Cardinals Sign Jaime Garcia To Four-Year Deal
The Cardinals announced that they signed Jaime Garcia to a four-year deal with two club options, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN). Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the deal is worth $27.5MM in guaranteed money (Twitter link). Michael Golde of KTRS 550 AM first tweeted a rumor of the Garcia extension last Thursday, with the contract details included.
Garcia, 25, is enjoying another fine season with a 3.22 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, 0.6 HR/9, and 54.5% groundball rate in 117 1/3 innings. He was set to become arbitration eligible for the first time after the season, so it appears that the contract covers his three arbitration years (2012-14) and his first free agent year, with options on two additional free agent years. Garcia is represented by Melvin Roman of MDR Sports Management, having made a change this year.
The deal falls a bit short of the contracts earlier this year for Clay Buchholz and Trevor Cahill, which also featured a pair of club options. Keep in mind that Garcia's first-year arbitration earning power would have been limited by time missed due to '09 Tommy John surgery.
West Notes: Rockies, Padres, Mariners
Baseball's western divisions have the Rangers, Angels, Giants, and Diamondbacks as contenders, with the Mariners, Athletics, Rockies, Dodgers, and Padres looking like potential sellers. Today's links:
- There's little the Rockies could obtain that would justify trading Ubaldo Jimenez, explains Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. It was revealed Saturday that the Rockies will listen on their ace, but Renck says Dan O'Dowd is the rare GM who will engage in trade talk that's headed nowhere just to understand other teams' needs.
- O'Dowd told MLB.com's Thomas Harding that he's looking for a strike-throwing pitcher who's under team control beyond 2011. The Rockies, who have been eyeing pitching for a while, will look for deals that make sense for the team's present and long-term well-being, O'Dowd says.
- The Padres want "impact players in return for their movable pieces," tweets MLB.com's Corey Brock. The Padres' best trade chips are relievers Heath Bell and Mike Adams, though Ryan Ludwick, Aaron Harang, and Chad Qualls should draw interest.
- Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner runs through the Mariners' trade chips, led by Brandon League and Erik Bedard.
- Righty Doug Mathis is headed for Korea to play with the Samsung Lions, tweets Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net. To make it official, he'll need his release from the Athletics' Triple-A club. Kurtz notes that Ryan Garko would be released from the Lions to make room.
Rangers Release Manny Delcarmen, Seth McClung
The Rangers released righties Manny Delcarmen and Seth McClung from their Triple-A club, tweets Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
Delcarmen, 29, posted a 5.59 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 3.5 BB/9, and 0.9 HR/9 with 52 hits allowed in 38 2/3 innings for the Rangers' and Mariners' Triple-A affiliates this year. The Rockies non-tendered Delcarmen in December, and he signed a minor league deal with the Mariners despite a Major League offer from an NL team. He opted out of his contract with Seattle on June 1st and signed with Texas.
McClung, 30, posted a 5.19 ERA, 5.7 K/9, 3.9 BB/9, and 0.7 HR/9 with 93 hits allowed in 78 Triple-A innigs this year, including 11 starts. He'd signed a minor league deal in December.
Heyman On K-Rod, Sabathia, Fielder, Beltran
The latest from SI's Jon Heyman…
- Francisco Rodriguez's agent Scott Boras spoke with Brewers GM Doug Melvin shortly after last night's trade, at which point Heyman says "Boras made the case that K-Rod should close, suggesting he wouldn't do nearly as well setting up." Melvin was apparently noncommital in that conversation, as he has been publicly. K-Rod would become the highest-paid reliever in baseball history if his option vests, though Boras wouldn't get commission on a contract brokered by Wasserman Media Group in 2008. Heyman suggests an unhappy Rodriguez is a scary concept, but based on the player's tweets (in Spanish), he's content.
- Yankees ace C.C. Sabathia "has done some selling on the Yankees" to his friend Prince Fielder. Heyman doesn't take this as a sign the Yankees are interested in Fielder as a very expensive designated hitter, but rather an indication that Sabathia expects to stick around with the club after this season.
- Cardinals right fielder Lance Berkman told Yahoo's Jeff Passan he expects Fielder to top Albert Pujols in total dollars due to the age difference, but Albert should get the higher average annual value.
