	1	0	1	2	.312
Cano, 2B	4	0	1	0	0	2	0	.263
Rodriguez, I, C	4	0	0	0	0	1	1	.285
Totals	35	5	8	5	1	9	8
BATTING 2B: Rodriguez, A (29, Guthrie). HR: Giambi (25, 3rd inning off Guthrie, 1 on, 2 out), Matsui (9, 7th inning off Guthrie, 0 on, 0 out). TB: Damon; Jeter; Rodriguez, A 2; Giambi 5; Nady; Matsui 4; Cano. RBI: Rodriguez, A (78), Giambi 3 (76), Matsui (38). 2-out RBI: Rodriguez, A; Giambi 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Matsui; Abreu. Team LOB: 5. FIELDING DP: (Cano).

NY Yankees	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Pavano (W, 1-0)	5.0	7	3	3	1	5	0	5.40
Bruney (H, 5)	2.0	1	0	0	0	1	0	2.11
Veras (H, 8)	1.0	1	0	0	0	2	0	2.72
Rivera (S, 30)	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1.57

Baltimore	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Roberts, 2B	5	0	1	1	0	1	4	.298
Markakis, RF	5	0	2	1	0	2	2	.302
Mora, 3B	3	0	0	0	0	1	3	.281
Huff, DH	4	0	1	0	0	1	1	.301
Hernandez, R, C	4	0	1	0	0	0	3	.257
Scott, LF	4	1	1	0	0	1	2	.272
Millar, 1B	2	1	0	0	1	1	1	.248
Payton, CF	4	1	3	0	0	0	1	.246
Castro, J, SS	2	0	0	1	0	2	3	.198
a-Cintron, PH	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.278
Totals	34	3	9	3	1	9	20
a-Grounded out for Castro, J in the 9th.
BATTING 2B: Scott (23, Pavano). TB: Roberts; Markakis 2; Huff; Hernandez, R; Scott 2; Payton 3. RBI: Castro, J (10), Roberts (46), Markakis (77). 2-out RBI: Markakis. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Hernandez, R; Markakis; Roberts. SF: Castro, J. Team LOB: 8. BASERUNNING SB: Payton (6, 2nd base off Bruney/Rodriguez, I).

Baltimore IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Guthrie (L, 10-10) 6.2 7 5 5 1 7 2 3.28 Castillo, A 0.1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.79 Cormier 2.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 4.47

HBP: Millar (by Pavano), Mora (by Pavano), Rodriguez, A (by Guthrie). Pitches-strikes: Pavano 91-54, Bruney 29-19, Veras 21-13, Rivera 10-6, Guthrie 115-76, Castillo, A 4-3, Cormier 28-18. Ground outs-fly outs: Pavano 5-4, Bruney 2-3, Veras 1-0, Rivera 2-0, Guthrie 7-6, Castillo, A 0-0, Cormier 3-2. Batters faced: Pavano 24, Bruney 7, Veras 4, Rivera 3, Guthrie 29, Castillo, A 1, Cormier 7. Inherited runners-scored: Castillo, A 2-0. EjectionsBaltimore Orioles Manager Dave Trembley ejected by HP umpire Joe West. (2nd). Umpires: HP: Joe West. 1B: Ed Rapuano. 2B: Ed Hickox. 3B: CB Bucknor. Weather: 82 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 8 mph, Out to LF. T: 3:08. Att: 48,817.

Pavano (W 1-0)

We had the craziest dream last night. Carl Pavano pitched and won a game for the 2008 Yankees. We woke up laughing. Then we picked up the sports page and remembered that it really did happen. After a bit of a shaky start, fragile Carl threw 5 yeoman-like innings to earn his first win since April 9, 2007.

The Orioles had three runs and a number of runners on base by the end of the second inning, but Pavano began to pitch better after that and the Yankees got enough runs off O's starter Jeremy Guthrie to get Pavano a 5-3 win.

With two away in the third inning, Guthrie tattooed Alex Rodriguez in the left arm with a 96 mph fastball. The next hitter, Jason Giambi, tattooed the baseball into the seats in right-center field for his 25th home run of the season and a 4-3 Yankees lead.

Hideki Matsui's 9th home run of the year, and the second since his return from the DL, gave the Yankees a big insurance run in the seventh inning. It wouldn't be needed as Brian Bruney, Jose Veras, and Mariano Rivera easily put the O's away over the final four innings. Rivera reached the 30 save mark for the 11th time in his career. (A 28-save 2002 season stopped it from being 12 years in a row).

But all eyes were on Pavano in this one, and it seemed to affect him in the early going. The Yankees handed him a 2-0 lead in the first with the help of the Orioles defense, but it appeared Pavano would give it right back. A fine defensive play by Robinson Cano, however, bailed him out.

Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis led off the bottom of the first with singles, but Melvin Mora hit a blooper up the middle that Cano grabbed and, in one motion, tagged out Roberts, who was returning to second base. Roberts put up a mild protest to umpire Ed Hickox, but manager Dave Trembley didn't argue the call. The play proved to be huge when Aubrey Huff followed with what would have been a run-scoring single to center field. Pavano then retired Ramon Hernandez on an inning-ending ground out.

The injury prone right-hander wasn't so lucky in the second inning. Luke Scott led off the inning with a double and Pavano, who struggled with his control early on, walked Kevin Millar. Jay Payton's single then loaded the bases with no one out. Juan Castro's deep fly to left-center brought home one run and both runners advanced when the weaker-armed Johnny Damon called off Xavier Nady, who was poised to throw to second base. Instead, Payton easily moved into scoring position. A Roberts ground out brought home the tying run and Markakis' single to center gave the Orioles a 3-2 lead.

The inning ended in controversy when Mora struck out on a pitch in the dirt. He started to walk away and then- realizing the ball had bounced in the dirt- ran towards first base. Both he and Markakis advanced another base as the Yankees continued off the field. The umpires were going to allow it at first, but Joe Girardi came out and vehemently argued with home plate ump Joe West, who then gathered the other umpires for a conference. It resulted in Mora being called out for the final out, which sent Trembley into a rage that would get him ejected from the ball game.

“The hitter walked toward the dugout to throw his bat and helmet away. He, in doing so, has abandoned his effort to reach the next base,” West said. “He’s called out, according to the rule.”

Given the lead back in the third, Pavano retired the O's in order, for the only time, in the bottom of the third. He got in trouble in the fourth, hitting Millar, possibly in retaliation for A-Rod being hit, and allowed a single to Payton. But then he struck out Castro, Roberts, and Markakis in order, getting the latter two looking at beautifully located pitches on the outside corner. Pavano hit Mora to start the fifth, but retired the final three batters he faced to give the Yankees a chance to gain ground on Boston in the wildcard race.


News and Notes

Jason Giambi's home run was the 389th of his career. Between Japan and the U.S., Hideki Matsui now has 444 home runs.

Alex Rodriguez is 3-8 in the series with all three hits being doubles. Derek Jeter picked up hit number 2,501 and is just 17 hits away from Babe Ruth and second place on the all-time Yankees hit list.

Phil Hughes was hammered in his start Friday night for Scranton. He allowed 8 runs in just 3.1 innings pitched.

August 23, 2008

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
NY Yankees	2	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	0		5	8	0
Baltimore	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		3	9	0

NY Yankees	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Damon, CF	4	1	1	0	1	0	1	.311
Jeter, SS	4	0	1	0	0	1	1	.296
Abreu, RF	4	0	0	0	0	2	3	.293
Rodriguez, A, 3B	3	2	1	1	0	1	0	.309
Giambi, 1B	4	1	2	3	0	0	0	.253
Ransom, 1B	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.000
Nady, LF	4	0	1	0	0	1	0	.327
Matsui, DH	4	1	1	1	0	1	2	.312
Cano, 2B	4	0	1	0	0	2	0	.263
Rodriguez, I, C	4	0	0	0	0	1	1	.285
Totals	35	5	8	5	1	9	8
BATTING 2B: Rodriguez, A (29, Guthrie). HR: Giambi (25, 3rd inning off Guthrie, 1 on, 2 out), Matsui (9, 7th inning off Guthrie, 0 on, 0 out). TB: Damon; Jeter; Rodriguez, A 2; Giambi 5; Nady; Matsui 4; Cano. RBI: Rodriguez, A (78), Giambi 3 (76), Matsui (38). 2-out RBI: Rodriguez, A; Giambi 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Matsui; Abreu. Team LOB: 5. FIELDING DP: (Cano).

NY Yankees	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Pavano (W, 1-0)	5.0	7	3	3	1	5	0	5.40
Bruney (H, 5)	2.0	1	0	0	0	1	0	2.11
Veras (H, 8)	1.0	1	0	0	0	2	0	2.72
Rivera (S, 30)	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1.57

Baltimore	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Roberts, 2B	5	0	1	1	0	1	4	.298
Markakis, RF	5	0	2	1	0	2	2	.302
Mora, 3B	3	0	0	0	0	1	3	.281
Huff, DH	4	0	1	0	0	1	1	.301
Hernandez, R, C	4	0	1	0	0	0	3	.257
Scott, LF	4	1	1	0	0	1	2	.272
Millar, 1B	2	1	0	0	1	1	1	.248
Payton, CF	4	1	3	0	0	0	1	.246
Castro, J, SS	2	0	0	1	0	2	3	.198
a-Cintron, PH	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.278
Totals	34	3	9	3	1	9	20
a-Grounded out for Castro, J in the 9th.
BATTING 2B: Scott (23, Pavano). TB: Roberts; Markakis 2; Huff; Hernandez, R; Scott 2; Payton 3. RBI: Castro, J (10), Roberts (46), Markakis (77). 2-out RBI: Markakis. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Hernandez, R; Markakis; Roberts. SF: Castro, J. Team LOB: 8. BASERUNNING SB: Payton (6, 2nd base off Bruney/Rodriguez, I).

