Remaining Free Agent Starters By Innings Pitched
A glance at MLBTR's Free Agent Tracker confirms the commonly-held belief that there's just not much starting pitching remaining on the free agent market. If we assume that Andy Pettitte is only an option for the Yankees and keep in mind that Jamie Moyer will miss the upcoming season, the list shrinks even more. At this point, only four free agent starters could be considered dependable options for a rotation (2010 innings totals in parentheses):
- Rodrigo Lopez (200)
- Kevin Millwood (190 2/3)
- Dave Bush (174 1/3)
- Jeremy Bonderman (171)
- Freddy Garcia (157)
Only two of those pitchers finished the season with an ERA below 5.00 and Garcia (4.64 ERA) and Bush (4.54 ERA) both posted marks above 4.50. The alternatives to those starters pitched less in 2010 and many of the free agents below dealt with injuries last year:
- Todd Wellemeyer (58 2/3)
- Brian Moehler (56 2/3)
- Doug Davis (38 1/3)
- Justin Duchscherer (28)
- John Maine (39 2/3)
Teams looking to sign free agent starters are probably not impressed with the options remaining. But clubs looking to trade starters could take advantage of the shallow free agent pool and send their arms elsewhere for salary relief and a prospect or two. The Phillies (Joe Blanton) Tigers (Armando Galarraga) and Braves (Kenshin Kawakami) would all deal pitchers for the right return, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see one or two more trades for starters before the season begins.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Votto, Pujols, Jays, Marmol
On this date in 2005, Roger Clemens agreed to a one-year deal worth $18MM with the Astros, making him the then-highest paid pitcher in baseball history. The Rocket filed for $22MM in salary arbitration while Houston countered with just $13.5MM. He was coming off a season in which he posted a 2.98 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 214 1/3 innings and won his seventh career Cy Young Award.
Here is this week's batch of links…
- SF Giants Rumors has a Q&A with Pablo Sandoval, including a short but exclusive video of one of his lifting sessions. You'll notice that Kung Fu Panda had shed quite a few pounds this winter.
- Fishstripes sat down for a chat with Marlins first baseman Gaby Sanchez.
- Yankeeist interviews former Yankee catcher John Ellis.
- Red Reporter wishes the Reds would have locked up Joey Votto for more than three years.
- Harness The Halo believes the Angels can be major players for Albert Pujols next offseason.
- The Tao of Stieb thinks the arbitration filing figures are an indication that the Blue Jays and Jose Bautista are willing to work towards a long-term deal.
- Drunk Jays Fans sifts through some recent Blue Jays related news.
- The Blue Jay Hunter does the Manny Ramirez dance.
- The Nats Blog discusses the topic of trading draft picks.
- Rooftop View wonders if a long-term deal for Carlos Marmol is a good idea.
- We Should Be GMs flashes back to two Phillies extensions signed on this date.
- Royals Review takes a premature look at Kansas City's 2012 roster.
- The Process Report analyzes Kyle Farnsworth's intimidation factor.
- Bless You Boys looks at Phil Coke's changeup and his transition to the rotation.
- Baseball Time in Arlington muses about Michael Young's flexibility.
- The Friarhood wants to see the dimensions of Petco Park changed.
- Camden Crazies posted 2011 projections for Derrek Lee and Matt Wieters (Lee, Wieters).
- Splashing Pumpkins compares two Matts, Cain and Garza (part one, part two).
- Crashburn Alley has a humorous take on Kyle Kendrick's arbitration case.
- Prospect Insider meanders about some Mariners news and notes.
- Baseball Analysts looks back at the Cardinals' offseason.
- More Hardball reviews some questionable offseason roster moves.
- At Home Plate ranks the five best offseason moves.
- Purple Row debuted its newest feature: Rockies Roster.
- Beyond The Box Score ranks reporters by their offseason scoops.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.
Rays Sign Hayhurst, Mayora, Olmedo
The Rays have signed right-hander Dirk Hayhurst and infielders Daniel Mayora and Ray Olmedo, the team announced. The Rays also made their deals with Chris Carter and Jonah Bayliss official.
Hayhurst, 29, posted a 3.75 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 57 2/3 innings for the Blue Jays' Triple-A affiliate in 2009 before missing the '10 campaign to recover from right shoulder surgery. He has big league experience with the Padres and Blue Jays and is the author of the bestselling book The Baseball Gospels.
Mayora, 25, hit .286/.352/.440 for the Rockies' Double-A affiliate last year. He has considerable minor league experience at second and short and has played third as well.
Olmedo has spent parts of five seasons in the majors with the Reds and Blue Jays. The 29-year-old was last spotted in a big league uniform three seasons ago, but he has continued playing at Triple-A since. Last year, Olmedo posted a .284/.330/.387 line for the Brewers' Triple-A affiliate.
Bayliss last pitched in the majors for the 2007 Pirates. The 30-year-old spent last season with the Astros' Triple-A affiliate, where he posted a 3.58 ERA with 8.4 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 65 1/3 innings.
Carter, who arrived in New York in the 2009 Billy Wagner trade, has big league experience in left and right field. The left-handed hitter posted a .263/.317/.389 line in 180 plate appearances last year. The Mets shielded him from southpaws in 2010; all but 7 of his plate appearances came against right-handed pitching.
Mets To Sign Tim Byrdak
The Mets have agreed to sign left-handed reliever Tim Byrdak to a minor league deal, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter). Mike Silva of the New York Baseball Digest first reported the deal.
Byrdak posted a 3.49 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in 38 2/3 innings for the Astros last year before they outrighted him off of their 40-man roster in November. Byrdak has a career ground ball rate of 40.9%, but that figure dropped to 28.6% in 2010, the 37-year-old's ninth big league season.
