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Rockies Interested In Millwood, Harden, Chen

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The Rockies have expressed interest in free agent starters Kevin Millwood, Rich Harden, and Bruce Chen, according to Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.  They'll also be exploring the trade market.

Millwood, 37 in December, finished the season with Colorado, making nine starts with a 3.98 ERA.  The Scott Boras client seeks a Major League deal, which Renck says makes this a "slow-developing situation."  Renck notes that the Rockies were among the finalists to sign Harden last year, though they viewed him as a reliever.

As for their second base opening, the Rockies have had internal conversations about free agent Aaron Hill, according to ESPN's Buster Olney.  Hill is also of interest to the Tigers, writes Lynn Henning of the Detroit News.  The Rockies also have interest in Jamey Carroll, Mark Ellis, and others, reported Renck previously.

For more on the Rockies' needs and finances, check out my offseason outlook.

Owners, Players Union Discussing Possible Type A Solutions

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It might stink to be Kelly Johnson this offseason.  Sure, he'll be signing for millions of dollars, but it's possible that if he wants to explore the open market as a Type A free agent, he'll be saddled with the cost of a draft pick.  For example, having to give their #23 overall pick to the Blue Jays next year might deter the Cardinals from making a serious offer to Johnson.  Like so many non-star free agents who are offered arbitration, Johnson could be in a bad place because of his Type A status.

As part of the ongoing collective bargaining agreement discussions, the owners and players union "seem focused on two possible solutions for the Type A quandary," writes ESPN's Buster Olney.

The first idea: instead of the new team giving a potential first-round draft pick to the old one, the old team would simply receive a supplemental pick sandwiched between the first and second rounds.  In a way, this would be like making all players Type Bs.  For example, instead of the Red Sox receiving the Tigers' #19 pick in the 2011 draft for Detroit signing Victor Martinez, maybe they would have received a pick in the 30s, not from the Tigers.  This solution seems reasonable.

A second idea would deter teams from offering arbitration to non-star free agents in the first place.  Olney equates this to the NFL's system, where a star free agent must be paid 120% of his previous salary or the average salary of the top five highest-paid players at his position, whichever is higher, or else be granted unrestricted free agency.  That could mean $8.5MM or more for someone like Kelly Johnson, which could deter the Jays from offering arbitration.  The current free agent arbitration system works this way to a lesser extent.  Johnson will get a raise if he accepts, despite a down year.  This is the reason a Type A free agent like Francisco Rodriguez has no chance of getting an arbitration offer. 

Olney says one unresolved question is whether Type A adjustments would be made for the 2012 season or for '13.  I think some teams would cry foul if the changes were made for '12.  At any rate, Olney is optimistic for a labor agreement within the next two weeks.

Blue Jays Considering Top Closers

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The Blue Jays are aggressively seeking an experienced closer through free agency or trade, reports ESPN's Buster Olney.  Olney says the Jays have discussed free agents Heath Bell, Jonathan Papelbon, and Joe Nathan, as well as trade target Andrew Bailey of the Athletics.

Padres GM Josh Byrnes said last month he's likely to offer arbitration to Bell, a Type A free agent.  Bell prefers to stay in San Diego, and he said in August he'll accept arbitration if offered.  Should he change his mind and decline, he'd be an unlikely fit for Toronto for at least two reasons: the closer prefers the West Coast, and the Jays would have to give the Padres their 17th overall pick in next year's draft.  The cost to sign Bell would be reduced to the Jays' second-rounder if they are to commit the #17 pick to another team by signing a higher-ranked Type A.  Only Albert Pujols, Prince Fielder, C.J. Wilson, David Ortiz, and Ryan Madson are ranked higher than Bell.  For a closer look at Bell's performance this year, check out Alex  Steers McCrum's article at CloserNews.

Signing Papelbon would hurt the division rival Red Sox in the short-term, though the Sox would get that #17 pick as a valuable consolation prize.  Nathan is a more reasonable free agent target for Toronto, as they can offer a chance to close and contend and he won't cost a draft pick to sign.  Bailey would require a bigger commitment — multiple well-regarded prospects — as the A's control him through 2015.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Wei-Yin Chen

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Southpaw Wei-Yin Chen belongs somewhere in our top 50 free agents list, perhaps in the 20s.  Chen will likely be coming to MLB from Japan's Chunichi Dragons as a 26-year-old free agent.  The Taiwanese lefty was a foreign player in Nippon Professional Baseball, and his agents at Octagon negotiated free agency into his contract.

