Quick Hits: Madson, Axford, Mets, Indians, Damon
On this day in 1969, the Braves traded infielder Joe Torre to the Cardinals for Orlando Cepeda. Here's a look at what's happening today..
- Reds closer Ryan Madson still believes that the Phillies offered him a $44MM contract in November, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Phillies GM Ruben Amaro denies that any sort of proposal was offered while agent Scott Boras has a different story.
- Brewers closer John Axford expects extension talks to begin soon as his agent, Dan Horwits, is in town to meet with the club, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel. Axford also says that he won't set a deadline for the talks as he doesn't believe that they would be a distraction to him during the season.
- Multiple scouts told Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (via Twitter) that the Mets haven't been looking for a backup lefty hitting outfielder as of late. Right now it looks like the club will turn to Adam Loewen or Mike Baxter rather than add someone from the outside.
- The Indians are looking for a leftfielder but have no interest in Johnny Damon because of his lackluster defense, a Cleveland front office executive told Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (Twitter link). In an interview with Bowden on MLB Network Radio this week, the veteran said that he plans to take his time in choosing a team as he looks for an everyday job.
- The Red Sox's signing of Simon Mercedes marks a change in the club's approach to the international amateur market under new director of international scouting Eddie Romero, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Speier writes that former VP of International Scouting Craig Shipley would never have signed Mercedes because the right-hander lied about his documentation.
Quick Hits: Twins, Rangers, Orioles, Mariners, Mitre
Tuesday night linkage..
- Free agent reliever Michael Wuertz says his tryout will be early next week with plans to be finalized in the next day, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Minneapolis. The Twins are expected to attend.
- Signing closer Joe Nathan allowed the Rangers to move Neftali Feliz into the rotation while keeping skipper Ron Washington comfortable by continuing to have an established closer, writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Nathan inked a two-year, $14.75MM deal with Texas last November, though the club typically doesn't give multi-year deals to relievers.
- There were at least 40 scouts on hand to watch the Orioles today, tweets Eduardo A. Encina of The Baltimore Sun.
- The Mariners reported a financial loss for a fiscal year with a $7.3MM deficit for 2011, writes Greg Johns of MLB.com. This marks just the second time since the opening of Safeco Field that the M's find themselves in the red.
- The bidding groups for the Dodgers appear to have been whittled down to five from seven tonight, a person familiar with the meetings tells Mike Ozanian of Forbes.com. The highest bid was $1.6 billion from Magic Johnson and former baseball exec Stan Kasten, whose purchase would be partially financed by private equity. The lowest bid from the five groups was $1.3 billion.
- Looking at at future payroll commitments, major league assets, farm systems, ownership status, and front office strategies, ESPN.com's Keith Law (Insider sub. req'd) tries to hash out when clubs such as the Mets, Cubs, and Astros will be able to contend.
- The biggest area of uncertainty for the Nationals, outside of their surplus of starting pitchers, seems to be their bench, writes Amanda Comak of The Washington Times.
- Free agent Sergio Mitre will work out for teams in March or April and expects to play in the majors this year, according to Tim (via Twitter).
AL Central Notes: Lannan, Pauley, Dotel, Floyd
Here's a look at some items on the Tigers and White Sox..
- The Tigers are keeping an eye on Nats pitcher John Lannan but have yet to have detailed talks involving him, writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.
- In the end, Monday’s release of David Pauley had the feeling of a mercy move, writes Jason Beck of MLB.com. By releasing him now, the Tigers give the 28-year-old a better chance to hook on somewhere before pitching staffs are set.
- Octavio Dotel is set to pitch for his 13th club in 13 big league seasons, making him the ultimate nomad, writes Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. Mike Morgan, Ron Villone, and Matt Stairs were all close, having played for a dozen teams.
- There has been concern with Jacob Turner's drop in velocity this spring, but Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter) spoke with execs with other clubs who say that scouts spotted this in late 2011 as well. The Tigers have said that they are not looking to trade the right-hander but he can reportedly be had in the right deal.
- Rival executives say that the price tag for White Sox pitcher Gavin Floyd was huge over the winter, tweets Olney.
Phillies Looking For Infield Help
The Phillies already have a good deal of infielders in camp but are in search of more depth, multiple major league sources tell Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. The club has health concerns about both first baseman Ryan Howard second baseman Chase Utley as they have yet to play in a game this spring.
Sources say that left field could also be a position the Phillies are looking to bolster. With Howard sidelined, John Mayberry Jr. might have to pitch in at first base. Help at third base might also be in order as Placido Polanco is coming off surgery to repair a double groin tear.
