Lost in Transactions 5/11-5/17/09: Demotions, waivers and releases, oh my!

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Carlos Delgado (Icon/SMI)

This week saw Carlos Delgado go on the disabled list with a chronic hip injury, threatening the Mets’ first base hopes for the remainder of the year. The Marlins demoted slumping outfielder Cameron Maybin, the Red Sox made a curious move, and D-Train returned.

5/11/09

Florida Marlins optioned CF Cameron Maybin to New Orleans Zephyrs.

Maybin was off to a brutal start to the season and has a .202/280/.310 line that he toted off to Triple-A. With Chris Coughlan and Cody Ross forcing him out, it didn’t make sense to have the 22-year-old waste away on the bench. Maybin hadn’t even seen Triple-A yet, but so far he’s showing he never needed to, as he holds a .421 average since being demoted.

Maybin is the only sure thing for next year’s outfield, really. In left, Chris Coughlan is getting the bulk of the time, but it would be surprising if he didn’t end up at third base long term. In center, Cody Ross is holding the fort down for the time being, but this is a 29-year-old with a career .255/.315/.479 line. The power has always been there, but he doesn’t look to be a consistent performer (channeling Joe Morgan there). In right field, Jeremy Hermida hasn’t exorcised his 2008 demons and could overstay his time in Florida as he is arbitration eligible after the season. If Hermida doesn’t pick it up, he’ll likely be jettisoned.

Ross and Hermida will join Jorge Cantu, Dan Uggla, Ricky Nolasco and others in line for arbitration raises, so this could be a busy offseason in Florida.

Next year could easily see Maybin the only outfielder on the roster projected to begin the season with the Marlins.

Kansas City Royals recalled Luke Hochevar from Omaha Royals.

It seems as if the Royals are copying the Twins’ philosophy (which they’ve since abandoned, by the way) of bringing in lousy veterans to stink the joint up in April while their better players toil in the minors. Now that the club has finally banished Sidney Ponson to the rotation, Hochevar is taking over.

Hochevar hasn’t exactly lived up to expectations as the Royals’ top pick in 2006, but he’s also shown he has nothing left to learn at the minor league level. He stunk up the joint in his first start of the year, giving up seven hits in two innings, but the Royals need to stick with him. He can still turn into a solid back-of-the-rotation starter.

For all the hoopla about the Royals’ solid start—hoopla deserved, by the way—would there be the same hoopla if Zack Greinke wasn’t doing his best impression of 1999 Pedro Martinez? I’m going with no. Eliminate Greinke from the team and Meche leads all starters with a 4.60 ERA. Brian Bannister, who didn’t even open the season in the bigs, would lead all players in wins with three. If they want to withstand Greinke’s inevitable regression, they need to improve on their team OPS of .756, 19th in the bigs.

Kansas City Royals placed RHP Joakim Soria on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 8, 2009. Sore right shoulder.

Speaking of the Royals, how about their mismanagement of Soria? So close, yet so far…

Washington Nationals activated RHP Terrell Young from the 15-day disabled list.
Florida Marlins transferred RHP Scott Proctor from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.
RHP Ryan Speier assigned to Modesto Nuts from Colorado Rockies.
Houston Astros optioned J.R. Towles to Round Rock Express.
San Diego Padres optioned Arturo Lopez to Portland Beavers.
Chicago White Sox optioned Jose Contreras to Charlotte Knights.
Los Angeles Angels optioned Anthony Ortega to Salt Lake Bees.
Pittsburgh Pirates optioned Brian Bixler to Indianapolis Indians.
Chicago White Sox called up LHP Jimmy Gobble from Charlotte Knights.
Florida Marlins called up John Koronka from New Orleans Zephyrs.
San Diego Padres recalled CF Drew Macias from Portland Beavers.

5/12/09

Boston Red Sox placed 1B Kevin Youkilis on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 5, 2009. Left oblique strain.

The Red Sox waited a whole week to disable Youkilis, which goes to show how concerned the Red Sox are about their offense. It may be fourth in the league in OPS, but that’s misleading. Jacoby Ellsbury doesn’t give any power, David Ortiz is in the worst slump of his career, perhaps his life, and really, only Dustin Pedroia, Youkilis and now Jason Bay can be counted upon. It’s a top offense with the potential to plummet very, very fast.

The Red Sox couldn’t justify it any longer, however, and finally caved. Youk will come back Wednesday and replace Jeff Bailey in the lineup. Also returning this week will be Daisuke Matsuzaka, who will push Justin Masterson to the bullpen and make the ‘pen that much better.

