Cubs To Sign Ian Stewart
4:24pm: The deal is non-guaranteed, a source tells Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. The Cubs will be off the hook for the $2MM deal if he is released in spring training.
3:32pm: The Cubs are set to re-sign third baseman Ian Stewart, sources tell Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (via Twitter). It's a one-year, $2MM deal for the Reynolds Sports Management client, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today. The deal also includes $500K of incentives.
The 27-year-old is said to be back to full health after playing with a broken bone in his wrist for the last two years. During that stretch, Stewart has had a .183/.272/.289 slash line with five home runs in 338 total plate appearances. Before the injury, Stewart owned a career .245/.332/.451 slash line in four seasons with the Rockies.
The Cubs non-tendered Stewart earlier this month as he was set to earn $2.3MM in arbitration. Stewart picked up varying degrees of interest from other clubs in the last week including the Marlins.
Latest On Jack Hannahan
MLBTR projected a $1.5MM salary for third baseman Jack Hannahan if he'd gone through the arbitration process in 2013. The Indians elected to cut the defensive-minded 32-year-old loose instead. Suddenly, with Eric Chavez and Jeff Keppinger signing at the Winter Meetings, Hannahan has become a relatively hot commodity in a weak third base free agent market. The latest:
- Hannahan could decide on a team today, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports, with the Twins, White Sox, and Reds in the mix.
- The third base market is still crazy enough that Hannahan asked teams for a multiyear deal, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. He says the Marlins are interested in Hannahan and have also asked the White Sox about Brent Morel.
- Hannahan is inspiring a bidding war, tweets Jon Heyman.
Jason Grilli Close To Deal
10:24am: It will be a two-year deal and the Giants are out, tweets Rosenthal. Pirates GM Neal Huntington said today that they made a "very fair offer" to Grilli.
THURSDAY, 8:28am: Grilli will decide between the Cubs, Blue Jays, Giants, and Pirates at 10am today, or earlier if one of the teams goes to three years on the 36-year-old, tweets Peter Gammons of MLB Network. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Grilli will stay in Pittsburgh if no one adds the third year.
WEDNESDAY, 4:38pm: Grilli is still wading through all the offers presented to him, Sheffield told MLB.com's Tom Singer. The Brewers haven't talked with Sheffield this week, GM Doug Melvin told reporters.
12:42pm: If Grilli is close to a deal, it's not with the Brewers, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
10:50am: Jason Grilli's agent, former MLB slugger Gary Sheffield, tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (Twitter link) that he's nearing a deal for his client. However, Sheffield didn't reveal which team was closing in on Grilli.
As Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review notes, Grilli is expected to choose from nearly a dozen suitors today, with the Pirates still in the mix. The right-hander figures to land a multiyear contract.
2012 Rule 5 Draft Results
Each year, Major League Baseball's Winter Meetings conclude with the Rule 5 Draft. For those who are unfamiliar with the event, MLBTR offers an in-depth description, but here's a quick overview.
Players are eligible for the Rule 5 Draft if they aren't on the 40-man roster four or five years after signing, depending on the age at which they signed. Teams draft in the reverse order of the previous season's standings but aren't required to make a selection. If they do choose a player, they pay his former team $50K and must keep that player on the Major League roster all season or offer him back to his original team for $25K.
