Mike Axisa | MLB Trade Rumors

Reds Continue To Look For Pitching

By Mike Axisa | December 17, 2011 at 10:46pm CDT

The Reds made a significant addition to their rotation today by trading for Mat Latos, but ESPN's Buster Olney says (on Twitter) that they are still looking for ways to upgrade their pitching staff. They could still add another starter at some point.

Latos figures to join Johnny Cueto, Homer Bailey, Bronson Arroyo, and Mike Leake in Cincinnati's rotation next season, with Travis Wood in reserve as the sixth starter. Cueto finished the season on the disabled list with a shoulder strain though, and Leake was the only other member of the rotation to finish the year with an ERA under 4.40. Plans to move Aroldis Chapman into the rotation hit a snag when a shoulder issue kept him out of winter ball.

The Reds were said to have interest in Jair Jurrjens, Gio Gonzalez, and James Shields recently, but it's tough to see them swinging another trade of that caliber after landing Latos. Unsigned free agents like Zach Duke and Rodrigo Lopez could serve as decent depth pieces on minor league contracts.

West Rumors: Rizzo, Pujols, Dodgers, Shuey

By Mike Axisa | December 17, 2011 at 9:36pm CDT

The Padres made a mini-blockbuster earlier today by trading Mat Latos to the Reds, and now let's recap the latest rumors from out west…

Clubs have already started calling the Padres about Anthony Rizzo, and the Rays and Cubs are among those interested according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). Rizzo could be on the market after Yonder Alonso joined San Diego in the Latos trade.
Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports provided the details of the incentives in Albert Pujols' contract with the Angels (Twitter link). The slugger will get $3MM for his 3,000th career hit and $7MM for his 763rd career home run, which would break the all-time record. The soon-to-be 32-year-old currently has 2,073 hits and 445 homers.
Dodgers GM Ned Colletti has restructured his front office slightly, according to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick. Vance Lovelace was promoted to director of professional personnel after serving as special assistant to the GM and director of pro scouting. Rick Ragazzo replaces Lovelace as director of pro scouting after serving as a special assistant to the GM.
The Dodgers are still fighting with Hartford Life Insurance Co. over Paul Shuey's $3.25MM salary for the 2004 season, reports Bill Shaikin of The Los Angeles Times. The team sued the insurance company in 2006, saying they didn't honor their claim when the right-hander did not pitch that season due to injury.

Winning Darvish Bid Exceeds Matsuzaka’s Record

By Mike Axisa | December 17, 2011 at 8:34pm CDT

It's been three full days since the posting period for Yu Darvish has closed, but we're still waiting to find out which team placed the high bid. That high bid will be a posting process record according to Franz Lidz of SI.com, who hears from Japanese league officials that the winning bid exceeds the $51.1MM the Red Sox paid for the right to negotiate with Daisuke Matsuzaka five years ago. The exact amount is unknown.

Yesterday we heard that the Blue Jays bid north of $40MM, making them the favorites for the 25-year-old right-hander. The Rangers, Yankees, and Cubs also submitted bids for Darvish, while the Red Sox, Nationals, Giants, Athletics, Marlins, Orioles, Mets, Rays, Angels, and Twins did not. Nearly 7,500 MLBTR readers believe he'll land in New York with the Yankees. The Nippon Ham Fighters are expected to accept the high bid just before Tuesday's deadline.

Cardinals Maintain Strong Interest In Beltran

By Mike Axisa | December 17, 2011 at 6:47pm CDT

The Cardinals won't be able to replace all the offense they lost when Albert Pujols left for the Angels, but there are ways to replace some of it. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Cardinals did extensive background work on Carlos Beltran this week, and they continue to maintain strong interest in the outfielder.

Beltran, 34, hit .300/.385/.525 with 22 homers last season, the first time he's played in more than 100 games since 2008. He's mulling over a variety of two and three-year offers according to Rosenthal, with the Blue Jays, Red Sox, and Rays also having interest in the outfielder. Toronto is said to have "significant financial flexibility," but Boston is more focused on pitching and Tampa only figures to get seriously involved if Beltran's market crashes.

Rosenthal says the Cardinals have expressed interest in both Cody Ross and Coco Crisp as well. St. Louis can add an outfielder because Allen Craig figures to miss the start of the season after having knee surgery recently, and also because Lance Berkman will move back to first base, his best position.

Giants Sign Eli Whiteside

By Mike Axisa | December 17, 2011 at 5:51pm CDT

The Giants have signed catcher Eli Whiteside to a Major League contract, reports John Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). San Francisco non-tendered the 32-year-old Pro Star Management client this past Monday, and we heard he was close to a return on Wednesday.

Whiteside started playing regularly when Buster Posey's season ended this past May, posting a modest .197/.264/.310 line in 236 plate appearances. Had the Giants tendered Whiteside a contract, he would have been in line for a 2012 salary in the $700K range, according to our projections. He figures to compete with Hector Sanchez and Chris Stewart for playing time behind Posey in 2012.

Mariners Close To Signing George Sherrill

By Mike Axisa | December 16, 2011 at 5:49pm CDT

The Mariners are close to signing left-hander George Sherrill to a one-year deal, reports Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times. Jason Churchill of Prospect Insider first reported that the two sides were close to a deal (on Twitter), saying it's worth $1.1MM plus incentives. The contract is pending a physical, and an announcement could come early next week.

Sherrill, 34, originally broke into the big leagues with the Mariners in 2004 after spending time with four different independent league teams. He was part of the trade that sent Adam Jones, Chris Tillman, and others to Baltimore for Erik Bedard before the 2008 season, but he spent last season with the Braves. Sherrill held left-handed batters to a .256/.275/.333 batting line with 32 strikeouts and just one walk in 81 plate appearances in 2011.

