David Ross Drawing Interest From Five Teams
Catcher David Ross is drawing interest from the Cubs, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, Padres and Braves and could soon sign, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo reports (Twitter links). Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart said earlier today that his team was keeping tabs on Ross, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (on Twitter).
With Jon Lester in Chicago, there will likely be plenty of speculation about Ross signing with the Cubs. Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan noted earlier tonight (again on Twitter) that Lester’s decision to sign with the Cubs greatly increased the chances that Lester’s former Red Sox teammates Ross and Jonny Gomes would wind up in Chicago as well. The Cubs recently traded for Diamondbacks catcher Miguel Montero, but they non-tendered backup catcher John Baker are expected to consider trading Welington Castillo.
Ross, 37, hit .184/.260/.368 in 171 plate appearances in Boston last season. The 13-year veteran has also played for the Dodgers, Pirates, Padres, Reds and Braves.
Edinson Volquez Looking For $20MM Deal
Free agent starter Edinson Volquez is looking for a two-year, $20MM contract this offseason, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press tweets. Volquez, 31, is coming off a strong season with the Pirates in which he pitched 192 2/3 innings with a 3.04 ERA, 6.5 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 while also posting an excellent 50.1% ground ball rate.
Prior to the 2014 season, Volquez had struggled badly with his control, posting BB/9 rates of 4.0 or greater in his previous six seasons and leading the NL with 105 walks in 2012. His always-tantalizing stuff and good work in Pittsburgh should earn him a healthy deal, however — two years and $20MM isn’t at all out of line with the two years and $18MM MLBTR’s Zach Links predicted for Volquez in October. The Twins have shown interest in Volquez, and the Pirates would also reportedly like to retain him.
Pat Neshek Talking To Three Teams, Could Sign Soon
Free agent reliever Pat Neshek is in the midst of talks with the Astros and two other teams, and he could soon agree to terms, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweets. Recent reports have connected the Blue Jays and Pirates to Neshek, although it’s unclear if those are the other two teams in negotiations. The Astros, meanwhile, have lately been linked to relievers like Tyler Clippard, Sergio Romo and Luke Gregerson.
Neshek is coming off an outstanding season with the Cardinals in which he posted a 1.87 ERA, 9.1 K/9 and a measly 1.2 BB/9 in 67 1/3 innings. MLBTR’s Steve Adams predicted in October that Neshek’s breakout season at age 33 would earn him a two-year, $10MM deal this offseason.
Red Sox, Marlins Interested In Wade Miley
The Red Sox and Marlins have interest in Diamondbacks lefty Wade Miley, Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi of FOX Sports tweet. (Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald noted in November that the Marlins had interest in Miley.) Rosenthal and Morosi add that the offers the Diamondbacks have received for Miley are significant, increasing the likelihood of a deal. The Blue Jays and Rangers also could have interest in Miley.
Miley, 28, posted a 4.34 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 last season, which was the third straight year in which he threw at least 194 innings. Miley also keeps the ball on the ground, with a GB% of 51.1 last season. He’s projected to make $4.3MM this offseason in his first year of arbitration eligibility. The news that the Red Sox are interested in Miley broke before news of Jon Lester‘s decision to sign with the Cubs rather than returning to Boston. It’s hard to imagine Lester’s decision hurting the Red Sox’ chances of dealing for Miley, but they’ll probably seek to replace Lester by also acquiring an obvious ace.
White Sox To Acquire Jeff Samardzija
It’s official: the White Sox and Athletics have agreed to a deal that sends Jeff Samardzija back to Chicago, though this time with the South Siders. Righty Michael Ynoa is going with him in return for infielder Marcus Semien, righty Chris Bassitt, Josh Phegley and Rangel Ravelo.
The deal continues a huge offseason for the White Sox, who also recently agreed to terms with David Robertson and have also acquired Adam LaRoche and Zach Duke to bolster a team that won just 73 games in 2014. The 29-year-old Samardzija had his best MLB season last summer, posting an outstanding 2.99 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 while pitching a career-high 219 2/3 innings. He’ll augment a strong-looking White Sox rotation that also will include Chris Sale and Jose Quintana.
For the Athletics, the deal continues an offseason of adjustment — the Athletics are set to lose Jon Lester, Jed Lowrie and Luke Gregerson to free agency, and they’ve traded key position players Josh Donaldson (to the Blue Jays) and Brandon Moss (to the Indians).
Semien, 24, had a terrific half-season for Triple-A Charlotte in 2014, then hit .234/.300/.372 in 255 plate appearances in the Majors, playing mostly second and third base, although he can also play shortstop. He boasts an excellent batting eye and reasonable power. The Athletics could use him in their middle infield next season.
