Archives for 2011

Yankees Haven’t Made Offer To Hiroki Kuroda

By Mark Polishuk | December 9, 2011 at 9:59am CDT

9:59am: While no offer has been made, the Yankees indeed "like Kuroda very much," according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link).

8:55am: The Yankees haven't made Kuroda an offer, tweets MLB.com's Bryan Hoch.

8:13am: The Yankees have offered Hiroki Kuroda a one-year contract worth approximately $12MM in U.S. dollars, reports Japanese news outlet Sponichi (passed on by Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues). The Yankees were one of several teams known to have an interest in Kuroda and as Axisa points out, the presence of Kuroda's old battery-mate Russell Martin could be a factor that only the Yankees could offer the right-hander.

If signed, Kuroda would join a rotation that features C.C. Sabathia and four relative question marks in Phil Hughes, Ivan Nova, Freddy Garcia and A.J. Burnett. On paper, Kuroda would be the No. 2 starter, though it remains to be seen how the 36-year-old would fare pitching in the AL East as opposed to pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium.

NL East Notes: Marlins, Rollins, Mets, Zimmerman

By Mark Polishuk | December 9, 2011 at 9:30am CDT

Here's the latest from the NL East, including several aftershocks from the Albert Pujols signing…

After missing out on Pujols, it has been speculated that the Marlins could turn their attention to Prince Fielder. FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reported yesterday that Miami wasn't interested, and today adds that the Marlins' club policy against no-trade clauses would probably keep them out of the running for Fielder anyway. The Marlins' insistence on avoiding no-trade clauses was a "big reason they lost" Pujols. (All links are to Rosenthal's Twitter account.)
It seemed as if the Phillies could have been the last suitor left for Jimmy Rollins after the Brewers signed Alex Gonzalez, but with Pujols gone, the Cardinals have money to spend on a Rollins contract, writes Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Gelb's Inquirer colleague Bob Brookover wonders if a Rollins/Cardinals match could be impacted by the fact that Rollins' agent Dan Lozano also represents Pujols.
When asked if he would sign with the Phillies, Omar Vizquel told Manuel Lira of the Venezuelan newspaper Lider en Deportes (passed on by ESPN's Enrique Rojas) that "We're working on it." Vizquel turns 45 in April and would be playing his 24th Major League season in 2012. Vizquel played under Charlie Manuel when Manuel managed the Indians from 2000-02.
David Wright may be the only "untouchable" on the Mets roster, writes Mike Puma of the New York Post. The Mets seem willing to listen to offers on everyone, though young, controllable players such as Ike Davis would naturally require a high price.
What the Mets are paying new bullpen acquistions Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch and Ramon Ramirez isn't out of line with other reliever contracts this winter, notes Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger.
Mark Zuckerman of Nats Insider thinks the Nationals should look at Pujols leaving the Cardinals as incentive to re-sign Ryan Zimmerman to an extension. Zimmerman is under contract in Washington through 2013 and Zuckerman says the club's desire to save money for a Zimmerman extension is a reason the Nats haven't pushed for Fielder this offseason.

Winter Meetings In Review

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 11:59pm CDT

MLBTR's 24-hour coverage of the the Winter Meetings has come to an end, as most team executives, agents, and reporters catch flights out of Dallas. With the week's action winding down, it's time for a recap of the major moves and rumors from the meetings:

