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Archives for February 2010

Tigers Sign Johnny Damon

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The Tigers officially signed outfielder Johnny Damon to a one-year, $8MM deal today.  The contract contains a no-trade clause and no deferred money.

Damon reportedly turned down two offers to return to the Yankees this offseason, the first of which was worth $14MM over two years. The White Sox, Braves, Rays, and Blue Jays were also in the mix for the Scott Boras client.

The 36-year-old Damon hit .282/.365/.489 with a career high tying 24 homers in 2009, which was the best offensive output of his career in terms of OPS+ (126). UZR wasn't kind to his play in the field, saying he was worth -9.2 runs defensively during the course of the season.  The Tigers seemed to be headed toward a rebuilding year when they traded Curtis Granderson, but they subsequently added Damon and Jose Valverde.

Yahoo's Tim Brown first reported the agreement on Saturday.

Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Upton, Damon, White Sox

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Sunday night linkage..

  • Confidential documents in the McCourts' divorce hearing reveal that the Dodgers may seek to spend on players at level pace while doubling ticket prices and revenue through 2018, writes Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times.  This is bad news for Dodgers fans as the uncertain financial status of the club has limited their activity this winter.
  • The Indians are keeping mum on their feelings about Edward Salcedo's reportedly impending deal with the Braves, writes Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer.  Salcedo, according to a Dominican paper, was signed by the Tribe in 2007.  The club denied this and word that the prospect lied about his age followed.
  • Todd Wellemeyer is fighting for a spot with the Giants in Spring Training, writes Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News.  Wellemeyer had a disappointing 2009 for the Cardinals, posting a 5.89 ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9.
  • Even though the D-Backs find themselves with two starting-caliber catchers in Miguel Montero and Chris Snyder, GM Josh Byrnes won't try to trade the latter, writes Gilbert.  Snyder was nearly dealt for Lyle Overbay in November before the Blue Jays got cold feet.
  • Justin Upton has had discussions with the Diamondbacks regarding a contract extension, writes Steve Gilbert of MLB.com.  The 22-year-old is under contractual control for four more years.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes that some Scott Boras detractors believe he sacrificed Johnny Damon for Matt Holliday.  Some rival agents and club executives assert that the super-agent declined to negotiate with the Yankees regarding Damon early on, allowing the possibility that they could pursue Holliday.  Boras scoffed at the notion when asked about it by Rosenthal.
  • Jake Peavy would have liked to see Damon join the White Sox, writes Scott Merkin of MLB.com.

Odds & Ends: Damon, A’s, Beckett, Reynolds, Dye

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Sunday links….

Week In Review: 2/14/10 – 2/20/10

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Time to get excited for Spring Training! For the time being though, let's take a look back at the past week here on MLBTR:

  • The Johnny Damon saga has come to an end at last. The 36-year-old reached an agreement with the Tigers on a one-year deal worth $8MM. It's a surprise to me to see the Tigers give $8MM to Damon when they were supposedly strapped for cash and had already signed Jose Valverde, but one year of Damon at $8MM is more than reasonable.
  • After months of searching Russell Branyan's finally found himself a team as well. The slugger signed with the Indians at one year and $2MM, with another $1MM in incentives. Branyan's deal has a mutual $5MM option for 2011. Branyan had turned down an offer to return to Seattle earlier this offseason that was also one year with an option. He'll end up making about 10% of what he was reportedly seeking.
  • The Mets signed Rod Barajas to a one-year deal worth $1MM with another $1MM in incentives. That it's a major league deal is a relief to the Blue Jays, who land a supplemental draft pick this year as a result of Barajas' Type B status.
  • The Nationals had a busy week, highlighted by the signing of Chien-Ming Wang at one year and $2MM. Wang can earn an additional $3MM through incentives. If he's healthy and returns to form, the Nats have a steal on their hands.
  • Washington also won two arbitration hearings this week, the first being against Brian Bruney and the second coming against Sean Burnett. Washington saved $500K in total between the two cases. The Nats added Willy Taveras on a minor league deal as well.
  • Sticking with the arbitration hearing theme, Cody Ross won his case against the Marlins; he'll earn $4.45MM this year instead of the $4.2MM Florida offered.
  • Jeff Mathis also won his case against the Angels, netting himself a salary of $1.3MM as opposed to the $700K the Angels had offered. The Halos avoided arbitration with Erick Aybar, signing him to a one-year deal worth $2.05MM.
  • Ryan Theriot can't add himself to the list of this week's victors in arbitration cases; the Cubs won their hearing, saving them $800K. Theriot will earn $2.6MM instead of the $3.4MM he was seeking.
  • Edwin Jackson avoided arbitration with his new club altogether, signing a two-year, $13.35MM contract with Arizona. Barring an injury or catastrophic collapse from Jackson, the D'Backs likely saved a little money on this one. Even with a rough second half in 2009, Jackson demonstrated that he's worth the money.
  • A couple of front office notes this week: The Astros extended GM Ed Wade through the 2012 season, and Indians GM Mark Shaprio will serve as team president following the 2010 season, with assistant GM Chris Antonetti taking over the GM duties.
  • Notable minor league signings this week include Eric Gagne attempting a comeback with the Dodgers, Endy Chavez signing in Texas, and Mike MacDougal signing in Florida. For more minor league signings, check out the Transactions section.
  • Tim started up his newest series, giving a look at the Offseason In Review for each club. This week's installments include the Yankees, Orioles, Red Sox, and Rays.

