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Olney On Adrian, Pineiro, Holliday, Orioles

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The latest from Buster Olney's ESPN blog…

  • Despite preliminary talks, Olney finds a Padres extension for Adrian Gonzalez to be "very, very unlikely."
  • The Dodgers "are in the chase" for free agent starter Joel Pineiro, with the Angels and Mets other suitors.  The Dodgers were first linked to Pineiro by MLB.com's Ken Gurnick on December 8th.  With a chunk of the Juan Pierre savings already spent on Jamey Carroll, Pineiro seems out of their price range.
  • Olney guesses that Matt Holliday will ultimately sign for five years and $82.5-85MM, with options and/or incentives that could "dress it up as a deal that could be worth over $100MM."
  • The Orioles continue to hunt for a pitcher and corner infielder.  I should note that they were initially linked to Pineiro, but maybe the $9MM committed to Kevin Millwood takes them out of the mix.  An Erik Bedard reunion could be a possibility.

Odds & Ends: Zambrano, Cabrera, Molina

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Links for Monday…

  • Matt Klaassen of Fangraphs gave his thoughts on the Orioles' "enviable outfield logjam."  In his Offseason Outlook for the club, Tim suggested that Luke Scott could make sense as a trade candidate.
  • A week ago, we heard conflicting reports about whether or not the Yankees had talked to the Cubs about acquiring Carlos Zambrano. SI.com's Jon Heyman reports, via Twitter, that the Yankees "definitely" inquired, and speculates that Zambrano is "eminently available."
  • In a piece for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, David O'Brien suggested in passing that the Braves could potentially use Melky Cabrera as a trade chip. Heyman tweets that the Cubs would be very interested, if the Braves were to make Cabrera available.
  • ESPN's Jerry Crasnick says Bengie Molina "might be willing to consider" a two-year deal.  So far the Mets are at one year with an option.
  • Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik must retain at least one of Cliff Lee and Felix Hernandez long-term.
  • Derek Zumsteg of U.S.S. Mariner gives us a Milton Bradley chronology.
  • CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban tweets that he's heard a whisper connecting the Giants to free agent reliever Kiko Calero.
  • WEEI's Alex Speier examines the differences between the contracts of John Lackey and A.J. Burnett.  In case you missed it, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe revealed on Wednesday that Lackey must play for the league minimum in 2015 "if an old elbow injury forced him to miss significant time with surgery any time during the deal."
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs says statheads and scouts are mostly in agreement these days, and Moneyball would be a very different book if Michael Lewis wrote it today.

Odds & Ends: Yanks, Reds, Orioles, Mets

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Another day removed from Christmas, let's hope we see a few more signs of life today from the hot stove. In the meantime, let's check out a handful of links….

  • Chad Jennings examines the decision the Yankees are facing, as they decide whether Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain is their fifth starter. Jennings feels that the best decision is for Hughes to start, with Joba being bumped back to the bullpen, for now. He feels both should be starters in the long run.
  • The Reds shouldn't trade away any of their starting pitching, writes Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports answers some frequently asked Orioles-related questions in his latest piece.
  • The Baltimore Sun's Dan Connolly writes that the Orioles have made significant strides in scouting and signing international players over the last couple years.
  • After parting ways with Curtis Granderson, the Tigers are searching for a player to take over their leadoff spot, according to the Detroit Free Press.
  • Newsday's Ken Davidoff (subscription required) tells Mets fans to relax, arguing that the team's offseason hasn't been too bad so far, and that there's still plenty of winter to come.
  • Joseph Pawlikowski at River Ave. Blues wonders if Jerry Hairston Jr. will fit into the Yankees' 2010 plans.

Odds & Ends: Vazquez, A’s, Orioles, Marlins

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A few links…

  • ESPN's Keith Law rated David Ortiz signing with Boston as the best free agent pickup of the decade. Darren Dreifort's deal with the Dodgers was the worst, and he called the Erik Bedard trade the biggest of the decade. That last one is certainly debatable; I prefer the Bartolo Colon for Grady Sizemore (plus others) deal.
  • Interestingly, Yankees' GM Brian Cashman noted today that the club tried to acquire Javier Vazquez from Arizona after 2005 and the White Sox after 2008, “but we just didn’t match up," reports Chad Jennings of The Journal News.
  • Bruce Jenkins of The SF Chronicle says that the A's are winning the battle of the Bay Area this offseason. Of course, the regular season is the battle you really want to win.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports that Orioles' president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said "My guess is I wouldn't think we'll be doing anything anytime soon, which is not to be interpreted as not doing anything between now and Sarasota." The O's finalized the Garrett Atkins deal today.
  • MLB.com's Joe Frisaro writes about the Marlins' first base situation, noting that there's certainly no shortage of in-house options.
  • Bill Ladson of MLB.com tweets that the Nationals continue to show interest in righty John Smoltz, "but they are not willing to break the bank to get him."
  • Coco Crisp's physical with the A's was delayed because of travel issues, so the announcement of his signing will have to wait says Susan Slusser of The SF Chronicle. 
  • Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball takes a look at the growth of player salaries over the last decade.
  • Here's some news on a different kind of contract negotiation: According to the AP (via ESPN) MLB and the umpires hope to have a new agreement in place tomorrow, which will allow for greater flexibility with postseason assignments.