- Heyman sees the Tigers as a potential suitor for Mets right fielder Carlos Beltran. He believes the Tigers could add a bat at second base, third base, or outfield.
Giants Among Beltran’s Most Serious Suitors
The Giants are among Carlos Beltran's most serious suitors, report Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Closer Brian Wilson acknowledged his team's interest in the Mets right fielder last night, saying, "I guess we're in talks with them about Beltran." It's not clear whether Wilson has inside information or is just putting his spin on public rumors.
Beltran indicated a few days ago that he wouldn't be shocked if the Giants acquire him, and you have to assume he'd approve a trade there. The Mets' recent trade of closer Francisco Rodriguez was about avoiding the reliever's $17.5MM vesting option for 2012, something that had to be done even if the team remained on the fringes of contention. But trading Beltran for prospects or salary relief would be a clearer white flag on the 2011 season.
Beltran will have about $6MM remaining on his contract at the July 31st deadline. Many contenders can't take on that size of a burden, but the Mets could kick in cash to receive better players in return, especially now that they're relieved of K-Rod on their 2012 books. The Giants, Red Sox, Rays, Tigers, Indians, White Sox, Pirates, and Reds are contenders that could use a corner outfield boost. The Phillies and Braves could as well, if the Mets are willing to deal with division rivals. Six or seven teams have real interest in Beltran, but the Yankees are not one of them, according to ESPN's Buster Olney (on Twitter).
Quick Hits: Reds, Berkman, Vogelsong, Blue Jays
Links for Tuesday night, after a second consecutive win for the National League All-Stars…
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty told Tom Groeschen of the Cincinnati Enquirer that he’s talking to clubs about possible trades, though discussions are still in their early stages. "We have not had specific or significant trade talks with anyone at this point," Jocketty said. "All discussion with other teams has been more general info gathering.” The Reds are monitoring Ubaldo Jimenez of the Rockies.
- Lance Berkman told Troy Renck of the Denver Post that he would have signed in Colorado if the Rockies had made him a "decent" offer last offseason (Twitter link). "They had other fish to fry," Berkman said. "And they fried them."
- ESPN.com’s Keith Law hears that top Blue Jays pick Tyler Beede didn’t report to the summer classes he had signed up for at Vanderbilt (Twitter link). It could be an indication that he's going to sign instead of going to college.
- As Patrick Newman points out at FanGraphs, Colby Lewis, Ryan Vogelsong, Chris Resop and Scott Atchison are among the MLB pitchers who pitched overseas before succeeding for their current MLB teams.
- Mike Lopresti of USA Today explains how Vogelsong went from Triple-A discard to National League All-Star.
- Stephen Goff of the Houston Astros Examiner points out that Brett Myers' trade value could diminish if other right-handed starters become available this month.
Bengie Molina Does Not Intend To Play In 2011
Bengie Molina told Jon Heyman of SI.com that he doesn't intend to play in 2011 (Twitter link). Though the backstop has not officially retired at this point, a return to the field currently seems unlikely.
Molina's stance has changed since late May, when he said he'd be open to returning to the Giants. His former team could still use catching depth; San Francisco has been looking for help behind the plate since losing Buster Posey to a season-ending injury. The Padres and Red Sox were in contact with Molina earlier in the season and the Pirates have since begun searching for catching as well.
In 118 games for the Giants and Rangers last year, Molina hit .249/.297/.326. He hit at least 15 homers each season from 2005-09, before hitting just five long balls in 2010. The 36-year-old has played for the Angels, Giants, Rangers and Blue Jays in 13 Major League seasons.
MLBPA Hoping For New CBA By World Series
The collective bargaining agreement between players and owners expires on December 11th, but the sides may announce a new agreement well before then. Michael Weiner, the executive director of the MLB Players Association, told Bill Shaikin of the LA Times that he’s aiming for resolution by the end of the World Series.
"In 2006, it was very productive for us to be done before the signing season," Weiner said. "There's a lot of benefit to everybody to get it done on that kind of schedule."
Representatives from the MLBPA have met with representatives for baseball’s owners on a weekly basis since Spring Training to discuss a new CBA. Commissioner Bud Selig says talks have been “constructive” so far.
