Braves Avoid Arb With Kelly Johnson
According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Braves avoided arbitration with second baseman Kelly Johnson by signing him at $2.825MM for ’09. The base salary is right at the midpoint of the filings, and Johnson can earn a bit more with awards incentives.
Ken Griffey Jr. Rumors: Tuesday
7:33pm: Griffey’s agent sent a text to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer this evening stating that "nothing about the situation has changed." Apparently Junior’s camp is keeping quiet, maybe until tomorrow.
3:13pm: O’Brien explains why he believes Griffey denied his report:
I would suggest that Griffey and his agent had told the Mariners they would talk to them this afternoon before making any decision, and that they plan to do that before announcing any decision.
1:24pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman says Griffey is telling friends he’ll choose the Braves.
12:58pm: C. Trent Rosecrans talked to Griffey’s agent Brian Goldberg, who said it’s "not true" that the Braves have an agreement with his client. Griffey has not yet decided on a team. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman and Jim Street spoke to Griffey, who verified that he has not reached a decision. Look for that decision later today or tomorrow morning.
11:38am: O’Brien says Griffey chose the Braves and his agent will meet with Frank Wren today to finalize the deal. The Braves and Mariners both made offers with about $2MM guaranteed. O’Brien says Junior will platoon in left field with Matt Diaz for the most part.
10:41am: According to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
I’m told Ken Griffey Jr. has already agreed to terms with Braves, though no announcement yet, and agent is supposed to meet with Wren again today to finalize things. Don’t know about a physical, whether he’s getting it now or what.
Braves Rumors: Griffey, Glavine, Johnson
MLB.com’s Mark Bowman and The News Tribune’s Larry LaRue both have a gut feeling that Ken Griffey Jr. will sign with the Braves soon. Atlanta is a better fit for Junior in all kinds of ways.
It’s all speculative right now, but Bowman also wonders if the Braves will announce a Tom Glavine signing alongside Griffey tomorrow. His guess at the two players they’d remove from the 40-man: Anthony Lerew and Gregor Blanco. Ken Rosenthal wrote last night that the Braves were close to re-signing Glavine. David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution weighs in via the comments section of his blog:
The Glavine thing is a given at this point, folks. A done deal, save for crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s. Trust me on that one. And I’d say it’s highly likely that Griffey is going to be a Brave. Almost certain he’s going to choose Atlanta. If I’m wrong, I’m wrong. But I’d put it at 90 percent or so that he’s picking the Braves.
O’Brien also writes about Kelly Johnson, who hopes to settle before Thursday’s arbitration hearing.
Braves Close To Deal With Tom Glavine
9:50pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Braves are close to re-signing Glavine. The lefty could potentially earn $4.5MM; here are the details:
Glavine would receive a $1MM guarantee, $1MM for making the Opening Day roster and two additional bonuses tied to the number of the days he is active, the source said.
6:22pm: According to the Associated Press, via ESPN.com, the Braves are making progress with free agent Tom Glavine.
The club made him a new offer this weekend worth $1MM guaranteed and another $3MM in deferred incentives. Glavine and his agent, Gregg Clifton, are obviously pining for more guaranteed cash.
"We continue to make progress," Clifton told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Monday. "When you have two sides that want to be together, it shouldn’t be too difficult to reach a resolution."
Ken Griffey Jr. Rumors: Monday
5:01pm: According to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman, Griffey met with Braves GM Frank Wren earlier today. It sounds like Junior will be making his decision on Tuesday.
Wren is scheduled to meet with Griffey’s agent, Brian Goldberg, on Tuesday and in the hours that follow, the veteran outfielder will likely announce whether he’ll be playing for the Braves or Mariners this year, writes Bowman.
1:10pm: Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times has more on the topic. He’s learned that Griffey will decide today or early tomorrow at the latest.
10:00am: Over the weekend we learned that Ken Griffey Jr. is campaigning to play for the Braves, and they may be willing to offer him $1.5MM.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Griffey may decide today. One of Rosenthal’s sources still believes it could go either way (Braves or Mariners). Both teams are considering Griffey and Garret Anderson.
Ken Griffey Jr. Rumors: Sunday
9:03pm: Another interesting item from Bowman:
About a week ago, [Nick] Swisher seemed to be at the top of the wish list. But that was before Griffey called the Braves and campaigned for the opportunity to play for Atlanta.
As more and more information pours out, it really sounds like Junior wants to, and is going to, end up with the Braves.
5:38pm: According to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman, "It’s believed the Braves are willing to offer Griffey a one-year deal worth up to $1.5 million."
The Mariners can probably afford to make a counter offer that beats that number but, as was reported yesterday, M’s CEO Howard Lincoln is less than enthused about the idea of getting into a bidding war with the Braves.
3:12pm: Jayson Stark’s latest article discusses Griffey and Atlanta. Has he wanted to play there for years? The answer to that question is yes, according to Chipper Jones. And Chipper would love to have Griffey in Atlanta as well:
"He’s a guy who can still hit," said Chipper Jones, who would figure to find Griffey keeping him company in the middle of the lineup. "I played with him a few years ago in the [World Baseball] Classic, and he was our best hitter. He’s got a knack for being able to turn it up and prove people wrong."
Stark writes that Griffey has moved ahead of both Garret Anderson and Nick Swisher on the Braves’ list, and points out that Junior can still hit righties very well, making him an ideal platoon candidate with Matt Diaz.
