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WEEI’s Latest: Anthopoulos, Ross, Butterfield

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Here's the latest from WEEI's Hot Stove Show with Rob Bradford, Alex Speier and Kirk Minihane…

  • Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos said the blockbuster with the Marlins came together in about 5-6 days. Talks between the two sides started with Josh Johnson, but obviously expanded. Anthopoulos also discussed the competitive advantage of keeping talks under wraps.
  • Red Sox manager John Farrell said David Ross was a priority signing because of his leadership skills as well as his throwing ability. He's thrown out 37.5% of attempted base stealers over the last eight years, second only to Yadier Molina.
  • Red Sox third base coach Brian Butterfield told Bradford he was a candidate for the Blue Jays' managerial job until the "11th-hour." Butterfield added there "were certain things (Anthopoulos) wanted in his next manager … he really had to have a guy who had previous major league managing experience."

Sosnick, Johnson Open To Extension With Blue Jays

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Josh Johnson has yet to throw a pitch for the Blue Jays after being acquired in a 12-player blockbuster earlier this month, but the right-hander is open to remaining with the team beyond 2013. Agent Matt Sosnick told Brendan Kennedy of The Toronto Star they'd be receptive to a new deal to remain in Toronto.

"If there is anyone in the game I’d be receptive to talking to about it it’s (Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos)," said Sosnick. "It hasn’t come up in any of our conversations … (Anthopoulos) hasn’t volunteered it and I haven’t asked him about it. It’s probably something that if he wants to talk about it we’ll talk about it down the road."

Johnson, 28, will earn $13.75MM next season, the final year on the four-year, $39MM contract he signed with the Marlins prior to 2010. He pitched to a 3.81 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 191 1/3 innings this season, though his fastball velocity dipped and both his strikeout and walk rates declined for a second straight year.

From 2009-2011, Johnson posted a 2.64 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 453 innings across 70 starts. A return to that level of performance with the Blue Jays this year would potentially put Johnson in line for a nine-figure contract as a free agent next offseason, when he will be arguably the best starter on the market.

Blue Jays Sign Julio Izturis

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THURSDAY: The Jays actually signed Julio Izturis, rather than Cesar, reports Mike Cormack of Sportsnet.ca.  So, to date, only two of the three Izturis brothers are members of the Blue Jays organization (Maicer and Cesar are half-brothers).  Julio is a 23-year-old infielder who last appeared in pro ball with the Giants' Low-A affiliate in 2011.

WEDNESDAY: The Blue Jays have signed Cesar Izturis to a minor league contract, reports Baseball America's Matt Eddy (on Twitter). The veteran infielder is a Peter E. Greenberg & Associates client.

Izturis, 32, hit .241/.254/.343 with two homers in 173 plate appearances for the Brewers and Nationals this season while playing the three non-first base infield positions. He originally started his career with the Blue Jays, who signed him as a amateur free agent out of Venezuela back in 1996. Toronto signed his half-brother Maicer to a three-year contract earlier this offseason.

Marlins Notes: Buehrle, Stanton, Johnson

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Just like last offseason, the Marlins have made plenty of headlines so far this year. This winter's moves haven't been met with the same kind of praise, however. Here's the latest from Miami…

  • "I’m upset with how things turned out in Miami," said the recently-traded Mark Buehrle in a statement, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of The Sun-Sentinel. "Just like the fans in South Florida, I was lied to on multiple occasions. But I’m putting it behind me and looking forward to moving on with my career."
  • Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports says the Marlins should trade Giancarlo Stanton right now if they're serious about rebuilding. "This has a chance to be baseball's version of the Herschel Walker trade," he wrote.
  • Josh Johnson, one of the players involved in last week's blockbuster, found out he was traded thanks to the MLB Trade Rumors app. The right-hander joined the Dan LeBatard Show on 790 the Ticket in Miami and explained how he heard about the deal (via Sports Radio Interviews).

Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post.

Minor Moves: Athletics, Nationals, Dodgers

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Here's a fresh batch of minor moves courtesy of Baseball America's Matt Eddy (on Twitter)…

Stark’s Latest: Halladay, Hamilton, Rays, Dickey

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In his latest blog post, ESPN's Jayson Stark points out that just five teams have $100MM+ committed to their 2013 payroll right now: the Dodgers, Yankees, Phillies, Tigers, and Blue Jays. None of those teams appear to be done this offseason either. Here's the rest of Stark's rumors…

