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Poll: Will Andy Pettitte Retire?

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The Yankees missed out on Cliff Lee this offseason, but there's still another free agent left-hander out there that can help shore up their rotation. No, I'm not talking about Jeff Francis or Bruce Chen, it's long-time Yankee Andy Pettitte.

For the fourth time in as many offseasons, Pettitte is debating between retirement and pitching another year. The lefty showed that he can still be an effective starter in 2010, posting a 3.28 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 129 innings, but he also demonstrated the perils of a 38-year-old starter. Pettitte missed a total 71 days due to elbow and (mostly) groin issues, and he was also hampered by back and hamstring issues in the postseason. Despite that, he still gave the Yanks a 7 IP, 2 R start in both the ALDS and ALCS.

Last we heard is that Pettitte is still leaning towards retirement, and it's worth noting that in three of the last four offseasons, he's re-signed with New York no later than December 12th. The lone exception is the 2008-2009 offseason, when he was coming off a second half in which he pitched through a sore shoulder. The Yankees will surely welcome him back with open arms, but GM Brian Cashman has indicated that they're operating as if the franchise's third winningest pitcher all-time was not going to return for the 2011 season.

This Date In Transactions History: December 26th

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The day after Christmas hasn't been a busy hot stove day historically, but there have certainly been a few notable deals struck. Let's review…

  • On this date last year, the Mets signed Kelvim Escobar to an incentive-laden one-year deal with a $1.25MM base salary. Escobar had missed most of 2009 and all of 2008 due to shoulder surgery, and sure enough he wasn't able to pitch at all in 2010 (not even in Spring Training) due to another surgery.
  • The Giants inked Randy Johnson to a one-year deal worth $8MM guaranteed on this day back in 2008. He gave the Giants 96 innings of 4.88 ERA pitching in return, winning his 300th career game along the way.
  • The Padres officially signed Kevin Correia to a minor league contract on the same day San Fran signed The Big Unit. He rewarded them in 2009 with 198 innings and a 3.91 ERA.
  • Seven years ago today the Indians signed Ronnie Belliard after the Brewers non-tendered him. He spent the next two-and-a-half years in Cleveland, hitting .285/.337/.433 along the way.
  • The Orioles acquired David Wells from the Reds for Curtis Goodwin and minor leaguer Trovin Valdez back in 1995. Boomer posted a 5.14 ERA in 224.1 innings during his one year in Baltimore.
  • All the way back in 1953, the Milwaukee Braves traded six players and $100K to the Pirates for 26-year-old Danny O'Connell. O'Connell finished his career as a .260/.333/.351 hitter, and the most notable player Pittsburgh received was Sid Gordon, who was near the end of his playing days.
  • Some other players involved in transactions on this date: Bob Howry, R.A. Dickey, Mark Prior, Frank Menechino, and Esteban Yan.

MLBTR Originals: 12/19/10 – 12/26/10

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People all around baseball took it easy during the holidays this week, but we here at MLBTR pumped out plenty of original content. Let's recap…

Odds & Ends: Webb, Manny, Soriano, CarGo, Prior

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Links for Sunday, as we start the countdown to next Christmas…

Week In Review: 12/19/10 – 12/25/10

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Happy Holidays to all of our readers! It's been slow the past couple of days, but there was plenty of action earlier in the week, so let's recap:

Brandon Webb Closing In On Decision?

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2:46pm: Stark provides an update saying that Webb is "closing in" on a decision. While the team hasn't confirmed its interest, many MLB executives call Cincinnati a "perfect fit" for Webb, according to Stark.

2:32pm: Cincinnati is the "principal challenger" to Texas for Webb's services, according to Ken Rosenthal's Major League sources.

While the Reds haven't confirmed their interest in the former Cy Young winner, Rosenthal notes some interesting connections to both clubs. Texas team physician Keith Meister performed a cleanup on Webb's shoulder in 2009, while Reds pitching coach Bryan Price and trainer Paul Lessard both worked with Webb in Arizona.

11:37am: The Cubs and Nationals are out on Brandon Webb, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. Stark says Webb is down to two teams now: the Rangers and a mystery NL Central club.

