Red Sox Rumors

Red Sox Pursued Jose Bautista Trade

By Mark Polishuk | January 25, 2011 at 5:54pm CDT

The Red Sox "made multiple offers" for Jose Bautista during the Winter Meetings, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. Boston "never got the sense that the Blue Jays were serious about a deal" and Rosenthal reports that several other clubs inquired about Bautista's availability as well.

One would think that the Sox would've had to pay a premium to extract Bautista from their division rivals, but needless to say, that trade would have completely altered the shape of the offseason. Let's play alternate reality for a moment and explore how a Bautista deal would have affected Boston's two biggest winter moves…

The Adrian Gonzalez trade. Rosenthal notes that the Red Sox were specifically looking for an outfielder (Carlos Beltran and Magglio Ordonez were also options), so a Bautista deal would've kept Kevin Youkilis at third base and left Boston looking for a big bat at first. It's hard to see Theo Epstein, however, cleaning out his farm system for the sake of two trades, when Boston has the finances to simply sign a big-name free agent. It's also possible the Jays would've wanted some of the prospects that the Sox sent to the Padres for Gonzalez. That said, the Red Sox had been interested in Gonzalez for so long that they surely put him at a higher level of importance than acquiring Bautista.
The Carl Crawford signing. Bautista's presence would've made Carl Crawford's signing unnecessary, unless the Red Sox were prepared to move J.D. Drew or just keep a $14MM player in a bench role. If Crawford doesn't land in Boston, that has a domino effect on several other teams; for instance, if Crawford instead had signed with the Angels, then the club wouldn't have hade a need for Vernon Wells.

Orioles, Red Sox In The Mix For Joe Beimel

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 25, 2011 at 3:25pm CDT

The Orioles and Red Sox are two of the five teams in the mix for Joe Beimel, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). The left-hander has received interest from clubs in both leagues and could make a decision this week. The Orioles have made Beimel a minor league offer, according to Connolly.

Beimel, who has a habit of signing late in the offseason, posted a 3.40 ERA with 4.2 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 45 innings for the Rockies last year. The 33-year-old struggled against right-handed hitters, but was especially effective against left-handed hitters, holding them to a .221/.275/.379 line.

Troy Renck of the Denver Post reported yesterday that Beimel had several irons in the fire.

Cafardo On Loney, Papelbon, Pavano, Feliz

By Luke Adams 2 | January 23, 2011 at 8:58am CDT

Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe tackles the subject of arbitration hearings in his latest column, pointing out that teams are far more willing to settle on salaries with their players than they used to be. After speaking to Astros president Tal Smith, who says hearings don't involve as much "mud-slinging" as you'd think, Cafardo wonders why more clubs aren't inclined to fight to keep their payroll down. Here are the rest of his notes:

James Loney won't be traded for now, but the Nationals made a "good push" for him earlier this winter, before they signed Adam LaRoche.
According to one of Cafardo's Red Sox sources, Jonathan Papelbon will be available throughout the season, regardless of where the Sox are in the standings.
Cafardo indicates that before Carl Pavano agreed to a two-year deal with the Twins, the Yankees offered the right-hander a one-year pact worth $7MM.
Ron Washington offers the latest on the Rangers' plan for Neftali Feliz, who could get a chance to start this year after winning Rookie of the Year honors as a closer: "We’re going to bring [Feliz] into camp and give him an opportunity to stretch himself out. And if he shows us he’s better fitted with our ball club to start, then we’ll go in that direction. If not, we know he can close ballgames and we’re very happy with that."
Joaquin Benoit discussed former teammates Carl Crawford and Rafael Soriano with Cafardo, opining that Red Sox pitchers will love having Crawford behind them, and expressing some surprise that Soriano won't be closing in 2011. He also told Cafardo that he was "getting a lot of phone calls" this winter from fellow relievers who felt Benoit helped them by signing early to his three-year deal.

Reaction To The Vernon Wells Trade

By Mark Polishuk | January 21, 2011 at 9:39pm CDT

Pundits are already chiming in on the huge Vernon Wells-for Mike Napoli/Juan Rivera trade between the Angels and Blue Jays this evening. A sampling…

