The trading deadline isn't over. August 31 is the waiver trade deadline, and there's always a nugget or two that changes things in the postseason races.
And, sports fans, we may have our nugget.
Both the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and the St. Paul Pioneer-Press are reporting that the Twins have claimed Rangers' 2B Alfonso Soriano on waivers.
This doesn't mean they have him yet, and they may not get him at all. According to MLB.com, "Twins claimed Soriano to block a trade to another team and the clubs do not expect to make a deal."
The way the waiver wire works is such: a team puts a team on waivers. The team with the worst record to claim the player "claims" the player. Now the two teams have 48 hours to make a deal. Then, the waiving team can either trade the player to that team, give them the player or retain the player. If they retain the player, he cannot be traded for the rest of the season.
The Twins have used the waiver earlier this season to nab a prominent second baseman. They acquired bat-flippin' Bret Boone from the Mariners, then weeks later released him.
Minnesota has a remarkable pitching rotation, featuring 2004 Cy Young winner Johan Santana, Brad Radke and Carlos Silva, along with lights-out closer Joe Nathan. However, their offense has been inconsistent. The season-ending injury to Torii Hunter was both an offensive and defensive handicap on the team, and the acquisition of Soriano would be an immediate fix to their hole at second base, as Luis Rivas has been slumping all year.
And Minnesota may not be out of this race. Last week they were 7 games back in the Wild Card chase, but with Oakland losing 5 of 6 games, the Twins find themselves back only 2 1/2 games of the A's after sweeping the White Sox and winning 3 of 4 vs. Seattle. Now the Twins play the White Sox again starting Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Blue Jays (who have quietly stayed in the race) were swept in Detroit, the third stop in their 4-city, 13-game road trip. Toronto was outscored 29-13 by the Tigers. Capping off their trip is a four-game series at the Yankees, who are also in the middle of this Wild Card chase.
Article comments
1 - Tan The Man
Waivers are fun...
2 - Matthew T. Sussman
When I was little I always thought waiving a player was named that because they were "waiving them goodbye."
Ahh, the beauty of youthful ignorance.
3 - Bob A. Booey
Didn't I write something here? I could have SWORN I put a comment up here. Maybe I didn't hit "Send" during my weekend haze yesterday.
Soriano's too expensive and would cost too many prospects for Minnesota to stomach, especially under their current business model.
I said some other stuff too, but I forget. Angels and A's good, Yankees out of playoffs, Florida dangerous if they make the playoffs, Phillies decent but not much pitching, etc.
It was all primo stuff, my friends.
That is all.
4 - Matthew T. Sussman
So Bobbo, can I quote you on this:
Angels: In?
A's: In?
Indians: Out?
And now way I'm gonna pin a bold prediction on you for the NL Wild Card. Hell, the Brewers will probably win it or something, the way the season's going.
5 - Bob A. Booey
I think the Indians have been treading water a little bit in the second half. They're still dangerous (especially because they win on the road), but I think their year is next year. The Twins can't hit -- neither can the White Sox, but the Sox have more than enough pitching to win that division easily by at least 5 games.
The Angels are in barring any catastrophic injury. Has anyone noticed that Bartolo Colon has quietly snuck into the AL Cy Young race along with Buerhle, Garland, and Mariano? He has 16 wins, a mid 3.00s ERA and no real hype yet on a winning team. This could be a very dangerous team in the playoffs and is probably my prohibitive AL favorite -- Boston hits like no one else but doesn't have enough pitching and Schilling won't be himself for the remainder of the year as a starter.
I think Oakland or Anaheim (whichever comes in 2nd in the West) wins the wild card. They're just the better, more balanced team than the Yankees this year. The Yankees have some of the best players in the game and ARod's having an MVP year (he'll be right there with Vlad and Ortiz), but they don't feel like a playoff team to me this year, much less a World Series contender.
I'm a little surprised that the A's have slid a little, but that's to be expected. They're good and balanced and both the A's and the Angels will give an unbalanced team like the White Sox some trouble in the playoffs. All the AL series should be pretty good ones, though, as the matchups look now.
The NL wild card and East mess is just too hard to figure out. The Jack McKeon effect seems to have worn off on on the Marlins, but they have more talent now than they did on their 2003 championship team. If they make the playoffs, I think they're my favorites to make the World Series and be right there with teams like Boston or Anaheim. The Phillies could also make some noise in the playoffs, but they don't have much pitching and Jim Thome's not healthy. Philly can hit pretty well and has a good bullpen, but their mediocre starting pitching might mean a late-season fade. No one wants to play Houston because of their pitching, but their atrocious offense limits them down the stretch against top pitchers. The Nationals and Mets just don't feel like playoff teams to me this year. The Nationals were playing way over their heads for most of the year -- they're not a bad team, well-balanced and with some good players, but Frank Robinson seems to have lost the grip he had on the team earlier in the season, especially with his ace, Livan Hernandez. Cristian Guzman's unbelievably poor production numbers are costing the team more games than his good defense preserves. The Mets seem to be too old and injured, without enough pitching other than the remarkable Pedro and Carlos Beltran sure isn't carrying them this year the way he did Houston down the stretch last year.
