Odds & Ends: Bay, Byrd, Liriano, Duchscherer
Some links on the last day of a year we'll remember for Joe Mauer, Albert Pujols and the World Series Champion New York Yankees…
- Tigers catcher Gerald Laird and his younger brother Brandon Laird, a prospect in the Yankees farm system, were arrested following a brawl at the Celtics-Suns NBA game in Phoenix, Arizona, according to the Associated Press. Gerald lives in Arizona during the offseason while Brandon played in the Arizona Fall League this past year.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (via his newly minted Twitter account) that Chan Ho Park's name has come up in the Giants' front office.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com hears that Jason Bay was indeed interested in joining the Mets. The two sides didn't go longer than a day without talking once negotiations got started. An interesting note: Speier hears that the Mets never offered Bay a guaranteed five-year deal.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs considers Marlon Byrd an average player, but likes the Cubs' decision to sign him.
- Cameron tweets that the Mariners are "kicking the tires" on Francisco Liriano.
- Mike Lowell's thumb surgery was a success, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. Lowell appears to be available, but health concerns may prevent the Red Sox from dealing the third baseman and some of his $12MM salary (the D'Backs face a similar challenge with Chris Snyder).
- Just because Lowell's still in Boston doesn't mean the Red Sox won't consider other third basemen. Adrian Beltre is one option and R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs doesn't think $10-15MM is an unfair asking price for the Scott Boras client.
- Justin Duchscherer tells Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that he returned to the A's because he's comfortable in Oakland and appreciates the club's support through his struggles with depression. Slusser also has details on the incentives in the righty's contract.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues wants the Yankees to stay away from free agent outfielder Marlon Byrd.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says the Pirates' failure to sign Dominican prospect Miguel Angel Sano was one of the club's low points this year. As Kovacevic says, "not every signing can be an absolute steal."
Odds & Ends: Hudson, Wallace, Chapman
A few notes as we head into the final day of 2009….
- ESPN.com's Insider news page passes on some Orlando Hudson-related speculation from Buster Olney on the Mike And Mike In The Morning radio show. Olney "wouldn't be surprised" if the Mariners got into the bidding for the veteran second baseman, adding that Hudson would "be a perfect fit in what they're doing" in Seattle.
- Andrew Stoeten of the Drunk Jays Fans blog runs down some of the highlights of Keith Law's appearance on Toronto's FAN 590 station this afternoon. Law opined on the type of free agents the Blue Jays should sign, said the Jays should focus on scouting and noted that if Brett Wallace wasn't going to be used at third base, "you can probably play him opening day."
- Chad Jennings of the LoHud.com Yankees blog says Aroldis Chapman "might be this winter’s most intriguing available player, period." He brought up Chapman with Yankees senior vice-president of baseball operations Mark Newman, who said the Cuban left-hander would start the year in Single-A or Double-A if he signed with New York. Newman was impressed by Chapman's workout session two weeks ago, but noted that Chapman is "not where (Stephen) Strasburg was."
- Mike Lowell underwent surgery today to repair the injured right thumb that prevented him from being dealt to Texas. Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports that Lowell had a 95-percent tear in his thumb's radial collateral ligament but is expected to be ready for spring training. This latest surgery will almost surely, as Newsday's Ken Davidoff surmised last week, put an end to the Lowell trade rumors unless Lowell proves himself to be healthy in Grapefruit League action.
Odds & Ends: Bay, Guardado, Yankees, Marlins
Let's round up some lingering Tuesday links….
- John Tomase of the Boston Herald reports that the Red Sox kept in touch with Jason Bay's representation right up until the outfielder agreed to terms with the Mets. Boston was a longshot destination for Bay though, with the Angels and Mariners also involved.
- Like Brian Bruney, Eddie Guardado hopes to close for the Nationals in 2010, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com. Doesn't seem too likely, with Bruney and Matt Capps on board, but Guardado could earn a setup role for the Nats.
- Dave Cameron of Fangraphs argues that even if they have the money to sign Matt Holliday, the Yankees don't need him. ESPN.com's Rob Neyer and Joseph Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues respond to Cameron's piece.