What to do about that starting pitching, though? Josh Beckett and Jon Lester’s FIPs are far better than their ERA’s, so they’re due to start pitching better. Until they do, though, they’re not helping a rotation that is one of the most inefficient in the game. If Dice-K can’t mirror his previous two years with the Sox out of the gate, John Smoltz won’t be able to get there quick enough.

Pittsburgh Pirates activated SS Jack Wilson from the 15-day disabled list.
Texas Rangers activated CF Josh Hamilton from the 15-day disabled list.
Cleveland Indians activated 2B Jamey Carroll from the 15-day disabled list.
Arizona Diamondbacks activated LHP Clay Zavada.
Houston Astros activated C Humberto Quintero from the 15-day disabled list.
Arizona Diamondbacks placed LF Conor Jackson on the 15-day disabled list. General illness
SS Brendan Ryan assigned to Memphis Redbirds from St. Louis Cardinals.
CF Angel Pagan assigned to Buffalo Bisons from New York Mets.
RHP Santiago Casilla assigned to Sacramento River Cats from Oakland Athletics.
RHP Chien-Ming Wang assigned to Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees from New York Yankees.
Jason Schmidt assigned to Inland Empire 66ers from Los Angeles Dodgers.
Arizona Diamondbacks optioned RHP Bobby Korecky to Reno Aces.
Texas Rangers optioned 2B Joaquin Arias to Oklahoma City RedHawks.
Cleveland Indians optioned 2B Josh Barfield to Columbus Clippers.
San Francisco Giants optioned RHP Osiris Matos to Fresno Grizzlies.
Arizona Diamondbacks called up CF Gerardo Parra from Mobile BayBears.
San Francisco Giants recalled LHP Pat Misch from Fresno Grizzlies.
Arizona Diamondbacks recalled LHP Clay Zavada from Mobile BayBears.
Los Angeles Angels recalled Bobby Wilson from Salt Lake Bees.
Boston Red Sox recalled SS Gil Velazquez from Pawtucket Red Sox.

5/13/09

Detroit Tigers activated LHP Dontrelle Willis from the 15-day disabled list.

The D-Train looked like he was getting back on track in the minors, so the Tigers brought him up. He was very uneven in his first start and didn’t show anything that intimated he could stick in the rotation. He’ll get a couple more spots, but if he can’t show progress, the Tigers may just elect to throw their hands up and release him.

It’s a shame what Willis has become after exciting the league as a young pitcher. His high-maintenance delivery and miles on his arm at such a young age were hard to ignore, and it’s manifesting itself now. Willis’ career is far from over, but his chances of remaining a starter are growing dimmer by the way.

The Tigers have gotten off to a nice start, largely because of their increased focus on defense. Josh Anderson was a great under-the-radar move who I believed could really help the team—and he has. The pitching has been enjoyable to watch, with Edwin Jackson enjoying his new uniform, Justin Verlander returning to form, Armando Galarraga continuing his ascent from nowhere and Rick Porcello holding his own as a 20-year-old. With these strong four, the Tigers can afford to give Willis a few more starts. That’s all Willis will get though. He’s on a very short leash as the bullpen could still use some tweaking.

St. Louis Cardinals recalled LF Nick Stavinoha from Memphis Redbirds.

Stavinoha could start taking some starts away from Chris Duncan against left-handers, as the Cardinals are trying to keep their hot start afloat with an offense that isn’t clicking just yet and saw Ryan Ludwick hit the disabled list this week.

Stavinoha doesn’t figure to become a long-term starter, but he shows enough hitting ability to stick as a bench player. When Ludwick and Troy Glaus come back along with Rick Ankiel finding his form, the offense should start coming together—and Stavinoha likely won’t be part of the team at that point.

There could be other changes on the horizon as well. Khalil Greene so far hasn’t shown that his poor hitting last year was solely due to Petco Park. The club is also concerned about his range, so if Greene can’t make strides by the All-Star break, the club could turn to Brendan Ryan or add a shortstop from outside the organization.

Greene’s line-drive percentage is the best it’s ever been, and the best since 2005. In 2005, Greene hit .250/.296/.431, so that isn’t all that encouraging. What is encouraging is that his BABIP is at .220 which is simply unsustainable and the worst in his career by far, even without Petco Park in the equation. Greene doesn’t have a lot of time on his side, but at some point this year or next year, Greene will make his team very happy.

