Twins, Ron Mahay Agree To Terms
The Twins agreed to terms with lefty Ron Mahay on a minor league deal, according to a team press release. Mahay, 38, finished the '09 season with the Twins after being released by the Royals.
Aside from four homers allowed, Mahay did a nice job against lefties in 25.6 innings last year: 7.01 K/9, 1.75 BB/9. The Red Sox, Phillies, and Mets also expressed interest in the southpaw reliever this winter.
Mets Shopping Gary Matthews Jr.
The Mets are shopping outfielder Gary Matthews Jr., reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Sherman suggests the Mets might not have much of a role for Matthews, and the Reds are a trade possibility.
Matthews has two years remaining on his contract, and when the Mets acquired him from the Angels in January the Halos agreed to include $21.5MM. Even on a two-year, $2MM commitment, the Mets will likely find that Matthews has little trade value. Who wants a 35-year-old malcontent who doesn't hit or play strong defense? Free agent Alex Romero, for example, is much younger, won't be a distraction, and can be acquired for a smaller commitment. The Reds, by the way, still have six outfielders in camp (seven if you count Juan Francisco) and no clear need for Matthews.
Best Minor League Deals Of The Offseason
Garrett Jones, Kevin Correia, Juan Uribe, Scott Podsednik, Kiko Calero, Brian Sanches, Jonny Gomes, Ronald Belisario – all were signed to minor league deals and had productive 2009 seasons. Candidates for the best minor league deals of the 2009-10 offseason:
- D.J. Carrasco, Pirates: Carrasco led all of baseball in relief innings in 2009, so maybe teams think he's worn down. He's capable of an ERA around 4.00, and could fill a swingman role.
- Joaquin Benoit, Rays: Benoit had rotator cuff surgery in January of '09. He'll be a big asset if his '07 skills return.
- Kiko Calero, Mets: Despite whiffing 10.4 per nine in '09 with a 1.95 ERA, concerns over Calero's shoulder prevented a big league offer from coming in.
- Shelley Duncan, Indians: Duncan hit 30 home runs in Triple A last year and could hit 20 for the Indians. The Braves' Mitch Jones and Pirates' Brian Myrow, also signed to minor league deals, are cut from the same cloth.
- Will Ohman, Orioles: Ohman had a lost 2009 due to a shoulder injury, but he dominated lefties in '08. Also keep an eye on Brian Shouse, a lefty reliever signed by the Red Sox.
- Endy Chavez, Rangers: The Rangers didn't risk much to see if Chavez's world-class defense will hold up after surgery to repair a torn ACL.
- Rich Hill, Cardinals: Hill's walk problems have continued in Spring Training, but the prospect of another '07 makes him intriguing. The Cards also snagged infielder Ruben Gotay, who posted a .429 OBP in Triple A.
- Jose Veras, Marlins: Who would be surprised if Veras gives the Marlins 70 productive innings this year? Jesus Colome (Mariners), Seth McClung (Marlins), and Erick Threets (White Sox) are other relievers signed on minor league deals who work in the 93-94 mph range.
- Hank Blalock, Rays: He hit 25 home runs last year, and could be useful if he stays healthy.
- Jose Arredondo, Reds: Arredondo is an investment for 2011, as he'll spend '10 recovering from Tommy John surgery.
- More decent veteran arms inked to minor league deals: Scott Proctor (Braves), Rodrigo Lopez (Diamondbacks), Jeff Weaver (Dodgers), Guillermo Mota (Giants), Todd Wellemeyer (Giants), and Justin Speier (Rockies).
Odds & Ends: Twins, Fien, Podsednik
Links for Tuesday…
- Twins assistant GM Rob Antony told Parker Hageman of Over The Baggy that the team just hired a stats guy. Also, Antony reads MLBTR every day!
- According to Tom Gage of the Detroit News, pitcher Casey Fien asked the Blue Jays why he was released and was told he was a liability.
