Roy Oswalt is looking to sign a three-year contract, sources tell MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan and Bill Ladson (Twitter link). Oswalt is thought to be waiting out the market, since interest in the right-hander may increase once top options like C.J. Wilson and Mark Buehrle are off the board.
Pirates Close To Deals With Betemit, McLouth
4:41pm: The Pirates are closing in on a one-year deal with McLouth, says MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch. She adds that the agreement isn't expected to be finalized until Wednesday.
4:14pm: The Pirates are moving closer to deals with Wilson Betemit and Nate McLouth, tweets Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
We heard yesterday about Pittsburgh's interest in a reunion with McLouth, who hit .228/.344/.333 in 321 appearances with the Braves this season. Betemit, meanwhile, did not receive an arbitration offer from the Tigers and hit the free agent market coming off a season in which he posted a .795 OPS in 359 plate appearances in Detroit and Kansas City.
NL West Notes: Sherrill, Saunders, Thayer, Moseley
Winter Meetings notes from the NL West:
- The Rockies are eyeing left-handed relief help and George Sherrill is on their list of targets, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Mariners have also checked in on Sherrill, Morosi adds.
- Joe Saunders' camp provided the Diamondbacks with a counter-offer to the contract the club proposed yesterday, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. Scott Miller of CBS Sports discusses the decision Arizona is facing on Saunders.
- The Padres signed Dale Thayer to a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock (on Twitter).
- Dustin Moseley, who had surgery on his non-throwing in August, is a non-tender candidate for the Padres, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
Rays Sign Four To Minor League Deals
The Rays have signed Juan Miranda, Matt Mangini, Jhonny Nunez, and Ricky Orta to minor league contracts, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
Of the four signings, the 28-year-old Miranda is the most intriguing. He spent a good chunk of 2011 in the bigs with the Diamondbacks, posting a .717 OPS in 202 plate appearances.
NL Central Notes: Lee, Betancourt, Melvin, Darvish
Tuesday afternoon's NL Central items:
- Carlos Lee's limited no-trade clause supersedes his ten-and-five rights, according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart (on Twitter). The Astros have reportedly been telling teams they'll eat half of Lee's salary in a trade.
- The Brewers have talked to Yuniesky Betancourt's agent about bringing the shortstop back, but haven't made an offer, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- In a piece for Baseball America, Haudricourt explains why Brewers GM Doug Melvin was baseball's top executive in 2011.
- Manager Dale Sveum says the Cubs haven't talked about bidding on Yu Darvish, tweets Yahoo's Steve Henson.
Mets Closing In On Deal With Jon Rauch
The Mets are closing in on a deal with free agent reliever Jon Rauch, according to Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger (via Twitter). Adam Rubin of ESPN New York tweeted earlier that the two sides were making progress and had "good talks."
If the Mets reach an agreement with Rauch, the Blue Jays, who offered arbitration to the Type B free agent, would receive a compensation draft pick.
Originally published on December 6th at 7:40pm.
AL West Rumors: Bailey, Jackson, Gonzalez, Rangers
The latest out of the AL West:
- The Athletics' asking price for Andrew Bailey is currently too high for the Rangers to consider him, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The Rangers' read on Bailey matches up with comments made by A's GM Billy Beane yesterday — he said many teams he'd talked to walked away wondering whether any A's were actually available, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle writes.
- Within Slusser's piece, she writes that the Athletics are considering Conor Jackson as a short-term outfield addition.
- The Athletics are looking for young, high-upside outfielders in any Gio Gonzalez trade, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The Yankees may have to consider a three-team deal if they want to acquire the lefty, since they don't have any outfielders in the high minors that fit that bill.
- Nothing is imminent, but ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick tweets the Rangers are looking into possible contract extensions for many of their core players, including Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, Ian Kinsler, and Mike Napoli.
Seth Smith Among Rockies Drawing Trade Interest
Seth Smith has drawn trade interest from multiple teams recently, according to Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd. As Thomas Harding of MLB.com writes, Colorado's search for pitching might result in the club dealing the outfielder.
"Seth is very, very well-liked within the game," O'Dowd said. "I'm not sure we're going to do anything, but we've had a lot of calls on Seth."
The Braves and Mariners had previously been linked to Smith, and Harding adds the Twins to the list of clubs who have expressed interest in the 29-year-old. Since the Rockies have "long had interest" in Kevin Slowey, who the Twins may be shopping, Harding suggests the two teams are a potential match.
The Rockies are also fielding offers for Ian Stewart, with the Cubs and Angels the most active suitors, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Huston Street is a trade candidate as well, and Morosi tweets that the Orioles are still talking to the Rockies about acquiring him, while Troy Renck of the Denver Post hears that talks have cooled (Twitter link).
"We've got a lot of things in play," said O'Dowd. "We've stuck a lot of nets in the water. You really don't have any idea if anything's going to come through for you.
AL Central Rumors: Slowey, Picollo, Choo, Tigers
The major move in the AL Central today was the Twins' re-signing of Matt Capps, but there may be more action in the division by week's end. Here are the latest rumors from the AL Central:
- Kevin Slowey, viewed as a non-tender candidate, is being shopped by the Twins, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- Royals assistant GM J.J. Picollo interviewed for the Astros' GM position tonight, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- The Indians are still interested in discussing a contract extension with Shin-Soo Choo, tweets MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.
- Bastian also tweets that the Indians checked in on free agent Kevin Kouzmanoff, though their interest is likely minimal.
- The Tigers aren't ruling out the possibility of one of their young, in-house arms earning the fifth spot in the rotation, writes James Schmehl of MLive.com. If the Tigers turn to the free agent market for a veteran, they prefer one-year deals.
Quick Hits: Coffey, Nats, Upton, Phillips, Andino
It's been a busy first day of the Winter Meetings at MLBTR, so let's use this opportunity to catch up on a few Monday items that may have slipped through the cracks…
- Todd Coffey is drawing interest from the Mets and Brewers, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Brew Crew haven't expressed any interest in bringing back another righty, LaTroy Hawkins, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (on Twitter).
- The Nationals may revisit their search for a center fielder after the non-tender deadline, so they can see if any bargain options hit the market, writes Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
- B.J. Upton is one center fielder who may be on the trade market, but Morosi hears interest in the Rays' speedster has been "mild" so far (Twitter link).
- GM Walt Jocketty suggested to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon that extension talks between the Reds and Brandon Phillips may hinge on the number of years the club feels comfortable offering.
- Orioles infielder Robert Andino is drawing trade interest from teams who could use him as a starting shortstop, tweets MASN's Roch Kubatko.
- GM Dan Duquette said the Orioles have several "irons in the fire" and is optimistic about making at least one move during the Winter Meetings, says Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com.
- There are indications that the Mariners have talked to the Rockies about Seth Smith's availability, says MLB.com's Greg Johns.
