Odds and Ends: Zimmerman, Tulo, Hawpe, Wang
Some bits and pieces from today…
- Damian Miller is leaning toward retirement, leaving Johnny Estrada as the one halfway viable catching option out there.
- Talks continue with Ryan Zimmerman on a long-term deal. The Nationals and Zimmerman reportedly discussed this a year ago.
- Padres GM Kevin Towers is upfront about his inquiries on Matt Murton and Xavier Nady. The Cubs aren’t done, by the way.
- Troy Tulowitzki is able to void his contract if he’d traded.
- The Rockies have had preliminary talks with Brad Hawpe about a multiyear deal. Tracy Ringoslby says they might aim for a four-year deal, buying out one year of free agency. The 28 year-old hit .291/.387/.539 in ’07. He was a lot better at Coors and against righties.
- Anthony McCarron says a long-term deal with Chien-Ming Wang looks unlikely, and the Yankees may have to go to a hearing with him regarding his ’08 salary.
Rumor Royalty – Evan Grant (Rangers)
I’ve chosen Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News as Rumor Royalty for the Rangers – he is the best source of hot stove for that club. Grant’s blog can be found here.
Submit your Rangers questions for Grant in the comments I will choose the best. Let’s keep ’em focused on the hot stove.
Odds and Ends: Velocity, Santana, Teixeira
Make sure to check out these links.
- Baseball America admits that fastball velocity is important, and does a Where Are They Now with all those who had reached 98 mph from the ’02 prospect handbook. The success rate was solid. They have an even bigger list of guys who topped 98 from their upcoming ’08 handbook, some of whom will be aces one day. Did you know Felipe Paulino reached 102? Hat tip to Depressed Fan on the link.
- Joe Posnanski writes about how the Royals are leading the Johan Santana race. Funny stuff. Would be refreshing to see the Royals in there.
- White Sox outfielder Brian Anderson busts out the ol’ "best shape of my life" cliche. He’s trying to ditch the negative attitude, but still wants out of Chicago so he can have a shot at a full-time role.
- Not sure what to make of this…did Mark Teixeira buy a house in north suburban Atlanta? If so does it mean anything? Hat tip to Braves Love for the discovery.
Blue Jays Sign Rod Barajas
The Blue Jays have signed catcher Rod Barajas to a one year deal worth $1.2MM. There is also a club option for 2009. Gregg Zaun did not fade in the second half, so it doesn’t seem like a tandem thing is necessary. Maybe they just wanted a more solid backup than they had.
Barajas was all set to become Toronto’s starting catcher for the ’07 season, but he changed agents and pulled out at the last moment (cancelling his flight). It would’ve been a two-year deal worth $5.25MM – and J.P. Ricciardi had more than a handshake. Did the MLBPA pressure Barajas to back out? Read more about the situation on this blog (funny quote from the blog’s author: "One thing is clear from all of this: Rod Barajas will never play for the Blue Jays after this fiasco.")
Barajas ended up signing a lesser deal with the Phillies that winter.
Braves Sign Soriano For Two Years
According to Dave O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Braves have signed closer Rafael Soriano to a two-year deal. This buys out one year of free agency and also removes him from a deep free agent closer class.
The deal is worth $9MM: $2.4MM in ’08, $6.1MM in ’09, and a $500K signing bonus. Solid move.
Which Free Agents Will Retire?
Jerry Crasnick has a piece up on ESPN.com regarding the remaining free agents. Specifically, he looks at the possibilities for Barry Bonds, Kyle Lohse, Livan Hernandez, Tony Clark, Sean Casey, Mark Sweeney, Kris Benson, Pedro Feliz, and Shannon Stewart.
These players have been talked about at length on MLBTR over the course of this off-season. The collective youth movement in MLB is really hurting these guys. Teams are beginning to replace them with younger, cheaper talent, and making vets work for their spots in the lineup and rotation.
True, many of the remaining free agents are going to catch on somewhere. Lohse, for instance, isn’t going to begin the season unemployed. He’ll end up taking what the market bears for his services. However, to me the most interesting part of Crasnick’s article was a one-sentence paragraph:
Don’t be surprised to see a few retirement announcements mixed in with the signings over the next few weeks.
