Giants, Mariners, Rockies Interested In Olivo
The Giants, Mariners, and Rockies are leading the charge for free agent catcher Miguel Olivo, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Olivo, 31, hit .249/.292/.490 in 416 plate appearances for the Royals this year, catching 845.6 innings. The Royals, intending to reboot their catching situation, declined Olivo's $3.3MM mutual option last month. Of the three suitors named here, you'd have to think Olivo would find the Rockies the least appealing given the presence of Chris Iannetta.
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick notes that the Rockies also maintain interest in re-signing Yorvit Torrealba.
Mets Not Interested In Burrell, Bradley
11:34am: Newsday's David Lennon tweets that the Mets have no interest in Burrell, in any way. Nor are they interested in Milton Bradley, tweets Sherman.
6:58am: Dating back to being suspended for the final weeks of the season by the Cubs, the writing has been on the wall that Milton Bradley's time in Chicago is ticking. Lately, we've heard quite a few rumors about a possible swap with the Rays for Pat Burrell, depending on money kicked in by the Cubs.
This morning, according to a tweet from Joel Sherman, we learn that if the Rays and Cubs can indeed work out a swap, the Mets would consider a Burrell-for-Luis Castillo swap. They're hesitant, however, because of Burrell's defensive issues.
Does this three-team exchange of bad contracts make sense for all parties? That answer likely depends on how much of Bradley's salary the Cubs are willing to take on. While Burrell's down season in 2009 makes him a less-than-ideal option for the Mets in their search for a power-hitting outfielder, a return to the NL East could prove beneficial, while saving the Mets a few million dollars over the next two seasons.
Five Teams Interested In Kevin Gregg?
Yahoo's Tim Brown tweets the "early market" for free agent reliever Kevin Gregg: the Rays, Nationals, Tigers, and Rockies. Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune says the Orioles are also interested. I imagine Gregg will get a one-year deal for less than the $4.2MM he earned in 2009. This year the 31-year-old improved his control a bit and whiffed more than a batter per inning, but allowed 13 home runs in 68.6 innings and lost the Cubs' closing job to Carlos Marmol. The Cubs chose not to offer arbitration to Gregg, a Type A free agent.
With the Tigers and Rockies, the arbitration decisions of Brandon Lyon, Fernando Rodney, and Rafael Betancourt will be reached tonight, perhaps clearing the way for Gregg. The Rays are looking to add reasonably-priced late-inning arms (they've already traded for Jesse Chavez). The Nats have arbitration-eligible Mike MacDougal as the default closer currently, but may want another veteran option for 2009. Van Dyck wonders if the Nats might non-tender MacDougal.
Odds & Ends: Melky, Green, Branyan, Lowe
It's officially Winter Meetings time! New thread for links as the folks in Indianapolis begin to wake up and get going:
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets an interesting situation: the Cubs and Yankees both like Mike Cameron, while the Cubs like the Yanks' Melky Cabrera. The Cubs will need to clear payroll space before they can try for Cameron though. Also muddying the picture: both clubs may have interest in Curtis Granderson.
- ESPN's Buster Olney is hearing that the starting pitching market is "intensifying."
- Larry Stone of the Seattle Times has all kinds of amusing Winter Meetings memories from years past, and he explains why the Meetings were cancelled for five years in the nineties.
- David Lennon of Newsday says Mets COO Jeff Wilpon is not scheduled to come to Indianapolis this week, suggesting the team won't be signing major free agents at the Meetings.
- The Dodgers met with Nick Green's agent, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown. Green, 31, hit .236/.303/.366 in 309 plate appearances for the Red Sox this year while playing all around the infield (mainly shortstop).
- The Mariners have begun preliminary negotiations with Russell Branyan, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Branyan already rejected an offer from the Mariners in November. The Mets appear to be among Branyan's other suitors.
- Jon Heyman reports, via Twitter, that Adrian Beltre is "not likely" to accept Seattle arbitration offer. They'll still likely try to retain him, however. It might be difficult to keep Branyan, Beltre, and Jose Lopez, with Ken Griffey Jr. already signed.
- In case you were wondering, Morosi tweets that nothing is cooking with the Braves and Diamondbacks for Derek Lowe. Nor are the D'Backs in on Bronson Arroyo.
