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Rosenthal On Guillen, Marlins, Reds

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The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…

  • One prominent agent told Rosenthal he can envision a free agent frenzy if a labor agreement is reached by the start of the offseason.  The last labor agreement, in 2006 was followed by ridiculous overspending on mediocre veterans.  The current labor agreement is set to expire on December 11th, three days after the conclusion of this year's Winter Meetings in Dallas.
  • Rosenthal has a source familiar with the thinking of Ozzie Guillen who has recently dropped his predicted chances of the manager returning to 50-50.
  • Rosenthal sees "mixed signals" on whether the Nationals will spend big this offseason, but he considers Jimmy Rollins a good fit.
  • The Marlins intend to discuss every available starting pitcher this winter.  The free agent market is looking thin, so teams with starters to trade will be in a good position.
  • The Reds' top goal is to add a middle-of-the-order hitter.

Epstein On Papelbon, Ortiz, Millwood

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The Red Sox have dropped five in a row, and GM Theo Epstein joined WEEI's Dennis & Callahan show today to offer his take.  A few highlights:

  • Epstein hasn't ruled out outside acquisitions, but internal solutions are much preferred.
  • "There's never been a lack of interest" in keeping closer Jonathan Papelbon in Boston.  Added Epstein, "I have to think there’s a lot of mutual interest in continuing the relationship."  Papelbon is eligible for free agency after the season, having earned $27.6MM over his three arbitration years.
  • The Red Sox are "obviously" interested in having designated hitter David Ortiz back, but Epstein says now is not the time to talk about that stuff.
  • The GM's thoughts on having Kevin Millwood in the organization: "At the time, we had guys ahead of him. His stuff, in our judgment and the judgment of our Triple-A staff, it wasn’t going to play at the major league level here for the Red Sox above the other options that we had."  The 36-year-old veteran has since posted a 3.79 ERA in six starts for the Rockies.

 

Rays Designate Rob Delaney For Assignment

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The Rays designated righty Rob Delaney for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot for top prospect Matt Moore, reports Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.

Delaney, 27, spent most of the year at Triple-A.  There he posted a 1.86 ERA, 7.6 K/9, 2.3 BB/9, and 0.4 HR/9 in 67 2/3 relief innings.  He'd been designated and outrighted in May, but was re-added to the 40-man roster in July.

Moore, meanwhile, is the consensus best pitching prospect in the minor leagues.  The 22-year-old southpaw has won back-to-back minor league strikeout crowns, whiffing 210 across 155 innings at Double and Triple-A this year.  Moore's electric arm makes for an exciting bullpen addition to a surging Rays team that now sits 3.5 games back of the Red Sox in the wild card standings.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Ramon Hernandez

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During the period of 2003-06, Ramon Hernandez was consistently among the top ten offensive catchers in the game.  He hit .278/.335/.466 in 494 games in that time, averaging almost 19 home runs per season.  Fortunately for Hernandez, he reached free agency when he was still in his prime, and he scored a four-year, $27.5MM deal with the Orioles in December of 2005.

Hernandez

After three years in Baltimore Hernandez had worn out his welcome, and the Orioles shipped him to the Reds with cash for Ryan Freel, Justin Turner, and Brandon Waring.  Hernandez wasn't great in his first year with the Reds, but they re-upped him for $3MM anyway.  He managed to improve his batting average and power, but re-signed with the Reds again for the same money.  Hernandez has had another solid offensive year in 2011, though he is averaging less than 100 games per season.  Hernandez has re-entered the discussion of the ten best offensive catchers in baseball, but he's something less than a regular and will turn 36 in May.

Hernandez re-signed in November both times, before the Reds were forced to decide whether to offer arbitration.  If no deal is reached by the free agent arbitration offer deadline this year, the Reds will have a tough decision.  Hernandez profiles as a Type A free agent.  At the trade deadline, Reds GM Walt Jocketty wasn't even willing to listen to offers for him, under the assumption no team would offer enough.  In August, Hernandez was claimed off waivers but Jocketty again chose not to make a deal.

Jocketty's unwillingness to trade Hernandez suggests he's thinking of re-signing Hernandez, or at least is mulling an arbitration offer.  Hernandez and his agent Eric Goldschmidt are aware that turning down an arbitration offer from the Reds would hurt his market value, as a team would have to surrender a draft pick to sign him.  There's a case to be made for accepting an offer, as Hernandez clearly likes Cincinnati and he'd get a raise too.  But with Devin Mesoraco considered the catcher of the near future for the Reds and backup Ryan Hanigan locked up through 2013, how much playing time would Hernandez get?  The Reds could trade Hernandez if he accepts, at which point the catcher would probably wish he had simply chosen his destination in free agency.

There's an intricate game of cat-and-mouse when a free agent like Hernandez gets Type A status.  The Reds could play it safe and not offer arbitration, but then they'd risk getting nothing for him.  I think the club has more leverage here, since Hernandez would be tradeable if he accepts.  If he declines Hernandez would probably be the best catcher available on the free agent market, but he'd be a better fit for a team with a protected first-round draft pick.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Starters Who Could Be Extended Before Free Agency

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Last year, Brett Myers, Ted Lilly, and Livan Hernandez signed extensions before hitting free agency.  So far this year, the big name is Chris Carpenter, who will reportedly sit out the free agent market with a two-year deal in hand.  Here are some other impending free agent starters I could see signing before open bidding begins.

