Rangers Sign Kyle Hudson
The Rangers have signed Kyle Hudson to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training, according to Executive Vice President of Communications John Blake (via Twitter). The Orioles released the outfielder on Monday.
The 25-year-old hit .296/.375/.336 line with 41 stolen bases in 485 minor league plate appearances last season. Hudson also appeared in 14 Major League games for the O’s as a September callup.
AL East Notes: Orioles, Jackson, Uehara, Red Sox
Here's a look at some items out of the American League East..
- Earlier this week, Rangers reliever Koji Uehara rejected a trade that would have sent him to the Blue Jays. It appears that the 36-year-old would instead prefer a return to Baltimore and Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun writes that the O's have had sporadic conversations with Texas.
- Connolly also writes that he is unsure if the Orioles were one of the teams to make a three-year offer to Edwin Jackson, but says that it would make sense if they were. The club may be hesitant to go to four years for the hurler but hasn't completely dismissed the idea.
- Commissioner Bud Selig says that there's no timeframe for working out a compensation agreement between the Red Sox and Cubs over Theo Epstein's move, writes Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune. Selig seemed unhappy with the idea of having to intervene in the talks between the two clubs.
Rays Sign Jeff Keppinger
Jeff Keppinger has signed a one-year Major League deal with the Rays, the team announced. The CSE client will earn $1.525MM in 2012, the Tampa Tribune tweets. Executive VP Andrew Friedman explained why Keppinger’s a fit via team press release.
“He is a tough out, especially against left-handers, and his contact skills bring a useful dimension to our roster,” Friedman said. “We also value his defensive versatility, which will allow him to make an impact in many different ways."
Keppinger posted a .277/.300/.377 line in 399 plate appearances for the Astros and Giants in 2011. The 31-year-old only played second base last year, but he has started 80-plus games at shortstop and third base in his seven-year career. Keppinger earned $2.3MM last year and would have obtained a raise through arbitration, so the Giants non-tendered him in December, holding onto Mike Fontenot instead.
Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (via Twitter) first reported the agreement after Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter) reported that a deal was close.
Quick Hits: Braves, Fielder, Reds, Cespedes, Dodgers
On this day last year, the Rangers traded Frank Francisco and cash considerations to the Blue Jays for Mike Napoli. Toronto pulled the trigger on the swap just four days after acquiring Napoli from the Halos. Here's a look at tonight's links..
- The Braves have set a player payroll budget of $94MM for this year, leaving them with several million dollars still to spend, chairman and CEO Terry McGuirk told Tim Tucker of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. McGuirk also said that Liberty Media has expressed no intention of selling the club in the near future. Also of note is that the club is locked into a 25-year local TV deal that will prevent the franchise from cashing in on MLB’s trend toward higher telecast rights fees.
- The Rangers' bid for Prince Fielder was much shorter than nine years, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
- The Reds are probably done handing out big league deals this offseason, tweets John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Earlier tonight, the club reached agreement on a minor league deal with Jeff Francis.
- Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (via Twitter) ranked Yoenis Cespedes' most probable destinations in the following order: Cubs, Marlins, Orioles, and White Sox.
- Peter Ueberroth says he's heard from several groups bidding on the Dodgers but rebuffed them all, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter).
- C. Trent Rosecrans of CBSSports.com examined what's left on the open market.
- Free agent Raul Ibanez believes that a three-day session that he had in December with Cubs hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo will be key to a bounce back season in 2012. Last season, Ibanez hit .245/.289/.419 in 575 plate appearances for the Phillies.
- Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette is zeroed in on improving the club's on-base percentage this winter, writes Eduardo A. Encina of The Baltimore Sun.
- Rival executives applaud Fielder for signing on with a winning club rather than signing with a struggling club just for the money, Heyman tweets.
Rosenthal On Fukudome, Uehara, Orioles, Jackson
A look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..
- Kosuke Fukudome wants to remain in the majors, according to a source with knowledge of his thinking. Some executives, however, believe he could end up back in Japan. The Brewers had interest in Fukudome before signing Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki.
- Rangers right-hander Koji Uehara enjoyed his time so much in Baltimore that he recommended the Orioles to the two free-agents the team signed out of the Japanese league, Tsuyoshi Wada and Wei-Yin Chen, according to a major-league source. A trade back to the O's is possible for Uehara, who rejected a deal to the Blue Jays this week.
