Astros claim Demel, Elmore off of waivers

The Astros have claimed pitcher Sam Demel and shortstop Jake Elmore off of waivers from the Diamondbacks.

Demel has posted a combined 4.95 ERA in 72 relief appearances with Arizona since 2010. Elmore made his MLB debut during the 2012 season, hitting .191 in 73 plate appearances.

Analysis: Demel is bullpen depth at best, but I'm surprised that the Diamondbacks let Elmore go. I thought that they were going to give him a longer look at the shortstop position, considering that it was empty when the club traded away Stephen Drew. He is a good pickup by the Astros, and could be used as shortstop depth in case Jed Lowrie is traded away.

Rangers claim Konrad Schmidt

The Rangers have claimed catcher Konrad Schmidt off of waivers from the Diamondbacks.

Schmidt spent most of the 2012 season in Triple-A, hitting .277 with 7 home runs in 374 plate appearances.

Analysis: This is probably just a depth move in case Mike Napoli and Geovany Soto leave via free agency. Schmidt has some pop to his bat but I don't expect him to make an impact with Texas in 2013. 

Diamondbacks decline option for Lindstrom

The Diamondbacks have declined their 2013 club option for pitcher Matt Lindstrom. He will now receive a $200k buyout instead of the $4 million salary.

Lindstrom posted a 2.68 ERA in 47 innings with Baltimore and Arizona in 2012. Arizona acquired him back in August in the Joe Saunders trade.

Analysis: Lindstrom is a decent relief pitcher but is not worth $4 million. I doubt that the Diamondbacks will re-sign him because they recently acquired Heath Bell. Lindstrom will appeal to several teams, specifically team's like the Mets, Angels, and Orioles, who could be looking for bullpen help.

Diamondbacks decline option for Blanco

The Diamondbacks have declined their $1.24 million option for catcher Henry Blanco. Blanco is now a free agent.

Blanco appeared in 21 games for Arizona in 2012, hitting .188 in 67 plate appearances while serving as the team's backup catcher. The Diamondbacks will apparently now seek a more durable backup catcher for Miguel Montero.

Analysis: Blanco is a good defensive catcher, but hasn't been able to stay healthy, and that is why he has bounced around from team to team throughout his career. He is still a decent backup catcher to have on your team, but is not worth $1.24 million.

Diamondbacks claim Nunez

The Diamondbacks have claimed shortstop Gustavo Nunez off of waivers from the Pirates.

Nunez hit a combined .273 in Single-A, Double-A and the Gulf Coast League in 2012. Nunez was formerly a semi-top prospect in Detroit's farm system.

Analysis: Alright, Uhh, I suppose this move can't hurt. I don't know why the Pirates would get rid of this kid, because he is still 24 and has upside, and lets be honest, is probably an upgrade over Clint Barmes. The Diamondbacks have little to no shortstop depth, so Nunez may get some playing time if he can get that batting average up.

D'Backs outright five to Triple-A

The Diamondbacks have outrighted Jonathan Albaladejo, Tyler Graham, Mike Jacobs, Joe Martinez, and Cody Ransom to Triple-A.

Albaladejo only appeared in three games for Arizona in 2012, and spent the entire 2011 in Japan. Graham hit .176 in 123 Triple-A plate appearances. Jacobs hit .279 with 18 homers for Triple-A.  Martinez spent most of the season in Triple-A, posting a 5.39 ERA in 27 starts. Ransom hit .220 with 11 home runs in 282 combined plate appearances with Arizona and Milwaukee.

Analysis: Albaladejo isn't really anything special, and Graham cannot hit at all. Mike Jacobs is a decent hitter, but has gotten caught with PED's so I don't know if he is doing this legit or not. Martinez is pretty much rotation depth, and Ransom is infield depth, so none of these are surprising.

