Mike Fontenot Rumors

Mike Fontenot Gets Super Two Status

Three players - Mike Fontenot, Adam Jones, and Micah Owings - have exactly two years and 139 days of service time. According to MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger, only one could be designated a Super Two player, and it will be Fontenot. It might seem pretty minor, but once you refresh yourself on what Super Two means, check out these ripple effects from the tiebreaker decision... Fontenot is arbitration-eligible now, so the Cubs can't just renew him for $430K. He's coming off a poor season, but he'll still be more expensive in 2010. The Cubs are tight on payroll, so you have...   Continue Reading

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Nightengale On Holliday, Sheets, Yankees

USA's Today's Bob Nightengale is cranking out the tweets...put this stuff in a column, Bob! He says the Red Sox met with Scott Boras about Matt Holliday, as a Jason Bay contingency. Brewers GM Doug Melvin told Nightengale no one has heard from Ben Sheets or his agent. Back in October, assistant GM Gord Ash told the AP, "There's been once and a while conversations with his agent to remind that we still have that ongoing interest." Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Nightengale he didn't sit down with a single agent. Seems kind of weird. Talking to Mariners GM Jack...   Continue Reading

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Cubs Rumors: Marmol, Payroll, Theriot

Bruce Miles of The Daily Herald has a few tidbits of information about the Chicago Cubs in his latest blog post. Miles notes that the Cubs have an unusually high number of arbitration-eligible players this offseason, and singles out Carlos Marmol as an important case. Miles figures that the Cubs and Marmol's agent Barry Praver could disagree about the reliever's value, since his holds total and opponents' average are so strong, while his control is so unpredictable. The Cubs haven't had an arbitration case go to a hearing since early in the 1990s, but this one is a candidate for...   Continue Reading

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Cubs Rumors: Bradley, Grabow, Reed Johnson

Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune and Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times discuss the Cubs' offseason plans in new articles today. Both writers agree that unloading right fielder Milton Bradley (owed $21MM) is at the top of GM Jim Hendry's to-do list. Wittenmyer's sources suggest the Cubs might be able to move Bradley without eating 80% of his contract. Sullivan believes the Cubs could kill two birds with one stone by trading Bradley for their desired "RBI guy," one who carries an equally poor contract. Magglio Ordonez and Jose Guillen come to mind for me. However, the Tigers would...   Continue Reading

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Odds & Ends: Ibanez, Pettitte, Fontenot

Your Saturday evening links, with more to come... ESPN's Keith Law has made some significant changes to his Top 100 MLB Draft Rankings. It's subscriber-only, but a great read for those looking to catch draft fever. Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times asks (and attempts to answer) a popular question: "What is going on with Raul Ibanez in Philadelphia?" Benjamin Kabak of River Ave. Blues takes another look at Andy Pettitte's incentive-laden deal with the Yankees. Cubs manager Lou Piniella is high on Mike Fontenot at third base. "Fontenot is honestly our best option there," Piniella told the Chicago Sun-Times....   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Burnett, Garland, Aurilia

8:22pm: John Mozeliak said tonight the Cardinals never engaged with Burnett's agent. A commitment of more than two years to a free agent starter is extremely unlikely. 3:40pm: Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says it's "not true" that the Cardinals are players for Burnett. 8:30am: The latest from Ken Rosenthal: The Cardinals are a serious bidder for A.J. Burnett. They also pursued him back in 2005. The Blue Jays would get the Cardinals' #19 pick next June if they sign him. However, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch recently wrote that the Cards "are not expected to...   Continue Reading

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Cubs Rumors: Hermida, Bradley, Roberts

7:24pm: The Cubs met with Bradley last night, according to ESPN Deportes. 5:06pm: Cubs manager Lou Piniella asked Seattle reporters today whether Ibanez can play right field. 2:16pm: The Tribune Company filed for bankruptcy today, but the Cubs were not part of the filing. 1:59pm: Jayson Stark says Ibanez and Abreu rank much higher than Adam Dunn and Bradley on the Cubs' list. They've checked in on all four free agents. As for Hermida, the Marlins want more than just prospects and the Cubs may not be able to do that. Stark adds that the Cubs' payroll is not frozen...   Continue Reading

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Jake Peavy Rumors: Monday

8:42pm: Towers gave Tom Krasovic a Peavy update. Towers believes that the Braves' unwillingness to grant Peavy a no-trade clause remains on obstacle in that potential match. Plus, a Krasovic source wonders whether Peavy would even OK a trade to Atlanta. Krasovic adds that the Cubs and Padres discussed a 5-for-1 deal, where the Orioles would be involved to route more pitching to San Diego. However, Towers noted the Cubs' current payroll concerns. 10:35am: Murray Chass snagged a good quote from Padres GM Kevin Towers regarding the Jake Peavy trade talks: "I would say the Cubs are still in it....   Continue Reading

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Cubs Rumors: Teahen, Edmonds, Marquis

Earlier today I spoke with a source familiar with the Cubs' thinking, and dug up enough info for a fresh post. While Mark Teahen is a player of interest for the Cubs, they certainly won't be trading Mike Fontenot and Sean Marshall for him. The Cubs don't consider Teahen the middle of the order bat they require. Royals outfielder David DeJesus also interests the Cubs, but the source has the impression Dayton Moore would have to be overwhelmed to trade him. There seems a good chance DeJesus stays put this winter. The Cubs aren't keen on bringing Jim Edmonds back...   Continue Reading

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Cubs Rumors: Ibanez, Abreu, Teahen

Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times has a couple of new Cubs articles up, here and here. Manager Lou Piniella would prefer the Cubs acquire a middle of the order hitter over a leadoff man, if only one can be acquired. Piniella had kind words for possible free agent target Raul Ibanez. Piniella continued to dismiss the idea of the Cubs pursuing Jake Peavy (despite recent comments from Padres GM Kevin Towers). He'd like to give Mike Fontenot more playing time in 2009, which would help balance the lineup. In the spring the Cubs will see if Fontenot can chip...   Continue Reading

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