Rangers Notes: Dodgers, Kemp, Napoli, Davis, Choo
The Rangers and Dodgers discussed trades during the GM Meetings, looking to fill the other team's respective needs in the outfield and infield, FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter links). The Dodgers had interest in shortstop Elvis Andrus while the Rangers had interest in Matt Kemp, though they were concerned about the $128MM owed to Kemp through 2019 and his recent injury problems. Talks between the two sides didn't go anywhere, Rosenthal said.
Here's some more news from the Lone Star State…
- Rosenthal expects the Rangers to be "linked to virtually every power bat in free agency and trades" (Twitter link). This includes such names as Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann and Mike Napoli.
- Speaking of Napoli, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that some executives think the Rangers will be the Red Sox biggest rivals for the first baseman this offseason. Scouts were impressed by how well Napoli handled first base and Texas is known to be looking for first base help. Napoli has drawn interest from several teams and while there's mutual interest in a return to Boston, the Sox have reportedly only made him a one-year offer.
- Shin-Soo Choo could be on the decline and will cost too much for the Rangers to pursue in free agency, ESPN Dallas' Todd Wills opines. McCann is a better fit for Texas' needs, Wills argues.
- Ray Davis was unanimously approved as the Rangers' control person by MLB owners today, ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett reports. Davis, the club's co-chairman, will represent the Rangers at ownership meetings and he told media (including Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram) that GM Jon Daniels would report directly to either Davis or co-owner Bob Simpson.
- From earlier today, the Rangers avoided arbitration with Adam Rosales by signing him to a one-year, $750K contract.
Minor Moves: Alex Liddi, Eric Fryer, Brad Snyder
Here are the latest minor transactions from around the majors, with the latest moves at the top of the page…
- The White Sox have signed corner infielder Alex Liddi to a minor league contract, Mario Salvini of La Gazzetta dello Sport reports (confirmed by FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi). The Italian-born Liddi was designated for assignment by the Orioles in September and he was outrighted off the team's 40-man roster. Liddi has a .636 OPS in 188 Major League PA with the Mariners since 2011 and he has posted a .272/.337/.459 slash line in 3734 career PA in the minors.
- The Twins have signed catcher Eric Fryer to a split contract, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports. If Fryer is in the Major Leagues next season, the 28-year-old backstop will earn $515K. Fryer appeared in six games with Minnesota last season and he has 50 career PA accumulated with the Twins and Pirates from 2011-13.
- The Rangers have signed outfielder Brad Snyder to a minor league contract with an invite to the big league Spring Training camp, Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest reports (Twitter link). Snyder was drafted 18th overall by the Indians in 2003 and was ranked 71st on Baseball America's top 100 prospects list prior to the 2006 season, yet despite some big minor league numbers, Snyder only has 37 Major League PA to his name (with the Cubs in 2010-11). Snyder hit .311/.370/.494 with 12 homers in 458 PA with the Diamondbacks' Triple-A affiliate in 2013, and he has a career .850 OPS over 4773 minor league PA.
- Also from Andro, the Rangers officially signed southpaw Aaron Poreda today. The two sides agreed to a contract three weeks ago.
Rangers Avoid Arbitration With Adam Rosales
The Rangers have avoided arbitration with infielder Adam Rosales by agreeing to a one-year, $750K contract, according to Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com (on Twitter). Rosales is represented by agent Steve Hilliard of Octagon.
The 30-year-old Rosales bounced back and forth between the Rangers and A's an unthinkable amount of times. Rosales was designated for assignment by Oakland on July 31, claimed by Texas on Aug. 2, designated for assignment by the Rangers on Aug. 5, claimed by the A's on Aug. 8, designated by Oakland again on Aug. 10 and finally claimed for the last time by the Rangers on Aug. 12.
In 166 plate appearances between Oakland and Texas this season, Rosales batted .190/.259/.327. He appeared at second base, third base, shortstop and left field, and he also posseses more then 200 career innings at first base. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected a salary of $900K from Rosales, who earned $700K in 2013.
Rosenthal On Wieters, Butler, Choo, Davis
Here's a look at the latest news from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..
- Major league sources say it's not a surprise that the Orioles are willing to deal Matt Wieters. The bigger question is how Baltimore would reshape the roster if they made such a move. The O's don't have much breathing room to spend, but Rosenthal suggests the Orioles could gain flexibility by moving the catcher and also closer Jim Johnson, who projects to earn $10.8MM through arbitration. The O's could then find cheaper alternatives at both positions and be aggressive on the open market.
