Pirates Rumors: Snell, Estrada, Villone
John Perrotto had some new Pirates’ rumblings in yesterday morning’s column.
- Don’t be so quick to dismiss the Ian Snell to Seattle rumor. Perrotto acknowledges it, noting that the Mariners would offer Jeff Clement but the Pirates would probably require Adam Jones.
- Perrotto believes the Pirates have backed off their pursuit of Johnny Estrada, though Dejan Kovacevic hasn’t heard this. I never thought Estrada made much sense for them.
- Perrotto says the Pirates have an eye on free agent lefty Ron Villone, who pitched for them back in ’02.
Bucs May Extend Capps, But Not Sanchez
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has the latest regarding new GM Neal Huntington’s plans for closer Matt Capps and second baseman Freddy Sanchez.
Capps, 24, posted a fine 2007 (2.28 ERA) in his first year as the Pirates’ closer. He’d be under team control through 2011 anyway if the Pirates went year-to-year with him. But Huntington has an offer to Capps out for three or four years, buying out most or all of his arbitration years. Kovacevic notes that this is a strategy Huntington observed under Mark Shapiro in Cleveland.
Huntington appears to have less faith in 30 year-old second baseman Sanchez. He seems to have developed into a solid .800 OPS guy, and his second half in ’07 showed further upside. Sanchez has two more years under team control; if the Pirates gave him an extension they’d want it to buy out his first year of free agency in 2010. Sanchez would probably not be amenable to that, but even going two years would give the Pirates more cost certainty. At any rate, it would make sense for Huntington to entertain offers on Sanchez.
Ian Snell, Jason Bay On Mariners’ Radar?
UPDATE, 1-5-08 at 10:29am: Jason Churchill of Prospect Insider says talks between the Pirates and Mariners for Bay and Snell "never went past the introductory stages" – the Bucs’ demands are not reasonable.
FROM 1-3-08 at 11:51pm:
Jake at Bucco Blog has been hearing a lot of buzz lately about the Mariners’ interest in Pirates’ righty Ian Snell. The 26 year-old posted a 3.76 ERA in 208 innings in 2007. He was an ace in the first half (2.93 ERA).
Snell seems somewhat comparable to Matt Garza, though he’s a bit older and has an extra year of service time. So maybe acquiring him doesn’t require a Delmon Young-caliber player, but something close. If Neal Huntington can get Adam Jones for him straight up, I think he should pull the trigger.
Odds and Ends: Cameron, Inge, Bay
Here are some random rumors and links I’ve cobbled together today.
- The Fish officially signed Jorge Cantu to a minor-league deal worth $500K with $100K in incentives.
- The Cardinals re-upped Aaron Miles for $1.4 mil. This team needs some good middle infielders.
- According to Tyler Kepner, Alex Rodriguez has been "privately endorsing" Mike Cameron. Well, it’s not private anymore! The Yankees could entertain such a signing if they trade Melky Cabrera but don’t want to move Johnny Damon back to center. Kepner’s article also discusses the internal struggle between Hank and Hal Steinbrenner. Hank wants Johan Santana, Hal wants to show a little financial restraint.
- Lynn Henning digs into the Brandon Inge situation, with help from the always-insightful Keith Law. Henning believes Inge would view a shift back to catcher "with contempt."
- Scott Wuerz runs through various possible Cardinals targets. He notes that the Pirates had considered the White Sox their best possible trade partner for Jason Bay, and are disappointed by Chicago’s Nick Swisher acquisition.
- Seems that Bartolo Colon has yet to crack 90 mph in the Dominican Winter League.
- There are rumblings that the Astros are considering bringing Freddy Garcia back.
- R.J. Anderson snagged an interesting interview with Paul DePodesta.
- Minor League guru and MLB.com senior writer Jonathan Mayo has a new book coming out about what it’s like to face Roger Clemens. I’m going to do a Q&A with Jonathan next week; if you have any good question ideas leave ’em in the comments. By the way, Mayo finished his book before the Mitchell Report came out.
- Yankees fans – Ray Istorico has an illustrated history of the early Yankees coming out in a few months.
- I will be appearing on XM Radio’s MLB Home Plate show on Sunday around 2:25 CST.
Odds and Ends: Estrada, Payton, Kielty
Random rumors from the day…
- The Bucs are set with their starting five, unless they can trade Matt Morris. Dejan Kovacevic adds that the Pirates and Johnny Estrada have mutual interest but haven’t spoken in a while.
- Roch Kubatko expects the Orioles to shop Jay Payton now that they’ve acquired Chris Roberson. Really, all of their vets should be fully available.
- Bobby Kielty has interest from three or four teams, but his first choice is Boston. The likelihood of that increases if Coco Crisp is sent elsewhere. Kielty is willing to give up switch-hitting if his new team so desires.
- Troy E. Renck has salary details on Mark Redman and Kip Wells. Redman gets $1MM, with another possible $500K in incentives. Wells gets a $3.1MM base with another possible $1.5MM in incentives.
Mailbag: Nioka, Crede, Snell
Let’s dig through the ol’ mailbag once again. Feel free to shoot an email to mlbtraderumors@gmail.com.
Do you have any news regarding Japanese shortstop Tomohiro Nioka? Is he a free agent and are any teams pursuing him? – Bob
It seems that Nioka turned out to be ineligible for free agency. We’ll have to keep an eye out for him next year.