- The Florida Marlins haven't been aggressively signing their arbitration-eligible players so far this winter, but they should take care of it soon, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (via Twitter).
- Frisaro also tweets that the Marlins remain "firmly" entrenched in the Aroldis Chapman sweepstakes.
Jason Bay Reactions
With an agreement in place between Jason Bay and the New York Mets, reactions to the deal are already starting to pour in….
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post feels that the Mets will regret signing Bay within a few years.
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan feels that Bay's money would've been better spent on John Lackey.
- ESPN.com's Keith Law says that Bay's defense will dictate whether the contract is a good one or not, and argues that the Mets will need to make a few more moves to contend.
- It may have taken a while to get done, but "all's well that ends well," writes Rob Neyer of ESPN.com.
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff is on board with the deal, and hopes the Mets continue to stay financially responsible for the rest of the winter. This means going "nowhere near" Joel Pineiro at his current asking price, and not guaranteeing Bengie Molina two years (Davidoff suggests that reports of an imminent two-year deal for Molina are inaccurate).
- Scott Lauber of The News Journal looks at what the move means for the Phillies, both as a division rival and as a club that will have their own free agent outfielder (Jayson Werth) next year.
- Articles from Ian Browne of MLB.com and Ryan Divish of the Tacoma News Tribune examine the signing from Boston's and Seattle's perspectives, respectively.
- R.J. Anderson of Fangraphs explains why, even if it's heavily backloaded, the Mets' offer was more financially appealing than one the Red Sox made earlier.
Red Sox Remain Interested In Adrian Beltre
The Boston Red Sox are still involved in discussions for Adrian Beltre, according to Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com.
Edes notes that a couple factors stand in the way of Beltre signing with the Red Sox. The club no longer has as convenient an opening at third base, after the Mike Lowell trade with Texas fell through. On top of that, signing Beltre could put the Sox over the luxury tax threshold. Still, Edes reports that the Red Sox plan to resume talks with Beltre and agent Scott Boras in the new year.
We heard earlier in December that the Red Sox had "significant interest" in Beltre, but that was before the team cut into their budget to sign John Lackey and Mike Cameron. It's possible that the Sox could add another pricey free agent, but it certainly seems less likely now than it did a few weeks ago.
Odds & Ends: Thome, Chapman, Mariners
Links for Tuesday, as we wait for the hot stove to reignite…
- MSG's Tina Cervasio tweeted that she saw Jim Thome at a Detroit area hotel, prompting ESPN's Jerry Crasnick to wonder (via Twitter) if there's a match with the Tigers.
- ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. points out that Aroldis Chapman stands to lose millions of dollars due to taxes if he signs in 2010.
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times looks at the Mariners' remaining trade bait.
- ESPN's Buster Olney feels that Scott Boras' reputation "will remain cemented" no matter how the rest of the offseason plays out. Olney also notes that other agents, such as the Levinson brothers, moved quickly to get many of their top clients signed.
- John Tomase of the Boston Herald has a few free agent relief names for the Red Sox to consider.
Odds & Ends: Bay, Holliday, Bruney
Monday night linkage..
- Daniel Barbarisi of The Providence Journal points out that Boston giving Jason Bay a backloaded contract would do nothing to keep them out of luxury tax territory. Payroll is calculated by totalling the average yearly earnings of a player, not a player's year-to-year salary. However, Barbarisi offers up a number of other ways the Red Sox could retain Bay without getting hammered by the luxury tax.
- Chuck Brownson of The Hardball Times writes that the Cardinals can afford to be patient with Matt Holliday as long as alternatives remain on the open market. Brownson feels that Mark DeRosa signing with the Giants put a little more pressure on St. Louis.
- Brian Bruney told Bill Ladson of MLB.com that he wants to close for the Nationals in 2010. Bruney will have to compete with newly acquired Matt Capps for the role.
Odds & Ends: Zambrano, Cabrera, Molina
Links for Monday…
- Matt Klaassen of Fangraphs gave his thoughts on the Orioles' "enviable outfield logjam." In his Offseason Outlook for the club, Tim suggested that Luke Scott could make sense as a trade candidate.
