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Trade Reactions: Bell, D’Backs, A’s, Young, Marlins

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The Diamondbacks bolstered their bullpen today with the acquisition of Heath Bell and they may not be done, tweets Jack Magruder of FOXSportsArizona.com.  General Manager Kevin Towers is still on the lookout for a shortstop, third baseman, left-handed specialist, and a starting pitcher.  Arizona still has an excess outfielder to work with as well and could dangle Justin Upton, Jason Kubel, or Gerardo Parra to upgrade elsewhere.  Here's more on the surprising trade..

  • In Chris Young, the D'Backs owed $10MM to an outfielder whom they felt was redundant, so they are instead redirecting the money to a reliever, tweets Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) is surprised at how little the Diamondbacks netted in return for Young.  Meanwhile, the A's can now use their new found outfield surplus and trade one, likely Coco Crisp, elsewhere, Rosenthal tweets.
  • Trading Bell, who clashed with manager Ozzie Guillen this year, is one indication that the skipper may return in Miami next year, writes Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.  It has been widely speculated that Guillen would be relieved after a tumultuous first year with the Marlins.
  • The A's came away with the best player in the deal in Young, opines Jim Bowden of ESPN (via Twitter).  Bowden adds that Miami had to move Bell and was fortunate to find a taker while Arizona got a solid defensive shortstop in Cliff Pennington.
  • Pennington being moved out of the picture in Oakland bodes well for Stephen Drew's return, writes Jane Lee of MLB.com.  The shortstop has a $10MM mutual option for 2013.

Diamondbacks Notes: Putz, Bell, Towers

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The Diamondbacks started off the day by finalizing the long awaited decision of exercising J.J. Putz's $6.5MM option for 2013.  It turns out that was small potatoes compared to the move they would pull later in the day – a three-team deal sending Chris Young to Oakland and bringing in Heath Bell from Miami.  Here's more on the D'Backs..

  • Some scouts are already speculating that Putz could be on the trading block after Bell's arrival, tweets Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.  However, Miller notes that General Manager Kevin Towers is a fan of strong bullpens and would relish the chance to have David Hernandez, Bell, and Putz as the club's 7-8-9 relievers (Twitter link).
  • Towers believes that Bell can help "get the ball" to Putz, tweets Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times.  That would seem to infer that Putz is still part of the club's plan for 2013, but the closer would absolutely have value if the D'Backs chose to shop him.
  • Prior to the deal being announced, Towers told Jack Magruder of FOXSportsArizona.com (via Twitter) that he will talk to Putz about a contract extension.  "I hope he finishes his career in a Diamondbacks uniform," said the GM.

D’Backs Acquire Heath Bell In Three-Team Deal

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The Diamondbacks announced that they have acquired Heath Bell, infielder Cliff Pennington, and cash considerations from the Marlins in a three-team deal with the Athletics.  Miami will receive minor league infielder Yordy Cabrera from the A's and Oakland will get outfielder Chris Young and $500K from Arizona. 

The Marlins will be picking up $8MM of the remaining $21MM owed to Bell over the next two years, according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel (via Twitter).  The veteran was unhappy in Miami as the club was unwilling to restore him as closer and found himself clashing with manager Ozzie Guillen at points during the year. 

The 35-year-old struggled in his first and only year with the Marlins, posting a 5.09 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 73 appearances.  The new-look Marlins signed Bell in December of last year as a part of their spending spree, giving the reliever a three-year, $27MM deal.  The contract includes a vesting option for the 2015 season which will guarantee him $9MM with 55 games finished in 2014 or 100 games finished in 2013-14.

Pennington has been a member of the A's since being tabbed with the 21st overall pick in the 2005 draft.  The 28-year-old was slotted at shortstop until the acquisition of Stephen Drew bumped him over to second base.  For his career, Pennington owns a .249/.313/.356 batting line across parts of five seasons in Oakland.

