The Yankees have claimed C Craig Tatum on waivers from Arizona after he was cut by the D-backs this Spring. He spent last season in Baltimore where he batted .195 in 87 at-bats. A defensive standout, Tatum has spent a large part of this off-season on the waiver wire.
Drafted by Cincinnati in 2004, Tatum was claimed on waivers by Baltimore in 2009 and was then claimed on waivers by Houston this past November, only to waived and claimed by Arizona in January before again being claimed by the Yankees today after being cut in Spring Training. The Yankees have added Tatum to their active roster and he will be temporarily competing for a job as a backup catcher until the end of Spring Training.
And you guessed it: If Tatum is cut (and he isn't likely to beat out C Francisco Cervelli for the backup job) he'll likely be waived again.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Spring Training cuts
Boston made another series of Spring Training cuts on Tuesday, with one of them having major ramifications on the makeup of the team in 2012. 1B Lars Anderson was optioned to Pawtucket in a move that was expected all season long. But in another major move, SS Jose Iglesias was also optioned to Pawtucket. Iglesias was battling for a position as the team's starting shortstop, but that job now appears to have gone to IF/OF Mike Aviles.
Chamberlain Expects to Pitch this Season
RHP Joba Chamberlain feels as if he let the Yankees down when he dislocated his ankle on a trampoline playing with his son and nearly died to to blood loss, but refused to apologize to the team following the incident. He was already sidelined following Tommy John surgery and - realistically - probably wouldn't have pitched at all this season. However, Chamberlain still expects to pitch this season.
Chamberlain said that he and his son were jumping from trampoline-to-trampoline at a Tampa trampoline facility when he landed awkwardly. GM Brian Cashman has revealed that the injury has been categorized as an open dislocation subtalar joint. Chamberlain is expected to remain in a cast for a minimum of six weeks and then move to a walking boot.
Chamberlain said that he and his son were jumping from trampoline-to-trampoline at a Tampa trampoline facility when he landed awkwardly. GM Brian Cashman has revealed that the injury has been categorized as an open dislocation subtalar joint. Chamberlain is expected to remain in a cast for a minimum of six weeks and then move to a walking boot.
Baseball Season Opener - if you saw it
Hey in case you didn't notice it, and judging by the TV exposure this came got, you didn't, the baseball season opener happened yesterday morning at 2:00 in Tokyo. RF Ichiro Suzuki had four hits in the first game he has played in Japan since 2000 and 2B Dustin Ackley hit a homer and drove in the game-winning run with an 11th inning single as Seattle topped Oakland 3-1. RHP Felix Hernandez combined with two relievers on a six-hitter for the Mariners. The two teams complete their two-game series in Tokyo this morning at 2:00, with the rest of the league not opening their seasons until April 4 or later.
The game was tied in the fourth when Ackley homered and Oakland C Kurt Suzuki had an RBI double in the bottom of the frame. Seattle went ahead in the 11th when SS Brendan Ryan doubled and 3B Chone Figgins bunted him over to second, followed by Ackely's RBI single, a stolen base, and a single by Ichiro to pad Seattle's lead to make it easier on RHP Brandon League, who slammed the door for the save in the bottom of the frame. RHP Tom Wilhelmsen got the win for Seattle following two innings of relief.
CF Yoenis Cespedes, a Cuban defector who signed a four-year, $36 million contract this off-season, was one-for-three with a double and two strikeouts in the game for Oakland in his Major League debut. The capacity crowd at the Tokyo Dome seemed ecstatic every time Ichiro came up to the plate or touched the ball in the field. Ichiro has been dropped to the number three hole in Seattle's batting order and singled in his first at-bat when he beat out Oakland SS Cliff Pennington's throw to first for an infield hit.
Ichiro had another infield hit in the fourth and a clean single to center in the sixth before his extra-inning hit in the 11th. Hernandez pitched eight strong innings in a no-decision for Seattle. RHP Brandon McCarthy pitched seven strong innings in a no-decision for Oakland.
