Kuzul

The Rays are in the playoff hunt, and they’re looking to make some moves to improve their playoff chances. Luckily for them, they made one.

Tampa Bay traded for D-Backs third baseman Ryan Roberts, who will provide depth to the infield. Roberts blasted 19 home runs last year in a breakout season, and while he isn’t doing too well this year, he is an upgrade over Brooks Conrad and Sean Rodriguez at third base.

Roberts is hitting .250 with six homers and 34 RBI this year. He has a solid .306 OBP, and has only struck out 45 times in 252 at-bats. Roberts has hit a lot of singles this year, but he definitely has some much-needed power. Tampa Bay’s offense needs a spark, and Roberts could provide that.

As for the D-Backs, they received Tyler Bortnick. Bortnick is a Double-A second baseman who is hitting .253 this year. Bortnick isn’t having a good year, although he is fast and hit .306 last year. Arizona probably could’ve asked for more, but the D-Backs want to build a great team around their young stars.

The D-Backs are currently just six games back of the first-place San Francisco Giants, but they seem to be in “sell” mode. Instead of giving Roberts a chance to bounce back and help the D-Backs in the second half, they traded him for an infielder who probably won’t be ready to play this year.

As for the Rays, they acquired a much-needed piece to improve their infield. The Rays are just 2.5 games out of the Wild Card race, despite lots of uncertainly at second base, third base and shortstop. Carlos Pena is Tampa Bay’s everyday first baseman, while Sean Rodriguez, Brooks Conrad, Elliott Johnson and Jeff Keppinger fill in the other infield spots.

Conrad, Rodriguez and Johnson haven’t been great, and Roberts is definitely an upgrade. Tampa Bay already has a good outfield and pitching staff, and with the one area they really needed to upgrade out of the way, the Rays can focus on other minor moves to improve the bullpen and add depth to the rotation.

However, it looks like the biggest move (if the Rays don’t move James Shields) is out of the way. Roberts is ready to break out in the second half, and since the Rays are definitely within striking distance, I wouldn’t be surprised if Roberts ends up being a key contributor to the Rays in a playoff run. 

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The Pittsburgh Pirates have been a great team this year. With just one simple move, they got a lot better.

According to multiple sources, Pittsburgh acquired Houston Astros‘ lefty Wandy Rodriguez. Rodriguez is 7-9 with a 3.79 ERA this year, but opponents don’t hit well against him. Rodriguez has only walked 32 batters this year, although he has only retired 89 batters on strikes.

Pittsburgh has a good rotation, but it is inexperienced. Rodriguez adds depth to the rotation while also adding a pitcher who throws strikes and knows how to force weak contact. With James McDonald already in the rotation, Pittsburgh’s rotation just improved a lot.

In the deal, Houston received prospects Robbie Grossman, Colton Cain and Rudy Owen. Owen and Cain are pitchers, while Grossman is an outfielder. After selling their stars for a few consecutive years (and getting rid of Hunter Pence, Michael Bourn, Carlos Lee, Rodriguez and others in the process), Houston has stockpiled their farm system in hopes of future success.

Pittsburgh has a whole different perspective about the trade, though. The Pirates are contending for the first time in a while, and they are looking to add pitchers. A.J Burnett has always been inconsistent, and Kevin Correia and Erik Bedard have struggled to find a home. Rodriguez will add a lot to the rotation, and he will definitely be able to help if the Pirates make the playoffs.

If the Pirates don’t make the playoffs, he could help them next year. Rodriguez is signed through 2013 and would be in a Pirates uniform again next year (unless Pittsburgh traded him).

With a great bullpen, a solid offense (consisting of the game’s best hitter) and a much, much better rotation, the Pirates will definitely contend. Last year, the Pirates came out of the gates strong, but faded away in August eventually missing out on a playoff berth. This year’s team is more experienced, and they are ready to win now.

Thanks to Rodriguez, it should be easier for the Pirates to win.

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According to Tim Kurkijan from ESPN.com, the Tampa Bay Rays and Los Angeles Angels are in talks about a possible trade that would send the starting pitcher out west for center fielder Peter Bourjos and catcher Hank Conger in return. He also added that there is a possibility that Angels pitcher Ervin Santana could be included as well.

The proposed deal would offer the Rays some pieces that they need to continue to be competitive in 2012 and beyond. It also provides a potential replacement in Bourjos for the anticipated departure of BJ Upton in the offseason.