The results from the Major League phase:
- Astros take righty Josh Fields from Red Sox
- Cubs take righty Hector Rondon from Indians
- Rockies take lefty Danny Rosenbaum from Nationals
- Twins take righty Ryan Pressly from Red Sox
- Indians take first baseman Chris McGuiness from Rangers
- Marlins take outfielder Alfredo Silverio from Dodgers
- Red Sox take second baseman Jeff Kobernus from Nationals; traded to Tigers for infielder/outfielder Justin Henry
- Royals
- Blue Jays
- Mets take lefty Kyle Lobstein from Rays; traded to Tigers for cash considerations
- Mariners
- Padres
- Pirates
- Diamondbacks take righty Starling Peralta from Cubs
- Phillies take outfielder Ender Inciarte from Diamondbacks
- Brewers
- White Sox take infielder Angel Sanchez from Angels
- Dodgers
- Cardinals
- Tigers
- Angels
- Rays
- Orioles take lefty T.J. McFarland from Indians
- Rangers take righty Coty Woods from Rockies
- Athletics
- Giants
- Braves
- Yankees
- Reds
- Nationals
Second round of Major League phase:
- Astros take first baseman Nate Freiman from Padres
- Marlins take lefty Braulio Lara from Rays
NL Central Notes: Brewers, Cubs, Cardinals
Today in NL Central news, the Cardinals reached a three-year agreement with lefty reliever Randy Choate, the Pirates traded for wild power lefty Andy Oliver, and the Cubs signed right fielder Nate Schierholtz to a one-year deal. The latest from the division:
- Speaking of lefties, the Brewers are in the market for one, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Haudricourt can see Tom Gorzelanny as a fit, since the recently non-tendered 30-year-old can retire righties as well as lefties. Gorzelanny, though, has been some combination of wild and homer-prone against righties the last few years.
- J.P. Howell is a name to watch for the Brewers, as MLB.com's Adam McCalvy notes that GM Doug Melvin met with agent Greg Genske today at the Winter Meetings. Genske's agency also represents free agents Edwin Jackson, Francisco Liriano, Brad Penny, and Joe Saunders.
- "I don’t see this being one of our more active years at this point," Melvin told Haudricourt today.
- The Cubs were in on Jeff Keppinger and Eric Chavez before they signed with the White Sox and Diamondbacks, respectively, GM Jed Hoyer told reporters. The Cubs are seeking someone who can help at the hot corner.
- The Cardinals want to upgrade with a utility infielder, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. They've discussed free agent Alex Gonzalez and trade options Chris Getz of the Royals and Steve Lombardozzi of the Nationals.
Cubs, Brewers, Royals, Red Sox In On Dempster
8:48pm: Levine's report "grossly misrepresents" the nature of the Cubs-Dempster talks, tweets Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. He says negotiations are not happening and a reunion is implausible.
7:56pm: Dempster's agent has talked to the Cubs about a possible return to Chicago, reports Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com. Though the Cubs have not made an offer, money and length of contract was discussed. Dempster has two and three-year offers on the table, writes Levine, with the Royals and Brewers showing the most interest. Levine sees a no-trade as a potential obstacle to Dempster returning to the Cubs.
2:13pm: The Royals made Dempster a two-year, $26MM offer, which he declined, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Kansas City balked at Dempster's request for three years and it seems neither side has changed its stance, says Dutton (Twitter links).
1:59pm: The Royals and Red Sox are still interested in Dempster, according to Rosenthal, who says the Brewers remain in the mix as well. The Angels' current level of interest is unclear, says Rosenthal (Twitter link).
12:21pm: Dempster believes he will earn a three-year deal if other free agent pitchers like Anibal Sanchez, Kyle Lohse, and Edwin Jackson land four- or five-year deals, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
10:37am: With the Brewers still unwilling to commit a third year to an offer for Ryan Dempster, the two sides have reached an impasse in their negotiations, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. If another team steps up and offers Dempster a three-year deal, the Brewers will likely be out of the running, says Haudricourt.
We heard on Monday that Dempster is seeking a three-year contract, something Milwaukee preferred to avoid, having been burned on long-term deals for veteran starters before. Perhaps the two sides can reach a compromise on some sort of two-year deal with a third-year option, but for now it seems nothing is close.
GM Doug Melvin visited with Dempster's agent, Craig Landis, yesterday.
Mariners Close To Signing Jason Bay
1:07pm: Bay's deal with the Mariners is close to completion as of this hour, a source tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Arizona's Jason Kubel would remain a trade target for the Ms, adds Morosi.
