June / July Transaction Thread -- Latest: Huntsville Times w/Injury Details

[Mass Haas]

Tyler Stover, Brevard's Media Director:

Milwaukee purchases LHP Derrick Ellison from the Atlantic League and assigns him to Brevard County. RHP Travis Wendte is placed on the DL retro to July 21. Manatees roster is at 25.

This will be Wendte's third stint on the DL this season. With reports out of Brevard scarce, and affiliates instructed to be mum (for the most part) on minor league injuries (HIPPA issues), we really don't know about the nature of Travis' injuries.

It would be interesting to know why minor leaguers are so protected by HIPPA injury privacy rules, yet we know every single detail of major leaguer's playing situations. My initial thought was that, incredibly, sports books demand details, and that major leaguers must sign some sort of waiver in these situations.

[TheCrew07]

I've seen tons of posters who've been down on Dykstra, and I can't figure out why. Who wouldn't like an elite athlete with speed, explosive stregnth, bat speed, scrappiness, work ethic, and bloodlines?

I'm firmly in that camp... The first thing I didn't like was that he's basically searching for a position, that's something I never want to read about a HS kid. I honestly didn't realize how good of an athlete he was until I saw how he faired in the trials against the other elite HS athletes in the draft. I'll concede that point and it has changed my opinion somewhat in the last 2 weeks. The bloodlines thing doesn't impress me much, mostly because I never liked his father all that much, and it appears his career was aided heavily by performance enhancers (BTW, the piece HBO did on him was fantastic). I know typically Lenny would have been the type of player that I adore (a more athletic and talented Brady Clark on steriods), but I just didn't like him for whatever reason, on the other hand I find his current exploits pretty fascinating and he's grown on me tremendously since. He's absolutely relentless and fearless in all aspects of his life, I find it very easy to admire what he's done.

 

All that being said, I reserve the right to be a skeptic of Cutter until he proves me otherwise.

[battlekow]

I'll have an interview with Cutter up on BCB in the next couple of days.

[homer]

"and it appears his career was aided heavily by performance enhancers (BTW, the piece HBO did on him was fantastic). "

 

He never admitted anything in that interview.

[Mass Haas]

I'm afraid if someone wishes to continue the Lenny Dykstra discussion, they'll need to start a new thread in the Major League Forum, link to it here if you wish, as we'll keep this thread focused on Transactions.

 

I will say, though, that Lenny will never live down his 30-pound documented off-season weight gain, showing up at spring training with literally no neck, and explaining that he had taken those "really good vitamins". Just google 'Lenny Dykstra vitamins' for various accounts.

[Mass Haas]

To fill two openings on the Power roster, RHP Rob Wooten and LHP Lucas Luetge get promoted from Helena. That's a nice infusion of talent for the West Virginia staff, although Helena could have used their arms this week as the first-half season ends.

 

Newly signed infielder Steve Braun will make his debut in Helena, not Arizona, and RHP Brandon Rapoza moves up from Maryvale, to fill the Helena spots.

 

Also, catcher Brett Whiteside's roster spot has been re-assigned to Maryvale, as he has been officially diagnosed with a broken left hand.

 

Keep in mind you can always review transaction data via our Brewerfan Transaction Index, available via any top-of-page Brewerfan banner.

[Mass Haas]

RHP Ben Howard goes on the Nashville DL, retroactive to the 21st, with an undisclosed "injury". This makes room for LHP Mitch Stetter.

[Mass Haas]

Should be official within a day or so (the Tennessean):

 

With Nashville's Callix Crabbe and Carlos Corporan temporarily sidelined by chicken pox, veteran outfielder Jay Gibbons, who has batted .273 (3-for-11) in five games at Double-A Huntsville since having his contract purchased from the independent Atlantic League, is expected to join the Sounds along with catcher J.R. Hopf. Brendan Katin will be placed on the disabled list with a hamstring injury, and another move will be made to activate both Hopf and Gibbons.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Media Notes:

KATIN, CRABBE PLACED ON D.L.: Outfielder Brendan Katin and infielder Callix Crabbe have been placed on the Sounds' disabled list. Katin suffered a left hamstring strain while racing to field a Will Venable double in the first inning last night. Crabbe, who was placed on the D.L. retroactive to Friday, has been diagnosed with the chicken pox.

 

GIBBONS JOINS SOUNDS: Veteran outfielder Jay Gibbons has been promoted to Nashville from Double-A Huntsville to fill Katin's roster spot. Gibbons, who hit .273 (3-for-11) with two RBIs in five games for the Stars, had his contract purchased by the Brewers from the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League on July 22nd. He batted .280 (30-for-107) with nine doubles, five home runs, and 19 RBIs in 27 contests for Long Island after signing with that club in mid-June. Gibbons had spent the previous seven seasons with the Baltimore Orioles before being released at the conclusion of 2008 spring training. He made his big league debut with Baltimore in 2001, hitting 15 home runs while appearing in 73 games. His best season came in 2003, when he batted .277 with 23 homers and 100 RBIs. Gibbons played in a career-high 160 games that year and also clubbed 39 doubles. The Michigan native was originally selected by Toronto in the 14th round of the 1998 draft.

 

HOPF REJOINS SOUNDS: Catcher J.R. Hopf rejoins the Nashville roster to fill Crabbe's spot. The 25-year-old has spent the past three weeks with Double-A Huntsville, where he batted .182 (8-for-44) with three RBIs in 15 contests since joining the Stars on July 4th. Hopf batted .324 (11-for-34) with one home run and three RBIs in 15 games for the Sounds earlier this season.

