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Tankersley, Others Hit Free Agency

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Taylor Tankersley and a number of others with big league experience recently hit free agency, as Baseball America's Matt Eddy reports. Joining the left-hander on the open market are Bobby Scales (Cubs), Justin Lehr (Reds), Paul Phillips (Rockies), Juan Rincon (Rockies), Hector Luna (Marlins), Anderson Hernandez (Astros), Adam Stern (Brewers), Denny Bautista (Giants), Brandon Medders (Giants), Willie Eyre (Rangers) and Sean Henn (Blue Jays).

Tankersley, the Marlins' first round pick in the 2004 draft, succeeded early in his career, but has since struggled. Still just 27, Tankersley brings a career 8.8 K/9 to the free agent market and could become a lefty specialist. He missed all of 2009 with a stress fracture in his elbow, but it wouldn't be surprising to see a team like the Diamondbacks take a flier on the former prospect.

Bautista, who turns 28 this weekend, is another interesting arm. He posted a 3.74 ERA with the Giants this year and struck out (11.8 K/9) and walked (7.2 BB/9) tons of batters in 33.2 innings. The right-hander has always walked lots of hitters, but his mid-90s fastball and ability to induce strikeouts may tempt teams looking to buy low on live arms.

Mets, K-Rod Resolve Grievance

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The Mets and Francisco Rodriguez resolved the closer's grievance with the team, according to statements from the Mets and the Players Association. Rodriguez decided not to challenge the Mets’ decision to withhold his 2010 salary after he injured himself in a non-baseball-related incident this August. He says he looks forward to remaining with the Mets and apologized to the team’s owners, players and fans.

The Mets agreed not to attempt to convert Rodriguez’s contract to a non-guaranteed deal and will remove him from the disqualified list. The team lost its closer to a season-ending thumb ligament operation, but ultimately saved $3.1MM.

Nationals Sign Mike Rizzo To Five-Year Extension

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The Nationals signed GM Mike Rizzo to a five-year extension and promoted him to executive vice president of baseball operations and GM, according to the team. Rizzo, who turns 50 later this year, has been Washington's GM since August 2009 and has acted as GM since March of last year.

The Diamondbacks drafted Brandon Webb, Justin Upton, Stephen Drew and others when Rizzo was the team’s scouting director. Rizzo has continued drafting aggressively with the Nationals, selecting Stephen Strasburg (2009) and Bryce Harper (2010) with recent first overall picks. The Nationals have also drafted Drew Storen, Jordan Zimmermann and Danny Espinosa under Rizzo. 

Rizzo has signed Yunesky Maya, Joel Peralta, Miguel Batista and Matt Capps to deals that paid dividends for the Nationals. Maya climbed to the major leagues this year, Peralta and Batista pitched well and Capps made the All-Star team before Washington traded him to Minnesota for catching prospect Wilson Ramos.

Rizzo, who says he intends to improve Washington’s pitching this offseason, committed millions to Jason Marquis and Chien-Ming Wang last offseason, but neither pitcher has contributed meaningfully so far. 

Reds Rumors: Hernandez, Rhodes, Bruce

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We heard yesterday that the Reds are likely to decline their half of the $4MM mutual option on Orlando Cabrera for 2011 and that the club has interest in retaining Jonny Gomes and Ramon Hernandez. Here’s more news on the 2010 NL Central Champs from John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer:

  • Devin Mesoraco’s progress could impact the offers the Reds make to Hernandez. Mesoraco, a 22-year-old catcher, had an excellent season at the plate this year. The 2007 first rounder hit .302/.377/.587 at three minor league stops with 26 total homers. He’s now playing in the Arizona Fall League and figures to need more minor league seasoning given his lack of experience in the upper minors.
  • The Reds have talked to Arthur Rhodes’ agent about bringing the lefty back in 2011. Rhodes told Fay he’d like to return and talks will resume next week, so there’s a chance the sides work something out before Rhodes hits the open market.
  • The Reds expect Jay Bruce to qualify as a Super Two, but they haven’t heard official word yet. Bruce would likely earn a few million if he’s arbitration eligible this year and that commitment would likely affect the Reds’ ability to spend on other players.
  • MLBTR's Tim Dierkes heard in June that the Super Two cutoff will be earlier than usual this year and that Bruce will be the Super Two with the fewest days of service time. With just two years and 125 days of service time, Bruce will have less big league experience than any Super Two in recent years.

Braves Release Melky Cabrera

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The Braves released Melky Cabrera, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Cabrera, who joined the Braves in last winter's Javier Vazquez trade, was a non-tender candidate after a disappointing season in Atlanta. The 26-year-old hit just .255/.317/.354 in 509 plate appearances this year, so the Braves decided not to tender him a contract worth anything close to his 2010 salary of $3.1MM. 

Cabrera can play all three outfield positions and was useful at the plate for the 2009 World Champion Yankees, so he figures to draw interest as a fourth outfielder. Whichever club signs Cabrera will have him under team control through 2012.

The Braves expected more from Cabrera, but they did obtain Arodys Vizcaino in the Vazquez deal. The 19-year-old right-hander was pitching well in the minors before a torn elbow ligament forced him out of action for most of the second half.

Cubs Hire Mike Quade

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The Cubs signed manager Mike Quade to a two-year deal with a club option for 2013, according to the team. Quade, 53, became Chicago’s interim manager on August 23rd after Lou Piniella retired. He was the team’s third base coach from 2007-10 after managing the Triple-A Iowa Cubs for four seasons.

Iowa’s most recent manager, Ryne Sandberg, was also a finalist for the major league managerial job. Mariners manager Eric Wedge interviewed for the position and the Cubs also appeared interested in Yankees manager Joe Girardi, whose contract expires after the season.