Here is a look at the Angels players rumored to be involved in the deal being discussed and how they could fit into the Rays’ plans.

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The Philadelphia Phillies are “eager” to trade Hunter Pence, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.

If Pence is truly going to be on the move, the Cole Hamels situation could end up being quite a bit more interesting.

On one hand, trading Pence would be indicative of an oncoming fire sale. The Philadelphia Phillies haven’t had much offense this year, but Pence does have 17 home runs on the year. Trading away a large piece of their offense so far this year would definitely not do very much to help the Phillies compete right now.

If this trade would really indicate a sale, it would make sense that Shane Victorino and Hamels would be on their way out as well. If you’re going to sell one important piece, why not go all the way and worry about dominating next season?

However, there is another reason the Phillies might be trying to trade Pence.

As almost everyone knows, the Phillies are trying desperately to keep Hamels in Philadelphia for quite a bit of time. In order to do that, they obviously need to pay him a ton of money, and they can free up a lot of money by trading Pence.

Again, this move wouldn’t necessarily help the Phillies win this year, but it would definitely help give them the financial flexibility to keep one of their star players in town.

Trading Pence would probably be an unpopular move, but if either one of the reasons I’ve mentioned is true, it does make a lot of sense.

In one week, it will be the trade deadline. A lot is surely going to happen before then.

Whether you think I know everything or nothing about Major League Baseball, you should follow me on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook and keep in touch. I love hearing what you all have to say!

Follow Zak Schmoll on Twitter.

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The Oakland Athletics are in the heart of the playoff hunt, but are they legitimate contenders?

That question’s answer would easily be yes if they could work out a trade for Hanley Ramirez.

Just yesterday, I explained why Oakland shouldn’t trade for Chase Headley, but acquiring Ramirez would be a completely different story.

The A’s lack production from both positions on the left side of the field. They rank last in the AL in terms of WAR from shortstop, according to FanGraphs. They are fourth-worst from third base. Luckily for the A’s, Hanley can play either position.

Ramirez had been the starting shortstop for the Marlins since coming up in 2006. Only until this season when they signed Jose Reyes did Hanley start playing third base on a regular basis. He’s having an off-year, but would still be a major upgrade over Cliff Pennington or Brandon Inge.

Pennington is hitting .197/.259/.282 with 17 extra-base hits in 82 games and Inge is hitting .210/.272/.386 with nine home runs in 56 games with Oakland this season. On the other hand, Hanley is hitting .246/.322/.430 with 14 home runs, 47 RBI and 49 runs this year—a pretty big upgrade.

The A’s would be a great fit for Ramirez, according to CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman. Going off of that, Oakland has shown interest in Hanley, but their level of interest is still to be determined and nothing is close to happening yet, tweeted FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets that the A’s could even be the favorites.

The Oakland #Athletics have now become the most aggressive team, Marlins exec says, pursuing #Marlins infielder Hanley Ramirez

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 25, 2012

It’s a stretch that the A’s could make a run for the AL West title with their current lineup, but they’d definitely be contenders if they were to acquire Ramirez.

By adding Ramirez to the No. 3 spot in the Oakland lineup, with Josh Reddick and Yoenis Cespedes surrounding him, the A’s would have a very solid heart of the order. Hanley also brings more speed to the team to add to Jemile Weeks and Coco Crisp.

Ramirez gives the A’s plenty of flexibility, mainly because of his ability to play either shortstop or third base. Since neither position has played well this year, it could be a difficult decision as to whom to immediately replace. My first instinct says shortstop, just because Pennington lacks power and usually hits ninth.

The Marlins aren’t even asking for a lot in return for Ramirez, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Miami is looking to acquire young players who have decent potential, wrote Jackson.

Oakland has several good prospects that they’ve acquired through recent trades who may be of interest to Miami, including Brad Peacock, A.J. Cole or Derek Norris. Michael Choice would be too much to give up, in my opinion, but Oakland could decide to trade Sonny Gray or Yordy Cabrera. Of course, this is all just speculation, but the A’s clearly have the pieces.

With the trade deadline nearing and the A’s still in the race, it makes sense to make a blockbuster move like this. Hanley Ramirez would not only make the A’s contenders for this season, but for the next few as well. 

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The trade of Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante to the Detroit Tigers should have indicated that there are going to be changes with the Miami Marlins’ roster during the days before the 2012 MLB trade deadline.

Hanley Ramirez is on the block and Scott Miller of CBS Sports has quoted a few executives as saying that the Marlins are very open to moving him.

