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White Sox Looking To Trade Vazquez?

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The latest on the White Sox…

  • GM Ken Williams wants a younger, more athletic club, but still expects to compete in 2009.  Players such as Chris Getz, Josh Fields, Jayson Nix, Jerry Owens, Brian Anderson, and Clayton Richard could play prominent roles on next year’s team.  Sox Machine offers their take on Williams’ comments.
  • Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times lists Brian Roberts, Coco Crisp, Chone Figgins, and Orlando Hudson as potential Sox targets.  Williams didn’t talk much about his wish list yesterday, suggesting that last year’s openness hindered his progress.  If the Sox sign Hudson, they’ll give their #24 pick in next year’s draft to the D’Backs.
  • Joe Cowley of the Sun-Times says trading starter Javier Vazquez is Williams’ top offseason priority.  Cowley believes Williams could look for an infielder in return.  Vazquez will earn $23MM over the next two seasons, and has a limited no-trade clause to block trades to NL and AL West teams.
  • Also in Cowley’s article – free agent catcher Toby Hall seems likely to re-sign.

Burnett Decision Due Monday Before GM Meetings

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ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick talked to A.J. Burnett’s agent Darek Braunecker, who says his client will make his opt-out decision prior to the start of Monday’s GM meetings.  We all know Burnett is opting out, of course.

Crasnick believes Burnett and Derek Lowe will seek salaries of at least $16MM per year.  He names the Yankees, Mets, Rangers, Red Sox, Orioles and Nationals as potential suitors for Burnett.  The Blue Jays will remain in the mix as well.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Sabathia, Teixeira, Peavy

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports posted a new column yesterday; let’s take a look.

  • Rosenthal says the "expectation in some baseball circles" is that the Brewers will offer a four-year, $100MM contract to C.C. Sabathia.  However, between the Yankees, Angels, and Dodgers he could probably do significantly better.
  • Mark Teixeira should draw interest from the Yankees, Red Sox, and Angels.  Rosenthal adds that Mike Lowell does not have a no-trade clause (I believe I wrote earlier that he did).
  • The Padres and Braves are at an impasse in the Jake Peavy talks, with the Padres seeking five players.  The Braves don’t want to surrender Tommy Hanson, as Tom Krasovic reported Saturday.
  • Scott Boras is reportedly pitching Jason Varitek as the Tigers’ next catcher.
  • Rosenthal suggests that Manny Ramirez’s defense may keep NL teams away.

Odds and Ends: Myers, Crede, Giants

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Links for Wednesday…

Heyman’s Latest: Sabathia, Holliday, Griffey

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SI.com’s Jon Heyman has a new column up; let’s take a look.

  • "The prevailing opinion around baseball" is that C.C. Sabathia will sign with the Yankees, and C.C.’s friend Jimmy Rollins agrees.
  • Matt Holliday "definitely intrigues" the Yankees.  But they’d have to give up a lot to get him for one year, and they seem full at the outfield corners.
  • Heyman, perhaps sensing a divide that does not exist, says Pat Gillick has relied on scouts rather than stats to make his decisions.  Heyman also speaks of "a new hesitancy on the part of some to go for another young Ivy League stat man" at the general manager position.
  • Heyman echoes the commonly held sentiment that the White Sox will not re-sign Ken Griffey Jr.
  • The Mets are prioritizing catcher, bullpen, rotation, and outfield over second base.  They’ve talked about Giants backstop Bengie Molina, owed $6MM in the last year of his deal.
  • Heyman believes Boston’s chances of trading Mike Lowell are "practically nil" due to his hip surgery.  His sources won’t rule out a run at Mark Teixeira though.  In other Boston buzz, Heyman sees Coco Crisp on the trading block and a two-year offer for Jason Varitek.

Odds and Ends: Rivera, Floyd, Peavy

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Links for Tuesday…

Odds and Ends: Hughes, Tigers, Affeldt

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Links for Monday…

  • I’m working on this year’s Top 50 Free Agents list, with predicted destinations.  It’s always a tough puzzle to assemble.  Anyone have educated guesses on where Ben Sheets, Oliver Perez, Braden Looper, and Jon Garland might sign?
  • MLB.com’s Mychael Urban believes Mark Mulder would like to return to the A’s, but the team may not be interested.  Plus, Mulder isn’t even considering destinations until he is healthy.
  • Japanese free agent pitcher Kenshin Kawakami hired American agent Tony Attanasio.  The Red Sox may be interested.
  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post takes the Yankees to task for their unwillingness to include Phil Hughes in a Johan Santana package.
  • Tigers officials are meeting in Detroit for four days to discuss trade possibilities.
  • MLB.com’s Dick Kaegel explains why a Luis Castillo for Jose Guillen swap is unlikely.
  • Dave Cameron considers Jeremy Affeldt a possible free agent bargain.  He could be underrated, but not a bargain if he renews last year’s desire for a four or five-year deal.

