Orioles Rumors

Odds & Ends: Startup, Rays, Reds, Dye, Mauer

By Mike Axisa | February 8, 2010 at 9:53pm CDT

A few links for Monday night…

Morosi reports (via Twitter) that the Orioles have signed lefty reliever Will Startup to a minor league contract. The 25-year-old missed all of 2008 and most of 2009 with injuries, though prior to that he had a 2.56 ERA and held lefties to a .206 batting average in 175.2 career minor league innings. He spend last season in the Padres' system.
Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times passes along some quotes Rays' vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman made during his appearance on 620-AM this evening. He basically said the team is keeping an eye on the market, though it's difficult to say if they'll be able to act on anything given their current financial situation.
After losing out on Erik Bedard, the Orioles are still looking to add an arm according to Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com (via Twitter).
MLB.com's Mark Sheldon lists the Reds' players who are out of options. Wladimir Balentien appears to be the biggest question mark.
Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets that the Braves are not interested in Jermaine Dye, but they could still make another addition if Johnny Damon's (or another free agent's) price falls.
Unsurprisingly, Twins' CEO Jim Pohlad declined to talk about contract negotiations with Joe Mauer, though he did say that they try to stay away from deferred compensation.
In a mailbag, MLB.com's Matthew Leach says the Cardinals are likely done spending until Spring Training.

Odds & Ends: Brewers, Cubs, Looper, Baer, Wigginton

By Tim Dierkes | February 8, 2010 at 5:23pm CDT

Links for Monday…

MLB.com's Adam McCalvy posts an unofficial list of Brewers' players who are out of options. Joe Inglett and George Kottaras appear to be the players most on the bubble.
In a mailbag, MLB.com's Carrie Muskat says that the Cubs are still looking for righthanded relief help.
MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince explains that Grady Sizemore's 2012 club option becomes a player option if traded. He also notes that the Indians are not in on Felipe Lopez.
Braden Looper will not settle for a low base salary or a minor league deal, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
The Biz of Baseball now has Opening Day and year-end payroll data by team.
Giants president Larry Baer mentioned MLBTR in a recent KNBR interview with Ralph Barbieri and Tom Tolbert.
Roch Kubatko of MASN believes it's possible the Orioles will trade Ty Wigginton. Wiggy has $3.5MM coming in 2010.
Benjamin Kabak of River Ave. Blues ponders the benefits of the Yankees bringing Gary Sheffield back on a minor league deal.
Dave Cameron of FanGraphs would like the Mariners to spend a few million on Jarrod Washburn, provided he'd be willing to pitch out of the bullpen when Erik Bedard is ready.
ESPN's Tim Kurkjian explains why the Reds should sign Johnny Damon.

Odds & Ends: Hudson, Red Sox, Bedard, Mets

By Mike Axisa | February 7, 2010 at 8:19pm CDT

A Super batch of links..

In a piece for Fangraphs, Dave Cameron writes that the Twins are in the mix for the best offseason in baseball. Earlier this week, Minnesota agreed to a one-year deal with Orlando Hudson for just $5MM and appear to be close to locking up Joe Mauer.
Even former Met Darryl Strawberry offered up a critique of the Mets' quiet offseason, writes Newsday's David Lennon. Strawberry said that the offseason "could have been better," when asked about it. Lennon's piece looks at some offseason targets that never became a reality for New York.
Following up on yesterday's news that Bobby Kielty is converting to a pitcher, MLBTR heard from Kielty himself via email. Kielty says his ultimate goal is to be a right-handed bat off the bench and eat up some relief innings if necessary. He threw some bullpens for the Mets last season and has thrown for Oakland as well. Kielty says he reads MLBTR every day. Thanks for the support, Bobby!
Peter Abraham has the full list of players who will be with the Red Sox in training camp this year.
Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun reports that Erik Bedard seriously considered an offer from the Orioles similar to the deal he signed to return to Seattle.
Joel Sherman of The New York Post spoke one agent about the Mets, who said "How can you have that payroll and still not have a starting catcher or first baseman, a second baseman you hate and no legitimate starters after Johan?”
Paul Lo Duca is unlikely to accept a minor league assignment if he doesn't make the Rockies, reports Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post. Colorado signed Lo Duca to a minor league deal in January.
Rob Biertempfel of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review says that Pirates' GM Neal Huntington admitted that there are "a lot of rumblings" that prospect Jose Tabata might actually be in his mid-20's. Tabata's listed age is 21, and ESPN's Keith Law ranked him as the 57th best prospect in baseball last month. The Pirates originally acquired Tabata from the Yankees in 2008 as part of the Xavier Nady–Damaso Marte trade.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Baldelli, Gregg, Blockbusters

By Mike Axisa | February 5, 2010 at 3:05pm CDT

On this date way back in 1935, the Yankees released an aging slugger by the name of Babe Ruth just one day before his 40th birthday so he could sign with the Boston Braves. The Sultan of Swat hit .288/.448/.537 with 22 homers in his final season in New York, easily his worst full season with the team. He went on to hit just .181/.359/.431 with six homers in 28 games for the Braves before retiring in May. Ruth ended his career as a .342/.474/.690 hitter with a then-record 714 homers.

