This time: July 21-26

Players listed with an asterisk (*) signed minor league contracts, replacing major league pacts with the same organization. That's a fancy way of saying the player has been optioned or outrighted to the minors.

Numbers in parentheses indicate draft round.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Signed: SS Angel Berroa (Bridgeport (Atlantic))
Released: 3B Tyler Williams
Acquired: OF Michael Restovich from White Sox for cash considerations
Added to 40-man roster: RHP Ryan Cook, SS Cody Ransom, OF Collin Cowgill
Removed from 40-man: RHP Yhency Brazoban (outrighted to Triple-A)
Optioned to Triple-A: RHP Ryan Cook
Optioned to high Class A: RHP Trevor Bauer
Placed on 7-day DL: RHP Jason Urquidez, SS Dan Kaczrowski, OF David Winfree

The Diamondbacks signed No. 3 overall draft pick Trevor Bauer to a four-year big league contract worth at least $4.45 million. They optioned him to high Class A Visalia.

In the midst of a career year for Triple-A Reno, Collin Cowgill ranks fourth in the Pacific Coast League batting race (.354), second in stolen bases (30), fourth in on-base percentage (.430) and first in runs scored (95).

Atlanta Braves
Signed: C Carlos Castro
Recalled: RHP Cristhian Martinez
Optioned to Triple-A: RHP Cory Gearrin, OF Wilkin Ramirez
Placed on 7-day DL: RHP Tyler Hess, RHP Steven Shell, RHP Ryan Weber
Reinstated from DL: RHP Brett Butts, LHP Ronan Pacheco [...] Continue Reading »

DURHAM, N.C.—In our Midseason Update, Baseball America ranked Rays lefthander Matt Moore and Braves righty Julio Teheran as the top two pitching prospects in the minors, with Moore ranking one spot higher. They took the mound Tuesday and Wednesday at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, and Moore showed just why he earned a slight edge over Teheran.

A day after the Colombian righty threw six solid innings to earn a victory for Triple-A Gwinnett, Moore dominated for Durham, tossing eight shutout innings while striking out 13 in a 4-0 victory. Moore's 13 strikeouts tied a Triple-A Bulls mark (the franchise was in Class A prior to 1998), previously set by Jason Hammel and Wade Davis.

Davis and Hammel are two of the many pitching prospects to come through Durham in the last 13 seasons, a group of current big leaguers that includes last year's Minor League Player of the Year, Jeremy Hellickson, as well as Davis and Hammel, David Price, Jeff Niemann, Mitch Talbot, Alex Cobb and James Shields, among others.

Bulls manager Charlie Montoyo said it was "fair to say" Moore, in terms of stuff and dominance, compares favorably with any of them, including Price, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft and a two-time all-star. And this was just Moore's second Triple-A start, coming against a solid lineup and while squaring off against another top prospect, Gwinnett's Mike Minor.

"It was fun to watch," Montoyo said. "The other guy was pretty good, so for (Moore) to do that, it was fun to watch. He was commanding all his pitches, which is pretty good for his age."

[...] Continue Reading »

Before we get to Tuesday's best performances by prospects, we'll first salute the efforts of Triple-A Columbus righthander Justin Germano. The 28-year-old tossed the first perfect game in Clippers history, which dates back to 1955, and the fifth in International League history last night in Syracuse.

Germano was making just his fifth start of the season after having shuffled between the bullpens in Columbus and Cleveland. Just five nights earlier, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre knocked him around for five runs on 12 hits in six innings. But no such issues surfaced yesterday, as Germano struck out seven, induced 11 groundouts and threw 69 of his 95 pitches for strikes. He went to a three-ball count only once and struck out Chiefs center fielder Corey Brown looking for the final out of the game.

"After three innings, I put it in (my head) so I didn’t make myself nervous," Germano told The Syracuse Post-Standard. "I knew it early on. But I didn’t want to think about it, put pressure on myself. You give up a hit, you give up a hit. I didn’t want to make it more stressful than it had to be."

[...] Continue Reading »

The Royals have agreed to terms with Dominican shortstop Adalberto Mondesi for $2 million, the Dominican Prospect League announced. Mondesi, who became eligible to sign today on his 16th birthday, is the son of former big league outfielder Raul Mondesi.

