Orioles Notes: Beltre, Delgado, Wolf, Blalock
The Orioles are positioned to be buyers in free agency, according to Jeff Zrebiec and Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun. GM Andy MacPhail says that the club is looking to spend this offseason, but there remains some skepticism in Baltimore as to whether owner Peter Angelos will be willing to open up his checkbook. If the O's decide to dole out dollars this winter, here are some of the players they will and won't be targeting:
- Barring a change in organizational plans, you can cross the Orioles off the list of suitors for outfielders Matt Holliday and Jason Bay.
- The Orioles have contacted the agents of Chone Figgins and John Lackey, but are hardly alone in that regard.
- Adrian Beltre and Pedro Feliz top the O's wish list to replace Melvin Mora at third base.
- At first base, Nick Johnson, Hank Blalock, and Carlos Delgado are options. We know that Baltimore is not the only club keeping tabs on Delgado, as his last employer is said to be keeping an eye on him as well. The 37-year-old slugger ranked #43 on Tim's Top 50 Free Agents list, where it is predicted that he will sign with the Orioles.
- Andy MacPhail & Co. are considering Dodgers pitchers Randy Wolf and Jon Garland, as well as Braden Looper. MacPhail noted that the club is not afraid to take a chance on a hurler with a history of injuries and high upside. Former Oriole Erik Bedard, Ben Sheets, and Rich Harden all fit the bill.
- The O's would gladly add an established closer at the right price. Billy Wagner, Fernando Rodney, and Mike Gonzalez are mentioned as members of a deep crop of available relievers.
- It shouldn't be long before the Orioles agree to terms with pitcher Mark Hendrickson as both sides want to get a deal done. The 6'9 lefty spent time with four different organizations before coming to Baltimore – eight if you count NBA teams.
Indians Unlikely To Trade Wood
The Indians are not likely to deal Kerry Wood this winter, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
In order to trade the 32-year-old, Cleveland would have to eat a significant portion of his $10.5MM salary. Even then, Wood's value is not quite as high as it could be with the wide array of relievers available on the open market.
The post suggests that the Indians would be better off holding on to Wood until June or July. If they are not contenders at that point, then they can shop him when he is owed just a fraction of his salary. However, Rosenthal and Morosi caution that teams may balk at Wood's $11MM club option for 2011, which vests if he finishes 55 games this season. The 6'5 righty finished 50 games last season for the Tribe.
Do you agree that the Indians should refrain from dealing Wood for now? Let's hear your thoughts in the comments.
Waechter and Lowery Opt For Free Agency
The Kansas City Star reports that Royals relievers Doug Waechter and Devon Lowery have elected to become free agents rather than accept demotions to the club's Triple-A affiliate.
Waechter posted a 3.69 ERA and 6.5 K/9 in 48 appearances with the Marlins in 2008. However, the 28-year-old pitched just 5.1 innings for the Royals in '09 due to injuries.
Lowery, who is 26-years-old, saw just a handful of innings in the big leagues for the Royals in 2008.
Odds & Ends: Halladay, Teahen, Karstens
Some Saturday night links:
- MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (via Twitter) says that Roy Halladay's reported unwillingness to stay in Toronto is less than shocking and speculates that his time with the Blue Jays is nearing its end.
- Mark Teahen's flexibility could open up some interesting options for the White Sox this winter, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. GM Ken Williams says that he likes Teahen at third base, but wouldn't completely rule out the possibility of moving him to first base or right field.
- Chad Jennings of the LoHud Yankees Blog weighed in on the Astros' signing of former Yankees minor league pitcher Jose Valdez. Jennings was surprised not by the signing but by the fact that Houston chose to protect the once-highly touted hurler from the Rule 5 draft.
- As mentioned by Jennings, the Pirates DFA'd pitcher Jeff Karstens. Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com characterized the move as "somewhat surprising." The 27-year-old posted an ERA of 5.42 and 1.16 K/BB in 108 IP last season.
Giants Rumors: Posey, Molina, Uggla, Johnson
Recently re-signed GM Brian Sabean has his work cut out for him this offseason. Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle brings us the latest on the Giants offseason:
- Giants brass are discussing whether or not they feel Buster Posey will be ready to play in the majors at the start of the 2010. Even if they decide he's not, Bengie Molina isn't likely to be back in San Francisco. As we've heard elsewhere, the Mets are interested in the 35-year-old catcher.
- Sabean said that as of Thursday, the club wasn't close to a deal for Florida's Dan Uggla. However, Schulman notes that Sabean pointed out Freddy Sanchez's ability to play third base, which leaves open the possibility of acquiring someone to play second base.
- Sabean also said that he is looking at "second-tier" free agents who want to play at AT&T Park. One player to keep an eye on is Nick Johnson, who is beloved by manager Bruce Bochy. In 133 games with the Nationals and Marlins last season, the 30-year-old posted .291/.426/.405 with 8 HRs – his lowest total in any 100+ game season.
Odds & Ends: Chapman, Cubs, Holliday, Damon
Links for Saturday afternoon …
- Anthony McCarron of the New York Daily News spoke with a baseball executive who believes the Yankees will wind up with Aroldis Chapman. "My bet is that it'll come down to the Yankees and Red Sox, like it always does…" said the executive. "And I think the Yankees will get him. They can give him a big-league contract over five years for $20 million and they don't even feel that."
