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Reds Will Sign Baker To A Multi-Year Deal

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5:09pm: Baker tells John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer that the contract is a two-year extension.

11:29am: It’s not official yet, but Reds manager Dusty Baker will be back next season on a multi-year contract, according to Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News. Baker told McCoy that the sides are close to a deal and a confidante of Baker’s said it’s a matter of “dotting I’s and crossing T’s” at this point. 

The deal, which will probably be for three seasons, could be announced within the week, but it’s more likely that we’ll hear an official announcement after the postseason. Baker led the Reds to an NL Central title this year in his third season as the team’s manager. Prior to joining the Reds, Baker managed the Cubs for four seasons and led the Giants to the 2002 World Series.

The Reds have been discussing a contract with Baker since offering him an extension in August. The 61-year-old earned over $10MM on his current three-year deal and it would be a surprise to see the Reds offer less for another three-year term.

Odds & Ends: Brewers, Buehrle, Francis, Vazquez

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Miguel Olivo never played a major league game for the A's, but he signed with Oakland as an amateur free agent 14 years ago today. Here are some afternoon links, including an update on Olivo…

MLBPA Confirms Offseason Date Changes

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The MLB Players Association officially announced what MLBTR reported earlier in the week: that MLB and its players have agreed to make significant changes to the offseason calendar. Teams now have five days of exclusive negotiating rights with departing free agents instead of 15 and the deadlines for tendering contracts and offering and accepting arbitration have also been moved up. The date changes, which MLBTR reported in detail this Monday, will apply to the next two offseasons (2010-11 and 2011-12).

The Players Association also announced the implementation of “stricter rules” (for the MLBPA, MLB, clubs, players and agents) to guard against collusion and “restrictions on the abilities of the clubs, players and agents to conduct their free agent negotiations through use of the media."

Diamondbacks Rumors: Reynolds, A’s, Drew

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Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse hears that Arizona’s payroll will sit between $50-60MM next year. The Diamondbacks started the season with a $75MM payroll, but shed considerable salary with a flurry of midseason trades. They now have just shy of $20MM committed to the 2011 team (not including potential free agents or arbitration-eligible players). Here’s the latest on the Diamondbacks:

  • Krasovic hears that the D’Backs considered offering Mark Reynolds to the A’s for Kevin Kouzmanoff and Vin Mazzaro before Kevin Towers took over as the team’s GM.
  • The club also talked to the Tigers about exchanging Rick Porcello for Stephen Drew earlier in the summer, but Detroit wasn’t interested.
  • Krasovic wouldn’t be surprised to see the Diamondbacks sell high on Kelly Johnson, who is heading into his final season of arbitration.

 

Scott Boras To Represent Rafael Soriano

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Agent Scott Boras has added another one of the offseason's most intriguing free agents to his client list. Rafael Soriano hired Boras to represent him, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.

As Boras recently pointed out to Jon Heyman of SI.com, Soriano is “one of the top closers in the game.” The 30-year-old leads the American League in saves (44) and has a 1.76 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 63 appearances. MLBTR's Luke Adams recently pointed out that Soriano has set himself up for a multi-year deal, possibly even a three-year contract.

Boras, who has negotiated massive free agent deals for the likes of Matt Holliday, Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez, recently added Jayson Werth to his list of clients. Soriano, Werth, Adrian Beltre and Carlos Pena highlight Boras' free agents this offseason.

The Rays' chances of re-signing Soriano seem slim, but they could obtain two picks in next year's draft if Soriano turns down arbitration and signs elsewhere. Soriano, a projected Type A free agent, could theoretically accept an arb offer, as he did a year ago, but that probably won't concern the Rays. Soriano seems unlikely to accept arbitration and the Rays could trade him if he does, just as Atlanta did last offseason.

Olney On Crawford, Rangers, D’Backs

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Home field advantage in the Division Series and League Championship Series hasn't given teams the advantage you might expect, as ESPN.com's Buster Olney shows. But the Rays, Yankees and Twins presumably want home field advantage anyways and there's no question that the teams' respective owners would like the extra revenue. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors:

  • Some MLB executives expect the Red Sox and Angels to get into a bidding war over Carl Crawford this offseason. He’d be a good fit on either team, though Mike Cameron would likely become a bench player if the Red Sox signed Crawford or Jayson Werth.
  • High-ranking executives wouldn’t be surprised to see the Rangers’ payroll rise to $90-100MM. The team opened the 2010 season with a $65MM payroll, so that would be a substantial increase.
  • There seems to be a very good chance that Adam LaRoche and Mark Reynolds, who have combined  to strike out 375 times this season, will not be on the D’Backs in 2011. LaRoche will probably hit free agency this winter, but Reynolds has $13MM remaining on his contract and would have to be traded.

