Odds & Ends: Pena, Mets, Angels, Soriano
The Orioles announced a deal they agreed to a month ago. Cesar Izturis is officially an Oriole again and these are officially the day's links…
- Stop by at 2pm CDT for this week's chat.
- The Red Sox signed Tony Pena Jr. to a minor league deal and invited him to Spring Training, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark (on Twitter). Pena, who spent parts of four seasons as a big league shortstop, spent the 2010 season in the upper minors with the Giants and posted a 4.13 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 76 1/3 innings.
- The Mets deny that they offered Chris Young a contract, according to Dan Martin of the New York Post. ESPN.com's Buster Olney reported last night that the Mets had offered the tall right-hander a deal that's likely worth over $1MM.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports argues that the Angels have "holes to fill and explaining to do" after missing out on Carl Crawford and Adrian Beltre.
- Rafael Soriano told Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes that he has “no preference” between the AL and the NL (link in Spanish). The closer says he isn’t worried even though he’s on the market after most top free agents have signed.
Cubs, Rays Have Discussed Matt Garza
10:53am: Major League sources tell David Kaplan of CSNChicago.com that the teams have discussed Garza, but other names have not been exchanged. Though the Cubs are willing to part with talent for the right-hander, the Rays would have to be overwhelmed to move him, Kaplan reports.
8:32am: The Sun-Times report surprised club officials, according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat (on Twitter). The Rays want a lot for Garza and may be inclined to wait until July. Earlier this morning, ESPN.com's Buster Olney reported that a deal for Garza is not close and is more likely to occur in July than now (Twitter links).
7:41am: The Cubs are close to trading for Rays righty Matt Garza, reports Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. He says the Cubs "appear to have moved past the Rangers" in their efforts to acquire the 27-year-old.
Garza has been a hot topic all winter, with teams like the Nationals and Brewers also inquiring. A deal has seemed unlikely up to this point, with manager Joe Maddon showing amusement with Winter Meetings trade rumors and saying, "Matt Garza will be pitching for us." Executive VP Andrew Friedman indicated later that he's open-minded to any trade that meets the team's objectives, but he values his starting pitching depth highly.
Garza posted a 3.91 ERA, 6.6 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, 1.2 HR/9, and 35.8% groundball rate in 204 2/3 innings this year. He could earn $6MM+ in arbitration for 2011 and is under team control through '13 due to his Super Two status. The Brewers had to give up Brett Lawrie to acquire Shaun Marcum from Toronto; in theory the price for Garza should be higher due to an extra year of control.
With Ryan Dempster, Carlos Zambrano, Tom Gorzelanny, Randy Wells, and Carlos Silva already penciled into the Cubs' rotation, acquiring Garza would give the Cubs flexibility to move a starter unless Gorzelanny or Wells is part of the deal.
Indians Sign Doug Mathis
The Indians announced that they signed right-hander Doug Mathis to a minor league deal and invited him to Spring Training.
The 27-year-old appeared in 13 games for the Rangers last year, but spent more time at Triple-A Oklahoma City. In 89 innings for the RedHawks, Mathis posted a 5.66 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9. Mathis has a 4.84 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in parts of three seasons with the Rangers.
Mathis joins non-roster invitees Justin Germano, Anthony Reyes, Luke Carlin, Paul Phillips, Jack Hannahan, Adam Everett and Travis Buck. As MLBTR's Transaction Tracker shows, rookie GM Chris Antonetti has had a quiet offseason. He has added the players above on minor league deals, signed Austin Kearns and traded for Joe Martinez.
Nationals Rumors: Free Agents, Lee, Pavano
The challenge for the Nationals, writes Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post, is convincing elite players to come to D.C. Zack Greinke, Jorge de la Rosa and Derrek Lee are among the players who declined Mike Rizzo’s overtures this offseason; the GM says luring players to Washington isn’t easy.
"It shows the difficulty of trying to build something," Rizzo said. "The only thing that convinces players to come is winning. It's the chicken and the egg. Which comes first? Do you win and then the players come, or do the players come and then you win?"
The Nationals have agreed to deals with top free agents like Jayson Werth and Adam LaRoche this offseason. But the team faced rejection along he way.
“We liked [Derrek] Lee a lot,” Rizzo said. “I don't know why he went to Baltimore over us."
The Nationals have been linked to Carl Pavano for months, but Rizzo says he hasn’t talked to the right-hander at all. The Nationals last spoke to agent Tom O’Connell at the Winter Meetings, so they don’t appear to be frontrunners. Conflicting reports about the Nationals’ interest in Pavano emerged yesterday.
Tigers Consider Adding Rotation Depth
Detroit GM Dave Dombrowski told Tom Gage of the Detroit News that the Tigers have “talked to some people” and remain open minded about adding a starter to compete for a job at the back of the team’s rotation. Dombrowski told reporters last month that he was “comfortable” with his pitching staff, but open to potential changes or additions.
The Yankees have interest in Jeremy Bonderman, and the Tigers haven’t ruled out a reunion with the 28-year-old. The team is “keeping an open mind about Jeremy," Dombrowski told Gage. The team would not sign Bonderman and another starter, though.
FOX Sports reported in December that the Tigers had considered veteran starters, including Brad Penny. Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello and Phil Coke are pencilled in to the team’s rotation and Armando Galarraga will likely compete with any new additions for the final rotation spot.