A number of teams will have an interest in Ramirez because of his impressive offensive abilities. However, he does struggle in the field and may not have a true position anymore. Ramirez has also had some attitude issues in the past. Still, this will not deter teams from pursuing him.

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The last 48 hours have been tenuous for Atlanta Braves baseball fans to say the least.  Word broke yesterday that the Braves and Chicago Cubs agreed to a deal that would send ace Ryan Dempster to Atlanta for Randall Delgado.

Fans of both franchises were ecstatic with the move.  For the Braves, Dempster provided stability to a rotation that has been plagued by a season-ending injury to Brandon Beachy and uneven performances by Tommy Hanson, Randall Delgado, and Mike Minor.  The Cubs gained a young pitcher in Delgado who could develop without the added pressure of a pennant race in the back of his mind.

As the day wore on, reports began filtering out that Dempster was not aware of any impending trade and then early today MLBTradeRumors.com reported that Dempster was on the fence about signing any deal because he wanted the Cubs to re-open trade talks with his first choice, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

As a player with 10 years of MLB experience, including five with his current team, Ryan Dempster has the right to veto any trade this season per the Collective Bargaining Agreement.  This article will list five reasons why the Braves are better off without Ryan Dempster.

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It’s time for a crazy trade idea with less than 10 days left until the trade deadline.

We know the New York Yankees and their GM Brian Cashman would prefer not to make a deal between now and July 31.

But, if an opportunity presents itself to Cashman and the Yankees even he knows he would look into it.

There’s been quite a few rumors going around that Cliff Lee of the Phillies could be on the block and could be traded, again.

He was traded twice at the deadline back in 2009 and 2010 in deals that shaped the Phillies and Rangers postseason hopes. With Lee, both teams reached the World Series.

With the Phillies falling slowly out of the playoff race with each loss, they have some nice trade chips on their team that they can shed.

Shane Victorino is likely to be dealt, as could Hunter Pence. Cole Hamels was rumored to be on the block, but the Phillies are working very hard to lock up their lefty before he hits free agency this winter.

Surprisingly, Lee has also been rumored to potentially be on the block as well.

Lee signed a five-year, $125 million deal with the Phillies back in December of 2010, spurning the Yankees offer to re-join the Phillies.

There’s also a vesting option for a sixth year on Lee’s current deal, which makes him a very expensive trade option.

There has been one team rumored to potentially being interested in Lee, the Texas Rangers. The same Rangers who beat the Yankees to the punch two summers ago, and landed the lefty on their ride to the 2010 Fall Classic.

The Yankees had a deal in place with the Mariners to land Lee, but the deal fell apart when the two teams couldn’t agree on the players involved and Lee went to Texas.

After the season, many people felt that Lee would join his long-time friend CC Sabathia in the Bronx, but decided to return to the Phillies in a stunning move.

Lee thought the Phillies would have a better shot of getting to the World Series than the Yankees, but in 2012, that certainly doesn’t seem to be the case.

The Phillies are in last place in the National League East and seem like they could be on the verge of a fire sale; rebuilding the team for the future.

Lee will turn 34 come the end of August, and in his current deal he has 21 teams listed for his no-trade clause. If Lee is traded, he has to approve it before Ruben Amaro, Jr. can unload Lee.

According to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, the Rangers are not one of the 21 teams on the list, and while it’s not been confirmed, there’s a good chance the Yankees may be on the list.

Lee’s window for winning a championship is closing as he gets up in age, and the Phillies may no longer be the contender they once were when he was traded and signed with them.

But the Yankees are. So are the Rangers, who are set up to win now, and win in the future.

The one plus on trading for Lee now over signing him two years ago is his current deal is for another three seasons. If they had signed him back then, it would have been another five years they would have been tied to Lee for over $20 million.

In 2012, Lee doesn’t exactly have the best record with a 1-6 record and a 3.72 ERA. Lee has run into hard luck, with the Phillies offense struggling to give him any run support.

As the Yankees head into the second half of the 2012 season, their rotation is no guarantee of success in the postseason, especially when the ALDS is only five games.

Andy Pettitte is still recovering from a fractured ankle he suffered in late June, and he’s a big piece that is missing in the rotation right now.

When Pettitte got hurt,  the rumors of Matt Garza, Ryan Dempster, Zack Greinke, Cole Hamels and Wandy Rodriguez all started, but they all seem unlikely for the Bombers.

Could the Yankees dare to be bold enough to try and trade for Lee one last time?

