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Olney On Soriano, LaRoche, Braves

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Baseball’s most recent collective bargaining agreement introduced new rules regarding draft pick compensation, and the changes were expected to help free agents. However, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports that some agents and general managers say certain free agents who obtained qualifying offers are now seeing reduced interest from teams. These players are talented, but general managers are hesitant to give up draft picks. Here are more notes from Olney’s column…

  • One GM pointed out that teams aren’t “wild about giving up a draft pick for a reliever," even though Rafael Soriano is a good pitcher. The Yankees almost certainly won’t consider taking him back, according to Olney.
  • The Red Sox have targeted players who aren’t linked to draft pick compensation, as Olney points out.
  • Adam LaRoche is tied to draft pick compensation and it’s “really hurting him,” Olney writes. The first baseman has been sitting on a two-year offer from the Nationals.
  • It appears that the Braves would be fairly comfortable going into the season with Martin Prado playing both left field and third base. They’d use Reed Johnson in left field against left-handers and Juan Francisco at third base against right-handers in that scenario.

Red Sox Notes: Napoli, Ellsbury, Drew

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The Red Sox officially announced the signing of Ryan Dempster to a two-year, $26.5MM contract earlier today. Here's what GM Ben Cherington had to say to reporters following the announcement…

Red Sox Designate Pedro Beato For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced that they designated right-hander Pedro Beato for assignment. The move creates 40-man roster space for Ryan Dempster, whose two-year deal became official today.

Beato, 26, joined the Red Sox in August as the player to be named later in the Kelly Shoppach trade. He appeared in four games for the Red Sox after pitching in seven games for the Mets. Beato spent most of the 2012 season in the minor leagues, where he posted a 3.33 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 46 innings of work.

Red Sox To Sign Ryan Dempster

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The Red Sox announced that they will formally introduce Ryan Dempster at Fenway Park today. The Red Sox agreed to sign the free agent right-hander to a two-year, $26.5MM contract last week, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported (Twitter links). LSW Baseball represents Dempster.

Ryan Dempster - Rangers (PW)

Dempster, 35, posted a 3.38 ERA with 8.0 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 43.5% ground ball rate in 173 innings for the Cubs and Rangers in 2012. The 15-year veteran saw his average fastball velocity dip below 90 mph, but he continued generating swings and misses. His 10.4% swinging strike rate was right around his career mark of 10.8%. He's not linked to draft pick compensation, which means the Red Sox won't have to surrender a pick to complete the deal.

Earlier in the offseason Dempster turned down a two-year, $25MM offer from the Boston. The Brewers also made a two-year offer and the Royals were interested. Dempster ranked 16th on MLBTR's list of top 50 free agents this year.

The Red Sox needed rotation depth for the 2013 season. Their rotation options now include Dempster, Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz, Felix Doubront, John Lackey and Franklin Morales.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

AL East Links: Orioles, Ellsbury, Ross, Iglesias

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We've already had one batch of AL East Notes on MLBTR today, but here are some more items on a busy day around the division…

  • The Orioles have had a quiet offseason while their division rivals have been spending, writes Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun.  While the O's didn't make any major signings en route to a playoff appearance last year and face a payroll increase due to several arbitration-eligible players, Schmuck thinks spending on a big free agent like Adam LaRoche would help the team contend again.
  • A Dodgers official flatly denied that the Dodgers and Red Sox could make an Andre Ethier/Jacoby Ellsbury swap, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.  Ethier's name has come up in recent rumors but L.A. isn't shopping the outfielder and doesn't appear eager to move him.
  • Also from Cafardo, he hears from an AL general manager that the Red Sox may be trying to deal Ellsbury so they can shift Shane Victorino to center field and then sign Cody Ross.  Several teams are interested in Ross but none have yet met his desired price of a three-year, $21-$31MM contract.