Young, 29, is set to make $8.5MM in 2013 with an $11MM club option for the 2014 season that comes with a modest $1.5MM buyout.  The centerfielder has been unable to regain his All-Star form of 2010 and posted a .231/.311/.434 slash line with 14 homers last season.  Young played in just 101 games last season, due in large part to a shoulder injury he suffered when he slammed into a wall in early April.  The outfielder now reunited with skipper Bob Melvin, who he developed a bond with during his time in Arizona.

While the Marlins' main reward in the deal is being freed from the bulk of the money owed to Bell over the next two years, they also pick up a former second-round pick in Cabrera.  The 22-year-old, who played high school baseball four hours north of Miami in Lakeland, Florida, made the move to Class-A Advanced in 2012.  Cabrera hit .232/.293/.332 with three homers in 60 games last season.

Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic (via Twitter) first reported that Arizona would send $500K to Oakland in the deal.

Diamondbacks Exercise 2013 Option For J.J. Putz

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The Diamondbacks have exercised their $6.5MM club option for J.J. Putz, the team announced. The right-hander is represented by LSW Baseball and would have been owed a $1.5MM buyout had Arizona declined to bring him back for 2013.

Putz, 35, has pitched to a 2.48 ERA with 10.1 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 in two years with the D'Backs while saving 77 games in 86 chances. Injuries have been a problem for the veteran closer throughout his career, and he missed close to four weeks with elbow inflammation this season. Despite the injury, the net price of just $5MM was far too good to pass up. Arizona signed Putz to a two-year, $10MM contract during the 2010-2011 offseason.

West Links: Adams, Wilson, A-Rod, D’Backs, Rangers

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Rangers right-hander Mike Adams had successful surgery for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome yesterday, reports Anthony Andro of FOXSportsSouthwest.com (on Twitter). The free agent-to-be reliever should be healthy in time for Spring Training. Here's the latest from baseball's two West divisions…

  • "They pay me to be me, and I will be," said Giants closer Brian Wilson to reporters (including Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle). He is recovering from Tommy John surgery and hasn't thought about his role going forward (Twitter links). Wilson is a non-tender candidate after earning $8.5MM in the second year of a two-year deal in 2012.
  • "I think there will certainly be interest," said Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson to Arizona Sport 620's Burns & Gambo when asked if the team has trade interest in Alex Rodriguez. The D'Backs are said to be seeking a third baseman, and GMs Kevin Towers and Brian Cashman worked together in the Yankees' front office in 2010.
  • The Rangers have hired Red Sox hitting coach Dave Magadan to be their hitting coach, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. Texas has since confirmed the hire.

Offseason Outlook: Arizona Diamondbacks

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The Diamondbacks will look to reinforce the left side of their infield and acquire starting pitching depth while weighing trades for their outfielders.

Guaranteed Contracts 

Arbitration Eligible Players (estimated salaries)

Contract Options

Free Agents

Some general managers prefer to keep their offseason plans private, speaking in abstractions instead of specifics and offering up vague or evasive answers. It’s their prerogative, of course, and a case can be made that controlling information leads to a competitive advantage. At the same time, it’s a whole lot simpler to listen to someone like Kevin Towers outline an offseason plan.

Justin Upton - Diamondbacks (PW)

When Towers recently explained his goals to Barry Bloom of MLB.com he didn’t leave much to the imagination. The Diamondbacks will pursue veteran pitching via trades, look for upgrades on the left side of the infield, trade an outfielder and exercise J.J. Putz’s option. As for the team’s payroll, Towers said it could rise as high as $85MM or so. 

Longtime Diamondbacks shortstop Stephen Drew leads a relatively unremarkable class of free agent shortstops, but he's "probably not" coming back to Arizona in the words of his former GM. If Towers looks to free agency for solutions on the left side of the infield, players such as Marco Scutaro and Kevin Youkilis could catch his attention. Yet the trade market might offer more variety, especially if Towers looks to acquire a long-term answer. Shortstops such as Elvis Andrus, Yunel Escobar or Jed Lowrie could draw trade interest from Arizona this offseason if Towers decides to bypass the free agent market.

