Quick Hits: Athletics, Cabrera, Jeter, Braves, Janssen
Let's take a look at some links for Monday night..
- Jane Lee of MLB.com writes that Athletics manager Bob Geren believes that his club has improved by leaps and bounds this winter.
- Recent addition Orlando Cabrera might not hold the Indians' starting second-base job for long, writes Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.
- Yankees captain Derek Jeter is not going to be happy about the comments made by Hank Steinbrenner earlier today, writes Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.
- David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution points out that Braves GM Frank Wren is now under contract for the same period as manager Fredi Gonzalez, whom he hired to replace Bobby Cox. Earlier today the two sides agreed to a two-year contract extension.
- There may not be a spot in the Blue Jays' bullpen for pitcher Casey Janssen but the veteran says he's not looking for a way out of Toronto, writes Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com.
- New to San Diego, Jorge Cantu says that he's ready to produce even though he'll be asked to move around the diamond, writes MLB.com's Tom Singer. The Padres offically inked Cantu to a one-year deal worth $850K towards the end of January.
- Speaking of brand new members of the Pads, Kevin Frandsen is delighted to be back in the National League, tweets Dan Hayes of the North County Times.
Astros To Sign Alberto Arias
The Houston Astros have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with right-handed reliever Alberto Arias, tweets Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle. The 27-year-old will earn just under $440K.
The hurler missed the entire 2010 season after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder surgery, but GM Ed Wade and manager Brad Mills intend to give him every opportunity to earn an Opening Day roster spot in the bullpen, writes Stephen Goff of Examiner.com. Making the squad could prove to be more difficult than once thought as Goff writes that Arias told the team that he felt discomfort in his throwing shoulder yesterday.
Arias made 42 appearances for the Astros in 2009, posting an ERA of 3.35 with 7.7 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9.
Steinbrenner On Jeter, Luxury Tax, Burnett, Soriano
It doesn't take much to coax Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner into giving his thoughts on the state of the franchise and baseball as a whole. The outspoken part-owner sounded off on a number of topics to reporters today, writes Bryan Hoch of MLB.com..
- Steinbrenner seems worried about the team's drive to win, saying "I think maybe they celebrated a little bit too much last year," the co-chairman said. "Some of the players are too busy building mansions and other things and not concentrating on winning." Shortstop Derek Jeter built a mansion in Florida during the offseason after negotiating a new three-year, $51MM deal. When asked if the comment was directed at the team captain, Steinbrenner insisted that he wasn't singling anybody out.
- The Yankees' 2010 payments as a result of luxury tax and revenue sharing programs are expected to total about $130 million, Steinbrenner said. He continued to say that the Yankees are allied with other major market teams on the issue and believes that Commissioner Bud Selig wants to "correct it in some way." Hoch noted that in a recent interview on Boston's 98.5 the Sports Hub, the commish said that he is happy with the system as it stands today.
- Steinbrenner says that pitcher A.J. Burnett seems "very hungry" for a bounce-back season. Last year, Burnett turned in a 5.26 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9. The 34-year-old right-hander is set to earn $16.5MM annually through 2013.
- Skipper Joe Girardi, closer Mariano Rivera and several hitters were consulted on the idea of signing Rafael Soriano, Steinbrenner said. Last week, Rivera said that he had not been consulted about the signing but was happy to have the reliever aboard.
White Sox Won’t Be In On Pujols
If Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols hits free agency after the 2011 season, most of the major market teams are expected to jump into the fray for his services. However, White Sox GM Kenny Williams says that his club won't be one of them, writes Chuck Garfien of CSNChicago.com.
“If [Jerry Reinsdorf] gave me $30MM dollars right now, I’m not going to spend it on one guy. Sorry White Sox fans,” the GM said. “But I tell you what, I’m going to take that $30 million and I’m going to distribute it around. My team is going to be better as a whole than it is with one player who might get hurt. Then you’re done. Sorry, that’s just me. And that’s no disrespect to a future Hall of Famer, first ballot, one of the greatest players in history.”
