13 Teams Eligible For First Competitive Balance Lottery
The new collective bargaining agreement calls for a competitive balance draft pick lottery beginning in 2013, and MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo has details. 13 teams will be eligible for the first lottery based on their market size and revenue: the Diamondbacks, Orioles, Indians, Royals, Athletics, Pirates, Padres, Rays, Reds, Rockies, Marlins, Brewers, and Cardinals. The lottery gives each of these teams the chance to win one of six extra picks in the 2013 draft, which will come after the compensation picks for free agents. The odds of winning a pick will be based on each team's winning percentage in the previous season.
There will be another group of six picks after the draft's second round. The teams in the mix for these will be the ones that did not win a pick in the first lottery, as well as any other team that receives revenue sharing.
Mayo says lottery picks can be traded, but only once by a team and only during the regular season. The picks cannot be sold for cash.
A third lottery will be held for picks forfeited by teams that exceeded their bonus pools. Teams that did not exceed their pools will be eligible, with odds based on a formula of revenue and winning percentage. Got all that? There will be a quiz tomorrow.
Orioles Interested In Renyel Pinto
The Orioles have expressed interest in left-hander Renyel Pinto, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Orioles director of international operations David Stockstill scouted the 29-year-old in his native Venezuela last week. Stockstill met with Pinto, a five-year veteran of the Major Leagues, and a deal remains possible.
Pinto has a 1.42 ERA with a 42K/16BB ratio in 43 2/3 innings as a starter in the Venezuelan Winter League this year, for what it’s worth. He last pitched in the Major Leagues for the 2010 Marlins. In parts of five seasons with the Marlins, Pinto posted a 3.62 ERA with 8.6 K/9, 5.9 BB/9 and a 42.4% ground ball rate in 231 innings (244 relief appearances).
The Orioles don’t currently have interest in free agents Jason Varitek or Jorge Posada as possible backup catchers, since they prefer someone who could catch every day if necessary. Matt Wieters is the lone catcher on the Orioles’ 40-man roster at the moment.
AL East Notes: Yankees, Orioles, Reddick
Two AL East teams brought in new general managers this offseason and a third club faces the possibility that its GM will leave for another team. Here are some notes from the division, starting in New York City, where Brian Cashman has been running the Yankees since 1998…
- Though the Yankees would have interest in Matt Garza, they aren’t having high-level trade talks with any team about starting pitchers, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter). The Cubs appear to be willing to listen on Garza, who’s under team control through 2013.
- Red Sox bench coach DeMarlo Hale is the Orioles' top choice to be their next third base coach, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). Hale, who is still under contract in Boston, is considering the Orioles' job.
- The Red Sox have gotten some play on 24-year-old outfielder Josh Reddick, according to Yahoo’s Tim Brown. Should Boston sign Yoenis Cespedes, Carlos Beltran or Michael Cuddyer, GM Ben Cherington might part with Reddick, who posted a .784 OPS in 278 plate appearances while playing all three outfield positions this past season.
Morosi On Fielder, Randy Wells, Guthrie
A "tense three-week period that will shape [baseball's] landscape for the following year" begins today, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. His latest:
- Agent Scott Boras has pared down Prince Fielder's sales pitch binder but still has 70 pages worth, he tells Morosi. Morosi says Fielder's suitors are believed to be the Cubs, Nationals, Rangers, and Mariners.
- The Cubs are open to moving Randy Wells, indicates Morosi as he lists available starting pitchers. Wells, 29, is under team control through 2014. MLBTR projects him to earn $2.2MM in 2012.
- The Angels and Orioles discussed the possibility of a Jeremy Guthrie trade in recent days. Guthrie, 33 in April, projects to earn $8.3MM in 2012 before hitting free agency.
- Japanese players including righty Hisashi Iwakuma, lefties Tsuyoshi Wada and Wei-Yin Chen, and second baseman Kensuke Tanaka can begotiate with MLB teams after free agency in Japan begins Thursday. The Yakult Swallows intend to post outfielder Norichika Aoki after the Winter Meetings, adds Morosi.
Quick Hits: Jaso, Orioles, Byrnes, Rivera
Sunday evening linkage..
- Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner takes a look at the newest member of the Mariners, John Jaso. The M's traded pitcher Josh Lueke to the Rays for Jaso earlier this evening, and Cameron likes the move for Seattle.
