Minor Moves: Rangers, Stults, Olmedo, Young
Here are today's minor moves…
- The Rangers signed right-hander Sean Green and left-hander Mitch Stetter to minor league contracts that include invitations to Spring Training, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan writes.
- The White Sox agreed to sign left-handers Leyson Septimo and Eric Stults, catcher Hector Gimenez, infielder Ray Olmedo and outfielder Delwyn Young to minor-league contracts that include invitations to Spring Training, the team announced. Stults, 32, appeared in six games with the 2011 Rockies and also has experience with the Dodgers. Young played for the Dodgers and Pirates from 2006-10, but spent the 2011 season at Triple-A, where he posted a .685 OPS in 480 plate appearances. Gimenez appeared in four games with the 2011 Dodgers and Olmedo played for the Reds and Blue Jays from 2003-07.
- The club confirmed its deals with Brian Bruney, Dallas McPherson and Damaso Espino.
Reds Sign Willie Harris
3:22pm: The sides agreed to a minor league deal, according to Fay on Twitter. Harris can earn an $800K salary if he makes the Reds out of Spring Training and the deal includes another $200K in incentives, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.
1:48pm: Reds manager Dusty Baker says the team signed Willie Harris, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. Paragon Sports International represents the versatile 33-year-old.
Harris spent the 2011 campaign with the Mets after a three-year stint in Washington. He posted a .246/.351/.317 line in 283 plate appearances last year, when he earned a base salary of $800K. He can play all three outfield positions plus second and third and owns a .330 on-base percentage in 11 seasons. The Nationals and Mets were also linked to Harris this offseason.
Many Teams Eyeing Gerardo Concepcion
Cuban left-hander Gerardo Concepcion has been declared a free agent and is drawing interest from many MLB teams, Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com reports. The 18-year-old recently established residency in Mexico and was said to be close to declaring free agency last week.
The Rangers, Yankees, Cubs and White Sox have expressed the most interest in Concepcion, agent Jaime Torres said. The lefty worked out in front of Rangers personnel, including Nolan Ryan, in the Dominican Republic today. The Phillies, Giants, Blue Jays, Red Sox and Royals have also expressed interest.
Concepcion has an offer on the table and will likely sign within two weeks, according to his agent. He defected from Cuba last June while playing in the Netherlands.
Diamondbacks Claim Craig Tatum
The Diamondbacks claimed catcher Craig Tatum off of waivers from the Astros, ESPN.com's Keith Law tweets. The Astros designated Tatum for assignment last week to create roster space for Jack Cust. The 28-year-old backstop will provide the Diamondbacks with another option behind Miguel Montero and Henry Blanco.
The Astros had claimed Tatum from the Orioles in October. He has three partial seasons of catching experience at the Major League level and isn't yet eligible for arbitration. He has a .223/.291/.264 line in 299 MLB plate appearances and has stopped 21% of stolen base attempts against him. In eight seasons as a minor leaguer, the 2004 third round pick has a .249/.316/.377 batting line and has stopped 35% of stolen base attempts.
The Diamondbacks, who have confirmed the move, note that their 40-man roster is full.
Rays Interested In Jeff Keppinger
The Rays have expressed interest in free agent infielder Jeff Keppinger, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick tweets. The CSE client is still in contact with multiple clubs.
Keppinger posted a .277/.300/.377 line in 399 plate appearances for the Astros and Giants in 2011. The 31-year-old only played second base last year, but he has started 80-plus games at shortstop and third base in his seven-year career. Keppinger earned $2.3MM last year and would have obtained a raise through arbitration, so the Giants non-tendered him in December, holding onto Mike Fontenot instead. It wouldn't be a surprise to see clubs such as the Yankees and Mariners express interest in Keppinger.
Latest On Ryan Zimmerman
Ryan Zimmerman is two years away from free agency, but the Nationals already know what it will take to keep the third baseman in place long-term, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports. Zimmerman and his representatives at CAA have informed the team of the exact extension terms he would accept.
It was reported last week that the Nationals and Zimmerman are discussing a contract extension. Talks are fluid and an agreement is within reach, according to Rosenthal’s sources.
Zimmerman is set to earn $12MM in 2012 and $14MM in 2013 on his current contract. If he doesn't sign an extension, he'll become eligible for free agency after the 2013 campaign. The 27-year-old posted a .289/.355/.443 line with 12 home runs in 440 plate appearances in 2011. He was sidelined with an abdominal injury last year — the second time in four years that he has missed substantial time due to injury.
