Zack Greinke Rumors

Odds and Ends: Kawakami, Griffey, Greinke

Links for Tuesday... The weekly chat has been moved to Wednesday at 2pm CST this time. I'll be on Seth Stohs' radio show tonight around 8pm CST. From NPB Tracker: Kenshin Kawakami has switched to Dan Evans as his agent, while Koji Uehara wants a rotation spot and multiple years. Ken Griffey Jr.'s agent, Brian Goldberg, has been in contact with nine teams (six AL, three NL). The Mariners were one of the AL teams. It's been over a decade since the White Sox signed a free agent from another team for more than $20MM. Justin Morneau would like the...   Continue Reading

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Royals Payroll Could Reach $70 Million

Sports Radio 810 in Kansas City talked to Royals GM Dayton Moore recently. Moore hopes to sign Zack Greinke long-term. Greinke, however, is comfortable going year to year to maximize his earnings. Moore named three free agent bats he ranked above Mike Jacobs: Mark Teixeira, Manny Ramirez, and Bobby Abreu. He implied those three are out of the Royals' price range. Moore feels that Jacobs will continue to improve. Moore says he has flexibility to extend payroll toward $70MM or even higher. He notes that last year the Royals tried to sign Jose Guillen and Torii Hunter, which would've pushed...   Continue Reading

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Royals May Be Done

Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star talked to Royals GM Dayton Moore, who suggested he might not be able to do much more this winter due to payroll limitations. After arbitration raises, the Royals should be close to their $60MM budget. So don't look for any big free agent signings unless a player is moved to create payroll room. Dutton says rumors continue to link the Royals to outmakers Jeff Francoeur and Yuniesky Betancourt. Dutton asked Moore why he seemingly ignored his OBP plan for Mike Jacobs, and Moore said he can only take advantage of the players who...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Furcal, Bradley, Greinke

Another day, another Ken Rosenthal column. The A's have payroll flexibility, and are expressing "strong interest" in free agent shortstop Rafael Furcal. Bobby Crosby is set to earn $5.25MM in '09, but it makes sense to upgrade. Contrary to previous reports, Rosenthal says the Tigers are not in on Furcal. They'll also pass on Francisco Rodriguez, which was expected. Rosenthal discusses possible fits for Milton Bradley, including the Rays, Rangers, Blue Jays, Mets, Cardinals, and Phillies. It will be hard to overlook the health risk and give Bradley a three-year deal, especially for an NL club. Rosenthal confirms interest in...   Continue Reading

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Royals Rumors: Francoeur, Butler, Ibanez, Greinke

Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star has several Royals rumors this morning... Dutton says the Braves appear willing to trade Jeff Francoeur. While no trade talks have taken place, it's known that Royals GM Dayton Moore is a fan. Dutton speculates that the Royals would not give up Zack Greinke for Francoeur, but may consider offering Luke Hochevar, Danny Cortes, or Mark Teahen. The Royals and Mariners discussed a Billy Butler for Yuniesky Betancourt trade before the '07 season, and Dutton wonders if Seattle's new GM could reignite those talks. Dutton says the Mark Teahen to Cleveland rumor "just...   Continue Reading

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Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Greinke, Manny, Burnett

A look at what is being written around the Blogosphere... Royals Authority feels it will take a Johan Santana-type deal to trade Zack Greinke this offseason. Goat Riders Of The Apocalypse takes an in depth look at the Cubs '09 roster and what changes could be made. Mets Geek (or is it Rays Geek?) thinks the most important move for the Mets this winter is to sign Manny Ramirez, but only for three-years and an option. River Ave. Blues agree that Manny should only be signed by the Yankees if it can be done for less than five years. MetsBlog...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Sabathia, McLouth, Fuentes

Here's a look at the latest column from Ken Rosenthal. Rosenthal puts odds for various teams to sign C.C. Sabathia, with the Yankees, Angels and Red Sox on top. Rosenthal wonders whether the White Sox will consider trading Jermaine Dye for a starting pitcher, moving Carlos Quentin to right field, and acquiring an athletic center fielder somehow. The goal would be a more athletic club. The Sox will also look to add a second baseman, moving Alexei Ramirez to shortstop. I'm not sure if something as long-term as Orlando Hudson makes sense, though. The Pirates wouldn't trade Nate McLouth for...   Continue Reading

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Olney: Young Starters On Trade Market

