Odds & Ends: Orioles, Brewers, Green, Sellers, Astros, Byrd, Vizquel, A’s
Some more links as the weekend begins…
- Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun notes that the Orioles didn't make any contract offers on the first day of free agency.
- Nick Green doesn't expect to back with the Red Sox, according to Dan Barbarisi of The Providence Journal.
- Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the Marlins, Royals, Tigers and Reds are currently baseball's most active sellers.
- The Astros signed minor league free agent Jose Valdez, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com (via Twitter).
- The Brewers agreed to sign Santo Aybar, according to ESPN.com's Jorge Arangure Jr. The 16-year-old shortstop has to pass an age investigation for the deal to go through.
- Marlon Byrd repeated to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan that he wants to return to the Rangers in 2010. He's looking for a multi-year deal "at the right numbers." The Rangers have interest in re-signing the outfielder.
- Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen knows the White Sox are talking to Omar Vizquel. Guillen didn't confirm anything other than his intention to continue wearing number 13.
- WEEI.com's Rob Bradford breaks down the suitors for Jason Bay, starting with the Red Sox, Angels and Mets.
- John Sickels of Minor League Ball spoke with A's GM Billy Beane, who says his club's currently rebuilding. Check out the entire interview for more on the team's direction.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says the Brewers are "kicking the tires" on every available pitcher.
Odds & Ends: Atkins, Twins, Carlyle
Links for Friday, as the free agent market officially opens…
- As Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports points out, the Angels' lack of interest in Matt Holliday bodes well for the Cardinals, but not for Scott Boras.
- Scott Boras tells FOX Sports that interest in Adrian Beltre and Mike Gonzalez is strong so far. The agent says he's fielded offers for eight players already.
- The Nippon Ham Fighters signed minor league free agent pitcher Buddy Carlyle, says NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman. Newman also says the Yokohama BayStars are working to sign Chris Bootcheck, Jose Castillo, and Terrmel Sledge.
- The Nats hired former Mariners manager John McLaren as a bench coach, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse.
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan ranks 131 free agents and provides capsules. We've also got SI's Jon Heyman and AOL FanHouse's Frankie Piliere with Top 50 lists.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch breaks down the market for Mark DeRosa.
- ESPN's Buster Olney notes five arbitration-eligible players who could be traded, including Russell Martin and Kevin Correia.
- SI's Jon Heyman tweets that the Mariners and Tigers continue to discuss Edwin Jackson.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel tweets a comment from Brewers GM Doug Melvin: the team will fill current needs before discussing a Prince Fielder extension.
- Garrett Atkins to Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post: "I know that I will be on another team next year."
- Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune feels that free agents Carl Pavano, Jarrod Washburn, and Rich Harden are potential fits for the Twins.
- Christensen's colleague Sid Hartman wonders if catcher Mike Redmond "could wind up with a job in the [Twins] organization." However, Redmond told MLB.com's Kelly Thesier a month ago that he plans on playing in 2010.
- Paul Hagen's Phillies source shot down a story that Pat Gillick could be heading back to the Blue Jays.
- Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball has a Winter Meetings primer.
- Chico Harlan is moving on from the Washington Post's Nationals beat, once a replacement is found.
Nightengale On Jackson, Swisher, Rays, Halladay
USA Today's Bob Nightengale suggests we keep an eye on a possible three-way trade between the Tigers, Mariners and one other club. The Tigers would give up Edwin Jackson and the Mariners would give up Brandon Morrow. Here are some more rumors to read as you wonder who that third team might be:
- Nightengale says the Rays are the "clear-cut favorite" to acquire Milton Bradley from the Cubs.
- The Yankees are apparently letting teams know that Nick Swisher is available. Swisher was involved in his share of trade rumors after the Yankees acquired him last season.
- The Dodgers are focusing on Roy Halladay, who would potentially cost Chad Billingsley and others.
Tigers Don’t Have To Dump Salaries; Could Trade
Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski know a thing or two about fire sales, and he insists the Tigers aren't in the midst of one. The former Expos and Marlins exec told Lynn Henning of the Detroit News that he's only going to make solid baseball trades.