Week In Review: 3/4/12 – 3/10/12
A recap of this week's news as we get closer and closer to Opening Day..
- Andrew McCutchen is officially the face of the Pirates through at least 2017 now that he has a new six-year contract. The deal reportedly guarantees the 25-year-old $51.5MM and has a seventh year club option. McCutchen's contract buys out his final pre-arbitration year, all three arbitration years, and a pair of free agent seasons with a club option for another.
- Some wonder if the Yankees can get under the $189MM luxury tax threshold by 2014 and keep both Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson after their contracts expire following the 2013 season. However, team president Randy Levine said this week that the Bombers plan to do just that.
- Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette told reporters that he doesn't expect to sign Johnny Damon, but later said that the veteran could be a possibility.
- Roy Oswalt spent most of the offseason telling teams that he'd prefer to sign close to his Mississippi home, but the free agent right-hander will now consider all opportunities.
- The Marlins have reportedly discussed the possibility of presenting Giancarlo Stanton with a "big, crooked" contract offer, though they have yet to reach out to him.
- The Twins signed left-hander Glen Perkins to a three-year, $10.3MM extension. The SFX client was already under contract for $1.55MM in 2012, so the deal covers the 2013-15 seasons. The pact also includes a club option for 2016.
- The Nationals are interested in outfielder Jason Bourgeois and have asked the Astros about him at least three times since December. However, Nationals manager Davey Johnson has been pleased with internal candidates for the center field job such as Roger Bernadina, Brett Carroll and Rick Ankiel.
- The White Sox have shown interest in lefty relievers Mike Gonzalez and Arthur Rhodes.
- Mariano Rivera may announce whether or not he will pitch in 2013 before the All-Star break.
- Zack Greinke will hire an agent if he reaches free agency next winter but is open to discussing a long-term deal with the Brewers on his own.
- It doesn't appear that Cole Hamels and the Phillies are close on a new deal. However, Hamels' agent John Boggs met with Phillies' management in Florida this week.
- The Giants and Matt Cain appear to have positive momentum in contract extension talks.
- Free agent reliever Mike Gonzalez turned down a non-roster offer from the Rangers.
- Surprisingly, the Angels are looking around for a left-handed reliever.
- The A's released catcher Landon Powell, who had been outrighted off of the 40-man roster in January and was in camp as a non-roster player. Powell has a .207/.284/.328 line in 406 plate appearances over the course of three seasons with the Athletics.
- The Orioles released reliever Dennys Reyes over the weekend when he didn't report to camp, but the lefty still plans to pitch for the team this season.
- Chris Young is close to rejoining the Mets.
MLBTR Originals
Here's a look back at the original reporting and analysis produced by MLBTR's writing staff this week..
- We're always looking ahead here at MLBTR and this week Tim rolled out his early analysis of the 2013-14 free agent class.
- Some questioned the Nats' decision to take a closer so early in the draft, but Drew Storen hasn't disappointed on the promise he flashed as an amateur, writes Dan Mennella. Dan gave his thoughts on what it might take for Washington to extend Storen.
- For all of the hype generated by Craig Kimbrel and Jonny Venters last year, many overlooked the impressive numbers posted by Braves left-hander Eric O'Flaherty. Mark Polishuk took notice, however, and believes that a three-year, $12MM deal would be appropriate for the 27-year-old.
- This week's installment of Baseball Blogs Weigh In from Mike Axisa covers Andrew McCutchen's extension and Yu Darvish's spring debut.
- Speaking of McCutchen's deal, the Pirates are now set focus their attention on a new deal for second baseman Neil Walker. Tim examined what that contract might look like.
- The Red Sox have Jacoby Ellsbury under team control through 2013, but they might want to start thinking about a contract extension for him, Mark writes.
- This week's Sloan Sports Analytics Conference featured some of the brightest minds in baseball and many of the panelists gave their thoughts on the next frontier in the game.
- The Padres didn't get a discount on Cameron Maybin's arbitration years, Tim writes.
- The Yankees are looking to get under the $189MM threshold by 2014, but Mike's poll shows that roughly 72% of MLBTR readers aren't buying it.
- Tim conducted the weekly chat on Wednesday. If you missed out on it, you can check out the transcript right here.
- The Nationals' glut of starting pitching makes John Lannan a great trade candidate.
- Tim outlined some big money players who stand a chance of being cut at some point in 2012. Among those on the list are Vernon Wells, Barry Zito, and Jason Bay.
- What was the biggest surprise of the offseason? According to MLBTR readers, it was the Halos signing both Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson. A majority (26.4%) of MLBTR readers also picked the Angels as the American League team poised to make the biggest turnaround.
