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White Sox Seek Relief; Could Add Lefty

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The White Sox have spent on power this winter, but they're less likely to spend on power arms, according to Kenny Williams. The Chicago GM told Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune that he isn't likely to sign prominent free agent relievers before next season. However, Williams intends to be as creative as possible in trade talks. 

"The free agent front is a little expensive for us now in filling those needs, so we have to try another way. That's all right, we've done it before," Williams said.

Williams says he’ll consider adding a third left-hander to complement Matt Thornton and Chris Sale, who will likely join the rotation for the beginning of the season. However, it seems unlikely that the team will have enough money to re-sign Bobby Jenks or lure another big name reliever to the Windy City.

Odds & Ends: Iwakuma, Heisey, White Sox, Feliciano

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One year ago today, the Yankees, Tigers and Diamondbacks finalized the trade that sent Curtis Granderson to New York, Edwin Jackson and Ian Kennedy to Arizona and Max Scherzer and Austin Jackson to Detroit. As we await this year's answer to that 2009 blockbuster, here are some links to enjoy…

  • Phil Coke, who was also in that trade, is set to move to the Tigers' rotation, but Detroit isn't desperate for left-handed relief help. Daniel Schlereth, yet another product of the trade, could be a cog in the Tigers' 'pen, so they're showing limited interest in free agents like J.C. Romero and Ron Mahay, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck.
  • The agent for Hisashi Iwakuma, Don Nomura, told the Associated Press (via ESPN) that the A's showed no respect for his client in their recent negotiations. The agent is clearly frustrated by what he perceives to be a lack of sincerity from Oakland.
  • The D'Backs have some interest in outfielder Chris Heisey, but have yet to approach the Reds about him, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link).
  • The Phillies are still interested in a potential deal with Chad Durbin, according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
  • White Sox GM Kenny Williams tells Jayson Stark of ESPN.com that his team is "about tapped out" in terms of payroll flexibility (Twitter link).
  • The Indians officially announced their minor league deal with Paul Phillips today.
  • The Yankees met with Pedro Feliciano's representatives today, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (on Twitter).

White Sox Re-Sign Paul Konerko

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The White Sox reached an agreement with first baseman Paul Konerko on a three-year deal, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today.  The deal is worth $37.5MM, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.  The contract includes deferred money, as outlined by MLB.com's Scott Merkin.  The contract has now been officially announced by the White Sox. 

Konerko gets a slight raise, but still falls short of Adam Dunn's new deal with the Sox.  Konerko is represented by Craig Landis of LSW Baseball.  GM Kenny Williams talked about moving on yesterday, but chairman Jerry Reinsdorf got involved.  Considering Konerko a special case, the Diamondbacks offered him three years and $30MM.  Landis said Konerko was very tempted by the offer.

Konerko, 35 in March, led all free agents with 39 home runs in 2010.  He hit .312/.393/.584 in 631 plate appearances, perhaps the best season of his career.  He's been Chicago's first baseman since '99.

Paul Konerko Rumors: Wednesday

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Yesterday the talks between the White Sox and longtime first baseman Paul Konerko hit a snag, with GM Kenny Williams talking about moving on.  Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf still may step in and make it work, but here's the latest…

  • Yahoo's Steve Henson calls a Konerko-White Sox reunion "dead in the water for the time being."  He suggests Jayson Werth's signing caused Konerko to raise his demands as a ripple effect.
  • Rival teams bidding on Konerko are convinced he's returning to the White Sox, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

Snag In White Sox, Konerko Talks?

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10:26pm: White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf still wants the deal to happen and will work to resolve things by tomorrow afternoon, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.

10:00pm: White Sox GM Kenny Williams told Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune that he’s prepared to move on without Konerko and address other needs. "There's no deadline, but we're going to make the first best deal we can," Williams said. The White Sox had plans to discuss alternatives this evening.

5:25pm: There's still "pretty decent optimism" for a deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Konerko's agent is pushing for more than the White Sox want to commit.

4:14pm: There have been "big changes" in the talks, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter links). The Konerko ship may be sailing, Cowley writes. Even though talks have hit a snag, it does seem that there's a fit here.

4:10pm: Snag or no snag, the Orioles expect Konerko to re-sign with the White Sox, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter). The O's will likely be in on Derrek Lee if that's the case.

