Red Sox Rumors

Red Sox To Sign Kevin Youkilis For Four Years

By Tim Dierkes | January 15, 2009 at 7:09pm CDT

7:09pm: According to Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald the contract’s worth at least $41.25MM. Youkilis gets a $1MM signing bonus, $6MM in 2009, $9MM in 2010 and $12MM in 2011 and 2012. After four years, the Red Sox have the option of buying Youkilis out for $1.25MM or paying him about $14MM to play another season.

5:25pm: Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe adds an important detail; the deal includes a club option for a fifth year at $13MM. It’s still unclear whether it includes any buyouts.

3:06pm: According to ESPN’s Peter Gammons, the Red Sox and Kevin Youkilis agreed to a four-year deal worth more than $40MM. There’s also a fifth year option. The deal buys out two arbitration years and two free agent years. The Boston Globe’s Amalie Benjamin says the deal is close but not likely to be finished today.

Youkilis, 30 in March, hit .312/.390/.569 in 621 plate appearances in ’08 while playing above-average defense at first base. He finished third in the AL MVP vote. Youkilis’ teammate Dustin Pedroia received $34MM for the same slice of his career ($40.5MM in total).

Indians, Red Sox Complete Byrd Trade

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 15, 2009 at 5:49pm CDT

Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that the Red Sox have sent outfielder Mickey Hall to the Indians to complete the trade that sent Paul Byrd to the Red Sox last season.

The news comes the day after we heard that Byrd will sit out the first half of the 2009 season.

Hall, who turns 24 in May, hit .232/.333/.456 in 82 AA games last year in the Boston organization.

Odds and Ends: Smoltz, Cordero, Colon, Byrd

By Tim Dierkes | January 15, 2009 at 10:45am CDT

Links for Thursday…

John Smoltz told Dan Patrick that the Yankees and Dodgers also courted him.
KNBR had interviews with Scott Boras and Ned Colletti yesterday.
The Dodgers are "only monitoring" Kris Benson and Chad Cordero.
The Phillies have "kept tabs" on Cordero and Eric Milton.
Baseball America ranked the Rangers’ farm system as the best in baseball.
Andy MacPhail says the Orioles don’t necessarily have to add a first baseman.
South Side Sox and Sox Machine on the Bartolo Colon signing.
Jon Paul Morosi says Jason Isringhausen is a "natural fit" for the Tigers.
The Red Sox will only get a supplemental pick for Paul Byrd if he signs before the June draft.
Barry Bloom gathers responses from baseball execs on the salary cap issue.
Eddie Bajek made a breakthrough in his attempt to crack the Elias code.
Richard Justice has an interesting story involving new Astro Russ Ortiz.
Rickey Henderson says he’s still available to play. Asked about the WBC, he responded, ""What is [the WBC], wrestling?"
Transcript of an interview with Red Sox owner John Henry.

Rosenthal On Lackey, Dunn, Young, Isringhausen

By Tim Dierkes | January 14, 2009 at 1:03pm CDT

Here’s a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal.

John Lackey is due up for extension talks with the Angels, as he’ll be eligible for free agency after the ’09 season. He’d easily be the best available starter. Rosenthal says talks with the Angels should occur before the beginning of the season, but the Halos may not be willing to offer A.J. Burnett money (five years, $82.5MM). In November, Jayson Stark said Lackey had been telling friends he expects to have an extension by Opening Day. That came after Lackey’s confirmation he’d wait to see the Angels’ offensive plans before re-signing.
The Braves paid $60MM for Derek Lowe, though no one else made a comparable offer. This is a testament to Scott Boras (and perhaps the Braves’ desperation), though Boras has more challenging work ahead in Manny Ramirez and Jason Varitek.
The Red Sox have shown interest in Adam Dunn, one rival exec tells Rosenthal. Rosenthal considers the possibility a longshot – "a square peg in a round hole." The Sox could always make a midseason deal if their offense isn’t cutting it.
A Rangers official put Michael Young’s chances of being with the team on Opening Day at at least 90%. The Rangers aren’t interested in moving Ian Kinsler to left field and Young to second base.
Rosenthal believes Xavier Nady is likely to garner Type A status when he becomes a free agent after the ’09 season, but half of the equation (his 2009 stats) is missing.
Jason Isringhausen is considering four teams, and he’d have a shot to close for those clubs. The Dodgers aren’t terribly interested, while the Cardinals and Tigers are possibilities.
Should the Mets sign Andy Pettitte as well as Randy Wolf or Oliver Perez? One rival exec suggested the idea.
The Astros apparently made a three-year, $28.5MM offer to Wolf before pulling it back. Looks like he’ll be settling for less.
Rosenthal says a Rangers trade for Jermaine Dye is "not happening." They’ll go with Hank Blalock’s left-handed offense rather than sign an aging veteran. Blalock is headed into a contract year.
If Todd Helton has a healthy spring, the Rockies could shop Garrett Atkins.
The Red Sox and D’Backs are not close to a deal involving catcher Miguel Montero. Arizona will need to add a capable backup catcher if they do find a deal for Montero.