You know Amaro will ask for top prospects like Manny Banuelos and Dellin Betances in any deal that would involve Lee.

Would Lee be worth it?

The Yankees thought so two years ago when they started a deal surrounding Jesus Montero, and were close to pulling it off.

Would Cashman try again for Lee after missing out on the trade two summers ago, and then again in free agency?

In all honesty, I think it’s worth it for Cashman to pick up the phone and see what Philadelphia’s asking price is for the left-hander, who can be a huge difference maker in the postseason.

In the postseason, Lee has a 7-3 record with a 2.52 ERA, and the Yankees have witnessed first-hand how dominant Lee can be on the big stage.

It’s the reason why they were willing to hand over Montero to Seattle, and if he leaves Philadelphia he could get one more run at a championship.

I know some of you might be hesitant on the idea of chasing after Lee again, but if the Yankees want to beat a team like the Rangers, or even the Tigers in the postseason, they need every advantage possible.

Remember, the Yankees won 97 games a year ago but saw a quick exit in the 2011 ALDS against the Tigers because their rotation didn’t hold up when needed.

If that means adding more quality pitching to ensure they have a chance at a 28th World Series, then I think a trade for Lee is worth exploring.

The only question remains: would Cashman dare explore the trade for Lee one more time?

Stay tuned Yankees Universe.

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The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have interest in Tampa Bay Rays right-handed pitcher James Shields, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports. He noted that the Detroit Tigers have scouted Shields as well.

Of course, this trade would have huge implications around baseball.

One thing it very well could mean would be that the Rays are somewhat selling. Shields has been underachieving this season at 8-6 with a 4.39 ERA, but he has been the Rays’ ace for the past few seasons.

Without him, it is definitely possible that the Rays could slip down in the American League East. That entire division is capable of pouncing on any weakness.

The other obvious impact would occur in the American League West. With the Cole Hamels rumors swirling, acquiring Shields would take the Angels out of that particular race.

However, they would have an excellent consolation prize. Hamels may never even become available, and if he doesn’t or at least doesn’t end up with the Texas Rangers, grabbing Shields would be a great addition that would outweigh anything else Texas might do.

Obviously the Rays are still competitive, so they might not want to move this drastically yet, but dealing Shields to the Angels would do a lot to a few critical playoff races.

Whether you think I know everything or nothing about Major League Baseball, you should follow me on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook and keep in touch. I love hearing what you all have to say!

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The Los Angeles Dodgers are desperately looking to add another starting pitcher prior to the MLB trade deadline and it looks like Matt Garza is their latest target.

Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com is reporting the Dodgers have now turned their focus to Garza and could look to bring him to Los Angeles to join their current ace, Clayton Kershaw, in order to shore up their rotation:

Multiple sources confirmed Saturday the Los Angeles Dodgers have shifted their focus to obtaining Cubs starter Matt Garza just one day after they tried to trade for Dempster.

The price for Dempster appears to have been too high for the Dodgers liking and that might have forced them to look elsewhere on the Cubs roster. Per the same report from Levine, it will take less prospects to land Garza than it would for Dempster.

One of those reasons is based on the fact that Dempster is having a career year this season. Dempster is pitching to an ERA nearly half that of Garza’s and that’s enough to send Dempster’s value sky-high.

Not to mention, Garza left the Cubs game with the St. Louis Cardinals early on Saturday night thanks to a minor injury, according to the Cubs official Twitter page:

Matt Garza left tonight’s game with cramping in his right triceps. X-rays were negative.

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 22, 2012

If the problems persist, however slight they might be, Garza’s price could come down even further and that would be a huge benefit for the Dodgers since they wouldn’t have to give up as much young talent to acquire him.

In turn, they could use their very best young pieces to bring in some much-needed offense.

Garza would be a great addition to the Dodgers stellar rotation. Currently, Los Angeles’ starters have the second-best collective ERA in the MLB. With the addition of Garza, the Dodgers would have one of the deepest rotations in baseball.

With experience pitching in the AL East and in the postseason, Garza has seen some of the toughest lineups in baseball throughout his career and flourished in the process. His 3.91 ERA in 2012 will no doubt be reduced upon entering one of the weakest hitting divisions in baseball.

To start the day on Saturday, the Dodgers were merely two games back of a wild-card spot and 2.5 games behind the division leader, the San Francisco Giants. Adding Garza and some offense would certainly help Los Angeles make up the ground they need to in order to make the postseason.

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