Rosenthal’s Latest: Morneau, Ruiz, Upton, Hamilton
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports has a new Full Count video up, so let's recap…
- Don't be surprised if the Twins consider trading Justin Morneau. The first baseman is owed $14MM both this season and next, and Minnesota likely needs the position for Joe Mauer long-term. Denard Span, Matt Capps, and Carl Pavano could also be on the block, but Morneau offers hard-to-find power. He has a no-trade clause but the extent is unknown.
- The Phillies hold a $5MM option for 2013 on catcher Carlos Ruiz and an extension is warranted, but at 33 years old, Chooch is three years older than Yadier Molina and four years older than Miguel Montero. They aren't contract comparables.
- This year's crop of free agent center fielders stand to benefit from Adam Jones' new six-year, $88.5MM extension, but age will again be a factor. B.J. Upton will be 28 next season and is two years younger than Michael Bourn and four years younger than Shane Victorino. All three will hit the open market after the season.
- Josh Hamilton is unlikely to sign a contract extension with the Rangers, and the lack of comparable players (both on and off the field) make him even more likely to hit the open market. It's possible the only way to determine his actual value is to let other teams bid for his services as a free agent.
Poll: Mike Napoli’s Next Contract
The catching market has changed substantially over the last several months. Yadier Molina paved the way with his five-year, $75MM contract, and yesterday Miguel Montero reaped the rewards. He agreed to a five-year, $60MM extension with the Diamondbacks, leaving Mike Napoli as the top catcher on the free agent market after the season.
Napoli, 30, is said to be seeking a deal somewhere between Victor Martinez‘s (four years, $52MM) and Molina’s. He’s hitting just .233/.325/.436 in 154 plate appearances this season following last year’s breakout .320/.414/.631 campaign. Furthermore, Napoli has only started behind the plate in 25 of his team’s first 46 games.
Quality catching is very hard to find, which is why Molina and now Montero have cashed in so handsomely. Napoli is next in line for a huge contract despite his slow start to the season.
Which is closest to Napoli's next contract?
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Four years, $52MM (Martinez) 49% (2,691)
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Five years, $60MM (Montero) 34% (1,838)
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Five years, $75MM (Molina) 17% (932)
Total votes: 5,461
Sveum, Dempster Talk About Potential Moves
The Cubs have the worst record in baseball (15-30) and they've lost their last ten games, the franchise's longest losing streak in 15 years. Manager Dale Sveum told Gordon Wittenmyer of The Chicago Sun-Times that the next few weeks will be important as they try to shape their roster going forward.
"You get to that point in the year where decisions, roster moves, a lot of things like that [have to be made]," he said. “You get to the point where if you’re not playing well things start changing a lot."
With extension talks between the team and Matt Garza reportedly going "very well," the Cubs' most marketable piece of trade bait is right-hander Ryan Dempster. The 35-year-old owns a 2.14 ERA in 54 2/3 innings spread across eight starts, and his walk (2.5 BB/9), home run (0.5 HR/9), and hit (7.1 H/9) rates are the best they've been in years.
"I’m not an idiot. I know how things go," he said. "I know how it goes with players in contract years and the team not necessarily doing like they’re supposed to be doing, there’s always a possibility of things. There’s a possibility of being traded anytime."
Dempster has full no-trade protection as a five-and-ten player, though he seems open to waiving it under the right circumstances.
"If it’s something they want to approach me with, then I’ll have to cross that bridge when I get to it," he said.
Dempster exercised his $14MM player option this past winter and is still owed approximately $10.1MM the rest of the season. The Cubs would have to offer Dempster a qualifying offer to receive draft pick compensation after the season, but if traded, his new club will not be eligible to receive picks under the new collective bargaining agreement.
Blue Jays Reject Offer From Japan For Jesse Chavez
The Blue Jays have rejected an offer from the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks for pitcher Jesse Chavez according to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. The Hawks offered Toronto $1MM and would have paid the right-hander $3MM over two years. Chavez's agent Paul Cobbe declined to comment.
Chavez, 28, has pitched to a 3.72 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 58 innings across ten Triple-A starts. He owns a 5.36 ERA in 152 2/3 big league relief innings with the Pirates, Braves, and Royals. He's been involved in trades for Akinori Iwamura, Rafael Soriano, Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth. Toronto removed Chavez from the 40-man roster this offseason.
The Hawks released Brad Penny a few weeks ago and are presumably looking to replace the pitching depth.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Oswalt, Chapman, Trout
One year ago today, Mariano Rivera became the first pitcher in baseball history to appear in 1,000 games with one team. He is currently eighth on the all-time games pitched list with 1,051 appearances, but he won't be making any more this season after tearing his right ACL. Here's the latest from around the web…
- Jays Journal interviewed GM Tony LaCava, the Blue Jays vice president of baseball operations.
- Baseball Hot Corner interviewed Blue Jays prospect Daniel Norris.
- MLB Reports interviewed former big leaguer Karim Garcia.
- Baseball Time In Arlington wrote about Neftali Feliz's injury and Roy Oswalt.
- Redleg Nation calls the Reds' decision to make Aroldis Chapman the closer a mistake.
- Monkey with a Halo says the Angels should sign Mike Trout to a contract extension.
- Lasorda's Lair believes this year's Dodgers are similar to the 1988 team.
- Bucs Dugout listed Neal Huntington's eight best moves as Pirates GM.
- Royals Review asks if you'd hire Royals GM Dayton Moore again.
- I-70 Baseball thinks Royals manager Ned Yost must go.
- NASORB says the Mariners must cut ties with Chone Figgins.