Even though the White Sox currently have a $125MM payroll, Williams says that he and Reinsdorf agree that there should be a salary cap in baseball in order to level out the field. The GM says that a contract that would give one player $30MM per season would be bad for baseball, to the point where he'd be okay with the game being "shut down" in order to correct the issue. After getting all of this off of his chest, Williams immediately tried to downplay his comments:
“Wait a minute, didn’t I say I wanted it quiet, I wanted peace? Let me shut the hell up already. I was hoping no one would ask me that this entire spring training.”
Quick Hits: Pelfrey, Pujols, Livan, Benoit, Astros
The Twins signed Joe Crede two years ago today in the hopes that he could replicate or improve upon the numbers he posted in 2008, when he made the All-Star team. Crede battled injuries and clubbed 15 homers in 90 games for Minnesota that year, but he hasn't played in the majors since. Crede remains a free agent after deciding not to report to Rockies camp. Here are today's links…
- In a piece for ESPN.com, MLBTR's own Howard Megdal points out that Mets starter Mike Pelfrey has been far more consistent than anyone gives him credit for.
- MLBPA leader Michael Weiner said the union would be open to a player owning a share of a team, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). The possibility came up when the Cardinals discussed an extension with Albert Pujols.
- Weiner says he expects to make progress on the upcoming Collective Bargaining Agreement during Spring Training, according to Tim Reynolds of the AP (via the Miami Herald). Baseball's current agreement expires this offseason.
- Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post explains how Livan Hernandez and Nationals GM Mike Rizzo negotiated the right-hander's current contract.
- Tigers reliever Joaquin Benoit told Dick Scanlon of the Detroit Free Press that he signed early because the Tigers made him a strong offer ($16.5MM) and he couldn't justify waiting around. "I didn't want to make a mistake of being too greedy and trying to wait and wait, get myself in a hole and wait to the last minute," Benoit said.
- Astros GM Ed Wade told Stephen Goff of the Houston Astros Examiner that he expects better things from Carlos Lee in 2011 and that last year was an "aberration" for the outfielder.
Red Sox Notes: Lackey, Miller, Bard
Some Red Sox links, as Adrian Gonzalez takes his first swings since undergoing shoulder surgery last fall…
- The Red Sox included a creative clause in Andrew Miller's contract that will discourage rival clubs from claiming the left-hander, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com. If a team claims Miller, who is out of options, when the Red Sox try to send him from the majors to the minors, his 2012 option becomes guaranteed, according to Speier. Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston says the option is worth $3MM, so a team would really have to want Miller to make a claim.
- Miller explained to Speier that he chose a minor league offer from the Red Sox instead of a Major League deal elsewhere because he wants to develop as a pitcher. The left-hander made a similar decision out of high school, when he chose to go to college instead of taking guaranteed money in the form of a signing bonus.
- As Speier explains, Daniel Bard told the Yankees he wouldn't sign for less than $2MM when they drafted him in the 20th round out of high school in 2003. The Bronx Bombers never made Bard an offer and he's now a key member of their biggest rival's 'pen.
- John Lackey told Dennis & Callahan of WEEI that he expects Carl Crawford's transition to the Red Sox to be a little smoother than Gonzalez's, since Crawford is accustomed to playing in the AL East. Lackey, who is hoping for a bounce-back 2011 season, says he was trying to sink the ball too much early on in 2010, his first campaign with the Red Sox.
Braves Extend Frank Wren
The Braves signed GM Frank Wren to a two-year contract extension through 2013, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman (on Twitter). Wren, who took over as GM when John Schuerholz became team president after the 2007 season, led Atlanta to its first playoff berth since 2005 last year.