Toward the end of the regular season, the Diamondbacks seemed content to rely on internal options at third base, and they have a fallback plan of using Chris Johnson (vs. RHP) and Cody Ransom (vs. LHP). Staying within the organization at shortstop seems less likely, as Willie Bloomquist and John McDonald aren't viewed as everyday options at the position.

Unfortunately for the Diamondbacks, their most prominent organizational strength — outfield depth — happens to be a strength of the upcoming free agent market. There will still be demand for Arizona's outfielders, and at least one of Justin Upton, Chris Young, Jason Kubel and Gerardo Parra figures to be traded. The presence of Adam Eaton and A.J. Pollock means Towers can — and should — explore potential trades.

Upton, the 25-year-old right fielder whose name surfaced in trade rumors all summer long, would likely bring the most substantial return. The Rangers, Mariners, Mets are a few of the many teams that could have interest in completing a deal for Upton. The former first overall selection battled thumb injuries this past season, before finishing strong, with six September home runs. Towers knows Upton could play at an MVP level again as soon as next year, but the GM can't justify an exorbitant asking price for a player whose overall performance was good but not great in 2012. It means the Diamondbacks could keep Upton and trade someone else.

Kubel would draw interest coming off of a 30-home run season. So would Young despite a so-so season at the plate. And Parra, the youngest and most affordable of the three with a projected salary in the $2MM range, would appeal to many teams as well. Towers and other top Diamondbacks executives will have to weigh numerous possibilities with so many trade candidates to choose from — it's a good problem to have.

The Diamondbacks could seek an experienced starting pitcher in a trade for an outfielder. Though they have an assortment of promising young starting pitchers, Towers has said he'd like to acquire a veteran starter this winter. Rival teams will no doubt have interest in the likes of Tyler Skaggs, Patrick Corbin and Trevor Bauer, but to this point there's been no indication those young starters will be available. While manager Kirk Gibson figures to enter Spring Training with an enviable selection of starting rotation options, such depth can disappear quickly so it'd be imprudent to make moves based on the assumption that the rotation will always seem so deep.

Josh Johnson, a ground ball pitcher with one year remaining on his contract, might appeal to the Diamondbacks, who pursued top-of-the-rotation arms this past summer. His $13.75MM salary could be prohibitive, so a pitcher like Jon Niese might be preferable.

Reliever J.J. Putz will return, assuming the Diamondbacks exercise his 2013 option, as expected. Retaining a shutdown reliever for one additional season at a net price of $5MM makes sense for Arizona. As challenging as it can be to predict reliever performances accurately, the right-hander adds lots of value and the Diamondbacks can afford the $6.5MM commitment. Conversely, Matt Lindstrom's option could safely be declined. The hard-throwing right-hander looks more like a $2MM player in this market, so it'd be unnecessarily expensive to exercise his option at $4MM. Instead, free agents like Jeremy Affeldt, Randy Choate and Tim Byrdak could appeal to Towers, who has indicated he's interested in adding left-handed relief.

The Diamondbacks have committed approximately $55MM to next year's payroll, according to Cot's Baseball Contracts. This gives them $20-30MM to work with, using Towers' estimate of next year's payroll. About half of that sum would go to the team's arbitration eligible players, assuming Brad Ziegler, Matt Albers, Chris Johnson, Gerardo Parra and Ian Kennedy are tendered contracts. That scenario has Arizona non-tendering Ransom, Wil Nieves, Mike Zagurski and Brad Bergesen instead of retaining them for another year.

Though Kennedy didn't appear to have interest in an extension last offseason, the Diamondbacks could explore the possibility of a new contract with agent Scott Boras this winter. Towers might also ask Aaron Hill about his interest in a contract extension that would cover 2014 and beyond.

