Kawakami Down To Orioles, Cardinals, Twins
According to Wayne Craczyk of the Japan Times, Kenshin Kawakami has narrowed his options to three teams: the Orioles, Cardinals, and Twins.
Kawakami probably makes the most sense for the Cardinals out of those three. Baltimore isn’t near contention and the Twins already have a nice starting rotation. However, signing Kawakami could allow them to feel more comfortable about trading a young starter.
Odds And Ends: Red Sox, Andruw, Roberts
Links for Saturday…
- At the bottom of an interesting article about baseball’s youth movement, Peter Gammons adds that the Red Sox-Marlins Hanley Ramirez discussions "lasted all of 20 seconds" according to a Marlins official.
- Yahoo’s Tim Brown speculates that the Nationals could have interest in Andruw Jones. I can see the Blue Jays taking him on if they can make it work financially.
- Roch Kubatko cautions fans from reading too much into discussions about a Brian Roberts–Gavin Floyd trade.
- Peter Schmuck hasn’t heard much on the Roberts front, but wouldn’t mind seeing the Orioles trade him for Floyd, even if they don’t acquire anyone else in the deal.
- In another post, Schmuck argues that there’s nothing wrong with the Mark Hendrickson signing.
- Ryan Dempster has heard good things about Milton Bradley and hopes he joins the Cubs.
- The Yankees have no need for Manny Ramirez, Erik Bedard or over-the-top position swaps, in Peter Abraham’s opinion.
- Jeff Moorad- who’s leading the group poised to buy the Padres- was a record-setting agent in his day. Tom Krasovic looks back at Moorad’s earlier career.
- NPB Tracker compares Japanese teams before and after losing their stars to MLB.
Orioles Make Final Offer To Kawakami?
FRIDAY: The Baltimore Sun’s Peter Schmuck heard from sources that there’s little substance to the below-referenced Sanspo report. He hasn’t heard anything about the Orioles viewing Kawakami as an injury risk.
WEDNESDAY: Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker passes along a report from Sanspo, a Japanese sports network, reporting that the Orioles have made a final offer to Kenshin Kawakami and are waiting for a response.
The Orioles reportedly have concerns about the health of Kawakami’s shoulder and are offering an incentive-laden deal, but agent Dan Evans is seeking a higher base salary.
The O’s are also still pursuing Koji Uehara and like him as a starter.
Cubs To Target Brian Roberts Yet Again?
Ready for more Brian Roberts-to-the-Cubs rumors? Here’s a little speculation via Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun:
Schmuck surmises that the Cubs might try to recover some of the offensive production that they lost in Mark DeRosa‘s departure by once again going after Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts. The Cubs just signed Aaron Miles, who is a fine utility infielder and occasional pinch-hitter, but he’d be an offensive and defensive liability as an everyday starter.
Odds and Ends: Mariners, Jeter, Penny
Links for Wednesday…
- With the top three free agent closers off the market, the Brewers maintain interest in Trevor Hoffman.
- The Orioles’ Mark Hendrickson signing is official – he gets $1.5MM plus incentives.
- McCovey Chronicles evaluates some corner infield options for the Giants.
- Geoff Baker asks whether Bill Bavasi will be vindicated at all if the Mariners contend in 2009.
- Japanese pitcher Takateru Iyono is aiming to sign with an MLB club. Also, Taiwanese pitcher Fu-Te Ni has an offer from an East Coast team.
- All of Jeff Passan’s Hot Stove Daily pieces are good reads. Here’s his Marlins one.
- Murray Chass questions the oft-cited "$88.5MM coming off the books" figure for the Yankees.
- Bob Klapisch asks: how does the Mark Teixeira signing affect Derek Jeter‘s future with the Yankees?
- Buster Olney says the D’Backs "took a serious run" at Brad Penny before he signed with Boston.
Orioles Considering Richie Sexson?
Having missed out on the Teixeira Sweepstakes, the Orioles appear to be looking at Richie Sexson as an option for filling their current vacancy at first base, says Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun.
