Baseball notebook: How to measure a player's worth — in quarters?

Remember Chris Burke? The Mariners acquired the outfielder from San Diego just before the start of the season, and sent $1 to the Padres to complete the transaction.

The Mariners assigned Burke to Tacoma, found he was expendable, and in late April dealt him back to the Padres, who were suddenly lacking outfield depth. So desperate was San Diego, it was willing to give up $1.25 to get reacquire Burke. The shrewd Jack Zduriencek turned a quarter profit in the transaction, first unveiled by Web site Bleacher Report.

Now comes the postscript. The Padres released Burke a little while ago, and he now has signed with the Braves. No word on whether any cash changed hands.

Burke, who was assigned to Class AAA Gwinnett, has some history with Atlanta. As a rookie with the Astros in 2005, he hit an 18th-inning homer to beat the Braves in a Division Series playoff game. That put Houston in the NLCS, en route to the World Series. The Braves, meanwhile, haven't played a postseason game since.

Manny's not one

for tradition

It is tradition for Dodgers major-leaguers to spring for lavish postgame spreads when they go down to the minors on a rehab assignment.

Pitcher Will Ohman, for instance, catered a meal from Outback Steakhouse when he was at AAA Albuquerque, and pitcher Claudio Vargas brought in food from P.F. Chang's.

It's a way for well-paid players to do something nice for minor-leaguers still scraping to get by.

Manny Ramirez, who is earning $25 million this season, just finished a three-game stint with Albuquerque as he readies to return from his drug suspension.

He left before the end of the first two games, and didn't bring in any food. It was the usual pizza.

Notes and quotes

• Orioles closer George Sherrill, who made the All-Star team last year, is advocating for Adam Jones to get the honor this year.

"I pitch the ninth inning to try and lock up wins for us," he told the Baltimore Sun. "Jonesey has been struggling a little bit lately, but he's had a helluva year. I think he should be the one that makes it. If I do, I do. If we both do, that would be great. But it's not going to [tick] me off or anything if I don't go."

• Here's former Mariners hitting coach Paul Molitor on Joe Mauer, a fellow St. Paul native, in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

"Is there a lot of room for improvement? No. How much better can he get? But I think he's going to continue to amaze people. He made that remarkable tag play in New York [when he faked a throw to first, then scrambled home to tag out Brett Gardner], he shuts down running games, he's improved dramatically at calling games, and offensively we're finally seeing him become more of a run producer."

• Speaking of the Twins, they dumped reliever Luis Ayala after he requested a trade.

"He wanted an eighth-inning role; that's why he signed here," manager Ron Gardenhire told the Star-Tribune. "His thoughts were if we gave him the ball in that eighth inning, he'd be able to do the job. My thoughts are, 'If you're not getting them out, you're not going to pitch in the eighth inning.' We're trying to win, so there's your difference."

Ayala, who was signed to a one-year, $1.3 million deal in the offseason, was designated for assignment.

"When you walk into my office and tell me you don't like your role — and he talked about his contract for next year — you lose me right there," Gardenhire said. "I don't deal with that. We're talking about winning now."

• Vladimir Guerrero had a double in his first at-bat Wednesday, his first extra-base hit since June 13. He followed with a two-run homer in his next at-bat, his first home run since April 12.

The power explosion came one day after Guerrero shaved off his trademark dreadlocks.

"I think they found the Dead Sea scrolls in there," Scioscia joked to reporters.

• Jose Canseco was a no-show to Oakland's 1989 World Series reunion on Tuesday — much to the pleasure of some teammates.

"I don't believe there's a guy on the '89 team who'd show up [if Canseco was there]," said former Oakland infielder Carney Lansford to the San Francisco Chronicle.

"Not after his book and all the lives he ruined. It's selfishness, basically. I hate to say that, really. I played with him and thought he was a nice guy, but I don't know how you can do that to people."