Mike Axisa | MLB Trade Rumors

Blue Jays Will Explore Signing David Ortiz

By Mike Axisa | October 29, 2011 at 10:15am CDT

The Blue Jays will discuss the possibility of signing David Ortiz this winter, reports Richard Griffin of The Toronto Star. GM Alex Anthopoulos cautioned that he would be "doing his due diligence" more than anything, but Griffin says he's likely to have preliminary talks with Ortiz's agent once the free agency period begins.

The Jays do have several things working in their favor when it comes to wooing Ortiz to Toronto. The slugger knows manager John Farrell from his four seasons as the Red Sox's pitching coaching, and Ortiz is friends with Jose Bautista. Bautista could also stand in the way of a deal though; Griffin says the front office would like him to remain the highest paid player on the team. He'll earn $14MM in 2012, and Ortiz is likely to seek a raise from the $12.5MM he made in 2011.

Ortiz, 36 next month, hit .309/.398/.554 with 40 doubles and 29 homers this past season. Last week he said that he wants to return to Boston next season, backing off some earlier comments about not wanting to be part of the "drama" surrounding the team. In his introductory press conference, GM Ben Cherington said he has had some initial dialogue with Ortiz about a possible return.

Rockies To Decline Cook’s Option; Giambi To Exercise His

By Mike Axisa | October 29, 2011 at 7:36am CDT

As our Offseason Outlook shows, the Rockies only have two option decisions to make this winter, and Troy Renck of The Denver Post says both appear to have already been made. The team will decline their end of Aaron Cook's $11MM mutual option, and Jason Giambi seems set to exercise his end of a $1MM mutual option. We learned that the team intends to exercise their end of Giambi's option last month.

Cook, 33 in February, has thrown just 382 2/3 innings over the last three seasons due to various injuries. He's pitched to a 4.94 ERA during that time with 4.39 K/9, 3.21 BB/9, and a 56.7% ground ball rate. The team will pay him a $500K buyout, and Renck says they do have interest in bringing him back as long as it's on a low-risk contract.

Giambi, 41 in January, hit .260/.355/.603 with 13 homers in just 152 plate appearances this past season. He drew a lot of interest both before and after the trade deadline, but has talked openly about enjoying his time in Colorado. He'll return as the backup first baseman and pinch-hitter extraordinaire in 2012.

Last night we learned that all option decisions – regardless if it's team, player, or mutual – must be made by 11:59pm ET on Monday, October 31st.

Free Agency Period Will Begin October 30th

By Mike Axisa | October 28, 2011 at 10:48pm CDT

Congratulations to the Cardinals and World Series MVP David Freese for winning the 11th World Championship in franchise history tonight. Now that they're done playing on the field, all of the off-the-field fun starts.

Major League Baseball and the Players' Association announced earlier this evening that the start of the free agency period will be delayed by 24 hours, and will officially begin at 12:01am ET on Sunday, October 30th. All team/player/mutual option decisions are due by 11:59pm ET on Monday, October 31st. Free agents will be able to sign contracts with new teams starting at 12:01am ET on Thursday, November 3rd. The MLBPA will release a full list of free agents on Sunday, but here is our Free Agent Tracker so you don't have to wait.

Here are some other important offseason dates, courtesy of MLB.com…

Nov. 23rd: Last day for clubs to offer salary arbitration to Type-A or B free agents in order to receive draft pick compensation. Deadline is midnight ET. Here are the reversed-engineered Elias rankings.
Dec. 7th: Last day for free agents to accept arbitration, if offered. Deadline is midnight ET.
Dec. 5th-8th: Winter meetings in Dallas.
Dec. 12th: Deadline to tender contracts to players with less than six years of service time. Our Arbitration Eligibles series will give you an idea of which players are non-tender candidates.

Selig & CBA Links: Mets, Draft, Successor

By Mike Axisa | October 28, 2011 at 10:08pm CDT

Let's round up some links from the business side of the game…

Bud Selig told reporters, including Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports, that the Mets are working on an "alternative financing plan." Bob Klapisch of The Bergen Record adds that Selig said the Mets have yet to repay the $25MM loan from MLB, though he's "not worried." (Twitter links)
ESPN's Buster Olney says that changes to the draft system being discussed during Collective Bargaining Agreement talks involve a draft tax (Twitter links). It would work similar to the luxury tax, forcing teams to pay if they spend over a certain amount. There is also talk about giving lower revenue clubs additional picks, which some officials perceive to have little value.
"There isn't a mechanism in place," said Selig to reporters (including Passan) when asked about finding his successor (Twitter link). The commissioner continues to maintain that he will retire on December 31st of 2012.

