Adrian Gonzalez Rumors
By Zach Links [November 22, 2009 at 10:15pm CST]
The Red Sox are shopping third baseman Mike Lowell and are willing to eat half of his $12MM salary for next season, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. However, a rival executive says that he would be surprised if another club would even be willing to pay Lowell $6MM. The 35-year-old has played less than 120 games in each of the last two seasons. While he remains productive offensively, Rosenthal and Morosi point out that he posted a .932 OPS in Fenway Park while batting for a .713 OPS on the road. However, it should...
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By Luke Adams [November 22, 2009 at 10:24am CST]
In his usual Sunday morning column for the Boston Globe, Nick Cafardo passes on some hot stove talk from around the majors. Let's check out the highlights.... The fate of John Lackey could potentially affect the offseason plans of each of the AL East powers. Both the Yankees and Red Sox have interest, and Cafardo suggests that landing Lackey would allow the Red Sox to turn around and move Clay Buchholz in a deal for a coveted bat, like Adrian Gonzalez. Cafardo relays this quote from an AL GM: "The Red Sox could be the major player this offseason if...
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By Mike Axisa [November 21, 2009 at 8:58am CST]
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick reports that new Padres' GM Jed Hoyer met with John Boggs, agent for Adrian Gonzalez, on Friday. The two-hour lunch meeting was said to be more of a "get-acquainted session" than a formal negotiation. Said Boggs: "There wasn't any kind of negotiating or exchanging of numbers or anything like that. I'm sure we're going to keep the dialogue open, but nothing is imminent at this point. The way we're looking at it, Adrian is a Padre until something happens . And they're the ones who are really in control of the situation.'' Hoyer declined comment, but Boggs...
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By Mike Axisa [November 20, 2009 at 7:41pm CST]
In a piece for ESPN Boston, Peter Gammons and Gordon Edes answered five key questions about the Red Sox and the upcoming offseason. There's not many hard rumors in the piece, but there's plenty of discussion topics, so let us know what you think... Both Gammons and Edes believe the Sox will retain Jason Bay (Gammons guesses the contract will be in the four year, $64MM range), and neither is sure who will compete with them for his services. The Red Sox "can easily" keep shortstop Alex Gonzalez at a reduced rate even though they declined his option earlier this...
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By Mike Axisa [November 20, 2009 at 5:24pm CST]
The Red Sox have expressed interest in four players - all Scott Boras clients - early in the hot stove season, according to Mike Silverman of The Boston Herald. Those four players would be Matt Holliday, Adrian Beltre, Mike Gonzalez, and Rick Ankiel. Silverman notes that the Sox consider Holliday and alternative to Jason Bay, should they fail to re-sign him. Gonzalez could replace Billy Wagner, although Ankiel is somewhat redundant after the team acquired Jeremy Hermida earlier this month. Beltre could replace Mike Lowell at third, who Silverman says may "wind up being traded if the Red Sox go...
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By Cork Gaines [November 20, 2009 at 12:00pm CST]
On this date two years ago, Mike Lowell re-signed with the Red Sox for three-years, $37.5MM. In this first two years of the deal, Lowell has taken in $25.5MM, and according to his WAR has been worth $19.9MM. In '10, Lowell will be 36 as he enters the final year of his deal. Today is the first day of free agency, let's take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere... Howard Megdal and Chris Pummer of The Perpetual Post debate the Oliver Perez and Derek Lowe signings of a year ago. The Ghost of Moonlight Graham looks...
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By Howard Megdal [November 18, 2009 at 11:57am CST]
Jon Heyman's latest column begins with this simple declaration: "The Yankees recently called the Blue Jays to express interest in superstar pitcher Roy Halladay." And Heyman points out the change in administrations in Toronto- from J.P. Ricciardi to Alex Anthopoulos- means an in-division trade is no longer out of the question. Heyman also points out that with Halladay seeking a big payday from whoever acquires him, the suitors for his services could quickly dwindle to the precious few big-market teams who can afford to pay him long-term. He lists the Yankees as option 1, the Red Sox as option 1A...
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By Mark Polishuk [November 17, 2009 at 8:15pm CST]
MLB.com's Lyle Spencer answered a pile of fans' questions about the Angels' free agents, possible new signings and trade options. Here are some of the highlights... Spencer "has his doubts" that Los Angeles will re-sign any of its big three free agents (Chone Figgins, Vladimir Guerrero and John Lackey). He thinks the other three AL West teams would be smart to sign Guerrero given that the outfielder is "a prideful man who would have something to prove to his former employer." If the Angels do dip into the free-agent market, it would be for a starting pitcher. Spencer lists Randy...
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By Howard Megdal [November 16, 2009 at 8:00pm CST]
The incomparable Marty Noble answers many of the fan inquiries with his usual mixture of information and wit. Among other ideas, he considers: Just what would it take, hypothetically, to bring Adrian Gonzalez to Queens? Noble believes a package of John Maine, Fernando Martinez and Ike Davis "and perhaps more would be one to consider seriously." Noble likes Joel Pineiro more than Jason Marquis, adding that "I know the Mets are interested in [Bengie] Molina." He says that while Mark DeRosa wouldn't be a top priority, "If they can't bring back Alex Cora, DeRosa would an even better fit." He...
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By Howard Megdal [November 16, 2009 at 5:35pm CST]
Padres fans have plenty to think about beyond considering the future of Adrian Gonzalez, and Corey Brock of MLB.com does a terrific job breaking down some of those potential moves in his latest mailbag. Brock says that he doesn't see Kevin Correia "going anywhere." His "GM-for-a-day" scenario involves signing Mike Cameron and Henry Blanco. He's a big fan of the minor league third basemen in the organization. The entire mailbag is worth a read. Do you agree with Brock's prescriptions?
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