- If the Royals sign Carlos Beltran or another right-handed slugger, they could afford to trade designated hitter Billy Butler, who is signed for $8MM in 2014 with a $12.5MM club option for ’15. The Mariners are among the teams that covet Butler, a major league source tells Rosenthal.
- The Reds haven’t given up on re-signing Shin-Soo Choo, but they probably would need to trade Brandon Phillips and possibly Homer Bailey to create the necessary room, sources say. We've heard that Phillips is a likely a goner, but Bailey a more difficult call since losing him would require the Reds to move Aroldis Chapman to the rotation, unless they acquired another starter. All that might be too much to ask to accommodate the signing of a $100MM+ free agent, but they'd ideally like to have Choo back to give them another year before putting Billy Hamilton in center field. If they lose Choo, they likely would go with Hamilton and seek out a veteran complement in center.
- The Mets appear likely to trade Ike Davis, who is drawing interest from a number of clubs. Rosenthal also cautions not to be surprised if they move Daniel Murphy as well.
- Opinions are split on Jacoby Ellsbury's value. One rival exec's statistical analysis rated Ellsbury as the top Red Sox player last season, ahead of Dustin Pedroia. Others in the industry, however, are wary of Ellsbury’s diminished power since he has hit only 13 home runs over the past two seasons.
- One rival exec described the Rangers' infield logjam as an untenable situation.
AL West Rumors: McCann, Ellsbury, Tanaka, Lowrie
The latest out of the AL West..
- The Rangers are high on catcher Brian McCann, but a few GM's are thinking Texas still has interest in Jacoby Ellsbury, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
- The Rangers have put their pursuit of free agent pitchers Masahiro Tanaka and Matt Garza (as well as top trade target David Price) to the side as they seek out a big bat, writes Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram.
- In an appearance on 95.7 The Game, A's manager Bob Melvin threw cold water on the idea that Jed Lowrie could be traded to the Cardinals, tweets Jane Lee of MLB.com. "Maybe [the Cardinals] made a call and inquired about him … we’re not looking to move Jed Lowrie."
- Athletics GM Billy Beane spoke with Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com about the GM Meetings and his club's needs. Beane says he's on the lookout for backend bullpen help, a right-handed hitting outfielder to replace Chris Young, and added that there is mutual interest in a return between the A's and Bartolo Colon.
- Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com examines Carlos Beltran as a possible target for the Rangers.
Feinsand On Freese, Yankees, Ellsbury, Beltran
Here's a look at the latest from Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News, with all links going to Twitter..
- The Yankees are talking to the Cardinals about a deal for third baseman David Freese, a source tells Feinsand (via Twitter). The Cardinals could theoretically part with Freese since they can move Matt Carpenter to third base and use Kolten Wong at second. Freese, 30, would give the Yankees a solid plan B in the event that Alex Rodriguez's suspension is upheld. Even if the suspension isn't upheld, A-Rod will probably have to play a good amount of DH. Freese hit just .262/.340/.381 with nine homers last season but his career slash line of .286/.356/.427 is much stronger.
- A source says the says Mariners have "no interest" in Jacoby Ellsbury but the Cubs appear to be stealthily waiting in the wings (link). The Cubs are probably targeting 2015 to make a move towards contending but its possible that they'll look to make a splash this winter in advance of that.
- According to Rangers source, the club is working to schedule Carlos Beltran for a visit to Dallas (link). Two other teams are believed to be working on the same thing. Feinsand lists the Yankees, Red Sox, Royals, Indians, and Mariners as the other clubs showing serious interest and notes that they're all AL clubs (link).
Latest On Brian McCann
The Rangers are pushing hard for free agent catcher Brian McCann, a baseball source tells Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com. "They're knocking his door down," said Edes' source.
McCann, MLBTR's fourth-ranked free agent this offseason, is also on the radar of at least the Red Sox and Yankees.
Texas Notes: Beltran, Garza, Castro
The Rangers could become serious contenders for Carlos Beltran's services, writes Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. The Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles, Royals and Mariners have also been mentioned in whispers about Beltran, but rumors about Beltran and the Rangers really seem to be gathering steam. The Rangers can use the help in their outfield and/or at their DH position, particularly if Nelson Cruz ends up leaving. Here are more notes about the Rangers and Astros.
