Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

2012 Options Notes: Wainwright, K-Rod, Sabathia

By | at

Some rumblings about 2012 options from around the league…

  • The Cardinals could still pick up the 2012 ($9MM) and 2013 ($12MM) options they hold on Adam Wainwright even though he's having Tommy John surgery, writes Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A pitcher of Wainwright's caliber is a bargain at that price, even if he doesn't get back to being himself until midway through the 2012 season. The options will not vest now that the right-hander will spend the season on the disabled list.
  • When asked about the possibility of the options not being picked up and becoming a free agent, Wainwright simply told Strauss "I think I'd end up doing all right."
  • SI.com's Jon Heyman says (on Twitter) there's a zero percent chance the Mets will allow Francisco Rodriguez to finish the 55 games needed to vest his $17.5MM option. The player's union figures to be vigilant, especially if K-Rod is healthy.
  • Rival GMs told Heyman (on Twitter) that the chances of Yankees ace CC Sabathia opting out of his contract after the season are "100 percent." Sabathia was non-committal when asked about the clause two weeks ago.

Pitching Notes: Hudson, Buehrle, Carpenter

By | at

A few pitching notes from around the league…

  • In today's blog post at ESPN (Insider req'd), Buster Olney reports that the Yankees did not inquire about Tim Hudson. Yesterday we heard that the Braves aren't looking to move one of their starters anyway.
  • Within the same post, Olney says he finds the timing of the report about White Sox ace Mark Buehrle's willingness to accept a trade interesting. It's been presumed that the Missouri native would embrace a chance to pitch for the Cardinals at some point, and St. Louis now has an opening in its rotation with Adam Wainwright headed for Tommy John surgery.
  • Joel Sherman of The New York Post believes Cardinals co-ace Chris Carpenter could potentially be a fit for the Yankees, and the news of Wainwright's injury makes him wonder if Carpenter will "become available in a stronger way." I looked at how Wainwright's injury could have a trickle down effect on the Yankees over at River Ave. Blues. 

Cardinals Will Be Open-Minded About Pitching Help

By | at

10:48am: Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has some more from Mozeliak…

"We haven't played a game yet, that throws a wrench into a little bit," said the GM. "Internally we don't want to have a knee-jerk response to this. We certainly feel we have some players in camp that can fill this role."

10:14am: Now that Adam Wainwright will officially be out for the entire 2011 season, the Cardinals need to begin thinking about potential replacements. GM John Mozeliak told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that the team will not look outside the organization for help initially, but they "have to be open-minded." (Twitter link)

The Cardinals won't find a pitcher of Wainwright's caliber on the market, but there are plenty of options that could give them innings. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch broke down the internal candidates today, and I took a look at external candidates yesterday. 

Wainwright Will Undergo Tommy John Surgery

By | at

THURSDAY, 10:01am: GM John Mozeliak confirmed that Wainwright will undergo Tommy John surgery according to the team's official Twitter feed. The injury will keep him on the shelf for all of 2011.

WEDNESDAY, 8:59am: Adam Wainwright is heading back to St. Louis to have his right elbow examined, and right now the team expects the worst. "I can say just based on the initial evaluation from our training staff, things do not look encouraging," said GM John Mozeliak according to Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. ESPN's Buster Olney says (on Twitter) that it appears the team is expecting their ace to have Tommy John surgery, which would keep him out for all of 2011.

Wainwright, 29, has been one of the game's best pitchers in recent years, pitching to a 2.53 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 463 1/3 innings over the last two seasons. He finished second in the NL Cy Young voting last season and third in 2009. Rival executives are speculating that the Cards will pursue Kevin Millwood in the wake of the injury, according to Olney (on Twitter). Over the weekend we heard that Millwood was "waiting for the right widespread panic."

If Wainwright finishes the 2011 season on the disabled list, his $9MM option for 2012 and $12MM option for 2013 will not vest. 

Casey Close Leaving CAA Sports

By | at

Agent Casey Close is leaving CAA Sports when his five-year contract expires at the end of the month, reports Liz Mullen of The Sports Business Journal (subs. req'd). A hat tip goes out to Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball.

