Archives for January 2012

AL West Notes: Fielder, Angels, Darvish, Perez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 3:15pm CDT

The Athletics signed Brian Fuentes to a two-year, $10.5MM contract on this date last year. The veteran left-hander posted a 3.70 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 36.7% ground ball rate in 58 1/3 innings for the A's and is set to earn $5MM this coming season. Here are the latest links from the AL West…

The Rangers want Prince Fielder to go along with Yu Darvish, but are wary of saying so publicly, Bob Nightengale of USA Today writes. Though they don’t want to offer an Albert Pujols-like $240MM deal, they’d like to sign Fielder, the top free agent remaining.
The Angels are likely to add a late-inning reliever before Opening Day, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets. Francisco Cordero and Brad Lidge are among the relievers who have been linked to the Angels this month.
The Mariners, who signed Oliver Perez yesterday, view the lefty as a reliever, Morosi of FOX Sports tweets.
Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times explains that before Darvish turned pro, the Angels were willing to offer a lucrative bonus to lure him to MLB. The Dodgers had been scouting Darvish since he was 15 and Tommy Lasorda was intrigued by the right-hander’s stuff.
The A's are shopping first baseman Brandon Allen, Jerry Crasnick reported this morning.

Rays, Carlos Pena “Deep” In Talks

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 2:20pm CDT

The Rays are "in pretty deep" on Carlos Pena, their first baseman from 2007-10, Yahoo's Tim Brown tweets. The Boras Corporation represents the first baseman, who's one of the top free agents remaining.

Pena, 33, posted a .225/.357/.462 line with 28 home runs in 606 plate appearances for the Cubs in 2011. Just 9.36% of 15,700 people who participated in MLBTR's December poll expected Pena to return to Tampa Bay. He earned $10MM in 2011, when the Rays spent $42MM on their entire Major League payroll.

The Rays, who recently signed Luke Scott, still have an opening at first base. Casey Kotchman played the position in 2011 and would sign elsewhere — possibly in Cleveland — if the Rays complete a deal with Pena. Pena averaged 36 home runs and a .238/.368/.516 line in his four seasons in Tampa Bay.

This post was first published January 20th, 2012.

Blue Jays To Sign Nelson Figueroa

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 1:46pm CDT

The Blue Jays agreed to sign 37-year-old right-hander Nelson Figueroa to a minor league contract, Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes tweets. The ACES client would earn $650K on the big league roster.

Figueroa started the 2011 season in Houston's rotation, but the Astros released him in August after he posted an 8.69 ERA with 5.3 K/9 and 5.0 BB/9 in 29 innings. He spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he posted a 6.05 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 99 2/3 innings. The Pirates picked him up in August, only to grant him free agency after the season. This is clearly a depth move for the Blue Jays.

Beeston Talks Blue Jays, Fielder, Rogers

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 1:32pm CDT

Blue Jays president Paul Beeston joined Jeff Blair on Sportsnet Radio FAN 590 in Toronto and said the Blue Jays can compete with the Yankees, Red Sox and Rays in the American League East in 2012. He acknowledged the frustration that some Blue Jays fans have expressed over the team's modest payroll, but said money won't solve everything. "It's not just a matter of spending, it's a matter of spending it wisely," he explained. Here are some more highlights from Blair's conversation with Beeston:

Beeston said the Blue Jays ask certain questions of themselves before spending big on any free agent. "Is that going to put you over the top? Is that going to give you an opportunity to get to the point where you have that contending team, that competitive team? Does that one piece do it for you?" Darren Oliver's $4.5MM contract represents the Blue Jays' most substantial free agent expenditure to date under GM Alex Anthopoulos.
The Blue Jays might regret it if they sign Prince Fielder to a ten-year deal, Beeston said. "We all love Prince Fielder," he said. "Prince Fielder is a terrific ballplayer and there's no question about that." Despite the praise for the 27-year-old free agent, it definitely doesn't sound as though he'll be signing in Toronto.
Rogers communications, which owns the Blue Jays, has never denied a request to increase payroll or spend on player development, Beeston said.
Beeston said the Blue Jays could have managed fan expectations better this offseason.

Rays Sign Will Rhymes

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 12:41pm CDT

The Rays signed second baseman Will Rhymes, outfielder Jesus Feliciano and right-handed reliever Romulo Sanchez to minor league deals, Matt Eddy of Baseball America tweets. Rhymes, 28, spent parts of the past two seasons with the Tigers, who non-tendered him in December. The team confirmed the moves and reports the signing of right-hander Matt Torra.

Rhymes, who's listed at 5'9" and 155 pounds, owns a .283/.341/.370 line in 312 MLB plate appearances. He was far more impressive at the plate in 2010 than in 2011, when his batting average on balls in play dropped by 50 points.

