The Phillies, who have openings at third base and in the outfield, checked in with the recently released Chone Figgins, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. However, the extent of the club's interest is unclear at this time. More from around baseball..
- No less than seven teams have interest in right-hander Mike Pelfrey, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Mets non-tendered Pelfrey last week but they still have interest in re-signing him for less than the $5.875MM he earned last season.
- The Twins don't want to trade Josh Willingham but there are multiple teams interested in the leftfielder, according to Phil Mackey of 1500 ESPN (via Twitter). An AL executive recently told Mackey that the club might not get much more than a No. 4 starter for Willingham, despite his team-friendly contract. Willingham is owed $14MM through 2014.
- Rays GM Andrew Friedman figures to be a popular man during the meetings as he may dangle James Shields or Jeremy Hellickson to acquire offense, Morosi writes.
- The Mariners need to increase their risk tolerance if they hope to take a major step forward at this week's meetings, opines Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. For the M's, that could mean spending a lot more money on payroll or trading away young prospects for proven players.
- One exec tells Morosi (via Twitter) that this year's Rule 5 draft class is one of the best that he has seen. The draft will take place on Thursday.