- Scott Podsednik told MLB.com's Scott Merkin there was miscommunication between his agent and the White Sox this offseason, but Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn disagreed.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post wonders if the Mets will be thinking about trading Fernando Martinez for a top-notch starter come July.
- Ed Price of AOL FanHouse tweets that the Rangers are still looking at bringing Ramon Vazquez back. Vazquez is a prime candidate to be traded or released by the Pirates before the season begins, though the Rangers added Hernan Iribarren ten days ago.
Brewers Release Scott Schoeneweis
The Brewers released lefty reliever Scott Schoeneweis, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Schoeneweis had signed a minor league deal on February 9th, with hopes of complementing Mitch Stetter as the team's second bullpen lefty. Schoeneweis was upset by the release, and doesn't feel he should have to prove himself again because his wife died last year from a drug overdose. He sounded off further to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
Schoeneweis, 36, handled lefties well for the Mets back in '08. He joins free agent southpaw relievers Ron Mahay, Glendon Rusch, and Ron Villone.
Offseason In Review: St. Louis Cardinals
Next in our Offseason In Review series, the Cardinals.
Major League Signings
- Matt Holliday, LF: seven years, $120MM. Includes $17MM club option for 2017 with a $1MM buyout. Includes deferred money.
- Brad Penny, SP: one year, $7.5MM.
- Felipe Lopez, IF: one year, $1MM.
- Jason LaRue, C: one year, $950K.
- Total spend: $129.45MM.
Notable Minor League Signings
Extensions
- Skip Schumaker, 2B: two years, $4.7MM.
Trades and Claims
- Claimed Rule 5 P Ben Jukich off waivers from Reds; returned on 3/18/10
Notable Losses
- Rick Ankiel, Joe Thurston, Mark DeRosa, Khalil Greene, Brian Barden, Troy Glaus, Joel Pineiro, Todd Wellemeyer, Brad Thompson, John Smoltz, Jarrett Hoffpauir, Mike Parisi
Summary
The Cardinals' offseason was mostly about re-signing Holliday, which finally occurred on January 5th. GM John Mozeliak also overpaid Penny by a few million, but made up for it by getting Lopez at a bargain price.
Summing up the concerns about the Holliday signing: the Cardinals significantly overpaid given the lack of competition, it may be difficult to pay Holliday and Albert Pujols a combined $40MM+ starting in 2012, and the last few years of the contract will not provide good value. ESPN's Jayson Stark says Holliday's only other offers were one-year deals in the $18MM range. The Cardinals-Holliday contract was panned by most executives to whom Buster Olney spoke.
Prior to the Holliday signing, Mozeliak guaranteed a surprising $7.5MM to Penny. Penny offers upside under Dave Duncan's tutelage, though replacing Joel Pineiro's 214 innings of 3.49 ball will be nearly impossible. Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Cards never made Pineiro an offer, because the pitcher wanted multiple years and the team already has three such rotation commitments.
The Lopez signing was easily one of the best of the offseason. The Cardinals waited him out until late February and guaranteed less than many utility players and half-season pitchers received.
The Holliday contract is questionable, but he certainly makes the Cardinals much better in the near future. Their offense projects as one of the best in the NL, and the worst projected ERA among their front four starters is Kyle Lohse's 4.18. The Cardinals are easily the NL Central favorite in 2010.
Yankees Place Chad Gaudin On Waivers
The Yankees placed righty Chad Gaudin on waivers, tweets Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Assuming he's not picked up, the Yankees can then release him and pay a quarter of his $2.95MM salary ($737,500) or send him to the minors and pay his full salary.
Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News wrote yesterday of whispers of the Yanks sending Gaudin or Sergio Mitre to the Dodgers for Jamie Hoffmann, though you have to think Gaudin's salary would be an issue. A year ago, after the Cubs released Gaudin, the Nationals, Rockies, and Athletics expressed interest before he signed with the Padres. The Rockies went in a different direction with their acquisition of Jason Hammel, one of the best trades of the year.