Florida's an enigma to me, but I'm going to go out on a limb and make them both my Wild Card and my prohibitive favorite to make the World Series. I think the struggles of Juan Pierre have had a lot to do with the team's inconsistency this year and he may sink the team yet. Lowell and Mota have also been huge disappointments. But Florida has pitching, good hitting with two great hitters in the middle of the lineup (Cabrera and Delgado) and above-average defense, which makes for a dangerous combination if they can find some focus down the stretch. If Josh Beckett finds his 2003 form and carries them again, look out. AJ Burnett and Dontrelle Willis aren't Schilling-style aces who carry you on their back in clutch games, but they'll keep the team in games down the stretch. Beckett has proven he can be dominant in big games.
Atlanta doesn't scare me this year -- I do think they're better than Philly and will probably hang on in the NL East, however, due to Bobby Cox, some good young hitters, and some veteran gamers. They're good in a lot of areas, but not great in any, except for the new, improved Andruw Jones, who'd be MVP if it weren't for the super-human Albert Pujols (who will win it, deservingly, in a non-Barry year after being 2nd banana for the last few). Derek Lee is right there in the Top 3 as well, but his struggles this August and the Cubs' fade mean he's not the MVP despite MVP stats and probably having the best all-around year of any position player in 2005 (team-carrying offense + Gold Glove defense).
The Cardinals looked like the team to beat in the NL, but I think they're breaking down. Losing Rolen for the year is huge (Abraham Nunez?) and Mark Grudzielanek's knee infection will limit his effectiveness for a while. They're still the favorites to return to the World Series, however, because there's no guarantee a scary team like Florida will make the playoffs. I do think Florida beats the Cardinals in a series, however. I don't think St. Louis can beat the cream of the AL crop despite Pujols, their excellent pitching and Chris Carpenter's likely Cy Young season. They won't get swept and they'll be competitive, but I don't think they can win a championship without Rolen healthy. Larry Walker has really started to slip this year and Jim Edmonds is even beginning to show his age both offensively and in his defensive range, despite a solid year.
I'd love to see Roger Clemens win another Cy Young this year and he'd probably get my vote because he gets almost ZERO run support while having the most remarkable season ever by an aging star. But he's not going to be able to win it unless he gets at least 15, probably more like 17 wins. That's no guarantee with that Houston offense.
Meanwhile, Carpenter's a virtual lock for winning 20, despite having an ERA a full run higher than Clemens's jaw-dropping numbers.
The NL West is one of the worst divisions in history this year, but everyone seems to think the Padres have it locked down with a 4 game lead. I think it's possible that Arizona makes a run since I think they're a slightly more talented team than San Diego, but it's hard to imagine anyone in that division catching fire. Jake Peavy will probably make sure the Padres hold off the rest of the NL West stinkers.
So if I had to pick today, it'd be Anaheim, Oakland, Boston, Chicago in the AL, with Anaheim making the World Series (with a close series against Boston) and Atlanta, Florida, St. Louis, and San Diego in the West. Whoever comes out of the NL West is liable to get swept in the playoffs and I wouldn't be surprised if Atlanta got beaten pretty handily as well. I'm picking Florida to beat St. Louis in another close series and Anaheim
That is all.
6 - Bob A. Booey
I meant to finish that comment by saying that I'm picking Anaheim to beat Florida in a close World Series in 6 games. Mike Scoscia's got a better handle on his team than Jack McKeon, whose old-school hard-ass antics are probably wearing thin with his young players, and Anaheim's got more balanced hitting, a great bullpen, and a more balanced pitching staff.
Anaheim will win the Series despite the fading Steve Finley, which I thought was one of the worst signings of the off-season last year. Sure, he had a good run last year, but statistics and normal assumptions about aging had to indicate that there's no way he's worth $8-9 million into his early 40s.
I may revise this prediction, however. Florida's younger and more likely to get hot at the right time than the balanced, consistent Angels are.
That is all.
7 - Matthew T. Sussman
Whoever comes out of the NL West is liable to get swept in the playoffs.
So
whoever wins the NL WestSan Diego goes three-and-out?The Padres record against teams in contention for the playoffs:
Division leaders:
St. Louis: 4-3
Atlanta: 5-1
----------------
Total W-L: 9-4
Wild Card chasers:
Houston: 1-3
Florida: 4-2
Washington: 3-0
Philadelphia: 0-3
NY Mets: 1-2
-------------------
Total W-L: 9-10
Combined W-L against teams "still in it": 18-14
Mmmm, those were meaty stats.
8 - Bob A. Booey
Well done, Sussman. I suppose Peavy's good for a win, depending on whom he's matched up against.
Let me revise: the Padres are likely to get swept, unless they're playing the Braves. Then they might have a chance at winning that series. I suppose I was maybe overstating the point since no one looks dominant in the NL. I still don't think the Padres will have much of a chance in the playoffs, although they do play well at home.
That is all.