Olney On Padres, Young, Manny, Branyan
The Padres like that Brad Hawpe posted a .903 OPS two years ago and is still just 31 years old, writes ESPN.com's Buster Olney. The team's front office is confident in Hawpe's ability to play first, but club execs don't know what they'll get from the longtime Rockie at the plate. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors:
- Olney suggests a player’s inability to play the field seriously compromises his value, since teams would prefer to have roster flexibility. Though Michael Young may become the Rangers’ regular DH, his ability to play all over the infield is a plus that players like Jim Thome and Vladimir Guerrero cannot offer.
- Executives wonder “where the heck [Manny] Ramirez is going to land – if anywhere.” As Olney notes, Ramirez has the potential to become a distraction.
- Russell Branyan can still play first base when healthy, which is why one GM believes he’ll find a job. “He’ll get a shot someplace," the GM said.
Mariners, Brendan Ryan Working To Reach Deal
WEDNESDAY, 8:14am: The Mariners and Ryan are working to reach a two-year deal, according to MLB.com's Greg Johns.
TUESDAY, 6:33pm: Jeff Evans, the team's manager of baseball information, confirms via email that the Mariners have not reached an agreement with Ryan.
5:14pm: The Mariners have signed infielder Brendan Ryan to a two-year contract worth $2.75MM according to Stephen Hawkins of the AP. Ryan was arbitration-eligible for the first time heading into 2011. He'll earn $1MM in 2011 and $1.75MM in 2012.
Ryan, 29 in March, was acquired from the Cardinals last month. He's just a .256/.314/.344 career hitter, but his value lies in his top-of-the-line defense at short. His +18.7 UZR at the position is the best in baseball since the start of the 2009 season, close to four runs better than the runner-up.
AL East Links: Orioles, Hayhurst, Andruw, Crawford
The Orioles agreed to sign Kevin Gregg today, but that's far from the only news to emerge from what's arguably baseball's toughest division. Here's the latest:
- Brian Cashman told MLB.com's Bryan Hoch that he's "monitoring what the necessary requests are, financially or player wise. If some drop, then maybe we'll get a little more serious [about making a move]." Earlier tonight we heard that the Yankees were interested in Jeremy Bonderman.
- The Orioles would still like to add a left-handed reliever, according to MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli (all Twitter links). Will Ohman is an option, but not the leading option or the only one, according to Ghiroli.
- The Orioles would like to add a veteran starter and the feeling in the front office is that a trade is more likely than a free agent signing. Kenshin Kawakami and Joe Blanton come to mind as possible trade targets, but that's just my speculation.
- Dirk Hayhurst will not be back in the Blue Jays organization next year, the pitcher (and best-selling author) announced on his blog.
- The Yankees will consider Andruw Jones, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). He bats right-handed and can play all three outfield positions, so he could provide the Yankees with some pop as a fourth outfielder and spell Curtis Granderson and Brett Gardner.
- Heyman suggests the Yankees will go for a lockdown bullpen with Rafael Soriano and Mariano Rivera if Andy Pettitte retires (Twitter link). Click here for more Yankees rumors.
- Carl Crawford's trainer explained the left fielder's offseason workout program to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.
Padres Looking To Add Catching Depth
The Padres are looking for catching help according to MLB.com's Corey Brock (Twitter links), specifically seeking a backup for Nick Hundley. The team will not hand the newly acquired Rob Johnson the job, according to Brock.
The free agent catching pool is rather light at the moment, especially now that former Padre Josh Bard is returning to the Mariners. This is just speculation on my part, but the Angels could be a potential trade match. They have Mike Napoli, Jeff Mathis, Bobby Wilson (who's out of options), and top prospect Hank Conger (debuted in 2010) on the 40-man roster, and could look to move one in exchange for help elsewhere. The recently designated for assignment Max Ramirez could also be an option. Again, that's just my speculation.
Hundley, 27, hit .249/.308/.418 in what was essentially a platoon with Yorvit Torrealba last summer. He's never played more than 85 games in any of three big league seasons, but he's also never played fewer than 60. It'll be tough for San Diego to replace Torrealba's .271/.343/.378 batting line, but upgrades at second base, shortstop, and in center field will help mitigate the loss.
NL Notes: Pavano, Young, Cubs, Brewers
Some notes from the senior circuit…
- Carl Pavano is still "entertaining interest" from a handful of teams according to MASNSports.com's Ben Goessling. The Nationals remain very much in that mix, and Goessling's source indicates that there is no timetable for Pavano's decision.
- Meanwhile, Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post gets the sense from team officials that the Nats are "lukewarm" on Pavano (Twitter link). He says not to expect a deal until Pavano's asking price comes down.
- ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the Mets' offer to Chris Young "likely includes guaranteed money over $1 million." A team offical said that yesterday's Chris Capuano pickup will not take the team out of the running for other free agent starters.
- The Cubs are not planning to upgrade at second base, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). That makes it unlikely that they'll pursue Michael Young.
- The Brewers have signed right-hander Jesus Sanchez to a minor league deal, reports Baseball America's Matt Eddy (on Twitter). The 23-year-old posted a 2.99 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 129 1/3 Single-A innings for the Phillies last season. They originally acquired him from the Yankees in the Bobby Abreu trade, back when Sanchez was a catcher.
- Eddy tweets that the Brewers also signed outfielder Brandon Jones to a minor league deal. The 27-year-old hit .231/.333/.325 in the minors last year, bouncing from the Braves to the Pirates to the Tigers.