Astros Rumors: Looper, Wolf, Pudge
MLB.com’s Alyson Footer spoke with Astros GM Ed Wade and has the latest on the club.
- The Astros made "11th-hour" offers to Randy Wolf and Braden Looper before they signed elsewhere.
- They offered Wolf a one-year deal with a mutual option for 2010.
- The offers to Wolf and Looper were both for less than $5MM.
- The Astros haven’t spoken with Ivan Rodriguez in weeks and never made him a formal offer.
- Wade says he isn’t likely to make any moves between now and the regular season.
Royals Considering Orlando Hudson
ESPN.com’s Buster Olney heard the Royals are looking for ways to fit Orlando Hudson into their budget. Olney calls this a "terrific idea" that would likely give the Royals a "greatly improved lineup and a better defense."
Earlier in the week, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reported the Royals’ interest in signing a free agent before the season begins. Hudson would cost the Royals their second-round pick.
Odds And Ends: Griffey, Varitek, Giants
A few links for Saturday morning…
- Russell Branyan wants Ken Griffey Jr. to join him in Seattle according to this AP story found in the Globe and Mail.
- If Griffey ends up in Seattle, Cameron Smith of the Washington Post says it’s nothing but a marketing ploy.
- Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times likes the depth the Bobby Abreu addition gives the Angels.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle suggests the Giants could make a trade in Spring Training if teams are looking to dump salary. Brian Sabean says he’s keeping his eye on teams who may need to free up money.
- Alex Speier of WEEI in Boston heard from Jason Varitek about his contract negotiations this offseason. Varitek says he never doubted that he would stay in Boston.
- This doesn’t have to do with rumors, but it’s a good read: MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan shares anecdotes from 20 years of Spring Training.
Dodgers Put Bullpen Search On Hold
Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News reports that the Dodgers have put their search for a lefty reliever on hold because talks aren’t progressing with Will Ohman, Dennys Reyes and Jamey Wright.
The Dodgers have added some lower tier arms and for now GM Ned Colletti says he’s happy to let pitchers such as Carmen Cali, Stephen Randolph and Scott Strickland compete with Jeff Weaver and others.
Tigers Could Make Trade
Lynn Henning of the Detroit News expects the Tigers to make a trade before the regular season, "perhaps a big one." Henning writes that the team could trade away starting pitching if Nate Robertson and Dontrelle Willis are healthy. Henning also mentions Marcus Thames and Ryan Raburn as possible trade candidates.
Willis and Robertson each have considerable negative trade value, as they’ll both make at least $7MM in 2009 and 2010. Unless the Tigers are willing to pay most of that, they’d have to trade one of their other starters: Justin Verlander, Jeremy Bonderman, Armando Galarraga, Edwin Jackson or Zach Miner. Trading one of those starters would leave the Tigers with a thin rotation.
The Tigers don’t have a starting spot for Thames if Gary Sheffield stays healthy.
Mets To Sign Livan Hernandez
According to Christian Red of the New York Daily News, the Mets have agreed to sign Livan Hernandez to a minor league deal worth $1MM plus incentives. Hernandez can earn another $1MM in performance bonuses according to Red’s source.
Red points out that this signing is "another indicator that free agent Pedro Martinez will likely wear another uniform this season." Regis Courtemanche of MetsBlog writes that Omar Minaya said this morning the Mets’ rotation is set without Pedro, but Newsday’s David Lennon doesn’t rule out a Pedro return.
Johnson Wants To Play, Would Accept A Trade
According to MLB.com’s Bill Ladson, Nick Johnson will not accept a bench role with the Nationals, who will "most likely look to trade" him. Johnson said he "would rather play every day" than accept a role as a reserve. Now that the Nats added Adam Dunn, Johnson doesn’t fit as a starter so he said if the Nationals choose to trade him "that’s fine."
Ladson writes that the A’s, who have had interest in Johnson, aren’t near a deal with the Nats. Oakland doesn’t have a clear spot for him either, though.
Mariners Likely To Add An OF Soon?
John Hickey of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer suggests the Mariners could soon sign Ken Griffey Jr. or Garret Anderson.
"It’s a good bet that a deal for one or the other will come down in the next few days."
Hickey writes that both would like to play in Seattle, so it’s up to the front office to make a decision. Since the Mariners don’t have a lot of financial flexibility, they’d have to do some "creative accounting" and likely defer money.
Glavine, Braves Have ‘Positive’ Meeting
8:36pm: MLB.com’s Mark Bowman heard from Glavine, who also described the meeting as "positive." He said he wants to sign with the Braves and sounds hopeful that he will. Frank Wren said he had a "good meeting" with Glavine.
Since Glavine’s willing to accept a contract with deferred money, Bowman suggests this deal could work: $2MM guaranteed with up to $4MM in deferred incentives over the next five years.
7:38pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that the Braves met with Tom Glavine today and offered him a deal that could be worth up to $3MM. Rosenthal’s sources confirm Jerry Crasnick’s earlier report: the deal would guarantee Glavine $1MM, pay him another million for making the team out of Spring Training and pay him the final million if he’s on the Braves’ roster for 60 days.
Glavine’s agent, Gregg Clifton described the meeting as "amicable and positive" and said the two sides are still exchanging ideas. The Nationals are an option for Glavine if he doesn’t reach an agreement with Atlanta.
The Braves have $6-8MM left to spend, but they’d also like to add an outfielder. Rosenthal describes Nick Swisher, who makes $5.3MM this year, as the Braves’ most likely option. If Atlanta expects the Yankees to pick up any of Swisher’s salary, they’d likely have to part with "higher quality prospects."
Rosenthal adds that Glavine could wait until March, when he turns 43, to sign. If injuries occur in Spring Training more teams could need starters.
Blue Jays Sign Shigeki Noguchi
NPB Tracker’s Patrick Newman passes along an article from Sports Hochi in Japan that reports that the Blue Jays have signed lefty Shigeki Noguchi to a minor league contract. Noguchi won the 1999 MVP as a member of the Chunichi Dragons, but has fallen off considerably since winning 19 games that year.
Noguchi, 35, will attend minor league camp and figures to start the season in AA or AAA.