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AL East Links: Johnson, Orioles, Ortiz

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Blue Jays prospect Travis d'Arnaud will have surgery to repair torn ligaments in his thumb after getting hurt while catching for Team USA at the World Cup in Panama, reports Bob Elliott of The Toronto Sun (on Twitter). Toronto acquired d'Arnaud from the Phillies in the Roy Halladay trade, and he's considered one of the very best prospects in all of baseball. Here are some links from the AL East…

  • Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com says one of the first things the Blue Jays have to do this offseason is figure out if Kelly Johnson fits into their long-term plans. "I thought Kelly did a nice job, and he's definitely in the mix for us," said GM Alex Anthopoulos. "We have an opening, he is a free agent, and in the coming weeks, we'll certainly reach out to his agent and talk to him, but it's hard to characterize where any of that is going to go."
  • The Orioles may expand their GM search beyond the names that have already been mentioned, reports ESPN's Buster Olney (on Twitter). Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun says regardless of who is hired, their first priority will be fixing the team's player development system.
  • In another tweet, Olney speculates about a possible fit between the Blue Jays and David Ortiz. The soon-to-be-free agent DH would be a veteran mentor for their younger hitters, and he's close to Jose Bautista.

Central Links: Tigers, Avila, Votto, Epstein

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The Rangers and Tigers are playing Game Six of the ALCS tonight, and Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News looks at how the 1999 trade that sent Juan Gonzalez from Texas to Detroit is still helping the Rangers today. Here are some links from baseball's two central divisions…

  • Regardless of how the rest of their season plays out, David Mayo of The Grand Rapids Press says the Tigers won't have many issues to address this winter. Second base and a left-handed starter figure to top their shopping list, and $23MM is coming off the books in the form of Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Guillen.
  • Tigers assistant GM Al Avila has been mentioned as a GM candidate around the league, but ESPN's Jerry Crasnick says it's probably a long shot (all four Twitter links). "I'm very happy here,'' said Avila, who recently signed a four-year extension. "I have a great relationship with the ownership, and I've worked for [Dave Dombrowski] for 20 years.'' Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com says Avila's new contract prohibits him from interviewing for a GM job (on Twitter).
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Reds don't have to rush into a trade involving Joey Votto. They can wait until free agents Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols sign, which will give them an idea of what an extension for Votto would cost. It would also shed some light on potential trade suitors. GM Walt Jocketty recently shot down all the trade talk, however.
  • While we wait for the Cubs and Red Sox to agree on compensation for Theo Epstein, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Chicago Sun Times says the GM will have a much tougher time turning the Cubs around than he did Boston nine years ago.

Draft Links: Bonuses, Fernando Perez

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Gerrit Cole, the first overall pick in the 2011 draft, made his Arizona Fall League debut yesterday, and ESPN's Keith Law says he hit 100 mph twice and sat at 95-98 (Insider req'd). "I projected Cole as a No. 1 starter based on the plus fastball/changeup combo and the chance for the slider to become plus as well," said Law, "and for his first professional outing Cole didn't show anything to change that ceiling."

Here are a few draft-related links, even though we're still nine months away from the actual event…

  • Fernando Perez, a high school third baseman/outfielder from California, will forego the spring semester at Otay Ranch High School to enroll at Central Arizona Community College according to ESPN's Andrew Knepper. It's the same move Bryce Harper used to become draft-eligible a year earlier than expected. Perez has a chance to go in the first round next June.
  • Baseball America's Jim Callis notes (on Twitter) that signing bonuses have increased just 3.8% since MLB's slot recommendations were put in place in 2000. He adds that bonuses rose 26.9% during the 1990s and 10.2% during the 1980s.
  • In another tweet, Callis says he doesn't expect there to be major changes to the draft in the upcoming Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Managers And GMs Entering Their Contract Year

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As Jim Riggleman would tell you, everyone in baseball wants more job security.  Here is a list of managers and general managers whose contracts expire after 2012, featuring both extension candidates and those on the hot seat this winter.  (Thanks to the always-invaluable Cot's Baseball Contracts for many of the details.)

White Sox: Kenny Williams has a rolling contract that automatically extends itself every year.  Should Williams be fired, the Sox will owe him one year's worth of severance pay.  With Ozzie Guillen now managing the Marlins, the spotlight will be directly on Williams to get the White Sox back on track following their rough 2011 season.  Williams has already made one roll of the dice by hiring first-time manager Robin Ventura.  White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf and Williams have a strong relationship, but if the team struggles again in 2012, the Sox could blow things up and rebuild under a new general manager.

