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AL East Notes: Rays, Iglesias, Crawford, Yankees

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The American League East may be the toughest division in baseball, so the Yankees, Rays, Red Sox and Blue Jays likely welcomed the news that MLB will expand its playoffs in 2012. In theory, three teams from one division could play in the postseason under the new arrangement. Here are the latest links from the AL East…

  • Rays executive VP of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told Peter Gammons of MLB.com that he gets “tired of hearing the Red Sox are underdogs." As Gammons explains, the Rays could be better in 2012 than they were in ’11.
  • Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg said he's "pretty certain" the Tampa Bay market can support the team long-term, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Sternberg said he's had encouraging talks with city officials and business leaders about the club. 
  • After a challenging winter, Sternberg is projecting a "very, very good team this year," Topkin writes. Sternberg approved a payroll increase of approximately 50% for 2012.
  • Red Sox GM Ben Cherington joined WEEI's Dennis & Callahan show and said the decision of whether Jose Iglesias breaks camp with the team will be up to manager Bobby Valentine. "In a perfect world, [Iglesias] would probably get some more time in Triple-A," the GM said (via Jerry Spar). 
  • Cherington said on WEEI that he isn't worried about Carl Crawford, who will be looking to increase his production after a disappointing 2011. 
  • Right-handed reliever Chris Carpenter, acquired from the Cubs for Theo Epstein, isn't a lock to make the team, Cherington said. The Red Sox may option him to Triple-A and call him up when a spot opens up.
  • Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues discusses some Yankees who fell short of expectations in 2011 and could make up for it in 2012.

AL East Notes: Varitek, Ramirez, Hughes

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The AL East included four of the junior circuit's eight 80-win teams a year ago, and you could make the argument that the Yankees, Rays, Red Sox and Blue Jays are just as strong entering the 2012 campaign. The latest links from the division…

  • As Alex Speier of WEEI.com explains, the Red Sox didn't realize they had obtained two future All-Stars when they sent reliever Heathcliff Slocumb to Seattle for Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe in 1997. Speier passes along quotes from Dan Duquette, scout Gary Rajsich and Lowe in this look back at the franchise-altering deal. Rajsich considered Lowe a future above-average setup man at the time.  Even then, the scout thought Varitek could be a frontline starting catcher. 
  • Duquette explained to Speier that Manny Ramirez wasn't a fit for the Orioles this winter. "I thought since I was so generous with Manny last time around, he should have paid me this time around. He didn’t quite see it that way," Duquette quipped, making reference to the slugger's eight-year, $160MM contract with the Red Sox.
  • Duquette also discussed the Varitek-Lowe deal in detail.
  • The Yankees say there's a competition between Phil Hughes and Freddy Garcia for the final spot in their rotation, but Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the competition is essentially rigged. Hughes will win if the competition is close, and Garcia will head to the bullpen unless a starter gets injured.

Jason Varitek To Retire

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Fifteen seasons and two World Championships later, Jason Varitek is calling it a career. The 39-year-old catcher will announce his retirement in Fort Myers this Thursday, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports. Varitek is expected to remain involved with the Red Sox organization.

Jason Varitek - Red Sox

Varitek, Boston's longtime captain, was a key member of the 2004 and 2007 World Series winners. He caught four no-hitters in his career — one each by Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz, Hideo Nomo and Derek Lowe. The Red Sox acquired Lowe and Varitek from the Mariners for Heathcliff Slocumb in a fateful 1997 trade. Seattle had selected the switch-hitter with the 14th pick in the 1997 draft.

Varitek made three All-Star teams and picked up MVP votes each year from 2003-05. His career slash line reads .256/.341/.435 and he'll retire with 193 home runs. He earned over $67MM in his career, according to Baseball-Reference.

The Red Sox, who had interest in re-signing Varitek to a minor league deal, will employ Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Kelly Shoppach and Ryan Lavarnway behind the plate this year. Interestingly, Varitek and longtime rival Jorge Posada retired during the same offseason.

Photo courtesy Icon SMI.

