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Tigers Notes: Carroll, Young, Infielders

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Some news items from the Motor City….

  • "The Tigers were not involved in the bidding for Jamey Carroll," reports MLB.com's Jason Beck.  The Tigers are willing to give a multiyear deal to a second baseman but weren't willing to offer such a contract to the 37-year-old Carroll.  The Twins signed Carroll to a two-year, $7MM contract today, pending a physical.  Carroll was seen as a fit in Detroit by several contestants in the MLBTR Free Agent Prediction Contest, including both myself and Tim Dierkes. 
  • Also from Beck, the Tigers have begun negotiations with some free agent targets but "no deal is believed to be close."
  • Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski told Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio (Twitter link) that his club is looking at second and third basemen, "but doubts" the Tigers will pursue such big names as Aramis Ramirez, Jose Reyes or Jimmy Rollins. 
  • Dombrowski also confirmed to Bowden (Twitter link) that the club will tender a contract to Delmon Young.  Matt Swartz projects Young will earn $6.3MM in arbitration this winter, Young's third time through the process.  Young was on pace to be non-tendered by the Twins but after being dealt to the Tigers in August, Young hit reasonably well down the stretch for Detroit and posted a 1.170 OPS in the Tigers' ALDS victory over the Yankees.

Far East Notes: Darvish, Aoki, Nippert

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Here's the latest on Japanese players who could be coming to North America and a North American who's staying in South Korea…

  • There is "a bit of concern" among executives that Yu Darvish won't decide to be posted this winter, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.  It has been widely assumed that Darvish would be posted and immediately become one of the most sought-after pitchers on the market, despite the fact that it will cost a team at least $100MM to both win the posting bid and then sign Darvish to a contract.
  • The transition to four days' rest from six days' rest between starts will be the biggest transition for Darvish if he comes to the Major Leagues, writes ESPN's Jason Coskrey.  Coskrey also provides brief scouting reports of Wei-Yin Chen, Hisashi Iwakuma and Tsuyoshi Wada, three pitchers likely to make the jump from NPB to MLB this winter.
  • Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (via Twitter) suggests the Indians aren’t likely to pursue Norichika Aoki, the three-time Central League batting champion who will be posted this offseason. As Hoynes reported yesterday, however, the Indians are interested in Japanese right-hander Shinobu Fukuhara.
  • Dustin Nippert has signed a new two-year deal with the Doosan Bears of the Korean Baseball Organization, reports Dan of MyKBO.net (Twitter link).  Nippert originally signed with Doosan in March.  The 30-year-old right-hander pitched three seasons each with the Diamondbacks and Rangers from 2005-2010 before being non-tendered by Texas last offseason.

MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith also contributed to this post

Marlins Make Offers to Pujols, Reyes, Buehrle

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9:51pm: Loria confirmed the club made the offers, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  Marlins president David Samson, however, said the team had no official comment.  When asked if the club could afford all three players, Samson said “It’s a problem we never suspected could happen. That’s the true answer.”

5:03pm: The Marlins have made "substantial offers" to both Albert Pujols and Jose Reyes, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports and have also offered a contract to Mark Buehrle, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (both Twitter links).  The team met with Pujols today, Reyes on Wednesday and Buehrle on Tuesday but apparently already felt comfortable enough to make contract offers, though Heyman reports there is "nothing close" to a deal with any of the three.

Miami's aggressiveness is no surprise, given how the Marlins have been in hot pursuit of several top free agents already this offseason.  It's unlikely that Pujols, Reyes or Buehrle would sign so early without fully exploring the market for their services, though a blow-away offer from the Marlins could change their minds. 

The Marlins' payroll was expected to increase by as much as $35MM this winter, but signing Pujols, Reyes and Buehrle would add at least $60MM to the 2012 payroll.  That's a big outlay for three players — to put it in perspective, Cot's Baseball Contracts lists the entire Marlins payroll for 2011 as just under $57.7MM.  Given how committed Jeffrey Loria is to put a competitive team into his new ballpark, we may have been conservative with our estimates about how much the Marlins are willing to spend this winter.

