Archives for November 2010

Laynce Nix Becomes A Free Agent

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 9, 2010 at 5:55pm CDT

Laynce Nix has cleared waivers, refused an outright assignment and become a free agent, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon (on Twitter). The 30-year-old batted .291/.350/.455 in 182 plate appearances this year after the Reds signed him to a minor league deal.

Nix played all three outfield positions for the second consecutive season, spending most of his time in left field. However, he missed weeks with a sprained left ankle in August and September and saw his homer total drop from 15 to four. The left-handed hitter has handled righties (.738 OPS) much better than lefties (.521 OPS) over the course of his eight-year MLB career.

Odds & Ends: Beltre, Crawford, Mets, Konerko

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 9, 2010 at 5:36pm CDT

Links for Tuesday night, as free agents Adam Dunn and Dave Bush celebrate birthdays…

Adrian Gonzalez said on XX 1090 in San Diego that he had surgery in October and may not swing a bat until late March, according to Dan Hayes of the North County Times (on Twitter). The Padres have said they’re willing to listen to offers on Gonzalez, but the surgery could limit the number of offers GM Jed Hoyer gets.
MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch explains why the Pirates might have some interest in Adrian Beltre and why the third baseman isn't likely to end up in Pittsburgh.
Free agent outfielder Carl Crawford says he's "just kind of sitting back waiting" to hear from interested teams, according to Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune.
Dennis Sarfate, Scott Moore, Joel Guzman, Chris George and Mike Hinckley became minor league free agents over the weekend, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.
ESPN.com's Mark Simon explains that we aren't necessarily going to see "a strict adherence to baseball analytics and a formulaic, stats-over-scouts approach" from the Mets, who now have Sandy Alderson, Paul DePodesta and J.P. Ricciardi in their revamped front office.
The friendship between free agent first baseman Paul Konerko and White Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf likely means Chicago will have the chance to match any offers Konerko receives from other teams, according to Doug Padilla of ESPNChicago.com.
Patrick Newman of FanGraphs says Tsuyoshi Nishioka is a pretty good player who can hit well from both sides of the plate and handle second base. The Chiba Lotte Marines may post the Pacific League batting champion and make him available to MLB teams.

Gregg Zaun Would Prefer To Sign With Rays

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 9, 2010 at 3:56pm CDT

Gregg Zaun would like to return to Tampa Bay, according to Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio (on Twitter). Zaun said on Bowden's radio show that his first choice is to sign in Tampa Bay, where he played at the end of the 2009 season.

Zaun's 2010 campaign lasted just 28 games, so the Brewers recently declined their 2011 option for the catcher. He hit .265/.350/.392 before he tore the labrum in his right shoulder and missed the rest of the season.

Zaun signed a one-year $1.5MM deal with Baltimore before the 2009 season and a one-year $1.9MM deal with Milwaukee before the 2010 season. The 39-year-old is in line for another one-year deal, but could be available for even less than usual because of his injury-shortened season.

Dioner Navarro probably won't be back in Tampa Bay, but the Rays do have John Jaso and Kelly Shoppach, so they don't appear to need Zaun.

Seven To Eight Teams Show Interest In Cliff Lee

By Tim Dierkes | November 9, 2010 at 1:55pm CDT

1:55pm: The Astros may make a run at Lee, in the opinion of SI's Jon Heyman (Twitter link). He names the Cubs, Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, and Phillies as other surprising suitors.

11:40am: Seven to eight teams have already shown interest in free agent lefty Cliff Lee, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. He says the Yankees and Rangers are still the favorites, but the Phillies, Dodgers, and others have checked in.

As Rosenthal notes, it's questionable as to whether the Phillies or Dodgers could come up with the money for Lee. He's expected to sign for significantly more than $100MM. I imagine the Nationals checked in as well; they do have the money and are known to be interested. While the Red Sox and Angels appear poised to spend their money on position players, we won't count them out until they say so. At any rate, I'm excited to use the Mystery Team category here at MLBTR for the first time this offseason.