"I can assure you 100% that we do not have any kind of fire sale, or salary dump, or whatever you might call it, taking place," Dombrowski said.
The GM didn't mention Curtis Granderson or Edwin Jackson specifically, but both have been involved in trade rumors recently. It's still possible that the Tigers could deal one of the two players and Dombrowski said the Tigers are in conversations with other teams.
"To me, you're always in position where you listen to what people have to say," he said.
As long as the Tigers are wiling to listen, teams like the Brewers, Mariners and Cubs will continue to call. Dombrowski tells MLB.com's Jason Beck that the club's trade talks aren't likely to slow down negotiations with any of the team's free agents.
Odds & Ends: Mulder, Matsui, Smoltz, Rangers
Some afternoon linkage…
- The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Tom Haudricourt tweets that "it would be a huge upset if Mark Mulder doesn't try his comeback attempt in the Brewers' spring camp."
- Meanwhile, Brewers' GM Doug Melvin said the George Kottaras pickup was all about depth, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
- NPB Tracker passes along a report that says the Yankees stand to lose at least $15MM in revenue if Hideki Matsui leaves as a free agent.
- The Tigers aren't one of the teams that have expressed interest in John Smoltz, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck. Yesterday we learned that at least seven teams are interested in the righthander.
- Tom Hicks is trying to put together a group of local businessmen that would allow him to maintain major ownership of the team, says ESPNDallas.com's Richard Durrett. The deadline to submit a bid for the team is Friday, so if you have a couple hundred million bucks burning a hole in your pocket…
- Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball reports that the Nationals have named Davey Johnson Senior Advisor to GM Mike Rizzo.
- ESPN's Howard Bryant writes about a salary cap, and how baseball doesn't need one.
- Last, but certainly not least, everyone welcome FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal to Twitter!
Twins And Brewers On Washburn’s Radar
Free agent lefty Jarrod Washburn hasn't made much of a secret of his desire to play near his Webster, Wisconsin home, and he told FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi that both the Twins and Brewers are on his radar.
"The Twins and Brewers are both on the radar for me," Washburn said. "The thought of playing close to home has always appealed to me, and I think both of those teams would be good fits for me.
"I don't know yet if either of those teams have mutual interest, but we will see."
Obviously, those two teams fit Washburn's geographical desires. Both are said to be seeking veteran starters this offseason as well. Washburn also feels there's "mutual interest" in a return to the Mariners, noting that he enjoyed his time in Seattle and his family loved it there.
He also mentioned that his surgically repaired knee feels good.
"The surgery on the knee wasn't real extensive," Washburn told FOXSports.com in a Wednesday e-mail. "Dr. (Lewis) Yocum said he didn't have to do too much in there — just a little cleaning up.
"It feels great now, almost like I didn't even have a surgery. So, I don't see it being a problem for me in the future."
The Tigers acquired the 35-year-old from Seattle at the trade deadline, only to see him pitch to a 7.33 ERA in eight starts. Washburn has already received word from Detroit that they will not attempt to re-sign him.
Mariners Interested In Edwin Jackson, Curtis Granderson
The Mariners are interested in Tigers starter Edwin Jackson, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. However, though names have been exchanged, a source tells the writers the talks are "not all that serious." The FOX writers say the Ms also like Curtis Granderson, who'd be used in left field. Rosenthal and Morosi downplay this rumor as well.
The cost for Jackson is young, affordable pitching, of course. The Brewers, Yankees, and Mets are three other clubs thought to be interested. Jackson is due an arbitration raise on this year's $2.2MM salary. He is one of a handful of well-paid Tigers who actually has strong trade value.
Odds & Ends: Butler, Holliday, Counsell
A batch of links to kick off the work week…
- Newly minted Royals Player of the Year Billy Butler has not held long-term extension talks with the team, MLBTR learned on a conference call today. Butler will not be arbitration-eligible until after the 2010 season.