Front Office Notes: Duquette, Gwynn, Padres, Wilken

By Mike Axisa | October 28, 2011 at 9:22pm CDT

Earlier today we learned that the Angels will name Jerry Dipoto as their new GM while the Orioles are leaning towards hiring Tony LaCava for the same role. Let's round up the latest front office news from around the game…

The Diamondbacks are unlikely to fill Dipoto's position, according to MLB.com's Steve Gilbert (Twitter links). The team believes scouting director Ray Montgomery and farm director Mike Bell can handle the responsibilities.
Dan Duquette was among those interviewed by the Angels, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Duquette has served as GM of the Expos (1991-1994) and Red Sox (1994-2002), but most recently has been involved with the Israeli Baseball League and New England Collegiate Baseball League.
The Mariners have hired Chris Gwynn to be their director of player development, reports Dan Hayes of The North County Times (on Twitter). Gwynn had previously been the Padres director of player personnel.
Hayes hears from a source that Padres assistant GM A.J. Hinch will not assume the departed Jason McLeod's duties (Twitter link). The team will look to hire new evaluators following the departures of McLeod, Gwynn, and Jed Hoyer.
“I’m very happy that we got him over here for a number of reasons," said Cubs scouting director Tom Wilken to The Chicago Sun-Times when asked about working for McLeod, who now oversees the team's scouting and player development. “[His hiring] just kind of brought a smile to my face, and we’ve talked a little bit here in the last few days. And I really look forward to getting together with him and putting together this plan here to make us World Champions."

Red Sox Notes: Youkilis, Pitchers, Epstein, Freese

By Mike Axisa | October 28, 2011 at 8:07pm CDT

The Red Sox are now under new GM Ben Cherington's watch, and they figure to again be one of the most active teams during the offseason. Here's the latest from Boston…

WEEI.com's Alex Speier spoke to sources both inside and outside the organization who said the Red Sox are not expected to move third baseman Kevin Youkilis. Youkilis will turn 33 next month, and although he's missed time with injury in each of the last three seasons, he remains productive (.258/.373/.459 in 2011) and affordable ($12MM in 2012 with a $13MM club option for 2013).
Within the same piece, Speier notes that the Sox will "almost surely kick the tires on [pitchers] with the stuff and/or track record that suggests an ability to compete in the American League East," as long as they're open to short-term contracts.
CEO and team president Larry Lucchino appeared on the Dennis & Callahan show this morning; Jerry Spar of WEEI.com provides a transcript. Among other things, he said talks with the Cubs about compensation for Theo Epstein are taking so long because "the parties have different views of what is significant compensation."
Meanwhile, Bud Selig told reporters (including Scott Miller of CBSSports.com) he expects the compensation dispute to land on his desk this coming Tuesday (Twitter link).
David Freese is busy providing the Cardinals with postseason heroics, but Tom Krasovic of Inside The Padres says the Red Sox had a loophole deal in place to sign the third baseman for $90K before the 2006 draft. The commissioner's office stepped in and nixed the deal, however.

Cashman, Sabathia’s Agent To Meet This Weekend

By Mike Axisa | October 28, 2011 at 7:21pm CDT

7:21pm: Sherman posted a correction (on Twitter); the commissioner's office memo does not apply to Sabathia, he only has until midnight ET on Monday to exercise his opt-out clause.

The league clarified that players can file for free agency at 12:01am ET Sunday morning (Saturday night) and talk to new teams at 12:01am ET Thursday morning (Wednesday night). All option decisions are due by 11:59pm ET on Monday night (Twitter links).

5:44pm: The Yankees took care of one important piece of business by agreeing to a new three-year contract with GM Brian Cashman recently, and now they're moving on to bigger and better things. ESPN New York's Andrew Marchand reports that Cashman will meet with CC Sabathia's agent this weekend in an attempt to complete a new contract extension before the ace left-hander can opt-out of his contract and become a free agent.

Joel Sherman of The New York Post says (via Twitter) the commissioner's office sent out a memo informing teams that the offseason officially begins at midnight ET on Sunday, so Sabathia has until midnight ET on Wednesday to exercise his opt-out clause. Yesterday we heard that the team was "close to completing" a new contract offer for Sabathia, an offer Cashman figures to present this weekend.

Sherman notes (via Twitter) that he expects the offer to be in the five-year and $120MM range, similar to what Cliff Lee got from the Phillies last offseason. The team is concerned about bidding against itself however, simply because there aren't many other clubs capable of putting together an offer of that magnitude. Earlier this month, nearly 1,500 MLBTR readers said they expect Sabathia's new contract to be in the $121-130MM range.

