John Mozeliak Rumors
Cardinals Far Apart With Ankiel, Ludwick
As reported by MLB.com's Matthew Leach, Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said Wednesday that little progress has been made with arbitration-eligible outfielders Rick Ankiel and Ryan Ludwick.
"There's not a whole lot to comment on," Mozeliak said. "Right now we're just preparing. I think if there is a settlement before we enter in, it would be a [last-minute] type of thing."
Both players are pretty far apart in negotiations with the club. Ludwick asked for $4.25MM and was offered $2.8MM, while Ankiel asked for $3.3MM and the Cardinals countered with $2.35MM. The Cards haven't required an arbitration hearing since 1999, but it looks like that's about to change.
Odds and Ends: Prospects, Alfonzo, Zimmerman
Links for Wednesday...
- Cardinals GM John Mozeliak subjected himself to all kinds of questions from fans today in an online chat. It sounds like he might do a little spring tinkering.
- It seems that the Angels will go with internal options for the fifth starter job.
- The Rangers, Rays, and A's are atop Keith Law's farm system rankings, with the Tigers, Nationals, and Astros bringing up the rear.
- Orioles infielder Oscar Salazar is likely on the chopping block to make room for Gregg Zaun.
- Kyodo News reports that Edgardo Alfonzo will try out for the Yomiuri Giants.
- Dave Sheinin says Kevin Youkilis is a good comp for Ryan Zimmerman. The midpoint between Zimmerman's and the Nationals' arbitration submissions would be a $3.325MM.
- I sincerely appreciate all the submissions for the Saturday evening writer gig. I'm happy to welcome D.J. Blatter aboard as our newest blogger.
Wellemeyer, Cardinals Close To Deal
Matthew Leach of MLB.com believes the St. Louis Cardinals and right-handed starting pitcher Todd Wellemeyer are close to a deal to avoid arbitration.
This from Wellemeyer himself: "I know it's getting close, I'll tell you that much."
Wellemeyer, 30, went 13-9 with a 3.71 ERA in 2008.
Leach notes that deals might be close for Chris Duncan and Brad Thompson, too. General manager John Mozeliak said he would like to avoid arbitration with Duncan and Thompson, as well as Rick Ankiel and Ryan Ludwick.
Mozeliak is hopeful that none of the five players will actually go to arbitration. Ankiel is especially challenging given his short tenure as an outfielder, Leach writes.
Odds and Ends: Howard, Cormier, Gerut
I am currently evaluating Phil Hughes' playlist. Some of it is solid. Let's get on to the odds and ends...
- Bill Conlin thinks it's a mistake for the Phillies to pay Ryan Howard at a rate commensurate with his service time. It's a slippery slope - shouldn't Cole Hamels be earning $15MM instead of $500K, then? The system may be broken but it doesn't make sense for the Phillies to start ignoring service time.
- John Mozeliak is not done yet. Meanwhile, Albert Pujols continued to direct his ire at KTVI-TV of St. Louis.
- The Orioles agreed to a minor league deal with 27 year-old righty Lance Cormier worth around $450K. Cormier doesn't have much to show for his 244 big league innings, whether starting or relieving. He has a decent groundball rate, at least.
- The Padres signed Jody Gerut to a minor league pact that could be worth as much as $910K. He's 30 now; his best season was an .830 OPS for Cleveland at age 25. Since then he's had all sorts of knee problems and even had a grievance with the Pirates.
Cards Hire Mozeliak As GM
According to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, negotiations with Chris Antonelli broke down and the Cards have instead hired John Mozeliak as their GM. He gets a three-year deal. Mozeliak has experience and familiarity with the organization. He's said to have a solid relationship with Jeff Luhnow. Luhnow's presence may have been a factor driving Walt Jocketty and Antonelli away from the job.
Mozeliak had already gotten down to business as interim GM, re-signing Joel Pineiro and Russ Springer while exercising Jason Isringhausen's option. Perhaps his next move will be to have a chat with Curt Schilling.
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