Earlier updates:

  • Jose Iglesias has "always been available, but nobody has knocked down [Boston's] door," writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe about the Red Sox prospect's trade value.  Given that Stephen Drew was signed to just a one-year contract, it's too early to say that the Sox have given up on Iglesias as a long-term solution at shortstop. 
  • Also from Cafardo's piece, he thinks that Rafael Soriano and Matt Garza could both still be targets for the Red Sox.
  • Right-hander Daniel McCutchen has received multiple offers to play in Japan, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes has learned.  McCutchen’s minor league deal with the Orioles permits him to accept an offer from a Japanese team. The 30-year-old appeared in one game for the Pirates this past season, but he spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he posted a 2.98 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 63 1/3 innings.
  • The Blue Jays were picked as the 2013 AL East champions by 13 of 20 scouts and executives polled by FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi.  In that same poll, the Orioles were picked to finish last by 10 voters, while the Red Sox received six last-place votes and were the only team that didn't get at least one pick as division winners.  Morosi himself picks Toronto for first place and Boston for last.
  • From earlier today, the Rays signed Roberto Hernandez, the Red Sox finalized the signing of Koji Uehara and I compiled some Yankees-related notes.

MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith also contributed to this post

Rosenthal On Rangers, Nakajima, Upton

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The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…

  • Rangers officials aren’t overwhelmed by the remaining free agent position players available, Rosenthal reports. Texas has done background work on A.J. Pierzynski, and could work to sign him. However, Adam LaRoche, Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn seem like less likely targets. The Rangers are particularly concerned about makeup, according to Rosenthal. Manager Ron Washington knows Swisher from their days in Oakland and likes the outfielder, Rosenthal reports.
  • The Rangers still want to add to their bullpen, and Rosenthal suggests they could make a play for Pirates closer Joel Hanrahan. The team is also exploring other bullpen options via trades and free agency. Hanrahan’s projected salary of $6.9MM limits interest from the Dodgers and Tigers, Rosenthal writes.
  • Hiroyuki Nakajima has range that is average “at best,” one executive told Rosenthal. However, the A’s agreed to sign the 30-year-old free agent to a two-year deal in part because they like his offensive potential.
  • Now that many free agent third basemen have signed, the Marlins could pursue a top third base prospect who’s close to contributing at the MLB level. However, it would be difficult to put together a package for a player such as Mike Olt.
  • Some executives believe the Diamondbacks will trade Justin Upton even after GM Kevin Towers said a deal seems unlikely. There’s a perception that the Diamondbacks are down on Upton, Rosenthal notes.
  • When Mets executive Paul DePodesta watched outfield prospect Wuilmer Becerra in 2011, he liked the prospect’s athleticism and effort. The Mets acquired the 18-year-old Becerra in the R.A. Dickey trade.
  • The Red Sox are always looking to upgrade their bullpen, Rosenthal adds.

Red Sox Sign Koji Uehara

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The Red Sox announced that they signed reliever Koji Uehara to a one-year deal.  Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News first reported the agreement, which includes a $4.25MM base salary, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter).  Uehara is represented by SFX.

Uspw_6230172

Uehara, 38 in April, posted a 1.75 ERA, 10.8 K/9, 0.8 BB/9, 1.00 HR/9, and 32.5% groundball rate in 36 innings this year, missing time with a strained lat muscle.  He'll join Andrew Bailey and Junichi Tazawa at the back end of Boston's bullpen.  Uehara came to MLB from Japan in 2009, and has dominated as a reliever when healthy despite an average fastball velocity below 89 miles per hour.  Among pitchers with at least 200 career innings, Uehara's 7.97 career K/BB ratio is the best in baseball history.  He ranked 35th on my top 50 free agents list.

