Week In Review: 11/14/10 – 11/21/10
The hot stove jumped into another gear this past week, with several trades and free agent signings going down. Let's recap…
- Last Sunday we heard that the Braves' pursuit of a hitter could pick up during the week, and sure enough they soon traded Omar Infante and Mike Dunn to the Marlins for slugger Dan Uggla. Florida intends to focus on pitching now, and they have interest in Javier Vazquez (it's mutual). The Nationals could make Vazquez an offer this week, however.
- The first two significant free agents came off the board, as the Marlins signed John Buck (three years, $18MM) and the Tigers signed Joaquin Benoit (three years, $16.5MM).
- Two starting pitchers re-signed with their old clubs. The Dodgers brought back Hiroki Kuroda to a one-year, $12MM contract while the Cardinals re-upped Jake Westbrook for two years and $16.5MM with a third year option.
- Miscellaneous trades: The Blue Jays traded a pair of prospects for Rajai Davis, the Rockies and Astros swapped Clint Barmes and Felipe Paulino. and the Yankees flipped Juan Miranda to the Diamondbacks for prospect Scottie Allen.
- The D'Backs were featured prominently this week, and not just because they signed Geoff Blum to a two-year, $2.7MM contract or have interest in J.J. Putz. GM Kevin Towers said he'd listen to offers for Justin Upton, but he's asking for a ton in return. Upton has four teams on his no-trade list.
- Gavin Floyd is reportedly on the market and the Rockies have shown interest. They also have interest in Kevin Kouzmanoff, Jorge Cantu, Jose Lopez, Ty Wigginton, and Kevin Millwood. Colorado released Manny Corpas and has drawn the line at three years with Jorge de la Rosa,
- Derek Jeter wants a four-year deal from the Yankees, but they offered three years and $45MM. The Yanks also have interest in Pedro Feliciano and J.C. Romero, as well as Bill Hall. New York is expected to sign Dominican righty Rafael DePaula.
- Infielder Tsuyoshi Nishioka was posted by the Chiba Lotte Marines, and the Red Sox, Twins, and Orioles will submit bids. The O's also have interest in J.J. Hardy and Jason Bartlett.
- The Rangers met with Cliff Lee this past week, though Nolan Ryan expects to be outbid. Texas did sign free agent (but former sixth overall pick) Barret Loux for $312K.
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin told reporters that he's not shopping Prince Fielder while Scott Boras said that Manny Ramirez is seeking a one-year, incentive-laden contract to DH somewhere. Vladimir Guerrero is seeking a multiyear deal. Both the White Sox and Tigers met with Adam Dunn and his agent, and several teams have interest in Josh Willingham.
- The Orioles and 11 other teams have interest in Adrian Beltre, but the Athletics offered him five years and $64MM. The Red Sox will not go more than four years, however.
- The A's, meanwhile, broke off talks with Hisashi Iwakuma because of his contract demands.
- The Mets have a new manager, giving the job to Terry Collins. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire received a two-year contract extension. Drayton McLane announced his decision to put the Astros up for sale.
- The Phillies re-signed Jose Contreras to a two-year deal worth $5.5MM with a option for a third year, and they also have interest in Hisanori Takahashi. The Reds claimed Takahashi but were unable to work out a deal before he became a free agent.
- Yorvit Torrealba cut ties with the Padres and three clubs have interest in Miguel Olivo. The Reds re-signed Ramon Hernandez (one-year, $3MM).
- The Red Sox claimed Taylor Buchholz off waivers and are willing to trade Marco Scutaro.
- The Pirates designated three for assignment: Zach Duke, Andy LaRoche, and Delwyn Young.
- The Indians re-signed Anthony Reyes, but the big news in Cleveland is that Shin-Soo Choo will likely be exempt from mandatory military service back home in South Korea.
- Several players are trying to make comebacks, including Bartolo Colon, slugger Wily Mo Pena, and former Athletic Eric Chavez.
- "Six or eight" teams have shown interest in Carl Pavano while five have done the same with Jeff Francis and four with Brandon Webb.
- The Dodgers selected outfielder Anthony Jackson from the Rockies to complete September's Octavio Dotel trade.
MLBTR Originals: 11/14/10 – 11/21/10
The hot stove finally started to heat up this week, no doubt thanks to the GM Meetings. Here's a look at MLBTR's original content from the last seven days…
- Ben Nicholson-Smith was on location at the GM Meetings in Orlando, and he spoke to Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos, Nationals GM Mike Rizzo, Rays GM Andrew Friedman, Padres GM Jed Hoyer, and Pirates GM Neal Huntington. He also provided some general rumors and got quotes from Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski after they signed Joaquin Benoit.
