Matt Morris Rumors

Odds and Ends: Morris, Moeller, de la Rosa

Let's kick things off with an odds and ends post today. By the way did anyone watch Max Scherzer's debut last night? Damn. Dejan Kovacevic notes that even if Matt Morris considered retiring and abandoning his '08 salary, the Players Association would've strongly objected. Rays Senior VP of Baseball Ops Gerry Hunsicker indicates that the team will spend money to improve the team if they're still contending a few months from now. According to Jon Heyman, catcher Chad Moeller will remain with the Yankees. Another fine piece from Bob Nightengale of USA Today (hat tip to ShysterBall). The article discusses...   Continue Reading

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Matt Morris Retires

According to Justin Rodriguez of the Times-Herald Record, pitcher Matt Morris has retired. He confirmed it with Rodriguez; Morris has no desire to battle his way back or work out of the bullpen. Morris finishes with a 3.98 career ERA in 1806 innings, including a respectable 121 wins. Kind of nice that the career ERA didn't get pushed over 4.00. Retired at 33 with $60MM earned...can't say I don't envy him!   Continue Reading

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Pirates Release Matt Morris

Unfortunately, there's no surprise here. ESPN reports the Pirates have released Matt Morris. As Tim noted last night, the Pirates had little choice and eating $10MM seems their best option. According to ESPN, "The decision to cut Morris will cost the Pirates more than $10 million, in addition to what they already have paid him this season. Morris is making $10,037,283 this season, or about one-fifth of their payroll, and has a $1 million buyout for 2009." There shouldn't be much interest for Morris. A minor league contract somewhere could be a possibility. But retirement seems inevitable, and Morris may...   Continue Reading

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Decision Time On Matt Morris

According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pirates management met with Matt Morris after today's performance brought his ERA to 9.67. I mentioned in my recent video mailbag that I couldn't see Morris lasting past June 1st, but it looks like May 1st is in question. Kovacevic explains the three possible scenarios: Morris goes to the bullpen. The Pirates release Morris, eating more than $10MM. Morris retires, saving the Pirates millions. But as classy as Morris may be, no one should expect him to leave that kind of money on the table. It's not his fault Brian Sabean signed...   Continue Reading

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Bucs Not Ready To Release Morris

The Pirates aren't ready to release beleaguered starter Matt Morris. However, the team's president wouldn't rule it out for the future. Pirates fans are growing increasingly frustrated with Morris, but the team continues to wait it out. Given the upside of a 5.00 ERA, what's the point? He wasn't Neal Huntington's acquisition; he should be able to deal with it rationally. I would be surprised if Morris is still with the Pirates on June 1st.   Continue Reading

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Odds And Ends: Crede, Morris, Thomas

Just a couple of lingering posts in my browser this morning. It looks like Joe Crede is sticking by Scott Boras's side as he enters free agency after this season. I can't blame him. It's one thing for a superstar like A-Rod or an established veteran like Kenny Rogers to do what they want. But Crede certainly benefits from being repped by Boras. If Pirates GM Neal Huntington has plans to ditch Matt Morris, he's not tipping his hand. The 33-year-old righty has been downright horrible since coming over to Pittsburgh, a gaffe made by who else by Dave Littlefield....   Continue Reading

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Matt Morris Tough To Move

It's no secret that the Pirates would love to trade starter Matt Morris. The Dave Littlefield acquisition remains perplexing. The "veteran leadership" angle doesn't play well when his Pirates' ERA is over 6.00 in 14 starts. This year, he's not even getting groundballs. Neal Huntington would love to see Morris show a hint of value, so that he can trade the 34 year-old and somehow avoid paying all of the $10.5MM still owed to him. How long until Huntington gives up on that idea and cuts Morris? Bryan Bullington and John Van Benschoten seem more deserving of starts.   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Rauch, Fielder, Braun, Garcia

