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James Shields’ Decision Expected “Soon”

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FEBRUARY 8TH, 7:52pm: The Padres’ offer to Shields four years and between $72-80MM, tweets FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi.

11:46am: People around baseball think it will wind up somewhere in the $72-$75MM range across four years, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets.  The Cubs are still a long shot, according to Bruce Levine of WSCR-AM (on Twitter).

10:45am: Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (on Twitter) expects Shields’ deal to be a four-year deal worth around $72-$80MM.

10:32am: Depending on the number of years, Shields, could sign for an annual average value of a little less than $20MM, according to Lin.

10:10am: The Cubs are seen as the major outside threat as things appear headed toward a resolution between Shields and the Padres, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.

Shields isn’t expected to come close to early $100MM projections and at this late juncture, baseball people say they believe he would do well to get anywhere close to $20MM per year.  It is believed multiple teams have showed a willingness to extend a three-year offer, and one interested GM said agent Page Odle suggested he had at least one four-year offer.

9:40am: A Padres source that spoke with Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (on Twitter) expressed confidence that San Diego sign Shields.

9:20am: Shields’ decision could come either today (Sunday) or Monday, according to Dennis Lin of U-T San Diego (via Twitter).  Lin hears that Shields was informed early on Saturday that the Padres has made their final offer.  Lin adds (link) that he’d be surprised if another team comes in and steals him away.

FEBRUARY 7TH, 7:04pm: Shields never rejected a five-year, $110 million offer, tweets Nightengale. While not pertinent to the present situation, it’s an interesting revelation. Earlier in the offseason, it was rumored that such an offer had been extended. When Shields didn’t sign, it was widely assumed the deal was rejected.

6:32pm: The outcome of the Padres offer is expected to be known within 24 hours, tweets Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune.

4:20pm: It’s not known which teams remain involved in the bidding, but one involved club was told that a decision is expected soon, tweets Nightengale.

4:07pm: The Padres “badly” want Shields and remain the favorites, but they’re being told that there are other teams still heavily involved in the bidding, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports. Meanwhile, Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio tweets that there’s no “impasse” between the two sides, but rather that Shields simply must decide whether or not to accept San Diego’s “last and final offer.”

2:43pm: The Padres and Shields are currently “at an impasse” after several hours of negotiations, tweets Miller. The ball is Shields’ court at this point, he adds.

1:31pm: The Padres are indeed the favorites to sign Shields, “if not a lock already,” reports MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro (on Twitter). Frisaro covers another team, the Marlins, who have been linked to Shields throughout the offseason.

11:15am: Talks between the Padres and James Shields “have heated up and are gaining momentum,” according to Scott Miller of FOX Sports San Diego/Bleacher Report (Twitter link). Shields, a native of Santa Clarita, Calif. (just 150 miles from San Diego), very much likes the idea of pitching in San Diego, Miller adds.

Last night, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that nothing was imminent between the two sides at this point, though he added that things could change quickly. Within his piece, Lin noted that Cole Hamels (a San Diego native himself) could be the team’s top target, but no club had yet come close to matching an asking price that many clubs believe to be exorbitant.

Rumors have been connecting the Padres and Shields for quite some time now. Adding an arm of his caliber to an already-strong rotation would be the icing of the cake, so to speak, on what has been a nearly unfathomably active offseason for first-year general manager A.J. Preller. The former Rangers executive was named GM in August and set out to transform the Padres’ low-scoring offense not with a lengthy rebuild, but by using his farm system to acquire several win-now bats. San Diego has added Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, Wil Myers, Derek Norris and Will Middlebrooks this winter as well as relievers Shawn Kelley and Brandon Maurer while keeping the big league roster largely intact. The most notable subtractions from last year’s 25-man roster are Seth Smith, Yasmani Grandal and Jesse Hahn.

Shields, the prize of the remaining crop of free agents, is reportedly expected to make a decision on a destination before the weekend is complete. If signed, he’d join Andrew Cashner, Tyson Ross and Ian Kennedy atop a strong group of starters and further the Friars’ chances of reaching the postseason for the first time since 2006.

Quick Hits: Fielder, De Aza, Maddon, Scherzer

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Prince Fielder is one of several players whose hoped-for return to past production levels will go a long way toward determining the near-term fate of the Rangers. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News provides an interesting profile of Fielder, who says he is recharged, newly appreciative, and raring to go for 2015.