Odds & Ends: Francoeur, Theriot, Braves, Hacker

By Tim Dierkes | November 9, 2010 at 12:49pm CDT

Links for Tuesday, as the American League Gold Glove winners are announced…

Rangers outfielder Jeff Francoeur is expected to clear waivers and become a free agent by week's end, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Francoeur would have been non-tendered on December 2nd, otherwise.
Speaking of non-tender candidates, Dodgers second baseman Ryan Theriot told MLB.com's Ken Gurnick he hopes to return next year.
Yahoo's Jeff Passan provides his top 164 free agents.
ESPN's Keith Law says Arthur Rhodes is a player to avoid, in his relievers buyer's guide (Insider required).
David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution speculates on outfield options for the Braves.
Minor league free agent Eric Hacker signed a big league deal with the Twins, agent Matt Sosnick told ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (Twitter link). Hacker, 28 in March, posted a 4.57 ERA, 7.0 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, and 1.1 HR/9 in 165 2/3 Triple-A innings for the Giants' affiliate this year.

Non-Tender Candidate: Blaine Boyer

By Tim Dierkes | November 9, 2010 at 10:22am CDT

As new Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers looks to remake his bullpen, he may choose to cut 29-year-old right-handed reliever Blaine Boyer loose. Towers will need to decide by the December 2nd non-tender deadline, as Boyer is arbitration eligible for the second time in his career after earning $725K in 2010.

Boyer tossed 57 innings out of Arizona's pen this year, with a 4.26 ERA, 4.6 K/9, 4.6 BB/9, and 0.5 HR/9. His 65.8% groundball rate stood out; that ranked third among all pitchers with at least 50 innings. He also throws hard, averaging a 94.6 mph fastball this year.

Boyer has moved around in his career since coming up with the Braves. The Braves traded him to the Cardinals in April of '09, and then the D'Backs claimed him off waivers two months later after he'd been designated for assignment. Former D'Backs GM Josh Byrnes designated Boyer again in May of this year, but he cleared waivers and was added back to the roster in June.

Boyer's control in 2010 had been horrible prior to his demotion, but an arm slot adjustment led to a 3.7 BB/9 after his recall. That's tolerable, but with so few strikeouts it's tough to make that formula work even with frequent groundballs.

We've shown you the good and the bad; now it's your turn to predict what Kevin Towers will do. Click here to make your prediction and here to view the poll results.

One Year Ago: Early November 2009

By Tim Dierkes | November 9, 2010 at 9:22am CDT

A look back at the first half of November 2009 reveals interesting parallels with what we've seen so far this month. Last year the offseason began on November 5th, three days later than this year. However, the offseason deadlines have been moved up for 2010, so we're still on a similar pace. Burning up the hot stove a year ago:

Teams Extending Their Own Free Agents

The Mariners signed Jack Wilson to a two-year, $10MM extension. Perhaps Jhonny Peralta's recent two-year, $11.25MM deal is the parallel. The Mariners do deserve credit for resisting Russell Branyan's demands for a two-year deal a year ago.
The Braves signed Tim Hudson to a three-year, $28MM extension. One of the few early deals that worked out, this could match up with Ted Lilly's three-year, $33MM extension.
The Cubs were close to an extension for John Grabow, who ultimately signed for two years and $7.5MM.
The Red Sox signed Tim Wakefield to a two-year, $5MM extension.
The Angels signed Bobby Abreu to a two-year, $19MM extension, and also locked up GM Tony Reagins.
The White Sox signed Mark Kotsay to a one-year, $1.5MM deal. The Sox jumped out early this year too, re-upping Omar Vizquel.
Several of these early extensions were at inflated prices, and in most cases teams would have been better off waiting.

