Around the majors reports--July 25

[nyy26wc]

1) Yesterday's results--

AL NL
Yankees 6, Tigers 5 Phillies 10, Expos 2
Redsox 6, BlueJays 4 Marlins 4, Mets 3
Whitesox 4, Indians 1 Astros 2, Cardinals 1
Rangers 8, Orioles 7 Reds 11, Braves 3
Royals 6, Mariners 1 Cubs 10, Pirates 2
Angels 9, Devil Rays 6 Dodgers 7, Brewers 2
A's 7, Twins 6 Diamondbacks 11, Padres 0
Rockies 6, Giants 4

2) Standings--

AL EAST W L Pct GB L10 Str Home Away
Yankees 59 41 .590 - 6-4 W-3 32-19 27-22
Redsox 57 42 .576 1 1/2 5-5 W-1 27-20 30-22
BlueJays 47 54 .465 12 1/2 3-7 L-3 23-28 24-26
Orioles 42 57 .424 16 1/2 2-8 L-2 22-30 20-27
Devil Rays 32 68 .320 27 4-6 L-1 19-32 13-36

AL CENTRAL W L Pct GB L10 Str Home Away
Indians 57 41 .582 - 6-4 L-1 27-23 30-18
Twins 58 42 .580 - 1-9 L-5 34-19 24-23
Whitesox 49 49 .500 8 6-4 W-1 28-23 21-26
Tigers 43 54 .443 13 1/2 5-5 L-3 25-23 18-31
Royals 39 61 .390 19 4-6 W-1 21-30 18-31

AL WEST W L Pct GB L10 Str Home Away
Mariners 72 28 .720 - 7-3 L-1 32-15 40-13
A's 54 46 .540 18 8-2 W-2 27-21 27-25
Angels 51 49 .510 21 8-2 W-2 26-21 25-28
Rangers 41 57 .418 30 5-5 W-1 21-27 20-30

NL EAST W L Pct GB L10 Str Home Away
Braves 56 44 .560 - 5-5 L-2 27-25 29-19
Phillies 55 45 .550 1 4-6 W-1 31-20 24-25
Marlins 52 48 .520 4 7-3 W-2 32-17 20-31
Mets 45 56 .445 11 1/2 6-4 L-2 25-24 20-32
Expos 44 57 .436 12 1/2 5-5 L-1 24-24 20-33

NL CENTRAL W L Pct GB L10 Str Home Away
Cubs 58 41 .586 - 6-4 W-2 29-16 29-25
Astros 55 44 .556 3 6-4 W-1 26-26 29-18
Cardinals 49 49 .500 8 1/2 6-4 L-2 31-21 18-28
Brewers 43 56 .434 15 0-10 L-11 23-26 20-30
Pirates 38 60 .388 19 1/2 3-7 L-1 22-24 16-36
Reds 38 62 .380 20 1/2 4-6 W-2 13-37 25-25

NL WEST W L Pct GB L10 Str Home Away
Diamondbacks 58 42 .580 - 5-5 W-1 27-22 31-20
Dodgers 58 43 .574 1/2 9-1 W-4 31-18 27-25
Giants 52 49 .515 6 1/2 5-5 L-4 33-20 19-29
Padres 49 52 .485 9 1/2 6-4 L-1 22-31 27-21
Rockies 43 57 .430 15 3-7 W-2 26-26 17-31

3) Today's schedule--

AL
Orioles (John Parrish 0-0 and Calvin Maduro 0-2) at Rangers (Justin Duchscherer 0-0 and Doug Davis 5-7), 6:05 p.m.
BlueJays (Esteban Loaiza 6-9) at Redsox (Rolando Arrojo 2-3), 7:05 p.m.
Tigers (Jose Lima 2-1) at Yankees (Ted Lilly 3-3), 7:05 p.m.
Whitesox (Rocky Biddle 2-6) at Indians (Jake Westbrook 2-2), 7:05 p.m.
Devil Rays (Bryan Rekar 1-11) at Angels (Ramon Ortiz 7-7), 10:05 p.m.
Royals (Paul Byrd 1-5) at Mariners (Aaron Sele 12-1), 10:05 p.m.
Twins (Joe Mays 11-7) at A's (Cory Lidle 4-4), 10:05 p.m.