At 5-foot-11, 160 pounds, Mondesi is a switch-hitter who was born in California while his father played for the Dodgers. He played in the DPL and trained with Basilio Vizcaino (known as Cachasa). Baseball America subscribers can access Mondesi's full scouting report and reports on more than 40 of the other top prospects in Latin America.

High Class A Frederick shortstop Manny Machado went 2-for-5 with a double in a game against Salem on July 19, hinting at a breakout to come. But through his first three weeks in the Carolina League, the 19-year-old had batted just .222 (14-for-63) with four extra-base hits in 18 games.

Those struggles may be a distant memory now for the future Orioles shortstop. Facing those same Salem Red Sox (it's an eight-team league) and the same Drake Britton, Machado went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles, two steals and two RBIs in yesterday's 4-2 win for Frederick.

In his last six games, Machado has gone 9-for-23 (.391) with three doubles, a triple and three stolen bases. On the year he's batting .264/.360/.445 with eight homers and 11 doubles in 227 at-bats, which is quite good considering the aggressive jump to high Class A and the knee injury that knocked him out for a month. [...] Continue Reading »

In the history of the Mobile BayBears, no hitter had ever hit more than 28 home runs. Paul Goldschmidt has already taken care of that record. If the Diamondbacks don't promote him, he'll have destroyed it by the time the season's over.

Goldschmidt homered on Friday and Saturday. His Saturday home run was his 29th of the season, which broke Greg Sain's record of 28 set in 2004. Goldschmidt still has 40 games left to add to his record.

Perhaps more important than that, Goldschmidt is on pace to lead the minors in home runs. [Note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Goldschmdit won the minors home run crown in 2010. He did not. Mike Moustakas and Mike Trunbo tied for the lead with 36.] His home run on Saturday gave him the minors' lead (one ahead of Tim Wheeler and Bryan LaHair). [...] Continue Reading »

The Rangers signed two 16-year-old players represented by Luis Blasini in Venezuela, landing lefthander Yohander Mendez for $1.5 million and outfielder Eduard Pinto for $300,000, according to multiple Rangers reporters citing an official team announcement.

Mendez's bonus surprised some international scouts because his fastball is mostly in the mid-to-high 80s right now, though he does have a clean delivery, projectable size (6-foot-4, 175 pounds) and some feel for his secondary pitches. Pinto played against professional competition last winter for the Navegantes in the Liga Paralela (the minors of the Venezuelan League) and hit .329/.396/.409 in 164 at-bats.

Full scouting reports on both Mendez and Pinto are available only to Baseball America subscribers.

Despite comments from the team's general manager suggesting otherwise, the Reds do have a deal with a prominent Venezuelan righthander, according to Baseball America's sources.

BA reported on Tuesday afternoon that the Reds had reached a deal with 16-year-old Venezuelan righthander Jonathan Perez for $825,000 . When a reporter from the Cincinnati Inquirer asked Reds general manager Walt Jocketty on Tuesday if an agreement had been reached, Jocketty responded in a text message:

"Not to my knowledge, and I'm sure I would have known about it."

Jocketty did not unequivocally deny that the Reds had a deal with Perez. While it's possible that his team had a deal for a pitcher worth just less than $1 million without his knowledge, his statement strongly suggested that there is no deal in place. Jocketty did not respond to Baseball America's request to clarify his statement.

Despite Jocketty's comments, multiple international sources have confirmed to BA that the Reds do have a deal with Perez. The sources all said the deal is worth $825,000. 

On Tuesday night, a Facebook account that other international sources have confirmed belongs to Jonathan Perez had a picture of Perez posing for a picture while wearing a Reds cap and shirt, standing between top Reds officials in Latin America in front of a wall painted with a Reds logo. By the next night, the picture was removed.

Perez became eligible to sign when the international signing period opened on July 2. At 6-foot-4, 195 pounds, Perez has good mechanics and a projectable body that have helped his fastball already develop from the mid-80s earlier in the year to touching the low-90s before July 2. He pitches downhill with sink on his fastball and has a good idea of how to pitch for his age, though his offspeed pitches are still raw.

Players listed with an asterisk (*) signed minor league contracts, replacing major league pacts with the same organization. That's a fancy way of saying the player has been optioned or outrighted to the minors.

