Heyman On Wheeler, Reyes, Martin, Reds
Now that top prospects Eric Hosmer and Jose Iglesias are in the majors, Jon Heyman of SI.com examines the minors’ top prospects. Mariners infield prospect Dustin Ackley, the second overall pick behind Stephen Strasburg two years ago, is "over-rated'' and without a clear defensive position in the opinion on one NL executive. Here’s Heyman’s latest from around the league:
- The Giants and Mets don’t appear to be talking about Jose Reyes at the moment, but the rumors won’t stop until the calendar flips to August or another team acquires the shortstop. Heyman hears from one person who believes the Mets would “have to” send Reyes to San Francisco if they could get pitching prospect Zack Wheeler in return.
- MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes suggested Wheeler as a possible target for the Mets last week.
- In off-field news, Heyman reports that the Mets are getting more interest than expected from buyers interested in a minority stake in the team.
- The Rangers hope Cuban outfield prospect Leonys Martin, who signed last week, can help them in 2011.
- The Reds were among the teams that bid on Martin, according to Heyman.
Avila’s Hot Start Gives Tigers Depth At Catcher
Whether you look at home runs (6) and RBI (23) or wins above replacement (1.0) and wOBA (.387) you’ll see Alex Avila’s name all over early season leaderboards. He has thrown out 12 of 33 would-be base stealers so far this year (36%) and the most recent of his six home runs came when he was navigating Justin Verlander through nine no-hit innings on Saturday.
“That was definitely nice. It’s the best of both worlds,” Avila told MLBTR this weekend. “I was joking with Justin that four of my six home runs are when he’s pitching. It seems that when he’s pitching, I’m going to hit one out.”
A 5th round pick in 2008, Avila is the son of Tigers assistant GM Al Avila. He hit .228/.316/.340 and threw out 32% of would-be base stealers as Detroit's primary catcher in 2010. This year, he’s feeling more comfortable as a hitter and as a defender.
“When you first come up, there’s always an adjustment period, a time when you’ve got to learn and figure out how to not only catch, but hit in the big leagues and the experience definitely helps,” Avila said. “You learn more about yourself and the league and make adjustments from there.”
The Tigers aren’t expecting Avila to continue at his current 28-homer pace, but the front office believes he can continue to be a valuable everyday catcher – and his father’s not the only one who thinks so.
“He has a nice left-handed swing,” GM Dave Dombrowski said. “We think he can hit.”
Avila’s new teammate, Victor Martinez, is one of baseball’s best hitting catchers, having reached the 20-homer plateau five times in the past seven seasons. Though the Tigers don’t plan on asking Martinez to catch more than a couple times per week, he has still helped Avila develop as a backstop.
“Absolutely,” Avila said. “Victor has helped me a ton with both aspects of my game. He’s such a positive person and generous with his time. He’s just fantastic.”
It's still too early to assume the 24-year-old Avila will continue hitting at this rate. But at this point, it appears that the Tigers have a pair of quality catchers thanks to his development.
Photo courtesy Icon SMI.
Which Agency Had The Biggest Offseason?
From the Blue Jays signing Dustin McGowan for $450K to the Red Sox extending Adrian Gonzalez at $154MM, teams committed almost $3 billion in free agent deals, arbitration contracts, and extensions to 314 players during the 2010-11 offseason. I defined the offseason as October 1st, 2010 through April 30th, 2011, so that the April extensions would be recognized.
The goal was to capture guaranteed money from new contracts. Arbitration deals typically are not guaranteed, though those players are rarely cut, so I included them. If you find any errors in the numbers in the attached spreadsheet, please contact us or leave a comment.
- Boras Corporation: $444.475MM. Boras is back on top after ranking third last winter. Contracts for Jayson Werth, Adrian Beltre, Carlos Gonzalez, and Rafael Soriano accounted for much of the total.
- Legacy Sports Group: $321.375MM. Legacy's huge winter was led by Carl Crawford, Adam Dunn, Rickie Weeks, and Billy Butler. Crawford signed the offseason's biggest free agent contract at $142MM.