NL
Reds (Jose Acevedo 2-2) at Braves (Kevin Millwood 1-4), 1:05 p.m.
Expos (Mike Thurman 5-6) at Phillies (Robert Person 8-5), 1:05 p.m.
Astros (Tim Redding 3-0) at Cardinals (Dustin Hermanson 7-8), 1:40 p.m.
Dodgers (Luke Prokopec 6-5) at Brewers (Ben Sheets 10-7), 2:05 p.m.
Pirates (David Williams 1-2) at Cubs (Jon Lieber 12-5), 2:20 p.m.
Giants (Livan Hernandez 8-11) at Rockies (Brian Bohanon 5-5), 3:05 p.m.
Mets (Glendon Rusch 5-6) at Marlins (Ryan Dempster 11-8), 7:05 p.m.
Padres (Sterling Hitchcock 2-0) at Diamondbacks (Miguel Batista 5-6), 10:05 p.m.

4) Yesterday's HRs--

Luis Gonzalez--#39 & #40
Sammy Sosa--#34
Vladimir Guerrero--#28
Todd Helton--#28
Shawn Green--#27
Carlos Delgado--#26
Gary Sheffield--#23
Jason Giambi--#23
Greg Vaughn--#23
Andruw Jones--#22
Garret Anderson--#17
Robert Fick--#17
Bernie Williams--#17
Rich Aurilia--#16
Eric Chavez--#15
Travis Lee--#15
Jay Gibbons--#15
Mark McGwire--#13
Ray Durham--#12
Mark Quinn--#12
Juan Encarnacion--#11
Tim Salmon--#10
Dmitri Young--#10
Ron Belliard--#8 & #9
Scott Spiezio--#6
Marvin Benard--#6
Jay Payton--#4
Tomas Perez--#1 & #2
Cesar Izturis--#2
Ryan Minor--#2
Chris Gomez--#1

5) HR leaders--

AL
1) Jim Thome--31
2) Manny Ramirez--30
3) Alex Rodriguez--27
T4) Rafael Palmeiro--26
T4) Juan Gonzalez--26
T4) Carlos Delgado--26*
7) Troy Glaus--24
T8) Jason Giambi--23*
T8) Bret Boone--23
T8) Greg Vaughn--23*

NL
1) Barry Bonds--42
2) Luis Gonzalez--40**
3) Sammy Sosa--34*
T4) Jeff Bagwell--28
T4) Larry Walker--28
T4) Chipper Jones--28
T4) Cliff Floyd--28
T4) Todd Helton--28*
T4) Vladimir Guerrero--28*
T10) Lance Berkman--27
T10) Phil Nevin--27
T10) Shawn Green--27*

**--hit 2 yesterday
*--hit 1 yesterday

6) Mark McGwire watch--hit #567, is 6 behind Harmon Killebrew for 5th place

7) Greg Vaughn passed Ron Santo into 63rd place on the all time HR list, with 343.

8) Gary Sheffield passed Rogers Hornsby, Mike Piazza and Ron Gant into 87th place on the all time HR list, with 302.

9) Luis Gonzalez set the Diamondbacks record with 40 HR in a season, breaking the mark of 38, set by Jay Bell in

This is Gonzalez's 1st 40+ HR season.

10) Phillies SS Tomas Perez homered from both sides of the plate.

[nyy26wc]

MOST HR, SEASON, DIAMONDBACKS

1 Luis Gonzalez 2001 40
2 Jay Bell 1999 38
T3 Matt Williams 1999 35
T3 Steve Finley 2000 35
5 Steve Finley 1999 34
6 Luis Gonzalez 2000 31
7 Luis Gonzalez 1999 26
T8 Travis Lee 1998 22
T8 Devon White 1998 22
T10 Matt Williams 1998 20
T10 Jay Bell 1998 20
T10 Reggie Sanders 2001 20

Lee

[nyy26wc]

1) The Rangers traded 1B Andres Galarraga to the Giants for minor league Ps Erasma Ramirez and Todd Ozias and INF Chris Magruder.

Galarraga's having a bad year, hitting .424 SLG, .310 OBA, .734 OPS, -8 RCAA, .409 OWP, .235 AVG, 10 HR, 34 RBI in 72 games. The Giants were interested in the deal since J.T. Snow's having a bad year, hitting .339 SLG, .362 OBA, .701 OPS, -3 RCAA, .457 OWP, .220 AVG, 5 HR, 16 RBI in 61 games.

