Dodgers “Long Shot” To Land Halladay
Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times reports that the Dodgers are a "long shot" to land Roy Halladay, while Los Angeles GM Ned Colletti indicated an unwillingness to add Chad Billingsley into any Halladay deal.
It doesn't take much of a leap to think the former is a result of the latter.
Colletti refused to discuss Halladay specifically, but said of his desire to improve the pitching staff, "We would like to improve our pitching, especially starting pitching. I don't believe we can subtract from it in order to improve it."
The Dodgers have plenty of prospects for a potential Halladay deal, but adding Billingsley, an established arm, would give them a leg up on other teams who would have the financial flexibility to sign Halladay long-term.
Hernandez also writes that Colletti has been in contact with Brad Ausmus, but hasn't had discussions about Brandon Phillips or Dan Uggla.
Brewers Re-Sign Chris Capuano
The Brewers re-signed rehabbing lefty Chris Capuano, according to Anthony Witrado of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Capuano had his second career Tommy John surgery in May of 2008. He was non-tendered after that season and re-signed on a minor league deal, but setbacks limited him to nine minor league innings this year.
The Brewers are expected to sign a pair of starters from a free agent pool that includes Carl Pavano, Randy Wolf, Jarrod Washburn, Doug Davis, and Jon Garland. But wouldn't it be something if low-risk fliers like Capuano or Mark Mulder made significant contributions?
Mets Call On Russell Branyan
The Mets have called to inquire on free agent Russell Branyan, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown. Branyan was the subject of a November 2nd discussion post here at MLBTR, where it was noted that the first baseman was productive only for the season's first three months perhaps due to a back injury. At the time, interest in a Mariners reunion was mutual, with readers finding a $3-5MM base salary to be reasonable.
On-base machine Nick Johnson could be another option for the Mets at first base; his discussion post can be found here. Johnson's agent Rex Gary told ESPN's Jayson Stark today that more than six teams have expressed interest in his client. Stark wonders if the Giants, Mets, Mariners, Orioles, Nationals, and Red Sox are among them.
Eddie Guardado Plans To Pitch In 2010
Lefty reliever Eddie Guardado intends to pitch in 2010, according to his agent Kevin Kohler (MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan reporting). A visit with Dr. Lewis Yocum has Everyday Eddie feeling better about his knee. Kohler acknowledged that another minor league deal probably makes sense for Guardado, who would like to pitch on the West Coast. Sullivan considers a return to the Rangers unlikely.
Guardado, 39, posted a 4.46 ERA in 38.3 innings this year, with fairly ugly peripheral stats. He hasn't shown much of a platoon split over the last three seasons, with lefties hitting .265/.329/.449 against him.
Odds & Ends: Towers, Randy Johnson, Arroyo
Links for Monday…
- Former GM Kevin Towers will attend the Winter Meetings and meet with three or four teams about possible employment, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Towers prefers the American League.
- Randy Johnson is undecided about pitching in 2010, say Rosenthal and Morosi.
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman tells readers in his latest mailbag that he wouldn't be surprised to see the Braves trade Jordan Schafer.
- Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues speculates on what the Yankees would have to give up for Josh Johnson.
- ESPN's Buster Olney compares a potential Joe Mauer extension to Todd Helton's contract, in that it'd make up such a large percentage of the Twins' payroll.
- Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel discovered that a handful of teams have avoided four-year commitments to pitchers in recent years.
- Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos talked to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports about the team's strategy to beef up scouting.
- For someone who hasn't been paying attention to the hot stove, Bronson Arroyo has a reasonable take on the Reds' direction and recent Scott Rolen/Ramon Hernandez commitments (MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reporting).
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick discusses the role of advanced defensive metrics in player acquisitions.
- MetsBlog's Matthew Cerrone notes that a very similar report surfaced in three different media outlets within a span of a few hours.
Giants Interested In Yorvit Torrealba
MONDAY, 3:40pm: MLB.com's Chris Haft talked to Torrealba's agent Melvin Roman, who confirmed the Giants' interest in his client.