- A week ago, we heard conflicting reports about whether or not the Yankees had talked to the Cubs about acquiring Carlos Zambrano. SI.com's Jon Heyman reports, via Twitter, that the Yankees "definitely" inquired, and speculates that Zambrano is "eminently available."
- In a piece for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, David O'Brien suggested in passing that the Braves could potentially use Melky Cabrera as a trade chip. Heyman tweets that the Cubs would be very interested, if the Braves were to make Cabrera available.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick says Bengie Molina "might be willing to consider" a two-year deal. So far the Mets are at one year with an option.
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik must retain at least one of Cliff Lee and Felix Hernandez long-term.
- Derek Zumsteg of U.S.S. Mariner gives us a Milton Bradley chronology.
- CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban tweets that he's heard a whisper connecting the Giants to free agent reliever Kiko Calero.
- WEEI's Alex Speier examines the differences between the contracts of John Lackey and A.J. Burnett. In case you missed it, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe revealed on Wednesday that Lackey must play for the league minimum in 2015 "if an old elbow injury forced him to miss significant time with surgery any time during the deal."
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs says statheads and scouts are mostly in agreement these days, and Moneyball would be a very different book if Michael Lewis wrote it today.
Matt Holliday’s Best Offer
Based on published reports, let's try to determine the best offer Matt Holliday has received.
- Tracy Ringolsby, then of the Rocky Mountain News, reported that Holliday rejected a four-year, $82MM extension from the Rockies in the spring of 2008. Ringolsby's colleague Dave Krieger talked to Holliday about the offer, and learned that it did not include a no-trade clause. In another article, Ringolsby put the offer at four years and $72MM, and noted that Holliday would've been able to void the contract if dealt.
- Did the Rockies really top out at four years? Reader Dan B. passed along this video of 9NEWS' Susie Wargin interviewing Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd in November of '08. About 35 seconds into the video, O'Dowd said the Rockies offered Holliday $107.5MM over seven years during Spring Training of '08. That comes to a salary of $15.36MM, but it's the only $100MM+ offer Holliday received.
- ESPN's Buster Olney reported that the Cardinals' offer to Holliday this winter guaranteed five years, while Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch put the salary at $15-16MM. If both reports are accurate, the Cardinals' best offer could not exceed five years and $80MM.
- It appears that in terms of total dollars, Holliday's pre-John Lackey offer from the Red Sox was the best. Boston's five-year offer was initially pegged at $82.5MM, while today John Tomase of the Boston Herald says it was $85MM.
- It seems that Holliday's best offer in terms of yearly salary was $20.5MM from the Rockies before the '08 season, but the lack of a no-trade clause devalued it. It appears that the Red Sox outdid the Cardinals by a million or two per year, but Boston's offer is no longer on the table. Perhaps Scott Boras is holding out for a sixth guaranteed year or $18MM per, but with no obvious competition there's no reason for the Cardinals to raise their offer. The Orioles' interest waned quickly and the Mets are currently focused on Jason Bay. In Boras' perfect world Bay would not sign with the Mets, and they'd tangle with the Cards for Holliday.
Cafardo On Red Sox, Hudson, Garland
In his latest column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe speculates about where "old hands" such as Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, and John Smoltz could land. Here are some of Cafardo's other notes:
- The Red Sox "are debating whether they’ll go for it and pay luxury tax money," as their payroll approaches the $170MM mark.
- If the Sox wanted to sign Jason Bay, they could offer a low, one-year base salary with three heavily backloaded option years. With as much as $48MM coming off their books next winter, they would be better equipped to pay Bay after 2010.
- Baseball executives think that plenty of good values will be available by mid-January, with some established major league players having to sign minor league contracts. One NL GM says "the Pirates will load up" on this type of player.
- The Mets are still the team most interested in Orlando Hudson, but would have to find a way to move Luis Castillo.
- A market is starting to form for Jon Garland, and the Rangers seem to be the early frontrunner.
- Other Rangers notes: The team might prefer Jermaine Dye to Vladimir Guerrero, since Dye can still play the outfield (albeit not particularly well, according to UZR/150). Texas and Minnesota could also be good fits for Miguel Tejada.
- The Indians aren't saying Fausto Carmona is available, but baseball execs feel that the club would have to listen on any offers.