Jason Varitek And Draft Pick Compensation

By Tim Dierkes | January 14, 2009 at 9:06am CDT

As you know, players such as Jason Varitek, Orlando Cabrera, and Juan Cruz are Type A free agents who declined offers of arbitration. As such, it costs a draft pick to sign one of these players. For Varitek in particular, no team seems comfortable with this cost.

WEEI’s Alex Speier looks at the Varitek situation, outlining four ways the catcher might get around this problem: wait until June, have the Red Sox waive their right to a compensation pick, a sign and trade, or a minor league contract. Bottom line, Varitek will probably not find a way to circumvent the draft pick compensation (which is why re-signing with the Sox makes the most sense). It’s never wise to bet against Scott Boras, but the agent’s apparent recommendation to decline Boston’s offer of arbitration looks like a miscalculation.

Odds and Ends: Smoltz, Young, Cameron

By Tim Dierkes | January 13, 2009 at 2:00pm CDT

Links for Tuesday…

Lyle Spencer doesn’t think Michael Young and Jermaine Dye make sense for the Angels.
Joel Sherman speculates on some possible matches Young trades.
The Marlins’ recent minor league signings, including John Koronka and Jay Gibbons.
The Red Sox officially announced the John Smoltz signing today. Here’s the transcript, and here are the contract terms.
Buster Olney debunks the Mike Cameron for Nick Swisher rumor, saying the teams haven’t talked trade since the Winter Meetings.
With the ninth pick in a fantasy draft, this is the team I’d put together.

Red Sox Sign Takashi Saito

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 13, 2009 at 12:31pm CDT

TUESDAY, 12:30pm: Dylan Hernandez says Saito’s deal could be worth as much as $15MM over two years, although he is guaranteed just $1.5MM.

SATURDAY, 2:23pm: It appears the Dodgers weren’t ready to offer the contract terms needed to bring Takashi Saito back. As Tony Jackson reports: "[the Dodgers] weren’t about to give him anything close to this much money."

8:41am: Ken Rosenthal reports that the Red Sox have signed Takashi Saito to a one-year contract with a club option for 2010. The deal’s worth between $1.5 and $2.5MM in 2009, but Saito could earn up to $7MM if he pitches well, according to Rosenthal’s sources.

Saito passed his physical yesterday.

Red Sox Still Eyeing Miguel Montero

By Tim Dierkes | January 13, 2009 at 9:10am CDT

9:10am: WEEI’s Alex Speier talked to a source who said little has changed in the Montero trade talks. Speier says the D’Backs hope to receive a starter for Montero, meaning Daniel Bard might not cut it. The D’Backs aren’t in any rush to trade Montero.

TUESDAY, 8:40am: Massarotti says the D’Backs and Red Sox "clearly feel there is a fit." They’re still trying to determine which young Boston player is comparable to Montero. Massarotti reiterates that the Red Sox maintain interest in Jason Varitek and Jarrod Saltalamacchia as well.

MONDAY, 2:44pm: Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic weighs in:

We’re hearing the Diamondbacks aren’t getting the impression that the Red Sox are zeroing in on Montero. The clubs are still talking — or maybe we should say they are again talking — and the Sox have tweaked their offer, but it apparently is not to the point where it satisfies the Diamondbacks.

8:59am: According to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald, the Red Sox have been "intensifying talks with the Arizona Diamondbacks concerning 25-year-old catcher Miguel Montero." Silverman says the D’Backs have not been requesting Clay Buchholz, and the teams may be able to find a match. Last week Peter Gammons said the Red Sox would not give up Michael Bowden for Montero. Alex Speier wrote on December 9th that the Red Sox rejected that offer.

Silverman adds that the Red Sox are expected to continue to sign new players this week. They’ve already added John Smoltz, Brad Penny, Mark Kotsay, Rocco Baldelli, and Takashi Saito on one-year deals. Former Dodgers GM Fred Claire weighs in on Boston’s bargains at MLB.com.

Red Sox To Introduce Smoltz On Tuesday

By Ben Jones | January 12, 2009 at 7:54pm CDT

The Boston Red Sox sent out a press release stating the team will announce the John Smoltz signing at 10 am Tuesday, The Providence Journal reports.

Odds and Ends: Andruw, Manny, Hudson

By Tim Dierkes | January 12, 2009 at 12:30pm CDT

Links for Monday…

David Chase lists the signs a pitcher may be primed for a breakout.
The Dodgers considered trying to void Andruw Jones’ contract, but waived possible action as part of their new agreement.
Dodgers assistant GM Kim Ng on the Manny Ramirez talks.
Michael Silverman explains why the Red Sox are not inclined to deal with Scott Boras.
Dave Sheinin talked to one exec who predicted a one-year deal for Orlando Hudson.
The Tigers signed Taiwanese lefty Fu-Te Ni.
The alleged Japanese interest in Eric Hinske may have come from the SoftBank Hawks, in November.
Pitcher win (and dollar) values are now up at FanGraphs. Cliff Lee was worth $20.2MM in 2008.

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