Odds & Ends: Uggla, Soria, Romero, LaRoche
Fallout from the Zack Greinke deal continues to dominate the baseball landscape. We have more on that and some other items of note, too…
- Dan Uggla and the Braves are still hammering out a contract extension, tweets David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta GM Frank Wren said the progress between the sides has been steady and there have been no setbacks, but nothing's imminent, according to O'Brien. We heard last week that the Braves remain optimistic about extending Uggla, who is entering his final year of arbitration eligibility.
- The teams that inquired with the Royals about Zack Greinke were told that Joakim Soria will not be traded, tweets Jack Curry of the YES Network. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported earlier today that the Royals don't intend to move their closer. Soria, who will turn 27 in May, is considered one of the best young stoppers in the game and is signed to team-favorable terms through 2014, his age-30 season. Perhaps the combination of Soria's age and fair contract have persuaded the Royals to see that he's with Kansas City while its highly touted wave of young talent trickles into the bigs.
- Free-agent reliever J.C. Romero hopes that Dennys Reyes' failed physical might facilitate his own return to Philly, writes Randy Miller of the Bucks County Courier Times. The 34-year-old Romero, who spent the past three-plus seasons with the Phillies after they acquired him in a midseason deal in 2007, said he'd "definitely" like to return, just as Cliff Lee did.
- The Orioles' first choice to fill their vacancy at first base remains free agent Adam LaRoche, writes Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com. Baltimore and LaRoche have been "heavily involved" in talks, and LaRoche is "waiting for a few things" before deciding on a team. The Nationals and Padres are also pursuing him.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports noted some leftover tidbits from the Greinke deal, and here are a few of the highlights: The Yankees made a strong push for Greinke in July 2010, but the pitcher didn't want to leave the Royals then. The Royals liked a package of prospects the Blue Jays offered for Greinke, but he didn't want to play for Toronto. One rival executive said the Brewers' acquisition of Yuniesky Betancourt with Greinke "nullifies" the benefits of adding the ace.
- Greinke was readying for an offseason move late in the 2010 season, going so far as to shelve his toxic but arm-taxing slider, writes Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports.
Braves Agree To Sign Yohan Flande
The Braves have agreed to sign left-hander Yohan Flande to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training, tweets Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes.
Flande, 25 in January, has spent the last six seasons in the Phillies' farm system. He owns a 3.28 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 501.2 career innings, and spent all of 2010 with Philadelphia's Double-A affiliate. Baseball America ranked Flande as the 17th best prospect in their system before the 2010 season, noting that he sits at 91-92 mph with his fastball and backs it up with a "plus changeup, which gains deception from his stiff, unconventional arm action." They call him a back-of-the-rotation starter or lefty specialist.
Braves Remain Optimistic About Extending Uggla
2:46pm: The Braves have had positive dialogue with Uggla and remain optimistic about extending him, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).
1:11pm: The Braves are closing in on a five-year extension worth $60-61MM with Dan Uggla, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (on Twitter). Braves GM Frank Wren and agent Terry Bross were planning to discuss an extension earlier in the month. Uggla rejected a four-year, $48MM deal from the Marlins before the Braves acquired him in a November trade.
Uggla, 30, earned $7.8MM last year and would likely have earned over $10MM if he had gone to arbitration this winter. A five-year deal would buy out Uggla's last remaining season of arbitration plus four free agent years. The reported deal appears to value Uggla's four free agent seasons at $12.5MM each.
Uggla batted .287/.369/.508 with 33 homers last year. He won his first Silver Slugger and reached the 30-homer plateau for the fourth consecutive season.
Braves Sign George Sherrill
The Braves signed George Sherrill to a one-year deal worth at least $1.2MM. The agreement, which is official now that Sherrill passed his physical, could be worth as much as $1.4MM if the left-hander reaches certain incentives. Sexton/Landrum/Williams represents Sherrill.
Sherrill, 34 in April, was non-tendered by the Dodgers after a lost 2010 season. He's always been useful and sometimes dominant against lefties in his career. The Braves could be strong on the southpaw relief front, with Eric O'Flaherty and Jonny Venters already in the fold.
ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick first reported the agreement (on Twitter)
Pirates Close To Deal For Kawakami?
THURSDAY, 9:35am: The Pirates seem to be close to a deal for Kawakami, tweets Biertempfel. He says money is one issue, as is the possibility of the Pirates moving Paul Maholm.
