Lamb Re-Signs With Brewers
12:33pm: MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy says the deal with Lamb has been finalized, with the Brewers on the hook for something close to the league minimum for ’09.
TUESDAY, 10:58am: Tom Haudricourt says Lamb’s signing will be announced today. Haudricourt rejects the Rosenthal/Price report about the Lamb signing paving the way for a Hall trade.
MONDAY, 8:07pm: Rosenthal and Ed Price say the Lamb signing could prompt the Brewers to trade Bill Hall. Hall interests the Yankees, but he has almost $16MM left on his deal. Rosenthal notes that Yankees targets Hall and Mike Cameron are friends of C.C. Sabathia.
4:52pm: According to MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy, the Brewers are "closing in on a deal to re-sign free agent third baseman Mike Lamb." GM Doug Melvin will continue discussions with Lamb’s agent later today.
Blagojevich Corruption Charges
Illinois govenor Rod Blagojevich was arrested on corruption charges today. Cubs-related passage:
Blagojevich and [chief of staff John] Harris conspired to demand the firing of Chicago Tribune editorial board members responsible for editorials critical of Blagojevich in exchange for state help with the sale of Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs baseball stadium owned by Tribune Co.
Blue Jays, Indians, Dodgers Interested In Kris Benson
Roch Kubatko of MASN Online ran into Kris Benson, who says he’s fully recovered from rotator cuff surgery. The Blue Jays, Indians, and Dodgers have expressed interest.
Milton Bradley Rumors: Tuesday
According to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, the Cubs are in "intense discussions" with Milton Bradley. The Cubs are known to have met with Bradley Sunday; the Rays lunched with him yesterday.
Rick Ankiel Rumors
Joel Sherman of the New York Post says Cardinals outfielder Rick Ankiel is popular, with at least five interested teams. He adds the Yankees, Rays, and Giants to the previously known Braves. With the lack of center fielders on the market, the interest makes sense. Sherman says the Cardinals seek a closer and/or a starter, and have some interest in Ian Kennedy.
Odds and Ends: Laird, Mitsui, Snyder
Links for Tuesday…
- Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald describes a casino alert regarding potential inside information due to the Winter Meetings.
- ESPN’s Keith Law isn’t thrilled with the Tigers’ acquisition of Gerald Laird.
- Michael S. Schmidt gives a peek at the Boras Book for Greg Maddux. One client for which exaggeration is unnecessary.
- Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker says the Seibu Lions will post 35 year-old lefty reliever Koji Mitsui. Another southpaw option to consider; he’s not expected to cost much.
- Newman also says the Orioles may offer two-year, $10MM contracts to both Kenshin Kawakami and Koji Uehara.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic says the D’Backs have had brief, preliminary talks on an extension for Chris Snyder and they’ll resume soon.
Phillies Starting Pitching Rumors
2:20pm: Dan Graziano says the Phillies expressed interest in Andy Pettitte.
8:47am: Paul Hagen of the Philadelphia Inquirer says that as the Phillies’ talks with Jamie Moyer drag on, they’re looking at alternatives. They seem to have some kind of offer out to Derek Lowe. Hagen adds that they have some interest in Braden Looper while Randy Wolf is unclear.
Braves, Cardinals Talk Ankiel
According to Ken Rosenthal, the Braves and Cardinals discussed a trade for outfielder Rick Ankiel. However, the Braves did not want to give up Mike Gonzalez. I’m surprised; one year of Gonzalez for one of Ankiel sounds like a good swap for the Braves.
Rosenthal says the two teams also talked about swapping Blaine Boyer for Joe Mather, but that didn’t pan out either.
Jason Varitek Rumors: Tuesday
Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald talked to Scott Boras, who said the Tigers’ acquisition of Gerald Laird actually improves Jason Varitek‘s prospects. Perhaps Boras is implying that the Rangers are now less likely to deal an additional catcher. But it’s still hard to figure out which team would be willing to give Varitek a decent-sized multiyear deal and surrender a draft pick.
Silverman runs through a slew of catchers the Red Sox like. Jack Magruder says they could be a serious player for Arizona’s Miguel Montero.
Garrett Anderson A Fit For Rays?
Kevin Baxter of the L.A. Times passes along quotes from Rays manager Joe Maddon, who is fond of Garrett Anderson. Maddon knows GA from his days as an Angels coach. Whether the Rays are actually interested in his services remains to be seen.