Gammons On Chapman, Lowell, Damon
Peter Gammons answered fans' questions today in a chat session for the Boston Globe. Most of the inquiries were Red Sox-related or required some guesswork from Gammons, but let's check out a few highlights….
- Gammons speculates that the Angels will end up landing Aroldis Chapman, pointing to Chapman's connection to Kendry Morales as a possible factor.
- Mike Lowell's hip is improving and his thumb injury shouldn't be an issue by March. Gammons thinks there will still be some teams that would be willing to take on $2-3MM of the third baseman's contract, and that the Red Sox will eventually be able to trade him.
- The Red Sox may try to acquire another big bat sometime down the road, but right now the team doesn't seem too concerned about it. They think their improved defense will help make up for the offense they lost when they parted ways with Jason Bay.
- If Johnny Damon can't find a two-year contract that's close to his asking price, Gammons wouldn't be surprised to see the outfielder back in the Bronx next season.
Aroldis Chapman Decision Coming Soon?
4:13pm: The Baltimore Sun reports that the Orioles haven't been in touch with the Hendricks brothers since telling Chapman's representatives how they valued the pitcher.
1:40pm: Gordon Edes of ESPN.com hears that the Red Sox are still pursuing Chapman and remain "very much in the picture" to sign the lefty. The Red Sox have continued talking with Chapman's representatives since making their initial offer of $15MM-plus. Meanwhile, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe also hears that the Yankees are out.
THURSDAY, 6:35am: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweeted last night that the Angels are "trying like crazy" to sign Chapman. Yahoo's Tim Brown tweets disagreement from an Angels source: "Despite what you read, we're not in that deep."
6:56pm: Clark Spencer of The Miami Herald tweets that internally, the Marlins have "conceded defeat" in the Chapman sweepstakes.
WEDNESDAY, 3:55pm: At least three teams are out on Chapman: the Astros, Yankees, and Mets (ESPN's Buster Olney via Twitter, and MLB.com's Brian McTaggart).
TUESDAY, 8:48pm: Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that the Aroldis Chapman sweepstakes may be nearing a close. According to Rodriguez, Chapman is saying that he "expects to sign within the next three or four days." As many as 15 clubs have shown some degree of interest in the Cuban left-hander, including several small-market franchises.
One such team, the Marlins, are particularly taken with Chapman since they hope that South Florida's large Cuban population will tempt the 21-year-old into signing at something of a hometown discount. Rodriguez reports that the Marlins have already made a $13MM contract offer to Chapman and have now raised that offer — a wise move given that the Red Sox have already offered Chapman $15.5MM.
The Marlins' maneuvering may be all for naught, however. An unnamed source tells Rodriguez that the Angels and Blue Jays seem to be the favorites to sign the Cuban left-hander, and that Chapman will sign with one of the two clubs for "around $21MM."
Odds & Ends: Epstein, Cards, Contracts, Greene
Links for a snowy Thursday…
- MLB.com's Lyle Spencer tweets of the Dodgers' interest in Robb Quinlan for a fourth outfielder role. The Rockies and Twins are other known suitors.
- Red Sox GM Theo Epstein appeared on the Toucher and Rich show this morning. He spoke about the team's offense, Adrian Gonzalez, Mike Lowell, and the "bridge period" comment; MLB.com's Ian Browne provides the transcript.
- MASN's Steve Melewski says the Red Sox rescinded the contract given to reliever Bob McCrory after he failed his physical.
- Tommy Rancel of DRays Bay looks at the team-friendly deals signed by Paul Cohen clients.
- Cardinals manager Tony La Russa told Cam Inman of The Contra Costa Times there's a non-zero chance the team adds Mark McGwire to the player roster on August 31st.
- There is currently no timetable for the Cardinals to sit down with Albert Pujols' agents, GM John Mozeliak told Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Cards are ready to talk when Pujols is.
- Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball is beta-testing an MLB salary database. Also of note: Cot's Baseball Contracts has joined the Baseball Prospectus family.
- ESPN's Buster Olney wrote yesterday that Khalil Greene is working hard and seeks a big league deal. Greene can play shortstop or third base, and Olney sees Oakland as a potential match.
- The Pirates aren't far apart with Zach Duke on his 2010 salary, writes Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Kovacevic believes Duke's $2.2MM salary could double in his second arbitration year. A multiyear deal is not in the works.
- Murray Chass chronicles the blank contract Andre Dawson gave to the Cubs in the spring of '87.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues looks at Nick Johnson's injury history in detail.
- A December 30th tweet from SI's Melissa Segura notes that Dominican lefty Victor Payano signed with the Rangers. Payano had a deal with the Red Sox in July for $900K that was voided due to shoulder concerns. Here's a video of the 16-year-old courtesy of Kiley McDaniel.
Comments From Brian Cashman
Chad Jennings of The LoHud Journal spoke to Yankees GM Brian Cashman today. A few notes…
- Cashman seeks a right-handed hitting outfielder to come off the bench on occasion. Reed Johnson is the oft-mentioned name, though free agents such as Jonny Gomes and Rocco Baldelli are also available.
- Cashman's comment that he doesn't need a left-handed bat for the outfield makes one wonder if Johnny Damon's time with the club is up. Click here for more on that situation.
- As far as backup infielder/catcher roles, Cashman seemed OK with internal options. Still, the slight hedging in the GM's quotes led Jennings to wonder if Cashman will continue to monitor the market.
- Bullpen help is not Cashman's focus – instead it's "non-roster invites and position player bench." The Yankees have actually agreed to several minor league deals that have yet to be announced.
