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Hahn On Viciedo, Pierzynski, Stewart

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Earlier today, the White Sox hosted SoxFest 2013, an interactive event where fans got the opportunity to participate in a Q&A session with General Manager Rick Hahn.  Executive Vice President and former GM Kenny Williams couldn't resist joining in and closed things out when he asked Hahn if he'll do a better job than his predecessor.  Hahn responded by saying that the last GM had a better support staff in place (via White Sox on Twitter) and drew laughs from everyone in attendance.  Here's more on the White Sox..

  • Hahn said that the White Sox haven't shopped Dayan Viciedo but added that no one is untouchable, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.  It was reported last month that the White Sox discussed deals involving Viciedo and Alejandro De Aza.
  • The GM was asked about the departure of A.J. Pierzynski and he explained that the money that would have gone to the catcher was instead re-routed to Jake Peavy, Jeff Keppinger, and Matt Lindstrom, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.  Hahn also expressed confidence in catcher Tyler Flowers' abilities.
  • A fan asked Hahn about the decision to claim Zach Stewart off of waivers from the Pirates.  The GM explained that Stewart adds depth to the team's pitching, cost the team very little, and has big league experience, Gonzales tweets.  The White Sox's decision to pick up Stewart yesterday marked the second time that they have acquired the right-hander in two years.

White Sox Agree To Sign Matt Lindstrom

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1:04pm: The White Sox announced the deal, which includes a base salary of $2.3MM for 2013 and a $500K buyout for the $4MM club option in 2014.

January 25th, 12:30pm: The deal includes a $2.8MM guarantee and a $4MM club option for 2014, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (Twitter links). Lindstrom can also earn $2.25MM in bonuses and escalators based on games finished over the life of the deal.

January 19th: The White Sox have agreed to sign Matt Lindstrom to a one-year contract with a club option, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). Financial terms are not known and the deal is pending a physical. The right-hander is a client of The Sparta Group.

Lindstrom, 32, pitched to a 2.68 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 47 innings for the Orioles and Diamondbacks last season. He's posted a 2.85 ERA in 101 innings over the last two seasons. Lindstrom adds another hard-thrower to a White Sox bullpen that already includes Addison Reed, Matt Thornton, and Nate Jones.

White Sox Claim Zach Stewart

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The White Sox claimed Zach Stewart off of waivers, MLBTR has learned. The Pirates had designated Stewart for assignment one week ago to create 40-man roster space for Jeff Karstens.

This marks the second time in two years that the White Sox have acquired Stewart. They traded for him and Jason Frasor in July of 2012, sending Edwin Jackson and Mark Teahen to Toronto. Stewart posted an 8.58 ERA with 4.8 K/9 and 1.0 BB/9 in 35 2/3 innings for the White Sox and Red Sox this past season. The Red Sox traded him to Pittsburgh in November, but he never threw a pitch for the Pirates.

Minor Moves: Wilson, Powell, Yankees, Mets

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We'll keep track of tonight's minor moves here..

  • The Yankees signed veteran catcher Bobby Wilson to a minor league deal, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America (on Twitter).  Wilson will vie for playing time with Chris Stewart, Francisco Cervelli, and rookie Austin Romine this spring.  The backstop hit .208/.272/.321 in five seasons with the Angels.
  • The Mets announced that they have signed catcher Landon Powell to a minor league contract with an invite to major league Spring Training.  The former first-round pick hit .207/.284/.328 in three seasons with the A's.
  • The Yankees inked second baseman Reegie Corona, who was once a well-regarded prospect in their system, Eddy tweets.  He was playing in Venezuela and has been out of affiliated ball since 2010.
  • The White Sox signed shortstop turned right-handed pitcher Tony Pena Jr. to a minor league deal, tweets Eddy.  Pena switched positiions back in 2009.
  • The Brewers signed catcher Robinzon Diaz to a minor league deal with an invitation to early minor league camp, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.  Diaz spent time in theRangers and Angels systems last year.  

Players Avoiding Arbitration: Friday

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Dozens of players will agree to terms with their respective teams today and avoid arbitration. We'll have detailed posts on the top earners around MLB, and we'll track more modest agreements — those worth less than $4MM — right here. MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker will have all of the details.

