It’s not often you hear about a journeyman middle reliever asking to be traded, but Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports that D.J. Carrasco met with Pirates general manager Neal Huntington last week “to express his openness to being traded to a contender.”
Kovacevic makes it clear that he “neither demanded a trade in the meeting nor said he would prefer one” and Carrasco clarified the situation by saying “it’s just something that I’m open to, playing for a contender.”
While the situation is an odd one, the Pirates would be smart to trade Carrasco regardless of what he’s “open to.” He’s a solid enough pitcher, posting a 3.88 ERA this season and a 3.84 ERA over the past three seasons, but he’s also 33 years old and was available for just a minor-league contract this offseason. If the Pirates can get a decent prospect or two for him six months after acquiring him for essentially nothing they’d be silly not to jump at it.
Anthony Rendon fan interaction video looked into by MLB
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
OAKLAND, Calif. – Major League Baseball is looking into a video circulating on social media that appears to show Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon grab a fan by the shirt through the bleacher guardrails after Thursday night’s game in Oakland, a league spokesperson said Friday.
Rendon looks to have grabbed the fan’s shirt near his chest through the bars of the railing and exchanged words with him before appearing to take a swipe at the bill of the man’s ballcap and walking into the tunnel.
Angels spokesman Adam Chodzko says the team has no comment. The Angels do not play Friday, but the club expects Rendon to address the video Saturday in the clubhouse before the game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland.
The video shows the fan, dressed in A’s colors, approach the railing as Rendon turns toward him from the tunnel walkway below. Rendon then appears to grab the man’s shirt and ask him what he just said, accusing the fan of calling him a derogatory term before swiping at his ballcap.
The A’s won the game 2-1.