AL Central Rumors: Hughes, Royals, Pierzynski, Twins
The Royals are among the clubs with interest in free agent pitcher Phil Hughes, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Kansas City pitching coach Dave Eiland knows Hughes well from his time spent with the Yankees and is a fan of his. A return to New York isn't in the cards as both sides recognize that a change of scenery would be best. The latest from the AL Central…
- With Ervin Santana looking for a $100MM contract, the Royals are prepared to move on to look for other pitching options, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star writes. Besides Hughes, the Royals also have interest in Tim Hudson and Josh Johnson. "We want a bat, but in our meetings, the main thing we talk about is finding someone to put between [James] Shields and [Jeremy] Guthrie," one Royals official said.
- In regards to those bats, Dutton says the Royals have interest in bringing Carlos Beltran back to Kansas City and maybe signing Rafael Furcal as a second baseman. Furcal may have enough suitors to remain at shortstop if he wants.
- A Twins source tells 1500 ESPN's Darren Wolfson that "we can only hope" on the possibility of A.J. Pierzynski signing with the team. Wolfson notes that Pierzynski might be more apt to sign with a contender, however. The Twins are rumored to be taking an interest in the catching market since Joe Mauer will be a full-time first baseman in 2014.
- With Rick Porcello reportedly being shopped, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press wonders the Tigers and Twins could swing an intra-division trade.
- In his latest piece on fixing the Twins, Phil Mackey of 1500 ESPN looks at how much money Minnesota can spend this winter and how they can best allocate it.
- While the top catching option available (Brian McCann) could land a nine-figure deal, the White Sox appear to match up with free agent Jarrod Saltalamacchia, writes Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com. Chicago would like an improvement behind the plate after neither Tyler Flowers nor Josh Phegley impressed last season.
MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post
Mets Notes: Murphy, Davis, Duda, Hart, Granderson
The Mets are listening to offers on Ike Davis and Daniel Murphy, but are not aggressively shopping them at this point, according to Marc Carig of Newsday (via Twitter). Here's more on the Mets…
- Five or six teams have inquired about Davis and/or Lucas Duda, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York reports. Duda is considered by some AL teams to be a fit as a designated hitter, Carig tweets.
- Peralta appears to be the Mets' top free agent target, Andy Martino of the New York Daily News writes. The club "really likes" Peralta but they don't know if he intends to sign soon or later in the offseason.
- The Mets have talked to free agent Corey Hart, but Martino gets the sense that they either don't identify him as a top target or aren't that eager to get a deal done with him. Carig (link) also hears from a source that the Mets aren't close to a deal with the Brewers first baseman. "We haven't discussed him in depth enough to say where we'd put him if we got him," the source said.
- The Mets have plans to meet with Curtis Granderson's agent this week, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post (on Twitter). The outfielder is turning down the Yankees' $14.1MM qualifying offer.
- The Mets have touched base with Marlon Byrd's representatives in the last few days, according to Carig (link). Recently, Steve Adams examined the market for Byrd and concluded that he could fetch a deal in the neighborhood of $16MM over two years.
- A source suggested to Carig (link) that it would make sense for the Mets to take their time in trading Davis and take advantage of a market that is starved for power. Carig (link) hears that the Mets might do just that and hang on to him until later in the offseason when teams will be seeking out less costly alternatives to add power.
- The Mets aren't actively talking to Mike Pelfrey about a possible reunion, but they are open to it, a team official tells Adam Rubin. "I know he is on a long list of guys just like him," the team insider said. The Mets non-tendered the hurler after he earned $5.7MM in 2012.
- The Mets' top priority is shortstop, but they're hardly alone in that, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Possible options for the Mets include Peralta, Erick Aybar, Didi Gregorius, Rafael Furcal, and Jed Lowrie.
Tigers Open To Trading Max Scherzer Or Rick Porcello
The Tigers have told teams that they're open to trading either Max Scherzer or Rick Porcello, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). Scherzer has been involved in trade whispers for the last few weeks as the Tigers are considering their options in the event that they can't hammer out a new deal before he hits the open market after the 2014 season.
The 29-year-old Scherzer pitched a career-high 214 1/3 innings, turning in a 2.90 ERA with 10.1 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 36.3 percent ground-ball rate in 2013. While he earned just $6.725MM in 2013, MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects an increase to a whopping $13.6MM in 2014 following his dominant campaign. Scherzer's 2.98 SIERA and 2.74 FIP are both among the seven best marks in baseball and among the six starters with better FIP marks, only Clayton Kershaw has a higher innings total.
