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New York Notes: Mets, Peralta, Hughes, Nathan

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The Mets are currently dealing with sticker shock when looking at free agent demands, tweets Mike Puma of the New York Post. One example, says Puma, is Jhonny Peralta, whom the Mets initially believed they could land on a two-year deal. Peralta, however, is said to be seeking more than $45MM on at least a three-year deal. Here's more out of the Big Apple…

Astros Claim Ryan Jackson, Outright J.D. Martinez

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The Astros announced that they have claimed shortstop Ryan Jackson off aivers from the Cardinals and outrighted outfielder J.D. Martinez to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Jackson, 25, went hitless in seven plate appearances for the Cardinals in 2013 and is just 2-for-24 in his brief big league career to date. However, he's posted a much stronger .275/.343/.371 batting line in 1,013 career plate appearances at Triple-A and is capable of playing second base and third base as well. It's hardly a surprise to see the Astros claim him, as GM Jeff Luhnow likely played an integral role in selecting Jackson in the fifth round of the 2009 draft when he served as the Cardinals' VP of scouting and player development.

The 26-year-old Martinez owns a career .251/.300/.387 slash line with 24 homers in 975 plate appearances. He hit the DL on two separate occasions in 2013 — once for a sprained wrist and once for a sprained knee.

Chris Carpenter Retires

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Chris Carpenter has told the Cardinals that he is officially retiring, general manager John Mozeliak revealed at today's press conference to announce manager Mike Matheny's three-year extension (Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporting on Twitter).

Carpenter attempted a comeback this season but was unable to make it back to a big league mound. The 38-year-old didn't pitch in 2013 and managed just 17 innings in 2012 after a strong 2011 campaign that saw him lead the NL in starts and innings pitched.

Injuries to Carpenter shortened what could have been one of the most impressive careers of a generation, but few were better than Carpenter when he was healthy. From 2004-11, Carpenter posted a 3.06 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 1,331 2/3 innings. He took home the National League Cy Young Award in 2005 and finished in the Top 3 on two other occasions.

Carpenter's career will conclude with a 144-94 record, 3.76 ERA, 33 complete games, 15 shutouts and 1,697 strikeouts in 2,219 1/3 innings between the Blue Jays and Cardinals. Baseball-Reference pegs his career at 35.5 wins above replacement, and Fangraphs likes him for 38.9 WAR. Carpenter earned $98.5MM in his career, according to Baseball-Reference. The Cardinals are said to be discussing a new role in the organization with Carpenter, so St. Louis fans will likely continue to see his name in the news. Best of luck in life after pitching, Chris.

Cardinals Extend Mike Matheny

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The Cardinals have signed manager Mike Matheny to a three-year extension that will run through the 2017 season, the team announced on Twitter.

The past two seasons as the Cardinals' skipper are the only two seasons of managerial experience Matheny has at the big league level, but it's hard to argue with the results. Matheny's Redbirds have turned in a 185-139 record. They reached the National League Championship Series in his first season as manager and made it to Game 6 of the World Series this season, ultimately being defeated by the Red Sox.

Matheny's initial contract ran through the 2013 season and contained a club option for 2014, which the team exercised this past February.

White Sox Claim Jake Elmore

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The White Sox announced that they have claimed utility player Jake Elmore off waivers from the Astros.

Elmore batted .242/.313/.325 in 136 plate appearances for the Astros in 2013. The highly versatile 26-year-old accomplished a rare feat this season by appearing at all nine positions on the diamond. Even more rare is the fact that he both pitched and caught in the same game on Aug. 19.

Indians Designate Cord Phelps For Assignment

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The Indians announced (on Twitter) that they have designated infielder Cord Phelps for assignment. The move frees up enough space for the team to add Jesus Aguilar, Austin Adams, Bryan Price, Eric Gonzalez and Carlos Moncrief to the 40-man roster, thereby protecting each from next month's Rule 5 Draft (Twitter link).

The Indians picked Phelps in the third round out of Stanford back in 2008. He has strong career numbers at the Triple-A level, having slashed .286/.367/.471 in 1,576 plate appearances at the level. Those numbers haven't translated to the Majors, however, where the switch-hitter has managed just a .159/.221/.248 slash line in 123 plate appearances. Phelps, who turns 27 in January, has primarily been a second baseman throughout his career, but he saw some time at first base and in left field this season at Triple-A as well.