- The Orioles have hired Gary Rajsich of the Blue Jays to be the club's new amateur scouting director, an industry source told Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun. Rajsich, 57, has been with the Blue Jays since 2009 but spent most of his scouting career with Boston, where he worked with O's GM Dan Duquette.
- Don Norcross of the San Diego Union-Tribune spent some time with Josh Byrnes and found that the recently-appointed Padres GM is extremely optimistic about the club's future. When speaking to Norcross in his Petco Park office, Byrnes had one of his computer screens locked to MLBTradeRumors.
- Yankees skipper Joe Girardi says that he isn't so sure that this will be Mariano Rivera's final season, writes Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com. The closer will celebrate his 42nd birthday on Tuesday.
- Bud Selig, the same commissioner who canceled the World Series in 1994 in order to crush the union, deserves props for seeing the error of his ways and dramatically changing them, writes Ken Davidoff of Newsday. However, Davidoff isn't a fan of the limits on amateur spending and doesn't see the point of HGH testing.
- On the other hand, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald argues that the newly-implemented HGH testing is a striking example of how far the sport has come in recognizing its issues with performance-enhancing drugs.
- Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer likes that MLB will be adding an additional wild card team in each league. The new system, he writes, puts an emphasis on winning the division, which only brings integrity to the 162-game season.
Minor Moves: Marrugo, Rohlinger, Sutil, Maldonado
We'll keep track of today's minor moves right here. News of these moves are courtesy of Matt Eddy of Baseball America unless indicated otherwise..
- The Orioles signed 17-year-old Colombian right-hander Yeizer Marrugo to a deal with a $120K bonus, according to Ernesto Armenteros D. of El Universal (Spanish link) and passed along by Eddy. In the El Universal story, O's scout Jorge Franco says that Marrugo's fastball topped out at 91 mph when they recently scouted him and the youngster has the talent to make it to the majors in five years.
- The Phillies acquired right-hander Adam Worthington from the Diamondbacks as player to be named for left-hander Mike Zagurski. The Phillies sent Zagurski to Arizona in a September trade.
- Cubs outfielder Lou Montanez elected free agency after recently being outrighted off of the club's 40-man roster.
- The Reds re-signed right-hander Chad Reineke after the pitcher elected free agency in October. Reineke had a 3.84 ERA in 25 games (22 starts) with Triple-A Louisville in 2011.
- The Rockies released shortstop Ryan Rohlinger. Rohlinger hit .247/.353/.409 in 103 Triple-A games for Colorado and the Giants.
- The Royals signed a pair of left-handers in Marlon Arias and Tommy Hottovy. Arias spent seven years in the Dodgers system, but hasn't pitched domestically since becoming a free agent following the 2009 season.
- The Marlins signed right-hander Robert Ray, who appeared in a handful of Major League games for the Blue Jays in 2009 and 2010. They also re-signed catcher Luke Montz.
- The Dodgers signed shorstop Luis Cruz.
- The Diamondbacks signed shortstop Wladimir Sutil to a minor league deal, according to El Universal (Spanish link). Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic confirmed the signing to MLBTR.
- The Nationals have re-signed catcher Carlos Maldonado, according to Bill Ladson of MLB.com (via Twitter). The move was first reported by El Universal (Spanish link). Maldonado, 32, hit .234/.361/.342 in 38 games with Triple-A Syracuse this season and spent four games on the Nats' varsity squad in 2011.
Cafardo On Lowrie, Rodriguez, Gonzalez, Marlins
In today's column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe gives a list of suggestions for the Red Sox's offseason. As they look for a solution in right field, Cafardo feels that the club should go after Michael Cuddyer with Carlos Beltran as a Plan B. The BoSox are also looking for a pair of affordable starters and two interesting names that could be had in deals are Joe Saunders of the Diamondbacks and Francisco Liriano of the Twins. Here's more from Cafardo..
- There were many scouts and GMs in the Dominican Republic recently and Jed Lowrie came up often as a possible shortstop/third base candidate. Teams like his offense and are skeptical about his defense, but are more worried about his mental toughness and his ability to play through injury. The 27-year-old may become a chip for the Red Sox in a deal.
- The Astros are getting more and more inquiries about the availability of Wandy Rodriguez. The Red Sox are one of the teams that have asked.