Orioles, Diamondbacks complete Saunders trade

The Orioles and Diamondbacks have completed the August 26th trade that sent pitcher Joe Saunders to Baltimore in exchange for Matt Lindstrom and a player to be named later. The two sides couldn't agree on a player, so the Orioles will send cash considerations to Arizona to complete trade.

Saunders was very reliable for Baltimore down the stretch, posting a 3.63 ERA in 44 2/3 innings during the regular season. He will become a free agent when the World Series is over and it is assumed that Baltimore will try to retain him.

Analysis: Alright, well that is unfortunate. There's really no news here, expect that both Lindstrom and Saunders played very well with their respective teams in 2012.

Diamondbacks designate Saito for assignment

The Diamondbacks have designated Takashi Saito for assignment to create roster space following the three team deal that the Diamondbacks were part of yesterday. Saito was already set to become a free agent when the World Series ends, so this move just takes him off of the 40 man roster in advance.

Arizona signed Saito to a one year, $1.75 ERA last December, and he missed most of the 2012 season due to a calf and hamstring injury. He posted a 6.75 ERA in 16 games for Arizona during the 2012 season.

Analysis: I've always liked Saito, but his career has been a train-wreck over the last two seasons. He was practically an elite setup man with the Dodgers, Red Sox, Brewers, and Braves, and the Diamondbacks were expecting him to be good in 2012. I think that he'll have a bounce-back season if he decides to continue to pitch in American in 2013.

Diamondbacks acquire Bell in three-team trade

The Diamondbacks have acquired closer Heath Bell from the Marlins in a three way trade that will also send Cliff Pennington and cash considerations to Arizona. Miami will receive infielder Yordy Cabrera from Oakland, and the Athletics will get outfielder Chris Young and $500k from the Diamondbacks.
The Marlins are responsible for $8 million of the remaining $21 million owed to Bell over the next two years. Bell had a horrific season with the Marlins in 2012, and got into several confrontations with manager Ozzie Guillen about his struggles. He posted a 5.09 ERA in 73 appearances. The Marlins signed Bell last off-season as part of their spending spree. His contract includes a vesting option for the 2015 season that will earn him $9 million if he finishes 55 games in 2014, or 100 games finished in 2013-2014 combined.

Pennington has been a member of Oakland ever since his career started in 2005 when he was drafted in the first round (21st overall) in the 2005 draft. He was Oakland's everyday shortstop until they acquired Stephen Drew, therefore forcing him to move to second base. He hit .215 in 462 plate appearances in 2012.

Young will earn $8.5 million in 2013, and has a 2014 club option worth $11 million with a $1.5 million buyout. He hit .231 with 14 homers in 2012, and only started 101 games that season, partly due to shoulder injury that he suffered in April.

Cabrera hit .232 in 60 games at Single-A in 2012, and is a former second round pick.

Analysis: Wow this is a lot to take in here. First off, I like this trade from every side's standpoint. The Marlins are not only getting rid of Bell and the majority of his contract, but they get Cabrera, who isn't a great prospect but does have some upside. It also will allow Steve Cishek to take the everyday closer's role, whom I am a big fan of. As for the Diamondbacks, their bullpen is pretty solid already but I guess they decided that buying low on Bell would be the right thing to do. Hopefully Bell turns around his career, because if he doesn't than Arizona will be stuck with him for two more years and it may get ugly. Cliff Pennington will also be going to the Diamondbacks, and he is a guy that is pretty much a defensive specialist. Arizona has been looking for a shortstop ever since Stephen Drew was traded a few months ago, and I suppose Pennington can serve as a stop-gap like replacement for now. Now, I like what Billy Beane is doing here. He is getting Young, whose value is extremely low right now. He really doesn't fit the typical "Billy Beane player" mould due to his strikeouts, but he is being reunited with manager Bob Melvin, and hopefully that helps him play better.

Diamondbacks exercise J.J. Putz's 2013 option

The Diamondbacks have announced that they have officially exercised closer J.J. Putz's 2013 club option that is worth $6.5 million. Putz would have been owned a $1.5 million buyout if Arizona decided not to bring him back in 2013.