1:10pm: The Braves are trying to see whether the Pirates or Orioles will pick up more of Kawakami's salary, tweets Biertempfel.
WEDNESDAY, 11:39am: The Pirates and Braves are still discussing a Kawakami trade, tweets Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
TUESDAY, 2:41pm: A Braves-Orioles Kawakami deal won't happen, tweets Connolly.
12:54pm: The Braves appear destined to unload righty Kenshin Kawakami, picking up much of the $6.67MM tab. The Pirates were linked to Kawakami yesterday, but Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review feels they may have cooled on him given the deals for Kevin Correia and Scott Olsen. Biertempfel says the Orioles are in the mix; Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports that the two teams have talked several times.
Kawakami is not the only available Braves starter; David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets that they'd trade Brandon Beachy in the right deal.
Braves Closing In On Deal With George Sherrill
The Braves are closing in on a deal with lefty reliever George Sherrill, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Sherrill, 34 in April, was non-tendered by the Dodgers after a lost 2010 season. He's always been useful and sometimes dominant against lefties in his career. The Braves could be strong on the southpaw relief front, with Eric O'Flaherty and Jonny Venters already in the fold.
Braves, Brewers Still Talking Trade
The Braves and Brewers continue to discuss trades that would send an outfielder to Atlanta for a young pitcher, reports MLB.com's Mark Bowman. However, the Brewers are more inclined to move Carlos Gomez than Lorenzo Cain. The Brewers requested Mike Minor for Cain, and the Braves balked at trading him or their other top young arms.
Brewers Rumors: Weeks, Capuano, Francis, Webb
The Brewers have had some trade discussions about Prince Fielder, and inquired on Matt Garza. Here are the rest of the details on the Crew:
- The Brewers had "productive" talks with Rickie Weeks' representatives about a potential extension, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Assistant GM Gord Ash says the sides have "reason to continue to talk" to Weeks, who can become a free agent after the 2011 season.
- GM Doug Melvin told Haudricourt that he intends to meet with the agent for Craig Counsell and work a deal out soon. The Brewers have made the veteran infielder more than one proposal.
- The Brewers have another offer out to Chris Capuano and are waiting to hear from him.
- Manager Ron Roenicke says the team would like to pair Jonathan Lucroy with a veteran catcher next year, according to Haudricourt (Twitter link).
- The Brewers seem hesitant to commit to a pitcher coming back from an injury, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
- Melvin says the Brewers haven't called the agent for Jeff Francis, though they've been linked to the left-hander repeatedly. The team scouted Brandon Webb, but their level of interest in the former Cy Young Award winner seems low.
- The Brewers have had discussions with the Braves, but Melvin says he doesn't have any ongoing talks with Atlanta.
Possible Extensions For Pujols, Uggla, Cahill
TUESDAY, 7:39pm: Braves GM Frank Wren and agent Terry Bross will discuss an Uggla extension soon, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Wren says he would like to sign Uggla to an extension and is optimistic about reaching one.
MONDAY, 8:43pm: The Cardinals, Braves and Athletics have interest in locking up star players to multiyear extensions. Cardinals GM John Mozeliak met with the representatives for Albert Pujols today, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter).
The Marlins traded Dan Uggla to Atlanta partly because extension talks with the second baseman stalled, but the Braves are now making progress on a possible extension, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). Uggla, who turned down a four-year, $48MM offer from the Marlins this fall, will likely earn about $10MM in 2011.
The A's are exploring a possible multiyear deal with Trevor Cahill, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). The 22-year-old is under team control through 2014. It wouldn't be the first time GM Billy Beane has locked up a young starter, as Tim Hudson, Barry Zito, Rich Harden, Dan Haren and Brett Anderson will attest.
Zack Greinke Rumors: Monday
Zack Greinke appears willing to waive his no-trade clause in any deal, but his list of potential suitors appeared to shrink when the Brewers acquired Shaun Marcum. Milwaukee tried to pry Greinke away from the Royals, but found that GM Dayton Moore was asking a lot for the 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner. We'll keep track of all the day's Greinke rumors right here:
- The Royals appear to be tiring of the Rangers' offers, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Discussions with Toronto appear to hinge on the Blue Jays' willingness to include Kyle Drabek and Travis Snider in a potential deal. Royals officials say a deal could come together in a hurry if the Blue Jays decide they're willing to part with those two players.
- The Reds have not talked to the Royals about a potential Greinke deal, according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
- The Braves are not pursuing Greinke and have not been pursuing him, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter).