Archives for February 2011

AL East Notes: Yankees, Werth, Pavano, Jays, Rays

By Mike Axisa | February 25, 2011 at 1:47pm CDT

Seven years ago today, the Yankees signed Eduardo Nunez as a free agent out of the Dominican Republic. Now 23, Nunez is in the mix to be New York's utility infielder in 2011 after hitting .280/.321/.360 with more walks (three) than strikeouts (two) in his brief big league debut last season (53 PA).

Here are some more notes that have to do with the Yanks and their fellow AL East clubs…

Joel Sherman of The New York Post reports that the Yankees "have told their scouts to bear down on several teams they think could have starters available" in a trade this summer. The teams they are targeting include the Braves, Angels, A's, White Sox, and Cardinals according to Sherman.
Jayson Werth told SI.com's Jon Heyman that he had a "great" meeting with the Red Sox earlier this offseason, after which he figured they would offer six years (Twitter link). They only offered five, so he ended up with the Nationals.
Carl Pavano spoke to Kelsie Smith of The Pioneer Press about being pursued by the Yankees this offseason. "I don't think [the past] would be a hindrance, but there would have definitely been obstacles," said Pavano. "I'm not naïve enough to think that there wouldn't have been things I would have had to overcome, especially the trust of the fans and maybe some of the guys that were there. That's reality."
Richard Griffin of The Toronto Star notes (on Twitter) that four of the Blue Jays' ten highest paid players are former closers: Jason Frasor, Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch, and Octavio Dotel.
When asked about the payroll disparity between his Rays and other teams in the division, Joe Maddon told Ken Davidoff of Newsday that he's "never seen a dollar bill throw a strike, or hit a homer, or whatever." (Twitter link)

Phillies Have Asked Nationals About Mike Morse

By Mike Axisa | February 25, 2011 at 1:23pm CDT

1:23pm: Heyman says (on Twitter) the Nationals are not inclined to trade Morse to the Phillies, or anywhere else for that matter. They're intrigued by the work he's done with hitting coach Rick Eckstein.

12:29pm: After losing their top right-handed power threat this offseason, the Phillies have asked the Nationals about the availability of outfielder Mike Morse according to SI.com's Jon Heyman (on Twitter). Philadelphia's lineup is predominantly left-handed with Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez, and Domonic Brown, something that might be exposed with the departure of Jayson Werth.

Morse, 29 next month, hit .289/.352/.519 with 12 doubles and 15 homers in just 293 plate appearances for Washington last year, his first regular playing time in the big leagues since 2005. He crushed lefty pitching, hitting .295/.374/.625 with eight long balls against them in just under a hundred trips to the plate. Although he has experience on the infield, most of Morse's playing time has come in the corner outfield spots in recent years. He'll earn $1.05MM in 2011, the first time he was eligible for arbitration.

The Nationals outfield is pretty crowded right now, with only Werth guaranteed a full-time job. The other two spots will go to some combination of Morse, Rick Ankiel, Roger Bernadina, and Nyjer Morgan. Jerry Hairston Jr. can also play the outfield, and the Nats have both Matt Stairs and Laynce Nix in camp on minor league contracts.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Pujols, Reyes, Rays, A’s

By Mike Axisa | February 25, 2011 at 9:41am CDT

On this date in 1973, the players and owners agreed to a new three-year collective bargaining agreement, ending the Spring Training lockout. The new deal introduced salary arbitration for players with two or more years of service to the game, as well as ten-and-five no-trade protection. While we wait to see what rule changes are included in the next CBA (due this December), here's the best the baseball blogosphere has to offers…

Wahoo Blues interviewed Justine Siegal, the first woman to throw batting practice in MLB history.
Bless You Boys chatted with Tigers prospect Brandon Douglas.
Viva El Birdos goes through the 17 stages of grief following Adam Wainwright's injury.
Pine Tar And Pocket Protectors looked at the ripple effect of Albert Pujols' impending free agency.
The Golden Sombrero explains why Pujols' venture into free agency is bad for baseball.
Blue Sox Baseball muses about Pujols' inevitable contract and what's best for the Cardinals.
Amazin' Avenue analyzed Jose Reyes and his future as it pertains to the Mets.
The Process Report examines Rays' attendance immediately following the Scott Kazmir trade and in recent years (part one, part two).
The Todd Van Poppel Rookie Card Retirement Plan wonders if the Athletics are built to last beyond 2011.
Through The Fence Baseball muses about how teams can get the most out of their young pitchers.
The Nats Blog looks at the best seasons by position player teenagers, hoping that Bryce Harper will one day crack the list.
Tomahawk Talk continues its series looking at seven keys for the 2011 Braves.
Capitol Avenue Club writes about the lesson learned from Andy Marte.
The Biz of Baseball examines the potential ripple effect of Hunter Pence's arbitration award.
Where Have You Gone, Andy Van Slyke? explains why 2011 is an important year for the Pirates.
D'Backs Central looks at the Diamondbacks outfield setup for the upcoming season.
Blog Red Machine tackles the idea of Jay Bruce hitting leadoff in 2011.
Phillies Nation finished their countdown of the top 25 Phillies' prospects.
Rooftop View tries to rationalize Alfonso Soriano's contract.
1 Blue Jays Way posted their 25 Man Roster Challenge.
The Ghost of Moonlight Graham named its five offseason winners.
Cubs Billy Goat Blog helps you prepare for your fantasy draft.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.

