Mike Hampton Rumors

Odds and Ends: Griffey, Springer, Hoffman

Links for Wednesday... Common misconception Joe and I keep running into: signing one of the 15 Type A free agents who were offered arbitration will only cost the signing team one draft pick. The player's old team also gets a second pick, but it doesn't come from the new team. It's just squeezed into the supplemental round. Check out a deeper explanation here. Nuggets from a Frank Coonelly chat: he expects the Pirates to make room on the 40-man roster for a potential Rule 5 addition, and they'd still like to re-sign Doug Mientkiewicz. Pirates pitcher Jason Davis looks like...   Continue Reading

---

Astros Sign Mike Hampton

WEDNESDAY: The Astros are having a press conference for Hampton in about 25 minutes, implying that he passed his physical. TUESDAY: Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says Hampton turned down a slightly higher offer from the Braves to be closer to his children, who are in Arizona. MONDAY, 3:31pm: Ken Rosenthal says it's a one-year, $2MM deal with another $2MM in appearance-based incentives. Hard to find fault in that. 2:44pm: According to FOX 26 Sports in Houston, the Astros signed pitcher Mike Hampton today. He needs to complete a physical to make it official. Hampton pitched for the Astros...   Continue Reading

---

Odds and Ends: Thorman, Sabathia, Pettitte

Links for Tuesday... Big League Stew names Scott Boras' ten most notorious deals. Darren Dreifort also probably belongs on the list. Any others? Roch Kubatko of MASN Online debunks a rumor about the Orioles offering Brian Roberts a three-year contract with a soft deadline. ESPN's Keith Law likes the Astros' signing of Mike Hampton. The Brewers signed first baseman Scott Thorman to a minor league deal. He hit .251/.283/.465 at Triple A this year. Also, Salomon Torres officially retired. C.C. Sabathia attended a Golden State Warriors game last night, for what it's worth. Dodgers GM Ned Colletti paid lip service...   Continue Reading

---

Braves Rumors: Hampton, Lowe, Burnett

Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has the latest on the Braves in a new blog post. The Braves never intended Mike Hampton to be one of the two front-rotation starters they acquire this winter, so his rejection of their offer doesn't affect their plans much. O'Brien notes that he's heard no indications that the Braves are actively pursuing Derek Lowe. A.J. Burnett seems to be their top target, and it wouldn't be surprising to see the Jake Peavy talks revived at the Winter Meetings. The Braves made trade inquiries on Roy Oswalt and Matt Cain and "haven't received favorable...   Continue Reading

---

Hampton Seeks One-Year Deal

ESPN's Jerry Crasnick spoke to Mike Hampton's agent Mark Rodgers, who said, "We're looking for a straight one-year deal - no option, no nothing." Hampton obviously just wants to re-establish himself as a healthy, useful starting pitcher after so many lost seasons. It's unclear whether Rodgers' statement means Hampton will avoid incentive-based offers. Crasnick says Hampton wants to pitch near his Arizona home, but the Braves, Astros, Padres, Giants, and Cardinals could be fits. Astros GM Ed Wade said recently he's had dialogue with Rodgers and Hampton is open to returning to Houston. The Braves have also had dialogue. Hampton,...   Continue Reading

---

Braves Rumors: Hampton, Ludwick, Burnett

Braves GM Frank Wren chatted with fans on MLB.com today and David O'Brien has some new Braves rumors as well. Wren told O'Brien that the Braves have had "a number of conversations" with Mike Hampton about keeping him in Atlanta. In his MLB.com chat, Wren said he thinks Hampton is still a "very good pitcher." O'Brien says that talks with the Cardinals about Ryan Ludwick "aren't dead." Wren doesn't comment when asked about Ludwick in the chat, but that is in itself something of a statement. O'Brien says that if Atlanta can't trade for Ludwick, Raul Ibanez would be an...   Continue Reading

---

Stark's Latest: Putz, Manny, Lackey, Ibanez

Let's take a look at the latest column from ESPN's Jayson Stark. Stark does the math and finds 15 potentially available closers versus six clubs in the market for one. Should result in a few bargains or teams holding on to their surpluses. The Mets don't seem willing to extend to four years for Francisco Rodriguez. Stark says J.J. Putz would become the Mets' top closer target if he's made available. MetsBlog's Matthew Cerrone wrote a few days ago that the Mets are likely to trade for a reliever with closing experience before attempting to sign one. J.P. Ricciardi quote:...   Continue Reading

---

Astros Rumors: Wolf, Hawkins, Hampton

MLB.com's Alyson Footer has the latest Astros buzz. Astros GM Ed Wade will meet with Randy Wolf's agents tomorrow, but doesn't expect an agreement to be reached before the exclusive negotiating period ends. Wolf will test the open market, and the Mets are already known to be interested. Talks are ongoing with the agents for Doug Brocail and LaTroy Hawkins. Brocail is a Type A free agent, and the Astros already declined a $3.25MM option on him. Wade met with Mike Hampton's agent recently. Hampton could return to Houston on an incentive-laden contract. Wade is on the lookout for a...   Continue Reading

---

Braves Rumors: Ludwick, Dempster, Francoeur

David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has been churning out rumors in the comments section of his blog. He believes the Braves are interested in Ryan Ludwick, but is not sure if they'd give up Kelly Johnson. O'Brien also suggests Rick Ankiel could be available, and that either player would interest Atlanta. O'Brien says the Cubs offered three years, $36MM to Ryan Dempster. Most folks think he'll re-sign, but the Braves have spoken to Dempster's agent. He adds that the Braves will make an offer to Mike Hampton, though Hampton will shop around and may prefer the West Coast. He's...   Continue Reading

