Red Sox Rumors

July 2nd Rumors: Aybar, Devers, Zapata, Jimenez

By Tim Dierkes | March 27, 2013 at 1:00pm CDT

Kiley McDaniel of sbb.scout.com has a primer on the international signing period, which begins July 2nd every year. That's when 16-year-olds from countries such as the Dominican Republic and Venezuela can be signed by Major League teams. The latest from McDaniel:

There is no super elite prospect this year, writes McDaniel. He notes that under the new collective bargaining agreement, most teams will have budgets in the $1.5-4MM range, as determined by the 2012 MLB standings. The Astros could have north of $7MM to spend, however. McDaniel notes that teams can trade for up to 50% of their assigned cap.
In another article, McDaniel looks at particular players in this July 2nd class. Dominican shortstop Obispo Aybar could get a $1MM bonus, even though MLB is investigating his age and clubs believe he is 18 or 19.
Dominican third baseman Rafael Devers has been connected to the Red Sox, with a possible bonus over $1MM.
Right fielder Micker Zapata, born on the island of St. Thomas but trained in the Dominican in recent years, has drawn interest from the Phillies, Mariners, Twins, and Indians. McDaniel notes that Zapata "speaks perfect English from his upbringing in St. Thomas."
Dominican right fielder Eloy Jimenez has shown similar tools to Zapata with plus speed, a right field arm, and big raw power to his pull side. Jimenez has been rumored to be in line for a bonus that would likely top the class, ranging from $2.5MM-$3MM and is most often linked to the Astros.
Gleyber Torres is a Venezuelan shortstop who doesn’t offer a ton of projection but has the smoothness and skills to put him into the top group of talents in this class. The Cubs are said to like him and they could spend over $2MM on him.
Fellow Venezuelan shortstop Yeltsin Gudino is rumored to be in line for over $1MM with the A's and Mariners mentioned most often.
Dominican shortstop Franly Mallen is further along than Gudino and has caught the attention of a number of teams. Rumor has it that a couple of clubs have already offered him a bonus in the high six figures.
Dominican righties Mayky Perez and Marcos Diplan are the top two pitchers this year. Perez is 6’5, 205 pounds and shows three average or better pitches with a physical, projectable frame. Diplan, meanwhile, is skinny at 6’0, 160 pounds and boasts a 90-94 mph fastball with an above average breaking ball.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Red Sox Release Lyle Overbay

By Tim Dierkes | March 26, 2013 at 10:01am CDT

The Red Sox released first baseman Lyle Overbay, tweets WEEI's Alex Speier. Boston's other choices were to put Overbay on the 25-man roster or pay him a $100K retention bonus to go to the minors.

Overbay, 36, hit .259/.331/.397 in 131 plate appearances for the Diamondbacks and Braves last year and was signed by the Sox to a minor league deal in February. Overbay became the odd man out when Boston acquired Mike Carp from the Mariners later that month. The Yankees have had internal discussions about Overbay, wrote Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe two days ago. That match is "unlikely, but possible," tweets ESPN's Buster Olney today.

Multiple Teams Showing Interest In Chris Young

By Steve Adams | March 25, 2013 at 7:01pm CDT

MONDAY: The Blue Jays, Orioles, Twins, Indians, Cubs, Cardinals, Red Sox, Brewers and Mets all have scouts on hand for Young's start against the Astros today, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). However, as he's quick to note, that doesn't necessarily mean that each team is there to scout Young specifically.

For what it's worth, Young was terrific in his outing, scattering two hits, a walk and an unearned run over four innings to go along with a pair of strikeouts.

SUNDAY, 2:10pm: The Pirates are intrigued by Young, tweets the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Rob Biertempfel. However, Biertempfel wonders whether the Pirates can assure Young he'd be on roster the whole year and, if not, whether or not Young would be interested.

11:25am: The minor league deal that Chris Young signed with the Nationals last month contains an opt-out clause that he can exercise today. However, Young is scheduled to pitch in a Grapefruit League game tomorrow. Dan Kolko of MASNsports tweets that Young is planning on making that start tomorrow and then making a decision. Young says he has received interest from other teams, and it was reported on Friday that Young likely won't make the roster.

