Archives for August 2009

Nats Missed Chance To Shed Kearns’ Salary

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 12:42pm CDT

By placing Austin Kearns on the DL earlier in the month, the Nats missed the chance to shed the $3.4MM remaining on his salary, according to Tom Verducci of SI.com. An unknown team claimed Kearns when the Nats placed him on waivers, so Washington was in a position to shed the remaining $2.4MM on his 2009 contract and avoid the $1MM buyout for next year. However, they placed him on the DL, meaning he could no longer be claimed.

Verducci hears that the $3.4MM won't be the difference between signing Stephen Strasburg and failing to, but as one source says, saving the money "couldn't have hurt."

Heyman On Strasburg, Boras, Rizzo

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 12:25pm CDT

Jon Heyman of SI.com hears from people around the league who guess that Stephen Strasburg is in line for a bonus worth $12-30MM – if he signs, that is. Here are the rest of Heyman's Strasburg-related rumors:

Agent Scott Boras says teams dictate a slow negotiating pace and he and his clients merely follow along.
Boras doesn't see why Strasburg should get less than Daisuke Matsuzaka, who signed for $52MM.
Boras says the draft currently penalizes Americans, who, unlike international players, are limited to the team that drafts them.
The Nationals visited Southern California to make a presentation to Strasburg, but there's no evidence they made him an impressive offer. Ben Goessling of the Washington Times also reports that the Nats paid Strasburg a visit last week.
Strasburg doesn't seem likely to play in Japan if he doesn't sign.
Boras says Strasburg will ultimately decide whether to accept the Nats' offer.
Some people around the Nationals believe that acting GM Mike Rizzo will get the permanent GM job. He's got a busy few days coming up.

Gonzalez Clears Waivers; Red Sox Interested?

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 11:23am CDT

Reds shortstop Alex Gonzalez has cleared waivers and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that the Red Sox may be interested. The extent of their interest isn't clear, but Rosenthal says they're considering Gonzalez and other options as they try to solidify the shortstop position. Now that Gonzalez has cleared waivers, the Reds can trade him to any club.

Gonzalez, 32, makes $5.4MM this year and is hitting .210/.258/.296.

The Red Sox showed brief interest in Bill Hall. The Brewers haven't yet placed shortstop J.J. Hardy on waivers and it's unclear if they'd trade him now, while he's in the minors.

Odds And Ends: Draft, Wagner, Pirates

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 11:11am CDT

Some more links as we near the deadline for signing draft picks…

Jim Callis of Baseball America creates a handy chart to let us know how much money the unsigned draft picks are seeking.
Callis reports that the Giants signed Brandon Belt for $200k and the Rangers signed Shawn Blackwell for $300k.
Paul Hagen of the Philadelphia Daily News says the Phillies should at least consider making a run at Billy Wagner if he's healthy.
Rockies manager Jim Tracy tells Karen Price of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that he admires his former club, the Pirates, for boldly trying to acquire the talent to become an NL Central force and remain one for years.
MLB.com's Doug Miller speaks to Jarrod Washburn and other major leaguers about the effect trades have on players and their families.
Nats manager Jim Riggleman told Chico Harlan of the Washington Post that the negotiations between the team and Stephen Strasburg are likely to be too complicated for those in uniform to worry about.

Yanks Could Bring Back Damon; Not Matsui

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 10:56am CDT

Joel Sherman of the New York Post looks forward to some decisions the Yankees will face this offseason:

Sherman believes the Yankees would consider bringing Johnny Damon back if he'd sign a one year deal after the season when he hits free agency.
Damon profiles as a Type A free agent, so the Yankees could offer him a one-year deal in arbitration and receive two draft picks if he signs elsewhere.
Damon makes $13MM this year and would presumably receive a raise in arbitration. Remember, the Yankees didn't offer Bobby Abreu arbitration last year.
The Yankees like Hideki Matsui a lot, but they won't bring him back next year because they want to be able to rotate other players in and out of the DH spot.

