By Zachary Links | at
The Giants have claimed pitcher Hunter Strickland off waivers from the Pirates, according to Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter). Pittsburgh designated the right-hander for assignment last week.
Strickland, 24, posted a 4.46 ERA in 42 1/3 innings at the Double-A level last season, while also compiling a 2.98 ERA in 45 1/3 innings at High-A. He has yet to advance above the Double-A level, however.
By Tim Dierkes | at
With 259K Twitter followers, MLB Trade Rumors ranks fourth on Sports Business Daily's MLB rankings, behind ESPN's Buster Olney, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, and Peter Gammons of MLB Network. Andrew Westney conducted an interesting roundtable on the topic of Twitter with Olney, Rosenthal and the also well-followed Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. In the discussion, Rosenthal blames/credits MLBTR for his joining Twitter, and I do recall urging him to give in to the inevitable so that we wouldn't have to keep refreshing his blog. On to today's links:
By Tim Dierkes | at
Back in November, I wondered if Alexei Ramirez's four-year, $32.5MM deal could be a point of reference for the Nationals and shortstop Ian Desmond in contract extension negotiations. Like Desmond now, Ramirez had three years of Major League service when he signed. Ramirez had better career offensive numbers at that time, though he never reached the 25 home run level Desmond did in 2012.
Desmond, however, has "something of a template" in Elvis Andrus' eight-year, $120MM contract with the Rangers, writes Amanda Comak of the Washington Times. One major difference is that Andrus' contract covers only free agent years, while Desmond will be arbitration eligible for 2014 and '15. Plus, Desmond only has one really good season under his belt, while Andrus has been consistently valuable for four seasons. Desmond does not match Andrus' defensive reputation, though he clearly has more pop. If Desmond does wait until after the season, he'll have four years of service time, and hopefully more of a track record of being an elite shortstop. At that point, I think Alex Gordon's four-year, $37.5MM contract (plus a $12.5MM player option) would be a floor, even though we're straying away from infielder comps. As far as Desmond getting into the $100MM range, I can't picture it unless he posts an MVP-type season.
Desmond didn't have much to say on the topic, explaining to Comak, "I'm trying to do everything I can to win a World Series. Talking about that, or revisiting that, isn't really going to help. We'll see where it goes." GM Mike Rizzo said, "We don’t discuss negotiations with players and that type of thing. But we feel Ian is one of our leaders. He’s one of the guys that is our core players and he’s a guy we’d like to be with the Nationals for a long time."
By Tim Dierkes | at
11:33am: Boras told ESPN's T.J. Quinn, "I haven't spoken to Robinson, and I hope to." Quinn's sources say Cano is still under contract with Boras. And I can confirm that at this moment, the MLBPA still has Cano's agent as Boras. It could just be a matter of paperwork, however, since Cano and his new agent have already released statements.
9:27am: Robinson Cano has fired agent Scott Boras, reports ESPN's Buster Olney. Olney says the Yankees' second baseman "has quietly been meeting with other agents in recent weeks to discuss a possible switch, and now he has changed representation." Cano hired CAA as his new agency, tweets Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Cano is the top free agent of the 2013-14 offseason, with a potential $200MM contract in his sights, so it's a big blow for Boras and huge addition to a CAA roster that includes Ryan Braun, Buster Posey, Adam Jones, Ryan Zimmerman, Roy Halladay, Matt Cain, Jake Peavy, Andre Ethier, Matt Garza, Corey Hart, and Ryan Howard, among many others.
Cano hired Boras in February 2011, three years after previous agent Bobby Barad negotiated a team-friendly contract that included a pair of club options. Last month, Yankees GM Brian Cashman told reporters the team had made a "significant offer," with free agency looming after the season. It stands to reason that the Yankees' chances of extending the player before free agency have increased. Cano's marketing will be handled by Jay-Z's company Roc Nation, notes Feinsand, and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says this affiliation is part of the reason the player chose CAA. Olney further explains, "Jay-Z is starting a sports rep agency, attached to CAA, and Cano will be its first client." CAA agent Brodie Van Wagenen will handle baseball stuff, tweets Andy McCullough of the Newark Star-Ledger. For more on Jay-Z's Roc Nation Sports venture, including news that Jay-Z (real name Shawn Carter) himself is planning to become a certified agent, check out this article from ESPN's Darren Rovell.
