Team And Transaction-Only Feeds
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If you'd prefer to monitor only actual transactions, we've got several options. Our Transactions page shows only posts marked as transactions, such as signings, trades, DFAs, and releases. You can also get this same info on Twitter and RSS.
Poll: Jose Bautista’s Extension
Jose Bautista, an unlikely home run champion if there ever was one, signed a five-year, $64MM extension yesterday. The Blue Jays are hoping that the 30-year-old's breakout season (.260/.378/.617 line, 54 homers) is a sign that Bautista has transformed himself as a hitter. The skeptics, however, are not convinced that one year of elite production warrants a $64MM commitment.
Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos has earned the benefit of the doubt, if you ask ESPN.com's Buster Olney. But Olney says he probably would have traded Bautista if any team "dangled an acceptable package" and let another organization risk its money.
Dave Cameron of FanGraphs, who wasn't sure about the deal initially, says he likes the extension the more he considers it. Bautista has unusually good control of the strike zone and can still be one of baseball's most productive hitters if his power drops off, according to Cameron.
Anthopoulos told MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm that he believes in Bautista and is willing to take a calculated risk on him. Would you have done the same thing?
Would you have offered Jose Bautista a $64MM deal?
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No - he hasn't proven himself over the course of multiple seasons 72% (9,087)
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Yes - players like Bautista are exceptionally hard to find 28% (3,560)
Total votes: 12,647
Quick Hits: Liriano, Guerrero, Fielder, D’Antona
On this date in 2009, the Mariners welcomed Ken Griffey Jr. back to Seattle, signing him to a one-year deal. The Kid hit 19 homers in his age-39 season and re-signed with Seattle for one last season before the 2010 campaign. Last year went poorly for Junior, but he's back in Seattle as a consultant this year. Here are today's links…
- Francisco Liriano told La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he doesn't think his representatives had serious discussions with the Twins about a long-term deal during the offseason. (Twitter link).
- Vladimir Guerrero says he hasn't thought about retirement, according to MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli (on Twitter). The Orioles finalized their deal with Vlad today.
- Brewers manager Ron Roenicke told ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick that he doesn't expect Prince Fielder's contract status to be "an issue" for the team this year (Twitter link). Prince hits free agency for the first time after the coming season.
- The Marlins released Jamie D'Antona, according to MLB.com's transactions page. They signed the third baseman last month after he spent two seasons in Japan. The 2003 second rounder clubbed 36 homers for the Yakult Swallows last year.
- Tim Dierkes ranks this year's crop of third basemen from a fantasy perspective at RotoAuthority.
Extensions That Didn’t Buy Out Free Agent Years
When MLBTR's Tim Dierkes and I examined the reasons teams do and don't extend young starters last fall, it became apparent that obtaining control of free agent years was critical for teams considering extensions. By locking a player up for one or more of his free agent seasons, the team gets to keep the player for longer, without having to bid for him on the open market.
Red Sox GM Theo Epstein weighed in on extensions for arbitration eligible players this morning and explained that he doesn't like the idea of extending players if they aren't willing to sign a deal that includes a free agent season.
"If we’re going to sign arbitration-eligible players long term, we have to get one free agent year and we have to get an option for the club," Epstein said on WEEI. "Because we’re giving the player certainty. We need to be able get some of those prime years back in exchange. That makes it a fair bargain."
Most of the 21 arbitration eligible players who signed extensions this offseason surrendered at least one year of free agency, but nine players signed multiyear deals that provided them with security without delaying their arrival on the free agent market.