Coonelly On Budget, Draft Picks, Payroll, Extensions

By Mike Axisa | February 25, 2011 at 8:20am CDT

Kevin Creagh of Pirates Prospects recently interviewed Pirates team president Frank Coonelly, who spoke about a number of hot stove topics. Let's recap…

If GM Neal Huntington wants to make a move that would cause the team to exceed its budget, whether it be a trade, free agent, draft signing, etc., Coonelly said "Neal and his staff will make a case for such a decision and I will then take that case to [owner] Bob Nutting. If Bob agrees that the case has been made and that exceeding the budget for the proposed signing will not hinder our ability to make the other investments that need to be made, he will approve the acquisition."
Nutting and Coonelly will bring the fans' interest into the equation if a trade involves a popular player, such as Nate McLouth or Jason Bay.
"We need to reduce the compensatory selections so that the second selection of the club drafting first in the country is not 58 or 60 instead of 31," said Coonelly, with regards to the draft pick compensation system. "Now, [the Rays] received those selections because it lost good players in free agency but it is difficult for the draft to serve its purpose when there are so many compensatory selections before the second round."
The team would not be able to support a $70-80MM payroll right now, but they "will be able to support that payroll very soon if [their] fans believe that [they] now have a group of players in Pittsburgh and on its way here in the near future that is competitive."
Nutting told Rob Biertempfel of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that payroll is not dependent on attendance. "We're not artificially handicapped by extreme limitations on dollars, as we have been in the past," said the owner. "I don't see there being an artificial constraint as we move forward."
Factors such as track record, health, makeup, and character go into the decision about whether or not to sign a player to a long-term deal. "We need to be convinced that we can count on the player over the long term and that requires trust in the player as a person and as a teammate," said Coonelly.

Coonelly also spoke about his day-to-day responsibilities, minority partners, and how he spends his free time.

Quick Hits: Rockies, Dodgers, McDonald, Clippard

By Zachary Links | February 24, 2011 at 10:33pm CDT

Links for Thursday night..

While I wondered if the Braves could be a match for the Cardinals as they look for pitching, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports suggests that the Rockies could be a match. A major league source told Rosenthal that the Cards will first explore internal options before looking out-of-house.
Commissioner Bud Selig has rejected a proposal under which FOX would have loaned about $200MM to Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, three people familiar with the talks told Bill Shaikin of the LA Times.
Ex-Giant Juan Uribe is happy to be aboard with the Dodgers, writes John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Former Dodgers pitcher James McDonald is excited to turn over a new leaf with the Pirates, writes Evan Drellich of MLB.com. McDonald was shipped to Pittsburgh along with Andrew Lambo for Octavio Dotel last season.
Nationals reliever Tyler Clippard says that he will continue to be represented by agent Casey Close, who is leaving CAA Sports, writes MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
Brewers right-handers Justin James and Shaun Marcum were drafted by Toronto in the same year but took very different paths to wind up in Milwaukee, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. James claimed off waivers by the Brewers from the A's this offseason.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/02/22/SPUB1HRH67.DTL&feed=rss.giants

Discussion: Should The Braves Shop Their Starters?

By Zachary Links | February 24, 2011 at 9:15pm CDT

Earlier today, the Cardinals confirmed that Adam Wainwright will undergo Tommy John surgery, shelving him for all of 2011. Without last year's Cy Young runner-up, St. Louis will certainly be in the market for a pitching upgrade. They're not the only team that could use a rotation boost, however. The Yankees and Nationals would like to shore up their respective starting fives, as would the Indians, though they likely can't afford a hefty contract.

Despite the need for pitching around the league, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez doesn't expect the club to move any of its starters. Earlier today, Buster Olney noted that the Yankees have not inquired on veteran Tim Hudson but is sure that the club would love to have him. Fellow vet Derek Lowe could also hold some value, but the righty is owed $30MM across the next two seasons.