Earlier this week, Mets manager Terry Collins said he'd like to add another left-handed reliever to complement newcomer Taylor Tankersley.
Orioles Notes: Duchscherer, Vlad, Invitees
As the Orioles' roster rounds into shape heading into Spring Training, Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun has a few items of note …
- The Orioles still have interest in free-agent pitcher Justin Duchscherer, although the O's were not one of the two teams for which the right-hander recently worked out, as reported by Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. Duchscherer will likely hold another open workout for any interested teams to check him out in the next week or so, Zrebiec notes, and he thinks the O's will be there. Duchscherer's son lives in New Jersey, which is relatively close to Baltimore, and the righty is looking to join a team he can start for, which the Orioles can offer.
- The Orioles have not been aggressively pursuing free-agent slugger Vladimir Guerrero, contrary to a report by ESPNDeportes.com earlier on Thursday. If Guerrero's market shrinks enough, the O's may be interested, Zrebiec writes, but otherwise they plan on moving forward with Luke Scott as their designated hitter, and Nolan Reimold and Felix Pie platooning in left field.
- The Orioles have not officially announced their list of non-roster invitees to Spring Training, but Zrebiec reports the following players will be among them: Armando Gabino, Raul Rivero, Josh Rupe, Adam Donachie, Michel Hernandez, Caleb Joseph, Ryan Adams, Brendan Harris and Tyler Henson.
Mets Designate Stoner, Pridie For Assignment
The Mets designated pitcher Tobi Stoner and utility outfielder Jason Pridie for assignment, tweets Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
Stoner and Pridie were 40-man-roster casualties following the Mets' recent signings of Chris Young, Scott Hairston and Willie Harris, writes Rubin. Harris, signed to a minor-league deal, is a stronger candidate than Stoner and Pridie to perhaps claim a roster spot from the out-of-favor Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo.
Stoner appeared in just five games for the Mets over the past two seasons, spending most of his time in the minors. Similarly, Pridie appeared in 11 games for the Twins in 2008-09 and spent all of 2010 in the Mets' farm system.
Royals Designate Hughes For Assignment
The Royals designated left-handed pitcher Dusty Hughes for assignment, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.
The move was made to make space on the 40-man roster for the recently acquired Jeff Francis. In a related transaction, Bruce Chen was officially added to the 40-man roster after his signing in the wake of Gil Meche's retirement, writes Dick Kaegel of MLB.com.
Hughes, 28, appeared in 65 games with the Royals over the past two seasons, 57 of them in 2010 (all in relief). For his career, he has a 6.3 K/9, 4.1 BB/9 and a 4.09 ERA.
Quick Hits: Giambi, Young, Hairston, Wakefield
While a couple more arbitration hearings were averted Thursday, here's a few tidbits of note:
- The Rockies have a uniquely structured minor-league deal with Jason Giambi, blogs Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Giambi will earn a salary of $850,000 this season or a $250,000 buyout if he's cut during Spring Training (which is unlikely, according to Renck). There's also a mutual option for 2012 worth $1MM with a $150,000 buyout. Finally, Giambi can request that he be released on two separate dates (March 31 and June 1) if he's not on the 25-man roster at those times.
- The Mets' incentive-laden, one-year deal with Chris Young is structured such that the right-hander will earn bonuses for a variety of benchmarks, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. On top of his $1.5MM base salary, Young can earn as much as $1,525,000 for starts Nos. 10-31 and $1,875,000 for innings 70-180.
- The Mets' one-year pact with Scott Hairston is a Major League deal, contrary to some earlier reports, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, and is worth $1.1MM in base salary and $400,000 in incentives.
- Tim Wakefield, the Red Sox's 44-year-old knuckleballer, says he hasn't ruled out the possibility of pitching beyond 2011, writes Ian Browne of MLB.com. Wakefield, entering his 16th season with Boston, is in the final year of a two-year deal he signed prior to the 2010 campaign. It's far too soon to guess whether Wakefield would pitch for another team or if one would be interested in him after 2011, but because the knuckleball is relatively easy on the arm, it stands to reason someone might take a flier on him to eat innings in a swing role.
Mariners Sign Jody Gerut, Nate Robertson
The Mariners have signed outfielder Jody Gerut and left-handed pitcher Nate Robertson to minor-league deals and invited them to Spring Training, according to the team's official Twitter feed.
Gerut was a touted prospect coming out of Stanford and has enjoyed intermittent but fleeting periods of success in the Majors, chiefly as a rookie with the Indians in 2003 (.279/.336/.494) and with the Padres in 2008 (.296/.351/.494).
Robertson was a key cog during the Tigers' run to the World Series in 2006 but has not been able to capture that form since then. After spending parts of seven seasons with Detroit, he pitched primarily for the Marlins in 2010 but was released in July and made a two-outing cameo with the Phillies in September. For his career, he has 6.1 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and a 5.01 ERA.
Giants Sign Jeff Suppan
The Giants have finalized a minor-league deal with Jeff Suppan, tweets Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com. Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News, who first reported that the sides were close, adds that the deal would pay Suppan $1MM for making the team and includes a late-March opt-out clause (Twitter links).
The 36-year-old will provide the team with insurance in case Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner or Barry Zito got injured.
Suppan posted a 7.84 ERA in 15 appearances with the Brewers before they released him last year. The right-hander then appeared in 15 games for St. Louis and posted a 3.84 ERA for the Cards. Fielding independent pitching stats suggest Suppan's season ERA (5.06) should have been around 5.00. Overall, he logged 101 1/3 innings and posted 4.5 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and a 40.3% ground ball rate.