Magruder, who was ranked as the Giants's #23 prospect by Baseball America and was given a C grade by the Minor League Scouting Notebook was the only one of the minor leaguers the Rangers acquired who was either on Baseball America's top 30 prospect list for the Giants or made it into the ML Scouting Notebook.

2) The A's, Royals and Rockies may be on the brink of a major 3 way deal.

The Royals would send RF Jermaine Dye to the A's, the Rockies would sent SS Neifi Perez to the Royals and the A's would send minor league prospects 2B Jose Ortiz and OF Mario Encarnacion to the Rockies. Meanwhile, some reports say the A's would also include P Todd Belitz in the package they send to Colorado.

3) The Rangers placed P Kenny Rogers on the 15 day DL and recalled P Aaron Myette.

Rogers will have shoulder surgery next Monday and is out for the season.

4) The Reds sent P Frankie Rodriguez and OF Robin Jennings to the minors and called up P Scott MacRae.

McRae, 26, had a 4.01 career ERA in 6 minor league seasons, coming into this year. He had a 1.23 ERA in AAA in 2001, his first year at that level. He wasn't on either Baseball America's top 30 prospect list for the Reds and didn't make it into the Minor League Scouting Notebook.

5) The Orioles called up P John Parrish and sent P Jorge Julio to the minors.

Parrish was called up so he can start the 1st game of today's doubleheader.

6) Marlins CF Preston Wilson's son died, 10 days after being born 3 months premature.

Wilson's been on the DL since July 2 and has suspended his rehab to be with his family.

7) Padres 1B Ryan Klesko missed yesterday's game, due to a sore left knee, and is day to day.

8) Marlins P Chuck Smith had to leave yesterday's game, due to pain in his elbow. X-rays were negative and he's scheduled to have a MRI today.

Meanwhile, it was a bad game to be a starting pitcher, as Mets starter Kevin Appier had to leave after 2 innings, due to a sore hip. The early reports on mixed on whether his questionable for his next start or will definitely be able to make it.

9) Braves LF B.J. Surhoff and C Javier Lopez missed yesterday's game, due to tight and back injuries, respectively, and are both day to day.

10) A MRI on Brewers OF Geoff Jenkins's sore right shoulder showed he has rotator cuff tendinitis and inflammation. He's day to day.

[nyy26wc]

1) Tigers RF Juan Encarnacion's HR into Yankee Stadium's LF bleachers, beyond the bullpen, is believed to the first ball hit there since the Stadium was renovated.

2) Expos 2B Jose Vidro had to leave yesterday's game, due to a strained hamstring, is listed as day to day and will be reevaluated today.

3) A's OF Billy McMillon had a cortisone shot in his sore right shoulder and is expected to be out of the lineup for at least 5 days.

4) Mariners CF Mike Cameron missed yesterday's game, since his wife gave birth during the game.

5) Diamondbacks 2B Jay Bell missed yesterday's game, but it was just a routine game off after he started the previous 60.

6) Marlins SS Alex Gonzalez missed yesterday's game, due to a sore elbow.

7) A's CF Johnny Damon was scratched from yesterday's lineup, due to tightness in his left shoulder, did appear as a pinch runner, but may be out of the lineup for the another day or 2.

8) The Brewers announced Jeffrey Hammonds will have season ending surgery, to repair torn cartilage in his shoulder.

9) Pirates P Omar Oliveras was hit in the forearm by a line drive yesterday and may have to go on the DL. Meanwhile, 1B Kevin Young left yesterday's game after fouling a pitch off the inside of his knee and he'll be examined today.

10) Angels P Troy Percival is day to day, due to muscle spasms in his lower back and right hip.

11) The Rangers recalled OF Bo Porter, to replace Andres Galarraga on the roster.

[nyy26wc]

1) The Royals-A's-Rockies deal has been made.

The Royals sent RF Jermaine Dye to the A's, the Rockies sent SS Neifi Perez to the Royals and the A's sent minor league prospects 2B Jose Ortiz, OF Mario Encarnacion and P Todd Belitz to the Rockies.

This trade is comically bad for the Royals. Even Ralph Wiggum would find it difficult to get less value back for Dye.

Taken out of Coors, this season Perez has Ordonez-like .274 OBA, .302 SLG and .576 OPS. Over his first 3 years as a starter, Perez had a .289 OBA, .347 OBA, .636 OPS when he wasn't able to inflate his stats at home.