The rotation is rounded out with Tommy Hanson and Jair Jurrjens with Mike Minor, Rodrigo Lopez, Brandon Beachy as fifth-spot candidates, leaving the Braves with plenty of depth. Obviously, if Atlanta were to part with a hurler, they would opt to trade away Kenshin Kawakami, though finding a taker for his $6.67MM salary might be easier said than done. The club has dangled the 35-year-old for quite some time but might have to instead settle for selling him to a Japanese team, which would pick up half of his contract.

If you were in GM Frank Wren's position, would you sacrifice some of your pitching depth to upgrade elsewhere or would you prefer to hang on to your starters as insurance?

Ryan Braun Content With Contract

By Zachary Links | February 24, 2011 at 5:47pm CDT

Early on in the 2008 season, the Brewers and Ryan Braun reached agreement on an eight-year, $45MM extension. In the past three years, the 27-year-old has more than lived up to his end of the pact, hitting .303/.363/.535. While some Brewers fans might worry that the outfielder will become unhappy with his contract that seems to favor the club, Braun has put those worries to rest, writes Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.

"I get it, but it's a non-issue," the three-time All-Star said. "I pay attention to what goes on around the game, obviously, but I'm happy for all of those guys. I agreed to a deal three years ago that goes five [more] years, and I'm excited and honored to be here."

One of "those guys" was Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who agreed to an extension that will provide him with just under $158MM through 2020. It's hard not to draw comparisons between the two as they were separated by just two picks in the 2005 Draft – Braun went to Milwaukee at No. 5 and Tulowitzki to the Rockies at No. 7. Despite the disparity in contracts, Braun insists that he's not jealous of the star shortstop's paycheck.

As McCalvy points out, Braun's deal is still the richest guaranteed deal in Brewers history. It could be surpassed by Rickie Weeks' five-year, $50MM extension, but that deal can be voided in the final year if he is not a regular in 2013 and 2014.

Offseason In Review: Oakland Athletics

By Tim Dierkes | February 24, 2011 at 2:55pm CDT

The Athletics are next in our Offseason In Review series.

Major League Signings

Brian Fuentes, RP: two years, $10.5MM. Includes $6.5MM club option for 2013 with a $500K buyout.
Grant Balfour, RP: two years, $8.1MM. Includes $4.5MM club option for 2013 with a $350K buyout.
Mark Ellis, 2B: one year, $6MM. Club option exercised.
Coco Crisp, CF: one year, $5.75MM. Club option exercised.
Hideki Matsui, DH: one year, $4.25MM.
Renato Nunez, 3B: $2.2MM bonus.
Rich Harden, P: one year, $1.5MM.
Brandon McCarthy, P: one year, $1MM.
Vicmal De La Cruz, CF: $800K bonus.
Total spend: $40.1MM.

Notable Minor League Signings

Willie Eyre, Vinnie Chulk, Javier Ortiz, Andy LaRoche, Fernando Cabrera, Jai Miller

Trades and Claims

Acquired OF David DeJesus from Royals for SP Vin Mazzaro and SP Justin Marks
Claimed 3B Edwin Encarnacion off waivers from Blue Jays, later non-tendered
Acquired RP Danny Farquhar and RP Trystan Magnuson from Blue Jays for OF Rajai Davis
Acquired OF Jose Rivero from Diamondbacks for cash considerations
Acquired OF Josh Willingham from Nationals for RP Henry Rodriguez and OF Corey Brown
Claimed SP Philip Humber off waivers from Royals, claimed by White Sox 1-18-11
Acquired RP Ryan Kelly from Pirates for OF Corey Wimberly
Acquired SP Guillermo Moscoso from Rangers for RP Ryan Kelly
Acquired SP Ethan Hollingsworth from Rockies for SP Clayton Mortensen

Notable Losses

Rajai Davis, Jack Cust, Gabe Gross, Eric Chavez, Jeff Larish, Vin Mazzaro, Ben Sheets, Justin Duchscherer, Henry Rodriguez, Boof Bonser, Ross Wolf, Justin Marks, Corey Brown, Corey Wimberly, Ryan Kelly, Clayton Mortensen

Summary

Once again, the Athletics failed to reach agreements with top free agent targets, falling short on attempts to sign Hisashi Iwakuma, Lance Berkman, and Adrian Beltre. In an earlier post, I explained that Oakland missed on these players for a classic reason: they didn't offer the best contracts. As ESPN's Jerry Crasnick explained, the A's chose to make modest, incremental upgrades to the offense, and did so by taking the decision out of the player's hands. Two winters ago they acquired Matt Holliday, and this offseason they did the same by trading for DeJesus and Willingham.

Replacing Cust with Matsui at DH is not necessarily an upgrade, but Cust only accounted for about half of the plate appearances for the A's at that position last year. The A's come out ahead overall, at about half the price of Berkman.