On the one hand it’s completely unsurprising to hear that the sides would like to complete a deal earlier, rather than later (what else would they say?). But there are real advantages to completing the agreement before the offseason begins in earnest. Everything from the luxury tax to salary arbitration to draft pick compensation could be affected under the new agreement, so it would be much simpler for executives and agencies to operate if a new set of rules is clearly in place by the end of October.
Selig On Draft, Playoffs, Realignment, Replay
Commissioner Bud Selig held a chat with fans yesterday and he touched on a number of issues that we focus on here at MLBTR, plus some other items of interest. Here are some highlights from Selig’s chat at MLB.com:
- Collective bargaining between the players and the owners has been “constructive” so far, but it’s still early.
- Not surprisingly, there’s no chance of a salary cap in the upcoming collective bargaining agreement.
- Selig repeated his support for slotting and a worldwide draft and said the sides are discussing both possibilities at the bargaining table.
- Stories about realignment are somewhat premature, according to Selig. He has had realignment on his mind for a while, but nothing is imminent.
- The Diamondbacks have been told that they will be able to stay in the NL West and that the Astros will ultimately be asked to move to the AL West in realignment, according to Jack Magruder of FOXSportsArizona.com (on Twitter).
- The commissioner would like to see two additional playoff teams in the near future.
- There are no plans to remove the designated hitter or expand the role of the DH.
- There’s not much of an appetite for expanding instant replay within the game, according to Selig. However, MLB is considering “significant adjustments” to baseball’s current instant replay rules.
- Selig told reporters today that he remains firm on his decision to retire after 2012, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
Make Or Break Year: How Are They Doing?
Before the season, MLBTR writers identified 13 players who were set for 'make or break' years. These players had experienced ups and downs in their respective careers and were positioned to re-establish themselves as difference makers at the Major League level and set themselves up for success in free agency.
We checked in on the players at the quarter pole of the campaign and let's do it again now that we're midway through the season (all links go to the MLBTR posts):
- Scott Kazmir - Kazmir spent time on the DL, made one appearance for the Angels and posted a 17.02 ERA with more walks than strikeouts at Triple-A before getting released. The former first rounder is now a free agent.
- Nate McLouth - McLouth's .225/.345/.330 line is better than it was last year and features a respectable on-base percentage, but his offensive production has fallen off considerably since 2007-09. He spent time on the DL this June.
- Grady Sizemore - Sizemore missed time with a knee injury, but he still has nine homers and a .231/.295/.448 line. However, he has a career-high 29.5% strikeout rate and a career-low 6.1% walk rate.
- Ryan Doumit - The switch-hitter has spent most of the season on the disabled list, though he has a .269/.333/.441 line when healthy.
- Jonathan Broxton - Broxton is on the disabled list with a bruised right elbow and he has had another setback, so there's no timetable for his return. If he doesn't pitch well later this season, he will be overshadowed by this offseason's strong crop of free agent relief pitchers.
- Joel Zumaya - Zumaya had elbow surgery in March and it's not clear if he'll ever return to the Tigers.
- Casey Blake - Blake has returned from surgery for an elbow infection and has a .243/.346/.386 line as a third baseman, first baseman and left fielder. The 37-year-old isn't in the Dodgers' everyday lineup anymore.
- Aramis Ramirez - Ramirez has a .298/.346/.497 line with 15 homers and could be en route to his best season since 2008.
- Edwin Jackson - Jackson, a free agent this winter, has a 4.30 ERA (3.31 xFIP) with 7.8 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 106 2/3 innings for the White Sox.
- Bobby Abreu - Abreu, 37, has a .277/.394/.363 line this year. A year after hitting his usual 20 homers, Abreu's power is diminishing, but his on-base skills still exist.
- Carlos Beltran - Beltran has a .285/.377/.503 line with 13 homers. There seems to be a good chance that he'll finish the season with another team, as he would agree to waive his no-trade clause under the right circumstances.
- Matt Capps - Capps has 15 saves, but his strikeout rate has fallen from 7.3 K/9 to 4.9 K/9 and his average fastball velocity has fallen from 94 mph to 92.8 mph.
- Jeff Francis - The 30-year-old left-hander appears to be headed for the second 200 inning season of his career. Francis, who battled shoulder injuries in 2009-10, has a 4.60 ERA with 4.4 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9.