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Archives for 2011

Mariners Notes: Thieben, Montero, Adams

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The Mariners endured their 13th walk-off loss of the season at the hands of the Twins yesterday, setting a franchise record. Seattle which is tied with the Angels for the most walk-off losses in baseball this season, visits the Rangers tonight…

  • The Mariners are expected to sign Daniel Thieben, an 18-year-old right-hander who's the youngest member of Germany's World Cup roster, according to John Manuel of Baseball America. The deal will likely become official in early November, when international scouting director Bob Engle visits Germany. Thieben's best pitch is a curveball and his fastball sits in the mid or upper-80s.
  • Brian Cashman's comments about Carl Crawford made headlines today and his candor extended to the near-trade that would have sent Jesus Montero and others to the Mariners for Cliff Lee last summer. The GM told Ian O'Connor of ESPNNewYork.com that Montero "would've been by far the best player moved" in any of the three deals involving Lee.
  • Cashman told Larry Stone of the Seattle Times that he had Lee until the Mariners decided they didn't like the medicals on second baseman David Adams and moved on to the Rangers, who were offering Justin Smoak.

East Notes: Collins, Epstein, Phillies

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Yankees GM Brian Cashman's remarks regarding his feigned pursuit of Carl Crawford are creating some buzz today, unsurprisingly. Here are some other items of note out of the east …

  • The Mets will decide whether they'll exercise manager Terry Collins' 2013 option within the next 10 days, a source tells Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. The club will also have to decide on whether to bring back all of Collins' coaches, whose contracts are expiring, except for hitting coach Dave Hudgens.
  • Red Sox GM Theo Epstein told ESPNBoston.com that there's no "disconnect" between him and manager Terry Francona. The latter's job security has been a hot topic on talk radio shows and the like this week, what with the Red Sox owning just a two-game lead over the Rays in both the AL East and the AL Wild Card entering Friday's action. Boston, of course, appeared to be a lock for the postseason only a month ago.
  • The Phillies will lead the Major Leagues in attendance in 2011, writes Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. With the second highest payroll in the big leagues at $175MM, the great turnout will certainly help pay some of the bills. The Phils sold out their 204th consecutive home game on Thursday, a stretch that dates back to 2009, according to Salisbury.

Diamondbacks Acquire Zagurski; Designate Vasquez

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The Diamondbacks have acquired left-handed reliever Mike Zagurski from the Phillies in exchange for a player to be named, Zagurski's agent tells Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). Arizona announced it designated reliever Esmerling Vasquez for assignment in a corresponding 40-man-roster move.

Zagurski, 28, was among three players whom the Phillies designated for assignment last week. The southpaw pitched to a 2.65 ERA in 54 1/3 innings with Triple-A Lehigh Valley this season but has struggled in 37 career big league outings, posting a 6.82 ERA in parts of three seasons. His 10.2 K/9 rate is promising, but he struggles with his control (5.4 BB/9).

Arizona's magic number number to clinch the NL West is down to 1, but Zagurski, who will be added to the active roster for the regular season's balance, will not be eligible for the postseason roster.

Vasquez, 27, has posted a 4.66 ERA in 141 career Major League games, spanning parts of three seasons with Arizona. The Dominican right-hander was signed as an international free agent in 2003.

The Diamondbacks' active roster is currently at 33 after the moves. The 40-man roster is full.

Cashman: We Tried To Drive Crawford’s Price Up

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When the Yankees wined and dined Carl Crawford during last December's winter meetings, most assumed he was their backup plan to Cliff Lee. Crawford agreed to a deal with the Red Sox before the end of the meetings and Lee eventually went back to the Phillies, but GM Brian Cashman told ESPN New York he was never really interested in signing the outfielder in the first place…

"I actually had dinner with the agent to pretend that we were actually involved and drive the price up," said Cashman. "The outfield wasn't an area of need, but everybody kept writing Crawford, Crawford, Crawford, Crawford. And I was like, 'I feel like we've got Carl Crawford in Brett Gardner, except he costs more than $100 million less, with less experience.'"