Teams had until 12pm CDT today to exchange filing numbers with their arbitration eligible players. Generally speaking the deadline creates lots of discussion and leads to early deals. Plus, for ‘file and trial’ teams this marks the final chance for negotiations in advance of a hearing. Here are the latest agreements from around MLB…

  • The Padres announced that they have avoided arbitration with Edinson Volquez.  Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
  • The Red Sox announced that they avoided arbitration with Andrew Bailey ($4.1MM), Daniel Bard ($1.8625MM), Andrew Miller ($1.475MM), and Franklin Morales ($1.4875MM).  Terms courtesy of WEEI.com's Rob Bradford.
  • The Mets and Bobby Parnell avoided arb with a $1.7MM deal, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter).
  • The Red Sox avoided arbitration with Alfredo Aceves, agreeing to a deal worth $2.65MM plus incentives, according to O'Connell Sports Management, Aceves' agency (on Twitter via Jon Heyman).
  • The Cubs avoided arbitration with James Russell and Jeff Samardzija, Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com reports (on Twitter). Samardzija obtains $2.64MM while Russell gets $1.075MM, Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com reports (on Twitter).
  • The Diamondbacks announced that they avoided arbitration with Chris Johnson ($2.2875MM). The team also avoided arbitration with Brad Ziegler ($3.15MM), agreeing to a one-year deal, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reports (on Twitter).  Terms courtesy of Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (on Twitter).
  • The Nationals announced that they agreed to terms with Tyler Clippard, avoiding arbitration (via Amanda Comak on Twitter). The Nationals avoided arbitration with Ian Desmond, agreeing to a one-year, $3.8MM deal, Amanda Comak of the Washington Times reports (on Twitter). The Nationals also avoided arb with Roger Bernadina according to the outfielder's agent, James Wagner of the Washington Post reports (on Twitter). The Nationals and Ross Detwiler agreed to a one-year, $2.3375MM contract, according to CAA (via Twitter).
  • Brennan Boesch and Phil Coke avoided arbitration, agreeing to one-year deals with the Tigers, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports (on Twitter). Boesch will earn $2.3MM while Coke will earn $1.85MM. The Tigers also avoided arbitration with Alex Avila, agreeing to a one-year, $2.95MM deal, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (all Twitter links). Austin Jackson agreed to a deal worth $3.5MM for 2013, Heyman reports. Doug Fister obtained a one-year, $4MM deal from Detroit, Heyman reports.
  • The Dodgers and A.J. Ellis avoided arbitration, agreeing to a one-year, $2MM deal, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). Ronald Belisario agreed to a one-year, $1.45MM deal, MLB.com's Ken Gurnick reports (on Twitter).
  • The Mariners announced that they avoided arbitration with Kendrys Morales and Brendan Ryan on one-year agreements for 2013. Morales will obtain $5.25MM plus performance bonuses, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). Ryan obtained $3.25MM, Heyman reports (on Twitter).
  • The Rockies avoided arb with Tyler Colvin, agreeing to a one-year deal, the team announced (on Twitter). Colvin will earn $2.275MM, Troy Renck of the Denver Post writes (on Twitter).
  • The Braves avoided arbitration with Cristhian Martinez, agreeing to a one-year deal, MLB.com's Mark Bowman reports (on Twitter). The Braves avoided arb with Kris Medlen, David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports (on Twitter). Medlen will earn $2.6MM in 2013. They also avoided arb with Jason Heyward, agreeing to a one-year, $3.65MM deal, Bowman reports (onTwitter). The Braves agreed with another young player, avoiding arb with Jonny Venters, O'Brien reports (on Twitter). It's a $1.625MM deal. Earlier today the Braves agreed to a one-year deal with Eric O'Flaherty, avoiding arbitration, Bowman reported (on Twitter). He'll earn $4.32MM plus awards bonuses, Bowman adds.
  • The Athletics announced they avoided arb with Jerry Blevins and Brandon Moss, agreeing to one-year deals for 2013.
  • The Cardinals avoided arb with Mitchell Boggs and Edward Mujica, B.J. Rains of FOX Sports MidWest reports (on Twitter).
  • The Indians announced that they avoided arb with Matt Albers and Justin Masterson. Albers will earn $1.75MM in 2013, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports (on Twitter). Masterson will earn $5.6875MM according to Bastian (on Twitter). The Indians and Joe Smith avoided arbitration with a one-year, $3.15MM deal, Bastian reported earlier today (on Twitter). The Indians also avoided arbitration with Lou Marson, Bastian reports (Twitter links). The catcher will earn $1MM on a one-year deal in 2013.
  • The Astros avoided arb with Wesley Wright, agreeing to a one-year deal, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports (on Twitter).  Wright will earn $1.025MM, according to Heyman (on Twitter). Earlier today the Astros and Bud Norris avoided arb with a one-year, $3MM deal, McTaggart reports (on Twitter). The Astros and Jed Lowrie avoided arbitration with a one-year, $2.4MM deal with awards bonuses, according to his representatives at CAA Baseball (on Twitter).
  • The White Sox announced that they avoided arbitration with Alejandro De Aza, agreeing to a $2.075MM deal for 2013. The White Sox also avoided arb with Gordon Beckham, agreeing to a one-year deal worth $2.925MM for 2013, MLBTR has learned.
  • The Orioles announced that they avoided arb with Chris Davis and Brian Matusz (Twitter link). Matusz gets a base salary of $1.6MM while Davis gets $3.3MM, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports (Twitter links). The Orioles also avoided arbitration with Troy Patton. The sides agreed to a one-year, $815K deal, his agency, CAA Sports, announced on Twitter. 
  • The Brewers avoided arb with right-hander Marco Estrada and reliever Burke Badenhop, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports (Twitter links). Estrada will earn $1.955MM while Badenhop will earn $1.55MM, Haudricourt reports.
  • The Rays avoided arbitration with Matthew Joyce and Ryan Roberts, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports (on Twitter). Joyce will earn $2.45MM and Roberts will earn $2.95MM plus incentives, the Rays announced. The Rays also avoided arbitration with Sam Fuld, agreeing to a one-year, $725K deal, Topkin reported (on Twitter). Earlier today the Rays avoided arbitration with Jeff Niemann. The sides agreed to a one-year, $3MM deal, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter).
  • The Royals announced that they avoided arbitration with Luke Hochevar, agreeing to a one-year deal for 2013. Hochevar will earn $4.56MM plus performance bonuses, Pete Grathoff of the Kansas City Star reports (on Twitter).
  • The Yankees avoided arb with Boone Logan, agreeing to a one-year, $3.15MM deal (via CAA Sports on Twitter).
  • The Padres avoided arb with John Baker, agreeing to a $930K deal (via CAA Sports on Twitter).
  • The Twins and Brian Duensing avoided arb with a $1.3MM deal for 2013 (via CAA Sports on Twitter).
  • The Marlins avoided arbitration with Ryan Webb, agreeing to a $975K deal, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports (on Twitter).
  • The Blue Jays announced that they avoided arbitration with Emilio Bonifacio by agreeing to a one-year, $2.6MM deal. The Blue Jays also announced that they avoided arbitration with J.A. Happ, agreeing to a one-year, $3.7MM deal for 2013.
  • The Angels and Tommy Hanson avoided arbitration with a one-year, $3.725MM deal, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports. 
  • The Giants avoided arb with Gregor Blanco, agreeing to a one-year, $1.35MM deal, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter).
  • The Phillies announced that they avoided arbitration with Antonio Bastardo with a $1.4MM contract for 2013.
  • Gaby Sanchez and the Pirates have reached agreement on a one-year, $1.75MM deal plus bonuses to avoid arbitration, according to the Beverly Hills Sports Council (on Twitter).

