Diamondbacks Notes: Johnson, Snyder, Bailey
Some Diamondbacks tidbits courtesy of MLB.com's Steve Gilbert…
- The Diamondbacks have about $3MM left to spend and are expecting to hear back from Kelly Johnson in the next couple of days regarding their offer, according to Gilbert's MLB.com blog.
- The acquisition of Johnson could shift Tony Abreu into an infield utility role, making infielder Augie Ojeda expendable.
- While inking Johnson would put Arizona at their budget, trading Chris Snyder and the $4.75MM he is owed next season would give the D-Backs some more wiggle room. You may recall that they nearly dealt Snyder to the Blue Jays for Lyle Overbay, before Toronto's concern over his surgically-repaired back triggered them to call off the swap.
- Gilbert also reports (via Twitter) that the Diamondbacks have signed outfielder Jeff Bailey to a minor-league deal with an invite to spring training. The 31-year-old hit .262/.362/.424 with 10 HRs in 63 games for Boston's Triple-A affiliate in 2009.
Diamondbacks Sign Bob Howry
The Diamondbacks signed reliever Bob Howry to a one-year, $2.25MM deal today. The contract pays $2MM in 2010 and has a $3MM club option for 2011 with a $250K buyout. Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic first reported the agreement on Saturday, while MLB.com's Steve Gilbert added contract details today.
Howry, 36, posted a 3.39 ERA, 6.5 K/9, and 3.3 BB/9 in 63.6 innings for the Giants in 2009. We first heard the D'Backs were interested in the Arizona native a few weeks back after LaTroy Hawkins was scooped up by the Brewers. Howry is the D'Backs' second bullpen addition of the winter, as they acquired Aaron Heilman from the Cubs in November.
Tim Dierkes contributed to this post.
Odds & Ends: Uggla, Marlins, Pirates
Let's check out some links on this Sunday evening…
- In his column this morning, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wrote that there is "no doubt" the Marlins are planning another salary dump with Dan Uggla at the center of it. Cafardo adds that the club, which receives a ton in revenue-sharing and central-fund money, is looking to keep its profit margin high.
- Meanwhile, the Marlins are eager to stay just below $40MM in payroll, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Considering their $36.8MM payroll entering last season and the mass of players owed raises in arbitration, moving Uggla would likely put them where they want to be.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette estimates that the Pirates' offer to Matt Capps was about $500K shy of what he received from the Nationals. With Washington, Capps will earn a base salary of $3.5MM with the chance to make an additional $425K in performance bonuses.
Week In Review: 12/20/09 – 12/26/09
Let's take a look back at the biggest stories of the week..
- The Yankees brought Javier Vazquez back to the Bronx by sending Melky Cabrera, two prospects, and some cash to Atlanta. Vazquez has pitched 198 innings or more every season this decade while striking out at least 150 batters each season. The Yanks also received Boone Logan in the deal.
- Later on, the Braves inked Troy Glaus to a one-year deal worth $2MM plus incentives.
- Toronto acquired Brandon Morrow in exchange for reliever Brandon League and minor league outfielder Johermyn Chavez. Morrow has a career ERA of 3.96 over 197.6 innings.
- Washington signed Jason Marquis, one of the top starters remaining on the market, to a two-year, $15MM contract. Marquis ate 216 innings in 2009 while posting a 4.04 ERA.
- Apparently that didn't eat up the Nats' entire weekly allowance. After narrowing his options down to the Nationals and Cubs, free agent reliever Matt Capps signed with the former on a one-year deal worth a minimum of $3.5MM. The 26-year-old reportedly picked Washington because he'll have the opportunity to close.
- The Mets took a chance on Kelvim Escobar, signing him to a one-year deal with a base of $1.25MM. With incentives, the 33-year-old could earn an additional $3.125MM. Though he has experience as both a starter and reliever, GM Omar Minaya says that Escobar will be in the bullpen.
- Word that the Red Sox were thinking about making room for Jason Bay's return was swiftly characterized as a "long shot." Meanwhile, Bay's lack of dialogue with the Mets is leading some to question his desire to play in Queens.
- As first reported by MLBTR, Coco Crisp agreed to a one-year deal with Oakland. The deal will pay him $5.25MM in 2010 with a $5.75MM club option for 2011.
- The Angels landed free agent reliever Fernando Rodney on a two-year deal worth $11MM. Rodney is coming off a so-so year in which he posted a 4.40 ERA with 7.3 K/9.