Porcello, 25 in December, turned in a 4.32 ERA with 7.2 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 across 177 innings of work. Those numbers and some of the advanced statistics (3.19 xFIP) indicate that 2013 was Porcello's best season yet.
Twins Showing Interest In Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Just hours after announcing that Joe Mauer will be transitioning to first base full-time in 2014, the Twins have already started looking into out-of-house options at catcher. Minnesota is showing preliminary interest in free agent Jarrod Saltalamacchia, a baseball source tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN.
The 28-year-old Saltalamacchia enjoyed his best season in 2013, batting .273/.338/.466 with 14 home runs in a career-high 470 plate appearances. Not only is he one of the best catchers available, but he is one of the youngest free agents on the market this offseason.
A separate source indicated to Wolfson that A.J. Pierzynski would be a good one-year stopgap to keep the seat warm until Josmil Pinto is ready to take over. The 36-year-old has been incredibly durable, averaging over 130 games per season for more than a decade.
AL West Notes: Rangers, Profar, Chavez
The Rangers are looking for offensive firepower at the GM Meetings, writes Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com. “More or less we’ve been telling clubs our short-term needs are more on the offensive side,” GM Jon Daniels said. “We have some depth in a couple of areas organizationally and at the big league level. We’re open to different ideas.” Here's more out of the AL West..
- The Rangers and Cardinals remain strong potential trade partners with the Cards wanting Jurickson Profar or Elvis Andrus and Texas liking Shelby Miller, Oscar Taveras, and Matt Adams, tweets Jim Bowden of ESPN.com.
- The Angels are among the many clubs with interest in veteran free agent Eric Chavez, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Yankees have discussed signing the third baseman and there appears to be mutual interest between Chavez and the D'Backs in a reunion.
- Todd Wills of ESPNDallas.com looks at potential Rangers target Masahiro Tanaka. Ultimately, Wills believes that the Rangers should focus their energy on trying to work a trade for the Rays' David Price.
Royals Sign Clayton Mortensen
The Royals have re-signed right-hander Clayton Mortensen to a minor league deal, according to the MLB.com transactions page. Kansas City acquired Mortensen from the Red Sox in late August in exchange for outfielder Quintin Berry.
The 28-year-old pitched to a 5.34 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 last season with the Red Sox. For his big league career, Mortensen owns a 4.68 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 over five seasons spent with the Cardinals, A's, Rockies, and BoSox.
Mortensen is represented by the Beverly Hills Sports Council, according to the MLBTR Agency Database.
Crasnick On Cano, Tanaka, Price, Ellsbury
ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick checked in with 21 general managers, assistant GMs, player personnel people, and scouts to get their take on some of the biggest storylines of the winter. Here's a look at some of the highlights..
- Almost everyone sees Robinson Cano staying put with 19 votes for the Yankees, one vote for the Dodgers, and one for the Cubs. Nearly everyone sees Cano getting a seven- or eight-year deal worth $160MM-$230MM and no one expects him to approach the $300MM figure he was asking for from the Bombers earlier this year. It should be noted that the GM that picked the Cubs said that he has no inside info to support that pick.
- Nine execs see Masahiro Tanaka landing with the Dodgers while six chose the Yankees. All but a handful of those surveyed think his payout will exceed the $60MM Yu Darvish got from the Rangers. Tanaka is ranked as the top available pitcher by MLBTR's Tim Dierkes.
- Seventeen of the 21 participants in the survey say David Price will get traded this winter. Where will he land? The Rangers got nine votes and the Dodgers got four nods with one vote each for the Nationals, Cardinals, Angels, and Astros.
- Opinions were somewhat split on whether Jacoby Ellsbury or Shin-Soo fChoo will provide better value over the course of their next deals. Twelve execs said Ellsbury, eight voted for Choo, and one GM declined to vote, saying that neither one will match what they get.
- When asked to pick the best pitcher between Matt Garza, Ervin Santana, and Ubaldo Jimenez, ten execs chose Garza. Most seemed to agree that the lack of quality starting pitching available will lead to all three being overpaid. One American League scout seemed to like Jimenez on some level but was skeptical of him long-term. "Ubaldo has the best chance to give you impact in the short term, but I am not buying him over the course of 3-4 years," the scout said.
