AL West Notes: Wilson, Young, Angels, Morrison
The Rangers made headlines today by selecting Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft. Before going on to NFL stardom, Wilson was selected by the Rockies as a second baseman in the fourth round of the 2010 draft, and Colorado retained its rights to Wilson until this morning. Wilson will report to Spring Training and talk to the Rangers' minor leaguers in a motivational capacity. "We decided if he ever wanted to play again, he'd be a guy that we'd want with us," Texas assistant GM A.J. Preller told reporters, including MLB.com's Richard Justice. The Wilson selection isn't a gimmick, ESPN's Richard Durrett writes, and Jon Daniels is excited to have Wilson's winning qualities in the organization, though Daniels stressed that the club isn't trying to distract Wilson from his NFL goals. Here's more out of the AL West…
- Shin-Soo Choo and Nelson Cruz remain unsigned, which is good news for the Rangers, ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett writes. The Rangers like both players and are hoping that their asking prices drop the longer they stay on the market. Daniels said that his team's pursuit of Choo was "unchanged" from yesterday.
- There is a chance that Michael Young could rejoin the Rangers if both parties see a fit, MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez tweets. Texas dealt its longtime franchise staple to the Phillies last offseason and Young was subsequently dealt to the Dodgers in August.
- Despite recent rumors linking the Angels to Matt Garza and Raul Ibanez, general manager Jerry Dipoto told reporters (including Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times) that his team doesn't have any outstanding offers to free agents.
- In a special piece for FOX Sports, new Mariners first baseman/outfielder Logan Morrison wrote about the experience of being traded to a new team. Morrison's piece is particularly fascinating in that it was written prior to the trade that sent him to Seattle. LoMo says he doesn't have any ill feelings toward the Marlins organization, adding that contrary to public opinion, owner Jeffrey Loria was "great and generous" to Morrison and his family. Loria allowed Morrison and his family to use his personal plane to get to Kansas City for the funeral of Morrison's father.
- The Astros spoke to the Marlins about Morrison and also pursued Corey Hart and Mike Morse, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports. Jose Veras rejected the Astros' initial contract offer but the two sides still share a mutual interest in a reunion.
- The Yankees, Indians, Braves, Phillies, Blue Jays, Twins and Indians were all involved in trade talks for Brett Anderson before the Athletics sent the right-hander to the Rockies, writes Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post
AL Central Notes: Jackson, Pelfrey, Garza, Butler
The Tigers have discussed trading Austin Jackson to the Yankees in exchange for Brett Gardner, Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun reports. Both players have been above-average fielders in center over their careers and have comparable career batting lines, though Gardner is a better base-stealer and Jackson has more doubles pop. Jackson turns 27 in February, is projected to earn $5.3MM in his second year of arbitration eligibility and he'll hit free agency after the 2015 season; the 30-year-old Gardner is projected to earn $4MM and he'll be a free agent next winter. I'm not sure this deal makes sense for the Tigers unless they don't think they can sign Jackson (a Scott Boras client) to an extension, or if they aren't interested in extending Jackson. From the Yankees' side, they like Gardner enough that they probably wouldn't move him for a very similar player, albeit a younger one.
Here are some more items from all five AL Central franchises…
- The Twins have increased the value of their two-year offer to Mike Pelfrey from $10MM to $12MM, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. The Rangers and Giants have also shown interest in Pelfrey, Neal reports.
- Also from Neal, the stumbling block between Matt Garza and the Twins seems to be Garza's demands for a four- or five-year contract, as Minnesota isn't willing to make that long a commitment due to injury concerns. That said, Neal isn't counting the Twins out of the Garza race yet as he hears the team is still in the hunt (Twitter links). You can read more about the Twins' hunt for pitching here.
- The Royals could continue to shop Billy Butler since "Before too long, the DH spot has to be a rotating position for us. It really does," a club official tells Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. For one, the Royals may use Salvador Perez at DH to keep his bat in the lineup when he isn't catching, plus added DH days would help keep Perez healthy. Even if Butler isn't dealt this offseason, Dutton doesn't believe the Royals will sign him to an extension once his current deal is up. It was reported earlier today that Butler's name had come up in trade talks with the Blue Jays.
- The Royals, Indians and Rangers are among the teams interested in Shaun Marcum, ESPN's Jayson Stark tweets. Marcum underwent surgery to correct his thoracic outlet syndrome in July and his agent updated MLBTR's Tim Dierkes on the recovery process last month.