Putz posted a  combined 2.48 ERA in two years with Arizona, and saved 77 games in 86 opportunities. Arizona signed Putz to a two year, $10 million contract after the 2010 season.

Analysis: We had to see this coming. Putz was very solid in his years with Arizona, despite his age. $6.5 million wont' break the bank, so retaining him definitely makes sense. I just wish that he would have had this kind of success when he was with my Mets in 2009.

Diamondbacks re-sign Clevlen

The Diamondbacks have announced that they have re-signed outfielder Brent Clevlen to a new contract.

Arizona signed Clevlen to a minor league deal back in April, and hit a combined .290 in 345 plate appearances for Double-A and Triple-A this season.

Analysis: Ok, whatever. Clevlen's minor league stats are pretty good but he hasn't really gotten a chance to play at the big league level. Don't expect him to be in the majors next year unless the Diamondbacks have a fire sale of some sort and get rid of every one of their outfielders, which is highly unlikely.

Cole Gillespie elects free agency

The Diamondbacks have announced that outfielder Cole Gillespie has cleared waivers and will elect free agency over being outrighted to Triple-A. Arizona designated Gillespie for assignment a couple of days ago to create roster space for Mike Jacobs.

Gillespie had a few brief cups of coffee with Arizona in 2010-2011, but has spent the entire 2012 season in Triple-A, where he has hit .308 with 13 homers in 510 plate appearances. The Diamondbacks originally acquired Gillespie in the Felipe Lopez trade of 2009.

Analysis: Gillespie has put up nice stats in Triple-A, but is really a quadruple-A player in my opinion. I'm not surprised that he didn't get claimed, but I'm sure that he'll sign some sort of minor league deal with SOMEBODY this winter. A trip to Japan is also possible.

Diamondbacks designate Gillespie for assignment

The Diamondbacks have designated infielder Cole Gillespie for assignment to create roster space for Mike Jacobs, who has been recalled from Triple-A.

Gillespie has hit .308 with 13 homers in 510 plate appearances in Triple-A this season. Arizona originally acquired him in the Felipe Lopez deal back in 2009.

Analysis: Gillespie isn't a terrible hitter but I think he'll clear waivers because he is already 28 years old, and is practically a quadruple-A player.

Contenders or Pretenders: Arizona Diamondbacks

It's alright Justin, you'll get em next year. 

The Diamondbacks surprised the baseball world last year by making the playoffs, despite having a team full of unproven players and an inexperienced manager in Kirk Gibson. Coming into the 2012 season, some people believed that they would only continue to get better, and possibly make a deeper post-season run. Their season, however, has been very up and down and right now, they are sitting in 3rd place in the NL West with a record a few games under .500.

Despite the fact that Chase Field is generally a hitter-friendly park, I expected Arizona's pitching staff to be a strength this year. It has, however, been horrible for the most part. Ian Kennedy has had a rough year and some people, including myself, are questioning if he can become Arizona's long-term ace. Trevor Cahill has had a decent season, but we are all waiting for him to have a breakout year and live up to his hype. Daniel Hudson was lost for the season a couple months ago following Tommy John surgery. He will most likely miss a few months of next season as well. GM Kevin Towers traded away Joe Saunders, and that is when I knew that he was throwing this season away in order to look toward the future. Luckily for Arizona, they have quite an abundance of young arms. Names like Trevor Bauer, Patrick Corbin, Wade Miley, and Tyler Skaggs come to mind. These arms will pretty much determine whether Arizona will be contending within the next couple of years. As for this season, the pitching is a mess and I don't think that they will make the playoffs for that reason.

Arizona, despite having Craig Breslow, actually has a solid group of relief pitchers. J.J. Putz is a good veteran closer to have, and Brad Ziegler and David Hernandez are good setup men. Arizona definitely doesn't have a problem with their bullpen.

