Archives for January 2011

MLBTR Originals: 1/23/11 – 1/30/11

By Mike Axisa | January 30, 2011 at 10:40pm CDT

Time to recap the last seven days of original MLBTR content…

Ben Nicholson-Smith provided a ton of original Blue Jays' coverage this week. He wrote about some recent comments made by GM Alex Anthopoulos, the team's eventual payroll boost, and their pursuit of bullpen depth. In the wake of the Vernon Wells' trade, I looked at Toronto's future payroll obligations.
Ben also looked at four potential landing spots for Vladimir Guerrero, the 22 teams that have given out multiyear contracts this offseason, and ten arbitration cases to watch.
Nick Collias reported that the Cubs signed a pair of Cuban players: outfielder Ruby Silva ($1.2MM) and catcher Yaniel Cabezas ($500K). MLBTR also reported that Ian Stewart had avoided arbitration with the Rockies.
We started a new series looking at players who face a make or break year in 2011. So far we've covered Grady Sizemore of the Indians, Nate McLouth of the Braves, and Scott Kazmir of the Angels.
We posted a pair of poll questions this week, asking where Justin Duchscherer will sign and who the best unsigned starting pitcher is.
I rounded up the latest and greatest from around the web in Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
Here is this week's chat transcript.
Howard Megdal's latest Jack of all Trades post looked at baseball's tallest players.

Week In Review: 1/23/11 – 1/30/11

By Mike Axisa | January 30, 2011 at 9:32pm CDT

Pitchers and catchers will report to Spring Training in just two short weeks, but that doesn't mean the rumors have stopped. Let's recap the last seven days of hot stove action…

Two pitchers landed multiyear contract extensions this week. Wandy Rodriguez agreed to a three-year deal worth $34MM with the Astros while Johnny Cueto got four years and $27MM from the Reds. The Angels are trying to lock up their ace as well, having opened up talks with Jered Weaver about a long-term contract extension.
Less than a week after acquiring him from the Angels, the Blue Jays turned around and traded Mike Napoli (and cash) to the Rangers for Frank Francisco. Both Napoli and Francisco later agreed to one-year contracts with their new teams to avoid arbitration.
In an effort to bolster their pitching staff, the Diamondbacks acquired Armando Galarraga from the Tigers for a pair of minor leaguers. The Padres added depth by signing Jorge Cantu to a one-year deal worth $850K while the Nationals added Todd Coffey to their bullpen for $1.35MM and one year.
Chone Figgins' name came up in trade talks with the Athletics (and Blue Jays), but he ultimately said he's going to remain a Mariner. The Red Sox pursued a trade for Jose Bautista, but nothing ever materialized.
The Orioles made an offer to Vladimir Guerrero, but there hasn't been any progress in talks and there's no timetable for a decision. Baltimore also has interest in Justin Duchscherer, who wants to start, as do the Nationals.
If he decides to pitch in 2011, the Yankees will offer Andy Pettitte a cool $12MM. Rodrigo Lopez has offers from the Braves, Mets, and Rockies, while the Orioles have an offer out to Mark Hendrickson. The Indians have interest in bringing back Kevin Millwood, ditto the White Sox and Freddy Garcia and the Tigers and Jeremy Bonderman. A few clubs have interest in Aaron Miles.
Spring Training deadlines for contract extensions are the new black. Rickie Weeks set one this week, as did Shin-Soo Choo. Albert Pujols said he will veto all trades if he can't get an extension worked out with the Cardinals before the season. Rumor has it he might seek $300MM.
The Rangers and GM Jon Daniels are discussing a contract extension. The Rockies locked up Rafael Betancourt for the next two years, as the Mets did with R.A. Dickey.
The list of players that avoided arbitration by agreeing to one-year deals includes Edinson Volquez of the Reds, Jason Frasor of the Blue Jays, Ian Stewart of the Rockies, Miguel Montero of the Diamondbacks, Kevin Slowey of the Twins, and Craig Breslow of the Athletics.
A number of players signed minor league contracts this week, including Dave Bush (Rangers), Shawn Hill (Marlins), Nick Green (Orioles), Mike MacDougal (Dodgers), Joe Beimel (Pirates), Jose Julio Ruiz and Ty Taubenheim (both Rangers), Nick Bierbrodt (Orioles), Braden Looper and Augie Ojeda (both Cubs), Casey Kotchman (Rays), Alfredo Amezaga (Rockies), Greg Burke (Padres), Bartolo Colon (Yankees), Chris Ray (Mariners), Clay Rapada (Orioles), Todd Wellemeyer (Cubs), Marc Kroon (Giants), Andy LaRoche (Athletics), Willy Taveras (Rockies), and Micah Owings (Diamondbacks).
We saw three players get claimed off waivers this week. The Padres claimed Samuel Deduno, the Rays claimed Rob Delaney, and the Twins claimed Dusty Hughes. Deduno was designated for assignment after the Rockies acquired Clayton Mortenson from the A's for minor leaguer Ethan Hollingsworth.
The Nationals designated both Justin Maxwell and Shairon Martis for assignment while the Diamondbacks did the same with Rafael Rodriguez. The Cubs signed a pair of Cuban-born players: outfielder Ruby Silva ($1.2MM) and catcher Yaniel Cabezas ($500K).
Troy Glaus is going to sit out at least the start of the 2011 season, while both Rocco Baldelli and Russ Springer officially announced their retirements. Jim Edmonds is likely to call it a career as well.

