Odds & Ends: Alvarez, Strasburg, Church, Rays
Links for Saturday…
- Pirates' GM Neal Huntington said that Pedro Alvarez will remain in the minors so he can get more at-bats against lefthanded pitchers, though Dejan Kovacevic of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette mentions that it could have to do with pushing his service time clock back.
- ESPN's Keith Law broke down Stephen Strasburg's demotion to the minors, and says that "what he does need to improve is only going to improve in the big leagues."
- Ryan Church spoke to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo about his opportunity with the Pirates, saying that "It's either reestablish yourself and be one of the main guys or just be a fourth outfielder from here on out."
- Rays Executive VP Andrew Friedman says the club will explore internal and external options to replace J.P. Howell, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. Tampa Bay hopes to have the lefty back by May.
- Most players never shed the dreaded "4A" label, but the Pirates' Garrett Jones did, writes Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.
- Tom Tango will be a big part of the Blue Jays' front office, writes Robert Cribb of The Toronto Star.
- Indians closer Kerry Wood could miss up to two months with a strained back muscle. Brady Gardiner of SIRIUS XM tweets that this is a blessing for the Tribe as Wood's option for 2011 likely will not vest. The 32-year-old would make $11MM in '11 with 55 games finished in 2010.
- Dodgers manager Joe Torre has confidence in Ronnie Belliard's ability to play first base, writes Tony Jackson of ESPNLosAngeles.com. This will likely leave first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz on the outside looking in as he jostles with Garrett Anderson for the club's left-handed pinch hitting spot. However, Belliard still must weigh in at 209 pounds or less at some point during Spring Training to guarantee his deal.
- At the age of 47, Jamie Moyer has no interest in retiring, writes Jayson Stark of ESPN. Moyer is entering the final season of a two-year, $13MM deal.
Revisiting The Manny Ramirez, Jason Bay Trade
It's been nearly 20 months since the Red Sox, Dodgers, and Pirates completed the three-team blockbuster that sent Manny Ramirez to Los Angeles, Jason Bay to Boston, and four prospects to Pittsburgh. Alex Speier of WEEI.com spoke to Pirates' GM Neal Huntington about the trade, who noted that the book is still out on their end of the deal.
Here are the highlights, but the whole article is well worth the read…
- Huntington suggests the Pirates now believe that they had a better offer on the table for Bay than the one they ultimately accepted, though it's not fair to look back using hindsight. The Marlins and Rays were both rumored to be interested at the time.
- He also recognizes that he might have received a better package if he waited until the offseason to deal Bay.
- If the deal had not been made, the Red Sox were unsure about how to proceed with Manny's $20MM club option for 2009, and it was unclear if they would have been willing to risk offering him arbitration to recoup draft pick compensation.
- They were, however, confident in offering Jason Bay arbitration at the time of the trade.
- Meanwhile, the two players Pittsburgh received from Boston haven't delivered as expected. Brandon Moss is out of options, and might be put through waivers after hitting .232/.300/.381 since the trade, while Craig Hansen apparently went unclaimed after being designated for assignment. Both players have dealt with injuries.
- Huntington says that if Andy LaRoche's power comes on, it would be a good trade for them since they acquired six years of him for a year and a half of Bay. If Bryan Morris develops into a middle of the rotation starter, he would consider it a great deal.
Odds & Ends: Crawford, Alvarez, Mauer, Aumont
Some links for your Friday…
- Tom Verducci of SI.com said on WEEI's Dennis & Callahan show that he expects Carl Crawford to sign with the Yankees after the season, because "nobody is going to outbid them." The Yankees and Red Sox both love Crawford, according to Verducci.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Dodgers should spend more aggressively, especially considering they led the league in attendance last year.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com points out that Mike Lowell, Jason Varitek, Bill Hall and Jeremy Hermida will combine to make only $10MM or so less than the entire Pirates team this year. Why is that noteworthy? All four Red Sox are expected to be bench players.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry is under contract through 2012, but he tells ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick that he knows "these jobs aren't forever."
