Quick Hits: Red Sox, Braves, Astros, Marlins
Saturday afternoon linkage..
- Despite speculation to the contrary, the Red Sox's limited spending this offseason isn't connected to the amount of money owner John Henry has spent on his Liverpool soccer club, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald.
- David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution spoke with several members of the Braves who say that they are glad the club didn't shake things up this winter. Jair Jurrjens and Martin Prado were at the center of many offseason trade rumors but Frank Wren didn't find suitable deals for either player.
- Astros GM Jeff Luhnow told reporters that he hasn't been instructed to limit or cut payroll, writes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. The overall goal, he says, is to make the team more competitive over a three-to-five year time frame.
- Overall, the Marlins don't have a great deal of MLB-ready talent in the minors as their most promising players are at the lower levels of their farm system, tweets Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel.
Central Links: Gordon, Molina, Astros, Braun
Seven years ago today, the Cubs traded Kyle Farnsworth to the Tigers for Scott Moore, Roberto Novoa, and Bo Flowers. Farnsworth spent half-a-season in Detroit before being traded to the Braves at the deadline. Here's the latest on baseball's two central divisions…
- Alex Gordon told Rustin Dodd of The Kansas City Star that he and his agent wanted to work out a one-year deal for 2012 before discussing a longer contract (Twitter link). He also confirmed that the Royals have offered him a long-term deal. Gordon avoided arbitration with a one-year pact earlier today.
- "I love the city. I love the fans, I love the park. But it's out of my hands," said Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch when asked about a new contract (Twitter links). "Whatever they like to do is how it is … They let Albert [Pujols] go. It's business for the team, too. It's out of my hands." Molina can become a free agent after the season.
- "We're very active in terms of looking at transactions that are happening out there," said Astros GM Jeff Luhnow to Examiner.com's Stephen Goff. "Right now, most of the free agents have signed. Roy Oswalt is probably the last guy out there. We've got our fingers in everything. Are we actively looking to move a player or sign somebody at this point? No. We have got 61 guys coming to camp. From that group of 61, we believe we can get a real good 25-man roster to start the season."
- Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter) that the arbitrator in Ryan Braun's case won't be limited to the usual 25-day window, so a decision isn't necessarily expected by this Sunday. The Brewers slugger is appealing his failed banned substance test.
NL Central Notes: Greinke, Cardinals, Rodriguez
All three of the National League's unsigned arbitration eligible players play in the NL Central, as MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows. Here are the latest links from the division…
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin joined Todd Hollandsworth and Jim Memolo on MLB Network Radio and said that he and Zack Greinke have had some conversations about the right-hander's future in Milwaukee. Greinke told Melvin that he likes pitching for the Brewers and wants them to remain competitive going forward. Greinke is one of the top starting pitchers scheduled to hit free agency after the 2012 season.
- The Cardinals are waiting to see if Roy Oswalt will sign on their terms and at their price, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes.
- Astros GM Jeff Luhnow said Wandy Rodriguez is "definitely an important part" of the team's plan at this point, Stephen Goff of the Houston Astros Examiner reports. Rodriguez has been involved his share of trade rumors in the past year, but Luhnow says the left-hander is an important part of Houston's roster.
- Jose Veras of the Brewers and Casey McGehee and Garrett Jones of the Pirates are the NL's remaining unsigned arbitration eligible players.
Astros, Lowrie Avoid Arbitration
The Astros announced that they avoided arbitration with infielder Jed Lowrie, signing him to a one-year contract for 2012. CAA represents Lowrie, who joined the Astros in the December trade that sent Mark Melancon to Boston. Lowrie's deal is worth $1.15MM plus performance bonuses, CAA tweets.
As MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, first-year GM Jeff Luhnow has now avoided arbitration with all of the team's eligible players. Lowrie filed for $1.5MM and the Astros countered with an offer of $900K for a midpoint of $1.2MM.
Lowrie posted a .252/.303/.382 line with six home runs as a shortstop/third baseman in Boston last year. Mike Aviles, Robert Andino and Blake DeWitt were relevant to his case, as I explained this afternoon.
Alexi Casilla & Jed Lowrie Head To Arbitration
Only two of the 13 remaining unsigned arbitration eligible players filed for less than $2MM: Alexi Casilla and Jed Lowrie. Though they’re reasonably similar in terms of career stats, Casilla is arbitration eligible for the second time, so the players relevant to his case are different than the players relevant to Lowrie’s.
Casilla, who earned $865K in 2011, posted a .260/.322/.368 line with two home runs in 365 plate appearances while playing second base and shortstop last year. He filed for $1.75MM, while the Twins countered with a $1.065MM submission for a midpoint of $1.407MM.
Current infielders who put together similar Arb 1 seasons to Casilla’s 2011 campaign include Aaron Miles, whose salary jumped from $1MM to $1.4MM after the 2007 season, Alfredo Amezaga, whose salary jumped from $945K to $1.3MM after the 2008 season, and Jeff Baker, whose salary jumped from $975K to $1.175MM after the 2010 season. All three are among the possible comparables for Casilla's case, in my view, though his representatives may focus on similar players who settled above the midpoint.