Here's some links from around the web…

TYU wants to see the Yankees invite Rocco Baldelli to Spring Training as a non-roster player.
The Tao of Stieb tries to make sense of the Kevin Gregg addition for the Blue Jays.
Red Legged, Blue Blooded Boilermaker reviews Cincinnati's offseason and projects their 25-man roster.
Fantasy Baseball Junkie examines how players perform after being involved in a blockbuster trade, with a fantasy spin.
More Hardball built a 25-man roster out of players still available on the free agent market.
Camden Crazies looks at how Miguel Tejada may handle the transition to third base.
Flushing University says that the Mets have failed to address their biggest needs this offseason.
MLB News and Rumors compiled prospect lists from all of the different outlets.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

Odds & Ends: Nationals, Hudson, Brewers, Guzman

By Zachary Links | February 4, 2010 at 10:35pm CDT

Thursday night linkage..

With Hudson having agreed to a deal with the Twins, Jon Heyman of SI tweets that he anticipates the Nationals considering Adam Kennedy.
Jarrod Washburn is only considering two teams at present – the Twins and the Mariners. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports writes that if he doesn't receive an offer from either club or expand his list, the 35-year-old hurler may retire.
Orlando Hudson would be a great fit for the Twins, writes Rob Neyer of ESPN. Neyer writes that the extra one or two wins that Hudson's addition represents are worth at least $3MM. However, according to Buster Olney, Hudson has been offered a one-year pact worth $5MM.
Despite Travis Buck's reported dissatisfaction with the organization, A's GM Billy Beane is not looking to move the outfielder writes Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.
Spurred by the recent pickups of Joe Inglett and Marco Estrada, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com takes a look back at the Brewers' best waiver wire moves in recent years. One of the best hidden gems was one of GM Doug Melvin's earliest acquisitions, Scott Podsednik.
The Orioles have signed Joel Guzman to a minor league deal, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. The 25-year-old, once one of baseball's top prospects, will not receive an invite to Spring Training. In 108 games with the Nationals' Double-A affiliate last season, Guzman hit .281/.352/.447 with 12 HRs.

Cafardo On Damon, Ohman, Sheffield, Wang

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 31, 2010 at 9:12am CDT

Scott Boras tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he has seen some "very creative proposals" for Johnny Damon's services. The market for Damon seems limited, but teams like the Blue Jays, Tigers and A's could be fits at some price. Here are the rest of Cafardo's rumors:

The Blue Jays, Orioles and Royals seem most aggressive in their pursuit of reliever Will Ohman.
Gary Sheffield is considering two unidentified teams and waiting for offers from them.
Boras is trying to find interest for Jeff Weaver.
There's interest in Chien-Ming Wang, but teams aren't offering the two-time 19 game winner much money.

Orioles Designate Dennis Sarfate For Assignment

By Tim Dierkes | January 30, 2010 at 8:08pm CDT

SATURDAY, 8:08pm: Kubatko reports that Baltimore is trying to deal Sarfate rather than lose him for nothing if another team makes a waiver claim. "Several teams" are interested in the reliever, according to Sarfate's agent.

WEDNESDAY, 3:39pm: The Orioles designated pitcher Dennis Sarfate for assignment to make room for Miguel Tejada, reports Roch Kubatko of MASN. Oddly enough, Sarfate came to the O's in the December '07 Tejada deal with the Astros.

Sarfate, 29 in April, struggled in 35.6 innings between the Majors and Triple A this year. He had shoulder surgery in September of '08 and a circulatory finger problem in the summer of '09. The injuries seemingly caused his mid-90s velocity to disappear, but Kubatko says Sarfate was hitting 97 recently in the Mexican Winter League.

