Jesus Flores Rumors

Dodgers Sign Jesus Flores

The Dodgers signed catcher Jesus Flores to a minor league deal that includes in invitation to Spring Training, Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post reports (on Twitter). Praver/Shapiro represents Flores, who was non-tendered by the Nationals earlier in the offseason.

Flores appeared in 83 games for the Nationals this past season. The 28-year-old posted a .213/.248/.329 batting line with six home runs and 12 doubles in 296 plate appearances. Flores, who bats and throws right-handed, prevented 27% of stolen base attempts against him in 2012. He'll provide depth behind A.J. Ellis along with Tim Federowicz.

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National League Non-Tenders

Here are today’s National League non-tenders. All decisions must be in by 11pm CT tonight. Be sure to track all tender decisions using MLBTR's Non-Tender Tracker. Related resources include our list of non-tender candidates, our projected arbitration salaries and our arbitration eligibles series.

• The Diamondbacks have non-tendered Wil Nieves according to Jack Magruder of FOXSportsArizona.com (on Twitter).
• In addition to John Lannan, the Nationals have also non-tendered Tom Gorzelanny and Jesus Flores according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
• The Cubs have non-tendered Ian Stewart, Jaye Chapman, and Zach Putnam according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat (on Twitter).
• The Padres have non-tendered left-hander Juan Oramas, the team announced. He had Tommy John surgery this summer and is expected to miss the start of next season.
• The Mets also non-tendered Andres Torres and Manny Acosta, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports (on Twitter). Mike Pelfrey has been informed he'll be non-tendered by the Mets, Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com reports (on Twitter). The Mets were expected to non-tender Pelfrey.
• The Braves will non-tender Jair Jurrjens and Peter Moylan.
• The Phillies plan to non-tender Nate Schierholtz, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports (on Twitter).
• The Pirates will non-tender Jeff Karstens, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports (on Twitter). Technically the Pirates are designating Karstens for assignment, Michael Sanserino of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports (on Twitter). The team confirmed the move.
• The Brewers have non-tendered left-hander Manny Parra, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports (on Twitter).

Mike Axisa contributed to this post.

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Mets Notes: Pagan, Flores, Wright

The latest on the Mets, who have agreed to terms with David Wright on a long-term deal and are considering an extension for R.A. Dickey...

• A Mets insider told Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com that the team will likely spend on one outfielder. It’s even too early to rule out a return for Angel Pagan, not that a reunion seems likely. Ryan Ludwick and Cody Ross are among the right-handed hitting free agent outfielders who could draw interest from the Mets, Rubin writes.
• The Mets have also made a list of backup catchers they might target, according to Rubin. Nationals catcher Jesus Flores, a non-tender candidate with a projected salary of $1.2MM, is among the catchers on the team’s list.
• The Mets will likely address their needs via free agency, team insiders told Rubin.
• Joel Sherman of the New York Post heard that it was “vital” that Wright’s contract with the Mets surpass Johan Santana’s $137.5MM contract in terms of total value (Twitter link). Wright's eight-year deal will pay him $138MM in total.
• Dave Cameron of FanGraphs  applauds the Mets for not giving up on the team in the short term.

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Players Avoiding Arbitration: Monday

In advance of tomorrow's 11am central time deadline to exchange arbitration figures, settlements will be rolling in today.  Follow all of the action with MLBTR's arbitration tracker.  The latest for players under $4MM:

• The Braves and Eric O'Flaherty avoided arbitration, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets. O'Flaherty will earn $2.49MM, just shy of his projected $2.6MM salary.
• The Orioles and Jim Johnson have avoided arbitration, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets.  The right-hander will earn $2.625MM in 2012, just north of his projected $2.5MM salary.
• The Red Sox avoided arbitration with Franklin Morales, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets.  The left-hander had a projected salary of $1MM and agreed to an $850K deal.
• The Rays avoided arbitration with J.P. Howell, agreeing to a $1.35MM deal for 2012, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets.  Matt Swartz had projected a $1.4MM salary for the left-hander.
• The Royals avoided arbitration with Chris Getz, agreeing to a $967,500 deal for 2012, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets.  Matt Swartz had projected a $1.2MM salary for the infielder.
• The Nationals announced they've avoided arbitration with catcher Jesus Flores.  Flores, who is represented by Praver/Shapiro, received $815K, MLBTR has learned.
• The Brewers avoided arbitration with outfielder Nyjer Morgan, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.  The ACES client received $2.35MM, reports MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
• The Royals announced they've avoided arbitration with catcher Brayan Pena, a client of Wasserman Media Group.  Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star says the deal is worth $875K; Matt Swartz had him at $900K.
• Orioles pitcher Darren O'Day avoided arbitration for a deal worth $1.35MM, tweets Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.  Matt Swartz had projected the same for the Beverly Hills Sports Council client.
• Yankees righty Phil Hughes agreed to a deal worth $3.2MM plus performance bonuses, tweets his agency CAA.  The 25-year-old gets a $500K raise after a lost 2011 season.
• The Tigers announced they've avoided arbitration with lefty Phil Coke.  Coke, a client of Full Circle Sports Management, gets a $1.1MM base salary with $50K in incentives for appearances or starts, MLBTR has learned.
• The Angels avoided arbitration with infielder Alberto Callaspo, signing him to a one-year deal worth $3.15MM, tweets ESPN's Keith Law.  MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz nailed this one, projecting a $3.1MM salary.  Callaspo, a client of Eric Goldschmidt, received a $1.15MM raise for his second time through arbitration.

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East Links: Cespedes, Nationals, Hanley

Some afternoon reading pertaining to Eastern division teams...