Lowrie filed for $1.5MM after a season in which he posted a .252/.303/.382 line with six home runs as a shortstop/third baseman in Boston. The Astros offered their new infielder $900K for a midpoint of $1.2MM.
Mike Aviles, who essentially replaces Lowrie on Boston’s roster, may be his top comp in arbitration. Aviles settled at $1.2MM — Lowrie's midpoint — after a highly similar platform season. Aviles has better career numbers across the board, and that should help the Astros build their case. On either side of Aviles, we have two first-time eligible infielders from the current service class: Robert Andino at $1.3MM and Blake DeWitt at $1.1MM. Andino had a strong platform year, while DeWitt has the career bulk and both will figure in to Lowrie's case.
Astros Sign Justin Ruggiano
The Astros signed free agent outfielder Justin Ruggiano to a minor league contract that includes an invitation to Spring Training, the team announced. Ruggiano elected free agency one week ago today, after the Rays designated him for assignment.
Ruggiano appeared in 46 games for the Rays last year, playing all three outfield positions. The 29-year-old posted a .248/.273/.400 line in 111 plate appearances. Ruggiano, who also played for the Rays in 2007-08, is not yet arbitration eligible. The native of Austin, Texas has a .295/.376/.486 in eight minor league seasons.
Minor Moves: Royals, Rowland-Smith, Hessman
Some minor transactions from around the majors…
- The Royals signed Cuban outfielder Roman Hernandez Jorrin, reports Jorge Ebro of El Nuevo Herald (Twitter link). Hernandez Jorrin, 22, is a right-handed hitter who escaped from Cuba in November 2010.
- The Cubs have signed Ryan Rowland-Smith to a minor league deal, tweets ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. The Australian southpaw compiled a 4.57 ERA and a 1.64 K/BB ratio in 362 2/3 innings with the Mariners from 2007-10. Rowland-Smith spent last season in the Astros' minor league system, posting a 6.19 ERA in 22 games at Triple-A Oklahoma City.
- The Astros signed Mike Hessman to a minor league contract, reports Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle. The deal doesn't include an invite to the Astros' big league Spring Training camp. Hessman has a .694 OPS in 250 career plate appearances with the Mets, Tigers and Braves on the Major League level and also has 335 career minor league homers. The 33-year-old played for the Orix Buffaloes in Japan last season.
- The Reds have signed right-hander Wirfin Obispo to a minor league contracts, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Signed as an 18-year-old shortstop by the Red Sox in 2002, Obispo was converted to pitching by the Reds in 2004 and put up solid numbers for Cincinnati's Dominican summer league team over the next three seasons. Obispo has since pitched in Japan, posting a 3.25 ERA, a 7.8 K/9 rate and a 3.22 K/BB ratio in 46 games (28 of them starts) with the Yomiuri Giants and the Nippon Ham Fighters.
Minor Moves: Fossum, Sanchez
Here's where we'll keep track of the day's minor moves…
- The Orioles have agreed to sign left-hander Casey Fossum to a minor league deal, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets. Fossum, 34, last pitched in the Major Leagues with the 2009 Mets. He spent the 2010 season in Japan, before posting a 6.56 ERA in 35 2/3 innings at Triple-A in 2011. Orioles general manager Dan Duquette selected Fossum in the first round of the 1999 draft when he was Boston's GM.
- Astros infielder Angel Sanchez cleared waivers and will be a non-roster invitee at Spring Training, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart tweets. The 28-year-old appeared in 110 games for the Astros in 2011, playing shortstop, second and third. He posted a .240/.305/.285 line in 328 plate appearances, and the Astros designated him for assignment last week.
Astros Sign Livan Hernandez
The Astros have signed Livan Hernandez to a minor league deal, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. The Praver/Shapiro client would provide Houston with rotation depth if he makes the team out of Spring Training.
Hernandez posted a 4.47 ERA with 5.1 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 42.4% ground ball rate in 175 1/3 innings for the 2011 Nationals. The 36-year-old has averaged 216 innings and a 4.44 ERA since 1998, his first full season as a big league starter, and has completed at least 175 innings in each of the past 14 seasons. He earned $1.25MM in 2011, but didn't obtain guaranteed money from the Astros.
Quick Hits: Branyan, Reds, Mariners, Astros
Links for Monday night…
- Russell Branyan intends to play in 2012, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes tweets. Branyan posted a .197/.295/.370 line with the Diamondbacks and Angels in 2011, but hit 25 home runs in 2010.
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty said he hopes to lock Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips up long-term, even though doing so would require major commitments, MLB.com youth correspondent Meggie Zahneis reports. "Everyone has to understand that these are expensive deals and there is only so much we can do," Jocketty said. An extension for Votto would likely require one of the largest deals in MLB history.
- Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner argues that the Mariners should make another move or two, even if they don’t project to contend in 2012. There’s value in staying in the pennant race and the Mariners can maximize their chances of staying competitive by adding to the roster before Opening Day, Cameron writes.
- Ben Badler of Baseball America offers scouting reports on six intriguing international players not named Yoenis Cespedes. Outfielder Jorge Soler, lefty Gerardo Concepcion and right Armando Rivero are worth watching, Badler writes.
- Astros owner Jim Crane announced that the team will not be changing its name. “The Houston Astros are here to stay,” he said.