New York Notes: Pettitte, Mets, Pitching
Let's check out a few items concerning the Yankees and Mets..
- Yankees people continue to hear from friends of Andy Pettitte that they think the 38-year-old will pitch this year, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated. Of course, there's still no word from Pettitte himself on the matter.
- As expected, Mets principal owner Fred Wilpon, COO Jeff Wilpon and team president Saul Katz met with commissioner Bud Selig today to talk about the team's finances, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. On Friday the club announced that they are looking to sell 20 to 25 percent of the team in order to give themselves a cushion against any settlement that comes from the Bernie Madoff case.
- Mike Piazza, who earned more than $120MM over the course of his major league career, says he isn't interested in buying a share of the club right now, according to Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com.
- Nick Swisher isn't concerned about the Yankees' pitching woes, writes Marc Carig of the Newark Star-Ledger.
Rays Close To Signing Lopez
We can expect to see the Rays sign veteran Felipe Lopez to a minor league deal in the next couple of days, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (via Twitter). Topkin wrote earlier today that Lopez was a name to "keep in mind" as the club is in need of an inexpensive middle infielder.
After signing a one-year, $1MM deal with the Cardinals last year, the club cut ties with the 30-year-old due to behavioral problems. Lopez's flat offense didn't help his case either as he hit just .233/.311/.345 in 109 games before signing with Boston. The Red Sox wisely offered the Type B infielder arbitration, but a minor league deal means that they won't receive a compensatory draft pick.
Orioles Notes: Simon, Jakubauskas, Houser
Let's take a look at some Orioles news..
- The O's are unlikely to make a move with Alfredo Simon until February 26th, the mandatory date for all players to report to Spring Training, writes Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun. After being named as the primary suspect in a murder and denied bail in the Dominican Republic, Simon probably won't be able to join the club by that date. Once that date passes, Baltimore can move the reliever to the restricted list, freeing up a spot on the 40-man roster.
- Baltimore has signed a trio of free agent pitchers to minor league deals according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The club reached deals with right-handers Chris Jakubauskas and Mark Worrell as well as lefty James Houser. Houser, who was tabbed by the Rays in the second-round of the 2003 draft, turned in a 3.67 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 for the Marlins' Triple-A affiliate in 2010. The Orioles now have a handful of interesting pitchers in their farm system after signing Clay Rapada and Nick Bierbrodt last week.
Athletics To Sign Brian Fuentes
The Athletics have agreed to terms with Brian Fuentes on a two-year contract that includes a club option for 2013, the team announced. Terms of the deal are unknown but Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) reported that the deal would be for two years with an option for a third at more than $5MM per season. Meanwhile, Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter) reported that the two sides were working on a two-year deal worth roughly $10.5MM.
Fuentes, 35, registered a 2.81 ERA last season with 8.8 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 for the Angels and Twins. The 6'4" left-hander is represented by the Beverly Hills Sports Council.
The A's have remade their team quite a bit this offseason, facilitating trades for David DeJesus and Josh Willingham while signing Grant Balfour and Hideki Matsui as free agents. Fuentes would join Balfour in an already strong bullpen that features Michael Wuertz, Craig Breslow, Brad Ziegler, and All-Star closer Andrew Bailey.
ESPN's Buster Olney pointed out that geography could work in Oakland's favor since Fuentes is from nearby Merced. The Blue Jays were also considered a serious suitor to sign the lefty reliever, and both the Yankees and Rays were connected to him earlier this month. Fuentes was said to be seeking Scott Downs money a few weeks ago, though it's likely that his asking price has since come down.
Steve Phillips of AOL Fanhouse first reported (via Twitter) that the two sides were close to finalizing an agreement.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Dodgers Sign Marcus Thames
The Dodgers have officially signed outfielder Marcus Thames to a one-year contract. The deal includes a $1MM base salary and another $800K in incentives.
Thames, 33, would provide the Dodgers with right-handed power and could platoon with Jay Gibbons in left field. Last season Thames hit .288/.350/.491 with 12 homers in 237 plate appearances for the Yankees.
MLB.com's Ken Gurnick first reported that the two sides were on the verge of agreeing to a deal while Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times confirmed the agreement. Hernandez later added the financial terms (Twitter links).
Brewers, Weeks No Longer Talking Multiyear Deal
TUESDAY, 6:06pm: MLB.com's Adam McCalvy reports that the two sides have "mutually agreed to change courses and focus on a one-year deal for 2011." Brewers assistant GM Gord Ash said they'll "try to get something done for this year and then continue to talk longer-term and use this as a placeholder, perhaps."
MONDAY, 10:12pm: The Brewers and Rickie Weeks are scheduled to exchange contract figures tomorrow but the two sides continue to focus on hammering out a multiyear deal, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Assistant GM Gord Ash says that all of the talks that he's had with Weeks' agent, Greg Genske, have been for multiyear deals.
