Ryan Expects Yanks To Outbid Rangers For Lee
Nolan Ryan told Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal that he expects the Yankees to outbid the Rangers for Cliff Lee (Twitter link). The Rangers will try to sell the appeal of Texas to Lee, an Arkansas native, but they don't have the same spending power as the Yankees.
The Rangers met with Lee at his home on Monday, less than a week after the Yankees made the same trip. Lee will command a deal worth more than $100MM and no team wants to enter a bidding war with the Yankees, but the Rangers can afford to make multiple free agent additions this winter, according to FOX Sports. It's not just the Yankees and Rangers, of course; the Nationals are among the other interested teams.
Yankees Likely To Sign DePaula
The Yankees are expected to sign Dominican right-hander Rafael DePaula for about $700K later today, according to Melissa Segura of SI.com (on Twitter). He reappeared on the market a week ago after facing age and identity fraud questions for a year. MLB suspended him in 2009 and he later confessed to using a false identity.
If not for the suspension, DePaula would likely have signed for more, according to Segura. He turns 20 soon, so the Yankees may fast track his path through the minor leagues. (Twitter links).
Chicago Rumors: Zambrano, Marmol, Dunn, Quentin
Carlos Zambrano has not asked for a trade and the Cubs have not asked him to waive his no-trade clause, according to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com. The Cubs did meet with Zambrano’s agent, Barry Praver, but the sides didn’t discuss trading the right-hander. Here are the details on the Cubs and White Sox:
- Praver and the Cubs also discussed Carlos Marmol, an offseason extension candidate who may be offered a long-term deal.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry acknowledged the team’s need for a first baseman and said he anticipates “more volume at that position than what people need at that position."
- The Cubs have not yet talked to the agents for Adam Dunn, but the White Sox are still targeting the slugger. The Tigers are interested in Dunn, but ESPN.com's Jayson Stark heard that the Cubs may not pursue him as aggressively as expected.
- Levine hears that the White Sox are not shopping Carlos Quentin. Stark reported yesterday that the Phillies have interest in Quentin.
Morosi On Soriano, Pirates, Tigers
Joaquin Benoit agreed to a lucrative three-year deal yesterday, but a former bullpen mate of his could be waiting a lot longer for his free agent payday. As Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports explains, Rafael Soriano may find more teams pursuing him if he shows some patience. Here’s how some teams other than the Angels could end up in pursuit of the former Rays closer, plus other hot stove notes:
- If the Red Sox send Daniel Bard or Jonathan Papelbon to Arizona in a potential Justin Upton trade, they could be willing to spend on Soriano.
- The Rangers could be looking for a closer if Cliff Lee signs elsewhere and Neftali Feliz moves to the rotation and the White Sox may non-tender Bobby Jenks.
- Agent Scott Boras says closers like Soriano are rare. “A closer of this caliber — at 30 — is almost never in the marketplace.”
- A source suggests to Morosi that the Pirates could deal Evan Meek or Joel Hanrahan and sign a replacement.
- The Tigers would now like to add left-handed relief and are considering J.C. Romero.
Marlins Intend To Spend On Pitching
The Marlins intend to spend the money they saved in the Dan Uggla trade on an established starting pitcher and Javier Vazquez and Carl Pavano are among the team’s top targets, according to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark.
Vazquez is now the Marlins’ primary target, but he has a number of other suitors. At least six teams, including the Nationals, Rockies, Cardinals and Cubs, have expressed interest in the right-hander this winter, but he isn’t close to a deal with any of them. Vazquez, who has thrown the second most innings and recorded the second most strikeouts in baseball since the start of the 2000 season, would be closer to his Puerto Rico home if he signed with the Marlins.
Pavano is looking for a contract comparable to the three-year $33MM deal Ted Lilly signed with the Dodgers. If Pavano's willing to accept a shorter term deal, the Marlins could work aggressively to bring him back to Miami. Six to eight teams have expressed some interest in Pavano so far this winter.
Yankees To Make Jeter An Offer; How Will It Look?
The Yankees plan to offer Derek Jeter a contract of at least three years, possibly by the end of the week, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Jon Heyman of SI.com and Sherman both suggest the Yankees' initial offer will likely be worth roughly $45MM (Twitter link). However, Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork reported yesterday that the Yankees would be happy to agree to a three-year $63MM deal.