  • Mark Buehrle, White Sox.  Based on the many reports on this topic, Buehrle's preferences appear to be A) the White Sox B) the Cardinals or C) retirement.  With the Cardinals' rotation looking full, the smart money is on a new deal with Chicago.
  • Aaron Harang, Padres.  It's well known that Harang wants to remain in his native San Diego.  I've mentioned that I could see both sides exercising his $5MM mutual option, though the two parties could work something out prior.
  • Rich Harden, Athletics.  As I mentioned last week, a one-year deal in the $4.5MM range could work for Harden, who wants to remain in Oakland.
  • Livan Hernandez, Nationals.  Hernandez has expressed his desire to stay with the Nationals, and there's be little harm in another $1MM deal.
  • Chien-Ming Wang, Nationals.  Wang's strikeout rate this year in eight starts is dangerously low, but there still appears to be something left in the tank post-shoulder surgery.  He wants to return, and may give a discount since he'll have earned $4MM over 2010-11 from the Nats for 50-odd big league innings.  It might be a stretch for the Nationals to sign both Hernandez and Wang to Major League deals though.
  • Hiroki Kuroda, Dodgers.  Interest in a new contract seems mutual, assuming Kuroda does not return to Japan.  Kuroda, owner of a 3.25 ERA, might be a tough sell at $12MM again for the Dodgers because of raises due to Lilly ($4.5MM), Chad Billingsley ($2.725MM), and Clayton Kershaw (potentially around $6MM).
  • Paul Maholm, Pirates.  Maholm's season ended on a sour note with a shoulder injury, but interest in a new contract is mutual and the price might be reasonable.
  • Roy Oswalt, Phillies.  Assuming Oswalt's back is up to it and he wants to pitch again, perhaps he'd like to remain in Philly.  Like Carpenter, the option price is too high, but a new deal could be reached.
  • Tim Wakefield, Red Sox.  I expect Boston or retirement for Wakefield.  The decision to retire would be presumably be much easier if he gets his 200th win this month.
  • This isn't a glamorous bunch, but top pitchers such as C.C. Sabathia and C.J. Wilson could re-sign quickly as well.  Throw in a few extensions from the list above, and the market for free agent starters could be extremely thin.

Arbitration Eligibles: Kansas City Royals

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The Royals are next in our arbitration eligibles series.

I view Getz and Pena as non-tender candidates.  However, with projected salaries of a million bucks or less, they may be retained.  Maier is also in line for an affordable salary, at about $700K.

Paulino won't be going anywhere, as we have him down for about $1.6MM.  Hochevar leads the club in innings, and should jump up to the $4MM range.  Cabrera was a fine cheap free agent signing for GM Dayton Moore, who can retain the outfielder again for approximately $4MM.

We've got Gordon down for $4.3MM.  Extension talks are on the offseason agenda, so the Royals could get him at a reduced salary for 2012 as part of a long-term deal.

Quick Hits: Red Sox, Dodgers, Peavy, Bauer

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Sunday night linkage..

  • Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter) wonders if the Red Sox might pursue pitching for the final stretch, even though anyone acquired wouldn't be eligible for the postseason.
  • Surprisingly, patience seems to be the new trend in baseball when it comes to GMs, writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.  This morning, the Pirates announced that they have extended GM Neal Huntington's contract through 2014.
  • Dodgers GM Ned Colletti said yesterday that the club won't undergo any major changes this winter and Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times is less-than-enthused.
  • The White Sox are shutting down starter Jake Peavy in hopes that rest will help the 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner return to full strength next year, according to the Associated Press.  Peavy underwent shoulder surgery on July 14, 2010 and the right-hander posted a 4.92 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9.
  • The Diamondbacks might promote top prospects Trevor Bauer and Jarrod Parker to experience the playoff race as they prepare for 2012, tweets Peter Gammons of the MLB Network.

Poll: Pirates Extension Of Neal Huntington

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This morning, the Pirates announced that they extended GM Neal Huntington's contract through 2014 with a club option for 2015.  In his four years on the job, the Bucs' farm system has gotten an infusion of talent and the club has shown that they are willing to spend on the draft.  Most recently, the Pirates gave sizeable deals right-hander Gerrit Cole and outfielder Josh Bell.  Pittsburgh also saw success on the major league level as they briefly sat atop the NL Central in late July before a slide in August.

While it appears that the club is headed in the right direction, the Pirates' record in three full seasons under Huntington's watch has been 186-299.  Unless they practically run the table to close out the season, this year will mark the team's 19th consecutive losing campaign. 

All things considered, do you agree with the Pirates three-year extension of Huntington's contract?

MLBTR Originals

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Here's a look back at the original content we published this week at MLBTR …

Week In Review: 9/4/11 – 9/10/11

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With just a couple of weeks left in the season, there's plenty of talk giving us a picture of what can expect this winter, so let's run down the week's stories:

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

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