Yankees, Sergio Mitre Reach Agreement
The Yankees and pitcher Sergio Mitre avoided arbitration, reaching an agreement for $850K plus incentives tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Mitre had Tommy John surgery in July of '08, and was released by the Marlins in September of that year. The Yankees signed him a few months later and were able to retain him for 2010 even after declining his option.
Mitre, 29 in February, served a 50-game PED suspension as he recovered from the elbow surgery. He ended up tossing 54.3 strong minor league innings and 51.6 ugly big league frames. He could become trade bait if the Yankees go elsewhere for their fifth starter.
Heyman On Damon, Tejada, Pineiro, Molina
The latest from SI's Jon Heyman…
- Heyman believes the Yankees would not go beyond one year and $6MM to re-sign Johnny Damon. On MLB Home Plate Boras said Damon "would just have to move forward," while not faulting the Yankees for sticking to a budget. Heyman suggests four alternatives for Damon: the Giants, Mariners, Braves, and Angels. The Angels would be a tough fit barring a Juan Rivera trade, as their outfield and DH spots are full. The problem with the Braves is that they're approaching their payroll limit.
- Despite a report that the Cardinals probably can't afford Miguel Tejada, Heyman sees them as the best fit. Heyman's $8MM idea seems too pricey though.
- The Mets debated offering Joel Pineiro a two-year, $15MM Jason Marquis special, but at this point Pineiro seems to be seeking Randy Wolf's three-year, $29.75MM deal. MetsBlog's Matthew Cerrone sees the team landing Jon Garland instead.
- Heymans says the Mets "seem serious about sticking with an offer of one year and a vesting option" for Bengie Molina. However, Cerrone "gets the feeling the Mets might have a two-year deal on the table."
GM Trade Histories: AL East
Brendan Bianowicz has more updates to the GM Trade History series. Today he covers the AL East. Check out the Excel spreadsheets below to see trades, free agent signings, and notable draft picks for each GM.
Odds & Ends: Orioles, Braves, Indians
Lots of other bits of information to get to on a busy Monday:
- The Baltimore Sun's Dan Connolly has several pieces of information about once and perhaps future Orioles. Former Oriole Melvin Mora has three suitors, according to Mora's agent, two National League teams and one American League team.
- Mark Hendrickson, by contrast, could well return to Baltimore. He lives in nearby York, PA and wants to play in Baltimore. His agent, Joe Urbon, said both sides have talked, but there's been no movement yet.
- David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution believes that if his price tag drops to well below $10MM, Johnny Damon could be a good fit for the Braves. You'd have to think the Yankees would get back involved at that price, however.
- Matt Klaassen of Fangraphs.com thinks a disparity in GM talent could be behind the gap between the National and American League.
- And if Cleveland fans weren't upset enough over recent deals for Cliff Lee, C.C. Sabathia and Victor Martinez, MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince checks in with when he expects Cleveland to begin looking to trade Grady Sizemore in his latest Inbox.
- MLB.com's Chris Haft thinks the Giants should take a look at Mike Jacobs.
Discussion: Wang Or Lewis?
Earlier today, Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com had updates on a pair of Alan Nero clients: pitchers Chien-Ming Wang and Colby Lewis.
Both pitchers represent low-cost rotation alternatives for 2010, and there are differing reasons to value the potential upside of both.
For Wang, the news came that he could throw off of a mound in six-to-eight weeks, news that was "even more positive" than expected from Dr. James Andrews, according to Nero.
Nevertheless, the pitching-needy Mets have yet to contact Nero about Wang, 1050 ESPN Radio's Andrew Marchand reports.
The reason Wang is even in the position of free agency is due to his health issues over the past few years. Considering he posted a 46-15 record from 2006-2008, with an ERA of 3.74, all while pitching in the ultra-competitive American League East, a return to form would present a team with a strong member of the starting rotation.
But could Lewis be an even better alternative than Wang? Lewis struggled mightily in five major league seasons, posting an ugly 6.71 ERA, but his performance in Japan during 2008-2009 was eye-popping. He led the Central League in strikeouts in each campaign, walking just 46 in 354 1/3 innings.
Ultimately, the combination of Lewis' numbers and good health would make him a better buy-low fit, in my opinion.
Odds & Ends: Lowe, Tigers, Halladay, Capps
Links for Monday…
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman says the Braves made it known they were willing to eat $9MM of the $45MM owed to Derek Lowe over the next three years, but found no takers.
- MLB.com's Jason Beck talked to Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski, who said nothing has changed in terms of using Scott Sizemore as the second baseman. Beck points out that if the Tigers wanted a veteran at the position they probably would've offered Placido Polanco arbitration.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik told Murray Chass they he expressed interest in Roy Halladay a couple of times, before the trade deadline and at the Winter Meetings. It sounds like Halladay's no-trade clause was an obstacle.
- Chico Harlan of the Washington Post has a Q&A with new Nationals reliever Matt Capps, who agreed to a one-year, $3.5MM deal on Christmas Eve. MLB.com's Bill Ladson tweets that Capps' physical is scheduled for Tuesday.
- Baseball America's Jim Callis gives us a couple of prospect "All-Bust" teams for the 2000s.
- MLB.com's Todd Zolecki notes that the Phillies have a minor league offer out to Scott Eyre.
- MLB.com's Mark Sheldon talked to Reds GM Walt Jocketty, who will be looking at minor league deal possibilities. Sheldon indicated that the Reds' interest in Noah Lowry is now less than minimal.
- MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan fills us in on the Rangers' offseason plans and potential targets in his mailbag.
- Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues would like to see the Yankees buy low on Oakland's Travis Buck. Buck made our list of right field trade candidates back in November.