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Tigers Interested In Martin Prado

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TUESDAY, 10:55am: "There is a trade brewing between the Braves and Tigers centering around Prado for Young," reports ESPN's Jim Bowden.  However, MLB.com's Mark Bowman says there won't be a Young-Prado deal, as the majority of the Braves' front office isn't interested in Young (Twitter link).

MONDAY, 2:37pm: The Tigers are interested in Braves infielder/left fielder Martin Prado, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  The free agent market for potential second basemen has moved quickly, with Aaron Hill and Jamey Carroll off the board and Mark Ellis close to a deal with the Dodgers.  Morosi adds that the Tigers are willing to trade left fielder Delmon Young for the right second baseman, but it's not known whether the Braves are interested.

Prado has also drawn interest from the Rockies and other teams.  The 28-year-old had a disappointing offensive year in 2011, spending most of his time in left field for the Braves after they acquired second baseman Dan Uggla.  MLBTR projects Prado to earn about $4.4MM in arbitration in 2012, and freeing up that salary would add to the Braves' flexibility.  Prado will continue to be under team control for the 2013 season. 

Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski said Friday on MLB Network Radio to host Jim Bowden, "We're not going to non-tender Delmon Young.  I mean, that's just not going to happen."  Young, 26, hit .274/.298/.458 in 178 plate appearances for the Tigers after coming over in an August trade, adding five postseason home runs.  With a projected $6.3MM salary, Young was thought to be a non-tender candidate for the Twins but is currently penciled in as the Tigers' left fielder for 2012.  I think Prado would be generally regarded as more valuable than Young.

How Much Will Jose Reyes Get?

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In September, I named Albert Pujols, Prince Fielder, C.C. Sabathia as locks for $100MM+, and Jose Reyes, C.J. Wilson, and Yu Darvish as candidates.  The majority of MLBTR readers polled (44%) thought only those three locks would receive $100MM+.  Less than 5% of you thought all six would.

With word today that the Marlins' opening bid for Reyes was $90MM over six years, $100MM+ seems more plausible for the shortstop.  Let's see what the MLBTR electorate is thinking.

Jose Reyes will sign for...
$101-110MM 38.08% (4,584 votes)
$90-100MM 37.11% (4,467 votes)
$111-120MM 14.71% (1,771 votes)
$121-130MM 5.06% (609 votes)
More than $150MM 2.24% (270 votes)
$131-140MM 1.67% (201 votes)
$141-150MM 1.12% (135 votes)
Total Votes: 12,037

Phillies Rumors: Schneider, Hamels, Cuddyer

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The latest on the Phillies…

Mets Rumors: Reyes, Closer, Murphy, Duda

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The Mets were far from the favorite for Jose Reyes entering the offseason.  But if the Marlins offered Reyes six years and $90MM as a starting bid, Mets fans can forget about him coming back in the opinion of ESPN New York's Adam Rubin.  For months now, the impression has been that the Mets don't want to exceed four years for the shortstop.  They'll have to hope for a couple of decent draft picks, depending on what happens with the new collective bargaining agreement.

  • Two executives tell Joel Sherman of the New York Post that the Mets have been assured of Type A draft pick compensation for Reyes this offseason, even if the new CBA eliminates it going forward.  GM Sandy Alderson presumes as much, tweets Rubin.  Sherman says the expectation is that Type B compensation will be eliminated, and maybe a few non-star Type As will have that status removed.  This is the first I've heard of eliminating Type B compensation.  All links go to Twitter.
  • Alderson described his talks with Reyes' agent Peter Greenberg to Ken Davidoff of Newsday: "I wouldn't classify them as substantive.  More than phone tag."
  • Mets officials refer to Mike Pelfrey and Angel Pagan as "bridge pieces," reports Sherman, in that they feel no long-term allegiance to either player.  Pelfrey and Pagan are arbitration eligible this winter.
  • Mets executives tell Sherman closer is the only position at which the team is willing to exceed a one-year contract, and Sherman feels they may top out at two years with an option.  The Mets consider themselves two years away from contention, writes Sherman, so Alderson intends to avoid big multiyear commitments.  Sherman guesses the Mets will spend $8-10MM for two relievers with late inning experience, letting them battle for the ninth inning.    
  • The Mets won't trade Ike Davis, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but maybe Daniel Murphy or Lucas Duda.