Tigers: Jim Leyland entered this season as a lame duck and signed just a one-year contract extension from Detroit in August.  This relative lack of security is how Leyland prefers it, however, since he isn't sure how much longer he'll continue to manage.  Given the Tigers' success, one would think they'll let Leyland go year-to-year for as long as he feels up to the job.

Royals: Ned Yost is entering the last year of his contract and I would guess that he'll receive another.  While the Royals don't expect any on-field success right now, the onus is on Yost to ensure that Kansas City's wealth of young prospects continue to develop.  Yost will return as K.C.'s manager in 2013 unless the Royals heavily regress from their 71-91 record of last year, or (even worse) the likes of Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer and Danny Duffy hit a snag in their Major League seasoning.

Rockies: Colorado's disappointing 2011 campaign puts the pressure on manager Jim Tracy, who is entering the final year of his original three-year pact with the team.  GM Dan O'Dowd recently told Troy Renck of the Denver Post that he doesn't foresee any problems with Tracy working as a lame duck.  "Jim is signed through next year and we'd love to have him be manager here for much longer than that," O'Dowd said.

Reds: Dusty Baker signed a two-year extension with the Reds last October.  If Cincinnati takes the unlikely step of trading Joey Votto and starting a mini-rebuilding phase, Baker may not want to stick around while the club builds itself back into a contender.  A Votto deal is a long shot (at least in the short term), however, so barring a poor season for the Reds in 2012, the team will probably pursue another extension with Baker next winter.

Rays: Because Andrew Friedman works without an official contract, his name was already linked to the GM's openings with the Cubs and Astros earlier this year.  Friedman has said he enjoys the challenge of working in Tampa Bay and it would be odd for him to walk away given that the Rays are contenders now and for the foreseeable future given their deep minor league system.  Manager Joe Maddon is similarly very likely to stay, even though his three-year contract runs out after next season.  Tampa Bay's shaky financial situation makes Maddon's status a very minor question mark, but one would think the Rays will do everything in their power to keep Maddon, especially since owner Stu Sternberg said he expects Maddon to manage the team beyond 2012.

Rangers: Ron Washington signed a two-year extension through 2012 in the wake of the Rangers' AL pennant last season.  With Texas on the verge of another World Series appearance, Washington looks to be in line for another new deal.

Indians: GM Chris Antonetti's original five-year contract is up after 2012 and the Indians' progress would indicate that the club will pursue an extension.  The Tribe picked up Manny Acta's 2013 option last month.

Giants: Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy both had their options for 2012 picked up last February, an expected move given San Francisco's 2010 World Series title.  That championship also probably ensures both men will receive extensions at some point over the next year since incoming team CEO Laurence Baer has stated that he wants Sabean and Bochy to stay.  Unless the Giants have a disastrous 2012 campaign, expect Sabean and Bochy to be in San Francisco for years to come.

Dodgers: Ned Colletti can either activate an out clause in his contract after 2012, or 2012 is actually the last year on his deal.  Either way, the general manager will likely be pursued by the club to sign an extension given how competitive the Dodgers were this season in the wake of the ongoing ownership mess.  Of course, Colletti could choose to leave given the uncertainty with the McCourts.  Chicago native Colletti drew some attention from the Cubs last summer, before the Theo Epstein hiring.

Diamondbacks: 2012 is the last guaranteed year for both Kevin Towers and Kirk Gibson, though Towers had club options for 2013-14 and 2015-16, and Gibson has a club option for 2013.  Neither man is going anywhere in the wake of Arizona's surprise run to the NL West crown.

Cubs: Mike Quade is signed through 2012 with a club option for 2013.  Rumors are already swirling that Ryne Sandberg could be hired as the Cubs' new manager once Theo Epstein takes over, so Quade could be out of a job once the Epstein era officially begins in Chicago.  

Cardinals: Tony La Russa and the Cards have a mutual option for 2012 and the latest indication is that La Russa wishes to return for another season.  The manager could have a change of heart should Albert Pujols leave for free agency, though La Russa's return could provide some incentive for Pujols to also stay in St. Louis.  It's also worth noting that La Russa is just 35 wins behind John McGraw for second place on the list of all-time regular season managerial wins.

Brewers: Doug Melvin's contract expires after 2012 and given Milwaukee's success this season, he seems like a sure bet to receive an extension.  It will be interesting to see how long a Melvin extension would run; ownership may not want to commit to Melvin for more than three years just to see how he operates in a post-Prince Fielder environment in Milwaukee.  Ron Roenicke is also technically out of contract after next year, but the Brewers hold a club option on the manager for 2013 that is very likely to be exercised.  A new multiyear deal for Roenicke is also not out of the question.

