Quick Hits: Guerrero, Kawakami, Johnson, Dodgers
Some links from around the majors as the market for Vladimir Guerrero becomes a little clearer…
- When I looked at possible destinations for Guerrero last week, I listed the Rangers, Angels, Orioles and Blue Jays. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that the Rays are not in on Guerrero, which makes sense, since they already added Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez (Twitter link).
- The Braves would like to trade Kenshin Kawakami this spring, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter). The Braves have a number of starting pitching options without Kawakami, especially now that they've signed Rodrigo Lopez.
- D'Backs GM Kevin Towers told MLB.com's Steve Gilbert that he considers Kelly Johnson's arbitration case a tough one, but hopes to "create some dialogue" before the sides go to a hearing. As our Arb Tracker shows, Johnson asked for $6.5MM while the D'Backs countered with a $4.7MM offer.
- Longtime Astros right-hander Brandon Backe, who last pitched in the majors in June of 2009 and is recovering from a pair of shoulder operations, told Stephen Goff of the Houston Examiner that he is working toward a possible comeback.
- The Dodgers signed right-hander Merkin Valdez to a minor league deal, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The 29-year-old appeared in two games for the Blue Jays last year after spending parts of three seasons with the Giants.
Braves Sign Rodrigo Lopez
The Braves announced that they signed Rodrigo Lopez to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse (Twitter link).
The Braves' rotation is already deep; Tim Hudson, Derek Lowe, Tommy Hanson and Jair Jurrjens provide manager Fredi Gonzalez with four solid starters. Lopez will presumably battle with Mike Minor for a rotation spot and Kenshin Kawakami and Brandon Beachy provide Atlanta with even more options.
Lopez logged 200 innings for the Diamondbacks last year, posting a 5.00 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9. The 35-year-old induced more fly balls than ground balls last year, posting a 37.6% ground ball rate. Lopez underwent Tommy John surgery in 2007 and missed time with shoulder inflammation in 2009 before recovering to start 33 games last year, the second-highest total of his career.
Rodrigo Lopez Weighing Offers From Braves, Mets, Rockies
Rodrigo Lopez "expects to decide to sign" with either the Braves, Mets or Rockies by the end of the weekend, reports ESPN.com's Jayson Stark (ESPN Insider subscription required). All three contracts are non-roster invitations to Spring Training, with various performances bonuses attached.
Lopez, 35, allowed a league-high 37 homers and 111 earned runs last season, posting a 5.00 ERA and a 2.07 K/BB ratio in 33 starts with Arizona. Lopez has already played for the Rockies (in 2007) and has also pitched for the Padres, Orioles and Phillies in his nine-year Major League career, missing the 2008 season due to Tommy John surgery.
Make Or Break Year: Nate McLouth
We tend to hear a lot about "selling high" on a player during the offseason, which means trading a player when his value is at its absolute apex. It's a difficult thing to do for a number of reasons, especially when it involves a young player who might just be on the upswing of his career. Pirates GM Neal Huntington sold high on Nate McLouth two summers ago, dealing his All Star center fielder to the Braves for three young players in June of 2009.
The year before the trade, the then 27-year-old McLouth broke out by hitting .276/.356/.497 with 26 homers, earning a Gold Glove for his defensive effort in center field. At the time of the trade he was hitting a more than respectable .256/.349/.470. Unsurprisingly, reaction to the trade was mostly negative in Pittsburgh, and it didn't go over well in the clubhouse either.
McLouth gave the Braves a respectable .257/.354/.419 performance in the three months after the trade, but the good times ended there. He hit just .118/.217/.196 in Spring Training last year, then followed that up with a .176/.295/.282 performance in his first 205 plate appearances of the season. A collision with Jason Heyward sent McLouth to the disabled list with a concussion in early-June, then Atlanta decided to send him to minors after he returned in late-July. He hit just .234/.338/.383 in 151 trips to the plate in Triple-A before finishing the season with a .263/.358/.509 performance (68 PA) while playing sparingly after coming back up in late-August.
