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AL Central Notes: Royals, Indians, Tigers

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The Royals' unbeaten streak to open Cactus League play has people talking, although some (twitter link) would advise not reading too much into the early returns.  Here is a look at a few of the clubs competing in the American League's increasingly interesting Central division: 

  • The Royals clubhouse "has been transformed" by the offseason moves of GM Dayton Moore, writes Danny Knobler of CBS Sports, especially the heavily-debated decision to trade for James Shields and Wade Davis.  "It seemed like we had been building prospects forever," said outfielder Alex Gordon.  "You can't make everyone happy, but I can tell you, in this clubhouse it made us happy."
  • Meanwhile, in Cleveland, the Indians' acquisition of Mark Reynolds was overshadowed by later signings, but might just have been more important than it first seemed, Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer opines.  While he carries high strikeout totals and defensive limitations, Reynolds adds pop from the right side of the plate to a team that had little of it last season.  Likewise, Pluto notes, pitchers Matt Albers and Bryan Shaw were not the most publicized pieces acquired by the Indians in the Shin-Soo Choo trade, but will be especially important to the club now that closer Chris Perez figures to miss time with a shoulder injury.  
  • Indians manager Terry Francona sounds like he is committed to giving a 25-man roster spot to Jason Giambi to start the season, according to Bud Shaw of The Plain Dealer.  Francona has spoken fondly of the aging slugger's presence, patience, bat speed, and veteran savvy.
  • The division-winning Tigers, meanwhile, remain somewhat unsettled at the back end of their bullpen after deciding early on not to bring back the still-unsigned Jose Valverde to reprise his role as closer.  With would-be replacement Bruce Rondon struggling early in the spring, Jason Beck of MLB.com wonders whether the young pitcher could lose his chance to finish games in Detroit this year.  Following yesterday's reports of manager Jim Leyland's possible lack of confidence in Rondon, the skipper said today that "it's too early to get excited about anything," explaining that, "right now, he's throwing pretty hard, and they're hitting it pretty hard."

Central Notes: Garza, Tigers, Hart, Royals

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Cubs manager Dale Sveum told reporters, including MLB.com's Carrie Muskat, that Matt Garza will most likely miss the first month of the season. Garza, ranked ninth on MLBTR's 2014 Free Agent Power Rankings and one of the prime trade targets last summer until he hurt his elbow, strained his left lat two weeks ago when he faced live hitters for the first time since July. In other news involving teams from the NL and AL Central Divisions:

Central Notes: Tigers, Cubs, Rondon, Valverde

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The Tigers would love to lock Justin Verlander up for the long-term, but it may take a while for the two sides to find middle ground.  The right-hander says that he wants to become baseball's first $200MM pitcher and also says that he is intrigued by the idea of free agency.  While it's certainly a priority for Detroit, Verlander won't be a free agent until after the 2014 season.  In the short-term, they have other questions to answer.  Here's more on the Tigers and other notes out of the Central divisions..

  • Tigers manager Jim Leyland remains interested in bringing Jose Valverde back as a safety net but the money still isn't good enough to facilitate a return, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The veteran would serve as insurance against rookie Bruce Rondon, who is slated to take over the role of closer in 2013.
  • Lynn Henning of the Detroit News believes Leyland is scared that Rondon isn't ready to make the leap just yet.  If the Tigers can't come to terms with Valverde and Rondon struggles, GM Dave Dombrowski may have to start exploring the trade market for ninth inning options.
  • Cubs players recognize that Theo Epstein & Co. may look to sell off valuable pieces at the deadline this year, but they're hoping to play well enough to prevent that from happening, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.  "That’s not what our plan is," right-hander Jeff Samardzija said. "Our plan is to put them in a situation — a tough situation — on what they want to do halfway through the year. . . . If we’re doing our job and winning ballgames, then they’re going to have a tough decision on what they want to do."

AL Central Notes: Tigers, Twins, Cabrera

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Every American League Central team except the Royals has won the division at least once since 2007. Here are some AL Central notes, starting with Tigers, winners of the last two division titles…

  • Brennan Boesch doesn't have a clear role on the 2013 Tigers, and it's possible his recent oblique injury hurt his trade value, John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press writes. GM Dave Dombrowski has said Boesch won’t be sent to the minors, according to Lowe.
  • Jamie Samuelsen of the Detroit Free Press outlines four reasons the Tigers shouldn't sign Justin Verlander to a $200MM extension, before concluding that Verlander would be worth it, especially given the cost of starting pitching in MLB. Verlander has acknowledged that free agency intrigues him.
  • Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 hears from a Twins official that the asking price for Cuban shortstop Aledmys Diaz remains “too high." The Twins are fans of the free agent shortstop, according to Wolfson (on Twitter).
  • Asdrubal Cabrera told MLB.com's Jordan Bastian that he was surprised to find himself mentioned in offseason trade rumors (Twitter link). The shortstop added that he wants to spend his entire career with the Indians. Cabrera's under contract through 2014, but he'll probably appear on these pages next offseason if the Indians' shortstop prospects continue to develop.

