Quick Hits: Lambin, White Sox, Yankees, Tanaka
2014/01/quick-hits-lambin-white-sox-yankees-tanaka.htmlHe's a very serious hitter." The Yankees' brass agrees it needs to add talent to its rotation, but still hasn't reached a consensus about Masahiro Tanaka, Dan Martin of the New York Post writes. … The 34-year-old is the oldest active minor leaguer without any Major League experience despite a solid .272/.345/.438 career line in the minor leagues.
Masahiro Tanaka Rumors: Friday
2014/01/masahiro-tanaka-rumors-friday.htmlLet's round up the day's rumblings on Masahiro Tanaka, who will have chosen his new club by this time next week: Both Chicago organizations are real contenders for Tanaka, Dan Martin and Ken Davidoff of the New York Post wrote yesterday. … The Cubs have withheld cash thus far in order to keep a sufficient war chest to make a real run at Tanaka, says Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Morrow, Martin, D’Backs
2014/01/baseball-blogs-weigh-in-4.htmlOutside PItch sizes up the Braves' catchers. … Martin.
MLBTR Originals
2014/01/mlbtr-originals-2-2.htmlA look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR this past week: Tim Dierkes spoke to Orioles Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Dan Duquette and agents Paul Kinzer and Dan Rosquete about the growing trend of signing six-year minor league free agents to Major League deals despite a lack of big league experience.
AL East Notes: Carp, Blue Jays, Yankees, Robertson
2014/01/al-east-notes-carp-blue-jays-yankees.htmlDavid Robertson will be the Yankees' closer in 2014, Steinbrenner told Sherman and Dan Martin of the New York Post… I'd guess that Boston wouldn't do anything with Carp, however, until they get a long look at the injury-plagued Sizemore during Spring Training.
Frank Coonelly On TV Contracts, Pirates’ Offseason
2014/01/frank-coonelly-on-tv-contracts-pirates-offseason.htmlCoonelly cited the Pirates' relatively-unheralded acquisitions of Francisco Liriano and Russell Martin last offseason as evidence that money isn't everything. … Coonelly also said the value of the Pirates' own TV deal with ROOT Sports, which has been reported to be about $18MM per year, has been "grossly understated." Teams will receive "significantly less" than $25-27MM from MLB's national TV contract, at least in 2014, Coonelly says.
Diamondbacks Making One More Run At Free Agents
2014/02/diamondbacks-making-one-more-run-at-free-agents.htmlPresumably, the Diamondbacks are set in terms of starting position players with Miguel Montero at catcher, Paul Goldschmidt at first base, Aaron Hill at second base, Chris Owings or Didi Gregorius at shortstop, Martin Prado at third base and some combination of Mark Trumbo, Gerardo Parra, A.J. … Among the free agents they're interested is right-hander Bronson Arroyo, team president Derrick Hall confirmed to Zach Buchanan of the Arizona Republic.
Diamondbacks Extend Kevin Towers, Kirk Gibson
2014/02/diamondbacks-extend-kevin-towers-kirk-gibson.htmlSome of the more notable deals include his trade of Justin Upton (along with Chris Johnson for Martin Prado, Randall Delgado, Zeke Spruill and Brandon Drury), his trade for Aaron Hill (in exchange for Kelly Johnson) and subsequent extension and his trade for Trevor Cahill and Craig Breslow (in exchange for Jarrod Parker, Ryan Cook and Collin Cowgill). … I hope and believe they’re going to be long-term Diamondback people." Gibson took over as the D-Backs' manager midway through the 2010 season and has posted a 290-279 record since that time.
Braves Interested In Extensions For Simmons, Teheran
2014/02/braves-interested-in-extensions-for-simmons-teheran.htmlThere's a much larger sample of historical context when looking at his case, as starters Martin Perez, Wade Davis, Brett Anderson, James Shields and Cory Luebke have all signed four-year deals in the $12MM range with multiple club options at similar junctures of their careers. … The Braves haven't been known as a team that's big on working out long-term extensions for arbitration eligible and pre-arb players, but that reputation may be changing.