Mullen says that CAA and Close are still trying to work out the details of his departure, "which may involve CAA and Close sharing the representation of some of the clients going forward." Close represents Derek Jeter, Ryan Howard, Michael Cuddyer, and Derrek Lee, among others.

It's unclear if Close will join a new a firm or work independently, though Brown notes that high profile agents (such as Dan Lozano) have been going out on their own recently. Close was one of the first sports agents that CAA hired when it launched its sports division in April 2006. It is primarily a Hollywood talent firm.

Nats Agree To Terms With 14 International Prospects

By | at

In addition to the previously reported Randy Novas and Raudy Reed, the Nationals have agreed to terms with 14 international free agents per a team press release. Here is the list of players, per the release…

Left-handed pitchers Joel Barrientos (17, Dominican Republic), Brian Escolastico (18, Dominican Republic) and Hector Silvestre (18, Dominican Republic); right-handed pitchers Anderson Martinez (18, Venezuela), Gilberto Mendez (18, Dominican Republic) and Felix Moscat (20, Dominican Republic); catchers Pedro Severino (17, Dominican Republic) and Jorge Tillero (17, Venezuela); first baseman Arialdi Peguero (18, Dominican Republic); shortstop Yewri Guillen (18, Dominican Republic); third baseman Diomedes Eusebio (18, Dominican Republic); and outfielders Juan De Los Santos (17, Venezuela), Wilman Rodriguez (19, Dominican Republic) and Dioncio Rosario (17, Dominican Republic).

Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post wrote about the team's efforts to improve its presence in Latin America earlier this month.

Kiko Calero To Throw For Cardinals

By | at

Kiko Calero originally broke into the big leagues with the Cardinals back in 2003, and now he's trying to see if he can revive his career with them. SI.com's Jon Heyman reports that Calero will throw for the Cardinals as a tryout (on Twitter).

The 36-year-old right-hander signed a minor league contract with the Mets last year, only to be released. He then hooked on with the Dodgers only to be released yet again. In 25 Triple-A appearances last year, Kiko (whose real name is Enrique) posted a 7.03 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9 in 32 innings.

Prior to last season, we heard that Calero, who pitched to a 1.95 ERA with 10.4 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9 in 60 innings with the Marlins in 2009, wasn't drawing much interest because his "medicals [were] so bad that everybody [was] wary." He's battled major shoulder injuries in the past.

The Cardinals are faced with the possibility of not having Adam Wainwright in 2011, and reliever Kyle McClellan is a candidate to fill his rotation spot. St. Louis could be looking at Calero as bullpen depth if they do go that route.

Looking At Some Productive Waiver Claims

By | at

Waiver claims are perhaps the least exciting hot stove transaction, but they can have a very real impact in the standings. Zachary Levine of The Houston Chronicle noted that seven players on the Astros' 40-man roster were originally acquired via waivers, including setup man Wilton Lopez. After being claimed from the Padres in April 2009, Lopez posting a 2.96 ERA with 6.7 K/9 and just 0.7 BB/9 in 67 innings last season.

Using our Transactions Tracker, lets look back at some players who were claimed off waivers in the last three or so years before going on to be productive players for their new teams…

  • Craig Breslow, LHP – Breslow bounced around quite a bit before the A's poached him from the Twins in May 2009. He's pitched to a 2.84 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 130 innings with Oakland.
  • Todd Coffey, RHP – The burly right-hander was claimed off waivers by the Brewers from the Reds in September 2008, after which he posted a 3.52 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 153 1/3 innings for Milwaukee.
  • Casey McGehee, 3B – Another waiver gem by the Brewers, they grabbed McGehee from the Cubs in October 2008. In the two seasons since, he's hit .291/.346/.477 with 39 homers in 1,064 plate appearances.
  • Dan Meyer, LHP – Once the headliner in the Tim Hudson trade, the Marlins selected Meyer from the A's in November 2008. He pitched very well in 2009 (3.09 ERA, 8.6 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 in 58 1/3 innings) before falling apart in 2010.
  • Darren O'Day, RHP – The Mets let O'Day go on waivers in April 2009 after selecting him from the Angels in the Rule 5 Draft. All the submariner has done since is post a 1.99 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 117 2/3 innings as a Ranger.
  • Eric O'Flaherty, LHP – The Braves claimed O'Flaherty off waivers from the Mariners in November 2008, and he's gone on to pitch to a 2.78 ERA with 6.7 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 100 1/3 innings for Atlanta.

