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Archives for February 2012

Angels Unlikely To Extend Erick Aybar Before Season

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Angels GM Jerry Dipoto will continue extension talks with the representatives for Erick Aybar but doesn't foresee completing a deal before the start of the season, writes Alden Gonzalez in MLB.com.  Working out an extension at some point is still "very much a possibility" but Dipoto doesn't see it happening before Opening Day.

The shortstop, who avoided arbitration with the Halos by agreeing to a one-year, $5.075MM deal, is set to hit the open market after this season.  The Angels worked out a four-year, $33.5MM deal with Howie Kendrick last month to cover the 28-year-old's final year of arbitration and first three years of free agency.

Red Sox Sign Sean White

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We'll keep track of today's minor moves right here..

  • The Red Sox signed right-hander Sean White to a minor league deal, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America.  White, 30, has 105 career major league games with the Mariners to his credit and has a 4.16 ERA with 4.0 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9.  White spent 2011 with the Rockies' Triple-A affiliate.

Quick Hits: Red Sox, Braves, Astros, Marlins

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Saturday afternoon linkage..

  • Despite speculation to the contrary, the Red Sox's limited spending this offseason isn't connected to the amount of money owner John Henry has spent on his Liverpool soccer club, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald.
  • David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution spoke with several members of the Braves who say that they are glad the club didn't shake things up this winter.  Jair Jurrjens and Martin Prado were at the center of many offseason trade rumors but Frank Wren didn't find suitable deals for either player.
  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow told reporters that he hasn't been instructed to limit or cut payroll, writes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.  The overall goal, he says, is to make the team more competitive over a three-to-five year time frame.
  • Overall, the Marlins don't have a great deal of MLB-ready talent in the minors as their most promising players are at the lower levels of their farm system, tweets Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel.

A.J. Burnett Rumors: Saturday

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The Pirates and Yankees have been discussing an A.J. Burnett trade recently, and yesterday we learned that Pittsburgh is reportedly willing to take on $10MM of the $33MM left on his contract. The Yankees are looking for a 50-50 split, however. Garrett Jones is off the table as well. Here's the latest on the right-hander…

  • According to a source, there's a good chance that a deal sending Burnett to Pittsburgh gets done, tweets Mark Feinsand of of the New York Daily News.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter) that the Pirates are one of four teams in on Burnett, but the Yankees feel the Buccos make the "most sense" as a trade partner. One of those four teams is on Burnett's no-trade list, which reportedly includes ten West Coast clubs. 

Marlins Make Offer To Yoenis Cespedes

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3:00pm: Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald (via Twitter) hears that the Marlins offered Cespedes less than $40MM.

1:54pm: Yoenis Cespedes met with Marlins brass this week and returned to the Domincan Republic with an offer worth roughly $40MM over six years, a source close to the negotiations told Eric Reynoso of Cafe Fuerte.  Cespedes, according to the source, still doesn't have any immediate plans to meet with other teams.

Prior to meeting with Cespedes, Marlins president David Samson hinted that the club would make an offer to the Cuban outfielder.  The interest seems mutual as Cespedes told reporters that he would like to play in Miami.

Also within the piece, Reynoso writes that utility player and fellow Cuban Adonis Garcia became a free agent on Thursday.  Agent Carlos Perez says that he has fielded interest from six teams, though the Marlins are not among them.  The 26-year-old, who has shown the ability to hit for power, spent this winter with the Magellan Navigators of the Venezuelan League.

AL East Links: Wakefield, Varitek, Ross, Orioles

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Pitchers and catchers for the Orioles, Red Sox, Yankees, Rays, and Blue Jays are scheduled to report on February 18th, 19th, 19th, 20th, and 21st, respectively. Here's the latest from the AL East…

  • Both Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek have received interest from other teams, but Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com says (on Twitter) that the two are expected to decided between the Red Sox or retirement. Boston has extended minor league offers to both players.
  • "This offseason was definitely tough," said new Red Sox outfielder Cody Ross to WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. "There were a lot of teams I though would be interested that weren't. There were teams that were interested that I didn't think would be … I knew something was going to happen, and something good was going to come of it, and it did." 
  • MASNSports.com's Roch Kubatko looked at all the turnover on the Orioles' 40-man roster this offseason. He counts 13 new players brought in from outside the organization. Check out our Transaction Tracker for a recap of all of Baltimore's moves under new GM Dan Duquette.