AL Central Notes: Escobar, Dolan, White Sox, Porcello

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Aside from similar modest batting averages, you could hardly find two more different players than Harmon Killebrew and Luis Aparicio but it was on this day in 1984 that both AL Central greats were inducted into the Baseball Hall Of Fame.  Killebrew slugged 573 homers in his career and was a classic three-true-outcomes power hitter, while Aparicio hit just .262/.311/.343 in his career but made it Cooperstown on the strength of his defense (nine Gold Gloves) and speed, leading the league in steals nine times and finishing with 506 stolen bases in his career. 

Here are some more notes from around the AL Central…

Javier Vazquez Rumors: Thursday

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Though he didn't pitch during the 2012 season, veteran right-hander Javier Vazquez has drawn interest from several teams as he toys with the idea of returning to the Major Leagues under the right circumstances.  Here's the latest on some of Vazquez's suitors…

  • The Red Sox have watched each of Vazquez's last two starts in the Puerto Rican Winter League but Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald isn't sure how interested the team is in Vazquez, with one source saying the Sox are "just continuing to scout him" at this point.
  • Beyond the Red Sox and the Nationals, the White Sox also scouted Vazquez's last start, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link).  Vazquez pitched for the Pale Hose from 2006-2008.
  • Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. tells ESPN's Jayson Stark (Twitter links) that the team has scouted Vazquez but their interest is limited "until we know what his plan is…We're flying at about 5,000 feet, just to see what's going on."
  • Despite all this interest, Vazquez reiterated that he hasn't decided yet if he'll return next season, tweets Rosenthal.  Vazquez's fastball reportedly reached 94 mph during his most recent start.

White Sox To Sign Gray, Troncoso, Anderson

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The White Sox announced that they agreed to sign seven players to minor league contracts that include invitations to MLB Spring Training. Right-handers Jeff Gray and Ramon Troncoso, left-hander David Purcey, catcher Bryan Anderson, infielders Josh Bell and Steve Tolleson and outfielder Stefan Gartrell will all report to Glendale next month.

