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Twins Sign Jamey Carroll

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The Twins have signed Jamey Carroll to a two-year deal to be their everyday shortstop.  The team announced the deal today.  Carroll's contract will guarantee him $6.75MM and includes a $2MM mutual option for 2014. The option vests if Carroll makes 401 plate appearances in 2013, though he can choose to turn it down.  SI's Jon Heyman has further contract details. The Millenium Sports Management client drew interest from multiple teams this offseason before signing with the Twins, who are operating under interim GM Terry Ryan.

Carroll

The 37-year-old infielder played shortstop and second base for the Dodgers in 2011, posting a .290/.359/.347 line in 510 plate appearances. He hasn't posted an on-base percentage below .355 in any of the past four seasons and he has a career mark of .356 after a decade in the Major Leagues. Carroll, who also has experience at third base and in the outfield, stole ten bases without getting caught this past season. He is not a ranked free agent and won't cost his new team a draft pick.

Carroll spoke with MLBTR's Tim Dierkes in June and you can check out the interview here.

ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reported the deal, with Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, SI's Jon Heyman, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports adding details.  Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Bruce Chen Weighing Multiyear Offers

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Lefty Bruce Chen has multiyear offers, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.  He says the Royals and Cubs are among the teams talking to Chen, with the Royals perhaps focused on him.

Chen, a 34-year-old Scott Boras client, has never had a multiyear deal in his career.  This year for the Royals he posted a 3.77 ERA, 5.6 K/9, 2.9 BB/9, 1.05 HR/9, and 34.6% groundball rate in 155 innings.

Latest On Ryan Zimmerman Extension Talks

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"There currently are no active discussions regarding a contract extension for Ryan [Zimmerman]," agent Brodie Van Wagenen told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.  Kilgore explains that while the sides have had informal dialogue, no specifics or proposals have been exchanged.  Meanwhile Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports, "It’s important to us.  We’ve already begun preliminary discussions with his people. He’s an important piece for us, a guy that we would like to have here long-term."  Though the statements appear conflicting, it's probably just a difference of opinion over the technical definition of "discussions."

Certainly, both sides have the same goal of a long-term extension.  Zimmerman is eligible for free agency after the 2013 season, so he's not as close as Matt Kemp was but closer than Troy Tulowitzki and Ryan Braun.  As Kilgore explains, Zimmerman wants a deal by spring training 2013 so as to avoid distractions during that season.  

Zimmerman said in August he wants a contract longer than five years, and seven or eight seems likely.  The big question is if the two sides can agree on how Zimmerman's injury history should be factored in.

Rosenthal/Morosi On Dodgers, Astros, Blue Jays

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The latest from Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports…

  • The Dodgers' payroll will be well under $100MM in 2012, sources tell the FOX writers.  If James Loney and Hiroki Kuroda return, there will be little left to spend.  On the plus side, the Dodgers were able to reduce Matt Kemp's '12 salary to slightly more than $10MM as part of his new multiyear deal, in a year where as much as $16MM seemed possible through arbitration.  Rosenthal and Morosi say the Dodgers would want to buy out at least two free agent years in a long-term deal for Clayton Kershaw, who may take home the NL Cy Young award tomorrow.  With Kershaw under team control for three more years, the Dodgers don't have the same urgency to lock him up as they did Kemp.  In MLBTR's exclusive arbitration salary projections, Kershaw was pegged at $8.4MM, easily a first-time record for a pitcher.
  • The Astros "probably will acquire a shortstop and add low-cost relief pitching" this offseason, write Rosenthal and Morosi.  GM Ed Wade told the FOX writers he plans to stick with Mark Melancon at closer.  The GM explained his team's corner outfield situation: "From the standpoint of corner outfield, there are going to be guys out there, looking for opportunities.  We’re pretty much the land of opportunity right now."
  • Chipper Jones still enjoys playing, says Braves GM Frank Wren.  The 39-year-old third baseman is signed through 2012 with a '13 vesting option.  Rosenthal and Morosi say Martin Prado is available in the right deal, but the Braves value his versatility, including his ability to back up Jones.
  • Yoenis Cespesdes could petition baseball to declare him a free agent fairly quickly, after he establishes temporary residence in the Dominican Republic.  The residency part is expected to happen within 10 to 14 days.
  • The Blue Jays have expressed interest in trading for Rockies reliever Huston Street.  Street has one year and $8MM remaining on his contract.  Rosenthal and Morosi say the Rockies remain interested in a deal for Prado, which would require Seth Smith and another piece.