There's no ambiguity about Towers' offseason goals. If he hasn't bolstered the left side of his infield and acquired starting pitching depth by Opening Day, the offseason will arguably have been a disappointment. But if the Diamondbacks follow the path they've traced for themselves and their fans, this team should enter the 2013 season with the expectation of contending again.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

Diamondbacks Considering Trading Kubel Or Parra

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The Diamondbacks are weighing whether Jason Kubel or Gerardo Parra is a better fit as their everyday left fielder in 2012, GM Kevin Towers tells Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.  The Snakes are also looking for help at shortstop and third base this winter, and Towers said those decisions will affect the direction that Arizona takes in left field.

"When you put a club together, it’s more of a puzzle,” Towers said. “What you do at short and third maybe changes what your need is in left. If you get more offense on the corner, then maybe there’s more of a premium for the defender in left. If you don’t get the offense and you get the defense in the infield, you have to have your power somewhere."

Piecoro projects the 2013 D'Backs outfield as Justin Upton remaining with the team and playing right field, Adam Eaton playing center, and one of Kubel or Parra in left, leaving A.J. Pollock as the fourth outfielder.  The loser of the Kubel/Parra decision would become expendable along with Chris Young, who has already been rumored to be on the trading block.  Young is owed $8.5MM in 2013 and his $11MM option for 2014 carries a $1.5MM buyout, and Piecoro reports that the D'Backs expect to eat some of that money in any Young trade.

Kubel signed a two-year, $15MM deal with Arizona last December and he hit 30 homers with a .253/.328/.506 batting line in 2012, though he slumped in the second half of the season, posting just a .745 OPS after the All-Star break.  Parra posted a .727 OPS in 430 plate appearances last year and provided his usual excellent glovework, recording a +13.8 UZR/150 rating.  It's a clear choice between hitting and defense for the Snakes, though contracts also play a role — while Kubel will earn $7.5MM next year, Parra is arb-eligible for the second time this winter and is under control through 2015 as a Super Two player.

Towers mentioned how defense was an important factor at Chase Field and that he wanted the team to be less reliant on home runs, leaving Piecoro to speculate that this could mean the D'Backs could move away from Kubel in left and Chris Johnson at third base.

In other team news, Piecoro hears that Trevor Bauer isn't likely to be traded.  D'Backs managing general partner Ken Kendrick sounded critical of Bauer last week, leading to some speculation that the team had soured on the highly-touted 21-year-old.  If Arizona actually did make Bauer available, the 2011 third overall pick would instantly become one of the biggest trade chips on the market this offseason.

Minor Transactions: Chulk, Dillard, Clevlen

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Baseball America's Matt Eddy recaps this week's minor league transactions, including these notable moves…

  • Brewers right-handers Vinnie Chulk and Tim Dillard have elected free agency.  After last pitching in the Major Leagues in 2009, Chulk posted a 10.00 ERA in nine relief innings for Milwaukee this season before he was designated for assignment in May.  Dillard, 29, was a 34th-round draft pick for Milwaukee in 2002 and has a 4.70 ERA in 73 career games over four seasons with the Brewers.  Dillard had a 4.38 ERA, a 10.9 H/9 rate and a 2.07 K/BB ratio in 37 relief innings in 2012.
  • The Diamondbacks re-signed outfielder Brent Clevlen to a new contract.  Clevlen signed a minor league deal with the D'Backs in April and posted a combined .290/.366/.520 line in 345 plate appearances for the franchise's Double-A and Triple-A affiliates.  Clevlen, 28, has a career .783 OPS over 11 minor league seasons plus 84 PAs in the majors with the Braves and Tigers, though just four of those PAs have come since 2008.

Arbitration Eligibles: Arizona Diamondbacks

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The Diamondbacks are next in our 2013 Arbitration Eligibles series.  Matt Swartz's salary projections are below.

Ziegler and Albers both posted sub-3.00 ERAs in 2012, aided by strong groundball rates.  Look for both to be retained at reasonable prices.

