Kuzul

Since making his MLB debut in 2007, Cincinnati Reds catcher Ryan Hanigan has without a doubt been a valuable asset to the Reds organization.As both a backup catcher and a spot starter, Hanigan has proven himself to be a clutch hitter and a solid defender behind the plate.Many baseball fans, including me, expected to see Hanigan earn more of a full-time role with the Reds once the recent trade deadline had passed, but Cincinnati elected to hold on to veteran Ramon Hernandez and keep Hanigan in his usual on-again, off-again role.One has to wonder, with Hernandez playing at a high level and with two hot minor league catching prospects in Devin Mesoraco and Yasmani Grandal itching to make their way up to the majors, where exactly Hanigan fits in Cincinnati's plans for the future.Hernandez is 35 years old and projected to become a free agent at the season's end, but the ...

Almost instantly after today's game against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Texas Rangers made a deal for the reliever that they desperately need.General manager Jon Daniels made a deal with the Baltimore Orioles to send pitcher Tommy Hunter and first baseman Chris Davis in exchange for reliever Koji Uehara.A trade involving Chris Davis comes as no surprise to me, as he was destined to find another team to play for.He tore it up in the minor leagues but just can't seem to outperform Mitch Moreland at first. As a result, he was pushed over to third base to sub for an injured Adrian Beltre. He's a power bat that is of no use to the Rangers on the bench, so moving him in a trade is exactly what needed to happen.However, including Tommy Hunter in the deal is a bit of a surprise. He's been a solid pitcher throughout his career ...

Do you have any friends who you absolutely adore, but hate talking to? I know I do. Whenever they call, I can’t seem to get off the phone fast enough. That’s what it must be like for Ruben Amaro’s fellow general managers around Major League Baseball. Amaro has been in baseball his entire life and knows everyone.  However, when other GMs see his caller ID on their phones, they must cringe. “Oh no, what does that man want now?” they all must say. Whatever it is that Amaro does say to them must make them want to get off the phone quickly; they must be willing to give up practically anything to just shut him up. There’s no other explanation for how he continually gets the players he wants from the teams he wants by giving up the scraps he no longer needs. For the second time in as many Julys, Amaro ...

In 2010 Hunter Pence must have hit .345 with 43 home runs, 52 doubles, 125 walks, and 173 RBI.He also must have sucker punched the official scorer’s child. Otherwise, it would be hard to explain why the Philadelphia Phillies (along with some other teams) were so intent on acquiring him.The Phillies committed four prospects to acquire the former Houston Astros right fielder, including pitcher Jarred Cosart and first baseman Jonathon Singleton, the 70th and 39th ranked prospects in the country according to Baseball America (pre-2011). Now, Hunter Pence is a very solid player. He is above-average at every aspect of his game, except for patience.And, in defense of Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr., Pence represents a significant upgrade over 23-year-old rookie Domonic Brown and is under team control through 2013. But for two top prospects, as well as two additional prospects, the impact of a new player needs to ...

After acquiring Hunter Pence from the Houston Astros just yesterday, it looks like the Philadelphia Phillies have no intentions of slowing down.Jayson Stark tweeted earlier that the Phillies may be interested in another power hitter, specifically Jason Giambi or former Phillie Jim Thome. The tweet stated:Next #Phillies move might not be for an arm. Still have interest in HR threat off the bench like Jason Giambi. Even asked on Thome.When everyone in the lineup is healthy, the current bench players include: Ben Francisco, Brian Schneider, Wilson Valdez, Michael Martinez and Ross Gload.There isn't much power there.Considering Schneider is the backup catcher, the Phillies probably want to replace Gload, who has just six RBI this year with no home runs.The Phillies were rumored earlier in the week to be interested in Giambi and he "appeared almost certain to go to Philly" according to Troy Renck, who covers the Rockies. But Thome is a brand new ...

The Boston Red Sox have traded infielder Yamaico Navarro and pitching prospect Kendal Volz for Kansas City infielder Mike Aviles.On the surface, it's a bit of an odd move, as Aviles is going through a difficult 2011.  His slash line of .222/.261/.395 is brutal to look at, and the Royals only recently recalled him from AAA after his poor performance earned him an option to the minors.Boston must like his versatility. Aviles can play third base or either of the middle positions, though his 2011 UZR is minus-0.8 according to Fangraphs.  Aviles' best year came in 2008 when he posted and .834 OPS in 102 games with Kansas City.  He also managed an 11.1 UZR that season at shortstop.  Since then, however, his development has stalled.  His career path makes the trade a little surprising. It's unclear what the team sees in Aviles that makes him preferable to Boston's existing options.One ...

While the trade market is dwindling and two of the Atlanta Braves' top targets have been taken, there still remains a trade possibility or two that would be nearly ideal for the Braves.The most reasonable and beneficial trade would involve the San Diego Padres.Earlier this week, I wrote an article explaining the Braves' need for a relief pitcher, and Bryce Sumida responded with an article explaining the Braves' need for an outfielder.Both articles present reliable facts, and it seems the ideal scenario for the Braves would land them a consistent outfielder along with a strong reliever.The Padres are widely known to have one of the best bullpens in the NL and seem willing to make a deal involving one of their relievers.Among San Diego's relievers whom the Braves could target, the best option would be Mike Adams.The Atlanta Big Three of Jonny Venters, Eric O'Flaherty, and Craig Kimbrel has been ...

With all the pressure on his shoulders, Rangers Double-A prospect Joe Wieland went out and threw a no-hitter Friday night against the San Antonio Missions. He allowed one walk and faced the minimum 27 batters as the sole baserunner was eliminated trying to steal second base. Wieland's timing could not have been better as Major League scouts have been in attendance the last few weeks evaluating pieces for a potential deadline deal. The latest rumors have been with San Diego in the Heath Bell discussions as teammates Wieland, Robbie Erlin and Tanner Scheppers have been the hottest names in the possible swap. Wieland has to hear the rumors. How can he not in a world obsessed with Twitter and reporters trying to be the first to break a story. In an interview with ESPN's Richard Durrett, Wieland said about the rumors, "Whatever happens, happens. I try not to think about it too much, ...

Sure, Hunter Pence is an improvement right now. Even though offensively, I expected Brown and Pence to be roughly equal for rest of the season, Pence certainly is the better defensive player at this point. No Brown supporter will deny that. But the trade does not guarantee anything.I'd be a lot more on board with the move if I knew our worst outfielder, not including Gload, was not going to be manning left field every night. I'd even be fine with moving Brown down to Triple-A if I knew it was John Mayberry Jr. going to be starting instead of Ibanez. But that's not happening.Back to Pence. Fans should be prepared when he hits a slump this season, which is bound to happen as his batting average of balls in play regresses to more normal levels. When that happens, I'm sure you'll hear sports talk folk attributing it ...

The Arizona Diamondbacks added minor league outfield depth by acquiring Michael Restovich from the Chicago White Sox for cash on July 27. Restovich, who has not played in the major leagues since 2007, was hitting .229 for the Charlotte Knights—the White Sox’s Triple-A team—at the time of the transaction. He has hit .222 in three games since then. The Knights are not losing much. In addition to his .229 batting average, he had 37 strikeouts, a meager .365 slugging percentage and a .282 on-base percentage prior to the move. Restovich was once a top prospect in the Minnesota Twins organization and in 2000 was rated the 26th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America. He came to the major leagues in 2002 and hit .308 in 13 at-bats, giving the big club a taste of what they hoped he would produce. However, the power-hitting prospect slugged only three home ...