Chen's arm may be fresher than many hurlers coming over from Japan, given his age and the fact that his innings were limited by Tommy John surgery several years ago.  On the other hand, he's not lighting up radar guns as he once did, and his strikeout rate dipped to 5.1 per nine innings in 164 2/3 frames this year.  Chen did manage a 2.68 ERA, keeping his walks and home runs allowed down.

Chen is expected to come to MLB if he's offered a rotation job.  I don't expect the price to be exorbitant — perhaps a four-year deal worth less than $20MM would get it done.  Interest should be strong in a market light on reasonably-priced starting pitchers with upside.

NPB Rumors: Aoki, Nakajima, Chen, Kuroda, Igawa

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Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker has scoured Japanese newspapers for the latest rumors.

  • Yakult center fielder Norichika Aoki has asked to be posted.  Aoki hit .292/.358/.360 in 643 plate appearances in 2011.  Newman wrote last year that Aoki was "the best pure hitter Japan has produced since Ichiro," but that was before his numbers dropped off significantly in 2011.  Despite great range, Newman thought last year that Aoki's weak arm could limit him to left field in MLB.
  • Seibu shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima will again ask to be posted this offseason.  Nakajima was denied that request last winter, though the Orioles and Mariners were reportedly among the interested teams.  The 29-year-old hit .297/.354/.433 with 16 home runs in 633 plate appearances this year.  Newman considered Aoki Japan's second-best hitter in his August 2010 article.
  • Chunichi southpaw Wei-Yin Chen was 50/50 on moving to MLB as of October 26th.  Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports dubbed Chen a "likely free agent" in a report this morning.  The 26-year-old posted a 2.68 ERA, 5.1 K/9, 1.7 BB/9, and 0.49 HR/9 in 164 2/3 innings this year.  He's represented by Alan Nero of Octagon.
  • The Hiroshima Carp have an offer out to Hiroki Kuroda.  Kuroda said he's happy to have received the offer from his former team.  His plans for 2012 remain unknown though.
  • Multiple Japanese teams have interest in Kei Igawa, who reached free agency after his five-year deal with the Yankees expired.  

Rosenthal On Oswalt, Giants, Kuroda, Chen

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports dishes the latest on several free agents…

  • The Nationals "plan a major push" for free agent righty Roy Oswalt, and Rosenthal considers the Rangers another potential player.  Nats GM Mike Rizzo explained his interest earlier this month.  Oswalt's agent Bob Garber told Jon Paul Morosi, "With Roy, home and family are very important to him.  It would be a bonus to be close to home, but nothing is off limits, in terms of either coast or the Midwest.  Ideally, yes, it would be great to be close to home, but it's not going to stop us, if it's the right situation. His goal is to get the ring. He doesn't have any jewelry right now. He's made a lot of money. At this point, it's about the ring. That's what he wants to take with him."  Oswalt lives in Mississippi.
  • Rosenthal doesn't see the Giants having the money to afford Carlos Beltran or Jose Reyes this winter.  This math was apparent in September, when GM Brian Sabean told reporters payroll would remain about the same, around $125MM.  The Giants currently have $81.683MM in contractual commitments for 2012, and if they tender the most likely nine of their 13 arbitration eligible players that's another estimated $38.7MM for a total of $120.383MM before minimum salary players are considered.  A few million for 2012 could be freed up by trading Jeff Keppinger and signing Tim Lincecum to a multiyear deal.  
  • Rosenthal feels that Hiroki Kuroda "might be more open to playing elsewhere, having gone through the experience of considering another team."  I ranked Kuroda 15th on my top 50 free agents list.
  • Wei-Yin Chen of the Chunichi Dragons is a likely free agent, writes Rosenthal.  Agent Alan Nero told Rosenthal Chen and Tsuyoshi Wada are drawing significant interest.  Last week, Chen said he was 50/50 on moving to MLB (link in Japanese, thanks to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker for the translation).  Chen controls the process due to a free agency clause in his contract, and he's only 26.  Newman tells me Chen topped out around 91 miles per hour this year, short of the 95 he reached a few years ago, but he's still interesting enough to fit in the middle of our top 50 list.  I ranked Wada 34th.

Yoenis Cespedes To Gain Free Agency

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7:15pm: The Red Sox are "sending everyone" to the Dominican to evaluate Cespedes, according to MLB.com's Peter Gammons.  The Rangers are also interested, along with the many teams named below, according to Gammons, who confirms that small-market teams like the A's, Pirates and Indians will be involved.

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports names the Marlins, Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers, and Nationals as teams with a significant presence at the Friday workout.

