Cubs Outright, Re-Sign Angel Guzman
The Cubs outrighted Angel Guzman and re-signed the pitcher after he cleared waivers, a major league source told ESPNChicago.com's Bruce Levine. The two sides agreed to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.
The oft-injured right-hander underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair a career-threatening shoulder injury before the start of the season. Guzman was expected to be the Cubs' right-handed setup man after his strong 2009 campaign. The soon-to-be 29-year-old turned in a 2.95 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 55 games.
With Guzman back in the fold and Aramis Ramirez's 2011 option officially exercised, the club's 40-man roster stands at 37 players.
Cubs Notes: Nick Johnson, Wood, Payroll
The Cubs plan to add a starter, a right handed reliever and a first baseman this offseason and the Chicago Sun-Times has the details on which players could be suiting up at Wrigley Field in 2011:
- There are indications that GM Jim Hendry is focusing on “the likes of” Nick Johnson if the medicals look good enough. Johnson appeared in just 24 games last year, but has a .401 career on base percentage and doubles power. A year ago the Cubs signed another former Yankee coming off an injury-plagued season, but the Xavier Nady deal didn’t work out as well as the Cubs hoped.
- Hendry is keeping an eye on Kerry Wood, a player who would reportedly interest the Cubs at the right price. The GM says he has a “wonderful relationship” with Wood, but insisted that it would be foolish to get into specifics.
- The Cubs don’t have a firm payroll, but it still appears that the team will spend less than it did in 2010.
NL Central Notes: Sandberg, Rasmus, Pirates, Arroyo
Here are some news items from the National League's middle division…
- Ryne Sandberg has turned down an offer to return as the Cubs' Triple-A manager, tweets MLB.com's Carrie Muskat, and Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com reports that Sandberg won't be with the organization at all in 2011. Sandberg was heavily rumored to take over managing the Cubs after Lou Piniella's retirement, but Chicago instead gave the job to interim manager Mike Quade.
- A roundtable of Cardinals writers collected by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch discussed the Colby Rasmus trade rumors and the majority don't like the idea. Comments range from "there would be no logic behind a trade" to "trading Rasmus would be incredibly stupid unless it’s an offer that’s so ridiculously good that it cannot be rejected."
- Pirates president Frank Coonelly discussed the team's manager search and other topics in a chat with fans on MLB.com.
- Steven Jackson, Brandon Moss and Justin Thomas can all become minor league free agents after being outrighted to Pittsburgh's Triple-A affiliate, reports MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch. Sean Gallagher, who was also outrighted, can declare free agency on Saturday but Langosch says the Pirates will try to sign the pitcher to a contract before then.
- Walt Jocketty tells MLB.com's Mark Sheldon that the Reds want to work out a contract extension with Bronson Arroyo before Opening Day. "I don't want to go into the season negotiating," Sheldon said. "We'll try to [get it done] before the start of the season."
- Steve Dilbeck of the L.A. Times praises Milwaukee's hire of Ron Roenicke as manager.
- Former Phillies hitting coach Milt Thompson has interviewed for the hitting coach job in Houston, reports MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.
Aramis Ramirez Exercises Player Option
Aramis Ramirez informed the Cubs that he is exercising his player option instead of testing the free agent market, according to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com. Late in the season Ramirez declared his intention to remain in Chicago, so this announcement is just a formality.
Ramirez has a 2011 player option for $14.6MM and the Cubs will have to pay him $2MM more even if they buy him out in 2012. The 32-year-old struggled early in 2010, but hit better as the year progressed and finished with a .241/.294/.452 line and 25 home runs.
Puerto Rican Links: Beltran, Delgado, Listach
'Tis the season for Puerto Rican players to head back to the island for winter ball and home cooking. Links are in Spanish…
- At the opening of a baseball academy yesterday, Carlos Beltran told Fernando Ribas Reyes of El Nuevo Dia that the Mets have invited the center fielder to meet with new GM Sandy Alderson. Beltran was non-committal about his approach, saying, "It doesn't matter what I think. The organization is going to do what they think is best for them. The way I can control it is to have a good year. If I do, I know there will be teams interested in me. For my part, I'd like to play in New York a few years more."
- In a separate piece, Carlos Delgado told Reyes he hasn't been approached by any major league teams so far this offseason. Delgado insisted he has no preferences about where he plays, and admited that he has had a few doubts about his ability to return to the majors.
- Pat Listach, former Nationals third base coach and recent candidate for the Brewers managerial opening, told Junior Lugo Marrero at Periodico La Perla that making the jump from base coach to manager remains one of his goals. At the moment, Listach is managing the Ponce Lions in Puerto Rico, and he described his style as that of "an aggressive manager who likes the hit and run and moving players around the bases." In the shorter term, Listach will be joining the Cubs as bench coach, reported Rhett Bollinger at MLB.com two days ago.
