Pirates Rumors: Wilson, Sanchez, LaRoche
More Pirates stuff courtesy of Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- Shortstop Jack Wilson played very little since breaking a finger on August 31st, but he wanted a plate appearance in front of the die-hard season ticket crowd yesterday at the team’s final home game. Wilson received a standing ovation, with fans knowing his Pirates career may end with a trade this winter. Kovacevic says Wilson is a "highly likely trade target," while GM Neal Huntington insists he is not trying to trade his shortstop. He will definitely listen though.
- Kovacevic adds Freddy Sanchez as a trade candidate, but feels Adam LaRoche will stay put. If the Bucs move both middle infielders, they could have a $30MM payroll in ’09.
Perrotto’s Latest: GMs, Angels, Offseason Moves
John Perrotto at Baseball Prospectus has his Every Given Sunday column up, let’s take a look at what he has to say:
- Perrotto believes that there’s a good chance that the only GM change baseball will see this offseason may be the one we already know about, as Pat Gillick has already announced his retirement. Perrotto cites Assitant GM Ruben Amaro Jr. as a likely replacement. The most likely other change is in Seattle, and cites Dodgers’ Assistant GM Kim Ng as a possible replacement, which would make her the first female general manager in the game’s history. Perrotto believes Cashman and the Yankees will work something out, though notes that if Cashman leaves, he will ascend to the top of both the Mariners’ and Phillies’ lists.
- Angels’ owner Arte Moreno says that the 2009 club will not exceed the current $123MM payroll. This leaves the Angels with hard decisions on Mark Teixeira, Francisco Rodriguez, Garrett Anderson, Juan Rivera, and Jon Garland. Of all those options, I see Teixeira as the top priority, as well as the most likely to return. Garland and Rivera seem like certainties to be gone, with Garland being one of the more appealing starters on the free agent market.
- The Robinson Cano trade rumors continue, as Perrotto expects the Yankees to make a run at Orlando Hudson. Giving up on Cano seems like a mistake to me, but he certainly hasn’t lived up to the expectations he set when he nearly won a batting title in 2006. The Yankees are also not likely to re-sign Jason Giambi or Bobby Abreu.
- The Tigers feel they have a good chance at re-signing Freddy Garcia for 2009. Garcia could potentially be a nice rebound candidate in a rotation that desperately needs help. Perrotto mentions that Detroit has considered Derek Lowe as a possibility, but I don’t see how that could work with the Tigers trying to cut payroll at the same time. One thing seems certain: Kenny Rogers will not be pitching for Detroit in 2009.
- The White Sox have removed the nameplate from Joe Crede’s locker. Doesn’t seem like he’ll be back in 2009, not that that’s necessarily a new revelation.
- The Royals/Jeff Francouer rumors continue in Perrotto’s column. It’s been written all over the site, but doesn’t it seem like the Royals should actually be pursuing people who have a career OBP that isn’t lower than several good hitters’ career average?
- The Giants are willing to trade Matt Cain for a solid power hitter in return. Again, I think keeping a rotation headed by Cain and Tim Lincecum for the next few years is a far better option than trading Cain.
- The Pirates have said that the only guarantee for their rotation next season is Paul Maholm. It’s been a rough season for Ian Snell, but I don’t see why he wouldn’t be guaranteed a spot as well, unless they’re not positive he’ll still be with the club.
- The Mariners will likely non-tender Erik Bedard, completing the downward spiral on what has been one of the worst trades in recent history. Bedard will have shoulder surgery and likely miss a good portion of 2009.
- Speaking of disappointing moves: Both Greg Maddux and Kosuke Fukudome are in danger of being left off their respective teams’ postseason rosters.
Olney’s Latest: Cardinals, Snell, Milledge, Maine, Fuentes
Buster Olney’s latest offering is packed full of links:
- Bernie Miklasz notes that the Cardinals have only three starting pitchers (Adam Wainwright, Todd Wellemeyer, and Joel Pineiro) locked up for next year (he’s not expecting Chris Carpenter to contribute in 2009), and no prospects waiting in the wings. His solution? Pry open owner Bill DeWitt’s wallet, "and please, no el cheapo deals for rehabbing pitchers, medically risky pitchers, broken-down pitchers."
- The Pirates have it a little bit tougher. According to pitching coach Jeff Andrews, it consists of Paul Maholm and "a blank sheet." Here’s one vote for adding Ian Snell, "on the verge of becoming the best right-handed pitcher to come from Delaware since World War I," according to DelwareBaseball.com, who sponsors his Baseball Reference page.