11:04am: There were lots of rumors surrounding Ken Griffey, Jr. and the Braves yesterday. Jon Heyman puts it simply:
"It appears likely that Griffey and [Garret] Anderson will wind up in Atlanta and Seattle. The big question at this point is which player will end up with which team."
While Griffey lives in Orlando and has a daughter playing AAU basketball in Georgia, Anderson is a resident of Southern California with more recent success in the AL West. Still, Heyman notes Griffey is the prize here because of the draw he brings to the stadium, a draw that would even allow the M’s to stretch their budget for the added revenue Griffey brings in.
Braves Make New Offer To Glavine
SUNDAY: Jayson Stark says that a reunion between the two sides is becoming more likely. He quotes Braves GM Frank Wren as saying:
"I think we’ve made some progress," GM Frank Wren told ESPN.com Sunday. "I think there’s a true desire on both parties to get something done."
FRIDAY: Yesterday, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports mentioned these details on Tom Glavine‘s contract aspirations:
Glavine is seeking a guarantee of $3MM, plus incentives that could push the total value of his package into the $6MM range. He is willing to defer a portion of his salary.
Today, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman says the Braves have offered a new one-year proposal that would defer the incentives for up to five years. The offer guarantees $1MM, with a chance to earn another $3MM in deferred incentives. Bowman suggests both sides are more optimistic today than they were yesterday.
Braves Interested In Griffey
8:21pm: Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times had a conversation with Mariners CEO Howard Lincoln on Saturday and Griffey was obviously a topic of discussion. Lincoln seemed less than enthused about the possibility of getting into a bidding war with the Braves.
"Everybody always wants more money, that’s reality,” he said. "It doesn’t matter whether it’s the baseball business or any other business. But you’ve got to go with what you’ve got.”
6:14pm: David O’Brien took to the comments section of his blog for a little more insight on the Griffey situation:
Atlanta is his first choice. He really wants to play for the Braves. Has a daughter on an Atlanta AAU team and a son who’s playing high school football this year in Orlando, and Griffey doesn’t want to be on the other side of the country at Seattle. Plus, he’s always wanted to play for Bobby Cox.
If I had to bet, I’d say this gets done early next week.
5:28pm: So much for the whole "agent leaking" theory. Braves GM Frank Wren just confirmed to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s David O’Brien that his club does indeed have interest in Griffey:
"We have interest in several available outfielders, including Griffey," said Wren.
5:22pm: The Tacoma News Tribune’s Ryan Divish suggests that the Braves’ reported interest in Griffey "could be another case of an agent leaking some info to the media to make it seem like his client is coveted to enhance his positions in negotiations."
It’s just speculation, but it’s definitely a possibility. With Griffey off playing in a Pro-Am tournament at Pebble Beach, his agent might as well stir the pot.
2:33pm: Jerry Crasnick at ESPN.com reports that the Atlanta Braves are looking to acquire Ken Griffey, Jr.. According to Crasnick’s sources, "Griffey is Atlanta’s prime target."
Crasnick says there is mutual interest between the two parties. Griffey lives in Orlando, where the Braves’ spring training facilities are located. Also, Griffey may benefit from the ability to split time with Matt Diaz in left field.
If the Braves miss on Griffey, their next likely target would be Garrett Anderson.
Odds and Ends: Dunn, Schumaker, Abreu
Links for Friday…
- The Blue Jays signed pitcher Dirk Hayhurst to a minor league deal; they’d released him to make room for Matt Bush.
- Alex Speier of WEEI has quotes from John Smoltz about his departure from Atlanta. Smoltz leaving the Braves was the biggest surprise of the offseason for me.
- ESPN’s Jayson Stark surveyed 15 baseball sages for all kinds of opinions on the best and worst of the offseason (which is not officially over yet).
- Dave Sheinin of the Washington Post has more from the Adam Dunn press conference.
- Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch sees Skip Schumaker as the Cardinals outfielder most vulnerable to a trade.
- ESPN’s Keith Law weighs in on the Bobby Abreu signing.
- Kevin Goldstein’s Top 100 Prospects list is up over at Baseball Prospectus.
- Scott Moore cleared waivers; he’ll remain in the Orioles organization.
- My definition of a fantasy baseball sleeper, over at RotoAuthority.
- Shoutout: MLBTR had over 9,800 pageviews from Puerto Rico this month.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Red Sox, Cruz, Angels, Jays, Braves
On this date 14 years ago, Hideo Nomo signed with the Dodgers after "retiring" from professional baseball in Japan, becoming the first Japanese player in the big leagues in over 30 years. Nomo would go on to win 123 games in 12 big league seasons, including two no-hitters. Since then, at least 25 other pitchers have made the jump from Japan to the U.S. and Nomo is arguably still the best to make the move. With several big names still looking for their own big league contract, let’s take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…
- Fire Brand of the American League speculates on some in-season trade targets for the Red Sox.
- MLB Notebook takes a look at the players most affected by the recent signings of Bobby Abreu and Adam Dunn.
- Jorge Says No! takes a look at the market for Juan Cruz.
- The Sports Banter reflects on what they consider to be a "disappointing" offseason for the Angels.
- UmpBump recaps the offseason for the Blue Jays and looks at their projected lineup.
- Braves Blast rummages through the scraps of what is left for the Braves outfield now that most of the big names have signed elsewhere.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here.