Matt Garza Rumors: Tuesday
The Rays have lots of pitching depth and a number of holes to address, so the Matt Garza rumors were inevitable. Here's the latest on the Rays righty:
- Garza is a fallback plan for the Rangers in case they can't sign Cliff Lee or trade for Zack Greinke, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Price reports that the Rays are motivated to move Garza.
- The Brewers have talked to the Rays about Garza, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (on Twitter).
Kevin Gregg Has Multiple Offers
Kevin Gregg is drawing strong interest on potential multiyear deals and has offers from the Red Sox, Pirates, and Nationals, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). The Red Sox have offers out to a number of relievers other than Gregg, according to Rosenthal. They're known to be interested in Scott Downs, Matt Guerrier and Pedro Feliciano.
Rosenthal reports that the Orioles and Mariners are also in the mix for Gregg, who has also drawn interest from the Rockies. The Blue Jays will obtain a draft pick for losing Gregg, a Type B free agent.
The Asking Price For Guerrier, Crain
3:46pm: Guerrier's agent informed Miller that his report was inaccurate (Twitter link). Guerrier is not looking for a Benoit-like contract.
3:15pm: Emboldened by Joaquin Benoit's $16.5MM deal with the Tigers, Matt Guerrier and Jesse Crain are looking for similar contracts, according to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com. Like Benoit, Crain (a Type B free agent) and Guerrier (who wasn't offered arbitration) can be signed without surrendering a draft pick. The former Twins are durable and effective, so they're drawing interest from multiple teams.
Despite the Benoit deal, clubs are reluctant to hand middle relievers multiyear deals worth $5MM per season. One NL GM told Miller that there's "no way in hell" he'd endorse that kind of signing. Red Sox GM Theo Epstein recently told Alex Speier of WEEI.com that some deals are exceptions and don't necessarily represent the market.
"Sometimes when there’s a contract that exceeds expectations early, it can embolden players and agents within that subset of players who have a similar resume,” Epstein said. “Time will tell whether they get attached to that contract or it’s an outlier contract.”
Brandon Lyon signed a three-year, $15MM deal at the Winter Meetings last year before the market settled and comparable relievers signed for less guaranteed money.
Cardinals, Mariners, Athletics Interested In Zaun
TUESDAY, 2:52pm: The Athletics are also in on Zaun, tweets John Hickey of AOL Fanhouse.
MONDAY, 4:48pm: Gregg Zaun is on the Cardinals' radar, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). However, the team hasn't spoken to Zaun's representatives so far at the Winter Meetings. Earlier today, Yahoo's Tim Brown named the Mariners and Cardinals as possible suitors for the veteran catcher (Twitter link).
Zaun missed the second half of the 2010 season after undergoing surgery on his right labrum in June. Zaun, 40 in April, should still be able to reach base if healthy; he has a career .344 on base percentage and posted a .350 OBP before getting hurt this summer. Last month, Zaun said he would prefer to return to the Rays.
Twins Offer Nishioka Multiyear Deal
7:38am: La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune gets the sense that the Twins would like to get something done sooner rather than later, despite the fact that they have until Dec. 26 to sign Nishioka. Neal says the Twins are pushing for an agreement to happen during the Winter Meetings, and the sides exchanged multiple proposals yesterday.
TUESDAY, 6:43am: Nishioka is seeking something along the lines of a three-year, $12MM deal from the Twins, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. Heyman feels there's optimism for a deal between the two sides.
MONDAY, 7:44pm: The Twins offered Tsuyoshi Nishioka a multiyear deal, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. One source tells Price that the Twins are working to sign the infielder to a two or three-year deal worth $3-4MM per season and a second source says the Twins have offered a three-year deal worth $9-10MM in total. Jon Heyman of SI.com reported earlier today that Nishioka was looking for a three-year deal.
The Twins have until late December to work out an agreement with the 26-year-old. If the sides do not reach an agreement, the Chiba Lotte Marines will not receive the $5MM that Minnesota bid for the right to negotiate with Nishioka.
