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Archives for March 2011

Dodgers Sign Randy Keisler

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The Dodgers have signed Randy Keisler to a minor league contract according Dynasty Athlete Representation (on Twitter).

The 35-year-old left-hander hasn't appeared in the majors since 2007, and he's spent the last two years pitching in an independent league and the Mexican League. He spent the 2008 season with Triple-A affiliates of the Orioles and Cubs, posting a 4.03 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 in 114 innings. Keisler has pitched for the Yankees, Padres, Reds, Athletics, and Cardinals in his career, pitching to a 6.63 ERA in 150 2/3 big league innings.

Players That Signed Extensions With A New Team

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Every year we see teams sign their star players to long-term contract extensions, often buying out arbitration and/or free agent years. But every so often a team will acquire a player in a trade and then sign him to an extension before they ever play a game in their uniform. Many times an extension will be a condition of a trade, other times it can be unexpected.

Here's a few extensions that were signed before the player ever played a game for the team, sorted by guaranteed money…

  • Miguel Cabrera, Tigers – A little more than three months after the trade that brought him to Detroit, the Tigers gave Cabrera an eight-year, $152.3MM contract. Off-the-field transgressions aside, he's been worth every penny: .314/.388/.567 with 109 homers in three years in MoTown.
  • Johan Santana, Mets – The trade was contingent on Santana agreeing to a new deal, which he did when the team offered six years and $137.5MM. Although he's battled injuries with the Mets, Santana's pitched to a 2.85 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in the three years since the trade.
  • Ken Griffey Jr., Reds – The Kid signed what was then the largest contract in baseball history the day he was traded to Cincinnati, a nine-year, $112.5MM pact. He hit .270/.362/.514 with 210 homers in parts of nine seasons with the Reds, battling numerous injuries.
  • Roy Halladay, Phillies – Philadelphia wasted no time getting Halladay under contract, giving him a three-year, $60MM deal the day he was acquired from the Blue Jays. The extension doesn't kick in until this year, but Doc was as good as advertised in his first season with the Phillies, winning the Cy Young Award to go with a regular season perfect game and a playoff no-hitter.
  • Javier Vazquez, Yankees – After acquiring Vazquez from the Expos, the Yankees locked him into a four-year, $45MM pact. It didn't work out in New York; he pitched to a 4.91 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 2004 before being traded to Arizona as part of the package for Randy Johnson the following offseason.
  • Dontrelle Willis, Tigers – The Tigers locked up Willis before they locked up Cabrera. He signed a three-year, $29MM contract about two weeks after the trade, and you can bet the team wishes it could have pushed the reset button on this one. Willis pitched to a 6.86 ERA in just 101 innings in a Tigers' uniform.

Dan Uggla joined this group earlier this winter, and it's very possible Adrian Gonzalez will before the end of the month as well. Other players like Josh Beckett and Scott Rolen (with the Cardinals) signed extensions within a few months of being acquired, playing just a handful of games with their new teams beforehand.

Mets Notes: Wilpon, Perez, Rodriguez, Finances

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The latest on the Mets, including updates on two pitchers who haven't lived up to their contracts…

  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says he finds it "increasingly difficult to believe that [Fred Wilpon] will remain viable as owner [of the Mets]." He believes Wilpon should sell the team and move on, for the good of all involved.
  • Andy Martino of the New York Daily News hears that the Mets are close to giving up on Oliver Perez and could release him if he doesn't pitch well against the Cardinals today. Manager Terry Collins says Perez will have another chance to prove himself after today, however. The left-hander earns $12MM this year in the final year of his contract.
  • Agent Paul Kinzer told David Lennon of Newsday that Francisco Rodriguez's 2012 option, which becomes guaranteed if he finishes 55 games this year, will be a "point of interest" that he'll watch closely. Kinzer says he hopes the Mets play to win instead of worrying about the $17.5MM option.
  • The owners of the Mets, Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, face more than a $1 billion lawsuit, but that's not all. They are expected to face additional allegations from a court-appointed trustee, according to Matthew Futterman and Michael Rothfeld of the Wall St. Journal.

Rangers, Daniels Nearing Extension

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6:54pm: The two sides spoke today and are moving closer to a deal, reports Jeff Caplan of ESPN Dallas. "I'm optimistic we're in the process of getting something done shortly," said Ryan.

8:24am: Jon Daniels and Rangers president Nolan Ryan are expected to meet today to discuss an extension for the GM, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. The deal is a priority for Ryan and the sides could arrive at an agreement as soon as today, according to Grant.

Daniels led the Rangers to the World Series last year after signing Vladimir Guerrero, trading for Cliff Lee, moving C.J. Wilson to the rotation and seeing young players like Elvis Andrus and Neftali Feliz emerge as regulars. For a more complete look at Daniels' work, click through to MLBTR's Transaction Tracker.

The Rangers are interested in exploring extensions for a number of their players, as well.

Dustin Nippert Signed With Team In Korea

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Free agent right-hander Dustin Nippert signed with the Doosan Bears of the Korean Baseball Organization according to a report from Naver news services (link in Korean), passed along by the blog True Stories of Korean Baseball. The signing actually occured back in mid-January.

