Looking At The Needs Of Some Contenders
With Spring Training wrapping up around the country, teams are finalizing their rosters and picking the 25 players they'll start the season with. There's always room for improvement, but some contenders have some very obvious weak spots on their rosters. Here's a look at some of them, which may need to be addressed during the season…
- Angels, third base: Brandon Wood and Maicer Izturis will get the first cracks at replacing Chone Figgins, but if neither is up to par, the Halos might be looking for a fill-in at the hot corner.
- Braves, outfielder: Superstar in training Jason Heyward will start the year in right, but incumbent centerfielder Nate McLouth had a brutal spring (6-for-51), which may push Melky Cabrera into full-time duty.
- Rays, setup man: With J.P. Howell on the shelf due to a bum shoulder, the team has no obvious candidate to hand the ball off to new closer Rafael Soriano. Dan Wheeler and Grant Balfour represent solid options, but if Howell misses more time than expected, the Rays might be looking to add a reliever.
- Twins, closer: This is the most obvious hole of them all. Joe Nathan is out for the season after having elbow surgery, and Jon Rauch will get the first chance to replace him.
- Yankees, left field: The team is breaking camp with Brett Gardner, Randy Winn, and Marcus Thames set to share time in left, but we've already seen a scenario laid out in which they might need help sooner rather than later.
That doesn't include all of the clubs that could very well be looking to add a starting pitcher at some point, like the Mariners, Mets, Phillies, Cubs, and Dodgers. Some other holes aren't so obvious though. Maybe the Red Sox could use another reliever (who couldn't?), or perhaps Seattle will go looking for a big bat that fits into their extreme run prevention plan.
What other areas of need to do you see out there for contenders?
Rockies Release Justin Speier
The Rockies have released righty reliever Justin Speier, tweets Tracy Ringolsby of Inside the Rockies. Ringolsby says that Speier will retire if he can't land a big league job, but the door is open for him at Colorado's Triple-A affiliate.
Speier, 36, signed a minor league deal with the Rockies back in January, and posted a solid 3.42 ERA with a 12/3 K/BB ratio in 13 innings this spring. The last time he was an effective big league reliever was back in 2007, when he posted a 2.88 ERA in 50 innings during the first year of the four year, $18MM he signed with the Angels.
Anaheim still owes him $5.25MM this season, which he'll add to the $20MM Baseball-Reference.com says he's earned to this point in his career.
Marlins Designate Miller, Martinez For Assignment
The Marlins have designated outfielder Jai Miller and righthander Cristhian Martinez for assignment, tweets MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. The moves open up 40-man roster spots for Mike Lamb and Jose Veras.
The 25-year-old Miller has one big league plate appearance to his credit, coming back in 2008. He's a .277/.354/.489 hitter in 888 Triple-A plate appearances, and is a threat to steal once he reaches base.
Martinez, 28, posted a 5.13 ERA and a 6.2 K/9 with a 2.7 BB/9 in 26.1 innings of relief for the Marlins last year. He's never spent a day in Triple-A, but his minor league walk rate is impressive at 1.8 BB/9.
Yankees Release Mike Rivera
The Yankees have released catcher Mike Rivera according to GM Brian Cashman, tweets Marc Carig of The Newark Star-Ledger. The writing was on the wall once the Yanks signed Chad Moeller this morning.
Rivera, 33, struggled in Spring Training (3-for-18) and missed some time with a hamstring issue. He's a .244/.305/.383 career hitter in 582 plate appearances, seeing most of his big league action with the Brewers.
Rangers Notes: Greenberg, Feldman
A couple of Rangers tidbits..
- Chuck Greenberg says that his group is on the verge of acquiring the Rangers, writes Richard Durrett of ESPN.com. While he says he cannot pinpoint the date that the transfer will be complete, Greenberg says that it is on track to be done on the week of April 19th.
- Meanwhile, GM Jon Daniels says that Scott Feldman will likely be the last player to be given a contract extension before Opening Day, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. Texas locked up the 27-year-old yesterday to a deal that will keep him with the Rangers until at least 2012.
Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Figueroa, Rays, Martinez
Links for Saturday…
- Rule 5 Draft pick Carlos Monasterios will make the Dodgers' Opening Day squad, writes Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. However, Joe Torre will not announce whether the team will carry 11 or 12 pitchers until tomorrow.
- Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (via Twitter) says to expect word that Elliot Johnson has cleared waivers and will stay with the Rays at their Triple-A affiliate. Johnson, who was out of options, was waived by Tampa Bay earlier this week.
