Odds & Ends: Marte, Wilkerson, Bowden
Links for Wednesday as we enter the short post-Manny phase of the offseason…
- RotoAuthority has 18 undrafted players to watch for mixed leagues.
- WEEI’s Rob Bradford talked to Bill Lajoie, who was behind Boston’s acquisition of Andy Marte while Theo Epstein was on hiatus. Lajoie admitted he acquired Marte with the intent of flipping him.
- SI.com’s Melissa Segura writes about fraud involving Dominican prospects.
- Nothing cooking yet with the Red Sox and Jason Bay, says Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe.
- Jorge Says No! says shortstops Bobby Crosby and Khalil Greene are at the crossroads of their careers.
- WEEI’s Alex Speier notes that Boston outfielders Jeff Bailey and Brad Wilkerson have opt-out clauses if they’re not in the bigs by certain dates.
- Fire Jim Bowden has the ten best moves of their namesake GM.
- Nick Piecoro wonders if Randy Johnson took a subtle jab at Chris Snyder.
- Updated June draft order at Baseball America.
- Ken Davidoff of Newsday looks at each team’s 2012 commitments.
Red Sox Not Interested In Pedro
According to Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald, the Red Sox are not interested in bringing Pedro Martinez back to Boston. McAdam’s sources say Pedro’s representatives approached the Red Sox this week to determine interest and heard from the Red Sox that they don’t have room for Pedro.
Pedro, who won two Cy Youngs and a World Series in Boston, will pitch in the WBC for the Dominican Republic and hopes to attract interest with a good showing.
Odds and Ends
A few links on a slow Friday night:
- Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports that Jon Garland was open to returning to the White Sox this winter. The Sox opted for Bartolo Colon and Garland signed with the Diamondbacks.
- Former major leaguer Gary Matthews had a front-row seat for President Obama’s inauguration, reports Brian Knapp of MLB.com. Matthews and Obama met when their daughters had a dance class together in Chicago.
- Rocco Baldelli made his Red Sox debut against his former team today. Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe writes that Baldelli will be a good fit in Boston.
- Tracy Ringolsby signs off in the final edition of the Rocky Mountain News.
Odds And Ends: Alvarez, Cameron, Nats
A few links for Thusrday night…
- Pedro Alvarez, who was drafted by the Red Sox in 2005, remembers thinking about signing with Boston in an article by Alex Speier on WEEI.com.
- Joe McDonald of the Providence Journal heard from Theo Epstein and Terry Francona about building a winning team. Epstein said the Sox have a history of making room for young talent, but Francona added that there’s never room for all the youngsters.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Mike Cameron was preparing himself to be traded this offseason and considers it "a blessing" to be in Milwaukee.
- Ironically, Mark DeRosa, who was actually traded, didn’t see it coming at all according to this article by Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- ESPN.com’s Buster Olney spoke with a number of baseball people who say "baseball’s internal code of conduct is strengthening." Players who act out aren’t getting away with it as often.
- Chico Harlan of the Washington Post reports that Nationals president Stan Kasten didn’t comment directly on whether we should expect any more dismissals within the organization soon.
- Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News heard from Giants president Larry Baer that the team doesn’t consider the Edgar Renteria and Jeremy Affeldt signings mistakes.
- And bad news out of Colorado: The Rocky Mountain News will publish its final edition Friday.
Red Sox Contract Notes: Okajima, Drew
According to WEEI’s Alex Speier, when Hideki Okajima‘s 2009 vesting option triggered it also guaranteed that the reliever is under team control through 2012 if the Red Sox want him. There had been some debate about whether Okajima would become arbitration-eligible after his current contract; the answer is yes.
Also, WEEI’s Rob Bradford notes that J.D. Drew is entering the phase in his five-year contract where certain injury situations would allow the Sox to void the last two years of this deal. It seems unlikely, though.
Odds & Ends: Arbitration, Bay, Manny
Links for Tuesday…
- Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball has all the info and analysis about this year’s salary arbitration class you could possibly need.