- Scouts and GMs believe that the Athletics would deal left-hander Gio Gonzalez for the right price. An NL talent evaluator noted that the 26-year-old would be at the top of a lot of teams' lists.
- Baseball people we talked to seem to think that if the Marlins are thinking big, Jose Reyes is the most logical signing for them, with Hanley Ramirez shifting over to third. Cafardo also wonders if the Brewers would explore signing with the likelihood of losing Prince Fielder.
- Free agent David Ortiz is still very much in play with the Orioles. O's GM Dan Duquette met with Ortiz’s agent, Fern Cuza, at the GM meetings.
- Cafardo could envision Jason Varitek backing up Matt Wieters in Baltimore
- The BoSox have considered former Mets GM Omar Minaya for a front office role, but nothing is official yet.
Orioles Notes: Reynolds, Tillman, Chen, Johnson
Earlier this week we learned that the Orioles are close to a deal with Korean right-hander Chong Tae-Hyon and the pact should become official after he undergoes a physical. Here's more on the O's..
- Mark Reynolds' propensity for striking out didn't faze the Orioles much when they traded for him last winter, writes Rich Dubroff of CSNBaltimore.com. The O's acquired the 28-year-old from Arizona for relievers David Hernandez and Kam Mickolio roughly one year ago. Manager Buck Showalter is leaning towards playing Reynolds at first this year with Chris Davis at third base.
- Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com takes a look at Baltimore's rotation and notes the club would be willing to deal Chris Tillman. Tillman, 23, posted a 5.52 ERA with 6.7 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 13 big league starts last year.
- While the Orioles are waiting to see if Yu Darvish will be posted, fellow NPB pitcher Wei-Yin Chen is another name to keep an eye on, writes Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun. Earlier this month, Tim Dierkes wrote that the 26-year-old left-hander could be signed for less than $20MM over four years.
- The Orioles' interest in adding relief pitchers could open the door for Jim Johnson to return to the rotation and Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com is all for it. Melewski could see Johnson thriving in a starting role as he has enough quality pitches to make the transition.
AL East Notes: Orioles, Garcia, Rays, Blue Jays
The Red Sox won’t be hiring their next manager today, but they made progress on the managerial front this week. Here’s the latest on Boston’s search and here are some updates on their division rivals…
- Matt Klentak left the Orioles to be the Angels’ assistant GM because the chance to build a winner with Jerry Dipoto was too good to pass up, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. “This is a great opportunity,” Klentak said. “It has nothing to do with the team and the change in regime [in Baltimore].”
- Jon Heyman of SI.com says Freddy Garcia’s deal with the Yankees guarantees the right-hander $4MM and includes incentives (Twitter link). Garcia pitched for a $1.5MM base salary this past season but earned a raise with 146 2/3 innings of 3.62 ERA ball.
- ESPN.com’s Buster Olney highlights some offseason needs for ten MLB teams. For example, the Rays will need to obtain a first baseman and/or a DH and the Blue Jays continue searching for a closer.
AL East Notes: Gio, Jones, Buchholz, Garcia
Here's the latest from the AL East…
- "Gio Gonzalez has been a name widely discussed internally" by the Red Sox, reports Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston. The Sox are "extremely high" on the Athletics left-hander. We've also heard the Yankees and Marlins are interested in Gonzalez, though the A's haven't yet begun seriously discussing possible trades.
- The Orioles don't have to pursue an extension with Adam Jones this winter, opines MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli. She believes if Baltimore's young pitchers don't show signs of improvement next season, the O's will have to enter yet another rebuilding process, and only then will the team decide if Jones is a long-term answer. If the Orioles rebuild, Jones would command a heavy price on the trade market. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes looked at Jones as an extension candidate in August.
- We recently heard from FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal that the Red Sox asked the Blue Jays about Toronto manager (and former Sox pitching coach) John Farrell. According to David Waldstein of the New York Times (Twitter link), the Jays asked for Clay Buchholz in return. As Rosenthal wrote, "the Sox never considered it likely that the Jays would engage in serious discussions about Farrell, and the conversations failed to progress," which isn't at all surprising if Buchholz was the asking price.
- Freddy Garcia could have found a two-year deal elsewhere but wanted to return to the Yankees, tweets Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. The Red Sox were the only other team known to have an interest in Garcia, who agreed to terms today on a one-year, $5MM deal with New York.