Quick Hits: Vlad, Pujols, Cabrera
Here are a few items of note for Feb. 17, the day on which Wally Pipp was born 118 years ago.
- The Orioles will hold a press conference for Vladimir Guerrero on Friday, tweets Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com, so it's safe to assume that he passed his physical earlier this week and that his one-year deal is now official.
- The Cardinals at some point offered Albert Pujols a nine-year contract extension worth more than $200MM, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.com. To this point, the value of St. Louis' offer has been consistently around the $200MM range, but the length has been less clear.
- Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera, arrested in Florida late Wednesday night and charged with DUI and resisting arrest, will not likely face jail time, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, who spoke to a "leading criminal defense attorney." Whether Cabrera will enter a treatment program at this time remains unclear, Morosi notes.
New York Notes: Wilpon, Sabathia, Torrealba
There seems to be no shortage of on- and off-field baseball news coming out of the Big Apple these days. Here's some of the latest out of New York …
- High-ranking baseball people are concerned about whether the Wilpons will be able to keep the Mets in the wake of the ongoing Madoff fallout, writes Jon Heyman of SI.com. MLB Commissioner Bud Selig, a "friend and ally" of Wilpon's, according to Heyman, will give Wilpon a long leash in sorting through the mess, but some are doubting whether the Wilpons can withstand a loss worth half or even a quarter of the $1 billion that Madoff trustee Irving Picard is seeking.
- The Yankees may actually benefit if CC Sabathia opts out of his contract after 2011, writes Joe Sheehan of SI.com. Typically, opt-out clauses are considered player-friendly, but because of Sabathia's injury risk due to his body type and age between 2012-15, the Yanks might do well to let Sabathia walk and spend the money elsewhere, according to Sheehan, especially with some promising pitching prospects on the way up. One interesting hypothetical posed by Sheehan: Let Sabathia walk, move Mark Teixeira to full-time DH duties and sign potential free agent Albert Pujols.
- The Mets won their grievance case with catcher Yorvit Torrealba, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. An arbitrator ruled that the Mets were within their rights to call off a three-year, $14.4MM agreement they had reached with Torrealba following the 2007 season upon conducting a physical which caused them "concerns" about the condition of Torrealba's throwing shoulder.
Cubs, Marmol Close To Long-Term Deal
FEBRUARY 13TH: The deal is expected to be for three years and worth around $23MM, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.
12:54pm: Marmol's agent, Barry Praver, arrived at Fitch Park in Arizona today to finalize a multiyear deal for the closer, tweets Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. The contract extension is expected to be announced Monday, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter).
FEBRUARY 3RD: The Cubs are close to signing closer Carlos Marmol to a long-term contract extension, according to Fred Mitchell and David Kaplan of the Chicago Tribune. The new deal is expected to be announced before Cubs pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training in Mesa, Arizona on February 13th.
The deal would buy out Marmol's remaining two years of arbitration eligibility for 2011 and '12 and perhaps lock him up beyond that. The righty had asked for $5.65MM in arbitration with the Cubs countering at $4.1MM. Marmol is the Cubs' final remaining arbitration-eligible player, as our Arbitration Tracker shows.
Marmol, 28, is coming off an excellent season in which he posted a 2.55 ERA and a whopping 16.0 K/9 en route to 38 saves. He gets it done with an extreme blend of strikeouts, walks, and flyballs.
A Look At Roster Spots Up For Grabs
Camps are opening, and most teams have the majority of their Major League roster spots devoted to particular players. However, each team typically has a few roster spots up for grabs, typically in the back of the rotation, on the bench and in the back end of the bullpen. Here's a look at some of those teams and the players in the hunt for the jobs …
- The White Sox will probably start the season with a four-man rotation with Jake Peavy unlikely to be ready by Opening Day, writes Mark Gonzales of ChicagoBreakingSports.com. Chris Sale will return to the bullpen, where he pitched so effectively in 2010, and when the schedule no longer permits the Sox to get by with a four-man rotation, the likely fifth-starter candidates are Lucas Harrell, Philip Humber and Jeff Gray.
- The Indians have a handful of possibilities for their infield, writes Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer. The best-case scenario entails Jason Donald at third, Asdrubal Cabrera at shortstop and Orlando Cabrera at second, but veterans Jayson Nix, Luis Valbuena and Jack Hannahan, and prospects Lonnie Chisenhall, Jason Kipnis, Cord Phelps and Jared Goedert are also in play.