According to Schmuck, "Club officials apparently have had at least one conversation with Sexson’s agent, Casey Close, though the depth of their interest is uncertain."
Dodgers Interested In Dunn, Abreu
4:28pm: A very Dodgers-centric day here at MLBTR. MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick reports that in addition to Dunn, the Dodgers will soon open up talks with Bobby Abreu. They’d like to move Andruw Jones or Juan Pierre if they sign an outfielder.
Gurnick adds that pitching is Ned Colletti’s priority – the Dodgers are eyeing Jon Garland, Randy Wolf, and relief help.
1:46pm: According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, the Dodgers contacted Adam Dunn‘s agent over the holidays to express interest. If the Dodgers sign Dunn, Manny Ramirez could be in a really bad place. Other teams showing interest in Dunn: the Cubs, Nationals, Mariners, and Orioles. All five teams have surfaced in prior reports, with the Brewers also getting a mention while they were mulling a Mike Cameron trade.
There was a report nine days ago stating that the Cubs are Dunn’s first choice. Today Stark puts it this way: "The Cubs had believed to be his top choice before the Dodgers entered the mix."
Rockies Rumors: Redding, Marquis, Fogg
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has the latest on the Rockies’ pursuit for back-end starting pitching.
The Rox "remain firmly in the mix" for free agent Tim Redding, who also has the Mets and Orioles in pursuit. Renck suggests the Orioles’ signing of Mark Hendrickson could cause them to back off, though Jeff Zrebiec wrote today that the Orioles want to add at least two starters.
Jason Marquis is also on Colorado’s radar, but they "can’t absorb hardly any" of his $9.875MM salary. The Cubs are seemingly looking to save at least $3-4MM here. Renck adds that Josh Fogg is another possibility for the Rockies, on a minor league deal.
Hendrickson, Orioles Reach Agreement
MONDAY, 7:49am: According to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun, the Orioles reached an agreement with Hendrickson. The O’s still want to add another starter.
SUNDAY, 10:26pm: Spencer Fordin of MLB.com adds information about how Hendrickson will help the Orioles. Fordin writes how Hendrickson’s presence will allow prospects more time to develop in the minor leagues.
Fordin also mentions that Baltimore has reportedly been in close negotiations to land Japanese free-agent pitcher Kenshin Kawakami.
8:59pm: Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com is reporting that free-agent pitcher Mark Hendrickson and the Baltimore Orioles are working on a deal to bring the starter to Baltimore.
The announcement, pending a physical, is slated for early this week.
Hendrickson has played with four different franchises since 2002, Kubatko wrote. The 6-foot-9 left-hander is 50-63 with a 5.07 ERA in 215 career games. He was 7-8 with a 5.45 ERA with the Florida Marlins in 2008.
Cafardo’s Latest: Pettitte, Kotsay, Red Sox
Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has a number of items to cover in today’s Sunday paper:
- While the Mets are front-runners in the Derek Lowe sweepstakes, the Red Sox have a lot of money to play with having lost out on Mark Teixeira and could make a strong play to outbid competition.
- The Dodgers and Rangers are interested in Andy Pettitte if he doesn’t accept the Yankees reduced $10MM offer.
- Don’t rule out a return to the Red Sox for Mark Kotsay as a fourth outfielder and added infield depth.
- Cafardo reports a source close to the talks says Teixeira was "very concerned" with Mike Lowell‘s fate should he sign with Boston, but that financial matters and the negotiations process removed that "awkward situation."
- Jose Fernandez can play first and third base. He’s 34 and just completed seven years in Japan, hitting 20+ HR every year. He could be an interesting right handed-hitting option for teams looking to add depth to their infield and DH.
- The Red Sox, Orioles, Braves, Reds, and Cardinals remain interested in Kenshin Kawakami.
- Now that Teixeira is gone, Jim Bowden is not interested in Manny Ramirez. Perhaps Adam Dunn?
- The Sox are still unwilling to deal Clay Buchholz for Jarrod Saltalamacchia.