  • The Phillies have kicked around the idea of a contract extension for Roy Halladay, though GM Ruben Amaro said that "a lot has to do with how he feels and how he performs. So that's a decision and a conversation that would probably have to go into the spring, and maybe into the season."
  • The two sides actually had preliminary talks about a new contract that would raise Halladay's annual salary north of $24MM and keep him with the Phillies beyond next season. Talks were shelved when the right-hander's shoulder began to act up, however.
  • Stark hears that Josh Hamilton is no longer on the Phillies' list, and Amaro said they "haven't been given a real budget. I know it's not unlimited, but that's not usually how we work."
  • Teams continue to check in with the Rays about their starting pitchers, and the asking price for James Shields is in the neighborhood of the five-player package Tampa received for Matt Garza two winters ago.
  • Those same clubs don't believe the Mets have really put R.A. Dickey on the trade market yet.
  • Rumors swirl that Zack Greinke is seeking a six-year contract, but his agent Casey Close has yet to ask for specific offers.
  • Scott Rolen has told the Reds he may play next season, but he isn't ready to make a final decision tweets Stark. The team wants him back in some role.

White Sox Re-Sign Dewayne Wise

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The White Sox have re-signed Dewayne Wise to a one-year contract worth $700K, the team announced. The outfielder has signed seven minor league contracts in the last three seasons.

Wise, 34, hit .259/.293/.429 with eight homers in 239 plate appearances for the Yankees and White Sox this year. He's a .228/.264/.385 career hitter in 1,118 big league plate appearances spanning ten years with the Blue Jays, Braves, Reds, Marlins, Yankees, and ChiSox.

Blue Jays Notes: Gibbons, Coaches, Payroll, Buck

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Earlier today the Blue Jays announced the hiring (or re-hiring) of former manager John Gibbons, though not everyone around the game is impressed by the move according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Here's the latest out of Toronto…

  • "I've got more conviction in this hire … than in any other transaction," said GM Alex Anthopoulos of the Gibbons hire according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca (on Twitter) Gibbons received a two-year contract plus an option for a third year, tweets Davidi.
  • The Blue Jays have not yet made any announced about the rest of the coaching staff, but MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm says (on Twitter) they want to take care of that quickly.
  • The team has exceeded payroll expectations, but Anthopoulos reminded everyone that he promised the money would be there when the time was right according to Mike Wilner of The Blue Jays Radio Network (on Twitter).
  • Anthopoulos said he will now focus on improving the team further, specifically mentioning both rotation and bullpen depth, tweets Davidi.
  • John Buck will serve as the backup catcher to J.P. Arencibia according to Anthopoulos, tweets Davidi.

Fujikawa Meets With Five MLB Clubs

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Monday: According to Japanese media reports, Fujikawa met with the Angels, Dodgers and Orioles over the weekend (per Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times). DiGiovanna adds that Angels GM Jerry Dipoto wouldn't comment on contract negotiations, nor would he divulge whether or not he envisions Fujikawa as a setup man or closer.

Not surprisingly, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports that Fujikawa is looking for a multiyear commitment wherever he signs (Twitter link).

Saturday: Right-hander Kyuji Fujikawa started meeting with MLB clubs and touring their facilities this past week, reports Gerry Fraley of The Dallas Morning News. He's already visited the Diamondbacks and Cubs and is expected to meet with both the Dodgers and Angels as well. It's unclear if he'll meet with the Rangers on this trip.

Fujikawa, 32, has been the top closer in Japan for nearly a decade and is a true free agent, meaning he won't have to go through the posting process. The Red Sox have expressed some interest in the right-hander in addition to those five clubs above. Tim Dierkes ranked Fujikawa as the 34th best free agent available on his Top 50 Free Agents List, predicting he would sign with the Angels.

MLBTR's Steve Adams contributed to this post.

Blue Jays Close To Naming New Manager

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SUNDAY: Former Indians manager Manny Acta has been strongly reviewed by the Blue Jays, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.

SATURDAY, 10:42am: The Blue Jays have not contacted Riggleman according to his agent Burton Rocks, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Riggleman would be interested in the job, however.

10:20am: The Blue Jays have been a busy team all week, first agreeing to a blockbuster trade then signing Melky Cabrera. ESPN's Buster Olney hears that the club is now close to naming a new manager as well, with two of the finalists being Jim Tracy and Jim Riggleman.

Tracy, 56, led the Rockies to a 294-308 record during his 3+ years at the helm. He resigned from the job last month. Riggleman, 60, last managed in the big leagues with the Nationals, leading them to a record in 140-172 record in 2+ years. He resigned from the team in June of 2011. Olney speculates (on Twitter) that the Blue Jays could hire a manager really in-tune with the running game given the presence of Jose Reyes, Rajai Davis, Emilio Bonifacio, and others.

Edward Creech contributed to this post.

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