- The NY Post's Bart Hubbuch reports that the rumored three-way deal involving Milton Bradley, Kevin Millwood and Luis Castillo "isn't happening because the Rangers aren't interested in giving up Millwood so easily." He also mentions that the Mets aren't expected to make any majors moves until the Winter Meetings in two weeks.
- Paul Sullivan at The Chicago Tribune rounds up some Cubs' rumors all in one convenient spot, just like our Cubs archive.
- Meanwhile, Phil Rogers of The Chicago Tribune posted his projections on where some notable free agents will land. He sees Matt Holliday signing with Boston, while both Jason Bay and John Lackey land with the Angels.
- Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post Dispatch notes that the market for Holliday is diminished because officials from the Angels and Giants said they "would not be vying" for his services.
- The Yankees' biggest focus right now is finding a "common ground" with Johnny Damon, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff. Hideki Matsui seems to be less of a priority.
- Larry LaRue of The News Tribune says that the Josh Johnson situation in Florida represents the worst-case scenario for the Mariners and Felix Hernandez.
- Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker passes along a report that says Yusei Kikuchi has inked his first pro contract with the Seibu Lions. Kikuchi will not be eligible for international free agency for at least nine years, though Seibu could make him available through the posting process before that.
Reds Notes: Jocketty, Nix, Gomes
John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer gathered a few bits of information Saturday from Reds general manager Walt Jocketty:
- The Reds have made an offer to Laynce Nix, who was outrighted off the 40-man roster this week and elected free agency. Jocketty believes he "may take it" but first wants to "see what's out there."
- Jocketty believes the Reds will be able to "get something done" with arbitration-eligible outfielder Jonny Gomes, who hit .267/.338/.541 in 2009 with 20 home runs and 51 RBI. It's not clear if the two sides are talking about a multi-year deal, but that would make some sense.
- Jocketty also had some nice things to say about the prospects that the Reds added to their 40-man roster on Friday, protecting them from December's Rule 5 Draft.
To track the Reds throughout the offseason, check out MLBTR's team archive.
Josh Johnson Extension Talks Reach Impasse
SATURDAY: MLB.com's Joe Frisaro gathered a bit more information on the failed talks, including this quote from Johnson's agent:
"We talked twice for a total of 30 minutes. Everything happened this week. There were no hard feelings about it, no harsh words. They offered us a deal that we felt was way under market value for the dollars and years."
FRIDAY, 6:12pm: ESPN's Jerry Crasnick is reporting that contract extension talks between Josh Johnson and the Marlins have reached an impasse, and that the righthander will not agree to a new deal with the team at all.
"Based on our conversations, there's no chance of doing a long-term deal with the Marlins," [Johnson's agent Matt] Sosnick said. "We made it clear that it was going to be this year or it wasn't going to happen. It was now or never. And the Marlins agreed."
Sosnick says that Johnson made it clear he wanted to remain with the team, "but they just weren't comfortable going to the fourth year." Marlins' GM Michael Hill wouldn't comment on the negotiations as per team policy.
The 25-year-old Johnson had a 3.23 ERA in 33 starts for the Marlins this year, making his first All Star Team. The righty earned $1.45MM in 2009, and has two more years of arbitration eligibility remaining before he hits the free agent market. Sosnick added that given his age and performance, Johnson's next contract could be worth nine figures.
Halladay Wants To Move On?
Blue Jays CEO Paul Beeston told George King III of the New York Post that ace Roy Halladay "is not inclined to sign" with Toronto if (or when) he hits free agency.
Halladay, 32, is only under contract through the upcoming season and Toronto might not have the kind of money it would take to extend his contract anyway. "We would like to sign him, he is an original Blue Jay and we have never had a pitcher as good as him," Beeston told The Post on Friday. "But he is not inclined to sign with us."
The right-hander has a 148-76 career record and a 3.43 lifetime ERA. He went 17-10 this past season with a 2.79 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and a league-leading nine complete games and four shutouts. There's a good chance he'll be traded before he nears the open market. A deal could go down this winter, or we might have to wait until mid-summer. Either way, all of baseball's biggest spenders are sure to at least try for his services.
Contreras Considering Move To Japan?
According to Japan's Nikkan Sports, via Patrick Newman's NPB Tracker, free agent right-hander Jose Contreras may be seriously considering a move to Japan.
Contreras is heading across the Pacific next week to set his 16-year-old son up in a Japanese high school exchange program. He might also be looking for a new employer, Contreras, 37, posted a 4.92 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and a 106/53 K/BB ratio in 23 starts (131 2/3 innings) during the 2009 season. His fastball averaged 92 MPH, according to FanGraphs.
Japan's Sanspo ran a report last week claiming that Contreras reached out to the Hanshin Tigers, and a source with the team said (translation via NPB Tracker), "It seems like he wants to play in Japan. We’ve already decided against it, but it’s not 100%,” later adding, “(Contreras) seems like he would be quite inexpensive, so there will probably be other teams that show interest.” Contreras may or may not have the stuff to compete in Japan, but keep in mind the Yokohama BayStars rejected Sammy Sosa when he offered to sign in 2006 for a measly $500K. Of course, that was after he hit .221/.295/.376 for Baltimore.