Lyle Spencer of MLB.com likes the trade for both teams, noting that the addition of Wells gives the Angels "the makings of a dream outfield."
The trade "had the air of desperation" to it, says Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Saxon counts this trade along with the Scott Kazmir deal as cases of the Angels taking "other teams' financial problems off their hands." On the plus side, Saxon points out that Wells and Torii Hunter are ideal candidates to mentor Mike Trout, the Halos' center fielder of the future.
Wells is "absolutely the wrong player right now for the Angels, who have made one the worst desperation moves I can remember," writes Keith Law of ESPN.com. Law points out that with all of the money Toronto is saving with Wells' contract off the books, the Jays "could become very good, very fast."
Acquiring Wells for Rivera and Napoli added roughly $75MM to the Angels' payroll over the next four years, and Fangraphs' Dave Cameron looks at what else the Halos could've bought with that money this winter.
"It's hard to get away from the thought that [the Angels] were better off when they were doing nothing," writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Knobler thinks the Angels are taking a big risk in acquiring Wells, who does nothing to "change an Angels offense that has gotten older and less athletic as the years have gone on."
Ken Fidlin of the Toronto Sun looks at how the trade alters the Jays' lineup and thinks Alex Anthopoulos may have to make another deal to fill a few holes.
Anthopoulos has only been the Blue Jays' GM since October 2009, but Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star tweets that this deal might already be Anthopoulos' "best deal…ever." Griffin also tweets that the trade could "be the first step to signing [Jose] Bautista long-term."
The Jays and Rays weren't the only AL East team with an interest in Napoli. The Red Sox looked at Napoli earlier this winter but their interest waned after acquiring Adrian Gonzalez, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. Boston didn't feel Napoli was a legitimate starting catching option; the club wanted him as a first baseman and emergency catcher. The Sox put in a waiver claim for Napoli last summer.
ESPN.com's Mark Simon looks at some Wells statistics that will trouble Angels fans — the center fielder's odd decline against left-handed pitching and his home/road splits away from the Rogers Centre.

Heyman On Fielder, Papelbon, Rays, Giants

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 21, 2011 at 1:32pm CDT

Prince Fielder is looking to join the $200MM club and the Red Sox considered trading Jonathan Papelbon to the A's or White Sox, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. Here are the details and the rest of Heyman's rumors:

Fielder is looking for at least eight years and $200MM or so when he hits free agency after the season, according to Heyman. Not surprisingly, the Brewers don't like the idea of committing that much to their first baseman.
The Red Sox talked to the A's and White Sox about Jonathan Papelbon. Boston appeared willing to offer Rafael Soriano a one-year deal and make him their closer. If the sides had agreed to a deal, the Red Sox would have sent Papelbon elsewhere, likely to Oakland or Chicago
The Rays, who are moving toward a deal with Johnny Damon, have also considered Vladimir Guerrero, Manny Ramirez, Russell Branyan and Nick Johnson.
The Yankees hope to hear from Andy Pettitte soon, but the lefty is still mulling retirement.
The Giants appear to be nearing a one-year deal with Andres Torres. As our Arb Tracker shows, Torres filed at $2.6MM and the Giants countered with $1.8MM.
Heyman says there's "scuttlebutt" that the Rangers could look to lock Josh Hamilton up on a multiyear deal.
Heyman talked to executives about Joey Votto's new deal and arrived at the conclusion I reached after talking to insiders earlier in the week: the Reds didn't appear to gain much from their deal with the reigning NL MVP.
Heyman points out that Jose Bautista's representatives will have to convince arbitrators to overlook the string of pedestrian seasons that led up to Bautista's mammoth 2010 campaign. For more on Bautista's case, click here.

East Notes: Jones, Buchholz, Papelbon, Rizzo, Jays

By Mark Polishuk | January 19, 2011 at 9:27pm CDT

Some news about the various beasts of the eastern baseball world…

Adam Jones doesn't believe the Orioles discussed a multi-year extension with his CAA representation before the two sides agreed to a 2011 contract, the outfielder tells MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli.
The Red Sox haven't discussed a long-term extension with Clay Buchholz this offseason, reports Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal. Last September, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith explored what a Buchholz extension might cost Boston.
Also from MacPherson, he points out that the Red Sox could wind up letting Jonathan Papelbon leave for nothing next winter. Papelbon would have to turn down an arbitration offer from Boston in order for the Sox to receive compensatory draft picks if he signed elsewhere as a free agent. However, by offering arbitration, the Red Sox would be making "a $14-$15MM gamble" that Papelbon wouldn't accept, since he's unlikely to find that much salary elsewhere.
GM Mike Rizzo discussed several Nationals-related topics during a conference call with reporters today. Mark Zuckerman of the Nats Insider blog has a partial transcript.
Alex Anthopoulos tells MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm his philosophy about not publicly disclosing whether or not the Jays are negotiating multi-year contracts, be they with Jose Bautista or any player.
Brett Lawrie tells MinorLeagueBaseball.com's Robert Emrich that he has been working out at third base and believes he will play the position during Spring Training. When Toronto acquired Lawrie in the Shaun Marcum deal, there was speculation to whether Lawrie would stay at second base or be moved to third or even a corner outfield spot. The Jays are, obviously, set at second (at least in the short term) with Aaron Hill.
In an interview with Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio (Twitter link), Phillies assistant GM Scott Proefrock says his club does not have to deal Joe Blanton or Kyle Kendrick. Proefrock also said the Phillies will look within the organization for right-handed hitting help.
The Orioles are lacking in Major League third base depth, writes Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.