Odds & Ends: Boras, Antonetti, Girardi, Cubs
Links for Friday, as Josh Hamilton and the Rangers rest before trying to make up ground against the Giants. Incidentally, it was nine years ago today that the Rangers signed Edinson Volquez, the player they later flipped to Cincinnati for Hamilton…
- The Phillies contacted Scott Boras about Jayson Werth this week, according to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. At this point, GM Ruben Amaro Jr. says "There's really not much to say" about possible negotiations with the free agent right fielder.
- Bill Lubinger of the Cleveland Plain Dealer offers up a must-read profile of Indians GM Chris Antonetti. Pirates GM Neal Huntington says Antonetti is similar to former GM Mark Shapiro – to an extent. “I would say Chris is going to seek out maybe more opinions and he's going to be more inclusive," Huntington said. "Mark will seek out the opinions that he thinks are more crucial to the decision. Chris may get outside that narrow circle a little bit more than Mark."
- We heard lots of buzz about Joe Girardi and the Cubs, but the manager says he "didn't really think about leaving the Yankees," according to Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger (on Twitter). The skipper agreed to a three-year extension yesterday.
- The Cubs selected catcher Robinson Chirinos from Double-A and outrighted Jim Adduci to Triple-A and off of the 40-man roster.
- Former Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi wants to get back into baseball operations and has been in contact with the Red Sox about working for them, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff. We heard yesterday that Sandy Alderson contacted Ricciardi about joining the Mets.
Adrian Gonzalez’s Trade Suitors
The Padres' surprising 2010 campaign might ensure that Adrian Gonzalez at least starts next season in San Diego, since the club will want to see if they can capture the same lightning in a bottle in 2011. But if the Padres fall out of contention early (as they were expected to do last year), the simmering Gonzalez trade market will again catch fire.
Don Norcross of the San Diego Union-Tribune recapped the difficulty — or impossibility — that the Padres will have in signing Gonzalez to the expensive, long-term contract that he'll no doubt command when he reaches free agency after the 2011 season. Norcross named three "favorites" and two dark horses as possible homes for Gonzalez come Opening Day 2012, so let's take a closer look at these options…
- The Red Sox. Boston has been at the forefront of Gonzalez rumors for over a year, and there's no question the Sox will be involved in trade talks for the slugger right down to the wire.
- The Giants. Norcross somewhat surprisingly adds them to his favorites list, pointing out that Aubrey Huff could be moved to the outfield (if he's re-signed at all) to accommodate Gonzalez at first base. It's hard to picture San Diego dealing Gonzalez to a division rival, plus San Francisco isn't the kind of big market that could afford A-Gon's future contract. That said, the Giants are rewriting their own history right now in the World Series. They might decide to just go for broke and acquire Gonzalez while their window of contention is open.
- The Angels. As Norcross notes, L.A. is close to home for the San Diego-born Gonzalez, and the Halos will pay the money for top talent. Kendry Morales is relegated to the outfield or the DH spot in Norcross' scenario, but Morales could also be the centerpiece of the Angels' trade package to San Diego.
- The Dodgers. One of the darkhorse contenders depending on if a new owner takes control of the team and wants to make an instant impact. Gonzalez could be in a new uniform well before the Dodgers' ownership situation is settled, so we can probably write off at least one L.A. team.
- The Cubs. Gonzalez himself has shown some interest in playing in Chicago, but the Cubs might be looking to add Adam Dunn to play first base this winter.
Besides these five teams, a number of other clubs can and will arise in the market depending on how this offseason pans out. The White Sox might need first base help if Paul Konerko departs, and could be interested in a long-term answer at first anyway given Konerko's age. Texas might try to undo their infamous Gonzalez/Chris Young for Adam Eaton/Akinori Otsuka swap in 2006 and make a play for the first baseman. Teams like Toronto, Baltimore, Washington or Seattle don't seem like candidates now, but could dive into the free agent market next winter if they think they're close to contention. Even St. Louis could be considered a possibility if they're unable to come to terms on an extension for Albert Pujols.
Odds & Ends: Wood, Dunn, Valentine, Hoover
Links for Thursday, before the Rangers try to even out the World Series…
- The Cubs would welcome Kerry Wood back to Chicago if they have enough money, according to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com. The Yankees declined Wood's 2011 option yesterday, so he'll be free to sign with the team of his choice soon after the World Series.