Remaining Unsigned Arbitration-Eligible Players

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Approximately 196 players were eligible for arbitration when the offseason began, but as our Arbitration Tracker shows, just eight remain unsigned as of today. Here's the latest on those players…

Quick Hits: Cespedes, Sanchez, Cabrera

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The Twittersphere is um, atwitter, with Jeremy Lin chatter right now, but you'll have to head over to Hoops Rumors for the latest on the Knicks' sudden superstar. Here are a few baseball-related odds and ends to share as the night winds down …

  • Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen said on ESPN 1000 Radio today that while there's a lot to like about free agent Yoenis Cespedes, the outfielder doesn't come without some concerns. Guillen added that many teams are interested in Cespedes, implying that it's hardly a sure thing that the Cuban defector will sign with Miami.
  • An arbitration expert told Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com that the Marlins "blew it" by allowing Anibal Sanchez to earn a $4.3MM raise through arbitration coming off a season in which he won eight games and posted a 3.67 ERA (Twitter link). Sanchez will earn $8MM in 2012.
  • An arbitration expert also told Heyman that the Indians did well in settling with shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera slightly above the midpoint of their exchanged figures, as the Tribe's original offer was low (via Twitter).

Yankees, Pirates Talking A.J. Burnett Trade

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9:50pm: Talks were ongoing as of Friday evening, according to Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and do not include Garrett Jones. Brink adds that Bucs are more receptive to taking on salary than moving a player or prospect.

4:14pm: The Yankees are telling the Pirates that absorbing $10MM isn't enough, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets.

3:47pm: The Pirates appear to be willing to absorb $10MM in a trade, Heyman tweets. The Yankees have been pushing for an even split and seek an OK prospect in return. Heyman tweets that the chances of a deal remain "decent." The clubs are talking, but aren't close to a deal, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. The Pirates are also looking at other starters.

12:34pm: There seems to be a fair amount of optimism about a deal, Heyman tweets.

10:28am: The Pirates haven't yet offered to pay $10MM of the $33MM remaining on Burnett's contract, Heyman tweets.

7:57am: The Yankees and Pirates continue discussing a possible A.J. Burnett trade, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. The Yankees are willing to pay a substantial portion of the $33MM remaining on the right-hander’s contract through 2013, but the teams are still a few million apart. The Yankees first asked the Pirates to pay well over $11MM, Heyman writes.

The Yankees want to create payroll room for a designated hitter and appear to be leaning toward Raul Ibanez, perhaps because they prefer his ability to play the outfield. Johnny Damon and Eric Chavez also intrigue the Yankees as possible free agent additions, according to Heyman. The Pirates rejected the Yankees’ request for Garrett Jones, Heyman writes.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Burnett’s no-trade list includes all of the teams on the West Coast (Twitter links). Sherman expects the Yankees to trade Burnett before Spring Training and suggests the team is waiting to see if the Pirates or another club offers to absorb more money.

Lucchino On Payroll, Ortiz, Wakefield, Varitek

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Red Sox president and CEO Larry Lucchino appeared on SiriusXM Sports radio today to discuss a handful of topics, including payroll and David Ortiz's impending arbitration hearing. WEEI.com provided a transcript of his quotes, so let's dig in.

  • Not surprisingly, Lucchino scoffed at recent criticism that the Sox have been too frugal this offseason: Now, this year, if you want to talk specifically about 2012, we will have the highest payroll in the history of the Boston Red Sox in 2012. Will we eclipse the luxury tax threshold? To be sure, we will — once again. So I think the talk of us not spending needs to be viewed in the context of real facts and in comparisons to real dollars.
  • There will be no hard feelings against DH David Ortiz regarding his arbitration hearing, Lucchino said, adding that the sides will "move on" after the hearing barring an unforeseen settlement before then. Check out MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker for details on Ortiz's case.
  • Regarding outstanding offers of minor league contracts to Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek: "The decisions are now kind of in their hands as to what they’d like to do in this particular season.”
  • Lucchino has no regrets about signing Carl Crawford to a seven-year, $142MM contract last offseason: "Don’t take a still photograph of year one of a seven-year deal and use it to conclude that the deal has been a success or been a failure."

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