Rangers Claim Shawn Tolleson

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The Rangers announced, via press release, that they have claimed right-hander Shawn Tolleson off waivers from the Dodgers.

Tolleson, who turns 26 in January, missed nearly all of the 2013 season after undergoing surgery in late April to repair a herniated disc in his back. The Baylor University product owns a career 1.34 ERA with 13.0 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 127 2/3 minor league innings, though just 15 of those have come at Triple-A. Tolleson pitched 37 2/3 innings for the Dodgers in 2012, posting a 4.30 ERA with 39 strikeouts and 20 walks.

Baseball America's Ben Badler tweets that the Rangers may have gotten a steal by landing Tolleson, praising his high strikeout and ground-ball rates.

Orioles Sign Edgmer Escalona

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The Orioles announced, on Twitter, that they have signed right-hander Edgmer Escalona to a one-year, Major League contract. The 27-year-old is represented by agents Barry Praver and Scott Shapiro.

The 27-year-old Escalona pitched to a 5.67 ERA with 6.7 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 39.9 percent ground-ball rate in 46 innings for the Rockies in 2013. The Venezuelan hurler hasn't had much big league success but has averaged 94.2 mph on his heater over the past two seasons.

It's worth pointing out that Escalona had pitched to a 3.38 ERA with a strong 27-to-7 K/BB ratio through his first 32 innings. On June 9, he allowed three runs in one-third of an inning and hit the disabled list with elbow inflammation. That injury likely contributed to the sky-high 10.93 ERA he posted over his next 14 frames before being designated for assignment.

Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette explained to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com that Escalona has been starting in the Venezuelan Winter League and has added a third pitch — a split-fingered changeup — that scouts have raved about. Kubatko quotes Duquette: "We feel like he's developing pitches that he needs to be successful in the big leagues. He's got a weapon for left-handed hitters now," (Twitter links).

Escalona has a 2.10 ERA with a 25-to-11 K/BB ratio in 34 1/3 innings in Venezuela this winter. He is the second bullpen piece that Duquette has signed to a Major League deal this week, as the team also picked up lefty Kelvin De La Cruz on Monday despite the fact that he has no Major League experience. With the Escalona signing, the O's now have 33 players on their 40-man roster.

Kubatko first reported the agreement (Twitter link) and also was the first to report that Escalona would receive a Major League deal.

Coaching Links: Indians, Phillies

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Here's today's look at the various coaching hirings and vacancies around the Majors…

  • The Indians announced that they have hired Matt Quatraro as their new assistant hitting coach (Twitter link). Quatraro, 40, was an eighth-round pick of the Rays in 1996 and posted a career .286/.343/.416 batting line in eight minor league seasons. He has served as the Rays' minor league hitting coordinator for the past four seasons.
  • It's been 52 days since Rich Dubee informed the Phillies that he would not return as the pitching coach, and Philadelphia's list of replacement candidates includes 12 names at this point, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Among the candidates are Bob McClure, Randy St. Claire and Rafael Chaves.

Giants Nearing Three-Year Deal With Javier Lopez

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12:40pm: Lopez's deal will be worth $13MM over three years, according to Steve Berman, who also reported San Francisco's Tim Hudson signing this week.

WEDNESDAY, 10:42am: Lopez will receive a three-year deal, but the agreement is not yet finalized, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (on Twitter).

TUESDAY, 3:07pm: Giants vice president Bobby Evans tells Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio that the two sides have agreed on base salary and years but are still working out the other elements of the contract. There's nothing in writing yet, according to Evans (Twitter links).

2:33pm: The Giants close on multi-year deal with Lopez, a source tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). 

1:53pm: The Giants are "fully engaged" with Javier Lopez and hope to re-sign him in the near future, general manager Brian Sabean tells Andrew Baggarly of CSN Bay Area (Twitter link).

Lopez, 36, pitched to a 1.83 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 39 1/3 innings in 2013, primarily working as a lefty specialist for the Giants. Lopez was incredibly good in that role, limiting opposing left-handers to a minuscule .156/.208/.222 slash line.

Lopez just wrapped up a two-year, $8.5MM contract with the Giants and is said to be looking for another multiyear deal on the free agent market. The Giants acquired Lopez from the Pirates in exchange for John Bowker and Joe Martinez after the Buccos had signed him to a minor league deal in the 2009-10 offseason. He's spent the past three-and-a-half years with the Giants, earning a pair of World Series rings and posting a 2.26 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 147 1/3 innings of relief.

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