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Central Notes: Sizemore, Kendall, Reds, Votto

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Here’s a look at some items out of the Central divisions..

Ryan Braun Reactions

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There's plenty of news, commentary and analysis in the fallout of Ryan Braun's overturned suspension. Here's a look at what's being said about the reigning National League MVP:

  • Baseball is left facing uncomfortable issues, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca, regarding the leak of Braun's result as well as the break in the chain of custody of his sample.
  • The appeals system worked as it should, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, but Braun has nonetheless been victimized by a lack of confidentiality.
  • Braun has been dealt a clean slate but, unfairly, a stained reputation, writes Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.
  • The ruling is a blow to the testing system that Bud Selig believed would restore baseball's reputation after the steroid era, writes Jeff Passan of Yahoo!.
  • T.J. Quinn and Mark Fainaru-Wada of ESPN.com outline some of the critical discrepancies between MLB's recounting of the events vs. Braun's.
  • MLB and the MLBPA issued statements in response to Braun's comments at a press conference today, blogs Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  • Here is video from Braun's press conference.
  • Confidentiality is certain to be a topic of discussion between MLB and the MLBPA, tweets Haudricourt.
  • Braun will be a "rallying point" for MLB and the MLBPA for a long time, tweets Quinn.

NL Central Notes: Oswalt, Molina, Braun

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Ryan Braun publicly denied taking banned substances at Brewers camp today, expressing a willingness to bet his life that the substance in question never entered his body. Braun called the current drug testing system ‘fatally flawed’ and respectfully disagreed with MLB’s reaction to yesterday’s news that he won his appeal. Here’s the latest from the NL Central…

  • Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch hears the Cardinals recently boosted their offer to Roy Oswalt to $5MM from $3MM (Twitter links). Oswalt announced yesterday that he will look to sign midseason.
  • The Cardinals have made enough progress in extension talks with Yadier Molina that an agreement could be in place within a week, Strauss reports.
  • Major League Baseball is a big loser in the aftermath of Braun's appeal, since an old wound has been re-opened, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes.

Ryan Braun Wins Appeal, Will Not Be Suspended

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Ryan Braun has won the appeal of his failed banned substance test and will not be suspended for the first 50 games of the season, reports Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel. The union officially announced the win, saying both parties agreed to the announcement despite what is usually a confidential process. MLB has issued a statement saying it "vehemently disagrees" with the decision.

"It is the first step in restoring my good name and reputation," said Braun in a statement passed along by MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. "We were able to get through this because I am innocent … This is not just about one person, but about all current and future players, and thankfully the process worked."

Haudricourt says the appeal went Braun's way not because of the test result, but because of a technicality with the testing process. CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman and The New York Post's Joel Sherman report that part of Braun's argument was that the sample was not shipped in a timely fashion and that the chain of custody was broken for two days, meaning the sample was left unprotected (Twitter links). Independent arbitrator Shyam Das ruled in favor of the technicality, giving Braun the win by a 2-1 margin.

The reigning NL MVP is the first player to have a suspension successfully overtuned through the appeals process.

NL Central Notes: Braun, Molina, Crisp, Gimenez

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Considerable uncertainty surrounds the Brewers, who don't yet know whether Ryan Braun will miss 50 games after a positive test for a banned substance. Here are the latest links from the NL Central, which will look much different than it did a year ago whether or not Braun plays a full season in 2012…

  • Braun is on his way to Brewers camp and doesn’t know whether he’ll face a 50-game suspension yet, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. A decision is expected today or tomorrow.
  • Brewers camp is looking different this year, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports writes. There are more distractions than the Brewers would like, as Braun's possible suspension looms and the club moves on without Prince Fielder.
  • Agent Melvin Roman recently met with Cardinals GM John Mozeliak to discuss an extension for Yadier Molina, Derrick Goold and Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch report. The most recent round of discussions took place in the past two days and went well, the Post-Dispatch reports. Roman said Tuesday that the sides won't discuss an extension after Opening Day.
  • Coco Crisp said the Cardinals offered him a multiyear deal this offseason, Joe Stiglich of the Bay Area News Group tweets. The outfielder eventually signed a two-year, $14MM contract with the Athletics.
  • The Pirates nearly signed Chris Gimenez earlier this month, the catcher told Bill Chastain of MLB.com. The Rays signed Gimenez soon after the Mariners released him.

NL Central Links: Renteria, Brewers, Molina

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Here's the latest from the NL Central, on the day the Brewers signed Jay Gibbons…

Brewers Sign Jay Gibbons

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The Brewers signed outfielder Jay Gibbons to a minor league deal, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (on Twitter). Agent Bo McKinnis represents the 34-year-old, who played in the Brewers' organization in 2008,

Gibbons appeared in 24 games for the Dodgers last year, playing both corner outfield positions and posting a .255/.323/.345 line in 62 plate appearances. He has a .258/.318/.460 career line against right-handed pitching.

Brewers GM Discusses Greinke

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Zack Greinke doesn't see the need for an agent currently, but Brewers GM Doug Melvin told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel not to read into that.  "I think he may end up doing a lot of this himself. Then, if it gets to a serious nature, he might get somebody to help," said Melvin.

Melvin said he first needs to talk to owner Mark Attanasio before he discusses a possible extension with Greinke.  The GM implied he'd prefer not to talk contract during the season.  Melvin cited four signed pitchers who I assume he considers comparable to Greinke; let's look more closely at each situation.

