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NL Central Links: Concepcion, Cardinals, Soler

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A few notes to pass along out of the NL Central, as the Cardinals gear up to defend their World Series title from a year ago …

  • The Cubs have officially announced the signing of 20-year-old Cuban left-hander Gerardo Concepcion to a five-year Major League contract. Concepcion joins the 40-man roster but will report to minor league camp. The deal is worth $6MM, which includes a $3MM signing bonus, according to Doug Padilla of ESPNChicago.com.
  • The Cardinals will likely turn to a handful of in-house candidates to take Chris Carpenter's rotation spot if the right-hander misses any substantial chunk of time due to a bulging disc in his neck, according to Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. The Cards may choose from relievers Lance Lynn, Kyle McClellan, Marc Rzepczynski, and Mitchell Boggs, or perhaps minor leaguers Brandon Dickson and Shelby Miller, so it doesn't seem like they'll explore a trade or signing for now.
  • Cubs GM Jed Hoyer declined to comment on the team's pursuit of prized Cuban outfield prospect Jorge Soler with reporters, including Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune, as Soler has yet to officially be designated a free agent by MLB.

NL Central Notes: Wainwright, Cardinals, Cubs

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A few items on the Cubs and Cardinals..

  • The Cardinals control Adam Wainwright for the next two seasons for $21MM but the hurler could be up next for a long-term deal with the team once he shows that he's recovered from Tommy John surgery, writes Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  While the 30-year-old won’t be immune to future injuries, Gordon writes that his work ethic offers some promise of success as he gets older. 
  • Former Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez defended the job that Jim Hendry did in Chicago, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.  While recognizing Theo Epstein's past success, Ramirez says that it'll take time for the President of Baseball Operations to find success.
  • Ramirez also touched on Carlos Zambrano's issues in Chicago and says that his ex-teammate hurt the club with his suspensions, Wittenmyer writes.
  • Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com credits the Cardinals for making smart decisions in the months following Albert Pujols' departure.

Minor Moves: Ruiz, Meloan, Hernandez

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Here are the details on the latest minor moves. Unless otherwise noted, Matt Eddy of Baseball America first reported these transactions on Twitter…

  • The Diamondbacks signed 34-year-old first baseman Randy Ruiz. He won the 2009 Pacific Coast League MVP and spent the past two seasons in Japan.
  • The Rangers signed right-hander Jon Meloan, who has big league experience with the Dodgers, Indians and Athletics.
  • The Padres signed right-hander Dennis Tankersley. Baseball America ranked Tankersley ahead of Jake Peavy in its 2002 handbook, but he hasn't pitched affiliated baseball since 2008.
  • The Blue Jays signed right-hander Fernando Hernandez, who appeared briefly with the 2008 Athletics. The reliever has a 3.55 ERA with 8.8 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 in nine minor league seasons.
  • The Cubs released right-hander Kyle Smit, who struggled at three levels in 2011.
  • The Dodgers signed right-handed reliever Blake Johnson, their second round selection in the 2004 draft.
  • The Mariners released former catching prospect Angel Salome, according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus.

Minor Moves: Red Sox, Cubs, Rockies, Nationals

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We'll keep track of today's minor moves here…

  • Right-hander Scott Atchison signed a minor league contract with the Red Sox after being removed from the 40-man roster and clearing waivers, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America.
  • The Cubs signed left-hander Nate Robertson to a minor league deal, Eddy writes.  Robertson had a 7.14 ERA with 5.3 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 18 starts with the Mariners' Triple-A affiliate last season.
  • The Rockies signed left-handed pitcher Royce Ring, according to Eddy.  The former first-round pick saw time in the majors for four different clubs between 2005-2010.  Ring spent time with the Triple-A affiliates for Seattle and Boston last season.
  • The Nationals signed right-hander Mike Schultz, who has one big league inning to his credit from his time with Arizona in 2007.  The 32-year-old has been pitching well in Japan for the last four years, posting a 2.55 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9.
  • MLBTR has learned that the Orioles signed catcher Josh Johnson.  The 29-year-old played the last three years in the Atlantic League but prior to that spent time with the Rays and Astros Triple-A affiliates.
  • The Red Sox signed right-handed pitchers Garrett Mock and Billy Buckner to minor league deals and will report to minor league camp, an industry source tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com.  Mock, 28, was once considered a top pitching prospect by Washington but strugged in 2011 as he posted a 6.39 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 5.3 BB/9.  Buckner, meanwhile, made 21 starts and two relief appearances for the Rockies' Triple-A affiliate in 2011. 
  • The Dodgers signed right-hander Blake Johnson and shortstop Brandon Mims to minor league deals following this week's open tryout, Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times tweets. Johnson spent the 2011 season in the upper minors with the Royals and Rockies, posting a 5.59 ERA in 77 1/3 innings. Mims, 19, was the Blue Jays' ninth round selection in 2010.
  • The Orioles signed 27-year-old Mexican pitcher Miguel Gonzalez to a minor league deal, the pitcher told Fernando Ballesteros at Puro Béisbol (link in Spanish). Gonzalez posted decent strikeout rates across three levels in the Red Sox system last year after two years away from the minors. He told Ballesteros he will start off at Triple-A for the Orioles. 

