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AL Notes: Springer, Tigers, Orioles

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The Astros have optioned top prospect George Springer to the minors, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart tweets. The demotion comes shortly after the news that the Astros had offered Springer a seven-year, $23MM contract before he had even played a day in the Majors. Springer's demotion will likely raise further questions about the effect of MLB service time on teams' promotion decisions. As FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal put it last night, "If Springer was good enough to be offered $23 million, why isn't he good enough to crack the 25-man roster of a team that has finished with the worst record in the majors in each of the past three seasons?" By having Springer start the season in the minors, the Astros can ensure that he will become a free agent after the 2020 season, rather than after the 2019 season. And if they wait to promote him until the early summer, they can limit his number of arbitration-eligible seasons to three rather than four. As Rosenthal points out, if Springer had agreed to the Astros' contract offer, these service-time issues would have been moot.

  • Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski says he has not been engaged in any serious trade talks recently, MLB.com's Andrew Simon tweets. Dombrowski offered no specific details about free-agent shortstop Stephen Drew. Meanwhile, it looks like shortstop Jose Iglesias may miss the entire 2014 season with stress fractures in his shins, as CBS Sports' Jon Heyman notes. Iglesias should be able to play in 2015, however.
  • Orioles executive Dan Duquette recounts his team's strange offseason in an interview with MASNsports.com's Steve Melewski. The Orioles endured plenty of criticism for their quiet offseason before they swooped in late to sign Ubaldo Jimenez and Nelson Cruz. "We were trying to sign a number of players and it didn't work out the way we thought it might," Duquette says. "But if we signed the players we signed back in November or December, people would say the Orioles are gearing up." Duquette also says the Orioles will not comment on any extension discussions with shortstop J.J. Hardy.

Orioles Near Deal With Luis Ayala

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The Orioles are nearing a deal with reliever Luis Ayala, Max Wildstein of OutsidePitchMLB.com tweets. FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal mentioned last night (also on Twitter) that Ayala had offers from the Orioles and another team, and that he could make a decision today.

The Nationals released Ayala yesterday after he struggled in spring training. Last season, he posted a 3.27 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 in 33 innings. Two of those innings came with the Orioles, who traded him to the Braves about a week after the season started. Ayala was also a regular in the Orioles' bullpen in their 2012 playoff season.

Nationals Release Luis Ayala

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11:19pm: The Orioles and another team have already offered Ayala contracts, FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter link).  Ayala is weighing the two offers and will likely make his choice on Thursday.

12:49pm: The Nationals have granted right-hander Luis Ayala his unconditional release, tweets Mark Zuckerman of CSN Washington. The veteran reliever will head home to Arizona with the hope of signing on with another club quickly, he adds.

The 36-year-old Ayala struggled in camp with the Nationals, allowing nine runs on 10 hits and a pair of walks with three strikeouts in six innings of work. However, he's coming off a strong performance with the Braves in 2013, in which he pitched to a 2.90 ERA with 5.8 K/9, 3.8 BB/9 and a 59.6 percent ground-ball rate in 31 innings of work. He did miss a chunk of the season on the disabled list as he dealt with anxiety disorder, but a 2.73 ERA in 26 1/3 innings following that DL stint seems to indicate that he was able to work through the issue.

Ayala drew interest from a number of clubs this offseason, including the Mariners, Tigers and Indians, so he could land another shot to prove himself with a different club despite the early struggles in Spring Training.

AL Notes: Drew, Tigers, Blue Jays, Orioles

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For the Tigers, signing free agent shortstop Stephen Drew would make "a great deal of sense," Dayn Perry of CBS Sports writes. Jose Iglesias looks likely to miss much of the season with a leg injury. The Tigers are lucky, in a sense, that a player as good as Drew is still out there to pursue. And though they would have to sacrifice the No. 23 overall pick in the draft to sign Drew, they need to focus on their goal of winning the 2014 World Series, Perry suggests. If Iglesias were to return at midseason, the Tigers could potentially move Drew to third base if Nick Castellanos isn't performing well there. Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski, however, has recently indicated that he is not interested in signing Drew. Here's more from the American League.

Chris Davis Extension Talks Dormant

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Chris Davis and the Orioles have not made progress recently on a contract extension, Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com reports. "Not that I know of and you guys are pretty good about finding things out," said Davis, when asked if there had been any new developments. "I'm sure if anything is said, we'll be talking about it, but those are for Scott (Boras) and Dan (Duquette). I have way too much to focus on here."