East Notes: Amaro, Teheran, Miller
2014/02/east-notes-amaro-teheran-miller.htmlTeheran also received much more than Martin Perez did in his extension, which he received in November. … While Teheran's deal isn't as surprising as the Freddie Freeman deal was, Cameron argues that it still demonstrates that pre-free-agency extensions are getting more expensive.
Braves Extend Andrelton Simmons
2014/02/braves-extend-andrelton-simmons.htmlPlacing in the same service class as recent extension signees like Julio Teheran, Martin Perez, Jose Altuve, Anthony Rizzo, Paul Goldschmidt and Madison Bumgarner, Simmons' guaranteed money tops them all. … The Braves have agreed to a seven-year extension with shortstop Andrelton Simmons, the club announced today via press release.
Rangers’ Matt Harrison Has Clean MRI
2014/02/rangers-matt-harrison-to-undergo-mri-on-back.htmlYu Darvish, Martin Perez, and Alexi Ogando figure to be good bets to occupy a regular turn, but several players of less-certain capabilities line up behind them. … Though Harrison will not be ready by Opening Day, he is expected to re-start his throwing program in just two days.
Phillies Notes: Wetzler, Starters, Kendrick
2014/02/phillies-notes-wetzler-starters-kendrick.htmlHaving already seen prospect Adam Morgan go under the knife, Philadelphia is now monitoring young pitchers Jonathan Pettibone (who threw a pen session after getting a cortisone shot for a lingering shoulder problem) and Ethan Martin (who took an MRI because he was dealing with pain and working well under peak velocity). … The ultimate lesson of the Phillies-Ben Wetzler affair, writes Baseball America's Aaron Fitt, is that leverage has shifted too far in favor of MLB teams in the amateur draft.
Quick Hits: Pineda, Lester, Rangers, Beede, Burnett
2014/03/quick-hits-pineda-rangers-beede-burnett.htmlDerek Holland is injured, Yu Darvish and Matt Harrison have back issues, Alexi Ogando hasn't proven he's durable, and Martin Perez is only 22. … "I don’t want to go to Triple-A.
Offseason In Review: Arizona Diamondbacks
2014/03/offseason-in-review-arizona-diamondbacks-7.htmlWith Trumbo in left, the team planned to slot Martin Prado at the hot corner; that, in turn, meant that the young third bagger Davidson was blocked at the MLB level. … There were questions, surely, but one would have been hard-pressed to point to a significant area where an addition was truly necessary.
Phillies Notes: Hamels, Defensive Shifts
2014/03/phillies-notes-hamels-defensive-shifts.htmlSeidman notes that Ethan Martin has been shut down with shoulder inflammation, and Jonathan Pettibone is also dealing with shoulder pain. … Cole Hamels' scheduled throwing session was canceled today, as the Phillies' co-ace reported feeling a fatigued arm that wouldn't allow him to go through the throwing motion as he normally would, reports CSNPhilly.com's Jim Hawkins.
Offseason In Review: Pittsburgh Pirates
2014/03/offseason-in-review-pittsburgh-pirates-5.htmlStewart will back up Russell Martin at catcher, with the Pirates likely hoping that 2012-Yankees tandem will put their pitchers in the best possible postion to succeed. … The possibility that Volquez could become another Liriano likely made Volquez more attractive to the Pirates than a more reliable but lower-upside pitcher like Chris Capuano.
NL Notes: Taveras, Stutes, Flores, Cervelli
2014/03/nl-notes-taveras-stutes-flores-cervelli.htmlHe provides a fascinating breakdown of the pitch from the perspective of Pirates players and coaches (including many staff members and catcher Russell Martin). … It all started with a pitching staff that had far and away the highest ground-ball rate (52.5%) in the big leagues.