- The White Sox are looking to cut their payroll from just under $119MM in 2013 to between $89MM-$99MM range for 2014, ESPN Chicago's Doug Padilla writes, with the $99MM figure being the likelier of the two. Despite the cuts on the Major League side, GM Rick Hahn said the club will reinvest the saved money into extra spending on the draft and international signings.
- In other AL Central news from earlier today, the Tigers reached an agreement with Joba Chamberlain and the Indians were battling with the Padres over Joaquin Benoit.
Rangers Sign Lillibridge, Wilson, Kouzmanoff
The Rangers announced that they've signed Kevin Kouzmanoff, Brent Lillibridge, Armando Rodriguez and Josh Wilson to minor league deals with invites to Spring Training.
Lillibridge, 30, batted .119/.133/.136 in 61 plate appearances between the Cubs and Yankees last season. The utility man showed promise with the White Sox in his age-27 season back in 2011, batting .258/.340/.505 with 13 homers in 216 plate appearances. Over the course of his career, however, he's a .205/.267/.332 hitter.
Wilson, 32, batted .200/.262/.300 in 65 plate appearances for the Diamondbacks in 2013. He's a career .225/.278/.317 hitter in 1077 plate appearances between the D-Backs, Mariners, Rays, Padres, Nationals, Marlins and Brewers.
Kouzmanoff, 32, spent four seasons as the everyday third baseman for the Padres and A's, slashing .259/.303/.426 with 75 homers. He spent 2013 in the Marlins organization, batting .294/.344/.440 at Triple-A.
Rodriguez, 25, split the 2013 season between Double-A and Triple-A with the Mets, posting a combined 4.81 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in 63 2/3 innings.
The Rangers also announced that they inked righty Doug Mathis to a minor league pact, though Mathis' deal doesn't contain an invite to Spring Training. Mathis posted a 4.84 ERA in 87 1/3 innings for the Rangers from 2008-10 and split last season between the Triple-A affiliates for the Marlins and Pirates.
Shin-Soo Choo Rumors: Thursday
As of yesterday, it appears that the Mariners, Diamondbacks and Reds are all out of the market for Shin-Soo Choo. Here's the latest on the top remaining free agent position player…
- One veteran general manager told Bob Nightengale of USA Today that he thinks the Astros will ultimately be Choo's landing spot (Twitter link).
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports (via Twitter) that the Rangers appear comfortable going to five years for Choo, but agent Scott Boras wants a seven-year deal. Morosi wonders if they can meet in the middle.
Overnight Links: Padres, Rule 5, Rockies, Iglesias
MLBTR's 24/7 coverage of the 2013 Winter Meetings rolls on, with a few late night (or is it early morning?) links….
- When the Astros and Padres both included players to be named later in Wednesday's Anthony Bass trade, our Steve Adams suggested the move was related to Thursday's Rule 5 draft, and Jim Callis of Baseball America confirms as much. According to Callis (Twitter links), the Astros and Padres have switched spots in the draft, with San Diego likely to select a pitcher first overall.
- Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News tweets that the Yankees expect to lose players in Thursday's Rule 5 draft, naming Tommy Kahnle and Danny Burawa as two pitchers who could be selected.
- The Rockies are looking to add a left-handed reliever and have the money to be flexible, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
- While they've been linked to major trade candidates like David Price and have one of their own in Matt Kemp, the Dodgers expect to leave Orlando without having completed a major deal, GM Ned Coletti said Wednesday, according to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.
- A number of scouts are going directly from the winter meetings to Mexico to watch a showcase for Cuban right-hander Raicel Iglesias, tweets Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports. The workout is scheduled for Friday.
- The Rangers can afford to approach the free agent and trade markets with patience, says Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com, writing that Texas isn't necessarily under any pressure to make another big move.
Shin-Soo Choo Rumors: Wednesday
Reports yesterday indicated that both the Diamondbacks and Tigers are likely out of the Shin-Soo Choo sweepstakes (though I personally question whether or not the signing of Rajai Davis truly removes Detroit from the equation). The Rangers are still said to be in the mix, however. ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick provided a rundown of potential Choo suitors yesterday, cautioning never to bet against Scott Boras. Here are Wednesday’s Choo rumors…
- A Rangers source says the club isn’t optimistic about their chances of signing Choo, writes T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. Texas doesn’t have a seven-year offer out to the outfielder, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram.