Baltimore IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Guthrie (L, 10-10) 6.2 7 5 5 1 7 2 3.28 Castillo, A 0.1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.79 Cormier 2.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 4.47

HBP: Millar (by Pavano), Mora (by Pavano), Rodriguez, A (by Guthrie). Pitches-strikes: Pavano 91-54, Bruney 29-19, Veras 21-13, Rivera 10-6, Guthrie 115-76, Castillo, A 4-3, Cormier 28-18. Ground outs-fly outs: Pavano 5-4, Bruney 2-3, Veras 1-0, Rivera 2-0, Guthrie 7-6, Castillo, A 0-0, Cormier 3-2. Batters faced: Pavano 24, Bruney 7, Veras 4, Rivera 3, Guthrie 29, Castillo, A 1, Cormier 7. Inherited runners-scored: Castillo, A 2-0. EjectionsBaltimore Orioles Manager Dave Trembley ejected by HP umpire Joe West. (2nd). Umpires: HP: Joe West. 1B: Ed Rapuano. 2B: Ed Hickox. 3B: CB Bucknor. Weather: 82 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 8 mph, Out to LF. T: 3:08. Att: 48,817.

The Pennant Race - 8/21

You just get the feeling that for the second straight year, the Mets and Phillies will come down to the final weekend to determine the NL East winner. The Mets are playing good baseball, but they haven't been able to put much cushion between themselves and the Phillies since moving into first place.

Mike Pelfrey has really stepped up this season and did again last night, limiting the Braves to three hits in a complete game, 6-3 Mets victory. David Wright continued his run at the NL MVP with his 24th home run and 97th RBI. Rookie Dan Murphy's two RBI gave him 11 in 18 games and he's batting .404 in 47 at-bats.

The Phillies got a complete game of their own from Brett Myers, who scattered nine hits in shutting down the Nationals 4-0. Washington has lost 12 straight. After a brief stint in the minors, Myers has returned to form and is 3-1, 1.47 in his last five starts.

The Marlins' hopes are fading away. They dropped a 6-5 game to the Giants last night that put them 5 games behind the Mets and 7.5 behind the wildcard-leading Brewers. Florida rallied for 3 runs in the top of the ninth to tie the game, but Bengie Molina's sac fly won it for the Giants in the bottom of the ninth.

Speaking of the Brewers, they got themselves back to within 5 games of the Cubs with a 5-2 win over the Astros. J.J. Hardy hit a 2-run home run to help Manny Parra win his 10th game. Ryan Braun sat out for the 9th time in 11 games due to lower back soreness.

The Reds edged the Cubs 2-1 despite starter Ted Lilly allowing just two hits over seven innings.

The Cardinals remained 2.5 behind the Brewers in the wildcard with an 11-2 thumping of the Pirates. Todd Wellemeyer won his career-high 11th game and reached the century mark in strikeouts for the first time.

The Diamondbacks moved two games ahead of the Dodgers with an 8-6 win over the Padres. Neither starter Dan Haren nor Jake Peavy was good, but after allowing four runs in the first inning, Haren settled down to get the win. Adam Dunn belted a 3-run home run, his 34th of the season.

The Rockies played spoilers, beating the Dodgers 4-3. The Dodgers lead 3-0 early, but Brad Hawpe almost single-handedly beat LA. He reached on an error that cut the lead to 3-2, singled in the game-tying run in the seventh, and singled again in the ninth to drive in the go-ahead run.


There was no movement in the AL Central standings as both the White Sox and Twins were daytime winners. Chicago got four home runs in a 15-3 rout of the Mariners. Ken Griffey Jr. tied Sammy CheaterSosa with his 609th career home run, and his first in Chicago. Gavin Floyd earned his 13th win.

Francisco Lirano and four pitchers pitched the Twins to a 3-1 win over the A's. Little-used reserve Mike Redmond drove in two runs.

The AL East's top two teams remained 4.5 apart as they both lost last night. The Angels beat the Rays 5-4, overcoming an early 3-0 deficit, and then winning after blowing a 4-3 lead. Garret Anderson's ninth inning single was the game winner. K-Rod notched his 48th save.

The Red Sox jumped out to a 4-0 lead, but it was all Baltimore after that as the Orioles won it 11-6. Melvin Mora, who had four RBI, and Ramon Hernandez each hit 3-run home runs. Clay Buchholz was hammered for five runs in 2.1 IP and is reportedly headed back to Pawtucket.