Braves Avoid Arb With Kris Medlen, Chris Johnson
The Braves and Kris Medlen have successfully avoided arbitration, tweets David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Medlen gets $5.8MM, according to O'Brien (on Twitter). O'Brien also reports that the Braves have avoided arb with third baseman Chris Johnson by agreeing to a $4.75MM contract (Twitter link).
The 28-year-old Medlen had a breakout year in 2011 and a solid, 3.11 ERA campaign last year in his first full season as a starter. He was projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $5.9MM, and came quite close to matching that mark. Medlen will go through arbitration one more time before qualifying for free agency.
Johnson, 29, was one of the biggest surprises in baseball last year after coming to Atlanta in the Justin Upton trade. He posted a .321/.358/.457 mark in 547 plate appearances, earning a projection of a $4.2MM payday from Swartz. Johnson qualified as a Super Two last year, boosting his numbers this year. He will not be eligible for free agency until 2017.
Reds, Mike Leake Avoid Arbtration
The Reds and Mike Leake have avoided arbitration, according to the Beverly Hills Sports Council (via Twitter). He'll get $5.925MM plus incentives, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter links).
Leake, a former No. 8 overall draft pick, was in his second year of arbitration eligibility. The Arizona State product is controllable through the 2015 season and should join a rotation that will also include Homer Bailey, Johnny Cueto, Mat Latos and Tony Cingrani in 2014. The Reds still have unsettled arb cases with Bailey and closer Aroldis Chapman, as MLBTR's Arb Tracker shows.
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz nailed his projection on Leake, pegging him for a $5.9MM salary this offseason.
Tigers Avoid Arbitration With Porcello, Jackson
The Tigers and Rick Porcello have avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $8.5MM deal, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter). They've also agreed to a $6MM deal for 2014 with Austin Jackson, Sherman tweets.
Porcello, 25, was arb-eligible for the third time this offseason as a Super Two player. The Excel Sports client is controllable through the 2015 campaign and was projected to earn $7.7MM, per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. Porcello relies heavily on his high ground-ball rate and could see an uptick in performance with a new-look — and presumably, defensively superior — infield behind him in 2014.
Jackson, 26, is also controllable through the 2015 campaign, though he is not a Super Two player. A Scott Boras client, Jackson had been projected by Swartz to earn $5.3MM.
Japanese Posting Fee To Be Split Into Four Payments
THURSDAY: The posting fee will actually be split into four payments over 18 months, Major League sources tell Scout.com's Kiley McDaniel. According to McDaniel, the payment schedule breaks down as follows:
- 50 percent of posting fee due within 14 days of the submission of the posted player's contract (for the Rakuten Golden Eagles, that would mean $10MM on Feb. 7).
- 17 percent of the posting fee due within six months of the submission of the posted player's contract ($3.4MM for the Golden Eagles on July 24).
- 17 percent of the posting fee due within 12 months of the submission of the posted player's contract ($3.4MM for the Golden Eagles on Jan. 24, 2015).
- 16 percent of the posting fee due within 18 months of the submission of the posted player's contract ($3.2MM for the Golden Eagles on July 24, 2015).
TUESDAY: Under the new system, the maximum $20MM posting fee for Japanese players calls for teams to pay in two installments, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The NPB club posting their player will get $13MM in year one and $7MM in year two.
The idea behind that wrinkle, Rosenthal tweets, is to give more clubs a realistic opportunity to bid on a top flight talent. That could have an impact on this year's chase for Masahiro Tanaka. There are likely many teams that are believed to have serious interest in Tanaka but are waffling on the potential price tag. With the $20MM posting fee split up over two years, the cost could be a little bit easier to swallow.
Quick Hits: Volquez, Tanaka, D’Backs
The Major League Baseball Players Association announced that Kevin McGuiness, a lawyer who has spent a decade heading a lobbying firm in Washington, D.C., has been hired as COO under new union head Tony Clark. The 61-year-old will fill a post that had been vacant since Gene Orza retired in March 2011. McGuiness will start work with the union next month. Tonight’s look around baseball..
- The Pirates signed starting pitcher Edinson Volquez as a free agent this offseason, but that wasn’t the first time they had pursued him, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes. “When San Diego put me on waivers (last year), the Pirates called right away,” says Volquez. “This winter, they called again. I thought, ‘They must really want me, so let’s do it.'” Volquez posted a 5.71 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 with the Padres and Dodgers last year, but the Pirates have had success with down-on-their-luck pitchers like Francisco Liriano in the recent past. “What I hear about the Pirates pitching coaches and the pitching staff is pretty good,” Volquez says. “So, why not take a chance to come here and maybe get better?“
- Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers has made no secret of his desire to make a play for Masahiro Tanaka and he has a strategy in place to make it happen, writes MLB.com’s Steve GIlbert.