"We've focused exclusively on a multi-year deal," Ash explained. "We've never discussed a one-year deal. I'm not concerned about it. One way or the other, it will get resolved."
The two sides have swapped proposals over the past few weeks but Ash says that he doesn't feel that a deal is near. Last month, the talks were characterized as "productive". This is Weeks' final arbitration eligible year as he will become a free agent after the 2011 season.
Haudricourt writes that one of the difficulties in reaching a deal with Weeks is that its tough to find a comparable for him. The second baseman has missed a great deal of time due to injury but stayed healthy in 2010 and hit .269/.366/.464 with 29 homers. Dan Uggla signed a five-year, $62MM deal in his final year of arbitration but Ash says that he isn't a true comparable due to his years of hitting for power.
While Milwaukee looks to hammer out a multiyear deal with Weeks, GM Doug Melvin has taken the opposite approach with Prince Fielder. Melvin tried to work out a multiyear deal last year with agent Scott Boras but couldn't make any headway. The GM declined to comment when asked if he'll again try to workout a multiyear deal with his star slugger.
Quick Hits: Athletics, Nunez, Rangers, Pavano, Pujols
On this day 15 years ago, Blue Jays skipper John Farrell signed with Mariners as a free agent. Let's take a look at today's links..
- Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com applauds Athletics GM Billy Beane for upgrading the club's bullpen this winter.
- Leo Nunez's $3.65MM 2011 salary is the most ever for a Marlins reliever under owner Jeffrey Loria, tweets Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel. The previous watermark was Armando Benitez's 2004 salary of $3.5MM.
- The Rangers are looking to fill their final roster spot, writes MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Rangers CEO Chuck Greenberg also says that the club plans on extending the contract of GM Jon Daniels this winter.
- The Pirates have made a run at Carl Pavano, but the hurler prefers the Twins as they are a contending team where he can be the ace, writes Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated.
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty told Mark Sheldon of MLB.com that he is working to sign arbitration eligible players Edinson Volquez, Johnny Cueto and Bill Bray before the Tuesday deadline.
- The Cardinals have to get a deal done with Albert Pujols, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com.
Mariners Notes: Olivo, Kennedy, Bard
Here are the contract details on three of the newest Mariners, courtesy of MLB.com's Greg Johns..
- Catcher Miguel Olivo's two year contract includes a team option for 2013. The veteran will make $2.75 this season, $3.5MM in 2012, and will receive a $750K buyout if his option is not picked up, bringing his guaranteed total to $7MM. If the M's pick up his option in '13, Olivo will earn a base of $3MM that could rise to as much as $3.75MM based on how much he plays in '11 and '12.
- Infielder Adam Kennedy will make $750K if he makes the big league roster. The 35-year-old's contract includes playing-time bonuses that start kicking in at $50K for 350 plate appearances. He could as much as $450K if he reaches 600 plate appearances.
- Catcher Josh Bard will also earn $750K if he makes the major league squad. Bard's bonuses begin at 300 plate appearances and could reach $250K for 500 plate appearances.
- Both Bard and Kennedy can exercise an out clause if they're not on the major league roster by the end of March.
Diamondbacks, Nationals Interested In Heilman
The Diamondbacks and Nationals are among several clubs that have expressed interest in free agent Aaron Heilman this winter, according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN (via Twitter). After five straight years of 70-plus appearances out of the bullpen, Heilman is looking to become a starter.
Heilman, 32, posted a 4.50 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 for the D'Backs last season. Since he declined Arizona's arbitration offer, the club will not receive compensation if they lose the Type B free agent. Last month we learned that the Rockies and Pirates were interested in the right-hander as a reliever.
Twins Notes: Pavano, Liriano, Crain, Punto
Let's take a look at some Twins tidbits..
- The Twins and Carl Pavano are still close to a deal but appear to be in a temporary holding pattern, writes Joe Christensen of the Star Tribune. The sides still have some details to work out but they've agreed to put the talks on hold through Tuesday.
- Tabling the talks with Pavano should allow the Twins to focus on their potential arbitration cases. Matt Capps, Francisco Liriano, Kevin Slowey, Glen Perkins, and Delmon Young are all scheduled to swap figures with the Twins on Tuesday. Christensen points out that the Twins settled all eight of their potential arbitration cases at the eleventh hour last year.
- The Twins made some attempts to retain Jesse Crain but ultimately knew that relievers Brian Fuentes, Matt Guerrier, and Jon Rauch would sign elsewhere, according to Christensen.
- Nick Punto is still on the open market but the Twins don't have any plans to bring the infielder back, writes Sid Hartman of the Star Tribune. Punto, 33, has spent the last seven years with the Twins, hitting .248/.323/.324.