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Odds & Ends: Vazquez, A’s, Orioles, Marlins

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A few links…

  • ESPN's Keith Law rated David Ortiz signing with Boston as the best free agent pickup of the decade. Darren Dreifort's deal with the Dodgers was the worst, and he called the Erik Bedard trade the biggest of the decade. That last one is certainly debatable; I prefer the Bartolo Colon for Grady Sizemore (plus others) deal.
  • Interestingly, Yankees' GM Brian Cashman noted today that the club tried to acquire Javier Vazquez from Arizona after 2005 and the White Sox after 2008, “but we just didn’t match up," reports Chad Jennings of The Journal News.
  • Bruce Jenkins of The SF Chronicle says that the A's are winning the battle of the Bay Area this offseason. Of course, the regular season is the battle you really want to win.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports that Orioles' president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said "My guess is I wouldn't think we'll be doing anything anytime soon, which is not to be interpreted as not doing anything between now and Sarasota." The O's finalized the Garrett Atkins deal today.
  • MLB.com's Joe Frisaro writes about the Marlins' first base situation, noting that there's certainly no shortage of in-house options.
  • Bill Ladson of MLB.com tweets that the Nationals continue to show interest in righty John Smoltz, "but they are not willing to break the bank to get him."
  • Coco Crisp's physical with the A's was delayed because of travel issues, so the announcement of his signing will have to wait says Susan Slusser of The SF Chronicle. 
  • Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball takes a look at the growth of player salaries over the last decade.
  • Here's some news on a different kind of contract negotiation: According to the AP (via ESPN) MLB and the umpires hope to have a new agreement in place tomorrow, which will allow for greater flexibility with postseason assignments.

White Sox Claim Freddy Dolsi

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The White Sox have claimed former Tigers reliever Freddy Dolsi off of waivers, tweets Scott Merkin of MLB.com.  Merkin adds that the trade of Jon Link to the Dodgers has allowed the club to add Dolsi to the 40-man roster.

In the last two seasons with the Tigers, Dolsi has posted a 3.55 ERA over 58.1 innings of work.  In that period of time his fastball was clocked at an average of 94.8 miles per hour.

White Sox Acquire Juan Pierre

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FRIDAY, 12:57pm: The Dodgers will obtain Ely and Link to complete the deal, tweets MLB.com's Scott Merkin.

TUESDAY, 11:44am: The Dodgers will choose two pitchers from a list of arms that could contribute in the majors next year, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. The teams will complete the trade on or before January 7th, 2010, according to a Dodgers press release.

11:31am: The Dodgers have officially announced the deal, according to Hernandez. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports hears that John Ely and Jon Link are heading to the Dodgers. The Tigers and Pirates also had interest in Pierre, according to Morosi.

10:43am: The White Sox will pay $3MM of Pierre's salary in 2010 and $5MM of it in 2011, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney. That means the Dodgers will pay the remaining $10.5MM.

10:28am: Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times says the Dodgers will acquire two players to be named later.

9:52am: The White Sox acquired Juan Pierre from the Dodgers for two minor league pitchers, according to Yahoo's Tim Brown (and confirmed by Ken Rosenthal). The Dodgers will take on roughly half of Pierre's salary. The outfielder has $18.5MM remaining on his deal ($10MM next year and $8.5MM in 2011), so the Dodgers are taking on about $9MM.

Pierre, 32, hit .308/.365/.392 in 425 plate appearances for the Dodgers last year. He stole 30 bases and played well in the outfield, according to UZR (though we don't want to draw sweeping conclusions from 750 innings of work).

The White Sox had shown interest in Scott Podsednik and Brett Gardner, but they appear set with their new addition. If Pierre performs close to last year's levels, the White Sox will have themselves a bargain (depending on the pitchers they give up).

Odds & Ends: Lowe, Bay, Gonzalez

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News and notes from around the big leagues tonight…