- When he got back, Ben explained why small market teams time their free agent bids carefully.
- Tim Dierkes pointed out the great start the ACES Agency is off to this winter.
- Among the free agents whose stock we examined: Grant Balfour of the Rays, Scott Downs of the Blue Jays, Brandon Webb of the Diamondbacks, and Victor Martinez of the Red Sox. We also looked at non-tender candidates Joel Zumaya of the Tigers and Tony Gwynn Jr. of the Padres.
- This week's polls included questions about Scott Downs' next contract and whether or not the Diamondbacks would trade Justin Upton.
- My amateur signing bonus series concluded with the Blue Jays and Nationals.
- Steve Adams listed the players that received bonuses based on regular season awards.
- I rounded up the best from the blogosphere in this week's Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
- Tim's chat transcript can be found here.
- If you're new to the site, make sure you check out our team and transactions-only feeds, team Facebook pages, and then visit the MLBTR forums. Here's a handy guide on all the different ways you can use the site.
Mets Hire Terry Collins
5:58pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that Collins is getting a two-year deal.
4:30pm: The Mets have hired Terry Collins as their next manager, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Collins, 61, has a wealth of experience as a minor league and major league manager as well as managing experience from Japan. He managed the Astros from 1994-1996, as well as the Angels from 1997-1999, but resigned with 29 games left in the season. He spent the 2010 season as the Mets' minor league field coordinator.
Other candidates for the job included Bob Melvin and Chip Hale, but Rosenthal first tweeted that Melvin was out of the running, and SI's Jon Heyman followed that up shortly after with a tweet saying that Hale was out of the running as well. Fanhouse's Ed Price tweets that Melvin is unlikely to remain with the club in a different role.
Diamondbacks Interested In J.J. Putz
The Diamondbacks had one of the worst bullpens in baseball history last season (league-worst 5.74 ERA), something new GM Kevin Towers will undoubtedly try to correct this offseason. Part of the solution could be free agent reliever J.J. Putz, whom the D'Backs have interest in according to Mark Gonzales of The Chicago Tribune.
Putz, 34 in February, was fantastic with the White Sox this year. He struck out 65 and walked just 13 unintentionally in 54 innings, pitching to a 2.83 ERA and holding opponents to a .204/.261/.313 batting line against. He did spend 16 days on the disabled list with knee tendinitis, a year after having bone spurs removed from his elbow. It's not long ago that Putz was one of the game's elite closers, a role he could easily fill in Arizona.
As Gonzales notes, Putz resides in nearby Peoria, something that will surely be attractive to the righty. The D'Backs also plan to pursue another former White Sox and Arizona resident, Paul Konerko. Putz earned $3MM in 2010 and is a Type-B free agent.
Oakland Breaks Off Talks With Iwakuma
4:58pm: Slusser writes that the figure Iwakuma was said to be seeking was including the posting fee. She also notes that Iwakuma wasn't looking for the same number of years as Zito, just the same annual salary. Oakland, on the other hand, was thinking somewhere along the lines of a $3MM-$5MM salary.
The A's are also looking for a power hitter, and one thought was that signing Iwakuma could have made Oakland a more appealing destination for Hideki Matsui.
Slusser says she recently spoke with a scout who saw Iwakuma pitch in Japan, and described the 29-year-old as "Nothing special. Just a guy." With Iwakuma presumably out of the picture, Slusser says a healthy Outman would be the frontrunner for the fifth starter job. The 26-year-old lefty was having a strong season in 2009 before he underwent Tommy John surgery and missed all of 2010.
3:38pm: The Athletics have broken off talks with Hisashi Iwakuma, according to this series of tweets from Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
While the A's will have until December 7 to make a decision on Iwakuma, Slusser's sources have told her that Iwakuma was seeking something similar to Barry Zito's seven-year, $126MM contract with the Giants to sign in Oakland, which the A's are obviously unwilling to do. Iwakuma is preparing to announce his return to the Rakuten Golden Eagles at an upcoming fan fest.
If Iwakuma's demands don't come down, the A's will be down one fifth starter option, having traded Vin Mazzaro to Kansas City in exchange for David DeJesus. Slusser says the A's will then approach the season with Josh Outman, Tyson Ross, and Bobby Cramer as fifth starter candidates, barring a free agent signing of course.
