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Jason Varitek Rumors: Tuesday

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7:24pm: Massarotti notes that the exact date of the deadline is still a bit fuzzy.  Either way, he writes that "it is possible that a resolution will be unknown until early Saturday."

5:13pm: CBSSports.com is reporting that Varitek has only until Friday to accept or decline either deal.

12:12pm: A source told Massarotti Varitek can choose between a one-year, $5MM deal or the deal with a dual option for 2010.

8:19am: A summary of what we learned recently: the Red Sox made an offer to Jason Varitek for $5MM in ’09 plus a $5MM club/$3MM player option for ’10.  The offer has a Saturday deadline attached, with Varitek and the team putting other options on hold until the situation plays out.

A new tidbit from Tony Massarotti: the offer was made near the end of last week.  Massarotti still contends that Varitek may prefer a straight one-year deal.

Jason Varitek Rumors: Monday

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11:26pm: According to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald, the Red Sox have set a Saturday deadline for their offer to Varitek.  Silverman does not expect the Sox to sweeten their offer.  He adds that Varitek "is believed to have instructed his agent not to discuss monetary terms with any other teams during the entire free agent process."  For their part, the Red Sox will wait on Varitek before pursuing a trade for a catcher.

5:55pm: Rob Neyer of ESPN.com believes the Red Sox will get what they want no matter what: A cheap Varitek or no Varitek at all.

12:24pm: Tony Massarotti confirms Bradford’s numbers on Boston’s offer.  The incentives are based on awards rather than health or playing time.  Massarotti suggests Varitek could prefer to eliminate the ’10 option.

9:26am: Yesterday, WEEI’s Rob Bradford wrote that the Red Sox made this offer to Jason Varitek: $5MM for ’09, with a $5MM club/$3MM player option for ’10.  The offer has a deadline attached.

The Boston Herald’s Michael Silverman writes today that the one-year plus an option offer to Varitek is worth between $3-5MM.  He believes the Red Sox are "unwilling to wait much longer" and unwilling to budge much.

Jon Heyman wrote on Thursday:

It’s still a mystery to many why Varitek didn’t take arbitration. And even Red Sox owner John Henry asked Varitek in their well-publicized meeting a week ago why he didn’t take the arbitration offer. The reason is that Varitek didn’t believe that accepting arbitration would guarantee him a spot on the team.

Buster Olney called this notion "laughable" in today’s blog, labeling it as a Scott Boras talking point to cover for a poor decision.  Peter Gammons agrees.

Red Sox To Be Done After Solving Catcher?

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Daniel Barbarisi weighs in on the Red Sox, saying that following whatever their solution to the hole at catcher is (Barbarisi figures it to be Jason Varitek), they should call it quits for the offseason.

Barbarisi notes that one potential bargain could be Orlando Cabrera, but points out that Cabrera’s projections for 2009 don’t figure to be any better than Jed Lowrie’s.

He also points out that while Ben Sheets is the exact type of low-risk/high-reward player the Red Sox like to gamble on, they’ve signed enough of those already this offseason.

What does everyone else think? Do the Red Sox need another piece?

Stephen Strasburg & Alex Meyer Interviewed

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Stephen Strasburg and Alex Meyer were interviewed by Eric SanInocencio on his live radio talk show, Baseball Digest Daily Live. Head over there and click the play button.

For those unfamiliar with Strasburg, he is a power-righty from San Diego State and the odds on favorite to go first overall in next years draft. He was the only collegiate player to play in the Beijing Olympic games where he allowed only 1 hit and struck out 11 in his first 7 innings against professional hitters. He describes himself as a fastball-slider pitcher with an added sinker. He is working on a changeup and is a big fan of Josh Beckett’s approach to hitters.

On the show, Strasburg discusses the upcoming draft. While the Washington Nationals are expected to pick him first overall, he isn’t concerned with being the first player off the board. His head coach, Tony Gwynn, has fed him advice on how to handle the pressure of being a top draft pick during the season. Stras seems to have a very level head and gives all the right answers.

Right handed pitcher Alex Meyer, ranked the #5 prospect in all of high school baseball by Baseball America, was drafted by the Red Sox last year but had his mind set on going to the University of Kentucky. On the show, he discussed his experience with the Sox as they tried to sign him.

Meyer heard first from his advisors that he had been selected.  Three weeks before the signing deadline, Theo Epstein and others flew out to talk to Meyer.  On signing deadline day, Sox Assistant GM Jed Hoyer and Vice President of Player Personnel Ben Cherington showed up unannounced on his front porch. Hoping to sit down and convince him to sign with the team, they were turned away by Meyer and his dad. They returned twenty minutes later for another attempt only to be told that Meyer wanted to go to Kentucky.

Cafardo’s Latest: Crede, Gagne, Rangers, Brewers

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Some quick notes from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe:

  • The Twins and Giants will be monitoring Joe Crede’s workouts in Arizona next week. Both teams have had ongoing interest this month.
  • The Twins and Rangers are continuing to seriously consider Eric Gagne.
  • Cafardo notes the growing sentiment among middle-market teams that patience could land an all star caliber player for a "low-risk one-year deal."
  • Milwaukee would prefer to save and make a "Sabathia-like" deadline deal rather than spend now.
  • Adam Melhuse signing with Texas could be a signal that Taylor Teagarden or Jarrod Saltalamacchia are en route to the Red Sox. Cafardo cautions that’s probably not the case since the Rangers have not come down on their asking price of Clay Buchholz.
  • Watch for the Cubs to reengage the Padres and Jake Peavy now that they have found an owner in billionaire Tom Ricketts.

Red Sox And Varitek Getting Closer?

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According to Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe, the Red Sox have made a formal proposal to Jason Varitek that could satisfy both sides.

Though the exact terms of the offer are unclear, Massarotti reports that a baseball source said that the offer could include a second year for the 36-year-old catcher. Varitek rejected the Red Sox arbitration offer in December that could have been worth $10-12MM in 2009.

With pitchers and catchers scheduled to report to spring training in less than three weeks, it would be ideal for both sides to reach an agreement sooner rather than later.

Odds And Ends: Varitek, Pedro, Sheets

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Links for Saturday morning…

  • Pedro Martinez isn’t worried that he hasn’t signed yet.
  • Jason Varitek says he’s still "exchanging offers" with the Red Sox. Scott Boras and Theo Epstein didn’t comment on the talks, which continue slowly.
  • Buster Olney takes a look at the market for Ben Sheets. He says whoever signs Sheets will get a bargain. Some GMs would be impressed if he gets $20MM over two years.
  • Nate McLouth isn’t optimistic about his chances of signing a multi-year deal with the Pirates.
  • Peter Schmuck thinks the O’s should find a way to sign Brian Roberts to a long term contract.
  • The Blue Jays fired assistant GM Bart Given.
  • Gordon Wittenmyer breaks down the Cubs’ chances of acquiring Jake Peavy now that the team’s about to change hands.
  • Richard Justice writes Randy Wolf should have accepted the Astros’ offer.
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