  • Derek Lowe tells MLB.com's Mark Bowman that he doesn't expect to be back in Atlanta in 2010 and feels rather disrespected by being put on the trade market just a year after signing with the Braves: "I would have never even considered going there if I knew that ultimately this was going to happen."
  • The Providence Journal's Joe McDonald considers Theo Epstein's comments from the Mike Cameron press conference to be a virtual farewell to Jason Bay's time in Boston.
  • As if the Mike Gonzalez and Garrett Atkins signings weren't enough, the Orioles also "made a pretty good run" at trading for Adrian Gonzalez at the winter meetings, tweets ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes.
  • Scott Merkin of MLB.com is reporting (via Twitter) that Jason Botts has been given an invitation to spring training by the White Sox.  Botts played in Japan last season after posting a .230/.325/.344 line in 326 plate appearances with Texas from 2005 to 2008.
  • MLB.com's Todd Zolecki (via Twitter) quoted Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. as saying "Right now, it doesn't look good," in regards to Chan Ho Park re-signing with Philadelphia.
  • ESPN's Jayson Stark talks with Baseball America's John Manuel about how the Phillies' farm system looks in the wake of the big Roy Halladay/Cliff Lee deal.
  • Jose Contreras wanted a three-year contract from the Rockies, but the club "didn't bite," reports Thomas Harding of MLB.com.  Harding notes that Colorado may have to wait to see what happens with Rafael Betancourt's possible arbitration case before they can make a move toward signing relievers like Contreras or Joe Beimel.
  • If the Nationals can't sign any relief help, they will move a willing Collin Balester into the bullpen, reports MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
  • Jake Westbrook seems fit after his stint Puerto Rican Winter League, reports MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince.  It was rumored that the Tribe would have been in the market for a veteran starter (maybe Carl Pavano) to anchor their staff had Westbrook suffered a setback from his Tommy John surgery in 2008.

White Sox May Be Finished With Offseason Shopping

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MLB.com's Scott Merkin reports that White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen seems satisfied to stand pat with the current composition of his roster, a decision that would leave Chicago without the everyday DH that seemed to be the club's top priority this winter.

Guillen tells Merkin that he likes the idea of using several different players (such as Andruw Jones, Paul Konerko, Mark Kotsay, Jayson Nix, or even Omar Vizquel) as a designated hitter depending on matchups or, in Konerko's case, to rest him without taking him out of the lineup altogether.

Chicago GM Kenny Williams doesn't sound entirely convinced with this plan, but seems to be willing to acquisece to Guillen on this front.  Williams told Merkin, "I don't want to do anything that conflicts with what my manager wants….Regardless if I think there might be a need for another left-handed bat in middle of the lineup, he's the one in there, and I fully support how he sees the situation fitting and piecing it together."

It's not like the Southsiders haven't been active this offseason — they acquired Mark Teahen and Juan Pierre in trades and signed Jones, Vizquel and J.J. Putz.  But given all of the high-profile designated hitter options on the market this winter, it's safe to say that White Sox fans were counting on a bit more than just Jones and Vizquel as DH upgrades.  Do you think that Williams should, in fact, look to acquire that left-handed bat or do you agree with Guillen and think the Sox roster is fine as it is?

Odds & Ends: Wang, Yankees, White Sox

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Some Sunday links…

  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter) says that three AL teams and three NL teams have shown interest in Chien-Ming Wang.  However, the Dodgers are not one of those teams "yet."  Rosenthal notes that Wang is a favorite of Joe Torre and his staff.
  • In his running blog, Rosenthal says that Kevin Youkilis' versatility gives the Red Sox a number of options this winter.  Boston could sign Adrian Beltre to play third or, for a much lower price, Nick Johnson to play first.
  • Regardless of where Wang signs, we can safely assume that it will not be for a split contract.  The Yankees made the 29-year-old a minor-league offer that would become a major-league deal once his shoulder was healthy.  Wang's agent demanded guaranteed money, according to Bill Madden of the New York Daily News.
  • Earlier today, Buster Olney mentioned the Yanks as a possible destination for free agent outfielder Brian Giles.  Marc Carig of the Newark Star-Ledger hears that the club is just doing its "due diligence" by checking in on the soon-to-be 39-year-old.
  • The White Sox have signed Freddie Bynum and T.J. Bohn to minor league deals, according to the FutureSox twitter page.
  • Kevin Correia's agent Barry Axelrod told Dan Hayes of the North County Times that the Brewers and Rays both showed interested in trading for his client.  While GM Jed Hoyer gave him no guarantees that the one-year deal won't be a sign-and-trade, Axelrod is confident that the 29-year-old will pitch for San Diego in 2010.
  • Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel spoke to Mike Rivera, who was non-tendered by the Brewers yesterday.  Rivera says he was caught off guard by the decision but was told by GM Doug Melvin that the organization might reach out to him again at some point.