The 25-year-old Bassitt made his big-league debut in 2014 despite missing much of the year with a broken hand. In four minor-league seasons, Bassitt has a 2.97 ERA, 8.6 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9. Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook 2014 ranked Bassitt the White Sox’ 15th-best prospect heading into the season.
Phegley, meanwhile, is a 26-year-old backstop who goes from a crowded group in Chicago to one in Oakland. He has seemingly mastered the Triple-A level, putting up back-to-back high-power, high-OBP campaigns. But he failed to take advantage of a big league opportunity in 2013 and will need to earn his way into another.
Ravelo, the only true prospect going to the A’s, is a 22-year-old corner infielder. Last year he was promoted to Double-A and the former sixth round pick slashed .309/.386/.473 in 551 plate appearances. Ravelo has past experience at third base but has played mostly at first base over the past two seasons.
Samardzija was born in Indiana, grew up a White Sox fan, and of course played most of his previous big-league career with the Cubs, so his return to Chicago will represent a homecoming. He is projected to make $9.5MM in 2015 through the arbitration process, and will be eligible for free agency following the season.
Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com (on Twitter), and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (links to Twitter) all reported pieces of the deal. David Kaplan of CSNChicago.com (via Twitter) and Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (via Twitter) both contributed to the reporting on the deal’s progress.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Red Sox Make Offer To Justin Masterson
10:50am: Masterson’s camp will not necessarily act on the offer immediately, tweets Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com, as it still has teams to meet with.
8:38am: The offer is actually only for one year, Cafardo tweets. Reports have not clarified whether the deal would include any option years.
With that in mind, Boston appears to be competing on more equal footing with other teams that are said to have made or weighed offers to the righty.
7:21am: The Red Sox have offered Justin Masterson a multi-year deal with the idea of using him as a starter, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe tweets. CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reported yesterday that the Red Sox had made Masterson an offer. A number of teams have shown interest in Masterson, so it’s not that surprising that he would already have at least one multi-year offer despite his disappointing 2014 season, in which he dealt with injuries and a (likely related) loss of velocity.
In October, MLBTR’s Zach Links predicted Masterson would take a one-year, $12MM deal, but that was predicated upon the idea that he would want to use that year to rebuild his value before hitting the free agent market again. Last offseason, Masterson appeared headed toward a huge contract, and he might yet be able to get one if he took a one-year deal and then had a big 2015 season.
Masterson, of course, came through the minors with the Red Sox, who sent him to Cleveland when they acquired Victor Martinez in 2009. After four straight years in which he was solid or better from the Indians (he had a poor ERA in 2012, but his peripherals that season remained reasonable), his ugly walk year resulted in a trade to St. Louis last July. For the season, he posted a 5.88 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9 in 128 2/3 innings.
Poll: Are The White Sox Ready To Contend?
Before last night, the White Sox had already made noise this offseason, signing Adam LaRoche to complement Jose Abreu at first base and DH and Zach Duke to provide a strong lefty for their bullpen. On Monday, though, they took their offseason to a new level, agreeing to terms with former Yankees closer David Robertson on a four-year, $46MM deal and agreeing to acquire Athletics starter Jeff Samardzija, reportedly for infielder Marcus Semien, pitcher Chris Bassitt and a third player.
Add in pitcher Carlos Rodon, who has moved through the minor leagues as quickly as anticipated after the White Sox drafted him third overall last season, and it appears GM Rick Hahn has swiftly turned the White Sox from a franchise with weak big-league talent and an even weaker farm system into something far more interesting. But is it enough?
Next year’s AL Central appears to be up for grabs. The Tigers figure to lose Max Scherzer, and they’re getting older; the Royals will almost certainly lose James Shields. The Twins’ recent streak of losing seasons looks likely to continue, leaving the Indians as the only team that appears to have improved, adding Brandon Moss to a roster that finished third last year. An AL Wild Card spot might be a bit more attainable than last season, too, with the Royals and Athletics appearing likely to move backwards, although the Blue Jays, Red Sox and perhaps Mariners could complicate that picture.
The White Sox, however, only won 73 games in 2014, and it remains to be seen if their aggressive offseason is enough to move them past the Tigers, Royals and Indians, all of whom won at least 12 more games than they did. The White Sox’ rotation, led by Chris Sale, Jose Quintana and Samardzija, now looks like it should be a strength, particularly if Rodon can make an impact. Adding Robertson and Duke to what had been a weak group of relievers should provide a big boost, and young-ish arms like Jake Petricka, Zach Putnam and Daniel Webb are interesting enough to imagine that the bullpen could be a strength overall.