Astros: General manager Ed Wade's deal is up after 2012 but his tenure in Houston could finish early once the sale of the team to Jim Crane is finalized.  A new GM could also spell the end of Brad Mills as the manager, who is contracted through 2012 with a club option for 2013.  While Mills did lead the Astros to the worst record (56-106) in franchise history last season, he didn't have much talent to work with on the Houston roster.

Red Sox Notes: Sandberg, Pitching, Youkilis

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While the Red Sox and Cubs are still trying to figure out a compensation package for Theo Epstein, here are a few more items from Fenway Park….

  • The Red Sox and Cubs could cross paths again over Ryne Sandberg's managerial services, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  Epstein tried to hire Sandberg to manage Boston's Triple-A affiliate last year and Cubs owner Tom Ricketts is looking to mend fences with Sandberg after he was passed over for Mike Quade as Chicago's manager last year.  "If Epstein hires a manager without major-league experience, he probably would have little choice but to go with Sandberg," Rosenthal writes, since if another rookie manager got the job, it "could alienate Sandberg from his former team for good."
  • WEEI's Alex Speier looks at Boston's options for upgrading its troubled rotation, saying that the Red Sox will probably shy away from big free agent pitchers in the wake of John Lackey's struggles.  Options like calling up a minor league arm or putting Alfredo Aceves into the rotation also wouldn't provide automatic stability.  
  • Speier also lists a few trade candidates like Gavin Floyd and Wandy Rodriguez are mentioned but, "according to multiple industry sources, the number and quality of available starters is expected to be so limited that those clubs that are in position to part with a potential rotation member are expected to ask for a prospect ransom that may be out of proportion with the value of the pitchers."
  • Before Billy Beane passed on becoming the new Red Sox GM in the 2002-03 offseason, Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald writes that Kevin Youkilis would've been part of the compensation package that Boston would have sent to Oakland in exchange for Beane's services.
  • Of all the players who had just signed a major free agent contract, Carl Crawford may have had the worst opening season of his deal, writes Justin Havens for ESPN Boston.  Crawford's deal is compared to Carlos Beltran's contract with the Mets, and Havens notes that while Beltran struggled in his first year (2005) in New York, Beltran had a fantastic 2006 season.

Sabathia’s Agent Discusses Opt-Out Clause

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Yankees ace CC Sabathia is widely expected to exercise his opt-out clause soon after the World Series, foregoing the final four years of his contract in search of an even larger payday. In today's Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Buster Olney spoke to Brian Peters, Sabathia's agent, about the situation….

"CC has been clear about how he feels about New York and the Yankees," Peters said on Saturday morning, "and we will exhaust all of our efforts to reach a new agreement (with the Yankees)."

When asked if negotations about a new deal with New York have started, Peters replied: "As of today, I've got nothing new to report."

Sabathia, 31, will be leaving $92MM on the table if he opts out. His ERA has gone down in each of his three seasons in New York (3.00 in 2011), and his strikeout (8.7 K/9) and walk (2.3 BB/9) rates this year were his best since 2008. Olney mentions that there was some concern in the Yankees organization about how the lefty's weight affected his command late in the season (4.30 ERA in his last nine starts), but there should be little concern about his durability; Sabathia has thrown at least 230 innings every year since 2007.

We heard the Rangers were preparing to "throw a boatload of money" at Sabathia earlier this week, and Olney speculates that the Cubs and Angels could get involved as well. MLBTR readers were pretty split when asked how much Sabathia's next contract will be worth about two weeks ago.

Extension Candidate: Elvis Andrus

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3961008270121_Athletics_at_RangersThe Rangers on are the verge of winning their second American League pennant in as many years, and after the season they'll have to deal with the free agency of ace C.J. Wilson. A number of important players, like Nelson Cruz and Mike Napoli, are set to earn substantial raises through arbitration, as is Elvis Andrus.

Andrus, 23, just completed his third season in the big leagues and will be arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter. He's a defense-first shortstop but also offers some offense. He's hit just 11 homers in three years but has stolen no fewer than 32 bases each season. He makes enough contact (.272 AVG last two years) and draws enough walks (.345 OBP) to ensure he can use his speed. UZR loves his glovework, rating him the fifth best defensive shortstop since he broke into the league.

The Rangers signed Ian Kinsler, Andrus' double play partner, to a five-year contract worth $22MM before the 2008 season, but that was one year before the second baseman was eligible for arbitration. Alexei Ramirez inked a four-year, $32.5MM deal with the White Sox this past February, after his first three years in the majors. He was starting from a higher base salary ($1.1MM) than Andrus will be because of the contract he signed out of Cuba before the 2008 season. Both deals could serve as a frame of reference in any potential talks between the Rangers and Andrus.

