Rays, Burrell Agree To Two-Year Deal
1:51pm: Buster Olney agrees with Rosenthal. He writes that Burrell has agreed in principle to a two-year $16MM deal with the Rays pending a physical.
12:51pm: According to Ken Rosenthal, the Rays are close to signing Pat Burrell to a two-year, $16MM deal. It’d be a solid move, as the Rays can increase his value by not using him in the field. The ’08 Rays struggled against lefties (.726 OPS) and Burrell crushes them (.952 OPS in ’08).
Rosenthal figures this signing may pave the way for the Cubs to get Milton Bradley and the A’s to sign Jason Giambi. You have to think they’ll also be affordable; Raul Ibanez could be the outlier.
Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times has similar information about the potential signing. He doesn’t get into financial details, but writes that the Rays are nearing a two-year deal with Burrell.
Cardinals Sign Royce Ring
According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals signed lefty reliever Royce Ring to a one-year deal. He joins fellow southpaw imports Charlie Manning and Trever Miller. Ring hasn’t really shut down lefthanded hitters in recent years.
Phillies’ Romero Suspended 50 Games
TUESDAY, 11:17am: Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. says he’s not dead set on replacing Romero with another lefty reliever. The team has interest in several free agent relievers.
MONDAY, 9:26pm: The Philadelphia Phillies might need to pick up some help for their bullpen after reliever J.C. Romero found out he has been suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball. Fortunately they signed Scott Eyre at the beginning of the offseason.
Romero failed a drug test, though he denies doing anything illegal. The MLB Players Association had told players that the supplement Romero took was acceptable, ESPN.com’s Peter Gammons reports.
"I still cannot see where I did something wrong," Romero told Gammons. "There is nothing that should take away from the rings of my teammates. I didn’t cheat. I tried to follow the rules."
Gammons notes that Romero will lose $1.25MM. You can read the rest of the drama at ESPN.
The left-handed Romero, 33 in June, was an impact player in the Phillies’ bullpen in 2008. He went 4-4 with a 2.75 ERA in 81 appearances (59.0 innings). The Phillies could possibly explore the market for his replacement.
Odds and Ends: Andruw, Marquis, Coonelly
Links for Monday…
- In his first post for RotoAuthority, David Chase looks at players who were said to have lost weight or gained muscle during Spring Training ’08. How did they perform in ’08?
- The Red Sox inked infielder Nick Green to a minor league deal.
- Murray Chass explains why the New York Times Company’s purchase of a share of the Red Sox was a conflict of interest.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik: "We’ve got an offer out right now for a piece of the puzzle, and I’d hope to hear in the next few days."
- David Laurila talked to new Mariners exec Tony Blengino. One of many interesting quotes (in reference to the Bill Bavasi regime and the ’07 club): "I thought that it was clear going in that, with all due respect, they overrated their team from the last year."
The Yankees will introduce Mark Teixeira tomorrow. He passed his physical today. - River Ave. Blues and Peter Abraham ask whether the Yankees should consider Andruw Jones. Evan Brunell looks at other possible fits.
- The Dodgers talked to the Cubs about Jason Marquis, according to MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick.
- Pirates president Frank Coonelly joins Mark Attanasio (Brewers) and Drayton McLane (Astros) in supporting a salary cap.
- Jeff Moorad might be aggressive in the draft if he takes over the Padres. Tom Krasovic adds that the Padres have already discussed spending up to $6MM on their #3 pick this June.
- Keith Law likes the Angels’ Brian Fuentes signing, and doesn’t think the Indians gave up much for Mark DeRosa.
- If the Indians are to add another significant player, they’ll have to get creative with contracts.
- RAB and In Mo We Trust discuss Kevin Kernan’s recent suggestion that the Yanks sign Oliver Perez over Andy Pettitte.
- A couple of recent Hot Stove Dailies from Jeff Passan: the Braves and A’s.
- Athletics Nation asks whether Brian Sabean is "out-GMing" Billy Beane this winter.
