Jays Considering Barajas, Mulder
Here are notes from the blog of Paul Hoynes, Indians beat writer for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. These were posted yesterday.
Hoynes says the Blue Jays are talking to Rod Barajas and have some interest in Mark Mulder. Even if they signed both, the Jays would still need to come up with a shortstop and one decent starter.
The Tribe is expected to bid on lefty Kei Igawa, who will be posted next week. If they win, the Indians, like the White Sox, would be six deep in their starting rotation. A good kind of problem.
3/15 Offered To Alex Gonzalez
Free agent shortstop and defensive whiz Alex Gonzalez has received a three year, $15MM offer from an unknown club.
Nick Cafardo’s sources indicate that the teams may be the White Sox or Reds. Though not mentioned in the post, another possibility could include the Royals.
Much Ado About Manny
Buster Olney refers to Manny Ramirez‘s commitment thusly:
"Three years and $42 million because in the end, Ramirez, who has a full no-trade clause in his contract, will probably want a year added to the end of his current deal to make this happen. And the Red Sox will probably eat some of his salary — but not nearly as much as would have been required to make a trade happen even two months ago."
A host of teams would not balk at that relatively short-term commitment. And you can be damn sure Manny would far exceed 3/42 on the open market. What’s it gonna take?
Olney mentions Lastings Milledge and Aaron Heilman from the Mets. I think the Mets would jump on that one. Their NL East rival, the Phillies, will take a pass apparently.
Buster also threw out the Cubs and Astros as possibilities. The Cubs have promising young players like Donald Veal, Felix Pie, Carlos Marmol, and Sean Gallagher to offer. The Astros might offer players such as Jason Hirsh, Brad Lidge, Chris Burke, Luke Scott, or Willy Taveras. Certainly seems like Houston could offer a better package.
I doubt they’re interested, but could you imagine Manny on the White Sox?
Yankees Rumor Roundup
Too many Cub rumors for you, eh? Let’s round up all the Yankee-related happenings in one convenient post.
Carl Pavano: the Rockies would have him, but only at the price of $12-13MM for 2007-08. According to the New York Post, the Yankees will hold off on this one but could revisit it. Back in ’04, Pavano ranked 15th in the NL with a groundball percentage of 48.2. Hard to believe Carl once threw 222 innings in a season. Ah, contract years.
A-Rod: talk of his out clause was strong enough to bring a statement out of him. He said all the right things, but you have to wonder.
After retaining Mike Mussina, the Yankees might turn their focus to Barry Zito (scroll to bottom). Failing that, 28 year-old righty Gil Meche could be the target. And don’t forget Randy Wolf. The Yankees also are expected to bid on Kei Igawa. Finally, the Yankees are interested in Ted Lilly, whose deal will exceed four years and $34MM.
Internally, New York has talked about the possibility of adding Dontrelle Willis. Could they flip Humberto Sanchez and Melky Cabrera to Florida? Would that be enough? Bill James projects Cabrera to hit .285/.351/.411 as a 22 year-old. On top of that, James’s panel of experts ranked him as the fourth best defensive LF in the game. As for Sanchez, George King confirmed his availability. ZiPS projects a 4.42 ERA for him next year.
As the Yanks are looking for a right-handed hitting first baseman, Nomar’s name has surfaced again. James’s experts labeled Nomar the fifth best defensive 1B in baseball. However, Ken Davidoff says that Garciaparra "seems poised to re-sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers." How many right-handed hitting 1Bs are left? Kevin Millar, Phil Nevin, or Chris Shelton could fit the bill.
Finally, Brian Cashman is looking for a backup catcher after failing to sign Henry Blanco. Where’s Sal Fasano‘s mustache when you need it?
By Tim Dierkes
Astros Offer Deals to Lee and Soriano
The Houston Chronicle reports that the Astros have offered multi-year deals to Alfonso Soriano and Carlos Lee. Houston has been viewed by many as the frontrunner for El Caballo, but I hadn’t heard anything about their interest in Soriano.
The article also notes that the Astros "are in serious discussions" with Woody Williams. I suppose if they aren’t counting on getting Roger Clemens back for another year, they may feel the need to add a different 40 year old in the rotation.
By Jeff Sackmann
Cardinals Tidbits
Several good items from Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
- Scott Spiezio is resigned to a 2-year deal.
- Jocketty’s focus seems to be on pitching at the moment: talking about Vincente Padilla, Adam Eaton, and Kip Wells, and trying to bring Jeff Weaver back.
- Also looking for a Mark Mulder-like rotation filler–a nice thought, but I would think that a pre-FA starter would be incredibly pricey in this market.
- Luis Gonzalez and Julio Lugo are unlikely.
By Jeff Sackmann
A’s Considering Bonds
Now that Frank Thomas is out of the picture, the A’s need a DH again. It’s no surprise that Barry Bonds would be a good fit–after all, the A’s need to find somebody to replace Thomas’s production, and there aren’t many options out there to do that.
Billy Beane has been chatting with Bonds’s agent, so it would appear that the A’s have no objection to taking on Bonds’s baggage. Certainly they managed just fine with their share of "problem" guys last year. As Lew Wolff points out in the linked article, though, Bonds may out of the A’s price range, especially if the Padres make Barry a top target.
By Jeff Sackmann
About These Radio Reports…
Hi everyone, Tim here. I’ve been out today preparing for my wedding, but popped in just now to see some rumor-related confusion.
As you know, Jeff Sackmann is covering this site for me while I’m gone for the next week or so. Jeff’s done a fine job so far and has posted informative info.
However, it appears that today some false radio reports made their way onto the site. I’m not sure exactly how it all happened, as Jeff was going on the word of some trusted friends.
In my experience it’s pretty easy for a rumor to get lost in translation or even made up as it gets passed along, kind of like a game of telephone. I only have a few guys I will listen to for the ever-present "radio rumors" as these are the toughest to confirm. We will probably stick to links and not radio reports for the next few weeks here.
I apologize for the error. Echoing what Matt Cerrone at MetsBlog said today…we can’t listen to all the radio stations or Buster Olney spots ourselves, so there is a certain level of trust when reporting them. However, this is the Internet, so one has to be 100% confident before posting. We regret the mistake here at MLBTradeRumors.
Chicago Crosstown Deal
First the first time since the infamous Garland/Karchner deal, the Chicago teams got together on a trade. The Cubs sent relievers David Aardsma and Carlos Vasquez to the White Sox for Neal Cotts.
Cotts, 27 next season, has had one good season out of three. In 2005 he upped his groundball percentage a bit and displayed fantastic hit and home run prevention.
Here is a downright frightening picture of Aardsma.
Blue Jays Close With Frank Thomas
Jerry Crasnick has some good info for ESPN: the Blue Jays are "closing in on a deal" with designated hitter Frank Thomas. It seems that a two-year deal is in the works.
As Thomas’s excellent comeback season wound down, it seemed apparent that he would leave the A’s. If Gary Sheffield commands a two-year, $28MM extension, Thomas should be good for two years and at least $20MM.
The Blue Jays have a ton of needs, but plenty of free cash.