Orioles Notes: Fielder, Arbitration-Eligibles, Jones
Orioles GM Dan Duquette spoke to fans and the media at Orioles FanFest today, so let's round up the latest news (all links go to Twitter)…
- "Are we going to get him? I don't know. If we don't, we'll look for someone just like him," said Duquette when asked about the possibility of signing Prince Fielder according to Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com. "There are some players that are attractive to us that we might be able to sign as a DH. That's still possible."
- Duquette said that the team will continue to talk to its arbitration-eligible players right up to a potential hearing, but extension talks have been tabled according to MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli. As our Arbitration Tracker shows, Robert Andino, Brad Bergesen, Jeremy Guthrie, and Adam Jones remain unsigned.
- Jones told Ghiroli that staying in Baltimore long-term is "up to them." The outfielder is an extension candidate, but his name has come up in trade talks as well.
- Second baseman Brian Roberts has "started his workout program" according to Kubatko, though Ghiroli reports that Duquette said they need to have "more patience." Roberts is still dealing with concussion symptoms and skipped the event per his doctor's advice.
Luis Ayala Choosing Between Angels, Orioles
Reliever Luis Ayala is weighing offers from the Angels and the Orioles and could sign with one of the two "at any moment," according to Fernando Ballesteros at the Mexican baseball magazine Puro Béisbol (via Twitter, in Spanish). The Padres, he writes, were also involved but have left negotiations with the 34-year-old. According to Ballesteros, Ayala is seeking a two-year deal.
Ayala earned the privilege of being choosy this winter after a resurgent 2011 with the Yankees. He signed a minor league deal with the team in January after a lost 2010 season, but ended up finishing 20 games and pitching to a 2.09 ERA in 56 innings. His rate of 6.3 K/9 tied previous season highs, and he generated ground balls 50 percent of the time. Last week we learned that the Yankees still had interest in bringing him back, but Ballesteros writes that the team isn't among those currently interested in Ayala.
Orioles To Sign Dennys Reyes
The Orioles will sign 34-year-old left-hander Dennys Reyes to a minor league deal, a source tells MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith (via Twitter). Reyes, a Paragon Sports International client, briefly appeared in the Major Leagues with the Red Sox in 2011.
The veteran has spent time with eleven different big league clubs across his 15-year career. During that span, Reyes has a ERA of 4.21 with 8.0 K/9, 5.0 BB/9 and a ground ball rate of 55.9%.
AL East Links: Montero, Kuroda, Red Sox, Yankees
Here's the latest from the AL East, starting with an update on two pending moves involving the Yankees…
- Jesus Montero is dealing with a passport or visa issue at the moment and is unable to travel to Seattle for his physical, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Once that is resolved, the trade sending him and Hector Noesi from the Yankees to the Mariners for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos will be made official.
- Bob Klapisch of The Bergen Record says (on Twitter) that Hiroki Kuroda is still in Japan, so he has yet to take his physical and finalize his one-year contract with the Yankees. Klapisch adds that like Montero, Campos is stuck in Venezuela at the moment.
- Red Sox GM Ben Cherington indicated to MLB.com's Ian Browne that the team is unlikely to make any big changes to the roster before Spring Training. "If Spring Training were to start tomorrow, we'd feel good about where we are and [we'd be] ready to put the team together," said the GM.
- Though the Yankees currently have $1-2MM to spend on a designated hitter, they could free up cash by dealing A.J. Burnett, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets. Burnett has $33MM remaining on his contract, and it would be a surprise if the Yankees free up more than $10MM via trade.
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff suggests Raul Ibanez might be the best DH option for the Yankees, assuming Johnny Damon signs with a team that can offer more plate appearances.
- Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports that former Oriole Brady Anderson was named special assistant to Orioles GM Dan Duquette today. Melewski also lists some changes in the responsibilities handled by other front office employees.
Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post.
Orioles Sign Armando Galarraga
The Orioles signed Armando Galarraga to a minor league contract, according to the transactions page at CBS Sports. SFX represents the 30-year-old right-hander.
