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Red Sox Have Mike Napoli On Their Radar

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The Red Sox have Mike Napoli on their radar for first base, reports Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe (on Twitter). He also reiterates the team's interest in Adam LaRoche, and hears that Boston's rebuilding won't keep free agents away.

"We view Boston as a contender because they'll build team quickly. I doubt they'll have trouble attracting free agents," said a prominent agent to Cafardo (Twitter link).

Napoli, 31, hit .227/.343/.469 with 24 homers this season and is a year removed from a 30-homer, .320/.414/.631 performance. For what it's worth, he's a .306/.397/.710 hitter with seven homers in 18 career games at Fenway Park. Napoli has been primarily a catcher in recent years, but he also has plenty of first base and DH experience.

The Rangers did not make Napoli a qualifying offer, therefore teams will not have to forfeit a draft pick to sign him.

Cherington Talks Outfield, Iglesias

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Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said completing this year’s managerial search relatively early should provide the team with some amount of additional flexibility this coming offseason. The GM can focus on the roster now that John Farrell’s in place as Boston’s new manager. Here are more details from Cherington’s conversation with MLBTR at the 2012 GM Meetings…

  • The Red Sox are talking to free agent outfielders while discussing possible trades to address their needs in the outfield, Cherington said.
  • Cherington expressed confidence that Jose Iglesias can be an MLB shortstop on a good team. “He has a chance to be an elite defender and his development path has probably made his offensive performance look worse than the hitter he actually is,” the GM said. However, nothing will be given to Iglesias and the Red Sox could go with another option if an appealing alternative emerges.
  • “We’ve got some work to do this winter,” Cherington acknowledged.

Red Sox Notes: Bay, Hunter, Ellsbury, Upton, Farrell

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A source tells Rob Bradford of WEEI.com (via Twitter) that Jason Bay would be very interested in returning to the Red Sox.  Earlier today, the Mets reached an agreement with the outfielder to make him a free agent this winter in exchange for deferring some of the $21MM owed to him.  Here’s more on the Red Sox..

  • While Bay would like to return to the Red Sox, signs point towards him preferring a west coast team, tweets Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
  • The Red Sox have expressed interest in free agent outfielders Torii Hunter and Grady Sizemore, tweets Silverman.
  • General Manager Ben Cherington says the club has not yet discussed Bay, tweets Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald.
  • The Red Sox will listen on Jacoby Ellsbury but they will listen on him, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.  One rival official noted that the club won’t be overly anxious to move Ellsbury as they’re already in need of two outfielders.
  • Boston is expected to be in the mix for Justin Upton this offseason, writes Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.  It’s not yet known if the Red Sox have had talks with the Diamondbacks about the outfielder previously or at the GM meetings, however.
  • Manager John Farrell says the club is thinking about hiring two hitting coaches and would even prefer it, tweets Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald.  “I think it’s evolved into more than a one-man system. We’re going in that direction,” Farrell said (Twitter link).
  • Maureen Mullen of CSNNE.com looks at the decisions facing the Red Sox in advance of the Rule 5 draft.

Minor Moves: Mock, Burke, Maier, Slowey, Ford

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Here are Wednesday’s minor moves…

  • The Diamondbacks have signed Garrett Mock to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The 29-year-old right-hander posted a 3.79 ERA in 61 2/3 relief innings in Triple-A this season.
  • The Mets have signed right-hander Greg Burke to a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training, the team announced (on Twitter). Burke, 30, pitched to a 1.53 ERA in 64 2/3 relief innings in Triple-A this year.
  • Indians right-hander Kevin Slowey has elected free agency, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America.  The 28-year-old spent 2012 with Cleveland’s Triple-A affiliate.
  • The Red Sox have signed Mitch Maier to a minor league deal, reports Baseball America’s Matt Eddy (on Twitter). The 30-year-old outfielder hit .172/.260/.313 in 74 plate appearances for the Royals this year.
  • The Pirates have signed Darren Ford to a minor league pact, reports Rob Biertempfel of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The 27-year-old outfielder hit .273/.326/.385 with 26 steals in 329 Triple-A plate appearances this year.
  • The Pirates have signed infielder Jared Goedert to a minor league deal, reports Rosenthal (on Twitter). The 27-year-old hit .311/.373/.502 with 19 homers in 504 plate appearances split between Double-A and Triple-A this season.
  • The Royals have agreed to re-sign catcher Manny Pina to a minor league contract, reports Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star (on Twitter). Pina, 25, hit .278/.415/.417 in 183 minor league plate appearances this summer. Dutton notes that he will be exposed in next month’s Rule 5 Draft.

AL West Notes: Rangers, M’s, Hamilton, Adams, Uehara

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Rangers General Manager Jon Daniels says that the door is open for reliever Mike Adams to return, but he doesn't sound terribly optimistic about it happening, writes Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram.  "I think Mike's earned the right and put up performances indicative of a substantial contract," Daniels said. "Historically we haven't done those kinds of deals."  More on the Rangers and other items out of the AL West..

