Francisco Rodriguez Rumors

Rosenthal's Latest: K-Rod, Maddux, Wolf, Street

Rumor guru Ken Rosenthal is at it again. Angels GM Tony Reagins is doing his due diligence on available hitters. Rosenthal admits his own suggestion of a Mark Teixeira/Will Ohman blockbuster acquisition is unlikely. Rosenthal believes Francisco Rodriguez's expected asking price to be five years, $75MM. The Angels would not bite on that. Greg Maddux only wants to be traded to a West Coast team. He might accept a trade back to the Dodgers, if Ned Colletti and Kevin Towers want to go down that road. The Orioles would trade George Sherrill if someone wants to overpay. Tons of teams...   Continue Reading

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Week in Review

Another week in the history books! Here's a look back from July 13-19: The Phillies acquired Joe Blanton from the A's for a package of three minor leaguers: Adrian Cardenas, Josh Outman, and Matthew Spencer. Cardenas and Outman were the Phils' #2 and #4 prospects. Personally, that seems like a lot to bring a pitcher who's already struggling to a much smaller park. Blanton is a much better pitcher than he's showed this season, however. Francisco Rodriguez will test the free-agent market this offseason. I don't think anyone would be surprised to see K-Rod sign a record-setting contract for a...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Sexson, K-Rod, Halladay

Random links for the day... We'll have our weekly live chat here today at 2pm CST. R.J. Anderson of DRays Bay writes the Rays Comprehensive Trade Post. Brian Cashman confirmed interest in Richie Sexson. Danny Knobler quotes Francisco Rodriguez as saying that the Angels offered him three years, $34MM in November. Josh Hamilton called all his friends to tell them he was a Cub, then had to call them all back. People in Pedro Alvarez's neighorhood expect him to sign. Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay wants to see the team make some progress. Viva El Birdos would like to see...   Continue Reading

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Francisco Rodriguez Will Test The Market

Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez plans to file for free agency, though he didn't rule out re-signing with the Halos. Kurt Streeter named several contracts that might be used as comparables for K-Rod: Mariano Rivera: three years, $45MM ($15MM per year) Francisco Cordero: four years, $46MM, fifth year club option ($11.5MM per year) Joe Nathan: four years, $47MM, fifth year club option ($11.75MM per year) It seems clear that K-Rod will set a new record for relievers in terms of total contract value. He'll probably want $13-15MM per year over four or five seasons. Will the Angels pay up? Will his...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Vizquel, Saito, Burnett, K-Rod

So many links, so little time. Barry Bonds' agent, Jeff Borris, says the prospects of his client playing this year look bleak. The Tigers made their first Taiwan signing, adding outfielder Tang Chao-Ting. Aside from Jim Bowden's other problems, he's having a hard time finding common ground with the Nationals' top five draft picks. Interesting post at NPB Tracker contrasting Masa Kobayashi with Yasuhiko Yabuta and Kazuo Fukumori. The White Sox will have to choose between pitchers D.J. Carrasco and Adam Russell soon. Troy E. Renck heard "simmering buzz" that Omar Vizquel could retire right now, but Vizquel debunked it....   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Dunn, Burnett, Ibanez

Ken Rosenthal's Full Count video Saturday covered many interesting topics; yesterday he put the info into column form and added even more. Same old story with Adam Dunn - he's just not drawing much interest. Even with the whiffs and ugly defense, this is surprising to me. Rosenthal says the Reds "will take a considerable risk" if they offer Dunn arbitration after the season and he accepts. Would having Dunn on a one-year deal at market price really be so bad? Rosenthal says "it remains to be seen whether Jim Bowden's authority will be compromised" in the wake of his...   Continue Reading

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Stark's Latest: K-Rod, Burnett, Oliver Perez, Bedard

It's Thursday, and that means it's time to dig in and feast on Jayson Stark's latest rumor-packed column. The Braves have shifted their focus from starting pitching to an impact bat in left field. Stark suggests Raul Ibanez, Jason Bay, and Xavier Nady would make sense. Matt Holliday would be too costly; Adam Dunn is not mentioned. We have seen the surprising rumor that the Angels could pursue C.C. Sabathia. However, Stark's sources are in agreement with Bill Plunkett - the Angels are likely to stand pat. Francisco Rodriguez wants four years and more than $60MM, a dangerous record-breaking commitment....   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Lane, K-Rod, Adam LaRoche

Random linkage... Jason Lane has agreed to remain a Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankee. Francisco Rodriguez would like to play nine more seasons. Four or five or those might come with his next contract, which may set a record for a reliever. Pirates prospect Steve Pearce is getting some time at first base in Triple A. Despite that development, Dejan Kovacevic says there is no Adam LaRoche trade chatter yet. LaRoche followed up his standard awful April with an .804 OPS in May. RotoAuthority looks at the fantasy studs of May. SI.com's Jon Heyman speculates that it'd require at least two of a...   Continue Reading

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Angels Open To In-Season Talks For K-Rod

