Steinbrenner On Jeter, Luxury Tax, Burnett, Soriano
It doesn't take much to coax Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner into giving his thoughts on the state of the franchise and baseball as a whole. The outspoken part-owner sounded off on a number of topics to reporters today, writes Bryan Hoch of MLB.com..
- Steinbrenner seems worried about the team's drive to win, saying "I think maybe they celebrated a little bit too much last year," the co-chairman said. "Some of the players are too busy building mansions and other things and not concentrating on winning." Shortstop Derek Jeter built a mansion in Florida during the offseason after negotiating a new three-year, $51MM deal. When asked if the comment was directed at the team captain, Steinbrenner insisted that he wasn't singling anybody out.
- The Yankees' 2010 payments as a result of luxury tax and revenue sharing programs are expected to total about $130 million, Steinbrenner said. He continued to say that the Yankees are allied with other major market teams on the issue and believes that Commissioner Bud Selig wants to "correct it in some way." Hoch noted that in a recent interview on Boston's 98.5 the Sports Hub, the commish said that he is happy with the system as it stands today.
- Steinbrenner says that pitcher A.J. Burnett seems "very hungry" for a bounce-back season. Last year, Burnett turned in a 5.26 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9. The 34-year-old right-hander is set to earn $16.5MM annually through 2013.
- Skipper Joe Girardi, closer Mariano Rivera and several hitters were consulted on the idea of signing Rafael Soriano, Steinbrenner said. Last week, Rivera said that he had not been consulted about the signing but was happy to have the reliever aboard.
White Sox Won’t Be In On Pujols
If Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols hits free agency after the 2011 season, most of the major market teams are expected to jump into the fray for his services. However, White Sox GM Kenny Williams says that his club won't be one of them, writes Chuck Garfien of CSNChicago.com.
“If [Jerry Reinsdorf] gave me $30MM dollars right now, I’m not going to spend it on one guy. Sorry White Sox fans,” the GM said. “But I tell you what, I’m going to take that $30 million and I’m going to distribute it around. My team is going to be better as a whole than it is with one player who might get hurt. Then you’re done. Sorry, that’s just me. And that’s no disrespect to a future Hall of Famer, first ballot, one of the greatest players in history.”
Even though the White Sox currently have a $125MM payroll, Williams says that he and Reinsdorf agree that there should be a salary cap in baseball in order to level out the field. The GM says that a contract that would give one player $30MM per season would be bad for baseball, to the point where he'd be okay with the game being "shut down" in order to correct the issue. After getting all of this off of his chest, Williams immediately tried to downplay his comments:
“Wait a minute, didn’t I say I wanted it quiet, I wanted peace? Let me shut the hell up already. I was hoping no one would ask me that this entire spring training.”
Quick Hits: Diamondbacks, LaRoche, Pence, Young
Some links for Saturday evening as the cold weather makes its way back to the Northeast..
- Diamondbacks CEO Derrick Hall told Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic that the team will "spend the money necessary to sign the players that are the best players out there when our turn comes," referring to the draft. The D'Backs hold two of the first seven picks after failing to sign sixth overall pick Barret Loux last year.
- Before landing with the Athletics on a minor league contract, Andy LaRoche drew interest from the Red Sox and Indians according to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).
- Astros outfielder Hunter Pence tweeted that he found the arbitration process to be fascinating but is glad to have it in the rear view mirror. Earlier today, Pence won his arb case, meaning that he'll earn $6.9MM in 2011.
- The Diamondbacks' 2011 payroll should be in the low $60MM range, managing partner Ken Kendrick told Jack Magruder of FOXSportsArizona.com (via Twitter).
- Rangers GM Jon Daniels doesn't sound too upset about the status of his relationship with Michael Young in this tweet from Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram.
- White Sox slugger Adam Dunn is ready to embrace his new role in Chicago, writes Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- Former Yankees prospect Zach McAllister is looking forward to a new start with the Indians, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.
Michael Young Rumors: Saturday
This afternoon, Michael Young reported to Surprise, Arizona for Spring Training and addressed the trade talk surrounding him. Even though he seemed to be in good spirits, the veteran infielder wouldn't say whether or not he'll rescind his trade request, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Furthermore, the slugger has no plans to talk things over with Jon Daniels. Here's more of what Young had to say:
- Young insisted that he will no longer talk about the trade rumors surrounding him so as to not be a distraction to the club, says Anthony Andro of the Star-Telegram (via Twitter).
- The decision to ask for a trade a few weeks ago had nothing to do with his role as a DH and a utility infielder, writes Richard Durrett of ESPN.com. Despite that, the 34-year-old is still unwilling to talk about what prompted his trade request.
Hunter Pence Wins Arbitration
Outfielder Hunter Pence has won his arbitration case with the Astros for $6.9MM, according to Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated (Twitter links). The 27-year-old is represented by the Beverly Hills Sports Council.