 

***

 

Also, nice bonus -- Huntsville's Chris Errecart is off the DL, as the bone in his hand has healed sufficiently.

 

Finally, Michael Garciaparra has landed on the Huntsville DL, and Yohannis Perez has been brought up from Brevard County to fill that spot. No word on a corresponding Brevard move.

[Mass Haas]

The Brewers have signed two RHP's out of the Latin ranks, Vladimir Diaz and Rigoberto Almonte.

 

Unless colbyjack tells us that these were among the higher profile Latin free agents available, we won't know anything about them until they are listed at MiLB.com, or, if signed to 2009 contracts, next year's media guide. So we're on hold with them, even for Brewerfan Player Index pages, but keep the two names in mind when you see them down the road.

 

And thanks to the Brewers for two more fun names, joining Stosh, Cutter, and others.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Media Notes:

HOWARD ACTIVATED FROM D.L., REASSIGNED TO HUNTSVILLE: Right-handed reliever Ben Howard was activated from the disabled list today and reassigned to Double-A Huntsville. He has spent the entire season with the Sounds and posted a 2-6 record, one save, and a 4.73 ERA (31 ER / 59.0 IP) in 31 appearances (two starts).

[Mass Haas]

RHP Donovan Hand has been placed the Stars' DL, retroactive to 7/25, with an undisclosed injury.

 

Huntsville's active roster is at 23, one short of the minimum, for the moment.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Media Notes:

CORPORAN PLACED ON DISABLED LIST: Catcher Carlos Corporan has been placed on the disabled list, retroactive to Sunday, due to chicken pox. Both Corporan and infielder Callix Crabbe (who is also on the D.L.) are not with the Sounds on the current trip after being diagnosed with the illness. Nashville is currently one man short of the 24-player roster limit.

[Mass Haas]

RHP Robert Hinton has been activated off the Huntsville disabled list, but rather than fill the Stars' open roster spot, he's been transferred to Brevard County to fill the open spot there.

 

Hinton will be 24 in August, it just seems as though he's older since his name has been in various discussion mixes for ages now.

[Mass Haas]

Remember we mentioned it was odd that Angel Salome left the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader after grounding out fairly late in the game?

 

Angel has landed on the Huntsville seven-day DL, we'll do what we can to determine injury info for you. As of now, it's the dreaded "undisclosed".

[Mass Haas]

I just listened to the 4th inning groundout of Angel Salome from last night's archive, and Brett Pollock did not indicate that Salome came up lame or anything.

[bork]

Man, they're short position players at every level now.

[igor67]

This could be an opportunity to challenge a couple of those older catching prospects we have at A+ and A ball...

[Mass Haas]

Anderson de la Rosa gets the bump up from West Virginia, to share catching duties with Martin Maldonado, in Angel Salome's absence in Huntsville.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Pain cuts into gain

Injuries to Stars diminish several standout seasons

By BRAD SHEPARD

For The Huntsville Times

 

It doesn't do Michael Brantley any good to think about the season that might have been.

 

When the Huntsville Stars' leadoff-hitting center fielder suffered a high ankle sprain on a stolen base attempt on June 26, he was on pace to have one of the best table-setting seasons in franchise history.

 

Instead of continuing his torrid pace, Brantley has since missed 26 games, and his numbers seem frozen in time: .327 batting average, 102 hits, 25 stolen bases, 64 runs and a .402 on-base percentage.

 

"It's unfortunate, but I've got to deal with it and hope it won't be a nagging injury that stays with me the rest of the year," Brantley said.

 

"Hopefully when I get back, I can start where I left off."

 

Brantley said he's only "days away" from returning. When he does get back, he may not recognize his team.

 

Currently, catcher Angel Salome (shoulder), pitchers Donovan Hand (oblique) and Derek Miller (shoulder), and utility man Michael Garciaparra (groin) have joined Brantley on the disabled list. Also, shortstop Alcides Escobar has only been used as a designated hitter this week because of a finger injury. All-Star first baseman Chris Errecart also just returned from a sprained wrist that kept him out 18 games.

 

With production like that gone, it's no wonder the Stars have lost six straight and are five games out of first place. At least Salome found out good news from the doctor Thursday when he was cleared to return by the start of next week.

 

"It's frustrating, but in the same breath, it's part of the game," said healthy Stars third baseman Mat Gamel. "You see how it is out there. We've just got to get healthy again."

 

The injuries have hit Huntsville hard in the standings, but more importantly, it has affected the development of prospects.

 

Though most of the players who have been hurt likely would have stayed in Huntsville, Brantley might have been promoted by now - at least to Triple-A Nashville.

 

"It's set him back developmentally because he was having a tremendous season," Stars hitting coach Sandy Guerrero said. "He's hurt, and he's regressed a little - not on his abilities, but you can't help but think of the numbers and where they may be.

 

"As difficult as this game is, when you miss just two or three days, you're back to zero."

 

Guerrero said that as polished as Brantley is, it could take only a week or two for Brantley to get his timing and swing back.

 

Errecart knows firsthand. After returning to the lineup this week, he was 1-for-10 entering Thursday night.

 

"But I've done better than I expected the last couple of games," he said. "I'm beginning to feel a lot more confident."

 

It's a process Garciaparra knows that very well - he has dealt with his share of bangs and bruises over his seven-year minor-league career.

 

Garciaparra had finally gotten a chance to play this year because of his teammates' injuries, but then he got hurt, too.

 

"I usually give myself a day to feel sorry for myself," Garciaparra said with a smile. "Then, you just have to go out there and try to get better."