At Least Seven Teams Interested In Brandon McCarthy
The Athletics, Astros, Diamondbacks, Brewers, Padres, Mariners, and Tigers are among the teams interested in free agent righty Brandon McCarthy, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Rangers acquired McCarthy four years ago mainly for John Danks and Nick Masset in what I described at the time as an offer Kenny Williams couldn't refuse. McCarthy's Rangers career was ruined by injuries, and he was outrighted and elected free agency earlier this month.
Morosi notes that McCarthy has thrown well in the Dominican Winter League, and teams have been scouting him heavily. McCarthy has a history of shoulder injuries, but Morosi says he's subject to a "buy-low frenzy." Since the 6'7" righty has less than five years of big league service time, he could be controlled by his new team through 2012 as an arbitration eligible player.
McCarthy, 27, posted a 3.36 ERA, 7.0 K/9, 1.8 BB/9, and 1.3 HR/9 in 56 1/3 Triple-A innings this year. He tossed 119 innings between the Majors and minors in 2009.
Diamondbacks Interested In J.J. Putz
The Diamondbacks had one of the worst bullpens in baseball history last season (league-worst 5.74 ERA), something new GM Kevin Towers will undoubtedly try to correct this offseason. Part of the solution could be free agent reliever J.J. Putz, whom the D'Backs have interest in according to Mark Gonzales of The Chicago Tribune.
Putz, 34 in February, was fantastic with the White Sox this year. He struck out 65 and walked just 13 unintentionally in 54 innings, pitching to a 2.83 ERA and holding opponents to a .204/.261/.313 batting line against. He did spend 16 days on the disabled list with knee tendinitis, a year after having bone spurs removed from his elbow. It's not long ago that Putz was one of the game's elite closers, a role he could easily fill in Arizona.
As Gonzales notes, Putz resides in nearby Peoria, something that will surely be attractive to the righty. The D'Backs also plan to pursue another former White Sox and Arizona resident, Paul Konerko. Putz earned $3MM in 2010 and is a Type-B free agent.
Justin Upton Rumors: Saturday
Yesterday we learned that at least 15 teams inquired about the availability of Arizona's Justin Upton at the GM Meetings, and that five of those clubs wanted to push talks further along. We also learned that the 23-year-old can block trades to Athletics, Indians, Royals, and Tigers. Here are today's batch of Upton rumors, with more to come throughout the day…
- ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that a lot of people in the game are wondering why the Diamondbacks are so intent on marketing their budding star. They're curious if something's wrong.
- ESPN's Keith Law (Insider req'd) lists four reasons why new GM Kevin Towers might want to deal Upton, noting that he may have concerns about his on-field potential, makeup, and health.
Minor Deals: Sborz, Huber, Royals, Ruiz
We'll keep track of all of the day's minor deals right here:
- Righty reliever Jay Sborz, 26 in January, signed a minor league deal with the Braves with a Spring Training invite, MLBTR has learned. Sborz was outrighted by the Tigers on November 4th after posting a 4.74 ERA, 8.7 K/9, 4.9 BB/9, and 1.6 HR/9 with 19 saves in 43 2/3 Triple-A innings this year.
- The Twins signed Justin Huber to a minor league contract with an invite to spring training, tweets Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Huber last played in the majors with Minnesota in 2009, and has a .580 OPS in 175 career plate appearances.
- The Royals announced that four players have been designated for assignment: Jordan Parraz, Victor Marte, Gaby Hernandez and former #1 overall pick Bryan Bullington.
- The Rays released first baseman Jose Ruiz, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (on Twitter).
- The Tigers announced that they signed Al Alburquerque to a major league deal for 2011. GM Dave Dombrowski says the team has been impressed with the right-hander's winter ball performance and expects him to compete for a bullpen job in Spring Training. The 24-year-old has struck out 191 batters in 174 1/3 minor league innings in the Cubs and Rockies organizations.
- The Yankees have released Jonathan Albaladejo, who signed with a Japanese team, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News (on Twitter).
- The Diamondbacks claimed right-hander Juan Jaime from the Nationals, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson (on Twitter). The 23-year-old right-hander didn't pitch in 2010, but he has a 2.42 ERA with 11.8 K/9 and 5.7 BB/9 in 111 2/3 minor league innings.
- The Blue Jays signed Mike Hinckley, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The lefty posted a 1.93 ERA in 28 games with the Nationals from 2008-09. Last year he posted 6.8 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 46 2/3 innings in the upper minors.
- Josh Barfield, Ryan Feierabend and Brandon Moss all got Spring Training invitations from the Phillies according to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki.
Justin Upton Rumors: Friday
Put an affordable 23-year-old with superstar potential on the trade market and you're going to hear some juicy rumors. We found out yesterday that the Diamondbacks are prepared to deal Justin Upton even if the move isn't popular with the team's fan base. The Blue Jays are showing strong interest in the right fielder and the Mariners, Marlins, Orioles and Red Sox are among the other interested teams. Here are today's rumors, with more to come throughout the day:
- The Athletics, Indians, Royals and Tigers are the four clubs on Upton's no-trade list, tweets FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal. Upton can be dealt to any of the other 25 teams without his approval.
- At least 15 teams approached the D’Backs about Upton at the GM Meetings and five of those clubs wanted to push talks further along, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, who notes that the Yankees were not one of the five clubs in hot pursuit of the outfielder.
- Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald says the Red Sox need to deal for Upton and Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic says it would be a mistake for the D'Backs to trade him.