Marlins Release Mike MacDougal
The Marlins released reliever Mike MacDougal, according to the team's media relations department. MacDougal had signed a minor league deal on February 18th. He was knocked around in five spring appearances.
MacDougal provided an interesting test case for how highly teams value saves, as he saved 20 in 21 tries last year but walked more than he struck out. The save total didn't get MacDougal very far, though Fernando Rodney appears to have earned several million extra for his. MacDougal does share a couple of positive traits with Rodney: he averages over 95 mph on his fastball, and he gets tons of groundballs.
Yankees Return Hoffmann To Dodgers
The Yankees Rule 5 pick Jamie Hoffmann cleared waivers and was returned to the Dodgers, reports Chad Jennings of The Journal News. New York essentially acquired Hoffmann for Brian Bruney back in December, and he was was battling with Marcus Thames for the chance to serve as the Yanks' right-handed bench bat. Neither player has done much in Spring Training so far.
Hoffmann, 25, hit .284/.360/.455 for the Dodgers' Triple A club last year while playing center and right field.
10 Best Free Agent Signings Of The Offseason
It's time to present MLBTR's ten best free agent signings of the offseason. Note that only Major League deals are included. The players are listed in order of contract amount.
- Joel Pineiro, Angels: two years, $18MM. At the advice of Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan, Pineiro tried a sinker in Spring Training and went on to lead all of baseball in walk and groundball rate. There are concerns over Pineiro's ability to reach 200 innings and succeed without Duncan, but the Angels signed a potential #2-3 starter and didn't take on a lot of risk.
- Adrian Beltre, Red Sox: one year, $10MM. Beltre was confident enough in his abilities this year to turn down a pair of three-year, $24MM offers from other clubs. He's arguably the best defensive third baseman in the game, and he may return to his 25 home run ways in Boston.
- Noel Arguelles, Royals: five years, $7MM. The 20-year-old Cuban lefty is the equivalent of an extra first-round pick for the Royals. True, he's no match for Aroldis Chapman, but he cost a quarter of what the Reds paid.
- Adam LaRoche, Diamondbacks: one year, $6MM. LaRoche should provide Arizona a .350 OBP and .490 SLG at a fair price.
- Orlando Hudson, Twins: one year, $5MM. Even if his defense is slipping, it appears the Twins added a couple of wins here.
- Colby Lewis, Rangers: two years, $5MM. The Rangers weren't the only team to notice Lewis' two years of dominance in Japan, as the A's and Twins also made two-year offers. This was a low-risk, high-reward signing by the Rangers.
- Kelly Johnson, Diamondbacks: one year, $2.35MM. Johnson was supplanted by Martin Prado as the Braves' starting second baseman last season and signed with Arizona after being non-tendered. His arbitration-eligibility for 2011 is nearly as good as a club option. If Johnson approaches his .273/.351/.443 CHONE projection, he'll be well worth the D'Backs' investment.
- Gregg Zaun, Brewers: one year, $2.15MM. In a world where Jason Kendall, Ivan Rodriguez, and Brian Schneider snagged two-year deals, the Brewers got Zaun for one year at a lesser salary, plus a club option. Unlike those catchers, Zaun is able to muster up a .340 OBP.
- Chien-Ming Wang, Nationals: one year, $2MM. Though he may not be ready until May or later, Wang represents the right kind of risk for the Nationals. If he rediscovers a 60% groundball rate, the Nats won't be non-tendering him after the season.
- Felipe Lopez, Cardinals: one year, $1MM. Scott Boras got Lopez $3.5MM coming off a decent '08 season, so he seemed in line for more after a fine '09. However, Lopez tired of waiting around and switched to Beverly Hills Sports Council before signing with the Cards at a steep discount. Utility players and half-season pitchers received larger guarantees.