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Giants Talking With Ervin Santana

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The Giants are talking to Ervin Santana’s reps today at the winter meetings, according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (via Twitter).

The Giants were said to have Santana on their list as a fallback option if they could not land Jon Lester.  Now that Lester has gone to the Cubs, the Giants are following through on their pursuit of Santana, who turns 32 on Friday.  SF will also reportedly look at free agents Max Scherzer and James Shields and Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels as alternatives.

Santana, 31, enjoyed a solid season for Atlanta in which he posted a 3.95 ERA with 8.2 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 42.7 percent ground-ball rate in 196 innings of work. While his ERA rose, metrics such as FIP (3.39) and xFIP (3.47) felt Santana had his best season since 2008.

Free Agent Rumors: Furcal, Grilli, Young, Mets

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Free agent infielder Rafael Furcal could be a fit for the Royals on a minor league deal thanks to his connection with GM Dayton Moore, according to Tim Dierkes of MLBTR (via Twitter).  Here are some of the latest free agency rumors out of San Diego..

  • Jason Grilli has multiple offers from teams in major markets but the Tigers are not one of them, his agent tells Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (on Twitter).
  • The Rangers have interest in Eric Young Jr., but they may have already been outbid, according to Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News.
  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson says he is considering bidding in the posting of Jung-ho Kang, but he’s unresolved as to whether he will, tweets Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
  • The Orioles could be a landing spot for former Rangers pitcher Alexi Ogando, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com (via Twitter).
  • After signing Jon Lester, the Cubs are now pursuing outfielder Jonny Gomes in an apparent effort to get the band back together, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter).
  • Catcher David Ross tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (via Twitter) that he’s not close on a deal with any club even though he has interest from the Red Sox, Cubs, Braves, D’Backs, and Padres.

Pirates Interested In Antonio Bastardo

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The market for Phillies reliever Antonio Bastardo is heating up, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (via Twitter).  A source tells Salisbury that the Pirates are among the teams pursuing him.

Late last night, CSNNE.com’s Sean McAdam reported that the Red Sox explored a deal with the Phillies that would have swapped Bastardo for prospect Sean Coyle.  Bastardo has a 3.36 ERA, 2.61 K/BB rate and an 11.6 K/9 in 216 2/3 IP out of the Philadelphia bullpen over the last four seasons. He’s been almost as equally effective against right-handed batters (holding them to a career .664 OPS) as he has against left-handed batters (career .621 OPS), though control has been an issue, as evidenced by his career 4.3 BB/9.

Starter Rumors: Red Sox Yet To Engage On Hamels, Giants May Be In

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With Jon Lester off the market, we should start to see some dominoes fall.  Here are the latest pitching rumors from around baseball.

  • Talks between the Tigers and Red Sox have yet to gain any traction, tweets Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
  • The Red Sox have yet to engage the Phillies on Hamels, Stark reports (Twitter links). It is early, of course, though perhaps it would have been expected that Boston would immediate move to that option. The team is, however, working on several other deals including a previously-rumored swap involving Yoenis Cespedes and Rick Porcello.

Earlier Updates

  • After missing on Lester, the Giants have interest in dealing for Hamels, sources tell Jayson Stark of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Earlier rumors that San Francisco is casting a wide net appear to have been well-founded, as the team has been reported to have at least some involvement in a wide variety of possible additions.
  • The Twins have interest in Kyle Kendrick and have already had a meeting in San Diego, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets.
  • Dillon Gee is the most likely Mets pitcher to go in trade, followed by Jon Niese and Bartolo Colon, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).  The Rangers aren’t enamored with the Mets’ pitching but the Royals and Twins have been mentioned as possibilities.
  • The Red Sox aren’t currently close on acquiring Cole Hamels from the Phillies, sources tell Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter).  They could now turn their attention to Diamondbacks pitcher Wade Miley instead and one of five other pitchers that they have their eyes on.  James Shields could also be a free agent option for Boston.
  • Two unnamed owners traveled to the winter meetings to meet with Max Scherzer’s agent Scott Boras, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.  Scherzer’s market should develop after Lester signed for $155MM over six years, but he’s aiming much higher this winter.  The losers in the Lester derby – the Giants, Red Sox, and Dodgers – could all be candidates for Scherzer with the Giants being the one team in the group certain to take a serious look.

NL West Rumors: Morse, Rosario, Rockies, Padres

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The latest from the NL West..

Mookie Betts Moves To Relativity Sports

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Red Sox second baseman/outfielder Mookie Betts has joined Relativity Sports, according to Alex Speier of WEEI (via Twitter).  Betts was previously a client of the Wasserman Group.

Betts, 22, won’t be arbitration eligible until after the 2017 season and isn’t slated to hit the open market until the 2020 season concludes.  While there was some speculation that Betts could be put on the block this offseason, the Red Sox appear to have zero intention of moving the promising youngster.  Just last week, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com wrote that Boston is open to trading any position player, with the exception of Betts and a few others.

To keep up with everyone’s representation, check out MLBTR’s Agency Database.  As the database shows, Relativity also represents a number of other notable Red Sox, including David Ortiz, Koji Uehara, Will Middlebrooks, Clay Buchholz, Matt Barnes, and Daniel Nava.