No D’Backs Offer To Hiroyuki Kobayashi
8:08pm: In a text to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers said the Kobayashi offer was "news to me!" (Twitter link)
7:38pm: The Diamondbacks are prepared to offer a two-year, $3MM contract to Japanese pitcher Hiroyuki Kobayashi, according to Sponichi (and tweeted by NPBTracker's Patrick Newman). We heard last week that Kobyashi was leaving the Chiba Lotte Marines for the majors, and it makes sense the reliever-starved Snakes would be interested in the right-hander.
Kobayashi became a full-time reliever in 2010, and posted a 2.21 ERA and 7.82 K/9 rate for the Marines. The 32-year-old spent his previous three seasons in the Chiba Lotte rotation, so it's possible he could also be called upon as an emergency starter. In Newman's look at the international free agent class coming from Japan, he said "Kobayashi doesn’t have a power arm, but attacks the strike zone."
New York Notes: Jeter, Minaya, Rivera
The Yankees are about to offer their captain a three-year deal worth $45MM. Here's the latest on Derek Jeter, the Yankees and the Mets:
- Bill Madden of the New York Daily News says Jeter is about to learn that more often than not the Yankees are willing to pay more for someone else's free agent than for their own.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post says Jeter and the Yankees "are a married couple that knows the soft spots with which to hurt each other. Yet they know the marriage must go on."
- The D'Backs have offered a front office job to former Mets GM Omar Minaya, according to Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal (on Twitter).
- Mariano Rivera has told friends he'd like a two-year deal from the Yankees, but the sides have not yet discussed contract terms, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
- The Yankees announced the hiring of Larry Rothschild as their new pitching coach today. Rothschild has been the pitching coach for the Cubs and Marlins, and was also Tampa Bay's first-ever manager.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Uggla, Rollins, Giants, Upton
On this date 20 years ago, a 26-year-old Barry Bonds took home his first National League MVP Award thanks to a .301/.406/.565 season with the Pirates. He went on to win the award again in 1992, his final season in Pittsburgh, and then five more times with the Giants. The latter part of Bonds' career was clouded by PED allegations, but he did hit .301/.424/.566 in his final three seasons with the Pirates and .305/.438/.600 with far more unintentional walks (825) than strikeouts (685) from 1990-1998, age 26-34. Barry could have retired at that point and waltzed into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot.
Here's a look at the best the baseball blogosphere had to offer this week…
- We Should Be GMs celebrates Omar Vizquel, the last remaining active player from the 1980's.
- Capitol Avenue Club wonders what's next for the Braves following the Dan Uggla trade.
- Pittsburgh Lumber Co. contemplates Jorge de la Rosa.
- Meanwhile, Pine Tar And Pocket Protectors pieces together Pittsburgh's 2011 rotation.
- Baseball Analysts looks at Japanese pitchers and the hot stove.
- Crashburn Alley says that right now is a prime opportunity for the Phillies to sign Jimmy Rollins to a contract extension.
- Fenway Faithful Reports thinks that Victor Martinez is destined to sign with the Tigers.
- Splashing Pumpkins breaks down some shortstop options for the Giants.
- Baseball Time In Arlington explains the regression that the Rangers could experience.
- FanSpeak believes the Nationals should go all-in to acquire Justin Upton.
- Boston Sports Pulse provides a blueprint for the Red Sox offseason.
- Phoul Ballz looks at Matt Rizzotti, a Phillies' farmhand that will be eligible for this year's Rule 5 Draft.
- The Sports Banter finds some interesting minor league free agents.
- Cubs Billy Goat Blog lists some minor moves that could have a big impact on the Cubs.
- SPANdemonium muses about why teams have to wait a year before trading drafted players.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
Orioles To Bid On Nishioka
The Orioles' search for a shortstop has led them to Japan and to the trade market. They are going to bid on Japanese infielder Tsuyoshi Nishioka according to a Sports Hochi report relayed by Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. The Mariners and Padres also seem likely to bid, but the Giants will not bid and the D'Backs probably won't either.
The Dodgers and Cardinals have some interest in Nishioka and we should know the high bidder by early next week. The 26-year-old switch hitter batted .346 with 22 steals and 206 hits last year. ESPN.com's Keith Law and Newman recently offered more analysis of his game.
The Orioles have also discussed deals for J.J. Hardy and Jason Bartlett and have dangled David Hernandez. Dan Connolly of the Sun says he's not sure he would give up Hernandez for either shortstop, since he's a big believer in the right-hander's upside, particularly as a reliever.
Poll: Will Arizona Deal Justin Upton?
Recently, Justin Upton's name has popped up in trade talks as GM Kevin Towers seems willing to part ways with the 23-year-old – for the right price, of course. Several teams have been linked to the up-and-coming star, including the Red Sox, Yankees, and even the division rival Rockies. There's no shortage of interest in the slugger, but one has to wonder if the asking price will be too rich for everyone's blood.
Yesterday, an American League executive told Jon Heyman of SI that Arizona's asking price is "ridiculous." The D'Backs are said to be looking for at least four or five players in return that can help them in the short-term and long-term. Today, it was reported that half of the teams in baseball have shown interest in Upton but Towers will only ship the up-and-coming star if he comes away the clear victor in a trade. It makes one wonder if Arizona's recently-crowned GM is looking to trade Upton or if he is simply keeping an open mind to potential offers.
Will the D'Backs trade Upton?