Here are a few more notes from around the league:

  • The Orioles are headed toward an arbitration hearing with outfielder Alejandro De Aza, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports. Executive VP Dan Duquette explains that the club informed De Aza it had made him its best offer and would take a “file to go” strategy from that point forward. He expressed surprise that the team’s $5MM proposal was not accepted, noting that there had been discussions of a two-year deal as well. De Aza filed at $5.65MM, which actually falls shy of the $5.9MM that MLBTR and Matt Swartz projected. Baltimore’s arbitration strategy was actually the first topic covered by Kubatko in his recent appearance on the MLBTR Podcast.
  • MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said today that the league’s investigation into possible tampering by the Cubs into then-Rays manager Joe Maddon is still in progress, as ESPNChicago.com’s Jesse Rogers reports. Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein and Maddon’s agent, Alen Nero, have both insisted that nothing untoward occurred, but it appears that MLB will take its time and cover the matter thoroughly before coming to any conclusions.
  • Max Scherzer’s departure from the Tigers appears to have been all but a formality from the point that he rejected the club’s $140MM offer last spring, as the righty explained to MLB.com’s Jason Beck. Scherzer said that he wasn’t interested in holding contract talks during the season, and that the club was not interested in negotiating when Scherzer’s camp “reached out” over the offseason. Indeed, Scherzer said that both he and Rick Porcello realized some time ago that the club was likely going to undergo a lot of turnover in the coming years, which has indeed been the case.
  • As for his choice of the Nationals, Scherzer gave some further details on how the end game went down: “Of the teams that were really down to the end, the Nationals gave me the best opportunity [to win]. So because of that, that’s the recent why I told Scott [Boras] at the end, ’Let’s just negotiate with the Nationals.'”

James Shields Rumors: Friday

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The latest reports on the James Shields front from Thursday had the Padres as the likely favorites to sign the right-hander, with the Cubs and Blue Jays on the periphery of the talks. Shields is reportedly expected to come to a decision by the time this weekend comes to a close, so resolution to his lengthy free agency saga could be nigh. Here’s the latest on the former Royals righty…

  • Whether or not the Padres are the favorites to sign Shields, they have not spoken with his camp in over 24 hours, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Agreement does not appear imminent, per the report, though San Diego has discussed numbers with Shields.

Earlier Updates

  • Cubs manager Joe Maddon tells MLB Network Radio (Twitter link) that club president of baseball operations Theo Epstein spoke with him about the prospect of signing the righty. Those comments certainly confirm prior reports that the team has had some internal consideration of the possibility, though of course it remains unclear exactly what level of interest Chicago has (and at what price it might bite).
  • Astros owner Jim Crane told Jose De Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle that he doesn’t envision his team signing Shields. Some have speculated that Houston could be a sleeper for Shields, with the fruits of their rebuilding efforts on the brink of Major League contribution. However, Crane cited the lack of TV revenue from 2014 and Shields’ age as factors. “With the (local) TV money not coming in last year, that really hurt. That was over $50 million that we did not receive,” said Crane, who also added that he’s not sure the team is quite ready to begin making four-year investments. He did note that the Astros would have to consider the move “if we got a good deal.”
  • There’s a growing sense among those involved in Shields talks that he will end up with the Padres, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com.
  • The Padres are believed to have a max payroll of about $105MM in 2015, reports Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). As such, Lin feels that an addition of Shields is very possible for the Friars. San Diego currently projects to have a payroll around $84MM, thanks to the $18MM of Matt Kemp’s 2015 salary that will be picked up by the Dodgers.

Cubs Sign Jonathan Herrera

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The Cubs announced their list of non-roster invitees to big league Spring Training today, and among the list of previously reported minor league deals was the signing of infielder Jonathan Herrera.

The 30-year-old Herrera spent last season with the Red Sox — his only career season not spent in a Rockies uniform. In 104 plate appearances with Boston, Herrera batted .233/.307/.289, though he entered the 2014 campaign as a .265/.325/.332 hitter in 1109 plate appearances. While some may assume he posted stronger numbers at Coors Field than on the road, his production at and away from Coors was largely the same; he’s a career .266/.331/.340 hitter in Denver.

Herrera will provide the Cubs with some versatile infield depth, as he’s logged significant Major League innings at each of second base, third base and shortstop. Following the departure of Luis Valbuena in the Dexter Fowler trade, Herrera should provide the Cubs with an option at three infield positions and give competition to Arismendy Alcantara. He also gives Chicago an alternative to Mike Olt if they wish to open the season with top prospect Kris Bryant in the minors for a three weeks or so in order to delay his free agency by a year.