- Desipio on the Cubs-Curtis Granderson idea: "In the end, this smells like a winter of Brian Roberts and Jake Peavy trade rumors. One that ends with us talking ourselves into how Marlon Byrd isn’t so bad after all."
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports believes it's a three-horse race for Matt Holliday: the Red Sox, Yankees, and Angels.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick writes about Jed Hoyer and the Adrian Gonzalez situation.
- ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that a dozen teams have expressed interest in free agent infielder Craig Counsell. He'd like a multiyear deal.
- MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan sums up the Rangers' hot stove storylines.
- Evan Grant wonders what it would take for the Rangers to acquire Edwin Jackson.
- ESPN's Keith Law believes it'd be unwise for a team to acquire Dan Uggla and move him off second base.
- Sean Smith's 2010 CHONE projections for hitters are now available, so take a peek into his crystal ball.
- Jeremy Greenhouse of The Hardball Times cautions against misuses of the WAR statistic.
- Jeff Blair of The Globe and Mail thinks the Blue Jays "will be all over" Brandon Phillips to play third base if the Reds make him available.
- Troy Renck of the Denver Post suggests Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd will hold Type A free agent reliever Rafael Betancourt hostage with an arbitration offer. In my opinion, Betancourt has a decent chance of accepting.
- Tommy Rancel of DRays Bay talked to Rays VP of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman.
Odds & Ends: Morillo, Bay, Cabrera, Gonzalez
Some links to read before the weekend draws to a close…
- Juan Morillo, who pitched briefly for the Twins this year, has signed with a Japanese team, according to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker.
- Tyler Hissey of Around the Majors argues that Jason Bay fits best in the American League because of his suspect defense. Bay is a productive hitter, but questions about his ability to play the field may limit his appeal to NL clubs. His agent insists that Bay plays solid defense, but advanced metrics suggest that's not the case.
- Here, Hissey argues that the Yankees should consider signing Mike Cameron for a year until Austin Jackson is ready.
- Steve Kornacki of MLive.com reminds us that the Miguel Cabrera trade talk is just speculation at this point. It's fun to wonder about, though.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney doesn't think the Padres will face pressure to deal Adrian Gonzalez until next summer, so he doesn't expect them to be in a rush to deal their superstar. Instead, they'll wait to be overwhelmed.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic predicts where some big-name free agents will sign. He has the Yankees signing Matt Holliday.
Odds & Ends: Pirates, Jeter, Marlins
Let's take a look at some Sunday morning links….
- Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review says that the Pirates may be able to add one or two low-cost free agents this winter, but, as usual, they won't be making any big splashes.
- The Boston Globe's Chad Finn thinks that the Red Sox should be doing whatever it takes to acquire Adrian Gonzalez.
- When it comes to Derek Jeter, the Yankees ought to rethink their rule about not discussing early contract extensions, according to Bob Klapisch of FOX Sports.
- Michael Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press writes that all of the Curtis Granderson trade rumors could be much ado about nothing.
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff has a few tidbits of info from around the league. He mentions that he doesn't see the Yankees taking care of their outfield/DH situation until after the winter meetings.
- The latest Marlins mailbag from MLB.com's Joe Frisaro includes a few hot stove inquiries from readers.
- Roch Kubatko looks back at some of the names that were bounced around Orioles hot stove talks a year ago and wonders if the Orioles will again be linked to Braden Looper, Jon Garland, and Matt Treanor now that they're all back on the market.
- Joe Pawlikowski at River Ave. Blues hopes to see the Yankees stay internal to solve fill the eighth inning role, rather than venture to the free agent market and spend on a name like Rafael Betancourt, LaTroy Hawkins, or Octavio Dotel.
- Adam McCalvy at MLB.com examines some of the rumored discussions that obviously fell through when the Brewers and Pirates were talking JJ Hardy.
- El Lefty Malo crunches some numbers to try to predict how many additional runs the Giants will need to score to approach 90 wins and make a postseason run.