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Braves Remain Optimistic About Extending Uggla

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2:46pm: The Braves have had positive dialogue with Uggla and remain optimistic about extending him, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).

1:11pm: The Braves are closing in on a five-year extension worth $60-61MM with Dan Uggla, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (on Twitter). Braves GM Frank Wren and agent Terry Bross were planning to discuss an extension earlier in the month. Uggla rejected a four-year, $48MM deal from the Marlins before the Braves acquired him in a November trade.

Uggla, 30, earned $7.8MM last year and would likely have earned over $10MM if he had gone to arbitration this winter. A five-year deal would buy out Uggla's last remaining season of arbitration plus four free agent years. The reported deal appears to value Uggla's four free agent seasons at $12.5MM each.

Uggla batted .287/.369/.508 with 33 homers last year. He won his first Silver Slugger and reached the 30-homer plateau for the fourth consecutive season.

Orioles Maintain Interest In Adam LaRoche

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2:40pm: LaRoche is looking for a three-year deal, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter).

2:13pm: An Orioles source suggests to MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli that the sides aren't close to a deal (Twitter links). The Orioles remain "very interested" in the first baseman, however.

1:49pm: The Orioles are closing in on a deal with Adam LaRoche, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse (on Twitter). Earlier today, the Nationals and Padres also appeared to have some interest in LaRoche and the Orioles appeared to have some interest in Derrek Lee.

O's president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail has revamped his club's infield this offseason, acquiring Mark Reynolds, J.J. Hardy and Brendan Harris in trades. He did bring back one familiar face, re-signing Cesar Izturis.

Padres Acquire Eric Patterson

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The Padres acquired Eric Patterson from the Red Sox, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). He is the player to be named in the Adrian Gonzalez deal, according to Dan Hayes of the North County Times (on Twitter). The Red Sox acquired Patterson from the A's for Fabian Williamson this summer.

Patterson, 27, has played second base, left field and center field in his four-year major league career. Given the Padres' outfield depth and need for a second baseman, it seems likely that they've acquiRed Patterson for infield depth. In 204 plate appearances for the A's and Red Sox last year, Patterson hit .214/.272/.406 with 11 stolen bases in 12 attempts.

 

Indians Sign Adam Everett

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The Indians signed Adam Everett to a minor league deal and invited him to Spring Training, the team announced. The 33-year-old will earn $700K plus incentives if he makes the team, or $15K per month at Triple-A, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (Twitter link). The Nationals and Rockies also expressed interest in the infielder at the Winter Meetings. Career Sports represents Everett.

Everett batted just .185/.221/.247 for the Tigers in 89 plate appearances last year, before Detroit released him. If he can rebound to the .238/.325/.613 line he posted in 2009, the Indians would likely be happy. The defensive specialist has appeared in 846 big league games, but has only played one inning at a position other than shortstop. 

Bartlett Trade Holdup Nearly Resolved

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THURSDAY, 1:30pm: The issue that slowed the trade down is "nearly resolved," according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).

TUESDAY, 6:23pm: Ramos told Dan Hayes of the North County Times that he's healthy and only on the DL to create roster space (Twitter links). The Padres contacted him yesterday to make sure that he was healthy. 

MONDAY, 9:25pm: Ramos, who is now playing in the Mexican League, is on the disabled list, according to MiLB.com. His health may have slowed down trade talks.

FRIDAY, 6:12pm: The Rays are looking to get a second opinion on either Russell or Ramos after the pitchers went through their physicals, says Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune.  "The problem is not believed to be serious, but there are no guarantees the deal will go through as originally agreed upon," Center writes.

WEDNESDAY, 10:20pm: The deal is done, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter).

6:43pm: The Rays say they have nothing to announce and that reports of a deal are premature, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (Twitter link).

5:45pm: The Padres have acquired Jason Bartlett from the Rays for relievers Adam Russell and Cesar Ramos. 

The Padres drafted Bartlett in 2001 and traded him to Minnesota just over one year later for Brian Buchanan. Five years after that, the Twins shipped Bartlett to Tampa Bay with Matt Garza for Delmon Young, so the Padres' new shortstop is no stranger to being dealt.

After a 2009 season in which he made the All-Star team and batted .320/.389/.490, Bartlett slumped to .254/.324/.350 last year. The Rays can now ease Reid Brignac into an everyday role. The 24-year-old batted .256/.307/.385 in 326 plate appearances in his first extended taste of the major leagues.

With seemingly every Rays reliever on the free agent market, and limited spending power, Rays president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman had to get creative to find relief help. Russell, a 27-year-old right-hander, pitched 15 2/3 innings for the Padres in 2010, posting 10.3 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 4.02 ERA. He also appeared in 50 Triple-A games, posting a 4.88 ERA with 8.9 K/9 and 5.6 BB/9. It marks the second time in two years that he's been traded; the Padres acquired him in the 2009 Jake Peavy deal.

