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Archives for February 2008

Cubs Sign Alex Cintron

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Minor signing this morning, as the Cubs inked shortstop Alex Cintron to a minor league deal according to ESPN 1000 Radio’s Bruce Levine.  Does this have implications for Ronny Cedeno, who’s been a rumored piece in the Brian Roberts discussions?  And since Cintron had been on Baltimore’s radar, will they now focus on Juan Uribe?

Cintron, 29, hit .243/.281/.324 for the White Sox in 185 ABs last year.  He dealt with bone spurs in his elbow, a bruised thumb, and time spent on the bereavement list for his grandfather. 

Shannon Stewart Switches Agents

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Shannon Stewart had a bounceback 2007, finally staying healthy and hitting .290/.345/.394 as Oakland’s left fielder.  Though his left field defense ranked seventh at the position according to the Fielding Bible’s panel of experts, a sub-.400 SLG doesn’t work for a corner outfielder.  He hit all of his playing time incentives in ’07, earning a total salary of $2.5MM.

ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick notes that Stewart "apparently scared off some clubs by looking for a two-year deal earlier this winter."  Is that something Stewart pushed for, or was it his representatives at Legacy Sports Group?  Either way, Stewart has switched to Barry Praver and Scott Shapiro given his lingering unemployment.

Crasnick suggests the Mariners and Padres as two possibilities for Stewart, who is likely to sign quickly under the new representation.  If he sets his sights on one year and a fourth outfielder role he should find something. If Stewart signs elsewhere and Mike Piazza retires, the A’s stand to snag the 39th overall pick in June.  The A’s could find the next Joba Chamberlain, Clay Buchholz, or Huston Street with that pick.

Fogg Still Looking For Work

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Every year some free agent unexpectedly finds himself without a job in late February.  This year, that guy is Josh Fogg.  To rejoin the Rockies, Fogg would have to take a pay cut from his ’07 salary of $3.625MM, and he’d have to be open to bullpen work.

Will anyone take Fogg in for $4MM and give him a rotation spot?  The Nationals, Reds, Astros, and Cardinals seem like viable options.  Viva El Birdos isn’t thrilled with the Cardinals’ portrayal of Matt Clement’s health.  Since Clement won’t be ready for the start of the season, maybe St. Louis will add some depth with Fogg.  However, John Mozeliak implied a couple of days ago that he wasn’t going to make anymore acquisitions.

Fogg Still Looking For Work

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Every year some free agent unexpectedly finds himself without a job in late February.  This year, that guy is Josh Fogg.  To rejoin the Rockies, Fogg would have to take a pay cut from his ’07 salary of $3.625MM, and he’d have to be open to bullpen work.

Will anyone take Fogg in for $4MM and give him a rotation spot?  The Nationals, Reds, Astros, and Cardinals seem like viable options.  Viva El Birdos isn’t thrilled with the Cardinals’ portrayal of Matt Clement’s health.  Since Clement won’t be ready for the start of the season, maybe St. Louis will add some depth with Fogg.  However, John Mozeliak implied a couple of days ago that he wasn’t going to make anymore acquisitions.

K-Rod Looking For Rivera Money?

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On Saturday, we discussed the Francisco Rodriguez situation.  He’s been historically good for a closer his age, and his next contract could be record-breaking.  That contract doesn’t seem likely to come from the Angels.

K-Rod has arrived in camp, and he admits that ’08 is probably his last season with L.A.  Mike DiGiovanna speaks of repeated rejected extension attempts by the Angels.  After the ’07 season, the Angels offered something near three years and $34MM.  Rodriguez unsurprisingly turned this down, as it’s $11MM short of the Mariano Rivera money he craves.  GM Tony Reagins is thinking about a future that may include Kelvim Escobar or Ervin Santana in the pen.

2008 will be huge for Rodriguez, whose post-break 3.45 ERA and 5.6 BB/9 raise red flags for a team considering committing $40MM+ to him.

Odds and Ends: Kelly Johnson, Nathan, Crede

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Time for some early Monday odds and ends.