ESPN's Buster Olney names three young starting pitchers who might be available this winter: Jake Peavy, Zack Greinke, Matt Cain, and Edwin Jackson. Peavy is 27; his trade value is off the charts. He's under contract for the next four seasons at a below-market $59MM total. In 2013, his $22MM club option could be seen as a discount as well - remember when A.J. Burnett at $11MM a year was crazy? The A's received a six-prospect bounty for three years of Dan Haren; Peavy suitors will have to top that. Peavy will also need to be compensated to waive his...   Continue Reading

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Odds And Ends: Mientkiewicz, Michaels, Greinke, Soria, Scheppers

Some links for Saturday lunch, I'll add some more as the day progresses: The Mariners may sign the first woman general manager, Dodger's assistant GM Kim Ng. Pirates GM Neal Huntington says the team will approach Doug Mientkiewicz and Jason Michaels about resigning with the club, but has yet to do so. Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star ruffled some feathers by quoting a scout on the possibility of the Royals trading Joakim Soria and Zach Greinke. The discussion devolved into a debate on whether to move Soria to the rotation. A Tanner Scheppers sighting: The Pirates draft pick...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Patterson, Lowry, Alvarez

Today's linkage... Brewers fans, act quickly to snag free tickets to tonight's game courtesy of Eric Gagne. Nice gesture. Of course Ned Colletti wants to re-sign Manny Ramirez. It's just a question of dollars and years. Does Manny get the rumored 4/100 he might desire? The Jays locked manager Cito Gaston up through 2010. Richard Griffin says the Blue Jays will be better for it if they lose A.J. Burnett. Meanwhile, River Ave. Blues is open to the idea of the Yankees signing him. No, Corey Patterson is not dating Dusty Baker's daughter. And Baker says he wasn't behind the...   Continue Reading

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Perrotto's Latest: Royals, Ibanez, Rauch, Gregg

It's Sunday, which means that John Perrotto has his Every Given Sunday column up over at Baseball Prospectus. Here's the highlights... Royals GM Dayton Moore will likely make a big splash in the free agent market once again. Two years ago, he signed Gil Meche to a five-year, $55MM deal. Last year, he signed Jose Guillen to a three-year, $36MM contract. This year, his big target appears to be Rafael Furcal, which would allow the Royals to move Mike Aviles to second base. Moore is also believed to be willing to trade anyone on the team with the exceptions of...   Continue Reading

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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

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Odds and Ends: Eaton, Tazawa, Royals, Jays

Today's links... SI.com's Tom Verducci ranks the five best midseason deals of the past 25 years. Peter Abraham thinks the Yankees should stick with Robinson Cano. Pat Gillick says there's a slight chance the Phils acquire a reliever this month. He was not able to acquire Kyle Farnsworth in August. MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan doesn't put much stock in the rumor that Nolan Ryan will clean house in Texas. Phillies GM Pat Gillick admitted signing Adam Eaton was a mistake. Many MLBTR readers thought so when the signing was finalized in November of '06. The Red Sox hope to sign a...   Continue Reading

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Sherman's Latest: Yankees' Off-Season Plans

Earlier this week Hank Steinbrenner promised changes this off-season for the Yankees. Today Joel Sherman of the New York Post speculates on what those changes could look like... Sources tell Sherman that Steinbrenner wants to make CC Sabathia the highest paid pitcher ever. Sherman thinks Shane Victorino would be a nice fit for the Yankees in center field. Some Yankees officials are toying with the idea of trading some of their young pitching if the Yankees do land Sabathia and another veteran such as AJ Burnett. Sherman thinks a player like Phil Hughes could be used to land a young...   Continue Reading

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Rangers Rumors: Laird, Greinke, Bonser, Masset

Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has Rangers rumors for us today. Wilson sums up the suitors for catcher Gerald Laird: Yankees, Reds, Marlins, and Brewers. The Giants could also jump in if they trade Bengie Molina. Wilson heard that the Rangers are not shopping Laird, though. The Rangers inquired on three pitchers recently: Zack Greinke of the Royals, Boof Bonser of the Twins, and Nick Masset of the White Sox. Greinke would be near-impossible to pry loose, though Chris Davis would be an interesting offer.   Continue Reading

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Royals To Stand Pat

Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star doesn't expect the Royals to move anyone before the deadline because all of their pieces are under contract beyond this season and/or integral to their plan to contend in the future. The Royals 2-prospect pricetag is too steep for Jose Guillen who's signed through 2010 and leads the team in HR and RBI. Gil Meche has a no-trade clause and even so, the Royals feel he's a key piece to their future chances. Even though the team isn't discussing any long term deals with him, Zack Greinke is under control through arbitration through...   Continue Reading