The offense has actually been pretty solid, despite Justin Upton's sub-par performance. Upton has hit 13 homers in 129 games, but is still young and I'm confident that he'll have a strong season in 2013. Jason Kubel has been a nice surprise, and Miguel Montero is having a nice, underrated season. Like I said earlier, the pitching will determine if this team will contend this year, and it looks like that won't happen.

Overall, the Diamondbacks may compete within the next year or two, but it looks like they'll have to settle with 3rd place this season. The Dodgers and Giants are better teams right now, and in order for the Diamondbacks to climb the ranks in the division, they will need consistent performance's out of their starters, and a bounce-back season from Justin Upton in 2013. So Contenders or Pretenders? I'll say Pretenders.

Angels, D'Backs finalize Enright trade

The Diamondbacks and Angels have announced that they have finalized the Barry Enright trade. The player to be named later has been announced as 24 year old first baseman Frazier Hall, who will be going to Arizona.

Hall has hit .254 with 13 homers in 510 plate appearances in Single-A this year.

Analysis: Hall doesn't seem like anything special. 24 years old and being in Single-A means that if he does make it to the big leagues, he'll probably be a bench player at best.

Diamondbacks claim Cody Ransom

The Diamondbacks have claimed infielder Cody Ransom off of waivers from the Brewers. Arizona will activate Ransom when the rosters expand tomorrow. This marks the 2nd stint Ransom has had with the Diamondbacks this year. He originally signed a minor league deal with them in the Spring.

Ransom appeared in 64 games with Milwaukee, hitting .214 in 252 plate appearances.

Analysis: Odd move by the Diamondbacks here. If I were GM Kevin Towers, I wouldn't waste a roster spot with Ransom. He is a good defender, but a horrible hitter and isn't very young (36 years old.) I guess veteran experience can't hurt but the club already has John McDonald.

Fantasy talk: Trevor Cahill status report

Trevor Cahill hasn't really been a consistent pitcher so far in his brief MLB career. He is still extremely young (24 years old), and still has a lot to learn. He has a lot of upside, and if he can gain some sort of consistency, he could possibly be Arizona's ace for year's to come. 

Cahill was drafted by the Athletics in the 2nd round of the 2006 draft. He pitched very well in the minors, and was quickly promoted to the big leagues. He started the 2009 season in Oakland's starting rotation, and didn't really have a great year. He posted a 4.62 ERA in 32 games started, and only racked up 90 strikeouts. The following season he had a breakout year, winning 18 games while posting a 2.97 ERA in 196.2 innings pitched. He made his first All-Star team, and at 22 years old, he looked like a rising star in the game. In 2011, Oakland expected him to be their #2 pitcher behind Gio Gonzalez but Cahill did not have a successful season. He posted a 4.16 ERA in 34 games started, and only had 147 strikeouts. He also put up a 9.3 H/9 ratio, which is startling for fantasy owners. Last off-season, the Athletics surprised the baseball world by trading Cahill to the Diamondbacks. Cahill was 23 years old at the time, and many figured that he would be part of Oakland's future plans despite his poor 2011 campaign. The Diamondbacks paid a hefty price in order to acquire Cahill, sending 3 players to Oakland, most notably Ryan Cook and Jarrod Parker. 

Once the 2012 season started, I expected Cahill's numbers to improve because he would be facing National League hitters, who are generally worse than the sluggers in the American League. Cahill hasn't been spectacular, but has pitched like a #3 starter this year. He currently has a 3.86 ERA in 156.1 innings, and has a 6.6 SO/9 ratio, which is not appealing to fantasy owners. Cahill is what he is, a control pitcher who relies heavily on his sinker and change up. I really hope that he develops some consistency, but even if he doesn't, luckily for him, age is on his side. I doubt that the Diamondbacks would give up on a 24 year old pitcher whom they paid a lot for. In fantasy, Cahill isn't really a great pitcher to have unless he starts racking up the K's and lowering his unimpressive walk ratio, which is 3.4 BB/9. 

