Red Sox Rumors

Cafardo’s Latest: Pettitte, Kotsay, Red Sox

By Nat Boyle | December 28, 2008 at 10:18am CDT

Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has a number of items to cover in today’s Sunday paper:

While the Mets are front-runners in the Derek Lowe sweepstakes, the Red Sox have a lot of money to play with having lost out on Mark Teixeira and could make a strong play to outbid competition.
The Dodgers and Rangers are interested in Andy Pettitte if he doesn’t accept the Yankees reduced $10MM offer.
Don’t rule out a return to the Red Sox for Mark Kotsay as a fourth outfielder and added infield depth.
Cafardo reports a source close to the talks says Teixeira was "very concerned" with Mike Lowell’s fate should he sign with Boston, but that financial matters and the negotiations process removed that "awkward situation."
Jose Fernandez can play first and third base. He’s 34 and just completed seven years in Japan, hitting 20+ HR every year. He could be an interesting right handed-hitting option for teams looking to add depth to their infield and DH.
The Red Sox, Orioles, Braves, Reds, and Cardinals remain interested in Kenshin Kawakami.
Now that Teixeira is gone, Jim Bowden is not interested in Manny Ramirez. Perhaps Adam Dunn?
The Sox are still unwilling to deal Clay Buchholz for Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

Odds And Ends: Otsuka, Orioles, Johnson

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | December 27, 2008 at 11:41am CDT

I’ll keep this updated as more comes in, but for now these are your Saturday links…

Patrick Newman found that Akinori Otsuka will work out in front of reps from all MLB teams next month. Apparently Padres GM Kevin Towers is interested if Otsuka’s healthy.
Roch Kubatko knows there’s pitching talent coming from the minors, but he doesn’t love the current Orioles rotation and expects them to add two more starters.
The difference between 69 and 72 in 2009 wins isn’t worth much to the Orioles, Peter Schmuck writes.
The Red Sox move on after missing out on Mark Teixeira.
Eric Wedge doesn’t seem bothered by the Yankees’ big acquisitions.
Vernon Wells knows how hard it will be to compete now that former-teammate A.J. Burnett’s in pinstripes along with a couple other big names.
Keith Law says the Randy Johnson signing moves the Giants "toward 2009 respectability, if not outright contention."
Vlae Kershner doesn’t like the possibility of Garret Anderson on the A’s.
Bleed Cubbie Blue argues that Adam Dunn’s patience-power combination would work well for the Cubs. Last week Dunn said he thinks so too.
Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi revealed his favorite meal and dream date in a Q&A with the Sporting News.

Varitek, Red Sox Talking

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | December 27, 2008 at 9:57am CDT

According to Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe, the Red Sox and Scott Boras "continue to exchange ideas on Jason Varitek’s potential return."

If the sides don’t reach an agreement, Benjamin writes that the Red Sox would still like to trade for a catcher, but a team source said no trades are imminent. The price remains high for teams in need of catching help and the Red Sox are reluctant to deal Clay Buchholz.

Odds and Ends: Teixeira, Dickey, Takahashi

By Tim Dierkes | December 26, 2008 at 7:06pm CDT

Links for Friday…

In the aftermath of the Yankees’ spending, Joe Posnanski reminds us that two thirds of MLB teams have won the World Series in the last 30 years.
UmpBump doesn’t like the idea of a salary cap.
FanGraphs now shows a hitter’s wins over replacement level, as well as the player’s dollar value. You don’t need to be a stathead to enjoy this. For example, here’s the Carlos Pena page. Scroll to the bottom. Value Wins shows he was worth 6.0 wins over replacement level in 2007. That made him worth $24.6MM, but he earned just $800K.
If you are a stathead, you’ll like this 1981 SI article on Bill James.
A look at the only five players who should be considered within the first five picks of a fantasy baseball draft next year.
Mark Teixeira leftovers…Murray Chass says Tex and his wife didn’t want to live in Boston, while Kat O’Brien details the hard stance the Yankees took with Scott Boras. The Nationals did everything they could to sign Teixeira, but he wanted to win now.
ESPN’s Keith Law explains why the draft pick compensation system is broken. Brewers GM Doug Melvin had interesting comments on this in a recent Buster Olney blog.
The New York Times Company is trying to sell its stake in the Red Sox.
La Velle E. Neal III tries to figure out the Twins’ signing of knuckleballer R.A. Dickey.
Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker takes a closer look at lefty reliever Ken Takahashi.

Mets Target Lowe, Perez

By Dan Slowey | December 25, 2008 at 10:55pm CDT

Now that Mark Teixeira has found a home in New York, the Mets would like to talk with two other Scott Boras clients about following suit, Ben Shpigel of the New York Times reports. The Mets are interested in Derek Lowe and Oliver Perez, in that order, and believe that the market may be shaping up to allow them to obtain their first choice. Nothing is imminent for the Mets at this time.

With the Yankees (almost) definitely out of the picture, and the Red Sox seemingly focused more on hitting, the Mets are optimistic that they can get Lowe for considerably less than the five-year $90MM deal he was rumored to be looking for initially. If for some reason this doesn’t work out, the enigmatic Perez would be their next choice, Shpigel says.

Lowe, 35, had a 3.24 ERA in 211 innings for the Dodgers in 2008. Perez, 27, had a 4.22 ERA in 194 innings for the Mets.

