Mets Have Not Contacted Sheffield
George A. King III of The New York Post spoke to free agent Gary Sheffield, who said he has not heard from the Mets but did seem to indicate that teams are interested in bringing him aboard.
“There are things on the table that I have to accept or not accept," the former Mets and Yankees slugger told The Post on Wednesday. “Right now I have not made up my mind."
“I have a few things to weigh," said Sheffield.
There hasn't been much interest in the 41-year-old this offseason, and last we heard was that Sheff was considering two unidentified teams but still waiting for offers.
The Tigers released the nine-time All Star last March, eating basically all of his $14MM salary in the process. The Mets picked him up for the league minimum, and gave him 312 plate appearances during which he hit .276/.372/.451 with ten homers.
Mets Sign Mike Jacobs
The Mets signed first baseman Mike Jacobs to a minor league deal. The contract pays $900K if he's in the Majors and has another $1.15MM in incentives. ESPN's Jerry Crasnick first reported the near-agreement last night, with SI's Jon Heyman tweeting contract details today.
Jacobs, 29, hit just .228/.297/.401 with 19 homers in 478 plate appearances for the Royals last season, which led to the team declining to tender him a contract. He's the lefty power threat the Mets currently lack, though his .313 career OBP and poor defense are big negatives. He also struggles immensely against southpaws.
Jacobs broke in with the Mets back in 2005, though he was included in the Carlos Delgado trade after that season.
Odds & Ends: Lincecum, Jackson, Blalock, Bedard
Some Tuesday night links…
- Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports tweets that neither Tim Lincecum nor the Giants have budged in their negotiations, and his arbitration hearing is set for Friday.
- MLB.com's Steve Gilbert reports (via Twitter) that the Diamondbacks and Edwin Jackson still haven't made any progress towards an agreement. Their arbitration hearing is now just eight days away.
- In addition to having interest in Russell Branyan and Jermaine Dye, the Indians are also talking to Hank Blalock, reports Rosenthal. He adds that the Blue Jays are also in on Branyan.
- In a pair of tweets, Rosenthal passes along the incentives in Erik Bedard's contract. They lefty could bring in $500K each for 14, 17, 20, 23, and 26 starts, plus $600K for every 25 innings after 75.
- Meanwhile, Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com report that Damon hasn't moved off his demand of a two-year deal. Good luck with that, Johnny.
- Morosi and Rosenthal also report that the Rangers and Mets appear to be "hamstrung by complications at the ownership level," meaning they're approaching their payroll limits.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick tweets that Astros' GM Ed Wade said the team has some interest in bringing Willy Taveras back on a minor league deal. Oakland released Taveras today.
- Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun (via Peter Schmuck) spoke to Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail, who indicated that the team has not had recent talks with the agents for Jarrod Washburn or Chien-Ming Wang. The O's were linked to both pitchers earlier today.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock says (via Twitter) that it's "highly unlikely" that the Padres will sign Japanese lefty Hisanori Takahashi. Several teams reportedly offered the southpaw a minor league contract.
Mariners Transactions: Pauley, Koplove, Speigner
The Mariners completed a slew of minor moves today…
- David Pauley was signed to a minor league deal. The 26-year-old spent 2009 in the Orioles system, posting a 4.37 ERA in 152.1 Triple-A innings.
- Mike Koplove was re-signed to a minor league deal. The 33-year-old finished the 2009 in Seattle's system, putting up a 1.87 ERA in 72.1 Triple-A innings. He also pitched in the Phillies' and Pirates' systems last season.
- Levale Speigner also signed a minor league deal. The 29-year-old had a 2.56 ERA while pitching in the Marlins' farm system in 2009.
- The team also signed righty Steven Shell, lefty Chris Seddon, and catcher Guillermo Quiroz to minor league pacts.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Tuesday
We'll keep track of any players that avoid arbitration throughout the day here…
- The Mets and Angel Pagan have agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.45MM, reports Adam Rubin of The New York Daily News. Pagan filed for $1.8MM, the team $1.275MM.