The Washington Post's Adam Kilgore adds that the Nationals hope to retain Young and view him as the clear favorite for a rotation spot if one of their starting five were to suffer an injury. Young is interested in staying in the organization in the event that he can't find a Major League job elsewhere.

The 33-year-old Young posted a 4.15 ERA, 6.3 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 115 innings for the Mets last season. However, teams in smaller ballparks will likely be wary of Young's alarming 58.2 percent fly-ball rate. Among pitchers with 100 innings or more, Young's fly-ball rate was far and away the highest in baseball, while his 22.3 percent ground-ball rate was far and away the lowest.

Edward Creech contributed to this post.

Article XX(B) Free Agents Update: Monday

By Steve Adams | March 25, 2013 at 6:25pm CDT

As has been previously discussed on MLBTR, Major League Baseball's new collective bargaining agreement contains a provision that allows certain free agents who are signed to minor league contracts to receive a $100K retention bonus if they are not on the team's 25-man roster or the Major League disabled list five days prior to the season.

Free agents who qualify for this distinction are those who have at least six years of Major League service time and had a Major League contract expire at the end of the previous season, but signed a minor league deal ten or more days prior to Opening Day.

MLBTR has confirmed with MLB that the deadline for teams to decide on these players is tomorrow at 12:00pm ET (11:00am CT). In other words, by tomorrow afternoon teams with these players in camp need to decide whether to:

Add the player to their 25-man roster or Major League disabled list (or agree to do so in writing).
Grant the player his outright release from the minor league contract so that he may pursue opportunities with other teams.
Pay the player a $100K retention bonus to keep him in the organization beyond the deadline.

Here's the latest news from around the league on Article XX(B) signees and their roster statuses with their respective teams (newest updates on top)…

Rangers manager Ron Washington informed infielder Jeff Baker that he has made the Opening Day roster, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.
The Indians announced that Jason Giambi has made the roster but will open the season on the 15-day disabled list with a back strain. Ezequiel Carrera was designated for assignment in order to clear room on the roster.
The Mariners announced via press release that they have added Kameron Loe to the 25-man roster and transferred Josh Kinney to the 60-day disabled list to create space.
Smith also tweets that Rick Ankiel is expected to make the team as the everyday right fielder, meaning Houston will have to make a 40-man roster move. Ankiel's base salary will be $750K, and his contract includes incentives based on plate appearances.
LaTroy Hawkins has been informed that he will make the Mets' 25-man roster, writes ESPN's Adam Rubin. The Mets currently have an open spot on their 40-man roster, meaning no corresponding move would have to be made. Hawkins will earn a base salary of approximately $1MM for making the team.
Pedro Feliciano, another Mets non-roster invitee, is still deciding whether or not to opt out of his contract or take his $100K bonus and report to Triple-A, Rubin tweets. Feliciano was told he would not make the Mets' roster yesterday.
Red Sox bench hopeful Lyle Overbay says he has "no idea" as to whether or not the team will add him to the 25-man roster, according to the Boston Herald's Scott Lauber (Twitter link). Overbay has plenty on the line, as he'll earn $1.25MM (with $250K more available via incentives) if he makes the Opening Day roster.

Cafardo On Norris, Overbay, Mortensen, Dodgers

By charliewilmoth | March 24, 2013 at 8:26pm CDT

Here's the latest from the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo:

Pitcher Bud Norris of the Astros has "drawn interest from at least six teams," but Houston does not appear interested in trading him.
The Yankees have had discussions about Lyle Overbay, who could platoon with Juan Rivera at first base in Mark Teixeira's absence. Overbay is currently with the Red Sox, but he has an out clause in his contract that he can trigger on Tuesday.
The Red Sox aren't inclined to deal reliever Clayton Mortensen, even though he is out of options.
The Orioles, Brewers, Indians, White Sox, and Mets have all had "internal discussions" about surplus Dodgers starters Chris Capuano, Ted Lilly and Aaron Harang, and scouts feel that the Dodgers will ultimately trade at least one of them.
The White Sox are looking for another starter because John Danks, who is recovering from shoulder surgery, has struggled this spring, allowing 21 runs in 11 innings.