Players To Avoid Arbitration: Tuesday

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 18, 2011 at 5:20pm CDT

Today is the deadline for players and teams to submit arbitration figures. The sides will then settle on a salary between the team's proposed number and the player's proposed number or go to an arbitration hearing. Arbitration eligible players are under team control, so the clubs don't risk losing them – it's a question of how much the players will earn.

Yesterday, 11 players avoided arbitration. We could see just as many agreements trickle in today and we'll keep you posted on them right here and with our Arb Tracker. The latest updates will be at the top of the post:

The Angels have agreed to terms with Reggie Willits and Howie Kendrick, tweets Bill Shaikin of The Los Angeles Times. Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register tweets that Kendrick will earn $3.3MM, Willits $775K (on Twitter).
The Giants agreed to terms with Santiago Casilla on a one-year deal worth $1.3MM with incentives, according to ESPN Deportes' Enrique Rojas (on Twitter). The team also announced that they avoided arb with Jonathan Sanchez and Ramon Ramirez (on Twitter). Sanchez will earn $4.8MM with incentives tweets Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle while Ramirez will earn $1.65MM according to Janie McCauley of The Canadian Press.
The Braves agreed to terms with Peter Moylan and Eric O'Flaherty, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman (on Twitter). Moylan gets $2MM, O'Flaherty gets $895K according to Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter).
The Mariners agreed to terms with Brandon League, David Aardsma and Jason Vargas, the team announced. Aardsma will earn $4.5MM with plenty of incentives, according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times (plus Twitter link).
The Rangers agreed to terms with C.J. Wilson and Nelson Cruz, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan (Twitter links). Cruz gets $3.65MM, and Wilson gets $7.05MM with a chance to earn another $100K according to his agent Bob Garber, via email.

The Padres avoided arbitration with Chase Headley (2.535MM) and Tim Stauffer ($1.075MM), according to MLB.com's Corey Brock (on Twitter).
The Phillies and Kyle Kendrick avoided arbitration with a $2.45MM deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The team has confirmed the deal.
The Pirates announced that they agreed to terms with Joel Hanrahan. It's a $1.4MM deal, according to Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter).
The Cubs agreed to a one-year deal with Tom Gorzelanny, despite reports that a trade to Washington is imminent. Gorzelanny will earn $2.1MM next year, according to Mark Zuckerman of NatsInsider.com (on Twitter). They also announced a two-year, $4.7MM deal with Sean Marshall.
The Diamondbacks agreed to a one-year deal with Joe Saunders.
The Padres agreed to a $2.535MM deal with Mike Adams, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links).
The Angels agreed to a $3MM deal with Erick Aybar and a $2.975MM deal with Kendry Morales.
The White Sox agreed to a $5.05MM deal with Carlos Quentin, according to Rosenthal.
The Braves agreed to a $3.1MM deal with Martin Prado and a $3.25MM deal with Jair Jurrjens according to Rosenthal.
The Orioles agreed to a $5.85MM deal with J.J. Hardy, according to Rosenthal.
The Athletics agreed to a $4.75MM deal with Kevin Kouzmanoff, according to Slusser (Twitter link).
The Giants avoided arbitration with Cody Ross, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Ross will earn $6.3MM in 2011.
The Red Sox avoided arbitration with Jonathan Papelbon ($12MM) and Jacoby Ellsbury ($2.4MM).
The Yankees avoided arbitration with Joba Chamberlain ($1.4MM), Phil Hughes ($2.7MM) and Boone Logan ($1.2MM), according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (all Twitter links).
The Dodgers agreed to a $6.275MM deal with Chad Billingsley, according to Heyman (on Twitter).
The White Sox agreed to a $6MM deal with John Danks, according to Heyman (on Twitter).The Cubs avoided arbitration with Matt Garza and agreed to a $5.95MM deal, according to Heyman (on Twitter).
The Indians avoided arbitration with Shin-Soo Choo, the team announced. The deal is worth $3.975MM, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (on Twitter).
The Twins avoided arbitration with Matt Capps ($7.15MM) and Glen Perkins ($700K), according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune (on Twitter).
The Rays avoided arbitration with Andy Sonnanstine, agreeing to a deal worth $913K plus incentives, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (on Twitter).
The Mets avoided arbitration with Mike Pelfrey, agreeing on a deal worth close to $4MM, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
The Brewers avoided arbitration with Prince Fielder and Manny Parra, signing the players to one-year deals, the team announced. Parra will earn $1.2MM, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy (on Twitter).
The Athletics avoided arbitration with Dallas Braden ($3.35MM) and Conor Jackson ($3.32MM), according to MLB.com's Jane Lee (on Twitter).
The Blue Jays agreed to a one-year, $2.3MM deal with Brandon Morrow, the team announced.
The Indians announced that they agreed to a one-year deal with Rafael Perez (Twitter link). It's worth $1.33MM, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (on Twitter).
The Athletics avoided arbitration with Josh Willingham, agreeing to a $6MM deal, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter).
The Astros signed Michael Bourn to a one-year, $4.4MM deal, according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart (on Twitter).
The Nationals announced (on Twitter) that they avoided arbitration with Michael Morse.
The Marlins avoided arbitration with Anibal Sanchez, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (on Twitter). They agreed to a $3.7MM deal, according to Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com (Twitter link).
The Orioles avoided arbitration with Felix Pie, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). The deal is for $985K.
The Blue Jays avoided arbitration with Rajai Davis, agreeing to a two-year, $5.25MM deal with the outfielder.
The Marlins avoided arbitration with Clay Hensley and agreed to a $1.4MM deal, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (on Twitter).
The Astros agreed to a one-year, $2.3MM deal with Jeff Keppinger, avoiding arbitration, according to Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). The Astros confirmed the deal.
The White Sox agreed to a one-year, $1.6MM deal with Tony Pena, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
The Padres avoided arbitration with Ryan Ludwick with a $6.775MM deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
The Astros avoided arbitration with Clint Barmes, signing the infielder to a one-year, $3.925MM deal, according to Rosenthal. The Astros confirmed the deal.
The Rockies avoided arb with Felipe Paulino and agreed to a one-year, $790K deal, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
The Blue Jays announced that they have agreed to terms with Yunel Escobar on a $2.9MM deal for 2011.
The Indians signed Chris Perez for 2011, avoiding arbitration, the team announced (on Twitter). It's a $2.225MM deal, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (on Twitter).
The Royals announced that they agreed to terms with Kyle Davies on a one-year deal, avoiding arbitration. It's a $3.2MM deal, according to MLB.com's Dick Kaegel (on Twitter).
The Reds avoided arbitration will Bill Bray, according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer (on Twitter). The AP says the deal is for $645K.
The Nationals avoided arbitration with Doug Slaten, and agreed to a one-year, $695K deal according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
The Padres avoided arbitration with Heath Bell and agreed to a one-year, $7.5MM deal.