Since the trade, the now-29-year-old McLouth has hit just .229/.330/.379 with 17 homers in 684 plate appearances. His -25.8 UZR since 2008 ranks 48th out of 58 qualified outfielders, just a touch better than Carlos Lee. Was 2010 a fluke season for McLouth, or was it the sign of a bigger problem after the league got a chance to put together a book on him?
The Pirates gave McLouth a three-year contract extension before the 2009 season, and right now it seems pretty unlikely that the Braves will exercise his $10.65MM club option for 2012 after the upcoming season without significant improvement in his performance. His main competition in center field is Jordan Schafer (.201/.268/.255 in 307 minor league PA in 2010), so McLouth will definitely have the opportunity to show what he's got before hitting the open market in a little more than ten months.
Braves Not Pursuing Jorge Cantu
6:39pm: Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution confirmed that the Braves discussed Cantu, but they have decided not to pursue him. His source says they only wanted him for a bench role and to mainly backup rookie Freddie Freeman at first base (Twitter links).
12:31pm: The Padres and Braves appear to be the front-runners to land Jorge Cantu, writes Stephen Goff of the Houston Astros Examiner. In addition to San Diego and Atlanta, Cleveland remains a potential destination for the infielder.
Cantu, who turns 29 next weekend, expressed some disappointment that he wasn't able to work out a deal with his hometown Astros, but is optimistic about securing a contract with another team:
"We've been talking to Atlanta, Houston, San Diego and Cleveland," Cantu said. "We were really trying with Houston, but talks have just ceased with them, which is unfortunate…. Still, San Diego is talking a lot. I like San Diego. They have a winning ballclub and had a great pitching staff last year. I wouldn't mind going over there."
The Rockies, Mariners, and Diamondbacks have also been linked to Cantu at various times this offseason, though it's unclear if they still have any interest.
Quick Hits: Yankees, Bradley, Padres, Teheran
What a day for outfielders. Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez went to the Rays, Vernon Wells went to the Angels, Vladimir Guerrero could be going to the Orioles and maybe the greatest outfielder of all time went to a New York City public school.
Some news items on a busy Friday in the majors…
- Yankee fans, be warned: SI's Tom Verducci looks at how Mark Teixeira could be headed for a decline.
- The Yankees could probably afford to sign Albert Pujols as a free agent next winter, but Mike Axisa of the River Avenue Blues blog points to Teixeira's presence and the albatross of Alex Rodriguez's giant contract as reasons why Pujols just doesn't fit in the Bronx.
- Geoff Baker and Larry Stone of the Seattle Times agree that a split between Milton Bradley and the Mariners would be beneficial to both the player and the team.
- Jed Hoyer and Bud Black predict the Padres' offense won't suffer much of a dropoff without Adrian Gonzalez, reports MLB.com's Corey Brock. "I think our offense has the potential to be as good as last year," Hoyer said. "We lost our clear best player [Gonzalez], but we have better balance. The positions we were weak last year, we're better at now."
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman profiles Julio Teheran, a 19-year-old right-hander and non-roster invitee to the Braves' Spring Training camp who has drawn comparisons to Pedro Martinez.
- The Reds wanted to bring back Arthur Rhodes, but the Rangers' willingness to give Rhodes a vesting option for 2012 was an offer Cincinnati just couldn't match, says MLB.com's Mark Sheldon as part of a reader mailbag.
Quick Hits: Wagner, Andruw, Chavez, Upton
One year ago today, the Angels signed Joel Pineiro to a two-year, $16MM deal. Yesterday, the Twins agreed to a similar deal with a similar pitcher: Carl Pavano. Here are today's links…
- Billy Wagner is on the Braves' 40-man roster, but the lefty is going to retire as planned, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports explains.
- Agent Scott Boras and Yankees GM Brian Cashman had a long meeting about Andruw Jones yesterday, but the sides are still apart on money, Jack Curry of the YES Network reports (on Twitter). Jones appeared to be nearing a deal with the Yankees earlier in the week.
