Outfield Trade Notes: Pads, Cubs, Upton, Gattis, Kemp, Trumbo
There is a fairly lengthy list of right-handed hitting outfield bats being discussed in trade scenarios. Here’s the latest on some members of that group:
- The Padres and Cubs are “turning up” their efforts to add a right-handed power bat, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, who notes that Upton is one elite option on the market. At this point, the possible involvement of the Cubs on more prominent outfield targets remains largely an undercurrent, and O’Brien himself cautions not to read between the lines too much on that possibility.
- The Cubs are pursuing a power bat capable of playing in left, tweets Jim Bowden of ESPN.com. Chicago has, of course, been tied to Jonny Gomes, but it is not clear if the club might have its eyes on a larger prize.
- As noted in a separate post, the Orioles have expressed interest in Yoenis Cespedes, though nothing is imminent.
Earlier Updates
- The Braves continue to get hits on both Justin Upton and Evan Gattis, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets. The Giants, Rangers, Royals, and Padres have interest in both players, while the Mariners are only interested in the former.
- The Royals are indeed interested in Upton and Gattis but remain disinterested in parting with Danny Duffy or Yordano Ventura, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star tweets.
- While the Dodgers and Padres are continuing to discuss a Matt Kemp deal, the sides do not have a direct match, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. The clubs are attempting to involve a third team to make a deal, says Rosenthal.
- The Diamondbacks are still fielding calls on Mark Trumbo, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports on Twitter. It remains to be seen, of course, just how interested Arizona is in moving the slugger. Rival executives feel they are receiving mixed signals on that point, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
Pirates Interested In Antonio Bastardo
The market for Phillies reliever Antonio Bastardo is heating up, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (via Twitter). A source tells Salisbury that the Pirates are among the teams pursuing him.
Late last night, CSNNE.com’s Sean McAdam reported that the Red Sox explored a deal with the Phillies that would have swapped Bastardo for prospect Sean Coyle. Bastardo has a 3.36 ERA, 2.61 K/BB rate and an 11.6 K/9 in 216 2/3 IP out of the Philadelphia bullpen over the last four seasons. He’s been almost as equally effective against right-handed batters (holding them to a career .664 OPS) as he has against left-handed batters (career .621 OPS), though control has been an issue, as evidenced by his career 4.3 BB/9.
Starter Rumors: Red Sox Yet To Engage On Hamels, Giants May Be In
With Jon Lester off the market, we should start to see some dominoes fall. Here are the latest pitching rumors from around baseball.
- Talks between the Tigers and Red Sox have yet to gain any traction, tweets Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
- The Red Sox have yet to engage the Phillies on Hamels, Stark reports (Twitter links). It is early, of course, though perhaps it would have been expected that Boston would immediate move to that option. The team is, however, working on several other deals including a previously-rumored swap involving Yoenis Cespedes and Rick Porcello.
Earlier Updates
- After missing on Lester, the Giants have interest in dealing for Hamels, sources tell Jayson Stark of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Earlier rumors that San Francisco is casting a wide net appear to have been well-founded, as the team has been reported to have at least some involvement in a wide variety of possible additions.
- The Twins have interest in Kyle Kendrick and have already had a meeting in San Diego, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets.
- Dillon Gee is the most likely Mets pitcher to go in trade, followed by Jon Niese and Bartolo Colon, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). The Rangers aren’t enamored with the Mets’ pitching but the Royals and Twins have been mentioned as possibilities.
- The Red Sox aren’t currently close on acquiring Cole Hamels from the Phillies, sources tell Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). They could now turn their attention to Diamondbacks pitcher Wade Miley instead and one of five other pitchers that they have their eyes on. James Shields could also be a free agent option for Boston.
- Two unnamed owners traveled to the winter meetings to meet with Max Scherzer‘s agent Scott Boras, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Scherzer’s market should develop after Lester signed for $155MM over six years, but he’s aiming much higher this winter. The losers in the Lester derby – the Giants, Red Sox, and Dodgers – could all be candidates for Scherzer with the Giants being the one team in the group certain to take a serious look.
Stephen Drew Drawing Broad Interest
Though he is coming off of a disappointing season, infielder Stephen Drew is drawing fairly broad-based interest around the game, Jon Heyman of CBSSports reports on Twitter.
Heyman attributes that to the fact that he is not saddled with draft compensation, as he was this time last year. But I would suggest that there is probably a general sense that a bargain could be had for a team that can present Drew with a desirable opportunity.
Among the clubs with some level of interest are the Yankees, Mets, Astros, Athletics, Braves, Padres, Dodgers, Blue Jays, Nationals, and Marlins. That lengthy set of club names probably encapsulates a variety of possible uses for Drew, ranging from a regular job at short to an intended use at another position to a pure utility role.
NL West Rumors: Morse, Rosario, Rockies, Padres
The latest from the NL West..
- The Giants are looking for left field help but they’re not focused on Michael Morse, according to Alex Pavlovic of the Mercury News (via Twitter). SF loved what Morse did for them, but defense is a big concern for the club at the moment. Both the Orioles and Marlins are known to have interest in the 32-year-old (33 by Opening Day).
- A number of teams, mostly AL clubs, have inquired on Wilin Rosario and the Rangers appear to be the frontrunners, writes Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post. Texas has relievers that interest the Rockies, including right-handers Roman Mendez, Jon Edwards, Shawn Tolleson, Phil Kleinand Spencer Patton, as well as lefty Robbie Ross Jr.
