Results tagged ‘ cubs ’

7/31 Dempster to Rangers

Ryan Dempster apparently said yes to the Rangers. The Cubs’ makeover continued Tuesday when they reportedly traded Dempster to the defending American League champions, finalizing the deal minutes before the 3 p.m. CT Trade Deadline. The Cubs have yet to confirm the deal but multiple reports said it was done.

The 35-year-old right-hander, who ranks among the National League leaders with a 2.25 ERA, had favored a deal to the Dodgers but apparently altered his wish list. The Yankees also were believed to be in talks with the Cubs. <p> The Cubs thought they had a deal last week which would’ve sent Dempster to the Braves but the right-hander exercised his 10-and-5 rights (10 years of service, five with the same team) and rejected that move. He had given Theo Epstein, Cubs president of baseball operations, a list of teams he would prefer.

Dempster will be a pure rental. Players must be with a team for an entire season in order to qualify for draft-pick compensation. This is in the last year of his four-year contract with the Cubs, which was paying him $14 million this season. His career has come full circle. Dempster was selected by the Rangers in the third round of the 1995 First-Year Player Draft by the Rangers, then traded in ’96 to the Marlins.

– Carrie Muskat

7/31 Dempster to Yankees?

USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports Ryan Dempster has told the Cubs he would accept a trade to the Yankees if they can’t work something out with the Dodgers. Los Angeles is believed to be Dempster’s first choice. He has the right to pick as a player with 10-and-5 rights — 10 years in the big leagues and five with the same team. Dempster would be reunited with pitching coach Larry Rothschild, and, of course, former Cubs GM Jim Hendry, who is a special assistant to the Yankees. The Dodgers apparently don’t want to move one of their top prospects for a rental player. As of 1:45 p.m. CT, Dempster is scheduled to start for the Cubs against the Pirates.

– Carrie Muskat

7/31 Dempster & the Dodgers

The Dodgers acquired outfielder Shane Victorino from the Phillies on Tuesday but FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal says they’re not done. Rosenthal reports the Dodgers are focused on Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster and want him before today’s 3 p.m. CT Trade Deadline. Dempster was scheduled to start Tuesday night for the Cubs against the Pirates. However, the Cubs were expected to have pitcher Casey Coleman in Chicago as a contingency plan. Dempster has hinted he’d prefer to go to the Dodgers. As a player with 10-and-5 rights, he has veto power.

– Carrie Muskat

7/31 Soto to Rangers

It’s now official. Geovany Soto moved up in the standings, traded by the Cubs to the Rangers for Minor League right-handed pitcher Jake Brigham and a player to be named or cash consideration. Soto, 29, has been in the Cubs system since he was drafted in 2001. The trade was reported Monday night as Soto was pulled from the game after the Pirates sixth inning, but wasn’t finalized until Tuesday morning. As he left Monday night’s game, Soto was greeted in the dugout by handshakes and hugs from his teammates. He was batting .199 this season in 52 games this season. He missed time because of a torn meniscus in his left knee. The 2008 National League Rookie of the Year, Soto was being paid $4.3 million this year, and on track to go to arbitration for the third time this offseason.

The defending American League champion Rangers lead the West division by 3 1/2 games.

The Cubs were expected to call up catcher Welington Castillo from Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday with Clevenger taking over as the regular catcher. Clevenger was in the weight room, preparing in case he was needed to pinch hit when he got word that he had to get into the game to catch.

Brigham, 24, was 5-5 with a 4.28 ERA in 21 starts for Double-A Frisco this season. He went 3-1 with a 3.60 ERA (16 ER/40.0 IP) in 21 relief outings last season. In 2012, Brigham was named to the mid-season Texas League All-Star team. He was selected in the sixth round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft out of Central Florida Christian Academy in Orlando, Fla. In 135 Minor League appearances, Brigham is 27-42 with one save and a 4.40 ERA.

– Carrie Muskat

7/30 Dempster tidbits

No change in Ryan Dempster’s status, just the rumors. Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus reports Zach Lee, Allen Webster and Chris Reed are off the table in any talks between the Cubs and Dodgers for Dempster. CBS Sports’ Scott Miller said discussions are “gaining momentum.” However, a Major League source told MLB.com Monday afternoon that nothing has changed in discussions.