The trend here is relievers. Their performance tends to fluctuate from year-to-year, sometimes wildly, and sometimes a change of scenery can be all it takes to unlock potential. 

Other players like Alex Rios, Manny Ramirez, and Cody Ross were claimed off waivers as well, both those transactions were driven by shedding salary more than anything else. The list of players above were more or less given up on by their original clubs.

Gonzalez Doesn’t Expect Braves To Trade A Starter

By | at

It was just a few years ago that the Braves seemed desperate for starting pitching help, but now they boast enough that new manager Fredi Gonzalez is being asked about potential trades. Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution picked up this quote from skipper, who was asked about moving one of his arms…

"[Are we] looking at trading somebody? Oh, no, no, no," said Gonzalez. "No. No. I think this is where you build your team from. Your strength is your starting pitching. No, I don’t anticipate us moving any of those guys."

The Braves currently have Tim Hudson, Derek Lowe, Tommy Hanson, and Jair Jurrjens penciled into the rotation, with Mike Minor, Brandon Beachy, and Rodrigo Lopez around to serve as the fifth starter and depth. Kenshin Kawakami has been on the trade block all winter, but so far no one has bit because of his $6.667MM salary. 

Earlier today we heard that the Twins weren't necessarily eager to deal one of their excess starting pitchers either, but if they or the Braves decided to act, they'll surely find a robust market. The Yankees are known to be seeking rotation help, as are the Indians and Nationals. The Cardinals are also facing the possibility of losing Adam Wainwright for the season.

Potential Pitching Options For The Cardinals

By | at

The Cardinals are expected to receive some bad news pretty soon, as it appears as though right-hander Adam Wainwright will miss the 2011 season with Tommy John surgery. Manager Tony LaRussa told Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that they "have to overcome this," though St. Louis still has a formidable front of the rotation featuring Chris Carpenter, Jaime Garcia, and Jake Westbrook.

Reliever Kyle McClellan is already working under a starter's program this spring according to Goold, so he could be first in line for the vacated rotation spot. The team could also turn to Brian Tallet, Miguel Batista, Ian Snell, P.J. Walters, or Lance Lynn if needed. What about external options? Let's take a look…

  • Kevin Millwood – The 36-year-old free agent is said to be "waiting for the right widespread panic," and Wainwright's injury would certainly qualify. Millwood was rumored to be seeking $4-5MM, and recently declined a minor league offer from the Yankees. 
  • Joe Blanton – It's long been speculated that the Phillies would try to unload the $17MM owed to Blanton over the next two years, though St. Louis' payroll is said to be "leaking." Philadelphia would likely have to eat a significant portion of Blanton's contract to facilitate a trade, defeating the point of moving him.
  • Jeremy Bonderman – Still just 28, Bonderman has been connected to the Indians recently but is still without a job for 2011.
  • Chad Durbin – At least one team (the Red Sox) have interest in him as a starter, but he'd have more of an opportunity with the Cardinals. Durbin has 75 big league starts to his credit, but none since 2007. He could also provide bullpen depth if McClellan moves into the rotation.
  • Bartolo Colon or Freddy Garcia – both right-handers are with the Yankees on minor league contracts that allow them to become free agents if they don't make the team out of Spring Training.

There's no way to replace a pitcher of Wainwright's caliber, so the Cardinals will have to hope that whoever takes his place in the rotation simply provides quality innings while the rest of the team takes their game up a notch.

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top