Mauer Talks Still Progressing
Talks between Joe Mauer and the Twins are not stalled despite an absence of news on the topic, a source with knowledge of the discussions told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Opening Day, which is the likely deadline for Mauer, is still three weeks away.
In November, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports wrote that Mauer would shut down talks at the end of Spring Training. However, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's La Velle E. Neal III, no deadline has been set.
Rosenthal writes that Mauer is still expected to sign an extension of at least seven years for $20MM per season.
Discussion: Are The Padres Tipping Their Hand?
It's no secret that the Padres are thinking about moving Adrian Gonzalez in the near future. Gonzalez, or, the "Human Trade Rumor" as Scott Miller of CBSSports.com refers to him, is owed just $4.75MM in 2010 and $5.5MM on a club option for 2011. Yet, it appears that the Padres have already given up on keeping him for the long-haul.
John Boggs, the agent for Gonzalez, told team CEO Jeff Moorad and GM Jed Hoyer that his client will seek a contract similar to the $180MM deal Mark Teixeira signed with the Yankees last offseason. That course of action brought discussion to a halt.
While the Padres appear to have up to a dozen suitors for Gonzalez's services, they may not be keeping their cards close to the chest. In his aforementioned piece, Miller writes that Gonzalez – inarguably San Diego's biggest star – will not be one of the six players featured in promotional nights this summer. Neither will closer Heath Bell, who has also been rumored to be on the trading block.
This comes just two months after Hoyer assured a reporter that the club was not looking to move the 27-year-old. Bobbleheads and replica jerseys aside, one has to wonder if the Padres' transparency in recent weeks might hurt them in the long run. Are the Padres tipping their hand or is it already obvious to everyone in baseball that the Friars have to consider moving their star first baseman?
Odds & Ends: Belliard, Nats, Looper, Gathright
Friday night linkage..
- Dodgers second baseman Ronnie Belliard has still yet to make weight, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. Upon re-signing him to a one year deal, the club asked that the veteran weigh no more than 209 pounds by the start of Spring Training.
- In his latest mailbag, MLB.com's Bill Ladson writes that the Nationals are trying to trade for a top-of-the-rotation starter.
- El Lefty Malo implores the Giants to ink free agent pitcher Braden Looper as Madison Bumgarner continues to struggle in Spring Training. You can read up on Looper and the other remaining starters in Ben's post from earlier today.
- With a good showing this spring, Joey Gathright has a solid chance of making the Blue Jays' roster, says Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. The soon-to-be 29-year-old has hit .263./.327/.303 for his career with a UZR/150 of 10.3 in the outfield.
Pirates Notes: Vazquez, Tabata, Alvarez
Let's check out some Pirates-related tidbits courtesy of MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch..
- With Ramon Vazquez on the trading block, Langosch stresses that any talk of him being Texas-bound is merely conjecture at this point. Furthermore, if they do move him, they are unlikely to get much back and may have to eat some of his $2MM salary. However, Pittsburgh might be willing to move the 33-year-old for next to nothing.
- One reader asks if the Pirates are considering locking up their young prospects, like Milwaukee did with Ryan Braun or like Tampa Bay did with Evan Longoria. Langosch says that the Pirates will wait until players like Jose Tabata, Brad Lincoln, and Pedro Alvarez establish themselves in the majors to open up discussions.
- Speaking of Alvarez, Langosch expects the Pirates to hold off on bringing him up to the big leagues. Pittsburgh delayed Andrew McCutchen's promotion last season in order to give him more seasoning in the minors and, in all likelihood, to extend his time under team control.
Dodgers Don’t Plan To Trade For Catcher
The Dodgers do not plan to bring in a catcher after losing Russell Martin for four to six weeks with a pulled groin, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Instead, they will rely on A.J. Ellis to fill the void, with Brad Ausmus serving as the understudy. Ken Gurnick of MLB.com writes that Torre has faith in the rookie.
The post notes that Paul Bako is likely the top remaining free agent catcher. The 37-year-old hit .224/.308/.336 in 130 plate appearances for the Phillies last season. Another notable catcher without a job is Michael Barrett, though he missed the majority of 2009 due to injury.
Los Angeles dealt one of the game's top catching prospects, Carlos Santana, in the Casey Blake deal in 2008. The 23-year-old Santana will likely make his major league debut this season.
No Multi-Year Talks For Sandoval
The Giants are not currently looking to give Pablo Sandoval a multi-year contract, writes Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. Team official Bobby Evans told Schulman that the club is negotiating a one-year deal with the 23-year-old, as is their custom for players with less than two years of major league service time. Sandoval has just over one year of service time to his credit.
Finding precedent for a player like Sandoval could prove to be difficult. This past season Kung Fu Panda hit .330/.387/.556 with 25 HRs in 633 plate appearances. Last spring, the Giants and Tim Lincecum agreed to a $650K deal, though Tiny Tim had a bit more service time under his belt than Sandoval.