- CAA Sports: $234.575MM. CAA's total comes mainly from Ryan Braun and Derek Jeter.
- John Boggs & Associates: $185.675MM. Extensions for Adrian Gonzalez and Trevor Cahill pushed this company to the fourth spot. Gonzalez signed the biggest contract of any player during the offseason at $154MM.
- TWC Sports: $164.0575MM. Rockies players Troy Tulowitzki and Jorge De La Rosa comprise most of this total.
- SFX: $152.38MM. SFX had a balanced winter, with only Mariano Rivera and Clay Buchholz in the $30MM range.
- Frontline: $126.375MM. This is almost all Cliff Lee.
- ACES: $125.85MM. Early contracts for John Buck, Joaquin Benoit, Brandon Inge, and Jhonny Peralta boosted this agency.
- Gaylord Sports Management: $102.65MM. Dan Uggla and Bronson Arroyo made up most of this total.
- Octagon: $99.885MM. Victor Martinez was the big fish for this agency.
- Praver/Shapiro: $95.15MM. This group had four major deals, with Johnny Cueto, Juan Uribe, Carlos Marmol, and Leonys Martin.
- Wasserman Media Group: $91.91MM. Like SFX, Wasserman had a balanced winter, with only Wandy Rodriguez topping $15MM.
- Sosnick Cobbe Sports: $90.95MM. This firm made their money with extensions, led by Jay Bruce and Ricky Nolasco.
- LSW Baseball: $71.725MM. Paul Konerko, Jason Bartlett, and J.J. Putz scored eight-figure deals.
- Beverly Hills Sports Council: $66.4685MM. BHSC's biggest deals went to relievers Brian Fuentes and Kevin Gregg, and they were able to beat their former agent Dan Lozano.
- Proformance: $65.865MM. This is almost all Jose Bautista's contract.
- Dan Lozano: $51.35MM. This agency should do well next offseason with Albert Pujols, Jimmy Rollins, and others. During 2010-11 they were led by Joey Votto's extension.
Those were the 17 agencies to top $50MM brokered during the 2010-11 offseason. Another 47 agencies accounted for the remaining 14% of the offseason total.
Dan Lozano To Represent Alex Rodriguez
Agent Dan Lozano signed Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez for all baseball-related work, reports Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal (subscription required). On the surface it doesn't seem that A-Rod has much need for an agent, since he is signed through 2017. Rodriguez left the Boras corporation last summer. Steve Loy of Gaylord Sports Management handles Rodriguez's marketing.
Lozano left Beverly Hills Sports Council about a year ago. His robust client list includes impending free agents Albert Pujols and Jimmy Rollins, as MLBTR's agency database shows.
Mariners Designate Ryan Langerhans For Assignment
The Mariners announced they've designated Ryan Langerhans for assignment to make room for outfielder Mike Wilson, tweets ESPN 710's Shannon Drayer.
Langerhans, 31, hit .173/.317/.346 in 64 plate appearances for the Mariners this year after re-signing on a minor league deal in December. Langerhans is no stranger to the DFA, as this is the third time in his career. Other candidates to be removed from the roster, such as Milton Bradley and Chris Ray, live to see another day.
Rosenthal On Hendry, Indians, Kelly Johnson
The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…
- On Saturday Rosenthal talked about the "consensus in the game is that the Cubs need to show progress for GM Jim Hendry to keep his job beyond this season." Rosenthal, however, feels that the Ricketts family should extend Hendry, who in his estimation has built a team that is positioned to contend for the next several years. The club may have over $60MM to spend in 2012 salaries during the offseason, so the Cubs' GM, whoever it is, should be a major player in the free agent market.
- Rosenthal wonders whether the Indians will be willing to part with prospects for midseason reinforcements, having assembled much of their promising team through trades. Earlier this month, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith discussed the Indians' approach with GM Chris Antonetti.
