Marlins To Keep An Eye On Lowell
The idea of a reunion between the Marlins and Mike Lowell has been in the air since the Miami Herald reported the team sent scouts to watch the 36-year-old's Grapefruit League debut on March 15. This morning, Jorge Ebro at the Nuevo Herald (link in Spanish) provided a more specific picture of the team's interest level and what situations could bring Lowell back to Florida after talking with a source inside the organization.
"We've talked about that subject, and everyone within the organization is aware of the significance of bringing back Lowell from all points of view," explains Ebro's source. He adds that much remains "unclear" about Lowell for the team's scouts, particularly the status of his hip and "the lateral movement that made him one of the best defenders of his time." Reports on Lowell's mobility haven't been glowing, and he started the spring at first base for the first time since he was in the Yankees minor league system. But even with the potential of changing positions on occasion, Lowell's role would likely be much clearer outside of Boston, where he is currently either the first option off of the Red Sox's bench, especially in the case of another slow start by David Ortiz, or a $12MM odd man out in the race for starts at the infield corners and DH.
If Lowell were to join the Marlins, the source says, he would fill the same corner-to-corner role currently held by Jorge Cantu: a potential starter at third base who occasionally spells the starting first baseman. That starter increasingly looks like Gaby Sanchez, who has hit .387 this spring and looked "more relaxed" at the plate and in the field, according the source. "But having a veteran like Lowell in the bank never hurts," he adds. "It's a long season, injuries happen. If the price is good, a return by Lowell would not be unreasonable." As Ebro notes, the Marlins' idea of a good price—or that of the Twins, or White Sox, or whatever team looks seriously at Lowell—would likely include the Red Sox picking up most of the cost.
Odds & Ends: Helton, Gaudin, Hensley, Papelbon
Links for Monday…
- Troy Renck of The Denver Post has the details of Todd Helton's new contract extension. He can void the deal if two of three general partners sell their controlling interest in the team, and it contains $13.1MM in deferred money at three percent interest.
- The Yankees could look to move Chad Gaudin soon, according to Rosenthal (via Twitter). In another tweet, he mentions that Clay Hensley can opt out of his contract with the Marlins if he's not on the roster by April 1st.
- Jim Bowden shows off his post-trade fist pump in his latest GM's Corner video for FOX Sports. Bowden asked a slew of GMs about their processes for making deals; Frank Wren estimated that less than ten percent of discussions lead to trades.
- In considering Jonathan Papelbon's future, WEEI's Alex Speier demonstrates just how risky large multiyear deals for relievers have been.
- FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal says the Blue Jays "will not settle for fringe prospects in return" for relievers Scott Downs and Jason Frasor, and they could use them to continue the rebuilding effort.
- Rosenthal adds that Gary Sheffield is talking to a NL club, though it's not clear which one.
- Meanwhile, Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com notes that both Jamey Wright and Austin Kearns have out clauses in their contracts, but a club official said the provisions will not impact the makeup of the team. A source added that there are "no trades on the horizon" for Cleveland.
Marlins Return Jorge Jimenez To Red Sox
MONDAY, 5:39pm: Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com tweets that the two sides discussed several names in a trade that would have allowed the Marlins to keep Jimenez, and that it's possible they'll revisit a deal later.
SUNDAY, 9:15am: Rule 5 pick Jorge Jimenez has been returned to the Boston Red Sox by the Florida Marlins, tweets Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post. MLB.com's Joe Frisaro notes that Boston will return $25K to the Marlins, half of the $50K the Sox received for Jimenez.
Jimenez was acquired from the Astros, as part of the Matt Lindstrom trade. The Astros selected Jimenez from Boston's roster in the Rule 5 draft and sent him to Florida.
The 25-year-old Jimenez is a career .298/.377/.423 hitter in the minors, and had been hoping to earn the starting job third base job in Florida. With Jimenez now out of the picture, it appears likely that Jorge Cantu will start at third for the Marlins, with Gaby Sanchez the favorite to win the first base job.
Joe Mauer Extension Reactions
Joe Mauer's eight-year, $184MM extension with the Twins will be officially announced later today. Reactions from around the web:
- Aaron Gleeman says "the decision was a no-brainer for the Twins despite the incredible amount of risk involved." Gleeman notes that a payroll in the $100MM range will still leave the Twins with "more money to spend than they had in any previous season" despite Mauer's percentage.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post suggests Twins catching prospect Wilson Ramos could "enable the Twins to better preserve Mauer." Or maybe Ramos becomes one of the game's better trade chips?
- How much did Mauer leave on the table? ESPN's Jayson Stark believes he could've gotten $30MM per year and more than eight years on the open market. Stark's colleague Buster Olney says Mauer "might've walked away from the promise of another $60 million to $70 million in free agency."
- ESPN's Rob Neyer discusses the opportunity costs of being locked into a Mauer megadeal, as well as the short-term credibility cost of not signing him.
- Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez told WEEI's Alex Speier that Mauer "deserves every penny he got." Regarding his own extension, Martinez is leaving the ball in Boston's court and hasn't heard anything thus far.
Red Sox Sign Alan Embree
The Red Sox signed reliever Alan Embree to a minor league deal that could pay the lefty about $1.1MM if he makes the major league roster and reaches his incentives for games pitched. Embree will earn $500K for making the big league club, and he'll have the chance to opt out of his contract on April 15th to reassess his situation. This marks Embree's second stint with the team, as he joined the Red Sox in a 2002 trade and pitched for them until his '05 release.
Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe added the opt-out details; Alex Speier of WEEI.com added the salary Embree will earn if he's on the major league roster and Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston added specifics about the incentives (Twitter links).