SUNDAY, 9:08pm: After turning down a two-year, $4.5MM offer to remain with the Rockies, Yorvit Torrealba is expected to receive an offer from another NL West club, writes Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Although Renck isn't 100% certain, he believes that the Giants are the team interested in the 31-year-old catcher as they might be looking for someone to keep the seat warm for Buster Posey.
Renck also reports that the Rockies have "expressed preliminary interest" in Brian Schneider in the event that they do not retain Torrealba. In 59 games last season, the veteran catcher recorded an OPS of .627, his lowest since his rookie campaign.
As for Torrealba, does anyone see an NL West club other than the Giants or Rockies being a match?
Barry Zito Signing Reactions From 2006
On December 28th, 2006, the Giants signed 28-year-old lefty Barry Zito to a seven-year, $126MM contract with a full no-trade clause. At the time, it was the largest deal ever for a pitcher. Keep in mind that if Zito's 2014 option vests, his contract will end up paying $137MM. Henry Schulman and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote that the Mets and Rangers were among four teams willing to go to seven years. The Mariners were also known to be in the mix.
Zito's first three seasons with the Giants have resulted in 568.6 innings of 4.56 ball. Even if the option doesn't vest, Zito will still earn $83MM over the next four seasons. It's safe to say this is one of the game's worst contracts, but let's see what people were saying at the time of the signing.
Rob Neyer, ESPN: "Based on the facts at hand, this looks to me like one of the dumber free-agent signings ever. Zito just isn't very good."
Jerry Crasnick, ESPN: "Except for his durability, Zito is not the personification of a staff ace…Still, when proven injury risks such as A.J. Burnett and Gil Meche receive five-year, $55 million deals, there's something to be said for taking the ball."
Keith Law, ESPN: "Zito should be billed for all the ink and electrons spilled over him in the last eight weeks, since the sports media seems to have fallen for the spin that he's actually some sort of ace pitcher, when in fact he's just a durable mid-rotation guy with good marketing…That's a guy you want to get into for seven years and a gazillion dollars?"
Joel Sherman, New York Post: "It is hard to criticize the Mets for not giving Zito the richest package ever for a pitcher, which is what it would have taken to sign him. There is no better predictor of durability for a pitcher than a track record of durability, which Zito has. But as one AL executive said, 'durability is finite and you always have to ask when it ends.'"
Ken Davidoff, Newsday: "In [the Mets'] sights, they had a pitcher who would have cost them only money. Who fit the team in so many ways, when there seemingly are no similar alternatives. And they whiffed."
Ben Shpigel, New York Times: "Zito will make the Giants a more formidable club in 2007, which is almost certain to be Bonds's last season in San Francisco. Assuming that Bonds breaks Hank Aaron's career home run mark next season and then says goodbye, the Giants could take the $16 million they are paying Bonds and reroute it to Zito's salary slot. In that sense, the money the Giants are paying Zito is not that outrageous."
Murray Chass, New York Times: "The Giants can boast all they want about Zito's durability, his six successive seasons of more than 200 innings and 34 or 35 starts, his history of never having been on the disabled list or even missing a start. It's still a dumb contract."
Phil Rogers, Chicago Tribune: "Yes, it's rather optimistic to give a 28-year-old lefty with diminishing stuff $18 million a year for seven years. The question isn't whether the Giants will rue making that commitment to Zito, but how quickly will it become apparent that Scott Boras did it again?"
Tracy Ringolsby, Rocky Mountain News: "Why on Earth would the Giants shell out a seven-year, $126 million contract for free agent Barry Zito? Zito's a nice pitcher, but he's a middle-of- the-rotation guy. The only No. 1 starter on the free-agent market this offseason was Jason Schmidt, and the Giants let him go."
I didn't offer much opinion on the deal, but here's the MLBTR thread from the signing in case you want to read the comments.