Schulman suggests Prince Fielder and Ryan Howard as comparisons, as they also had brilliant campaigns in their first full seasons. Fielder was renewed for $415K while Howard was given $900K, a record salary for a one-plus player.
Odds & Ends: Wedge, Nats, Marlins, Webb, Tejada
Some links for Saturday..
- Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer hears that Eric Wedge is taking this year off by choice. The former Indians skipper, who is still under contract with the club for one more year, was connected to the Mets' bench coach job for a while.
- The strong play of Nats rookie shortstop Ian Desmond could bump Cristian Guzman from the starting lineup, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com. However, it will be difficult for Washington will find a taker for Guzman's $8MM salary.
- Newly acquired Dodger Garret Anderson knows that he's fighting for a very limited role with club, writes MLB.com's Ken Gurnick. Anderson played in 135 games for the Braves last season, hitting .268/.303/.401 with 13 HRs.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that Giants pitcher Byung-Hyun Kim has the right to opt out of his contract on March 15th if he doesn't think he'll make the 25-man roster. The 31-year-old – who last pitched in the majors in 2007 – signed a minor league deal with San Francisco in February.
- Bobby Valentine told Marlins beat reporters that he was never spoke with club owner Jeffrey Loria about managing the team, writes Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. Bobby V said the speculation was unfair to skipper Fredi Gonzalez, who led guided Florida to 87 wins and a second-place finish in the NL East.
- Arizona GM Josh Byrnes said that the club wants to look at internal candidates first if Brandon Webb is unable to start the regular season, tweets MLB.com's Steve Gilbert. Byrnes added that the club, as always, will keep an eye on the waiver wire as Spring Training winds down (also via Twitter).
- Despite the impressive play of Josh Bell, Miguel Tejada will be the Orioles' starting third baseman barring a "dramatic" event, writes Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun. The O's signed Tejada to a one-year, $6MM deal in late January.
- Joe Posnanski takes a look at the history of the Rule 5 draft. Fun Fact: The Rule 5 draft goes back more than 100 years.
State Of The Dodgers
Dodgers owner Frank McCourt addressed reporters today and said that GM Ned Colletti will have the same financial flexibility at the trade deadline as he did last year, writes Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times (via Twitter).
Before the trade deadline last season, the Dodgers acquired George Sherill from the Orioles for Josh Bell and right-hander Steve Johnson. Colletti also managed to bring Jim Thome, Ronnie Belliard, and Jon Garland aboard prior to the August 31st waiver deadline. While those pickups didn't require Los Angeles to break the bank, Dodgers fans should be relieved to know that they will have room to make mid-season moves.
Meanwhile, after listening to McCourt speak, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter) doesn't get the sense that the club is close to adding another starting pitcher.
Odds & Ends: Ramirez, Sheets, Cardinals, Reds
Sunday night linkage..
- Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner tweets that it'll be interesting to see which sabermetric-friendly team will ink recently-DFA'd pitcher Edwar Ramirez. Cameron's bet is on Tampa Bay.
- Jason Churchill of ESPN (Insider subscription required) explains why second basemen aren't often selected in the first round of the amateur draft. He writes that the best athletes usually play center field and shortstop in high school and college. The second basemen typically come from the shortstops who cannot keep up with the position defensively.
- Ben Sheets threw live batting practice for the first time with the A's and impressed the coaching staff with his velocity, according to the Associated Press. Sheets inked a one-year deal with Oakland worth $10MM plus performance bonuses in late January.
- Felipe Lopez's arrival may mean less at-bats for Julio Lugo, writes Matthew Leach of MLB.com. Lugo sounds less-than-thrilled about a reduced role but said that his agents have not approached the Cards about a move.
- Dusty Baker isn't worried about his contract situation, writes Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. The Reds skipper is entering the final season of a three-year pact.
- Todd Zolecki of MLB.com writes that despite trading away several highly-rated prospects in the last 19 months, the Phillies still have talent in their farm system.
Odds & Ends: Tigers, White Sox, Lannan, Looper
Monday night linkage..
- The Tigers went from sellers to buyers this offseason, writes MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- Hank Blalock's former teammates are surprised to see him still without a job, writes T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. Earlier today we heard that the Rays and Marlins are thought to have interest in the 29-year-old.
- Pitcher Cha Seung Baek tried out for the Mariners today, tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com. Baek last pitched in the majors in 2008 and was released by San Diego in October of 2009.
- Chuck Garfien of CSNChicago.com spoke to White Sox GM Ken Williams, who said that he nearly pulled off a deal that would have possibly given the club the best rotation in the history of the game. Williams wouldn't name names, but Garfien believes that he was referring to Roy Halladay.
- Nats pitcher John Lannan has decided to part ways with agent Andrew Mongelluzzi and latch on with Brodie Van Wagenen of Creative Artists Agency, according to Bill Ladson of MLB.com. Lannan will be arbitration-eligible after the 2010 season and become a free agent after the 2013 campaign.
- While the Dodgers remain in contact with Braden Looper's representation, the chances for a deal are slim as they cannot offer him a spot in the rotation or the salary he wants, writes MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.