Galarraga struggled through the 2011 season after an eventful 2010 campaign in which he came within one out of throwing a perfect game for the Tigers. Galarraga, who was traded from Detroit to Arizona last January, posted a 5.91 ERA with 5.9 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 in 42 2/3 innings for the D'Backs in 2011. He also made five Triple-A starts, allowing 24 earned runs in 23 1/3 innings.
Arbitration Filing Numbers
Many players avoided arbitration today, but dozens of others exchanged figures with their teams in anticipation of hearings. Most cases won't go to arbitration hearings, but teams such as the Rays, Nationals, Marlins, White Sox, Blue Jays and Braves have stuck to 'file and trial' policies in the past.
MLBTR's arbitration tracker will keep you up to date on every one of the filing numbers from around the game, but here are the highlights — players who filed for $4MM or more. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com had most of the info with MLBTR and others also contributing:
- Tim Lincecum filed at $21.5MM, while the Giants filed at $17MM, as noted earlier.
- David Ortiz filed for $16.5MM, while the Red Sox offered $12.65MM, Heyman tweets.
- Hunter Pence filed for $11.8MM, while the Phillies countered at $9MM, Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com tweets.
- Mike Napoli filed for $11.5MM while the Rangers countered at $8.3MM, Heyman tweets.
- Jeremy Guthrie filed for $10.25MM, while the Orioles filed at $7.25MM Heyman tweets.
- Matt Garza filed for $12.5MM, while the Cubs countered at $7.95MM, Heyman tweets.
- Clayton Kershaw filed for $10MM, while the Dodgers countered at $6.5MM, Heyman tweets.
- Shaun Marcum filed for $8.7MM and the Brewers countered with $6.75MM, according to the Associated Press via MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
- Russell Martin filed for $8.2MM, while the Yankees offered $7MM, MLBTR has learned.
- Nelson Cruz filed at $7.5MM, while the Rangers countered at $5.5MM, Heyman tweets.
- Adam Jones filed for $7.4MM, while the Orioles offered $5MM, Heyman tweets.
- Miguel Montero filed at $6.8MM, while the Diamondbacks filed $5.4MM according to Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic (on Twitter).
- John Lannan filed for $5.7MM, while the Nationals countered at $5MM, Heyman tweets.
- Alex Gordon filed at $5.45MM, while the Royals countered at $4.15MM, Heyman tweets.
- Asdrubal Cabrera filed for $5.2MM, while the Indians countered at $3.75MM, Heyman tweets.
- Michael Morse filed at $5MM, while the Nationals countered with $3.5MM, Heyman tweets.
- Andrew Bailey filed for $4.7MM, while the Red Sox filed for $3.35MM, Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com tweets.
- Brandon Morrow filed for $4.2MM, while the Blue Jays countered at $3.9MM, MLBTR has learned.
Quick Hits: Orioles, Cespedes, Dodgers
Links for Monday, as teams and players continue avoiding arbitration in advance of tomorrow's deadline for exchanging figures…
- Former A's, Mets and Brewers pitching coach Rick Peterson has accepted a job with the Orioles, MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko reports. The sides have been discussing a pitching-related role since last month.
- ESPN.com’s Buster Olney suggests the Yankees could use their DH spot to see what Jorge Vazquez can do at the big league level or to give Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter partial days off (all Twitter links). The 29-year-old Vazquez posted a .262/.314/.516 line with 32 homers at Triple-A in 2011.
- The Orioles aren’t very high on the idea of having a DH-only player, Olney tweets. Because teams like the Orioles and Yankees are shying away from traditional DHs, veterans such as Vladimir Guerrero, Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui and Manny Ramirez aren't finding a robust market for their services.
- Yoenis Cespedes has two hits with six strikeouts in 19 at bats in the Dominican Winter League, tweets Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com.
- Jim Callis of Baseball America includes Devin Mesoraco, Yonder Alonso, Mike Trout and Matt Moore on his 2012 all-rookie team in this week's edition of Ask BA.
