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Archives for August 2007

Vizquel Claimed Off Waivers, Pulled Back

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On August 16th, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark mentioned that Omar Vizquel, among many others, had cleared waivers.  Stark’s colleague Buster Olney heard differently, however.  According to Olney, Vizquel was indeed claimed but no deal was reached and he was withdrawn.  Olney believes the Tigers may have made the claim, or perhaps the Indians as a block.

Vizquel still doesn’t strike out much, but his batting average dipped to .245 this year.  He could’ve helped a contender though.  I’m not sure whether the Elias Bureau will rate him a Type A or B free agent after this year, as he was solid in 2006.

Here’s a look at the updated Players Who Have Cleared Waivers post; Jack Wilson is out there for whoever missed out on Vizquel.

Mets Acquire Conine

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UPDATE: According to Ken Rosenthal, the Mets are on the verge of getting Conine for two low-level minor leaguers.

According to Ben Shpigel of the New York Times, the Mets might consider trading for Reds outfielder Jeff Conine.  The need was created when Damion Easley endured a Grade 3 ankle sprain.

Conine, 41, has about $480K left on his contract this year.  He’s known to have cleared waivers, and I’m sure he can be had for a song.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Damon, Glaus, Wells

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Ken Rosenthal has a new column up; here are some rumor-related points of interest.

  • As you know, it doesn’t make sense for the Yankees to keep both Bobby Abreu and Johnny Damon around for 2008.  It’s just not an efficent way to spend $29MM.  Rosenthal says Damon would be open to waiving his no-trade clause, if the Yankees struck a deal with a team that fell under his 12-team protection.  Damon is apparently open to regular playing time on teams not located on the West Coast.  The White Sox, Phillies, Braves, or Astros might make sense, in my opinion.  The Yanks’ ability to pull an exercise-and-trade with Abreu’s 2008 option is hindered by his full no-trade protection.
  • Rosenthal believes the Blue Jays might aggressively shop Troy Glaus this winter.  Glaus surprisingly cleared waivers recently.  Glaus is holding all the cards – he has a full no-trade clause and a player option for 2009.
  • The Rockies will pass on David Wells, but the Dodgers are still interested.  The Rox might still go for Steve Trachsel if they opt for experience over potential.
  • Craig Monroe seems to be an option for second-tier clubs, especially if he becomes a free agent.  The Giants will pass. 

Olney On Johan Santana

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ESPN’s Buster Olney kicks off his blog today with his thoughts on Johan Santana.  Fresh off a team-record 17 strikeout performance, Santana is a hot topic around baseball.  Olney believes Santana trade talk could dominate the offseason.  It might be a hell of a winter if Alex Rodriguez hits the open market (though that seems unlikely). 

Olney feels that the Twins would be best off trading Santana this winter if they don’t sign him.  Studs like Jered Weaver, Clay Buchholz, Phil Hughes, and Andrew Miller could suddenly lose untouchable status if Santana is in play.  There’s no arguing that an established, MLB-ready young pitcher like the above-mentioned four is worth significantly more than the two draft picks the Twins could receive after ’08 for letting Johan walk.  Terry Ryan would need to acquire a valuable young position player as well, I imagine.

Olney notes that the Twins have made such a deal before with the Chuck Knoblauch trade in February of ’98.  The Twins received Eric Milton, Cristian Guzman, Brian Buchanan, and cash back then.  They’d do significantly better this time.

I know a lot of folks think the Mets can pull this off, but I don’t know that they have the right mix of players.  Here’s my stab at a Santana bounty: Matt Kemp, Clayton Kershaw, and Jonathan Meloan.  Reasonable?  Ridiculous?  Leave your most reasonable proposal in the comments, maybe we’ll vote on the best.  And if your favorite team isn’t a great fit, don’t try to force it!   

Zambrano Contract Has Ripple Effect

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Now that Carlos Zambrano is officially an $18MM a year pitcher – and the open market would’ve given him more – the future of other top starters is the hot topic of discussion.  Even at a discount Zambrano’s average annual value is the highest ever for a pitcher’s multiyear contract.

We’ll start with the best of the best, Johan Santana.  We might as well get used to the Johan speculation, because it’s going to be filling newspapers until he signs his next contract.  As much as he’d like to stay, how can the Twins possibly sign him if the starting point is 5/90?  The Seattle Times’ Larry Stone dreams on the possibility of a Johan/Felix combo, but of course it’d require gutting the farm system (and Santana waiving his no-trade clause).  Not enough talk about his NTC.  Anyway, let’s face it.  Santana gives the Twins the best chance to win in 2008, so they’ll keep him through the end of his contract.  Minnesota’s staff looks excellent for ’08 with Francisco Liriano returning.