5:49pm: Yankees GM Brian Cashman confirmed that he saw the Cespedes video, but wouldn't say whether the Yankees are interested, according to Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger (link on Twitter; the video has been removed).  Meanwhile, Braves GM Frank Wren told David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he doesn't expect to sign the center fielder, though they're checking in on him (Twitter link).

2:25pm: The Yankees, Phillies, Blue Jays, Giants, Marlins, Nationals, Indians, Athletics, and Pirates have had a presence at Cespedes' workouts, reports Yahoo's Tim Brown.  Giants GM Brian Sabean told reporters today that his team will not be involved on Cespedes, however (via Andrew Baggarly on Twitter).  

Agent Adam Katz tells Brown he'll wait until his client is technically declared a free agent before discussing contract terms with teams.  The Yankees, Phillies, and Marlins will have private workouts with Cespedes within the next few weeks, with a Marlins contingent heading to the Dominican Republic this week.  

8:30am: Cuban center fielder Yoenis Cespedes defected mid-summer and is expected to be cleared for free agency within a matter of weeks, reports Yahoo's Jeff Passan.  The 26-year-old is "arguably the best all-around player to come out of Cuba in a generation," according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus, who describes Cespedes as "a legitimate centerfielder with plus power and speed."  Both Passan and Goldstein expect the 26-year-old to receive a deal in the range of the $30.25MM Aroldis Chapman received in January of 2010.  MLBTR first told you about Cespedes' escape from the Cuban National Team in July.

If you really want to get to know Cespedes, though, you need to watch the 20-minute YouTube video sent by his trainer to MLB teams.  Goldstein's column provides a full breakdown of this bizarre production, but I'll just note that it includes Cespedes making a 45-inch vertical jump, leg-pressing 1,300 pounds (with two friends atop the weights), catching a flyball behind his back while facing the batter (twice), a thank you to Ahman Green, and the player roasting a pig.  Some of the songs used may not be appropriate for your workplace, except for Christopher Cross' 1980 hit "Sailing," which was deemed too tame even for your office's elevator.

Cespedes is represented by Adam Katz of Wasserman Media Group.  Passan says the Yankees are "particularly hot" for the center fielder.  Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post says the Nationals had multiple talent evaluators on hand at Cespedes' workout last week in the Dominican Republic, and a team official said they'd "love to have him."  Ownership has been informed about Cespedes and what it would take to sign him.  The Marlins and Phillies are also in the mix for Cespedes, writes Kilgore.  As with Chapman, this type of player in his prime will draw the interest of almost every club.  

The Marlins have the inside track, one American League source who attended the showcase told Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  A Marlins contingent including owner Jeffrey Loria will visit Cespedes in the Dominican Republic later this week, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  

Jose Reyes To Meet With Marlins

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3:47pm: The Marlins contacted Reyes one minute into the free agent signing period, according to Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. A group of Marlins executives went to New York this week and it appears they were going to visit Reyes’ agent, Peter Greenberg.

2:38pm: Free agent shortstop Jose Reyes is scheduled to meet with the Marlins, according to WFAN's Mike Francesa (Twitter link).  The tweet says that Reyes has received an offer, but my guess is nothing has been formally presented at this early stage.

The Marlins' interest in Reyes is real, so what would become of Hanley Ramirez if they sign Reyes?  Marlins president David Samson told MLB.com's Joe Frisaro there have been no conversations about moving Ramirez to another position, but I'd be surprised if the Fish haven't discussed the possibility internally.  A trade could be another option.

Major free agents typically sign in December or January, so much remains to be seen about the composition of Reyes' market.

Twins Name Terry Ryan Interim GM

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Terry Ryan is returning to the role of Twins GM, the team announced today.  Ryan, who has an interim tag on his title this time, replaces Bill Smith.  Said owner Jim Pohlad in a statement:

"The Twins goal is to get better in 2012 and beyond. Bill was equally motivated to achieve that goal but we differed in the scope and approach that was required. Going forward, we intend to have additional discussions with Bill about an ongoing role within the organization."

Smith spent over four years as Twins GM.  He won two division titles and nearly three in that time, but 2011 was disastrous for the club.

Ryan has been in the Twins organization for 28 years, serving as GM from 1994-2007 before assuming the role of senior advisor.  The two-time Sporting News Executive of the Year said, "We have many assets in place including a strong front office, manager, coaching staff and returning core of players. We have a lot of work to do in relation to development of our roster, but I’m optimistic in our collective abilities to ensure the future on-field success of this franchise."

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