- Eric Chavez worked out for the Dodgers today, according to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick. The Mariners and Blue Jays have also been linked to the six-time Gold Glover and Gurnick says the White Sox and Yankees are potential suitors for Chavez.
- B.J. Upton told Joe Smith of the St. Petersburg Times that he would consider signing a long-term deal in Tampa Bay if the Rays approached him about one. The center fielder signed a one-year deal earlier in the week, avoiding arbitration.
Players To Avoid Arbitration: Tuesday
Today is the deadline for players and teams to submit arbitration figures. The sides will then settle on a salary between the team's proposed number and the player's proposed number or go to an arbitration hearing. Arbitration eligible players are under team control, so the clubs don't risk losing them – it's a question of how much the players will earn.
Yesterday, 11 players avoided arbitration. We could see just as many agreements trickle in today and we'll keep you posted on them right here and with our Arb Tracker. The latest updates will be at the top of the post:
- The Angels have agreed to terms with Reggie Willits and Howie Kendrick, tweets Bill Shaikin of The Los Angeles Times. Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register tweets that Kendrick will earn $3.3MM, Willits $775K (on Twitter).
- The Giants agreed to terms with Santiago Casilla on a one-year deal worth $1.3MM with incentives, according to ESPN Deportes' Enrique Rojas (on Twitter). The team also announced that they avoided arb with Jonathan Sanchez and Ramon Ramirez (on Twitter). Sanchez will earn $4.8MM with incentives tweets Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle while Ramirez will earn $1.65MM according to Janie McCauley of The Canadian Press.
- The Braves agreed to terms with Peter Moylan and Eric O'Flaherty, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman (on Twitter). Moylan gets $2MM, O'Flaherty gets $895K according to Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter).
- The Mariners agreed to terms with Brandon League, David Aardsma and Jason Vargas, the team announced. Aardsma will earn $4.5MM with plenty of incentives, according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times (plus Twitter link).
- The Rangers agreed to terms with C.J. Wilson and Nelson Cruz, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan (Twitter links). Cruz gets $3.65MM, and Wilson gets $7.05MM with a chance to earn another $100K according to his agent Bob Garber, via email.
Braves Claim Anthony Varvaro
The Braves have claimed Anthony Varvaro off waivers from the Mariners, reports MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Seattle designated the right-hander for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for Miguel Olivo earlier this month.
Varvaro, 26, made his big league debut this past season, allowing five runs in four innings out of the Mariners' bullpen. The Tommy John surgery survivor pitched to a 4.02 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9 in 65 relief innings at the Double and Triple-A levels in 2010. Baseball America ranked Varvaro as Seattle's 30th best prospect before the 2008 season, noting that he sits in the low-90's with his fastball.
Boras Talks Damon, Andruw, Manny
Scott Boras told ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick that Johnny Damon, Andruw Jones and Manny Ramirez can boost fan interest, TV ratings and revenue for MLB teams. Not only that, the agent insists his clients can be key players on winning clubs.
"These guys are star players," Boras said. "They're championship-caliber players. Owners and general managers know they have extraordinary abilities, and they can be a force in the locker room and around young players."
Crasnick surveyed MLB executives and scouts about the three stars and heard the Angels and Rays mentioned as possibilities for Damon. The Dodgers, who have also been linked to the 37-year-old, are “unlikely” to sign him, according to a source familiar with the team’s thinking. The Yankees haven’t ruled out a reunion with Damon, but they’re only interested in him as a fourth outfielder, according to Crasnick.
Jones, another Yankees target, “still has value as an extra outfielder who can fill in at all three spots and mash left-handed pitching," an AL assistant GM said. The Braves briefly discussed a reunion with Jones and the Rockies are another possible fit.
Despite speculation that Ramirez could be a fit in Toronto, where former Red Sox coach John Farrell will take over as manager, it isn’t a likely match. In fact, Crasnick suggests Farrell’s familiarity with the slugger could make the Jays less likely to sign Manny. Tampa Bay could be a fit for Ramirez, who definitely wants to play in 2011, according to Boras.