Olney On Chipper, Sherrill, Torre, Gonzalez
Chipper Jones told ESPN.com's Buster Olney that he and Jim Thome met and complained "like two old grannies" last summer when Jones was struggling and Thome wasn't playing much. Thome finished strong and re-signed with the Twins and Jones is eager to play again, too. Here are the details on Jones and from around the majors:
- Jones says getting rest every week or ten days helps him stay strong throughout the season. The veteran third baseman has only played in 135 games once in the past six seasons because of a variety of injuries, so it makes sense to give him the occasional day off.
- The Phillies tried to sign George Sherrill this winter, before he signed with the rival Braves. Philadelphia sent executive Pat Gillick to see Sherrill and manager Charlie Manuel talked to him, but the left-hander wanted to play within driving distance of his father.
- Joe Torre makes about $2MM in his new job with MLB, according to Olney.
- Gio Gonzalez looks very, very good, according to a scout.
NL East Notes: Beltran, Cox, Vazquez
On this date five years ago, the Mets signed Pedro Feliciano, who had spent the previous season playing for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of the NPB. He posted a 3.09 ERA from 2006-10, appearing in more than half of the Mets' games during that time. Feliciano and his durable left arm still play for a New York team, but he will now show up for work at Yankee Stadium. Here's the latest on the NL East…
- Carlos Beltran says he'll move to right field to keep Angel Pagan in center. Beltran explained that Carlos Delgado and agent Scott Boras helped him make the decision, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post. Beltran, a free agent after the season, says he feels capable of playing center field, but wants to do what's best for the Mets.
- ESPN.com's Jayson Stark details the transition from Bobby Cox to Fredi Gonzalez, explaining that the Braves were not looking for something "dramatically different from the previous administration." Gonzalez says the Braves model is "really not broke," so he isn't looking to make radical changes.
- New acquisition Javier Vazquez was only throwing 88 mph yesterday, but the Marlins aren't concerned about his velocity, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post. Vazquez, who has consistently thrown 91-92 mph throughout his career, averaged 88.7 mph on his fastball last year.
AL East Notes: Yankees, Werth, Pavano, Jays, Rays
Seven years ago today, the Yankees signed Eduardo Nunez as a free agent out of the Dominican Republic. Now 23, Nunez is in the mix to be New York's utility infielder in 2011 after hitting .280/.321/.360 with more walks (three) than strikeouts (two) in his brief big league debut last season (53 PA).
Here are some more notes that have to do with the Yanks and their fellow AL East clubs…
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post reports that the Yankees "have told their scouts to bear down on several teams they think could have starters available" in a trade this summer. The teams they are targeting include the Braves, Angels, A's, White Sox, and Cardinals according to Sherman.
- Jayson Werth told SI.com's Jon Heyman that he had a "great" meeting with the Red Sox earlier this offseason, after which he figured they would offer six years (Twitter link). They only offered five, so he ended up with the Nationals.
- Carl Pavano spoke to Kelsie Smith of The Pioneer Press about being pursued by the Yankees this offseason. "I don't think [the past] would be a hindrance, but there would have definitely been obstacles," said Pavano. "I'm not naïve enough to think that there wouldn't have been things I would have had to overcome, especially the trust of the fans and maybe some of the guys that were there. That's reality."
- Richard Griffin of The Toronto Star notes (on Twitter) that four of the Blue Jays' ten highest paid players are former closers: Jason Frasor, Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch, and Octavio Dotel.
- When asked about the payroll disparity between his Rays and other teams in the division, Joe Maddon told Ken Davidoff of Newsday that he's "never seen a dollar bill throw a strike, or hit a homer, or whatever." (Twitter link)
Discussion: Should The Braves Shop Their Starters?
Earlier today, the Cardinals confirmed that Adam Wainwright will undergo Tommy John surgery, shelving him for all of 2011. Without last year's Cy Young runner-up, St. Louis will certainly be in the market for a pitching upgrade. They're not the only team that could use a rotation boost, however. The Yankees and Nationals would like to shore up their respective starting fives, as would the Indians, though they likely can't afford a hefty contract.
Despite the need for pitching around the league, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez doesn't expect the club to move any of its starters. Earlier today, Buster Olney noted that the Yankees have not inquired on veteran Tim Hudson but is sure that the club would love to have him. Fellow vet Derek Lowe could also hold some value, but the righty is owed $30MM across the next two seasons.
The rotation is rounded out with Tommy Hanson and Jair Jurrjens with Mike Minor, Rodrigo Lopez, Brandon Beachy as fifth-spot candidates, leaving the Braves with plenty of depth. Obviously, if Atlanta were to part with a hurler, they would opt to trade away Kenshin Kawakami, though finding a taker for his $6.67MM salary might be easier said than done. The club has dangled the 35-year-old for quite some time but might have to instead settle for selling him to a Japanese team, which would pick up half of his contract.
If you were in GM Frank Wren's position, would you sacrifice some of your pitching depth to upgrade elsewhere or would you prefer to hang on to your starters as insurance?
Pitching Notes: Hudson, Buehrle, Carpenter
A few pitching notes from around the league…
- In today's blog post at ESPN (Insider req'd), Buster Olney reports that the Yankees did not inquire about Tim Hudson. Yesterday we heard that the Braves aren't looking to move one of their starters anyway.
- Within the same post, Olney says he finds the timing of the report about White Sox ace Mark Buehrle's willingness to accept a trade interesting. It's been presumed that the Missouri native would embrace a chance to pitch for the Cardinals at some point, and St. Louis now has an opening in its rotation with Adam Wainwright headed for Tommy John surgery.
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post believes Cardinals co-ace Chris Carpenter could potentially be a fit for the Yankees, and the news of Wainwright's injury makes him wonder if Carpenter will "become available in a stronger way." I looked at how Wainwright's injury could have a trickle down effect on the Yankees over at River Ave. Blues.
Minor Moves: Sisco, Mujica, Russell, Armstrong
Some Minor League moves of note as some teams try to trim rosters and others look to amass organizational depth.
- The Yankees released left-handed pitcher Andy Sisco, tweets Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Sisco has bounced around in recent years and last appeared in the big leagues with the White Sox in 2007.
- The Yankees and Braves each inked a veteran international free agent, with New York signing Cuban shortstop Yadil Mujica and Atlanta signing Australian outfielder-turned-pitcher Andrew Russell, a righty, tweets Eddy.
- The Angels signed catcher Cole Armstrong, who could claim a spot on the Halos' 40-man roster as a defense-first specialist, tweets Eddy.
Gonzalez Doesn’t Expect Braves To Trade A Starter
It was just a few years ago that the Braves seemed desperate for starting pitching help, but now they boast enough that new manager Fredi Gonzalez is being asked about potential trades. Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution picked up this quote from skipper, who was asked about moving one of his arms…
"[Are we] looking at trading somebody? Oh, no, no, no," said Gonzalez. "No. No. I think this is where you build your team from. Your strength is your starting pitching. No, I don’t anticipate us moving any of those guys."
The Braves currently have Tim Hudson, Derek Lowe, Tommy Hanson, and Jair Jurrjens penciled into the rotation, with Mike Minor, Brandon Beachy, and Rodrigo Lopez around to serve as the fifth starter and depth. Kenshin Kawakami has been on the trade block all winter, but so far no one has bit because of his $6.667MM salary.
Earlier today we heard that the Twins weren't necessarily eager to deal one of their excess starting pitchers either, but if they or the Braves decided to act, they'll surely find a robust market. The Yankees are known to be seeking rotation help, as are the Indians and Nationals. The Cardinals are also facing the possibility of losing Adam Wainwright for the season.
Quick Hits: Athletics, Cabrera, Jeter, Braves, Janssen
Let's take a look at some links for Monday night..
- Jane Lee of MLB.com writes that Athletics manager Bob Geren believes that his club has improved by leaps and bounds this winter.
- Recent addition Orlando Cabrera might not hold the Indians' starting second-base job for long, writes Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.
- Yankees captain Derek Jeter is not going to be happy about the comments made by Hank Steinbrenner earlier today, writes Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.
- David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution points out that Braves GM Frank Wren is now under contract for the same period as manager Fredi Gonzalez, whom he hired to replace Bobby Cox. Earlier today the two sides agreed to a two-year contract extension.
- There may not be a spot in the Blue Jays' bullpen for pitcher Casey Janssen but the veteran says he's not looking for a way out of Toronto, writes Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com.
- New to San Diego, Jorge Cantu says that he's ready to produce even though he'll be asked to move around the diamond, writes MLB.com's Tom Singer. The Padres offically inked Cantu to a one-year deal worth $850K towards the end of January.
- Speaking of brand new members of the Pads, Kevin Frandsen is delighted to be back in the National League, tweets Dan Hayes of the North County Times.
Braves Extend Frank Wren
The Braves signed GM Frank Wren to a two-year contract extension through 2013, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman (on Twitter). Wren, who took over as GM when John Schuerholz became team president after the 2007 season, led Atlanta to its first playoff berth since 2005 last year.
The Braves, who have graduated Jason Heyward, Tommy Hanson and Jonny Venters to the majors in recent years, still boast one of the game's best farm systems. Baseball America ranked the Braves' system second in baseball and says Atlanta is "developing the industry's hardest-throwing, deepest pool of pitching prospects." Prospects Julio Teheran, Mike Minor, Randall Delgado and Arodys Vizcaino could become impact major leaguers by the time Wren's new extension expires.
Wren's notable Major League acquisitions include Dan Uggla (trade), Kenshin Kawakami (signing), Alex Gonzalez (trade), Takashi Saito (signing), Billy Wagner (signing), Tom Glavine (signing), Garret Anderson (signing), Derek Lowe (signing), Derrek Lee (trade), Adam LaRoche (trade), Javier Vazquez (trade) and Jair Jurrjens (trade), as MLBTR's Transaction Tracker shows.
Minor Moves: Geary, Perkins, Cotts, Petit
Some minor league moves from early Spring Training…
- The Padres signed righty reliever Geoff Geary, tweets Baseball America's Matt Eddy. He did not pitch in the majors last season, instead appearing in 31 games for the Triple-A affiliates of the Rangers and Dodgers (4.32 ERA).
- The Padres also released infielder Gregorio Petit, tweet Eddy. He signed on with San Diego back in December.
- The Yankees signed righty reliever Fernando Hernandez, tweets Eddy. The 26-year-old pitched in three games with the 2008 A's as a Rule 5 Pick, though he spent last year with their Triple-A affiliate (4.77 ERA in 77 1/3 innings).
- The Yankees also released Neal Cotts, reports Marc Carig of The Star Ledger (Twitter link). Cotts signed a minor league deal in November, but was still coming back from Tommy John and hip surgeries.
- The Blue Jays signed Vince Perkins, who they originally drafted back in 2000, tweets Eddy. The Canadian-born right-hander last pitched in 2009, when he made 53 appearances in the Cubs' minor league system (3.02 ERA).
- The Braves signed left-hander Jose Lugo, tweets Eddy. The 25-year-old posted a 6.72 ERA with 8.8 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 in 85 2/3 innings with the Twins' Triple-A affiliate last season.