- The Pirates say Pedro Alvarez needs seasoning above AA, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Sending the third baseman to the minors limits his MLB service time, so it's a sound financial decision by the Pirates.
- The A's haven't called Joe Beimel, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- The A's worked out Wagner Mateo on Tuesday, according to Slusser.
- ESPN.com’s Buster Olney thinks that the Joe Mauer contract negotiations, which remain cordial, could continue in a few months if the sides don’t reach a deal in Spring Training.
- The Dominican prospect already worked out for the D'Backs and will likely work out for the Indians.
- Twins minor league director Jim Rantz told Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that another Dominican prospect, Miguel Sano, has "tremendous upside." Kovacevic says it's still too early to know how much the Pirates missed out on when Sano signed with the Twins instead of the Pirates.
- Phillies prospect Phillippe Aumont tells Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun that he thought he was heading to the Blue Jays at one point this offseason.
- Carl Crawford tells Tyler Kepner of the New York Times that he's comfortable with the speculation about his future since it "comes with the territory." Crawford is a free agent after the season.
Pirates Notes: Vazquez, Tabata, Alvarez
Let's check out some Pirates-related tidbits courtesy of MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch..
- With Ramon Vazquez on the trading block, Langosch stresses that any talk of him being Texas-bound is merely conjecture at this point. Furthermore, if they do move him, they are unlikely to get much back and may have to eat some of his $2MM salary. However, Pittsburgh might be willing to move the 33-year-old for next to nothing.
- One reader asks if the Pirates are considering locking up their young prospects, like Milwaukee did with Ryan Braun or like Tampa Bay did with Evan Longoria. Langosch says that the Pirates will wait until players like Jose Tabata, Brad Lincoln, and Pedro Alvarez establish themselves in the majors to open up discussions.
- Speaking of Alvarez, Langosch expects the Pirates to hold off on bringing him up to the big leagues. Pittsburgh delayed Andrew McCutchen's promotion last season in order to give him more seasoning in the minors and, in all likelihood, to extend his time under team control.
Brian Giles Retires
Outfielder Brian Giles announced his retirement today, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times. The Dodgers had signed Giles to a minor league deal on February 7th, and soon after he told MLB.com's Ken Gurnick it wouldn't take long to decide whether his knee could hold up physically.
Though he's not a household name, Giles finishes with an excellent .291/.400/.502 line in 7,835 career plate appearances for the Indians, Pirates, and Padres. Giles' career OBP currently ranks 59th all-time. Giles made two All-Star appearances and received MVP votes in five seasons. He was involved in a blockbuster trade in August of '03, joining the Padres for Jason Bay, Oliver Perez, and Cory Stewart. According to Baseball Reference, Giles earned about $81MM in his career.
Ramon Vazquez Could Be Traded Or Released
Infielder Ramon Vazquez is fighting to make the Pirates, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Vazquez said he's been told he's not on the team right now, despite being guaranteed $2MM in 2010. GM Neal Huntington admitted he has to consider a trade of some sort, having six players for four bench spots.
A release is the least-desirable approach for the Pirates, since they'd still owe Vazquez's $2MM salary (less $400K if he joins another big league club). A trade makes more sense, with Kovacevic naming the Rangers and Orioles as possible matches. Vazquez, 33, hit .230/.335/.279 in 239 plate appearances last year while playing second base, shortstop, and third base. His poor performance may have been related to a knee injury.
Huntington's plan when signing Vazquez in December of '08 may have been to find a credible back-up middle infielder in case the team traded Freddy Sanchez and/or Jack Wilson. But you have to question his $4MM commitment to Vazquez, a journeyman platoon player who still didn't hit lefties in his career year '08 season.
Trade Interest In Glen Perkins?