  • While some have speculated that the Red Sox and Rangers could partner up for a swap of Jacoby Ellsbury and Elvis Andrus, such a trade won't be happening, tweets Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.
  • People familiar with the Mariners' thinking told Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com that the club could be a new entry into the Josh Hamilton sweepstakes.  Earlier today, we learned that the Orioles will be targeting Hamilton this winter.
  • Daniels also said that he wants to see Koji Uehara return in 2013, Wilson writes.  With the likely departure of Adams and Alexi Ogando's move to the rotation, the Rangers have three vacancies to fill in the bullpen.
  • The GM also confirmed that the club has discussed a minor league deal with right-hander Yoshinori Tateyama.  The Rangers declined their $1.2MM option on Tateyama last week.
  • Daniels believes that there is a perception that the Rangers do not want to retain Hamilton and said that it is inaccurate, Wilson writes.  The Rangers have maintained contact with Hamilton's agent, Mike Moye, but contract terms have yet to be discussed.
  • Earlier tonight, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reported that the Rangers are pursuing free agent first baseman Adam LaRoche.

Red Sox, Rangers Pursuing Adam LaRoche

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The Red Sox and Rangers are pursuing free agent Adam LaRoche, major league sources tell Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  The first baseman has garnered enough interest that he is expected to reject the Nationals' one-year, $13.3MM qualifying offer by Friday's deadline.

Morosi writes that the Rangers' interest in the 33-year-old is yet another sign that Texas is preparing for life without Josh Hamilton in 2013 and beyond.  The Red Sox, meanwhile, have been linked to LaRoche for a good while as they look to fill their void at first base.

D’Backs In “Active Discussions” About Justin Upton

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It's that time of the year again. The Diamondbacks are engaged in "active discussions" about a trade involving Justin Upton, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Multiple teams are looking into his background, makeup, etc. (Twitter link), and one executive put the outfielder's chances of playing elsewhere next season at 80-20.

Upton, 25, hit .280/.355/.430 with 17 homers this season while battling hand issues. He hit .289/.369/.529 with 31 homers just a year ago, earning him a fourth place finish in the MVP voting. Upton is signed through 2015 for a total of $38.5MM. Rosenthal says his limited no-trade clause included the Yankees, Red Sox, Indians, and Cubs this year, though the list has since changed.

The Diamondbacks seems to be involved in trade discussions involving Upon every offseason and every trade deadline, though the most serious talks occurred back in 2010. Arizona has already traded Chris Young and still has plenty of outfield depth with Gerardo Parra, Adam Eaton, and Jason Kubel.

Red Sox Disinclined To Trade Jacoby Ellsbury

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Outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury is one year removed from an MVP-caliber season and one year away from free agency, but Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says (on Twitter) the Red Sox are disinclined to trade him right now. His value is down at the moment and the team figures he'll be highly motivated in his walk year.

“We’ve already had a lot of conversations on the phone,” said GM Ben Cherington to Michael Silverman of The Boston Herald, talking about this week's GM Meetings and not Ellsbury specifically. “But face-to-face, we’ll talk a little more about concepts, both free agent concepts and trade concepts.”

Ellsbury, 29, missed most of this season with a shoulder problem and hit just .271/.313/.370 with four homers and 14 steals in 323 plate appearances when healthy. A year ago he hit .321/.376/.552 with 32 homers and 39 steals while finishing second to Justin Verlander in the MVP voting. Ellsbury missed most of 2010 with a rib injury, so he's played in only 250 of 486 games over the last three years.

Matt Swartz projects the outfielder to earn $8.1MM through arbitration next season before hitting the open market a year from now. Silverman says the Red Sox should listed to any and all inquiries for Ellsbury given his impending free agency and their long list of needs. Ellsbury is a Scott Boras client and figures to command a mammoth long-term deal for his next contract.

East Links: Blue Jays, Jackson, Nationals, Pedroia

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Here's the latest from baseball's two East divisions….

  • Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos acknowledged to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca that his priorities this winter are pitching, second base, and left field. "There’s no question the priority is definitely in the rotation, with the dollars we have available, we have to be creative," he said. "Our payroll is going to be up from what it was last year but it doesn’t mean it’s a bottomless pit, there is a limit and there is an area we can go to."
  • Ken Davidoff and George A. King III of The New York Post write that Yankees GM Brian Cashman is likely to meet with every agent who attends this week's GM Meetings, including Larry Reynolds. He represents both Torii Hunter and B.J. Upton.
  • Edwin Jackson hasn't ruled out returning to the Nationals next season, writes Dan Kolko of MASNSports.com. The right-hander did make it clear that he will listen to offers from any team, however.
  • During a recent radio appearance, Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia said that he is not leaving the ACES agency according to WEEI.com's DJ Bean. ACES is currently being investigated by MLB for its role in Melky Cabrera's PED-related suspension.

Quick Hits: Red Sox, League, Astros

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The GM Meetings could be busier than usual this year, Jon Paul Morosi writes at FOX Sports. Morosi suggests the Red Sox and Indians line up as potential trade partners given each team’s needs. The meetings take place in Indian Wells, California beginning tomorrow. In the meantime here are today’s links…

  • Jim Bowden estimates the cost of the offseason’s top free agents in an ESPN piece that’s worth checking out.
  • ESPN.com’s Keith Law provides a guide to available and potentially available outfielders. Law believes Melky Cabrera will be a good value signing, but he doubts Cody Ross has value outside of Boston on a multiyear deal.
  • Tom Verducci of SI.com ranks this year free agent outfielders starting with Josh Hamilton. Verducci suggests we shouldn't expect Hamilton to end up signing a bargain deal given his skills.
  • Brandon League's $22.5MM contract with the Dodgers could be worth as much as $33.5MM, Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times reports. Incentives based on games finished could push the value of the 2016 option as high as $9MM, according to Hernandez.
  • The Astros announced the hiring of David Stearns as their new assistant GM. Stearns, 27, spent the 2011 season with the Indians and has also worked in the front offices of the Mets and Pirates.
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