Quick Hits: Red Sox, Cubs, Cabrera

By charliewilmoth | March 23, 2013 at 11:52pm CDT

Red Sox principal owner John Henry has no intention of selling the team, he says in a wide-ranging interview with Steve Buckley of the Boston Herald. "I’ve not had one partner in 11 years suggest thinking about selling the Red Sox, even though they haven’t received dividends," he says. Henry also defends club president and CEO Larry Lucchino, saying Lucchino "revolutionized the game" with the building of Camden Yards in Baltimore, and adding that Lucchino's focus on revenue is critical to the Red Sox maintaining a high payroll. Henry also suggests that Lucchino will one day be enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Here are more notes from around the majors.

The Cubs' trade of Sean Marshall to the Reds for Travis Wood, Dave Sappelt and minor-leaguer Ronald Torreyes might turn out well for Chicago, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times suggests. Sappelt performed well in a brief big-league stint last year and will break camp with the team, and Wood made 26 starts for the Cubs in 2012. "I think it could turn out to be a good trade," Sappelt says. "I think it already is a good trade, and I’ll get to face Marshall a lot, so we’ll see." Wittenmyer also says the Cubs are unlikely to pursue Chone Figgins or Bill Hall for their bench.
Asdrubal Cabrera could be dealt if the Indians have a bad season, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes. After an offseason in which Cabrera's name was connected with the Trevor Bauer deal, however, there are no trade rumors regarding Cabrera right now. Pluto also notes that Cabrera could receive more off days this season, thanks to the addition of Mike Aviles.

Quick Hits: Yankees, Overbay, Rolen, Gardenhire

By Mark Polishuk | March 22, 2013 at 11:57pm CDT

The Yankees are still looking for help at both corner infield spots and no shortage of veteran names have been mentioned in connection to the search. CBS Sports' Jon Heyman (via Twitter) wonders if New York would be interested in Pirates first baseman Gaby Sanchez, who "appears to be available." The Yankees have also been scouting Lyle Overbay, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports, and Overbay can opt out of his minor league deal with the Red Sox on Tuesday if he isn't on Boston's Major League roster. As of now, however, Cafardo believes Overbay would "probably" make the Red Sox.

Here's some more news from around baseball as we head into the weekend…

One candidate the Yankees don't seem to be considering is Scott Rolen, according to Heyman, as the team "never really engaged" the veteran third baseman. Rolen is also "not on the radar" of the Dodgers, who are also looking for infield help in the wake of Hanley Ramirez's injury.
The Twins "are not even thinking about" manager Ron Gardenhire's job security, a team source tells Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. Minnesota has suffered consecutive last-place seasons but the club doesn't fault Gardenhire given how little he had to work with on the roster. Gardenhire is one of several managers and GMs entering the final years of their contracts in 2013.
The Angels could re-sign Bill Hall to a new minor league contract, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports. Hall was released earlier today and, if the Angels re-sign him after Tuesday, they won't have to pay the veteran utilityman a $100K bonus as an Article XX(B) free agent.
Also from DiGiovanna (on Twitter), the Angels watched right-hander Adam Reifer throw a bullpen session today and could sign the former Cardinals prospect to a minor league deal. Reifer, 26, posted a 3.88 ERA, an 8.3 K/9 and a 2.47 K/BB rate over 204 1/3 IP (all out of the bullpen) in the Cards' system since 2008.
Cubs outfielder David DeJesus stands out as a trade candidate for the Royals as a platoon partner with Jeff Francoeur, Rany Jazayerli of Rany On The Royals opines. Kansas City is known to be looking for a left-handed hitting complement to the right-handed hitting Francoeur in right field.
The Mets are "going to go with the guys we have" in the outfield, GM Sandy Alderson tells Newsday's Marc Carig. Jordany Valdespin, Lucas Duda, Marlon Byrd, Mike Baxter, Collin Cowgill and Kirk Nieuwenhuis are all fighting for playing time in the Mets' outfield this season.

Rangers May Have Interest In Andrew Bailey

By Mark Polishuk | March 22, 2013 at 7:36pm CDT

The Rangers have spoken to the Red Sox about acquiring relief pitching and right-hander Andrew Bailey may be a trade target, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan reports. General manager Jon Daniels said he was looking to add depth to both the bullpen and starting rotation during an interview with Jim Bowden and Casey Stern on MLB Network Radio today (Twitter link) and Bailey would join Jason Frasor as right-handed setup options behind closer Joe Nathan.