Angels owner Arte Moreno said today that the team is flexible and is willing to negotiate a contract extension with closer Francisco Rodriguez during the season. K-Rod and his agent were strongly leaning toward putting talks off until after the season after an agreement could not be reached by Opening Day. Twins closer Joe Nathan inked a four-year, $47MM deal in March. The total is the highest ever for a reliever, though Mariano Rivera earns $15MM annually on a three-year pact. Another comparable is Francisco Cordero's four-year, $46MM deal. Nathan and Cordero both have fifth-year club options. Assuming they hit...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Harden, Bonds, Ramon Hernandez

Time to round up today's linkage. Susan Slusser believes Rich Harden and Joe Blanton will both be traded this season. She sees the Yankees and Mets as suitors for Harden, though he's already having a start pushed back. Jim Caple recently made his case for the Mariners to sign Barry Bonds; his logic is sound. Our Brian Bannister Q&A got a mention in the KC Star. Nice! RotoAuthority has the fantasy take on K-Rod's ailing ankles. Pure speculation, but Ken Rosenthal thinks Ramon Hernandez would be a good fit for the Reds. Not sure if the Reds were looking at...   Continue Reading

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K-Rod Won't Negotiate During Season

The Daily News LA has a brief update on the Angels and their attempt to re-sign Francisco Rodriguez. Apparently neither party has made much headway on getting a deal done before the season and now that Spring Training is ending K-Rod and his agent, Paul Kinzer, won't negotiate during the season. "...Kinzer said he has 'absolutely not' given the Angels a deadline or ultimatum to sign Rodriguez before the season starts or watch him leave as a free agent next fall. Rodriguez conceded Saturday that seems to be the likely outcome. 'Everything's headed that way,' he said. 'But there's going...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Crede, Rodriguez, Marlins

Just a couple items worth mentioning: Matt Hurst notes Elasticman Scot Shields says "(Heck) yeah" to whether or not the Angels should dish out the big bucks for Francisco Rodriguez, this despite incentives in Shields contract that would kick in should he be transitioned into the closer role. Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times touches in on Joe Crede's fate after notching his first homerun of the spring, easing concerns for his surgically repaired back. Says Cowley, "Crede's agent, Scott Boras, already has told general manager Ken Williams that they want to explore the market. With Josh Fields waiting...   Continue Reading

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K-Rod Loses Case

According to Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times, Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez lost his arbitration case. He'll make $10MM rather than the $12.5MM he wanted. K-Rod might be looking for something like $50MM over four years when he reaches free agency after the season, which would be a record amount for a reliever. Angels owner Arte Moreno won't close the door on him, and notes that the Angels have tried a couple of times to sign their closer.   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Roberts, Garcia, Crede

Today's assortment of links. Gary Sheffield is not fond of Scott Boras. Arte Moreno and the Angels aren't closing the door on K-Rod yet. Turns out Brian Roberts left camp because of a possible kidney stone. From Small Ball To The Long Ball has all kinds of cool data that I haven't seen elsewhere. For example, average initial pitch speed for pitchers. Dustin McGowan's fastball: 96.11mph. Tim Wakefield's: 75.62mph. Seems that Freddy Garcia might wait a few months before signing. Andrew Baggarly says the Giants consider Joe Crede a possible long-term piece even with his impending free agency. So maybe...   Continue Reading

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K-Rod Looking For Rivera Money?

On Saturday, we discussed the Francisco Rodriguez situation. He's been historically good for a closer his age, and his next contract could be record-breaking. That contract doesn't seem likely to come from the Angels. K-Rod has arrived in camp, and he admits that '08 is probably his last season with L.A. Mike DiGiovanna speaks of repeated rejected extension attempts by the Angels. After the '07 season, the Angels offered something near three years and $34MM. Rodriguez unsurprisingly turned this down, as it's $11MM short of the Mariano Rivera money he craves. GM Tony Reagins is thinking about a future that...   Continue Reading

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K-Rod May Leave Angels After '08

It's looking more and more like 2008 will be Francisco Rodriguez's last season with the Angels. His '08 contract situation is not said to be the reason he's late to camp. But the two sides are a solid $2.5MM apart and Rodriguez will try to become the first player to win a hearing this year on Thursday. Mike DiGiovanna thinks the hearing "could lead to animosity." Rodriguez recently turned 26. He has a career ERA of 2.37 in 383 innings, with 146 saves under his belt. That's the most saves in baseball history for a pitcher before his 26th birthday....   Continue Reading

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Angels Look To Lock Up K-Rod

According to Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times, one of the biggest priorities for the Angels this offseason will be locking up closer Francisco Rodriguez to a long-term deal. K-Rod is due for free agency after the '08 season, and the Yankees are already said to be eyeing him up as the heir to Mariano Rivera. This year is Rodriguez's age 24 season, and he's already accumulated 100 saves. He's showing the best command of his career, though the side effect is that he's got the worst hit rate of his career. Still, 6.5 hits per nine is pretty..   Continue Reading

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