St. Louis Cardinals placed RF Ryan Ludwick on the 15-day disabled list. Strained right hamstring.
Brian Anderson assigned to Charlotte Knights from Chicago White Sox.
Detroit Tigers designated RHP Juan Rincon for assignment.
Arizona Diamondbacks designated SS Josh Wilson for assignment.
Arizona Diamondbacks optioned LHP Clay Zavada to Mobile BayBears.
Arizona Diamondbacks called up Bryan Augenstein from Mobile BayBears.
RHP Terrell Young returned to Louisville Bats from Washington Nationals.

5/14/09

Los Angeles Angels activated RHP Ervin Santana from the 15-day disabled list.

The hurting Angels are finally getting healthy. Ervin Santana, their breakthrough pitcher of the year last year, comes back to help anchor the rotation along with John Lackey.

Santana had two solid years in 2005 and 2006 but struggled with home/road splits, a mental block seemingly developing into an inability for Santana to pitch on the road. That culminated in his 5.76 ERA season in 2007 with 150 innings pitched. Putting it all behind him, he pitched brilliantly in 2008 to put him on the map. 214 strikeouts against 47 walks in 219 innings is extremely impressive, and he was a minimizing of home runs allowed away from being a Cy Young contender.

He came back from a partially torn left ligament to give up three runs in five innings against the Red Sox. It would have been more, but David Ortiz was always up in key situations to bail him out. There is concern that he may eventually require surgery for it, but he seems fairly healthy at this point. The pressure will be on him to show that last year was no fluke, as he bumped his K/9 rate over a full point and halved his walk rate. With a BABIP of .302 and abandoning his curveball with success, odds are he will have no problem living up to what he gave the Angels last year.

Milwaukee Brewers recalled 3B Mat Gamel from Nashville Sounds.

This was a pretty interesting move. Brad Nelson wasn’t working out as their lefty option off the bench, so they turned to Gamel to see what they could get out of him.

It may be strange on the face of it for a team to call up a 23-year-old to sit on the bench with Frank Catalanotto due to join the club in a month, but it actually makes a lot of sense.

Firstly, the Brewers are embroiled in a tough division with the Cubs and Cardinals (and the Astros would like to think of themselves as part of this group) as contenders for the division. The Brewers can’t afford to sit around and wait for Catalanotto, not when the current option is not doing well at all.

Gamel bashed 19 home runs in Double-A last year and was up to eight in Triple-A this year before the recall. It’s clear that this guy can hit and well be part of a Brewers lineup for a long time.

With interleague play fast approaching, the Brewers can use his stick as a designated hitter until Catalanotto is ready. It allows the Brewers to integrate him into the majors more smoothly while continuing to get him regular playing time in Triple-A.

If the Brewers had not signed The Cat, Nelson likely wouldn’t have been cut. They wouldn’t have wanted to keep Gamel up in an open-ended environment as a backup infielder. Now, though, they remove the pressure for Gamel to perform as he knows that he is going down when Catalanotto is ready. They also remove the pressure from themselves to make sure Gamel gets healthy at-bats.

What’s in Gamel’s future?

It would be very, very strange to not see Gamel manning the hot corner next year. With Mike Cameron a free agent and likely to depart, the Brewers could move Bill Hall (again) to center field and have Tony Gwynn Jr. as a backup. I suppose it’s possible the club cuts ties with Hall, but since his offense seems to be stabilizing after being shifted willy-nilly all over the diamond, it’s unlikely they will want to. So do they take the risk and send him back to center field or do they trade him and go get a different center fielder.

A lot of questions to answer but the Brewers will gladly do it to get Gamel in the lineup in 2010.

Detroit Tigers placed LHP Nate Robertson on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 6, 2009. Low back muscle strain.
Milwaukee Brewers activated C Mike Rivera from the 15-day disabled list.
Houston Astros placed RHP Geoff Geary on the 15-day disabled list. Right biceps tendinitis.
RHP Sergio Romo assigned to San Jose Giants from San Francisco Giants.
Baltimore Orioles optioned RHP Bob McCrory to Norfolk Tides.
Los Angeles Angels optioned Rafael Rodriguez to Salt Lake Bees.
Milwaukee Brewers optioned C Carlos Corporan to Nashville Sounds.
Oakland Athletics optioned RHP Jeff Gray to Sacramento River Cats.
Cleveland Indians optioned Jeremy Sowers to Columbus Clippers.
Milwaukee Brewers outrighted Brad Nelson to Nashville Sounds.
Cleveland Indians outrighted RHP Vinnie Chulk to Columbus Clippers.
Cleveland Indians signed free agent RHP Luis Vizcaino.
Detroit Tigers called up Lucas French from Toledo Mud Hens.
New York Mets called up RHP Nelson Figueroa from Buffalo Bisons.
Washington Nationals recalled C Josh Bard from Syracuse Chiefs.
Baltimore Orioles recalled RF Nolan Reimold from Norfolk Tides.
Houston Astros recalled RHP Jeff Fulchino from Round Rock Express.