The Angels made the biggest news of the week, committing over $330MM to Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson. Pujols signed a ten-year deal, while Wilson inked a five-year pact. So much for the Angels' budgetary limitations. And so much for the club's agreement with LaTroy Hawkins being their major move of the week.
While the Halos dominated headlines today, it was the Marlins who made a splash earlier in the week, signing Jose Reyes to a six-year deal north of $100MM and agreeing to a four-year contract with Mark Buehrle. Hanley Ramirez reportedly isn't thrilled about moving to third base, but the Marlins expect to have him playing alongside Reyes going forward.
Teams that missed out on Wilson and Buehrle got some good news — another top arm became available this week, as Yu Darvish was posted by NPB's Nippon Ham Fighters.
Prince Fielder rumors didn't really heat up this week, with Scott Boras exercising his usual patience, but here's the latest on the biggest bat left on the market.
The Mets gave new meaning to the term "arms race," striking three deals for pitchers in the span of about an hour on Tuesday. Frank Francisco and Jon Rauch join the club as free agents, while Ramon Ramirez arrives along with Andres Torres as part of a trade that sent Angel Pagan to the Giants.
A pair of AL East teams looked to solidy the back of their bullpens, as the Blue Jays acquired Sergio Santos from the White Sox, while the Red Sox unsuccessfully attempted to land Andrew Bailey from the Athletics.
David Ortiz, Francisco Rodriguez, and Kelly Johnson were the only three free agents to accept arbiration offers from their current clubs, so they'll remain with the Red Sox, Brewers, and Blue Jays, respectively.
In addition to re-signing Matt Capps, the Twins also proposed a three-year contract to Michael Cuddyer, and dealt Kevin Slowey to the Rockies.
Huston Street will make the best ballpark move a pitcher could hope for, as he heads from the Rockies to the Padres in a trade.
The Rockies made another deal as the meetings neared an end today, sending Ian Stewart to the Cubs in a four-player swap.
The Dodgers continued to add free agents to the fold, signing Aaron Harang to bolster their rotation and adding Jerry Hairston Jr. on a two-year deal.
Although the Yankees won the rights to negotiate with Japanese infielder Hiroyuki Nakajima, his odds of spending 2012 wearing pinstripes don't look great.
The Pirates may have landed themselves a nice bargain in Erik Bedard, who inked a moderately priced one-year deal.
The Brewers reached an agreement with Alex Gonzalez, which should put them out of the running for Jimmy Rollins. Rollins appears likely to return to the Phillies.
His departure from St. Louis wasn't quite as publicized as that of another longtime Cardinal, but Jeff Luhnow will certainly be missed by the club. The Astros, the Cards' division rivals for one more year, hired Luhnow to be their new general manager.
The Athletics' Gio Gonzalez and Mets' Jonathon Niese drew plenty of interest in Dallas, but neither pitcher was close to being moved by the end of the meetings.
Manny Ramirez has filed for reinstatement, though he'll have to serve a 50-game suspension before he sees big league action.
The Orioles acquired Dana Eveland from the Dodgers.
The Diamondbacks will sign Lyle Overbay.
Octavio Dotel agreed to a one-year deal with the Tigers.
Here are the results of today's Rule 5 draft.
For more in-depth recaps of Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, check out MLBTR's Steve Adams' Day in Review posts.

NL Central Notes: Cardinals, Luhnow, Pirates, Poreda

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 11:53pm CDT

Wrapping up a few NL Central loose ends from the Winter Meetings:

GM John Mozeliak said Thursday that the Cardinals will "redeploy the resources" that had been allotted for Albert Pujols, writes MLB.com's Matthew Leach.
Jon Heyman of the MLB Network tweets that the Cardinals figure to non-tender Ryan Theriot, and names the Mets, Braves, Astros, Reds, Blue Jays, and Royals as teams who may have interest in the infielder.
New Astros GM Jeff Luhnow was introduced today and said he's "very optimistic" about taking the club in the right direction, as MLB.com's Brian McTaggart writes.
The Pirates' deal with Erik Bedard includes $500K in potential innings bonuses, tweets ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick.
In the Triple-A portion of today's Rule 5 draft, the Pirates selected Aaron Poreda, tweets John Manuel of Baseball America. The former first-rounder was part of the trade that sent Jake Peavy from the Padres to the White Sox in 2009.

AL Central Notes: Indians, Rondon, Tigers

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 11:03pm CDT

A few Thursday updates out of the AL Central:

Indians GM Chris Antonetti left the Winter Meetings feeling as if he was just a couple text messages from making a deal, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "It could happen very quickly," said Antonetti. "There are some things we could be relatively close on. As we've said a bunch of times, the timing may change and it will take weeks for it to happen."
Hector Rondon cleared waivers and was outrighted to the Indians' Triple-A affiliate, tweets MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.
The Detroit Free Press tweets that GM Dave Dombrowski said the Tigers didn't make an offer to free agent Kelly Johnson, who ultimately accepted arbitration from the Blue Jays.

Marlins Notes: Fielder, Oviedo, Green, Buehrle

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 10:07pm CDT

The Marlins offered huge deals to Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson, but the pair of free agents opted to sign with the Angels for less money. Will the Marlins turn their attention to the top free agents still available? Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post tweets that he wouldn't be surprised to see the Marlins "at least kick the tires" on Prince Fielder, despite their insistence they don't have interest (Twitter link). Here are the rest of the latest Marlins updates:

Juan Carlos Oviedo, formerly Leo Nunez, was arrested in his native Dominican Republic today, but won't face false identity charges, according to an AP report (via ESPN.com).
The Marlins will sign Nick Green to a minor league deal, tweets Joe Frisaro of MLB.com.
Ozzie Guillen wants White Sox fans to know that he didn't steal Mark Buehrle away from the Sox, as he told ESPN 1000 today (hat tip to ESPN Chicago).