Orioles acquire Joe Saunders

The Orioles have acquired pitcher Joe Saunders from the Diamondbacks in exchange for reliever Matt Lindstrom and a player to be named later. Saunders cleared trade waivers earlier this week, making him eligible to be traded to any team.

The Orioles made a strong push to acquire Joe Blanton from the Phillies but never wound up acquiring him. Saunders has $1.5 million owed to him for the remainder of the season, and is arbitration eligible for the 3rd time this winter. He has posted a career 4.17 ERA in eight MLB seasons with the Diamondbacks and Angels.

Lindstrom, acquired by Baltimore in last off-season's Jeremy Guthrie-Jason Hammel swap, has pitched well out of the bullpen this year. He has posted a 2.72 ERA in 34 appearances in 2012. He will earn $3.6 million this year, and has a club option worth $4 million for 2013.

Analysis: This is a nice trade for both sides. I've been saying all year that the Orioles need starting pitching depth to make a post-season run, and they've been trying to get pitchers all summer but haven't had any luck up to today. Saunders is a decent pitcher to have on your pitching staff. He is an innings-eater, and pitches to contact. I have a strong feeling that he'll get lit up in the American League, simply because he didn't have much success when he was with the Angels in the beginning of his career. As for the Diamondbacks, I'm surprised that they got Lindstrom in this deal. I remember Lindstrom when he was an up and coming prospect with the Mets. The guy throws 100 mph, and is a nice bullpen piece to have. He'll probably serve as the club's setup man and get non-tendered in the fall. He isn't worth $4 million. And finally, the player to be named later will not, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, be a top prospect. He will probably end up being a lower-level minor leaguer.

Diamondbacks will look for shortstop this off-season

Jake Elmore could be a decent short term option

On Monday, the Diamondbacks traded shortstop Stephen Drew to the Athletics, therefore leaving a large gap at the shortstop position. The team will now rely on Willie Bloomquist, Jake Elmore, and John McDonald to fill that role for the remainder of the season, but they will pursue other shortstops in the off-season, according to GM Kevin Towers. 

"There's not a lot on the free agent market, so more than likely it's going to take a trade," Towers said. We'll probably have to trade a good player--or a couple of good players--to find one."

Analysis: Well we had to expect this. Bloomquist and McDonald are bench players at best, and Elmore is still young and unproven. I actually expect a bunch of prospects to be available this fall, possibly Elvis Andrus due to the Jurickson Profar almost being ready for the show. You can also say Zack Cosart could be available, because the Reds have some middle infield depth, Didi Gregorius and Billy Hamilton, waiting under him on the depth chart. Another name could be Yunel Escobar, who got a lot of trade interest last month. 

Fantasy talk: Welcome to the show Tyler Skaggs

The 2012 season has been a mess for the Diamondbacks, but on Wednesday they will catch a glimpse of their future. Arizona confirmed that pitching prospect Tyler Skaggs will make his major league debut against the Marlins on Wednesday. Skaggs is an interesting player, and seeing what he can do for the rest of the season could seriously impact his fantasy value for the 2013 season.

Skaggs was drafted in the first round (40th overall) by the Angels in 2009. He briefly stayed in Los Angeles' farm system, and was shipped to Arizona in the Dan Haren deal. Arizona allowed Skaggs to slowly develop in their farm system, and called him up to the Triple-A level a few months into this season. He posted a 2.91 ERA in 9 starts in Triple-A this year, and the Diamondbacks now would like to see what he can do in the MLB level.

I don't expect Skaggs to be unstoppable, but I can definitely see him being a solid number 3 starter. Arizona has a lot of young pitching, and it is really exciting to imagine what their rotation will look like in a few years. As for Skaggs, if he can post similar numbers in the majors like he did in the minors, I would seriously consider picking him up. He consistently put up great strikeout numbers while in the minors, and we fantasy owners like those strikeouts. Overall, Skaggs is a great buy low option and picking him up may be an under the radar move that could put your team on the top.