Tim Dierkes | MLB Trade Rumors

Bruce Chen Weighing Multiyear Offers

By Tim Dierkes | November 16, 2011 at 9:39am CDT

Lefty Bruce Chen has multiyear offers, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. He says the Royals and Cubs are among the teams talking to Chen, with the Royals perhaps focused on him.

Chen, a 34-year-old Scott Boras client, has never had a multiyear deal in his career. This year for the Royals he posted a 3.77 ERA, 5.6 K/9, 2.9 BB/9, 1.05 HR/9, and 34.6% groundball rate in 155 innings.

Latest On Ryan Zimmerman Extension Talks

By Tim Dierkes | November 16, 2011 at 8:32am CDT

"There currently are no active discussions regarding a contract extension for Ryan [Zimmerman]," agent Brodie Van Wagenen told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. Kilgore explains that while the sides have had informal dialogue, no specifics or proposals have been exchanged. Meanwhile Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports, "It’s important to us. We’ve already begun preliminary discussions with his people. He’s an important piece for us, a guy that we would like to have here long-term." Though the statements appear conflicting, it's probably just a difference of opinion over the technical definition of "discussions."

Certainly, both sides have the same goal of a long-term extension. Zimmerman is eligible for free agency after the 2013 season, so he's not as close as Matt Kemp was but closer than Troy Tulowitzki and Ryan Braun. As Kilgore explains, Zimmerman wants a deal by spring training 2013 so as to avoid distractions during that season.

Zimmerman said in August he wants a contract longer than five years, and seven or eight seems likely. The big question is if the two sides can agree on how Zimmerman's injury history should be factored in.

Rosenthal/Morosi On Dodgers, Astros, Blue Jays

By Tim Dierkes | November 16, 2011 at 8:14am CDT

The latest from Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports…

The Dodgers' payroll will be well under $100MM in 2012, sources tell the FOX writers. If James Loney and Hiroki Kuroda return, there will be little left to spend. On the plus side, the Dodgers were able to reduce Matt Kemp's '12 salary to slightly more than $10MM as part of his new multiyear deal, in a year where as much as $16MM seemed possible through arbitration. Rosenthal and Morosi say the Dodgers would want to buy out at least two free agent years in a long-term deal for Clayton Kershaw, who may take home the NL Cy Young award tomorrow. With Kershaw under team control for three more years, the Dodgers don't have the same urgency to lock him up as they did Kemp. In MLBTR's exclusive arbitration salary projections, Kershaw was pegged at $8.4MM, easily a first-time record for a pitcher.
The Astros "probably will acquire a shortstop and add low-cost relief pitching" this offseason, write Rosenthal and Morosi. GM Ed Wade told the FOX writers he plans to stick with Mark Melancon at closer. The GM explained his team's corner outfield situation: "From the standpoint of corner outfield, there are going to be guys out there, looking for opportunities. We’re pretty much the land of opportunity right now."
Chipper Jones still enjoys playing, says Braves GM Frank Wren. The 39-year-old third baseman is signed through 2012 with a '13 vesting option. Rosenthal and Morosi say Martin Prado is available in the right deal, but the Braves value his versatility, including his ability to back up Jones.
Yoenis Cespesdes could petition baseball to declare him a free agent fairly quickly, after he establishes temporary residence in the Dominican Republic. The residency part is expected to happen within 10 to 14 days.
The Blue Jays have expressed interest in trading for Rockies reliever Huston Street. Street has one year and $8MM remaining on his contract. Rosenthal and Morosi say the Rockies remain interested in a deal for Prado, which would require Seth Smith and another piece.