Marlins Offered Jose Reyes Six Years, $90MM

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The Marlins offered $90MM over six years to Jose Reyes, a source told Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  They say Reyes is intrigued by playing in warm weather and for Ozzie Guillen.  Reyes wants a contract worth a minimum of $100MM, however, tweeted Joel Sherman of the New York Post yesterday.  More from Rosenthal and Morosi…

  • The Marlins have not discussed moving Hanley Ramirez to center field.
  • Many in the industry are skeptical of the sincerity of the Marlins' early offers to Reyes, Albert Pujols, Mark Buehrle, and Ryan Madson, feeling the proposals are competitive but not good enough to accept.  
  • The Rangers and Angels are among the teams that are interested in both C.J. Wilson and Roy Oswalt.  The Nationals prefer Oswalt.  Both pitchers are clients of Bob Garber.
  • Heath Bell could benefit from the new collective bargaining agreement if teams no longer have to surrender a draft pick to sign Type A free agents who turned down arbitration.  Ramon Hernandez too, in my opinion.  I'm surprised to hear that such a change could be instituted for the 2012-13 offseason, after some teams made July trade decisions based on the old free agent compensation system.
  • The Padres want to trade Jason Bartlett or Orlando Hudson.  They are currently the only two players the Padres have under contract.  Bartlett's $5.5MM option for 2013 will vest with 432 plate appearances in 2012.
  • Rafael Furcal has drawn interest from the Rockies, Tigers, and Blue Jays as a second baseman, but he prefers to remain at shortstop.
  • Rosenthal and Morosi say not to rule out the Giants on Carlos Beltran yet.
  • The Angels will know more about Kendrys Morales' condition after January 1st.  Morales is still recovering from a fracture in his leg suffered in May of 2010.

Jose Reyes Rumors: Monday

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The latest on free agent shortstop Jose Reyes…

  • The Tigers like Reyes, but don't expect to sign him, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
  • Heyman hears that Reyes is the Brewers' top target (Twitter link).
  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson said he has spoken with agent Peter Greenberg since Reyes visited the Marlins last week, according to ESPNNewYork.com's Adam Rubin. Greenberg is currently out of the country, so he won't be meeting with teams at this week's GM Meetings. "I still think it’s early, notwithstanding all the background noise from the last week," Alderson said.
  • Brewers GM Doug Melvin told reporters, including Andy Martino of the New York Daily News, that he has spoken with Reyes' representatives and hasn't decided whether to initiate more talks (Twitter link).
  • "There is an expectation [the Marlins] will work something out with Reyes for something in the range of five years, $18-20MM a year," said ESPN's Buster Olney on Sportscenter.  Olney sees the Marlins as Reyes' most aggressive suitor.
  • The Marlins are very confident on signing Reyes, a baseball source tells Kevin Burkhardt of SNY (Twitter link).  Burkhardt says not to be shocked if Hanley Ramirez winds up in center field if the Marlins sign Reyes.
  • One executive interested in Reyes told Joel Sherman of the New York Post Reyes is targeting a minimum of $100MM (Twitter link).

Heyman On Fielder, Madson, Jurrjens, Capuano

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In addition to Albert Pujols, Jose Reyes, and Mark Buehrle, the Marlins made an offer to free agent closer Ryan Madson, reports SI's Jon Heyman.  Unlike the other three, the Madson offer has yet to inspire a visit to Miami.  Heyman notes that the proposals are preliminary, and the team is not concerned about all four accepting.  Marlins president David Samson explained Saturday on 790 The Ticket with Glenn Geffner that the team has a free agent flow chart in which they expect a playoff team with every outcome (transcript courtesy of Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post).  More from Heyman…