- Call to the Pen wonders if Brandon Morrow is officially an ace.
- Disciplines of Uecker listed some replacement starting pitchers for the Brewers.
- BoSox Injection wrote about the Daniel Bard dilemma facing the Red Sox.
- Talkin' Sox with Dan thinks the Red Sox should listen on their catching depth.
- Rays Colored Glasses wonders if the Rays could trade for David Ross.
- FanSpeak thinks the Orioles should target Adam Dunn in a trade.
- Wahoo's on First wonders if Kevin Youkilis is a fit for the Indians.
- Rising Apple says the Mets are better off without Jose Reyes in the clubhouse.
- Puckett's Pond wrote about the Twins' long-term search for a third baseman.
- Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness examined the Dodgers' roster crunch.
- We Should Be GMs says we have to respect the Phillies' array of cast-offs.
- 85% Sports wrote about the Cubs and the upcoming draft.
- MLB Draft Insider published the latest version of their mock draft.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.
Quick Hits: Wright, Oviedo, Broxton, Catchers
Here's the latest from around the league as Thursday turns into Friday…
- "We're all hopeful that long-term, [David Wright] will be here," said Mets GM Sandy Alderson during tonight's game broadcast according to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo (on Twitter). "I don't see any great impediment to that occurring."
- Juan Carlos Oviedo confirmed to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes that he has not yet received his visa but he is in the process of doing so. Earlier this week we heard that the pitcher formerly known as Leo Nunez had received his visa and was on his way back to the United States and the Marlins.
- Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com says Jonathan Broxton could be either a trade candidate or an extension candidate for the Royals. The closer will be a free agent after the season, but Knobler compares him to Jeff Francoeur, who signed a one-year deal with Kansas City last season before agreeing to a two-year extension.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.com wrote about offensive catchers, which he says are a dying breed. Joe Mauer, Brian McCann, Mike Napoli, and Miguel Montero all have sub-.815 OPSes this season.
AL East Links: Orioles, Oswalt, Jones, Nova
On this date in 2006, the Yankees acquired infielder Nick Green from the Devil Rays for cash. As our Transaction Tracker shows, it's the only trade ever made between the two division rivals. Here's the latest from the AL East…
- "We're always interested in the pitching market and any developments in the market," said Orioles GM Dan Duquette to Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com when asked about the team's reported interest in Roy Oswalt. He wouldn't confirm if the club has watched Oswalt throw recently.
- Duquette also told Kubatko that a contract extension with Adam Jones is not imminent, and he wouldn't confirm if the Orioles and their star center fielder have spoken recently.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that the Orioles put a waiver claim in on John Gaub, but lost it to the Rangers because they have a better record (Twitter links). Baltimore came into the day 28-17 while Texas is 27-18.
- “My impression is not only do [the Steinbrenners] all love being part of [owning the Yankees], I think they are interested in handing it to their kids,” said Yankees GM Brian Cashman to Joel Sherman of The New York Post when asked about rumors of the team potentially going up for sale.
- ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. wrote about Yankees right-hander Ivan Nova and his path to the big leagues. He worked out for the Red Sox in the Dominican Republic but said "I really didn't want to sign with Boston … My father and I were both Yankee fans."
Cutting Figgins “Not A Consideration” For Mariners
Chone Figgins has been a colossal bust with the Mariners, but manager Eric Wedge told reporters (including Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times) that parting ways with the infielder is "not even a consideration" right now. Seattle optioned Casper Wells to Triple-A rather than cut ties with Figgins when Miguel Olivo came off the disabled list today.
"Not right now,'' said the manager. "Right now, that's not even an option for us. With Chone, as you all know — we were very open with you (media) guys about that — we wanted to give him every opportunity to get back on track. We feel like we did that, leading him off, switching his role a little bit, and it didn't work out."
Figgins, 34, has hit just .230/.303/.286 in over 1,100 plate appearances with the Mariners since signing his four-year, $36MM contract prior to 2010. Seattle has indicated a willingness to eat part of that contract to facilitate a trade, but so far they've found no takers. Figgins still offers a lot of versatility but is owed approximately $15MM through next season.
Marlins Looking For Help Following Bonifacio Injury
The Marlins announced today that Emilio Bonifacio will miss 4-6 weeks due to left thumb surgery, and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter) that the team is looking at "possible outside fits" to replace him. Bryan Petersen has been playing center field in the meantime.
Bonifacio, 27, was hitting .268/.351/.315 in 170 plate appearances before getting hurt. He still leads the league with 20 steals (in 21 chances) despite not playing for nearly a week. As the Red Sox have shown during their rash of injuries, the market for outfield help isn't great the moment. Boston acquired Marlon Byrd and Scott Podsednik in separate trades in recent weeks to cover for injuries.
Dickey Hoping For Contract Extension With Mets
R.A. Dickey owns a 3.13 ERA in parts of three seasons with the Mets, and he'll earn $4.25MM this year before a $5MM club option ($300K buyout) comes into play for 2013. Dickey is thinking beyond next season though, admitting to Mike Puma of The New York Post that he is open to a contract extension.
"I like it here and I want to be here,” he said. “I feel like the team is moving in the right direction, and I want to be a part of the solution. Now it’s up to them. If I’m in those plans, [addressing the contract] is one way to make it known."
Dickey, 37, is one of the biggest bargains in baseball and as Ben Nicholson-Smith wrote in our Contract Issues series, the club is very likely to exercise his option. He signed a two-year, $7.8MM deal prior to last season and an extension could look very similar, another year or two at $5-6MM annually on top of the option for 2013.