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Archives for February 2013

Red Sox Links: Aceves, Napoli, De La Rosa

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We learned earlier tonight that the Red Sox are one of several teams interested in recently DFA'ed Mariners first baseman/outfielder Mike Carp. Here's some more on the BoSox…

  • Alex Speier of WEEI.com runs down a list of the team's options with Alfredo Aceves, who recently garnered some negative attention for himself by lobbing pitches to batters in live batting practice rather than actually pitching (ESPNBoston's Joe McDonald has the details). The Red Sox could trade Aceves, waive him, option him to Triple-A, or cut him for a fraction of his salary depending on the date at which they would theoretically release him.
  • When ESPN's Buster Olney asked one GM about Aceves, he responded by asking, "Why haven't they cut him yet?" Other GMs think Aceves has some trade value (Twitter link).
  • The Boston Herald's Scott Lauber interviewed Mike Napoli's agent and friend, Brian Grieper, about the emotional roller coaster that Napoli went through upon learning that he had avascular necrosis (AVN) in both of his hips. Grieper and Napoli were concerned about Napoli's long-term health, first and foremost, writes Lauber. A recent MRI showed Napoli's condition hasn't worsened. He'll have another MRI in three months and will be on medication for the next two years to monitor the condition.
  • Rubby De La Rosa has one of the best arms in the organization, writes Mike Newman of Fangraphs, which makes Boston's offseason acquisitions a bit surprising. The team added Ryan Dempster, Joel Hanrahan and Koji Uehara, which effectively blocks De La Rosa from having a clear path to the Major League roster. De La Rosa was one of the key pieces in last summer's blockbuster with the Dodgers.

Make Or Break Year: Josh Johnson

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Despite ranking third on Tim Dierkes' 2014 Free Agent Power Rankings, Josh Johnson's next big contract is far from a sure thing. Poised to hit free agency for the first time at age 30 next season, the upcoming season will be critical to Johnson as he looks to shed his "injury-prone" label and cash in on a five- or even six-year free agent deal.  JoshJohnson

Johnson pitched a respectable 191 1/3 innings last season — the third time in four seasons in which he's surpassed the 180-inning mark. However, Johnson also has a lengthy injury history, having spent time on the 60-day DL for shoulder issues, elbow problems and recovery from Tommy John surgery. His innings totals from 2007 (15 2/3), 2008 (87 1/3) and 2011 (60 1/3) are likely enough to give teams serious pause should Johnson miss significant time in 2013.

This will also be Johnson's first venture into American League pitching, as he spent his entire career with the Marlins prior to this November's blockbuster with Toronto. Pitching in the hitter-friendly confines of the Rogers Centre in Toronto and against the powerful lineups of the AL East will undoubtedly serve as a challenge for the right-hander.

However, when Johnson is healthy he has the talent to be one of the game's most dominant arms. Over his past four seasons (644 1/3 innings), the 6'7" hurler has a 2.99 ERA, 8.4 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and 47.8 percent ground-ball rate. Another 180-200 inning season in the powerful AL East could position Johnson to eclipse former teammate Anibal Sanchez's five-year, $80MM contract with the Tigers. A recurrence of the injury bug could force Johnson to settle for a short-term deal — perhaps even a one-year pact to demonstrate his health.

Johnson is set to earn $13.75MM this season — the final salary of the four-year, $39MM extension he signed prior to the 2010 season. That's hardly chump change, but this is likely his best shot at a massive free agent contract. If Johnson is injured this season, even a 200-inning effort in 2014 might not be enough to convince a team to guarantee four, five or six years to the power right-hander. Despite being part of a free agent class that could include Adam Wainwright, Roy Halladay and Tim Lincecum, Johnson could parlay a dominant 2013 season into a hefty pay raise, and possibly the biggest free agent contract for a pitcher next winter.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pirates Notes: Walker, Grilli

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Earlier today the Pirates extended manager Clint Hurdle through the 2014 season. Hurdle's contract contains an option for the 2015 season as well. Here's more news on the Buccos for your Monday reading pleasure…

  • Neil Walker could be the next Pirate in line for a contract extension, writes Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Pirates president Frank Coonelly said an extension for Walker was "absolutely" a possibility and called the second baseman part of the team's core going forward.
  • Despite Coonelly's comments, Walker told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that he's not aware of any recent conversations between his agent and the Pirates about a long-term deal (Twitter link). Walker is client of Hendricks Sports, as shown in MLBTR's Agency Database.
  • More from Morosi, who tweets that Jason Grilli's final contract decision came down to the Pirates, Blue Jays and Cubs. All three teams offered similar deals, but Grilli elected to return to Pittsburgh on a two-year, $6.75MM contract.

