Justin Verlander filed for $9.5MM in arbitration today, while the Tigers countered with $6.9MM according to a tweet from SI.com's Jon Heyman. The soon to be 27-year-old righty earned $3.675MM in his first year of arbitration last season, so he's shooting to nearly triple his salary after finishing third in the AL Cy Young voting.
Archives for January 2010
Lincecum Files For $13MM In Arbitration
Tim Lincecum filed for $13MM in arbitration today, according to SI.com's Jon Heyman. The Giants submitted $8MM. It appears the two sides will try to work a deal out with Ryan Howard's record $10MM award as a comparison. The question is, do you prefer a Rookie of the Year and an MVP, or two Cy Youngs?
Jonathan Papelbon's $6.25MM salary in 2009 is the record for a first year arbitration eligible pitcher, and that'll be smashed by Lincecum this year even if he loses an arbitration hearing.
Tigers Sign Jose Valverde To Two-Year Contract
The Tigers officially signed Jose Valverde to a two-year contract worth $14MM today. The deal also includes a club option for 2012 worth $9MM.
The 30-year-old Valverde has enjoyed a tremendous run as the closer for the Diamondbacks and Astros over the last three years. In 190.1 innings during that time, he posted a 2.84 ERA with a 10.3 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9. Valverde battled leg injuries in 2009, though he held opponents to a .202/.286/.294 batting line after coming off the disabled list in June.
The Tigers were left with a gaping hole in the back of their bullpen this offseason after losing setup man Brandon Lyon and closer Fernando Rodney to the Astros and Angels, respectively. Because Valverde was a Type-A free agent, Detroit sent their first round pick (#19 overall) to Houston as compensation. The Astros will also receive a supplemental first round pick (#33 overall).
The agreement was first reported by Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports last Thursday, with Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com adding the value of the option year later in the day.
Red Sox, Papelbon Agree To One-Year Deal
2:25pm: ESPN Boston's Gordon Edes reports that the two sides did in fact come to an agreement today, and Papelbon will earn $9.35MM on a one year deal in 2010. Incentives could put another $150K in the closer's pocket.
1:19pm: WEEI.com's Rob Bradford hears that the Red Sox and closer Jonathan Papelbon may have a one year deal worth $9MM in place. The team may announce that arbitration figures were exchanged, though Bradford expects the deal to get done.
The deal would make Papelbon the ninth highest paid relief pitcher in baseball, just ahead of Brian Fuentes. He earned $6.25MM in 2009, the record for a first year arbitration eligible pitcher. Since breaking into the big leagues in 2005, Papelbon's 1.84 ERA is the second best in the game (behind Joe Nathan) among pitchers with at least as many innings pitched.
Twins, Pavano Agree To One-Year Deal
The Twins and Carl Pavano have agreed to a one year deal worth $7MM, according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale (via Twitter). The contract does not include any incentives.
Pavano, 34, accepted the team's offer of arbitration earlier this offseason in lieu of exploring the open market as a Type-B free agent. He earned a $1.5MM base salary in 2009, though he picked up another $2.85MM in incentives based on starts and innings pitched. Between Cleveland and Minnesota, Pavano posted a 5.10 ERA in 199.1 innings, 53.2 more than he threw in his four years with the Yankees.
Odds & Ends: Lincecum, Reds, Red Sox, Uggla, Molina
Some Tuesday links…
- After talking to someone familiar with the process, FoxSports.com's Jon Paul Morosi guesses (via Twitter) that Tim Lincecum will file for somewhere between $12-13MM in arbitration.
- John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer has the Reds' 2010 payroll at just about $70MM at the moment.
- In a mailbag, Amalie Benjamin of The Boston Globe says that the Red Sox aren't likely to go out and spend on a high-risk, high-reward pitcher like Ben Sheets after signing John Lackey.
- Joe Frisaro of MLB.com doesn't think the Marlins will look to trade Dan Uggla, even after he agreed to a deal yesterday that makes him the team's highest paid player in 2010.
- Meanwhile, Frisaro says that Cody Ross is likely headed to an arbitration hearing after negotiations hit an impasse.
- Tony Massarotti of The Boston Globe wonders if the Red Sox are doing the right thing by going year-to-year with Jonathan Papelbon through his arbitration years.
- After turning down the Mets' latest offer, ESPN's Buster Olney thinks (via Twitter) that the Mariners might be a good fit for Bengie Molina.