Numbers in parentheses indicate draft round.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Signed: RHP Adam Osteen (White Sands (Pecos)), 1B Juan Miranda*, OF Breland Brown
Draft pick signed: 1B Jake Williams (49)
Recalled: RHP Barry Enright, RHP Bryan Shaw, 1B Brandon Allen
Removed from 40-man: 1B Juan Miranda (outrighted to Triple-A)
Optioned to Triple-A: RHP Barry Enright
Option transferred: RHP Yonata Ortega (High-A to Double-A)
Placed on 7-day DL: RHP Armando Galarraga, 2B Matt Jensen
Reinstated from DL: RHP Josh Ellis

Atlanta Braves
Signed: C Nathan Raffle (NDFA—Penn State-Greater Allegheny)
Draft picks signed: RHP Clint Wright (22), LHP Sean Gilmartin (1)
Released: RHP Jonathan Burns, C Jesus Sucre, OF Jason Mowry, OF Hilton Richardson
Optioned to Triple-A: SS Brandon Hicks
Placed on 7-day DL: C Mike Brownsten, 1B Chris Carter, 3B Shawn Bowman, OF Adam Milligan
Reinstated from DL: RHP Wei Huang, LHP Ben Swaggerty, 3B Shawn Bowman, 3B Donell Linares, OF Hilton Richardson [...] Continue Reading »

Triple-A Omaha righthander Luis Mendoza threw a nine-inning no-hitter on July 18 at Memphis. Then he didn't. Then he did. And now, the Pacific Coast League says, he didn't.

After taking two days to review a contested ninth-inning play, the PCL ruled that Memphis shortstop Tyler Greene did, in fact, line a double to left field, thus nullifying Mendoza's no-hitter. The Memphis scorekeeper originally determined that Greene had reached via a two-base error because the ball bounced off the glove of leaping Omaha left fielder David Lough. (You can view the video clip here.) The scorekeeper reversed his call after the game, only to reverse it again about an hour later.

So when the dust settled on Monday, Mendoza had a no-hitter, his second in the PCL. It turned out to be perhaps the shortest-lived no-hitter in history, though. The PCL issued the following statement on July 20:

"In response to the request by the Memphis Redbirds to review the scoring decision from the bottom of the ninth inning in their July 18th game with the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Pacific Coast League has deemed the batted ball by Tyler Greene of Memphis shall be changed from its original ruling as an error to a hit.

"In consideration of language included in the Official Baseball Rules, and with the benefit of additional time to review the play, including video replay and accounts of the play provided by professional baseball personnel present at the July 18th game, the PCL office and its official statisticians at Major League Baseball Advanced Media will recognize Greene’s hit as a double. The change in the ruling will nullify a no-hitter by Omaha pitcher Luis Mendoza and prolong Greene’s active hitting streak to 15 games entering today."

The Mariners have agreed to terms with righthander Victor Sanchez, who many scouts considered the top pitching prospect in Venezuela and possibly all of Latin America this summer. Bonus terms were not immediately available.

Here is Baseball America's complete scouting report on Sanchez from July 1. BA subscribers can access other complete scouting reports on top international prospects who became eligible to sign on July 2 as well:

"Scouts in Venezuela have viewed Sanchez as the country's top prospect for 2011 since he was 13, when he was the second-youngest player on Venezuela's 14-and-under team at the COPABE Pan American championship in 2008. That team also included Blue Jays righthander Adonys Cardona and Rangers shortstop Rougned Odor. Sanchez struck out eight in a five-inning no-hitter against Ecuador, missing a perfect game when he hit a batter. Sanchez wasn't as sharp at the COPABE 16-and-under championship in Mexico last October, but he has developed into a physically mature pitcher who combines a power arm with feel for pitching beyond his years.

Sanchez, a 16-year-old from Caracas, is an interesting prospect as a right fielder as well, due to his above-average arm and raw power, though he doesn't make enough contact for teams to take him off the mound. Sanchez isn't tall (6-foot, 185 pounds), but he has a body like a bull, with a strong, thick frame with sloped shoulders and large hands. His fastball ranges from 89-92 mph and touches 94. He has a loose arm and does it fairly easily. His athleticism helps him repeat his delivery and throw strikes with his fastball to both sides of the plate. Sanchez also throws a plus slider and has shown feel for a changeup, and he'll mix in an occasional curveball. While Sanchez likely has the most present talent in this year's pitching crop, scouts wonder how much projection he has left. His body is relatively filled out and his fastball won't gain much more velocity. Sanchez doesn't miss as many bats as scouts would expect, as his fastball can get straight. Sanchez is represented by Carlos Gavidia, who represented Cardona last year. Many scouts believe Sanchez is the better prospect, though he isn't expected to match Cardona's $2.8 million bonus. The Mariners are the frontrunners to sign Sanchez, with a price tag believed to be around $2.5 million."

