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Minor Moves: Kimball, Corporan, Rottino, Pascucci

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Today's minor moves…

  • The Twins re-signed left-hander Phil Dumatrait, according to the Sosnick Cobbe Twitter page. Dumatrait appeared in 45 games for the Twins last season, posting a 3.92 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9.
  • The Blue Jays claimed right-hander Cole Kimball off of waivers from Washington, according to the Nationals' official Twitter feed.  Meanwhile, the Nats outrighted outfielder Corey Brown to Triple-A Syracuse.
  • Astros catcher Carlos Corporan cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Oklahoma City, tweets Alyson Footer of the Astros.  Corporan has the right to elect free agency due to previously being outrighted.
  • The Mets signed catcher/left fielder/first baseman Vinny Rottino and first baseman/DH Val Pascucci to minor league deals, reports ESPN's Adam Rubin.  Both players saw their first big league action in several years in 2011.
  • Eric Duncan, drafted in the first round by the Yankees in 2003, has signed with the Royals, tweets Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus.  The 26-year-old played mostly first base, second base, and left field this year for the Cardinals' Double-A affiliate, hitting .274/.322/.527 in 385 plate appearances.
  • The White Sox re-signed Leyson Septimo, tweets Goldstein.  The Sox claimed the hard-throwing 26-year-old southpaw off waivers from Arizona in June but removed him from their 40-man roster in October.
  • The Giants signed center fielder Gregor Blanco, according to his agency (via Matt Eddy of Baseball America on Twitter).  The 27-year-old spent the year with the Triple-A affiliates of the Nationals and Royals, hitting .201/.350/.327 in 252 plate appearances.
  • The Phillies acquired righty Adam Worthington from the Diamondbacks to complete the September Mike Zagurski trade, tweets Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com.  Worthington, 24, posted a 4.48 ERA, 10.0 K/9, 4.6 BB/9, and 0.6 HR/9 in 62 1/3 High-A relief innings this year.
  • The Yankees signed lefty reliever Mike O'Connor, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.  The 31-year-old appeared briefly in the Majors for the Mets this year, also posting a 5.22 ERA, 9.8 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, and 1.0 HR/9 in 60 1/3 Triple-A innings.

Red Sox Rumors: Cespedes, Sveum, ACES, Crawford

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The latest on the Red Sox…

Thirteen Teams In On Mark Buehrle

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11 teams are playing on Mark Buehrle, tweets Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM and ESPN.com: the Nationals, White Sox, Cubs, Marlins, Twins, Rangers, Yankees, Royals, Cardinals, Red Sox, and Diamondbacks.  These suitors have all been confirmed by club sources, according to Bowden.  The Blue Jays and Angels were named by Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports yesterday, potentially bringing the total to 13.  From Bowden's list, I believe the Twins, Cardinals, and Red Sox are new suitors.  Cards GM John Mozeliak said yesterday he is not seeking to alter the team's rotation, however.

Cole Hamels Reiterates Desire To Stay With Phillies

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Signing Cole Hamels to a contract extension is "not a pressing need," GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer, "but it's something we're absolutely on top of."  Amaro has explained the timetable to Hamels and his agent, John Boggs.  Gelb says the Phillies do not want to trade Hamels.

Hamels commented last night to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki, "It's not really on my mind because I'm still locked in with the team, which I'm happy about.  It'll work its way out. I'm just going to go out there and focus on pitching. I feel like I have a really good agent, [John Boggs]. I hope he has a good relationship with [general manager] Ruben [Amaro Jr.] and they'll be able to work well together."  Hamels later added, "You don't really think the grass is greener on the other side.  This is the organization I've come up with. We're winning. Why would you ever want to leave? You want to be on a winning team, and the team wants to win."

Hamels could earn $14MM or more in 2012, his last year of team control before hitting free agency.  He expects to be ready for Spring Training following an October elbow procedure to remove loose bodies.  In general, Hamels noted that he feels no need to sign quickly due to fear of failure or injury, having come back from a broken arm in high school.

Who’s Met With Bob Garber?

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1:05pm: Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. is talking with Garber today, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.

11:53am: As the agent for top free agent starters C.J. Wilson and Roy Oswalt, Bob Garber of Select Sports Group has been popular so far at the GM Meetings.  He's met or plans to meet with the Marlins, Yankees, Royals, Angels, Nationals, Rockies, and Rangers, according to reports, and tells me he has at least three more new meetings today.

Cardinals, Pujols Re-Engage In Contract Talks

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The Cardinals re-engaged in contract talks with Albert Pujols' agent Dan Lozano for the first time since February, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

Yesterday, we heard that the Cardinals have yet to top $200MM in an offer for Pujols.  Another report indicated that the Marlins have offered a nine-year contract to the slugger. 