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Stark's Latest: Burnett, Nady, Greinke, Burrell

FRIDAY: We have an update to Stark's column - he is now saying that Burnett does have veto power over 15 teams. THURSDAY: Let's take a look at Jayson Stark's latest over at ESPN.com. The Phillies and Yankees both made failed runs at CC Sabathia. The Phils wouldn't include Carlos Carrasco or Lou Marson, while the Yanks insisted on a negotiating window. The Phils are looking at Erik Bedard and A.J. Burnett by default, while neither of those pitchers makes sense for the Yankees. The Yanks checked in on Aaron Harang, but that's a moot point since he's ailing. Despite...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Sabathia, Blake, Greinke, Tejada

And now...a fresh Ken Rosenthal column. An opposing viewpoint: Rosenthal says "any team that acquires C.C. Sabathia would gain an exclusive window to sign him long-term before he reaches free agency." Rosenthal notes that the Brewers and Rays are stacked enough to acquire Sabathia and wouldn't mind taking draft picks for him after the season. Casey Blake is drawing trade interest; his versatility is a plus. Rosenthal likes the fit for the Dodgers, Mets, and A's. An anonymous general manager tossed out this "trade concept": Adam Dunn to the Dodgers for Juan Pierre, Chin-lung Hu, and cash. Thoughts? Teams such...   Continue Reading

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Stark's Latest: Holliday, Lofton, Hudson, Greinke

Time to delve into Jayson Stark's latest column for ESPN. The Rockies are 9.5 games out, and if they slip further over the next month they may trade Matt Holliday or Garrett Atkins (not both). If so, they'd be flexible on the number and ages of the players they'd want in return. Aaron Cook will not be traded. Stark talked to one team official who speculated the Pirates could keep their outfield intact in the name of a run at .500. Presumably they'd be doing this for the fans, but diehards would probably prefer a sweet bounty of young players...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Padilla, Greinke, Hatteberg

Let's discuss Ken Rosenthal's lastest column. There's some chatter that the '09 draft class will be weak. This could motivate teams to trade their impending free agent stars this July rather than collect compensation picks. Mets pitching coach Rick Peterson has "fallen out of favor with some in the organization." Rosenthal believes he'd be a hot commodity if fired. The Rangers are open to trading Vicente Padilla, as you'd expect. We've heard some crazy things about the asking price. While the Royals don't seem to consider Zack Greinke untouchable, they'd have to be bowled over to trade him. The Yanks...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Blanton, Furcal, Penny, Burnett, Greinke

The latest from Ken Rosenthal's Full Count video: The Braves called the A's about Joe Blanton but did not even come close to meeting Billy Beane's price. The Dodgers may not want to lock up Rafael Furcal, the oft-injured shortstop, to a long term contract. Also, with Brad Penny's struggles, they may pass on his 2009 club option and trade him this season. They'd get something in return rather than pay his $2MM buyout in the offseason. The only way the Jays will trade A.J. Burnett is if they fall completely out of contention. Otherwise, he is a cornerstone to...   Continue Reading

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Stark's Latest: Young Players, Giles, DeJesus

Jayson Stark's latest Rumblings and Grumblings column is chock full of information. Stark rattles off Dan Uggla, Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, B.J. Upton, Justin Upton, Russell Martin, Zack Greinke, Prince Fielder, Felix Hernandez, Jeff Francoeur, Jonathan Papelbon, Kevin Youkilis, and Dustin Pedroia as youngsters who do not have long-term deals in the works. With Uggla and Greinke, the opposition seems more on the team's side. With Hamels and Howard neither side wants a long-term deal. With the rest, the player is resisting. The Padres' top trading chip is probably Brian Giles, though a deal would further deplete a weak offense....   Continue Reading

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What's Next For The Royals?

MLB.com's Dick Kaegel notes that the Royals have closer Joakim Soria and outfielder David DeJesus under contract multiple years into the future. Is anything cooking with other young Royals? The Royals didn't seek Soria out to sign him. Instead, he was "very aggressive" and approached the team, according to Dayton Moore. And Allard Baird signed DeJesus. Kaegel spoke to Alex Gordon and Brian Bannister, and learned that nothing is in the works. Bannister wondered whether his age (27) could be a factor. Kaegel didn't talk to Zack Greinke or John Buck, but Bob Dutton did a week ago. Neither has...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Jacque, Vizquel, Greinke