Some links for you to peruse... We suggested on Wednesday that Jon Rauch makes sense for Detroit. That same day, the Washington Post's Barry Svrluga wrote that the Tigers "will watch Rauch very closely." You have to appreciate Matt Morris' candor regarding his salary. We learned on Saturday that the Brewers made offers to sluggers Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun. Today the team's owner said talks with both are ongoing. Other multiyear offers have been made, though the players are not known. Tom Haudricourt speculates on Corey Hart, Yovani Gallardo, J.J. Hardy, and Rickie Weeks. Ken Rosenthal sees Freddy Garcia...   Continue Reading

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To Be Dealt: Bay, Nady, Marte, Morris, Wilson

A short but sweet article came out in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette this morning detailing the Pirates' five main trade candidates. No new or surprising names appear on the list but it's a handy roundup for those not up to date on their Bucco news. As we head into the '08 season (tonight!) the Pirates may not be contenders, but they could be difference makers. Jason Bay - $5.75MM in '08, $7.5MM in '09 - I was surprised they didn't deal him in the offseason, but the Pirates are wisely taking a wait and see approach with Bay. Surely he...   Continue Reading

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Pirates Acquire Matt Morris For Rajai Davis, PTBNL

UPDATE: This was a pure salary dump - the Bucs are paying the entire contract. Why, Dave? Why? Props to Sabean, but on June 1st he might've gotten a good prospect plus the same salary relief. The Pirates have acquired Matt Morris from the Giants for outfielder Rajai Davis and a player to be named later. I'm guessing they just wanted salary relief, because Davis isn't much more than a speedy reserve outfielder. Brian Sabean made this deal about a month and a half too late. Morris had a 2.56 ERA in June 11th. The Pirates seem to be trying..   Continue Reading

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Mariners Watching Starters

UPDATE: Hickey writes that the Mariners have also scouted Kyle Lohse, Matt Morris, Jason Johnson (thought he went to Japan), and Octavio Dotel. However, a deal seems unlikely because none of those players are worth top Mariner prospects. According to Jim Hickey of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Mariners have been scouting all kinds of available and not-so-available starters lately. The Mariners have been scouting the White Sox "religiously" lately. If they saw Javier Vazquez beat the Tigers on Tuesday, they came away impressed. (However, Vazquez can and probably would veto a trade to the AL or NL West). They were..   Continue Reading

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Molony On Jennings, Slowey

Jim Molony's column today at MLB.com has many good trade rumors that I haven't seen elsewhere. Let's discuss. Molony says at least a dozen scouts watched Jason Jennings toss a quality start last night. He needed it; I was beginning to think he wasn't right. Still, the performance probably isn't enough to cause some team to offer a package for Jennings superior to two draft picks. The Diamondbacks and Pirates had a scouting presence at the Astros-Dodgers game. Interesting players appearing in the contest included James Loney, Andre Ethier, Wilson Betemit, Mark Loretta, Morgan Ensberg, Jason Lane, Chad Qualls, Dan..   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Sexson, Dye

I feel bad for Ken Rosenthal's family, as they won't be seeing much of him until August 1st. He's got another update for us tonight. The Mariners are hoping to unload Richie Sexson; can you blame them? To trade for Sexson now would be insane, even with the Ms eating half of the $14MM he's owed in 2008. He has shown almost no signs of life this season. Rosenthal suggests a Sexson for Matt Morris swap but I'd much rather have Morris. The Brewers have considered the possibility of a Jermaine Dye trade. Kenny Williams apparently wants Derrick Turnbow or..   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Lohse, Hunter, Contreras

The latest trade and signing rumors from Ken Rosenthal: Rosenthal believes Alex Rodriguez's ability to play shortstop could increase the number of suitors. Take a look at the free agents - there may not be a single viable option at short this winter. Still, the number of suitors for Rodriguez is severely limited by his massive contract requirement. Not too many clubs aside from the Yankees and Red Sox can get in on $240MM over eight years or whatever. The lack of available, reasonably priced shortstops could compel the Braves and Orioles to aggressively shop Edgar Renteria and Miguel Tejada...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Dunn, Morris, Buehrle