- Many see Steve Cohen, whose net worth likely exceeds $5 billion, as the biggest threat to buy the Dodgers, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Monday
In advance of tomorrow's 11am central time deadline to exchange arbitration figures, settlements will be rolling in today. Follow all of the action with MLBTR's arbitration tracker. The latest for players under $4MM:
- The Braves and Eric O'Flaherty avoided arbitration, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets. O'Flaherty will earn $2.49MM, just shy of his projected $2.6MM salary.
- The Orioles and Jim Johnson have avoided arbitration, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets. The right-hander will earn $2.625MM in 2012, just north of his projected $2.5MM salary.
- The Red Sox avoided arbitration with Franklin Morales, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets. The left-hander had a projected salary of $1MM and agreed to an $850K deal.
- The Rays avoided arbitration with J.P. Howell, agreeing to a $1.35MM deal for 2012, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets. Matt Swartz had projected a $1.4MM salary for the left-hander.
- The Royals avoided arbitration with Chris Getz, agreeing to a $967,500 deal for 2012, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets. Matt Swartz had projected a $1.2MM salary for the infielder.
- The Nationals announced they've avoided arbitration with catcher Jesus Flores. Flores, who is represented by Praver/Shapiro, received $815K, MLBTR has learned.
- The Brewers avoided arbitration with outfielder Nyjer Morgan, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The ACES client received $2.35MM, reports MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
- The Royals announced they've avoided arbitration with catcher Brayan Pena, a client of Wasserman Media Group. Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star says the deal is worth $875K; Matt Swartz had him at $900K.
- Orioles pitcher Darren O'Day avoided arbitration for a deal worth $1.35MM, tweets Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. Matt Swartz had projected the same for the Beverly Hills Sports Council client.
- Yankees righty Phil Hughes agreed to a deal worth $3.2MM plus performance bonuses, tweets his agency CAA. The 25-year-old gets a $500K raise after a lost 2011 season.
- The Tigers announced they've avoided arbitration with lefty Phil Coke. Coke, a client of Full Circle Sports Management, gets a $1.1MM base salary with $50K in incentives for appearances or starts, MLBTR has learned.
- The Angels avoided arbitration with infielder Alberto Callaspo, signing him to a one-year deal worth $3.15MM, tweets ESPN's Keith Law. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz nailed this one, projecting a $3.1MM salary. Callaspo, a client of Eric Goldschmidt, received a $1.15MM raise for his second time through arbitration.
Orioles Interested In Francisco Cordero
The Orioles have shown interest in Francisco Cordero, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports. Talks between the free agent closer and the Orioles are preliminary, Connolly notes.
Jim Johnson is the current favorite to close games for manager Buck Showalter. The Orioles are open to trading Kevin Gregg and absorbing some of the $5.8MM he'll earn in 2012, Connolly reports. I find it hard to imagine a team taking on more than $1.5MM of Gregg's salary given the 53K/40BB ratio he posted in 2011 and the availability of other free agent relievers.
The Orioles discussed a Brandon League deal with the Mariners at the Winter Meetings and expressed interest in Seattle starter Jason Vargas at the time, according to Connolly. Jeremy Guthrie and Mark Reynolds also surfaced in the trade talks, Connolly reports. The Angels and Rays have also been linked to Cordero, who probably won't return to Cincinnati now that Ryan Madson is set to join the Reds.
Orioles Notes: Doi, Damon, Hoiles
Let's check out a few Sunday morning Orioles links….
- The Orioles have signed Japanese lefty Yoshihiro Doi to a minor league contract, according to NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman, who passes along a report from Nikkan Sports. Doi, 35, became eligible for international free agency a year ago, but ended up sitting out the 2011 season due to visa issues.
- You can hear admiration in Dan Duquette's voice when the O's GM discusses Johnny Damon, says Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. While Duquette didn't confirm to Cafardo that he's interested in signing Damon, a Friday report suggested Baltimore is eyeing the well-traveled veteran.
- Former Orioles backstop Chris Hoiles tells Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com that he'd like a chance to get back into the organization in some capacity. Hoiles says he has reached out to team officials in the past and will continue to do so: "I feel like I have a lot to offer and I feel like I can help out these young kids with my knowledge and experience."