- The updated June draft order from Baseball America.
- Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe discusses Jason Bay‘s future.
- ESPN’s Buster Olney provides analysis of the Manny Ramirez situation in this video.
- More Hardball looks at the best minor league contracts of the offseason.
- RotoAuthority discusses the possible fantasy impact of those from Baseball America’s top 100 list who have a 2009 ETA.
Red Sox Catching: Bard, Montero, Kottaras
Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe has a wrap-up of the Red Sox’ catching situation heading into the beginning of the 2009 season.
Even after signing Jason Varitek, the Red Sox were rumored to have been continuing their pursuit of a trade for a young catcher. In today’s article, Massarotti writes that at the beginning of Diamondbacks camp, Miguel Montero was informed that "no deals were imminent." Instead, it appears the Red Sox will stick with Josh Bard for now.
However, Massarotti also mentions another interesting in-house option for the Red Sox in George Kottaras. Massarotti summarizes Kottaras’ situation:
Kottaras is out of options and could be a threat to beat out Bard, though the more likely scenario is that the Red Sox are trying to increase Kottaras’ trade value so that they do not simply lose him on waivers.
It’s probably going to be ‘Tek and Bard on Opening Day. We’ll see if the Red Sox end up acquiring, or even trading away, any young catchers in the meantime.
Lester Wants To Stay In Boston
Joe Haggerty of the Boston Metro has a Jon Lester update on his blog, Hacks with Haggs. Lester says he wants to play for the Red Sox for his entire career.
"If they approach me we can work something out to not only be a Red Sox for the next four or five years, but for my whole career."
Lester’s entering his last pre-arbitration season and isn’t scheduled to become a free agent until after 2012. Two of his teammates, Kevin Youkilis and Dustin Pedroia, signed long-term deals with the Sox this offseason. Yesterday, Joe McDonald of the Providence Journal suggested Lester could be the next to receive a multi-year deal.
Ortiz Comments on Teixeira’s Contract and His Own
David Ortiz indicates that he might have missed an opportunity for a Teixeira-like contract in this piece from Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. It is definitely worth reading in its entirety, but here are a few quotes from the Red Sox slugger:
- On Teixeira’s Contract: "He was put in a good situation. Everybody needed a player like him at the time and the market was wide open. He walked into a situation that was perfect for him, and on top of it he was a very good player. Everybody who performs at that level wants to be put in that situation."
- On Signing His Four-Year, $52MM Extension in 2006: "The market wasn’t like it is now. It wasn’t close to what it is now. The year after I signed my deal the market exploded with the big television deal."
- On His Next Contract: "I know it will be hard to get that kind of money a few years from now. I haven’t really sat down and thought about it. All my focus is about doing my thing. You work, try to get better every day for a reason. I’m not planning to go anywhere."
Ortiz is 33 years old and could have hit the free agent market at the age of 31 had he not signed his extension with the Red Sox. The contract includes a team option for 2011. Bradford notes that his $12.5MM annual salary is $1.5MM smaller than that of teammate J.D. Drew.
Heyman On Bay, Papelbon, Manny, Braves
The latest from SI.com’s Jon Heyman…
- Red Sox GM Theo Epstein says he’s had "casual conversations" about a contract extension with Jason Bay. We learned a few days ago that Bay is open to an extension but doesn’t consider it the "end-all, be-all."
- Jonathan Papelbon says he’s a "gambling man," and he prefers to go year-to-year rather than sign long-term. Boston’s offer was far off his expectations, and he wants to set the market for closers. Papelbon is under team control through 2011, and will earn $6.25MM in his first arb year.
- Heyman says there’s "some indication Dodgers owner Frank McCourt is about to become involved in the Manny Ramirez negotiations." Maybe that’ll get things moving.
- Heyman says the Braves will look at Garret Anderson, Jim Edmonds, and Luis Gonzalez, though ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick has indicated the Braves aren’t interested in the veteran free agents.
- The Orioles’ acquisition of Felix Pie cost Edmonds a chance to sign with the team.