Quick Hits: Garza, Rays, Aardsma, Iwakuma
On this day last year the Rangers agreed to sign Vladimir Guerrero to a one-year, $5MM deal. In 2011, the veteran continues to look for a home with the Orioles, Angels, and Rays said to be interested. Let's take a look at the batch of links for tonight..
- Jamey Newberg of The Newberg Report is glad that the Rangers didn't overpay to land Matt Garza. The right-hander was shipped to the Cubs in an eight-player deal.
- Speaking of the Garza deal, Dave Cameron writes in a piece for Fangraphs that there's a good chance that the Rays got better in the short term by making the trade.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik told Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times that David Aardsma's hip surgery was more extensive than first thought and the hurler might not be ready by Opening Day. The M's were shopping the 29-year-old for quite some time but now they'll wait even longer to move him.
- In an interview on 1500-ESPN, Twins GM Bill Smith revealed that the club finished a distant second in the bidding for Japanese starter Hisashi Iwakuma (information passed along by Aaron Gleeman). Minnesota offered $7.7MM for the hurler while the Athletics won the bidding with $19.1MM. Ultimately, Iwakuma and the A's couldn't agree to terms.
Discussion: Will Padres Give Bell A Multiyear Deal?
Earlier this week, Padres closer Heath Bell told Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune that he hopes to remain with the club well beyond 2011. Bell, who earned $4MM in 2010 after avoiding arbitration, even went so far as to say that a new multiyear deal in San Diego would be his "dream". However, GM Jed Hoyer was non-committal when asked about Bell's future with the team.
"I'm sure a discussion of a multiyear contract for Heath will come up," Hoyer said. "[Bell's agent] and I have a good working relationship. We've touched on the subject although it's early."
Despite a great deal of speculation to the contrary, the Friars chose not to deal the 33-year-old after sending Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox. The Padres are willing to fork over between $6-7MM in arbitration to Bell this winter but Center writes that a three-year deal would easily top $20MM. It's hard to argue that the right-hander isn't worth the money after turning in a 1.93 ERA with 11.1 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 67 games.
Right now the club is more or less done making moves for 2011 and their payroll sits at just over $40MM. A multiyear deal for Bell would swallow up a significant portion of their budget. Does it make sense for the Padres to give Bell that sort of contract when considering their limited funds?
MLBTR Originals
Here's a look back at some of the analysis and reporting MLBTR's writing team produced this week..
- Want to know what kind of transactions we can expect in early January? Take a peek at the history of transactions made on January 2nd and January 8th in years past.
- This year's incarnation of the Diamondbacks will likely have fewer strikeouts at the plate, but Mike Axisa wonders what effect that could have on their production.
- This week we discussed the Twins' bullpen and the Angels' offseason while readers weighed in on the Rockies extensions, which blockbuster deal they preferred, and the next landing spot for Orlando Cabrera.
- Speaking of polls, click here to let us know what MLBTR posts you read regularly.
- Want to help contribute to MLBTR? We're currently looking for team coordinators.
- What an honor for Bert Blyleven! I'm of course talking about his selection as Howard Megdal's Jack Of All Trades for this week.
- Ben Nicholson-Smith examined the teams that came close to making the playoffs last season.
- The Adrian Beltre deal had a ripple effect on several parties.
- Want the best of the baseball blogosphere in one handy post? We got you covered with the latest edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
- "Odds & Ends" is so 2010. Get with the times grandpa – these days the cool kids are calling it "Quick Hits".
- On Wednesday, Ben Nicholson-Smith hosted our weekly chat.
- We recently introduced an Arbitration Tracker, which you can find under the "tools" tab at the top of the site. Under that tab you'll also find our Transaction Tracker and Free Agent Tracker.
Quick Hits: Liz, Rangers, Cubs, Nationals, Gonzalez
Links for Saturday evening…
- Curious about how all the recent free agent activity has impacted the 2011 draft order? Check out the updated order here.
- Right-hander Radhames Liz has signed with the LG Twins of the Korean Baseball Organization according to the Yahoo! Sports transactions log. MLBTR has confirmed the signing. The Padres released Liz earlier this week.
- MLB.com's Peter Gammons says the Rangers thought they'd be able to acquire Robinson Chirinos from the Cubs, then package him with Derek Holland, Engel Beltre, and Frank Francisco to get Matt Garza from the Rays. Texas would have kicked in some money to offset Francisco's salary.
- "We're not giving away the farm to try and win in one year," said Cubs GM Jim Hendry when asked about the Garza deal, according to Paul Sullivan of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Garza is still under team control through 2013.
- It appears that the Nationals will have a smaller payroll than last year, according to Ben Goessling of MASNSports.com.
- Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports applauds the Rockies for keeping their nucleus together. Earlier this week Colorado agreed to terms with Carlos Gonzalez on a contract extension.
- The Orioles' may have trouble finding an undervalued lefty reliever on a one-year deal, writes Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun.
- Joe Torre is in talks to become the next executive vice president of operations for MLB, according to Teri Thompson and Bill Madden of the New York Daily News. Torre stepped down as Dodgers manager towards the end of 2010 season.