"Because of my love of sports, it was a natural progression to form a company where we can help top athletes in various sports the same way we have been helping artists in the music industry for years," Jay-Z told Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal.
Usually, the Boras Corporation adds a few of the top free agents before free agency hits. The agency does still have big names for next offseason in Jacoby Ellsbury and Shin-Soo Choo.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Rapper and entrepreneur Jay-Z is "planning to become a certified agent, first in baseball and eventually in basketball and football," reports Darren Rovell of ESPN. Jay-Z's entertainment company Roc Nation has formed a partnership with CAA Sports to create Roc Nation Sports. The group's first client is Robinson Cano, the top free agent of the 2013-14 offseason and a former client of the Boras Corporation.
Just to be clear, though, CAA's Brodie Van Wagenen will handle Cano's baseball contract negotiations. Rovell further explains, "the initial launch is with CAA, but Roc Nation Sports will be its own company."
To become certified by the MLBPA, a prospective agent must "be designated by a Major League Player as his representative, or by a certified agent as a recruiter or service provider, read, understand and agree to all MLBPA Regulations Governing Player Agents, and submit a completed application for certification along with a non-refundable $500 application fee."
By Tim Dierkes | at
Seven years, $180MM! The largest contract ever signed by a pitcher! I'm no accountant, but I was slightly annoyed to read the common descriptions of Justin Verlander's new deal with the Tigers. Shouldn't we just be looking at the new, guaranteed money he received, when determining the contract's value? In what's becoming a common trend, the remaining two years and $40MM from Verlander's old contract were tacked onto the front of his new deal. I understand why it's done — the $180MM total allowed his agency to claim the largest contract ever signed by a pitcher, topping a $175MM Felix Hernandez deal that involved the same accounting trick.
So to counter that, I've tallied up the ten biggest contracts for starting pitchers, involving only new money and years:
Using my method, there was only one other pitcher to receive $100MM+ in new money, and it's the first: Kevin Brown in December of '98. Who's next in the $100MM club? Clayton Kershaw comes to mind, especially since he'll only be 27 in the first year of his next contract. Two strong years plus the open market would give Kershaw that elusive, true $200MM in new money, but the Dodgers probably won't let him get to free agency. Is there a $100MM pitcher in the upcoming offseason? Josh Johnson has a shot, with a Cy Young-caliber year. After 2014, aside from Kershaw, the Tigers' Max Scherzer is a candidate.
The average annual value pitcher contract rankings differ greatly from the total value ones:
Clemens topped $22MM in '06 on his first pro-rated deal, and Tim Lincecum and Roy Halladay also have $20MM+ AAVs.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Shaun Marcum’s one-year, $4MM deal with the Mets this past offseason was negotiated by his agents at Turner-Gary Sports, Inc. Marcum spoke with B.J. Rains for MLBTR about his agents Rex Gary and Jimmy Turner.
When did you first come in contact with Rex Gary and Jimmy Turner?
It would have been Spring Training 2004. At the time they had Ryan Howard as a client and I knew Ryan from college so he introduced us and within a few days, Rex and Jim Turner were representing me and we’ve been together ever since. Looking back on it too, they didn’t have my cell phone number in college and they called my parents' house and my parents never told me leading up to the draft so I never knew. When I got drafted I went with the one person I knew, the one person that called me, because he was the only agent to contact me before the draft and I needed somebody to represent me and then after my first short season that’s when I met Rex and Jim and my parents then told me that they did call the house, but I didn’t give my cell phone number out so when I met them that’s when I made the switch and I’ve been with them ever since.”
What made them the right fit for you?