- Oakland brought back Justin Duchscherer on a one-year deal with a modest base of $2MM. Duchscherer can earn more through incentives linked to innings pitched and games started.
- The Giants offered Mark DeRosa a two-year deal worth $12MM. While he has yet to take the offer, he is reportedly leaning towards accepting it.
- Free agent lefty Darren Oliver signed with the Rangers on a one-year, $3.5MM deal. The contract includes a vesting option for 2011.
- "Everyday" Eddie Guardado signed a minor-league deal with the Nationals. The 39-year-old lefty considered retiring after his 2009 stint in Texas.
- The Pirates signed lefty Javier Lopez to a one-year deal worth at least $775K.
- It was reported earlier in the week that the Phillies agreed to terms with a mystery reliever. No word on who it is yet. Could it be Danys Baez? Mike MacDougal? Find out, on the next action packed episode of MLBTradeRumors.
Odds & Ends: Indians, Maya, Sadowski
Saturday night linkage..
- In his latest mailbag, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer is asked about the Tribe's inactivity this winter. Hoynes says that there are two reasons for this. First, the team is rebuilding. Secondly, ownership has little, if any, money to spend on free agents. Hoynes says to look for the Indians to do something in January and February after the first and second-tier free agents have signed.
- Cuban pitcher Yuniesky Maya put himself on display in the Dominican Republic last week. Jorge Arangure of ESPN spoke to a scout in attendance who said the 28-year-old threw in the range of 88-92 MPH while showcasing a fastball, two-seamer, slider, curveball, and changeup. According to a report from Globedia.com, passed along by Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog, the Mets and White Sox are the frontrunners to sign him. Arangure notes that Deinys Suarez, who was also on display, has not generated as much interest as Maya.
- Former Giants pitcher Ryan Sadowski has signed a deal to pitch for Korea's Lotte Giants in 2010, according to a report from The Korea Herald passed along by Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. Sadowski signed with Houston earlier this offseason, so it appears that the Astros have let the 27-year-old out of his contract.
Atlanta Interested In Dan Uggla?
According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the Braves have "mild" interest in Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla, who they would place in left field. However, landing the 29-year-old might prove to be too costly for Braves GM Frank Wren.
The Palm Beach Post's Joe Capozzi writes that the Marlins would have to be "blown away" by a proposal to surrender Uggla to a division rival. Furthermore, Uggla's stated desire to remain at second base would throw a wrench in Wren's plans. Capozzi stresses that even though the Marlins are willing to open the season with Uggla if they can't find the right deal, they are working hard to move him.
Moving Uggla would leave Florida with a void at his position, assuming they don't receive a second baseman in return. Capozzi says that the recent signing of infielder Danny Richar to a minor-league deal would give Florida depth at the position. He also mentioned Emilio Bonifacio as a candidate, someone who MLB.com's Joe Frisaro believes would be given a shot to be the everyday solution, along with Chris Coghlan.
While the Marlins do have options available to fill the gap, none of those options can come close to producing at the same level as the two-time All-Star.
Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Beltre, Morrow
Some Saturday afternoon links..
- The Dodgers should have offered salary arbitration to Randy Wolf and Orlando Hudsonto allow themselves the opportunity to receive draft picks, writes Jon Weisman of the Los Angeles Times. Weisman argues that the worst case scenario of being stuck with one or both players at a slightly inflated price for one season wouldn't have been so bad. It's hard to dispute this point as we have yet to see the Dodgers do much of anything this winter.
- Not only are the Athletics talking to free agent Adrian Beltre, they may be the only serious bidder at the moment, according to an item on ESPN's MLB rumor page. The piece also notes that if Beltre's asking price - believed to be north of $10MM per season – drops into Oakland's price range, the Giants, Cardinals, and Tigers could get in the mix.
- Seattle's poor decisions stunted the development of Brandon Morrow, writes Ryan Divish of The News Tribune. While he never had the same ceiling as Tim Lincecum, who was drafted five spots later in the 2006 draft, things could have worked out differently for Morrow if he were given adequate time to develop in the minors.
- Shi Davidi of the Associated Presspraises new Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos and his plan to rebuild the franchise. Davidi writes that Anthopoulos has the support of ownership in a way that J.P. Ricciardi never did.
- A few free agents left on the market might want to consider lowering their asking price, writes Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Adam LaRoche seeking $30MM over three years might be the most wishful of the bunch.