There are potential benefits for the teams that signed extensions without gaining control of their players' free agent years. The clubs obtained cost certainty and may end up saving money through arbitration, so free agent years aren't the only variable in play. The arbitration eligible players below signed extensions that did not include free agent years this offseason (sorted by most guaranteed dollars):
- Reds – Joey Votto $38MM for three years
- Rangers – Josh Hamilton – $24MM for two years
- Diamondbacks – Stephen Drew – $13.75MM for two years (mutual option for 2013)
- Rockies – Jason Hammel – $7.75MM for two years
- Blue Jays – Rajai Davis - $5.75MM for two years
- Cubs – Sean Marshall – $4.7MM for two years
- Nationals – Sean Burnett – $3.95MM for two years (mutual option for 2013)
- Tigers – Ryan Raburn – $3.4MM for two years
- Mariners – Brendan Ryan – $2.75MM for two years
These extensions are by no means a new trend. Last winter alone, Mark Reynolds, Tim Lincecum, Brian Wilson, Andre Ethier, Jonathan Broxton and Matt Kemp signed extensions that didn't cover any free agent years.
Fukudome Wants To Play In MLB, With Cubs
Kosuke Fukudome, whose contract expires after the coming season, told MLB.com's Carrie Muskat that he wants to continue his MLB career after 2011 (Twitter link). The 33-year-old, who bought a house in Chicago, says he'd like to remain with the Cubs.
Fukudome earns $13.5MM this year in the final season of the four-year, $48MM deal he signed before the 2008 season. He hit .263/.371/.439 with 13 homers in 429 plate appearances last year. The left-handed hitter may not have lived up to expectations, but he does have a .368 OBP in his three years in the majors.
Details On Albert Pujols’ Negotiations With St. Louis
The Cardinals did not extend Albert Pujols by Wednesday's deadline, but it wasn't for a lack of creativity. The team was open to outside-the-box deals with the slugger, though talks have now been tabled until after the season. Here are the details on some of the deals the team proposed:
- Pujols will likely sign a deal worth at least $25MM per season, as Tom Verducci of SI.com points out. A source close to Pujols tells Verducci that the first baseman isn't about the money. "He has enough and his charitable work is amazing. He has flown doctors and dentists to the Dominican to give kids there access to health care. But he is someone with intense pride. He has worked hard to turn himself into the best hitter in baseball and he's earned the right to be treated that way in negotiations. It's not about greed with Albert. I think it's pride."
- The Cards offered a deal that was "slightly better" than Mark Teixeira's eight-year, $180MM contract, according to Yahoo's Tim Brown (on Twitter).
- Jon Heyman of SI.com reported yesterday that the Cardinals offered Pujols a nine-year extension worth more than $200MM and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported Wednesday that they offered Pujols a deal worth roughly $19-21MM per season.
- Pujols was interested in owning part of the Cardinals and the team explored the possibility, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Players cannot "directly or indirectly, own stock or have any financial interest in the ownership or earnings of any Major League Club," unless the Commissioner approves the agreement, but Bud Selig could be open to allowing such an arrangement between Pujols and the Cardinals.
- Goold lists some players, including former Cardinals great Rogers Hornsby and current Pittsburgh Penguins owner Mario Lemieux, who have gone on to own teams.
Rays Sign Joe Inglett
The Rays signed Joe Inglett to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to Major League Spring Training, the team announced. The 32-year-old, who was non-tendered by Milwaukee in December, will provide the Rays with depth on the infield and in the outfield.
Inglett appeared in 102 games for the Brewers last year, hitting .254/.331/.401 and playing second base, left field and right field. He has also played shortstop, third base and center field over the course of his five-year MLB career. The left-handed hitter has a .286/.345/.397 line in the majors, so he's a potential source of OBP off of manager Joe Maddon's bench.
Elliot Johnson, Felipe Lopez and Casey Kotchman will also be battling for spots on the Rays' bench. Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times first reported the Inglett signing.
Epstein On Crawford, Papelbon, Gonzalez
Red Sox GM Theo Epstein told Dennis & Callahan on WEEI that the Red Sox are vulnerable in certain areas, even after a successful offseason. Here's the latest from Epstein, including details on the team's pursuit of its new left fielder…
- Epstein prefers to integrate young players onto the Major League roster with minimal fanfare. Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester, for example, came up through Boston’s system and are now top starters.
