Pat Gillick Elected To Hall Of Fame
The 16-member Expansion Era committee announced they've elected Pat Gillick to baseball's Hall of Fame. From their website:
Pat Gillick spent 27 years as the general manager for the Blue Jays, Orioles, Mariners and Phillies, winning at every stop along the way, with his teams earning 11 post-season berths and three World Series championships. In his 27 years as GM, his teams finished with a winning record 20 times.
Eleven other men were on the ballot, including George Steinbrenner, Marvin Miller, and Billy Martin.
White Sox, Konerko Talking
MONDAY, 1:15am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that Monday's meeting will involve Konerko's agent and assistant GM Rick Hahn. With the Orioles viewed as the only other serious suitor for Konerko, there's a "strong feeling" the White Sox will get a deal done as early as this week.
SUNDAY, 9:29pm: Reinsdorf will do anything he can to re-sign Konerko, a source tells Doug Padilla of ESPNChicago.com.
1:42pm: A deal between Konerko and the White Sox will probably happen but nothing is imminent, sources tell Buster Olney of ESPN (via Twitter).
1:34pm: Konerko won't be meeting with White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf tomorrow, only his agent Craig Landis will, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Rosenthal believes that the two sides will reach an accord, though they're not close just yet.
12:58pm: Jerry Reinsdorf and Paul Konerko are very close, according to Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter). The slugger and White Sox chairman are scheduled to meet tomorrow.
Re-signing Konerko would cap off an incredibly busy week for the White Sox who also reeled in Adam Dunn and retained A.J. Pierzynski. On Friday GM Kenny Williams told reporters that both Dunn and Pierzynski will accept deferred payment on their newly minted contracts, giving the club the ability to make Konerko a solid offer.
NL West Notes: Pierzynski, Reynolds, Rockies
The latest NL West rumors, aside from a certain huge trade…
- The Dodgers were extremely close to signing A.J. Pierzynski before White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf stepped in, tweets Peter Gammons of the MLB Network. The Dodgers have been in the market for a catcher ever since they declined to offer arbitration to Russell Martin.
- Earlier this week we learned that the D'Backs were looking at getting pitcher David Hernandez from the Orioles in a package for Mark Reynolds. This isn't the first time that Arizona has tried to land Hernandez, says Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com (via Twitter). Ghiroli adds that several other teams, including Tampa Bay, are high on the right-hander.
- Troy Renck of The Denver Post (via Twitter) could see the Rockies getting in on outfielder Josh Willingham. We have long heard that Willingham and the Nats would part ways over an impasse in extension talks. Now after the arrival of Jayson Werth, it now seems very likely that Willingham will be moved.
- Meanwhile, the Rockies lost out Lance Berkman because they did not want to give the veteran $8MM and an everyday job wasn't realistic in Coors Field, Renck tweets.
Odds & Ends: Rivera, Pirates, Beltre, A’s
Links for Sunday, with winter meetings right around the corner….
- Mariano Rivera hinted that he may retire when his two-year pact with the Yankees is up, though he left some wiggle room. Anthony McCarron of the New York Daily News has the details.
- The Pirates will focus on pitching at this week's winter meetings, writes Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Biertempfel names Aaron Heilman, Jeff Francis, Brandon Webb, Justin Duchscherer, and Chris Young as potential targets for Pittsburgh.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Insider required) wonders if the Orioles could be a match for Adrian Beltre.
- The Athletics will be focused on free agents, rather than trades, at the winter meetings, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Orioles, D’Backs Agree On Mark Reynolds Trade
10:32am: The O's and D'Backs are closing in on a deal that would send Reynolds to Baltimore for Hernandez and Mickolio, reports MLB.com's Steve Gilbert. The trade is pending physicals, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.
10:08am: The Orioles and Diamondbacks are "making progress" on a Mark Reynolds trade, O's president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail told reporters including MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli (Twitter link). The deal is getting close, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. Ghiroli hears the same (Twitter link).
Chris Tillman is not in the deal as it's presently constructed, tweets Heyman. David Hernandez is expected to be part of the trade, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Righty Kam Mickolio is a strong possibility, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
Orioles Notes: Pena, Pitchers, Reimold, Gregg, Crain
Let's round up the latest from Charm City, courtesy of The Baltimore Sun's Jeff Zrebiec…
- Scott Boras' asking price for Carlos Pena remains "really high." The first baseman does have interest in Baltimore.
- Zrebiec hears that Andy MacPhail has made several calls to teams with starting pitching depth. Both he and manager Buck Showalter would feel more comfortable with another veteran arm behind Jeremy Guthrie.
- The Orioles aren't shopping Nolan Reimold, but they have at least gauged his value around the league. Reimold hit just .207/.282/.328 in 131 plate appearances last season before being demoted to the minors, and Zrebiec notes that they'd be selling low.
- The Orioles are "pretty interested" in Kevin Gregg, and they have an offer out to at least one free agent reliever besides Koji Uehara.