The A's were 1-for-14 with runners in scoring in position. Remember my opening? That's because this game wasn't broadcast live in the U. S. outside of the Seattle market. I was awake at 2:00, and I checked FOX, TBS, ESPN, and the MLB Network, but nary a game was found (the game was shown on a tape-delay by the MLB Network later yesterday). Don't get excited for this morning's game either, because you probably won't find it. The Mets and Cubs played in Tokyo in 2000, and those games were on TV. So were the Yankees and Tampa Bay (then "Devil" Rays) when they opened in Tokyo in 2004. And so were Boston and Oakland when they played in Tokyo back in 2008. Oh by the way, Oakland and Seattle were supposed to play a two-game set in Tokyo back in 2003, but the series was cancelled due to fears over the impending U. S.-invasion of Iraq, and I bet that those games would have been broadcast too. Epic fail MLB, Ted Turner, Disney, and Rupert Murdoch.
Today's probables are RHP Bartolo Colon for Oakland and LHP Jason Vargas for Seattle. Yesterday's game featured an hour-long tribute to the victims of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, narrated by former Baltimore IF Cal Ripken Jr., Yankees SS Derek Jeter, and Boston manager Bobby Valentine (who previously managed the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan for years), and absolutely no one from either Oakland or Seattle.
The game was tied in the fourth when Ackley homered and Oakland C Kurt Suzuki had an RBI double in the bottom of the frame. Seattle went ahead in the 11th when SS Brendan Ryan doubled and 3B Chone Figgins bunted him over to second, followed by Ackely's RBI single, a stolen base, and a single by Ichiro to pad Seattle's lead to make it easier on RHP Brandon League, who slammed the door for the save in the bottom of the frame. RHP Tom Wilhelmsen got the win for Seattle following two innings of relief.
CF Yoenis Cespedes, a Cuban defector who signed a four-year, $36 million contract this off-season, was one-for-three with a double and two strikeouts in the game for Oakland in his Major League debut. The capacity crowd at the Tokyo Dome seemed ecstatic every time Ichiro came up to the plate or touched the ball in the field. Ichiro has been dropped to the number three hole in Seattle's batting order and singled in his first at-bat when he beat out Oakland SS Cliff Pennington's throw to first for an infield hit.
Ichiro had another infield hit in the fourth and a clean single to center in the sixth before his extra-inning hit in the 11th. Hernandez pitched eight strong innings in a no-decision for Seattle. RHP Brandon McCarthy pitched seven strong innings in a no-decision for Oakland.
The A's were 1-for-14 with runners in scoring in position. Remember my opening? That's because this game wasn't broadcast live in the U. S. outside of the Seattle market. I was awake at 2:00, and I checked FOX, TBS, ESPN, and the MLB Network, but nary a game was found (the game was shown on a tape-delay by the MLB Network later yesterday). Don't get excited for this morning's game either, because you probably won't find it. The Mets and Cubs played in Tokyo in 2000, and those games were on TV. So were the Yankees and Tampa Bay (then "Devil" Rays) when they opened in Tokyo in 2004. And so were Boston and Oakland when they played in Tokyo back in 2008. Oh by the way, Oakland and Seattle were supposed to play a two-game set in Tokyo back in 2003, but the series was cancelled due to fears over the impending U. S.-invasion of Iraq, and I bet that those games would have been broadcast too. Epic fail MLB, Ted Turner, Disney, and Rupert Murdoch.
Today's probables are RHP Bartolo Colon for Oakland and LHP Jason Vargas for Seattle. Yesterday's game featured an hour-long tribute to the victims of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, narrated by former Baltimore IF Cal Ripken Jr., Yankees SS Derek Jeter, and Boston manager Bobby Valentine (who previously managed the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan for years), and absolutely no one from either Oakland or Seattle.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Ownership Group led by Johnson wins bid for Dodgers
An ownership group led by former NBA player Magic Johnson and longtime baseball executive Stan Kasten has agreed to buy the Dodgers from disgraced owner Frank McCourt for $2 billion. The price would be a new record for a North American sports franchise if the deal goes through, breaking the $1.1 billion Stephen Ross paid for the Miami Dolphins of the NFL in 2009. In addition to Johnson and Kasten, the controlling owners would also include Guggenheim Partners CEO Mark Walter.