Major League Baseball has suspended one of Cincinnati's top pitching prospects for lying about his age, a source familiar with the case told Baseball America.

Righthander Jonathan Correa, who entered the year ranked 26th on the Reds Top 30 prospects list, was placed on the disqualified list and received a one-year suspension from MLB for lying about his age. Correa's real age or identity were not immediately known and a Reds official did not return a call yesterday afternoon seeking comment. BA will update with more details as they become available. [...] Continue Reading »

Reds minor league righthander Daniel Tuttle received a 50-game suspension after a second violation of the minor league drug program for a drug of abuse. A fifth-round pick in 2009, he signed out of Randleman (N.C.) High for $200,000.

The 20-year-old Tuttle made 11 starts for low Class A Dayton this season, going 4-3, 4.87 with 50 strikeouts, 21 walks and a 1.38 WHIP in 57 1/3 innings, though his most recent action had come in the Rookie-level Arizona League. In 23 innings for the AZL Reds he notched 35 strikeouts and nine walks in 23 innings.

Four Dominican Summer League pitchers recently received 50-game suspensions for testing positive for performance-enhancing substances:

• Cubs righthander Yomar Morel (metabolite of Boldenone)

• Astros righthander Manuel Sanchez (metabolites of Stanozolol)

• Blue Jays righthander Aderly de la Cruz (metabolites of Nandrolone) and lefthander Luillyn Guillen (metabolites of Stanozolol)

For the second straight day, a Royals affiliate threw a no-hitter. Triple-A Omaha's Luis Mendoza accomplished the feat Monday, and it was duplicated by a pair of Double-A Northwest Arkansas pitchers, Will Smith and Kelvin Herrera, on Tuesday.

Fans who came out to see the game between Arkansas and Northwest Arkansas certainly got their money's worth, as the Naturals didn't just throw a no-hitter, they also turned a triple play along the way. Starter Smith, a lefty, carried a perfect game into the sixth before walking the first two hitters of the inning, but Travelers catcher Alberto Rosario then grounded to third baseman Mario Lisson, who started a 5-4-3 triple play.

Smith, 22, was removed after facing the minimum through seven innings, having thrown 101 pitches. Like Mendoza before him, Smith wouldn't seem to be a likely no-hit candidate. The lefthander, who came to the Royals from the Angels in a trade last July, doesn't miss many bats (5.52 strikeouts per nine innings this year) and his groundball rate is ordinary (1.17 ground-to-fly out ratio). Yet he did it anyway. Smith struck out five last night, picking up his fifth win in his last seven starts to improve to 8-7, 3.93 on the year.

[...] Continue Reading »

In a recent story at Baseball America.com, members of the front offices of the Yankees and Giants discuss the role that professional scouting departments play on the success of their major league clubs. To wit: the signings of veteran righthanders Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia and Luis Ayala (by the Yankees) and Ryan Vogelsong (by the Giants) have contributed to the effectiveness of those clubs' pitching staffs.

A third major league executive, on the condition of anonymity, agreed to share his thoughts on Colon, Vogelsong and some of last offseason's minor league pickups who have contributed positive value in the major leagues, in some cases to playoff contenders. All of these players were available to all 30 teams as free agents. It was up to each organization, led by its pro scouting department, to find the right fit.

"I’m shocked by Vogelsong and a bit surprised by Colon just because he was so old," the executive said. "Vogelsong we didn’t like at all in Triple-A (in 2010) . . . but to me he's the best story, coming out of nowhere to make the all-star team. It’s such a cool story that if he keeps it going, it could literally become a movie. The big thing is, without Barry Zito being hurt, no matter how well (Vogelsong) pitched (for Triple-A Fresno) he wouldn’t have gotten an opportunity. [...] Continue Reading »

The Reds have agreed to terms with 16-year-old Venezuelan righthander Jonathan Perez for $825,000, according to an international source.

Perez, who is 6-foot-4, 195 pounds, has a projectable body, a good delivery and an improving fastball that touched 90 mph as July 2 approached and recently has been up to 92 mph, according to one scout. Perez's complete scouting report is available to Baseball America subscribers.