- The Red Sox are talking to Edwin Jackson, who might be open to a one-year pact. However, one executive points out that the AL East isn't an easy landing spot for a starting pitcher. If Jackson signs for one year, he might be better off in the NL, where he could produce better numbers before trying the open market again.
- The bright side of the Nationals’ failure to sign Prince Fielder is that it allows the club to retain positional flexibility, particularly in center field. A long-term deal for the slugger eventually might have pushed the Nats to use an outfield of Michael Morse in left, Jayson Werth in center and Bryce Harper in right. Now, they can move Morse to first after Adam LaRoche plays out his contract this season and go after a center fielder.
Reds, Francis Agree To Minor League Deal
The Reds have agreed to sign free agent left-hander Jeff Francis to a minor league deal, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The 31-year-old is represented by Frontline Sports Management.
Last week it was reported that Francis was gaining interest from clubs, including the Reds, Mariners, Blue Jays, and Mets. The Cubs were also linked to the veteran before the New Year.
Francis spent 2011 with the Royals, posting a 4.82 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 across 31 starts. His 183 innings of work was his highest total since 2007, the season before he suffered a shoulder injury which required surgery and caused him to miss the entire 2009 campaign.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) first reported that the two sides were nearing an agreement.
NL East Notes: Nationals, Gonzalez, Fielder, Howard
The Nationals were linked to free agent slugger Prince Fielder for quite some time but yesterday the 27-year-old agreed to a nine-year, $214MM deal with the Tigers. Here's more on the Nats and other items from around the National League East..
- The Nats were never close to winning the Fielder bidding, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com. The club only got as far as discussing parameters of a deal, never specifics.
- Gio Gonzalez doesn't have a no-trade clause in his new deal with the Nationals, tweets Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. Gonzalez agreed to a five-year extension with the club earlier this month.
- Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. said Tuesday that while he believes Domonic Brown would benefit from more sustained playing time in the minor leagues, he'l have a chance to win the leftfield job away from John Mayberry this spring, writes Rich Hofmann of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
- More from Hofmann as he writes that Amaro is even happier with Ryan Howard's five-year, $125MM deal after seeing the contracts signed by Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder.
- The Phillies looked at Omar Vizquel before he signed with Blue Jays, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. Crasnick notes that the club still has Michael Martinez as a utility infielder.
- Washington GM Mike Rizzo says that the club was in the talks for Fielder "until the end," tweets Kilgore.
Red Sox Notes: Ross, Jackson, Payroll
The Red Sox freed up some spending room last week by sending Marco Scutaro to Colorado, and today it was reported that the club has made offers to both Roy Oswalt and Edwin Jackson. Here's the latest on the BoSox..
- The Red Sox are in the process of “exploring everything” with regards to freeing up a spot on the 40-man roster after signing Cody Ross, a team source tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com. At the moment, the source says, there’s no sense that the team will consider a “significant” move with regards to its roster. The most straightforward way to make room for the club might be to deal one of their many out-of-options pitchers. Boston is also carrying six outfielders on their 40-man roster.
- According to a major league source, the Red Sox are more likely to address their starting rotation needs through free agency than via a trade, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. Lauber also spoke to Scott Boras who declined to confirm the Red Sox's reported offer to Jackson.
- More from Lauber (via Twitter) as a major league source says that the money saved by trading Scutaro is "not a hard number," meaning that the Red Sox may be able to spend more to land a starter and/or shortstop.
- In an interview on WEEI this afternoon, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said that there was no instruction from ownership to stay under the luxury tax threshold of $178MM, writes Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.
Reds, Francis Close To Deal
The Reds are close to signing free agent left-hander Jeff Francis to a minor league deal, a source tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Last week it was reported that Francis was gaining interest from clubs, including the Reds, Mariners, Blue Jays, and Mets.
Francis spent 2011 with the Royals, posting a 4.82 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 across 31 starts. His 183 innings of work last season was his highest total since 2007, the season prior to suffering a shoulder injury.
MLBTR Originals
There was no shortage of news this week but MLBTR also delivered a great deal of original content and reporting..