- MLB.com's Adam McCalvy tweets that the Brewers will continue negotiating with their six remaining arbitration eligible players today, though GM Doug Melvin said that no multi-year deals are in the mix.
- John Lowe of The Detroit Free Press says it wouldn't be a shock if Justin Verlander sought at least $6MM through arbitration this year after seeking $4.15MM last year. Joe Blanton received just under $5.5MM in his second year of arbitration, so I wouldn't be surprised if Verlander submitted a figure closer to $8-9MM.
- Meanwhile, Lynn Henning of The Detroit News spoke to some scouts who think Austin Jackson might not be ready for the big leagues, at least at the plate. Jackson is slated to start the year as the Tigers' everyday center fielder.
- MLB.com's Jason Beck tweets that the Jose Valverde deal is official.
- The Rays aren't close to deals with any of their four arbitration eligible players, reports Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times. Tampa has a self-imposed deadline of noon ET today to get deals done, which is when the two sides must submit their salary figures.
- In a chat with readers, Tom Boswell of The Washington Post said he heard the Nationals were close to a "trade for a major-league ready pitcher of Jordan Zimmermann quality but it fell through when the other team backed out." He thinks Josh Willingham may have been involved.
- The Giants haven't confirmed if they're still interested in Miguel Tejada according to Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com, however he spoke to someone who says Tejada remains on the Twins' radar.
Angels In On Joel Pineiro Bidding
The Angels are in on the Joel Pineiro bidding, according to ESPN's Buster Olney (via Twitter). We first heard of their interest in the righty back in December, but they'll have to compete with the Mets and Dodgers for his services.
After losing John Lackey to the Red Sox and making a push for Roy Halladay before he landed in Philadelphia and Aroldis Chapman before he signed with Cincinnati, it's clear the Angels are looking to add another quality arm to their rotation. Despite that, they will not in attendance for Ben Sheets' workout today.
Molina Rejects Mets’ Most Recent Offer
Free agent catcher Bengie Molina has rejected the latest offer from the Mets, according to a tweet by ESPN's Buster Olney. The team is now beginning to focus it's attention on Joel Pineiro.
We heard that the Mets were close to landing Molina earlier in the week, but apparently he had a change of heart. The two sides have been haggling over the length of a potential deal seemingly all offseason. The Mets are one of several teams interested in Pineiro, and they'll also be on hand to watch Ben Sheets throw today.
Earlier today we learned that GM Omar Minaya was never given a budget this offseason, and instead must seek approve from COO Jeff Wilpon on a case-by-case basis.
Olney’s Latest: Hernandez, Mets, Orioles, GM’s, Harper
In today's blog post at ESPN.com, Buster Olney writes about Miguel Tejada's trip to Haiti, plus what other agents have privately speculated about what a fair deal for Felix Hernandez (six years and $110 million) would be.
Here's the rest of Olney's rumors…
- Mets' GM Omar Minaya was never given a budget this offseason. The front office is making recommendations to COO Jeff Wilpon on a case-by-case basis without knowing if they're approaching a payroll limit. It's easy to see how that could become a problem.
- The Orioles continue to look for a corner infielder, preferably a third baseman so that Garrett Atkins could man first. Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun notes that Andy MacPhail has had talks with the agents for Joe Crede and Tejada.
- Last week's GM meeting went so well that it ended up lasting five hours longer than originally scheduled. They discussed changes to the draft among other things, but Olney notes that some executes are concerned that a slotting system may lead to a situation where having the first overall pick is viewed as a bad thing because of the bonus required to sign the player. Allowing teams to trade picks would solve that.
- Some scouts question how Bryce Harper's size will impact his game going forward. Harper, the projected top pick for the 2010 Draft, is already 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds at age-17. "You worry that if he gets too big, his swing just won't be quick enough when he starts facing guys who throw harder," said one evaluator.
Phillies Sign Brandon Duckworth
The Phillies have signed righty Brandon Duckworth to a minor league contract, reports Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The deal does not include an invitation to Spring Training, which means the soon to be 34-year-old would likely just provide depth at the Triple-A level.
Duckworth has spent the last three seasons in the Royals' organization, mostly in Triple-A. He last appeared in the majors in 2008, and owns a 5.28 ERA in 511 innings pitched. During the last three years in the minors, Duckworth has posted a 4.98 ERA. Philadelphia originally signed him as an undrafted free agent back in 1997, and he spent six years in their system before moving on to Houston as part of the Billy Wagner trade.
