Mets Rumors: Sheets, Pineiro, Molina, Torrealba
Here's the latest on the Mets, who still have significant work to do…
- MetsBlog's Matthew Cerrone hears Ben Sheets will seek "at least $10 million, plus lots of incentives, and a second-year, player-controlled option." He says that while the Mets' interest in Sheets is legitimate, they prefer Joel Pineiro. The Mets made an offer – probably two years – to Pineiro.
- Cerrone writes about Bengie Molina, saying the Mets "offered at least $1 million more than the Giants, and also offered a player-controlled option for 2011." Cerrone believes Molina grew skeptical of playing in New York.
- Ken Davidoff of Newsday writes of a "team-fan disconnect," in that a Mets official he spoke to expected the team to get hammered for not signing Molina, but most fans don't mind.
- ESPN's Buster Olney writes of "signals being sent out on Tuesday night that the Mets are turning to Yorvit Torrealba." David Waldstein of the New York Times suggests the Mets would have to pay extra for Torrealba to settle the catcher's two-year-old grievance as part of a new deal. Rod Barajas is probably the only other starting-caliber free agent catcher remaining.
Pirates Claim Brandon Jones Off Waivers
WEDNESDAY, 9:20am: Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says Jones was "claimed him with the hope of including him in a trade." A trade could free up a spot for Octavio Dotel, with whom an agreement is close. Recently-designated Steven Jackson could be dealt as well. Pirates GM Neal Huntington recently explained to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch that Jackson's ERA (3.14) was not indicative of his skills (0.95 K/BB).
TUESDAY, 2:42pm: The Pirates have claimed outfielder Brandon Jones off waivers from the Braves, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Atlanta designated the 26-year-old for assignment last week to make room on the 40-man roster for Eric Hinske. As Bowman notes, the Pirates have "routinely shown interest" in Jones. Jones was mentioned when the Braves were pursuing Jason Bay in the summer of '08.
The Nationals were the only other team who had a chance to claim Jones before the Pirates grabbed him.
Arbitration Information
Here’s a page to bookmark – Maury Brown’s chart of 2010 arbitration filings over at The Biz of Baseball. The biggest gaps: Tim Lincecum at $5MM, Joe Blanton at $2.75MM, Justin Verlander at $2.6MM, and Wandy Rodriguez at $2MM. Obviously there is some disagreement on the appropriate salary for a top-tier starter.
Sheets Impresses In Throwing Session
WEDNESDAY, 7:52am: Sheets topped out at 92 mph on Tuesday, writes Tabby Soignier of The News-Star. Mariners scout John Stearns' take:
"I was impressed. Ben was free and easy, throwing the ball really well with not too much effort. He had good velocity. I was especially impressed with his curve ball. He's got a plus Major League curve ball with a lot of depth to it."
Soignier noted the presence of the Giants and Pirates, two clubs not on our list below (via Twitter, Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette already says the Bucs won't be bidding). Ed Price of AOL FanHouse adds the Phillies and Athletics, while adding more about Sheets' three throwing sessions. Click here to see video from the session, as well as Sheets' interview with MLB Network's Trenni Kusnierek.
MONDAY, 7:14pm: Ben Sheets will have quite an audience when he throws for interested teams on Tuesday. It's no surprise that clubs are curious about the 31-year-old. He has a 3.72 ERA and nearly four times as many strikeouts as walks in his eight-year MLB career. He missed last year after undergoing surgery to repair a torn flexor tendon, so clubs want to see if Sheets is back in form before signing him. The right-hander told ESPN.com's Tim Kurkjian that he feels "refreshed" and "fantastic." Here's a list of teams that will be on hand this week to see for themselves.
- Reds
- Nationals
- Diamondbacks
- Cubs (by the way, we're not on board with the rumor that Sheets is "all but signed" by them)
- Rangers
- Cardinals
- Blue Jays
- Dodgers
- Brewers (Sheets appears too expensive for them)
- Mets
- The Angels will not be there this Tuesday.
- The Yankees were not present.
- The Astros currently have no plans to watch Sheets.
Odds & Ends: Baldelli, Wang, Jackson
A few more newsbits as we near the end of a busy Tuesday…
- Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times singles out the Cubs and Yankees as "among those interested" in Rocco Baldelli. Bryan Hoch of MLB.com thinks Baldelli would be a good fit in the Bronx, though he notes that New York GM Brian Cashman "refused an internet rumor" claiming that the Yanks had already signed Baldelli.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the Cardinals are looking over Chien-Ming Wang's medical history.
- Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports (via Twitter) that pitcher Steven Jackson was designated for assignment by the Pirates to make room for Ryan Church on the 40-man roster. Jackson posted an impressive 3.14 ERA in his 2009 rookie season, making 40 appearances out of the bullpen for Pittsburgh.
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman thought the Braves might try to trade Jordan Schafer earlier this winter, but no more.
- The Cubs have settled with five arbitration-eligible players, but still don't have deals worked out with Carlos Marmol and Ryan Theriot, reports Dave van Dyck of The Chicago Tribune.
- Grant of the McCovey Chronicles blog is, shall we say, less than enthused about the Bengie Molina signing.
D-Backs Out Of Sheets Derby, Payroll Stretched Thin
The Diamondbacks were one of several teams who sent representatives to Ben Sheets' throwing session today, but according to Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic, the Snakes don't have any interest in the free-agent hurler. Arizona GM Josh Byrnes tells Piecoro that the club is probably finished their winter shopping aside from maybe a bit more pitching that would have to come at a much lower cost than Sheets' estimated $7.5MM price tag.
Even if Arizona had taken a shine to Sheets, the club wouldn't have been able to afford him given Piecoro's news that the Adam LaRoche signing pushed the Snakes' budget to just under the $79MM mark for 2010. Ergo, if the D-Backs struggle this season and don't contend for a playoff spot, the team is going to lose some money. This isn't a major problem for Arizona Managing General Partner Ken Kendrick, who tells Piecoro, "we're willing to take that risk. We're not about making money. We're about winning and trying to avoid significant losses."
LaRoche signed for a reasonable $4.5MM salary for 2010, but considering his notorious hot-and-cold stretches at the plate, D-Backs fans may not look too kindly on LaRoche slumping given his status as the "real difference-maker" (to quote Kendrick) of a player that the team broke the bank for.
Players To Avoid Arbitration: Tuesday
Noon ET today was the deadline for both the team and player to submit their salary figures for arbitration, however the two sides can come to an agreement at any point before the actual hearing. The hearings are scheduled for the first week of February.
We'll keep track of the players who avoid arbitration today by agreeing to deals here. Make sure you check back in for updates, and be sure to click the "Continue Reading" link to see today's full list of settlements. Yesterday's list can be found here.
- Kevin Baxter of the Los Angeles Times reports that the Angels avoided arbitration with Mike Napoli and Reggie Willits by signing the duo to one-year deals. Napoli will earn $3.6MM in 2010 with a $100K bonus if he makes 120 starts. Willits' contract is worth $625K.
- Zach Duke's one-year contract with Pittsburgh is worth $4.3MM with no performance bonuses, tweets Dejan Kovacevic of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- The Padres and reliever Mike Adams have agreed to a contract, reports MLB.com's Corey Brock (via Twitter). Brock's follow-up tweet says Adams' deal is worth $1MM, virtually splitting the difference between San Diego's $875K offer and Adams' $1.2MM demands.
- Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune tweets that the Twins have agreements in place with all eight of their arbitration eligible players. In a follow-up tweet, Christensen reports that Francisco Liriano agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.6MM and Jesse Crain agreed to a one-year contract worth $2MM.
- Marc Carig of the New Jersey Star-Ledger reports that the Mets avoided arbitration with reliever Sean Green (via Twitter). The one-year deal was worth $975K, according to the New York Daily News' Anthony McCarron.
- The Tigers avoided arb with Gerald Laird and Zach Miner as well according to James Jahnke of The Detroit Free Press. MLB.com's Jason Beck tweets the details on the one-year contracts: Laird will earn $3.95MM, Miner will earn $950K.
- Christensen tweets that the Twins avoided arb with Brendan Harris, signing him to a two year deal worth $3.2MM with another $650K in possible incentives.
- The Tigers and Bobby Seay avoided arbitration according to MLB.com's Jason Beck (via Twitter), agreeing to a one year deal worth $2.475MM.
- Thesier tweets that Matt Guerrier agreed to a one year deal worth $3.15MM with the Twins, avoiding arb.
- Amalie Benjamin of The Boston Globe tweets that the Red Sox have avoided arbitration with Ramon Ramirez and Manny Delcarmen, with Delcarmen getting $905K plus incentives according to Joe McDonald of The Providence Journal. Boston avoided arb with Jonathan Papelbon as well.