- Five players can lock in 2013 contract options with their play in 2012.
- Looking for a list of all of MLBTR's weekly features? Check out this post. It even includes MLBTR Originals, which is kind of meta, or something.
AL East Notes: Wieters, Yankees, Rodriguez, Red Sox
News and notes out of the American League East..
- Orioles catcher Matt Wieters told reporters today that he doesn't hold a grudge against the club for renewing his contract, writes Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun. The Scott Boras client will be eligible for arbitration after this season and can hit the open market after the 2015 season.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post offers up two ideas for how the Yankees can stay below the $189MM threshold while keeping their core in tact. His first idea is to extend and rework Alex Rodriguez's after the 2013 season in order to lower the average value of his contract. Rodriguez is currently slated to make $86MM over four years starting in 2014 but Sherman suggests that the Bombers could turn $24MM in uncertain bonuses into a $14MM add-on for '18. The Bombers could also suppress the average salary of Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson by extending them under their current deals rather than after 2014.
- As he waited for the Yankees' call this offseason, Eric Chavez wasn't sure if he'd be playing this year, writes Jeff Bradley of the Star-Ledger. Chavez, 34, also had conversations with the White Sox but ultimately chose to return to New York.
- Bobby Valentine & Co. are working to solve the Red Sox bullpen puzzle, which involves several relievers who are out-of-options, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
- Red Sox closer Andrew Bailey took a long and strange path to wind up where he is today, writes Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe.
Rays Not Considering Ivan Rodriguez
The Rays are not considering free agent Ivan Rodriguez as an option at catcher, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com. Tampa Bay is in need of a backup to Jose Molina but it doesn’t appear that the Scott Boras client will be the answer.
The Mets were once linked to the 40-year-old but two team sources shut the door on that possibility late last month. Pudge has reportedly fielded a few inquiries, including one from the Diamondbacks, but is in search of a job that will give him a decent amount of playing time.
Cafardo On Phillies, Blanton, Lannan, Ramirez
In this morning's column, Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe takes a look at some of the emerging storylines in the American League East. In New York, Francisco Cervelli is set to be the backup catcher, but could become trade bait for the Yankees with Austin Romine knocking on the door. The catching situation with Tampa Bay is also worth keeping an eye on as Jose Molina needs a backup. The Rays could pick up Ivan Rodriguez or deal from their pitching surplus to fill the vacancy. If they trade Jeff Niemann or Wade Davis, Cafardo writes that it would be for a catcher. Here's more from Cafardo..
- The Phillies are making it clear to teams that they would eat as much as $2MM of Joe Blanton’s $8MM deal in a trade. Moving Blanton would allow the Phillies to have payroll flexibility and bump Kyle Kendrick into the No. 5 spot in the rotation. Yesterday, Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos scouted the Phillies game and left after Blanton's exit.
- Meanwhile, the Nationals continue to dangle left-hander John Lannan. The club is spreading word that the 27-year-old is available in a deal, particularly one for a center fielder.
- The Braves are in need of a left field power bat and right-hander Jair Jurrjens could be the trade bait for one.
- At some point, Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobar will have to move to second base to make room for Cuban shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria. Escobar loves being a shortstop, so there is a bit of trepidation among some in the organization as to how he will accept this.
- Meanwhile, many feel that the Marlins' Hanley Ramirez won't stay happy for long at third base and eventually will demand a trade.
- With several teams in the market for a center fielder, Cafardo asked a National League scout if the Yankees would entertain a deal for Brett Gardner. Gardner is currently slated to start in left field for the Yanks but a National League scout said that at some point the club might seek out a more traditional left field option.
- The Red Sox are impressed with Chris Carpenter's live fastball but privately they are not happy with what they wound up getting in exchange for Theo Epstein.
Mets May Look To Trade D.J. Carrasco
Bobby Parnell seems likely to earn one of the final spots in the Mets bullpen, leaving the last spot up for grabs between Miguel Batista and D.J. Carrasco. Batista looks to have an advantage in the race, making Carrasco a candidate to be traded, two Mets officials tell Andy Martino of the New York Daily News.
One official said the team has discussed whether Miami could be a fit for Carrasco, because the pitcher enjoyed success while playing for then-White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen in 2008 and '09. A third team source mentioned that the Angels could have interest as GM Jerry DiPoto traded for Carrasco while serving as the interim GM of Arizona in 2010.
Carrasco's performance last season could make him a tough sell but the Mets are hoping GMs are willing to look past it. The 34-year-old, who is set to make $1.2MM on the back end of a two-year deal, turned in a 6.02 ERA with 4.9 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 2011.