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Masterson, Rays, De Aza

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The Red Sox are likely done adding to their Major League roster for the 2015 season, GM Ben Cherington told reporters, including John Tomase of WEEI.com, yesterday. “I would expect the group we have for spring training is in place and I would be surprised if there were any additions,” said Cherington. “I couldn’™t completely rule out a non-roster deal with someone, but we feel good about where we are with our position player and pitching group, so this is probably the group you’™ll see when we take the field in Fort Myers.” As Tomase notes, Cherington again ruled out the possibility of signing James Shields or making a significant run at Cole Hamels, as Tomase’s WEEI colleague Rob Bradford noted last month. Boston has added Rick Porcello, Justin Masterson and Wade Miley to its rotation this offseason, with Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez joining the lineup.

Here’s more from the AL East…

  • Masterson told Bradford earlier this week that he was surprised to be completely pain-free in a pre-Spring Training bullpen session. As Masterson explains, after he tore an oblique muscle last winter he did not have any scar tissue removed, which likely resulted in the pain he felt in his early spring bullpens. “I just figured I needed to loosen up, but it never did. Coming in right now compared to last year? It’™s huge.” Masterson feels that early pain trickled down into his knee and hips, serving as a significant detriment to his 2014 numbers. Boston gave Masterson a one-year, $9.5MM contract this offseason with the belief that he can bounce back to his 2013 form and help lead their revamped rotation.
  • While the Cubs insist that there was no tampering at play in their hiring of manager Joe Maddon, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets that the Rays insist that they do have evidence to the contrary. Maddon signed a five-year deal with the Cubs in early November, just 10 days after opting out of his deal with the Rays (though word that an agreement had been reached broke just seven days after his opt-out).
  • The Orioles and Alejandro De Aza are headed for an arbitration hearing, GM Dan Duquette conceded today in an appearance on 105.7 The Fan radio (h/t: MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko). Duquette said that he felt the team made a “very, very strong” offer to De Aza shortly before figures were exchanged, but no agreement was reached. De Aza filed for a $5.65MM salary, while the team came back with a flat $5MM offer, as can be seen in MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker.

James Shields Rumors: Thursday

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The market for James Shields is picking up steam, to say the least, with multiple reports indicating that he could decide upon a team before this weekend comes to a close. As of yesterday, the Marlins were still said to be in talks for Shields, with the Cubs “kicking the tires.” The Padres were indirectly connected to Shields, as reports had them seeking a top-end starter, though Shields was not mentioned by name.

Here are today’s Shields-related items…

  • “The Padres…have to be considered favorites for” Shields, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets.  The fact that Shields lives in San Diego could indeed give the Padres the edge, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman writes.
  • While the Padres are indeed “among the favorites” for Shields, Heyman reports that “a few other teams, including at least one surprise” are in contact with Shields’ camp.  A person connected to the Cubs tells Heyman that Chicago could get involved in Shields’ market if his price falls significantly; the Cubs’ interest in Shields was first reported yesterday.
  • The Blue Jays are “kicking the tires” on Shields, which is a surprise to Heyman given their payroll limitations.  This isn’t the first time Toronto has been linked to Shields, though it remains to be seen if the Jays can create the financial space to sign Shields even at a lowered price tag.

Earlier Updates

  • The Dodgers are currently focused on international stars Yoan Moncada and Hector Olivera and not Shields, tweets Hall of Fame journalist Peter Gammons. Many have speculated that the Dodgers could make a play based not only on their deep pockets but on the presence of former Rays GM Andrew Friedman atop the new L.A. baseball operations department.
  • Multiple sources have told Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald that they do not expect the Marlins to sign Shields. One source characterized the chances as “zero percent.” For what it’s worth, others have also reported the chances as “zero,” only to have rumors of talks between the two sides resurface. Ultimately, however, it seems that the Fish are long shots. Shields’ reported desire to play for a team on the West Coast and the Marlins’ limited payroll are both detrimental factors.
  • Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has been told by sources in recent weeks that the Cardinals “are not a team with interest.” As Goold outlines, the Cardinals may be wary not only of forfeiting a draft pick but of forfeiting the portion of their draft bonus pool that would go along with it. Based on last year’s slot figures, signing Shields would cost St. Louis 28.3 percent of its bonus pool.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: Thursday

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There are still nearly 30 players whose arbitration cases need to be settled, and as our Arbitration Tracker shows, the Royals (four remaining cases) and Pirates (three) have the most work ahead of them. We’ll run down today’s minor arbitration settlements here, with all projections coming courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz…

  • The Cubs and right-hander Pedro Strop avoided a hearing by agreeing to a one-year, $2.525MM deal, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link). The agreement falls slightly above both Swartz’s $2.4MM projection and the midpoint between the Cubs’ $2MM offer and Strop’s $3MM counter. Strop was the last of the Cubs’ eight arbitration-eligible players to agree to a contract for 2015. This is the second of four arb years for Strop as a Super Two player. The Legacy Agency client has pitched very well since coming to Chicago in July 2013, and Strop posted a 2.21 ERA, 10.5 K/9 and 2.84 K/BB rate over 61 relief innings last season.

