THURSDAY, 1:54pm ET: In the hospital, Buxton was given a CT scan, which luckily came back negative. He suffered no broken bones. However, he does have a concussion, and the likelihood of a September call-up for Buxton seems out of the question. "It could have been a lot worse," Twins general manager Terry Ryan said on the MiLBTV internet broadcast. "We are grateful for the concussion. That was very scary." As for Kvasnicka, he has a bruised hip and will be out for just a few days. WEDNESDAY: Minnesota Twins outfield prospect Byron Buxton suffered what looked to be a few serious injuries Wednesday evening. Buxton, making his Double-A New Britain debut and playing center field, collided with right fielder Mike Kvasnicka, reportedly losing consciousness. He was carted off the field on a stretcher and was taken to a hospital by ambulance. Buxton is the number one prospect in all of baseball as ranked by MLB.com, but has failed to progress this season due to injuries throughout the season. Buxton was expected to be in Double-A earlier in the season, but his debut was pushed back so he could gain experience in the lower levels of the minor leagues. However, in his debut tonight, Buxton got bit by the injury bug again, which may end his season, and perhaps his career if the injury is serious. The Twins selected Buxton second overall in the 2012 MLB Draft, and he has progressed nicely in the minor leagues, slashing a .301/.390/.487 line with 21 home runs and 113 RBI in 897 plate appearances during his minor league stay. The 20-year-old appeared to be hit by Kvasnicka's knee in his left shoulder and was down for approximately 10 minutes. He did not appear to be moving. Kvasnicka was up and walking following the collision, but Rock Cats broadcasters said that he went with Buxton to the hospital, likely for precautionary reasons. Play was halted for 35 minutes, as Twins general manager Terry Ryan, who was in attendance, went down to the Rock Cats dugout. Stay tuned here at Cover Those Bases and follow Devan on Twitter @CoverThoseBases as the story on Buxton and other news develops. Photo credits to Scott Blanchette of the New Britain Rock Cats on Twitter.
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The Kansas City Royals have acquired outfielder Josh Willingham from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for minor league right-hander Jason Adam, the team officially announced last night. Kansas City did claim Willingham off of revocable waivers, St. Paul Pioneer Press' Mike Berardino reported on Twitter. Berardino reported later that Willingham is owed $1.836 million throughout the rest of the season. He will be a free agent at the end of the year; Willingham is in the final year of his three-year, $21 million contract he signed prior to the 2012 season to join the Twins. The Royals could not have chosen a better time to make a move for a veteran player. They are winners of eight straight and 16 of their last 19. Their torrid run has brought them into first place in the American League Central, as they lead the Detroit Tigers by a half game. Kansas City has not been in first this late into the season since 2003 and has not been in first place this year since June 19th. Willingham will add veteran leadership to the Royals clubhouse, while also adding some power in the outfield. In 11 seasons with the Marlins, Nationals, Athletics, and Twins, Willingham has hit .253/.359/.467 with 193 home runs and 626 runs batted in. In 278 plate appearances on the season, Willingham has a .210/.345/.402 slash-line with 12 bombs and 34 driven in. He clearly has lost a step from his career average, but his on-base percentage remains high while he continues to add power. Adam, a 5th round pick back in 2010, will be a nice return for Minnesota. He just turned 23 eight days ago, and he is already at Triple-A. In eight games (zero starts) with Triple-A Omaha, he is 1-1 with a 2.35 ERA and a 1.370 WHIP in 15 1/3 innings pitched. Earlier this year, with Double-A Northwest Arkansas, Adam turned in a 4-8 record with a 5.03 ERA and a 1.393 WHIP in 19 games (18 starts). Adam appears nearly ready for the big leagues, as his control with his three pitches is highly touted. For the latest news and rumors, be sure to follow Devan on Twitter @CoverThoseBases. The Chicago Cubs and Miami Marlins have come to an agreement on a deal that sends right-hander Jacob Turner to Chicago, in exchange for minor league righties Jose Arias and Tyler Bremer. The Marlins recently designated the former 9th overall pick for assignment and placed him on waivers, where the Cubs placed a claim on him. Turner will be another work in progress for the Cubs, as they have been able to already rejuvenate the careers of Jason Hammel and Jake Arrieta, and are hoping to rejuvenate the career of recently added Felix Doubront. Adding Turner is just another pitcher for the Cubs to help reach their ceiling, which makes the move even better. On the year, the St. Charles, Missouri native is 4-7 with a 5.97 ERA and a 1.647 WHIP in 20 games (12 starts). In his 78 1/3 innings pitched, Turner has a 54 to 23 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Although these numbers are poor, the Cubs are hoping that Turner has just been a victim of some bad luck. Turner's FIP (4.01), ground ball percentage (51.3 percent), and BABIP (.368) all suggest that Turner has been a better pitcher