- According to GM Jim Bowden, the Nationals will explore ways to upgrade their defense for 2009, including the possibility of moving Lastings Milledge from center field back to a corner spot. Left fielder Elijah Dukes could move to center.
- Despite going through a difficult divorce, Padres’ owner John Moores is not planning on selling the team—which he bought because of his soon-to-be ex.
- The Mets seem to be rushing John Maine back from the DL in an attempt to keep their playoff hopes alive.
- Dave Krieger is amazed that the Rockies aren’t doing anything to try and keep free-agent closer Brian Fuentes.
Sarah Green writes for the Boston Metro and Umpbump.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Cards, Sheets, Twins, Pirates, K-Rod, Sabean
A few random notes from around the baseball Blogosphere…
- Rockin’ The Red says one of the priorities for the Cardinals this offseason should be signing a left-handed reliever. They examine the upcoming free agent market and feel Will Ohman and Jeremy Affeldt are the most attractive options.
- Was Watching explores the Yankees "lust" for Ben Sheets and notes that he may be a better option than A.J. Burnett and CC Sabathia.
- Twinkie Town projects the Twins ’09 payroll.
- Where have you gone, Andy Van Slyke? says it is better for the Pirates to wait and add payroll noting that a small increase now will not make the Buccos a contender. They believe it makes more sense to wait until ’10 or ’11.
- One writer at Fanhouse feels Chris Perez could keep the Cardinals from signing Francisco Rodriguez, giving the Cards money to spend on the rest of the bullpen.
- Another writer at Fanhouse wonders why Brian Sabean is going to be back in ’09.
- El Lefty Malo says Brian Sabean’s plan has "more or less worked". The suggestion is that it has only been one year since the rebuilding process began.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
The Adam LaRoche Situation
Pirates first baseman Adam LaRoche will be arbitration-eligible for the final time this winter, and can expect to earn $7MM or so in 2009.
LaRoche has not been bad with the Pirates – .272/.345/.458 in ’07, .269/.340/.480 this year. The problem: he was useless in April both years, continuing a career trend. His lines look much better without April included – .296/.361/.492 in ’07 and .291/.358/.535 this year. That is the kind of production the Pirates expected when they traded Mike Gonzalez for him in January of ’07.
Clearly LaRoche has value, so non-tendering him is out of the question. In April of this year, the Pirates reached a possibly insurmountable impasse in multiyear extension talks with LaRoche. With the Pirates in a clear rebuilding phase, trading him this winter makes sense. Teams that could be in the market for a first baseman: the Yankees, Indians, Angels, A’s, Mariners, and Giants. LaRoche could be Plan B for GMs not willing to pony up the young players needed to acquire Prince Fielder or Ryan Howard. Still, the Pirates do not have payroll problems and will not trade LaRoche just to unload salary.
Odds and Ends: Alvarez, Williams, Tazawa
Today’s links…
- Chat today, 2pm CST.
- Great stuff on the Pedro Alvarez situation from Baseball Prospectus’ Kevin Goldstein. Goldstein’s source says the union will claim that the Pirates and MLB engaged in a premeditated conspiracy, perhaps designed to take Scott Boras out of the picture by negotiating past midnight. The article is subscription-only. At $40 a year, BP is well worth it.
- It seems that Type B status is slipping away for Tigers reliever Kyle Farnsworth. Ivan Rodriguez recently fell from A to B, but the Yankees may choose not to offer him arbitration.
- Baseball America’s Jim Callis says Mariners top draft pick Joshua Fields wants $2MM, while the team is holding firm at $1.5MM. Fields is advised by Scott Boras.
- Interesting note from last week…Bernie Williams is training and does not consider himself retired.
- Patrick Newman discusses the Junichi Tazawa situation in-depth. He says NPB’s commissioner plans to meet with Bud Selig. One reason MLB looks extra-appealing to Tazawa: NPB limits draft pick bonuses to $1MM.
- Geoff Baker discusses Jose Guillen.
Odds and Ends: LaRoche, Bradley, Burnett
Digging into today’s random links…
- Joel Sherman looks at what went wrong for the Yankees this year. Did they fall too in love with their farm system?
- At least six teams have called the Pirates about third baseman Andy LaRoche in recent weeks. If LaRoche pans out and Pedro Alvarez comes aboard, the Bucs could have a surplus at some point.
