MLBTR Originals
Let's take a look back at some of the original reporting and analysis from MLBTR's writing team this week..
- Roughly fifty players were non-tendered this week. Click here for the American League non-tenders and here for the ones from the National League. Tim Dierkes compiled a list of the most interesting non-tenders. You can also sort the decisions by team using our non-tender tracker.
- We asked you if you thought that Russell Martin would be traded. Roughly 63% of MLBTR readers nailed it: Martin was instead non-tendered by the Dodgers.
- Nick Collias gathered up and translated baseball news from several Spanish outlets.
- We learned a lot from this week's arbitration decisions.
- Let us know how you feel about our new iPhone app!
- Mike Axisa collected some of the best analysis from around the blogosphere in this week's edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
- You have questions, we have answers. Ben Nicholson-Smith answered your queries in our weekly chat on Wednesday.
Week In Review: 11/28/10 – 12/4/10
It's time to take a look back at the week that was..
- After months and months of speculation, the Red Sox and Padres agreed to a deal that would send Adrian Gonzalez to Boston for Casey Kelly, Anthony Rizzo, and Reymond Fuentes. Gonzalez and Boston had until 2pm EST to reach agreement on a new contract but were unable to get anything done. Eventually, Boston relented and pulled the trigger on the trade.
- No surprise here, the Yankees and Derek Jeter hammered out a new three-year deal with a fourth-year option worth at least $56MM. Before he re-upped with the Bombers, five teams called to express interest in him, though the shortstop never considered going elsewhere.
- The Bombers also re-upped another piece of their core four when they gave Mariano Rivera a two-year, $30MM deal. The Red Sox and Angels were two of three teams to offer the closer a three-year contract. Rivera has indicated that this contract could be his last, but he's said that before.
- Troy Tulowitzki agreed to an extension that will keep him in Colorado until 2020. The shortstop will earn $119MM over the course of the deal. The extension was unexpected as he was already in the midst of a six-year, $31MM extension he signed before the 2008 season.
- What a week for the White Sox. GM Kenny Williams landed free agent slugger Adam Dunn and re-signed catcher A.J. Pierzynski. Dunn will get up to four-years, $56MM while Pierzynski will get $8MM over two seasons.
- The best pitcher on the open market, Cliff Lee, is still out there. The Rangers won't say whether they've made the ace a formal offer. It seems to be a two-horse race for Lee's services, though that could change.
- Jorge de la Rosa reached agreement with the Rockies on a three-year, $32MM deal. The pitcher holds a player option on the third year of the contract while Colorado has a team option for year four for $11MM.
- One of the most surprising moves of the week came when the Cardinals signed Lance Berkman to a one-year, $8MM deal. The veteran hasn't played in the outfield since 2007 but will start in left field for St. Louis.
- Juan Uribe landed the first multiyear deal of his career when he left the Giants for the Dodgers. The infielder is set to earn $21MM over three seasons. Uribe will serve as the Dodgers second baseman but could also play some third and, obviously, shortstop.
- Miguel Tejada landed in San Francisco on a one-year, $6.5MM deal. The contract includes a $500K bonus and gives the Giants a shortstop after losing Juan Uribe to the Dodgers in free agency.
- Toronto continues to show interest in Royals ace Zack Greinke. Meanwhile, the Rangers are dreaming of a scenario in which they can re-sign Cliff Lee and also acquire Greinke. Kansas City won't trade him anywhere inside of the division but the field could be pretty open as Greinke seems willing to consider big market teams. The market for the hurler could heat up once Lee finally signs.
- We've heard Heath Bell's name in trade rumors for some time now but there are conflicting reports as to whether or not the Padres will deal him.
- The Cards acquired second baseman Ryan Theriot from the Dodgers in exchange for righty Blake Hawksworth.
- Toronto and Arizona have discussed a deal for Mark Reynolds, though the slugger won't be dealt to the Padres. The Orioles are also said to be interested.
- Texas has "kicked the tires" on Carl Crawford but the club seems much more interested in Paul Konerko. Most league execs feel that Konerko will be back with the White Sox. Both Dunn and Pierzynski will accept deferred money in their contracts in order to give the club the flexibility needed to keep Konerko. The O's made a significant offer to the veteran.
- San Francisco brought Pat Burrell back on a one-year deal worth $1MM. The deal does not include any incentives.
- The Braves acquired Scott Linebrink and a check for $3.5MM from the White Sox for minor league pitcher Kyle Cofield.