Mets Will Listen On Turner, Keep Hefner

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7:50pm: Rubin notes (via Twitter) that the Mets may not actively shop Turner, but will listen to offers on him if a roster crunch arises late in the spring. In his revised article, he notes that manager Terry Collins is a big supporter of Turner.

5:32pm: Given the number of minor league deals the Mets have given to players with strong track records this offseason, the team could face a major 40-man roster crunch at the end of Spring Training, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. As such, the team is expected to gauge interest in infielder Justin Turner over the course of Spring Training.

The 28-year-old Turner has appeared in 211 games for the Mets over the past two seasons, hitting .262/.330/.366 with six homers in 672 plate appearances. He's appeared at all four infield positions in his career, though he hasn't graded out well at his primary position, second base, according to UZR/150 (-18.7) or The Fielding Bible (-16 runs).

As MLBTR's Transaction Tracker shows, Mets GM Sandy Alderson has added pitchers Aaron Laffey,Pedro Feliciano, Scott Atchison and LaTroy Hawkins on minor league deals this winter. He's also brought in Marlon Byrd to compete for an outfield spot, among many other minor league signings.

One player who likely won't find himself as a roster casualty is Jeremy Hefner, whom the Mets claimed off waivers from the Pirates last offseason. Rubin reports that the Mets value Hefner too highly to expose him to waivers. The 26-year-old righty made his Major League debut with the Mets last season, starting 13 games (and appearing in 26 overall). In 93 2/3 innings, Hefner posted a 5.09 ERA, 6.0 K/9, 1.7 BB/9 and 43.8 percent ground-ball rate. Advanced metrics such as FIP (3.66) and xFIP (4.21) suggested that Hefner was much better than his ERA indicated, however.

Both Turner and Hefner have one option remaining, so they could open the season at Triple-A. That, however, would not alleviate any 40-man roster issues the Mets could encounter toward the end of Spring Training.

Multiple Teams Interested In Mike Carp

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7:34pm: Brewers general manager Doug Melvin has indeed checked in on Carp, writes MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik told McCalvy that there's a good chance that Carp will be dealt in the next 24-48 hours.

7:19pm: The Twins, Red Sox and Astros are among the teams that are interested in Mike Carp, according Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (on Twitter). MLB.com's Greg Johns also speculates (via Twitter) that the Brewers could be a possible landing spot for Carp given Mat Gamel's season-ending injury and Corey Hart's knee surgery.

Carp, 26, has a career .255/.327/.413 batting line in 608 plate appearances. The lefty swinger was designated for assignment by the Mariners last week in order to clear roster space for the recently signed Joe Saunders. As Cafardo notes, Seattle has until Thursday of this week to make a decision regarding Carp's future.

Any team that acquires the first baseman/outfielder would be locking in four years of team control, as Carp won't be eligible for free agency until the 2016-17 offseason.

Central Notes: Cubs, Brewers, Gamel, Chapman, Reds

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A look at the Central divisions..

  • There are six or seven teams in the eastern or central divisions to which Alfonso Soriano would accept a trade, writes Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com. The long-time Cubs outfielder made it clear last summer that he would not have accepted a potential trade to the Giants. Soriano told reporters that the Cubs know which teams he'd prefer, but stated multiple times that his first priority is to win in Chicago.
  • Brewers manager Ron Roenicke announced today that Mat Gamel, who was sidelined for the final five months of the 2012 season with a torn ACL, will miss all of the 2013 season, writes Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.  The Brewers were already thin at first base thanks to Corey Hart's injury.  They plan to cover with in-house options, but GM Doug Melvin will look for outside options as well.  McCalvy suggests (on Twitter) that they could consider the recently DFA'd Mike Carp and Daric Barton of the A's.
  • Craig Fehrman of Cincinnati Magazine profiled Aroldis Chapman and the journey that brought the left-hander to the Reds.  The piece includes Chapman's daring move to defect from Cuba and the unique events that led him to changing representation while auditioning for teams.
  • The Twins are not among the clubs that have expressed interest in Mark Prior, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (on Twitter).  Prior is working on strengthening his shoulder in an attempt to hook on with a team in spring training.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.