Quick Hits: Wilson, Jays, Rule 5, Pudge, Ekstrom

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 9:18pm CDT

Let's round up a few Winter Meetings leftovers…

C.J. Wilson was a little disappointed the Rangers didn't try to make more of an effort to re-sign him, writes Richard Durrett of ESPN.com. The Yankees also passed on a final opportunity to get involved on Wilson, tweets Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record.
Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com has a rundown of comments made this morning by Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos on Kelly Johnson, Yu Darvish, and potential areas of need.
John Manuel of Baseball America shares some thoughts and quotes relating to this morning's Rule 5 draft.
The Nationals didn't make any major moves at the Winter Meetings, but GM Mike Rizzo says they're still "open for business," as MLB.com's Bill Ladson writes.
Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says the Angels' signing of Albert Pujols is a wake-up call for the Mariners. Several Cardinals players were surprised by Pujols' decision, according to MLB.com's Matthew Leach. For more reactions and fallout on Pujols, click here.
The Rays and Mets could be among the suitors for Ivan Rodriguez, who is working out in Miami, tweets Jon Heyman of MLB Network.
The Rockies are expected to sign Mike Ekstrom to a minor league deal, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
Yahoo's Jeff Passan thinks the Angels and Marlins might regret spending so aggressively this offseason.

Nightengale On Albert Pujols Negotiations

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 8:14pm CDT

Bob Nightengale has a fantastic story up at USA Today that provides a timeline of the negotiations involving Albert Pujols and a handful of clubs at the Winter Meetings. The must-read piece includes word that Pujols' contract could be worth as much as $280MM with incentives. Here are the other highlights:

When Dodgers manager Don Mattingly spoke to Pujols last weekend, he sensed Pujols wasn't entirely happy with the Cardinals: "You could just sense something was wrong. He was getting frustrated by it."
The Marlins were "relentless," increasing their offer to Pujols multiple times until it reached $275MM. They expected to leave Dallas having signed Pujols, but never offered the no-trade clause he wanted.
A mystery team (not the Angels) stepped in on Monday and offered Pujols ten years and $225MM. This mystery club "refuses to be publicly identified," writes Nightengale.
On Tuesday, the Cardinals offered a nine-year, $210MM deal with a tenth-year vesting option. At around this time, the Marlins were eliminated from the mix (whether by Pujols or the team), narrowing the decision to the Cards and the mystery team.
Late Tuesday, Angels GM Jerry Dipoto called agent Dan Lozano to talk Pujols. Early Wednesday morning, the Halos offered a ten-year deal worth about $250MM.
As of Wednesday night, Lozano expected Pujols to mull the decision for a few days, but the slugger called him early this morning to accept the Angels' offer.

Cubs Acquire Ian Stewart In Four-Player Trade

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 7:21pm CDT

The Cubs have acquired Ian Stewart and Casey Weathers from the Rockies in exchange for Tyler Colvin and DJ LeMahieu, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post.

Each team acquires a 26-year-old former first round pick coming off a disappointing season. Stewart, a non-tender candidate, has long been the subject of trade rumors and hit .156/.243/.221 in limited action in 2011. Colvin, who isn't yet arbitration eligible, hit .150/.204/.306 in 222 plate appearances.

LeMahieu, 23, has a career .753 OPS in the minors and saw his first big league action for the Cubs in 2011. He'll compete for time at second and third base, according to Renck (on Twitter). Weathers, 26, was also a first-round pick, but has yet to pitch above Double-A, where he posted a 5.32 ERA in 45 2/3 innings this year. The right-hander has excellent stuff (career 11.3 K/9), but hasn't been able to control it (7.1 BB/9).

Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported yesterday that the two teams were discussing a deal involving Stewart and Colvin.

Dodgers Notes: Television Rights, Harang

By Luke Adams 2 | December 8, 2011 at 7:08pm CDT

A United States Bankruptcy Judge ruled today that the Dodgers will be allowed to sell their television rights along with the team, writes Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. The team's current deal with FOX prevents them from negotiating with another broadcasting outlet before November 30th, 2012. However, owner Frank McCourt argued that an accelerated sale of the TV rights would mean a higher sale price for the franchise and more cost certainty for bidders. Judge Kevin Gross agreed that an accelerated sale would benefit the Dodgers and their creditors, though FOX is expected to appeal the decision.

Here are the rest of this evening's Dodgers notes:

GM Ned Colletti believes the team has improved since season's end, but he isn't done yet, as he tells MLB.com's Ken Gurnick: "There's also more work to do. We're by far a finished product. Take the rest of the winter off? No."
Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times has the salary details of Aaron Harang's backloaded two-year contract. Harang will earn $3MM in 2012 and $7MM for 2013, and has a vesting option for 2014 that depends on innings pitched. The option, which can be bought out for $2MM if it doesn't vest, could pay Harang as much as $8MM in '14.

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