Phillies To Sign Brian Schneider
The Phillies have agreed to sign catcher Brian Schneider, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The deal, which Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports caught wind of yesterday, is pending a physical. Schneider gets a base salary of $800K and could earn another $200K in incentives, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
Schneider, 34, spent the past two seasons as the Phillies' backup catcher. He struggled at times in 2011, posting a .176/.246/.256 line in 139 plate appearances and preventing just three of 23 stolen base attempts against him. Schneider has spent his entire 12-year career in the NL East with the Expos, Nationals, Mets and Phillies.
Minor Moves: Kimball, Corporan, Rottino, Pascucci
Today's minor moves…
- The Twins re-signed left-hander Phil Dumatrait, according to the Sosnick Cobbe Twitter page. Dumatrait appeared in 45 games for the Twins last season, posting a 3.92 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9.
- The Blue Jays claimed right-hander Cole Kimball off of waivers from Washington, according to the Nationals' official Twitter feed. Meanwhile, the Nats outrighted outfielder Corey Brown to Triple-A Syracuse.
- Astros catcher Carlos Corporan cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Oklahoma City, tweets Alyson Footer of the Astros. Corporan has the right to elect free agency due to previously being outrighted.
- The Mets signed catcher/left fielder/first baseman Vinny Rottino and first baseman/DH Val Pascucci to minor league deals, reports ESPN's Adam Rubin. Both players saw their first big league action in several years in 2011.
- Eric Duncan, drafted in the first round by the Yankees in 2003, has signed with the Royals, tweets Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus. The 26-year-old played mostly first base, second base, and left field this year for the Cardinals' Double-A affiliate, hitting .274/.322/.527 in 385 plate appearances.
- The White Sox re-signed Leyson Septimo, tweets Goldstein. The Sox claimed the hard-throwing 26-year-old southpaw off waivers from Arizona in June but removed him from their 40-man roster in October.
- The Giants signed center fielder Gregor Blanco, according to his agency (via Matt Eddy of Baseball America on Twitter). The 27-year-old spent the year with the Triple-A affiliates of the Nationals and Royals, hitting .201/.350/.327 in 252 plate appearances.
- The Phillies acquired righty Adam Worthington from the Diamondbacks to complete the September Mike Zagurski trade, tweets Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Worthington, 24, posted a 4.48 ERA, 10.0 K/9, 4.6 BB/9, and 0.6 HR/9 in 62 1/3 High-A relief innings this year.
- The Yankees signed lefty reliever Mike O'Connor, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. The 31-year-old appeared briefly in the Majors for the Mets this year, also posting a 5.22 ERA, 9.8 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, and 1.0 HR/9 in 60 1/3 Triple-A innings.
Cole Hamels Reiterates Desire To Stay With Phillies
Signing Cole Hamels to a contract extension is "not a pressing need," GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer, "but it's something we're absolutely on top of." Amaro has explained the timetable to Hamels and his agent, John Boggs. Gelb says the Phillies do not want to trade Hamels.
Hamels commented last night to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki, "It's not really on my mind because I'm still locked in with the team, which I'm happy about. It'll work its way out. I'm just going to go out there and focus on pitching. I feel like I have a really good agent, [John Boggs]. I hope he has a good relationship with [general manager] Ruben [Amaro Jr.] and they'll be able to work well together." Hamels later added, "You don't really think the grass is greener on the other side. This is the organization I've come up with. We're winning. Why would you ever want to leave? You want to be on a winning team, and the team wants to win."
Hamels could earn $14MM or more in 2012, his last year of team control before hitting free agency. He expects to be ready for Spring Training following an October elbow procedure to remove loose bodies. In general, Hamels noted that he feels no need to sign quickly due to fear of failure or injury, having come back from a broken arm in high school.
Who’s Met With Bob Garber?
1:05pm: Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. is talking with Garber today, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
11:53am: As the agent for top free agent starters C.J. Wilson and Roy Oswalt, Bob Garber of Select Sports Group has been popular so far at the GM Meetings. He's met or plans to meet with the Marlins, Yankees, Royals, Angels, Nationals, Rockies, and Rangers, according to reports, and tells me he has at least three more new meetings today.
Brian Schneider Nearing Deal With Phillies
The Phillies are close to re-signing catcher Brian Schneider, according to Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link).
Schneider, 34, has served as the Phillies' backup catcher since signing a two-year, $2.75MM deal prior to the 2010 season. His production at the plate dropped off significantly in 2011, with his .502 OPS bringing his overall slash line in Philadelphia down to .208/.297/.320 in 286 plate appearances.
Mets Will Tender Contracts To Pagan, Pelfrey
Their names showed up on our list of non-tender candidates yesterday, but Angel Pagan and Mike Pelfrey will be tendered contracts by the Mets, reports Jon Heyman of SI.com (via Twitter). The pair of Mets could earn more than $10MM between them in 2012, according to our projected arbitration salaries. Here are some other notes from the NL East:
- The Phillies are indicating Cole Hamels would cost "three small countries and two oceans" in a trade, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter link). Considering what sort of package it would take to land Hamels, the southpaw likely isn't going anywhere.
- The Mets have a similarly high asking price for David Wright. GM Sandy Alderson says he'll only considering moving Wright "if someone blows us away," tweets Heyman. Joel Sherman of the New York Post wrote earlier today that the Mets would definitely listen on Wright, but probably won't get an offer they like.
- Mark Buehrle's representatives and the Marlins are meeting today at the GM meetings in Milwaukee, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
- Yoenis Cespedes isn't the only Cuban outfielder to grab the Nationals' attention – Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post writes of the club's interest in 19-year-old Jorge Soler.