Central Notes: Hunter, Carrera, Morneau, Taveras

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On this day in 2007, the Twins signed Liam Hendriks as an amateur free agent out of Australia. Hendriks, 24, has struggled in the Majors to date but owns a solid minor league track record. He has twice cracked Baseball America's list of Top 10 Twins prospects and boasts a 2.95 ERA, 6.5 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 in 155 2/3 Triple-A innings. He'll fight for a rotation spot with the Twins this Spring. Here are some links pertaining to baseball's two Central divisions…

  • New Tigers right fielder Torii Hunter told ESPN's Jayson Stark that his comments about the Angels and owner Arte Moreno following the Josh Hamilton signing were a "joke that went bad." At the time, Hunter tweeted that Moreno must have had "some money under a mattress," as he'd been told the team couldn't afford him. Hunter praised the Angels' organization and said he's enjoying his time with the Tigers so far.
  • The Indians could look to trade outfielder Ezequiel Carrera near the end of Spring Training, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. Carrera is out of options, and the Tribe has no doubt that they would lose the 25-year-old if they placed him on waivers in an attempt to send him to Triple-A.
  • Former AL MVP Justin Morneau couldn't have picked a better time to get healthy, writes Phil Mackey of 1500 ESPN. The 31-year-old Twins slugger is set to hit free agency following the season and could find himself a midseason trade candidate, extension candidate, or the recipient of a qualifying offer with a strong, healthy season.
  • Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports wonders if Cardinals top prospect Oscar Taveras could be the next 20-year-old to take the Majors by storm. Taveras, however, doesn't have a clear path to the Majors given the presence of Matt Holliday, Jon Jay and Carlos Beltran.

AL Notes: Happ, Verlander, Ross

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On the same day that he broke Curtis Granderson’s forearm with a wild pitch, J.A. Happ finds himself facing a roster squeeze with the Blue Jays …

  • Happ is “mired in a grey zone” in Toronto, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca.  Despite solid credentials, Happ may not even earn a roster spot as a reliever with the new-look Jays.  With another potential lefty long-reliever (Brett Cecil) out of options, Toronto manager John Gibbons admits that Happ is not only “the odd man out” of the rotation, but could find himself “back down in Triple-A.”
  • Justin Verlander was merely stating the obvious when he said he hoped to become the first $200MM pitcher, MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports.  Verlander explained: “The question was posed to me: ‘Do you want to be the first $200MM pitcher?’  Well, yeah.  What kind of question is that?  Of course I do.”
  • Cody Ross revealed today that “Texas was wanting to move pretty quick” towards a deal before the outfielder signed with the Diamondbacks, Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com writes.  While it was previously reported that the Rangers had met with Ross, the Arizona-dwelling Ross explained the "crazy timing" that occurred.  Ross sat down with Texas right after learning that Arizona was interested, and by the end of the next day had “basically agreed” to sign with the Diamondbacks.

Tigers Not Looking To Trade

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The Tigers still want to find a right-handed bat to platoon alongside Andy Dirks in left field but Tigers assistant GM Al Avila told James Schmehl of MLive.com that they're going to try and fill that void with someone in-house.  However, if no one steps up the next few weeks, the club will re-evaluate its options and re-consider outside candidates.

By the same token, Avila says that a trade could materialize from another team's inquiry between now and the end of March.  For now, the Tigers will keep an eye on Brennan Boesch, Jeff Kobernus, Quintin Berry, Don Kelly, Danny Worth, Avisail Garcia, and Nick Castellanos to find someone to team with Dirks.

Cafardo On Yankees, Sanchez, Lohse, Red Sox

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In today's column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has some extremely kind words about MLBTR and founder Tim Dierkes.   "Call it American ingenuity, or a great business model for start-ups, but it has been incredible to watch the growth of mlbtraderumors.com — to the point where it’s now the go-to site for major league executives, reporters, and fans," Cafardo writes.  Here's more from today's column..