Reaction To The Jonathan Papelbon Signing

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Jonathan Papelbon became the first major free agent of the 2011-12 offseason to switch teams, agreeing to a four-year, $50MM contract with the Phillies today that also includes a vesting option for a fifth year.  Here is a sample of the reaction to the big signing…

  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (video link) says the Papelbon signing "is classic Philadelphia 21st century stuff: a quick strike, a big name and a lot of money."  It's a major commitment to a closer, but Rosenthal points out that Papelbon's numbers are comparable to the first six years of Mariano Rivera's career.
  • Rosenthal also notes that it hurts other free agent closers that the free-spending Phillies are no longer in the market for a stopper.
  • ESPN's Keith Law trashed the signing, citing the poor history of relievers in multiyear contracts, the fact that the Phils deprived their "depleted" farm system of a first-round draft pick as compensation for Papelbon and his belief that Ryan Madson is the better reliever on the market.  Law also projects that Papelbon will allow more home runs pitching at Citizens Bank Park.
  • "Papelbon is a safer bet than Madson, basically the same age and with a much longer and better track record as a closer," writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.  "Madson looked good in 2011, but in a role where success is often a year-to-year thing, it's very easy to say you'd rather have Papelbon."
  • Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports thinks "it’s hard to find much fault with" the signing, given Papelbon's experience pitching in a big market and in important games.  Morosi also looks at the rest of the offseason closer market.
  • The amount of money the Phillies paid is "stunning," according to Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston (Twitter link).  "If there was any year to lose your closer, this might be it," Edes writes.  "Other options out there, none as good as [Papelbon]."
  • The hefty contract and loss of a first round draft pick "seems steep" for Papelbon in the opinion of SI.com's Jon Heyman, but he likes how the Phillies are committed to contending every season.  Heyman also thinks the Red Sox will look to sign one of the available closers, due to Daniel Bard's poor numbers during Boston's September collapse (both Twitter links).

Wilson Ramos Found Safe By Authorities

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Wilson Ramos has been rescued from his abductors, reports Rafael Rojas Cremonesi.  Venezuela's Information Minister tweeted that Ramos was found by authorities (passed on by Cremonesi), and the Ramos family has already been contacted with the good news.

Ramos was kidnapped near his home in Venezuela by four armed gunmen on Wednesday.  The kidnappers didn't contact the Ramos family but did contact police, and it was confirmed yesterday that Ramos was alive. 

NL West Notes: Hudson, Soon-Shiong, Rockies, Hill

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The Diamondbacks have been one of baseball’s busiest teams so far this offseason. GM Kevin Towers and manager Kirk Gibson agreed to extensions and John McDonald, Henry Blanco and Willie Bloomquist have all re-signed with the defending NL West Champions. Here’s the latest from the division…

  • If the Rockies are indeed interested in Padres second baseman Orlando Hudson, Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune doubts the Padres would be willing to pick up any of Hudson's salary in a trade.  Hudson will earn $5.5MM in 2012, with an $8MM option for 2013 that can be bought out for $2MM.  Center also discusses several other Padres topics in his weekly chat with fans, such as the possibility of moving in the fences at Petco Park.
  • Billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong told Arash Markazi of ESPN Los Angeles that he has been approached by at least one of the groups trying to buy the Dodgers.  Soon-Shiong is considered to be the richest man in Los Angeles and bought a 4.5% share of the L.A. Lakers last year.
  • The Rockies aren't going to revisit their pursuit of Michael Young, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post.  Colorado and Texas were very close to a deal involving Young last winter in the wake of Young's trade request, but Young settled things with Rangers management and now there is "no motivation for [the] Rangers to move him."
  • Also from Renck, he doesn't think the Rockies will look to move Matt Belisle this winter, though Matt Lindstrom could be available.
  • As part of a reader mailbag, MLB.com's Chris Haft was surprised that the Giants needed to include Ryan Verdugo along with Jonathan Sanchez in the deal that brought Melky Cabrera to San Francisco.  That said, Haft writes "it's conceivable that the Giants might have obtained the most that Sanchez and Verdugo would bring."
  • The Rockies “love” Jamey Carroll, but wouldn’t be interested in signing him to a multiyear deal, according to Renck (Twitter links). The former Rockies infielder is nearing a multiyear deal with Twins.
  • The Rockies aren’t likely to sign Michael Cuddyer, but they continue pursuing Martin Prado, Renck reports.
  • The Diamondbacks have a multiyear offer on the table to Aaron Hill and it expires Monday, according to Jack Magruder of FOXSportsArizona.com (on Twitter). If Hill signs, the Diamondbacks will turn their attention to starting pitching.
  • Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle suggests the Giants should re-sign Carlos Beltran to a two or three-year deal.

MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post

Angels Notes: Wilson, Bullpen, Coaches

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Here's the latest on the Halos….

  • General manager Jerry Dipoto has "reached out" to C.J. Wilson's representation, according to Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link), though DiPoto added it's "very early in the courting period."  In his Offseason Outlook piece about the Angels, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith estimated the club would have roughly $10-$20MM in payroll space to work with this winter, so the Angels could afford to pay Wilson the $12-15MM average annual salary he's likely to receive on the free agent market and still have a bit of cash left over to address other roster holes.
  • From that same DiGiovanna link, Dipoto also said the Angels are looking at right-handed relievers.
  • The Angels' coaching staff have all had their contracts renewed and will be back in 2012, Dipoto tells DiGiovanna (Twitter link).
  • Keep up on all the latest Halos news by following MLBTR's Angels-specific Facebook page, Twitter feed and RSS feed.

Cherington On Papelbon, Ortiz, Free Agents

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Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington discussed a number of topics with reporters today, and WEEI.com's Rob Bradford has the details in these two posts.  The hot stove highlights…

  • The Red Sox didn't make a formal offer to Jonathan Papelbon, who reached a four-year, $50MM agreement with the Phillies today.  Cherington said he discussed "concepts" of a new contract with Papelbon's agents Sam and Seth Levinson, but didn't make an offer since Papelbon's asking price simply didn't fit into Boston's offseason plans.
  • Cherington said he wasn't given the option of matching the Phillies' offer by Papelbon's representatives, but he didn't think such a step was necessary.
  • Given the number of closing options on the market, Cherington didn't think his team would feel comfortable offering a four-year contract to a closer as the Phillies did with Papelbon.
  • The Red Sox have been talking to David Ortiz's representatives and Cherington said he wants to re-sign the veteran slugger.  "Because of what I feel, and I think he feels, is a little bit more of a defined market for that role it's been easier to engage sooner," Cherington said.  "It's probably less likely to be a situation where he gets into the market and there's something that he's pushed into a corner on. David knows we want him to be here. We want him to be back with the Red Sox. We want him in our lineup. We've had a lot of dialogue to see if there's a way to do that and I think that will continue."
  • Cherington feels that beyond the top free agent starters, there is "a lot of risk" in the pitching market this winter.  "There are options, but riskier and would require some sort of bounce back from injury or bad luck or performance to some degree," the Boston GM said.  "We're going to be exhaustive in looking at ways to build depth to the rotation an the bullpen. We do believe we have some internal options that will help us."

Minor Moves: Jared Burton, Wilmin Rodriguez

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The latest minor moves…

  • The Twins signed right-hander Jared Burton to a minor league contract, reports MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger (Twitter link).  Burton, 30, has a 3.41 ERA in 164 appearances with the Reds over the last five seasons, recording 143 strikeouts in 169 Major League innings.
  • The Giants re-signed left-hander Wilmin Rodriguez to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to Spring Training, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The 26-year-old reliever posted a 4.34 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 64 1/3 innings in the upper minors of San Francisco's system in 2011.

Managerial Notes: Cardinals, Cubs, Red Sox

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Here's the latest on the search to fill the dugouts in St. Louis, Chicago and Boston….

  • Cards GM John Mozeliak tells Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he expects the Cardinals' new manager to be one of the team's six finalists for the job: Terry Francona, Chris Maloney, Mike Matheny, Joe McEwing, Jose Oquendo and Ryne Sandberg.
  • Cubs GM Jed Hoyer told reporters, including MLB.com's Carrie Muskat, that the team will "probably" not conduct any more interviews of managerial candidates.  "I wouldn’t rule out an additional candidate but it’s not a certainty," Hoyer said.  The Cubs have thus far spoken to Sandy Alomar Jr., Pete Mackanin, Mike Maddux and Dale Sveum.
  • The Cubs have no timetable for hiring their new manager.  "We want to make the right decision, not the quick decision," Hoyer said. 
  • The Red Sox have no plans to bring in any other interview candidates, tweets Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston.  The Sox also haven't asked other teams for "formal permission" to interview any currently-employed candidates.  Blue Jays first base coach Torey Lovullo interviewed today and Tigers third base coach Gene Lamont will interview tomorrow, seemingly limiting the field to those two plus Alomar, Sveum and Mackanin.

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