Red Sox Exercise David Ortiz’s 2011 Option
The Red Sox exercised David Ortiz's $12.5MM option for 2011, according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. Big Papi has continually voiced his desire for a multi-year deal, but he's only under contract for 2011 at this point. The sides could renegotiate the deal to cover 2012 and beyond if the Red Sox like the idea of keeping Ortiz in Boston.
The 34-year-old recently told Rob Bradford that he considers himself “one of the best hitters in the game” and he has some impressive numbers on his side. Ortiz was among the American League leaders in slugging (8th, .529), OPS (8th, .899), home runs (5th, 32) and walks (9th, 82) this year.
The Rangers declined their side of the $9MM option for DH Vladimir Guerrero yesterday.
Nationals Aiming To Make A “Splash”
The Nationals are going to pursue top players aggressively this offseason and they may be a sleeper team in the Cliff Lee sweepstakes, according to ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick. They are looking for an elite starter and Lee will be available to them within a few days.
"They're going to step up and try to get a top free agent,'' a baseball insider told Crasnick. "They'd like to make a splash.''
If Lee signs with the Yankees, the Rangers or someone else, the Nationals will consider trading for James Shields, Matt Garza or another potentially available starter. The Nationals have no interest in including Ian Desmond and Danny Espinosa in potential trades, according to Crasnick.
The Nationals appear to be interested in Carl Crawford and have expressed interest in adding a top starter since the summer.
The Mets’ Decision To Hire J.P. Ricciardi
The Mets know J.P. Ricciardi signed Vernon Wells, B.J. Ryan and Frank Thomas to questionable deals, but they still wanted to hire him. So did the Red Sox for that matter. But their interest in Ricciardi probably had little to do with those multi-million dollar contracts. Theo Epstein likely wanted the former Blue Jays GM around because of his shrewd under-the-radar pickups and consistently productive drafts. It was a major reason why Mets GM Sandy Alderson hired Ricciardi.
“I know first hand he’s a superb talent evaluator," Alderson said when the Mets announced the hiring earlier this week. "He’ll be a tremendous resource in a variety of areas.”
Ricciardi, Toronto’s GM from 2001-09, added expensive free agents who didn’t perform as expected so, like former Mets GM Omar Minaya, he got fired. It would be unwise to try to analyze Ricciardi’s tenure in Toronto in a few hundred words, but certain deals will give us insight into what the executive brings to the Mets and why Sandy Alderson wanted to reunite with his former Oakland colleague.
Every one of Ricciardi’s drafts from 2002-07 produced at least one major league regular. Dave Bush (2002), Shaun Marcum (2003), Aaron Hill (2003), Casey Janssen (2004), Adam Lind (2004), Ricky Romero (2005), Travis Snider (2006), Brett Cecil (2007) and J.P. Arencibia (2007) are all Ricciardi draftees. It’s still early to be evaluating the 2008-09 draft classes, but Tyler Pastornicky (2008, no longer with Toronto), Eric Thames (2008), Jacob Marisnick (2009) and Chad Jenkins (2009) are promising.
Jose Bautista deserves credit for turning his career around, but Ricciardi was the one who traded for him. Ricciardi also bought low on Marco Scutaro, Rod Barajas, Scott Downs, Scott Richmond, Josh Towers and others. They aren’t all MVP candidates like Bautista, but none of those players cost the Jays much and they all contributed.
Ricciardi overspent on free agents and, at times, on his own players. He signed Frank Thomas and A.J. Burnett to contracts that didn’t work out particularly well. The Blue Jays owe Vernon Wells $86MM through 2014 because of a deal they offered under Ricciardi. And the Blue Jays spent $10MM on B.J. Ryan this year because Ricciardi overpaid for his services after the 2005 season.
But Alderson didn’t hire Ricciardi to overpay for closers or center fielders (the Amazins already have that covered). With decades of experience in big league front offices, Ricciardi has developed an eye for talent that should help the Mets.
