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Rangers To Sign Roy Oswalt

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The Rangers have agreed to sign Roy Oswalt, Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News reports. The right-hander will earn a guaranteed $5MM salary plus $1MM in incentives, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). The Rangers required ownership approval to sign Oswalt, a Bob Garber client.

Roy Oswalt - Phillies (PW)

The Rangers stayed in contact with Oswalt this past offseason, but didn't have an opening in their rotation at the time and none of his other suitors locked him up. Once Neftali Feliz hit the disabled list, an opening emerged in the rotation and GM Jon Daniels struck. Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan and pitching coach Mike Maddux appear to have helped convince Oswalt to pitch in Texas.

Oswalt made 23 starts and completed 139 innings for the Phillies last year, posting a 3.69 ERA with 6.0 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 45.1% ground ball rate. However, the 34-year-old's average fastball velocity dropped to 91.4 mph, and he had two back-related stints on the disabled list.

If the Rangers have five healthy starters when Feliz returns from the disabled list, they could use him out of the bullpen and rely on a rotation of Oswalt, Yu Darvish, Colby Lewis, Derek Holland and Matt Harrison.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

 

Yankees Claim Ryota Igarashi

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The Yankees claimed right-hander Ryota Igarashi from the Blue Jays, Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News reports (Twitter links). The Yankees transferred right-hander Brad Meyers to the 60-day disabled list to create 40-man roster space for Igarashi, who will report to Triple-A.

The Blue Jays designated Igarashi for assignment on Sunday after he appeared in two games earlier in the weekend. The 33-year-old allowed four earned runs in one total inning with the Blue Jays, who acquired him from the Pirates at the end of Spring Training. He had singed with Pittsburgh during the offseason, but didn't make their Opening Day roster.

Magglio Ordonez To Retire

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Magglio Ordonez - Tigers (PW)

Magglio Ordonez will announce his retirement this Sunday at Comerica Park, the site of the defining moment of his 15-year career. Ordonez, who hit a walk-off home run to end the 2006 ALCS and send the Tigers to the World Series, spent the last seven seasons of his career playing in Detroit.

Ordonez suffered a fractured ankle during last year's ALCS, his second such injury in as many seasons. The 38-year-old expressed interest in playing in 2012 and the Athletics appeared to have some interest, but he never signed a deal.

Ordonez retires with 294 home runs and a .309/.369/.502 batting line in 1848 games over the course of 15 seasons with the White Sox and Tigers. The six-time All-Star won the 2007 American League batting title and three Silver Slugger awards. Ordonez, a longtime Scott Boras client, earned more than $133MM in his career, according to Baseball-Reference.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

Roy Oswalt Rumors: Tuesday

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There’s an expectation that Roy Oswalt will agree to sign with an MLB team this week, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). The Rangers, Orioles, Red Sox, Phillies and Dodgers have all been linked to the free agent right-hander in recent weeks. We'll keep track of today's Oswalt rumors right here with the most recent updates up top:

  • The Rangers are actively engaged in negotiations with Oswalt, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports. The Rangers definitely want to sign the right-hander, a team official told Nightengale. The Dodgers have renewed interest with Ted Lilly on the disabled list and plan to discuss a possible deal. Oswalt seeks $5-7.5MM.
  • The Rangers would need approval from ownership to sign Oswalt since the team is over-budget, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter). There are mixed opinions about Oswalt in the Texas front office. Ownership approval appears to be the lone roadblock preventing the Rangers from signing Oswalt, Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi write.
  • Baseball officials are convinced Oswalt will sign with the Rangers, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports. The right-hander has given teams indications that he prefers the Rangers over other clubs. "I would be shocked if he doesn't go to Texas,'' one of Crasnick’s sources said. "A team is going to have to greatly outbid Texas to keep him from going there.''
  • The Rangers could use Oswalt now that Neftali Feliz is on the disabled list. The Orioles are known to be seeking pitching and their division rivals, the Red Sox, have endured the struggles of Clay Buchholz and Daniel Bard. Phillies starters are dealing with injuries and the Dodgers actually made Oswalt an offer earlier this year.

2013 Contract Issues: Boston Red Sox

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The Red Sox are next in MLBTR’s 2013 Contract Issues series:

Eligible For Free Agency (9)