Interestingly enough, Crawford said he didn't believe the Yankees were serious about signing him back in March. "If the Yankees want somebody they go out and get them, don't they?," he asked, and aside from Lee, he's generally correct. Crawford is hitting .259/.295/.410 with only 18 steals in the first year of his seven-year, $142MM contract. Gardner, on the other hand, is hitting .261/.347/.374 with an AL leading 46 stolen bases. He also leads all players in UZR (regardless of position) for the second straight year, and will be arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter.

Within the same ESPN NY piece, Cashman acknowledged that his offseason moves turned out better than expected. "What I said was accurate: The Red Sox had a great winter, and I had a bad winter," he said. "But as it turned out, I had a better winter than anybody would've expected, including myself." Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia have combined for a 3.90 ERA in one out shy of 300 innings, the main reasons Cashman's offseason was surprisingly successful.

Quick Hits: Crisp, Patton, Yankees, Indians

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On this date in 1983, Steve Carlton of the Phillies won the 300th game of his career. The Phillies don't have any 300 game winners on their staff at this point, but it won't be surprising if one or two of their pitchers join Carlton in Cooperstown one day. Here are some links for Friday…

  • Coco Crisp told Joe Stiglich of the Contra Costa Times that he's looking for a winning team, a location he likes and a good "financial situation" when he decides where to sign this offseason (link via the Boston Herald). The 31-year-old California native says he enjoys playing in Oakland and believes the A's have a chance to win in 2012.
  • The Orioles placed Troy Patton on the restricted list yesterday, according to MLB.com's Transactions Page. The left-hander left the team for a court-appointed orientation class that's related to his offseason DUI arrest, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. He should re-join the team in Detroit today.
  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Bob Klapisch of the Record that he's "comfortable but not expectant" of a new contract after the season, when his current deal with the Yankees expires. Klapisch says Cashman has earned another contract.
  • Bud Shaw of the Cleveland Plain Dealer made the case for bringing Grady Sizemore and Fausto Carmona to the Indians next year. Though there are arguments in favor of each player, it's not easy to get excited about "the prospect of continued uncertainty."

Dodgers Notes: Barajas, Kuroda, Rivera

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Clayton Kershaw leads the league in ERA, strikeouts and wins. Matt Kemp leads the league in RBI and isn't far off in home runs (second) and batting average (third). We can debate the value of the traditional Triple Crown stats, but there's no denying that the Dodgers have serious contenders for the NL Cy Young and MVP. The latest links from Los Angeles…

  • Earlier in the season, the Dodgers' decision to non-tender Russell Martin and sign Rod Barajas seemed like a mistake, but as Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times shows, the two backstops have comparable offensive numbers. Martin maintains a 35 point edge in OBP, but Barajas has the superior OPS+ (96 vs. 91). Barajas, a free agent after the season, told Hernandez that he hopes to return to Los Angeles next year.
  • Hiroki Kuroda will obtain $175K for having pitched 190 innings and if he completes four more innings to reach the 200 inning plateau, he'll obtain $200K more, according to Hernandez.
  • Juan Rivera has hit well since the Dodgers acquired him from the Blue Jays and manager Don Mattingly says he should be a consideration in 2012, according to AJ Cassavell of MLB.com. Rivera would like to re-sign with the Dodgers and his skipper likes his versatility and power, so the sides figure to discuss a deal after the season.

Tim Lincecum Prefers Short-Term Deals

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They call Tim Lincecum the Freak for his unusual delivery, but the nickname may also apply when it comes to contract talks. While most players are eager to sign their first long-term deal, the Giants’ two-time Cy Young winner told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that he feels most comfortable on one or two-year contracts.

"It's just easier for me mentally not to have to put that kind of pressure on yourself," he said. "Not that you don't want to succeed, but when you're signed to a long-term deal, it's like saying, 'I'm going to live up to every expectation.' That's why I like going year to year, so I can improve on it and not sit on what I've done."

Lincecum still has two years of arbitration eligibility after this season and he says he’d be open to a two-year deal similar to the one that bought out his first two seasons of arbitration eligibility. He says he likes the two-year, $23MM contract he signed before the 2010 season, since it allowed him to move gradually through the arbitration process. But if the Giants make an aggressive long-term offer, the Beverly Hills Sports Council client will listen.

"It all depends on how they come after me," he told Schulman. "If it's aggressive, obviously I want to take that into consideration and talk about it with my agent and see what he thinks is good. I haven't dismissed anything."