When a player has -21 RCAA in 89 games, that's terrible. When he does that, and that puts on him pace for the BEST year of his career, that's even worse. Over the previous 3 years, Perez had -49, -56 and -54 RCAA. Those seasons all rank in the top 6 in modern NL history for the best job at costing his team runs.

No player in baseball history could match Perez's -159 RCAA over any 3 year span.

Dye's doing everything he possibly can to prove his 2000 season, in which he hit .561 SLG, .390 OBA, .951 OPS, 40 RCAA, .661 OWP, .321 AVG, 33 HR, 118 RBI, was a fluke. He's having a below average season, hitting just .417 SLG, .333 OBA, .749 OPS, -4 RCAA, .472 OWP, .272 AVG 13 HR, 47 RBI in 97 games. But, he's a better choice for a starting spot than Ron Gant.

Meanwhile, even with his bad year, when compared to Perez, Dye still stinks at stinking, which makes the deal even less comprehendible from the Royals's standpoint.

The most important part of the deal, from the A's point of view, is they have shown they are going to the postseason, which should end the Giambi rumors. But, with the bad season he's having, if the A's can upgrade themselves by dumping Johnny Damon, I wouldn't be surprised to see them do it.

Ortiz, 24, was ranked as the A's #1 prospect by Baseball America and was given an A- grade by the Minor League Scouting Notebook, which ranked him as the 12th best prospect in baseball. He was the MVP in AAA in 1999 and came into the season as a favorite for the Rookie of the Year award. A bad start and an injury limited him to just 11 games in the majors, where he hit .167 SLG, .217 OBA, .384 OPS, -5 RCAA, .083 OWP, .167 AVG, 0 HR, 3 RBI. In 65 games this year in the great hitting conditions in the PCL, Ortiz had a .449 SLG and .345 OBA.

Encarnacion, 24, was ranked as the A's #4 prospect by Baseball America and was given a B- grade by the Minor League Scouting Notebook. In his 3rd year in the PCL, he had a .543 SLG and .356 OBA.

Belitz, 25, was ranked as the A's #12 prospect by Baseball America. In his 1st 4 years in the minors, he had a 4.19 career ERA and had a 5.13 ERA in the PCT this season.

WFAN is reporting the Royals are about to trade SS Rey Sanchez to the Braves.

2) According to the Repository, "If the Indians deal for a right-handed reliever, the top available names include former Tribe pitcher Danny Graves and Cincinnati teammate Scott Sullivan, Pittsburgh’s Mike Williams, Toronto’s Paul Quantrill and Montreal’s Ugueth Urbina ... ESPN reports Minnesota is talking with Pittsburgh about right-hander Jason Schmidt, a deal that would include Kyle Lohse, called up a few weeks ago to take the fifth spot in their rotation."

3) The Houston Chronicle reports, "The latest trade rumor had several Astros laughing in the visitors' clubhouse Tuesday at Busch Stadium prior to the team's 2-1 victory over the Cardinals in the opener of a two-game series.

"According to the Denver Post, the Rockies requested Scott Elarton, Tim Redding and Daryle Ward for righthander Pedro Astacio.

"A person with knowledge of the Astros' talks vehemently denied the Rockies have made a formal request to Astros general manager Gerry Hunsicker, who refuses to acknowledge any trade talks."

4) According to the Star Ledger, while the Yankees top priority is trading for Jason Giambi, "In the meantime, though, they have to consider other possibilities. They have called the Devil Rays about first baseman Fred McGriff, hoping McGriff would be more inclined to waive his no-trade clause to come to the Yankees than he was to go to the Chicago Cubs. They've asked the San Diego Padres about Phil Nevin and about Ryan Klesko, to no avail. And while there has been talk about lesser-known hitters such as Houston's Daryle Ward and Cincinnati's Dmitri Young, the Yankees are hoping a bigger name pops loose.

"They called the Los Angeles Dodgers to inquire about the availability of outfielder Gary Sheffield, a player they considered acquiring in spring training. But the Dodgers aren't inclined to trade Sheffield at this point unless it's a major trade that brings them a big-league bat and a starting pitcher. The Yankees don't have enough to offer.

"The Yankees also have held discussions in recent days with teams that have starting pitchers to deal. San Diego's Sterling Hitchcock and Woody Williams are possibilities, as is Jason Schmidt of Pittsburgh."

5) According to the National Post, BlueJays GM Gord "Ash is reportedly fascinated by Colorado's Pedro Astacio, also a trade target this time last year. Like Hamilton last night, Astacio auditioned for scouts on Sunday night at Coors Field, against the Dodgers. He allowed eight runs on 12 hits in 3 2/3 innings.