Cafardo’s Latest: Hot Stove, Twins, Gordon, Pedro

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Nick Cafardo from the Boston Globe has a nice article up catching up on some Hot Stove news, with a few other odds and ends tied in. Let’s hit the highlights here:

  • Cafardo seems to think the Yankees could entice C.C. Sabathia to pitch on the East Coast, and that the Angels would be crazy not to re-sign Mark Teixeira at whatever the cost. He also points out Joe Maddon’s connection to Francisco Rodriguez from his days as a coach with the Angels, and covers other top names such as Jake Peavy, A.J. Burnett, Derek Lowe, Manny Ramirez, Pat Burrell, Matt Holliday, and Garrett Atkins.
  • The Minnesota Twins were ranked as the #1 team in young talent by the 2009 Bill James Handbook. Minnesota had ten players in the top 150: Joe Mauer, Delmon Young, Justin Morneau, Kevin Slowey, Scott Baker, Carlos Gomez, Nick Blackburn, Jason Kubel, Denard Span, and Glen Perkins.
  • The article includes a Q&A with Tom Gordon, who has high praise for the Phillies, particularly Brad Lidge. Gordon says that having avoided Tommy John Surgery, he feels he can continue his career, and would love to pitch in Philadelphia next year. Gordon will understand if his option is declined, but is emphatic in saying he’s "going to pitch somewhere." Plenty of teams need bullpen help, and even with his injury, I can’t imagine him having a hard time finding work.
  • Cafardo likes the idea of either Rocco Baldelli or Gabe Kapler as a fourth outfielder for the Red Sox.
  • Would Pedro Martinez consider an incentive-laden contract to be Boston’s fifth starter next season?
  • Red Sox catching prospect Mark Wagner has shown improvement the Arizona Fall League. This only adds to the Jason Varitek dilemma that Boston is faced with.

Perrotto’s Latest: Red Sox, Mets, Burnett, Blalock

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John Perrotto over at Baseball Prospectus has his weekly column up… let’s take a look at what he has to say:

  • Couple of notes about the Red Sox: Perrotto expects Theo Epstein to re-sign Jason Varitek to a two-year deal in the $16MM range. This seems like drastically overpaying for what Varitek has become, in my opinion, but as Perrotto points out, there’s very little on the free agent market. Epstein will then look to trade for a young catcher who can become the starter in 2010 or 2011. Additionally, he’ll try to move Mike Lowell to open up a spot for either Mark Teixeira or Garrett Atkins, but that won’t be an easy task most likely. On a Manny-related note, Terry Francona said the last couple months of 2008 were the "most fun he’s ever had" in Boston, calling them "tremendous." He didn’t mention Manny specifically, but does he really have to?
  • Perrotto says the Mets have decided to pass on Francisco Rodriguez, and will instead pursue Brian Fuentes, as well as Derek Lowe. The Red Sox may also make a strong pitch for Lowe.
  • The Padres will likely take some gambles on rehabbing pitchers for 2009. Perrotto lists Mark Mulder, Matt Clement, and Mark Prior as candidates.
  • Toronto’s interim president Paul Beeston is making A.J. Burnett the organization’s top priority, and Perrotto feels that Burnett wants to stay. Personally, I’m in the other camp and see Burnett opting out and cashing in on a big payday.
  • The Rangers will almost certainly pick up Hank Blalock’s $6.2MM option for 2009.

Odds and Ends: Building A Bullpen, GM Gossip

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It’s a bit of a slow day for rumors, what with Game 3 of the World Series and all. Nonetheless, here are a few tangential tidbits for the afternoon:

  • Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald notes that the Tampa Bay Rays don’t save their best relievers for the 9th inning; Dave Pinto says it’s "a feather in his cap" that manager Joe Maddon can get his pitchers to excel in such undefined roles. If you can get players to buy into it, it’s a cheap and effective way to build a bullpen — witness the 2007 Indians. If not, it’s a wreck — witness the 2003 Red Sox.
  • John Romano of the St. Petersburg Times asks: does former GM Chuck LaMar or current GM Andrew Friedman deserve the credit for Tampa Bay’s success this year?
  • Canadian teams are feeling the pinch as the Loonie falls in value, writes Don McGowan. As if the Blue Jays didn’t have enough to worry about!

Sarah Green writes for the Boston Metro and UmpBump.com.

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