- The Rangers have a seven-year offer on the table to Choo and he is giving it serious consideration, a source tells T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. The deal is worth less than the $153MM deal that Jacoby Ellsbury inked with the Yankees but it’s strong enough for Choo to mull over.
- The general sense among teams involved in the Choo sweepstakes is whichever team goes to eight years will land him, tweets Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. He’s believed to have a seven-year offer in hand already.
- The Mariners are likely out of the picture on Choo after adding Corey Hart and Logan Morrison today, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
Earlier Updates
- Scott Boras spoke with more than 100 reporters today and said that he’s received multiple offers for Choo, who wants to his time and discuss all of his options with his wife. Boras said he’s received offers from teams that are rebuilding and also for teams that are looking to win in 2014. “He really is a player I think is revered,” said Boras (ESPN Dallas’ Richard Durrett reporting).
- “I think we have to move on,” Reds GM Walt Jocketty told C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer when asked about Choo (Twitter link).
- The Rangers like Choo but not at his asking price, which Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram hears is $22MM annually (Twitter link). Nelson Cruz is a more viable option for Texas, Wilson adds.
- Bob Nightengale of USA Today has heard that Choo is looking for $140MM over seven years (Twitter link). Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News tweets that he’s heard the same.
- One executive told Joel Sherman of the New York Post that the Mariners and Rangers “are the lead dogs” in the Choo market (Twitter link).
- The Reds met to discuss Choo last night, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. However, their inability to clear some payroll by dealing Brandon Phillips first has dimmed their chances, he adds.
AL West Notes: Astros, Morse, Rangers, Cruz
A look at the AL West..
- The Mariners' plan for Corey Hart is to see time in the outfield and at DH and he's not necessarily slotted for first base despite his knee troubles, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
- Astros manager Bo Porter is pushing for Michael Morse in Houston, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Morse is said to be willing to do a one-year deal to re-establish his value.
- Rangers GM Jon Daniels says that he has had a few conversations with Nelson Cruz's agent and will continue to talk with him, tweets Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com.
- The Angels aren't close to any free agents signings, so if Matt Garza is nearing a deal somewhere, it's not with the Halos, tweets Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register.
Rays, Rangers, Indians Eyeing Jamey Carroll
Veteran infielder Jamey Carroll is drawing interest from a number of teams, including the Rays, Rangers, and Indians, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter link).
Carroll, 39, endured the worst season of his 12-year career this past year, recording a .211/.267/.251 slash line in 249 total plate appearances for the Twins and Royals. However, he posted an OBP of .357 in the five seasons prior to 2013. While he's very unlikely to earn a starting job anywhere, Carroll could still have some value as a utility infielder.
Carroll's previous contract was worth $6.75MM over two years, but he figures to come cheaper this time around.
Rangers Have Interest in Bartolo Colon
The Rangers have interest in starting pitcher Bartolo Colon, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes. Colon would provide the Rangers with a backup plan in case Matt Harrison isn't ready to come back from injuries that limited him to two big-league starts in 2013. If Harrison is healthy, Colon would likely bump Alexi Ogando to the bullpen.
Colon will be 41 shortly after the start of the 2014 season, so he could very well be available to the Rangers on a one-year basis. Wilson notes that a one-year deal would be attractive for the Rangers, who might have Luke Jackson or other prospects knocking on the door by 2015. Colon posted a 2.65 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 190 1/3 innings with the Athletics last season.
Rangers Sign J.P. Arencibia
TUESDAY: The Rangers have announced Arencibia's deal via press release, making it official.
FRIDAY, 1:44pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that Arencibia will earn $1.8MM in 2014 and has an additional $300K worth of incentives in his deal (Twitter link).
12:44pm: Arencibia will receive roughly $2MM on a one-year deal, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
11:26am: The Rangers have reached an agreement with free agent catcher J.P. Arencibia, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Sulia link). Reports last night indicated that the Rangers were nearing a deal with the CAA Sports client.
Arencibia will presumably back up Geovany Soto in Texas. Arencibia hit just .194/.227/.365 in 2013 and is unlikely to ever hit for much of an average, but with his power, he can be effective if he bats above .215 or so, as he did in 2011 and 2012. He has 62 home runs in the past three seasons, and hitting in Arlington should help him maintain that level of power. Though he has his warts, Arencibia was one of the game's top pitch-framing catchers in 2013 — an undervalued element of catchers' skill sets.
Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.