5/15/09

Boston Red Sox outrighted LHP Javier Lopez to Pawtucket Red Sox.

I still haven’t quite heard a legitimate answer as to why the Sox chose to cut Javier Lopez rather than demote Hunter Jones to the minors. Jones was in his first career stint in the bigs, and although he’s shown promise to eventually be a solid middle reliever, that time isn’t now. His statistics would seem to attest to that, as he has a 8.00 ERA in nine innings pitched, giving up 10 hits, walking four and striking out seven.

For comparison, Lopez had turned in three more than solid years for the Red Sox and was off to a poor start: 9.26 ERA, 11.2 IP, 20 H, 9 BB, 5 K. It’s clear that Jones has more of a strikeout ability than Lopez, which is all well and good, but Jones isn’t going to put up the type of numbers Lopez did from 2006 to 2008, at least not right now. He also has historically not done well against left-handed batters, so he can’t even be used in a situational role while Lopez can. That’s mitigated somewhat by the ability of the Sox’s pen overall to shut down lefties, but it seems to me a particularly rash decision to make.

Oh well. It’s not as if Jones will last the whole season. He’s the heavy favorite over Daniel Bard to be shipped out for Daisuke Matsuzaka this week, but that would leave the Sox with just one lefty in the bullpen. Is that what they want?

Los Angeles Dodgers called up LHP Eric Milton from Albuquerque Isotopes.

Anyone wanna bet that Milton will be the next Dodgers pitcher to resurrect his career, land a nice salary elsewhere and then bomb? Chan Ho Park, I’m looking at you.

Milton was a good innings-eating lefty for a few years, mostly with the Minnesota Twins. Alas, he was grossly overpaid by Cincinnati to head to their hitter’s park, where he wrecked his career. (It must be said that he did pitch well in Citizen’s Bank Park for the Phillies in his only season for them, 2004.)

Recovering from Tommy John surgery, if he can move past his injuries and his sudden propensity to give up home runs, he could eat innings again. Of course, with Hiroki Kuroda due back shortly, Milton may find himself bumped off to the bullpen unless the team opts to move Eric Stults to the bullpen instead. To make room for Milton, the Dodgers shipped James McDonald out.

McDonald seems to be experiencing the yips, as he’s walked 16 batters in 18 innings. That amounts to a 7.71 BB/9, with his highest previous mark coming in 2006 in Single-A (4.11)!

I’m still extremely high on McDonald and it’s way too early to write him off. He’ll be back, and a big part of the Dodgers’ postseason hopes.

Oakland Athletics activated RHP Santiago Casilla from the 15-day disabled list.
St. Louis Cardinals activated SS Brendan Ryan from the 15-day disabled list.
LF Delmon Young roster status changed by Minnesota Twins.
Toronto Blue Jays activated LHP B.J. Ryan from the 15-day disabled list.
San Diego Padres transferred RHP Cha Seung Baek from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list. Strained right forearm.
San Diego Padres placed SS Luis Rodriguez on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 14, 2009. Sprained left ankle.
Washington Nationals placed C Jesus Flores on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 10, 2009. Riight shoulder contusion.
Andres Torres assigned to San Jose Giants from San Francisco Giants.
DH Travis Hafner assigned to Columbus Clippers from Cleveland Indians.
Washington Nationals designated RHP Logan Kensing for assignment.
Colorado Rockies designated LHP Glendon Rusch for assignment.
Oakland Athletics optioned Jerry Blevins to Sacramento River Cats.
Toronto Blue Jays optioned LHP Ricky Romero to Las Vegas 51s.
San Diego Padres optioned Edwin Moreno to Portland Beavers.
Toronto Blue Jays optioned Bill Murphy to Las Vegas 51s.
Los Angeles Dodgers optioned James McDonald to Albuquerque Isotopes.
St. Louis Cardinals optioned Mitchell Boggs to Memphis Redbirds.
San Diego Padres released RHP Duaner Sanchez.
San Diego Padres claim SS Josh Wilson off waivers from Arizona Diamondbacks.
Washington Nationals called up RHP Jesus Colome from Syracuse Chiefs.
Colorado Rockies called up Randy Flores from Colorado Springs Sky Sox.
San Diego Padres called up RHP Greg Burke from Portland Beavers.
Oakland Athletics recalled Aaron Cunningham from Sacramento River Cats.
San Diego Padres recalled LHP Joe Thatcher from Portland Beavers.
Minnesota Twins recalled Jose Morales from Rochester Red Wings.
OF Ben Copeland returned to Fresno Grizzlies from Oakland Athletics.