White Sox Release Freddie Bynum

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The Chicago White Sox have released Freddie Bynum, according to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter). The Sox signed Bynum to a minor league contract earlier in the winter, but parted ways with the infielder today, allowing him to pursue opportunities in Japan.

The 29-year-old last played in the majors in 2008 with the Orioles. For his career, he has posted a .234/.275/.379 line in 188 games.

Reds Still Waiting On Decision From Gomes

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SUNDAY, 12:01pm: We may have to wait another day or two for closure on the Reds and Gomes. Fay tweets that there is still no word on whether the outfielder will accept Cincinnati's offer. MLB.com's Mark Sheldon quotes Jocketty as saying, "We'll know something by tomorrow."

FRIDAY, 1:11pm: It looks like the holding pattern between the Reds and Jonny Gomes could come to an end this weekend. Reds GM Walt Jocketty tells John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer that he expects to know whether the outfielder will return by Sunday.

"He wants to come back," Jocketty said. "But he's taking a last look at what's out there."

The Reds have a minor league offer out to Gomes, who hit 20 homers for them last season. The Indians were connected to the 29-year-old earlier in the month, but there has been little reported interest in Gomes this winter.

Cardinals Unlikely To Sign Shortstop

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The "window is closed" on the idea of the St. Louis Cardinals signing a free-agent shortstop, according to GM John Mozeliak. Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that if the team needs to add a fallback option for the rehabbing Brendan Ryan, they'll explore the trade market rather than signing a free agent.

Given the lack of shortstops left available on the free agent market, we can assume that the GM's comments refer primarily to the team's interest in Felipe Lopez. Last we heard, the Cardinals were one of a handful of teams interested in the infielder, but Mozeliak's comments suggest that the club isn't likely to bring Lopez back to St. Louis. In 43 games for the Cardinals in 2008, Lopez hit a scorching .385/.426/.538.

Mozeliak added that the club should know more about Ryan's health by "the first or second week of March when he truly tests some things." We know that the Cards have a little money to spare, but it sounds like they might wait for more details on Ryan's recovery before deciding how to spend it.

Indians Notes: Payroll, Wood, Hafner

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A pair of Cleveland Plain Dealer writers address the latest Indians-related news in their recent pieces. Paul Hoynes fields readers' questions in a mailbag, while Terry Pluto talks Tribe in an all-Cleveland article. Here are a few highlights:

  • Pluto describes Cleveland's lack of consistency as the main reason why ownership reduced the team's payroll for 2010. The bump in player salaries following a strong 2007 season didn't result in on-field success over the last two years. As a result, the Indians will field one of the league's least expensive teams this season, after their 2009 payroll started around the middle of the pack.
  • Pluto also says that Chris Antonetti's promotion to GM comes as no surprise, since Antonetti has been handling many of the GM duties for the last year.
  • When asked if the Indians should have pursued a pitcher instead of signing Russell Branyan, Hoynes notes that Jarrod Washburn and Braden Looper were likely out of the Tribe's price range, though the club at least had interest in Washburn.
  • Unless they could decisively upgrade their current rotation, the Indians thought that adding offense provided the better value, according to Hoynes.
  • Hoynes finds it unlikely that the Indians will be able to move Kerry Wood or Travis Hafner this season. Their bloated contracts are only one part of the problem, since neither player enjoyed a strong 2009 campaign.

Odds & Ends: Dunn, Delgado, Pujols, Mets

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Links for Saturday…

Cardinals, Others Interested In Felipe Lopez

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SATURDAY, 3:53pm: Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter) hears it's highly unlikely that the Padres will make a move on Lopez.

WEDNESDAY, 5:12pm: Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports are reporting that free agent infielder Felipe Lopez has four suitors, two of whom are San Diego and St. Louis.

We've heard about the Cards' interest in Lopez already this winter, and Morosi/Rosenthal note that Brendan Ryan's wrist surgery might be a main reason why St. Louis is keeping an eye on Lopez.  For the Padres, Lopez would be essentially a depth signing, though David Eckstein and Everth Cabrera aren't exactly rock-solid everyday options in the middle infield.  Cabrera is entering just his second season, and Eckstein has never posted an OPS in any of his nine major league seasons that has come within 50 points of the .810 OPS that Lopez achieved in 680 plate appearances last season..

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