D’Backs Seriously Considering Jorge Cantu
Jorge Cantu is one of the first basemen the Diamondbacks are seriously considering, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). The Padres, Mariners and Rockies reportedly have interest in the infielder, though Colorado's interest may have disappeared since the team agreed to terms with Ty Wigginton.
Cantu, 29 in January, struggled offensively in 2010, batting just .256/.304/.392 for the Marlins and Rangers. His home run total dropped to 11, down from 16 in 2009 and 29 in 2008. He topped 40 doubles in '08 and '09, but hit just 29 in 2010. Though Cantu has extensive experience at both corner infield positions, GM Kevin Towers is presumably eyeing him as a first baseman, since the D'Backs already have Melvin Mora and Geoff Blum at the hot corner.
Short-Term Extension Likely For Joey Votto
The Reds have locked up Bronson Arroyo and Jay Bruce to extensions this month and the next logical candidate for an extension is NL MVP Joey Votto. The Reds are interested in signing the first baseman to a multiyear deal, but if they do sign him to an extension, it will likely be for less than the six years Bruce got, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).
Free agency is proving to be lucrative for All-Star caliber players, so as one NL executive pointed out to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, top young players may be tempted by the open market.
"If you are Joey Votto and you see what [Jayson] Werth got and [Carl] Crawford got, why would you ever sign now rather than wait until free agency?" the exec asked.
Votto, 27, is arbitration eligible for the first time this winter and is on track to hit free agency after the 2013 season. He could sign a two or three-year deal without affecting his path to free agency, much like Prince Fielder did two offseasons ago.
Poll: Do The Yankees Need Cliff Lee
If the Yankees don't sign Cliff Lee, their rotation will seem shallow, especially if Andy Pettitte retires. C.C. Sabathia, Phil Hughes and A.J. Burnett are viable starters, but it's hard to see the Bronx Bombers opening the season with Ivan Nova and Sergio Mitre in the rotation. You can make the argument that the Yankees need Lee, especially since the next-best free agent starter, Carl Pavano, is not the solution to the Yankees' problems after what happened in his first stint in pinstripes.
Zack Greinke may or may not be a fit for the Yankees, but other elite arms are potentially available in trades. The Yankees inquired on Francisco Liriano and Ricky Nolasco is known to be available. If the Yankees were to pair one of those starters up with Pettitte, their rotation would look strong and they could spend the money they would have committed to Lee on other needs.
Do the Yankees need Cliff Lee?
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Yes 58% (11,751)
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No 42% (8,395)
Total votes: 20,146
Odds & Ends: Giambi, Upton, Crawford, Yankees
On this date last year, the Brewers signed Randy Wolf to a three-year, $29.75MM deal. Now, GM Doug Melvin is still on the lookout for pitching, even after acquiring Shaun Marcum. Here's another round of links for the evening…
- The Rays have some interest in Jason Giambi, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
- Andy McCullough of The Star-Ledger wonders how Carl Crawford’s $142MM deal will impact the Mets’ efforts to keep Jose Reyes around long-term.
- Arizona GM Kevin Towers told Bob Nightengale of USA Today that he talked to one team about Justin Upton at the Winter Meetings (Twitter link).
- In another piece, Nightengale details the financial commitments the Yankees and Red Sox have made. As Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail points out, it's not easy competing with those two big spenders. "We're going to start a mid-Atlantic states division,'' MacPhail said.
- The Angels offered Carl Crawford a six-year deal worth $108MM, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter link). That fell well short of the seven-year $142MM offer that lured the left fielder to Boston.
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Jack Curry of the YES Network that the team dined with Crawford's representatives even though they weren't interested in signing the outfielder. Curry suggests the dinner could have been a bluff.
- Speaking of the Yankees, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark names them on his list of 'losers' at the 2010 Winter Meetings.
Day In Review: 12/9/10
Compared to the rest of the week, today has been relatively quiet, but there was still a steady flow of news and rumors. Here's what has happened since yesterday's Day in Review post:
- The day began with the 2010 Rule 5 Draft. The Pirates took Josh Rodriguez from the Indians with the first overall pick and other clubs selected 18 other players later on.
- The day ended with news of the Reds' six-year, $51MM agreement with Jay Bruce.
- Miguel Olivo became the most recent catcher to sign a lucrative multiyear deal, as he agreed to a two-year, $7MM contract with the Mariners.
- Seattle was busy today; they also offered a contract to Laynce Nix.
- The Astros created some more competition for their rotation by adding a former Mariner, agreeing to a deal with Ryan Rowland-Smith.
- The Pirates acquired Cesar Valdez from the Diamondbacks to complete the Zach Duke trade.
- A number of deals moved forward today. The Orioles officially acquired J.J. Hardy and Brendan Harris from the Twins, the Dodgers officially signed Vicente Padilla, the Pirates reached an agreement with Scott Olsen, the O's reached an agreement with Koji Uehara and the Mets announced their deals with Ronny Paulino and D.J. Carrasco.
- We also heard that the Red Sox aren't as aren't as close to extending their new first baseman as it seemed. Adrian Gonzalez says he doesn't have an extension in place with the Red Sox.
- Boston continues to be aggressive; the Red Sox are considered the frontrunners for Russell Martin.
- The Cliff Lee saga continued, as the Yankees offered a number of deals and the Rangers visited the left-hander at his home in Arkansas. Lee could make a decision soon.
- The Brewers continue to show interest in Carl Pavano, but they don't want to offer more than two years.