Sherman suggests the Yankees might be willing to increase their offer to the $57-60MM range on a three-year deal and notes that the team could offer a fourth year or an option for a fourth year. According to Matthews, Jeter wants at least a four-year deal and has a preference for a five or six-year contract.
At least one person in the Yankees front office wants the team to draw a hard line with Jeter, Matthews reported. Sherman finds it "very possible" that the Yankees will make an offer and tell Jeter to beat it on the open market if he doesn't like it. The Yankees insist that they'll be offering a baseball contract. Yankees president Randy Levine told reporters that Jeter's contract "isn't a licensing deal or commercial rights deal."
Anthopoulos Talks Offseason Plans
Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos was the center of attention at last year's GM Meetings. The then-rookie GM had the winter's most coveted player on his roster: Roy Halladay. The Halladay trade is history, but Anthopoulos has the entire offseason ahead to contemplate more deals. Here's what he told MLBTR about Toronto's offseason plans:
- Anthopoulos declined to discuss specifics, but said the Blue Jays have kept in touch with all their free agents. That includes Kevin Gregg, whose option Toronto declined earlier in the month.
- The Blue Jays are keeping their options open when it comes to ranked free agents. Even though signing a Type A free agent before next Tuesday would mean surrendering a draft pick, Anthopoulos says the Blue Jays would not hesitate to sign a Type A player this week if the deal is right. Though the Blue Jays may simply be keeping their options open, the news will interest the Toronto fans who are wondering about Type A free agent Manny Ramirez. It seems unlikely that the Blue Jays would sign a Type A free agent before the deadline to offer arbitration, since the organization appears to value draft picks highly, but Anthopoulos says he'll consider it. Toronto's first round pick (21st overall) is not protected.
- As for potential surprises, Anthopoulos says it's too early to predict whether they'll come via trade or free agency since so much of the offseason lies ahead.
Small Market Teams Time Free Agent Bids Carefully
If MLB teams want to sign top free agents, they can’t wait much longer than the Winter Meetings. But if they can’t afford to sign elite players, they generally keep waiting. The Rays, for example, will likely see Carl Crawford and Rafael Soriano sign elsewhere, since they are rarely able to bid aggressively on free agents early in the winter.
“We don’t necessarily have the resources ever,” Rays president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told MLBTR at the GM Meetings in Orlando.
It doesn’t take long to review the early forays into free agency that Friedman has made since taking over baseball operations late in 2005. They signed Akinori Iwamura to a three-year $7.7MM deal in December, 2006, added Troy Percival on a two-year $8MM deal in November, 2007, signed Joe Nelson to a one-year deal in December, 2008 and signed Rafael Soriano to a one-year deal in December, 2009.
Other than those four signings, the Rays have added all their big league free agents in January or February. History suggests the Rays will be patient this offseason, but Friedman says he isn’t necessarily going to wait the market out.
“It’s something for us that most likely it plays out [late],” Friedman said. “But sometimes there are guys who really want to sign earlier, have that peace of mind and I think we’ll be prepared enough to know which guys to move more aggressively on than others.”
Two offseasons ago, Oliver Perez, Manny Ramirez, Adam Dunn, Dennys Reyes, Juan Cruz and Ty Wigginton were the only free agents to sign multi-year deals between February 1st and the beginning of the season. Last offseason, no free agent signed a multi-year deal between February 1st and the beginning of the season and Johnny Damon, Orlando Hudson, Orlando Cabrera and Kevin Gregg were the only free agents to sign for more than $2MM in guaranteed money after February 1st.
There is no question that spending slows down later in the winter. It’s partly because there are fewer players to spend on and partly because the players remaining have less leverage. There is a limited number of major league jobs, (especially at DH and closer) so unsigned players don’t have much bargaining power if they want to play.
That’s why Padres GM Jed Hoyer is likely to wait a couple months before replacing Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica.
“I think frankly we’ll do a lot of our damage late in the offseason as opposed to early, given the market,” Hoyer said. “So we’ll probably wait and we will probably add some relievers, but I have a feeling it’ll be later in the offseason.”
Small market teams like the Padres and Rays wait patiently and spend cautiously because they can’t afford to make Carl Pavano-sized mistakes.