Padres Place Greg Burke On Unconditional Waivers
The Padres have placed righty Greg Burke on unconditional waivers to free up a roster spot for Yorvit Torrealba, tweets Dan Hayes of The North County Times. Burke will become a free agent if he goes unclaimed, but he also has the right to refuse any claims so he can hit the open market.
The 27-year-old reached the majors for the first time in 2009, posting a 4.14 ERA with a 1.43 K/BB ratio in 45.2 innings of relief. Burke had surgery to repair a debridement in his throwing shoulder in early October, and it's unclear if he'll be healthy for Spring Training.
Odds & Ends: Startup, Rays, Reds, Dye, Mauer
A few links for Monday night…
- Morosi reports (via Twitter) that the Orioles have signed lefty reliever Will Startup to a minor league contract. The 25-year-old missed all of 2008 and most of 2009 with injuries, though prior to that he had a 2.56 ERA and held lefties to a .206 batting average in 175.2 career minor league innings. He spend last season in the Padres' system.
- Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times passes along some quotes Rays' vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman made during his appearance on 620-AM this evening. He basically said the team is keeping an eye on the market, though it's difficult to say if they'll be able to act on anything given their current financial situation.
- After losing out on Erik Bedard, the Orioles are still looking to add an arm according to Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com (via Twitter).
- MLB.com's Mark Sheldon lists the Reds' players who are out of options. Wladimir Balentien appears to be the biggest question mark.
- Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets that the Braves are not interested in Jermaine Dye, but they could still make another addition if Johnny Damon's (or another free agent's) price falls.
- Unsurprisingly, Twins' CEO Jim Pohlad declined to talk about contract negotiations with Joe Mauer, though he did say that they try to stay away from deferred compensation.
- In a mailbag, MLB.com's Matthew Leach says the Cardinals are likely done spending until Spring Training.
Discussion: Hank Blalock
Older players are feeling the crunch these days, especially if they're one dimensional. Teams just aren't willing to pay big bucks for declining players, regardless of how notable they are or how good of a fit they may be. However some younger players are feeling it too; if they want a big league contract they better be able to do several things well.
Two-time All Star Hank Blalock sits here on February 8th without a job, despite hitting 25 homers last season and averaging 27 bombs per 162 games played for his career. The problem is that Blalock doesn't get on base well (.277 OBP in 2009, .329 career), isn't very good in the field at either first or third, and has dealt with major shoulder injuries in recent seasons. His value comes from his ability to occasionally make pitchers pay when they make a mistake.
At this point, Blalock's probably looking at a minor league deal, however his significant platoon split might be enough to land him a gig as a the lefty-half of a first base platoon somewhere. All it takes is an injury in Spring Training, after all.
Do you see any possible fits for Blalock, maybe as a platoon player or a bat off the bench for an NL team? The pickin's are slim this far into the offseason…
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Monday
We'll keep tabs of any players that avoid arbitration here…
- MLB.com's Matthew Leach tweets that the Cardinals and Skip Schumaker have agreed to a two-year deal, avoiding arbitration. The AP (via SI.com) reports that Schumaker will earn $2MM in 2010 and $2.7MM in 2011, with another $300K in performance bonuses. He had filed for $2.75MM, the team $1.45MM.
Nationals Talk: Guzman, Dye, Hernandez
MLB.com's Bill Ladson spilled some hot stove goodness in his latest mailbag, so let's round it up with some good old fashioned bullet points…
- Because he's owed $8MM in 2010, Ladson doesn't see Cristian Guzman getting traded before Opening Day. He'll get another chance to play shortstop because the team realizes his problems last year were due to injuries.
- Unless he comes in as a fourth outfielder, it's unlikely the Nats will pursue Jermaine Dye.
- The only way Ladson sees Livan Hernandez returning to the nation's capital is if they're unable to land a pitcher they really want first. If they do sign him, it would likely occur in Spring Training.