Feliciano made his MLB debut with the Mets in 2010, soon after his 31st birthday. He posted a .563 OPS in 119 plate appearances and spent the 2011 campaign in the minors. Sanchez, 27, spent last year in Japan and has MLB experience with the Pirates and Yankees.

Minor Moves: Petit, Loux

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 12:13pm CDT

Here's where we'll track the day's minor moves…

The Indians signed infielder Gregorio Petit to a minor league deal, Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus tweets. The 27-year-old appeared in the Majors with the Athletics in 2008-09, but didn't play affiliated baseball last year. He spent the 2010 campaign with the Rangers' top affiliate, where he posted a .658 OPS in 525 plate appearances as the Oklahoma City shortstop.
The Giants announced 25 non-roster invitees, including right-hander Shane Loux. The 32-year-old last appeared in the Majors in 2009 and spent the 2011 season as a starter for the Giants' top affiliate.

Indians Sign Fred Lewis

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 11:13am CDT

The Indians announced that they signed outfielder Fred Lewis to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to MLB Spring Training. The club also confirmed that it has signed Jeremy Accardo to a minor league deal.

Lewis posted a .230/.321/.317 line in 210 plate appearances last year, but he spent time on the disabled list with a strained right oblique muscle. The 31-year-old played both corner outfield positions for the Reds, who signed him for $900K. Lewis elected free agency in the fall after the Reds outrighted him off of their roster. Lewis has a track record of success against right-handed pitching (.780 career OPS), though Cleveland's lineup already features a number of left-handed bats.

Indians To Sign Jeremy Accardo

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 10:14am CDT

The Indians have agreed to sign right-handed reliever Jeremy Accardo to a minor league deal, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick tweets. The Phillies also expressed interest in the Lapa/Leventhal client.

Accardo, who turned 30 last month, posted a 5.73 ERA with 5.5 K/9, 4.3 BB/9 and a 37.4% ground ball rate in 37 2/3 innings for the Orioles in 2011. The seven-year veteran also logged 33 1/3 innings at Triple-A, where he posted a 2.16 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9. Baltimore outrighted Accardo off of the 40-man roster in October and he elected free agency.

Athletics Shopping Brandon Allen

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 9:59am CDT

Faced with an abundance of first base candidates and just one job, the Athletics are shopping first baseman Brandon Allen, tweets ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. The 25-year-old has excelled throughout the minor leagues, but has yet to produce at the plate in three Major League stints with the Diamondbacks and A's.

Allen posted a .200/.277/.377 line with six home runs in 195 MLB plate appearances last year to go along with a .991 OPS in 419 minor league plate appearances. The A's, who obtained Allen for Brad Ziegler last summer, also have Daric Barton, Chris Carter and Kila Ka'aihue in the mix at first base.

If the A's haven't already called the Rays, Indians, Pirates and Brewers about Allen, I doubt they're too far down the list of clubs that GM Billy Beane and assistant GM David Forst will get in touch with. The White Sox selected the left-handed hitter in the fifth round of the 2004 draft and traded him to Arizona for Tony Pena in 2009.

Checking In On The Offseason’s Multiyear Deals

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 19, 2012 at 9:28am CDT

So far this offseason, 33 players have signed multiyear deals. Albert Pujols’ megacontract is worth 100 times as much as Laynce Nix’s relatively modest $2.4MM deal, so not all multiyear deals are created equal. But they demonstrate a willingness on the part of teams to commit long term and, usually, to spend more. Here's a look at which teams have spent most aggressively on multiyear deals for free agents so far this winter (extensions not included).

As MLBTR's Transaction Tracker shows, 19 of the 30 MLB teams have already signed at least one player to a multiyear deal. The Diamondbacks, Dodgers and Marlins lead the way with four apiece and the Phillies have signed three such deals. On the other hand, the Braves, White Sox, Reds, Indians, Astros, Yankees, Padres, Mariners, Rays, Blue Jays and Nationals have yet to sign a free agent to a multiyear deal. However, some of those teams have been linked to Prince Fielder and other free agents, so the offseason totals are by no means final.

Last offseason 22 clubs signed at least one player to a multiyear deal, as our Transaction Tracker shows. Five teams have avoided multiyear free agent deals in both of past two offseasons: the Braves, Indians, Astros, Rays and Blue Jays.

In some cases teams prefer long-term deals. Why lock a superstar player like Jose Reyes up for one-year when you can have him for six? And in some cases players prefer short-term deals. Why sign long-term after a disappointing season when an Adrian Beltre-like 'pillow contract' will allow you to re-establish your value? Generally speaking, however, players prefer multiyear security.

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