Ramos, 26, pitched briefly for the 2010 Padres, but spent much of the season at Triple-A Portland, where he posted a 3.28 ERA as a swingman. He has never struck out an overwhelming number of hitters (5.9 K/9 in 2010) and his walk rate rose to 4.0 BB/9 this year. The lefty turned down the chance to sign with Tampa Bay when they drafted him in the 6th round of the 2002 draft. Three years later, he signed with the Padres after they selected him 35th overall.

The Padres had a vacancy at short since Miguel Tejada signed with the division rival Giants. GM Jed Hoyer met that need with Bartlett, but further depletes a 'pen that saw two relievers head to Florida's other team in the Cameron Maybin deal.

MLB.com's Corey Brock (on Twitter) first reported that the deal was official, Joel Sherman of the New York Post first reported that the Rays would make a trade (Twitter links), Dan Hayes of the North County Times (Twitter link), Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (Twitter link) and Bill Center of the San Diego Union Tribune also reported on the story as it broke.

Yankees Nearing Deal With Feliciano

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FRIDAY, 8:23am: The sides are nearing a two-year agreement that will pay the lefty $4MM per season and include an option for 2013, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).

THURSDAY, 12:02pm: The sides have made "a little progress," Feliciano's agent tells Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com.

9:43am: The Yankees are getting closer to a deal with Pedro Feliciano, according to Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record (on Twitter). The 34-year-old is durable, effective against left-handed hitters and used to pitching in New York. Feliciano has led the National League in appearances in each of the past three seasons for the Mets, the team with which he has spent his entire eight-year career. Overall, Feliciano posted a 3.30 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 62 2/3 innings in 2010.

Feliciano limited left-handed hitters to a .211/.297/.276 line last year. He did not allow a home run in 139 matchups against lefty batters.

The Yankees are also looking at Brian Fuentes, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).

Odds & Ends: Nady, Rangers, Felix, Gregg

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Eight years ago today, the Twins released David Ortiz. He has since hit 291 regular season homers and 12 more in the playoffs, all for the Red Sox. Here are today's links…

“Heavy Action” On Bobby Jenks

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THURSDAY, 10:34am: Jenks is looking for "closer money," according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). Heyman suggests that means Jenks is looking for at least $8MM.

WEDNESDAY, 9:07pm: It's a good time to be a free agent reliever, and one of the biggest on the market (both literally and figuratively) is former White Sox closer Bobby Jenks. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that there is "heavy action" on the right-hander, with both the Rays and Yankees showing interest. Jenks is not close to a decision, however.

Jenks, 30 in March, was non-tendered a few weeks ago after earning $7.5MM in 2010. Although his 4.44 ERA this season was the worst of his career, he struck out 10.4 batters per nine innings while walking just 2.9 unintentionally. Jenks also had a 58.3% ground ball rate, tenth best among relievers with at 50 IP, and his trademark velocity even crept up late in the season. 

Rafael Soriano is the best reliever on the market, but Jenks represents a reasonably priced alternative for teams looking to add a proven closer. The Rays are looking to replace Soriano while the Yankees have some money to spend after losing out in Cliff Lee. They would use Jenks in a setup role, of course.

Blue Jays Sign Edwin Encarnacion

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The Blue Jays announced that they signed Edwin Encarnacion to a one-year, $2.5MM contract that includes a club option for $3.5MM in 2012. The team says Encarnacion will play first base/DH, instead of third base, where he spent last season.

The A's claimed the infielder off of waivers  from the Blue Jays only to non-tender him a month later. Encarnacion would have been due for a raise from the $4.75MM salary he earned in 2010 if the A's or Blue Jays had gone to arbitration with him.

Encarnacion, who turns 28 next month, hit .244/.305/.482 with 21 homers in 367 plate appearances for the Blue Jays last year. He surged at the end of the season, homering in his last four games. He has a career .266/.373/.474 line against left-handed pitchers, so he could spell Adam Lind against lefties given Lind's struggles against southpaws.

Unless the Blue Jays intend to play Jose Bautista at third, they still have an opening at the hot corner. The Rays and Indians also had some interest in Encarnacion. Wasserman Media Group represents Encarnacion.

Rays To Sign Joel Peralta

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The Rays have agreed to sign Joel Peralta for about $900K, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). The Nationals non-tendered Peralta earlier in the month, after a strong 2010 campaign.

Peralta, 35 in March, posted a 2.02 ERA with 9.0 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 49 innings of work for the Nationals in 2010. A late bloomer who didn't reach the major leagues until his age 29 season, Peralta has a 4.22 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 260 career relief appearances. He has always generated lots of fly balls and this year ranked fifth in fly ball rate (55.6%) among big league relievers with at least 40 innings pitched.

The Rays re-signed another 2010 non-tender, J.P. Howell, earlier in the week, but their bullpen figures to look considerably different next year. Joaquin Benoit and Randy Choate have already agreed to deals elsewhere and Rafael Soriano, Lance Cormier, Grant Balfour, Dan Wheeler and Chad Qualls and are all free agents.

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