Johnson, acquired from Houston in July, showed increased power for Arizona in a limited sample and will come into 2013 as the team's likely starter at the hot corner.  He projects as a Super Two player.  Parra was an oft-used fourth outfielder for most of 2012.  A skilled defender, Parra may have an increased role next year if the D'Backs move him or another outfielder.

Kennedy's body of work — 46 wins, 684 innings, and a 3.76 ERA — is quite impressive and only a little shy of where Jered Weaver was prior to his first arbitration year.  With so many of the best starting pitchers locked into long-term contracts these days by the time they reach arbitration, our projection model actually has a pretty small sample with which to work.  So, it cranked out $4.6MM for Kennedy, which would be a first-time starting pitcher arbitration record.  In reality, we feel he will come in shy of Weaver, hence the "off-model" $4.2MM projection above.

Regardless, Kennedy is due for a very strong first-year arbitration salary.  It's possible the D'Backs will look to lock him up, saving some money for 2013 in the process.  The standard four-year, $30MM contract we've seen so often has been for pitchers with less than three years of service, whereas Kennedy is well past that point.  Gio Gonzalez's five-year, $42MM contract might be a better target, although it's not a perfect match since Gonzalez was a Super Two.

Nieves, Zagurski, Ransom, and Bergesen are the team's non-tender candidates.  If Henry Blanco returns as Miguel Montero's backup, Nieves will not be needed.  Zagurski was removed from Arizona's 40-man roster in April and August, and he'll probably be removed again.  The D'Backs also removed Ransom in May, though they brought him back in an August waiver claim.  Bergesen was acquired from Baltimore in a July waiver claim, and it's debatable whether the club will want him back for a long relief role.

Assuming only Ziegler, Albers, Johnson, Parra, and Kennedy are retained, we're projecting $12.6MM in salary for arbitration eligible Diamondbacks for 2013.

Matt Swartz's arbitration projections are available exclusively at MLB Trade Rumors.  To read more about his projection model, check out this series of posts.

Quick Hits: Braves, Leyland, Soriano, Phillies, Rays

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Depending on what happens with Michael Bourn, the Braves could potentially have two major holes to fill in their lineup.  Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) offers some suggestions for replacing Bourn and Chipper Jones and notes that the club could have some added flexibility if Martin Prado can be shifted from left field to third base.  Ben Revere of the Twins, Peter Bourjos of the Angels, and Chris Young of the Diamondbacks could all be trade targets in center field.  There aren't a lot of great third base options on the open market but Atlanta could zero in on guys like Mike Olt of the Rangers, Chase Headley of the Padres, and maybe even the Mets David Wright.  Here's more from around baseball..

  • Tigers manager Jim Leyland has been telling people in recent days that he has no plans to retire, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.  Given his desire to return, it's likely that Leyland will be managing the Tigers in 2013.  Leyland's contract expires at the end of the season.
  • Even though he has been linked the Marlins opening, Mike Lowell tells Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com that he has no interest in managing at this point in his life.  The former third baseman is currently working for the MLB Network as an on-air analyst.
  • The Yankees' desire to keep their payroll under $189MM in 2014 could complicate their chances to sign Rafael Soriano to a long-term deal once he opts out, writes Heyman.  Soriano's three-year, $35MM deal seemed like a stretch last year but it now seems like the Bombers view the possibility of a last year at $14MM more favorably than the right-hander.
  • The members of the Philadelphia Daily News staff bring us their suggestions for retooling the club heading into 2013.  David Murphy believes that Ruben Amaro & Co. should start by revamping the bullpen while Marcus Hayes writes that the club should stick to making small moves while allowing the younger players to flourish.
  • Bill Parker of DRays Bay looks in the rear view mirror to discuss what the Rays could have done differently in 2012.  The trade of John Jaso to the Mariners for Josh Lueke was among the missteps highlighted.
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