Orioles Sign Garrett Atkins

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The Orioles signed corner infielder Garrett Atkins to a one-year, $4.5MM deal today.  He has an $8.5MM club option for 2011 with a $500K buyout.  Atkins can earn up to $500K in incentives in 2010.  Dan Connolly and Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun broke news of the agreement on December 16th, while Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post and MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez (via Twitter) followed with contract details.

Atkins was non-tendered by Colorado on December 12th after hitting .226/.308/.342 in 399 plate appearances in 2009.  Atkins spent his entire seven-year major league career with the Rockies, posting a career .811 OPS.  He's logged time at first and third base in recent years, and his versatility gives the O's the ability to sign another corner infielder if they choose.

My expectations for Atkins are pretty low, but there's little harm in the Orioles giving him a shot.

This post was rewritten by Tim Dierkes.

Odds & Ends: Gonzalez, Bradley, Hamels

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Let's have a look at some miscellaneous Sunday links….

  • The Tigers purchased the contract of catcher Andy Bouchie from the Long Beach Armada. Bouchie, 24, was a seventh round pick by the Brewers after his junior season at Oral Roberts University, but was released due to catching depth in the Milwaukee system. He hit .290 with 7 home runs and 45 RBI in 59 games in the Golden Baseball League this year.
  • Jon Paul Morosi explains why the Padres should wait until July 31 to trade Adrian Gonzalez.
  • Larry Stone offers some optimism for Seattle fans with concerns about newly-acquired Milton Bradley in a nice article, reminding us that Bradley has had non-problematic stops over the course of his career. Stone quotes Eddie Guardado, Bud Black, and Ken Macha, all of whom support Bradley.
  • Scott Lauber writes that amidst the Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee pandemonium, it's easy to forget about Cole Hamels, but the Phillies haven't. They still see Hamels as a top-of-the-rotation arm and are confident in his ability to rebound from a forgettable 2009.
  • ESPN.com's Buster Olney writes that Oakland's potential deal with Coco Crisp reflects the value the A's place on defense.
  • In his usual lengthy Sunday column, the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo focuses primarily on the Red Sox' moves, past, present, and future. He provides at least one interesting hot stove note though: Mark DeRosa's asking price has come down, and Cafardo wonders if the Mets could sign the infielder and play him at first base.
  • Cafardo also mentions that, while plenty of teams are interested in Chien-Ming Wang, the Yankees hope to match any final offer the right-hander receives.
  • Newsday's Ken Davidoff can't see any other teams taking a chance on Mike Lowell unless he exhibits good health in Spring Training.
  • In a separate article, Davidoff examines the next move for Johnny Damon. Davidoff lists the Braves, Rays, Cubs, and Mets as possible destinations, but concedes there are roadblocks in each case.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports looks at the remaining names on the closing market, concluding that there are too many arms and not enough teams in need of a closer.
  • Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun says there's nothing wrong with any of the Orioles' recent signings, but that they aren't the big splashes fans may have hoped to see.

Odds & Ends: Rollins, Orioles, Anthopoulos

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Saturday morning links. Not quite as good as cartoons, but we'll do our best…

Olney On Gonzalez, LaRoche, Holliday

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ESPN.com's Buster Olney asked an "independent evaluator" to guess what the Red Sox would have to give up to obtain Adrian Gonzalez. Olney's source says the Padres need to acquire Ryan Westmoreland and Casey Kelly, plus other highly-touted prospects. Gonzalez is under control for two more years at $10.25MM. He'd probably be worth $40MM-plus over two years on the open market, so the Padres have some serious bargaining power. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors:

  • The A's are interested in Adrian Beltre, but "only in an Oakland economy size financial package."
  • Some teams bristle at the idea of paying eight figures for Beltre.
  • Some teams have been put off by Adam LaRoche's asking price. 
  • The Orioles checked out of the Matt Holliday derby when they learned that he's asking for considerably more than $75MM. 

Orioles Sign Mike Gonzalez

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The Orioles signed lefty reliever Mike Gonzalez to a two-year deal worth $12MM guaranteed, as first reported by Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun.  Gonzalez is likely to close for the O's, and Yahoo's Tim Brown tweeted that he can earn another $4MM in incentives.  Since the Braves offered arbitration to Gonzalez, a Type A free agent, the Orioles will surrender their second-round pick (currently #44) to them.

Gonzalez, 32 in May, attracted strong interest this winter (at least according to Scott Boras).  For the Braves this year he posted a 2.42 ERA, 10.9 K/9, and 4.0 BB/9 in a career-high 74.3 innings.  He saved ten games, with Rafael Soriano getting the Braves' other chances.  Gonzalez had Tommy John surgery in May of '07 and made it back to the Majors about a year later.  He missed some time in July of this year with elbow tendinitis, but says the injuries are completely behind him.

Dan Connolly's Baltimore Sun article has quotes from Gonzalez, Orioles president Andy MacPhail, and manager Dave Trembley.  So far this winter the Orioles have added Gonzalez, Kevin Millwood, and Garrett Atkins (at a total cost of $25MM), but Trembley said he doesn't think MacPhail is done yet.

Odds & Ends: Cubs, Vazquez, Matthews

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Some links for Friday…

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