- Pitcher Bronson Arroyo inked a three-year, $35MM extension with the Reds this week. The contract is similar to the one the Dodgers gave Ted Lilly.
- Javier Vazquez is returning to the National League after signing a one-year, $7MM deal with the Marlins.
- The Yankees and five other clubs are interested in free agent catcher Russell Martin. The Yanks tried to deal for him before he was non-tendered by the Dodgers.
- Colorado acquired Jose Lopez from the Mariners for right-hander Chaz Roe on Thursday.
- Earlier this week Toronto acquired pitcher Carlos Villanueva from the Brewers for a player to be named later.
- The Padres agreed to terms on a one-year, $3MM deal with pitcher Aaron Harang. The San Diego native should do well in Petco.
- The Cubs and Nats are stepping up their pursuit of Brandon Webb.
- Jim Thome plans on playing in 2011.
- Hisanori Takahashi received a two-year deal worth $8MM from the Halos.
- Jason Varitek will return for a 15th season in Boston after agreeing to a one-year, $2MM deal.
- The D'Backs avoided arbitration with pitcher Zach Duke by agreeing to a one-year deal for $3.5MM with a $5.5MM mutual option for 2012.
- Minnesota avoided arbitration with Jason Repko and Pat Neshek.
- Atlanta re-signed Eric Hinske to a one-year deal with an option for 2012.
- The White Sox exercised their option on Alexei Ramirez.
- The Dodgers will welcome back Rod Barajas in 2011 after agreeing to a one-year, $3.25MM deal with the backstop.
- Pittsburgh signed a trio of interesting players to minor league deals.
- Kansas City agreed to one-year deals with Wilson Betemit and Brayan Pena.
Nats Notes: Pavano, Zimmerman, Pena
The Nationals shocked the world today, and they're not done yet..
- Even after shelling out $126MM over seven years for Jayson Werth, the Nationals are still looking to make a splash in free agency. The club is still in on pitcher Carl Pavano, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Every player on the Nats, excluding Werth and Ryan Zimmerman, is being considered in trade talks, tweets MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Josh Willingham, who has long been talked about in trade rumors, seems especially likely to be headed elsewhere now.
- The Nationals are in the mix for Carlos Pena, but his preference is to stay in Tampa Bay, tweets Ladson.
NL West Notes: Pierzynski, Reynolds, Rockies
The latest NL West rumors, aside from a certain huge trade…
- The Dodgers were extremely close to signing A.J. Pierzynski before White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf stepped in, tweets Peter Gammons of the MLB Network. The Dodgers have been in the market for a catcher ever since they declined to offer arbitration to Russell Martin.
- Earlier this week we learned that the D'Backs were looking at getting pitcher David Hernandez from the Orioles in a package for Mark Reynolds. This isn't the first time that Arizona has tried to land Hernandez, says Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com (via Twitter). Ghiroli adds that several other teams, including Tampa Bay, are high on the right-hander.
- Troy Renck of The Denver Post (via Twitter) could see the Rockies getting in on outfielder Josh Willingham. We have long heard that Willingham and the Nats would part ways over an impasse in extension talks. Now after the arrival of Jayson Werth, it now seems very likely that Willingham will be moved.
- Meanwhile, the Rockies lost out Lance Berkman because they did not want to give the veteran $8MM and an everyday job wasn't realistic in Coors Field, Renck tweets.
Athletics Notes: Beltre, Berkman, Matsui
Let's take a look at a few Athletics-related items..
- It makes sense for the A's to have withdrawn their offer to Adrian Beltre as he has repeatedly ignored the club's offers, says Buster Olney of ESPN (via Twitter).
- Before signing with the Cardinals, Lance Berkman was offered a two-year deal from Oakland, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Berkman chose St. Louis in part because of familiarity with the division, having an everyday spot in the outfield, and relative proximity to his home in Houston.
- While Beltre and Berkman are the latest big-time free agents to shrug off offers from the A's, Hideki Matsui doesn't seem to have any concerns about being in Oakland, tweets Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. The veteran enjoys hitting in the Coliseum and likes the Bay Area. Also, his agent Arn Tellem gets along very well with the A's front office, Slusser says (via Twitter).
Nationals Sign Jayson Werth
Scott Boras landed Jayson Werth a nine-figure contract with a surprise suitor this afternoon. The Nationals signed the free agent outfielder to a seven-year, $126MM deal. In case any doubt remained, this deal shows that it's a good time to be a free agent. Werth turned three productive seasons into the third biggest deal a free agent outfielder has ever signed.