Trades For Near Non-Tender Candidates

Mark Teahen, J.J. Hardy, and Jeremy Hermida were dealt. Akinori Iwamura fits here as well, as a player the Rays would have cut loose but the Pirates found worthwhile. None of them panned out. A few who could be dealt prior to the December 2nd non-tender deadline this year: Mike Napoli, Russell Martin, James Loney, Leo Nunez, Jason Bartlett, and Carlos Quentin.

Under The Radar Pickups

The Royals signed Wilson Betemit to a minor league deal, and the Nationals claimed reliever Doug Slaten off waivers from the Diamondbacks. Both were more useful than expected. The Royals have already made a couple of low-profile pickups this year in Joaquin Arias and Lance Zawadzki. Willie Eyre, Travis Blackley, Brent Dlugach, Joe Mather, and Justin James also changed teams this month.

Free Agent And Trade Rumors

The Nationals showed early interest in Mark DeRosa and Mike Gonzalez. It appears they're being aggressive early this year too.
The Yankees were focused on whether they'd retain Andy Pettitte, Johnny Damon, and Hideki Matsui. This year they've got bigger concerns with Pettitte, Derek Jeter, and Mariano Rivera.
There were plenty of early suitors for Aroldis Chapman, who had not yet switched agents. The Reds weren't known to be in the mix. Of course, John Lackey, Matt Holliday, and Jason Bay were filling up our pages too. This year it'll be about Cliff Lee, Carl Crawford, Jayson Werth, Adrian Beltre, Adam Dunn, and Victor Martinez.
The big trade candidates were Roy Halladay, Curtis Granderson, Edwin Jackson, Milton Bradley, and Dan Uggla. This year it looks like Prince Fielder, and Zack Greinke. Matt Garza, James Shields, Matt Kemp, Mark Reynolds, Josh Willingham, and Uggla could also be popular rumor subjects.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Lance Berkman

By Tim Dierkes | November 9, 2010 at 7:53am CDT

Less than a year ago, Lance Berkman felt that the Astros picking up his $15MM option for 2011 was a possibility. He was since traded to the Yankees, who declined the option without pause. Let's examine his free agent story.

The Good

Berkman's .368 OBP this year was actually his worst since his rookie campaign. If his batting average comes back up from .248 he'll be even more of an on-base asset.
He can still play some first base, logging almost 800 innings there in 2010.
Berkman will not cost a draft pick to sign and ought to be open to a one-year deal.

The Bad

Like Manny Ramirez, the walks are still there but the power is slipping. Berkman slugged just .413 in 481 plate appearances this year, about on par with Miguel Cairo and Ty Wigginton. Berkman did not finish strong, slugging .349 in 123 Yankees plate appearances.
Berkman turns 35 in February. He had 41 DL days this year due to knee surgery and an ankle sprain. On the flip side, if he acts mostly as a DH in 2011 and stays healthy, some power could return.
He's a switch-hitter, but left-handed pitching has been a problem the last few years.

The Verdict

Berkman could make a quality platoon bat, but he's probably not ready to take that role. If he's flexible on first base versus designated hitter, he can probably find 500 plate appearances in 2011 for around $5MM. The Orioles, Red Sox, Rays, Blue Jays, Rangers, Nationals, Cubs, Brewers, Diamondbacks, Giants, Tigers, Athletics, and Mariners could have openings. However, a few DH types figure to be left out in the cold this offseason so it makes sense to sign early.

Adam Everett Intends To Play In 2011

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 8, 2010 at 10:00pm CDT

The agent for Adam Everett told MLB.com's Jason Beck that his client intends to play in 2011 and has heard from multiple interested teams. Clubs looking for a cheap, defense-first shortstop could turn to the 33-year-old, but they shouldn't expect much offense from him. Everett batted just .185/.221/.247 for the Tigers in 89 plate appearances last year, before Detroit released him.

The trade market for shortstops isn't deep and the free agent market isn't either, but it just got a little more interesting. The Chiba Lotte Marines will post Japanese batting champion Tsuyoshi Nishioka this week, according to Tim Kurkjian of ESPN The Magazine.

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