A’s one-dollar man Brad Mills is starting tonight

By Aaron GleemanJun 20, 2014, 10:15 AM EDT
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Earlier this week the A’s purchased Triple-A left-hander Brad Mills from the Brewers for one dollar and tonight he’ll join Oakland’s rotation by starting against Boston in place of the injured Drew Pomeranz.

Mills’ minor-league contract basically allowed him to opt out if he wasn’t in the majors by now, but technically the Brewers had to offer him around for a buck and the A’s gladly snatched him up for $24,999 less than a standard waiver claim.

Mills is 29 years old with a 7.76 ERA in 53 innings as a big leaguer, but he pitched very well at Triple-A for the Brewers’ affiliate with a 1.56 ERA and 77/18 K/BB ratio in 75 innings.

And really, what else can you buy for a buck these days?

Editor’s Note: Hardball Talk’s partner FanDuel is hosting a one-day $40,000 Fantasy Baseball league for Friday night’s MLB games. It’s $25 to join and first prize is $6,000. Starts at 7:05pm ET on Friday. Here’s the FanDuel link.

The Cubs will try to clinch the NL Central on Tuesday

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By Bill BaerSep 25, 2017, 11:28 PM EDT
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The Cubs soundly defeated the Cardinals on Monday night, 10-2, sending their magic number down to one. They will try to clinch the NL Central on Tuesday with another win against the Cardinals. Alternatively, if they lose, they can still clinch if the Brewers also lose on Tuesday.

The Cubs, of course, won the Central last year en route to winning their first World Series since 1908. It wasn’t nearly as easy this year as the club was below .500 entering June and was exactly at .500 entering July. A 16-8 July, 17-12 August, and 15-8 September have helped put the Cubs back in position to return to the postseason.

Not to be forgotten, the Cardinals were eliminated from NL Central contention with Monday’s loss. Now they have their sights set on the second NL Wild Card slot and currently trail the Rockies in that race.

The matchups for Tuesday’s action:

Carter Capps to undergo surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome

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By Bill BaerSep 25, 2017, 9:55 PM EDT
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Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union Tribune reports that Padres pitcher Carter Capps will undergo surgery this offseason to address thoracic outlet syndrome, which doctors believe caused the right-hander’s blood clots. The Padres hope to have him ready by spring training next year.

Capps, 27, underwent Tommy John surgery last year and didn’t debut this season until August 7. He made 11 relief appearances, yielding nine runs on 12 hits and two walks with seven strikeouts in 12 1/3 innings. He went back on the DL on September 12 due to the blood clot issue.

The Padres acquired Capps from the Marlins last July in the Andrew Cashner trade which ended up having a lot of moving parts. Capps will enter his third and final year of arbitration eligibility this offseason. It’s quite possible the Padres choose to non-tender him.