Marlins’ Offer To Pujols Believed To Be For Nine Years

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The contract the Marlins offered to Albert Pujols "is believed to be for nine years," says Yahoo's Tim Brown. The Marlins pulled out all the stops in an attempt to woo Pujols, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick, who hears that part of the team's pitch to Pujols involved bringing in about ten players to assist in recruiting and "make the organization's interest clear." Here are the rest of the latest rumblings on the free agent who ranks atop MLBTR's Top 50….

  • Cardinals GM John Mozeliak expects to meet with Dan Lozano, Pujols' agent, this week, according to Crasnick. It will be the first time this offseason that the two have talked in person.
  • Past reports have indicated St. Louis made Pujols an offer of nine years and $210MM before the season, but Crasnick hears that the Cardinals never topped $200MM.
  • While Pujols was "surprised" that the Cardinals named Mike Matheny their new manager, the hiring isn't expected to play a major role one way or the other in Pujols' decision.
  • Mozeliak said Tuesday afternoon that he "wouldn't envision" pursuing Prince Fielder even if Pujols signed elsewhere.

Anthopoulos Talks Offseason Approach, Closers, CBA

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Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos spoke to Sportsnet's Shi Davidi at the GM meetings and commented on a few hot stove issues. Here are some highlights:

  • Anthopoulos said there are still so many options available that he doesn't expect to be too active this week, since it would close the door on too many other possibilities.
  • The Jays are doing their due diligence on closers, having looked into health records for a few of the big-name free agents. However, Anthopoulos hasn't found any deals to his liking yet: "Some of them I'm fine with the terms and I'm not fine with the dollars, some of them I'm fine with the dollars and not fine with the terms."
  • Anthopoulos is very wary of making the mistake of signing or taking on a bad contract, since that would limit his freedom for other roster changes: "Cash, spots open on the roster, I think for the most part we have tradable players, tradable contracts. We've got the ability to go in a lot of directions."
  • We heard earlier today that free agent compensation could be modified this offseason as part of the new CBA, which could hurt the Blue Jays' chances of landing draft picks. But Anthopoulos thinks "the league is going to consider their impact on clubs" and isn't worried about the changes.
  • Davidi indicates the Jays' desire for a closer may be slightly overblown. He says the club would like to have one guy for the ninth rather than an ever-changing rotation of arms like they had last year with Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch, and others. However, they're not interested in committing to any reliever for the four years that Jonathan Papelbon received from the Phillies.

Huntington On Rod Barajas, Ronny Cedeno

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The Pirates provided fans around baseball with some midseason excitement before fading in August and September and finishing with a 72-90 mark. GM Neal Huntington knows the next step is sustaining success into September and beyond, but getting there is a definite challenge. Here are some updates on Huntington’s Pirates from the Milwaukee GM Meetings…

  • The Pirates moved quickly on Rod Barajas because they believe he can add power and work with the Pittsburgh pitching staff at an affordable price, Huntington said. 
  • Plus, the Pirates considered the catching market to be "very weak." They recently signed Barajas to a one-year, $4MM deal that includes a club option for 2013.
  • The Pirates may discuss a new deal with Ronny Cedeno and his representatives, Peter E. Greenberg & Associates. Pittsburgh declined its $3MM option on the shortstop after the World Series, making him a free agent. The Pirates also appear to have interest in Ramon Santiago.

Brian Schneider Nearing Deal With Phillies

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The Phillies are close to re-signing catcher Brian Schneider, according to Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link).

Schneider, 34, has served as the Phillies' backup catcher since signing a two-year, $2.75MM deal prior to the 2010 season. His production at the plate dropped off significantly in 2011, with his .502 OPS bringing his overall slash line in Philadelphia down to .208/.297/.320 in 286 plate appearances.

Rockies Rumors: Trade Targets, Stewart, Sizemore

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The latest on the Rockies from the Denver Post's Troy Renck:

  • The Rockies continue to search for starting pitching via trade, having met with a few teams already. They probably won't match the asking prices for John Danks or Wandy Rodriguez, but they could target arms such as Ricky Nolasco, Anibal Sanchez, Jeff Niemann, and Wade Davis, if the Marlins and Rays are willing to deal.
  • The club plans to tender Ian Stewart a contract, but that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be a Rockie in 2012. Multiple clubs have inquired on Stewart, and Colorado is listening.
  • Grady Sizemore won't work out for the Rockies, but the team hopes to get a better read on his health when he visits the Steadman-Hawkins clinic in Vail, Colorado.
  • The Rockies would have interest in LaTroy Hawkins if they opened up a spot for him by trading Huston Street.

Quick Hits: Phillips, Kuroda, Ortiz, Wood, Counsell

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It's been a busy first day of the GM meetings, but we don't want to let anything fall through the cracks. Here's a collection of assorted links from throughout the day:

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