FanHouse Al Reyes

Billy Wagner, who was eligible to come off the disabled list on Monday, has been told by his doctor that he's still three weeks away from returning to action. Needless to say, that's not what the Mets wanted to hear, prompting the team to sign yet another reliever. After adding the extremely indisposible Luis Ayala earlier this week, the Mets signed Tampa Bay cast-off Al Reyes to a minor league deal.

Reyes, who saved 26 games last year before being replaced as Tampa Bay's closer by Troy Percival over the winter, posted a 4.37 ERA in 22 2/3 innings before being released 10 days ago. He'll report to Double-A Birmingham, but he's expected to return to the big leagues soon. From the New York Daily News:

"As I've said, we're looking at guys who are not having the best years," GM Omar Minaya said, referring to the lack of closers to have made it through waivers. "There was a major league offer, but he's chosen to go with us.

"How he would be used (if brought up) would be up to (manager) Jerry (Manuel)."

And what does Manuel think of him?

"I wouldn't know him if he walked into the room," Manuel said.

That's not exactly a ringing endorsement. For Reyes' sake, here's to hoping Manuel sticks to Baseball-Reference and not Google to learn more -- I'm sure Manuel stumbling across an article talking about how Reyes was taken down with a taser after starting a bar fight (and spitting blood on patrons) this past April isn't the first impression he's hoping for.

Despite the heat check that the Tampa Bay Rays are on right now, they still suffered some bad news yesterday when shockingly efficient closer Troy Percival injured his hamstring in what was described as a nasty little landing. Nasty enough to get him sent out for an MRI.

That begs the question, who's the new save guy in Tampa? Dan Wheeler would be your likely answer, and if he's not owned, and you need saves, he's an immediate add. If he's already taken, pounce on Al Reyes for a backup. Both guys could see save opps, but Wheeler came in for Percival today and he has the better ratios on the season. Plus, he hasn't been tased at all this season, for whatever that's worth.

In Milwaukee, although nothing is ever made really clear, it does appear as if Salomon Torres has gotten a pretty good grip on the closer's job, picking up three saves and a win over the last week. There's no guarantee that Crazy Joe DaVola Ned Yost will actually stick with him, but for now, he should be getting run in your lineup. And certainly shouldn't be a free agent.

The Braves welcomed back Rafael Soriano on Wednesday while putting Matt Diaz on the disabled list. That's decent news for Soriano's fantasy owners -- of course you want to see him back. The bad news is that John Smoltz is going to close as soon as he is healthy, which could be soon. Start Soriano when he's pitching, but obviously look to trade him if you can.

The Hyde Park Cafe in Tampa is not the place you want to find yourself if you're a C-list celebrity. Way back in April of last year, Jessica Sierra, who has something to do with American Idol, got arrested there for chunking a drink at another bar-goer.

Now it's Al Reyes turn! It's apparently athlete birthday day here at the 'Haus, and Al is taking the cake. Guess what he's making news for. Is it: a) being drunk and disruptive, b) falling down everywhere, c) picking fights, d) spitting blood, e) getting tased by the police, or f) all of the above ...

Witnesses told police the incident started around 2:30 a.m. at the Hyde Park Cafe, 1806 W Platt St., when Reyes fell against a ceramic pot inside the bar. Thinking someone had pushed him, police said Reyes began exchanging words with patron Eduardo Mora.

Mora then punched Reyes in the face, getting the attention of the Hyde Park Cafe's bouncers. Meanwhile, police said in a news release, Reyes 'began to spit blood on the people in the area and began to swing his arms about.'

[...]Moments later, the officer Tased Reyes, knocking him to the bar floor. Ignoring police commands to stay down, authorities said Reyes got up and was Tased a second time.

Happy birthday, dude! (Yes, "f" was the answer). Pretty solid outing for Mr. Reyes, who will probably have to answer to this with the city of Tampa and his employer, the Rays. Especially if you look at what the Rays have been doing lately.

He didn't really get a lot of publicity last year, but Troy Percival was nails for the Cardinals after returning from nearly two years on the sidelines. In 34 appearances spanning 40 innings, he posted a 1.80 ERA and 0.85 WHIP to go with 36 strikeouts and just 10 walks. I figured he'd be decent, but I didn't realize he'd be nearly as dominant as he was in his prime.

Not surprisingly, Percival is now convinced that he has a couple of years left in him and is seeking a two-year deal as a free agent. One of the teams he's looking at is the Tampa Bay Dev... err, the Tampa Bay Rays. Why in the world would anyone seek out the Rays? Because Percival has a connection with Joe Maddon, who coached Percival in Anaheim for 10 years. From the Tampa Tribune:

Percival's agent, Paul Cohen, said Tuesday that the Rays are among about 10 teams interested in the 38-year-old pitcher, who went 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA in 34 appearances for St. Louis this season after sitting out nearly two years with forearm trouble.
[...]
"We wouldn't be having serious conversations with them if Troy wasn't serious," Cohen said. "He has a tremendous respect for Joe."

Al Reyes (another former Cardinal) was actually pretty decent in his first year as a closer: despite posting a 4.90 ERA, he saved 26 games to go with a 1.15 WHIP and .215 opposing batting average. It's not clear if Percival would supplant Reyes or continue in the setup role he served last year, but considering this will likely be the last contract he signs, it won't be a surprise to see him push for closer money. Todd Jones, who is a year older than Percival, wasn't half as dominant as Percival last year and still finagled a one-year, $7 million deal out of the Tigers. I won't be shocked at all if there's some team out there willing to give Percival $10 million over two years.

Major League Mongering will look at players rumored to be on the move between now and the July 31st pseudo-trade-deadline.

Despite a mediocre 4.50 ERA, Al Reyes has been an amazing find for the Rays, posting a 1.08 WHIP with 43 strikeouts in 38 innings this year. He hasn't picked up a save in more than a month, but that's more a function of the Rays not having any late-inning leads to protect than anything else considering he's converted 17 of 18 opportunites. With the Brewers setting a high market price for talented short relievers, the Devil Rays are shopping the 37-year-old Reyes. From the St. Petersburg Times:

"There's still some players we've targeted that we'd like to acquire and are trying to figure out a way, whether in a straight deal or in a three-way (trade), to accomplish that," executive vice president Andrew Friedman said Sunday. "It's not that likely, but we're still working toward accomplishing a few more goals before Tuesday." ...

The Mariners seem most interested (with two scouts at the Trop) and have young catching. The Mets are among other teams following Reyes. If they don't have what the Rays are looking for, a three-way deal is a possibility.

So what would the Rays want in return? Oddly enough, they're reportedly looking to improve their bullpen, which makes sense considering they just dealt Ty Wigginton for Dan Wheeler. While it seems counterproductive to improve a bullpen by dealing your closer, the lack of quality middle relief has been perhaps the team's biggest Achilles heel. Sure, simply moving Reyes to middle relief would help, but his value is highest when he's viewed as a closer capable of pitching in high-pressure situations, so I'm guessing they're hoping to move him for a young pitcher or two who can grow into their roles in the bullpen.

Previously at FanHouse:
Other Deadline Deals
Other Major League Mongering rumors