Ken Rosenthal's got a new Full Count video over at FOXSports; have a look. Trade rumors: The Padres went with the Barrett/Bradley acquisitions in part because the price on Adam Dunn was just too high. Wayne Krivsky could get more teams involved if he exercises Dunn's 2008 option and tries to trade him in the offseason, a la Gary Sheffield. However, unlike Sheff, Dunn has full no-trade protection until June 15th if the option is picked up. Then on June 15th it switches to a ten-team consent list of Dunn's choosing. The bottom line: the time to trade him is..   Continue Reading

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Stark's Latest: Tejada, Buehrle, Morris

Jayson Stark posted a new column for ESPN yesterday; let's take a glance at the trade rumors therein. Miguel Tejada's out until August, so that obviously means he won't be traded this season. Right? Wrong - Stark and an AL exec think $30MM or so due to Tejada for the remaining 2.3 seasons on his contract would allow him to pass through waivers. Miggy could be a hot topic for the August 31st trade deadline. You may recall that last August Andruw Jones was placed on waivers, claimed, and pulled back. Andruw called the affair "rude." Here is a refresher..   Continue Reading

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Could Bonds Be Dealt In A Giants Firesale?

Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News spoke extensively with both Giants GM Brian Sabean and Barry Bonds, and some interesting information emerged. First off, Bonds' comments seem to indicate he'd waive his no-trade clause if a need arose. Let's say he hits #756 July 18th against Rich Hill. That would work out nicely for the Giants, as the interest in Bonds as a sideshow would wane after he broke the record. Sabean could ditch the $8MM or so remaining on his 2007 contract and the Giants could finally move on. Bonds might be a nice fit for the..   Continue Reading

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Matt Morris San Francisco Projection

The always reliable Ken Rosenthal is reporting that Matt Morris is close to signing a deal with the Giants. This has been speculated for some time now, and I created a projection for Morris as a Giant about a month ago. I figured I'd try to get some more mileage out of that RotoAuthority post. New at RotoAuthority today is my Prince Fielder projection. Prince is nearly a lock for 30 HR, and a must-have in fantasy baseball. Finally, we've got new material at HoopsBuzz - seems that Ron Artest has demanded a trade   Continue Reading

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Cards May Miss Out On Morris

This morning, I mentioned that Matt Morris could be considered Plan C for Walt Jocketty. Looks like it might be time for Plan D. Joe Strauss's article from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch today confirms the Cardinals' lowball offer to Morris of $13MM over two years with a $7MM option for the third. Strauss quoted Jocketty on agent Barry Axelrod's reaction to the offer: "If we don't get one of these guys we still feel we have a pretty strong rotation," Jocketty said. "We wanted to get a little depth; it might've allowed us to do some other things. We'll have..   Continue Reading

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Cards Make A Play For Matt Morris

Sadly for frustrated Cardinals fans, it's come to this: Plan C. A distant Plan C, at that. After falling short on #2 starter types A.J. Burnett and Javier Vazquez, Walt Jocketty confirmed his interest in good ol' Matt Morris. Jayson Stark quoting an anonymous GM yesterday about the Cardinals: "That's a team whose window to win may be closing. They'll still be good. But they're getting thinner, and they're getting older, and they're getting more vulnerable." This is undeniable. The Cards aren't packed with young talent in the pipeline, and a couple of stars like Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen..   Continue Reading

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Matt Morris Receives Offer From Giants

It's no great mystery, but my sources have confirmed that the team with the three-year deal on the table for Matt Morris is the San Francisco Giants. The deal is expected to be in the range of $24MM. Morris is projected to go 11-13 with a 4.45 ERA and 1.36 WHIP for the Giants in 2006. Thanks to Alex S   Continue Reading

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