- The Orioles have two rotation spots up for grabs, writes Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. Brad Bergesen, Jake Arrieta, Chris Tillman, Rick VandenHurk, Zach Britton and non-roster invitee Ryan Drese are among the contenders. The final spot on the bench will probably be claimed by one of Jake Fox, Robert Andino, Nolan Reimold, Randy Winn, Brendan Harris and Nick Green.
- The Yankees, too, have two available spots in their starting rotation, writes Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Among the contenders are veterans Ivan Nova, Sergio Mitre, Freddy Garcia and Bartolo Colon, and prospects Dellin Betances, Manny Banuelos and Andrew Brackman. The catching situation is tricky, with Russell Martin the favorite to start, but he is coming off an injury. Finally, the bench has seen a lot of turnover but will need to be strong for a veteran-heavy team.
- The Reds have only one available roster spot for position players, writes Jeremy P. Kelly of the Dayton Daily News, and Jeremy Hermida is the front-runner to win it. Two rotation spots will be divvied up among Travis Wood, Homer Bailey and Mike Leake, but Bailey is out of options, so he might have an edge for that reason. There are a handful of qualified bullpen hopefuls vying for two spots, Dontrelle Willis and Daniel Ray Herrera among them.
- The Giants have one bullpen spot open, with Guillermo Mota and Jeff Suppan the early favorites, writes Andrew Baggerly of the San Jose Mercury News. Prospect Brandon Belt, blocked by Aubrey Huff at first base, may not get his chance on Opening Day, according to Baggerly. Andres Torres and Cody Ross are likely starters in the outfield, with Pat Burrell, Nate Schierholtz, Aaron Rowand and Mark DeRosa battling for playing time, either with the Giants or "someone else," writes Baggerly.
NL Central Notes: Snell, Pujols, Samardzija, Prince
Some items of note out of the NL Central as players and reporters alike continue to trickle into Spring Training camps in Florida and Arizona …
- Cardinals non-roster invitee Ian Snell, signed to a minor league deal, cited Redbirds pitching coach Dave Duncan as an incentive for him signing with St. Louis, writes Matthew Leach of MLB.com. Duncan, of course, is known for his penchant for helping down-on-their-luck pitchers get their careers back on track. Snell, who spent 2010 with the Mariners, has had a rough go of it since posting 14 wins with the Pirates back in 2006.
- Is Albert Pujols worth upwards of $30MM for as many as 10 years? That's the question examined at length by Tim Logan of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The baseball community has made great strides in calculating how a player's performance translates to wins in recent years, but even still, it can be tough to pinpoint the connection between wins and return on investment (financially), Logan writes.
- Cubs right-hander Jeff Samardzija is out of minor league options, writes Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune, and is therefore all but assured of a roster spot (likely in the bullpen) coming out of Spring Training, lest he be exposed to waivers. Samardzija has been shuttled between the minors and Majors, as well as starting and relieving, since being drafted by the Cubs in the fifth round in 2006.
- Prince Fielder is probably hoping Pujols signs an extension before hitting free agency so that Fielder's market value isn't diminished next offseason, writes Bill Shaikin of the LA Times. Fielder is scheduled to become a free agent after this season, and with fewer teams in need of a premier first baseman as of now, he'll need all the leverage he can get, according to Shaikin.
AL East Notes: Vlad, Anderson, Delcarmen
Here are a few AL East items of note for Feb. 12. On this day in 1981, a contract violation by the Red Sox made catcher Carlton Fisk a free agent. Pudge eventually signed with the White Sox, with whom he spent the balance of his 24-year, Hall of Fame career.
- Vladimir Guerrero's physical with the Orioles is scheduled for Wednesday, blogs Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com. The Orioles' and Vlad's verbal agreement was first reported Feb. 4, so it's been an unusually long period between the agreement and scheduled physical, but O's president Andy MacPhail said that Guerrero's agent, Fernando Cuza, has signed an agreement that he can't accept another offer in the interim.
- Brian Anderson is in Yankees camp and trying to make the team as a reliever, writes Anthony McCarron of the New York Daily News. The former outfielder and first-round pick of the White Sox was DFA'd by the Royals in December after spending 2010 in the Kansas City organization, converting to life as a hurler. Anderson, signed to a minor league deal by the Bombers, said he was told by the Yankees that he has a chance to make the team out of camp, but if he doesn't, he will return to the minors to contine working.