- If the Diamondbacks want to acquire a pitcher, they're most likely to move Kelly Johnson according to Rosenthal. He feels that they'd be open to swapping Johnson for a starter "at a comparable salary and service level," though Johnson would need to start producing first. It's tough for me to identify a team positioned to swap a starter for Johnson, as well.
- Jered Weaver has the best stuff in the game, says Red Sox DH David Ortiz. Click here for my take on how much Weaver might earn in his 2012 contract year.
2012 Contract Issues: Kansas City Royals
The Royals are next in our 2012 Contract Issues series. Here's what the team faces after the 2011 season:
Eligible For Free Agency (6)
- Catchers Jason Kendall and Matt Treanor will be eligible for free agency, so look for the Royals to acquire a veteran backstop this offseason.
- With Kyle Davies, Bruce Chen, and Jeff Francis signed through 2011, three-fifths of the club's current rotation will be up in the air. The Royals might lose a couple of veteran lefties, but in Mike Montgomery, John Lamb, Danny Duffy, and Chris Dwyer, they've got four highly-rated southpaws not far from the Majors. Aaron Crow has pitched well out of the team's big league bullpen, but he could also be in the rotation mix next year. I can picture the Royals adding a veteran free agent or two for depth.
- Infielder Wilson Betemit may be approaching free agency at the ideal time, as he's assembled a .300/.374/.497 line in 422 plate appearances in his Royals career to date. He should be able to continue as a third base regular with another club.
Contract Options (2)
- Joakim Soria: $6MM club option with a $750K buyout. Arbitration eligible if declined. Soria hasn't been himself this year, though much of the damage came in one outing against the White Sox. At any rate, he's not going anywhere.
- Jeff Francoeur: $3MM mutual option. Did you know Francoeur is currently tied with Howie Kendrick for the American League lead in total bases? He could end up knocking 30 home runs for the first time in his career. Wil Myers is learning to play right field in Double-A currently, so the Royals may prefer a stopgap solution at most for 2012.
Arbitration Eligible (8)
- First time: Mike Aviles, Mitch Maier, Chris Getz
- Second time: Luke Hochevar, Brayan Pena
- Third time: Robinson Tejeda, Alex Gordon
- Fourth time: Melky Cabrera
There may be a few non-tenders in this group, but Aviles, Maier, Hochevar, Tejeda, Gordon, and Cabrera are likely to be retained. I'll estimate something like $15MM for the six.
2012 Payroll Obligation
The Royals' 2012 payroll obligation, according to Cot's, is about $17MM assuming Soria's option is picked up. $15MM for the key arbitration eligibles puts them around $32MM, $6MM shy of this year's payroll and about $40MM short of the '09 and '10 payrolls. The Royals will probably increase their free agent activity during the 2011-12 offseason, as things may already be starting to come together.
Mariners Must Clear 40-Man Roster Spot
27-year-old outfielder Mike Wilson is off to a blazing start for the Tacoma Raniers, with a .381/.429/.683 line in 70 plate appearances. He'll be called up to the Mariners before Tuesday's game in Baltimore, reports Ryan Divish of The News Tribune. Since he's not on the 40-man roster, the Mariners will need to clear a spot.
Divish ran through players who could be removed from the 40-man, and came up with minor leaguers Edward Paredes and Yoervis Medina as well as Mariners Chris Ray, Milton Bradley, and Ryan Langerhans. It's time to end the Bradley experiment, writes Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner. In the opinion of Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times, it will down to Ray or Langerhans.
Releasing Bradley would require eating the remainder of his contract. He has just under $9.5MM remaining on the deal he signed with the Cubs in January of '09. Bradley has a .209/.298/.351 line in 393 plate appearances for the Mariners since the beginning of the 2010 season.
Trade Candidate: Heath Bell
The Padres' Heath Bell has been one of baseball's best closers over the past two-plus seasons, racking up 89 saves in 2009-10. Though he's undoubtedly benefited from the pitcher-friendly dimensions of his home digs, PETCO Park, Bell's output is no fluke: He's posted closer-worthy peripherals since establishing himself as a big league reliever.
