Archives for December 2006

Angels, Rockies Renew Todd Helton Discussion

By Tim Dierkes | December 22, 2006 at 9:43am CDT

Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports that Dan O’Dowd and Bill Stoneman have renewed the Todd Helton trade talks that died at the winter meetings.

Even if Helton’s contract was pared down to $45MM over the next five seasons, the Angels are concerned about the first baseman’s health. It seems that the Rockies could still snag Casey Kotchman and Erick Aybar in the deal – a sweet bounty in itself. Kotchman is healthy again and Aybar would give the Rox a shortstop surplus. Perhaps Aybar, a genius with the leather, could convert to center field.

Helton would have to approve a trade to L.A. Meanwhile, the Denver Post has basically the same info, but is careful to label a trade a "longshot."

Mets Visit Jeff Suppan, Brewers Make Offer

By Tim Dierkes | December 21, 2006 at 4:40pm CDT

It’s old news at this point, but I should mention that the Mets visited with free agent starter Jeff Suppan and his agent in California yesterday morning.

Suppan is the backup plan for teams like the Mets and Giants, one of which won’t get Barry Zito. A few small-market clubs who can’t afford Zito hope to swoop in and snag Suppan as well. Also, I forgot to write a soup-related pun so please feel free to do that in the comments. Have we seen "No Soup For You!" as a headline yet? Suppan should spurn some team so we can watch sixteen newspapers say that.

UPDATE: Cheese Soup? Seriously, that is well done.

Reds Acquire Jeff Conine

By Tim Dierkes | December 21, 2006 at 2:20pm CDT

According to Marc Lancaster, the Reds have acquired 40 year-old outfielder Jeff Conine from the Phillies. I guess he was expendable given the Phils’ acquisition of Jayson Werth.

Conine is owed $2MM in 2007. He joins a crowded Reds outfield that already contains Adam Dunn, Chris Denorfia, Ken Griffey Jr., and Ryan Freel. Oh, and they have to fit Josh Hamilton in there all year if they want to keep him.

Perhaps Conine will team with Scott Hatteberg at first base and face lefties. Though Conine’s .269/.352/.419 line against southpaws the last three seasons doesn’t blow anyone away.

Olney: Tribe A Serious Player For Mulder

By Tim Dierkes | December 21, 2006 at 10:20am CDT

According to Buster Olney in his blog for ESPN, "Cleveland has become a very serious player for Mark Mulder." Olney notes that the Indians would have four southpaws in the rotation if Mulder joins up. He considers Paul Byrd to be the probable odd man out. Of course, the Indians could always look to trade impending free agent Jake Westbrook if Mulder is healthy and effective.

Mulder is chilling on a beach somewhere on his honeymoon, but plenty of teams are talking about him. Lately the Rangers and Mets have been in the rumor mill. A billion other teams have been named in the past. Mulder wants a two-year contract.

People talk about how Jeff Suppan wouldn’t survive back in the AL…looking at the numbers, shouldn’t we have the same sentiment about Mulder?

UPDATE: There is an article here from the Dallas Morning News that mentions the Cards and D’Backs as well.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Projection

By Tim Dierkes | December 21, 2006 at 10:15am CDT

I’ve thrown my hat into the ring with a Daisuke Matsuzaka projection. Check it out at RotoAuthority.

My 2007 RotoAuthority Fantasy Baseball Guide should be available for $9.99 in mid-January. Brace yourself.

Latest On Adam LaRoche

By Tim Dierkes | December 21, 2006 at 9:48am CDT

This thing just won’t die. John Perrotto reports that the Pirates’ talks with Atlanta about Adam LaRoche are "picking up steam again."

The Braves originally wanted Paul Maholm, but are backing off and could go for Mike Gonzalez and Jose Castillo/Chris Duffy. Bucco Blog has been on this one for a long time. Perrotto writes that the Bucs want Kyle Davies in there if it’s going to be a four-player trade.

Meanwhile, the Yankees wouldn’t include a second player for Gonzalez and the Red Sox aren’t offering anything interesting.

Identify Theft Hits MLB

By Tim Dierkes | December 21, 2006 at 9:34am CDT

According to the Chicago Tribune (registration required), a man named David Dright of Chicago got a hold of financial records for 91 Major League players, including Jim Thome, Moises Alou, and Pedro Martinez.

He found unshredded loan applications, tax returns, and other private documents in a dumpster next to the SFX agency in Northbrook, IL. Dright has a past history of identity theft, with Juan Pierre and Miguel Tejada involved among others.

What Would You Bid For Miguel Cabrera?

By Tim Dierkes | December 21, 2006 at 9:11am CDT

Juan C. Rodriguez is already discussing Miguel Cabrera’s free agency, even though he won’t reach that point until after the 2009 season. The magical $200 million number is being thrown around.

If anyone’s going to get an A-Rod-ish contract, it’s M-Cab. Alright that’s it for hyphenated nicknames today. ~~D-Mat~~. Eight years would have to be the minimum; the Cubs would probably offer twelve (kidding). And a $20MM AAV seems low to me. I would expect $25MM. So yeah, eight years, $200MM is reasonable.

The part of this article I’m not following:

"The same team unwilling to give Cabrera a $22 million AAV over eight years ($176 million) may deem six years and a $29 million AAV ($174 million) more palatable."

I’m no economist, but does that make sense to you? I get the whole higher AAV, fewer years/risk concept. But explain to me why you wouldn’t want two extra years for $4 mil more?

Minor Signings

By Tim Dierkes | December 20, 2006 at 9:46pm CDT

Teams were adding all sorts of small bits and pieces today; I thought I’d round them up in a single post.

The Nats re-signed Robert Fick, who will turn 33 in March. Fick catches and plays first, plus maybe some outfield in a pinch. It’s been a while since he hit for any power.

The Royals added some pitching depth in Zach Day, who’s 28. He’s coming back from rotator cuff surgery, and hasn’t been a factor since 2004. They also re-signed Brandon Duckworth, a 31 year-old AAAA type guy. He had a 2.42 ERA in 74 Triple A innings this year. Finally, KC signed reliever David Riske, who turned 30 this year. Riske’s posted some solid ERAs but it seems like a house of cards given his declining strikeout rate. Riske would probably get the ball in the ninth if Octavio Dotel gets hurt.

I’ve received many emails about the Braves signing Chris Woodward. Why, I’m not sure. Usually I ignore signings of this stature. 30 year-old backup infielder who can’t hit. I would think Martin Prado and Willy Aybar are still the frontrunners for the second base gig in Atlanta.

Cubs Close On Cliff Floyd

By Tim Dierkes | December 20, 2006 at 2:53pm CDT

I swear I used that headline last week, but here are. Paul Sullivan reports that the Cubs are "on the verge" of acquiring Cliff Floyd.

He’d platoon with Matt Murton, which begs the question: why does Murton need a platoon partner? As I said five days ago:

"It seems like a great way to stunt Matt Murton’s growth and waste a year of cheap service time. Floyd hit .266/.342/.423 against righties in ’06. Murton managed a .295/.356/.426 line against them in his first full season. The Big Murt also hit .319/.390/.522 after the break. And he has red hair."

There better be a brilliant Jacque Jones trade in the offing. Still, while nonsensical, this move won’t rival the Jose Vidro trade for the offseason’s worst.

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