- Righthander Nelson Figueroa was one of six players cut by the Mets, according to MLB.com's Bill Chastain. Figueroa is out of options and has been outrighted before, so he can elect to become a free agent instead of reporting to the minors if he clears waivers.
- Victor Martinez doesn't feel he needs promises in his next contract that he will remain at catcher, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. This morning we learned that V-Mart doesn't want talks about a contract extension to take place during the season.
- Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies points out that the Rockies will start the year with the highest Opening Day payroll in team history, a cool $85,808,682.
- Marc Carig of The Newark Star-Ledger tweets that Marcus Thames has officially made the Yankees' Opening Day roster. He could have opted out of his minor league deal if he didn't make the team out of Spring Training, but now he'll earn $900K for the season.
Yanks Could Be Shopping For Outfielder Soon
Some in the industry are already wondering if the Yankees could be in the market for outfield help soon, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Both Randy Winn and Marcus Thames have struggled this spring, though Thames officially made the club's Opening Day roster today. The club may find themselves uneasy with the two veterans as starting left fielder Brett Gardner is not yet an established major league hitter. They would be especially thin in the outfield if Curtis Granderson or Nick Swisher are bitten by the injury bug.
Rosenthal writes that the Yankees figure to be more patient with Winn as he is more than four years removed from playing in the AL.
The Yankees investment in Winn and Thames amounts to just $2MM combined. Rosenthal writes that if one or both struggle, and Gardner also stumbles out of the gate, then the team could be seeking an outfielder quickly.
Blue Jays Sign Adam Lind To Multi-Year Deal
The Blue Jays have signed Adam Lind to a four year deal worth $18MM, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com tweets that the deal also includes club options for 2014, 2015, and 2016.
Bastian says that Lind will earn $400K in 2010 with a $600K bonus, then $5MM each year from 2011-2013. The 2014 option is worth $7MM with a $2MM buyout, the 2015 option is worth $7.5MM with a $1MM buyout, and the 2016 option is worth $8MM with a $500K buyout (Twitter link). If all of the options are picked up, Lind will earn $38.5MM over seven years.
Lind was entering his final pre-arbitration season in 2010, and wasn't scheduled to become a free agent until after the 2013 season. The deal buys out all three years of arbitration eligibility, and gives the team options for three free agent years.
The 26-year-old Lind broke out in a big way last season, hitting .305/.370/.562 with 46 doubles and 35 homeruns. Even though he's mostly a leftfielder and designated hitter, Toronto appears to get a tremendous bargain here. For comparison's sake, Nick Markakis will earn $62.455MM for the same seven year chunk of his career.
Yankees Sign Chad Moeller, Robby Hammock
The Yankees have signed veteran catcher Chad Moeller to a minor league contract according to Chad Jennings of The Journal News, just two days after the Orioles released him.
With catchers Jorge Posada, Francisco Cervelli, and Mike Rivera all battling minor injuries, Moeller will provide the Yankees with some depth at Triple-A. Jennings says the team is expected to release Rivera. Moeller hit .258/.313/.438 in 100 plate appearances for the O's last season, and played for the Yanks in 2008.
Jennings adds that the Yanks also signed utility man Robby Hammock to a minor league deal as well. The former Diamondback spent last season in the minors, and is a career .255/.313/.409 hitter in 525 big league plate appearances.
Kroenke Clears Waivers, Optioned To Triple-A
Lefty reliever Zach Kroenke has cleared waivers and been optioned to Triple-A Reno by the Diamondbacks, according to MLB.com's Steve Gilbert. Arizona selected Kroenke from the Yankees with the sixth overall pick in December's Rule 5 Draft.
Since this was Kroenke's second time through the process (the Marlins selected him in last year's Rule 5 Draft), he had the right to declare free agency if someone claimed him. As Jack Magruder of FoxSportsArizona.com explains, New York was told that Kroenke would elect to become a free agent if they wanted to take him back, so they never bothered to put a claim in. ESPN's Keith Law confirmed with Kroenke's agent that the Diamondbacks' chose to keep him on the 40-man roster even though he cleared waivers.
The 26-year-old Kroenke was the Yankees' fifth round pick in the 2005 draft, and posted a 1.99 ERA with a 6.8 K/9 and a 3.7 BB/9 in 72.1 Triple-A innings last year. He has held lefties to a .256 batting average during his minor league career.