Offseason Outlook: Colorado Rockies
Next up in our Offseason Outlook series, the Rockies. Their likely commitments for 2010:
C – Chris Iannetta – $415K+
C – Paul Phillips – $415K
1B – Todd Helton – $16.6MM
2B – Clint Barmes – $1.625MM+
SS – Troy Tulowitzki – $3.5MM
3B – Ian Stewart – $404K
IF – Omar Quintanilla – $408K
LF – Carlos Gonzalez – $403K
CF – Dexter Fowler – $401K
RF – Brad Hawpe – $7.5MM
OF – Ryan Spilborghs – $415K+
OF – Seth Smith – $403K
OF – Matt Murton – $430K+
SP – Ubaldo Jimenez – $1.25MM
SP – Aaron Cook – $9MM
SP – Jorge de la Rosa – $2MM+
SP – Jason Hammel – $422K+
SP – Jeff Francis – $5.75MM
RP – Huston Street – $4.5MM+
RP – Franklin Morales – $402K
RP – Matt Daley – $400K
RP – Taylor Buchholz – $1.055MM+
RP – Manny Corpas – $2.75MM
RP – Matt Belisle – $850K
RP – Randy Flores – $650K
Other obligations: Yorvit Torrealba – $500K, Alan Embree – $250K
Non-tender candidates: Garrett Atkins
The Rockies have about $63MM committed before arbitration raises to Iannetta, Barmes, Spilborghs, Murton, de la Rosa, Hammel, Street, and Buchholz. It would not be surprising to see the raises put the Rockies close to $80MM. They entered 2009 at $75.2MM according to Cot's Baseball Contracts, so there's not much to spend this winter.
While the Rockies may have limited resources, GM Dan O'Dowd doesn't have much to do besides perhaps signing a late-inning reliever. Rafael Betancourt could be the guy; it's believed the Rockies will offer arbitration to the Type A free agent. O'Dowd has also said he's interested in re-signing Jose Contreras and Joe Beimel to bolster the 'pen. The rotation looks strong, with Francis coming back from shoulder surgery to replace Jason Marquis.
The Rockies also appear set at all positions, though the two-year offer made to Yorvit Torrealba indicates they're not completely comfortable with Iannetta behind the dish. Atkins' Colorado career is over; O'Dowd is now just trying to get anything in return before the December 12th non-tender deadline.
The Rockies have a surplus in the outfield, as they might be best-served with an affordable trio of Smith, Fowler, and Gonzalez. That O'Dowd has more than $5MM to spend tells us that either the team's payroll is going up, or Hawpe will be traded. However, while it seems that the Rockies will listen on Hawpe, they won't shop him. Once source of Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi indicated a few weeks ago that the Rockies would seek "a right-handed-hitting outfielder and a reliable seventh-inning reliever" for Hawpe. The Cubs, Mets, and Red Sox could be potential suitors, though the Cubs' plan to move Kosuke Fukudome back to right field might take them out of the mix.
It looks like a quiet offseason for the Rockies – O'Dowd figures to look into potential Hawpe trades and otherwise tinker with the bullpen and bench. Management will still have their hands full with the multiple significant arbitration cases.
Jermaine Dye Open To First Base
Free agent Jermaine Dye is open to playing first base, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Dye's played one game at the position in '05, but teams are asking anyway. He played four games at first in Triple A back in '98.
The FOX writers speculate that Dye could make sense at first base for the Braves, Mets, Giants, and Orioles. Getting Dye out of right field would certainly improve his value. He's been quite bad for at least four years, and that's a sample of nearly 5,000 innings.
White Sox Sign Omar Vizquel
1:22pm: The signing is official, according to MLB.com's Scott Merkin.
MONDAY, 12:13pm: Levine says Vizquel will sign a one-year, $1.375MM deal with the White Sox today.
SUNDAY, 10:37pm: The White Sox offered Vizquel a one-year pact worth about $1MM, writes Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune.
FRIDAY, 3:10pm: Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago hears that the White Sox are close to a deal with Vizquel's representatives. Levine notes that the White Sox offered Vizquel a long-term deal before the 2005 season only to see him sign with the Giants.
10:59am: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the White Sox are close to a deal with free agent shortstop Omar Vizquel. He says it'd be a one-year deal and Vizquel would serve as a backup.
Vizquel, 43 in April, hit .266/.316/.345 in 195 plate appearances for the Rangers this year while playing shortstop, second base, and third base. He earned $1MM.