Odds & Ends: Yankees, Giants, Astros, Marlins
Some late night links after a busy day for the Diamondbacks…
- Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News has some quotes from Yankees GM Brian Cashman, including praise for Boston's Adrian Gonzalez acquisition and an explanation that Dustin Moseley was non-tendered because he was looking for something greater than what New York had offered, and New York didn't want to go to arbitration.
- Giants GM Brian Sabean acknowledged that the team's payroll could jump from around $100MM in 2010 to as high as $120MM in 2011, according to Carl Steward of the San Jose Mercury News.
- Astros GM Ed Wade told MLB.com's Brian McTaggart that rival clubs have asked about Wandy Rodriguez, Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn (Twitter link).
- The Cubs will meet with Scott Boras to discuss his clients, including Carlos Pena, according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat (on Twitter). The Cubs are known to have interest in the powerful first baseman.
- The Marlins are discussing free agents Joe Beimel and J.C. Romero as they look to add left-handed relievers to their bullpen, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. Ron Mahay could be another possibility for the Marlins, who have about $1.5MM to spend on a reliever. Florida will have some competition for Mahay's services, as the Red Sox are also interested.
M’s Interested In Harden, Zaun, Chavez, Matsui, Cust
11:16pm: The Mariners are also interested in Rich Harden, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link).
5:28pm: The Mariners are interested in a number of free agents, including two players whose 2010 seasons ended prematurely because of injury. Gregg Zaun, who is on the Cardinals' radar, has caught the Mariners' attention. The team will meet with his agents tonight or tomorrow, according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times (on Twitter).
Like Zaun, Eric Chavez spent much of the 2010 season on the disabled list. The Mariners have checked in on the longtime Athletic, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).
In addition to Zaun and Chavez, the Mariners are interested in Hideki Matsui and Jack Cust as DH options, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter).
Red Sox Interested In Magglio Ordonez
The Red Sox are interested in Magglio Ordonez, according to Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com. The free agent outfielder bats right-handed, a plus for the Red Sox. GM Theo Epstein told reporters that he’s inclined to pursue a complementary right-handed hitter this offseason, and while Ordonez is no complementary player, he could be a fit for the Red Sox in left field.
Two months ago, Ordonez expressed optimism about re-signing in Detroit. The Tigers may add a corner outfielder and the Scott Boras client could be a fit in Jim Leyland's lineup once again. Before fracturing his right ankle last July, the 36-year-old batted .303/.378/.474 in 365 plate appearances.
Minor Deals: Adams, Ryan, Bass, Santos
We've seen our share of major moves since yesterday, but the minor deals keep streaming in, too. Here they are:
- The Mets signed Russ Adams and Dusty Ryan to minor league contracts, according to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo. The Blue Jays made Adams their first round pick in 2002, but he disappointed in parts of five seasons in Toronto, batting .247/.313/.372. The Blue Jays drafted Adams as a shortstop, but he has big league experience at second base and in left field. Ryan, 26, batted .199/.333/.349 for the Padres' Triple-A affiliate in 2010. He had cameos with the Tigers in 2008 and 2009.
- Oddly enough, the Tigers signed a former Mets backstop today. MLB.com's Jason Beck reports that Detroit added Omir Santos on a minor league deal (Twitter link). The 29-year-old last appeared in the majors on the 2009 Mets.
- The Phillies signed right-hander Brian Bass, according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter). The 28-year-old has a 5.16 ERA with 5.1 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 in 183 major league innings.
Nationals, Rangers Interested In Jeff Francis
The Nationals and Rangers have checked in on Jeff Francis, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Previous reports have linked the lefty to the Rockies, Pirates, Mariners, Brewers, Astros and Mets. However, the Mets appear to be more serious about Chris Young than Francis.
A number of the clubs above have been linked to another pitcher who has dealt with shoulder injuries, Brandon Webb. Francis, 30 in January, posted a 5.00 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 104 1/3 innings for the Rockies in 2010.