Today's linkage... An MLBTR chat will take place in this space at 2pm CST - get your questions ready! I will also be hopping on ESPN-1580 (Columbia, MO) today at 4:20pm CST. Jacque Jones prefers to play for the Marlins...I imagine he will end up there. GM bloodlines courtesy of Batter's Box. Omar Vizquel wants to play in '09, if he has a good offensive year in '08. The White Sox do not intend to overpay their 8th overall pick this June. The Royals haven't had any extension talks yet with Zack Greinke, who would become a free agent after...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Dunn, Wheeler, Izzy

Ken Rosenthal posted a new column last night, and has updated it very recently. I've already spoken about the Teixeira stuff, but there's other good material in there too. Some of the wilder speculation out there has been that the Twins might trade Torii Hunter or Johan Santana if they decide they're out of it. Various Baseball Prospectus reports put the Twins' playoff chances between 5-10%. Rosenthal debunks the idea that Minnesota would shop Hunter without first making him an offer, and keeping Santana for at least 2008 makes sense. Plus, Santana has a no-trade clause. Rosenthal does have some..   Continue Reading

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Graziano On Greinke, Pettitte

Good stuff today from Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger. Here's my summary: Beyond the Cubs, Graziano lists the Braves, Dodgers, and Diamondbacks as teams interested in pitcher Zack Greinke. If the initial asking price for Octavio Dotel was as high as reported, I can't imagine what Dayton Moore would want for Greinke. Graziano's Dotel suitors: Cubs, Dodgers, and Brewers. The Red Sox, Rockies, and Indians have been mentioned by other sources. Quite a market for this guy. David Weathers is seen as the poor man's Dotel/Gagne. Let's see if Wayne Krivsky can get something useful for him. Stormy makes..   Continue Reading

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Cubs Interested In Zack Greinke

Whether he tops out at 96 or 100 mph, there's no doubt 23 year-old Zack Greinke is an intriguing pitcher. His name helps us remember or mnemonic devices from elementary school. The man even has his own website. Bob Dutton mentioned Greinke as a trade possibility a few days ago, and now Jeff Vorva of the Daily Southtown reports that the Cubs are interested. Vorva is quoting "broadcast reports" for this rumor; I will try to find more detail. UPDATE: The rumor is from 670 The Score out of Chicago. Greinke would be a fine addition for the Cubs whether..   Continue Reading

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Royals Possess Coveted Relievers

There's seemingly some sentiment that the Royals don't want to break up their bullpen by trading anyone. I think that's kind of silly, given the volatility of relievers and the Royals' chances at contending in 2008. Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star names four relievers on which Dayton Moore is getting phone calls: Octavio Dotel - Dotel was a $5MM gamble, and he's been decent so far. He can earn another few hundred thousand in incentives and also has a $5.5MM player option for '08. If he exercises that, the team can still void it. After a late start..   Continue Reading

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Greinke to the Bullpen

As Tim wrote the other day, with Luke Hudson and Scott Elarton coming back from the DL, something had to give. Apparently that "something" is Zack Greinke, who is going to be a relief pitcher for the time being. How odd. Greinke looked great in his April start against Daisuke Matsuzaka; since then he's been mostly terrible with a couple of strong outings mixed in. I can't imagine this is anything remotely permanent, but perhaps the Royals are showcasing all of their marginal guys-Hudson, Brian Bannister, Odalis Perez, etc.-to see what they can get in trade. Heaven knows they have..   Continue Reading

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Could Greinke Retire?

ESPN's Buster Olney has the scoop on Zack Greinke's mysterious departure from spring training. Sounds to me like he doesn't like his bosses and has perhaps lost the desire to play baseball: "Talked to several folks in baseball yesterday about Zack Greinke's departure from Kansas City's camp. Greinke, according to these sources, was going through some drills halfheartedly last week, and K.C. manager Buddy Bell got on him, pushing him to improve his effort; Greinke, displeased, later met with Bell. And then, a couple of days later, he packed up and walked out of camp. According to one source, Greinke..   Continue Reading

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What's Up With Zack Greinke?

Strange situation going on with Royals starter Zack Greinke. He's left spring training camp and probably won't start the season in the Kansas City rotation. The team is being weirdly mum on why he left. Here's what we think we know: - Not drug-related (Royals) - Not family-related (KC Star) - Not in trouble with the team (MLB.com) - Didn't lose desire to play baseball (KC Star) - Not a legal problem (Royals) - Not an injury (Royals) So Greinke is out indefinitely, and we're left to play twenty questions to figure out why. RotoWorld suggests that he may be..   Continue Reading

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