No International League catcher has been as hot as Pawtucket's Ryan Lavarnway since he joined the Triple-A circuit on June 13. That's really saying something for a league that includes high-end prospects such as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre's Jesus Montero and Louisville's Devin Mesoraco.

The 23-year-old Lavarnway mashed his 10th Triple-A home run yesterday (in just his 31st game) as part of a 3-for-3 showing that also included a double (11th), a walk and three RBIs. He served as DH in the game (won by Pawtucket against Lehigh Valley 4-1) as Luis Exposito, another Red Sox catching prospect, started behind the plate.

Over the course of the past 10 days, Lavarnway has gone 15-for-27 (.556) with five homers and four doubles. His 1.859 OPS tops any other player in the full-season minors in that time. But Lavarnway's excellence at the plate goes beyond just the past few weeks. He earned a promotion from Double-A Portland by hitting .284/.360/.510 in 55 games for the Sea Dogs, for whom he hit 14 home runs. So with 24 combined homers, Lavarnway can reach 30 if he stays hot down the stretch. [...] Continue Reading »

Alex Wimmers' second outing for high Class A Fort Myers went much better than his first. The Twins' 2010 first-round pick out of Ohio State walked six batters and didn't record an out in his first appearance this April. The Twins quickly shut him down as Wimmers tried to shake off Steve Blass disease as he lost the ability to throw strikes.

It's only been two outings, but the early returns are at least a sign that he's headed in the right direction. Wimmers walked one batter in a scoreless inning in a rehab appearance with the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League Twins, and on Sunday, Wimmers also walked one in a scoreless inning. [...] Continue Reading »

Players listed with an asterisk (*) signed minor league contracts, replacing major league pacts with the same organization. That's a fancy way of saying the player has been optioned or outrighted to the minors.

Numbers in parentheses indicate draft round.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Signed: RHP D.J. Johnson (Traverse City (Frontier))
Released: RHP Rafael Rodriguez
Traded: RHP Matt Torra to Rays for cash considerations
Added to 40-man roster: RHP Yhency Brazoban, LHP Alberto Castillo, 3B Sean Burroughs
Placed on 7-day DL: RHP Josh Ellis, 2B Mike Freeman
Reinstated from DL: RHP Armando Galarraga, RHP Daniel Stange, C Robby Hammock, OF David Winfree

Atlanta Braves
Signed: RHP Robert Roth (McAllen (North American)), C Victor Gomez (NDFA—Marshall), OF Sean Henry (Road Warriors (Atlantic))
Draft picks signed: RHP Mark Lamm (6), SS Seth Moranda (11)
Released: RHP Thomas Berryhill, RHP Eddie Morlan, LHP Stephen Foster
Recalled: RHP Cory Gearrin, SS Brandon Hicks
Optioned to Triple-A: RHP Jairo Asencio, RHP Cristhian Martinez
Placed on 7-day DL: RHP Kenshin Kawakami, RHP Kyle Mertins, LHP Ben Swaggerty, 1B Jakob Dalfonso, 3B Donell Linares, OF Adam Milligan, OF Antoan Richardson, OF Hilton Richardson
Transferred to 60-day DL: RHP Reidy Escobar, C Ramon de los Santos
Reinstated from DL: RHP Luis De Luna, RHP Daniel Lopez, RHP Henry Mendez, RHP Ryan Weber, C Braeden Schlehuber, 2B Alejandro Sanchez, OF Adam Milligan, OF Antoan Richardson, OF Will Skinner [...] Continue Reading »

Talk of Jonathan Singleton's disappointing season has been greatly exaggerated. The Phillies' high Class A first baseman went 2-for-4 and hit his seventh home run of the season yesterday, bringing his season line to .279/.384/.401 through 78 games. Despite being the Florida State League's youngest hitter at 19, Singleton's on-base percentage is 52 points higher than the league average and his slugging is 18 points higher than a league that's hitting .261/.332/.383 as a whole.

• The Red Sox pulled a surprise by jumping Aruban shortstop Xander Bogaerts from the Dominican Summer League in 2010 to low Class A Greenville in June. Bogaerts has flourished in the South Atlantic League, hitting .253/.339/.515, including a 3-for-5 showing with a double yesterday.

• The Angels drafted C.J. Cron in the first-round this year because of his ability to hit and hit for power. He's done just that as Rookie-level Orem's DH, going 2-for-5 with a home run yesterday, giving him four homers in 12 games and a .365/.441/.654 batting line.

[...] Continue Reading »