Minor League Transactions
Baseball America's Matt Eddy is back with minor league transactions for the period of December 21-31. A few notable moves…
- The White Sox signed 1B/OF Jason Botts, who compiled a .230/.325/.344 career line with the Rangers.
- The Marlins signed reliever Chris Schroder, who posted a 2.22 ERA in 56.6 Triple A innings last year.
- The Dodgers brought Jay Gibbons aboard. Gibbons signed a minor league deal with the Marlins in January of '09 and was cut in March.
- The Yankees added outfielder Reid Gorecki, who hit .286/.351/.464 in Triple A. Also, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Yanks signed lefty reliever Royce Ring and outfielder David Winfree.
- The Giants signed reliever Kevin Cameron, who had a respectable rookie season with the Padres back in '07. He pitched only 32.3 innings in '09 for various A's affiliates.
- The Blue Jays signed left fielder Chris Lubanski, who was originally drafted fifth overall by the Royals in 2003.
Odds & Ends: Chapman, Webb, Guerrero
Let's round up some assorted Sunday links….
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney tweets that the A's finished second to the Reds in the chase for Aroldis Chapman.
- A major league source tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com that the Red Sox tried hard to sign Chapman earlier in the offseason. They pulled their initial offer after Chapman switched agents and never offered another formal deal.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic finds it hard to imagine Brandon Webb returning to the D'Backs after 2010.
- Jamey Newberg wonders if Vladimir Guerrero will "revive his pinball numbers by playing half his games in his favorite arcade." Vlad has a career 1.175 OPS in Texas, but Jack Moore of FanGraphs suggests this stat is overblown.
- Within his Sunday blog entry, ESPN.com's Buster Olney addresses the persistent rumors about a potential reunion for Johnny Damon and the Yankees. Olney says that a few executives around the league "are absolutely convinced" that Damon will end up in the Bronx, but that it would require Damon significantly lowering his asking price and initiating contact with the Yanks.
- FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi reports that the Dodgers avoided arbitration with Jason Repko, signing him to a one-year deal worth $500K. Repko should compete for the team's fourth outfield spot.
- Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe writes that injuries have slowed the development of Red Sox prospect Ryan Westmoreland, whose name frequently pops up in trade rumors.
- Pittsburgh's 2004 first-round pick, Neil Walker, could be without a position at Triple-A this year, and is a candidate to be traded, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer says the Indians hope that at least one of Austin Kearns and Shelley Duncan makes the 25-man roster, to add a right-handed bat to their lefty-heavy outfield.
Houston’s Compensation For Losing Valverde
Hundreds of players remain on the open market, but only one of the unsigned Type A free agents received an offer of arbitration. Now that players like Jason Bay and Matt Holliday have signed, just Jose Valverde remains.
- 19th – The Tigers would have to give their first rounder up, but they've reportedly made an offer.
- 23rd – The Marlins consider Valverde too pricey right now.
- 49th - The Pirates have some interest, but don't like Valverde's asking price of $8MM per year.
- 53rd – The D'Backs, who are also interested, have their first round pick protected.
- 57th – The A's have a protected first rounder, but they may stick with 2009 Rookie of the Year Andrew Bailey.
- 58th – We haven't heard of definitive interest from the Blue Jays.
- The Phillies (27th), Yankees (32nd) and Nats (48th) would all surrender top-50 picks to sign Valverde, though those clubs don't appear to be likely destinations.
- The Red Sox haven't been connected to him either, and they'd rather avoid the luxury tax, but here's something to consider: they'd only have to give up their 107th overall pick to add the reliever. Valverde's ranked higher than John Lackey and Marco Scutaro, so the Astros get the 29th pick (now held by the Angels) if their former closer signs with the Red Sox. The Blue Jays and Angels are surely hoping to avoid this possibility because it would strengthen their rival's bullpen and diminish the value of their compensation picks.
- Confused? Check out our free agent compensation primer.
Cafardo On Damon, Hernandez, Delgado
In his new column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe discusses the Red Sox' decision to move Jacoby Ellsbury from center field to left field, concluding that the 26-year-old should excel in left. Here are some other notes from Cafardo's piece:
- Despite having a productive season, Johnny Damon acknowledges that he's expecting to take a pay cut. Right now though, he isn't willing to slice his earnings in half, which is what he'd be doing if he accepted a deal worth $6-7MM annually, after making $13MM in each of the last four years. Is returning to the Bronx still a possibility for Damon? "I don’t know. I haven’t had any conversations with them recently. Nothing would surprise me, but there’s nothing there right now."
- Talks between Felix Hernandez and the Mariners are "getting serious" and there's a chance that they could work out a long-term deal before the season begins.
- The Mets and Orioles are the primary suitors for Carlos Delgado. Baltimore is more interested in Delgado as a first baseman than a designated hitter, since they'd prefer a right-handed DH.
- Gary Sheffield still feels he can be an everyday player, but says a market hasn't developed for him yet this offseason.
- Cafardo describes the lack of interest in Miguel Tejada so far as "baffling."
- Although Miguel Cabrera's name popped up earlier in the winter as a possible trade candidate, it looks like the enormous price tag (in terms of both his salary and the required return) has quieted those rumors for now.