The deal came on the heels of an announcement by MLB that three finalists had been approved for an auction, and the deal is still subject to be approved by a bankruptcy court and is not expected to be completed until late April. As a strange part of the deal, McCourt will acquire land in Chavez Ravine surrounding Dodger Stadium for $150 million. The new ownership group also includes Mandalay Entertainment CEO Peter Guber, Guggenheim Partners President Todd Boehly, and oil and gas mogul Bobby Patton.
Johnson, now 52, played 13 seasons for the Los Angeles Lakers and won five NBA championships and three MVP Awards. He retired abruptly in 1991 after being diagnosed with HIV, although he came out of retirement in the 1995-1996 season and has coached in the NBA. Since leaving coaching, he has made a living as a public speaker on HIV awareness.
McCourt bought the team and approximately 250 acres of land in Chavez Ravine surrounding Dodger Stadium from News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch for $430 million in 2004. With the sale now all-but approved, it now appears that Katsen will serve as the foremost baseball executive. Other finalists included a group led by Stan Kroenke, who owns the Colorado Rapids of MLS, the Denver Nuggets of the NBA, the St. Louis Rams of the NFL, the Colorado Avalanche of the NHL, and the Arsenal of the Premier League; the last group of finalists included a group led by SAC Capital Advisors founder Steven Cohen, who owns a small share of the Mets, Patrick Soon-Schiong, a biotechnology entrepreneur, and Wasserman Media Group agent Arn Tellem.
MLB has the right to challenge the sale in bankruptcy court in front of Judge Kevin Gross in Delaware. MLB and McCourt made a deal to take the team to auction last November, with a schedule outlined to select the winner by April 1, have the agreement submitted to bankruptcy court by April 6, have the trial begin by April 13, and finalize the sale by April 30. The deal also hinges on the ability of the new ownership group to sell the Dodgers' broadcast rights by 2014.
If the deal goes through it would break the record for a purchase of a Major League Baseball franchise, set in 2009 when the Ricketts family bought the Cubs for $845 million. The Dodgers filed for bankruptcy protection last June when it became apparent that they weren't going to be able to make payroll. They finished in third place in the West last season at a respectable 82-79.
Kasten was hired as a legal counsel by Ted Turner for the Atlanta Braves and Hawks of the NBA in 1976 and became the youngest GM in the history of the NBA when he took the helm for the Hawks in 1979, later becoming president of the Hawks, Braves, and Thrashers of the NHL and later serving in the same capacity for the Washington Nationals from 2006-2010. Following the story of the upcoming sale, Dodgers GM Ned Colleti had dinner with Katsen in Glendale, Arizona. The Dodgers have won the World Series six times, but never since 1988.
Colleti admits that he's happy about the upcoming influx of money into the team.
The deal came on the heels of an announcement by MLB that three finalists had been approved for an auction, and the deal is still subject to be approved by a bankruptcy court and is not expected to be completed until late April. As a strange part of the deal, McCourt will acquire land in Chavez Ravine surrounding Dodger Stadium for $150 million. The new ownership group also includes Mandalay Entertainment CEO Peter Guber, Guggenheim Partners President Todd Boehly, and oil and gas mogul Bobby Patton.
Johnson, now 52, played 13 seasons for the Los Angeles Lakers and won five NBA championships and three MVP Awards. He retired abruptly in 1991 after being diagnosed with HIV, although he came out of retirement in the 1995-1996 season and has coached in the NBA. Since leaving coaching, he has made a living as a public speaker on HIV awareness.