"Attempting to squelch rumours, [MGR Buck] Martinez identified Jose Cruz, Raul Mondesi, Carlos Delgado, Alex Gonzalez and Shannon Stewart as anchors of the team, suggesting strongly that they will remain with the club when the July 31 trade deadline passes."

6) According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, "General manager Ed Wade said the Phillies have offers on the table for pitchers who can be free agents after this season. Four prominent relief pitchers fit into that category: Mike Williams of the Pirates, Jason Isringhausen of the A's, Bob Wickman of the Indians, and Steve Karsay of the Braves. It is believed the Phillies have made inquiries about Williams and Isringhausen and are willing to offer Bruce Chen in return."

7) According to the Arizona Daily Star, "The Diamondbacks could load the back end of their starting rotation with Tampa Bay's Albie Lopez, San Diego's Sterling Hitchcock, Colorado's Pedro Astacio or Baltimore's Jose Mercedes. Or others.

"Now. Today. It could happen before Hitchcock, today's scheduled starter, throws his first pitch for the Padres in the finale of a three-game series at Bank One Ballpark.

"All it would cost the D'backs would be some of their future - a package including Erubiel Durazo, Byung-Hyun Kim and/or prospects Jack Cust, Bret Prinz, Nick Bierbrodt, Junior Spivey and Alex Cintron.

"But the D'backs have opted to stand pat, for now, as the July 31 trade deadline approaches."

8) According to the Florida Sun-Sentinel, the Marlins are interested in Mets P Rick White.

9) According to the Star Tribune, "One Twins official dismissed a rumor the club would be willing to part with prospect Michael Cuddyer as part of a deal for Colorado righthanded pitcher Pedro Astacio. Meanwhile, a Twins scout is in New York this week for the Tigers-Yankees series.

"The Tigers are willing to deal reliever Todd Jones and first baseman-designated hitter Tony Clark. Jones would be a good setup man to closer LaTroy Hawkins. The Twins discussed Clark during the offseason but decided against dealing for him them, and Clark looks to be even less of a good fit now, with David Ortiz back in the lineup.

"Twins General Manager Terry Ryan said Tuesday he's still looking for ways to help the team improve, but would not discuss particular deals. But, in a sign that he might have renewed his efforts to make something happen, Ryan decided not to accompany the team on this week's road trip."

10) The St. Petersburg Times reports Fred McGriff denies the rumors that he might reconsider being traded to the Cubs.

11) The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports the Indians may be interested in trading for Reds P Scott Sullivan.

12) According to the Pioneer Press, "Twins general manager Terry Ryan wouldn't comment Tuesday on a report the Twins are involved in talks with the Pittsburgh Pirates that could lead to them acquiring veteran pitcher Jason Schmidt for rookie right-hander Kyle Lohse.

"But he said he is optimistic he'll be able to make a deal by next Tuesday's non-waiver trading deadline."

13) According to the Seattle Times, the Mariners and BlueJays are not that close to a trade for either Shannon Stewart or Jose Cruz Jr, since the BlueJays are interested in major leaguers and a package of Brett Tomko, Robert Ramsay and Joel Pineiro isn't enough.

[NetShrine]

Jason Schmidt of Pittsburgh.

Whomever trades for this guy is a moron. Even if they get him for free.

[nyy26wc]

The Yankees are rumored to be interested in him.

Enrique Wilson, Gerald Williams, Darren Bragg, Mark Wohlers, Jay Witasick ... A pitcher of Schmidt's caliber would be consistent with the caliber of players the Yankees have found desirable to add this season.

[NetShrine]

Originally posted by nyy26wc
The Yankees are rumored to be interested in him.

Enrique Wilson, Gerald Williams, Darren Bragg, Mark Wohlers, Jay Witasick ... A pitcher of Schmidt's caliber would be consistent with the caliber of players the Yankees have found desirable to add this season.

Ah, but they were smart enough to put Bragg in AAA.
Wilson and Williams are odd to me. They never play - or hardly do. Are they valued bench players? Don't you have to do something to have value?

Wohlers and Witasick - well, it's better than Almanzar and Todd Williams.

Hmmm, Wilson, Williams, Wohlers, and Witasick - someone should tell Cashman there's more than just the "W" section in the Baseball Register.