- Speaking of Cespedes, the Phillies worked out the 26-year-old in the Dominican Republic, with Pat Gillick in attendance, tweets Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com.
- Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington.com takes a look at which players the Nationals may protect in this year's Rule 5 draft.
Eight Teams Interested In Grady Sizemore
TUESDAY, 11:27am: The Rockies have examined Sizemore's medical records and believe he's worth the risk on a one-year deal, reports Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. The Rockies expect to watch Sizemore work out in the coming days.
The A's have no interest in pursuing Sizemore, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
MONDAY, 7:38pm: There's no shortage of interest in Grady Sizemore this offseason. The free agent outfielder has drawn interest from eight teams, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. The Cubs, Rangers, Giants and Yankees are potential suitors for Sizemore, along with the Phillies, Rockies, Red Sox and Indians.
The Giants are interested, even after acquiring Melky Cabrera, and the Cubs view Sizemore as a possible fit in right field. The A's, who saw their entire outfield hit free agency after the season, have also been linked to Sizemore.
Sizemore's knees have limited him to 104 total games in the past two seasons, so the Indians declined their $9MM club option after the season, making the 29-year-old a free agent. He hit 10 homers and posted a .224/.285/.422 line in 2011, but Sizemore combined power, speed and on-base skills as one of baseball's premier center fielders from 2005-08.
Phillies Rumors: Schneider, Hamels, Cuddyer
The latest on the Phillies…
- The Phillies are looking for a backup catcher, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. They're talking to Brian Schneider and others.
- Jonathan Papelbon explained how his deal with the Phillies came about: "One day, I finally told [my agent] – I said, 'I want to play for the Phillies and let's make it happen.'" Asked Sunday by Jeff Skversky of WPVI Philadelphia about becoming the richest reliever in baseball, Papelbon said, "That doesn't really play a role. The biggest thing that plays a role is the ability to come here and win."
- The Phillies still have the flexibility to sign Jimmy Rollins, said GM Ruben Amaro Jr. to reporters in response to a question about the shortstop.
- A Cole Hamels contract extension is "an agreement both sides want to forge," writes Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer. He doesn't see Papelbon's contract affecting Hamels.
- Michael Cuddyer visited the Phillies last week. Manager Charlie Manuel explained to Jeff Janiczek of the Philadelphia Daily News that Cuddyer told him, "Charlie, I'm a baseball player. I'll play anywhere you want me to play, and I'll do a good enough job that it will pass."
- Ken Davidoff of Newsday places Amaro tenth among all GMs in his annual rankings.
NL East Notes: Phillies, Hamels, Mets, Reyes, Capuano
The Phillies made waves with their four-year, $50MM signing of Jonathan Papelbon, but now they must look at how that deal and the rest of their hefty payroll will shape their contract talks with Cole Hamels. Here's a look at the Phillies and more from the NL East..
- Four teams showed serious interest in Papelbon prior to the reliever with the Phillies, a major league source told Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. That number is including the Phillies but not the Red Sox, who never made a formal offer to Papelbon.
- There don't appear to be any conversations between the Phillies and left-hander Cole Hamels, who will be eligible for free agency next fall so the club will have three possible options, writes Buster Olney of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required). The Phils could sign Hamels to a one-year contract for 2012 and risk him walking away with with little to no return, try and lock him up to a long-term deal, or deal him now for the best possible return. Some officials believe that the club's best course of action would be to move him this winter if they know now they don't want to pay him $20MM per season.
- If the Mets cannot re-sign Jose Reyes, they may look to make Daniel Murphy the full-time second baseman, an organizational source told Mike Puma of the New York Post.
- Based off of comments from Mets GM Sandy Alderson, it sounds like pitcher Chris Capuano is a goner, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. On Monday, Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated wrote that the Mets have crossed the veteran off of their list due to his desire for a two-year deal.
Phillies Sign Jonathan Papelbon
Jonathan Papelbon's desire to set the market for closers was never a secret — it's now a reality. The Phillies have agreed to sign the 30-year-old to a precedent-setting four-year, $50,000,058 deal that establishes the record for guaranteed money for a reliever. The Phillies announced the deal today, noting that Papelbon will continue to wear #58.
The contract includes a $13MM option for 2016 that vests with 55 games finished in 2015 or 100 in 2014-15, tweets ESPN's Jayson Stark. The Phillies appeared to have a deal with Ryan Madson earlier this week, but talks fell through and the sides didn't complete the rumored four-year, $44MM deal. Papelbon's agents at ACES stepped in and the Phillies have their closer.
Papelbon posted a 2.94 ERA with 12.2 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 64 1/3 innings for the Red Sox in 2011, saving 31 games. He's a Type A free agent who will cost the Phillies their first round draft pick in 2012, assuming the upcoming collective bargaining agreement doesn't change draft pick compensation for this offseason. Boston will obtain the 31st overall pick in next June's draft unless the Phillies sign an additional Type A free agent with a higher ranking than Papelbon. If the Phillies lose Madson to another team after offering him arbitration, they'll surrender one pick and gain two.
Papelbon is the first of MLBTR's top 50 free agents to sign. Check out MLBTR's Free Agent Tracker for the details. Bryan Grosnick examines the fantasy baseball implications of the move at CloserNews.
Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com first reported the deal and its terms. Jayson Stark of ESPN.com, Jon Heyman of SI.com, Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM and others added detail.
Photo courtesy Icon SMI.