Costello, Lilliquist Gone in Padre Roster Shuffle

The Padres paid $20,000 to obtain left-handed pitcher Mike Linskey off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday and finalized their 40-man roster by making five personnel moves.

The Padres released reliever John Costello and lost pitcher Derek Lilliquist to the Cleveland Indians when he was claimed on waivers. The Padres also sent relievers Pat Clements and Tim Scott and outfielder Kevin Ward to triple-A Las Vegas.

Their roster spots were filled when the Padres decided to protect third baseman Dave Staton (.267, 22 homers, 74 RBIs at Las Vegas), outfielder Will Taylor (.259, four homers, 34 RBIs at Las Vegas), pitcher Doug Brocail (10-7, 3.87 ERA at double-A Wichita) and second baseman Luis Lopez (.268, one homer, 41 RBIs at Wichita).

Linskey, 6-feet-5 and 220 pounds, was the Orioles’ minor-league pitcher of the year in 1989. Last season, he was 6-5 with a 4.46 ERA in 16 starts with double-A Hagerstown and 1-5 with a 7.24 ERA in 10 games with triple-A Rochester. He’s considered a finesse pitcher, according to scouting reports. He throws an 81-85 m.p.h. fastball with a big curve.

“Obviously, he didn’t have a good year this year,” Padre General Manager Joe McIlvaine said. “Often, though, that’s the best time to get a guy. Last year, we couldn’t touch this guy.”

Lilliquist, a former first-round pick of the Atlanta Braves, spent most of the season in Las Vegas. He was 0-2 with an 8.79 ERA in six games with the Padres. Costello pitched 27 games for the Padres and was 1-0 with a 3.09 ERA.

In an unrelated personnel move, Padre scout Randy Johnson left Wednesday for a similar position with the Colorado Rockies. The Padres have lost five scouts since the end of the season: Kevin Towers, Pittsburgh Pirates; Hank Zacharias, Toronto Blue Jays; Dale Sutherland, Angels; Mark Baca, Cleveland Indians; and Johnson.