than the "traditional" numbers say. With this information, the Cubs may be able to turn Turner's bad luck into some positive results. The former 22nd-best prospect (pre-2012) as rated by Baseball America has yet to preform to his highest potential. The 23-year-old still has time to perform, but if the Cubs cannot turn him around, it may be time to call Turner a bust. This is his last chance. The Marlins will be receiving right-handers Jose Arias and Tyler Bremer. The 23-year-old Arias is still in Single-A, where he is 1-1 with a 1.77 ERA, a 1.008 WHIP, and a 51 to 17 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 40 2/3 innings pitched. The 24-year-old Bremer is a former 27th-round pick, and while pitching in Single-A, the 24-year-old is 5-1 with a 2.43 ERA, a 1.162 WHIP, and a 51 to 15 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 37 innings. This is the last chance for Jacob Turner to prove who he really can be as a pitcher. The Cubs, while they are currently in last, can take a chance on a guy like Turner, and they made a very good move in going out and getting him. Now I would love to see him preform well. The Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired right-hander Roberto Hernandez from the Philadelphia Phillies, the Phillies announced on Thursday. In return, the Phillies will get to pick two players to be named later or cash. They will pick from a group of "lower-level minor leaguers" for their return, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com and Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reported. The Phillies placed Hernandez on waivers this past Saturday and he did clear. Hernandez, formerly known as Fausto Carmona, signed a one-year, $4.5 million contract with the Phillies this past season, and has exceeded any expectations coming into the season. In 23 games (20 starts), Hernandez has posted a 6-8 record with a 3.87 ERA, 4.62 FIP, and a 1.347 WHIP. He has tossed 121 innings, and owns a 75 to 55 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He has a 96 ERA+ on the year. The Dodgers may be getting the Dominican Republic native at the right time. Over Hernandez's past seven starts, the former All-Star owns a 2.85 ERA and has held hitters to just a .194 batting average, along with a .537 OPS. He is coming off arguably his best start of the season, when he held the Washington Nationals to just one unearned run and only five hits over eight innings. Hernandez said that he will be starting for the Dodgers tomorrow in Milwaukee, taking Josh Beckett's scheduled start. His overall place with the team, however, is yet to be known, as the Dodgers have a formidable rotation to say the least, with Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, and Hyun-Jin Ryu leading the pack. Beckett has struggled since coming of the disabled list with a hip injury. Hernandez could always be a long-man in the Dodgers bullpen as well, making a spot start every once in awhile. Considering the fact that Hernandez is only signed through this season, his contract was relatively easy to move. However, this may be just the beginning of the Phillies August fire sale, as Cole Hamels, Marlon Byrd, and Antonio Bastardo all could be prime candidates to be moved this month. The San Diego Padres have hired Texas Rangers assistant general manager A.J. Preller as their next general manager, Ken Rosenthal first reported on Tuesday evening. Preller and New York Yankees assistant general manager Billy Eppler were rumored to be the two finalists for the job, but Major League Baseball executive Kim Ng was also being considered. Had Ng been hired, she would have become the first female general manager in the four major professional sports. The Padres will make the official announcement on Preller's hiring today. The 36-year-old Preller has been working in the Rangers organization for ten years, working in various departments. He has headed international scouting, but currently is the head of both player development and scouting. He met Rangers general manager Jon Daniels at Cornell University, where they were fraternity brothers. Before working with the Rangers, Preller had jobs with other teams and Major League Baseball itself. Preller seems to be a good fit for the Padres, considering the fact that he is known as a person that is good with stats. With the Padres' estimated payroll at $67.1 million, statistics will be crucial in bringing the team back to the postseason for the first time since 2006, or at least bringing them back above .500 for the first time since 2010. That is already in the works. Since former general manager Josh Byrnes' firing on June 22nd, the three man team of assistant GM A.J. Hinch (yes, that is a coincidence), assistant GM Fred Uhlman Jr., and senior vice president of baseball operations Omar Minaya handled the Padres decision-making during the trade deadline. In trades of Huston Street, Chase Headley, and Chris Denorfia, the team was able to bring in prospects such as Jose Rondon, Taylor Lindsey, R.J. Alvarez, Elliot Morris, Yangervis Solarte, Rafael De Paula, Abraham Almonte, and Stephen Kohlscheen to the organization. A.J. Preller has been a candidate to accept a general manager job in the past, but now with the San Diego Padres, who may not be that far away from winning, he will get his chance to run an organization. |
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