- Tanaka flew to the U.S. today and is expected to start meeting with MLB clubs in the coming days, according to a report from Nikkan Sports.
- While some see the Blue Jays’ starting rotation as a weakness, others view it as an opportunity, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. Pitching prospects Sean Nolin and Marcus Stroman both say they aim to make the rotation out of spring training. Of course, there will be less seats at the table if Toronto goes out and finds more arms via trade or free agency.
Charlie Wilmoth and Aaron Steen contributed to this post.
This Date In Transactions History: January 8th
On this date in 2011, the Cubs traded minor leaguer Hak-Ju Lee, Chris Archer, Robinson Chirinos, Sam Fuld ,and Brandon Guyer to the Rays for Matt Garza, Fernando Perez and Zac Rosscup. Garza would go on to post a 3.45 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 across two years and change (60 starts) for the Cubs. After finishing the 2013 season with the Rangers, Garza now finds himself as one of the top starting pitchers available on the open market. Here's a look at other significant moves that have gone down on 1/8..
- In 2010, the Astros signed Brett Myers for one-year and $5.1MM guaranteed. He rewarded them with a 3.14 ERA in 223 2/3 innings, so they rewarded him with two-year, $21MM extension.
- That same day, the Royals inked Scott Podsednik to a one-year, $1.75MM contract. He hit .310/.353/.400 with 29 steals in Kansas City before being traded to the Dodgers for a pair of minor leaguers before the deadline.
- Long-time Padre Trevor Hoffman agreed to a one-year, $6MM contract with the Brewers in 2009. He was fantastic in 2009, pitching to a 1.83 ERA with 37 saves in 54 innings, though 2010 didn't go so well and wound up being his final season.
- The Angels finalized their one-year, $6MM contract with Shea Hillenbrand on this date back in 2007. Not only did he hit .254/.275/.325 in 204 plate appearances for the Halos, but he also made some disparaging remarks about the team. He was cut that June.
- In 2005, the Indians signed Kevin Millwood to a one-year, $7MM contract. He led the league with a 2.86 ERA in 192 innings, but only had nine wins to show for it.
- The Tigers acquired Carlos Guillen from the Mariners on this day in 2004, sending Ramon Santiago and a minor leaguer to Seattle. Guillen has hit .299/.369/.480 in seven seasons with Detroit, while Santiago was released (only to re-sign with the Tigers) a year later.
- A three-team trade was completed back in 2001. The A's acquired Johnny Damon, Mark Ellis, and Cory Lidle, while the Royals acquired Angel Berroa, Roberto Hernandez, and A.J. Hinch. Tampa Bay walked away with former Rookie of the Year Ben Grieve. In hindsight, Oakland was the clear winner here.
- Some other players involved in transactions on this date: Rocco Baldelli, Mark Loretta, Doug Mientkiewicz, Braden Looper, Julio Franco, two different Juan Gonzalezes, Harold Baines, Darryl Strawberry, and Rich Aurilia twice.
Mike Axisa's post from 2011 was used in the creation of this post.
MLBTR Apps, Features, Functions
An explanation of the many ways to enjoy MLB Trade Rumors:
- Be sure to pick up the MLBTR apps for the latest news and rumors, for iPads, iPhones, and Android devices.
- If you want only the hard news in the form of transactions, our transactions page is the ticket. You can also get only the transactions via Twitter or RSS.
- To return to the main page at any time, just click on the title or the Home button on the navigation bar below the title.
- The navigation bar will cover many of your needs. Use the About dropdown to learn about this site or any of its writers.
- The Contact button takes you to a page where you can write an email message to the MLBTR writers. If you have a link to a rumor we've missed, please send it in through the Contact page! Also use the Contact page to inquire about advertising on MLBTR.
- The Archives dropdown shows you 15 months worth. If you need to go back further, click on Site Map at the very bottom of the page. Site Map also lists out every MLBTR post category, including players, teams, and features.
- The Tools dropdown takes you to a number of different places. The MLBTR Widget allows website owners to easily add a constantly updated box with all of MLBTR's headlines to their sites.
- Also under the tools tab is our Transaction Tracker, which enables you to search about anything and everything to do with baseball trades, signings and extensions.
- Our DFA Tracker helps you monitor the many players who are designated for assignment throughout the year.
- We also have an Extension Tracker, with details on all contracts that include at least one arbitration year.
- MLBTR's Agency Database lets you know which agencies represent which players. It's searchable by team, agency or player, so be sure to check it out.
- Follow Teams is a very useful dropdown. Hover over it to see all 30 teams. Click on the team name to bring up a page of every post containing information about that team, with the latest on top. These are the same pages you'll find if you go to the Rumors By Team section on the sidebar and select A's Rumors, Angels Rumors, etc.