Mets Looking To Add Two More Pitchers
Metsblog's Matthew Cerrone reports that the Mets are interested in signing John Smoltz and one of either Joel Pineiro or Ben Sheets. Cerrone notes that "all three have legit interest in pitching for the Mets on short-term deals," and that signing Pineiro or Sheets would indicate that Smoltz's role in New York would be as a reliever.
The Mets have been linked to this trio and several other starters this winter, but they have yet to make any significant additions to their starting rotation. It's possible that pressure from fans and the New York media might be starting to take a toll on the club. Cerrone cites a report from SI.com's Jon Heyman on The MLB Network in relation to Sheets, where Heyman said the Mets would like to make a "positive" signing in the wake of missing out on free agent catcher Bengie Molina.
Cerrone passed on more info from Heyman and Tom Verducci's discussion of Sheets' throwing session today. More than one scout told Heyman the pitcher looked like "the old Ben Sheets," and both Heyman and Verducci agreed that Sheets will sign a contract similar to Brad Penny's one-year, $7.5MM pact with the Cardinals. Heyman named the Mets, Cubs and Rangers as interested suitors, while Verducci named St. Louis and Seattle as "a likely destination."
Odds & Ends: Arbitration Filings, Brewers, Blue Jays
Got some more links for you on a hectic Tuesday…
- Ed Price of AOL FanHouse has a list of salary figures exchanged by players and their teams at today's arbitration filing deadline.
- MLB.com's Adam McCalvy breaks down the exchanged figures and the situations of the Brewers' remaining arbitration-eligible players.
- Jordan Bastian of MLB.com says the Blue Jays' payroll "will probably be in the $60-63MM range" next season, down from a previously reported figure of $80MM. Toronto's payroll, however, is "really a fluid number" according to Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos.
- Colorado may sign veteran catcher Paul Lo Duca to a minor-league deal, reports Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
- In a text message to Tyler Kepner of The New York Times (via Twitter), Johnny Damon said he's "sure things will work out somewhere." Damon added that he hasn't ruled out a return the Yankees either.
- The Phillies are discussing a multi-year deal with arbitration eligible center fielder Shane Victorino, reports Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com.
- With Bengie Molina returning to San Francisco, the Mets primary catching target is now Yorvit Torrealba, according to ESPN's Buster Olney (via Twitter).
- Morosi tweets that Joe Blanton filed for $10.25MM in arbitration today, but the Phillies countered with $7.5MM.
- Ed Price of AOL FanHouse (via Twitter) spoke to a scout who saw Ben Sheets' throwing session today. "He threw very well. He threw easy," said the scout, who guessed that Mets, Cubs, and Rangers were the leaders for his services.
- Clark Spencer of The Miami Herald tweets that the Marlins and Cody Ross are going to an arbitration hearing over a $250K difference.
- MLB.com's Brian McTaggart tweets that the Astros and Wandy Rodriguez are $2MM apart in their arbitration case.
- The Rays and B.J. Upton did not reach a deal today, and his agent indicated that the two sides will head to an arbitration hearing according to Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times (via Twitter). He later tweets that they may be just $300K apart.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com reports that the Cubs, Cardinals, and Dodgers are monitoring free agent lefty Mark Mulder. Late last week we learned that the Brewers were going to wait before deciding whether or not to offer Mulder a deal.
- The Blue Jays have signed outfielder Jeremy Reed and righty Steven Register to minor league deals with invitations to Spring Training according to a team press release.
- MLB.com's Ken Gurnick tweets that the Dodgers have signed catcher J.D. Closser to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training. The former top Rockies' prospect last appeared in the big leagues back in 2006.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick penned a must-read on how Jack Zduriencik has transformed the Mariners in his short time at the helm.
- SI.com's Tom Verducci took a look at the most efficient teams of the last decade. The Marlins, Athletics, and Rays highlight the best, while the Mets were among the least efficient.
Blue Jays Do Not Sign Carlos Delgado
4:32pm: MLB.com's Jordan Bastian tweets that Delgado's agent shot the rumor down as well.
4:05pm: GM Alex Anthopoulos denied the report when contacted by the FAN 590 in Toronto (via Twitter).
3:37pm: Word out of Puerto Rico is that the Blue Jays have signed free agent Carlos Delgado, according to MLB.com's Noah Coslov (via Twitter).
The signing would be a return back to where it all started for Delgado, who holds a place in the top three of basically every significant offensive statistic in team history. Just last week we heard that Delgado wasn't a fit for Toronto, however things can always change.