Houston was offering the 2009 All-Star $5.15MM for this season but came away paying a bit more. With Pence now taken care of, the Astros have no more arbitration cases to tackle for 2011, according to the MLBTR Arb Tracker.
This marks a big win for BHSC, particularly since this W comes against arbitration guru Tal Smith. The agency holds a 4-4 record in the last decade of arb cases.
Rangers To Sign Brett Tomko
The Rangers have agreed to sign Brett Tomko to a minor league deal, a source tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com (via Twitter). Tomko pitched just 62.2 innings last season in Oakland's farm system while rehabbing from a nerve problem in his pitching arm.
In 2009, Tomko posted a 3.77 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 57.1 innings for the Yankees and Athletics. The right-hander worked out of the bullpen for the Bombers but made six starts for the A's. Tomko, 37, owns a 3.77 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 for his career.
Orioles Sign Vladimir Guerrero
The Orioles signed Vladimir Guerrero to a one-year, the team announced. The SFX client will earn $8MM in total: $5MM this year and $3MM in deferred payments, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). Zrebiec reports that Guerrero will get the $3MM several years from now.
It had been reported that the slugger was seeking a deal in the $8MM range while the O's were offering just $4.5MM for 2011. President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail appeared to be willing to let Guerrero go elsewhere, but it seems that the front office had a change of heart. Guerrero is the latest move for the O's, who signed Derrek Lee, Kevin Gregg, and Justin Duchscherer and traded for Mark Reynolds this offseason.
In 2010, the veteran belted 29 homers while hitting .300/.345/.496 in 152 games for the Rangers. Texas had some interest in retaining Guerrero last month but with Michael Young and Mike Napoli in the fold there wasn't a need for the nine-time All-Star.
Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com first reported the agreement.
Quick Hits: Young, Bautista, Prado, Jorge
Happy Bobby Valentine day everybody! Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week. Try the roast beef and be sure to tip your staff writers. Here are some links for Monday night..
- Melissa Segura of SI (via Twitter) reminds us that some of baseball's elite international free agents will be playing in Tuesday's Dominican International League All-Star Game.
- From all indications, Michael Young isn't a fit for the Marlins, writes MLB.com's Joe Frisaro.
- Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star (via Twitter) is "99-percent sure" that the postponement of Jose Bautista's arbitration hearing will result in a multiyear deal. The session, originally scheduled for Monday, has been pushed back until Friday.
- It's not yet known why Elmer Dessens' deal with the Giants fell through but Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that when a team is tightlipped on such matters, it could mean they did not like something in the physical.
- Braves infielder Martin Prado was hesitant about changing positions to accommodate the arrival of Dan Uggla but is now comfortable with the move to left field, writes MLB.com's Mark Bowman.
- The Twins have been impressed by Felix Jorge's development over the last few months, writes Kelly Thesier of MLB.com.
NL East Notes: Perez, Manuel, Lee
Here are some tidbits from the National League East..
- Today, Oliver Perez notified the Mets that he wants to make the club as a starting pitcher, writes David Waldstein of the New York Times. Perez met with manager, Terry Collins, and GM Sandy Alderson to inform them of his stance. However, it is far more likely that he will be a lefty out of the bullpen or be released before the season starts. Perez is owed $12MM in the final year of his three-year contract.
- Collins told Perez that he'll have an opportunity to make the Mets' rotation, writes Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal.
- After more than two months of talks, the Phillies and manager Charlie Manuel still have been unable to reach agreement on a contract extension. Tonight, Manuel's agent Pat Rooney told Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com that the two sides are not seeing eye-to-eye on dollars. “Charlie deserves to be paid as one of the top five managers in baseball,” the agent said. “I don’t want to negotiate through the media, but they know our position. Hopefully we’ll have something by Opening Day.”
- When addressing the media today, Cliff Lee insisted that he chose the Phillies over other clubs, such as the Yankees, because he felt that the Phillies gave him the best chance to win, writes Ken Davidoff of Newsday.
Yankees Notes: Rotation, Sabathia
Some Yankees-related news as things get underway in Tampa..
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman is still on the lookout for a starting pitcher, either via trade or free agency, writes Chad Jennings of the LoHud Yankees Blog. “If it makes sense, I’m ready to rock and roll,” the GM said. Of course, the Yankees already have plenty of candidates for the backend of the rotation in-house, including Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon, and Ivan Nova, as well as youngsters D.J. Mitchell and David Phelps.
- Meanwhile, manager Joe Girardi says that the competition is wide open at this stage. While that could mean that the club's in-house position battle goes down to the wire, it could also mean that there's enough time for a new acquisition to be worked into the mix. “The chances that the fourth and fifth starter role will be answered sooner than later are not very good,” the manager said. “I think we’ll spend all spring evaluating everybody in our camp…So, basically, we have an open competition until March 30.”
- Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (via Twitter) doesn't blame Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia for keeping his opt-out option open.
- Hank Steinbrenner isn't concerned about Sabathia opting-out of his deal, writes Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork.com. Steinbrenner also says that fans can expect the Yankees to contend every year.