- Nationals manager Jim Riggleman says he wants Adam Dunn to re-sign in Washington, but points out that "there's going to be some pretty good talent out there" if Dunn leaves, according to Ben Goessling of MASNSports (on Twitter).
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel hears that the Brewers are open to hiring managerial candidates Bob Melvin and Joey Cora, though they’ll likely talk to Bobby Valentine about a potential deal (Twitter link).
- The Phillies outrighted Paul Hoover off of their 40-man roster.
- Former Braves and Orioles pitching coach Leo Mazzone told Gary Williams and Steve Phillips of SIRIUS XM radio that he’d have interest in becoming the pitching coach for the Yankees or Mets.
Odds & Ends: Daniels, Takahashi, Byrnes, Lee, Gray
Links for Wednesday, as Cliff Lee and Tim Lincecum duel in Game One of the World Series…
- Jon Daniels called a report indicating that he asked the Mets (through back channels) to hold off on their GM announcement until after the World Series "complete bull," according to CBSSports.com's Scott Miller. Daniels can opt out of his contract after the season since the Rangers were sold this year.
- Hisanori Takahashi switched agents from Peter Greenberg to Arn Tellem, tweets Newday's David Lennon. We learned that Takashi and the Mets were discussing an extension just a few days ago, but it appears that the lefty is positioning himself to test the free agent waters.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the "belief in the sport" is that Josh Byrnes will join the Padres' front office after losing out on the Mets GM gig. Byrnes has strong ties to San Diego's front office, most notably owner Jeff Moorad.
- Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe wonders if the Tigers and Red Sox are getting ready to battle for the same free agents in a few weeks.
- The Yankees have had internal discussions about how much money they'd be willing to offer Cliff Lee, according to Jack Curry of the YES Network.
- The Cubs outrighted Jeff Gray to Triple A, so he’s no longer on the team’s 40-man roster. The 28-year-old righty struggled through 9.1 big league innings this year.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com explains that the Red Sox will have trouble finding another pitching coach like John Farrell, the new Blue Jays manager.
- Omar Minaya isn't sure whether he'll stay with the Mets, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Heyman says there's a decent chance Minaya returns, since he gets along well with owner Fred Wilpon and incoming GM Sandy Alderson.
Manager & Coach Notes: Valentine, Riggleman, D’Backs
While some teams continue looking for their new manager, other clubs are settling their 2011 coaching staffs. Here's a collection of news items about both searches…
- Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com (Twitter link) "keeps hearing" that Bobby Valentine is one of the finalists to be the next Brewers manager, though Rosenthal wonders if Valentine would take the job and if Milwaukee could afford him. We heard yesterday that the Brewers had narrowed their search to four men, two of whom were Joey Cora and Bob Melvin and one of whom was suspected to be Ron Roenicke. Valentine could be the mystery fourth man.
- Jim Riggleman will manage the Nationals next season, according to a team press release. The move was widely expected given Washington's 10-win improvement (from 59 wins to 69) in Riggleman's first full season as the team's skipper. The Nats could have fired Riggleman and paid him a $100K buyout, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post, rather than be on the hook for his full 2011 salary. The team also has an option on Riggleman for 2012.
- Arizona announced the hirings of Alan Trammell the new bench coach and Charles Nagy as the new pitching coach in a team press release. The D'Backs also confirmed the hirings of Don Baylor and Eric Young as the hitting and first base coaches, respectively.
- Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune tweets that with Trammell leaving the Cubs for the Diamondbacks, there is a "door open" for Pat Listach to become his friend Mike Quade's bench coach in Chicago. We heard today from ESPNChicago.com that Ryne Sandberg (a top contender for the Cubs' managerial job) wouldn't be staying with the Cubs as Quade's bench coach.
- It sounds like something of a stock "never say never" answer, but Ozzie Guillen sounded open to the possibility of hiring Sandberg as the White Sox bench coach should Joey Cora become Milwaukee's manager. Guillen made the remarks on WSCR-AM 670's "Mully & Hanley Show," and the news was reported by the Chicago Tribune.
- Former Rockies manager and current Rangers hitting coach Clint Hurdle tells Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the Brewers didn't consider him to be a candidate for their managerial opening. (Twitter link)
- Fredi Gonzalez will bring back his old Marlins bench coach Carlos Tosca for the same job in Atlanta, reports David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Also, former Florida hitting coach Jim Presley is "a finalist" to take over as the Braves' hitting coach.
- Presley could also end up as Baltimore's hitting coach, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com (Twitter link). In other Oriole-related Rosenthal tweets, Billy Ripken and Mike Bordick are being considered for coaching jobs on Buck Showalter's staff, and Mark Connor and Rick Adair are the "leading candidates" to be, respectively, Baltimore's next pitching and bullpen coaches.