Davis is making $10.35MM in his second year of arbitration eligibility. He can become a free agent after 2015, when he should be able to land a big contract, given that he'll only be heading into his age-30 season. The first baseman hit .286/.370/.634 with 53 homers in 673 plate appearances with the Orioles in 2013. Orioles catcher Matt Wieters, who is also a Boras client, will also be eligible for free agency after 2015.

AL East Notes: Cervelli, Pineda, Drew, Orioles

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While much has been made of the Yankees' lack of infield depth in 2014, Joel Sherman of the New York Post points out that the depth beyond this coming season is even more concerning. Of the team's starting infielders, only Mark Teixeira is under contract after 2014, and they have little in the way of MLB-ready replacements within the organization. As such, Sherman reports that when scouting other clubs, the Yankees aren't looking for platoon partners for Kelly Johnson or Brian Roberts; they're looking for a "500 at-bat" type of player who could start in 2015. Rival scouts are focusing on the Yankees' catchers, and a deal centered around Francisco Cervelli and Gordon Beckham "is not impossible," writes Sherman. He adds that Mason Williams could be a trade chip with the Yankees' outfield now locked in for the foreseeable future.

Here are some more links pertaining to the AL East…

  • Asked by MLB.com's Paul Hagen about the possibility of being traded, Cervelli replied: "I don't know. I've been here forever. I don't have that answer, because I feel right now like this is my house. But if somebody wants me to go over there, I've got to make the adjustment, you know?" Cervelli added that his dream has always been to be a starting catcher, but he accepts his role as a backup to Brian McCann. Manager Joe Girardi told Hagen that he feels Cervelli could be a starter for another organization, praising Cervelli's development offensively and defensively.
  • Hagen also writes that Michael Pineda has made a good impression with the Yankees this spring, but manager Joe Girardi suggested that he'd be on an innings limit if he won the fifth starter's job. "Let's just say, hypothetically, he was a starter at some point," Girardi said to Hagen. "You're going to have to adjust. Because you're not getting 200 innings from him." Pineda shrugged off Girardi's comments when asked about them, stating that he knows it's Girardi's choice to make, and he's simply preparing himself to be ready to pitch every fifth day.
  • Stephen Drew tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that doesn't know where he's going to be playing in 2014, but he's confident that a club will sign him and that he can help the team win. Drew is working out with fellow free agent Kendrys Morales at the Scott Boras Training Institute in Miami and says he feels he is coming off his best defensive season in the Majors. He'd love to return to Boston, but acknowledges that he can see why the team wants to give Xander Bogaerts a long look at shortstop. Drew doesn't say it directly, but he hints at his displeasure with the qualifying offer/compensatory draft pick system.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com hears from scouts outside the Orioles organization that Baltimore is on the hunt for a backup catcher. The club has yet to commit to choosing solely betwee Steve Clevenger and Johnny Monell for that distinction. Kubatko writes that manager Buck Showalter feels the decision will ultimately come down to defense.

AL East Notes: Sox, Romero, Gausman, Soriano

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ESPN analysts Jim Bowden, Buster Olney and Keith Law ranked all 30 Major League teams according to strength of their Major League roster, quality of the farm system, financial strength, management and mobility of contracts and aggregated the scores to come up with the latest edition of their Future Power Rankings (ESPN Insider required and recommended). The Red Sox currently top the list based on their strong Major League and minor league rosters as well as the fact that they've committed just under $14MM to the 2016 season currently, giving them plenty of long-term flexibility.

Here's more on the AL East…

  • Grantland's Jonah Keri looks at the Red Sox' bright future and writes that the team is essentially playing "moneyball" but doing so while also being able to outspend their opposition. Writes Keri: The Red Sox have begun combining their substantial resources with the obsessive advantage-seeking mind-set of a small-revenue club, and in so doing have set themselves up to vie for championships in 2014 and beyond." Keri examines Boston's innovative approaches in four main areas: health, platoons, shifts and prospects.
  • Entering camp, Ricky Romero didn't seem to be a legitimate candidate for the Blue Jays' rotation, writes MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm. However, Chisolm says that Romero's strong early performance has caught the attention of the club, and he's shown some flashes of the pitcher he used to be prior to his unexpected collapse. At this point, Romero's strong Spring Training has him in the mix for a spot in the rotation. Any form of resurrection for Romero would be excellent news for the Jays, as the left-hander is still guaranteed $15.6MM through 2015.
  • Orioles top prospect Kevin Gausman is hoping to force the team's hand and work his way into the rotation out of Spring Training, but that probably won't happen, writes MLB.com's Britt Ghiroli. Gausman has added 12 to 15 pounds of muscle, cleaned up his delivery and begun wearing glasses while pitching, and the early results have looked good.
  • MLB.com's Bryan Hoch reports that the Yankees are planning to give Alfonso Soriano a look at first base to improve his versatility, but there's been no talk of him seeing any time at second base.