The Red Sox have committed $150.95MM to free agents Uehara, Mike Napoli, Shane Victorino, David Ortiz, Jonny Gomes, Ryan Dempster and David Ross this offseason.  However, Napoli's $39MM deal hasn't been announced, as there appears to be something holding the agreement up.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AL East Notes: Drew, Orioles, Blue Jays, Rays

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On this date 21 years ago, the Blue Jays signed free agent starter Jack Morris to a two-year contract. The right-hander had recently led the Twins to a memorable World Series win over the Braves, out-pitching John Smoltz with ten shutout innings in the deciding seventh game. Morris won 21 games for the 1992 Blue Jays, and Toronto captured its first World Series title. Though Morris struggled in 1993, the Blue Jays successfully defended their title. Now 57, Morris is a candidate for Hall of Fame induction. Here are today's AL East links…

  • Stephen Drew will obtain $500K if he reaches 500 plate appearances in 2013, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). Drew agreed to terms with the Red Sox on a one-year, $9.5MM deal yesterday.
  • The Orioles have spoken with at least six teams about possible trades, Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com reports. The Orioles are seeking a middle of the order bat, but aren't willing to trade their best prospects to obtain one. While there's some interest in pitchers such as Brian Matusz, Jake Arrieta, Chris Tillman and Zach Britton, there are indications the Orioles wouldn't want to trade more than one of them. Plus, their trade value isn't particularly high.
  • The Blue Jays are prioritizing present gains over future potential, Shi Davidi writes at Sportsnet.ca. But it's not about a one-year gamble for GM Alex Anthopoulos. "This allows us to really put what we feel is a contending team together for an extended run, for a three-to-five year period," Anthopoulos said. An interesting note from Davidi's piece: Zack Greinke will out-earn Dickey's $30MM contract about a month into the 2014 season. The two contracts were signed under different circumstances, of course, but it’s still noteworthy.
  • Curtis Granderson expects to hit free agency after the 2013 season, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post reports. The Yankees have a team policy of waiting until players hit free agency before negotiating extensions, and Granderson doesn’t expect GM Brian Cashman to make an exception for him. “I’m just excited to play this year, and then, once we get to the end, we’ll take it at that point,” he said.
  • In a separate piece, Davidoff suggests that the best-run teams — he cites the Rays as one example — look to contend every year instead of targeting specific windows.

Orioles Hesitant To Pursue LaRoche

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The Orioles would like to add power to the lineup and improve their defense at first base, but Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun writes that the draft pick compensation that is tied to Adam LaRoche is a deterrent to executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette.

The 33-year-old LaRoche hit .271/.343/.510 with a career-high 33 homers in 2012 after missing the majority of 2011 with a torn labrum. For the third consecutive season, both the Fielding Bible and Ultimate Zone Rating praised LaRoche's defense at first base.

Connolly writes that multiple sources have told him the Orioles have legitimate interest in LaRoche. However, Duquette's plan since taking the reins in Baltimore has been to build through the draft. Forfeiting the 24th overall pick to sign LaRoche, who turned down a qualifying offer from the Nationals, would go against that mentality. The Orioles do also have the 35th pick, but Duquette prefers to stockpile picks rather than consider some expendable.

As for LaRoche himself, he doesn't mind playing the waiting game, according to the Washington Post's Adam Kilgore. LaRoche is content to wait out his situation, and doing so could have an initially unexpected benefit. Should the Red Sox see their deal with Mike Napoli fall apart, LaRoche would have another interested suitor. There does appear to be a snag in the finalization of the deal between Napoli and Boston.

AL East Notes: Ellsbury, Blue Jays, Dickey, Orioles

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It’s been a busy day for AL East teams, with the Red Sox agreeing to sign Stephen Drew and the Blue Jays agreeing to an extension with R.A. Dickey. Here are some more notes from the division…

  • The Red Sox have been rebuffing trade inquiries about Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). Boston can obtain a compensatory draft pick if Ellsbury declines a qualifying offer to sign elsewhere following the 2013 season, when he’ll become eligible for free agency.
  • As Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca writes, the value of the Blue Jays' prospects shifted from what they might eventually contribute in Toronto to what they can bring back in trades.
  • The Blue Jays aim to win now, even if it means surrendering multiple top prospects for a 38-year-old, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. The Blue Jays are betting that Dickey's success will continue, and as Rosenthal points out the knuckleballer is no one-year fluke.
  • Though the Orioles have been quiet to this point in the offseason, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun points out that we're still eight weeks away from the start of Spring Training. The trade value on young arms such as Chris Tillman, Brian Matusz and Jake Arrieta remains unclear, Encina writes.
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