Extension Notes: Wright, Ellsbury, Swisher

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Ryan Zimmerman's six-year, $100MM extension earlier today isn't the only contract extension (or lack thereof) being talked about in the baseball world…

  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson said he'd love to keep David Wright in the fold and called him a "special player," writes Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. Martino's sources said the Amazin's would like to see Wright produce in 2012 to make an extension "palatable." An executive told Martino it'd take "four Zack Wheelers" for the Mets to move Wright, which makes an extension sound preferable to a trade (in my opinion). Both sides agree that Zimmerman's extension won't be a factor in contract discussions.
  • Jacoby Ellsbury is open to discussing a long-term deal to keep him in a Red Sox uniform beyond 2013, writes WEEI.com's Alex Speier. Ellsbury said he leaves negotiations up to his agent, Scott Boras, but that he loves the city of Boston and its fans.
  • Nick Swisher recognizes that the Yankees rarely negotiate additional years on top of existing contracts, and anticipates filing for free agency, according to Wallace Matthews of ESPN. Swisher said it's "not his style" to ask agent Dan Lozano to approach New York about a long-term deal. He also said New York is where he ultimately wants to be.
  • In case you missed it, the Reds are nearing an extension with setup man Sean Marshall and Josh Hamilton expects to reach free agency.

Cafardo On Oswalt, Angels, Bourjos, Rodriguez, Lowe

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Here's a look at some highlights from today's column by Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe..

  • One National League GM said that Roy Oswalt's desire to pitch closer to home has some teams wondering if the hurler might not be enthused about pitching this season.  "Everyone knows he has back issues, but the thing that bothered teams was that all of a sudden, he wanted to be closer to home and wanted to start picking and choosing where he wanted to be. A lot of people felt he lost that desire he used to have to pitch, and now we’re seeing him say, ‘Maybe I’ll show up somewhere around midseason and make just as much as I’d make if I signed now,'" said the GM. 
  • The Angels are unlikely to outright release Bobby Abreu as they owe him $9MM, but their efforts to deal him have been fruitless so far.   
  • Peter Bourjos, meanwhile, is still prominent on the Nationals’ wish list for center fielders, but the Angels want considerable value back if they deal him.   With Torii Hunter in the final year of his contract, there is room for the Halos to keep both Bourjos and Mike Trout.
  • Astros left-hander Wandy Rodriguez will be a top "go get" guy before the deadline for teams needing an extra piece. Astros people remain surprised at the lack of interest in Rodriguez, even with the club willing to pick up about half the $36MM owed to him.
  • Indians pitcher Derek Lowe has strong interest in returning to the Red Sox after this season as a starter or reliever.  Cafardo writes that the veteran could have been an interesting solution as the BoSox's fourth or fifth starter, but picking up a large chunk his salary from the Braves didn't interest Boston.
  • Jason Varitek's friends still insist that he is leaning toward retirement as he can’t envision himself in a non-Red Sox uniform.  However, he feels that he can still play and at least be a backup catcher somewhere.

Red Sox Ownership On Scutaro, Payroll, Valentine

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The Red Sox ownership group spoke to the media at the team's Spring Training complex this morning, with chairman Tom Werner saying this season "is going to be a new chapter." Here's a recap of their media session, with all source links going to Twitter…

  • When asked if he and his partners would consider selling the Red Sox, ownerJohn Henry said, "It's a valid question … people involved in RedSox partnership, we've made enough money," tweets Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com.
  • Henry didn't sound thrilled about the compensation his team received from the Cubs for Theo Epstein, says Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Henry did say that's how tough negotiations go, calling it a "basic misunderstanding" according to Tim Britton of The Providence Journal.
  • Team president Larry Lucchino said the Marco Scutaro trade was "a little bit of both," meaning a baseball move and a financial move. They believe they can get similar production from other players. (Heyman)
  • Henry said the luxury tax will be a "bigger issue every year moving forward" and the team has to be "more careful" spending money, according to Heyman and Britton. He noted that other clubs are catching up economically.
  • Lucchino said payroll would be upwards of $190MM according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier, adding that the team will have money to make moves within the season.
  • "So far, he's done everything we could have hoped," said Werner when asked about new manager Bobby Valentine, according to Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com.
  • Henry backed off his comments about not wanting Carl Crawford from earlier this offseason according to McAdam, saying: "I should have never made those comments."