---

Hampton Will Consider Astros

MLB.com's Alyson Footer has some quotes from free-agent-to-be Mike Hampton regarding Houston: "I've always loved this place. Definitely. I'm sure there will be interest on both sides. We'll see if we can work something out. I've always loved it here." Hampton, 36, showed promise in thirteen starts this year. He could be a useful back of the rotation addition for Houston. Many teams might consider him (Rockies excluded).   Continue Reading

---

Odds and Ends: Santos, Blalock, Lo Duca

Let's dig through today's rumor bin... The Jays claimed southpaw Reid Santos off waivers from the Indians. MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince says the Indians are clearing room on their 40-man roster in preparation for the winter. Dejan Kovacevic has yet to observe why new Pirates third baseman Andy LaRoche is so highly regarded. Jamey Newberg feels Hank Blalock's $6.2MM option for '09 is an easy call to exercise. J.C. Bradbury sees a rift within the Braves organization. Craig Calcaterra dismisses the silly idea of Frank McCourt suing Andruw Jones. Paul Lo Duca would prefer a non-guaranteed deal next year if he...   Continue Reading

---

Rockies' Hampton Buyout Prefunded

Gerry Fraley wrote about Mike Hampton in the Rocky Mountain News a few weeks ago. One notable statement: "The Rockies will be free of a financial obligation once they pay the $6 million buyout on his option for 2009 - a sum that was prefunded so it won't impact Rockies finances." In my Rockies Offseason Outlook, the $6MM was included when I said the team had $77.6MM committed before arbitration raises. Since the buyout won't impact finances, the Rox actually have about $71.6MM committed before possible arbitration raises to Clint Barmes, Garrett Atkins, Willy Taveras, Jorge de la Rosa, Jason...   Continue Reading

---

Odds and Ends: Pettitte, Hampton, Tazawa, Blalock

Let's round 'em up... Chat today, 2pm CST. Andy Pettitte seems to want to play next year, but Peter Abraham believes he may have to take a pay cut. Gerry Fraley writes about the Rockies and Mike Hampton. It's safe to rule out a return to Colorado for Hampton, who is currently auditioning for his next team. The Royals dismissed their scouting director Deric Ladnier, offering him another position in the organization. Craig Brown reflects on Ladnier's tenure. More Royals linkage: Rany Jazayerli defends the Gil Meche signing and implores the team to lock up Zack Greinke this winter. Jazayerli...   Continue Reading

---

Odds and Ends: Indians, Rays, Jays

Time to cobble together today's links. The Dodgers designated Tanyon Sturtze for assignment. The 37 year-old pitched only 2.1 innings for the big club. Dejan Kovacevic does not believe the Pedro Alvarez issue will prevent the Pirates from working with Scott Boras in the future. RotoAuthority assembles a fantasy team entirely of players who went undrafted in March. Dave Cameron wonders if the Indians will make a trade due to their catching surplus. Rays Index wants to make it clear that drafting high is only a small factor in the Rays' success. Drunk Jays Fans caught an amusing exchange between...   Continue Reading

---

Rosenthal's Latest: Kotsay, Fuentes, Glavine, Smoltz

On August 18th, Rosenthal mentioned Mark Kotsay had cleared waivers, and that Brian Fuentes had not yet been placed. Here's an update, from today's Inside Pitch video: The Brewers and Red Sox are both showing interest in Kotsay. The Brewers would only pursue a trade if Ryan Braun's ribcage injury worsens, and so far he looks more than fine. The Sox made a play for lefty-hitting Brian Giles before Giles vetoed the deal, so it makes sense that they'd exert similar effort toward Kotsay. Even more so now that J.D. Drew has a herniated disc. Fuentes is expected to be...   Continue Reading

---

Odds and Ends: Gallardo, NPB, Braves

Today's link collection... Check out the latest MLB Roundup video. The crew hands out April awards, assesses Billy Beane's gameplan, and looks at Jeff Ma's third-place Tout Wars team. RotoAuthority helps Yovani Gallardo owners pick up the pieces and find a replacement (he has a torn ACL). The Brewers have guys they can plug in but Gallardo seemed primed for a stellar season. They'll keep an eye on the trade market. Mike Hampton could retire, but it's highly unlikely that he'll abandon the rest of his '08 salary. Nippon Professional Baseball might shorten the tenure needed for free agency, except...   Continue Reading

---

Braves Notes: Hampton, Lowry, Andruw

Mike Hampton makes $15MM next year, and the Braves aren't getting any relief from the Rockies or Marlins. However, it turns out the Braves actually spread around those payments so that they'd pay out about $8MM to Hampton in each year of the deal. This is confirmed by Bill Shanks of Scout.com, for starters. Shanks notes that the Braves owe $8.25MM to Hampton next year because of amortization. I've heard that David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution said something similar in the comments of one of his blog posts, but it's been buried somewhere. Bottom line, the Braves have $7MM..   Continue Reading

---

Hampton Injury May Force Trade

Mike Hampton injured his side this morning and could miss all of April or more. At the bottom of his article, MLB.com's Mark Bowman mentions that the injury may prompt the Braves to scour the trade market for a starting pitcher. Right now the front four are Smoltz, Hudson, James, and Davies. Lance Cormier could fill in for Hampton if Schuerholz doesn't find a reasonable trade. One available starter might be the Cubs' Wade Miller, assuming he is healthy but does not win the fifth starter job. I imagine the Phils won't send Jon Lieber over to the Braves. Brad..   Continue Reading

---

Search MLBTR

MLBTR Mailing List

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

MLBTR Features

Recent Posts

Rumors By Team

Monthly Archives

Live Chats

Tuesdays at 2 p.m. CST