Minor Moves: Pridie, Budde, Moore

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 7:31pm CDT

Today's minor moves…

Jason Pridie has signed a minor league deal with the Athletics, according to a tweet from Sosnick Cobbe Sports. The 28-year-old earned his first extended look in the bigs in 2011, hitting .231/.309/.370 in 236 plate appearances with the Mets.
The Diamondbacks signed Ryan Budde to a minor league deal, according to the same tweet. Budde, 32, earned 35 Major League plate appearances over the span of four seasons with the Angels from 2007 to 2010. He spent 2011 at the Blue Jays' Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas.
The Astros announced they've signed infielder Scott Moore to a minor league deal. The 27-year-old hit .295/.380/.444 with nine home runs in 425 Triple-A plate appearances this year, playing mostly first base, second base, and third base for the Iowa Cubs. The Astros have also signed Brad Snyder, Nick Stavinoha, Travis Buck, Brandon Barnes, Alberto Arias, Jose Valdez, and Xavier Cedeno to minor league deals this offseason. They've added Brian Bixler and Craig Tatum through waiver claims.

Blue Jays Offer Scouting Position To Minaya

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 3:02pm CDT

The latest out of the AL East…

Former Mets GM Omar Minaya was offered a scouting position with the Blue Jays, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. Minaya is weighing other options. Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun first reported Toronto's interest in Minaya, citing the Padres as another suitor. Elliott notes that the Jays already employ three former GMs in Jim Beattie, Ed Lynch, and Chuck LaMar. In October, Minaya interviewed for the Angels' GM job.
The Jays are "pushing hard for a closer," one GM tells Elliott. Elliott reported a few days ago that the Blue Jays were shocked by the asking prices, however.
No matter what they say publicly, Yankees people are telling friends to expect an eventual big splash with a pitcher, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. I don't think that'd shock anyone, but there's not much out there currently.
The Red Sox weren't surprised Jonathan Papelbon priced himself out of their range, writes WEEI's Alex Speier. The Sox are not looking to make a quick strike in the closer market to replace him.

Central Notes: Neil Walker, Royals, Oswalt

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 2:31pm CDT

The latest on several Central division clubs…

The Pirates are not currently engaged in contract extension discussions for Neil Walker, reports Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The second baseman is under team control through 2016, and will be eligible for arbitration after the 2012 season if he qualifies as a Super Two player.
Roy Oswalt's agent Bob Garber is expected to meet with the Royals today or tomorrow in Milwaukee, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Garber's agency also represents C.J. Wilson. Kansas City's interest in Oswalt is minimal, however, cautions a Royals source (Twitter link).
SI's Jon Heyman hears scuttlebutt that if Jim Crane is approved as Astros owner this week, he may spend on a free agent or two. Click here to read my offseason outlook for the team.
The Tigers have scouted Cuban center fielder Yoenis Cespedes several times, assistant GM Al Avila told John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.
The Cubs and White Sox could lose possible supplemental draft picks if Type B compensation is eliminated this winter, explains Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune. Of course, under the current system the player has to receive and turn down an arbitration offer for compensation to be possible. For a look at all the Type B free agents, click here.

Big Bat Looking Less Realistic For Dodgers

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 2:05pm CDT

Asked about adding a big bat this winter, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti told reporters including Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times, "As of today, it looks less realistic." Colletti has no meetings scheduled with Prince Fielder's agent, Scott Boras. I wouldn't consider the Matt Kemp extension to be adding a big bat for 2012, since he was under team control regardless.

The Dodgers' 2012 payroll will come down from this year's $110MM mark, reports Hernandez. So far the Dodgers have committed $6.5MM in 2012 salaries to Juan Rivera and Mark Ellis, perhaps with another $1MM or so on the way for Matt Treanor. The Dodgers' new eight-year deal with Kemp could actually reduce their expected commitment to the center fielder for 2012. Colletti still hopes to add a backup infielder capable of playing shortstop. He's also looking for a starting pitcher, with Hiroki Kuroda currently undecided. Chris Capuano, Jeff Francis, and Aaron Harang are on Colletti's radar if Kuroda does not return, reports MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.