Orioles Release Kyle Hudson
The Orioles released Kyle Hudson, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports. Baltimore had designated the outfielder for assignment on January 10th to create 40-man roster space for Wei-Ying Chen.
Hudson, 25, posted a .296/.375/.336 line with 41 stolen bases in 485 minor league plate appearances across three levels in 2011. He also appeared in 14 Major League games for the Orioles as a September callup. The 25-year-old has played left and center field since the Orioles selected him in the fourth round of the 2008 draft.
Tigers Have Some Interest In Matsui, Ibanez
11:53pm: Knobler indicates that Oswalt has turned the Tigers down even though they were very interested in signing him (Twitter links). They even had Justin Verlander make a recruiting call. He says the Tigers are likely to leave the fifth starter's job up for grabs in Spring Training.
9:01am: The Tigers have some interest in Hideki Matsui and Raul Ibanez, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter. Victor Martinez will likely miss the entire season with a torn ACL, so Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski is in the market for a designated hitter.
The Tigers are considering free agents Johnny Damon and Juan Pierre, but might rely on internal options at DH. Matsui, Ibanez, Pierre and Damon all bat from the left side, but club could consider right-handed bats such as Vladimir Guerrero, Magglio Ordonez and Derrek Lee. Both Matsui and Ibanez have been linked to the Yankees, another club that may add a designated hitter.
The Tigers have also shown interest in Roy Oswalt, according to Knobler. While Jacob Turner and others are candidates to start for Detroit, the team is considering ways of adding starting pitching depth before Opening Day. Knobler says it appears unlikely that the Tigers will sign Oswalt, which matches up with what Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reported yesterday.
Players Traded After Having Options Exercised
Every offseason, once the playoffs are over and a new World Series champion has been crowned, teams must decide whether to exercise or decline options for various players. While some decisions are straightforward — think Robinson Cano, Yadier Molina and James Shields — others are complex. In some cases, the team exercises its option with the knowledge that a trade is a distinct possibility. If the team can secure the player’s services for something less than market value, he’ll be valuable as a trade chip even if he’s no longer a fit on his original club's payroll or roster.
Teams exercised a total of 19 player options after the 2011 season and two of those players have since been dealt. Here’s a closer look into the circumstances surrounding the two trades:
- On New Year’s Day the White Sox sent right-hander Jason Frasor and his $3.75MM salary back to Toronto for Myles Jaye and Daniel Webb, a pair of 6’3” right-handers who have yet to reach Double-A. Though Jaye and Webb aren’t considered top prospects, they are better than nothing, which is what GM Kenny Williams would have ended up with if he had declined Frasor’s option.
- Over the weekend, the Red Sox sent shortstop Marco Scutaro to Colorado for Clayton Mortensen. The right-hander posted a 3.86 ERA with 4.6 K/9, 3.7 BB/9 and a 52.7% ground ball rate in 58 1/3 innings for relief for the Rockies in 2011 and may prove useful in Boston. If not, at least the Red Sox avoided the $1.5MM buyout on Scutaro’s $6MM option and moved him without taking on salary. Alex Speier of WEEI.com explains how the deal relates to baseball’s luxury tax and reports that the Rockies were the first team to offer to take on all of Scutaro’s salary this offseason.
Nationals Extend Michael Morse
6:15pm: Morse's deal is worth about $10.5MM over two years, according to the Associated Press.
4:17pm: It's a two-year deal, MLB.com's Bill Ladson tweets. The agreement buys out Morse's two remaining seasons of arbitration eligibility.
3:25pm: The Nationals announced that they agreed to sign Michael Morse to a contract extension. The team agreed to extend Morse before this week's deadline for exchanging arbitration figures and Morse has since passed his physical, making the deal official. The ACES client filed at $5MM with the Nationals countering at $3.5MM.
Morse, 29, broke out with his best season yet in 2011. He posted a .303/.360/.550 line and hit 31 home runs while playing left field and first base. The Nationals acquired him from the Mariners in a 2009 trade.
Tim Dierkes recently previewed a possible deal between Morse and the Nationals, suggesting a three-year, $18.5MM extension with a club option for a fourth year might work for both sides.