5/16/09

New York Mets placed 1B Carlos Delgado on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 11, 2009. Right hip impingement.

The only way Delgado can fix his injury is to have surgery, and it doesn’t seem to be one he wants to have. This is going to plague him for the rest of his career if he doesn’t undergo the knife, and I would have to think he wouldn’t be looked at a starting option at first base in the offseason, when he’s a free agent. It’s too much of a risk.

There’s no word on Delgado’s plans yet, but the club wants him to undergo surgery. He would be back sometime in August, allowing the Mets to fill the position internally without having to make a move: Fernando Tatis and David Murphy (my prediction to be the first baseman of the Mets for the next five years) would see the bulk of at-bats with Gary Sheffield playing left field. In the short-term, this is actually good news: get Delgado healthy and see if Sheffield still has a pulse. If he does, great. If not, cut him and find another player.

If Delgado delays surgery until the offseason or until after his career is over, however, he runs the risk of the Mets deciding they can’t trust him for the remainder of the year and making an acquisition (Nick Johnson?) to be able to count on someone. (Never thought I’d intimate Nick Johnson could be counted on, but there you go.) For both the Mets and Delgado’s sake, I hope he undergoes the surgery. The Mets’ season and Delgado’s short-term career depends on it.

New York Yankees traded RHP Eric Hacker to Pittsburgh Pirates and Indianapolis Indians traded RHP Romulo Sanchez to Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees.

Hacker was put on the 40-man roster this offseason, coming off a nice season in Double-A. Hacker, 25, was in Triple-A taking turns in the rotation and had an ugly 6.30 ERA, but he had just been promoted from Double-A where he had a 4.11 ERA. He has a power arm, and the Pirates under Neal Huntington love power arms. It stands to good reason: the best way to ensure that a hitter doesn’t hurt you is to strike him out. It sounds so easy.

Hacker was waived to make room for Brett Tomko, and the Pirates pounced. They sent Romulo Sanchez to the Yankees. Unlike Hacker, Sanchez is a reliever—although one the old regime thought could be valuable. The new organization was skeptical, due to Sanchez’s jittery command and not much else. He’s whiffed 15 in 13 innings in Triple-A, but that’s vastly misleading: his K/9 for Triple-A in 2008 was 5.50. He may see a couple glimpses of playing time with the Yankees but unless his newfound strikeout ability is for real, he’s a bit player.

Baltimore Orioles activated LHP Rich Hill from the 15-day disabled list.

This is one storyline this season in which I am very interested. Can Hill get over his struggles that saw him go from a highly-sought-after young lefty pitcher to one plucked up off the scrap heap a year later? His first start for the O’s went swimmingly (5.2 IP, 2 BB, 6 K), so we’ll see what happens from here on out. If he can repeat his 2007 season (11-8, 3.92 ERA, 195 IP) then another spot in the rotation for the Orioles just stopped being a revolving door.

New York Mets activated CF Angel Pagan from the 15-day disabled list.
Los Angeles Angels activated RHP John Lackey from the 15-day disabled list.
Baltimore Orioles placed LF Luke Scott on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 11, 2009. Strained left shoulder.
Florida Marlins activated LHP Andrew Miller from the 15-day disabled list.
Texas Rangers placed RHP Frank Francisco on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 7, 2009. Right biceps tendinitis.
Pittsburgh Pirates transferred LHP Phil Dumatrait from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.
Jorge Campillo assigned to Mississippi Braves from Atlanta Braves.
Carlos Zambrano assigned to Daytona Cubs from Chicago Cubs.
Jeremy Bonderman assigned to West Michigan Whitecaps from Detroit Tigers.
Philadelphia Phillies designated 2B Miguel Cairo for assignment.
Los Angeles Angels optioned C Bobby Wilson to Salt Lake Bees.
Florida Marlins optioned Brett Carroll to New Orleans Zephyrs.
Washington Nationals outrighted Mike Hinckley to Syracuse Chiefs.
Philadelphia Phillies recalled RHP Andrew Carpenter from Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
Texas Rangers recalled Warner Madrigal from Oklahoma City RedHawks.

