Heyman On Pudge, Pedro, Catalanotto
SI.com’s Jon Heyman has a new column up; let’s take a look.
- Heyman says Oakland’s "win now" mandate this winter came from owner Lewis Wolff.
- The Astros and Marlins are interested in Ivan Rodriguez, "no matter what they say publicly."
- Heyman says Pedro Martinez is "talking up a Dodgers reunion." So far, there’s been no indication the Dodgers are entertaining it.
- Edgar Renteria‘s agent was initially asking for a three or four-year deal.
- It’s no surprise that Frank Catalanotto is available, but the $6MM owed to him is an obvious impediment.
- According to Heyman, Andruw Jones told Rangers brass he’s flexible on the March 20th decision date in his contract.
- Heyman describes the Josh Hamilton extension talks as "just getting going" and believe the John Lackey discussions have only been preliminary.
Chad Cordero To Audition Again
As reported by Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, free agent Chad Cordero will hold another workout for interested teams on Friday.
The Rangers will be in attendance. You can bet the Twins will also be there. The Marlins, Royals and Brewers are also likely to send scouts. Cordero, who will turn 27 in March, missed most of the 2008 season after undergoing shoulder surgery. He racked up 113 saves for the Nationals between 2005 and 2007.
Rangers Sign Hamilton, Eight Others
According to MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan, the Rangers signed all nine of their pre-arbitration players Wednesday.
Josh Hamilton, who will become eligible for arbitration after the 2009 season, is the most notable name on the list. He inked a one-year deal worth $555K. The club is still expected to explore a long-term deal with the 27-year-old slugger later this spring.
Rangers, Hamilton Planning Extension Talks
According to MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan, the Rangers plan to embark on long-term contract discussions with Josh Hamilton‘s agents later this spring.
Tim suggested last week that Dustin Pedroia‘s six-year, $40.5MM extension could be a model for the Rangers and Hamilton’s representatives, as both players have two years of MLB service time. Hamilton, 27, went nuts last season, finishing with a line of .304/.371/.530. He also blasted 32 home runs and racked up 130 RBI.
Rangers Sign Kris Benson
SATURDAY, 10:56am: According to Jon Heyman of SI.com Benson signed with the Rangers.
FRIDAY: According to MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan, the Rangers are expected to sign righty Kris Benson to a minor league deal soon. Benson, 34, had rotator cuff surgery in March of ’07 and wasn’t able to make it back to the bigs last year.
Odds and Ends: Lester, Arbitration, Beimel
Links for Friday…
- RotoAuthority hosts a roundtable discussion of the worst fantasy picks of the first three rounds.
- Nationals president Stan Kasten expects "heavy trade talk," given the team’s surplus of first basemen/outfielders. Nick Johnson is the most likely candidate.
- Mark Sweeney may be forced into retirement, according to Tony Jackson of the L.A. Daily News.
- Joe McDonald of the Providence Journal wonders if Jon Lester could be the next Red Sox player to get a long-term extension.
- Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball analyzes the salary arbitration class of 2009.
- Brian McTaggart of the Houston Chronicle has Astros GM Ed Wade explain split contracts.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes the Yankees outfielders and Scott Boras clients Xavier Nady and Johnny Damon have been affected by the Stanford financial scandal.
- MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan says Joe Beimel turned down a minor league offer from the Rangers about a month ago. Tough time to be a lefty reliever.
Rangers To Watch Chad Cordero
Anthony Andro of the Dallas Morning News talked to Rangers GM Jon Daniels, who said the team will be represented at Chad Cordero‘s audition this week.
Other teams rumored to have interest at various points: the Royals, Brewers, Marlins, Dodgers, Twins, Angels, Mets, Cardinals, Diamondbacks, Nationals, and Tigers. We know the Mets will probably pass.
D’Backs Working On Sign-And-Trade Deal?
According to Steve Gilbert of MLB.com, the Diamondbacks could be hammering out a sign-and-trade deal with reliever Juan Cruz.
"I can’t say too much," Diamondbacks GM Josh Byrnes said Monday. "But of late, they’ve talked to the union, we have talked to the Commissioner’s Office to see if there is a way where they could sign through us and then we would receive in trade what we would deem as enough value."
Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic also has a column on the topic. Ken Rosenthal and La Velle E. Neal III have done a nice job of explaining this complicated situation. As Neal notes, the Twins may be interested in Cruz if they aren’t forced to surrender a high draft pick for his services. Yahoo’s Jeff Passan says the Brewers and Rangers also have interest in Cruz.
Rangers Consider Josh Hamilton Extension
MONDAY: A minor update from Sullivan:
The Rangers have expressed an interest to Hamilton’s agent Michael Moye and got a positive response in return. No offers have been exchanged on either side.
THURSDAY: MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan says the Rangers may attempt to sign Josh Hamilton to a long-term deal this spring. He notes that the Rangers have a history of doing spring deals with pre-arbitration players, with Ian Kinsler, Hank Blalock, and Michael Young serving as examples.
I wonder if Dustin Pedroia‘s recent six-year, $40.5MM extension could be a model, as both players have two years of service time. Nick Markakis has three years service time already. But if you look at his third through his eighth seasons, he’ll earn about $47MM.
Rangers Sign Andruw Jones
TUESDAY, 10:16pm: Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the Rangers finalized their deal with Jones. He has contract details, including a March 20th opt-out.
SUNDAY, 8:31pm: Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News reports that the Dodgers will receive half of the money Jones gets from the Rangers in ’09.
8:01pm: Manager Ron Washington seems to think Jones will find success with the Rangers. This quote comes via Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
"[Hitting coach] Rudy [Jaramillo] liked what he saw in his swing and thinks he can help him be consistent," said Washington. "He could be an impact. He was an impact for 12 years in Atlanta… I’m excited to have him. I think it’s a big challenge for him. We’re looking forward to seeing what he may still have and how he can help us."
1:23pm: Jeff Wilson has confirmation of the deal from Rangers GM Jon Daniels. Jones can opt out of his contract on March 20.
10:45am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports the Rangers will sign Andruw Jones to a minor league contract in the next few days.
The deal is for $500,000 if he makes the big league club and includes $1MM in bonuses; however, Sherman notes, he would have to be a full-time player to earn the full one million. The Rangers already have five outfielders that Jones will need to compete with for a starting role, most notably David Murphy or Nelson Cruz – so his chances are slim. Even as a backup he’s competing with Frank Catalanotto and Marlon Byrd.