12:50pm: The White Sox are not the only team to make a multiyear offer to Konerko, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  No deal is expected today.

10:59am: There could be a snag in the Konerko talks, tweets Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, with the player's agent insisting on $15MM per year.

7:11am: We've heard Paul Konerko's name connected to a few teams over the past several days, including the White Sox, Orioles, Rangers, and Diamondbacks. According to this tweet from SI's Jon Heyman, however, the White Sox are "in the driver's seat" for Konerko.

The Rangers will instead be focusing their efforts on signing Cliff Lee, and Heyman quotes a friend of Konerko who says "no way" on the possibility of him going to the Orioles.  The Diamondbacks don't have enough money to win the bidding, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.

Yesterday, we heard that talks between the White Sox and Konerko were going well, and that he could be in line for a $12.5MM annual salary, possibly over three years. The 34-year-old Konerko enjoyed perhaps the best season of his career, hitting .312/.393/.584 with 39 home runs. He finished fifth in the American League MVP voting.

Rays, White Sox Interested In Accardo

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Add the Rays and White Sox to the list of teams showing interest in non-tendered reliever Jeremy Accardo, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The Dodgers and Pirates have already expressed interest in the former Blue Jays closer.

Accardo, 29 this month, saved 30 games and posted a 2.14 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 2007. He has since bounced between the majors and minors and spent most of last season a Triple-A Las Vegas, where he posted a 3.48 ERA with 5.3 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9.

Diamondbacks Sign J.J. Putz

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The Diamondbacks signed J.J. Putz to a two-year, $10MM deal with an option for 2013. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links), MLB.com's Steve Gilbert and Jon Heyman of SI.com all reported on the deal, which is official now that the reliever passed his physical. Putz earns $4MM in 2011, $4.5MM in 2012 and either $6.5MM or a $1.5MM buyout in 2013, according to Rosenthal. LSW Baseball represents Putz, who posted a 2.83 ERA with 10.8 K/9 in 54 innings last year.

The White Sox offered the Type B free agent arbitration, so they'll obtain a supplementary first round pick for losing Putz.  Back on November 10th, two MLBTR writers predicted Putz would sign with the Diamondbacks.

The Diamondbacks, who have prioritized the reconstruction of their bullpen, already added relievers David Hernandez and Kam Mickolio today.

Prince Fielder Rumors: Tuesday

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Nothing's cooking with the Brewers on a potential Prince Fielder trade, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.  We'll keep you updated here anyway.

  • The Brewers fielded calls from the White Sox, Dodgers and Orioles on Prince, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). They know they can't sign the slugger long-term.
  • The Orioles have had talks with the Brewers for Fielder, tweets Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.  He says they're only talks right now, and the O's would want an extension before giving up young pitching for Fielder.  Haudricourt says these talks did not go beyond preliminary discussions.

Yankees, White Sox Interested In Kerry Wood?

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2:15pm: The White Sox-Wood rumor was "just blown up by a source," tweets Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.

11:06am: The Yankees and White Sox are interested in free agent reliever Kerry Wood, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  The Yankees want to take care of Cliff Lee first, while the Sox must address Paul Konerko.

The Orioles and Cubs have previously been linked to Wood, who finished strong with the Yankees despite some control issues.

Paul Konerko Rumors: Monday

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Paul Konerko led all free agents with 39 home runs in 2010.  The White Sox are considered the favorites, but the Rangers and Orioles are also in the mix.  Here's the latest on the first baseman:

  • Talks between Konerko and the White Sox seem to be going well, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). Konerko will likely get $12.5MM per season, potentially for three years.
  • The White Sox are awaiting a response from Konerko and agent Craig Landis, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
  • The White Sox will continue to have conversations with Konerko's representatives, according to Scott Reifert of the White Sox (on Twitter). GM Kenny Williams is neither optimistic nor pessimistic about reaching a deal.
  • White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, asked if he expects to sign Konerko by week's end, replied, "I hope so."  He also said Konerko "belongs in Chicago."  Jon Paul Morosi reported the quotes on Twitter.
  • Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers "had extended talks" with Konerko, reports Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports.  However, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the D'Backs have had "virtually no dialogue with Konerko."  Konerko lives in the Phoenix area during the offseason.  Arizona's first round pick is protected, so they'd give up their second rounder to sign him.  The supplementary round is especially large this year, so second round picks will be pretty far down.
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