The Reds are not believed to be said mystery team but Stark says Cincinnati has been "quietly poking around for a starter with top-of-the-rotation potential." The Pirates haven't talked to Webb since late-November, and although the Brewers have scouted him, their level of interest seems low since the Zack Greinke trade. The Cardinals are known to be seeking starting pitching depth, and then there's the Astros. The now 31-year-old right-hander is expected to decide on a team soon.

More than 27% of over 15,000 MLBTR readers expect Webb to sign with Texas.

Rays Notes: Bullpen, First Base, DH

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The Rays find themselves in a difficult position as the 2011 season approaches. Forced to cut payroll, they've lost Carlos Pena, Carl Crawford, (presumably) Rafael Soriano, and most of their bullpen to free agency, and traded Jason Bartlett as he approaches his final arbitration year.

Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times looks at some of the issues left to be addressed as the Rays begin bargain shopping this offseason:

Cafardo’s Latest: Uggla, Pavano, Matsuzaka, Ellsbury

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In today's column, Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe asked ten baseball people to select the ten most significant moves/non-moves of the offseason. Unsurprisingly, Adrian Gonzalez, Zack Greinke, Carl Crawford, and Cliff Lee topped the list. Here are the rest of Cafardo's rumors…

  • Talks between the Braves and Dan Uggla have slowed because he's seeking more money, but an extension should get done during the first week of January. Cafardo reported that the two sides were close to a five-year deal worth $60-61MM about two weeks ago.
  • The Orioles still have interest in Kevin Gregg and the Red Sox still have interest in Brian Fuentes, but other free agent relievers like Rafael Soriano, Grant Balfour, Octavio Dotel, Aaron Heilman, Manny Delcarmen, Hideki Okajima and Jon Rauch remain in limbo.
  • Carl Pavano is holding out for three years, with the Nationals, Twins, and Rangers still showing interest. Cafardo adds the Mariners to the mix, with the caveat that they free up some money first.
  • The teams considering Pavano could also turn to Joe Blanton, who would certainly come cheaper.
  • The Red Sox "haven’t heard anything close to the value they would need in return" for Daisuke Matsuzaka.
  • The Angels and several other teams made a run at Jacoby Ellsbury this offseason, but the Sox "never heard any offer resembling proper value."
  • Cafardo wonders if Adrian Beltre is looking at a much smaller payday than originally anticipated. Last we heard, the Angels pulled their five-year, $70MM offer to the third baseman, but they remain in the mix to sign him.
  • David Aardsma is still trade bait and the Mariners wouldn't mind moving him for starting pitching depth. Earlier this week we heard Seattle wanted an impact bat for its closer.

Hisashi Iwakuma Re-Signs With Rakuten

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Hisashi Iwakuma has re-signed with the Rakuten Golden Eagles for approximately $3.6MM, tweets Jason Coskrey of The Japan Times. He adds that the right-hander seems unwilling to discuss a move to MLB until he qualifies for international free agency, which will be after the 2011 season.

Iwakuma, 29, and the Athletics failed to reach an agreement on a contract after Oakland was the high bidder for his negotiating rights. The player was said to be seeking $12MM per season, but the A's were thinking along the lines of $3-5MM per season. Because no deal was reached, Rakuten did not receive the $19.1MM posting fee. Since Iwakuma will be a free agent next year, the team won't get any posting money then either.

Poll: Should The Red Sox Trade Papelbon?

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This winter the Red Sox made an offer they knew would likely be refused when they put a three-year, $51MM contract in front of Mariano Rivera.  As expected, the legendary closer opted to remain in the Bronx where he wishes to finish his career.  Some reports have said that Rivera's arrival in Boston would have meant that the club would then deal Jonathan Papelbon elsewhere.  We may never know if that was the plan but major league GMs have said that the BoSox have been listening to offers for the outspoken closer.

Now Papelbon and Theo Epstein are set to go to arbitration as the 30-year-old seeks $11.5MM in 2011, his final year before free agency.  The right-hander had a down year this past season, turning in a 3.90 ERA 3.8 BB/9, though his 10.2 K/9 was only a shade below his career average.  Boston probably can't expect equal talent in return for the pricey pitcher, but with Bobby Jenks now in the fold and Daniel Bard potentially ready to take over as closer, they could afford to move Papelbon.  Alternatively, they can hang on to him through 2011, at which point they could either re-sign him or receive compensation in the form of a draft pick from another club.

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