Odds & Ends: Hart, Yankees, Baldelli, Ruiz

By Mike Axisa | January 29, 2010 at 9:18pm CDT

A few Friday night links…

The Brewers and Corey Hart appear headed to an arbitration hearing after negotiations reached an impasse, reports MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Hart filed for $4.8MM, the team $4.15MM.
Chad Jennings of The Journal News spoke to a Yankees' executive about the possibility of bringing in some players on minor league deals, and was told “I wouldn’t say we’re done, but probably close to done.”
Four teams – including the Yankees, Rangers, and Mariners – are interested in Rocco Baldelli's services, reports Joe McDonald of The Providence Journal.
ESPN's Jorge Arangure tweets that Cuban first baseman Jose Julio Ruiz is now free to sign after being "unblocked" by the Office of Foreign Asset Control. In a second tweet, Arangure says that Ruiz is expected to command a multi-million dollar contract, and a few months ago we heard that the Red Sox and Tigers had some interest.
Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun reports that Mark Hendrickson passed his physical today, however his deal with the Orioles likely won't be made official until Monday because the league's offices are closed during the weekend.
MLB.com's Steve Gilbert says that the Diamondbacks and Edwin Jackson are playing close attention to how Wandy Rodriguez's arbitration case unfolds.
The Rockies and Cardinals are in the mix for Felipe Lopez, tweets SI.com's Jon Heyman. The 29-year-old had a higher OBP (.383) and SLG (.427) than either Orlando Hudson or Orlando Cabrera in 2009.
MLB.com's Bill Ladson says that the Nationals have spoken to John Smoltz's agent recently, but there is no progress to report and they aren't willing to break the bank for him (both links open in Twitter).
Meanwhile, Ladson also tweets that the team views the newly signed Miguel Batista as a starter for the back of their rotation, as opposed to an arm for the bullpen.
Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com says (via Twitter) that Craig Monroe isn't ready to retire to just yet. Over the last three years, Monroe has hit .215/.272/.377 with 23 homers in 693 plate appearances for four teams.

Stark On Damon, Bedard, Phillies, Smoltz, Gregg

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 29, 2010 at 2:34pm CDT

Jayson Stark of ESPN.com points out that teams aren't handing out long-term contracts as liberally as they were a few years ago. We've seen just eight contracts of three-plus years this offseason, after seeing 13 such contracts in each of the previous two winters. The offseason before that? Players signed 29 contracts of three years or more. Here are Stark's rumors:

Detroit doesn't seem that interested in Johnny Damon and the Braves haven't spoken with Damon's agent, Scott Boras, in a month and a half. The Rays have checked in, but they have little to spend.
Erik Bedard and the Orioles have mutual interest in a reunion, Stark hears.
The Phillies would like to add a veteran left-handed reliever on a minor league deal, but Alan Embree and Ron Mahay are holding out for big league deals at this point, despite the Phillies' interest.
Kevin Gregg is high on the Rockies' shopping list. They're looking at infield options and hoping to save enough money to shore up their bullpen, too.
The Blue Jays have told clubs that Scott Downs and Jason Frasor are available. The Cubs have checked in on the pair of relievers.
The Royals have told teams they're "open minded" about moving Gil Meche or Brian Bannister.
John Smoltz is in no rush to sign. He's open to waiting for a few months, since he'd like a starting job and some execs question his ability to start for an entire season.
Ben Sheets will be the first A's pitcher to make $10MM (though some believe Sheets will be traded before the end of the year).
Mark Prior is throwing off a mound and would like to make a comeback.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Mets, Damon, Burrell, Lopez

By Mike Axisa | January 29, 2010 at 8:46am CDT

On this date two years ago, the Mets and Twins agreed to a five player deal sending two-time Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana to New York. The Mets and Santana had a 72-hour window to finalize a contract extension, and the two sides eventually agreed to a six-year, $137.5MM contract to make the trade official. Santana has given the Mets over 400 innings of 2.78 ERA ball, while just one of the four players the Twins received in the deal is still with the organization.

Here's some links from around the baseball blogosphere…

Blogging Mets isn't sure where the Mets can turn for pitching help now that Jon Garland and Ben Sheets are off the market.
The Baseball Opinion wonders if the Sheets and Justin Duchscherer signings were calculated moves by Billy Beane made with the intention of flipping both at the trade deadline.
Royals Authority takes a look a Kansas City's crowded outfield.
Camden Crazies goes through some different roster permutations for the Orioles.
The Sports Banter comes up with some possible destinations for Johnny Damon.
Meanwhile, U.S.S. Mariner thinks Damon would be a cost effective way to upgrade Seattle's roster.
Rays Index takes the latest Rays' rumors as a sign that they're still trying to trade Pat Burrell.
Pro Ball NW gives us five reasons why the Mariners should trade Jose Lopez.
TAUNTR chimes in on some of the latest hot stove news.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

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