  • The Mariners will make a run at Prince Fielder, tweets Heyman, but they're unsure if there's room in the budget.  Heyman suggests the Ms will not be in on Pujols.
  • Heyman explains the mess that was the Phillies' negotiations with Madson.  He says Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. proposed $44MM over four years, which Madson accepted an hour or two later.  Oddly, Amaro added at that point that he needed the approval of CEO David Montgomery, according to Heyman.  The next day Amaro told agent Scott Boras he'd been unable to get that approval.  However, Amaro told Heyman there was no agreement "either verbal or in writing," and also said, "I will stand by my history of integrity forever."  Amaro also said Montgomery was aware of the negotiations as they occurred and wasn't responsible for killing the deal.  It appears Amaro and Boras are not on the same page as to what constitutes an agreement.
  • The Braves seek a Zack Greinke-like deal for Jair Jurrjens, writes Heyman.  He later tweeted, "Jurrjens understandably popular on trade market. A star and only 25. You know Yankees, Red Sox, Rangers, others are in."
  • The Mets have crossed Chris Capuano off their list given his desire for a two-year deal.

Latest On CBA Talks

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The collective bargaining agreement talks are at the ten-yard line, a source tells ESPN's Buster Olney. The latest…

  • There will be no agreement this week, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.  Look for a deal around Thanksgiving, tweets Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus.
  • One idea discussed is a ceiling for draft bonuses based on slot recommendations for the first ten rounds, reports Olney.  There would be no need to adhere to slot for individual picks, but if a team exceeded the recommended ten-round total they'd be taxed the first time and would "lose a top pick" the second time.
  • Negotiations are in progress for first-round draft pick compensation to disappear, according to Olney.  I take this to mean that a team signing a Type A free agent would never have to surrender its first round pick.

Kimbrel, Hellickson Win Rookie Of The Year Awards

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Braves closer Craig Kimbrel and Rays starter Jeremy Hellickson won the 2011 Rookie of the Year awards, announced the Baseball Writers Association of America.

Kimbrel received all 32 first-place votes, becoming the tenth unanimous selection.  Freddie Freeman, Vance Worley, Wilson Ramos, Josh Collmenter, Danny Espinosa, Darwin Barney, and Kenley Jansen also received votes in the NL.  Kimbrel tied John Axford for the NL saves lead with 46, setting a rookie record in the process.

Mark Trumbo, Eric Hosmer, Ivan Nova, Michael Pineda, Dustin Ackley, Desmond Jennings, and Jordan Walden followed Hellickson in the AL.  Hellickson posted a 2.95 ERA in 189 regular season innings for Tampa Bay this year.

Non-Tender Candidates

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By my count, 195 players are currently arbitration eligible.  More than 50 of those can be considered non-tender candidates.  The deadline for teams to decide is December 12th.  Non-tendering a player makes him a free agent.  Below is my subjective list of non-tender candidates.  Please note that not all of them will actually be non-tendered.  Click here for MLBTR's projected salaries for these players, if they are tendered contracts.

Position Players

John Baker
Daric Barton
Emmanuel Burriss
Jesus Flores
Mike Fontenot
Chris Getz
Alberto Gonzalez
Tony Gwynn Jr.
Jeremy Hermida
Koyie Hill
Paul Janish
George Kottaras
James Loney
Jeff Mathis
Donnie Murphy
Angel Pagan
Ronny Paulino
Brayan Pena
Landon Powell
Adam Rosales
Skip Schumaker
Luke Scott
Ryan Spilborghs
Ian Stewart
Ryan Theriot
Andres Torres
Wilson Valdez
Eli Whiteside

Pitchers

Matt Albers
Brad Bergesen
Taylor Buchholz
Dana Eveland
Willie Eyre
Tom Gorzelanny
Clay Hensley
Rich Hill
J.P. Howell
Hong-Chih Kuo
Jose Mijares
Andrew Miller
Peter Moylan
Ross Ohlendorf
Juan Carlos Oviedo
Micah Owings
Manny Parra
Mike Pelfrey
Jo-Jo Reyes
Joe Saunders
Doug Slaten
Kevin Slowey
Andy Sonnanstine
Joe Thatcher
Chris Volstad
Jerome Williams

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