Angels Rumors: Trout, Weaver, Podsednik
The Angels aren't talking to the Rangers about a deal for Michael Young, but the Halos are busy on other fronts, as Bill Shaikin of the LA Times reports (all links go to Twitter):
- The Angels will start top prospect Mike Trout at Double-A. GM Tony Reagins says it's "unlikely" that Trout makes the majors this year. The 19-year-old hit .341/.428/.490 with 56 stolen bases last year in his first full season as a pro.
- Reagins did not offer to meet Jered Weaver at the midpoint before the sides went to an arbitration hearing yesterday. The Angels' decision paid off when they beat the Scott Boras client and saved themselves over $1.4MM.
- Arbitration hearings can be uncomfortable for teams and players alike, but Reagins points out that some players are still open to extensions after going to arbitration with their clubs. Corey Hart of the Brewers is one player who agreed to an extension soon after going to arbitration (though he won his hearing with Milwaukee).
- The Angels are not in discussions with any free agent leadoff hitters, Reagins said. The Angels were interested in Scott Podsednik earlier in the winter.
AL East Notes: Gonzalez, Red Sox, Liriano
We've already checked out some NL Central rumors. Let's now move from the Central to the East and from the National League to the American League…
- Red Sox GM Theo Epstein told Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe that Adrian Gonzalez has been "on or ahead of schedule the whole winter" while rehabbing his shoulder. The Red Sox feel their new first baseman will be ready for Opening Day.
- Yahoo's Tim Brown evaluates Boston's offseason and says the Red Sox are "talented, deep and expensive" with an offense that should compensate for shortcomings in other areas.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs points out that the Yankees would be the most obvious suitor for Francisco Liriano if the Twins make him available, but suggests the Yankees would likely balk at trading Jesus Montero for the Twins lefty. Minnesota is open to the idea of dealing Liriano.
NL Central Notes: Cardinals, Ohlendorf, Marcum
On this date in 1916, the Cubs purchased future Hall of Famer Three Finger Brown from the Chicago Whales. The right-hander's career was over 12 appearances later, but he retired with a 2.06 ERA (139 ERA+) and 239 wins. Here's the latest on some of the Cubs' division rivals…
- The Phillies have watched former Reds reliever Jon Coutlangus throw recently, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The lefty logged 41 innings for the 2007 Reds and has a 3.94 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 189 2/3 minor league innings.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch points out that few players have put St. Louis on their no-trade lists in recent years.
- Fernando Gonzalez isn't the only Dominican prospect the Cardinals signed. Goold reports that the Cardinals have agreed to sign 17-year-old outfielder Jorge Araujo. Vice president of player procurement Jeff Luhnow says the left-handed hitter is "toolsy."
- Paul Swydan of FanGraphs asks whether Ross Ohlendorf used advanced stats to beat the Pirates in arbitraiton and concludes that it wasn't necessarily to Ohlendorf's advantage to use anything more complicated than ERA, WHIP and K/BB. The right-hander beat the Pirates in arbitration yesterday after winning one game in 2010.
- The incentives in Shaun Marcum's deal were part of the reason the Brewers were able to avoid arbitration with him. MLB.com's Adam McCalvy has the details on Marcum's incentives, which provide the former Blue Jay with a $200K bonus if he reaches the 200-inning plateau.
Angels Beat Jered Weaver In Arbitration
The Angels won their arbitration hearing with Jered Weaver, MLBTR has learned. As our Arb Tracker shows, the Angels offered $7.365MM, while Weaver and agent Scott Boras countered with an $8.8MM submission.
Weaver earned $4.625MM last year and pitched like an ace. He posted a 3.01 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 224 1/3 innings. The 28-year-old fly ball pitcher made the All-Star team and finished sixth in the voting for the AL Cy Young Award.
Ross Ohlendorf won his hearing with the Pirates earlier in the week, so teams and players have each won one of the two hearings to take place so far this offseason. Ten arbitration eligible players remain unsigned for 2011.
Twins Open To Trading Liriano
Twins officials are open to the idea of trading Francisco Liriano, according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Liriano, who avoided arbitration with the Twins on the weekend, is on track to hit free agency after the 2012 season if Minnesota doesn't lock him up long-term.
The Twins don’t plan to sign Liriano to an extension, according to Christensen. Long-term talks “went nowhere” and Liriano hinted at a three-year, $39MM extension when the sides discussed a deal, according to Christensen.
There would be demand for the left-hander if the Twins made him available. Liriano posted a 3.62 ERA with 9.4 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 191 2/3 innings last year. He appears to have recovered completely from Tommy John surgery and makes just $4.3MM in 2011.