5/17/09

Pittsburgh Pirates recalled LHP Tom Gorzelanny from Indianapolis Indians.

Gorzo was a massive disappointment for the Pirates last year. He was supposed to lead the Pirates last year with Paul Maholm and Ian Snell right behind him. Maholm would (and continues to) live up to his promise, but Gorzelanny’s walk rate ballooned from 3.03 in 2007 to 5.98 in 2008, causing a spike in ERA to 6.66—and FIP couldn’t come to the rescue and say he was unlucky, either.

It’s too early to say if Gorzo is back, but his peripherals in Triple-A are encouraging, similar to his 2007 peripherals when he had a 3.88 ERA in 201.2 innings. His recall doesn’t figure to be permanent because his future is as a starter, not as a reliever. With an immediate need, however, Gorzelanny was the choice. I’m sure the coaches are very interested to see whether Gorzelanny can get past the control problems of last year and spring training and show them some promise.

Cleveland Indians called up David Huff from Columbus Clippers.

The Indians have to be praying that Huff develops. The team doesn’t have one true standout ace pitcher. Sure, they have Cliff Lee, but he’s not so much an ace as he is a very good No. 2. Behind him they have a ton of righty soft-tossers, from Carl Pavano to Anthony Reyes to a struggling Fausto Carmona who can’t keep the ball on the ground at a good clip anymore. They need a hard-throwing starter to come aboard and lift them on his shoulders.

Is Huff that man? Probably not. But he’s better than players like Jeremy Sowers who keep getting turns on the mound to see how many runs he can give up that day.

Huff, 24, had a very successful 2008 campaign. He befuddled Double-A hitters to the tune of a 1.98 ERA, striking 62 out and walking 14. He was promoted to Triple-A where he was one of the better pitchers in the league, posting a 3.01 ERA and similar (actually, better) peripherals.

Seven starts in Triple-A this year (4.35 ERA) was all it took for the Indians to recall Huff. As part of a rehauling, Huff will get a couple starts to make his case. He doesn’t quite project to be an ace, but he does project to be a good middle of the rotation starter. The Indians are developing back end of the rotation starters by the dozen, but can’t seem to get any more than that. Huff could help change that.

Personally, I see no reason why Huff can’t be an ace. His minor league numbers are astounding: he allows roughly one home run per nine innings (excellent) and last year had a 5.40 K/BB ratio in Triple-A with 9.04 strikeouts per nine innings. With some evolvement and filling out, Huff could be a guy to watch.

The Indians will have to get their ace through the trade market. Although young pitching is gold these days, the Indians have a very valuable trade chip in Victor Martinez. V-Mart isn’t a free agent until after 2010 and he’s answered all the questions people had for him after his disastrous 2008 campaign. Could the Indians pry someone like Clay Buchholz from the Red Sox? Probably not, but that’s their best shot to get an ace quickly.

Washington Nationals placed LHP Scott Olsen on the 15-day disabled list. Left shoulder tendinitis.
Cleveland Indians transferred LHP Scott Lewis from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.
Florida Marlins transferred RHP Rick VandenHurk from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.
Pittsburgh Pirates placed RHP Tyler Yates on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 16, 2009. Right elbow inflammation.
Brian Bruney assigned to Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees from New York Yankees.
Philadelphia Phillies optioned Andrew Carpenter to Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
Cleveland Indians optioned Tony Sipp to Columbus Clippers.
Florida Marlins optioned Carlos Martinez to New Orleans Zephyrs.
Cleveland Indians outrighted Masa Kobayashi to Columbus Clippers.
Florida Marlins called up CF Alejandro De Aza from New Orleans Zephyrs.
Cleveland Indians called up Greg Aquino from Columbus Clippers.
Washington Nationals recalled LHP Ross Detwiler from Harrisburg Senators.
Philadelphia Phillies recalled LHP Sergio Escalona from Reading Phillies.
San Francisco Giants recalled 2B Kevin Frandsen from Fresno Grizzlies.


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