- When asked which former Yankees prospect has a better chance of succeeding elsewhere with a change of scenery, Phil Hughes was the overwhelming choice over Joba Chamberlain.
- Crasnick asked the execs which aging pitcher had the most left in the tank between Roy Halladay, Hiroki Kuroda, and Tim Hudson. Kuroda had the backing of 12 people surveyed, Hudson got eight votes, and Halladay had just one exec in his corner. "Maybe the chances of [Halladay] coming back aren't real good if you look at it objectively," a scout said. "But if the guy wants to [keep pitching] and be successful, I wouldn't put it past him."
NL West Rumors: Giants, Garza, Tulowitzki, D’Backs
The Giants are fans of free agent catcher Brian McCann, but they won't move former MVP Buster Posey to a new position to make room for him, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. However, they could shift center fielder Angel Pagan to one of the corners and look into outside options like Jacoby Ellsbury. Meantime, their emphasis is on the rotation and they have already shown interest in Matt Garza, Ervin Santana, Ubaldo Jimenez, and many other free agent starters. Here's more out of the NL West..
- Right now, there's no evidence that the Rockies will consider trading stars Carlos Gonzalez or Troy Tulowitzki, one GM tells Heyman. That GM said he has been told Gonzalez is "definitely" not available and was left with the impression that Tulowitzki isn't being traded either. Rockies Executive Vice President/Chief Financial Officer & General Counsel Bill Geivett said of Tulowitzki today, "He's not going anywhere," tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Geivett suggested the same of CarGo. Morosi adds that Geivett indicated he'd need to be overwhelmed to trade center fielder Dexter Fowler, but he did not explicitly rule that out.
- Along the same lines, Geivett shot down rumblings connecting Tulowitzki to the Cardinals, writes Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Geivett believes that with the right additions, the Rockies can put themselves in position to contend. "We like our core group of guys. We feel like we have a good crew to build around. I know some people disagree, but we don't feel that we are that far away," Geivett said. "We have to be healthy. We can't have our two main guys missing too much."
- Starting pitching and a power outfield bat are among the items on the Diamondbacks' wish list, writes Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. General Manager Kevin Towers believes that he is poised to be active in trade talks with depth in the middle infield and center field.
Twins Sign Jason Bartlett
The Twins have signed Jason Bartlett to a non-roster deal, according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Bartlett is represented by LSW Baseball, according to the MLBTR Agency Database.
The 34-year-old saw 29 games of big league action for the Padres in 2012, hitting .133/.240/.193 in 98 plate appearances. For his career, Bartlett owns a .271/.336/.366 across nine major league seasons. With the deal, Bartlett returns to the club that he spent the first four seasons of his career with.
The Twins also announced that Joe Mauer will transition to being a full-time first baseman in 2014. The move was made "after consultation with doctors from Mayo Clinic and team doctors," according to the press release. Moving Mauer, who is owed $115MM over the next five years, to first base opens up a starting spot for 24-year-old Josmil Pinto behind the plate.
AL East Notes: Wieters, Yankees, Red Sox, Granderson
Even though Matt Wieters and agent Scott Boras aren’t eager to agree to a contract extension, the Orioles shouldn't consider dealing their star catcher, writes Rich Dubroff of CSNBaltimore.com. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports suggested over the weekend that the O's could seek to move Wieters and target a replacement such as Jarrod Saltalamacchia, but Dubroff says that it's premature to consider such a thing. Changing catchers on a young pitching staff is probably a bad idea and with Wieters under control through 2015, there shouldn't be any real rush to trade him if he doesn't agree to a new deal. Here's more out of the AL East..
- The Yankees have already opened dialogue with agents at the GM Meetings, according to Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger (via Twitter). Our own Steve Adams will be checking in live from Orlando, Florida to give us the latest from the proceedings.
- The Red Sox are on the hunt for a semi-reliable late-inning arm, writes Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. With Andrew Bailey likely sidelined for the first few months of the season, Boston could use another veteran to bridge the gap to closer Koji Uehara.
- A person in the know tells Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter links) that he has yet to hear word of any of the players holding a qualifying offer accepting. There has been some question as to whether Curtis Granderson might accept the Yankees' offer, but he seems likely to find a multi-year deal elsewhere.