NL Central Notes: Bedard, Garza, Greinke, Reds

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Here are today’s NL Central notes, including thoughts from three of the division’s GMs on a few starting pitchers…

  • Pirates GM Neal Huntington said he’s cautiously optimistic about Erik Bedard this season, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports. "Not that long ago, Erik was one of the better pitchers in baseball," Huntington said. "We still see good stuff. The challenge is going to be health.”
  • Cubs GM Jed Hoyer joined Casey Stern and Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio and said he's hopeful to sign Matt Garza long-term because pitching is such a difficult commodity to obtain.
  • Brewers GM Doug Melvin told Bowden that he and owner Mark Attanasio plan to discuss an extension with Zack Greinke this spring (Twitter link). In this case, Melvin and Attanasio will be speaking to Greinke without relying on an intermediary. The right-hander is without an agent, unlike the overwhelming majority of players. Melvin recently cited deals in the $80MM range as possibly comparables for Greinke.
  • The Reds are a sleeper team for 2012, one scout told ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (Twitter link).

Padres To Receive Low-Level Prospect For Hoyer

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The Theo Epstein compensation case drew most of the attention this offseason, but the Padres and Cubs still have to work something out for Jed Hoyer. Scott Miller of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter) that San Diego will received a low-level minor leaguer from Chicago for their former GM, probably late in Spring Training but before Opening Day. 

The clubs have agreed to select the PTBNL from a pre-determined list of 12 or so players, according to Miller (on Twitter). The Red Sox received 26-year-old righty reliever Chris Carpenter and a player to be named later from the Cubs as compensation for Epstein and a player to be named two days ago. There's not much precedent for compensation involving front office employees, but the cases of Epstein and Andy MacPhail provide the Cubs and Padres with two such examples.

Red Sox Receive Chris Carpenter, PTBNL From Cubs For Epstein, PTBNL

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The Red Sox received 26-year-old righty reliever Chris Carpenter and a player to be named later from the Cubs as compensation for Theo Epstein and a player to be named later, announced the teams today.  The Cubs hired Epstein as their president of baseball operations in October, despite one year remaining on his contract as Boston's GM.  Nearly four months after that announcement, Epstein and new Cubs GM Jed Hoyer reached a compensation agreement with former colleague and new Red Sox GM Ben Cherington.  Epstein said in a statement:

"I am relieved that this process is over and particularly pleased that the teams were able to reach agreement on their own without intervention from MLB.  I truly hope and believe that this resolution will benefit both clubs, as well as Chris, who is an extremely talented reliever joining a great organization at a time when there's some opportunity in the major league bullpen.  More than anything, I'm excited that we can all move forward and focus exclusively on getting ready for the season.  I wish Chris and the Red Sox nothing but the best in 2012 and beyond."

Carpenter, who made his big league debut with the Cubs last year, was recently ranked 13th on their prospect list by Baseball America.  The Cubs converted Carpenter to relief late in 2010, and he averaged 96.5 miles per hour on his fastball in the Majors last year.  His command and control are works in progress, but Baseball America thinks he could develop into a setup man.  The Red Sox placed Bobby Jenks on the 60-day DL to create a 40-man roster spot for Carpenter.

The inclusion of two players to be named later means this saga has not quite reached its conclusion, but an April 15th deadline is already in place and Cherington expects resolution by the end of spring training.  The Cubs also owe compensation to the Padres for Hoyer, which Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune notes will get done very soon and will not involve anyone on the team's 40-man roster.

WEEI's Alex Speier first reported the Red Sox would receive a pitcher from the Cubs' 40-man roster.

Epstein Compensation Deal Is Close

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9:15am: The Red Sox will receive a pitcher from the Cubs' 40-man roster, tweets WEEI's Alex Speier.  That'd rule out McNutt.  Rafael Dolis, Chris Carpenter, Jeff Beliveau, and Casey Weathers are on the Cubs' 40-man and cracked Baseball America's top 30 prospects for the team.  The decision is coming down today, confirms Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.

7:36am: A resolution on the Theo Epstein compensation deal is imminent, reports Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.  Edes' MLB source says the Red Sox will receive one quality minor leaguer, a legitimate big-league prospect, from the Cubs.  The decision might come today, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

The Cubs hired Epstein as their president of baseball operations in October.  Epstein resigned from Boston's GM position with one year remaining as part of the process, and the teams have not been able on agree which Cubs players the Red Sox will receive as compensation.  The commissioner's office has gotten involved, with the teams submitting briefs recently.  In January, Epstein explained his stance on WEEI: "There's no precedent for major, major compensation here."

The Cubs are not loaded with top-ranked prospects and young players, but I think it's safe to assume Matt Garza, Starlin Castro, Anthony Rizzo, Brett Jackson, Javier Baez, and probably Matt Szczur will not be involved.  Given MLB's involvement, perhaps a player in the Cubs' next tier of prospects could be included, such as Trey McNutt.  Check out Kevin Goldstein's Cubs prospect rankings for Baseball Prospectus here.

NL Central Links: Reds, Greinke, Marcum, LaHair

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Here's the latest from the NL Central…

Blake DeWitt Accepts Outright Assignment

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Cubs infielder Blake DeWitt accepted his outright assignment, tweets MLB.com's Carrie Muskat.  Despite a $1.1MM contract, the Cubs removed DeWitt from the 40-man roster this month to open a spot for Adrian Cardenas.  He has a chance to earn his way back on the roster with a good performance this spring.

DeWitt, the Cubs' main return in the July 2010 Ted Lilly/Ryan Theriot trade with the Dodgers, hit .265/.305/.413 in 243 plate appearances last year.  A left-handed hitter, DeWitt played left field, second base, and third base in 2011.

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