- The Rays were one of two finalists to sign reliever Manny Delcarmen, blogs Alex Speier of WEEI.com, but the right-hander ultimately chose Seattle over Tampa Bay. Both clubs offered minor league deals, and as we noted Thursday, Delcarmen also turned down a Major League offer from a National League team.
Cubs Expect To Avoid Arbitration With Marmol
Cubs GM Jim Hendry said that he still expects to avoid arbitration with closer Carlos Marmol, writes Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com.
The Cubs and Marmol have an arbitration hearing scheduled for Feb. 15, but whether it be a one- or multiyear deal, Hendry said that he doesn't think the hearing will come to fruition, noting that he has a long-standing relationship with Marmol's agent, Barry Praver.
The North Siders prefer to ink Marmol to a three-year deal in the range of $22-25MM, according to Levine, which would buy out the right-hander's two remaining years of arbitration eligibility as well as one year of potential free agency. Marmol is seeking $5.65MM for 2011 while the Cubs have submitted a figure of $4.1MM, rendering a midpoint of $4.88MM, as our Arbitration Tracker shows.
Marmol reported to Spring Training in Mesa, Arizona, on Saturday and took a physical, indicating that a pre-hearing agreement may be imminent.
Quick Hits: AL West Grades, O-Cab, Scott, Hernandez
Offseason grades were revealed for the NL Central on Tuesday by ESPN.com's Jayson Stark, and his colleague Jerry Crasnick has marks for the AL West today. Here's more on that and a couple other tidbits of note …
- The A's had the best offseason of the AL West clubs, writes Crasnick, after adding some pop to their lineup relatively cheaply and solidifying their bullpen behind their strong, young starting rotation. They missed out on a couple bigger-ticket players and added some guys with injury questions, Crasnick notes, but they improved overall. The Rangers fared OK this offseason, writes Crasnick. The loss of Cliff Lee hurts Texas, as does its mishandling of a good asset in Michael Young, although Adrian Beltre was a nice if pricey add. The Angels and Mariners had a rough go of it, according to Crasnick, with the Halos committing too much money to Vernon Wells in the wake of losing out on Carl Crawford, and the M's pulling off some "uninspiring" signings, like Miguel Olivo.
- Free-agent shortstop Orlando Cabrera is talking to a couple teams and is "too good not to get a job," writes Jon Heyman of SI.com. The Twins, Brewers and Pirates all could make sense as a landing spot for Cabrera, Heyman explains.
- The Mets have signed outfielder Lorenzo Scott to a minor league deal, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. Scott, 28, spent 2010 in the Marlins organization, primarly with the Double-A Jacksonville Suns of the Southern League. There he hit .265/.369/.412 in 324 plate appearances.
- The Mariners have signed Moises Hernandez, the older brother of Seattle ace Felix Hernandez, to a minor league deal, tweets Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Hernandez, 26, was last with a Major League organizaiton in 2009, when he pitched for three Braves affiliates. For his minor league career, Hernandez has a 4.37 ERA in 116 appearances (57 starts).
- MLBTR founder and owner Tim Dierkes was interviewed by the folks over at BaseballNation.net recently, so be sure to give that a read for more information on the innerworkings of MLBTR.
Mets Sign Dale Thayer
The Mets have signed right-hander Dale Thayer to a minor league contract, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, and the deal does not include an invitation to Major League camp in Spring Training.
Thayer, 30, pitched in one game for the Rays in 2010, and has a career ERA of 7.47 in the big leagues in 12 appearances.
Thayer was signed by the Padres as an amateur free agent in 2002 and dealt to the Rays in September 2006 as part of the swap that sent Russell Branyan from Tampa Bay to San Diego.
Rockies Out Of Michael Young Trade Talks
The Rockies are no longer among the potential trade partners to land the Rangers' Michael Young, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
A potential deal between the Rockies and Rangers was hampered not necessarily by money, blogs Renck, but by the Rangers' need to acquire a "bigger name player" than Eric Young Jr., whom they had targeted earlier this offseason. Further complicating matters was Vladimir Guerrero's recent agreement on a contract with the Orioles, Renck notes, leaving Texas less inclined to compromise on its financial or prospect demands in a Young swap without a suitable replacement to handle their DH duties (Twitter links). The Rangers' plan was, Renck notes, to spend the money they saved on Michael Young's offloaded contract on a DH type, but that option has dried up.
Potential suitors for Young seem to be dwindling, and one has to wonder whether a deal will get done as this situation grows increasingly tricky, as Renck tweets. It may simply come down to how hard the Rangers try to honor Young's request of a trade, tweets Buster Olney.