Red Sox, Papelbon Avoid Arb With $12MM Deal

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 18, 2011 at 12:40pm CDT

The Red Sox avoided arbitration with Jonathan Papelbon and agreed to sign the reliever to a one-year deal worth $12MM, according to Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com (on Twitter). The Red Sox also avoided arbitration with Jacoby Ellsbury, agreeing to a $2.4MM deal.

AL East Links: Pettitte, Cashman, Chavez, Red Sox

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 17, 2011 at 12:54pm CDT

The latest on the AL East, as teams turn their attention to arbitration eligible players and possible bargains on the free agent market…

A Yankees source told Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork.com that the team's optimism about Andy Pettitte's potential return has diminished in the past week. The team has been in touch with Pettitte, but they aren't counting on him to return.
Despite the suggestion that the Yankees' deal with Rafael Soriano was ownership-driven, the Yankees have "full confidence" in GM Brian Cashman, a senior Yankees executive told Matthews. We heard over the weekend that Cashman has full backing from the Steinbrenner family.
Blue Jays manager John Farrell confirmed to MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm that the Blue Jays are interested in Eric Chavez. Farrell says he heard good things about the third baseman, who worked out for the Blue Jays recently.
Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe suggests we'll see a flurry of signings today, since teams would prefer not to exchange figures with their arbitration eligible players. Jonathan Papelbon and Jacoby Ellsbury are Boston's unsigned arbitration eligible players.

Cafardo’s Latest: Bonderman, Pettitte, Pavano, Bautista

By Luke Adams 2 | January 16, 2011 at 11:42am CDT

Despite their impressive offseason, the Red Sox will still need some luck at a couple positions, says Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Cafardo leads this week's column by discussing the production the Red Sox hope to receive behind the plate and from their left-handed relievers. Here are the rest of the items of interest from the piece:

Jeremy Bonderman is still looking to land a spot at the back of a rotation, and is drawing "minor interest" from the Rangers and Cardinals. The Yankees, whose interest in Bonderman we heard about earlier this month, have also been in touch with the right-hander's representation.
Someone "close to" Andy Pettitte told Cafardo that he would be shocked if we've seen the last of the left-hander in the bigs. The longtime Yankee won't start the 2011 season with the club, but hasn't officially announced any plans to retire.
There has been a "strange silence" surrounding Carl Pavano's situation over the last week, but Cafardo suggests that since Pavano definitely wants to remain a Twin, there's no urgency to act quickly.
According to Cafardo, Jose Bautista would prefer to play right field rather than third base for the Blue Jays this season. Where Bautista ends up on the field may hinge on whether the Jays add another bat.

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