– Carrie Muskat

7/30 Cubs rumors

Ryan Dempster’s next scheduled start is Tuesday night, with the first pitch at Wrigley Field scheduled for four hours after the 3 p.m. CT Trade Deadline. Will he still be in a Cubs uniform by then? Yahoo’s Tim Brown tweets Monday that the Dodgers are still talking to the Cubs about Dempster, and FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal says Alfonso Soriano could be part of the trade. On Sunday, the Chicago Sun-Times’ Gordon Wittenmyer wrote the Cubs’ failed attempt to get pitching prospect Allen Webster from the Dodgers created a stalemate. The Dodgers have had an offer on the table for Dempster since mid July.

The Braves appeared to have completed a deal one week ago for Dempster, who said Sunday: “Who’s to say I was going to say no or yes to whatever team.  All I said was that I just, at that time, I needed to think about everything.”

MLB.com’s Mark Bowman says there’s no guarantee 22-year-old Randall Delgado is still available to deal to the Cubs for Dempster.

Rosenthal points out that under the new CBA, there is no longer a required 24-hour waiting period for 10-and-5 players to approve a trade. So, any deals can go right to the deadline as long as the player gives consent. That applies to Dempster.

– Carrie Muskat

 

7/29 Cubs getting lots of looks

Ryan Dempster and Matt Garza aren’t the only players drawing interest from teams heading into Tuesday’s Trade Deadline. Players such as David DeJesus, Reed Johnson and Jeff Baker also are attractive options to potential playoff teams looking to add to their bench. The Pirates, for example, have been looking to add another bat, but if they can’t do that, they mght consider Johnson or DeJesus for the bench, depending on whether they prefer an extra right-handed bat or a left-handed one. Johnson’s execution of the bunt single on Saturday, which drove in the game-winning run against the Cardinals, certainly increased his value. The Pirates had a scout watching the Cubs this weekend and there also were reps from the Dodgers, Twins and Phillies.

– Carrie Muskat

7/28 Looking for bench help? How about Reed Johnson

Reed Johnson has heard his name mentioned in rumors so many times, he simply ignores them.

“I’ve had rumors over my 10-year career and never been traded,” the Cubs outfielder said Saturday. “It’s a situation for me for when you’re packing your stuff, that’s when you believe you’re headed somewhere else. If I stay here, great; if not, I realize that’s part of the game, and I have to move on.”

Johnson drove in the game-winning run with a pinch-hit bunt single with two outs in the seventh Saturday to give the Cubs a 3-2 win over the Cardinals.

“That was on his own,” Cubs manager Dale Sveum said. “He’s a good bunter, and I remember once in Boston, he did it against us with the bases loaded and it turned into a monster inning.”

Tuesday’s Trade Deadline can’t come soon enough for the players, who are weary of the rumors. It’s not really distracting, Johnson said.

“Once you’re in between the lines, you don’t think about it too much,” he said. “Maybe before the game when you’re in the clubhouse with the guys, everybody’s kind of chipping on each other about getting traded, and you think about it then, but once the game starts, you forget about that stuff. It’s a good release to get out there this time of year.”

He’s had family and friends keep him up to date.

“I feel like my mom could be my agent because she always has an idea of where I’m going to go but I never end up anywhere,” Johnson said. “I might have to fire her.”

Could Johnson, who was batting .448 as a pinch-hitter this year, help a team?

“He’s a valuable guy to a team vying for a championship or trying to get to the playoffs,” Sveum said.

— Carrie Muskat

7/28 Cubs wait for deadline to pass

There were no changes in the Cubs’ roster on Saturday, just attempts to ask Dale Sveum the same question: Are you eager for the Trade Deadline to pass?

“I think everybody is ready to get it behind us with everything that’s happened and all the rumors,” Sveum said. “Whether they happen or not, I think everybody will be glad it’s all over with. It’s not over with a lot of times because of the waiver wires. I think the main things will be shutdown one way or another [after Tuesday].”

The Trade Deadline is 3 p.m. CT on Tuesday. Ryan Dempster is scheduled to start that night against the Pirates.

– Carrie Muskat

7/27 Ryan Dempster rumors

Will Ryan Dempster be dealt before his start Tuesday? He was sitting on a cooler in the Cubs dugout on Friday, watching the game. CBSsportsline.com’s Jon Heyman reports talks between the Dodgers and Cubs are at an impasse, and that the Dodgers are looking at other options. The Dodgers have reportely offered pitching prospects but Heyman said the Cubs were asking for Allen Webster. The Dodgers have the leverage in talks as Dempster has rejected a deal to the Braves, and was believed to only be willing to go to the Dodgers. Matt Garza was another option but he may be a difficult trade candidate because the right-hander won’t get a start until the end of the week. He came out of his last start last Saturday because of cramping in his right elbow.

– Carrie Muskat

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