Including Rivera, Ellis, Treanor, and the $11.5MM owed to Manny Ramirez and Andruw Jones next year, the Dodgers have $52.45MM in contractual commitments over seven roster spots. If we estimate $13MM for Kemp and $19MM combined for Andre Ethier and Clayton Kershaw, that's about $84MM over ten roster spots. Retaining James Loney would require another $6MM or so, pushing the Dodgers to $90MM. Kuroda or an equivalent veteran starter would likely eat up most of the remaining surplus.

NL West Rumors: Lincecum, Rockies, Dodgers

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 1:19pm CDT

The latest out of the NL West…

Signing Tim Lincecum to a multiyear deal is at the top of the Giants' agenda, reports SI's Jon Heyman. The Giants are aiming for at least a four-year deal, which would buy out two years of free agency. Though Matt Cain is a year closer to free agency, Heyman says the focus is more on Lincecum. Heyman believes Lincecum's agents at Beverly Hills Sports Council could file as high as $25MM in arbitration this winter, in my opinion a risky move if the Giants come in around $20MM. For more on Lincecum's historic arbitration case, click here.
The Rockies will not dabble financially in marginal players, explained GM Dan O'Dowd to Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. They do have interest in Paul Maholm, Jeff Francis, and J.C. Romero, though, according to Renck, after bigger free agent targets such as Grady Sizemore and Roy Oswalt.
The Dodgers will lower their payroll in 2012, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times. The team's opening day payroll was about $120MM in 2011. So far this offseason they've added $6.5MM in 2012 salaries for Mark Ellis and Juan Rivera. Here's my offseason outlook for the club.
Unlike Ellis' deal, Aaron Hill's new contract with the Diamondbacks is not backloaded. He'll earn $5.5MM in each of the '12 and '13 seasons, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. Piecoro has an updated look at Arizona's payroll, and concludes that they'd need to non-tender Joe Saunders to be able to afford one of the better free agent pitchers on the market. MLBTR readers are split remarkably evenly as to whether Saunders will be tendered a contract on December 12th.

Justin Verlander Wins AL Cy Young

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 1:01pm CDT

Tigers righty Justin Verlander unanimously won the American League Cy Young award, announced the Baseball Writers Association of America. Verlander posted a 2.40 ERA with 250 strikeouts and 24 wins in 251 regular season innings this year, leading the league in all four categories. The Tigers have him under contract through 2014.

Also receiving votes: Jered Weaver, James Shields, C.C. Sabathia, Jose Valverde, C.J. Wilson, Dan Haren, Mariano Rivera, Josh Beckett, Ricky Romero, and David Robertson. Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News provided the lone vote for Robertson, rating him the league's best reliever.

Shields gets a $500K increase in his 2012 salary with the top five finish, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.

Dodgers Sign Mark Ellis

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 12:03pm CDT

Check another item off the Dodgers' winter to-do list, as the team officially signed second baseman Mark Ellis to a two-year, $8.75MM deal that includes a team option for 2014. Dylan Hernandez has the contract breakdown; only $2.5MM is owed to Ellis in 2012. He can earn an additional $125K per year in plate appearance-based incentives.

With Dee Gordon penciled in at shortstop and Juan Uribe at third, second base was considered one of the Dodgers' offseason needs. Ellis, 34, hit .248/.288/.346 in 519 plate appearances for the Athletics and Rockies this year. He's best known for his strong second base defense. Assuming the current free agent compensation system remains in place for this offseason, the Rockies will receive a supplemental draft pick for losing the Type B free agent.

Ellis' deal may have been based on Omar Infante's September pact with the Marlins. Ellis is represented by TWC Sports.

It's been an active offseason for Dodgers GM Ned Colletti amid recent news of the team going up for sale. Colletti reached an agreement with Matt Kemp on an eight-year, $160MM deal yesterday, signed Juan Rivera for $4.5MM, and made an offer to Ryan Doumit.

ESPN's Buster Olney broke the story of Ellis' agreement, with Ken Rosenthal adding the total and the option info. Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

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