I want to take a closer look at the Tout Wars draft results over the next day or so, as I have 5 drafts starting next Sunday March 27th. I have one expert mixed league auction on Sunday, two NL-only redraft league drafts on Tuesday and Thursday, and two NL-Only keeper auction league drafts on Friday and Sunday.
The Phillies are expected to sign former Mets second baseman Luis Castillo to play second base over the next day or so, per Buster Olney and Adam Rubin from ESPN. This tweet from Olney says it all about Phillies GM Ruben Amaro:
@DashTreyhorn The other day Ruben Amaro said the phillies weren't looking at anybody outside the organization... A tipoff they were looking
6 minutes ago via Mobile Web in reply to DashTreyhorn
That is nothing new from Amaro. My first thought after hearing the Castillo news was that the next news out of Philly will be Chase Utley having knee surgery. Give it a few days.
More after the jump:
The Rangers front office brass met on Sunday to discuss the future of closer/starter Neftali Feliz. This tells me they plan on moving him to the rotation, and are making plans for dealing for a closer. I can't see them handing the closer job to Alex Ogando, who has never closed at the major league level.
Everyone knows I am a Dodgers fan. I was listening to some of the Tout Wars mixed league draft yesterday while driving, and someone nominated Dodgers first baseman at $8. Why? Why wouldn't you nominated him at $1 and see where the bidding goes. Classic crickets followed that nomination. Then in the NL-only draft, he went for $19, which was the same price Aubrey Huff and Adam Laroche went for, Interesting for sure.
After another poor. outing this weekend, Mets pitcher Oliver Perez will more than likely be waived on Monday. I can see a team like the Cardinals taking a flyer on him to see if pitching coach Dave Duncan can work his magic on him. Or maybe the Pirates?
Who wins the Braves 5th starter spot-Brandon Beachy or Mike Minor? I think Minor will win it as he would be the only left-hander in the Braves rotation. Beachy could be trade bait should the Braves need help at the trade deadline.
Bob Dutton at the Kansas Cty Star had this to say about the battle for outfield spots in the Royals outfield:
The starting unit, barring injuries, was set in the offseason with Alex Gordon, Melky Cabrera and Jeff Francoeur in a left-to-right alignment. That positioned Mitch Maier and Gregor Blanco (who are out of options) in a battle with Lorenzo Cain and Jarrod Dyson (who have options) for the final two spots.
•Prediction: Cain will start the season in the minors because the Royals want him to play every day — but they are willing to keep Dyson as a backup because he offers plus defense and plus-plus speed. One possibility is to send Blanco through waivers to see if he clears because, if he does, he could then be sent to Omaha. If claimed, the Royals could pull him back and see if they can swing a trade with the claiming team.
Cain to the minors? I didn't expect that, but it makes sense to let him play everyday in AAA.
I was listening to XM175 this morning and Joel Sherman was the guest host with Holden Kushner. Sherman said that Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez looks thinner and in better shape than he did last year. He said he watched him doing fielding drills during spring training, and he appears more mobile this year. Could he have another monster season in him this year?