- Colby Lewis' impressive numbers in Japan over the past two seasons could earn him a multi-year contract. Cafardo says that at least six teams are interested, and that the Red Sox aren't one of them.
Yankees In “Serious Talks” With Hairston
The Yankees are in serious talks with free agent utility man Jerry Hairston Jr., according to a tweet by ESPN's Chris Singleton. New York has "serious interest" in Hairston, and would use him to spell Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez, as well as possibility platoon in left.
Last night we heard that there were five teams interested in Hairston, who's hit .281/.343/.432 in 730 plate appearances over the last two seasons while playing six positions. He finished the year as a World Champion with the Yanks.
Discussion: Left Field In The Bronx
The Yankees finished most of their offseason shopping when they traded for Javier Vazquez and Curtis Granderson, then signed Nick Johnson as a free agent, but the one spot left on the team that warrants an upgrade is left field.
At the moment, Brett Gardner and Rule 5 Draft pick Jamie Hoffmann are scheduled to start the season in a defense-heavy platoon and hit ninth. GM Brian Cashman has indicated that the team is approaching it's 2010 payroll limit, and it appears they're only willing to spend about $5-6MM for an upgrade. This morning we learned that they're planning to wait out the free agent market before making any moves.
Looking at the list of available free agents, there appears to be plenty of second and third tier outfield options available. What do you think the Yankees should do about their left field situation? Should they stick with the Gardner/Hoffmann platoon, or bring in someone like Reed Johnson or Ryan Church or Rick Ankiel?
Odds & Ends: Red Sox, Holliday, Yankees
Some Saturday links…
- Red Sox GM Theo Epstein expanded a bit on his "bridge year" comment from the Winter Meetings, writes Dan Duggan of The Boston Herald.
- FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal tweets that the Players' Union calculates the present day value of Matt Holliday's deal at $113.6MM, or $16.2MM per year. The Cardinals, however, see the present day value as lower because they use a different discount rate. ESPN's Buster Olney has a breakdown of the award based incentives.
- Chad Jennings of The Journal News has some more utility player candidates for the Yankees.
- Tommy Rancel at DRaysBay wonders if Franklin Gutierrez's contract extension could be used as a blueprint for a potential B.J. Upton extension.
Olney’s Latest: Chapman, A’s, Yankees, Marlins
In his blog post this morning, ESPN's Buster Olney notes that evaluators are split on Aroldis Chapman, as some see him as once in a generation talent, while others see extreme risk because of control and makeup concerns. "Where was Randy Johnson when he was that age?" asked one scout, and the answer is in A-ball walking 94 batters in 119.2 innings.
Here's the latest on Chapman, and here are the rest of Olney's rumors…
- Olney hears that if Oakland doesn't commit to a new ballpark for the Athletics, that commissioner Bud Selig will step in and negotiate a lucrative territorial rights deal with the Giants, similar to what happened with the Orioles when the Nationals moved into town. That could result in the A's getting their long desired San Jose stadium.
- The Yankees are in no big rush to sign a righty hitting left fielder, and are content to let the market for guys like Reed Johnson and Jonny Gomes play out. Last night we learned that the team had interest in bringing Jerry Hairston Jr. back.
- The Marlins continue to scour the free agent market for a closer, however Jose Valverde is too expensive and they aren't expected to bring back Kevin Gregg.
Five Teams Interested In Jerry Hairston Jr.
Five teams have expressed interest in free agent utility man Jerry Hairston Jr., according to Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com (via Twitter). Among the interested teams are the Padres, A's (who employ his brother Scott), and the Yankees, with whom he won a World Series ring in 2009.
Rosenthal adds that Hairston would likely receive a $2-3MM salary on a one-year deal, however he's also received multi-year offers. The 34-year-old is a career .259/.328/.373 hitter, and is capable of playing pretty much anywhere on the field except pitcher and catcher.
Odds & Ends: Yankees, Cardinals, Delgado
Some more links for the evening…
- Chad Jennings of LoHud.com provides an extensive breakdown of the Yankees' potential outfield options.
- Cardinals GM John Mozeliak says his team will decide in the near future "if we have a bullet to use what would we use it on," according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter).
- Ed Price of AOL FanHouse tweets that the Pirates are the leaders for D.J. Carrasco, who is being pursued by three other teams. In a separate tweet, Price adds that the Mets plan to scout Carlos Delgado this weekend in Puerto Rico.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports that Josh Johnson is definitely not switching agents any time soon. Matt Sosnick represents the big righty.
- Justin Sablich lists the best remaining free agents for the New York Times.
- Chien-Ming Wang is telling friends he's prepared to move on from the Yankees, according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. Abraham says Wang should be ready to join an MLB rotation in May.
- David Aardsma could come close to tripling his 2009 salary of $419K, according to MLB.com's Jim Street. The reliever is one of five arbitration-eligible Mariners
- MLB.com's Dick Kaegel tweets that Noel Arguelles passed his physical with the Royals, making official the five-year $7MM deal he agreed to earlier in the offseason.
- Larry Larue of the Tacoma News Tribune says Russell Branyan's likely not returning to Seattle now that the Mariners are poised to add Casey Kotchman.
- Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog hears from people connected to the Mets that they are interested in John Smoltz. The NL East is all over Smoltz – the Phils and Nats have interest, too.