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Archives for December 2013

Astros Pushing Hard For Jose Veras

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5:19pm: The Astros have a lot of offers out and are no closer with any one pitcher than another, including Veras, tweets Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle.

3:58pm: The Astros are pushing hard for Jose Veras and could get a deal done today, tweets MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. Veras was candid yesterday in explaining to McTaggart a strong desire to return to Houston, noting that he considers it home after loving his experience there in the first four months of the 2013 season.

Veras posted a 3.02 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 62 2/3 innings between the Astros and Tigers, collecting a career-high 21 saves along the way. The right-hander has also drawn interest from the Rockies this offseason.

AL West Notes: Astros, Morse, Rangers, Cruz

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A look at the AL West..

  • The Mariners' plan for Corey Hart is to see time in the outfield and at DH and he's not necessarily slotted for first base despite his knee troubles, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
  • Astros manager Bo Porter is pushing for Michael Morse in Houston, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.  Morse is said to be willing to do a one-year deal to re-establish his value.
  • Rangers GM Jon Daniels says that he has had a few conversations with Nelson Cruz's agent and will continue to talk with him, tweets Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com.
  • The Angels aren't close to any free agents signings, so if Matt Garza is nearing a deal somewhere, it's not with the Halos, tweets Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register.

Raul Ibanez Could Sign With Angels

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5:15pm: The Angels are talking with Ibanez but there's no deal yet, tweets Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register.  GM Jerry Dipoto has said that the Halos aren't closing in on a deal with anyone.

5:01pm: Raul Ibanez appears headed for a deal with the Angels, according to Jayson Stark of ESPN.com (on Twitter).  It would seem that Ibanez signing with the Halos is a ripple effect of the Corey Hart signing and the Mark Trumbo trade, Stark adds.

Ibanez, 41, has picked up interest from the Yankees, Rockies, Braves, Mariners, and Rangers this offseason.  The Bombers didn't see re-signing the veteran as a top priority, however.  

The veteran slashed .242/.306/.487 in 496 plate appearances for Seattle last season.  Over the course of 18 big league seasons, Ibanez has slashed .276/.338/.471.  Ibanez is represented by ACES, as shown in the MLBTR Agency Database.

Stephen Drew Rumors: Wednesday

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Yesterday it was reported that the Mets aren't likely to go to three years on Stephen Drew and would need him to be a "steal" in order to get more serious in their pursuit. Here's the latest on the Scott Boras client as he faces a limited market…

  • The Red Sox met with Scott Boras today to discuss Drew, tweets Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com.
  • In addressing more than 100 reporters today, Boras said that he's received several multiyear offers for Drew, but some are contingent on those teams completing other moves first (Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald reporting on Twitter).
  • Newsday's David Lennon speculates (on Twitter) that the Mets could be one of those teams, wondering if their preference is to move Ike Davis and possibly Daniel Murphy before acting.
  • Lennon also tweets that Boras said he's spoken with Mets owner Jeff Wilpon.
  • The Red Sox are still talking with Stephen Drew and want to retain him, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (on Twitter).

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Central Notes: Cubs, Hernandez, Tigers, Hart

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The latest out of the AL and NL Central..

  • The Cubs are among the teams with interest in Roberto Hernandez, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
  • Brewers GM Doug Melvin says that he'll look for a true first baseman to replace Corey Hart, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (on Twitter). "I'd like to find a first baseman who can play first. We've had so many guys who haven't played first," said the GM.
  • The Brewers topped out around $8MM for Hart, according to Haudricourt (on Twitter).
  • Cubs president Theo Epstein says the club has offers out to a free agent starter, a free agent offer, and a trade offer for a hitter, tweets Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. Theo added that he has other trade talks taking place as well.
  • Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski says he's never had a conversation with the Dodgers about Matt Kemp, tweets Jason Beck of MLB.com.  
  • Dombrowski also noted that the Tigers haven't ruled out signing Max Scherzer this offseason, tweets John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.
  • After initially being caught off guard by the trade, Adam Eaton says he's confident and ready for a fresh start with the White Sox, writes Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com.

Masahiro Tanaka Is D’Backs Top Priority

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Masahiro Tanaka is the Diamondbacks' No. 1 target, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).  The D'Backs continue to explore trades and free agents as they await the decision on whether Tanaka will be posted.

Arizona has made no secret of their desire to land a frontline starter.  Tanaka, who is widely regarded as the top arm on the open market this winter, would certainly fit the bill.

The MLB and NPB are said to be in agreement on a new posting system and it should be ratified by the MLB Executive Council on Monday.  MLB fully expects the Golden Eagles ace to be posted.

Giants In Talks With Jeff Baker

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The Giants are in negotiations with Jeff Baker, according to Andrew Baggarly of CSN Bay Area (on Twitter). Baggarly tweeted earlier that the Giants have "developed a couple pivot points" to add a left fielder, possibly as soon as today. As Baggarly notes, Baker could form a nice platoon with Gregor Blanco.

Baker had a strong .279/.360/.545 slash line in a small sample size of 175 plate appearances in 2013. The 32-year-old, who also has experience in the outfield, has a career slash line of .267/.321/.440 over parts of nine big league seasons.  The Rangers designated Baker for assignment in October.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Tigers Designate Luis Marte For Assignment

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Within today's announcement that the club has agreed to terms with Rajai Davis on a two-year pact, the Tigers dislcosed that they have designated pitcher Luis Marte for assignment.

Marte, 27, made 17 combined big league relief appearances for the Tigers in 2011 and 2012.  To keep up with all players in DFA limbo, check out MLBTR's DFA Tracker.

Astros Acquire Anthony Bass

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The Astros have acquired Anthony Bass and a player to be named later or cash considerations from the Padres in exchange for a PTBNL or cash, the Padres announced on Twitter. The reasoning behind the PTBNLs on each side seems likely to be related to tomorrow's Rule 5 Draft.

The 26-year-old Bass has a 4.08 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 3.8 BB/9 and a solid 46.9 percent ground-ball rate in 187 1/3 career innings at the Major League level. In 98 innings at the Triple-A level, Bass has a 5.42 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9.

James Loney Rumors: Wednesday

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Attention on the first base market could now shift to James Loney after the Mariners took a pair of options off the board in Logan Morrison and Corey Hart. Yesterday, we heard that the Pirates were checking back in on him, while the Brewers were hesitant to meet his three-year asking price. Here's the latest:

  • The Brewers have "sincere interest" in Loney but don't expect to get anything done before leaving the Winter Meetings, according to McCalvy (on Twitter).

Earlier Reports

  • The Pirates and Brewers are still in on Loney, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com, with the Rays also remaining in the discussion.
  • Indeed, after watching Hart leave for Seattle, the Brewers have turned their attention to Loney, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). The club is probably only interested if the deal stays under three years, tweets Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. 
  • If Milwaukee instead shifts its attention at the trade market, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter), options include Ike Davis, Mitch Moreland, and Justin Smoak. Haudricourt wonders (via Twitter) if the thin market could lead to an increased willingness to pay Loney.
  • Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle tweeted earlier today that while the Astros prefer a stopgap, they haven't ruled out Loney.

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