Now in the final year of his contract before free agency, however, Bell, 33, is a trade candidate on a cost-conscious Padres team that may not be able to afford investing too heavily in a closer. As well, the Friars have excellent setup men in Mike Adams, Luke Gregerson and Chad Qualls, any of whom could capably take over closing duties if need be.
Earlier this year, Bell expressed that he'd like to stay in San Diego, and a rumors of an extension were cropping up. Those talks have cooled, however, and thought it's too early to write off any team, the Padres are six games under .500 through their first 34 tilts and struggling considerably on offense. In fact, Tim Sullivan of the San Diego Union-Tribune wrote that the Padres should think about peeling off a reliever – perhaps Bell – now, to beef up their lineup.
Bell, like the Mets' Francisco Rodriguez, could be an intriguing rental for a contending team looking to bolster its bullpen, and unlike K-Rod, Bell's contract doesn't include that tricky games-finished option, meaning an acquiring team could use him at will.
Here's a list of some teams that could be in the running for Bell's services, should he be made available:
- Cardinals. You don't need to follow the @closernews Twitter feed to know that the Redbirds have been unsettled in the ninth inning recently. Bell could be the linch pin to a bullpen that can't seem to produce a clear-cut closer.
- Rangers. Neftali Feliz is a top-flight closer, but his recent stint on the DL exposed Texas' relatively thin relief corps. Bell could be an ideal setup man and spot-closer when the Rangers want to rest the younger pitcher's prized arm.
- Phillies. Brad Lidge, currently on the DL, is on the mend but is injury- and slump-prone, and Jose Contreras is hurt, too. Bell could solidify the Phils' bullpen with Ryan Madson and the emergent Antonio Bastardo. Remember: The Phils are a win-now team in a big market, so they'd probably make a deal like this if they think it'd put them over the top.
- Marlins. The Marlins' early success has surprised some, largely on the strength of a revamped, so-called no-name bullpen – including the likes of Michael Dunn, Ryan Webb and Brian Sanches. Still, closer Leo Nunez has struggled in the past, and Bell would probably become their best reliever.
- Indians. The Tribe are another pleasant surprise getting by with an unheralded bullpen, and Bell could make a formidable late-inning duo with closer Chris Perez.
MLBTR Originals: 5/1/11 – 5/8/11
Among the many topics covered in this week's MLBTR original analysis was, of course, the no-hitters of Francisco Liriano and Justin Verlander. You can find those pieces and other insights from MLBTR's writing staff right here:
- Verlander reflected on his achievement and his career development, as Ben Nicholson-Smith writes.
- With roughly five weeks of the season in the rearview, Mike Axisa looks at the performances of this offseason's free agents: Which ones have earned their keep and which ones haven't, and the best pitchers by ERA+ and best hitters by OPS+.
- Here's the best baseball blogging of the week, as compiled by Mike.
- Royals GM Dayton Moore's offseason is looking pretty good right now, writes Ben.
- In the wake of Liriano's no-no, Howard Megdal writes that if history is any indication, the lefty improved his chances of remaining in Minnesota.
- A look at the financial implications of Eric Hosmer's promotion to the bigs.
- Mark Polishuk examines David Wright as a trade candidate, and Ben does the same with Wilson Betemit.
- Which positions players and which pitchers were the best minor league signings?
- A now famous deal between the Giants and Twins sent Liriano to Minnesota. Ben examines the transactions history of the hurlers who've thrown no-nos since 2005.
- Here's the transcript from this week's MLBTR chat with Tim Dierkes.
- Jered Weaver is off to a ridiculously hot start. Tim examines how much the righty will make next year.
- The red-hot Indians are all the rage. Here's their recent trade history, and here's how they were built.
- Our Contract Issues series continues with the Astros, the Angels, and the Mets.
- This piece, by Ben, will help you keep tabs on those former relievers who have converted to starting.
- Tim looks back at Tim Lincecum's historic arbitration case and wonders what it might mean as the ace is once again eligible for arbitration after the 2011 season.
- The Offseason In Review series is complete.