It's not unthinkable that the A's would venture to free agency to find a suitable replacement; they clearly have the money to spend on pitching should they see fit. Oakland bid around $17MM to win the rights to negotiate with Iwakuma, but that amount will be returned if no deal is reached.
Five Teams Interested In Wily Mo Pena
It's been awhile since he's seen time in the big leagues, but after a strong finish to 2010 with San Diego's Triple-A affiliate in Portland, five teams have expressed interest in Wily Mo Pena, MLBTR has learned.
Pena, 29 in January, was once a top prospect with the Yankees and the Reds. In 2004, the right-handed slugger belted 24 home runs as a 22-year-old and notched an impressive .843 OPS. Injuries limited his playing time in 2005, but he still hit 19 homers in just 335 plate appearances.
In 2006, he was traded to Boston for Bronson Arroyo, where he hit .301/.349/.489 over 304 plate appearances. Wrist surgery and other injuries limited Pena's playing time again that year, and he started off slowly the following year in 2007. He was then traded to Washington for a player to be named later.
Pena's time with the Nats got off to a great start, as he hit .293/.352/.504 with eight home runs over 145 plate appearances to close out the 2007 season. He started off terribly in 2008, however, hitting just .205/.243/.267, and hasn't appeared in the Majors since.
Power is always a hot commodity, and Pena's most recent stint in the minors saw the thunder that once made him a coveted prospect return. He raked to the tune of a .324/.390/.556 line with nine home runs in 159 plate appearances and has caught the attention of teams in both leagues. Pena also saw time at first base in 2010, which could appeal to potential suitors.
Injuries and inconsistency have always plagued the slugger, but Pena's power provides a great deal of upside with minimal risk.
Sherman’s Latest: Rivera, Jeter, Mets
Joel Sherman's latest column for the New York Post touches on some issues relevant to both New York teams. Let's take a look:
- Sherman wonders why Derek Jeter's contract situation has garnered such overwhelming amounts of attention, while Mariano Rivera's has drawn significantly less. Sherman opines that Rivera may be the most irreplaceable pitcher in baseball over the past 15 years, and that his contract situation is equally important and deserving of attention.
- The Mets know their flexibility is lacking this offseason, and may have as little as $3MM-$5MM to spend on free agency.
- The Mets' managerial search will likely be over no later than Tuesday, according to Sherman.
- Sherman expects the Mets to wait until later in the offseason (after January 1 perhaps) for free agent prices to drop. He says the Mets will try to sign a reliever, possibly two, and possibly an affordable second baseman and reclamation project starter.
Regular Season Award Winners Cashing In
Players take a lot of pride in individual awards. While most will say that team success outweighs winning a Cy Young, Gold Glove, Silver Slugger, or MVP, there's no question that these achievements still serve as highlights in any player's career. There's more to it than just that, though. Many players have clauses in their contracts which award them extra cash for taking home these individual marks of excellence. As we're in the midst of award season currently, let's take a look at who's cashed in so far:
- Mark Buehrle: The Chicago lefty took home his second Gold Glove and was rewarded with an extra $25K on top of his $14MM salary.
- Joe Mauer: Minnesota's catcher earned his third Gold Glove and his fourth All Star nod, each netting him another $25K on top of his $12.5MM salary.
- Evan Longoria: Longo grabbed his second Gold Glove and his third All Star appearance, bringing in $25K and $50K, respectively, for an additional $75K on top of his ridiculously affordable $950K salary.
- Franklin Gutierrez: Seattle's standout center fielder finally took home a Gold Glove after missing out last season despite a terrific performance, and he'll bring home $50K to go along with his $2MM salary.
- Yadier Molina: Both Molina's second straight All Star selection and third straight Gold Glove will earn him $50K, for a total of $100K, pushing his 2010 earnings to $4.35MM.
- Albert Pujols: The NL's best player took home $25K for his All Star selection, $50K for his second Gold Glove, and $50K for his sixth Silver Slugger. Depending on where he finishes in the MVP voting, he'll take home $50K (third), $100K (second), or $200K (first).
- Brandon Phillips: His second Gold Glove earned him a whopping $250K, as it caused his 2011 salary to increase from $11MM to $11.25MM.
- Scott Rolen: Gold Gloves are nothing new for Rolen. He earned his eighth this season, and took home an additional $50K as a result. He also earned $25K for his sixth career All Star selection, for a total of $75K on top of his $6.5MM payday.
- Troy Tulowitzki: It was a big year for Tulo, who earned his first All Star selection ($25K), Gold Glove ($25K), and Silver Slugger ($50K) to go along with his $3.5MM salary.
