2011 Contract Issues: Toronto Blue Jays
The Blue Jays will face three club options after the season:
- Shortstop Alex Gonzalez has a $2.5MM option. That's actually a bit less than he's earning this year, and the net price would be lower if there's a buyout involved.
- Reliever Kevin Gregg has an odd contract, where the Blue Jays can exercise a $4.5MM option for 2011 or an $8.75MM option for 2011-12. Both scenarios appear steep unless Gregg has a big year.
- Backup catcher Jose Molina has a $1MM club option with a $200K buyout.
In Vernon Wells, Adam Lind, and Aaron Hill, the Blue Jays will pay an additional $16.1MM to players under contract. Wells' $10.5MM bump leads the way.
Fortunately, the Jays have $31.65MM coming off the books as Lyle Overbay, Scott Downs, Jason Frasor, and John Buck will be up for free agency. A few of the four will likely be dealt this summer. Also to be cleared: $10MM owed to B.J. Ryan and $6MM to Roy Halladay.
The Blue Jays have plenty of arbitration situations after the season, with non-tender candidates mixed in. Brandon Morrow, Jesse Litsch, Dana Eveland, Jesse Carlson, and Merkin Valdez project as first-time arbitration players. Shaun Marcum, Casey Janssen, and Dustin McGowan should be second-timers, while Edwin Encarnacion, Shawn Camp, and Jeremy Accardo will face arbitration for the third time. The Blue Jays have a pair of fourth-year arbitration players in Jose Bautista and Brian Tallet. There's a lot to sort through here, but no one seems likely to get a massive raise.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the information.
Odds & Ends: Lerew, Cuba, Coonelly, Hechavarria
Links for Wednesday…
- Anthony Lerew cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A, tweets Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star. The Royals designated Lerew for assignment over the weekend.
- Kat O'Brien of The Cincinnati Enquirer wrote a very interesting piece about what happens in Cuba once their players defect. Said one local cab driver: "[Aroldis] Chapman doesn't exist. He never existed."
- Pirates' team president Frank Coonelly chatted with fans at MLB.com. He fielded a question about what the Pirates would do with the second overall pick in June's draft if for some reason the Nationals pass on Bryce Harper.
- The Tigers released minor leaguer Kory Casto, reports Tom Gage of The Detroit News. Casto had been signed to a minor league deal after a .271/.334/.378 performance for the Nationals' Triple A club. Baseball America ranked him fourth among Nats prospects heading into the '07 season.
- Which of Zach Duke, Paul Maholm, and Ryan Doumit is most likely to be traded this summer? Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tackles the question.
- SI's Jon Heyman speculates that the Phillies would probably have to trade Raul Ibanez to be able to retain Jayson Werth after this season.
- Adeiny Hechavarria's visa has been approved and he's headed to the U.S. to take his physical this week for the Blue Jays, tweets ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr.
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan suggests the Rays will have long-term difficulty competing, while Jonah Keri offers a rebuttal.
- Rocco Baldelli still has hopes of playing baseball, according to this FOX Sports Florida article. He's currently rehabbing a shoulder injury and working with Rays minor leaguers.
- ESPN's Adam Rubin says the Mets will not place Canadian third base prospect Shawn Bowman on waivers until they've exhausted trade possibilites.
- In search of an accurate Mariners payroll number, Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times arrives at about $93MM.
- Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies explains why free agent Braden Looper would be a good fit for Colorado. On a related note, Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post learned that the Rockies are not interested in Jarrod Washburn.
- Elsewhere on the "nothing brewing" front, Jim Bowden of FOX Sports tweets that Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik told him the team has had no discussions regarding Pedro Martinez.
2011 Contract Issues: Oakland Athletics
Let's start with a look at the Athletics' 2011 options:
- Eric Chavez has a $12.5MM club option with a $3MM buyout. This appears highly unlikely to be exercised.
- Mark Ellis has a $6MM club option with a $500K buyout. Ellis missed a large chunk of last year with a calf strain and hasn't played a full season since '07. Should he stay relatively healthy and maintain his top-notch defense, WAR might suggest Ellis will be worth the $5.5MM net price in 2011. Still, the A's would have to weigh their many second base alternatives as well as Ellis' market value.
- Coco Crisp has a $5.75MM club option with a $500K buyout. The club option is the silver lining on a pretty risky signing.
After 2010, the A's will be free of their $4MM obligation to Willy Taveras. Veteran starters Ben Sheets and Justin Duchscherer will be eligible for free agency.