- Dan Uggla doesn't like the uncertainty surrounding what uniform he'll be wearing in five months. The Marlins slugger says he still sees himself as a second baseman, though many teams would like to move the 30-home run machine to third base. Matt Lindstrom is in a similar spot.
- Andy MacPhail told Steve Melewski that free agents are beginning to look at Baltimore in a different light, thanks to the great reviews their farm system is getting in the national media. That said, Melewski still feels that if the O's add a big name this offseason, it'll be through a trade.
- Alex Speier takes a look at what pieces the Red Sox could potentially use as trade bait.
- Joel Sherman explains why Andy Pettitte is so important to the Yankees, why personal relationships matter among GMs, and the Mets struggles in finding a taker for Luis Castillo.
- Mark Feinsand gives Yankee fans five situations to watch this week, including Pettitte, Roy Halladay, Johnny Damon, the Tigers, and Hideki Matsui.
Rays Rumors: Bradley, Shouse, Lindstrom
8:48am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that the "Rays are growing less hopeful of swapping Burrell to the Cubs."
12:28am: Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times has a few pieces of info from Indianapolis as we approach the early stages of the Winter Meetings:
- Joe Maddon has arrived in Indianapolis, but executive VP Andrew Friedman won't arrive until tomorrow, so don't look for any moves just yet.
- The Cubs are confident that they'll move Milton Bradley and his attitude out of Chicago, but if it's going to be to Tampa Bay for Pat Burrell, it will require "serious negotiation." Topkin notes that there's a near $15MM difference between the money owed to the two.
- Brian Shouse is unlikely to accept arbitration.
- The Rays are interested in Matt Lindstrom, as we've heard, but as of Sunday night, nothing is close between the Marlins and Tampa Bay.
Zach Duke, Paul Maholm Available?
Pirates starters Zach Duke and Paul Maholm are available, says Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. However, Morosi's source says the Bucs would have to be "overwhelmed" to trade either pitcher. Maholm is owed $11MM over the next two seasons. Duke is under team control for two more years and is due an arbitration raise on this year's $2.2MM salary. Morosi sees Duke getting $3-4MM in 2010; I think his 4.06 ERA in 213 innings will fetch him more.
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette noted this morning that teams are inquiring on Duke, Maholm, Matt Capps, and Ryan Doumit, though GM Neal Huntington has said he's not shopping anyone. Kovacevic also said that it'd take a "significant return" to pry Duke or Maholm loose.
Brian Bruney Braves Rumor
George A. King III of the New York Post talked to an official from a team interested in Yankees reliever Brian Bruney, and was told, "We asked about him but hear he is going to the Braves." The Braves would seem an odd match for Bruney, who is arbitration-eligible and due a raise on last year's $1.25MM salary. The Braves already signed Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito and might be saddled with Rafael Soriano if he accepts arbitration. Honestly, I'm not buying this rumor.
Angels Getting Interest In Matthews Jr.?
According to a tweet from Yahoo's Tim Brown this morning, the Angels are getting enough interest in Gary Matthews Jr. to believe that it's possible they get a deal done to move his salary off the books.
Matthews, 35, has two years and $23.5MM remaining on the five-year, $50MM he signed with the Angels back in 2006 (he gets a $500K bonus if traded). He's been a disappointment since coming to the Angels, and has been thought to be virtually immovable in years past.
However, we've seen several teams as of late looking to exchange bad contracts in an effort to free payroll or address other needs. Some that have been mentioned as of late include Milton Bradley, Pat Burrell, Derek Lowe, Luis Castillo, and Juan Pierre. A few days ago Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports noted that the Angels were working hard to trade Matthews to clear payroll, so taking back a bad contract might not fulfill that goal.
If the Angels are getting genuine interest in someone taking on Matthews Jr.'s contract, who are some possible fits, and what pieces do you see going back to the Angels?
Mets Looking At Gil Meche
6:39am: Matthew Cerrone at MetsBlog relays some info from Jon Heyman's appearance on WNBC in New York. Heyman agrees with Sherman that the Mets could look to spread their available funds around before turning to a big-name free agent.
