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Cardinals Sign Brian Tallet

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The Cardinals signed Brian Tallet to a one-year contract, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The southpaw posted 8.6 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 against lefty batters last year and should continue to be productive against them in Tony La Russa’s bullpen.

The 33-year-old posted a 6.40 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9 in 2010, his fifth season in Toronto. Tallet earned $2MM in 2010 and was headed for a raise through arbitration until the Blue Jays outrighted him to Triple-A. He refused the assignment and hit free agency before I named him as a potential bargain reliever.

The Blue Jays used Tallet as an occasional starter, but Morosi hears that the Cardinals will use him as a reliever. That makes sense, since they have Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter, Jaime Garcia, Jake Westbrook and Kyle Lohse in their rotation.

Odds & Ends: Hampton, Prince, Berkman, Miner

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Links on an intensely busy Monday for the Rockies…

Rockies Rumors: Stults, Floyd, Delcarmen

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This will probably go down as the busiest hot stove day of the year for the Rockies. Not only are they nearing a nine-figure extension with their franchise shortstop, they're close to locking up their number two starter. That's not it, either…

  • The Rockies added left-hander Eric Stults and catcher Matt Pagnozzi today, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Stults, 30, spent the 2010 season in Japan, but started 24 games for the Dodgers from 2006-09. He has a 4.84 ERA with 6.1 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 145 big league innings. 
  • Last year the 28-year-old Pagnozzi appeared in 15 games for the Cardinals, the same team his uncle Tom spent over a decade on.
  • Before it became apparent that the Rockies would be bringing Jorge de la Rosa back, Renck suggested that the Rockies had the resources to sign Carl Pavano.
  • Pavano and De La Rosa aren't cheap, but neither are the Rockies' potential trade targets. The White Sox would want Dexter Fowler and Ian Stewart for Gavin Floyd, according to Tracy Ringolsby of Inside the Rockies (on Twitter).
  • The Rockies are now looking to add a reliever and a right-handed bat, according to Renck (on Twitter).
  • The Rockies are expected to non-tender Manny Delcarmen, according to Renck (on Twitter). The 28-year-old pitched to a 6.48 ERA in 8 1/3 innings after the Rockies acquired him from Boston. Like former Rockie and current Red Sox Taylor Buchholz, Delcarmen was a valuable big league reliever in 2008, but has struggled since.

Catching Rumors: Mets, Rockies, Martin

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Victor Martinez, John Buck and, now, Yorvit Torrealba have agreed to deals with new teams. Here's the latest on the market for backstops:

  • The Rockies talked to Torrealba's agent, but only had interest in a one-year deal, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
  • The Mets also had interest in Torrealba, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (on Twitter).
  • Jon Heyman of SI.com says (on Twitter) that the White Sox would happily bring A.J. Pierzynski back. They didn't offer him arbitration because they didn't want to pay him more than $6.75MM in 2011.
  • Matt Colleran, the agent for Russell Martin, told Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times that the sides have exchanged ideas about reaching a deal before Thursday's non-tender deadline instead of going to arbitraiton. The Dodgers seem reluctant to give the non-tender candidate a significant raise after a disappointing season that Martin finished on the disabled list. Colleran told MLBTR last week that Martin's late-season hip injury did not damage his labrum.

Rockies, Tulowitzki Nearing Extension

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TUESDAY, 1:21pm: Tulowitzki will be guaranteed $157.75MM from 2011-20, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.  Here's the salary breakdown.

MONDAY, 9:22pm: The Rockies and Troy Tulowitzki are nearing a six-year extension that will keep the shortstop in Denver through 2020 and pay him $119MM. Tulowitzki will be approaching his 36th birthday by the time the extension expires.

Tulowitzki is midway through the six-year, $31MM extension he signed before the 2008 season. He'll earn $38.75MM through 2014 on that deal once the Rockies exercise his 2014 option for $15MM. He'll also earn $119MM for the 2015-2020 seasons.

Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd and Tulowitzki's representatives at TWC Sports are also nearing a multideal for another Rockie, Jorge de la Rosa. 

Tulowitzki won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger in 2010, finishing fifth in MVP voting for the second consecutive season. The 26-year-old also made his first All-Star team and, even though he missed a month with a left wrist fracture, finished the season with fantastic numbers. He posted a .315/.381/.568 line and hit 27 homers in 529 plate appearances.