The Athletics' first-year arbitration players will include Kurt Suzuki, Ryan Sweeney, Dallas Braden, Craig Breslow, and Travis Buck. A long-term deal for Suzuki may be in order. The A's will also have Kevin Kouzmanoff, Rajai Davis, and Joey Devine due raises as second-year arbitration players. Gabe Gross and Chad Gaudin are two more arbitration-eligible players, though they stand a chance of being non-tendered.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the information.
Phillies Claim Nelson Figueroa
Pitcher Nelson Figueroa was claimed by the Phillies, reports ESPN's Adam Rubin. The Phils' interest in Figueroa was revealed Monday by ESPN's Jayson Stark after the Mets placed him on waivers Friday. Figueroa had the ability to elect free agency if he cleared waivers. According to Stark, Figueroa was considering Japan if a big league opportunity didn't surface.
In 70.3 innings last year, Figueroa posted a 4.09 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 for the Mets. This marks his second stint with the Phillies, as he tossed 89 innings for the '01 club after coming over as part of the Curt Schilling deal. The Phillies are dealing with a handful of pitching injuries, with Joe Blanton, Brad Lidge, and J.C. Romero on the shelf.
Discussion: Joey Votto Extension
We haven't heard anything about the Reds considering an extension offer for first baseman Joey Votto, but he's high on our speculative list of candidates.
Votto, 26, finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting in 2008 and followed with an even better performance in his second full season. Unfortunately, issues related to the passing of Votto's father affected him early in '09.
Votto will be eligible for arbitration for the first time after this season. The Reds signed him for $550K for 2010, throwing several extra tens of thousands his way in the name of goodwill. Let's consider a few possible comparables for Votto:
- Adam Lind recently signed a four-year, $18MM deal with the Blue Jays with three club options. He gave up his three arbitration years for $15MM. The option years cover his first three years of free agent eligibility and are in the $7-8MM range. At this stage in their careers Votto has the batting average advantage, home runs are about even, and Lind wins in RBIs and runs. Votto's other advantages: a strong rookie season and the ability to play a respectable first base. Lind has split his time between left field and DH.
- Kevin Youkilis signed a four-year, $41.125MM deal in January of '09. The deal bought out two remaining arbitration years and two free agent seasons, with a club option on a third. The difference is that Youkilis was less accomplished in every way when he reached arbitration for the first time, and the Red Sox didn't lock him up until a year later.
- Mark Reynolds was signed with 1689 plate appearances across roughly 2.8 seasons whereas Votto will have roughly 1870 across 3.2 seasons. Plus Reynolds was signed a year prior to arbitration-eligibility. Reynolds' three arbitration years went for $23.5MM, assuming the D'Backs pick up his 2013 option.
- Prince Fielder gave up his first two arbitration years for $18MM. This is another tough comp because with three years service time, Fielder outpaced where I project Votto to be in all categories except batting average. Plus, Scott Boras drove a hard bargain and didn't give up Fielder's third arb year or any free agent years.
- Ryan Zimmerman stacks up OK, although he had a .282 average and 58 home runs at the time of his deal against a projected .308 and 83 for Votto. He gave up the same five-year slice of his career the Reds might crave for Votto, at a price of $45MM.
- I think a five-year deal in the $50MM range would make sense for the Reds and Votto. He'd give up his three arbitration years for roughly $22MM, plus a couple of free agent years for $14MM each. Of course, a lot depends on Votto's 2010 season. Keeping CHONE's rates but upping the at-bats to 575, Votto is projected for something like a .303 average, 29 home runs, 99 RBIs, and 85 runs.
Braves Sign Alex Romero
The Braves signed outfielder Alex Romero to a minor league deal, based on the team's Double A roster. The Braves confirmed the signing.
Romero signed a minor league deal with the Astros in December, but was released in March. The 26-year-old hit .348/.416/.462 for the D'Backs' Triple a club last year, but struggled in 157 big league plate appearances. Two years ago, Baseball America called Romero "the ideal fourth outfielder."
2011 Contract Issues: Houston Astros
The Astros have three 2011 options to consider after the season:
- Lance Berkman has a $15MM club option with a $2MM buyout. Berkman has indicated he might move on if the option is declined; MLBTR's Luke Adams discussed the situation recently. Berkman had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on March 13th and recently had it drained for a fifth time.