Regular MLBTR Features
If you're a regular MLBTR reader, you'll be familiar with our chats, our Week In Review posts and Mike Axisa's Baseball Blogs Weigh In feature. Here's some more detail on when you'll see our weekly features and exactly what to expect from them:
- MLBTR Chats – Come by every Wednesday at 2pm CDT to chat about the latest trades, signings and rumblings around the major leagues.
- Baseball Blogs Weigh In – Every Friday morning, Mike Axisa directs you to some of the best writing on baseball blogs around the web. Whether it's opinion, stats or something else entirely, you can connect to the best of the blogosphere once a week on MLBTR. If you want to send Mike a post of yours, reach him at: mike@riveraveblues.com.
- Week In Review – It's amazing how much happens in seven days. Every Sunday night, we summarize the week's biggest stories in our Week In Review posts.
- MLBTR Originals – We gather all our original analysis and reporting in one place every Sunday night.
Quick Hits: Marcum, Blanco, Peavy, Pujols
Links for Wednesday night..
- Brewers negotiator Teddy Werner told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter) that the ability for Shaun Marcum to exceed the $4MM arb midpoint via incentives was key to making the deal happen.
- Royals outfielder Gregor Blanco is out of options and on the bubble, writes Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.
- The Mets could learn a lot from the Rangers, who also experienced financial trouble recently, writes Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal.
- Jake Peavy is eager to fulfill the expecations that the White Sox had for him when they traded for him in 2009, writes Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.
- Agent Adam Karon has been promoted to partner and general counsel at Sosnick-Cobbe Sports, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Karon represents Jonathan Singleton, Brent Morel, Jesse Biddle, Sean Coyle, Chris Heisey, and others.
- Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com (via Twitter) points out that the Cardinals have an exclusive negotiating window with Albert Pujols from the end of the team's season to five days after the World Series.
- The Cards should give Pujols the dollars he's looking for but only across seven years, says Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter).
- The White Sox are amongst the teams that did well this offseason, writes Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer.
- Reliever Duaner Sanchez worked out for several clubs in Arizona today, though the Red Sox were not among them, tweets Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe. The veteran right-hander last pitched in the majors in 2009 when he made 12 appearances for the Padres.
Brewers, Marcum Avoid Arbitration
The Brewers and pitcher Shaun Marcum have agreed to a deal, avoiding arbitration in advance of their Thursday hearing, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The deal is for one-year and will pay the right-hander $3.95MM, according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.
With Marcum seeking $5MM and the club offering $3MM, the base figure falls just short of the midpoint. However, the deal will include performance bonuses that can push the deal beyond $4MM, according to McCalvy.
Last season, Marcum turned in a 3.64 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 31 starts for the Blue Jays. The 29-year-old is represented by Turner/Gary.
According to MLBTR's Arb Tracker, the Brewers are left with just one unsettled arbitration case: second baseman Rickie Weeks. Weeks wants $7.2MM for 2011 while the Brewers are offering $4.85MM. The two sides are scheduled to go to arbitration next Thursday but the club is said to be optimistic about reaching a deal beforehand.
Yankees Void Deal With Vizcaino
The Yankees have voided their contract with reliever Luis Vizcaino, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The right-hander tore his Achilles tendon late in the Winter Ball season and is not likely to pitch this season.
Vizcaino, 36, signed a minor league deal with the Yanks in December that would have paid him $750K for making the big league roster. The Yanks saw the veteran as a candidate to work his way to the majors in '11 after he impressed in the Dominican Winter League, throwing consistently in the mid-90s. Vizcaino's winter performance was crucial as he missed all of 2010 and most of 2009 with arm trouble.
For his career, Vizcaino has a 4.33 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9.
Brewers Notes: Marcum, Cabrera, Betancourt
This winter the Brewers have been working to sign Rickie Weeks to a multiyear extension. There hasn't been much news on that front in the last week, but here are some other noteworthy developments out of Milwaukee..
- The Brewers and pitcher Shaun Marcum remain deadlocked as they are less than 24 hours away from a scheduled arbitration meeting, writes MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. As seen on MLBTR's Arb Tracker, Marcum is seeking $5MM while the Brewers have offered $3MM. Brewers senior director of business operations Teddy Werner remains hopeful that the two sides can work out a deal, citing previous cases that the club has settled in the eleventh hour. As McCalvy pointed out on Sunday, Francisco Liriano's arb case could impact Marcum's as both pitchers submitted figures of $5MM. Liriano wound up settling with the Twins for $4.3MM.
- The club has not inquired about free agent shortstop Orlando Cabrera, GM Doug Melvin told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter). Some have speculated, including SI's Jon Heyman, that Milwaukee was a possible landing spot for the veteran. This likely means that the club will take care of the shortstop position internally, turning the keys over to Yuniesky Betancourt.