NL Central Rumors: Pirates, Lynn, Neshek, Reynolds

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The Pirates seem willing to spend on relievers, as Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes.  “We have typically stayed away from large dollars in the bullpen,” Huntington said. “That said, we are evolving as a organization. We’ve got a little more to spend now. For the right guy, we can go a little bit beyond our comfort zone.”  More out of the NL Central..

  • There’s mutual interest between the Cardinals and Lance Lynn in discussing an extension this winter, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  Yesterday, GM John Mozeliak inferred that he had a chat with someone from Excel Sports Management about Lynn.
  • Pat Neshek signed with the Astros earlier today, but he nearly joined the Pirates, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com (via Twitter).  The reliever was about to join the Bucs, but Houston upped their offer at the last second.  Neshek had eight two-year offers in front of him.
  • The Cardinals are not only interested in Rickie Weeks, they’re also looking at another ex-Brewer in Mark Reynolds, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter).  Reynolds, 31, hit .196/.287/.394 with 22 homers last season.
  • The Cardinals aren’t necessarily looking for a platoon partner to pair with Matt Adams, writes Goold.  “I believe we saw Matt Adams put together some fantastic at-bats against lefties in big situations,” manager Mike Matheny said Tuesday. “We can’t get too far away from the fact that this kid is still not really long into his career. Lumping him into this idea that he can’t hit lefthanded pitching isn’t really fair right now.”

NL East Rumors: Howard, Hamels, Breslow, Mets

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Ryan Howard will gain full no-trade rights as a 10-and-5 player in May, and that’s no small matter for the Phillies, writes Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com.  The Phillies are willing to eat a significant portion of the $60MM that remains on Howard’s contract to get a deal done, but once his 20-team no-trade list turns into a full no-trade provision, it could create another roadblock for them.  More from the NL East..

  • A major league source told Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com (on Twitter) that the Phillies haven’t been active in trying to move Cole Hamels at the winter meetings.
  • Phillies skipper Ryne Sandberg said the return for Hamels “would need to have a wow factor” for the Phillies to trade him to the Red Sox, tweets Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald.  Sandberg added that in a Hamels deal he would want pieces that could help in 2015, tweets Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
  • The Mets have remained in contact with free agent reliever Craig Breslow, according to Jon Paul Morosi (Twitter link) and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  However, Andy Martino of the Daily News (on Twitter) gets the impression that the Mets aren’t currently in serious pursuit of him.
  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson has said that any shortstop upgrade would be a modest one, so we shouldn’t expect to see the likes of Troy Tulowitzki, Starlin Castro, or Elvis Andrus in Queens, tweets Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
  • Alderson says there are two to three options on the shortstop trade market at present, according to Matt Ehalt of The Bergen Record (via Twitter).  The Mets are looking at a mix of youngsters and veterans.
  • Ian Levin has been named as the new farm director of the Mets, according to Rubin (on Twitter).  He previously headed the analytics department, which will now be run by T.J. Barra.

Angels Acquire Drew Butera From Dodgers

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2:22pm: The Dodgers announced that they will receive a player to be named later or cash considerations for the catcher.

2:14pm: The Angels have acquired Drew Butera from the Dodgers, according to Chris Cotillo of SB Nation (via Twitter).  Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (via Twitter) first reported that the Halos were close to acquiring Butera.

Halos GM Jerry Dipoto said that he was on the verge of landing a backup catcher just minutes ago (via Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com on Twitter) and it turned out to be Butera.  The 31-year-old isn’t much of a hitter – he boasts a career .183/.239/.268 slash line across parts of five big league seasons – but he’s known for solid defensive play.  That reputation behind the plate was enough for him to get a combined 733 plate appearances between the Twins and Dodgers.

The Dodgers designated Butera for assignment last week after claiming Ryan Lavarnway off waivers.

Central Rumors: Cabrera, Royals, Pirates, Cards

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The Royals have interest in free agent Asdrubal Cabrera, according to MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes (via Twitter).  Earlier today, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported that the Royals have made Omar Infante available, so they could be viewing Cabrera as a potential upgrade. More from the Central divisions..

  • With Francisco Liriano back in the fold, the Pirates are seeking relief help and have some money to spend, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Twitter).  The Bucs, he adds, are fans of Pat Neshek.
  • Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter) adds that the Pirates are checking the trade market for left-handed relief options.  As it stands, Tony Watson is their only proven lefty reliever after the Justin Wilson deal.
  • The Cardinals’ primary focus is on finding a right-handed bat off the bench, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. St. Louis will turn their attention to finding a bargain fifth starter/long man type in January as protection for Carlos Martinez.
  • Cardinals GM John Mozeliak is making no secret of the fact that he’s going to wait until the New Year to find pitching, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I would be looking for someone who adds depth to what we already have,” Mozeliak said. “I’m not saying I’m searching for that. That might be the time if we might want to bring in an extra arm or two that we might do it. The way I like to think about it is I don’t know what it looks like. Basically, it’s what’s left.“
  • In a chat with reporters yesterday, Tigers General Manager Dave Dombrowski stressed the importance of right-handers Joakim Soria and Bruce Rondon, indicating that he’s not about to make a major bullpen move, writes Chris Iott of MLive.com.

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