NL Notes: Toussaint, Castillo, Wood, Minor, Kendrick

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Diamondbacks right-hander Touki Toussaint, the No. 16 overall pick in the 2014 draft, has hired Rick Thurman and Nate Heisler of the Beverly Hills Sports Council as his new agents, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (via Twitter). The 18-year-old struggled greatly in his pro debut last year but still ranked as the D-Backs’ No. 5 prospect, per Baseball America and Fangraphs, and No. 98 overall in the game, per MLB.com. Toussaint’s change has been reflected in the MLBTR Agency Database, which contains agent information for more than 2,000 Major League and Minor League players. Agents, if you see any errors or omissions, please let us know via email: mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com.

Here are some more notes from around the Senior Circuit…

  • David Kaplan of CSNChicago.com expects the Cubs to move Welington Castillo and possibly Travis Wood before the team heads to Arizona for Spring Training (Twitter link). The Phillies are one of multiple teams that have shown interest, according to Kaplan. Castillo has been displaced as a starter with the addition of Miguel Montero, and the team has also added David Ross as a backup option as well. Wood figures to battle for the team’s fifth starter spot, as Jon Lester, Jake Arrieta, Jason Hammel and Kyle Hendricks are the likely front four in the rotation. The Cubs also have Tsuyoshi Wada and Felix Doubront as options for the fifth spot.
  • Mike Minor and the Braves have an arbitration hearing set for Feb. 19, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. That’s just one day before pitchers and catchers are slated to report to Spring Training. Minor filed for a $5.6MM salary, while the team countered at $5.1MM, as can be seen in MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker.
  • Kyle Kendrick tells Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post that he had interest from multiple teams before signing with the Rockies. Though it’s clearly not a favorable environment for a pitcher, Kendrick praised the Rockies’ offense and defense as reasons to sign with the team.

Minor Moves: Herrera, Dominguez, Vasquez, Feliciano

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Brewers announced earlier this week that utility player Elian Herrera has been outrighted to Triple-A and will be in Major League Spring Training as a non-roster invite. Herrera was designated for assignment after the Brewers added Neal Cotts on a one-year deal. The 30-year-old batted .274/.288/.341 in 140 plate appearances with the Brew Crew in 2014.
  • The Giants released the recently designated Chris Dominguez, according to the team’s transactions page. Designated to clear a roster spot for Ryan Vogelsong, the 28-year-old Dominguez made his big league debut in 2014, collecting one hit in 17 at-bats, although the one hit was memorable — a two-run homer. Dominguez hit .274/.307/.460 with 21 homers in Triple-A last season.
  • The Phillies signed lefty Anthony Vasquez, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter. Vasquez is still trying to work his way back to the big leagues after remarkably surviving a ruptured blood vessel in his brain that required emergency surgery. He spent last year in the upper minors with the Orioles, working to a 4.95 ERA over 123 2/3 frames (including 19 starts) with 6.7 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9.
  • Southpaw reliever Pedro Feliciano is nearing a minor league deal with the Cubs that would include a spring invite and a $700K salary if he makes the big league team, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. Heyman adds on Twitter that the deal is done, noting that it includes some incentives. The 38-year-old led the league in appearances for three straight years with the Mets (2008-10), but rotator cuff issues ensued and Feliciano has only tossed 11 1/3 big league frames since. He struggled with preventing runs last year at Triple-A with the Cardinals organization, though he still was able to generate better than eight strikeouts per nine innings.

An earlier version of this post incorrectly cited Heyman as reporting that Vasquez had received a big league camp invite.

Cubs Claim Drake Britton, Designate Gonzalez Germen

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The Cubs have claimed lefty Drake Britton off waivers from the Red Sox, the club announced. Fellow reliever Gonzalez Germen has been designated to clear roster space.

Britton, 25, has been productive at the big league level over the past two seasons in fairly limited action. In 27 2/3 total frames, he owns a 2.93 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9. He did have a rough go of things at Triple-A Pawtucket last year, however, posting 58 1/3 innings of 5.86 ERA ball.

The game of musical roster spots continues for Germen, who has now been on four 40-man lists since mid-December. The 27-year-old righty should have a decent chance at earning a big league bullpen slot once he does settle in somewhere for camp.

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