How Will 2016's Pitchers Returning From Tommy John Surgery Fare?

Out of context, throwing a baseball for a living is not a particularly dangerous job. There are hundreds of other occupations that provide a greater threat to health on a daily basis than standing on a pitcher's mound. In the context of the game of baseball, however, pitching is a dangerous occupation.

Fox Sports

Pirates Finally Have High Draft Picks Pay Off

There is no mistaking that the Pittsburgh Pirates, as they currently are constructed, are legitimate contenders to win the division series in which they are involved with the Cardinals and thus reach the National League championship series for the first time since 1992.

Post-Dispatch

Sully Baseball Salutes....Braden Looper

Pitcher Braden Looper retired today after failing to land a roster spot with the Cubs. He probably won't get a prolonged farewell in baseball circles nor a big celebration of his career.

Sully Baseball

Kris Benson Says He's Done Pitching

In 1996, the Pittsburgh Pirates made Kris Benson the No. 1 overall pick in baseball’s amateur draft. Within four years, he had thrown more than 400 innings in the majors and appeared on his way to realizing much of the potential he showed as a star at Clemson University.

Fox Sports

Cardinals Remain In Contact With Astros On Roy Oswalt

The Cardinals were very encouraged by Kyle Lohse’s rehab start Monday, his first outing since undergoing surgery to his forearm. However, the Cardinals are still looking for a starting pitcher and remain in contact with the Astros about Roy Oswalt. Why?

NY Post

College World Series Has Strong Draft Flavor

Omaha has long been the scene of final collegiate triumphs for future Major Leaguers. This year's NCAA's College World Series will be no different; with 57 picks from last week's First-Year Player Draft participating, it's sure to feature high drama from prospects looking to leave their alma maters in glory.

MLB Official Site

Ahead Of The Count: Production & The Draft

The 2010 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft begins tonight, presumably commencing with the Washington Nationals calling the name of Bryce Harper. The draft will be televised for the fourth year in a row, thanks to increasing fan interest.

Baseball Prospectus

Minor League Transactions April 15-18

Cubs activated Mark Johnson.
Marlins signed Jorge Sosa.
Angels outrighted Terry Evans.
Nationals signed Ron Villone.

St. Louis Cardinals
Recalled: C Bryan Anderson
Placed on 7-day DL: OF Kyle Conley, OF Chris Swauger
Reinstated from DL: 3B Jermaine Curtis

Baseball America

Under The Knife: Late Spring Training Hurts

Baseball Prospectus

Brewers Considered Trading Jeff Suppan; Cubs Scout Luke Gregerson

Pirates’ lefties Zach Dukes and Paul Maholm are not available. The best of the Blue Jays’ options are relievers. The Brewers considered Jeff Suppan-for-Snyder, but did not want to take on Snyder’s money for 2011.

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As for the Cubs’ search for a setup man, the team has scouted Jays righty Jason Frasor and lefty Scott Downs and Padres righty Luke Gregerson, but does not expect to make a trade before Opening Day.

Fox Sports

Kris Benson Throwing Again, Looking For Work

A number of National League teams are keeping track of Kris Benson’s progress, including the Diamondbacks, Cubs, Reds and Nationals, according to one major league source.

Fox Sports

Kris Benson Feels 100%, Throws For Two Unnamed Teams

The agent for Kris Benson said Friday that the right-hander is “100 percent” ready to pitch and should sign with a new team within the next few weeks.

Gregg Clifton said Benson has already thrown for two interested teams. According to Clifton, Benson’s fastball reached 92 and 93 miles per hour and averaged 91 during both of the 90-pitch sessions.

Fox Sports

Ben Sheets' Agent Expects Strong Market For Pitcher

Milwaukee general manager Doug Melvin caught reporters slightly off guard at the GM meetings in Chicago this week when he observed that "no one has heard from" former Brewers right-hander Ben Sheets. More than one media outlet took the comment as a sign that Sheets might be backing off an attempted comeback in 2010.

ESPN

You Could Look It Up: Inglorious Bastards

In the following pitcher capsules, the numbers in parentheses show the pitcher's career Support-Neutral Lineup-adjusted Value Above Replacement (SNLVAR) or his WXRL if he was a reliever, followed by his peak SNLVAR or WXRL along with the corresponding year. The last 50 starting pitchers to win the Cy Young Award have averaged an SNLVAR of 8.2 in their winning campaigns.

Baseball Prospectus

Inside Tommy John Surgery

Five years ago, Tom Gorman wrote the following piece on the wonder that is Tommy John surgery. Frank Jobe's fix is one of few things that truly changed the game of baseball, and should be remembered alongside the advent of night games, the live ball, and maybe even Jackie Robinson. For the anniversary, Baseball Prospectus was lucky enough to gain an historic interview—the first recorded interview with both Dr. Jobe and Tommy John. While Jobe and John have appeared together, there are no publicly available recordings.

Baseball Prospectus

A Look Back At The 1st Round Of The 1996 Draft

Once upon a time, Kris Benson was Stephen Strasburg. No, really.

Beyond The Boxscore

Grand Slams On Record-Shattering Pace

Major League Baseball has been more grand than ever this season.

MLB

The Cult Of The Sure Thing

With all the hype surrounding SDSU right-hander Stephen Strasburg this spring, I got to thinking about prospects and predicting their future. It's harder than it looks. In fact, it's impossible. The best we can do is make educated guesses based on assumptions and then hope we are right.

The Hardball Times

Athletics May Not Be Too Interested In Mark Mulder, Even With Injuries To Pitcher

Don't expect the A's to bottom-feed for a veteran starting pitcher or sign a free agent such as left-hander Mark Mulder, even though righty Justin Duchscherer is expected to miss at least six weeks once he undergoes arthroscopic elbow surgery.

The A's best move might be to pursue one of the Rays' available right-handers, Jason Hammel or Jeff Niemann.

Both Hammel and Niemann are out of options, meaning that they must be made available to every team on waivers before they can be sent to the minor leagues. The Indians, Angels and Dodgers are among the other contenders with current rotation needs.

As for the A's other possibilities, they would rather go with their youngsters than sign retreads, and Mulder is less of a fit than he might appear.

First, the A's need immediate help, and Mulder probably would not be ready until May. Second, the A's cannot afford Mulder if A) he pitches poorly, squandering a low guarantee or B) he pitches well, reaching his incentives.

At least for the moment, the A's would prefer to retain their remaining financial flexibility; they offered $1.7 million to free-agent reliever Joe Beimel, who instead signed with the Nationals for $2 million.

Fox Sports

Cardinals Release Ismael Cardona

Baseball America

Ismael Cardona: Catcher Released by Cardinals