- Sox Machine on why the Gavin Floyd–Brian Roberts rumor makes no sense.
Eight Phillies Eligible For Arbitration
David Murphy notes the Phillies’ large group of arbitration-eligible players: Cole Hamels, Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth, Shane Victorino, Ryan Madson, Joe Blanton, Chad Durbin, and Greg Dobbs. Scott Lauber suggests their combined salaries could double in 2009 – from $19MM to $38MM.
Murphy says there’s not much of a precedent for Hamels, who will easily top Chien Ming Wang‘s $4MM from last year. Ryan Howard also stands to tack millions on to last year’s $10MM award. Negotiations for a long-term deal are not active for either player, but the Phils will probably at least discuss it with Hamels’ agent. Between these two players, the Phillies may add $10MM to the payroll. Most of the others will also receive raises exceeding $1MM.
Japanese Baseball Rumors
A few rumors from NPB, courtesy of Patrick Newman.
- Lefty reliever Koji Mitsui will be posted again; all 30 MLB teams declined to bid the first time.
- The Chiba Lotte Marines may be prepared to offer Tadahito Iguchi two years and $4.4MM or so. Such a deal would not have been available in the States.
- Remember John Wasdin? He has a one-year deal with the Seibu Lions.
Rangers Rumors: Manny, Sheets, Gagne, Young
SI.com’s Jon Heyman checks in with a post on the Rangers; most of the info came up during his recent MLB Network appearance.
- Heyman says the Rangers "are considering a pursuit" of Manny Ramirez, noting that Jon Daniels isn’t currently pursuing him but didn’t rule it out. Heyman still considers the Dodgers and Giants the top suitors. El Lefty Malo doesn’t seem him landing with San Francisco.
- The Rangers maintain interest in Ben Sheets and are also considering bringing Eric Gagne back. T.R. Sullivan also mentions Tim Redding, Chad Cordero, Jason Isringhausen, and Eddie Guardado.
- The Rangers have received inquiries on Vicente Padilla (Braves) and Michael Young. Young has been loosely linked to the Twins, Mets, Angels, Dodgers, and Royals. Sullivan names Hank Blalock and Kevin Millwood as other trade candidates.
Active Week Ahead?
MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy talked to Brewers GM Doug Melvin, who said:
"I expect to be a little more active, and I think you’re more likely to get calls returned at this time of the year. I think this week will see a lot of stuff going on. Players start to get a little nervous after [New Year’s Day] if they don’t have a place to play."
Over 150 free agents remain unsigned, so it seems that a lot of the typical December action will be pushed to January. Keep it right here with MLBTR; we won’t miss a beat.
Rangers Not Pursuing Manny Ramirez
MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan spoke to Rangers GM Jon Daniels, who said:
"We’ve looked at some right handed options for the lineup but we’re not pursuing Manny [Ramirez] at this time."
Chatter was sparked earlier today by a recent Jon Heyman appearance on the MLB Network where he said the Rangers have interest in Manny. But there’s nothing on Heyman’s blog on the topic currently. Tim Brown, sizing up the market for Ramirez, talked to a Rangers source who said they’re "unlikely" to sign him.
Varitek, Red Sox Working On Deal?
Daniel Barbarisi of The Providence Journal believes the Boston Red Sox and the team’s veteran catcher, Jason Varitek, who is currently a free agent, are working on a short-term deal, possibly two years.
Barbarisi writes how the Red Sox usually do not sign aging veterans, so re-signing Varitek would be a catch-22, the title of the article.
Varitek, 36, is looking for a four-year deal worth $40MM, though it’s rather unlikely he’ll receive one, Barbarisi notes.
From Barbarisi:
“By the numbers, veteran players producing at (Varitek’s) level were generally paid between $2MM to $5MM by their teams in 2008, with the exception of the Yankees’ (Ivan) Rodriguez. If Varitek’s price were to drop that low, the Red Sox would probably be happy to bring him back for at least two more years. But if Varitek and Boras stick to their initial demands, the Red Sox will probably go another way and end up with the same production for half the cost.”