- Luring Pavano to Milwuakee could be a challenge, but he's not the only pitcher the Brewers are going to talk to. They will begin extension talks with new addition Shaun Marcum.
- The Twins, one of the teams with interest in Pavano, would consider trading Kevin Slowey.
- There's mutual interest between Adam LaRoche and the Orioles.
- The Pirates may be moving closer to a deal for Kenshin Kawakami.
- The Michael Young rumors slowed down.
- The Rockies are hoping to extend Carlos Gonzalez, but negotiating a long-term deal with the Scott Boras client may not be easy.
- We also learned that the Cardinals consider Gregg Zaun a fallback option and that the Cubs remain interested in Brandon Webb.
White Sox Seek Relief; Could Add Lefty
The White Sox have spent on power this winter, but they're less likely to spend on power arms, according to Kenny Williams. The Chicago GM told Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune that he isn't likely to sign prominent free agent relievers before next season. However, Williams intends to be as creative as possible in trade talks.
"The free agent front is a little expensive for us now in filling those needs, so we have to try another way. That's all right, we've done it before," Williams said.
Williams says he’ll consider adding a third left-hander to complement Matt Thornton and Chris Sale, who will likely join the rotation for the beginning of the season. However, it seems unlikely that the team will have enough money to re-sign Bobby Jenks or lure another big name reliever to the Windy City.
What We Learned: The Winter Meetings
The Winter Meetings have been four days of non-stop rumors, trades and mega-deals. Now that everyone has packed their bags and headed for the Orlando airport, what do we know that we didn't know a week ago? Here are a few developments:
- The Nationals have lots of money to spend – Not only did Washington sign Jayson Werth to a seven-year, $126MM deal, they are in on Cliff Lee and Carl Pavano, the best remaining starting pitchers. Plus, they're interested in a potential deal with Adam LaRoche. You can debate the way they spend their money, but you can't deny that the Nats have cash.
- It really will be a quiet offseason for the Mets – We're used to seeing the Mets spend. They've committed hundreds of millions to players like Jason Bay, Francisco Rodriguez, Johan Santana and Carlos Beltran in recent years, but their recent pickups, Ronny Paulino and D.J. Carrasco, cost them a total of $3.8MM.
- It's not a bad time to be a utility player – Just ask Miguel Cairo, Melvin Mora and Ty Wigginton, who all signed multiyear deals.
- The Pirates are being aggressive – Is this the year Pittsburgh's streak of losing seasons comes to an end? I don't think so and the Pirates probably don't either, but they willing to spend to improve upon the MLB-worst 57-105 record they had in 2010. Matt Diaz, Kevin Correia and Scott Olsen are all set to join the Pirates.
- Scott Boras can still negotiate a mega-deal – In case any doubt remained about Scott Boras' ability to get massive deals for his clients, the agent got $126MM for a player who has qualified for all of two batting titles and $10MM for a player who batted .196 last year.
- The Red Sox should have an elite lineup next year – Let's not assume anything, since the Red Sox experienced tons of injuries in 2010, but on paper Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez make Boston's lineup scary.
Dodgers Sign Vicente Padilla
The Dodgers signed Vicente Padilla to a one-year deal, the team announced today. The right-hander, who was nearing a $2MM deal with the Dodgers earlier in the week, has passed his physical. WMG represents Padilla.
The Dodgers already have Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley, Ted Lilly, Hiroki Kuroda and Jon Garland, so Padilla figures to be a swingman for manager Don Mattingly. That versatility appealed to Dodgers GM Ned Colletti.
“Vicente’s flexibility and willingness to be in whatever role we may need him in was very important to us,” Colletti said in a statement. “We believe he is capable of filling practically any role on our staff and we are very glad to have him back.”
The 33-year-old missed time with forearm and neck injuries in 2010, but still managed a respectable season. Padilla posted a 4.07 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 95 innings.
Poll: Which Team Will Cliff Lee Choose
After one month on the free agent market, Cliff Lee may be ready to decide on an offer. The Yankees have made him at least one proposal, the Rangers visited him in Arkansas again and it's too early to rule out interested teams such as the Nationals and Angels. These things are never easy to predict, but at some point the rumors will stop and the decision will be made.
Which team will Cliff Lee choose?
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Yankees 45% (14,495)
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Rangers 40% (12,715)
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Other 7% (2,138)
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Nationals 5% (1,457)
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Angels 4% (1,338)
Total votes: 32,143
Poll: Most Surprising Winter Meetings Deal
Who thought Jayson Werth would sign for $126MM? Did anyone expect the Red Sox to acquire Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez? And who had Shaun Marcum going to the Brewers? We've seen our share of surprising transactions in the past week or so, so let's vote on which one was the least expected move of all.
Which of the many recent deals surprised you the most?
Which recent deal surprised you the most?
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Nationals sign Jayson Werth for $126MM 54% (20,399)
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Red Sox sign Carl Crawford for $142MM 33% (12,401)
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Brewers acquire Shaun Marcum 6% (2,118)
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Cubs sign Carlos Pena for $10MM 4% (1,510)
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Red Sox acquire Adrian Gonzalez 3% (1,289)
Total votes: 37,717
Which recent deal surprised you the most?
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Nationals sign Jayson Werth for $126MM 54% (20,399)
-
Red Sox sign Carl Crawford for $142MM 33% (12,401)
-
Brewers acquire Shaun Marcum 6% (2,118)
-
Cubs sign Carlos Pena for $10MM 4% (1,510)
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Red Sox acquire Adrian Gonzalez 3% (1,289)
Total votes: 37,717