  • Greinke, 28, has a 3.82 ERA over 1279 2/3 career innings, though his 8.0 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9, as well as his 2009 Cy Young award, suggest he's better than his ERA.  A deal for Greinke would entirely cover free agent seasons, a key difference compared to some of the other contracts Melvin mentioned.  Greinke would have been a free agent after the 2010 season had he not signed a four-year, $38MM deal with the Royals in '09.  He's already made big money, unlike the comparables Melvin listed.  We don't know if that will give Greinke the security to seek top dollar or compel him to do the exact opposite.
  • Jered Weaver, a Scott Boras client, signed a five-year, $85MM extension with the Angels in August.  The contract included his final year of arbitration, so it was $70MM over four free agent years, a $17.5MM average annual value.  Weaver was also 28 at the time of the signing, and he had better career numbers than Greinke.  Two factors suppressed Weaver's price and term significantly: he strongly preferred to stay close to home, and he was a year and a month away from free agency.  Cole Hamels' agent has already stated the Weaver contract won't be a comparable, and Greinke might choose to toss it out as well.
  • Justin Verlander, a client of SFX Baseball, signed a five-year, $80MM deal, and Felix Hernandez, an Octagon client, signed a five-year, $78MM deal.  Both contracts covered two arbitration years and three free agent seasons, making them even worse comparables for Greinke.  Verlander received $20MM per free agent year and Hernandez got $19.3MM.  Verlander was coming off a better season than Greinke is, though he still had a 3.92 caree ERA at the time of signing.
  • C.J. Wilson, a client of Select Sports Group, recently signed a five-year, $77.5MM deal with the Angels.  Like Weaver, it appeared Wilson took less money because of his desire to play for the Halos.  Wilson's contract was signed on the open market following two seasons as a starting pitcher.  This seems closest to a legitimate comparable for Greinke, among the contracts Melvin named.

Despite the differences in service time in these comparables, the fact remains that Melvin cited a bunch of five-year deals in the $80MM range.  The Brewers' ceiling probably isn't much higher.  If Greinke is confident he can post a mid-3.00s ERA over 200 innings in 2012, he can land a six-year deal exceeding $100MM on the open market, even with the draft pick cost attached and possible competition from Matt Cain, Cole Hamels, and Anibal Sanchez.  And if Greinke doesn't go for a typical agency relationship, he'll save millions on commission.

NL Central Links: Reds, Greinke, Marcum, LaHair

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Here's the latest from the NL Central…

NL Central Notes: Burnett, Madson, Kvasnicka

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Let's celebrate perhaps the last year of a six-team NL Central with spring training links for all the clubs…

  • Pirates infielder Gustavo Nunez, who was taken from the Tigers in December's Rule 5 draft, was placed on the 60-day DL with a right ankle injury, tweets Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.  Side effects of the move: the Pirates buy some time before deciding whether to put Nunez on the 25-man roster, and a 40-man roster spot is opened for new acquisition A.J. Burnett.
  • The Burnett acquisition creates competition at the back end of the Pirates' rotation, writes Biertempfel.  He believes Kevin Correia and Jeff Karstens will battle for the last spot, if everyone is healthy.  Burnett talked to reporters this morning.  One interesting news tidbit was his comment that one ever asked him about a potential Angels trade, though he confirmed he's not interested in the West Coast for family reasons.  Unprompted, Burnett debunked the rumors about his wife's transportation preferences, saying with a smile, "She loves to fly."
  • Ryan Madson's $8.5MM commitment with the Reds is spread out over three budgets, explains ESPN's Buster Olney: "$2MM during the 2012 season, $2MM in deferred salary on Nov. 1, 2012 — which is the start of the 2013 budget — and another $2MM in deferred salary, without interest, on Nov. 1, 2013, at the outset of the 2014 fiscal year. In the middle of that, they have a $2.5MM buyout on an $11 million option for 2013."  On the topic of his one-year deal, Madson told MLB.com's Mark Sheldon, "I take it as motivation to show people again, to prove that it's real.  It's unfortunate it's that way but I'm not complaining. I'm very happy. I'm very privileged to have this opportunity, and I just want to run with it and show people that I will be OK."
  • Righty Brett Tomko always wanted to come back to Cincinnati, he told John Fay of the Enquirer.  Tomko said it's taken two years to recover from a 2009 pinched nerve.
  • The Astros could have a new player at all nine positions for Opening Day 2012 compared to '11, writes Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle.
  • Astros 2010 supplemental first-round pick Mike Kvasnicka is moving back to catcher from third base, tweets Levine.  Kvasnicka was recently ranked 25th among Astros prospects by Baseball America.
  • "I'm not one to look back with animosity, however people or fans want to view my time there," former Cubs GM Jim Hendry told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.  Hendry noted that it was "just nice" to be wanted by the Yankees, "the most storied franchise in sports."  He's now with the Yankees as a special assistant to GM Brian Cashman, and isn't worrying about becoming a GM again.
  • "They always say contract years turn out to be great years," Brewers starter Chris Narveson mentioned to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.  Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum are entering contract years, while Randy Wolf has a $10MM club option for '13 with a $1.5MM buyout.
  • Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright refuses to put a limit on his innings following 2011 Tommy John surgery, he told MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch, but she notes that GM John Mozeliak has said 200 frames is likely out of the question.
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