The Braves, who have graduated Jason Heyward, Tommy Hanson and Jonny Venters to the majors in recent years, still boast one of the game's best farm systems. Baseball America ranked the Braves' system second in baseball and says Atlanta is "developing the industry's hardest-throwing, deepest pool of pitching prospects." Prospects Julio Teheran, Mike Minor, Randall Delgado and Arodys Vizcaino could become impact major leaguers by the time Wren's new extension expires.
Wren's notable Major League acquisitions include Dan Uggla (trade), Kenshin Kawakami (signing), Alex Gonzalez (trade), Takashi Saito (signing), Billy Wagner (signing), Tom Glavine (signing), Garret Anderson (signing), Derek Lowe (signing), Derrek Lee (trade), Adam LaRoche (trade), Javier Vazquez (trade) and Jair Jurrjens (trade), as MLBTR's Transaction Tracker shows.
Make Or Break Year: Edwin Jackson
If Edwin Jackson continues pitching the way he did after being traded last summer, he'll set himself up for tens of millions in free agency. If he pitches the way he did before being dealt from Arizona to Chicago, his free agent stock will tumble and agent Scott Boras will be looking to find Jackson a 'pillow contract.'
Though he threw a no-hitter for the D'Backs last summer, Jackson was mediocre in his brief stint in the desert. The 27-year-old posted a 5.16 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 in 134 1/3 innings in hitter-friendly Chase Field before moving back to the American League, where he thrived under the tutelage of pitching coach Don Cooper.
Jackson dominated 11 starts for the White Sox after the trade, posting a 3.24 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 75 innings. Overall, Jackson posted a 49.4% ground ball rate and maintained an average fastball velocity of 94.4 mph (5th in MLB among qualified pitchers).
Like Jorge de la Rosa, who entered the 2010 season with comparable stats to the ones Jackson has now and a similarly inconsistent track record, Jackson could convince teams he's worthy of a multiyear contract by performing well in 2011, his contract year. De La Rosa, who has also been a member of five MLB organizations, missed time with a finger injury before putting together a strong season last year and he ended up with a $31.5MM contract.
If Jackson pitches reasonably well in 2010, he could ask for a contract like De La Rosa's. Jackson isn't left-handed, but he has more big league experience than De La Rosa despite being two years younger, since he first appeared in the majors as a teenager.
A poor season would limit interest in Jackson. His former teammate, Jeremy Bonderman, can attest to the fact that teams will shy away from starters if they don't have a strong walk year even if they're young and have a history of big league success (Bonderman's medical history is considerably spottier than Jackson's). But a strong season would set Jackson up as one of the top options in what will likely be a weak free agent class.
Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.
MLBTR At FanGraphs: Every Year Is A Contract Year
I'm writing a series of guest posts at FanGraphs, one of the first places baseball fans go for top analysis and stats. Today, I explain that players don't have to be free agents to cash in on big years. In fact, players don't have to be arbitration eligible to turn a standout season into a new deal so, in a way, every year is a contract year.
Arbitration Recap
The arbitration season ended when Hunter Pence beat the Astros at Friday's hearing to give players a 2-1 advantage in the three cases that did go in front of a panel of arbitrators, as MLBTR's Arb Tracker shows
The Angels, who beat Jered Weaver and Scott Boras in arbitration, were the only team to win an arbitration hearing this year. The Pirates and Astros lost to Ross Ohlendorf and Pence, respectively and no other cases went to arbitration hearings. The three total cases matched a record low, as there have never been fewer than three hearings since 1974, when the process began, according to the AP.
The 21 extensions extensions that arbitration eligible players signed this winter helped teams avoid the arbitration process. Though some involved in the process prefer to avoid potentially disruptive hearings, this year's players appear to have enjoyed the process. Pence says his hearing was fascinating and Weaver, who remains open to a multiyear deal, says it was "kind of fun."
Last year, eight hearings took place, as three players (Corey Hart, Jeff Mathis and Cody Ross) won and five others (Ryan Theriot, Wandy Rodriguez, Sean Burnett, Brian Bruney and B.J. Upton) lost.