Cubs Notes: Nick Johnson, Wood, Payroll
The Cubs plan to add a starter, a right handed reliever and a first baseman this offseason and the Chicago Sun-Times has the details on which players could be suiting up at Wrigley Field in 2011:
- There are indications that GM Jim Hendry is focusing on “the likes of” Nick Johnson if the medicals look good enough. Johnson appeared in just 24 games last year, but has a .401 career on base percentage and doubles power. A year ago the Cubs signed another former Yankee coming off an injury-plagued season, but the Xavier Nady deal didn’t work out as well as the Cubs hoped.
- Hendry is keeping an eye on Kerry Wood, a player who would reportedly interest the Cubs at the right price. The GM says he has a “wonderful relationship” with Wood, but insisted that it would be foolish to get into specifics.
- The Cubs don’t have a firm payroll, but it still appears that the team will spend less than it did in 2010.
iPhone App Now Available
Just in time for the offseason, our iPhone app is now available! It is listed as Baseball Trade Rumors in the app store and costs $2.99. You can search the store or just click this link. The app has been described as "beyond belief" by legendary journalist Peter Gammons.
The bread and butter of the app is the customizable push notifications. By default it sends an alert to your iPhone for all transactions, and you can also add alerts for any combination of players, teams, and leagues you desire. If you want to be the first to know where Cliff Lee is headed, who the Tigers are looking at, or anything else hot stove-related, this app can accommodate you.
The headlines page of the app shows our 25 latest posts, no ads, easily refreshed. Individual posts with hyperlinks can be viewed, of course. You can also leave comments on MLBTradeRumors.com through the app. Check it out today!
Brewers Hire Ron Roenicke As Manager
The Brewers officially announced the hiring of Ron Roenicke to a two-year deal with a club option for 2013, according to MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times and Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel first reported the hiring Tuesday and it didn't take long for people in baseball to praise the former Angels coach. Rays manager Joe Maddon told Haudricourt that he sees parallels between Roenicke and himself.
"I think he’ll be a very good manager." Maddon said. "He’s conversant, he listens. He’s got all these really good qualities that’s going to make him a good manager. Guys like Ron need to be found out."
Bobby Valentine, Bob Melvin, and Joey Cora were also reportedly candidates for the job. Roenicke has served as a coach with the Angels for eleven years, managing in the minor leagues before that. He spent eight seasons playing outfield in the Majors for the Dodgers, Mariners, Padres, Giants, Phillies, and Reds.
Yankees Don’t Plan To Pursue Crawford, Werth
The Yankees will try to sign Cliff Lee this offseason, but it doesn’t look like they’ll bid as aggressively on the top free agent bats. At this point, they don’t plan to pursue Jayson Werth and Carl Crawford, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News.
Brett Gardner, Nick Swisher and Curtis Granderson give the Yankees a capable and relatively affordable outfield. Crawford and Werth will require tens of millions of dollars and multiyear commitments, so the Yankees are reluctant to enter the bidding for them.
"We are better with Crawford, but at that price?" a Yankees source asked Feinsand. "I'm not sure it's that good of an upgrade."
Of course we didn’t expect the Yankees to end up with Mark Teixeira two winters ago, but they swooped in with a last minute bid. The Bronx Bombers could get by without Crawford and Werth and it appears that they don’t intend to sign either outfielder, but let’s not rule them out completely until it’s official.
Renck On Buck, Lopez, Giambi, Mora
It's already been a busy day for the Rockies what with their declined options on Jeff Francis, Octavio Dotel and (possibly) Miguel Olivo, but the Denver Post's Troy Renck has even more news from the Mile High City. All of Renck's links are from Twitter…
- John Buck is not a candidate to play for Colorado next season, but Renck "knows for a fact" the Rockies like the Angels' Mike Napoli.
- The Rockies are interested in Jose Lopez, among several other right-handed hitters. Lopez had his 2011 option declined today by Seattle and could be non-tendered next month.