Lincecum says he isn’t sure how he’ll feel in three or five years and added that he isn’t worried about the Giants’ offense, which currently ranks last in the National League in runs scored.

When MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes previewed Lincecum’s arbitration case in May, the agents he surveyed suggested a 2012 salary in the $19-22MM range would be fair assuming a “normal season.” The 27-year-old right-hander has a 2.59 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 212 innings and though he won’t win the Cy Young Award he has set himself up for $20MM-plus in 2012 and even more in 2013. In other words, Lincecum gets as much guaranteed money going year to year as many pitchers obtain on multiyear deals in free agency.

Quick Hits: Oswalt, Dipoto, Conditioning

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The Phillies suffered their first sweep since August 2010 on Thursday night, but they got good news regarding the long-term outlook of one of their starting pitchers. More on that in this late-night grab bag of links …

  • Phillies righty Roy Oswalt's agent, Bob Garber, said that the 33-year-old is no longer considering retiring after this season, according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. Oswalt and the Phils have a $16MM mutual option for 2012, although Zolecki writes that it's unlikely the Phils will exercise their end of that deal. The Phils could bring back Oswalt on a lesser deal, however. In February, Oswalt, who has dealt with back injuries in recent years, said, "I'm going to play this year and see how it goes."
  • Diamondbacks senior vice president of scouting and development Jerry Dipoto has played an integral role in Arizona's resurgence this year, writes Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. The Snakes' former interim GM remained with the organization last offseason, even though he was a candidate for the full-time GM job and didn't get it. Dipoto was interviewed recently by Tim Dierkes as part of MLBTR's GM Candidates series, so be sure to check that out.
  • Teams are moving closer to monitoring their players' physical conditioning year-round, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.com, although the players' union likely won't care for it. Some executives are growing increasingly frustrated by players who report to Spring Training out of shape or let themselves go during the season, according to Olney.

Central Notes: Reds, Buehrle, Floyd

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Some late-night linkage regarding the Redlegs and Pale Hose:

  • Reds GM Walt Jocketty said that Cincinnati's payroll will increase in 2011, according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer, but they will only "bump it up a little." Fay speculates the Reds' payroll will increase from this year's $80.8MM to roughly $85MM in 2012, which would represent a similar hike from 2010's $76.1MM. Most of that, however, is accounted for in projected salary increases for players under contract. When asked whether he'd be shopping for big-ticket free agents this winter, Jocketty said "probably not."
  • White Sox lefty Mark Buehrle, an impending free agent, said moving to the National League is enticing to him, as it would represent a chance to face hitters who have seen him relatively few times, according to Scott Merkin of MLB.com. The 12-year veteran, who said he's willing to play for a few more years, has pitched exclusively in the AL Central, so those hitters have seen him a lot. Sounds like classic posturing, doesn't it? Buehrle, a Missouri native, has been rumored in the past to have designs on pitching for the Cardinals.
  • Buehrle's teammate Gavin Floyd could be a trade candidate this offseason depending on how the White Sox plan for 2012, writes Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. Under team control through next season at a very reasonable price of $7MM (with a club option for 2013), Floyd would draw plenty of interest on the market.

East Notes: Blue Jays, Marlins, Nationals

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Here are a few items of note regarding the offseason plans for teams that reside in MLB's East divisions …

  • The Blue Jays will be more active on the trade market than in free agency this offseason, GM Alex Anthopoulous tells Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. “Philosophically speaking, if we want to improve the club, free agency is the last area I want to go to,” says Anthopoulos. Still, some in the organization feel the Jays need another starter, according to Davidi, and Yu Darvish remains a possible target. The Jays will also look to improve their bullpen.
  • The Marlins will interview Nationals third-base coach Bo Porter for their managerial vacancy this offseason, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. Porter, 39, is considered a "rising star" among future managerial candidates, according to Kilgore, and could take over in Washington if Davey Johnson does not return as Nationals skipper in 2012.
  • As mentioned above, the Nationals could have a managerial vacancy of their own this offseason. Among the candidates to replace interim manager Johnson are first-base coach Trent Jewett, Triple-A Syracuse manager Randy Knorr, and Porter, according to Bill Ladson of MLB.com.

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