Mozeliak: Cardinals Have Many Needs To Address

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The Cardinals have a number of needs to address this offseason and GM John Mozeliak repeated to Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that ownership is prepared to boost the team’s payroll if necessary. The Cardinals will look to add starting pitching, relievers, catchers and other position players this offseason. Throw in Tony La Russa’s uncertain future and Albert Pujols’ looming free agency and Mozeliak has a busy winter ahead.

The Cardinals will need a fifth starter and they’ve already initiated discussions with Jake Westbrook, who has pitched well in St. Louis so far. Miklasz reports that the team will likely look to “spruce up” its left-handed relief, too.

The club will also look to add offense to complement Pujols and Matt Holliday. Mozeliak told Miklasz that he’d like to acquire "a couple of guys who can hit 15 to 20 homers." The front office also intends to add pop behind the plate and will likely look for a backup catcher who can contribute offensively.

The 82-76 Cardinals would also like improved middle infield defense and better baserunning. It's been a disappointing season for the Cardinals, but Mozeliak seems prepared to make a number of changes before the 2011 campaign begins.

Westbrook, Cardinals Have Mutual Interest

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Jake Westbrook and the Cardinals have mutual interest in working out a deal to keep the starter in St. Louis, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. GM John Mozeliak says the club “obviously has interest” in re-signing Westbrook and has reached out to the pitcher’s representatives. Discussions haven’t picked up yet, but Westbrook says he wouldn’t mind signing a deal before other teams have the chance to bid on him.

"I'm definitely going to be open-minded about pretty much everything," Westbrook said. "If they had interest, I've definitely enjoyed my time here. I've gotten to know the guys well. The organization is definitely one that everybody knows about, that I've certainly heard a lot about, and now, firsthand, I've gotten to see that everybody was right."

The Cardinals have experience locking up starters on the cusp of free agency; they signed Kyle Lohse to an extension two years ago this week and locked up Joel Pineiro in October of 2007. Lohse will figure into the team’s 2011 rotation if healthy, but the Cardinals could still use starting pitching depth. Westbrook won’t cost as much as Lohse did ($41MM), but as MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes explained yesterday, he could be in line for a two-year deal worth $15MM or so.

Westbrook has put together 195 solid innings this year, posting a 4.38 ERA between Cleveland and St. Louis. In 11 starts since joining the Cards, the right-hander has pitched especially well, posting a 3.88 ERA.

Ted Lilly Seeks Three-Year Deal

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The agent for Ted Lilly anticipates mutual interest between his client and the Dodgers, but suspects other teams might make better offers.

“I’m just not sure the Dodgers at this point are going to get to a range that will be very easy for us to achieve come December,” agent Larry O’Brien told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. “I’m pretty confident that there’s a minimum three-year deal out there for Ted.”

Lilly, who turns 35 in January, has pitched well for the Cubs and Dodgers this season. He has an overall ERA of 3.71 with 7.6 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 186.2 total innings. He and teammate Hiroki Kuroda will be among the more appealing free agent starters not named Cliff Lee.

As Rosenthal points out, Lilly currently projects as a Type A free agent, but not by much. It may not matter, since the Dodgers would have to offer arbitration to obtain compensation picks and that doesn’t seem likely given their recent history.

Ten Bargain Signings For 2010

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The 2010 season is no exception to the rule that hindsight is 20-20. If we knew last winter what we do now, there's no way that players such as Chone Figgins would have signed for more than these ten players combined. No one on the list below signed for more than $3.5MM last winter, but all of these players went on to reward their teams with productive seasons:

  • Matt Capps, $3.5MM – Capps has a 2.51 ERA with 41 total saves for the Nationals and Twins. 
  • Darren Oliver, $3.5MM – The lefty has a 2.52 ERA with more than one strikeout per inning in 63 games for the Rangers.
  • Takashi Saito, $3.2MM – Another bargain reliever, Saito has a 2.52 ERA with 11.6 K/9 in 55 games.
  • Aubrey Huff, $3MM – Huff has hit .289/.382/.510 with 26 homers in San Francisco.
  • J.J. Putz, $3MM – Putz has a 2.92 ERA with more than a strikeout per inning in 58 games.
  • Miguel Olivo, $2.5MM – Olivo is batting .269/.314/.444 in 422 plate appearances so far in 2010.
  • Kelly Johnson, $2.35MM – One year removed from a tough season in Atlanta, Johnson has 26 homers.
  • John Buck, $2MM – Buck hit his 20th homer tonight and made the AL All-Star team.
  • Russell Branyan, $2MM – Branyan was an absolute steal last year, but he was a bargain once again in 2010, hitting 25 total homers.
  • Jim Thome, $1.5MM – Who saw this one coming? Thome has an OPS over 1.000 and 25 homers. Bill Smith and the Twins deserve a ton of credit for this signing.

Click here to check out some recent minor league deals that turned out well.

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