The Dodgers have signed 26-year old righty reliever Jose Ascanio to a minor league deal. He pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Pirates last year and he was 0-0 with a 7.11 ERA and a 1.90 WHIP. Ascanio has now pitched in 43 games (0 starts) in his first four years in the minors and he is 1-3 with a 5.28 ERA and a 1.70 WHIP. He will get a shot to win a job in the bullpen next spring.
Via Diamond Hoggers
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December 13, 2011
Within the very archives of this blog, you’ll see where I touted James Loney as a future batting title winner. I don’t know if I’m going to end up accurate on that one.
Huge hat tip to my buddy Franco over at Next Level Ballplayer for this one.
Loney, 27, was arrested Nov. 14 after hitting a Toyota, Mercedes and Mini around 6 p.m. According to the report, when...
Via Baseball Professor
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December 14, 2011
I have a lot of work to do today — compile offseason rankings, work on some Excel files, do some minor back-end site upkeep — so I don’t have much time for an intro. I’ve spent too much time rambling already!
Question 42 in our top 100 offseason questions asks us “Will Andre Ethier be the 30/100 player he was in 2009?”
Ethier is a talented hitter, but if he’s...
Via Dodgers Locker
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December 14, 2011
The Dodgers have inked 25-year old righty relieve/starter Ryan Tucker to a minor league deal. Tucker pitched in 5 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last year and he was 0-0 with a 7.20 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP. He has now pitched in 18 games (6 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 2-3 with a 8.14 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP. Tucker will likely start the 2012 season in the minors.
Via Pirates Prospects
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December 15, 2011
The Pittsburgh Pirates will be holding their annual PirateFest this weekend at the Convention Center. I’ve never been to a PirateFest before, so if you’re looking for a good guide on what to expect, you should check out Tom’s preview over at Rumbunter.
Pirates Prospects will have a booth at the event this year, selling copies of the 2012 Prospect Guide. I will be...
Via Pirates Prospects
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December 13, 2011
What would an Andrew McCutchen extension be worth?
One of the big topics this off-season is whether the Pittsburgh Pirates will extend their top player, Andrew McCutchen. McCutchen is entering his final year of league minimum pay. He will be arbitration eligible in 2013, and will be eligible for free agency after the 2015 season if no extension is reached.
The topic of a McCutchen...
For about the same money, the Dodgers will replace Hiroki Kuroda in their starting rotation with Chris Capuano and Aaron Harang. Harang will be paid $12 million over two years, while Capuano will receive $10 million over two years. Last year, Kuroda was paid $12 million (with $4 million deferred) for one year.
Via NBC Los Angeles
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December 13, 2011
Maybe Frank McCourt's end game is not to sell the Dodgers after all.
It's been five weeks since the team went up for sale, but no one can bid because none of the prospective buyers has the book with the Dodger financial information.
The Changeup: Timeline: The Frank McCourt Era
That information has not been made available to prospective buyers.
Why the delay?
It's not...
Via More Hardball
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December 12, 2011
WTF?! No, seriously, what the f...?!Mike Diaz is the crazy shirtless Rambo in the picture above. The Pittsburgh Pirates Mike Diaz of the 80's. Thing I don't understand, he was never a star, not even close. Why did he get such a lame cool promo pic? 4 seasons and only 293 games between the Cubs, Buccos, and White Sox. He played primarily outfield, but a little 1st base...
Via WHYGAVS?
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December 15, 2011
At the Winter Meetings, David Laurila at FanGraphs spoke to Clint Hurdle and Hurdle's got some interesting things to say about Andrew McCutchen, Pedro Alvarez, Neil Walker, Jose Tabata, and how the hitters and coaches prepare for opponents. It's worth reading enough that I'll only snark on his comment about Neil Walker being an RBI hunter this one time. But seriously...
Via MLB Trade Rumors
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December 14, 2011
The Dodgers announced the signing of 15 non-roster players yesterday, reported MLB.com's Ken Gurnick: Josh Bard, Wil Ledezma, Alberto Castillo, Angel Guzman, Cory Sullivan, Fernando Nieve, Jose Ascanio, Ryan Tucker, Will Savage, Matt Chico, Scott Rice, Jeff Baisley, Lance Zawadzki, and Luis Cruz.
Via MSNBC
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December 15, 2011
A bankruptcy judge on Thursday blasted Fox Sports for claiming that the Los Angeles Dodgers' plan to sell media rights to future games is intended to enrich team owner Frank McCourt after Fox negotiated a failed deal that would have left McCourt with hundreds of millions of dollars.
Via Where Is Andy Van Slyke
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December 12, 2011
With the midnight non-tender deadline fast approaching, I'll update this post through the night as we figure out who the Pirates do and don't offer contracts to. We already know that Jose Veras has been traded to the Brewers for Casey McGehee, who will presumably be tendered.We also know that the Pirates signed Jason Grilli to a one-year/$1.1 million deal. Grilli, you'...
Via Post-Gazette
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December 12, 2011
The Pirates acquired third baseman Casey McGehee from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for reliever Jose Veras Monday night, the team announced, adding insurance in case Pedro Alvarez continues to struggle.
Original Story:
http://www.dodgerslocker.com/2011/12/...