Olney on Bay, Beltre, Holliday
ESPN.com's Buster Olney believes the Yankees and Red Sox when they say that they have budget lines that they are not currently willing to cross. When the trade deadline rolls around, however, it will likely be a different story. Olney brings us his take on the teams who are still willing to spend this winter…
- Since Jason Bay continues to sit on their offer, the Mets may soon give up on him and move on to less expensive free agents. Olney suggests that they ignore fans who are focused on big names and instead spend their money on players who can be had for short-term deals, such as Randy Winn and Orlando Hudson. The Mets "seem to have" something in the range of $15MM to $22MM in payroll flexibility.
- The Mets are shopping for a catcher, left fielder, and starting pitcher. Joel Pineiro tops their list of desired starters.
- Olney characterized the A's consideration of Adrian Beltre as "serious."
- As the Cardinals continue to wait on Matt Holliday's answer, Olney wonders out loud if the club might look into signing Bay as a backup plan.
- Rival executives sense that the M's have some money left to spend, but not a great deal. Seattle needs either a first baseman or second baseman plus help for the back end of their rotation.
- Because of the mass of arbitration-eligible players on their roster, the Angels have limited payroll flexibility. This means that they could pursue Pineiro if they chose to, but are unlikely to factor into the bidding for Bay or Holliday.
Odds & Ends: Yankees, Beltre, Carroll
Merry Christmas everyone! It's time to see what news has been left for us under the tree. I hope there's a vortex football in there for me as well…
- Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports took a look at the offseason thus far in the National League. For his portion on the Cubs, Ringolsby writes that they got the better end of the Milton Bradley-for-Carlos Silva swap.
- Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball counted up the money spent by every team in baseball from 1999-2009, using the end of year salary totals. Over this stretch, the Yankees have spent 44% more than the number two top spender, the Red Sox.
- Sam Borden of the LoHud Yankees Blog takes a look at the remaining free agents who could fill the Yankees' vacancy in left field. Three names that jump out to him: Jonny Gomes, Xavier Nady, and Reed Johnson. Although Gomes had a strong '09 offensively (.879 OPS), his career defensive metrics leave much to be desired. Nady, of course, is only an attractive option if healthy.
- The A's are talking with free agent Adrian Beltre, according to the headline of a post by Mychael Urban of Comcast SportsNet. We first heard that Oakland was interested a week ago, but "only in an Oakland economy size financial package." Urban's piece says that Beltre is reportedly seeking $10-15MM per season.
- Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times writes that Jamey Carroll's contract with the Dodgers does not include the "Ramirez Provision", which is a clause that mandates a donation to the team's charity. While owner Frank McCourt said that the clause would be standard for all contracts after Manny Ramirez signed his new deal, a grievance filed by the player's union may have caused the Dodgers to ease up on the requirement.
- The Chiba Lotte Mariners will be sending a representative to California to negotiate with/for Dodgers pitcher Eric Stults, according to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker who passes along the report from Spinochi. The Japanese club has been interested in Stults for a couple of months and have already been rebuffed by the Dodgers once already.
Discussion: Johnny Damon and Jason Bay
While its difficult to criticize negotations from the outside, two major free agents appear to have negotiated their way out of ideal situations this year.
In 2009, Johnny Damon closed out his four-year, $52MM contract in style, hitting .282/.365/.489 with 24 HRs. This offseason it was clear that Damon wanted to re-up with the Yankees, but of course, at the right price. Early in the offseason, reports suggested that Boras was seeking a three-year contract at roughly the same rate ($13MM/year) as his last deal.
After the Bombers signed Nick Johnson to take his place, word got out that Damon would have settled for $20MM over two years. While the Yanks' proposal of $14MM still wasn't quite close enough, it is possible that the two sides could have reached an accord. The Giants could be a suitor, as they were in on the Johnson chase, but it's doubtful that they would want to put him in the outfield.
Meanwhile, after rejecting a four-year, $60MM offer from Boston in July, Jason Bay appears to be having some trouble finding a new home.
The signing of Mike Cameron likely means that the Red Sox will be moving on, leaving the Mets as the top suitor. While some suggest that Omar Minaya & Co. will be willing to fork over the five-year pact that agent Joe Urbon has been asking for, it has been said that he does not want to play in Queens.
Regardless of what kind of contract each player fetches, it is difficult to imagine either player getting the money they wanted from their respective teams.