  • David Ortiz – Ortiz's desire for a multiyear deal is no secret, but the Red Sox may prefer to go year to year with the 36-year-old. They could make a qualifying offer after the season and assure themselves of draft pick compensation if Ortiz leaves. The $12-13MM salary that comes with a qualifying offer would represent a pay decrease for Ortiz, who earns $14.58MM this year. 
  • Daisuke Matsuzaka - The Red Sox expect Matsuzaka to return from Tommy John surgery this summer. His next contract will depend on how he pitches upon his return.
  • Marlon Byrd - The Red Sox brought the 34-year-old in after injuries depleted their depth, but their need for outfield help won't necessarily exist next offseason.
  • Bobby Jenks - Jenks has appeared in just 19 games since signing a two-year, $12MM contract two winters ago. There's not much reason to expect the Red Sox to offer him a guaranteed roster spot again.
  • Cody Ross - Ross has eight homers and an .883 OPS, so he's setting himself up for a starting role and a Major League contract in 2013.
  • Aaron Cook - Cook started one game for the Red Sox before the team placed him on the 15-day disabled list. At this point he's on track for another minor league deal.
  • Kelly Shoppach – Shoppach may be expendable given the presence of Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Ryan Lavarnway.
  • Vicente Padilla - Padilla, who has more strikeouts than innings pitched, figures to sign a one-year or minor league deal next offseason.
  • Scott Podsednik - Podsednik and Byrd are in similar situations. They're contributing now with the knowledge that the Red Sox have a pair of star outfielders on the disabled list.

Contract Options (1)

  • Kevin Youkilis: $13MM club option with a $1MM buyout. Youkilis could be traded midseason now that Will Middlebrooks has emerged as an option for the big league team. But if he stays put and matches his career .878 OPS for the remainder of the season, the Red Sox could exercise the option.

Arbitration Eligible (14)

The Red Sox face a large arbitration class that includes many of the team's key players. Ellsbury and Bailey have been sidelined with injuries, so their raises will be modest. Others, such as Saltalamacchia, are on track for more substantial salary jumps. There's a good chance Tazawa will fall short of the service time requirements for eligibility at the end of the season and some players — Repko, for example — could be non-tendered.

2013 Payroll Obligation

The Red Sox have committed approximately $108MM to next year's payroll, according to Cot's Baseball Contracts. They are barely under the $178MM luxury tax threshold this year, and if they aim to avoid it again next year, GM Ben Cherington will have less than $70MM at his disposal this coming offseason.

Quick Hits: Vazquez, Oviedo, Acosta, Montero

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Happy Memorial Day! Here are today’s links…

  • It doesn't sound as though Javier Vazquez has baseball at the forefront of his mind.  When asked what he's up to, friends of the pitcher told Peter Gammons of MLB.com (via Twitter) that he's playing semi-pro tennis.  In April, the right-hander said that he's not planning on playing but also wasn't ready to announce his retirement.
  • MLB announced an eight-week suspension for Juan Carlos Oviedo, the right-handed pitcher formerly known as Leo Nunez, for engaging in age and identity fraud (Twitter link). Oviedo is making his way back to the Marlins after a prolonged absence.
  • Mike Puma of the New York Post wonders if Manny Acosta's days with the Mets could be numbered (Twitter link). Acosta has an 11.86 ERA after allowing three runs to the Phillies this afternoon.
  • The Diamondbacks were willing to pay up to keep Miguel Montero’s two-way play on the roster, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com writes. While Montero isn’t hitting much so far this year, he has thrown out 39.2% of potential base stealers since the beginning of the 2011 season. He recently signed a five-year, $60MM contract with Arizona.

Draft Notes: Cubs, Garcia, Pirates, Twins

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MLB's first year player draft takes place one week from today. The notes below should provide some hints as to what might happen on June 4th…

  • Chicago GM Jed Hoyer says "pitching is a target” for the Cubs in next week’s draft, Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald reports (Twitter link) “As an organization, our pitching depth is one of our bigger concerns,” Hoyer said.
  • In this week's edition of Ask BA Jim Callis of Baseball America explains why teams won't use top picks to draft players they don't intend to sign.
  • Cuban left-hander Onelki Garcia has his eyes on a major payday with the draft looming. The 22-year-old is looking for a signing bonus of $7MM and will not sign unless he's taken in the first round, tweets ESPN.com's Keith Law.
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America expects the Pirates to take a hitter with the eighth overall selection (all Twitter links). Callis keeps hearing the Pirates connected to Arizona State shortstop Deven Marrero, and prep outfielder Albert Almora and University of Florida catcher Mike Zunino are also possibilities. Zunino draws comparisons to Jason Varitek, Callis notes.
  • Callis expects the Twins to take the top talent available when they select second overall, but notes that they could use pitching.

Daniel Seco contributed to this post.

Latest On Kevin Youkilis

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Kevin Youkilis returned to Boston's lineup last week and he already has a home run and a pair of two-hit games. But he remains a trade candidate given the presence of Will Middlebrooks, Adrian Gonzalez and David Ortiz on the Red Sox roster. Here's the latest on Youkilis…

  • There’s a feeling other teams would be interested in Youkilis, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports (Twitter links). The 33-year-old isn’t the player he once was, so the Red Sox would likely have to contribute toward his $12MM salary in a trade. One scout says the Red Sox must trade Youkilis because Middlebrooks has as much power as Mark Trumbo of the Angels.

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