1:35 PM, FSNP, WPGB
Woody Williams (4-11, 5.37) vs. Shane Youman (2-1, 4.24). Here's the box. Today's Sub Club:
- Cesar Izturis, .601 OPS
- Pitcher
- Nate McLouth, .685 OPS
- Matt Kata, .577 OPS
The Pirates have made known to other teams that shortstop Jack Wilson is available, and the Toronto Blue Jays are interested. But any trade is unlikely to happen until after Major League Baseball's July 31 non-waiver deadline, mostly because the Pirates surely will be asked to pick up a significant portion of the $14.25 million Wilson is owed after this season. Such deals tend to take more than the nine days remaining before the deadline, and no firm talks are known to have begun with any team. After July 31, there is another month in which trades can be made if a player clears waivers, but Wilson is no certainty to do that. That makes the offseason more likely.
I'm confused. The Pirates trade for Izturis, which in turn causes the Pirates to tell other teams that Wilson is available. But they can't finish a deal until after the season, at which point Izturis will probably be too expensive for them to keep anyway. (His option next year is worth more than $5 million; they might refuse it and sign him for less money, but in that case they might as well have not traded for him in the first place and waited until the offseason to get him.) So what was the point of acquiring Izturis again?
-P- Marlins pitcher Scott Olsen keeps getting into trouble:
Bentolila said Olsen was arrested in the Miami suburb of Aventura, where an officer clocked him driving 48 mph in a 35 mph zone and attempted to pull him over at about 3:40 a.m.
-P- Mets infielder Jose Valentin broke his shin, possibly ending his season. As a result, the Mets may be interested in Jose Castillo; for now, they'll go with some combination of Ruben Gotay, Anderson Hernandez, and Marlon Anderson. Not that those guys are any great shakes, but I'd probably be inclined to stick with them if I were the Mets.
Olsen continued to drive about one mile, running a stop sign before stopping at his Aventura home, Bentolila said.
The pitcher got out of his car and sat down on a plastic chair in front of his home. When backup officers arrived and tried to arrest him, Bentolila said Olsen kicked at the officers, who used a stun gun on the 6-foot-5 pitcher.
Olsen then failed a field sobriety test and refused an alcohol breath test, Bentolila said. A booking photo showed Olsen had two scrapes on his forehead over his right eye.