The A's didn't get much offense from the many players appearing at their outfield corners last year, so DeJesus and Willingham add much-needed production at reasonable salaries. While neither player is a classic slugger, it's not easy to add a couple of .380 OBPs. GM Billy Beane surrendered several interesting players to rent DeJesus and Willingham, though I wouldn't call the price exorbitant.

Even without Iwakuma, the A's had strong starting pitching depth in the first four spots. For a mere $2.5MM they added projects Harden and McCarthy. It's hard to find fault with such low-risk signings. McCarthy in particular was a hot commodity after teams watched him throw in the Dominican Winter League.

Moneyball comes to the silver screen this year, but I don't think Beane signed Balfour and Fuentes with some kind of cutting-edge market inefficiency in mind. In fact, signing free agent middle relievers to multiyear, top-dollar deals has proven to be one of the least efficient strategies out there. After missing out on primary targets, the A's simply felt spending on the bullpen was the best remaining way to improve their team despite the risk involved. "They're too good to be out there, and we had money to afford them," Beane told Crasnick. Why did the GM shift from overstocking the rotation with a $30MM+ commitment to Iwakuma to bulking up the pen with an $18.6MM expenditure on Balfour and Fuentes? Perhaps they simply did not like Carl Pavano and the other remaining starters. I haven't seen any evidence that their Iwakuma bid was insincere.

I like what the A's did at DH and the outfield corners, though moving money to relief extravagances was less than ideal. They were unable to upgrade at third base, but the A's can't be faulted for the weak market at that position. It stands to reason that the Athletics have cash on reserve to spend on a midseason hot corner addition, though they'll be at the mercy of the trade market and dealing from a poorly-rated farm system. The current offense looks better than last year's, though the improvement is mitigated if you don't think their front four starters can post 700 innings of 3.17 ball again.

Photo courtesy Icon SMI.

Machado, Alonso & Valencia Hire Dan Lozano

By Mike Axisa | February 24, 2011 at 2:22pm CDT

Not long after landing Nick Swisher, agent Dan Lozano has added Manny Machado, Yonder Alonso, and Danny Valencia to his list of clients according to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick and Keith Law (all Twitter links). Machado and Alonso were named the 14th and 73rd best prospects in the game, respectively, by Baseball America just yesterday. Law notes that all three players than Miami roots.

Machado, 18, was the third overall pick in the 2010 draft. In his brief professional debut last summer (39 plate appearances), he hit .306/.359/.472 with a homer and as many walks (three) as strikeouts. In the 2011 edition of their Prospect Handbook, Baseball America said Machado "has the look of a perennial all-star" with a chance to "become a .300 hitter with 20 homers a season as he matures." Machado was previously being represented by Scott Boras.

Alonso, 24 in April, was the Reds' first round pick in 2008, seventh overall. He made his Major League debut last September, hitting just .207/.207/.276 with ten strikeouts and no walks in 29 plate appearances. Alonso is a .298/.368/.458 career hitters in the minors, and he told Crasnick that he left Legacy Sports "about a month ago." His salaries are controlled through 2012 thanks to the five-year, $4.55MM big league contract he signed out of the draft.

As a first baseman in the Reds' system, Alonso is stuck behind NL MVP Joey Votto, which is why the club has had him try third base and left field in the past. So far neither position has stuck, and Alonso could wind up trade bait.

Valencia, 26, emerged as the Twins third baseman last season, hitting .311/.351/.448 with seven homers in 322 plate appearances. He finished third in the AL Rookie of the Year voting.

Carpenter Wouldn’t “Hold Back Or Veto” A Trade

By Mike Axisa | February 24, 2011 at 1:38pm CDT

After losing one ace to Tommy John surgery, it seems highly unlikely that the Cardinals would look to move their other ace in a trade, but Chris Carpenter told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that he wouldn't stand in the way of a deal…

"It's not up to me," said Carpenter. "If the Cardinals wanted to trade me, obviously I would go. There's no question about that. I'm not going hold back or veto or do anything like that if they're looking to move me.

"I'm not concerned about it, though. I'm concerned about getting myself ready to pitch at the beginning of the season."

Carpenter, 36 in April, is in the final guaranteed year of his contract and will earn $15MM in 2011. The team holds a $15MM club option ($1MM buyout) for his services in 2012, but perhaps they'd prefer to use that money to re-sign Albert Pujols. Carpenter can veto any trade thanks to his ten-and-five rights.

GM John Mozeliak spoke this morning about adding pitching, not subtracting it, and the Cardinals intend to make a run in the NL Central even without Adam Wainwright. Should they fall out of contention, midseason rumors about Carpenter's availability will only grow louder. Rosenthal suspects that the Yankees would be potential suitors, something Joel Sherman of The New York Post mentioned this morning.

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