Gray pitched for the Twins in 2012, posting a 5.71 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in 52 innings. Troncoso, who turns 30 next month, pitched for the Dodgers' Triple-A team in 2012. Purcey also spent the 2012 season at Triple-A, and he struck out more than one batter per inning at that level while struggling to limit walks. The 26-year-old Anderson appeared in ten games for last year's Cardinals team. Bell, formerly a top prospect, played in 21 games for the Diamondbacks in 2012. Tolleson appeared in 29 games with the 2012 Orioles, posting a .183/.227/.310 batting line as a utility player. Gartrell posted a .787 OPS with 20 home runs for the Braves' top affiliate last year.

Cafardo On Cubs, Ellsbury, Morneau, Dodgers

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When Theo Epstein took over the Cubs a year ago, he took the long range view and opted for an all-out gutting and rebuilding.  This winter, however, he surprised some when he entered the bidding for Anibal Sanchez and signed Edwin Jackson to a lucrative four-year deal.  Does that mean that the Cubs are better than he anticipated?  “We’re certainly farther along than we were last year at this time,” said Epstein, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. “When we got here, we identified one core player [Starlin Castro] and now we can look around and see Anthony Rizzo, Darwin Barney, Jeff Samardzija , and others. We do have more positional prospects than pitchers, so we felt Jackson will be with us for many years to come.”  Here's more from Cafardo..

  • If Matt Garza can show teams that his elbow is in solid shape during spring training then the Cubs will consider offers for the right-hander.  It's hard to read the Cubs' intentions though since they are building for the future while also signing veteran pitchers.
  • Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury is a hard sell to some teams because he is in his walk year and has struggled with injury, but there are other clubs out there looking to make a splash who may feel that one year of a motivated Ellsbury would be tempting. 
  • The Twins' Justin Morneau is in the final year of his contract at $14MM and Cafardo wonders if they would deal him if they got a nice group of young players.  Teams like the Red Sox, Orioles, and Rays (even with James Loney) could be interested in first base help.
  • Dodgers pitchers Chris Capuano and Aaron Harang are both available thanks to the club's offseason pickups and the expected return of Ted Lilly.  Capuano should draw more interest since he is a lefty and coming off a decent season.
  • The White Sox say they want to hang on to Gavin Floyd, but younger pitchers have made him expendable.  It has been speculated that the White Sox won't look to move Floyd until John Danks is healthy.
  • Andrew Bailey is slated to be the Red Sox set-up man in support of Joel Hanrahan, but Cafardo wonders aloud if they might be willing to deal him to address another need?   Bailey didn't help his trade value after he returned from thumb surgery last year, but at least teams know he’s healthy.
  • Cafardo gets the feeling that Justin Upton will be gone just as soon as D'Backs GM Kevin Towers  hears the right mix of players.  Of course, there has also been a great deal of talk surrounding Jason Kubel.

Chicago Notes: Garza, Marcum, Bourjos, D’Backs

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ESPN Chicago's Bruce Levine opened up his latest online chat to reader proposals for trades that would send Justin Upton to the Cubs and Jason Kubel to the White Sox, which led to no shortage of creative ideas from fans.  Amidst these plausible-to-very implausible trade proposals, Levine also shared a few hot stove items about both of Chicago's teams…

  • The Blue Jays and Rangers have been Matt Garza's most ardent trade suitors and could again be interested in acquiring the right-hander if Garza shows he's in good health during Spring Training.  I'd think that Texas might still be in the mix but Toronto's rotation seems set unless the Jays don't think Ricky Romero can return to form.
  • If the Cubs have concerns that Garza won't be ready for Opening Day, Levine thinks the Cubs could try to sign a free agent starter like Shaun Marcum.
  • Before the Cubs and Angels settled on the eventually-abandoned Carlos Marmol-for-Dan Haren trade, L.A. turned down the Cubs' offer of Marmol for Peter Bourjos and an infielder.
  • The Cubs have "genuine concern about holding [their] fan base" given the team's recent struggles and rebuilding process, which Levine feels may have been the impetus for the Cubs' signing of Edwin Jackson and its pursuit of Anibal Sanchez.
  • The Diamondbacks have interest in some White Sox prospects, which could be a hint towards a possible Kubel trade.  We heard earlier this week that the Sox and D'Backs had discussed both Kubel and Upton in potential deals, though Kubel is the likelier of the two outfielders to be moved.
  • While Gavin Floyd has again been the subject of trade rumors, Levine believes the White Sox won't look to deal Floyd until they're sure that John Danks is healthy.
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