Rockies Links: Wandy Rodriguez, Michael Young

By Mike Axisa | October 28, 2011 at 6:59pm CDT

Let's round up the latest from the club at the highest altitude…

People within the game believe that the Rockies will make another aggressive attempt to acquire Wandy Rodriguez from the Astros this winter, according to Troy Renck of The Denver Post. There is $36MM left on Rodriguez's contract, but Colorado was willing to absorb that when they claimed him off trade waivers in August. The two teams could not work out a deal and lefty remained in Houston.
The Rockies were "100 percent convinced" they had a deal in place for Michael Young before the season, reports Renck (on Twitter). He says the trade fell through on the Rangers' end, not Colorado's.
Tim Dierkes broke down the team's Offseason Outlook and Arbitration Cases earlier this month.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Red Sox, Headley, Clippard

By Mike Axisa | October 28, 2011 at 12:12pm CDT

Nine years ago today, the Devil Rays signed Lou Piniella to a four-year contract and named him their manager. As compensation for hiring Piniella away from the Mariners, Tampa sent All-Star outfielder Randy Winn and minor leaguer Antonio Perez to Seattle. Another manager was traded just a few weeks ago, as the White Sox dealt Ozzie Guillen (and minor leaguer Ricardo Andres) to the Marlins for prospects Jhan Marinez and Osvaldo Martinez. At some point in the near future, the Cubs will officially send prospects to the Red Sox and Padres for front office executives Theo Epstein, Jed Hoyer, and Jason McLeod.

We're not going to require any compensation for these links; here's the best the baseball corner of the internet had to offer over the last week…

Replacement Level Baseball interviewed Dan Hayes of The North County Times about the change in the Padres' front office.
Boston Sports Then And Now introduced us to new Red Sox GM Ben Cherington.
The Dugout Report says the Rangers are built to last.
River Ave. Blues lists four things the Yankees could learn from the Rangers.
MLB Reports wrote about the aftermath of John Lackey's Tommy John surgery.
BoSox Injection doesn't think the Red Sox should trade Josh Beckett this offseason.
Sports of Boston wonders which free agent pitcher the Red Sox should target.
Lookout Landing muses about David Ortiz being a fit for the Mariners
Sodo Mojo opines about the Mariners trading Felix Hernandez.
Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness knows Clayton Kershaw is about to get expensive.
Brotherly Glove looked back at Brad Lidge's contract with the Phillies.
Capitol Avenue Club lays down some guidelines for the Braves' offseason.
The Eddie Kranepool Society says the Mets should use Ruben Tejada at short and go after pitching instead of re-signing Jose Reyes.
Rising Apple believes the Mets should make a run at Michael Wuertz.
Through The Fence Baseball explains why the Padres should trade Chase Headley.
Capitol Baseball makes a case against the Nationals signing Ryan Zimmerman to a contract extension.
District On Deck looks back at the trade that brought Tyler Clippard to the Nationals.
The Todd Van Poppel Rookie Card Retirement Plan says the Athletics should sell high on Guillermo Moscoso.
Blogging Mets says teams should beware of Yu Darvish and high priced Japanese imports.
Motor City Bengals says letting Placido Polanco walk after 2009 was the right move for the Tigers.
Frisco Fastball wonders if Grady Sizemore is too much of a health risk for the Giants.
Ol' Ball Game helps figure out what the Pirates should do to finish .500 next season.
Rum Bunter posted some video of 2011 first overall pick Gerrit Cole from the Arizona Fall League.
Call to the Pen put together a team of the best players to never play in the World Series.
More Hardball compiled a team of the best minor league free agent signings from this season.

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

Manager Notes: Red Sox, Maddon, Martinez, La Russa

By Mike Axisa | October 27, 2011 at 4:10pm CDT

Let's round up some manager links as we wait for Game Six of the World Series…

Torey Lovullo and Joe McEwing aren't on Ben Cherington's initial list of interview candidates for the Red Sox manager's job, reports Joe McDonald of ESPN Boston. "Among those expected to get some consideration" from the Sox include DeMarlo Hale, Sandy Alomar Jr., Ryne Sandberg, Dave Martinez and Pete Mackanin. McDonald also lists Ken Macha and Terry Pendleton as longer-shot possibilities.
Dale Sveum and Tim Wallach are also mentioned as candidates by Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. Lauber also reports that Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux "is interested in becoming a manager."
"Honestly, I love where I work and who I work with," said Rays manager Joe Maddon when asked by WEEI.com's Rob Bradford about pursuing another manager's job elsewhere. "For me it isn't always about money. I really am humbled by that thought, but at the end of the day I am a Ray and I want to be a Ray."
Maddon went on to say that Dave Martinez, his bench coach with the Rays, is "ready in the dugout, for sure," but he could have a tough time adjusting to the media responsibilities that come with being the manager of a big market team, like most people would.
In another WEEI.com piece, Alex Speier passed along a quote from Jack Sands, agent for Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, who appeared on the Dennis & Callahan Show last week. “Tony loves Boston,” said Sands. “Many years ago, he was really thinking this might be a place he might like to come to. … When he first came over to St. Louis, he really was an American League guy. He loved the DH. But now, he loves the double switches. We’ve seen what’s happened in the playoffs. He loves working that bullpen. So I seriously doubt that he would come back to the American League at this point.”

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