Bill Hall From MVP to Trade ME ?

06/04/2008BY Aaron Gleeman

LATEST FANTASY BASEBALL HEADLINES

Bradley homers twice, takes over AL OPS lead

Pujols leaves game with calf tightness

Joba exits first major league start in third

Red Sox place Ortiz on 15-day disabled list

Rays' Crawford undergoes MRI on knee

Nationals place 3B Zimmerman on DL

Indians' Blake homers twice, drives in seven

With Bill Hall upset about the Brewers calling up Russell Branyan from Triple-A to platoon with him at third base, his agent announced Tuesday that "if Billy's not going to be an everyday player, it's probably best for him and the team to be traded." Terry Bross then opined that the Brewers "could get a pitcher for him that would really help the team." General manager Doug Melvin then responded by saying: "Billy's still a very helpful player on the club against left-handed pitching." Hall signed a four-year, $24 million contract after winning team MVP honors in 2006, so Melvin calling him "a very helpful player against left-handed pitching" is a pretty strong indication of how far he's fallen in the team's eyes and signals that the Brewers are in no hurry to end the platoon at third base. Hall has hit .162 against righties this season, compared to .408 against lefties, which combined with Branyan's .818 career OPS against righties makes for a very viable platoon.On the other hand, even with his struggles Hall has a .752 career OPS against right and no doubt feels that he deserves a longer leash given his willingness to switch positions multiple times. From the team's point of view, he's a 28-year-old whose 2006 season looks like a fluke given his measly .246/.309/.422 line since and Branyan had a 1.146 OPS at Triple-A. For now, Branyan has solid NL-only value if you're in need of power and can live with a low batting average.While Billy Hall channels Monty Hall and hopes to find some playing time behind Door No. 2, here are some other notes from around baseball .

Varying reports on David Ortiz's status surfaced Tuesday, with some suggesting that he could return from the disabled list following the minimum 15-day stay and others speculating that he'll miss at least a month. He was officially placed on the DL prior to Tuesday's game with a partially torn tendon in his wrist and the injury comes at a somewhat fortunate time because the Red Sox will be without the designated hitter while playing nine interleague games in NL parks this month.Chris Carter was called up from Triple-A to replace Ortiz on the roster, but Manny Ramirez slid into the DH spot Tuesday with Coco Crisp and Jacoby Ellsbury starting together in the outfield. Acquired from the Diamondbacks in last season's three-team deal for Wily Mo Pena, Carter is a 25-year-old career .310/.388/.520 hitter in the minors, including .310/.366/.526 with 10 homers in 57 games at Pawtucket this season.Carter doesn't have big-time power, but controls the strike zone, draw walks, and has batted at least .290 at every rung of the minor-league ladder. His upside looks similar to Lyle Overbay or Casey Kotchman, but the difference is that they both have good gloves while Carter is considered a brutal defender. That wouldn't matter if given a chance to fill in for Ortiz at DH, but the Red Sox may choose to stick Ramirez there quite a bit while giving Crisp and Ellsbury increased action.

Either unwilling or unable to play through a small tear in his left shoulder, Ryan Zimmerman was placed on the disabled list Tuesday after remaining "day-to-day" while sitting out seven straight games. "I've had players who've had the same injury who took 10 days off and then played for five years," general manager Jim Bowden said. "Then I've had some who've been operated on. It can be anywhere in between."Zimmerman isn't expected to need surgery, but it's unclear whether playing through the injury will become any easier. In the meantime Aaron Boone will continue to have NL-only value filling in at third base, but could lose playing time if Ronnie Belliard returns from the DL next week. Kory Casto was called up from Triple-A to take Zimmerman's roster spot and was once considered a good third-base prospect, but he's now 26 years old and plays primarily in the outfield.

Joba Chamberlain made his long-awaited debut as a starter Tuesday, but didn't make it out of the third inning against Toronto thanks to shaky control and a limited pitch count. He allowed just two runs and one of them was unearned, but walked four batters and needed 62 pitches to record seven outs. He's still building up arm strength and wasn't expected to work more than four innings, so the short outing isn't much of a concern. He'll face the light-hitting Royals next.

If you're looking for an elite pitching prospect who could make a Chamberlain-like impact down the stretch this season, David Price might be the guy. Taken first overall in last June's draft, Price tossed seven shutout innings Monday at Single-A and has begun his pro career with 18 scoreless frames. With a 19-to-2 strikeout-to-walk ratio Price is screaming for a promotion to Double-A and the Rays could eventually be tempted to give him a bullpen job if they remain in contention.

AL Quick Hits: Carl Crawford (knee) pinch-hit Tuesday and is slated to rejoin the starting lineup Wednesday . Chone Figgins (hamstring) ran Monday for the first time in over a week and could begin a minor-league rehab assignment as soon as this weekend . As expected, the Indians placed Jake Westbrook (elbow) on the disabled list Tuesday and reliever Tom Mastny got shelled by the Rangers as a spot starter . Curt Schilling (biceps) played catch Monday and is scheduled to throw off a mound Friday for the first time . After posting a 6.00 ERA over his last 30 starts, Boof Bonser has been demoted to the bullpen in preparation for Scott Baker (groin) coming off the shelf Thursday . Radhames Liz showed no signs of his usual shaky control while holding the free-swinging Twins to a pair of runs in his first start of the year Tuesday and is worth watching in AL-only leagues . Alexei Ramirez went just 4-for-33 (.121) in April, but after going 3-for-4 with a homer Tuesday he's 24-for-69 (.348) with three homers since the calendar flipped to May . As you might expect, Carlos Gomez may have a second career as a movie reviewer.NL Quick Hits: Asked Monday whether John Smoltz is now the Braves' full-time closer, manager Bobby Cox responded that "we'll play it by ear every day" and "we'll see how it goes" . Randy Johnson's eight strikeouts Tuesday broke a tie with Roger Clemens for second place all time, but he remains 1,034 strikeouts behind Nolan Ryan . Albert Pujols exited Tuesday's game with calf tightness following a lengthy rain delay . Tim Hudson (hamstring) said Monday that he expects to make his next scheduled start Friday versus the Phillies . Dan Uggla homered twice Tuesday and now ranks second in MLB with 18 long balls behind only fellow NL second baseman Chase Utley . Ken Griffey Jr. was out of the lineup again Tuesday with what the Reds continue to call "general soreness" . Andruw Jones (knee) said Monday that he's hoping to return prior to the All-Star break . With Pedro Martinez returning from the disabled list Tuesday, Mike Pelfrey will remain in the rotation while Claudio Vargas gets bumped to the bullpen . Aaron Harang allowed three runs over six innings Tuesday, but fell to 2-8 with a 3.86 ERA as the Reds failed to score more than two runs for the seventh time in his 14 starts.