  • Backstops Francisco Cervelli, Chris Stewart, Bobby Wilson, and Austin Romine won't light up the scoreboard, but that's alright with Yankees GM Brian Cashman.  “We’re not looking for catching. We just know our offensive production at that position isn’t going to be as good as in the past," Cashman said.
  • Despite some interest in free agent second baseman Freddy Sanchez, teams have not been willing to commit to him.  The former NL batting champion has had numerous injuries and surgeries in the past. 
  • One AL GM offered up his prediction on where Kyle Lohse will land.  "[The Rangers] missed out on a couple of guys. While you don’t want to overpay or give him an extended contract, they seem to be the most motivated to get a deal done with him.” 
  • Some teams may not be anxious to add Red Sox reliver Alfredo Aceves to their club house, but one American League GM says that someone will pull the trigger.  “He’s a talented pitcher who can do a lot of things,” said the GM. “The baggage is there, but some team will put up with the baggage. Who knows? If he gets to start somewhere, maybe all of the problems go away.”
  • Cafardo believes that Brian Wilson will be the Tigers' fallback option when he's ready to return after surgery.  Until then, Bruce Rondon will have the opportunity to close in Detroit.
  • Free agent left-hander Joe Beimel wants to make a return and has auditioned for some teams. The 35-year-old is coming back from Tommy John surgery last May.
  • The stock of minor league catcher Christian Vazquez is rising so rapidly that Cafardo wonders if the Red Sox will pursue deals for Jarrod Saltalamacchia or Ryan Lavarnway.  Vazquez will likely start the year at Double-A but could move up quickly.

Justin Verlander Talks Free Agency

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FEBRUARY 22: Verlander hopes to become baseball’s first $200MM pitcher, the dominant righty tells Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan.  While explaining that he wants “to be compensated for what I feel like I’ve been: one of the best, if not the best, the last few years,” Verlander claims that it remains to be seen whether a new deal will come through free agency (following the 2014 season) or an extension with the Tigers.  Verlander admits that he “would like to experience” free agency, but notes that he does not “think you have to be a free agent to get [$200MM]” and maintains that he “love[s] the idea of playing [his] entire career in Detroit.”  As Passan explains, however, the Tigers may want to try to lock down Verlander before the end of this season, as the former AL MVP is keenly aware that “the risk-reward when you get to a year [of reaching free agency] is intriguing.”

FEBRUARY 13: Though Justin Verlander’s contract won’t expire for another two seasons, it’s not too early to start wondering about the right-hander’s next deal. Felix Hernandez recently obtained $175MM from the Mariners and some wonder if Verlander, who turns 30 in a week, might be baseball’s first $200MM pitcher. He has consistently expressed interest in staying in Detroit for the rest of his career, but free agency still intrigues him.

“Absolutely,” he told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. “I think that’d be a blast. If I have two more years like I just had, it would be pretty interesting.”

The Tigers haven’t begun meaningful extension talks with SFX, the agency that represents Verlander. The 2011 Cy Young Award winner told Morosi that he’d be happy to start talks and that he has “ears open.” He believes the Tigers are planning to contend long after 2014, when his current $80MM deal expires. Even so, a new deal “would take quite a commitment on their part.” If the sides don’t reach an agreement and Verlander does reach free agency after the 2014 season, he wouldn’t be opposed to hearing pitches from interested teams around MLB.

“You know how competitive I am,” Verlander told FOX Sports. “It’s kind of fun thinking about having teams battle for you.”

Jeff Todd contributed to this post.

Pitching Notes: Price, Valverde, Jackson

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We heard earlier today that the Yankees are eyeing pitching depth, but not Kyle Lohse. Here are some more pitching-themed notes from around MLB…

  • David Price recently said he’d be hesitant to sign a long-term deal with the Yankees because of their facial hair policy. However, the left-hander said today that he wouldn’t rule out playing for New York at some point, Newsday’s David Lennon reports (Twitter links). No doubt realizing his leverage will increase if the Yankees are interested, Price said he might not even have a beard by the time he hits free agency.
  • The Tigers haven’t considered re-signing Jose Valverde for a moment, Lynn Henning of the Detroit News reports (on Twitter). The reliever will have the chance to boost his free agent stock in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
  • Edwin Jackson, one of the top free agent pitchers of the 2012-13 offseason, said his choice came down to the Cubs and Indians, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports. The Indians were aggressive in free agency this winter, signing Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn while pursuing others such as Jackson. The right-hander pitched on a one-year deal in 2012 and is pleased to have signed a multiyear deal this time. “It’s always a good feeling to have security," he said.
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