We heard last week that the Rangers were scouting Red Sox relievers, though Boston may be hesitant to part with any bullpen arms given injuries to Franklin Morales and Craig Breslow. The Red Sox were open to dealing Bailey early in the offseason but it seems teams weren't willing to bite on a reliever who threw just 15 1/3 innings during an injury-plagued 2012 season. Bailey is slated to be a setup man behind newly-acquired Red Sox closer Joel Hanrahan.

AL East Notes: Phelps, Red Sox, Bradley

By Jeff Todd | March 22, 2013 at 2:48pm CDT

Yankees GM Brian Cashman spoke bluntly about prospective transactions yesterday, as reported by Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Cashman noted that he is often approached about young starter David Phelps, but continued: "I'm not looking to move him. I'm only looking to move the bad stuff."

Cashman also addressed the question whether the club's 25-man roster was all in camp, Feinsand reports. The GM indicated that the Yankees are still shopping: "The stuff that's possibly out there that we could add, those decisions aren't in our control. If there are castoffs from other camps that we'll look at and evaluate."
In searching for "castoffs," one area that New York is likely to target first is the corner infield, as the club is currently "actively seeking" help at first and third according to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News (via Twitter). Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports echoed that possibility, writing that the Yankees figure to add another corner infielder before Opening Day. Rosenthal reported earlier in the week on Twitter that the Yankees were "asking around about everybody."
Joel Sherman of the New York Post wonders if the Yankees and Pirates might have the pieces to make a deal. The Bucs could have interest in someone like David Aardsma to support closer Jason Grilli and they have an abundance of corner players. Garrett Jones or Gaby Sanchez could be a fit for the Yanks as they look to weather the storm during Mark Teixeira's stint on the disabled list.
Unlike his counterpart in New York, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington indicated that "in all likelihood our Opening Day roster is going to be made up of guys who are here now," reported Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Cherington also appeared to downplay any suggestion from manager John Farrell that Boston is actively looking to add rotation depth, saying that, while "it can never be deep enough," he "feel[s] a little better than I did this time last year, in terms of our options, at least early in the season."
Jackie Bradley Jr.’s defense and the importance of starting the season strong are among the reasons the Red Sox should start the season with Bradley on their roster, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com writes.

Zach Links and Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post.

Multiple Teams Pursuing Rick Porcello

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | March 21, 2013 at 6:53pm CDT

6:53pm: Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski vehemently denied that he had proposed any deals involving Porcello, including any offers to the Padres, reports Lynn Henning of The Detroit News. Dombrowski acknowledged that his "phone has been ringing a lot," and added that "this is the best I've ever seen [Porcello] throw the baseball."

12:07pm: The Padres have turned down two offers from the Tigers, Jim Bowden of ESPN.com and MLB Network Radio reports (on Twitter). The Padres declined to take Porcello for Huston Street or Luke Gregerson, a Tigers source told Bowden.

THURSDAY, 8:33am: The Cardinals are checking out Porcello, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports (on Twitter).

WEDNESDAY: The Rangers and Padres are the teams most actively discussing potential Rick Porcello trades with the Tigers, Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports report. The Orioles have also scouted the right-hander.

Despite the strong interest, rival teams wonder if the Tigers will actually trade Porcello. Instead of making a deal, the Tigers could choose to keep Porcello and use Drew Smyly in the bullpen or as a starter at Triple-A Toledo. The FOX writers report that the Tigers will not move Porcello unless they obtain a strong return.

The Padres made an “aggressive” offer last week and the Tigers rejected it, Rosenthal and Morosi report. Talks with the Rangers are not advanced at this point. The Tigers appear to like shortstop prospect Leury Garcia and right-handed pitching prospect Nick Tepesch. Detroit would want a third player added to the package, but the Rangers are reluctant to move even Tepesch.

The Red Sox could have interest in Porcello, yet they don’t want to reduce their bullpen depth, the FOX duo reports. The Orioles aren’t inclined to pursue Porcello aggressively, as they have many young starting pitchers of their own.

The Tigers also seek a right-handed hitting outfielder. They have talked about re-acquiring Casper Wells from the Mariners, Rosenthal and Morosi report. The Tigers traded Wells to Seattle midway through the 2011 season in the deal that sent Doug Fister to Detroit.

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