- Matt Murton talked to Anna Katherine Clemmons of ESPN The Magazine about his time in Japan.
Phillies Designate Sergio Escalona For Assignment
The Phillies have designated Sergio Escalona for assignment, according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com (via Twitter). The left-hander was DFA'd to make room on the 40-man roster for J.C. Romero, who was officially re-signed on Thursday.
Escalona spent 2010 with the Phillies' Double-A affiliate, turning in a 3.81 ERA with 8.8 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 across 54.1 innings of work. The 26-year-old has 14 major league appearances to his credit, all of which came in 2009 for the Phillies.
Yankees Still In On Soriano
Despite Yankees GM Brian Cashman's insistence that the club will not surrender a first-round pick to sign any of the currently available Type A free agents, they are still in on Rafael Soriano, according to Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter). Scott Boras, who represents the 31-year-old, recently said that his client would be open to a set-up role with the Yanks.
Meanwhile, Heyman says that the Angels could make a play for the right-hander, though the club needs to prioritize hitting over pitching. The White Sox have also been linked to Soriano but they are unlikely to pursue him unless his price drops significantly. We can also cross the Cardinals off of the list of potential suitors for Soriano as the club is said to be confident in both Mitchell Boggs and Jason Motte.
Orioles Sign Derrek Lee
The Orioles officially announced their one-year deal with Derrek Lee today. The first baseman signed for $7.25MM and could earn a total of $10MM if he reaches certain performance bonuses, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). The veteran slugger is represented by CAA.
Lee turned down an $8.5MM offer from the Padres, according to Heyman and Dan Hayes of The North County Times tweets that he asked them for $10MM.
Baltimore has been in talks with Lee for a good portion of the winter and recently began zeroing in on him as talks with Adam LaRoche stalled. While LaRoche sought a three-year, $21MM committment, Lee made it known that he was willing to take a one-year deal.
Lee had a down year in 2010 by his standards, hitting .260/.347/.428 with 19 homers for the Cubs and Braves. Although he qualifies as a Type-A free agent, the Braves did not offer Lee arbitration and will not receive compensation draft picks.
Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun first reported the deal.
Contract Details: Saito, Beltre, Capuano, Hudson
Here are some recent updates on contracts from around the majors:
- Reliever Takashi Saito will earn a base salary of less than $2MM with the Brewers but incentives could push his salary close to the $3.2MM he made with Atlanta last year, writes MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Saito could mark the Brewers' last major offseason acquisition.
- Adrian Beltre will earn $14MM in 2011, $15MM in 2012, $16MM in 2013, $17MM in 2014, and $18MM in 2015, according to Anthony Andro of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
- Left-hander Chris Capuano gets a base of $1.5MM in 2011 but he could earn more than $4.5MM through incentives, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
- The Padres agreed not to offer salary arbitration if Orlando Hudson, Brad Hawpe, or Aaron Harang end up being Type A free agents, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter).
- If they make the Bucs' major league roster, Garrett Atkins and Brian Burres will earn $800K and $600K, respectively, according to Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. If Atkins is not on the 25-man roster on April 1 or June 1, he can request his release. Burres also has an out clause of sorts as can sign with an Asian team for $50K between now and Opening Day or for $100K during the season.
Rangers Out On Vladimir Guerrero
The Rangers are out on Vladimir Guerrero, according to Anthony Andro of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter). Texas' need for the soon-to-be 36-year-old decreased significantly when they signed Adrian Beltre, sliding Michael Young into a DH/utility role.
The market for Guerrero has taken quite a hit in the last 48 hours as the Angels are reportedly no longer courting him. Signing the veteran would force the Angels to use Juan Rivera or Bobby Abreu in left field, something the club isn't terrifically eager to do. His return would also mean less plate apperances for Mike Napoli who hit .238/.316/.468 with 26 homers across 140 games last season.
Reds Notes: Renteria, Votto, Podsednik, Nix
Let's take a look at some Reds-related tidbits courtesy of The Cincinnati Enquirer's John Fay..
- Fay writes that "it is believed" that the Reds have made an offer to free agent shortstop Edgar Renteria. The veteran said that the Giants' offer of $1MM showed "a lack of respect", leaving the Reds with a chance of signing the 2010 World Series MVP.
- The news of Carlos Gonzalez's impending seven-year, $80MMM deal with the Rockies will likely have a ripple effect on the Reds' talks with Joey Votto. Reds GM Walt Jocketty says that he hasn't seen the numbers on Cargo's new contract but Cincy can expect Votto to ask for even more money. The 27-year-old, Fay writes, had two very good years prior to his brilliant season in 2010 while last year was Gonzalez's first in the majors. Jocketty says that he hasn't talked to Votto's representation in recent weeks however due to the holidays.
- The Reds are reportedly close to signing Jeremy Hermida to a minor league deal but they may continue to look for a left-handed hitting outfielder. Jocketty confirmed that he talked to the agents for Fred Lewis and Scott Podsednik before the holidays.
- Speaking of left-handed hitting outfielders, the Reds haven't had any recent contact with Laynce Nix. The Reds were under the impression that Nix was Seattle-bound after receiving a contract offer from the M's in December, but no deal has been reached.
Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.