According to La Velle E. Neal III of The Minneapolis Star-Tribune, scouts from a number of clubs (including the Rockies, Pirates and Blue Jays) watched Glen Perkins pitch on Tuesday night. It should be noted that the scouts could've been there for any number of reasons or to see any number of players, but the presence of the Toronto scouts is notable given the rumors that the Twins are interested in acquiring Jason Frasor to fill the void left by Joe Nathan's injury. Given the number of left-handed starting options on the Blue Jays roster, however, one wonders why they'd be looking at Perkins. The Pirates and Rockies also don't have any obvious need for a left-handed starter, but it's possible one of these clubs could be looking at Perkins as a reliever.
Perkins posted a 5.89 ERA in 18 games (17 of them starts) with Minnesota in 2009 before his season was cut short due to a shoulder injury. After being sent to the minors for injury rehab, Perkins complained that the move cost him major league service time and filed a grievance against the Twins that was settled over the winter. Neal wrote in December that the Twins were looking to move Perkins in part because of this dispute.
No Extension Talks Yet For McCutchen
The Pirates have yet to approach center fielder Andrew McCutchen about a long-term extension, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Team president Frank Coonelly explained that while McCutchen is the type of player they'd want to lock up, "the earlier you go, the more risk you take on." McCutchen has only 108 big league games under his belt.
McCutchen told Kovacevic that "it would be cool" to sign a Justin Upton-like extension. But as the player noted, Upton has significantly more time in the Majors. I'm not sure he's the right comparable anyway.
McCutchen won't even be arbitration-eligible until after the 2012 season. The model for an extension might come from this group of signed center fielders: Grady Sizemore, Shane Victorino, Franklin Gutierrez, Curtis Granderson, Nate McLouth, Chris Young, and David DeJesus. How much will it cost the Pirates to buy out McCutchen's three arbitration years? That might depend on how much power he displays. But the players listed gave up their arbitration years at prices ranging from $8.1MM for DeJesus to $17.25MM for Granderson. Gutierrez, signed most recently, gets $11.5MM.
Kovacevic's article touches on McLouth, as the way he was extended and traded months later was not received well. Coonelly says that the team's actions will gain the fans' trust. He also said:
We can never say never, but I will say again that the days of us needing to move players in order to get multiple players in return to rebuild the system, those are over.
Rangers Looking For Reserve Infield Help
When the Rangers voided the contract of Khalil Greene last week, it appeared as if the club would look within their system for a replacement. Indeed, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan was told by Texas officials that there was a "100 percent probability" that this would be the case (via Twitter).
A week later, however, Sullivan reports that the team is changing its tune. Greene provided both infield depth and a right-handed corner infield bat, and now the Rangers "are re-assessing the situation and early confidence that the roles could be filled from within may be eroding." The team hopes that prospect Max Ramirez or former Angel Matt Brown can handle the corner infield job, but several options exist outside the Rangers organization for the utility infield spot. Sulllivan noted the Dodgers have some extra infielders in camp and listed a few other specific names as options…
- Julio Lugo. He may be the odd man out in St. Louis given the Cardinals' recent signing of Felipe Lopez. Sullivan noted the irony of Lugo possibly again being acquired to replace Greene, given that St. Louis did the same thing last summer. Sullivan also said Lugo "is somebody [the Rangers] have talked about internally."
- Augie Ojeda. We heard last winter that Texas had some interest in the Diamondbacks infielder.
- Ramon Vazquez. Sullivan said "the Pirates may be willing to talk about" dealing the former Ranger.
Ruiz, Anderson Drawing Interest, Could Sign Soon
- Eduardo Salcedo, an 18-year-old infielder, could be cleared to sign with MLB teams sometime this week. If everything goes through, the D’Backs and Braves will be among the teams interested in signing him. The bidding could reach $2MM for the shortstop-third baseman.
- The Pirates agreed to sign 17-year-old Dominican outfielder Willy Garcia for $280K.
- The D’Backs signed 17-year-old Dominican outfielder Socrates Abrito for $190K.