Royals Draft Update: Dwyer, Myers, Crow

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 10:21am CDT

The Royals are nearing deals with two of their top picks, though they haven't finalized anything yet, according to Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star. Baseball America reported yesterday that the Royals agreed to a $1.5MM deal with fourth rounder Chris Dwyer, but the Royals insist that they have reached no such agreement. However, scouting director J.J. Picollo says he's confident the Royals can sign Dwyer and high school catcher Wil Myers.

Negotiations with first rounder Aaron Crow haven't progressed as far, but the Royals don't have to sign him by Monday because he played independent ball this year. We heard the Royals offered Crow $3MM, but Picollo says the sides "aren't on the same page."

D’Backs Offered Davis An Extension?

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 10:01am CDT

The D'Backs appear to have offered Doug Davis a one-year extension, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. Davis, who has been the subject of trade rumors since the Brewers claimed him on waivers, confirms that the D'Backs approached him with "an idea," but says it didn't appeal to him. Davis says he's more likely to test free agency after the season, but Piecoro suggests the club could offer him a two-year deal before then.

If not, the D'Backs will choose whether to offer Davis arbitration. If he accepts, they could be looking at a one-year deal worth about $10MM. If he rejects arbitration to sign elsewhere, the club would receive a draft pick as compensation for losing Davis, who will probably be a Type B free agent.

The Brewers and D'Backs still have two hours to work out a deal, so let's not rule one out.

Sabean On Lincecum, Sandoval, Bonds, Posey

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 9:44am CDT

Giants GM Brian Sabean tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that the Giants were determined to draft Tim Lincecum in 2006. Sabean avoided watching him pitch in person because he was worried someone else would take him and he didn't want other teams to know how serious the Giants were. Here are some highlights from the interview:

Sabean says the Dodgers are the best team in the NL.
He says the Giants could have used a high-profile player to distract from Barry Bonds once Jeff Kent left.
Sabean is confident the Giants want to keep him on as GM.
The Giants aren't sure what position Pablo Sandoval will play long-term.
Sabean is non-commital on the future of the catcher position. Bengie Molina's a free agent after the season and top prospect Buster Posey has reached Triple A.

Odds And Ends: Rays, Astros, Ortiz, Coffey

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | August 14, 2009 at 9:02am CDT

Some links for Friday morning…

Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times reports that the Rays are nearing deals with several top draft picks, including first rounder LeVon Washington.
Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle doesn't expect the Astros to lower their 2010 payroll by more than about 15%, though attendance is declining steadily.
Just like old times. As Adam Kilgore of the Boston Globe reports, David Ortiz is struggling again.
How does a 22nd round pick sign for $1MM? Cameron Coffey showed improved stuff this spring, but even he had no intention of signing until the Orioles came at him with a $990k offer recently, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America.
As Callis notes, the Rangers signed fifth round righty Nick McBride for $325k, which nearly doubles MLB's recommended bonus for his slot.

Odds & Ends: Cubs, Strasburg, O’s

By Eddie Schmid | August 13, 2009 at 9:42pm CDT

Some more links on a slow night in Rumorville:

A reader points us to a report out of Korea that says two amateurs have been signed out of Korea. CF Kyung-min Na was signed by the Cubs for 725k and is called "the fastest player in Korean high school baseball," while IF Chan-jong Moon was signed by the Astros for 350k.
According to MASN Sports' Steve Melewski, Orioles head of scouting Joe Jordan sees recent 22nd-round signee Cameron Coffey as "top two rounds" talent and expects him to pitch next season despite recent surgery.
Count in Ryan Zimmerman as a fan of Stephen Strasburg. He hopes the Nationals sign the fireballer, says Bill Ladson at MLB.com.
Roch Kubatko at MASN Sports says that Orioles president Andy MacPhail doesn't have much interest in the recently DFA'd Bill Hall.
Kubatko also reports that the Orioles are set to determine the player to be named from the Rays in the Gregg Zaun deal this coming Monday.

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