- The Nationals announced on Sunday that they agreed to terms on a five-year contract extension with Gio Gonzalez and Tim Dierkes has the goods on the pitcher's option years later in the week. If the Nationals exercise their $12MM club option for 2017, an option for '18 at the same salary will vest if Gonzalez pitches 180 innings in '17.
- Starter Rick Porcello and the Tigers avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal for $3.1MM, MLBTR learned. With two years and 170 days of Major League service, the 23-year-old Hendricks Sports client was arbitration eligible as a Super Two player.
- Need to get caught up on all of this week's arbitration news? Don't worry, we have you covered with MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker.
- The Braves acquired leadoff man and center fielder Michael Bourn at last year's trade deadline for a package of four young players, and Mike Axisa looked at what it would take for the Braves to lock him up.
- The Pirates agreed to terms on a one-year, $4.1MM deal with closer Joel Hanrahan. MLBTR learned that the righty can earn an additional $10K for 40 and 45 games finished and $15K each for 50 and 60 games finished.
- Pittsburgh also avoided arbitration with starter Charlie Morton, MLBTR learned, agreeing to a one-year deal worth $2.445MM.
- In an installment of (Not A) Trade Candidate, Mark Polishuk looked at Gerardo Parra.
- On Tuesday, MLBTR's Ben-Nicholson Smith was the first to report that the Astros avoided arbitration with starter J.A. Happ on a deal worth $2.35MM.
- Ben reported that the Indians avoided arbitration with outfielder Shin-Soo Choo on a deal worth $4.9MM. MLBTR had projected the Boras client for $4.3MM.
- The Rays avoided arbitration with starter David Price on a deal worth $4.35MM, Ben Nicholson-Smith reported. Tim expected Price to do better.
- If you missed out on this week's chat, you can check out the transcript right here.
- Boston agreed to a deal with center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury worth $8.05MM, BN-S reported (via Twitter). Some said that Ellsbury's salary set a record for a second-time arbitration eligible player, but Tim pointed out that Miguel Cabrera received $11.3MM in 2007 just before agreeing to a multiyear deal in which his '07 salary remained unchanged.
- Exciting news: this week, Tim announced the relaunch of RotoAuthority.com.
- On Tuesday, MLBTR learned that the Braves avoided arbitration with starter Jair Jurrjens on a deal worth $5.5MM. Atlanta signed all of their arbitration eligible players with the deal.
- The Diamondbacks' Daniel Hudson has already racked up 336 career innings (222 last year) and also has 25 wins and a 3.19 ERA. Tim examined his extension prospects.
- Mike Axisa rounded up the best from around the web in this week's installment of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
- Ben learned that that the Padres and Chase Headley agreed to a one-year deal worth $3.475MM.
- Arbitration filing numbers came out on Tuesday and Ben had the scoop on the figures for Brandon Morrow and Russell Martin.
- On Monday, MLBTR was the first to learn of contract agreements and salaries for Chris Getz and J.P. Howell and the salaries for Phil Coke and Jesus Flores starts as all four players avoided arbitration with their respective clubs.
- The Rockies and Seth Smith avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal on Sunday, and Tim Dierkes was the first to learn that Smith will earn $2.415MM this season. Smith was traded to the A's the next day.
- Back in December, Tim Dierkes reported that the Cubs and catcher Jason Jaramillo were close on a deal and this week Tim followed up with the news that the minor league contract has been finalized.
- Tim (via Twitter) first reported the salary for Reds reliever Bill Bray as he avoided arbitration with the club.
- The Tigers and Max Scherzer agreed to a 2012 salary of $3.75MM this week, but the negotiations won’t necessarily end there, since extension season is just beginning, Ben writes.
- Some arbitration records will fall in 2012, Tim writes.
- The Orioles agreed to sign 34-year-old left-hander Dennys Reyes to a minor league deal, a source told MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith (via Twitter).
- Tom Gorzelanny got $3MM from the Nats for 2012, Ben tweeted. That figure turned out to be a little higher than what was previously reported and topped the projected figure of $2.8MM.
- Tyler Clippard and the Nationals avoided arbitration with a one-year deal and Ben tweeted that the contract will be worth $1.65MM.
- Nick Collias passed along a report from Mexican magazine Puro Béisbol that reliever Luis Ayala is weighing offers from the Angels and the Orioles and could sign with one of the two soon.
- Ben checked in on the offseason's multiyear deals.