Tony LaCava with the Blue Jays was one of the guys that looked at me and drafted me back in 2003 and Tony had known Rex for a while and mentioned my name to Rex when I was in the Cape Cod League in 2002 so Rex had seen me then and he knew a little bit about me. I thought that was important because he wasn’t just somebody that was trying to make a quick buck. He knew quite a bit about me and my family and with Jimmy being from Missouri, he knew my college coaches and had a relationship with those guys so it just seemed like a good fit.
Just talking to them, they are very family oriented and they keep in touch and keep in contact with my wife and they’ve seen my kids from birth on and to this day, I feel like they are family. If they were ever in a bind or if I ever needed anything or them, I know either one of us would be there to help each other out.
What makes them good agents?
I know Rex is well respected by the Players Association and well respected throughout the game by a lot of the general managers. And arbitration, obviously it’s a big deal in baseball, and other agencies hire him to do their arbitration cases for them. He’s very respected throughout the game as far as arbitration. Also just his clients and what he can do for them in free agency. He and Jimmy had Joe Carter, Ryne Sandberg who signed a big contract, Brad Lidge, a lot of guys. Just his background and being an attorney and all of that and having that as an agent, he looks at all the details and makes sure everything is correct.
I’ve heard from other agents throughout my career, some random agents wanting to get a hold me and talk to me and I tell them I’m happy where I’m at and I don’t plan on making a change. I appreciate their interest but I’m happy with Jimmy and Rex.
It seems like they have plenty of big-name clients but are still able to give you personal attention?
I think that’s important, coming through the minor leagues and getting to the big leagues, to this day, they don’t forget about me. I still get texts and phone calls after every single start. I get them before starts. They will stay up and watch the games, if we’re on the west coast and they will be on the east coast but they will stay up and watch and I hear from them that night or the next morning. They don’t take anything for granted. They will do whatever they can do to help their clients out and I’m very fortunate enough to have them.
My wife would tell you the same thing, she loves them. She treats them as family. They are somebody that we will always have a relationship with even when I’m done with baseball. They’ve been there through everything with me as far as my baseball career is concerned, Tommy John, arbitration, free agency, my family, the birth of my kids, they’ve been there. They are like family. If you can find agents like I did that are going to be there with you through the ups and downs, good times and bad times, that’s the guy you need to get.
Check out our other interviews in the Why I Chose My Agency series with Mark DeRosa, Ted Lilly, Ryan Ludwick, Cody Ross, Aramis Ramirez, Adam Wainwright, Jeremy Affeldt, David Wright, Jay Bruce, Matt Holliday, Jamey Carroll and Jake Odorizzi.
By charliewilmoth | at
Jose Fernandez of the Marlins, Aaron Hicks of the Twins, and Jackie Bradley, Jr. of the Red Sox are all on their teams' Opening Day rosters, even though that might make them free agents a year earlier, and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports is rooting for all three of them. Rosenthal says he's tired of watching talented players languish in the minors at the start of each season as their teams attempt to delay their service-time clocks. The best players should be on the field, Rosenthal argues. "The game is so flush with cash, teams are awarding hundred-million dollar extensions like Halloween candy," he says. "I’ll grant that certain low-revenue clubs need to watch their money more carefully than others. The rest of ‘em, no way."
By charliewilmoth | at
Orioles executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette is defending his team's quiet offseason, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports. "[W]e're bringing back the core of the group from a year ago and the ball club that we had at the end of the season was a good defensive team," says Duquette. "And we've continued to build our pitching staff and our defense and the core players are young [and] they should continue to improve their offensive capabilities." The Orioles appear likely to take a step back in 2013, but they have an enviable young core that includes infielder Manny Machado, catcher Matt Wieters and outfielder Adam Jones. They could also get pick-me-ups at some point in the season from top pitching prospects Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman. Here are more notes from around the American League.
By Jeff Todd | at
The Dodgers received an epic performance from their young ace today, as Clayton Kershaw hit his first career home run for what turned out to be the game-winning run. Oh, and he also tossed a complete-game, 4-hit, 94-pitch shutout. Will L.A. regret not completing an extension over the spring if the lefty sticks with his stated intention not to negotiate during the season?
MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com
Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information
hide arrows scroll to top