AL East Links: Soler, Orioles, Dice-K, Jeter, A-Rod

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Red Sox ownership already spoke to the media this morning, so now let's check in the on the rest of the AL East…

  • Orioles GM Dan Duquette wouldn't comment on the team's interest in Jorge Soler, telling Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com that tipping his hand wouldn't benefit the team. The O's watched the 19-year-old outfielder work out earlier this month.
  • The Orioles lead all clubs with ten out of options players, and manager Buck Showalter told MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli that he estimates they'll have to make "2-4 moves" before the end of camp (Twitter link).
  • Daisuke Matsuzaka told WEEI.com's Rob Bradford that he still wants to pitch until he's 40. The right-hander is in the final year of his contract with the Red Sox, and is expected back from Tommy John surgery at midseason.
  • “If I didn’t think that I was capable of playing the game at a high level I would go home," said Yankees captain Derek Jeter to reporters yesterday, including George King of The New York Post. "If I wasn’t enjoying myself or enjoying the competition I would go home. Right now I am an enjoying myself. I can’t comment on what would force me to retire because I have a lot of confidence and if that starts to waver I would do it."
  • Joel Sherman of The New York Post wrote about Alex Rodriguez, wondering what kind of contract the Yankees third baseman would have received had he been a free agent his offseason.

AL East Notes: Martin, Red Sox, Vizquel

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A few odds and ends to pass along from the AL East. For more news out of the division, be sure to check out this afternoon's earlier post.

  • The Yankees and catcher Russell Martin have decided to table extension talks until after the season, writes Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com. Martin, 29, is eligible for free agency after this season, and is apparently seeking more than the three years and $20MM the Yankees were willing to offer, as reported by Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
  • Red Sox GM Ben Cherington addressed his club's shortstop situation today, according to the Associated Press: "[W]e feel good about the mix that we have, and we'll certainly keep our eyes open if there are ways to improve that. But right now we're focused on the guys we have." The current starting candidates are Nick Punto, Mike Aviles and, less likely, Jose Iglesias.
  • Blue Jays infielder Omar Vizquel passed on an offer to manage a winter league team in his native Venezuela so that he could focus on playing in the Majors for what is presumably a final season, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. Davidi adds that Vizquel, signed to a minor league deal this offseason, is the favorite to claim the backup infielder's role with the Jays. Vizquel also says managing is likely in his future.

AL East Notes: Davis, Carpenter, Soler, Beeston

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The latest from Florida, where all five AL East teams are preparing for Opening Day…

  • Rays starter Wade Davis told Bill Chastain of MLB.com that he doesn't want to get traded, despite the uncertainty surrounding his role on the 2012 team.
  • Red Sox right-hander Chris Carpenter tells Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald that it was "kind of cool" to be traded for Theo Epstein earlier this week. Epstein called Carpenter to explain the situation.
  • All of Boston's top talent evaluators including GM Ben Cherington have seen Cuban outfielder Jorge Soler, Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com reports. The 19-year-old appeals to the Red Sox more than Yoenis Cespedes did, according to Edes.
  • Blue Jays president Paul Beeston, who is entering the final year of his contract, told Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca that he'd like to continue in his current role. “I guess I would say that, but I’m not even thinking about that right now," he said. The Blue Jays promoted Alex Anthopoulos and invested in scouting and player development since Beeston assumed his current role following the 2008 season.
  • The Orioles aren't likely to add a catcher from outside of the organization any time soon, MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli tweets.

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Rays, Rivera, Vizquel

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Roy Oswalt probably won't be signing in Boston any time soon and the Yankees are discussing a multiyear deal with Russell Martin. Here are some more updates of note from the AL East…

  • Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine said he's ready to move on without Oswalt, Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald reports. “I think I may have been more comfortable, but I wouldn’t have been totally comfortable,” Valentine said of potentially signing Oswalt. “What did he pitch, 136 innings last year?” Valentine was close — it was 139.
  • Red Sox GM Ben Cherington says he doesn’t anticipate making any more additions in the near future, Alex Speier of WEEI.com tweets.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports discusses the Rays’ impressive rotation depth and explains why it’s a good ‘problem’ to have. Manager Joe Maddon told Rosenthal the club could use a six-man rotation at times this year and said top prospect Matt Moore won’t be relegated to the bullpen.
  • Mariano Rivera seems to be savoring the early days of Spring Training, so Joel Sherman of the New York Post won’t be surprised if the closer chooses to retire after the season.
  • Blue Jays infielder Omar Vizquel said he'll likely become involved in coaching next year, according to MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm (on Twitter). The 44-year-old doesn't anticipate playing after 2012 and would eventually like to manage in the Major Leagues.
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