6:27am: While the Mets plan to look at Matt Holliday and Jason Bay, and have high hopes that John Lackey's price will come down enough to entice him to accept a four-year offer, they also realize that's an unlikely scenario and are exploring other avenues. They're currently intrigued by Royals righty Gil Meche, according to Joel Sherman.
Meche has two years and $24MM left on his contract, which includes a limited no-trade clause. As we heard earlier tonight, the Royals are working to trim payroll in order to address some needs within their lineup. While Meche (when healthy) is an important part of their rotation, the $24MM owed to him could be better spent improving multiple areas of the team, especially in this economy.
Sherman says the Mets may explore moving Luis Castillo as part of a Meche deal, possibly taking back another bad contract such as Kyle Farnsworth or Juan Cruz if necessary. If it were to happen, Castillo's .387 OBP alone would be of benefit to a Royals team that was starved for OBP last season, posting a team mark of .318, tied for third-worst in baseball.
The Mets are concerned, however, about adding another injury risk to a rotation that already features such question marks as John Maine, Mike Pelfrey, and Oliver Perez. However, most free agent options lack elite talent and/or strong durability.
Meche seems like a solid target for the Mets, provided he's healthy. What sort of offers do you see being proposed by Omar Minaya?
Overnight Links: Red Sox, Jays, Posey, Past Deals
Some overnight links for your viewing pleasure as we start to get into the real late hours of the night:
- USA Today's Bob Nightengale says good morning with a series of tweets; Nightengale says he continues to hear Edwin Jackson's name floated about, and that "most executives" feel he'll be traded soon. He also wouldn't be surprised to see Adrian Beltre fall into Boston's lap if he declines arbitration. Not sure where he envisions Mike Lowell in that scenario.
- Jeff Zrebiec lists ten trade targets for the Orioles, though he admits that some are highly unlikely. In a separate piece, Peter Schmuck opines that it's not a waste of money if the O's spend money on free agents this offseason to add a few wins and show future free agents that Baltimore is trending in the right direction.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com explains why it would be unlike the Red Sox sacrifice a high draft pick for a free agent reliever such as Mike Gonzalez or Rafael Soriano. As you know, Boston currently owes their first-round #29 pick to the Blue Jays for signing Marco Scutaro.
- Anything can happen at the Winter Meetings, writes Peter Schmuck, who reminds us of the 1990 deal between the Blue Jays and Padres that sent Fred McGriff and Tony Fernandez to San Diego for Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter. That trade started off as a minor discussion.
- The Boston Herald has ten things to keep in mind at this year's Winter Meetings.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch looks at how the economy will affect this year's Winter Meetings, and poses five key questions to keep in mind this time around.
- Gordon Wittenmyer looks at why the Cubs are optimistic that they can move Milton Bradley this offseason.
- Count Tim Wakefield and Daniel Bard among those in the Jason Bay camp for the Red Sox, says Michael Silverman. While Matt Holliday may be a more complete player, Wakefield and Bard would prefer their friend and proven AL East commodity. Good read, if for no other reason than Wakefield's quote at the end on how closely he follows the offseason: "…We’ll be sitting in the dugout in spring training in Fort Myers and I’ll look across and be, ‘How the hell did he get over there?’ ”
- John Tomase touches on the Red Sox needs this offseason. Tomase hits most of the names we've already heard, and throws Mark DeRosa and Jamey Carroll into the mix as well.
- Quick! Who do you see spending the most money on the draft in 2010? Bet you didn't guess the Blue Jays (unless of course you took into consideration the large hint I provided in the title of this post). Reports are that the Jays will have a ridiculous $16MM to spend on the draft in 2010. The Jays have eight picks in the first three rounds (nine if Rod Barajas signs elsewhere), and plan to take full advantage of it.
- El Lefty Malo takes a look at the possibility that the Giants sign Jason Kendall as their starting catcher because of the belief that Buster Posey isn't ready. Apparently, it's not a thought that sits well.
- MLB.com looks back at some of the best trades and free agent signings by each club in the National League and American League since the era of Divisional play began. They've also got a more generic list of the best moves of the past 40 seasons.
- Per Kyodo News, several teams have expressed interest in So Taguchi, according to his agent Alan Nero. Several teams? Can't say I expected that one.