Blue Jays Acquire Bush

The Blue Jays have acquired former number one draft pick Matt Bush from the Padres in exchange for a player to be named later. Bush was designated for assignment after an off the field incident at a local high school. Bush has yet to be charged with anything, but Bush's checkered past has given the Padres no options but to deal him. Bush is still recovering from Tommy John Surgery, but has the potential to be a solid pitcher.

The Padres will likely keep him in extended Spring Training before shipping off to the minors.

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

2009 Arizona Diamondbacks Projection

C Chris Snyder

.246 AVG, 16 HR, 56 RBI

1B Chad Tracy

.283 AVG, 13 HR, 49 RBI

2B Felipe Lopez

.273 AVG, 8 HR, 43 RBI

3B Mark Reynolds

.262 AVG, 24 HR, 87 RBI

SS Stephen Drew

.285 AVG, 17 HR, 66 RBI

LF Conor Jackson

.298 AVG, 15 HR, 73 RBI

CF Chris Young

.257 AVG, 27 HR, 78 RBI

RF Justin Upton

.269 AVG, 19 HR, 65 RBI

OF Eric Byrnes

.254 AVG, 15 HR, 52 RBI

SP Brandon Webb

16-10 W-L, 3.29 ERA, 176 K

SP Dan Haren

15-9 W-L, 3.46 ERA, 203 K

SP Doug Davis

8-12 W-L, 4.63 ERA, 119 K

SP Jon Garland

11-10 W-L, 4.52 ERA, 105 K

SP Max Scherzer

7-3 W-L, 3.78 ERA, 87 K

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Quick Hits: Kennedy, Aurilia, Looper, Ensberg

Quick Hits:

• The Cardinals have released second baseman Adam Kennedy. The team that picks up Kennedy will have to pay him 400,000 dollars, with the Cardinals picking up the remainder of his 4 million dollar deal. Skip Schumaker will likely get a shot at second base, as well as Brendan Ryan and Jarrett Hoffpauir. As for teams that could pick him up, the Nationals are a possibility, as well as the Dodgers, if they do not sign Orlando Hudson.
• The Giants and Rich Aurilia have come to terms on a minor league deal. Aurilia will be valuable off the bench, considering he hit .321 against lefties last season.
  
• The Brewers are reportedly closing in on free agent Braden Looper, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He will hopefully provide stability to the Brewers rotation, which loss its two top starters. In 12 games at Miller Park, Looper is 0-4 with a 7.01 ERA.
  
• The Rays have signed Morgan Ensberg to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. He probably won't make the team out of Spring Training, but could be a midseason call up.
  

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Rodriguez Admits Steroid Use

Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez admitted to using steriods from 2001-2003, according to FOXSports.com. "And I did take a banned substance and, you know, for that I'm very sorry and deeply regretful. And although it was the culture back then and Major League Baseball overall was very — I just feel that — you know, I'm just sorry. I'm sorry for that time. I'm sorry to fans. I'm sorry for my fans in Texas. It wasn't until then that I ever thought about substance of any kind, and since then I've proved to myself and to everyone that I don't need any of that." It will be interesting to see how Rodriguez is embraced by fans around baseball. He is 209 homeruns away from Barry Bonds' homerun record, and is just 33. If he were to hit 30 homeruns for the next seven seasons, he would have 763 homeruns.

Odds appear to be in Rodriguez's favor, who has averaged 41 homeruns over the past five seasons.

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2009 Baltimore Orioles Projection

DH Luke Scott
.264 AVG, 24 HR, 72 RBI
C Gregg Zaun
.227 AVG, 5 HR, 34 RBI
1B Aubrey Huff
.282 AVG, 28 HR, 92 RBI
2B Brian Roberts
.285 AVG, 12 HR, 58 RBI
3B Melvin Mora
.268 AVG, 16 HR, 72 RBI
SS Cesar Iztuis

.264 AVG, 1 HR, 27 RBI

LF Felix Pie

.277 AVG, 14 HR, 56 RBI

CF Adam Jones

.275 AVG, 17 HR, 68 RBI

RF Nick Markakis

.309 AVG, 25 HR, 108 RBI

UT Ty Wigginton

.269 AVG, 21 HR, 60 RBI

C Matt Wieters

.306 AVG, 22 HR, 68 RBI

SP Jeremy Guthrie

11-10 W-L, 4.11 ERA, 115 K

SP Mark Hendrickson

6-8 W-L, 4.72 ERA, 62 K

SP Rich Hill

7-9 W-L, 4.58 ERA, 134 K

SP Koji Uehara

10-8 W-L, 4.30 ERA, 123 K

SP Chris Waters

6-11 W-L, 5.53 ERA, 63 K

SP Radhames Liz

4-9 W-L, 5.22 ERA, 82 K

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Quick Hits: Jones, Strasburg, Teahen, Olson, Free Agents