McCourt bought the team and approximately 250 acres of land in Chavez Ravine surrounding Dodger Stadium from News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch for $430 million in 2004. With the sale now all-but approved, it now appears that Katsen will serve as the foremost baseball executive. Other finalists included a group led by Stan Kroenke, who owns the Colorado Rapids of MLS, the Denver Nuggets of the NBA, the St. Louis Rams of the NFL, the Colorado Avalanche of the NHL, and the Arsenal of the Premier League; the last group of finalists included a group led by SAC Capital Advisors founder Steven Cohen, who owns a small share of the Mets, Patrick Soon-Schiong, a biotechnology entrepreneur, and Wasserman Media Group agent Arn Tellem.
MLB has the right to challenge the sale in bankruptcy court in front of Judge Kevin Gross in Delaware. MLB and McCourt made a deal to take the team to auction last November, with a schedule outlined to select the winner by April 1, have the agreement submitted to bankruptcy court by April 6, have the trial begin by April 13, and finalize the sale by April 30. The deal also hinges on the ability of the new ownership group to sell the Dodgers' broadcast rights by 2014.
If the deal goes through it would break the record for a purchase of a Major League Baseball franchise, set in 2009 when the Ricketts family bought the Cubs for $845 million. The Dodgers filed for bankruptcy protection last June when it became apparent that they weren't going to be able to make payroll. They finished in third place in the West last season at a respectable 82-79.
Kasten was hired as a legal counsel by Ted Turner for the Atlanta Braves and Hawks of the NBA in 1976 and became the youngest GM in the history of the NBA when he took the helm for the Hawks in 1979, later becoming president of the Hawks, Braves, and Thrashers of the NHL and later serving in the same capacity for the Washington Nationals from 2006-2010. Following the story of the upcoming sale, Dodgers GM Ned Colleti had dinner with Katsen in Glendale, Arizona. The Dodgers have won the World Series six times, but never since 1988.
Colleti admits that he's happy about the upcoming influx of money into the team.
Dickey's book Makes Stunning Revelations
Mets RHP R. A. Dickey has revealed in his upcoming book that he was sexually abused as a child. He says that he was eight years old when his 13-year-old female babysitter began sexually abusing him. Dickey has said that it's important to tell others of abuse when it happens.
In addition, Dickey also goes into detail about contemplating suicide after cheating on his wife. He also alleges that he once saw a syringe on the floor of the Texas clubhouse in 2001. Dickey only played four games with the Rangers that season, so the fact that he saw a syringe out in the open despite being on the roster for a brief period of time would suggest that steroids were rampant on that team.
The book, Wherever I wind up, written by Dickey and Wayne Coffey, will be released tomorrow.
In addition, Dickey also goes into detail about contemplating suicide after cheating on his wife. He also alleges that he once saw a syringe on the floor of the Texas clubhouse in 2001. Dickey only played four games with the Rangers that season, so the fact that he saw a syringe out in the open despite being on the roster for a brief period of time would suggest that steroids were rampant on that team.
The book, Wherever I wind up, written by Dickey and Wayne Coffey, will be released tomorrow.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Former Sopranos star Reportedly Dating Dykstra's son
Former The Sopranos hottie Jamie-Lynn Sigler is reportedly dating Washington Nationals Minor League IF/OF Cutter Dykstra, the son of former Philadelphia OF Lenny Dykstra, now a convicted felon. A source has told LeRoy that the two have been together for three months and that the relationship is going well. The LA starlet was introduced to the younger Dykstra by Yankees OF Nick Swisher and his girlfriend, the actress Joanna Garcia.
And Sigler seems to like those athletes, as she had previously dated Jets QB Mark Sanchez, but to be fair she also once dated actor Jerry Ferrara, who was her costar on Entourage. Sigler is currently set to star in the Jimmy Fallon pilot Guys with kids. Dykstra tweeted last week that he is happy dating the actress.
And Sigler seems to like those athletes, as she had previously dated Jets QB Mark Sanchez, but to be fair she also once dated actor Jerry Ferrara, who was her costar on Entourage. Sigler is currently set to star in the Jimmy Fallon pilot Guys with kids. Dykstra tweeted last week that he is happy dating the actress.
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