- Lopez could be a right-handed option at first base to platoon with Todd Helton, which would make Jason Giambi "unlikely to return." Then again, Renck notes Giambi "really didn't fit last year" in terms of a platoon situation and he was very popular in the clubhouse.
- Melvin Mora wants to come back next season, but there might not be enough playing time available to satisfy him.
- Renck says there's about a "60%" chance that Francis returns to Colorado. He notes that Pittsburgh could be interested in Francis if former Rockies manager Clint Hurdle is hired to manage the Bucs and if Zach Duke is non-tendered.
- It's "uncertain" if Joe Beimel will be pitching for the Rockies next year.
Yu Darvish Plans To Play In MLB In 2012
Japanese right-hander Yu Darvish intends to play in North America in 2012, tweets Newsday's David Lennon. Amidst speculation that Darvish might pursue a transfer to the majors next season, he chose to stay in Japan, a move Lennon says was prompted by a divorce.
Lennon mentions the Mets as a possible suitor, but New York is just one of the teams who would be interested in Darvish, who would be just 25 years old on Opening Day 2012. The Mets, Braves, Rangers, Rays and Yankees have all been connected to Darvish, in addition to the Nationals, Orioles and Red Sox.
Darvish has a career 2.12 ERA, a 3.28 K/BB ratio, and 974 strikeouts in 1036.1 innings for the Nippon Ham Fighters. He's best known to North American fans from his terrific performance at the 2009 World Baseball Classic that helped lead Japan to the title.
Odds & Ends: Indians, Jeter, Ellis, Giants, Chen
Happy 92nd birthday to one of baseball's all-time great pitchers, Bob Feller. "Rapid Robert" piled up 266 wins and 2581 strikeouts in his Hall of Fame career. In tribute to Feller, it's only appropriate that we start this batch of news items with something from Cleveland…
- Infielder Drew Sutton is eligible for free agency after being outrighted to Triple-A by the Indians, reports Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The article notes that Andy Marte is expected to be removed from the Cleveland roster before the Rule 5 draft deadline. Also from Hoynes (via Twitter), the Phillies claimed shortstop Carlos Rivero on waivers from the Tribe. Rivero has a .676 OPS in 2156 minor league plate appearances, none above the Double-A level.
- Hal Steinbrenner's recent comments about the Derek Jeter talks strike ESPN's Buster Olney "as if he's preparing the NYY fans for an ugly Jeter negotiation" (Twitter link).
- Now that the A's have exercised Mark Ellis' option for 2011, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that the team will look into an extension for the veteran second baseman.
- Buster Posey and Brian Wilson are the key reasons why the Giants have a chance to win another World Series, says Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com. "How many teams can say, right now, they have zero interest in upgrading at the need-to-have positions of catcher or closer?", Morosi asks. He cites just the Phillies and Twins, and even those two clubs come with question marks.
- Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com thinks the Giants should sign Eric Chavez to a minor-league contract. (Twitter link)
- Bruce Chen wants a multiyear deal but the Royals are "unlikely" to make the left-hander such an offer, tweets The Kansas City Star's Bob Dutton.
- It could be a bad omen for David Ortiz's $12.5MM option that another slugging DH (Vladimir Guerrero) had his $9MM option for 2011 declined by Texas earlier today, writes Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe.
- Tampa Bay added Elliot Johnson to its 40-man roster, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. Without the move, Johnson would've become a free agent. Johnson had a breakout minor league campaign in Triple-A last season, posting a .319/.375/.475 line and winning the International League MVP award.
- In response to a fan mailbag question about Adam Dunn, MLB.com's Bill Ladson warns about the dangers of the Nationals offering a long-term deal to a defensively-challenged slugger. He points out how fans were also wishing the Nats signed Alfonso Soriano to an extension, but in hindsight Washington made the right move.
- Nationals right-hander Collin Balester is looking for members to join his 'Movember' team. Click here to sign up and join Balester in raising money and awareness in the fight against prostate cancer.