Nippert, 29, spent the last three years with the Rangers, pitching to a 4.91 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 4.9 BB/9 in 198 innings. He was non-tendered this offseason after posting a 4.28 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9 in 56 2/3 innings in 2010. Nippert spent close to two months on the disabled list last year after getting hit in the head with a batted ball and suffering a concussion.

Youngest Remaining Free Agents

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We're weeks into Spring Training now, so few notable free agents remain. But some players (min. 50 PAs) and pitchers (min. 20 IP) remain unsigned. Here's a look at the remaining free agents who will play the 2011 season while no older than 32:

  • Willy Aybar (28) – The Rays declined Aybar's option and non-tendered him, but he can play first, second and third and has a career .341 OBP. He wouldn't be in line for more than a minor league deal if he signs. 
  • Jeremy Bonderman (28) – Bonderman may sit the season out, but you have to think he can help someone (the Cardinals?) despite the 5.53 ERA he posted in 171 innings last year. He's only 28 and he has recovered from shoulder surgery.
  • Manny Corpas (28) - Corpas will miss the 2011 season as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. He posted a 4.62 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 62 1/3 innings last year, and defense independent pitching stats suggest his ERA should have been lower, so he would have drawn interest if healthy.
  • Hank Blalock (30) - Blalock averaged 29 homers per season from 2003-05, when he made two All-Star teams. That power was nowhere to be seen last year, when he posted a .254/.319/.349 line in 69 plate appearances for the Rays. Blalock just turned 30 last fall, but he probably needs to rebuild value in the minor leagues to make a complete comeback.
  • Bobby Crosby (31) – Three teams were interested in the former AL Rookie of the Year earlier in the winter, but he remains on the open market. In 189 plate appearances for Pittsburgh and Arizona last year, Crosby hit .220/.294/.298 and played all four infield positions. 
  • Ryan Church (32) - Church, who was traded with Crosby from Pittsburgh to Arizona last summer, also struggled in 2010. He posted a .201/.265/.352 line, though he had 59 extra base hits as recently as 2007.
  • Ben Sheets (32) – If he wasn't going to miss the season with flexor tendon surgery, Sheets would likely have found a team by now. He won't sign this year.

Red Sox Notes: Ortiz, Gonzalez, Papelbon

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Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. says the Red Sox are the team to beat in 2011 and that's far from the only news out of Boston's Spring Training camp today…

  • David Ortiz told Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com that he feels good and is open to negotiating an extension during the season if the Red Sox are interested in one (link in Spanish).
  • Adrian Gonzalez told Rojas that he has no pre-set extension agreement with the Red Sox and that he needs to prove that his shoulder is completely healthy before finalizing a deal with his new team (link in Spanish). Gonzalez denied that the sides are waiting to announce the deal because of baseball’s luxury tax.
  • Ortiz told Joe McDonald of ESPNBoston.com that that he would at least consider playing for the Yankees. "Well, if I don't get signed here, I would play somewhere," Ortiz said. "You know what I'm saying? I'm not saying I would play for the Yankees, but I if I don't have a job, I gotta go somewhere else. As long as I play, right?"
  • But Ortiz tells Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald that he is "not even thinking" about his next contract yet.
  • Jonathan Papelbon says his slider will be a key pitch for him in 2011, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. The closer hits free agency for the first time after the season, though he'll have plenty of competition as the relief market figures to be strong again.

Quick Hits: Lawson, Franklin, Hanson

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The Dodgers signed Garret Anderson exactly one year ago today. Earlier this week, Anderson retired as the all-time leader in a number of offensive categories for L.A.'s other team. Here are today's links…

Players, Owners Begin Formal Bargaining

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MLBPA executive director Michael Weiner says the players and owners had their first formal bargaining session in Tampa Bay last night, according to Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun. Baseball's Collective Bargaining Agreement is set to expire after the season, so the sides will continue negotiating over the course of the coming months.

A number of issues, including the amateur draft, revenue sharing and expanded playoffs, figure to be on the bargaining table. But there's one major issue that won't likely come up: a salary cap. Weiner told Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that he doesn't expect the possibility of a salary cap to be an issue. In fact, Weiner says he doesn't expect that either side "is looking to make fundamental or radical changes in the structure of [the existing] contract."

Olney On Zito, Brown, Jeter, Reyes

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As ESPN.com's Buster Olney points out, the Giants would have to have a legitimate alternative in place before dumping Barry Zito and the $64.5MM remaining on his salary. If Jeff Suppan earns a rotation spot or someone else pitches unexpectedly well, the Giants could consider releasing Zito, but until then they can use the durable left-hander. Here's more on the Giants and other notes from Olney:

  • Olney says now is the time for the Giants to dump Zito if they're ever going to do it. The Giants are coming off of a World Series title, so Olney argues that they're working from a position of credibility. They aren't likely to cut Zito, however.
  • As Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News writes, manager Bruce Bochy says Zito is the team's fourth starter and GM Brian Sabean says the team isn't frustrated with him.
  • One talent evaluator says "the athleticism has been taken out" of Domonic Brown's swing.
  • Derek Jeter's relationship with the Yankees will be defined by the team's perception of what's required to win, writes Olney. The team will likely be willing to put Jeter at the bottom of the order or switch him to another position if his performance declines. 
  • It's for that reason that Jose Reyes could become a solution for the Yankees when he hits free agency after the season.

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