Jocketty Hopes New Deals Will Improve Attendance

By Mike Axisa | January 30, 2011 at 8:13pm CDT

The Reds have been very aggressive about signing their own players to long-term contract extensions this winter, and GM Walt Jocketty hopes the moves will improve the team's attendance according to Hal McCoy of The Dayton Daily News.

"If we continue to win … our attendance will improve, our revenues will improve and we’ll be in great shape to try and re-sign these guys," said Jocketty.

McCoy says the target appears to be 2.8MM fans in 2011, which would be an increase of about 800K fans from last season according to the data in his post. Cincinnati has consistently drawn about 2MM fans a year since the Great American Ballpark opened in 2003. The team's first division title and playoff appearance since 1995 will certainly help increase interest.

As our Transactions Tracker shows, the Reds have doled out over $150MM in contract extensions to four players this offseason: Jay Bruce, Bronson Arroyo, Johnny Cueto, and NL MVP Joey Votto. Edinson Volquez is rumored to be next in line.

Grilli Appears Likely To Sign With Phillies

By Mike Axisa | January 30, 2011 at 7:00pm CDT

Right-hander Jason Grilli announced on his Twitter account that he's "FIRED UP about the City of Brotherly Love," possibly indicating that he's agreed to sign with the Phillies. We heard that the team was interested in signing him just yesterday.

Grilli, 34, last pitched in the big leagues in 2009. He posted a 5.32 ERA in 45 2/3 innings with the Rockies and Rangers. He struck out an impressive 9.7 K/9, but walked 5.3 BB/9. He agreed to a minor league pact with the Indians last year, but he missed the entire season with a quad injury. The fourth overall pick in the 1997 draft, Grilli has worked exclusively in relief since 2005.

Jesus Feliciano Weighing Minor League Offers

By Mike Axisa | January 30, 2011 at 6:05pm CDT

It took Jesus Feliciano 12 years before he finally reached the big leagues, which he did with the Mets in 2010. Now the 31-year-old outfielder is weighing multiple minor league contract offers according to Adam Rubin of ESPN New York. It's unclear which teams made those offers.

Feliciano has spent the last five years playing in Triple-A, hitting .316/.363/.394 in 1,834 plate appearances. In 119 trips to the plate for the Amazin's last season, he hit .231/.276/.287 while playing all three outfield spots. The Mets dropped Feliciano off their 40-man roster back in November.

Orioles & Nationals Are Finalists For Duchscherer

By Steve Adams | January 30, 2011 at 5:03pm CDT

5:03pm: The Mariners are now out of the running, reports Connolly (Twitter links). The Orioles definitely offered Duchscherer a Major League contract.

2:36pm: Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets that Duchscherer's search is down to three teams: the Mariners, Orioles, and Nationals. All three have offered one-year deals, and more than one are Major League offers.

2:14pm: ESPN's Jerry Crasnick tweets that Duchscherer has narrowed his options to four teams, and that the Nationals and Orioles are both making pushes to sign the former Athletic.

2:10pm: Duchscherer told MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli (Twitter link), via text message, that he's "very close" with several teams and that his decision will be made this week.

1:19pm: The Orioles are the frontrunner to land Justin Duchscherer's services, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. According to Rosenthal, the O's have made an offer that's believed to be a Major League deal. Whether it's from Baltimore or another team, Rosenthal says the right-hander has at least one Major League offer.

Duchscherer, who turned 33 last November, has been limited to just 28 innings since a stellar 2008 season that was also marred by injury. Duchscherer's most recent trip to the DL occured in April this past season, and resulted in season-ending hip surgery on June 7. It was his his third trip to the 60-day disabled list of his career.

When healthy, Ducscherer provides plenty of value, owning a career 3.13 ERA, 6.87 K/9, and 2.4 BB/9 through 454 2/3 innings, mostly out of the bullpen.