• The Orioles traveled to the Dominican Republic to scout Yoenis Cespedes this past weekend, writes Roch Kubatko of MASNSports. Among those in attendance were manager Buck Showalter, executive director or international recruiting Fred Ferreira, director of international operations David Stockstill, scout Carlos Bernhardt, and bullpen coach Bill Castro. Kubatko says O's brass is staying tight-lipped about whether or not they'll attempt to sign Cespedes.
• Kubatko's colleague Pete Kerzel writes that the Nationals could non-tender Jesus Flores, Doug Slaten, and Tom Gorzelanny before tomorrow night's deadline.
• There have been some reports that the Marlins have discussed trading Hanley Ramirez, but MLB.com's Joe Frisaro writes that the Fish aren't looking to Ramirez and those discussions were all intitiated by other teams.

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Nationals Rumors: Zimmerman, Coffey, Flores

The latest on the Nationals...

• The Nationals prefer not to give players no-trade clauses, but GM Mike Rizzo admitted today that after giving one to Jayson Werth last year he'd do it again for the right player.   Rizzo also said he met with two teams and two agents today and he's not close on anything.
• Ryan Zimmerman's camp at CAA says their attempts at securing an extension with the Nationals have been rebuffed, reports ESPN's Jim Bowden.  The Nationals, however, maintain that taking care of Zimmerman is an offseason priority.  For more on Zimmerman, check out this November post.
• Mark Buehrle is the Nationals' primary starting pitching target, confirms Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington.com.  Roy Oswalt is probably their second choice, and C.J. Wilson is a distant third.
• Free agent reliever Todd Coffey told MLB.com's Bill Ladson, "In my heart of hearts, if it's the right contract, I would look to definitely come back to the Nationals."  Ladson hears at least five teams have expressed interest in Coffey so far.
• Nationals catcher Jesus Flores is now represented by Barry Praver, Scott Shapiro, and Bart Hernandez, tweets Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.  You can track representation for most MLB players in MLBTR's agency database.

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NL East Notes: Johnson, Phillies, Nationals, Flores

Let's take a look at a few items out of the NL East..

• There's no question in the mind of MLB.com's Bill Ladson that Davey Johnson will be back as manager of the Nationals in 2012 as players and people in the front office have told said that they want Johnson back in the same role.  Ladson also writes that Carlos Beltran is not a fit for the Nats and believes that he should get no more than a one-year deal due to his injury history.
• The Red Sox will consider Phillies coach Pete Mackanin as a managerial candidate, sources tell Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
• Jorge Arangure Jr. of ESPN The Magazine spoke with Ruben Amaro Jr. and Ed Wade about how Amaro came to join the Phillies as assistant GM.  The former outfielder had zero experience between going from the field to the front office.  
• Nationals catcher Jesus Flores sounds like a player who may want to continue his career elsewhere, writes Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post.  Kilgore says that Flores doesn't seem bitter or angry about his lack of playing time, but he doesn't sound content.

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Stark On B.J. Upton, Boras, Dodgers

The latest from ESPN's Jayson Stark...

• The Rays are not likely to trade B.J. Upton this summer, though the Nationals have been monitoring the center fielder just in case.  Though the Rays feel they have a long-term need for catching, they're not enticed by the Nats' dangling of Jesus Flores and Ivan Rodriguez.
• Scott Boras is the biggest culprit in trying to steal clients, says one agent.  However, the practice is legal if Boras reports all contact made with others' clients to the Players Association.  Last year Boras' free agent group looked weak before he snagged Jayson Werth and Rafael Soriano a few months before the offseason began.  This time, Boras won't be swiping Jose Reyes from Peter Greenberg, but he does have Prince Fielder, Carlos Beltran, Ryan Madson, and anyone else he manages to bring aboard.
• Realignment is unlikely to happen for 2012, since the schedule needs to be finalized by September.  Stark also explains that realignment may depend on the decision to expand the postseason.
• The Dodgers are telling teams they're weeks away from deciding whether to be deadline sellers.  If they do sell, it won't be because of money issues.  Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports agrees, saying MLB-appointed monitor Tom Schieffer would intercede if the team tries to make a move that's not in its best long-term interests.

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Stark On Millwood, Nationals, Fuld

ESPN.com's Jayson Stark breaks down the possible implications of expanded playoffs before providing some rumblings from around the league. Here they are:

• Even though Kevin Millwood has won both of his minor league starts and posted a 1.29 ERA, scouts say he doesn’t look very good. Millwood, whose fastball is averaging 85 mph, can opt out of his contact with the Yankees this Sunday.
• Rival teams are eyeing the Nationals’ catching depth, but they’re finding that after missing two seasons with labrum surgery, Jesus Flores isn’t ready.
• Sam Fuld has become an important piece for the Rays, but the Cubs expected to move him last offseason, according to Stark. Fuld had a history of getting injured, was behind Kosuke Fukudome and Tyler Colvin on the depth chart and was out of options and when the Cubs sent him to the Rays.

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Astros Tempering Pursuit Of Nationals' Flores

The Astros are cooling their pursuit of a potential trade for Nationals catcher Jesus Flores, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com.

Reports of Houston's interest in obtaining Flores surfaced on Monday, but the interest is waning because of concerns over Flores' surgically repaired right shoulder. The Astros were looking at Flores as a project and were not interested in surrendering a lot to get him, according to Ladson.

The Astros are a bit thin at backstop between J.R. Towles, Humberto Quintero and Brian Esposito, while the Nationals are considered pretty deep at the position with Ivan Rodriguez, Wilson Ramos and prospect Derek Norris.

Flores, whom the Nats acquired from the Mets in 2006 as a Rule 5 Draft selection, has missed the majority of the past two seasons due to right shoulder ailments, but he was becoming a solid everyday catcher with Washington prior to the injury.

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