- The team is hoping to meet with the representatives for former Oriole George Sherrill during the winter meetings. "I had a horrendous year. I couldn’t get my mechanics right now matter what I tried," said Sherrill, who had a 6.69 ERA in 2010. "I’m ready to bounce back and help somebody no matter my role."
- Jesse Crain is said to be seeking a two or three-year deal similar to Joaquin Benoit's.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wants to know what the Orioles are going to do this offseason.
Olney’s Latest: Gonzalez, Red Sox, Reynolds, Reyes
Rival executives have been expecting Adrian Gonzalez to land with the Red Sox at some point, and right now it's on the verge of happening. ESPN's Buster Olney writes (Insider req'd) that once the Gonzalez deal is complete, Boston will still have enough financial flexibility and the leverage to pursue a high-priced player like Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth.
The Padres, meanwhile, will be left to explain to the fan base that trading the team's best player is a good thing. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…
- The Orioles are the "clear front-runner" for Mark Reynolds. Last night we heard that Chris Tillman's name has come up in trade talks.
- The Mets will listen to offers for Jose Reyes, and unless the two sides agree to a contract extension, they will move the shortstop before the trade deadline next July.
Orioles Notes: Tillman, Hernandez, Reynolds, Uehara
The Orioles missed out on Victor Martinez and Adam Dunn, but they're still in the hunt for Paul Konerko. Here's a look at some of their other offseason targets…
- Chris Tillman's name has been mentioned in connection with the Mark Reynolds trade rumors, tweets Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic thinks the D'Backs "seem to like" David Hernandez more, but Hernandez would be just one piece of what's likely to be a pitcher-centric package (Twitter links).
- The O's are one of three teams known to be exploring a Reynolds deal, but they're the ones with "the heaviest interest" in the third baseman according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. The Blue Jays and Padres, in fact, "strongly deny" that they're even pursuing Reynolds.
- "Some progress has been made" between the Orioles and Koji Uehara, reports Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. The club has been keeping in touch with Uehara's agent and Zrebiec says team officials "feel pretty good" about their ability to re-sign the reliever.
- Zrebiec also notes that Baltimore has been in discussions about a number of free agent relievers and have contacted the representatives of Grant Balfour, Jesse Crain, Scott Downs, Brian Fuentes, Matt Guerrier and Kerry Wood. The O's "have at least one offer out" to one of these pitchers, Zrebiec says.
- Baltimore has contacted Bobby Jenks' agent, reports Zrebiec in another piece.
- From that same article, Zrebiec writes "the next person I speak to in the organization who feels the O’s have a shot at Konerko would be the first." The Orioles' interest in Konerko is "largely overblown" and most insiders feel Konerko will re-sign with the White Sox.
Execs Think Konerko Will Stay With White Sox
"Competing execs" think Paul Konerko will ultimately re-sign with the White Sox for around $13MM per season, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated. Konerko's close relationship with owner Jerry Reinsdorf is cited as a main factor.
The Cubs, Orioles and Rangers have all been mentioned as suitors for Konerko this winter, and the Orioles have made Konerko an offer. Still, moving elsewhere could be a tough call for Konerko given his ties to the White Sox and the fact that the team seems to be doing all it can to find payroll space for him. Adam Dunn and A.J. Pierzynski deferred money from their contracts just so the Sox could have more cash available in 2011 to re-sign Konerko. "They literally put their money where their mouth is so we can put a better offer on the table for Paulie," GM Kenny Williams told MLB.com's Scott Merkin.
Cubs, Other Teams Also Pursuing Adrian Gonzalez
The Red Sox aren't the only team in the hunt for Adrian Gonzalez. "Multiple teams besides [the] Red Sox," including the Cubs, are interested in the Padres slugger, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. This isn't the first time we've heard about Chicago's interest in Gonzalez, and the Cubs' search for a big-hitting first baseman may have intensified now that Adam Dunn has signed with the crosstown rival White Sox.
Two big obstacles stand in the way of a Cubs/Padres deal: the Cubs' ability to provide the blue-chip prospects that San Diego desires in any Gonzalez trade, and whether the Cubs can afford the long-term extension that Gonzalez wants after 2011. One obviously impacts the other, since it would be foolish for the Cubs to move several prospects for just one season of Gonzalez. With the Carlos Silva and Kosuke Fukudome contracts coming off the books after this year, Chicago has about $63MM committed to their 2012 payroll.
Besides the Cubs, Rosenthal lists the Angels, Blue Jays, Orioles, Nationals, Rangers and Rays as having a "possible interest" in a Gonzalez trade. All of the teams could potentially afford a Gonzalez extension except Tampa Bay, and all of the clubs have intriguing minor league prospects to interest the Padres (though it might be hard for L.A. to acquire Gonzalez without giving up star prospect Mike Trout). Dan Hayes of the North County Times tweets that it's the Cubs and Red Sox, however, who are the "main focus" of San Diego's trade talks.