Rangers Looking To Add Bats
Now that Marlon Byrd's officially gone, the Rangers are looking for ways to replace his bat, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. GM Jon Daniels says he's looking for an impact hitter.
Cubs Sign Marlon Byrd
The Cubs signed Marlon Byrd to a three-year $15MM deal today. The 32-year-old will play center field and push Kosuke Fukudome to right. Ken Rosenthal tweeted that the Cubs were nearing a deal with Byrd and Carrie Muskat followed up with the contract's length and value before Gordon Wittenmyer reported the specifics: the Cubs will pay Byrd just $3MM in 2010, $5.5MM in 2011 and $6.5MM in 2012.
A number of teams had been connected to Byrd, including the Braves. He had expressed interest in returning to the Rangers, but wanted a multi-year deal. As a Type B free agent, Byrd nets the Rangers a supplementary rounder in next year's draft.
Byrd, 32, hit .283/.329/.479 in 599 plate appearances with the Rangers last year, hitting a career-high 20 homers. He played mostly in center field, where his defense was below average, according to UZR/150. However, the sample size (889 innings) is limited, and UZR did like Byrd's defense in left.
Odds & Ends: Hudson, Wallace, Chapman
A few notes as we head into the final day of 2009….
- ESPN.com's Insider news page passes on some Orlando Hudson-related speculation from Buster Olney on the Mike And Mike In The Morning radio show. Olney "wouldn't be surprised" if the Mariners got into the bidding for the veteran second baseman, adding that Hudson would "be a perfect fit in what they're doing" in Seattle.
- Andrew Stoeten of the Drunk Jays Fans blog runs down some of the highlights of Keith Law's appearance on Toronto's FAN 590 station this afternoon. Law opined on the type of free agents the Blue Jays should sign, said the Jays should focus on scouting and noted that if Brett Wallace wasn't going to be used at third base, "you can probably play him opening day."
- Chad Jennings of the LoHud.com Yankees blog says Aroldis Chapman "might be this winter’s most intriguing available player, period." He brought up Chapman with Yankees senior vice-president of baseball operations Mark Newman, who said the Cuban left-hander would start the year in Single-A or Double-A if he signed with New York. Newman was impressed by Chapman's workout session two weeks ago, but noted that Chapman is "not where (Stephen) Strasburg was."
- Mike Lowell underwent surgery today to repair the injured right thumb that prevented him from being dealt to Texas. Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports that Lowell had a 95-percent tear in his thumb's radial collateral ligament but is expected to be ready for spring training. This latest surgery will almost surely, as Newsday's Ken Davidoff surmised last week, put an end to the Lowell trade rumors unless Lowell proves himself to be healthy in Grapefruit League action.
Cafardo On Red Sox, Hudson, Garland
In his latest column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe speculates about where "old hands" such as Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, and John Smoltz could land. Here are some of Cafardo's other notes:
- The Red Sox "are debating whether they’ll go for it and pay luxury tax money," as their payroll approaches the $170MM mark.
- If the Sox wanted to sign Jason Bay, they could offer a low, one-year base salary with three heavily backloaded option years. With as much as $48MM coming off their books next winter, they would be better equipped to pay Bay after 2010.
- Baseball executives think that plenty of good values will be available by mid-January, with some established major league players having to sign minor league contracts. One NL GM says "the Pirates will load up" on this type of player.
- The Mets are still the team most interested in Orlando Hudson, but would have to find a way to move Luis Castillo.
- A market is starting to form for Jon Garland, and the Rangers seem to be the early frontrunner.
- Other Rangers notes: The team might prefer Jermaine Dye to Vladimir Guerrero, since Dye can still play the outfield (albeit not particularly well, according to UZR/150). Texas and Minnesota could also be good fits for Miguel Tejada.
- The Indians aren't saying Fausto Carmona is available, but baseball execs feel that the club would have to listen on any offers.
Odds & Ends: Rangers, Lackey, Yankees
Another round of Wednesday links:
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that Justin Duchscherer is leaning towards an NL team, although he is not sure which one.
- Now that free agent Matt Capps appears to be leaning towards the Nationals, the Rockies are looking into other hurlers on the open market. A major league source tells Thomas Harding of MLB.com that the club is negotiating with free agent Tim Redding. The Rockies flirted with signing him last winter before he signed with the Mets, where he posted a 5.10 ERA in 30 games, including 17 starts.
- The group selected to purchase the Rangers could be in financial trouble, says Craig Calcaterra of NBC Sports.
- Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com thinks that Mark DeRosa could become more valuable to suitors after Matt Holliday and Jason Bay sign, with few other big bats available.
- The Javier Vazquez trade can't be properly evaluated until the Braves spend all of the $8MM they saved in the deal, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Still, Rosenthal points out that the Braves should be concerned about the health histories of their free agent signings so far.
- Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe relays some details of John Lackey's contract with Boston, including an interesting conditional option: If an old elbow injury forces Lackey to miss significant time over the course of his contract, he'd have to play for the league minimum in 2015.
- Mark Carig of the Star-Ledger passes on this quote from Yankees GM Brian Cashman, regarding the team's outfield opening: "It won't be a big name situation. I can promise you that."
- Seattle GM Jack Zduriencik says that the two recent trades involving the Mariners and Blue Jays were "complete, separate entities," according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times.