Mets’ Minaya: Nothing Imminent

By Ben Jones | December 25, 2008 at 1:38pm CDT

1:38pm: The New York Daily News has, essentially, the same report. Roger Rubin writes that Derek Lowe is a top priority for the New York Mets, but nothing’s imminent. Something could happen during the next week, though.

Rubin sees the Boston Red Sox as being competition for Lowe’s services.

9:48am: Mets general manager Omar Minaya told Kat O’Brien of Newsday to “Go enjoy the holiday” and that nothing was happening on the New York Mets’ front today.

Minaya did say the team has been talking to free-agent starting pitchers, including Derek Lowe, Oliver Perez and Randy Wolf.

As far as outfielder Manny Ramirez, “a Mets source” told O’Brien in the same article that the Mets will not sign him.

Red Sox Next Moves

By Ben Jones | December 25, 2008 at 8:30am CDT

After missing out on Mark Teixeira, Boston Red Sox fans have been asking what the team will do to respond. Here are a few links about the current (and therefore future) state of the franchise.

Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald goes through the health of designated hitter David Ortiz and third baseman Mike Lowell, and he looks at pitching and the open slot behind the plate.
In this article, McAdam takes a look at the free agent market with the goal of determining who would work well with the Red Sox. Overall, McAdam writes that the homegrown talent has reduced the pressure the Red Sox have on the market. Because of this, McAdam believes the Red Sox view free agency as “unnecessarily expensive.”
Adam Kilgore of the Boston Globe expands on what we learned yesterday about first baseman Kevin Youkilis’ contract: A one-year deal stands.

Odds & Ends: Lowe, Penny, Padres, Red Sox

By | December 24, 2008 at 10:25pm CDT

A couple of links from around the baseball world on a slow Christmas Eve…

Ben Shpigel of the New York Times believes Derek Lowe will settle for a three-year deal with a vesting option. The Mets might be willing to make that offer.
Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune presents seven candidates for the Padres’ 2009 starting rotation.
The New York Times jokes that Brad Penny "may be too cheap for the Yankees’ taste."
According to the Providence Journal, the Red Sox could see a payroll drop of nearly $20MM if they make no further moves this offseason.
New York Yankees’ president Randy Levine backs up the club’s wild spending this offseason. Levine claims that the dollars spent "are essential to the revenues generated by Major League Baseball and its networks and other entities.”

More Mark Teixeira Signing Reactions

By Ben Jones | December 24, 2008 at 4:01pm CDT

4:01pm: Peter Gammons of ESPN writes the Yankees are just being American.

1:26pm: FOXSports.com’s Dayn Perry believes the Yankees are taking a risk with the Teixeira deal. Perry points out that the Yankees’ spending will add even more pressure onto the franchise to win. He also thinks the Yankees needed to make this deal.

Former pitcher Jim Kaat is in line with Perry. Kaat believes there will be an adjustment period for all three of the Yankees’ big signings. He writes that players sometimes try too hard to live up to their big contracts in the first season, and that could take place here.
Murray Chass says Mark Teixeira banned himself from Boston.

11:33am: Add Rays skipper Joe Maddon to the list of baseball people who aren’t scared by the Yankees’ recent moves. This, via Mike DiGiovanna and the LA Times.

Curt Schilling weighs in.

10:01am: Since this is the major topic today — unless anything breaks — I’ll update this periodically.

Buster Olney of ESPN weighs in on the winners and losers of the Teixeira deal.
Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post writes that the Washington Nationals’ attempt to sign Teixeira was admirable. He says the Nationals showed they are willing to spend money, although a need to gain credibility as a franchise stood in the way of them and Teixeira.
Check out this post from Tuesday for more notes regarding the deal.

8:49am:

Sports Illustrated and Tom Verducci have a Q&A posted about the Yankees’ deal with Mark Teixeira. In short, Verducci likes the move for the Yankees.
“WE’RE BACK!” At least Boston Globe columnist Bob Ryan says about the Yankees and the Steinbrenner family’s spending.
Boston fans lost a big present from under the Christmas tree, Adam Kilgore of the Globe writes.
Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer opines that the Yankees are bad for sports. He cites the national economic struggles as a top reason the Teixeira/Yankees deal makes no sense.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle writes that the Yankees’ signing is good for baseball.
Orioles fans are upset that the hometown boy will only be returning to town wearing Yankees gray, Baltimore Sun’s Childs Walker writes.
Mike Lupica of the N.Y. Daily News wonders if the Yankees have spent enough this offseason to “buy back a World Series.”
Besides an apology to his wife for reporting from his vacation, New York Post writer Joel Sherman notes how Teixeira turns 29 in April. The new Yankees have become younger, he adds. He slips in that Manny Ramirez never made sense for the Yankees.
Bill Burt of the North Andover (Mass.) Eagle-Tribune writes the Red Sox didn’t want Teixeira enough to pull the trigger on the deal. He adds that the Sox will do nothing — and that they don’t need to.

Youkilis To Enter 2009 Without Extension

By Ben Jones | December 24, 2008 at 12:25pm CDT

Adam Kilgore of the Boston Globe is reporting that Boston Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis will not complete any long-term extension with the club before the start of the 2009 season, this according to Youkilis’ agent.

The post also states that Youkilis will play for the United States in the World Baseball Classic.

« Previous Page

Load More Posts

Show all

Headlines

Red Sox Rumors

Navigation

MLBTR INFO

Connect