Rays Moving Close To Deal With Luke Scott
12:12pm: It sounds like the Rays are moving close to a deal with Scott, tweets Topkin.
8:50am: Luke Scott is among the players the Rays have talked about, reported Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times yesterday. Scott could be a one-year option for the Rays mainly at designated hitter. Reportedly ten teams aside from the Orioles have shown interest in Scott since he was non-tendered a month ago, but none of them had been revealed until now. Shoulder surgery ended Scott's season in July.
As we mentioned yesterday, Topkin talked to agent Scott Boras, who said Carlos Pena and Johnny Damon remain possible for the Rays.
Orioles Notes: Johnson, Jones, Scott
The Orioles announced a three-year deal with left-hander Wei-Yin Chen today, but that’s far from the only news to trickle out of Baltimore today. Here’s the latest on the club…
- Now that they’ve signed Chen, the Orioles are going forward with Jim Johnson in the bullpen, MLB.com’s Brittany Ghiroli tweets. Johnson, 28, posted a 2.67 ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 in 91 innings of relief for Baltimore in 2011 and there's been talk of moving him to the rotation.
- The Orioles haven’t discussed a possible contract extension with Adam Jones, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. Jones projects to earn $5.8MM or so in 2012 as a second time arbitration eligible player
- GM Dan Duquette has had contact with free agent Luke Scott, Ghiroli tweets. However, no deal appears to be brewing between the Orioles and Scott, who got non-tendered in December.
- Kubatko suggests Chen, Jeremy Guthrie and Tommy Hunter will be in next year's rotation and that hopefuls such as Zach Britton and Brian Matusz will have to earn their rotation spots by pitching well in Spring Training.
Minor Moves: McClung, Bootcheck, Romero
Here's where we'll keep track of today's minor moves…
- The Brewers signed Seth McClung to a minor league deal, MLB.com's Adam McCalvy reports. The 30-year-old right-hander hasn't appeared in the Major Leagues since 2009, but he spent three seasons with the Brewers, posting a 4.32 ERA, 6.9 K/9 and 5.0 BB/9 in 92 appearances from 2007-09. McClung signed a minor league deal with the Rangers last offseason and they released him in July.
- The Tigers announced that they signed right-hander Chris Bootcheck to a minor league deal and invited him to Spring Training. Bootcheck, 33, signed a minor league deal with Tampa Bay last February and they granted him his release in July. He hasn't appeared in the Major Leagues since he suited up for the 2009 Pirates, but he owns a 6.54 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in six MLB seasons.
- The Tigers also signed Niuman Romero to a minor league deal, MLB.com's Jason Beck reports. The 26-year-old has MLB experience with the Indians and Red Sox, but spent the 2011 season playing for four minor league clubs. He posted a .231/.294/.261 line in 273 total plate appearances.
Cardinals Sign Koyie Hill
The Cardinals have signed catcher Koyie Hill to a minor league deal, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets. Turner Gary Sports represents the longtime Cubs backstop.
Hill, 32, figures to compete with Bryan Anderson and Tony Cruz for playing time behind Yadier Molina. He posted a .194/.268/.276 line in 153 plate appearances for the Cubs last year, stopping 24% of stolen base attempts. The eight-year veteran has a career batting line of .211/.275/.298 and has stopped 28% of the stolen base attempts against him.
Brewers, Carlos Gomez Avoid Arbitration
The Brewers avoided arbitration with center fielder Carlos Gomez, agreeing to a one-year deal, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The deal is for $1.9625MM, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. The Boras Corporation represents Gomez, who had a projected salary of $1.8MM, according to MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.
As MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, the Brewers have six remaining arbitration eligible players: Kameron Loe, Shaun Marcum, Nyjer Morgan, Manny Parra, Francisco Rodriguez and Jose Veras.
Gomez is arbitration eligible for the third time. The 26-year-old super two player earned $1.5MM in 2011, when he posted a .225/.276/.403 line with eight homers and 16 stolen bases in 258 plate appearances. Gomez projects to hit free agency after the 2013 season.