9:46am: Jason Bay is close to a decision on which team he'll sign with, according to Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). The Indians and Mariners are among the teams still in the mix for the former Met, says Brown.
The Indians may be in the lead for Bay, says Joel Sherman of the New York Post, though he notes that the M's are still a factor and the Cubs are "on the periphery" (Twitter link). Bay is going to get guaranteed money rather than a make-good deal, according to Sherman, since teams are willing to take a little risk to see if he can bounce back in a new environment (Twitter link).
Market For Mark Reynolds
First baseman Mark Reynolds has a nice market, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, including the Cubs, Yankees, Indians, Marlins, Mariners, Orioles, Rays, and more. The Mets were previously linked to Reynolds.
The Orioles have not met with Reynolds' agent since he was non-tendered, however, executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette told reporters today. The Marlins have not met with Reynolds' agent yet either, tweets Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Yunel Escobar Rumors: Tuesday
We received a flurry of Yunel Escobar rumors yesterday once it was revealed that the Marlins were shopping their recently acquired infielder. Specifically, the Athletics had ongoing discussions with the Fish surrounding the controversial shortstop. We'll keep track of today's Escobar rumors with the newest info up top…
- The Rays are still in on Escobar, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The Marlins are getting closer to trading the shortstop, but the A's, Yankees, and Cardinals remain involved.
Earlier updates:
- Despite the fact that they could use a defensive upgrade at shortstop, the Tigers aren't interested in Escobar, or at least don't view him as a fit, writes MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- The A's, Yankees, and Rays are the most likely teams for Escobar, reports Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Talks with the A's have centered around Brad Peacock or Grant Green, while talks with the other clubs involve younger minor leaguers.
- There's some conflicting info out there on the Yankees' interest in Escobar. Reports yesterday suggested that the Yankees had inquired, and Jayson Stark of ESPN.com tweets that New York is "definitely in" on the shortstop. However, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the Yankees aren't in the mix.
- The other clubs that are "definitely in" on Escobar, according to Stark, are the A's, Cubs, and Rays.
Red Sox Closing In On Shane Victorino
4:01pm: Things are "moving fast" on the Victorino front, with the Sox in a good position to finalize a deal, says ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (Twitter link). Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com adds (on Twitter) that nothing is done yet, but that it's getting close. Victorino has at least one four-year offer from a different team, notes Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
3:25pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports clarifies (via Twitter) that the exact terms of the Red Sox offer are three years at $37.5MM. There's optimism that the two sides will get a deal done at that price, says Cafardo (via Twitter).
3:09pm: The Red Sox are the frontrunners on Victorino, having offered a three-year deal worth $38MM, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (via Twitter).
3:02pm: There are two teams "fully engaged" in talks with Victorino, including the Indians, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today. It's not clear whether the other club involved is the Red Sox or the aforementioned "mystery team."
2:27pm: Victorino appears to have narrowed his options to three teams, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Indians and Red Sox remain in the mix, along with a third club. That third suitor isn't a true "mystery team," says Heyman — it's just unknown to him.
12:02pm: Momentum is building in talks for free agent outfielder Shane Victorino, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick, who tweets that a deal could be finalized during the Winter Meetings. Crasnick reports (via Twitter) that the Indians have emerged as a "prime suitor" for Victorino, with manager Terry Francona reaching out personally to the Flyin' Hawaiian earlier in the offseason.
Besides the Indians, other teams checking in on Victorino include the Red Sox, Cubs, and Yankees, says Crasnick (Twitter link). The Braves and Reds don't appear to be engaged in discussions, and the Phillies' interest is "tepid," according to the ESPN.com scribe.
Crasnick adds in a final tweet that Angel Pagan's and B.J. Upton's deals appear to be helping Victorino, who should be in line for a three- or four-year contract. Upton earned a five-year, $75MM deal from the Braves, while Pagan agreed to a four-year, $40MM contract with the Giants yesterday.