Rangers Sign Darren Oliver
Free agent lefty Darren Oliver signed a one-year, $3.5MM deal with the Rangers today, with a vesting option for 2011. ESPN's Jerry Crasnick first reported progress Sunday on the deal, providing financial terms. This marks Oliver's third stint with the Rangers.
Last year with the Angels, Oliver posted a 2.71 ERA, 8.0 K/9, and 2/7 BB/9 in 73 innings. Since the Angels did not offer arbitration to the Type A free agent, there will be no draft pick compensation.
Rangers Resume Search For Bat
The Texas Rangers will look for alternative options to strengthen their lineup after their acquisition of Mike Lowell fell through, writes T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.
Rangers general manager Jon Daniels declined to discuss Lowell's situation but said, "I expect we'll still add to the club in a few spots. We've been in regular contact with guys we're interested in and I like our options. Fortunately for us, the market is relatively strong in the areas we're looking at."
Sullivan notes that the Rangers have interest in veterans Vladimir Guerrero and Jermaine Dye, but that Vlad is looking for a multi-year deal, while Dye may not want to sign with a team that will use him primarily a DH. Both players have been below-average defenders for years, according to Fangraphs: Dye has recorded a -21.4 UZR/150 or worse for the last four seasons, while Guerrero only played two games in the outfield in 2009 (his 2006-2008 fielding stats aren't good either). It's hard to imagine that any team will be eager to sign either player with the intention of using them frequently on defense.
If the Rangers decide to pursue a left-handed bat instead, Jim Thome is a likely possibility, according to Sullivan.
Red Sox, Rangers Considering Mike Lowell Trade
SATURDAY, 11:59am: Lowell is flying to Texas today to meet with the Rangers' front office and medical staff, and to take a physical according to ESPN's Jayson Stark. Lowell saw a hand specialist in Arizona earlier this week.
FRIDAY, 3:30pm: The Rangers will have their medical staff look at Lowell this weekend, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. We should know by the end of the weekend if the trade is going to go through.
TUESDAY, 1:22pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that the deal has a better than 50-50 chance of going through, though it's still not a lock.
8:40am: Peter Gammons tweets that Lowell may require thumb surgery.
MONDAY, 12:03am: According to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com, the Rangers will take a look at Lowell's thumb in-person at some point this week. Meanwhile, Boston is looking into the condition of Max Ramirez's wrists, which gave him problems in 2009.
Cubs Still Not Close To Dealing Bradley
Although at least three teams are still interested in Milton Bradley, no trade is close, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The FOX duo names the Rays, Rangers, and Mariners as interested parties, but notes that there are roadblocks in each instance.
The Rays have been unwilling to budge for weeks in negotiations involving Bradley and Pat Burrell. The Rangers have some interest, but Bradley's last stint in Texas didn't end on "the best of terms." The Mariners, meanwhile, may be reluctant to acquire a controversial player like Bradley on the heels of making positive news with the Chone Figgins signing and the Cliff Lee trade.
Rosenthal's and Morosi's sources indicate that the Cubs are unwilling to pay the majority of Bradley's contract, or to release the disgruntled outfielder. It's hard to imagine a scenario where Bradley returns to Chicago in 2010, so you have to think that his potential suitors are waiting for the Cubs to bite the bullet and pay for a bigger chunk of the 31-year-old's remaining salary.
Odds & Ends: Orioles, Dodgers, Beltre, Pujols
Let's round up some Thursday evening links….
- The Baltimore Sun's Dan Connolly hears from Orioles officials that the team isn't serious about Matt Holliday or Adrian Gonzalez. This probably means that, despite their flurry of recent activity, Baltimore is done spending for now.
- Jon Weisman at Dodger Thoughts takes a look at the Dodgers' salary obligations for 2010.
- Todd Zolecki of MLB.com follows up on the Roy Halladay–Cliff Lee blockbuster by breaking down Halladay's extension and relaying Lee's reaction to the trade.
- While the Cardinals wait on Holliday, Mark DeRosa is exploring his other options, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
- Yahoo's Tim Brown adds a surprising team to a list of otherwise predictable suitors for Adrian Beltre: the Oakland Athletics. ESPN.com's Buster Olney follows up on this point, noting that the A's do have interest, but not at $10MM a year.
- The Marlins still could retain Dan Uggla, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. However, the team hasn't been in contact with his agent since the Winter Meetings, so a trade looks more likely. We heard some details earlier today about discussions the Marlins and Giants have had regarding Uggla.
- Albert Pujols' agent, Dan Lozano, tells Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the Cardinals' negotiations with Holliday won't affect a possible Pujols extension: "Albert respects Matt and would love to have him as a teammate and hopes he gets his money, but Matt’s situation must be seen as independent of Albert’s."
- A source tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that Adam Dunn "is not going anywhere for now."
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff thinks that Johnny Damon's run in New York is about to come to an end.
- Jeff Wilson of the Dallas Morning News says that if the Mike Lowell trade falls through because of Lowell's health, the Rangers have other targets, including Vladimir Guerrero, Jermaine Dye, and Jim Thome. Morosi says we should know about the Lowell deal "one way or the other" by the end of the weekend.
- Pirates GM Neal Huntington answers fans' questions about his team's future in an MLB.com mailbag.