Reds Interested In Wood; Cordero May Return
Reds GM Walt Jocketty says he’s hopeful to have resolved things with Francisco Cordero "one way or another" this week and that the free agent closer is up against a "soft deadline," according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer. If Cordero doesn’t re-sign with Cincinnati, the Reds could turn to Kerry Wood, depending on his asking price. The club would probably not sign both Cordero and Wood, according to Jocketty.
The Cubs maintain interest in re-signing Wood, who pitched for $1.5MM last year. They’ve offered the 34-year-old a substantial raise, GM Jed Hoyer said today. Wood posted a 3.35 ERA with 10.1 K/9, 3.7 BB/9 and a 35.8% ground ball rate in 51 innings for the Cubs in 2011 and has also drawn interest from the Phillies.
The Reds have maintained interest in re-signing Cordero throughout the offseason. The 36-year-old posted a 2.45 ERA with 5.4 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 and a 50% ground ball rate in 69 2/3 innings for Cincinnati this past season and has drawn interest from other clubs, including the Angels.
Phillies Release John Bowker
The Phillies released outfielder John Bowker to allow him to pursue an opportunity in Japan, according to a press release. The team's 40-man roster count now stands at 39.
Bowker, 28, was acquired by the Phillies from the Pirates in August. The former third-round pick hit .306/.348/.482 in 451 Triple-A plate appearances last year, his fourth extended stint at the level.
Olney On Free Agents, Yankees, Nationals
The latest from ESPN's Buster Olney…
- Some agents are showing renewed aggression, with spring training five weeks away. One executive Olney spoke to noted, "There are some good value buys out there. If you've got some extra cash, there are some good pitchers left." Among free agent starters, I think Bartolo Colon, Jeff Francis, Jon Garland, Rich Harden, Edwin Jackson, Hiroki Kuroda, Kevin Millwood, Roy Oswalt, Brad Penny, Joel Pineiro, and Joe Saunders will land big league deals, with a few more in the running.
- The Yankees will determine in the next couple weeks whether to expand their budget. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports says they're still talking to Kuroda, Jackson, and Oswalt, but nothing is close.
- The Nationals seek another reliever, and Olney suggests someone in the Todd Coffey mold if not Coffey himself.
Cardinals Shopping For Right-Handed Reliever
The Cardinals are shopping for a right-handed reliever, hears Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Adding a righty reliever would make a Kyle McClellan trade likely, he adds.
The Cardinals' bullpen includes righties Jason Motte, Fernando Salas, Mitchell Boggs, and Lance Lynn, as well as lefties Marc Rzepczynski and J.C. Romero. Our free agent tracker shows that Luis Ayala, Shawn Camp, Todd Coffey, Francisco Cordero, Brad Lidge, Scott Linebrink, Ryan Madson, Chad Qualls, Dan Wheeler, Kerry Wood, and Michael Wuertz are among the unsigned right-handed relievers.
McClellan, 27, posted a 4.19 ERA, 4.8 K/9, 2.7 BB/9, 1.33 HR/9, and 50.6% groundball rate in 141 2/3 innings last year, including 17 starts. Matt Swartz projects a $2.7MM salary through arbitration.
Phillies Talking To Jeremy Accardo
The Phillies are trolling for bullpen depth and talking to reliever Jeremy Accardo about a minor league deal, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Accardo became a free agent in October about being outrighted by the Orioles.
Accardo, 30, posted a 5.73 ERA, 5.5 K/9, 4.3 BB/9, 1.19 HR/9, and 37.4% groundball rate in 37 2/3 innings for the Orioles this year. The Arizona resident was designated for assignment in June and accepted a Triple-A assignment, but was re-added to the 40-man in September.
So far, the Phillies have signed Dave Bush, Scott Elarton, Pat Misch, David Purcey, Brian Sanches, Raul Valdes, Tuffy Gosewisch, Steve Lerud, Kevin Frandsen, Hector Luna, Pete Orr, Lou Montanez, and Scott Podsednik to minor league deals.