Chris Iannetta Rumors
NL Central Rumors: Volquez, Iannetta, Bourn
The NL Central has four buyers and two sellers. The latest:
- The Reds are drawing interest from multiple teams on righty Edinson Volquez, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The 28-year-old has a 5.93 ERA on the season and spent time at Triple-A. Still, he throws hard and is under team control through 2013.
- The Pirates and Rockies have yet to exchange names on Chris Iannetta, tweets Jon Paul Morosi. The Pirates added one bat today, promoting Pedro Alvarez.
- Interest in Astros center fielder Michael Bourn is still not high, writes Stephen Goff of Examiner.com. He says the Braves are not a good fit and the Nationals are highly unlikely.
- The Astros had scouts watching the Triple-A clubs of the Diamondbacks and Braves recently, writes Rosenthal.
Brown, Passan On Rockies, Reyes, Angels
A few more notes from Tim Brown and Jeff Passan of Yahoo...
- The Rockies are not actively shopping Chris Iannetta and Ty Wigginton, though they appeal to other teams.
- Mets shortstop Jose Reyes told friends he'd love to sign with the Angels after the season. However, the writers feel that Angels owner Arte Moreno is unlikely to win the bidding. Plus, the team is content with Erick Aybar at shortstop.
- The Halos' trade deadline emphasis is their bullpen, though they believe the cost of top-tier relievers like Heath Bell and Mike Adams is prohibitive. They'll look at the next tier, and also consider third base upgrades.
Gammons Talks Trade Market
Peter Gammons spoke with a host of scouts, general managers, and MLB executives, all of which is compiled in his latest piece at MLB.com, which is chock full of trade-related news:
- The Astros are asking for as much in return for Wandy Rodriguez as the Rockies are for Ubaldo Jimenez. General manager Ed Wade is in a difficult position, caught between an ownership change.
- Half a dozen teams are looking for right-handed offense, but the Rockies won't trade Ryan Spilborghs and the Cubs are holding onto Jeff Baker. Gammons says that reduces that market to Conor Jackson, Josh Willingham, Reed Johnson, Lastings Milledge, and Jeff Francoeur. The Twins recently announced they won't trade Michael Cuddyer as well.
- The Dodgers want to shed salary, but don't have much to shed besides Jamey Carroll and Hiroki Kuroda. Gammons spoke with two East coast executives that said Kuroda, who has a full no-trade clause, won't accept a deal to an East Coast team.
- The Athletics will move veteran bats and probably a reliever or two.
- The Mariners won't have a fire sale, and aren't likely to get much for Erik Bedard in light of his injury.
- The Nationals are willing to trade Tyler Clippard, and have been continually pursuing Michael Bourn. They're also one of several teams who showed interest in Julio Borbon prior to his injury.
- Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail is in a tough spot because he doesn't know which way owner Peter Angelos wants him to go, according to a rival GM.
- Jordan Pacheco and Wilin Rosario make it possible for the Rockies to trade Chris Iannetta, but the Red Sox seem content wth their catching options.
Rockies Rumors: Vazquez, Catching
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has the latest Rockies buzz...
- The Rockies are interested in Javier Vazquez. Vazquez joins Jake Westbrook, Jon Garland, and Hiroki Kuroda as pitchers of interest for the team in case they are unable to re-sign Jorge de la Rosa.
- GM Dan O'Dowd described the team's plans at catcher as "a fluid situation," but added, "We are absolutely prepared to give Chris [Iannetta] every opportunity to get over the hump." Re-signing Miguel Olivo hasn't been ruled out, but it sounds like the Rockies will be giving less playing time to Iannetta's catching partner in 2011.
- Notable minor league free agents, from Baseball America's Matt Eddy: Luis Ayala, Brad Eldred, and Kaz Matsui.
Odds & Ends: Lee, Astros, Hermida, Rockies
As Cliff Lee prepares to face the Yankees in the ALCS, he's trying not to think about his impending free agency, according to T.R. Sullivan and Bill Ladson. Still, Lee hinted to the MLB.com writers that winning the World Series with the Rangers this year would make it that much harder to leave Texas. Here are a few other links from around the league, as we count down the final 24 hours until the ALCS gets underway....
- The Astros removed three players from their 40-man roster, outrighting Brian Esposito, Anderson Hernandez, and Wladimir Sutil to Triple-A, according to a team release.
- Jeremy Hermida appreciates that the Athletics allowed him to reach free agency early in the offseason, says Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- Troy Renck of the Denver Post asked Lance Berkman about the possibility of coming to Colorado for next season, and Berkman said he might be interested (Twitter links). Of course, the 34-year-old will be looking for an everyday role, and Todd Helton is still very much in the first base picture for the Rockies.
- In a separate tweet, Renck adds that even with Jarrod Saltalamacchia under contract, the Red Sox could still inquire on Chris Iannetta this winter.
- Fangraphs' Jack Moore argues that Paul Janish's play at shortstop should prompt the Reds to turn down Orlando Cabrera's 2011 option. Yesterday, over 80% of you opined that Cincinnati wouldn't exercise Cabrera's option.