Prince Fielder Seeks $200MM

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The magic number for Prince Fielder could be $200MM, tweets SI's Jon Heyman – $25MM a year over eight years.  I don't see that happening, but here's the latest as Scott Boras dines with mystery teams on Fielder's behalf…

  • The Brewers are not giving up on Fielder, tweets Heyman.  He says owner Mark Attanasio and GM Doug Melvin met with Boras on Tuesday, and Attanasio is mulling what to offer.  Attanasio expects a long process.  The Brewers have no intention of making an offer Boras can shop to other clubs, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
  • In Parma, Italy last Saturday for a European tour of MLB players, Fielder was asked if he'll be in Milwaukee next year.  He joked with the kids, "No, but I don't know where I will go, perhaps to Parma."  That's a translation courtesy of ESPN's Keith Law of this article, found via Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
  • Marlins president Larry Beinfest wouldn't rule out Fielder if the Albert Pujols possibility falls through, tweets Heyman.  Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said yesterday he wouldn't envision a run at Fielder if he fails to re-sign Pujols.

Heyman On Rollins, Yankees, Nolasco, Jurrjens

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As usual, Jon Heyman is tweeting up a storm.  His latest from Day 2 of the GM Meetings…

 

Type B Compensation To Stay For This Offseason

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10:23am: There will be Type B free agents this offseason, clarifies Sherman in a tweet.

WEDNESDAY, 8:33am: Lesser Type As such as Kelly Johnson, Octavio Dotel, and Takashi Saito will be made Type Bs in the new CBA, tweets Sherman.  The players' teams will still get compensation, but the players' markets will not be hurt by the cost of a draft pick.  Sherman talked yesterday about Type B compensation being eliminated, but I am guessing that would go into effect for the 2012-13 offseason.  By the way, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Brewers have already agreed not to offer arbitration to Saito.

Sherman says the new CBA will be for five years, and could be announced as early as Friday.  A hard cap and floor for international signings will be included, tweets SI's Melissa Segura.

TUESDAY, 10:50am: Teams such as the Rockies, Dodgers, Twins, Royals, Cardinals, Yankees, and Astros may lose out on potential supplemental draft picks in 2012, if a new report from Joel Sherman of the New York Post holds true.  After talking to two executives briefed on the collective bargaining negotations, Sherman says there is a "strong possibility that Type-B compensation will be eliminated this offseason."  As you can see from the current list of Type B free agents, not all of them can expect arbitration offers next Wednesday, but several were likely.  

This year, teams like the Blue Jays, Rays, and Padres added multiple draft picks in the #44-60 range by having Type B free agents turn down their offseason arbitration offers.  That type of opportunity may have already passed.

Compensation is expected to remain the same this offseason for top Type A free agents, Sherman learned.  For example, Mets GM Sandy Alderson said he's received assurances from the Commissioner's Office that the compensation for Jose Reyes will remain unchanged.  Sherman hears that tinkering at the bottom of the Type A spectrum is possible, to help players like Octavio Dotel and Kelly Johnson.  I imagine the main objections would come from the A's and Blue Jays, teams that made summer trade decisions based on Josh Willingham and Johnson projecting as Type As.

Cubs Willing To Listen On Everyone

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The Cubs are telling teams they'll listen to trade offers on everyone this winter while trying to rebuild the team to be competitive in the future, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.  Danny Knobler of CBS Sports tweeted something very similar around the same time, so perhaps the Cubs are trying to get the word out.  ESPN's Buster Olney also joined in, saying Sean Marshall and Matt Garza figure to draw the most interest between now and July 31st.

The concept of listening to offers for any player is not unexpected for new Cubs president Theo Epstein and GM Jed Hoyer, and marks a change from Jim Hendry's reported summer stance of not listening on players he thought could help him in 2012.  Still, a team drawing three million fans a year doesn't often embark on a full-on offseason rebuilding effort.  The Cubs certainly haven't done that anytime recently.  Hoyer isn't afraid to make an unpopular decision, though, having traded Adrian Gonzalez for prospects months after his Padres nearly won the NL West.  And even after trading Gonzalez, Hoyer made a series of moves designed to keep the team competitive in 2011.  The Cubs aren't ruling out anything at this point, Hoyer told MLB.com's Carrie Muskat.

Garza, 27, could be one of the best available starters this offseason.  He's made 30 starts each of the last four years, has AL East experience, and struck out a career-best 197 this year with the move to the NL.  He's under team control for two more years, though his salary could approach $9MM in 2012 and will likely enter eight figures in '13.  Marshall is under contract for $3.1MM in 2012 and eligible for free agency after that.  With a 2.45 ERA, 10.1 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, and 0.2 HR/9 over the last two years, he's become an elite reliever capable of a Mike Adams-like bounty.  

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