This post was originally published on December 17th.

Nationals Sign Jeff Fulchino

By Mike Axisa | December 16, 2011 at 11:44am CDT

The Nationals have signed right-hander reliever Jeff Fulchino to a split contract according to his agent Lisa Pierce, reports Zachary Levine of The Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). He elected free agency back in October.

Fulchino, 32, spent last season with the Astros and Padres. He pitched to a 5.71 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 5.2 BB/9 in 34 2/3 innings, getting a ground ball 38.1% of the time. In five big league seasons, Fulchino has pitched to a 4.84 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 in 163 relief appearances.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Braun, Felix, Hanley

By Mike Axisa | December 16, 2011 at 10:37am CDT

Eight years ago today, the Orioles signed Miguel Tejada to a six-year contract worth $72MM, the richest deal in franchise history. The 2002 AL MVP had the three best seasons of his career (in terms of wins over replacement, or WAR) during his first three years in Baltimore, and hit .305/.354/.481 with 109 homers during his five years with the Orioles. Tejada spent the last year of the contract with the Astros after being traded for Luke Scott, Matt Albers, Dennis Sarfate, Troy Patton, and Mike Costanzo.

Here is the latest batch of links from around the web, now that the dust from the winter meetings has settled…

Rum Bunter interviewed Pirates GM Neal Huntington about the roster, the budget, etc.
Phoul Ballz spoke to Phillies prospect Tyson Gillies, who's focused on a rebound year.
The Baseball Nerds wrote about the fallout of Ryan Braun's failed drug test.
Pro Ball NW entertains the idea of trading Felix Hernandez.
Redbird Rants walks down memory lane with Albert Pujols.
Ranger Rap looked at the Rangers' side of C.J. Wilson signing with the Angels.
Chicken Friars imagines a world where the Padres sign Prince Fielder.
Brotherly Glove thinks Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. has done a good job dealing with Jimmy Rollins.
That Ball's Outta Here is curious to see how Dontrelle Willis fares with the Phillies.
Rant Sports Marlins wonders if the Marlins left the winter meetings as losers.
Sports of Boston explores the possibility of Hanley Ramirez returning to the Red Sox.
River Ave. Blues thinks the Yankees may be repeating their Johan Santana trick with Yu Darvish.
Over The Baggy explains why Josh Willingham was built for Target Field.
Puckett's Pond plays devil's advocate with the Willingham signing.
Jays Journal isn't sure that Carlos Beltran is on the Blue Jays' radar.
North and South of Royal Brougham compares Michael Cuddyer to Luke Scott.
Through The Fence Baseball says to bank on Bryce Harper starting next season with the Nationals.
Cubbies Crib wrote about Aramis Ramirez joining the Brewers from the Cubs' perspective.
Breaking Wisconsin covered all of the recent moves made by the Brewers.
Drays Bay looks at Jeremy Hellickson and David Price as extension candidates.
U.S.S. Mariner wonders if the Mariners should sign Michael Pineda long-term.
Rising Apple thinks Travis Snider would be a good fit for the Mets.
Bay City Ball wonders if Brandon Crawford's glove is good enough to carry his bat.
Blog Red Machine put together a pitching wish list for the Reds.
Wahoo's on First thinks the Reds might be overestimating Yonder Alonso's trade value.
Motor City Bengals asks if teams are overvaluing their prospects.
District on Deck believes the Nationals should inquire about Eric Young Jr.
The Hottest Stove plays "If I Were GM" with the NL East teams.
Baseball Reality Tour looks back at the remains of the trade that sent Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to the Tigers.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.

Padres Rumors: Latos, Headley, Bartlett, Hudson

By Mike Axisa | December 15, 2011 at 11:48am CDT

Last week we heard that the Padres aren't shopping right-hander Mat Latos, but today Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reminds us that the team isn't in the position to rule anything out. Here are Rosenthal's rumors out of San Diego…

Byrnes is "willing to talk about every player on his roster" and other clubs are inquiring about Latos, but Rosenthal reiterates that the 24-year-old isn't being shopped.
Third baseman Chase Headley is the player most in demand and most likely to be traded. The Tigers have interest in him, but the Padres are said to be asking for "the moon."
Jason Bartlett and Orlando Hudson are very available, but they're also drawing very little interest.
Rosenthal expects the Padres to be active at some point in soon.

Twins To Sign Josh Willingham

By Mike Axisa | December 15, 2011 at 10:42am CDT

The Twins announced that they have agreed to sign Josh Willingham to a three-year, $21MM deal. The contract provides Willingham with the chance to earn an additional $1MM through incentives, reports ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter). Willingham, who has passed his physical, is represented by Sosnick Cobbe Sports.

Willingham, 33 in February, is a modified Type-A free agent under the new collective bargaining agreement. The Twins will not have to surrender a draft pick to sign him, but the Athletics will still receive two picks as compensation for the loss. One will be a supplemental first round pick, the other a pick one spot ahead of Minnesota's second rounder since their first rounder is protected.

The Twins hit an AL worst 103 home runs in 2011, so Willingham provides some much needed pop. He hit a career-best 29 homers for Oakland this past season, and has cleared the 20 homer plateau four times in the last six years. He's also shown a knack for drawing walks and getting hit by pitches, leading to a solid .361 career OBP despite a .262 batting average. The Twins figure to use him in left field, where UZR has consistently said he's below average defensively.

MLBTR's Tim Dierkes ranked Willingham 24th on his list of the top 50 free agents, predicting he would sign with the Reds. Crasnick first reported the agreement, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported that the two sides were nearing a deal (on Twitter) and Joe Christensen of The Star Tribune added detail.

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