- Brett Myers has an $8MM mutual option with a $2MM buyout. As MLBTR's Mike Axisa noted a month ago, mutual options are baseball's new fad and typically don't serve as actual options. It's highly likely that one of the sides will want to decline.
- Geoff Blum also has a mutual option; at $1.65MM it's more plausible the two sides work something out.
The Astros also have Kaz Matsui, Pedro Feliz, Brian Moehler, and Jason Michaels up for free agency after the season. The four are earning $13.3MM in 2010.
Felipe Paulino is projected to enter his first arbitration year. Hunter Pence, Michael Bourn, Matt Lindstrom, Jeff Keppinger, and Chris Sampson will face arbitration for the second time. Wandy Rodriguez and Humberto Quintero will go for the third time, Tim Byrdak a fourth. A few of these players might be non-tendered, though. On the other hand, the Astros could consider locking up Pence, Bourn, or Rodriguez with big '10 seasons.
Raises to under-contract players are insignificant, with Roy Oswalt and Brandon Lyon each getting a $1MM bump in 2011.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
Odds & Ends: Beckett, Lind, Cardinals
Why isn't there more baseball today? Links for Tuesday…
- BoSox manager Terry Francona is glad that the organization hammered out Josh Beckett's extension before it became a media circus, writes Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal.
- I'll be joining Jeff & Jeff on KFNS St. Louis today at 1:25pm CST. Click here to listen live.
- SI's Jon Heyman wonders if the Diamondbacks and Rockies will get in on free agent lefty Jarrod Washburn.
- Josh Beckett initially wanted to top Carlos Zambrano's five-year, $91.5MM deal, reports WEEI's Rob Bradford. The market has changed since that deal was signed in August of '07, and the Red Sox secured Beckett for four years and $68MM.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says rival agents are exasperated by Adam Lind's four-year, $18MM extension, given the three club options. Frustrated agents – always a good sign for the team.
- Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch analyzes changes in the Cardinals' Opening Day payroll compared to '09.
- Steve Sommer of FanGraphs finds the best one-year deals at $2MM guaranteed or less for 2009, with Carl Pavano's Indians contract leading the way.
- The Twins look at seven factors when considering signing a young player to a long-term extension, learned Kelsie Smith of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
- Baseball America's Will Lingo puts together a list of lesser-known future GM candidates in the latest Ask BA.
Yokohama BayStars Sign Tomo Ohka
The Yokohama BayStars signed pitcher Tomo Ohka, according to a Sanspo report passed along by NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman on Twitter. Newman notes that Ohka began his career with the BayStars. The Red Sox purchased Ohka's contract from the team in '98 and started him at Double A the following year.
Ohka, 34, posted a 5.96 ERA, 3.9 K/9, and 2.4 BB/9 in 71 innings for the Indians last year, allowing 18 home runs. Ohka had signed with a Mexican League team in March, but was quickly released.
I profiled Ohka in December of '06, back when he was holding out for a three-year deal. He's an interesting character.
Blocked Prospects: Wilson Ramos
Twins catching prospect Wilson Ramos, according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus, became "one of the better trade chips in baseball" when Joe Mauer signed his eight-year extension. Goldstein ranked Ramos #65 overall among prospects. Baseball America put him at #58, while ESPN's Keith Law has him at #42.
In their 2010 Handbook, Baseball America wrote that Ramos is "almost big league-ready and has significant upside." All three outlets consider him an aggressive but above-average hitter with a cannon for an arm. Though Ramos missed almost three months with injuries in '09, he hit .317/.341/.454 at Double A and played well in winter ball.
Asked what the Twins should do with Ramos, Law recently said, "Trade him. And I don't mean for Heath Bell." Austin Jackson, Tim Alderson, Carlos Carrasco, and Jason Donald, Chris Perez, and Aaron Poreda are examples of prospects ranked in the #40-60 range on 2009 prospect lists who were recently traded for veterans. Each deal had its own nuances and additional parts, but the prospects named were typically headliners. They were used to acquire Curtis Granderson, Freddy Sanchez, Cliff Lee, Mark DeRosa, and Jake Peavy, veterans with varying contract situations.
Clearly Ramos can help bring in a major piece for the Twins. As Law indicates, it's not worth spending that chip on a reliever. A third baseman or an ace starting pitcher would make more sense, but at this point I can't find an appropriate name for the Twins to pursue. They may choose to let Ramos spend all of 2010 at Triple A and evaluate their needs in the offseason.