- Also under the Follow Teams dropdown, you'll find RSS and Twitter buttons. Those links allow you to follow a single team's rumors via RSS or Twitter. Did you know we have a separate Twitter account for each of the 30 teams? For example you can follow @mlbtrtigers, where you would get the latest Tigers updates.
- You can also follow Tim Dierkes on Twitter for more MLBTR content.
- On the far right of the Navigation bar, you'll see buttons for Twitter, Facebook, and RSS. MLBTR has over 301,000 Twitter followers, over 79,000 Facebook fans, and over 61,000 RSS subscribers. Sign up for these and you'll be the first to receive all of our posts.
- Be sure to check out your favorite team's MLBTR page on Facebook so you can receive and comment on the latest rumors.
- On to the sidebar. It begins with a list of our Top Stories, which our writers update any time major hard news occurs. Go here for a quick update on the most important stories. Below that is the site's Search Box, where you can type in any player's name and get the latest on him.
- MLBTR Features has all kinds of goodies, including our free agent lists. Many of the MLBTR Features are constantly updated by our writers, so be assured that our free agent lists are always fresh.
- Below Features you've got headlines for all the Recent Posts, in case you'd rather not scroll to see all the headlines. Then there's a box for our Mailing List, where you can sign up to receive a daily email containing MLBTR's posts. Use this option if you don't need the news as soon as possible.
- Next we have Featured Posts, where you'll find original work from MLBTR writers we consider noteworthy.
- If the main site doesn't load perfectly on your cell phone, try the more mobile-friendly mlbtraderumors.mobi. It's a simple page that shows you just the headlines and lets you click through to what you want to read.
- MLBTR is available on the Kindle as well.
Dodgers Extend Don Mattingly
WEDNESDAY: Dodgers GM Ned Colletti has officially announced Mattingly's extension to reporters, including Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
TUESDAY: The Dodgers and manager Don Mattingly have agreed to an extension that will keep him in the Dodgers' dugout for the next three seasons, according to ESPNLosAngeles.com's Ramona Shelburne. An official announcement is expected later this week. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) reported yesterday that the two sides were closing in on a deal.
Mattingly was already under contract through the 2014 season thanks to a $1.4MM option that vested when his Dodgers defeated the Braves in the NLDS. However, Mattingly made his desire for a multiyear contract known shortly after the season in a surprisingly candid press conference. Mattingly has led the Dodgers to three straight winning seasons, including an NL West Division Championship and an NLCS berth in 2013.
His job was called into question earlier in the season when the Dodgers were struggling despite the team's gaudy payroll, but Mattingly – thanks to some improved health and the emergence of Yasiel Puig – silenced critics by helping the Dodgers to a 42-8 run that vaulted them to the top of the NL West. Shelburne reported back in November that the two sides were discussing a multi-year deal and it sounds like they've finally hammered it all out.
Steve Adams contributed to this post.
NL East Notes: Braves, Mets, Davis
Tonight's look at the National League East..
- The Braves aren't finished making moves yet, team president John Schuerholz tells Jim Bowden of SiriusXM (via Twitter). "I like our team but [General Manager Frank Wren] is not done yet," Schuerholz said.
- It would be a mistake for the Mets to sell low on Ike Davis, opines Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. Instead of trading Davis now, it would be best to hang on to him and see if he might be able to get back to his old form and belt 30 homers again. So far, the Mets have been adamant that they will not simply give him away and it sounds like their price tag has been high in talks with the Orioles, Brewers, and others.
- Ken Davidoff of the New York Post doesn't agree, arguing that the Mets have to move Davis now. There's a chance he could turn things around, but one talent evaluator isn't too optimistic about that. “It’s like running a Mercedes dealership and saying, ‘We’re going to charge you $55,000 for this car, but it’s used and banged up, and you have to figure out how to fix it. Not us, you,'" the agent said.
AL Central Rumors: Twins, Plouffe, Downs, White Sox
After signing a one-year deal worth $4MM that includes a club option for 2015, Scott Downs says he's on board with the White Sox's plan. “The talks that I had about rebuilding, about going young, about needing some extra veteran leadership in the clubhouse and on the field — it all appealed to me,” Downs said on a conference call, according to Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com. “I want to win and be a part of something special and I think we have that here.”
- Twins GM Terry Ryan says that even at a projected payroll of about $84MM, the club won't have to unload salary to add another piece, tweets Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press (Twitter link).
- Ryan also said that as they get ready to take care of their arbitration cases, he's not discussing multi-year deals with Trevor Plouffe, Anthony Swarzak, or Brian Duensing (Twitter links). “I’m not saying it’s an impossibility,” Ryan said, “but we are not talking to any of the three about a multi-year deal."
- The White Sox's level of interest in Masahiro Tanaka remains to be seen, but whatever interest is there has certainly been sparked by the level playing field, Hayes writes.