- The Triple-A Portland Beavers will be sold to a group led by Padres owner Jeff Moorad, as J. Harry Jones of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes. If everything proceeds as planned, the club will play in Tucson in 2011 and then move permanently to Escondido in 2012, according to Jones and Josh Leventhal of Baseball America.
Rockies Undecided On Olivo Option
2:52pm: The Rockies have not determined whether they'll pick up their side of Olivo's option, tweets Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. Renck says the Rockies are keeping an open mind, with Victor Martinez on the radar. At #20, the Rockies would give the second-best available draft pick to the Red Sox if they sign V-Mart after he turned down an arbitration offer.
8:11am: The Rockies will exercise their option on catcher Miguel Olivo, tweets Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies. By reaching his 110th game played on September 26th, Olivo's club option became mutual and jumped up to $2.7MM. That means Olivo could still decline the option in search of a bigger payday or multiple years, though he told Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post last month he wants to stay.
The 32-year-old backstop hit .269/.315/.449 with 14 home runs in 427 plate appearances this year for the Rockies. He caught 935 innings, throwing out 42% of attempted thieves. His presence in 2011 would again create an uncomfortable situation for Chris Iannetta, who is on a multiyear deal running through 2012. Iannetta has a 2013 club option he can void if he's traded, which seems like a legitimate possibility this winter.
Olivo's 2011 Option Is Now Mutual
Catcher Miguel Olivo's option for next season went from club to mutual after he made his 110th appearance in today's contest against the Giants. However, the Rockies can still opt to buy out his 2011 for $500K rather than bring him back for $2.7MM.
Olivo's return to Colorado could create an uncomfortable situation with Chris Iannetta, writes Jim Armstrong of The Denver Post. The Rockies signed Iannetta to a three-year, $8.35MM deal before the season in the hopes that he would take hold of the everyday job behind the plate. If Olivo returns, he will earn more than the 27-year-old who believes that he is a starting major league catcher.
In his first season with the Rockies, Olivo has hit .271/.317/.447 with 13 homers. His option was initially worth $2.5MM but he boosted that figure to $2.7MM by reaching 100 and 110 appearances this year.
Rockies Rumors: Peralta, Gregg, Iannetta, Hawpe
Let's check in on the latest Rockies-related rumors and notes...
- Jhonny Peralta has "emerged as a potential fit" for Colorado, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. The Rockies and Indians have made trades in the past, including Colorado's acquisition of Rafael Betancourt last year, and Peralta can play all over the infield.
- As we heard earlier this weekend, bullpen help is still a priority for the Rox, and Kevin Gregg appears to be their top target.
- The Red Sox will likely look to reopen talks for Chris Iannetta during the offseason.
- With Jorge de la Rosa and Jeff Francis both facing free agency, Renck believes the Rockies should explore a deal for Dan Haren, though there's no indication Colorado is involved in those sweepstakes.
- In a separate Denver Post piece, Mark Kiszla argues that the Rockies should attempt to trade Brad Hawpe. Renck notes, in a tweet, that Hawpe could be a fit for the White Sox if Chicago can't land Adam Dunn or another big bat.
Gammons On Ankiel, Crawford, Iannetta, Martin
In his latest appearance on WEEI's Big Show, Peter Gammons opines that the trade deadline isn't as significant as it's made out to be. He cites only a handful of teams over the last decade who have made the World Series after making major deals prior to the deadline, arguing that the idea of pennant-altering trades is "essentially fiction." Here are a few other interesting tidbits from Gammons' conversation:
- Gammons thinks Rick Ankiel could be a good fit for the Red Sox, if he shows that he's healthy.
- The Angels' top priority this offseason will probably be trying to sign Carl Crawford. Gammons notes that the club put Crawford's locker next to Torii Hunter's at the All-Star Game.
- The Rockies aren't eager to trade Chris Iannetta, hoping instead to platoon him with Brad Hawpe at first base as long as Todd Helton is out.
- The Red Sox could try to make a run at Russell Martin, rather than Iannetta, since Martin's price tag may be getting too high for the Dodgers.
- There's still a chance the Sox could be sellers this year if they fall out of contention, though it's more likely to happen in August than before July 31st.
Red Sox Notes: Werth, DeJesus, Snyder
The Red Sox are unquestionably a good team, but in the AL East, 'good' is rarely good enough. Here's the latest on the Red Sox, who are currently in third place, 4.5 games behind the Rays for the AL Wild Card:
- The Red Sox are interested in acquiring an outfielder, a catcher and a reliever, according to Joe McDonald of ESPNBoston.com. The team isn't close to making any deals at the moment.
- They have "strong interest" in Jayson Werth and are interested in David DeJesus.
- GM Theo Epstein has continued interest in Chris Snyder and Chris Iannetta, partly because both backstops are under control after 2010.
- The Red Sox had a scout at the Rockies-Marlins game last night, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. The scout was not there to watch Iannetta and Renck suggests the Red Sox were eyeing potential relief help.
- Rob Bradford of WEEI.com argues that the Red Sox are "worthy of postseason conversation," even if they don't currently hold a playoff spot. The team addressed many of its holes over the winter, as Bradford shows.
|
|