Manny Ramirez ($160MM, 2000) and Alfonso Soriano ($136MM, 2006) are the only outfielders to sign bigger deals than Werth's. Interestingly, Vernon Wells and Barry Zito both signed deals worth exactly as much as the one Boras just negotiated with the Nationals.
The Phillies offered Werth, a Type A free agent, arbitration, but will not receive the Nats' first-round pick as compensation because Washington's pick is protected. Philadelphia will instead receive the Nats' second-round pick and and a compensatory sandwich-round pick.
Nationals GM Mike Rizzo appears to have a strong relationship with Boras. The two worked out deals for number one overall selections Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper in 2009 and 2010.
It was said earlier this week that the most serious suitors for the 31-year-old were the Phillies, Tigers, and Red Sox. Those three teams were all in on Werth up until the end, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. While Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that Boston got up to four years on Werth, Alex Speier of WEEI.com hears the Sox never made a formal contract offer to the outfielder.
MLB.com's Todd Zolecki first reported that the two sides were nearing agreement. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) confirmed the deal, Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter) first reported the length of the contract and Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports reported the deal's terms (via Twitter). Rosenthal later tweeted the financial breakdown. Werth's $4MM signing bonus will be payable between January 2011 and January 2012, and his annual salaries are as follows: $10MM, $13MM, $16MM, $20MM, $21MM, $21MM, and $21MM.
Greinke Willing To Go Anywhere
Royals right-hander Zack Greinke holds a partial no-trade clause and has given the club a list of fifteen teams that he will refuse to go to. Despite being one of the leading suitors for the hurler, the Blue Jays are on the no-trade list, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. However, sources say that Greinke has told Kansas City that he is willing to go anywhere.
Players frequently waive no-trade clauses, often times in exchange for a contractual benefit. Even though Greinke seems open-minded, one rival GM remains skeptical of that stance, saying that a club being on the no-trade list makes a deal less likely.
While the Blue Jays may face an obstacle in landing the ace, other potential suitors are not on the no-trade list. The Braves, Reds, and Rangers were all left off of the fifteen-team list.
Oakland Appears To Be Out Of Beltre Bidding
The A's appear to be out of the Adrian Beltre sweepstakes altogether, reports Buster Olney of ESPN (via Twitter). The third baseman has previously indicated a desire to play elsewhere and Oakland seems to be focused on other targets.
A few weeks ago, Oakland reportedly offered Beltre a five-year, $64MM deal which is equivalent to what he signed with the Mariners prior to the 2005 season. However, the third baseman's camp was reportedly seeking something similar to the five-year, $90MM deal that Torii Hunter signed with the Angels prior to the 2008 season.
With Adrian Gonzalez no longer Boston bound, it would seem that the door is once again open to Beltre's return. Had the BoSox landed Gonzalez, they would have shifted Kevin Youkilis to third, filling his position. Of course, the Red Sox and Padres could still rekindle the trade talks, leaving the third baseman without a spot to fill in Beantown.
Rockies Interested In Bengie Molina
The Rockies have expressed interest in free agent catcher Bengie Molina, tweets Troy Renck of The Denver Post. Colorado also has interest in Russell Martin though Renck says that landing the former Dodger is something of a longshot (via Twitter).
Molina's offensive numbers took a dive in 2010 when he hit .249/.297/.326 in 118 games for the Giants and Rangers. The catcher was Type A free agent, but the Rangers did not offer him arbitration.
After announcing in May that he would be retiring after the 2010 season, Molina has slowly softened his stance. The 36-year-old said that he was still considering retirement in October before finally deciding in November that he wanted to play one more year.
Rangers Interested In Crawford, Konerko
5:47pm: MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan says that the Rangers have just "kicked the tires" on Crawford, but are "far more in" on Paul Konerko. The team obviously likes both players, but they feel Konerko is the better fit given their needs.
1:49pm: The Rangers are in on free agent outfielder Carl Crawford and the interest is mutual, according to Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated (via Twitter). The Angels and the Yankees are also of particular interest to Crawford, Heyman tweets.
If Texas were to land Crawford, they would have to creatively re-align their outfield. Crawford would presumably take over in left field, likely making Josh Hamilton the full-time center fielder. Hamilton's career -6.0 UZR/150 in center field indicates that he's below average at that position.
Earlier today, ESPN's Buster Olney surmised that the BoSox will still have enough money after the Adrian Gonzalez trade to go after someone like Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth. However, Heyman believes that recent events make Werth to the Red Sox a likely scenario.