- Michael Bourn: Bourn's second Gold Glove was good for $25K on top of his $2.4MM salary.
- Shane Victorino: The Flyin' Hawaiian's third consecutive Gold Glove gave him a $50K bonus on top of his $5MM salary.
- Matt Holliday: His fifth NL Silver Slugger brought in $50K, as did his All Star Selection, netting him $100K in addition to the $17MM he had already earned.
- Felix Hernandez: King Felix's 2010 Cy Young earned him a cool million dollars, as his 2011 salary will now increase from $10MM to $11MM.
- David Price: The sensational lefty's second-place Cy Young finish earned him $80K on top of his $1MM salary.
- Jered Weaver: The AL strikeout king's fifth place finish in the Cy Young voting earned him $50K.
- Adam Wainwright: A second place finish in the 2010 Cy Young voting earned Wainwright an additional $100K on top of his meager $4.65MM salary.
- Ubaldo Jimenez: His third-place finish in the Cy Young voting added $50K to his dirt cheap $1.25MM salary.
Obviously, this isn't a complete list, as not all players' award clauses are available to the public. Still, that's a total of over $2MM in award bonuses, with the MVPs still to come this week.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Grant Balfour
One member of the Rays' 2010 bullpen has already inked a lucrative three-year deal, but Joaquin Benoit won't be the only Tampa Bay reliever to draw interest this winter. Let's examine the stock of Grant Balfour, another of the team's free agent right-handers.
The Good
- Balfour posted a 2.98 ERA in three seasons for Tampa Bay, including a 2.28 mark in 2010. In his 181 innings over the last three years, he's struck out 10.3 batters per nine innings, and even closed occasionally, recording eight saves.
- He has enjoyed that success while playing in the tough AL East, so there shouldn't be any doubt about his ability to play for any team in either league.
- When MLBTR's Tim Dierkes ranked the top 50 free agents, he placed Balfour just a few spots behind Benoit. Considering Benoit earned a $16.5MM deal, Balfour's odds of signing for multiple years look good.
The Bad
- Balfour is a Type A free agent, meaning it'll cost a high draft pick to sign him if he declines arbitration. For teams with protected first round picks or teams who sign two or three Type A players, this won't be as significant an issue, but it could limit his market to some extent.
- Though the 33-year-old doesn't have a history of health problems, he did spend a month on the disabled list in 2010 with a rib injury.
- Balfour has only thrown more than 60 innings once in his career, in 2009. It was the worst of his seasons with the Rays (4.81 ERA, 4.4 BB/9).
The Verdict
We haven't heard much yet about the market for Balfour this offseason, but he's coming off an impressive 2010 campaign and should be one of the more appealing non-closers available. MLBTR's writers were split on where the righty will land, with the Diamondbacks, Yankees, and Dodgers receiving votes. I'd imagine the Mets, Angels, Red Sox, and a handful of other teams would have some interest as well.
The Levinson Brothers, who negotiated Benoit's contract, also represent Balfour, and will likely be hunting for a similar offer. While I don't think they'll match the three years and $16.5MM that Benoit received from the Tigers, I expect Balfour to land a two-year, eight-figure deal.
New York Notes: Jeter, Rivera, Mets Manager
Here are the latest rumblings out of New York, with an emphasis on Derek Jeter's contract discussions and the Mets' managerial opening….
- Jeter's agent, Casey Close is baffled by the Yankees' negotiating tactics, writes Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News. "There's a reason the Yankees themselves have stated Derek Jeter is their modern-day Babe Ruth," Close said. "Derek's significance to the team is much more than just stats."
- Jeter "has every right to battle the Yankees," says Newsday's Ken Davidoff.
- Ian O'Connor of ESPNNewYork discusses the future of the Yankee captain with Jeter's trainer, Jason Riley, who thinks the 36-year-old could have another seven good years left in him. I can't say I share Riley's optimism, though a bounceback 2011 season from Jeter wouldn't surprise me.
- Jon Heyman of SI.com reported on Friday that Mariano Rivera has told friends he'd like a two-year deal with the Yanks. MLB.com's Bryan Hoch doesn't expect that to be a problem for the team.
- Former Mets skipper Davey Johnson tells Mike Puma of the New York Post that, as much as he likes Wally Backman, Terry Collins should be the club's next manager.
- According to major league executives that spoke to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News, the Mets are placing a high value on past major league managerial experience, making either Collins and Bob Melvin the likely choice.