So instead of looking at where each of the remaining free agents will land, let’s talk about who might opt for retirement. I’ll throw up my list, and you guys can add or subtract in the comments.
Damian Miller, Ryan Klesko, Corey Koskie, Luis Gonzalez, Reggie Sanders, Shawn Green, Barry Bonds, Mike Piazza, Mike Sweeney, Sammy Sosa, Eric Milton, David Wells, John Thomson, Bob Wickman, Russ Ortiz, Antonio Alfonseca, Joe Table, Rudy Seanez, Aaron Sele, Ron Villone
I wanted to include Kenny Lofton, but I figure that some team will give him a shot at some playing time. Trot Nixon crossed my mind, as he’s been not so good over the past couple of years. But he could bide his time and catch on when the inevitable injury strikes in Spring Training. I included Milton and Ortiz because while they’re not at the typical retirement age, their performances over the past few years are poor enough that no team should even think about giving them a shot.
Nick Johnson Readying For Spring Training
There’s quite a feature in yesterday’s Washington Post regarding Nick Johnson‘s return to action. It’s one of those feel-good pieces that documents his hardships and the tenacity with which he faced them. But apparently he has no remaining physical limitations, so he’ll get his shot in Spring Training.
How is this a trade rumor? Well, he’ll be competing with Dmitri Young for the starting first base gig. Both are signed through 2009, with roughly the same salaries. But there isn’t room for both of them on the Nats roster. Each has his pitfalls, making a trade difficult.
So what do you do if you’re Jim Bowden? Johnson is the team’s second highest-paid player, and Young is just a tick behind. Do you really let one of your top five highest paid players languish on the bench? A platoon doesn’t seem the answer. Young hit righties a ton last year, to the tune of a .903 OPS, while managing a .784 mark against lefties. This trend follows through his career. Johnson tends to destroy lefties and righties equally.
It’s hard not to give Johnson every shot to win the gig. He’s younger and has incredible plate discipline. We’re talking about one of the few guys in the league who can walk more than he strikes out. He was also a monster in his latest season, 2006, hitting .290/.428/.520 in 628 plate appearances. He walked 110 times that year, which is just an insane number.
But then where does that leave Young? This will definitely be a story to follow through Spring Training.
-Joe
Giants Considering Ensberg, Crede
We learned earlier today that Pedro Feliz rejected the Giants two-year offer. The team plans to look internally for a solution at third base. Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News comes in with the possible leading candidate: Kevin Frandsen.
He hasn’t manned the hot corner regularly since college, but his performance in just under 300 plate appearances last year has earned him a legitimate shot at the starting gig. He played third base for 55 innings last year. Most of his time was spent at second base, which figures to be occupied by Ray Durham in 2008.
Frandsen is a better option than Feliz, but the Giants still might bring in veteran competition in the form of Morgan Ensberg or Joe Crede. Baggarly’s club source said there’s a "good chance" of acquiring Crede if his back is healthy this spring. Noah Lowry would be too much; Brad Hennessey maybe?
Joe would like to remind you, just this once, that he writes for River Ave. Blues, a Peter Gammons-approved Yanks blog. Tim also contributed to this post.
Projecting Clay Buchholz
Projecting Clay Buchholz for 2008 is not easy, and I don’t have all the answers. But head on over to RotoAuthority if you are interested in the fantasy baseball discussion.
Brad Wilkerson Rumors
I’ve got some more info from the same source that told me about Boston’s interest in Brad Wilkerson.
- The Red Sox offered Wilkerson one year and $2MM plus incentives, and today is the deadline for him to decide. The appeal is that Wilkerson would join a winning organization for the first time; he’d be a backup first baseman and outfielder. It does not seem that Wilkerson is seeking three years and $21MM.
- Wilkerson’s fate could be linked to the Erik Bedard situation. If the Mariners are able to acquire Bedard and give up Adam Jones, they would be interested in signing Wilkerson to play right field. That would be a better chance for playing time for him.