Mets Closing In On Two-Year Deal With Carrasco
4:45pm: The Mets and Carrasco are closing in on a deal, according to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.
3:44pm: The Mets are discussing a two-year deal with Carrasco, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse (on Twitter).
2:37pm: The Mets are having "fruitful" negotiations with reliever D.J. Carrasco, reports ESPN's Adam Rubin. Carrasco, who was non-tendered by the Diamondbacks this month, has six to eight suitors. He posted a 3.68 ERA, 7.5 K/9, 3.9 BB/9, 0.57 HR/9, and 47.5% groundball rate in 78 1/3 innings this year.
Mets, Rockies Talking To Ronny Paulino
4:41pm: The Mets are talking to Paulino about a one-year deal worth $1.3MM, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
3:51pm: The Rockies, who have been linked to a number of free agent catchers, are exchanging offers with Paulino, according to Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
11:13am: The Mets are in on a group of right-handed hitting catchers such as Paulino, Gerald Laird, Miguel Olivo, Russell Martin, and Dioner Navarro, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. They prefer a one-year deal.
10:11am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the Mets are still talking to a lot of catcher possibilities, Paulino included (Twitter link).
8:45am: The Mets are closing in on catcher Ronny Paulino, reports ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. New manager Terry Collins has described Josh Thole as a "number one catcher," so presumably Paulino will serve as his backup.
Paulino, recently non-tendered by the Marlins, hit .259/.311/.354 in 316 plate appearances this year while catching 740 1/3 innings. He was hit with a 50-game PED suspension in August.
Prince Fielder Rumors: Tuesday
Nothing's cooking with the Brewers on a potential Prince Fielder trade, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. We'll keep you updated here anyway.
- The Brewers fielded calls from the White Sox, Dodgers and Orioles on Prince, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). They know they can't sign the slugger long-term.
- The Orioles have had talks with the Brewers for Fielder, tweets Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. He says they're only talks right now, and the O's would want an extension before giving up young pitching for Fielder. Haudricourt says these talks did not go beyond preliminary discussions.
Yankees, White Sox Interested In Kerry Wood?
2:15pm: The White Sox-Wood rumor was "just blown up by a source," tweets Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
11:06am: The Yankees and White Sox are interested in free agent reliever Kerry Wood, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Yankees want to take care of Cliff Lee first, while the Sox must address Paul Konerko.
The Orioles and Cubs have previously been linked to Wood, who finished strong with the Yankees despite some control issues.
Royals Seeking Right-Handed Hitting Outfielder
Like many clubs, the Royals are seeking a right-handed hitting outfielder. They're considering multiple ex-Braves, tweets David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Consitution: Jeff Francoeur, Matt Diaz, Melky Cabrera, and Andruw Jones. Diaz, of course, was with the Royals first.
Pirates Inquired On Orlando Cabrera
1:04pm: Though they inquired, the Pirates are not interested in Cabrera tweets Kovacevic.
9:48am: The Pirates at least inquired on free agent shortstop Orlando Cabrera, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Bucs seek an upgrade on incumbent Ronny Cedeno, but I'm not sure Cabrera qualifies.
The Pirates have also been linked to Jason Bartlett, Brendan Ryan, and J.J. Hardy.
Padres, Mariners, D’Backs In On Jorge Cantu
Free agent infielder Jorge Cantu is generating interest from the Padres, Mariners, and Diamondbacks, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown.
Cantu, 29 in January, had a rough year for the Marlins and Rangers in 2010. He hit .256/.304/.392 in 515 plate appearances, logging time at the infield corners.
Brandon Webb Rumors: Tuesday
Things are heating up for free agent starter Brandon Webb. The latest:
- Webb's agent will meet with the Cubs again this afternoon, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick.
- The Nationals will meet with Webb's agent Jonathan Maurer soon, MLBTR has learned.
- The Rangers met last night with Maurer, tweets Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse. The agent also spoke with the Cubs last night, tweets Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.
Dodgers Looked At Diaz, Francoeur, Hall
The Dodgers could sign a right-handed hitting outfielder this week, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports, and they've looked at Matt Diaz, Jeff Francoeur, and Bill Hall. Pure speculation: perhaps Austin Kearns and Scott Hairston will come up as well. The Dodgers could make Xavier Paul available after signing an outfielder, tweets Morosi.
MLB.com's Ken Gurnick first reported the Dodgers' interest in Diaz yesterday; he has many suitors and may sign this week. I assume the Rockies are now out on Hall after signing Ty Wigginton; his other known suitor is the Yankees. The Rockies, Royals, and Phillies have been linked to Francoeur.
Rays, Mariners Eyeing Mark Hendrickson
The Rays and Mariners are interested in lefty reliever Mark Hendrickson, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Hendrickson's former team, the Orioles, is also keeping tabs on him. The O's declined a $1.2MM option on him last month.
Hendrickson, a 6'9" southpaw, turned 36 in June. This year he posted a 5.26 ERA, 6.6 K/9, 2.4 BB/9, 1.1 HR/9, and 42.9% groundball rate in 75.3 innings. Hendrickson's FanGraphs splits show he's been plenty effective against left-handed batters over the past few years.