What’s up with Joe Crede? Will the ChiSox be looking to deal him this summer if they are struggling? And if so, you have to believe the Phillies would be top contenders for him. – Dan
I’m almost certain Crede will be dealt, I’m just not sure when. Maybe after a week or two of proving his health in Spring Training? Josh Fields needs his reps at third base, so I’d be surprised if the Sox started the season with Crede at the hot corner. The Phillies seem like the perfect fit, especially since Kenny Williams and Pat Gillick have gotten together for many deals.
Have you heard anything about a package of Snell and Bay from Pittsburgh to the M’s for some prospects? – Aaron
Jake at Bucco Blog heard this rumor just a few days ago. Both of them going to Seattle would represent a whole lot of talent. Seems that it would require Adam Jones and then some. Might make more sense for the Mariners to target just Snell, since they’re in fine shape in the outfield.
Matt Clement Rumors
FROM 12-31-07 at 11:20am: Wuerz says Clement balked at the idea of a minor league deal with the Cardinals.
FROM 12-30-07 at 12:26pm: John Perrotto believes Clement is leaning towards the Pirates or Indians, partly because of a new home he built in Butler, PA (same place he was born).
FROM 12-30-07 at 2:10am:
Here’s a rumor I missed from a couple of days ago. Scott Wuerz of the Belleville News-Democrat, a Southern Illinois newspaper, indicated in his blog that the Cardinals were close to signing Matt Clement. Haven’t seen recent buzz about this in the Post-Dispatch, but maybe Wuerz has the scoop.
Other teams previously linked to Clement: the Royals, Mariners, Blue Jays, Rockies, Pirates, Indians, and Phillies. The Astros pulled out and the Padres seem full. Clement underwent rotator cuff surgery in September of 2006, with his agent comparing the procedure to that of Drew Brees.
Phillies Sign Chad Durbin
UPDATE, 12-21-07 at 9:34am: Well, Durbin only got $900K. It’s hard to complain about any signing at that price; this could definitely be a profitable move for the Phils. The bigger concern is that this move ends their starting pitching search and leaves little behind Hamels and Myers. An injury to either, and the Phillies seem done.
FROM 12-19-07 at 6:18pm:
According to Dejan Kovacevic, starter Chad Durbin has reached an agreement with the Phillies. The Bucs missed out on another targeted free agent.
Durbin, a 30 year-old journeyman, posted a 4.72 ERA in 127 innings for the Tigers. His numbers were below-average across the board; I’m not sure how much he’ll help the Phillies’ starting pitching woes. They’re looking at a rotation of Cole Hamels, Brett Myers, Kyle Kendrick, Jamie Moyer, and Durbin (no one’s counting on Adam Eaton). Beyond the front two that rotation is going to be pretty bad.
The Mark Prior Derby
Let’s do a recap on the Mark Prior Derby, which is getting more confusing each day. Jerry Crasnick has added some good info this afternoon. Prior wants a one-year deal and hopes to be on a big league mound before the end of May.
- Yankees – They’ll probably pass, per Hank Steinbrenner.
- Red Sox – Named only by Jayson Stark.
- White Sox – Named only by Stark.
- Mariners – Named by Stark, denied by Jim Street.
- Mets – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Ken Rosenthal, Ed Price
- Cardinals – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Rosenthal, Matthew Leach
- Padres – Named by many, made an offer according to Crasnick. Prior went to USC but would have to take less money to play in San Diego
- Astros – Named by many, made an offer according to Alyson Footer
- Giants – Named only by Stark
- Reds – Named by Stark, Crasnick. Prior previously played under Dusty Baker
- Nationals – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Bill Ladson
- Rangers – Named by Crasnick but not Stark, aggressively pursuing according to Rosenthal
- Marlins – Named only by Crasnick
- Indians – Named only by Crasnick
One more and we’re at half of all baseball teams linked at some point. The Phillies and Pirates are not interested, and it’s probably safe to count the Cubs out.
Odds and Ends: Roberts, Otsuka, Walker, DaVanon
A few minor moves to speak of…
- The Cubs don’t appear to be concerned about Brian Roberts‘ steroid admission.
- The Padres’ talks for Xavier Nady are "on hold," according to Bill Center. Also, the Friars continue to eye Akinori Otsuka.
- Aside from the aforementioned Michael Barrett, the Padres signed Robert Fick and Jeff DaVanon. DaVanon, a switch-hitter, has had some decent years against righties. Ken Rosenthal believes the Padres may consider their outfield situation settled now after missing out on Geoff Jenkins and signing DaVanon.
- Todd Walker, remember him? He was released by the Padres this year in Spring Training and hooked on with Oakland. After a month and a half there, they designated him for assignment. He wasn’t picked up, and enjoyed spending the time with his family. Now, however, the Rockies have had preliminary conversations with him according to Tracy Ringolsby. Walker played for the Rox in 2000, posting a .929 OPS in limited duty. He had another half season in Colorado in ’01 before being traded to the Reds for Alex Ochoa.
- Excellent team blogs are going corporate – Bucco Blog was purchased by Baseball Interactive Media, and MetsBlog partnered with SNY. Both seem like positive developments for readers – Jake and Matthew maintain editorial control, but perhaps gain additional access and technology.