Before the season we heard that Texas was willing to explore long-term deals with several players before the end of Spring Training, but nothing came of it. Andrus' skill set (speed and defense) is typically undervalued in arbitration, and our projections have his 2012 salary in the $2.6-3.2MM range. There's certainly no urgency to get a deal done, but the sooner the Rangers act, the more money they're likely to save.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

NL Central Notes: La Russa, Furcal, Epstein

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Here are a few items of note regarding the NL Central as the Redbirds threaten to take a 3-2 series lead over the Brew Crew in the NLCS …

  • Cardinals manager Tony La Russa is hinting at returning to manage St. Louis in 2012, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN). Prior to Game 5, TLR was excitedly discussing the talent the Cards have in place for next season, and he also mentioned recently that he will hold a charity event in January at the team's Winter Warmup, according to the report. La Russa and the Cards have a mutual option for 2012.
  • Cards shortstop Rafael Furcal reiterated that he'd like to re-sign with St. Louis after the season, according to Matthew Leach of MLB.com. Furcal, an impending free agent, and the Cardinals expressed mutual interest in working out a new deal last month, though nothing came to pass.
  • While the Cubs and Red Sox continue to haggle over compensation and other details of Theo Epstein's potential move the Chicago, one GM told Buster Olney of ESPN.com that the North Siders should hold firm on giving up little for Boston's GM (Twitter link). "What are the Red Sox going to do — bring Theo back? No way," said the GM.
  • Albert Pujols has reestablished his negotiating leverage, opines Olney (via Twitter), who finds it hard to believe the Cards will let him walk if they reach or win the World Series.

West Notes: Dipoto, Cruz, Kemp

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On this date in 1988, Dodgers outfielder Kirk Gibson slugged his historic walk-off homer off Oakland's Dennis Eckersley in Game 1 of the World Series. Here are some notes on clubs that reside in MLB's West divisions, including one on another Los Angeles outfielder:

  • The Angels have received permission from the Diamondbacks to interview Jerry Dipoto, Arizona's senior vice president of scouting and player development, a major league source tells Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. The Angels will also interview Yankees executives Damon Oppenheimer and Billy Eppler, and Dipoto is expected to interview for the Orioles' GM job.
  • Dipoto is considered the favorite to become Baltimore's next GM, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com.
  • Rangers slugger Nelson Cruz recently rehashed his near move to Japan a few years ago with Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com. Nick Collias of MLBTR and Rumores de Beisbol was kind enough to translate: "My agent told me they were really interested and they'd pay me a relatively large amount of money for the last two months of the season," Cruz said. "I was in the minor leagues, I didn't have a future with the Rangers, and I wanted to begin to explore other options." The interested team was the Yomiuri Giants, and the salary would have been $800K, but Texas GM Jon Daniels declined. Good thing for the Rangers that he did.
  • Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp was named Major League Player of the Year by Baseball America. Kemp tied for the highest adjusted OPS (BA's version) among center fielders in the past 30 seasons, matching Ken Griffey Jr.'s 171 in 1997, writes Joe Haakenson.

AL East Notes: Cashman, CC, Blue Jays, Darvish

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There's no shortage of news regarding AL East ballclubs so far this offseason, not the least of which is the Orioles' search for a new general manager. Click here for the latest on that story, and here are some other interesting items of note:

  • The Yankees will meet with GM Brian Cashman next week, and the sides are expected to hammer out a new contract without trouble, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Cashman's contract expired after this season.
  • Separately, Sherman examines which teams could be in on the bidding for Yankees starter CC Sabathia in the likely event of the left-hander opting out of his contract. As well, Sherman raises an interesting point: If some team swoops in with six- or seven-year offer, will the Yankees match? A case could be made against it, as the Bombers already have a few risky long-term deals on the books.
  • The Blue Jays do not require rival teams to seek permission to interview Toronto employees, explains Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. As we have already seen in a couple instances this offseason (and in offseasons past), many teams are not as liberal with this policy, but the Jays feel that they can attract strong employees with the promise of being able to move on if another opportunity arises.
  • Orioles player development director John Stockstill is in Japan to scout Yu Darvish, among others, a club source tells Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link). Stockstill signed Koji Uehara, according to Connolly.
  • Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com has compiled a retrospective of Theo Epstein's tenure as Red Sox GM, listing Epstein's best and worst moves in trades, free agency and draft picks.

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