Quick Hits:

• The Rangers and Andruw Jones have agreed to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. Jones will earn 500,000 if he makes the major league club. He is no guarantee to make the team, vying for spots against four other starters. 
• Chico Harlan of the Washington Post has a good article out about Stephen Strasburg. Nationals GM Jim Bowden said he is "as good a pitcher we've seen in the draft in 10 or 15 years." He could be in the majors in 2010, if not the second half of this upcoming season. 
• The Royals and Mark Teahen have agreed to a one year deal worth 3.57 million dollars, avoiding arbitration. 
• The Nationals and Scott Olson have agreed to a one year deal worth 2.8 million dollars, avoiding arbitration. Could turn out to be a good deal for the Nats.
• Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune suggests the White Sox vacant Spring Training camp in Tucson be turned into a free agent Spring Training complex, for those players who have not been signed. Sounds intriguing, but could be over-crowded. 

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Phillies Sign Howard

The Phillies and Ryan Howard have agreed to a three year deal worth 54 million dollars, avoiding arbitration. Howard, hit .251 with 48 HR and 146 RBI in 162 games last season, will earn 15 million dollars next season. "We're very pleased to have avoided the arbitration process, not just for this year, but also for the next two," general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "Ryan is clearly one of the top power hitters and run producers in the major leagues and is a very important part of our championship club." Howard won't be a free agent until after the 2011 season, so this new deal simply buys out his arbitration years.

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Giants Make Offer To Crede

All-Star third baseman Joe Crede has reportedly received an offer from the San Francisco Giants, Jim Street of MLB.com is reporting. Crede is drawing interest from the Minnesota Twins, but they have reportedly not extended him an offer. Crede has battled injuries over the past couple of seasons, but is a solid player when healthy and could play a huge role for the Giants next season. At this point in the offseason, he is probably looking at a one year deal, plus incentives. 

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A-Rod Tested Positive For Steriods in '03

According to SI.com, citing independent sources, Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez reportedly tested positive for two types of anabolic steroids in 2003. Rodriguez, who hit .302 with 35 HR in 138 games last season, would not comment on the issue. Major League Baseball does not have a penalty in place for players who tested positive in 2003, the first year of testing.

In 2003, Rodriguez hit .298 with 47 HR in 161 games for the Rangers, winning the AL MVP. In 2002, he hit 57 HR in 162 games. Some of his teammates in 2003 include Rafael Palmeiro and Juan Gonzalez, both have been accused of using steroids.

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Options For Juan Cruz

Free agent reliever Juan Cruz still cannot find work, and it doesn't look like any team is planning to make a move. Cruz is a Type-A free agent, meaning any team that signs him would lose a first round draft pick in the upcoming MLB Draft. Cruz went 4-0 with a 2.61 ERA in 57 games last season, and lead the league with 12.37 strikeouts-per-nine innings. This problem goes back to the compensation system, which has been under fire all offseason because teams are avoiding some low cost players like Cruz, Orlando Cabrera, and Orlando Hudson, all of whom are Type-A free agents.

One option for Cruz, brought up by Ken Rosenthal in a recent piece, is to sign with a Japanese team. Cruz would be one of the top relievers in Japan, and would probably close for any team that would sign him. He would expensive, but a team with a extra cash would really benefit from his services. After one year in Japan, he would be a free agent and could sign with an MLB team in 2010.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Diamondbacks reenter the mix. If Cruz was willing to sign for a reduced price, in the range of 3 million dollars, the Diamondbacks would be able to fit that in their payroll. This way, it wouldn't cost anyone a draft pick and the Diamondbacks would keep their most valuable reliever from the previous two seasons.

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Angels Interested In Dunn, Abreu

The Angels are interested in free agent outfielders Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu, according to Ken Rosenthal. "I would say we'll continue to look at different ways to improve the club," Reagins said. "If something makes sense for us, we'd look at it. We'd have to see what the parameters are, how that player fits." The Angels would likely trump any front-runner for a one year deal if they got serious in talks. They have a strong lineup, beautiful stadium, and the money to lock up a player long term. If a guy like Adam Dunn can help the Angels next season, he could recieve the long term deal he deserves.

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.

Dodgers, Wolf Close to Deal

The Dodgers and free agent pitcher Randy Wolf are reportedly closing in on a one year deal. Wolf went 12-12 with a 4.30 ERA last season, his first full season in four years. Wolf gives the Dodgers a veteran pitcher in a young rotation, and hopefully, a healthy and reliable starter. 

This story was approved by MLB Rumors.