Orioles Among Teams Interested In Nick Franklin

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The Orioles have joined the Rays and Mets as teams discussing a deal with the Mariners for middle infielder Nick Franklin, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Baltimore would be interested in using Franklin at second base, where the team remains somewhat unsettled entering the season.

Franklin is competing (nominally, at least) with Brad Miller at short for Seattle after being displaced at second by Robinson Cano. The 23-year-old had a solid debut last year, posting a .225/.303/.389 line in 412 plate appearances after taking over at the keystone for Dustin Ackley. Franklin is considered a more marginal defender at shortstop than Miller, and has no apparent alternative spot in the Seattle infield, opening the possibility for a deal.

AL East Notes: Ramirez, Ortiz, Britton, Hardy

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Manny Ramirez last saw MLB action with the Rays (briefly), and of course will always be associated with the Red Sox. As he continues to look for another chance at the bigs, the slugger spoke with Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, acknowledging and expressing contrition for his prior PED use. Ramirez says he could play a role similar to that of Raul Ibanez on the field and in the clubhouse. Here are some notes from around the American League East:

  • Always-interesting Red Sox slugger David Ortiz says that he faces an unprecedented amount of responsibility to lead the way in the lineup, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. "I'll give it a try, but I don't think there's a baseball player that has lived through this pressure at my age," said Ortiz. "Think about it. Guys my age are supposed to be complementary players. Nobody signs guys my age to be 'The Man.'" The 38-year-old, of course, is entering the final year of his current contract, and there has been no word of progression on extension negotiations.
  • The Orioles are looking at out-of-options pitcher Zach Britton in different roles in anticipation of a possible move to the pen, reports Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun. Britton, a 26-year-old lefty, has been mentioned as a possible trade chip for Baltimore. As MLBTR's Tim Dierkes recently explained in addressing the O's out-of-options players, the team faces a roster crunch that will require it to make some tough calls on a number of players, Britton among them.
  • There is still no movement on the extension situation of Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy, writes MASNsports.com's Steve Melewski. Hardy comes across as somewhat frustrated with having to deal with speculation, noting that his previous extension came about in short order. "There has been not much talk at all," he said. "I don't know what they're thinking. The ball is in their court if they want me. They know I like it here." Hardy also added that he would want to address his long-term position before inking a new deal. "If there are any intentions at all of signing me to a long-term deal and wanting Manny to move over to short I would definitely want to know that before," he explained, "because, yeah, I still feel like I can play shortstop and that is what I want to do."

Ervin Santana Rumors: Tuesday

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Here's the latest on Ervin Santana, whose free agency situation has been the most active in recent days among the three still-unsigned players who declined qualifying offers:

  • The Braves are "making [a] legitimate run" to sign Santana, a source tells Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 

Earlier Updates

  • Santana could be expanding the search for possible landing spots, reports Ken Rosethal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). An executive from an interested team told Rosenthal that Santana's representatives were "talking to everyone."
  • The Orioles are standing by their previously-reported, one-year offer of around $13MM, reports Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun. A source tells Encina that the O's had been in touch with Santana's reps late this afternoon, and that Santana is likely to choose a destination within the next day or two.
  • The Orioles and Blue Jays still look like the favorites, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Santana's interest in a one-year deal is genuine, reports Heyman, with the righty being motivated to prove himself on the field.
  • Indeed, as MLBTR's Steve Adams noted earlier this morning, if Santana signs a one-year pact and throws well enough to earn another qualifying offer, he would stand to make nearly as much in two years as he could on the three-year offers he has reportedly received in the low-$30MM range. Or, he might find the substantial, multi-year deal that has seemingly eluded him to date. It bears recalling that Scott Feldman managed to get three years at a $10MM AAV earlier in the offseason, and that more comparable arms like Matt Garza and Ubaldo Jimenez landed $50MM guarantees over four years. Betting on another good season and a market reset carries risk, but accepting a lesser multi-year deal would pretty much ensure that Santana could not reach his full earning potential. 
  • Orioles GM Dan Duquette called Santana's market "interesting," with more possible teams seemingly entering the fray as injuries change roster complexions.
  • We learned that Braves starter Kris Medlen is getting a second opinion, but his MRI shows ligament damage. Atlanta has definitely been in touch with Santana, the same report provided.
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