Tulo's deal will become one of the most lucrative contracts in Rockies franchise history. Todd Helton ($141.5MM over nine years, 2001) and Mike Hampton ($121MM over eight years, 2000) also signed nine-figure deals with the Rockies.  Back in March, O'Dowd compared Tulowitzki to Derek Jeter in a conversation with Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.  Interestingly, the Rockies are locking up Tulo at the same time the Yankees' negotiations with Jeter have become surprisingly contentious.

ESPN.com's Keith Law first reported that the sides were nearing a deal, ESPN.com's Buster Olney confirmed that the sides were closing in on one and Jon Heyman of SI.com, Thomas Harding of MLB.com, Troy Renck of the Denver Post and Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports also reported on the story via Twitter.

Tim Dierkes contributed to this post.

Mets Interested In Chris Young

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9:10pm: The Mets may have interest in Young, but they aren't nearing a deal with him, according to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.  Young told CBS Sports' Scott Miller he's talking to the Mets and seven or eight other teams, including the Padres.

6:24pm: The Mets are closing in on a deal with right-hander Chris Young, ESPN.com's Buster Olney hears (on Twitter). Young has been offered multiple incentive-laden one-year deals, according to Yahoo's Jeff Passan (on Twitter). The signing would be Sandy Alderson's first major deal as Mets GM and it would reunite him with a player he had in San Diego as the Padres' CEO. 

Johan Santana will probably miss the beginning of the season, so the Mets were looking to add depth behind Mike Pelfrey, Jon Niese and R.A. Dickey.

Young battled through shoulder issues in 2010 and he appeared in just four games. He allowed only two earned runs and 11 walks in 20 innings for the Padres, who turned down the 31-year-old's option earlier in the offseason. Young has always been hard to hit, but walks have been a problem for him throughout his seven-year career.

Rangers Deny Contacting Andy Pettitte

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8:10pm: Rangers sources denied to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch that they've contacted Pettitte. The only contact between the team and the left-hander occured after the ALCS when Pettitte called Ryan to congratulate him.

5:59pm: Rangers president Nolan Ryan recently contacted Andy Pettitte to try and persuade the left-hander to return to Texas, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Though Pettitte appeared to be leaning toward a return to the Bronx, he will presumably consider the Rangers' pitch since they play relatively close to Deer Park, Texas, where he lives. Pettitte left the Yankees for the Astros after the 2003 season only to return to New York three years later.

The Rangers' interest could spark an unusual dynamic between the Rangers and the team they defeated in this year's ALCS. The Yankees are interested in lefty Cliff Lee, so the two teams appear to be bidding against one another for their best left-handed starters.

The Yankees did not offer Pettitte arbitration, so the Rangers wouldn't have to surrender a draft choice to sign Pettitte. Like longtime teammate and fellow free agent Derek Jeter, Pettitte gains leverage because of interest from other teams.

Talks Progressing For Yankees, Rivera

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8:08pm: Jon Heyman of SI.com reports on Twitter that no deal appears imminent.

7:53pm: The Yankees are "quietly closing in on a contract" with Mariano Rivera, according to Ken Fidlin of the Toronto Sun. Rivera is seeking a two-year deal, but the Yankees haven’t yet agreed to sign him for more than one season, according to Fidlin. 

Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal reports that the team will talk to agent Fern Cuza this week, and could very well have an agreement in place by the end of next week's winter meetings.

Kevin Correia To Decline Arbitration

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The agent for Kevin Correia says the right-hander will turn down the Padres' offer of arbitration, according to Dan Hayes of the North County Times (on Twitter). Correia is open to returning to San Diego, but is not yet ready to rule out other teams. The 30-year-old pitched to a 5.40 ERA in 145 innings last year and posted 7.1 K/9 with 4.0 BB/9, but lost his rotation spot to Tim Stauffer after slumping late in the season.  Baseball understandably took a backseat in Correia's life this year, as he tragically lost his 21-year-old brother in May.

If you're wondering which ranked free agents have accepted or turned down arbitration in advance of tomorrow night's deadline, check out MLBTR's free agent arbitration offer tracker.

De La Rosa Could Sign Sooner Than Expected

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Two teams have offered Jorge de la Rosa contracts and two more may make proposals within a day, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Rockies and Nationals have offered deals and the Pirates, Orioles, Rangers, Brewers and Yankees all have at least some interest in the free agent left-hander, who may sign sooner than expected.

The Rockies are not prepared to offer more than three years, but some other teams are prepared to make four-year commitments, Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post reported last week. Since the Rockies offered De La Rosa arbitration, he will cost other teams a  top draft pick in June of 2011.

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