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Kurkjian Reports: Byrnes, Ibanez, Dunn

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Tim Kurkjian at ESPN.com has a Friday morning round up for us, looking at several prominent team needs around the league.

While the article mentions several big names like Mike Mussina, Matt Holliday, Francisco Rodriguez and Trevor Hoffman, perhaps the most interesting part of Kurkjian’s article is that which discusses the offseason plan for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Part of that plan may include trading outfielder Eric Byrnes. Byrnes has two years and $20MM left on his deal with the D’Backs, and will be a challenge to move, says Kurkjian. Byrnes certainly has upside, with great speed and decent pop. But injuries have kept him from really breaking out in the past.

Also, Kurkjian offers Raul Ibanez as an "ideal" solution to Arizona’s everyday player needs. However, he doesn’t expect the D’Backs to be able to keep up in what is expected to be a fierece bidding competition for the right fielder. With the Mets, Phillies, and Cubs apparently involved, Kurkjian would appear to be spot on in that assessment.

The Diamondbacks have a lot of needs to address with just a little bit of money–Adam Dunn, Orlando Hudson, Randy Johnson, Brandon Lyon and Juan Cruz are all likely departing via free agency this offseason.

Freddy Garcia Injures Shoulder

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Cubs f/x reports Freddy Garcia has injured his throwing shoulder during a game in the Venezuelan Winter League. The post cites a pair of sources, including an official team website and an article at Venezuelan newspaper El Universal.

The extent of the injury is presently unknown, but regardless, it certainly won’t help convince teams to sign Garcia to any sort of substantial contract this offseason.

Fewer starting pitching options may push contract values up, but few teams were likely pinning their hopes for a World Series on a healthy and effective Freddy Garcia.

Alex Walsh can be reached at alexander.walsh@gmail.com.

Phillies Sign Mike Koplove

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The Philadelphia Phillies have signed RHP Mike Koplove to a contract that includes an invitation to spring training, reports David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News.

Koplove has only seven major league appearances since 2005, but has pitched 254.2 innings in his career. The 32-year old uses a high-80s fastball along with a slider and change-up to get hitters out.

Murphy says Koplove is likely to end up at Triple A Lehigh Valley, but will be in Clearwater, FL when the Phillies begin spring training.

Alex Walsh can be reached at alexander.walsh@gmail.com.

Yankees “What If”: No A.J., CC, Lowe?

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No new official information has been reported from either side–but that may be precisely why articles about the scenario where the Yankees fail to sign a big name free agent starting pitcher this offseason are starting to show up.

First, Jordan Bastian at MLB.com reports that the Yankees may not make a contract offer to A.J. Burnett. Burnett, through his agent, appears to be insisting on a five-year deal. While the market may not provide one, Bastian says that the Yankees simply will not.

In the CC Sabathia ring, separate postings at River Ave. Blues and Brew Crew Ball look at the "actual" disparity between the financial terms of the contracts offered to the big lefty by the Yankees and Brewers. I say "actual" because, as the articles admit, this type of information is hard to concretely determine. However, as the authors show, the actual difference may be alarmingly smaller than most might have thought.

Finally, Phil Rogers at the Chicago Tribune takes the issue head on: what if the Yankees fail to sign Burnett, Sabathia, and Derek Lowe? Rogers specifically talks about Sabathia’s likely preference for the West Coast (he’s from California), and/or an opportunity to hit (the guy did put up a .230 BA, with two doubles and a home run in 50 plate apperances). Notably, Rogers doesn’t offer much of a Plan B for the Yankees if all three pitchers end up elsewhere.

Does such a plan really even exist?

Teixeira Interested In Washington?

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Bill Ladson of MLB.com reports a mutual interest between the Washington Nationals and talented free agent Mark Teixeira. "[Maryland] is his home," mentions an anonymous source in Ladson’s article. The source also sets Miguel Cabrera’s eight-year, $153MM deal as a benchmark for Teixeira’s next contract.

Presumably, any hometown discount afforded the Nationals would also apply to the Baltimore Orioles, another team widely assumed to be on Teixeira’s short list of favorable destinations.

Crisp Almost A Red, Says Jocketty

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Reds GM Walt Jocketty says that his team nearly settled on a deal for Coco Crisp, according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer. "We were close," Jocketty said, although specific pieces aren’t mentioned in the article. It’d be interesting to know what the Reds were offering considering the Red Sox received pitching help in exchange for Crisp.

The same article lists upgrading the bullpen as a focus of the Reds’ offseason plans. Jocketty has been in touch with the agents of David Weathers and Mike Lincoln, but doesn’t expect to sign anyone soon.

Jocketty also talks about being surprised by how quickly reliever Jeremy Affeldt signed a deal. However, the article also points out that Affeldt wasn’t signed until January 23rd this past offseason.

Tigers Rumors: Zumaya, Hoffman, Miner

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Joel Zumaya might be ready to pitch this spring–and he might not be, reports Jason Beck of MLB.com. Tigers assistant GM Al Avila calls it "basically a week-to-week, month-to-month situation." That’s enough to force the Tigers to come up with a backup plan for their relief corps.

Adding Trevor Hoffman as closer may be at the center of that plan. Brandon Lyon is another option for the ninth, says Beck. Zach Miner is mentioned as an in-house option for the bullpen, but likely wouldn’t close. He may need to move to the rotation, pending an update on the futures of Kenny Rogers and Freddy Garcia.

While the bullpen is the focus for the Tigers this offseason, upgrades are also needed at shortstop and catcher, following the departure of 2008 Opening Day starters Edgar Renteria and Ivan Rodriguez.

Schulman On The Giants

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Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle gives us a look at what the Giants’ offseason plans look like right now.

  • For one, they’d like to upgrade at shortstop. However, the Giants’ current pursuit of Rafael Furcal would be "impacted," says Schulman, by any deal that sends Jake Peavy to Atlanta. It’s expected the Braves would get in on the bidding for Furcal if Peavy were acquired. By "impacted," I’m going to assume this means the Giants would be much less interested in the free agent shortstop.
  • Second, they need an impact bat for the middle of the order. There seems to be "some dialog" between the Giants and Brewers regarding Prince Fielder and J.J. Hardy. However, Schulman notes that teams across the league, the Brewers included, are hesitant to give up everyday players in exchange for anything but top-tier pitching.
  • As for pitching, the Giants are keeping an eye on Japanese starting pitcher Kenshin Kawakami, and will give Keiichi Yabu another shot at a spot in the bullpen this spring.

Brown on Sabathia, Teixeira, Lowe, Peavy

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In his latest article, Tim Brown at Yahoo! Sports considers a possibility that others have discussed: maybe C.C. Sabathia doesn’t want to play for the New York Yankees. He certainly has options–Brown’s list includes the Dodgers, Angels, White Sox, Red Sox, Mariners, Tigers, and of course, the Brewers.

Not signing C.C. would increase the likelihood that the Yankees make a serious offer to Mark Teixeira. Nick Swisher seems to have the starting job at first base for now, but failing to land Sabathia might shift the Yankees’ attention to all three of Teixeira, A.J. Burnett and Derek Lowe, says Brown.

Lowe might take his time before signing a new deal this offseason, with the news that Scott Boras is looking for the same average annual value obtained previously by Barry Zito ($18MM).

Finally, Brown notes that Padres GM Kevin Towers is waiting to hear from the Cubs about the possibility of continued trade talks regarding Jake Peavy, now that Ryan Dempster has been signed.

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