- If the Rockies and Angels get serious about a Josh Rutledge deal, Saunders writes that Colorado could target right-handers Vinnie Pestano and Fernando Salas. As of last night, the two teams were only talking and had yet to exchange proposals.
- The Padres are now among the teams that are kicking the tires on Mets pitchers Dillon Gee and/or Jonathon Niese, a source told Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
- The Dodgers were said to be among the finalists for Andrew Miller but it turns out they never even made an offer, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
Mookie Betts Moves To Relativity Sports
Red Sox second baseman/outfielder Mookie Betts has joined Relativity Sports, according to Alex Speier of WEEI (via Twitter). Betts was previously a client of the Wasserman Group.
Betts, 22, won’t be arbitration eligible until after the 2017 season and isn’t slated to hit the open market until the 2020 season concludes. While there was some speculation that Betts could be put on the block this offseason, the Red Sox appear to have zero intention of moving the promising youngster. Just last week, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com wrote that Boston is open to trading any position player, with the exception of Betts and a few others.
To keep up with everyone’s representation, check out MLBTR’s Agency Database. As the database shows, Relativity also represents a number of other notable Red Sox, including David Ortiz, Koji Uehara, Will Middlebrooks, Clay Buchholz, Matt Barnes, and Daniel Nava.
Latest On Sergio Romo
The relief market is in full swing this morning. Sergio Romo is arguably the best bullpen piece left on the market. The 31-year-old righty had a down year last year, but had been lights out for some time before and regained his former dominance over the season’s second half.
Here’s the latest:
- The Dodgers, Yankees, and Red Sox all have interest in Romo, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports on Twitter. All said, it would appear that Romo has quite a wealthy group of suitors, which bodes well for his ability to max out his market.
- Romo is in talks with the incumbent Giants, per Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The Tigers have actually not inquired on Romo, Rosenthal tweets in correction of his prior report. San Francisco is in, though it has other priorities, he adds.
More Reactions To Jon Lester Signing
We already took a look at one round of reactions to Jon Lester‘s deal with the Cubs, but the big lefty’s much-anticipated decision has drawn plenty of thoughts from around the game. Here are some more:
- Cubs manager Joe Maddon found it impossible to hide his excitement for the still-unannounced addition of Lester, as ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark writes. The reason is clear, says Stark: the move steps up the organization’s image and its timetable for competing.
- Don’t expect the Cubs to push for contention next year, cautions Rob Neyer of FOX Sports, who writes that the real target probably still remains 2016 and beyond.
- With the Lester signing, the Cubs are officially ready to try and go to the playoffs, opines Jeff Sullivan of Fangraphs. Sullivan, who feels that the Cubs are a good fit for Lester, looks at how the rest of the offseason might play out now that the left-hander is off the market.
- The Red Sox simply “blew it” with regard to Lester, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney opines in an Insider piece.
- As the Red Sox look to alternatives, Alex Speier of WEEI.com breaks down the top replacement options for Lester.
NL Central Rumors: Pirates, Lynn, Neshek, Reynolds
The Pirates seem willing to spend on relievers, as Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes. “We have typically stayed away from large dollars in the bullpen,” Huntington said. “That said, we are evolving as a organization. We’ve got a little more to spend now. For the right guy, we can go a little bit beyond our comfort zone.” More out of the NL Central..
- There’s mutual interest between the Cardinals and Lance Lynn in discussing an extension this winter, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Yesterday, GM John Mozeliak inferred that he had a chat with someone from Excel Sports Management about Lynn.
- Pat Neshek signed with the Astros earlier today, but he nearly joined the Pirates, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com (via Twitter). The reliever was about to join the Bucs, but Houston upped their offer at the last second. Neshek had eight two-year offers in front of him.
- The Cardinals are not only interested in Rickie Weeks, they’re also looking at another ex-Brewer in Mark Reynolds, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter). Reynolds, 31, hit .196/.287/.394 with 22 homers last season.
- The Cardinals aren’t necessarily looking for a platoon partner to pair with Matt Adams, writes Goold. “I believe we saw Matt Adams put together some fantastic at-bats against lefties in big situations,” manager Mike Matheny said Tuesday. “We can’t get too far away from the fact that this kid is still not really long into his career. Lumping him into this idea that he can’t hit lefthanded pitching isn’t really fair right now.”
East Notes: Yankees: Byrd, Orioles
Now that David Robertson has agreed to terms with the White Sox, the Yankees should forget about traditional closer usage and instead use their best relievers situationally, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post writes. Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances don’t have significant track records as closers, but established free agent closers like Jason Grilli and Sergio Romo aren’t better pitchers than Miller or Betances. So if the Yankees sign someone like Grilli or Romo, they should treat them only as potential options to pitch in save situations, not as closers in the usual sense. Here are more notes from the East divisions.
- Marlon Byrd is a good fit for the Orioles, but the Phillies shouldn’t give him up freely, Corey Seidman of CSNPhilly.com writes. Byrd is a quality hitter on a reasonable and relatively short-term contract, so his age (37) should not be a major detriment. If the Phillies can’t get the right return for Byrd, they shouldn’t trade him, Seidman suggests. The two teams met to discuss Byrd yesterday.
- Orioles manager Buck Showalter marvels at this offseason’s spending by Baltimore’s fellow AL East teams, Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com writes. “They run out of money yet? God bless them, that’s the system. If we were in their shoes, we’d do the same thing,” says Showalter. “We just have to be good at some things that allow us to compete with them.” The Orioles have been relatively quiet this offseason while the Red Sox have spent heavily on Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval, the Blue Jays on Russell Martin, and the Yankees on Andrew Miller.