East Notes: Mets, Red Sox, Aceves, Yankees

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In a meeting with his players today, Mets manager Terry Collins told his team that just because they don't have eight players making $20MM doesn't mean that they can't win, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post (on Twitter).  Could the Mets surprise people this year?  We'll have to wait and see.  Here's more out of the AL and NL East..

  • A rival evaluator told Buster Olney of ESPN.com (on Twitter) that if the Red Sox decide to move Alfredo Aceves, he will have some value in the trade market.  Aceves' agent, Tom O'Connell, was in Fort Myers, Florida today and had a chat with GM Ben Cherington, according to Tim Britton of the Providence Journal (Twitter link).  However, it's not clear if the two were talking about Aceves.
  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson has committed to reloading the team's farm system and won't sacrifice the club's future to win the short term, writes Andy McCullough of Baseball America (subscription req'd). 
  • Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano told reporters, including Bryan Hoch of MLB.com (via Twitter), that he's not thinking about his next contract and is only focused on winning another championship.  Last week we heard that Cano and the Bombers aren't making much progress on contract talks.
  • Barring something completely unexpected, Yankees manager Joe Girardi seems like a safe bet to re-sign with the team this winter and lead them for another three years or so, writes Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues.  
  • Pedro Martinez is pitching in to help out the Red Sox in spring training, but he told reporters that he doesn't see himself wanting to be a manager or a pitching coach, tweets Alex Speier of WEEI.com.

Diamondbacks Acquire Tony Campana

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The Cubs announced that they have traded outfielder Tony Campana to the Diamondbacks in exchange for minor league right-handed pitchers Erick Leal and Jesus Castillo.  The Cubs designated Campana for assignment last week to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Scott Hairston.

Campana, 26, finished 2012 with a slash line of .264/.308/.299 in 192 plate appearances.  The speedster also racked up 30 stolen bases last season, good for ninth in the National League.  The Diamondbacks are already more than set in the outfield, so its not clear what kind of role they have in mind for Campana.

Venezuelans Leal and Castillo are both just 17-years-old and spent time with the D'Backs Dominical Summer League affiliate in 2012.  Leal posted a 2.44 ERA with 9.0 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 12 starts and two relief appearances.  Meanwhile, Castillo had a 5.40 ERA with 7.9 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in eight starts and six games out of the bullpen.

Cardinals, Wainwright Still Talking Extension

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While both the Cardinals and Adam Wainwright have advertised a pause in contract talks, the lines of communication are open and conversations continue to occur between both parties, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  The pitcher had said that talks were on hold as recently as last week.

While Albert Pujols' relationship with the Cards front office became strained during the negotiation process, things remain solid between the club and Wainwright.  When asked if Wainwright’s talks had assumed an edge similar to Pujols’ in 2011, one party familiar with the process told Strauss, “Not even close. And I’d bet anything it won’t.”

The supposed break from talks allowed both sides to get out of giving daily progress reports to the press while also allowing the Cardinals to reevaluate their position.  The Cards will either have to raise the average annual value of their offer or give in to Wainwright's request for a longer pact with a lower AAV.  The 31-year-old, who has finished top three Cy Young Award balloting in two of his last three available seasons, is said to be seeking more than five years guaranteed.

Orioles Sign Darren O’Day To Two-Year Extension

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The Orioles and Darren O'Day have agreed to a two-year deal with a club option for a third year.  The Beverly Hills Sports Council client will earn a guaranteed $5.8MM over two years when factoring in the $400K buyout.  The 2015 option will pay $4.25MM, if exercised.

The two-year deal covers O'Day's remaining years of arbitration, putting him in line to test free agency after the 2014 season if his option is not picked up.  O'Day, who had previously earned Super Two status, filed for $3.2MM this winter while the O's offered $1.8MM.  

O'Day, 30, pitched to a 2.28 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in his first year with the Orioles.  Baltimore first acquired the right-hander after the 2011 season on a waiver claim from the Rangers.

With O'Day signed, the Orioles have now taken care of all of their arbitration eligible players.

The agreement was first announced by the Beverly Hills Sports Council.  Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com had the terms of the deal while Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com first announced that a deal was close.

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