Quick Hits: Weeks, Dodgers, Cuddyer, Mets

By Luke Adams 2 | January 30, 2011 at 4:45pm CDT

On this day 20 years ago, the Atlanta Braves signed Falcons cornerback Deion Sanders as a free agent. Though he struggled in his first year as a Brave, 'Prime Time' was a key contributor for the National League champs in 1992; he hit .304/.346/.495 with 26 stolen bases in 325 regular season plate appearances and added eight hits and five steals in four World Series games. Sanders ended up leaving both Atlanta franchises in 1994, but not before he racked up 75 stolen bases and ten touchdowns for the Braves and Falcons respectively. Here are Sunday's links:

The Brewers are comfortable with Rickie Weeks' deadline for an extension, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. He relays a quote from assistant GM Gord Ash praising Weeks for focusing on the right area once the season starts — baseball.
Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times looks at the possibility of Tony Gwynn Jr. hitting well enough to play every day and how that would impact the Dodgers' roster.
Michael Cuddyer and agent Casey Close have yet to discuss a long-term extension with the Twins, writes MLB.com's Kelly Thesier. While Cuddyer is open to talking about a contract during Spring Training, he'd prefer to table the topic during the regular season.
Martin Luther King III, son of the civil rights leader, is leading a group that's interested in buying at least 50% of the Mets, reports Kevin Kernan of the New York Post. The Wilpons were said to be willing to sell up to 25% of the team.
Given the Mets' financial situation, some rival executives think Jose Reyes is likely to be moved before this year's trade deadline, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Insider-only).
In a tweet, Olney adds that, despite considering it, the Diamondbacks are "probably not" going to implement a humidor at Chase Field this year.
Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer wonders why expectations for Phillies' prospect Domonic Brown seem to have diminished since last summer.
Within an Indians mailbag, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer says he can see the Tribe signing a couple more players before Spring Training, though the team would likely only do minor league deals.

Poll: Where Will Justin Duchscherer Sign?

By Steve Adams | January 30, 2011 at 3:40pm CDT

With the starting pitching market nearly bare, teams in need of pitching can look back to Justin Duchscherer's 2008 and his limited action in 2010 and dream big. Since Oakland converted their longtime setup man to a starter, he's posted a 2.60 ERA through 169 2/3 innings. His rate stats are excellent (7.1 H/9, 0.7 HR/9, 2.4 BB/9, 6.0 K/9) as well.

Unfortunately for interested teams and for Justin himself, it's taken Duchscherer three years to accumulate those numbers because of injuries. Now a free agent, the 33-year-old has narrowed his options and is choosing between Washington, Baltimore, and Seattle. Several reports have said he prefers the East Coast so he can be closer to his son in New Jersey, but there's no indication that Seattle is out of the running by any means despite that.

None of the three jump out as immediate contenders in 2011, but all three need pitching depth and can offer a chance to rebuild his stock and prove his health in order to land a much larger deal next offseason. Last week, 34.5% of the 18,000+ MLBTR readers polled agreed that Duchscherer was the best remaining free agent pitcher. Let's get your take once again:

Rockies Extend Rafael Betancourt

By Steve Adams | January 30, 2011 at 1:56pm CDT

The Rockies have signed Rafael Betancourt to an extension that will keep him in Denver through 2012 according to ESPN's Enrique Rojas (Spanish link). Troy Renck of the Denver Post adds that the one-year extension carries a mutual $4.25MM option with it.

Betancourt, 36 in April, was already under contract for 2011 at $3.77MM. The new deal guarantees him $4MM in 2012, and there's a $250K buyout on Colorado's half of the mutual option. If Betancourt declines his half of the deal, there's no buyout. If he's traded, the buyout becomes guaranteed.

The Rockies acquired Betancourt prior to the 2009 trade deadline in exchange for minor leaguer Connor Graham, and he's been nothing short of oustanding in their bullpen. Since the trade, the right-hander owns a 3.08 ERA and has fanned more than 12 hitters per nine innings while walking less than two per nine.

Rangers Sign Dave Bush

By Steve Adams | January 30, 2011 at 1:26pm CDT

The Rangers have signed Dave Bush to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training, tweets Anthony Andro of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. In a different tweet, ESPN's Jerry Crasnick informs us that Bush's base salary will be $1MM if he makes the club, with another $1MM in incentives. The Indians and Mets also expressed interest in the long-time Brewer.

Bush, who turned 31 last November, owns a career ERA of 4.66 that's backed up by his peripherals (4.64 FIP, 4.47 xFIP). Last season, he hurled 174 1/3 innings of 4.54 ERA ball in the Brewers' rotation, where he's spent the past five seasons. If he makes the club, Bush will return to the AL for the first time since 2005, when he pitched in Toronto (the club that originally drafted him).

While he's never had an overpowering fastball (88.4mph career average), last season saw his velocity dip to an average of 86.5. His normally strong command (2.33 BB/9 career) diminished as well, as his walk rate jumped to a career-high 3.36/9. Bush will need to re-establish his precision and improve on his career 1.3 HR/9 in order to thrive in a hitters' environment such as Texas.

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