- Craig Harris examines the rise of D’Backs GM Josh Byrnes.
- Eddie Bajek updated the Elias rankings for the AL 1B/OF/DH category. They’re fluctuating wildly. Eddie also did catchers for both leagues; Ivan Rodriguez is headed into Type B territory. Gregg Zaun lost Type B status.
- Mike Hindman conducted a roundtable asking what kind of contract the Rangers should offer Milton Bradley.
- 29 teams passed on Rays reliever Grant Balfour last spring. Now he has a 1.62 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 50 innings. Balfour’s been through a lot.
- Joe McDonald and Sean McAdam don’t see the Red Sox signing A.J. Burnett (or any big-name free agent starter).
- Padres CEO Sandy Alderson scoffed at the idea of a $40MM payroll for ’09. I never heard that figure tossed around; Buster Olney suggested the $50MM range.
- Maury Brown heard a rumor that Thomas Ricketts won the bid for the Cubs.
Pirates To Increase Budget Slightly
According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via team president Frank Coonelly, the Pirates will slightly increase their payroll beyond $54MM next year.
Coonelly says the Bucs will not get involved with high-end free agents, but the money will be there if they see good baseball investments in the mid or lower tiers (free agent list here).
I did an Offseason Outlook for the Pirates on Friday. Even with arbitration raises to eight players, the Pirates should still come in around $40MM (less if Jack Wilson and/or Adam LaRoche are traded). That could mean $10-15MM to spend on free agents. I could see them signing a veteran shortstop as well as a starting pitcher.
Offseason Outlook: Pittsburgh Pirates
Click here to view previous offseason outlooks. Today, a look at your 2009 Pirates.
C – Ryan Doumit – $412K+
C – Ronny Paulino – $424K
1B – Adam LaRoche – $5MM+
2B – Freddy Sanchez – $6.1MM
SS – Jack Wilson – $7.25MM
3B – Andy LaRoche – $400K
IF – Brian Bixler – $400K
IF – Luis Cruz – $400K
LF – Brandon Moss – $400K
CF – Nate McLouth – $425K+
RF – Steve Pearce – $400K
OF – Nyjer Morgan – $400K
SP – Paul Maholm – $425K+
SP – Ian Snell – $3MM
SP – Tom Gorzelanny – $419K
SP – Ross Ohlendorf – $400K
SP – Zach Duke – $400K+
RP – Matt Capps – $2.3MM
RP – John Grabow – $1.135MM+
RP – Tyler Yates – $800K+
RP – Craig Hansen – $700K
RP – T.J. Beam – $450K
RP – Denny Bautista – $400K+
RP – Phil Dumatrait – $400K
Other candidates: Jeff Karstens – $400K, Daniel McCutchen – $400K, Sean Burnett – $400K, Robinzon Diaz – $400K, Andrew McCutchen – $400K
Non-tender candidates: Jason Davis – $650K+, Raul Chavez – $550K+
Other commitments: Yoslan Herrera – $400K
The Bucs entered ’08 with a $48.7MM payroll. The ’09 team has about $30.5MM committed before arbitration raises to Doumit, LaRoche, McLouth, Maholm, Duke, Grabow, Yates, and Bautista. Even after those, they’ll still be comfortably under $40MM. So there is no need to make payroll-motivated trades.
It is fair to suggest the Pirates moved in the right direction with this year’s trades. This team won’t sniff contention in 2009, even with some breakout seasons. Right now it’s simply a team short on star power without much in the way of hitting or pitching. It will get worse before it gets better if the Bucs move LaRoche and/or Wilson this winter. The focus should be a young shortstop and pitching. The Pirates won’t be signing any significant free agents.
Doumit, McLouth, and Maholm were the bright spots in ’08. Hopefully those players can sustain their success while players like Andy LaRoche, Moss, Snell, and Ohlendorf take a step forward. Andrew McCutchen and Jose Tabata represent outfield promise for the future. Signing Pedro Alvarez would add another future star to the farm system. Neal Huntington did a nice job amassing young arms this year, and I’m sure he’ll continue to do so. With some luck added, the Pirates could be competitive in 2010.
Tazawa Headed To MLB
As expected, amateur pitcher Junichi Tazawa has decided to forego Japanese baseball and sign with an MLB team. The Braves, Tigers, Red Sox, Pirates, Mets, and Yankees are thought to be in on him. Patrick Newman has a slew of links and videos on Tazawa here.
I am curious what NPB fans think of this development.