  • Remember how White Sox GM Ron Schueler embarrassed Cubs GM Ed Lynch in 1998 by acquiring Jon Garland for Matt Karchner?  Rany Jazayerli sees a parallel to that heist with the Royals’ acquisition of Daniel Cortes as part of the July ’06 Mike MacDougal trade.
  • Mike Berardino’s blog continues to entertain; this time with a Dan Miceli story.  Ah, knife fights with siblings.  Who among us can say they haven’t had one or two?
  • Buster Olney learned from Braves GM Frank Wren that Kelly Johnson has been the team’s most asked-for player in trade talks this winter.
  • The look on Kyle Kendrick’s face is priceless.
  • Extension talks with the Twins and Joe Nathan have gone dormant.  Nathan still thinks the gap can be bridged but wants it done before the season begins.
  • Andy Marte and Shin-Soo Choo are both out of options; when Choo comes back from elbow surgery a month into the season one of them could be traded.
  • Henry Schulman says the White Sox may accept prospects from the Giants for Joe Crede.
  • Derek Lowe is entering his walk year, and he hasn’t had any extension talks with the Dodgers yet.

Jays To Talk Long-Term Deal With Rios

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Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail spoke to Alex Rios’ agent Paul Kinzer today.  Blair learned that Kinzer will meet with Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi early this week to talk about a long-term contract extension.  Rios recently agreed to a $4.835MM contract for ’08.  Rios, eligible for free agency after 2010, seeks at least a three-year extension (buying out one or more years of free agency).

Rios, 27, hit .297/.354/.498 for the Jays in ’07.  The average AL right fielder hit .288/.359/.465 by comparison.  Additionally, the Fielding Bible’s panel of experts ranked Rios as the best defensive right fielder in all of baseball, ahead of Austin Kearns.  Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA system projects a decline to .280/.339/.468 for Rios in ’08.

I was thinking Michael Cuddyer’s extension could serve as a framework, but Rios’ status as a SuperTwo player throws off the comparison.  Jeremy Sandler of the National Post wrote on January 15th that Rios might command a four-year, $40MM deal to buy out his arb-eligible years and first of free agency.  So maybe now a three-year, $35MM extension would do the trick.

Dusty Talks To Lofton, Patterson

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Cubs center fielders hit a fine .302/.344/.466 for Dusty Baker’s 2003 club, which came within five outs of a World Series appearance.  Most of the ABs at the position went to Corey Patterson and Kenny Lofton that year.

Dusty’s managing the Reds now, and both center fielders remain free agents as of February 17th.  The Reds have some uncertainty in center field, though Jay Bruce is a stud and Ryan Freel is said to be 100%.  According to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Baker has spoken to both Lofton and Patterson recently.  They are options for the Reds; Baker says Lofton seeks a Major League deal. In that case someone would have to be booted off the team’s 40 man roster.  Six days ago, Ken Rosenthal reported that the Reds’ interest in Lofton might depend on who they might trade for another starter (with Joe Blanton as the main target).

The Reds currently have Kent Mercker and Paul Bako in camp as non-roster invitees; both played for Baker in ’03.

Dusty Talks To Lofton, Patterson

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Cubs center fielders hit a fine .302/.344/.466 for Dusty Baker’s 2003 club, which came within five outs of a World Series appearance.  Most of the ABs at the position went to Corey Patterson and Kenny Lofton that year.

Dusty’s managing the Reds now, and both center fielders remain free agents as of February 17th.  The Reds have some uncertainty in center field, though Jay Bruce is a stud and Ryan Freel is said to be 100%.  According to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Baker has spoken to both Lofton and Patterson recently.  They are options for the Reds; Baker says Lofton seeks a Major League deal. In that case someone would have to be booted off the team’s 40 man roster.  Six days ago, Ken Rosenthal reported that the Reds’ interest in Lofton might depend on who they might trade for another starter (with Joe Blanton as the main target).

The Reds currently have Kent Mercker and Paul Bako in camp as non-roster invitees; both played for Baker in ’03.

Four Teams Considering Trot Nixon

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According to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, four teams watched 33 year-old outfielder Trot Nixon audition in Tucson today: the D’Backs, Blue Jays, Mariners, and Dodgers.  Nixon earned $4MM in ’07 while hitting .251/.342/.336 for the Tribe in 354 plate appearances.  He was pretty much injury-free.

Nixon’s calling card had typically been his ability to rake right-handed pitching.  He hit .256/.352/.345 against righties in ’07, drawing plenty of walks but displaying no power.  Rather than a platoon he seems in line for a bench job this year.

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