Quade led the Cubs to a 24-13 record down the stretch, though he had never before managed in the major leagues. He has managed for 17 years in the minors, though, and got his first managerial gig 25 years ago.

Minor Deal, Major Impact: Unheralded Moves Pay Off

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The Yankees probably wouldn't be in the ALCS if they hadn't spent big on Mark Teixeira and C.C. Sabathia. The Giants probably wouldn't be in the NLCS if they hadn't drafted Buster Posey and Tim Lincecum. But less celebrated moves also contributed to the success of the four teams in the LCS. Here's a closer look at four acquisitions that have shaped this year's pennant race:

  • As I wrote in September, the Giants' decision to sign Pat Burrell to a minor league deal changed the NL West from that point on. Not only did the Giants get 18 home runs and a .266/.364/.509 line from the slugger, they kept him away from the Padres and kept their division rivals out of the playoffs. This is about as impactful as a minor league deal gets.
  • When the Yankees signed Marcus Thames to a minor league deal, they probably weren't expecting him to hit .288/.350/.491, but that's exactly what he did. Brian Cashman deserves credit for adding Thames to Joe Girardi's bench.
  • Wilson Valdez, who signed a minor league deal with the Phillies last fall, didn't hit like Burrell or Thames, but he played second when Chase Utley was injured and short when Jimmy Rollins got hurt. He didn't hit badly, either, posting a .258/.306/.360 line.
  • None of the Rangers minor league deals (Alex Cora, Endy Chavez, Mark Prior and others) made a difference at the major league level this year, but a look back at GM Jon Daniels' first Rule 5 draft reveals a decision that's looking smart now: the Rangers plucked Alexi Ogando from the A's in the 2005 Rule 5 draft. The right-hander has yet to allow a run in two postseason appearances, after posting a 1.30 ERA in the regular season.

 

What They Were Saying: NL West GMs

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The NL West has a few of baseball's longest-tenured general managers and one of the game's newest. Here's what they were saying about the group back when they got their first GM jobs: 

Jed Hoyer

“Hoyer, 35, clearly is among the new generation of young general managers who put a great deal of stock in statistics and quantitative analysis, but he's also said to place an equal emphasis on scouting. Perhaps most importantly, he has experience as an assistant GM under baseball's true Boy Wonder, Red Sox ramrod Theo Epstein.” – Chris Jenkins, The San Diego Union-Tribune, October 25th, 2009 

Ned Colletti

“Colletti, 50, has a reputation of being an old-school executive, having learned the trade under hard-bitten Giant General Manager Brian Sabean. [Former Dodgers GM Paul] DePodesta, 32, represented the trend of young Ivy League-educated executives who are making their way into front offices.” – Steve Henson, The Los Angeles Times, November 16th, 2005

Dan O’Dowd

“O'Dowd, 41, oversaw the Indians' farm department from 1988 to 1992 and spent six years as the Indians director of baseball operations and assistant general manager. He renounced the final four years of a five-year, $1.5MM contract a year ago to pursue a general manager's job, initially interviewing but coming up short in Baltimore, the organization he worked in for five years before moving to Cleveland.” – Tracy Ringolsby, The Rocky Mountain News, September 21st, 1999

Brian Sabean

“Sabean emphatically said he will have the final say in all baseball matters, which will start this week with the expected changes in the coaching staff after a series of meetings with Manager Dusty Baker. Sabean was hired by [former GM Bob] Quinn as an assistant G.M. and director of scouting and player personnel and made such an impression in rebuilding the Giants' farm system that three teams sought permission to interview him as a G.M., [Managing General Partner Peter] Magowan said.” – Mark Gonzales, The San Jose Mercury News, October 1st, 1996

Kevin Towers

“Bright, personable and a Padre through and through – he was the organization's first-round draft choice in 1982 – Towers looks like a good hire. Any time you believe you have the right prospect in-house, it cuts down considerably on the education process. Kevin knows this organization – and what's needed – as well as anybody. And Towers is a former pitcher. You can talk all you want, but spotting good young arms is what makes a successful general manager.” Nick Canepa – The San Diego Union-Tribune, November 18th, 1995

 

El Duque Intends To Pitch In 2011

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Orlando Hernandez hasn't pitched in the majors for three years, but he intends to play in 2011, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson (on Twitter). The Cuban right-hander has tried to reach the majors in each of the past two seasons without making it higher than Triple-A. But even at 45 years old, the former playoff hero believes he has the stuff to pitch in the major leagues.

Hernandez's minor league numbers suggest he may have what it takes to pitch at the highest level. He has stuck out more than a batter per inning at each one of the four minor league stops he has made over the course of the past two seasons. His ERA has never been above 2.45 in that time, but he has logged just 26.2 innings, so the sample size is small.

The Rangers, who signed Hernandez last year, and the Nationals, who signed him this year, did not call him up despite his numbers. If anyone can match Jamie Moyer's late-career success, it could be El Duque, who has never relied on an overpowering fastball and has always had a deceptive delivery.

Darvish Intends To Stay In Japan

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Yu Darvish, the 24-year-old right-hander who has intrigued MLB teams for years, says he expects to play in Japan next year. He said on his personal blog that he's staying put according to Jason Coskrey of the Japan Times (via Twitter). Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker translates Darvish’s statement.

"Next year … I’ll be wearing a Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters uniform," Darvish wrote.

Earlier in the fall, some suggested that the Nippon Ham Fighters would post Darvish and make him available to MLB teams. That would likely have made Darvish one of the most highly coveted starters available, after Cliff Lee and possibly Zack Greinke. Darvish did not post an ERA above 2.00 his first four seasons in Japan and he struck out more than a batter per inning with an above-average walk rate (2.1 BB/9) during that period.

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