Embree, 40, posted a 5.84 ERA, 4.4 K/9, and 4.4 BB/9 in 24.6 innings for the Rockies last year. His season ended in July when a line drive fractured his tibia. Checking Embree's FanGraphs splits, his recent work against lefties has been spotty.
The Sox already have lefty relievers Hideki Okajima and Fabio Castro on the 40-man roster and Brian Shouse in camp on a non-roster invite.
The Latest On Mike Lowell
Although a Mike Lowell trade isn't the sure thing it once seemed, there's still a chance that a deal could be completed, according to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
Silverman mentions four teams that are possible landing spots for Lowell: the Astros, Marlins, Rangers, and Twins. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders if the White Sox could be added to that list as well. Each of these teams has potential question marks at first base or designated hitter, or just could use another right-handed bat.
Alex Speier of WEEI speculates that the Marlins' willingness to return Jorge Jimenez to the Red Sox could signal that Florida's need for a corner infielder isn't that strong. If the team feels confident enough in either Gaby Sanchez or Logan Morrison at first base that they'd cut Jimenez, that could mean a diminished interest in Lowell as well.
Lowell will, of course, have display good health before any club thinks about acquiring him. Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston tweets that the Rangers, among other teams, are scouting Lowell today. The 36-year-old is scheduled to play third base for the first time this spring.
Revisiting The Manny Ramirez, Jason Bay Trade
It's been nearly 20 months since the Red Sox, Dodgers, and Pirates completed the three-team blockbuster that sent Manny Ramirez to Los Angeles, Jason Bay to Boston, and four prospects to Pittsburgh. Alex Speier of WEEI.com spoke to Pirates' GM Neal Huntington about the trade, who noted that the book is still out on their end of the deal.
Here are the highlights, but the whole article is well worth the read…
- Huntington suggests the Pirates now believe that they had a better offer on the table for Bay than the one they ultimately accepted, though it's not fair to look back using hindsight. The Marlins and Rays were both rumored to be interested at the time.
- He also recognizes that he might have received a better package if he waited until the offseason to deal Bay.
- If the deal had not been made, the Red Sox were unsure about how to proceed with Manny's $20MM club option for 2009, and it was unclear if they would have been willing to risk offering him arbitration to recoup draft pick compensation.
- They were, however, confident in offering Jason Bay arbitration at the time of the trade.
- Meanwhile, the two players Pittsburgh received from Boston haven't delivered as expected. Brandon Moss is out of options, and might be put through waivers after hitting .232/.300/.381 since the trade, while Craig Hansen apparently went unclaimed after being designated for assignment. Both players have dealt with injuries.
- Huntington says that if Andy LaRoche's power comes on, it would be a good trade for them since they acquired six years of him for a year and a half of Bay. If Bryan Morris develops into a middle of the rotation starter, he would consider it a great deal.
Two Clubs Interested In Boof Bonser
At least two teams are interested in Boof Bonser, sources tell Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com. McAdam hears that the Cubs and D'Backs are interested in the right-hander. Bonser is out of options, so the Red Sox would have to attempt to put him through waivers if they want to send him to the minors.
Odds & Ends: Crawford, Alvarez, Mauer, Aumont
Some links for your Friday…
- Tom Verducci of SI.com said on WEEI's Dennis & Callahan show that he expects Carl Crawford to sign with the Yankees after the season, because "nobody is going to outbid them." The Yankees and Red Sox both love Crawford, according to Verducci.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Dodgers should spend more aggressively, especially considering they led the league in attendance last year.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com points out that Mike Lowell, Jason Varitek, Bill Hall and Jeremy Hermida will combine to make only $10MM or so less than the entire Pirates team this year. Why is that noteworthy? All four Red Sox are expected to be bench players.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry is under contract through 2012, but he tells ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick that he knows "these jobs aren't forever."
- The Pirates say Pedro Alvarez needs seasoning above AA, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Sending the third baseman to the minors limits his MLB service time, so it's a sound financial decision by the Pirates.
- The A's haven't called Joe Beimel, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- The A's worked out Wagner Mateo on Tuesday, according to Slusser.
- ESPN.com’s Buster Olney thinks that the Joe Mauer contract negotiations, which remain cordial, could continue in a few months if the sides don’t reach a deal in Spring Training.
- The Dominican prospect already worked out for the D'Backs and will likely work out for the Indians.
- Twins minor league director Jim Rantz told Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that another Dominican prospect, Miguel Sano, has "tremendous upside." Kovacevic says it's still too early to know how much the Pirates missed out on when Sano signed with the Twins instead of the Pirates.
- Phillies prospect Phillippe Aumont tells Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun that he thought he was heading to the Blue Jays at one point this offseason.
- Carl Crawford tells Tyler Kepner of the New York Times that he's comfortable with the speculation about his future since it "comes with the territory." Crawford is a free agent after the season.
Heyman On Mauer, Beckett, Lowell
Jon Heyman of SI.com expects Joe Mauer and Josh Beckett to re-sign with their current teams. Here are the details from his latest column:
- Heyman hears that Joe Mauer and the Twins are willing to work on an extension once the season begins. Apparently Mark Teixeira's eight-year $180MM deal is a comparable for the Mauer talks.
- According to a person involved in the talks, Beckett is seeking slightly more than the five-year $82.5MM deal John Lackey signed.
- Heyman doesn't think the Red Sox can expect the Marlins to pay as much as of Mike Lowell's salary as the Rangers agreed to take on in December. The Rangers were going to take on $3MM of the infielder's $12MM salary before concerns about Lowell's thumb emerged.