Odds & Ends: Mets, Braves, Red Sox, Cust

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Some Saturday links:

  • The Mets have yet to make an offer to John Lackey and continue to focus on Jason Bay, according to David Lennon of Newsday (via Twitter).
  • Meanwhile, Jon Heyman tweets that the Mets would be willing to give Bay a five-year deal if necessary.
  • Braves GM Frank Wren said the club is open to retaining Kelly Johnson at a lesser salary, he said that he would be better suited to an opportunity where he could get more at-bats, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  • While Wren continues to explore other options on the open market, the club is leaving the door open for Jason Heyward to win the job in right field, writes David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  • Prior to being selected by the Mets in the Rule 5 draft and sold to the Dodgers, Carlos Monasterios told Bravos de Margarita that both the Dodgers and the Tigers were in contact with him (passed along by Diamond Leung).
  • The Red Sox trade of Mike Lowell to Texas has not been officially completed as Rangers officials are looking over the third baseman's thumb, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
  • Recently non-tendered Jack Cust could be a fit for the White Sox, writes Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.
  • Diamondbacks managing general partner Ken Kendrick told Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic that the club still has room to spend this winter.
  • Dodgers GM Ned Colletti says that barring something that's not currently on the team's radar, the second baseman job will go to Blake DeWitt plus a veteran, according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.
  • Matt Eddy of Baseball America brings us the latest minor league transactions.  Most notably, former Seton Hall Prep standout and Yankees' first round selection Eric Duncan has landed with the Braves.

Odds & Ends: Diaz, Cedeno, German, Ojeda

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A few tidbits from around the majors….

  • Blue Jays reliever Jeremy Accardo hopes to be non-tendered tomorrow, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.  The righty, 28 this month, dealt with a groin injury and bounced up and down between Triple A and the Majors this year.  He earned $900K.
  • Cases of players avoiding arbitration and signing for 2010, according to the AP: Matt Diaz of the Braves at $2.55MM, Ronny Cedeno of the Pirates at $1.125MM, and Esteban German of the Rangers at $600K. Diaz gets a 106% raise, heading into his third arbitration year.
  • The AP also notes that the Nationals signed pitcher Ryan Speier for $425K.  The 30-year-old toiled at Triple A for the Rockies this year, mainly.
  • MLB.com's Steve Gilbert (via Twitter) reports that the Diamondbacks have avoided going to arbitration with Augie Ojeda by re-signing the veteran infielder to a one-year deal.  Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic says the contract is worth $825K.  Ojeda, 34, has spent the last three seasons with Arizona and hit .246/.340/.345 in 309 plate appearances in 2009.  The defensive specialist is a valuable utilityman, able to play second, third and shortstop.
  • Twins GM Bill Smith tells Kelsie Smith of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that his traditionally low-spending team has "substantial funds" to cover arbitration raises and potential signings that could raise Minnesota's payroll into the $90MM neighborhood for next season.  The general manager was predictably non-committal when asked if "substantial" translated to "enough to extend Joe Mauer."
  • NPB Tracker passes on news from Japanese site Sanspo.com that the Yakult Swallows will announce next week that they have signed Eulogio De La Cruz.  The right-hander was released by the Padres on Wednesday.  De La Cruz has an 11.84 ERA in 15 appearances over three seasons with San Diego, Florida and Detroit.
  • The White Sox seem ready to stick with Randy Williams as the only left-handed reliever (besides, of course, set-up man Matt Thornton) next season, as Chicago GM Kenny Williams told Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.  Gonzales notes that if the club changes its mind, a possible target could be former White Sox reliever Neal Cotts, who will be non-tendered by the Cubs tomorrow.

White Sox, J.J. Putz Agree To Terms

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The White Sox reached a one-year, $3MM deal with reliever J.J. Putz, tweets MLB.com's Noah Coslov.  AOL FanHouse's Ed Price tweets that Putz can earn another $3MM in incentives for games finished.  Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets of another $250K in incentives for appearances.  A Bobby Jenks trade might be good for Putz's wallet. 

Putz was scheduled to throw for teams today; he had also drawn interest from the Cubs, Nationals, Pirates, Tigers, D'Backs, and Phillies.  The righty, 33 in February, tallied only 29.3 innings this year for the Mets due to elbow issues.  He was dominant for the Mariners in '06 and '07.

On a related note, MLB.com's Scott Merkin reports that Sox reliever D.J. Carrasco could be non-tendered tomorrow.  Carrasco, 33 in April, posted a 3.76 ERA, 6.0 K/9, and 2.8 BB/9 in 93.3 innings this year.  His peripheral stats weren't much different from Brandon Lyon's.

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