Offensively, the White Sox will lean heavily on Abreu and LaRoche, with Adam Eaton, Alexei Ramirez and Conor Gillaspie all expected to play key roles. It remains to be seen what they’ll do at second base now that Semien is reportedly gone, and what they’ll get out of corner outfielders Dayan Viciedo and Avisail Garcia, both of whom struggled in 2014. The White Sox also still aren’t a strong team defensively. One more clever addition — perhaps someone like Nori Aoki to add to their corner outfield talent — might make a big difference.
That possibility aside, though, what do you think? Have the White Sox done enough already this offseason to mold themselves into a contender?
Are The White Sox Ready To Contend?
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Yes 56% (10,650)
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No 44% (8,454)
Total votes: 19,104
Quick Hits: Red Sox, Blue Jays, Rosario
The Red Sox are mired in “a mess of their own making” after “lowballing” Jon Lester last spring, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes. That reported $70MM offer (which the team later characterized as merely a starting point) got negotiations off on the wrong foot, and the team wound up dealing Lester to Oakland in July. Of course, the Red Sox could still end up signing Lester, and if they don’t, there are alternatives, like Cole Hamels or Max Scherzer. But if they don’t, Silverman writes, their decisions last spring will remain in question. Here are more quick notes from around the Majors.
- Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos says the rumors surrounding club president and CEO Paul Beeston have had no impact on him, writes MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm. “Honestly I haven’t thought about it at all today, and I’m being dead serious,” says Anthopoulos. “No one has brought it up to me, nobody. This is the first time I’ve talked about it today. I just don’t get caught up in it.” Anthopoulos claimed Chris Colabello from the Twins on Monday, and also reportedly pursued a trade for Royals closer Greg Holland.
- Rockies GM Jeff Bridich says catcher Wilin Rosario has mostly attracted interest from AL clubs, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding reports. Rosario is better offensively than defensively, and AL clubs could use him at DH. The Rangers are one possible fit, Harding suggests. A report last week indicated that the Rockies were interested in trying to trade Rosario, who is projected to receive a raise to $3.6MM in 2015 through the arbitration process. Harding writes that the Rockies would look for another catcher if they traded Rosario.
AL Notes: Angels, Holt, Rays, Mariners, Gutierrez
The Angels have at least a little interest in Red Sox infielder Brock Holt, Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston tweets. After non-tendering Gordon Beckham, the Angels are on the lookout for a backup infielder, and GM Jerry Dipoto has said that a trade for one is a possibility. Holt would be a good get for the Angels — he hit a solid .281/.331/.381 last season while playing seven positions. Here’s more from the American League.
- Rays GM Matt Silverman told reporters, including Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter), that clubs are calling about outfielders. Now that some of the notable free agents have signed, demand has increased.
- The Rays are in active search mode for a second catcher, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. According to Silverman, the club is active on both the free agent and trade front. They’re remaining open-minded about both veterans and youngsters. Tampa currently has Ryan Hanigan, Curt Casali, and Justin O’Conner on the 40-man roster.
- The Mariners are keeping their eyes on former outfielder Franklin Gutierrez, who they could bring back on a minor-league deal, MLB.com’s Greg Johns writes. Gutierrez spent the 2014 season on the restricted list while dealing with a nerve condition, but he’s currently playing winter ball in Venezuela. “I have not talked to him myself,” says GM Jack Zduriencik. “I plan to, but I’ve not done that yet. He missed a whole year, so we’ll see. I don’t know where he is physically or mentally.” Gutierrez’s exceptional defense once made him very valuable, but the 31-year-old struggled with injuries even before the 2014 season.
Yankees Notes: Robertson, Headley, Heathcott
David Robertson did such a good job replacing Mariano Rivera that the Yankees might now have a more difficult time replacing Robertson, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller have big-time talent, but have also both had frustrating seasons in the recent past. The Yankees could pursue a closer like Jason Grilli, or perhaps mix and match Betances and Miller at closer. The team has plenty of strong bullpen pieces, but no one who represents the obvious fix for the closer role that Robertson did last year. Here’s more out of the Bronx.
- Now that the White Sox have swooped in to nab Robertson, Bill Madden of the New York Daily News writes that the Yankees will turn their attention to the middle of their starting rotation, where the departure of Shane Greene in the Didi Gregorius trade leaves them thin. The Yankees would also like to re-sign Chase Headley, although Madden notes that the Astros are rumored to have offered him five years and $65MM.
- The Yankees will try to keep outfielder Slade Heathcott and pitcher Jose Campos by re-signing them to minor-league deals, Andrew Marchand of ESPN New York tweets. The Yankees non-tendered the pair last week even though neither were eligible for arbitration. Both have struggled with injuries, but they still have upside if they can stay healthy. As Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues explains, non-tendering Heathcott and Campos allows the Yankees to avoid losing them through waivers. They’re now free agents, but the Yankees may have an edge in their attempts to re-sign them, due to their histories with the organization.