“Our margin for error is significantly less than our competitors',” Friedman said. “And so it obviously makes it that much more challenging.”
The Rays did spend considerably more than usual in 2010, when they opened the season with a $72.8MM payroll. As they prepare to field a less expensive team, the Rays are looking ahead beyond 2011.
“The one mistake we can't make is treat each year like a disparate event and try to be as good as we can that year without being mindful of the future years,” Friedman said. “And so people talk a lot about 2010, that we went all in and I would agree with that from a financial standpoint. We way over-extended ourselves to field the team that we did, but we definitely didn’t from a talent standpoint. We didn’t trade off a lot of guys that are going to be key members of the 2011 and beyond.”
Call it a balancing act, call it a waiting game, the Rays’ approach has earned them a pair of division titles and, back in 2008, even more success.
“We won the American League Championship with a mid 40s payroll,” Friedman said with a grin. “It’s doable [but] it’s obviously very difficult.”
Padres Will Tender Ryan Ludwick A Contract
The Padres will offer Ryan Ludwick a contract through arbitration, GM Jed Hoyer told MLBTR. The Padres have limited payroll and a surplus of outfielders that includes Cameron Maybin, Kyle Blanks, Will Venable, Scott Hairston, Chris Denorfia, Aaron Cunningham and Tony Gwynn, so MLBTR had identified Ludwick as a non-tender candidate. But Hoyer says he's comfortable having outfield depth, so the Padres will offer Ludwick arbitraiton.
The 32-year-old is heading into his final season before free agency. He earned 5.45MM in 2010 and has hit 76 home runs over the course of the past three seasons, so he'll surpass the $6MM mark in 2011 and could earn close to $7MM. Hoyer says it's a fair price for an outfielder as powerful as Ludwick.
Jeff Fletcher of AOL FanHouse said on Twitter yesterday that Ludwick would be offered arbitration.
Meetings Rumors: A’s, Tigers, M’s, Red Sox, O’s
Baseball's general managers met in Orlando today and discussed potential changes to the collective bargaining agreement. MLB Executive Vice President Rob Manfred told reporters that he's optimistic about reaching a new CBA with the MLB Players Association and eager to hear the opinions of baseball's GMs. Manfred declined to go into detail on the talks, but the GMs addressed a number of hot stove topics with MLBTR soon afterwards. Here are the details (and be sure to follow @mlbtrorlando for more updates):
- The A's are off to a busy offseason start, but it's not intentional. "I don't think any particular reason other than opportunities presented themselves when they did," A's GM Billy Beane said. "It wasn't by design or anything like that. [David] DeJesus was somebody we inquired on back in August when he was hurt and we didn't control the pace of that negotiation, because they didn't move him until they were ready to move him."
- Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski says the Tigers could add left-handers, right-handers or both to their bullpen this winter.
- The Tigers expect Andy Oliver to be a quality big league pitcher, but they aren't counting on him for their 2011 rotation, according to Dombrowski.
- Asked who will close for his team in 2011, Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik praised David Aardsma's recent body of work. Zduriencik also said he doesn't expect Milton Bradley's history with manager Eric Wedge to be an issue.
- The Mariners opened the 2010 season with a heavily right-handed bullpen and Zduriencik says "it'd be nice to have a left-hander or two out there" in 2011.
- Red Sox GM Theo Epstein says the Red Sox need to get to know Andrew Miller and Taylor Buchholz before he knows specifically what to expect from the team's new acquisitions. He does like "the possibility of real upside" for both pitchers, and was impressed by Buchholz's 2008 season with the Rockies.
- Epstein says the Red Sox bullpen is far from a finished product despite the acquisitions. "We probably have to acquire one or two relievers through trade or free agency and we will. I really believe in the guys we have in the back: [Jonathan] Pabelbon, [Daniel] Bard and possibly [Felix] Doubront. If he's not in the rotation, he could be a very valuable bullpen piece."
- Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail says there haven't been major developments with free agents Cesar Izturis or Ty Wigginton since the O's expressed interest in both when the offseason ended.
- For more GM Meetings coverage, see what Jed Hoyer of the Padres, Neal Huntington of the Pirates and Andrew Friedman of the Rays had to say.