- The Rangers will not pursue Masahiro Tanaka or Matt Garza this offseason, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. "We’re not right now looking to give out a big multiyear deal for a starter," says GM Jon Daniels. Starting pitcher Matt Harrison, who missed most of the 2013 season due to injury, tells Wilson he "feel[s] good" about returning to the Rangers' rotation in 2014. If he's healthy, the Rangers don't have a pronounced need for a starting pitcher, with Harrison, Yu Darvish, Derek Holland, Martin Perez, Alexi Ogando and Nick Tepesch all in the fold.
- The Astros don't expect to trade catcher Jason Castro, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports. "I’m never going to say someone is untouchable. But we fully expect Jason to be on our club for a long time to come," says GM Jeff Luhnow. "He’s reaching his peak. He was our All-Star last year. He’s a team leader." Earlier today, it emerged that other teams had been asking the Astros about Castro, who hit .276/.350/.485 in 2013.
- The Astros don't expect to make a big move in free agency this winter, McTaggart writes. Given that the Astros still aren't a contender, they're reluctant to part with the draft pick they would lose if they signed a free agent who received a qualifying offer. They also don't want to commit to long contracts at this point.
AL West Rumors: Castro, Astros, Rangers
The Astros are receiving significant interest in catcher Jason Castro, and interest could pick up once big free agents like Brian McCann and Jarrod Saltalamacchia go off the board, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Their interest in trading Castro isn't known, but Houston is said to like catching prospect Max Stassi very much. Heyman sees the Yankees, Rangers, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Angels, Rockies, and Twins as teams that could possibly have interest if Castro is on the block. Here's more out of the AL West..
- The Mariners are more immersed in the Carlos Beltran–Jhonny Peralta–Kendrys Morales market than Jacoby Ellsbury at this point, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
- Brian McTaggart of MLB.com (Twitter link) doesn't see the Astros trading Castro. Even though Castro is starting to make some money – the catcher is projected to earn $2.2MM in arbitration this year – they're not deep enough at catcher to lose him and the club needs to take a step forward.
- Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com examined Carlos Ruiz as a possible fit for the Rangers if they don't land top catcher Brian McCann.
- More from Durrett, who believes that Jurickson Profar's trade value hasn't decreased much despite a down year in 2013.
- The Angels' best bet for acquiring quality pitching via trade would be to part with Mark Trumbo, even though losing him would hurt, writes Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com.
AL West Links: Mariners, Cruz, Napoli, Preller, Angels
"The expectation is" that the Mariners will target right-handed hitters such as Jhonny Peralta, Marlon Byrd, Mike Napoli and Nelson Cruz this offseason, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. The M's were particularly weak from the right side of the plate last season and will look to upgrade their right-handed bats, though really, Seattle will look to add hitting in any form. Ken Rosenthal also noted that the Mariners were looking at right-handed hitters earlier this week, though he noted that the M's were in on Napoli. Here's some more news from around the AL West…
- Cruz declined his qualifying offer from the Rangers today and Adam Katz, Cruz's agent, told ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett that he will continue to talk with the team about his client's possible return to Texas. "We've always been engaged with the Rangers and continue to be," Katz said. Durrett notes, the draft pick compensation tied to Cruz may hurt him in free agency, though MLBTR's Steve Adams recently predicted Cruz would find a three-year, $39MM deal on the open market.
- Brian Grieper, Napoli's agent, is scheduled to meet with Rangers GM Jon Daniels during the GM Meetings, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. The Rangers are known to be looking for an upgrade at first base and Napoli, a former Ranger, would definitely fit the bill.
- The Rangers have promoted A.J. Preller to assistant general manager, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports (Twitter link). Preller had previously worked as the team's senior director of player personnel. Texas also named Mike Daly, formerly their director of international scouting, as the franchise's new senior director of minor league operations.
- The Angels have been opposed to going over the luxury tax limit under Arte Moreno's ownership and that's not likely to change, MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez writes. Gonzalez also looks at Mark Trumbo trade rumors and a possible Mike Trout extension as part of his all-Angels mailbag.
- In another item from Gonzalez, he speculates about what the Angels might have to give up (and what the Rays might want) in order to facilitate a David Price trade.
- Earlier today on MLBTR we collected another set of AL West notes earlier today on MLBTR, a set of Astros-related notes and learned that the Angels signed Wade LeBlanc to a minor league deal.