- Epstein identified starting pitching depth as a possible area of weakness for the Red Sox. Boston has Tim Wakefield, Felix Doubront and Alfredo Aceves plus its starting five, but doesn’t necessarily have MLB-ready starters in the minors.
- Catching depth is another one of the team’s “areas of vulnerability,” Epstein says.
- The Red Sox didn’t expect Carl Crawford to want to sign with them, but soon realized that he wanted to stay in the AL East. It took lots of research on Boston’s part to determine its level of interest in the left fielder. “We covered him as if we were privately investigating him,” Epstein said. “We had a scout on him literally the last three, four months of the season at the ballpark, away from the ballpark.”
- The Red Sox never expected to sign Crawford as swiftly as they did, despite their strong interest in him.
- Epstein explained Boston’s approach to extensions for arbitration eligible players: “Our philosophy, which is actually a policy in writing, is if we’re going to sign arbitration-eligible players long term, we have to get one free agent year and we have to get an option for the club. Because we’re giving the player certainty. We need to be able get some of those prime years back in exchange. That makes it a fair bargain."
- It's a near-certainty that Jonathan Papelbon, who never signed an extension with Boston, will reach free agency after the season.
- Epstein says there’s “no real timetable” for an Adrian Gonzalez extension.
21 Extensions For Arbitration Eligible Players
When a panel of arbitrators decides between Hunter Pence's $6.9MM asking price and the Astros' $5.15MM offer today or Monday, all of the 160-plus arbitration eligible players in baseball will have contracts for 2011. About one eighth of them – 21 – have agreed to multiyear extensions, as MLBTR's Arb Tracker shows.
The diverse group of extension recipients included both reigning MVPs (Josh Hamilton and Joey Votto) and the 2010 MLB home run champion (Jose Bautista). Only six of the 21 extensions came from the American League and the Blue Jays were the lone AL team to extend two arbitration eligible players (Bautista and Rajai Davis).
The Cubs (Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmol), Rockies (Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom) and Reds (Votto, Jay Bruce and Johnny Cueto) all extended multiple players in the Senior Circuit*.
Bautista ($64MM) signed for the most guaranteed money, followed by Dan Uggla ($62MM) and Jay Bruce ($51MM). Bruce (six years) signed for the most years, followed by Uggla and Bautista, who both signed for five.
No arbitration eligible catchers signed extensions (Geovany Soto was one potential candidate), but the other positions were well-represented. Five starting pitchers, four relief pitchers, four outfielders, three second basemen, two shortstops, two first basemen and Bautista, a third baseman/outfielder, composed the group of 21 recipients.
Extension season is far from over, though. Nine players signed extensions between this date in 2010 and Opening Day, so we could still see a number of deals in Spring Training. Pre-arbitration eligible pitchers such as Clay Buchholz and Trevor Cahill will be among the names to watch once Pence signs and all of the year's arbitration eligibles are under contract.
*Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki were not arbitration eligible this offseason, though they signed extensions.
Jim Edmonds Retires
Jim Edmonds has retired, the Cardinals have announced (on Twitter). The 40-year-old, who agreed to a minor league deal with St. Louis earlier in the month, is still bothered by his right Achilles, so his playing days are over.
Edmonds retires with a .284/.376/.527 line and 393 career homers. The eight-time Gold Glover and four-time All-Star played for the Cardinals, Angels, Padres, Reds, Cubs and Brewers over the course of a career that began in 1993. An elite hitter in his prime, Edmonds was also a standout defender who became known for highlight reel catches in center field.
The 17-year veteran spent eight seasons with the Cardinals from 2000-07. He hit .285/.393/.555 for the Cards and was a member of the 2006 World Champions. After missing the 2009 season, Edmonds returned last year and posted a .276/.342/.504 line for the Reds and Brewers, adding 11 homers and 23 doubles.
Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch first reported Edmonds' decision.