C.C. Sabathia also reaches free agency after the ’08 season.  The Indians haven’t begun active negotiations with him, and Paul Hoynes believes he could only fit into the payroll if the Tribe goes deep into the postseason this year.  Like Santana, the Indians would keep Sabathia through the end of his contract to try to win next year.  Jon Garland, Derek Lowe, Oliver Perez, and Ben Sheets are the other big names in the 2008-09 class.

Jake Peavy knows he won’t get a fair offer from the Padres.  He’ll be a free agent after ’09.  Erik Bedard, Kelvim Escobar, John Lackey, and Brad Penny are all set to join his free agent class.  I can see Bedard and Penny hitting the open market, while the Halo hurlers might sign extensions.      

Jermaine Dye Signs Contract Extension

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Another below-market deal for the White Sox – they’ve signed right fielder Jermaine Dye to a two-year, $22MM contract extension.  The deal also includes a mutual option at $12MM for 2010 with a $1MM buyout attached.  At one point it seemed Kenny Williams would surely unload both Mark Buehrle and Dye, but instead he’s extended the veterans.

It’s hard not to like the deal.  The free agent alternatives – guys like Kosuke Fukudome, Milton Bradley, maybe Geoff Jenkins – are not decidedly better.  Fukudome might be able to challenge Dye, but he’ll get a larger, riskier contract.

The main concern is that Dye’s contract covers his age 34-35 seasons, though the White Sox have a crack medical staff.  They probably won’t have an open DH spot until 2010, as Jim Thome’s $13MM option for ’09 is reasonable and has a $3MM buyout attached.  The White Sox have to hope Dye doesn’t follow the career path of top PECOTA comparable Dave Henderson. 

Looking at 2008, the White Sox have over $92MM committed if Joe Crede is retained. 

Monroe Out; Maybin In

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The Tigers shook up their roster today, DFAing outfielder Craig Monroe and calling up 20 year-old top prospect Cameron Maybin.  They also sent Omar Infante to Triple A in favor of Ramon Santiago.  Apparently they wanted more of a "true shortstop" to back up Carlos Guillen.  You never know, a Jack Wilson deal could still be in the works.  Wilson has cleared waivers.

Monroe makes $4.775MM this year, so he’s a nontender candidate for his new team this winter.  It’s unknown whether he’s been placed on or has cleared waivers, which would have to precede a trade.  The 30 year-old has been plagued by knee and back problems; he was stellar in May and awful otherwise.  The Pirates and Cubs have been linked to Monroe in the past.

As for Maybin, his call-up was quite a surprise given his lack of high minors experience.  Check out the fantasy take over at RotoAuthority.

Wily Mo Pena Traded To Nationals

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UPDATE: The Red Sox traded Pena for cash considerations and a player to be named later, according to Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe.

According to Rob Bradford of the Boston Herald, Wily Mo Pena has been traded to the Nationals. Jim Bowden finally got his man again.

Assuming he can stay healthy, it’ll be interesting to see what Pena can do with 550 ABs.  For what it’s worth, PECOTA projected a line of .276/.336/.504 heading into this season.  Pena still has a one in five chance of becoming a star, according to Baseball Prospectus.

Cubs Sign Carlos Zambrano To Extension

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According to Ken Rosenthal, the Cubs have inked Carlos Zambrano to a five-year, $91.5MM contract extension.  The deal also has a $19.25MM player option for a sixth year, so you might as well call it 6/111. 

By waiting, the Cubs cost themselves at least $11.5MM.  It’s unclear as to whether the original 5/80 deal Zambrano almost signed had a player option.  The new contract carries Zambrano through his age 31 season.

This is a home team discount, but $18.3MM annually guaranteed is still pretty hefty.  The discount is that the Cubs are on the hook for five or six years instead of seven or eight.  And sure, Z probably could’ve gotten $20MM on the open market.  The deal would look a lot better for the Cubs if the 2013 option was the club’s.  As a player option, Zambrano will basically only exercise it if he’s in bad shape.

I’ve been back and forth on my opinion of a huge Zambrano extension, kind of like the pitcher’s up and down season.  Part of me says that the Cubs got a slight discount, Zambrano’s been an injury-free horse, and he’ll still be pretty young throughout the deal.  The other side of me says that his best years are behind him, he’s got a ton of mileage on his arm, and almost no free agent pitcher deal of this magnitude could possibly work out.  I think you could make a legitimate case for either side – sorry for the cop out.   

The free agent pitcher market is significantly worse for Zambrano’s absence.  The best option now appears to be Curt Schilling on a short-term deal, if you can get him.

Dodgers, Rockies Interested In David Wells

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Who wants seven starts from David Wells?  Apparently the Rockies and Dodgers do, as both teams have already inquired.  Wells is now a free agent.

I say seven starts because Boomer still has a seven-game suspension to serve.  We knew from this morning’s Denver Post that the Rockies were considering Wells, though that article cited only "internal discussions."  Well it’s external now, baby.  The Dodgers were also under heavy speculation with the whole West Coast thing, and now they’re officially in the game.

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