Coco Still Possibility For Cubs, White Sox
Two suitors for the affable Coco Crisp, both in the Windy City.
According to Chris De Luca at the Chicago Sun Times,
"The Cubs and Red Sox have had talks centering on Crisp in recent weeks, though the subject was broached by Boston, sources say, and evidently the Red Sox were not interested when the Cubs dangled outfielder Matt Murton. Talks could resume during spring training, however, depending on the Red Sox’ need for starting pitching — an area where the Cubs are expected to have some surplus with Ryan Dempster or Jason Marquis getting nudged out of the rotation."
And also from the same source,
"They, too, could find themselves in the market later in camp if Jerry Owens doesn’t pan out in center. Manager Ozzie Guillen has long admired Crisp, but the White Sox don’t figure to have a surplus of starting pitching by the end of spring training."
On a related side note, I caught the BoSox/Twins preseason game on Friday night and got a chance to watch Twins CF incumbent Carlos Gomez unload a scud missile from centerfield to get Dustin Pedroia at homeplate. With Gomez in house, I can see why rumors of the Twins as an option for Coco have cooled. Thoughts?
Odds and Ends: Crede, Rodriguez, Marlins
Just a couple items worth mentioning:
- Matt Hurst notes Elasticman Scot Shields says "(Heck) yeah" to whether or not the Angels should dish out the big bucks for Francisco Rodriguez, this despite incentives in Shields contract that would kick in should he be transitioned into the closer role.
- Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times touches in on Joe Crede‘s fate after notching his first homerun of the spring, easing concerns for his surgically repaired back. Says Cowley, "Crede’s agent, Scott Boras, already has told general manager Ken Williams that they want to explore the market. With Josh Fields waiting in the wings, the Sox are dealing from a position of strength. The Giants are a top suitor." Scouts were present for Crede’s homerun.
- Marlins Owner Jeff Loria says payroll is "all going to be a function of the revenues we generate. If we have a bigger base than we anticipate, that will go back to the payroll." This from Tom D’Angelo of the Palm Beach Post who add, "When asked if the team could lock up young stars like shortstop Hanley Ramirez for the long term, Loria said: ‘We’re going to look at that going forward. But we are challenged until we get into that new stadium." The Marlins payroll this year is just under $20MM.
Managers On The Hot Seat
It is a slow news day, so we are going to venture a bit off the beaten path…As spring training is now in full swing, a number of managers may have their jobs on the line during the ’08 season. Three managers are in the final year of their deals and another 12 managers have two years left on their contracts. This second group will be due either an extension or a pink slip next winter as few teams are willing to play out a season with a lame-duck manager. Therefore, any manager with two years remaining on their contracts (including options) will likely have their fate determined prior to the ’09 season.
Ignoring managers that may be on the hot seat for other reasons (i.e. Willie Randolph), here is a list of managers that could potentially have their jobs on the line in ’08 based on their current contract situations. (Numbers in parentheses represent the number of years remaining on current contract)
- Cecil Cooper, HOU (2)
- Bob Geren, OAK (1+1 team option)
- John Gibbons, TOR (1)
- Bobby Cox, ATL (1)
- Ned Yost, MIL (1+1 team option)
- Tony LaRussa (2)
- Bruce Bochy (2)
- John McLaren, SEA (1)
- Fredi Gonzalez, FLA (2)
- Dave Trembley, BAL (1+1 team option)
- Bud Black, SD (1+1 team option)
- Joe Maddon, TB (2)
- Clint Hurdle, COL (2)
- Jim Leyland, DET (2)
- Ron Gardenhire, MIN (2)
Taking a closer look at the list…Of the managers in the final year of their deal, Cox will be back if he chooses. LaRussa and Leyland may very well enter ’09 without new deals considering their ages. Yost, Gardenhire, Hurdle and Black look like locks for extensions prior to ’09. However, the remaining eight names on the list (Cooper, Geren, Bochy, Gonzalez, Trembley, Maddon, Gibbons, McLaren) may very well be managing for their jobs in ’08.
By Cork Gaines
Odds and Ends: Fields, Garcia, Bonds
Welcome to today’s roundup…
- Josh Byrnes would never give a pitcher eight years, just so you know (hat tip AZ Snakepit).
- South Side Sox explains how Josh Fields was posturing in not signing his contract. Unrelated interesting fact – Fields seemed headed to Florida in a Miguel Cabrera for a split-second in December.
- Bobby Jenks‘ salary is set to skyrocket next year, as he becomes arbitration-eligible.
- Freddy Garcia‘s agent talks about the Mets, Yankees, and Red Sox for his client. Garcia is targeting a June or July return.
- DRays Bay’s free season preview guide is now available. Speaking of the Rays, owner Stuart Sternberg may be willing to spend some money for midseason acquisitions if need be. And he "sounded as if he were open" to the idea of signing Barry Bonds, according to Marc Topkin.
Odds and Ends: Choo, Inge, Lohse, Francona
Let’s round up some rumors and links.
- Not only is Shin-Soo Choo out of options, but he’s recovering from Tommy John surgery and may have to join the South Korean military.
- Brandon Inge sat out a demanding drill on Friday, causing Tom Gage to wonder if trade talks are ongoing. Dave Dombrowski spoke on the topic recently, saying all the right things about Inge.
- Kyle Lohse is not interested in a minor league deal or playing in another country. He’s still waiting by the phone though.
- Funny anecdote involving J.P. Ricciardi’s son.
- Terry Francona was extended through 2011, with club options for ’12 and ’13.
- Kenny Williams and Billy Beane: opposites attract. Given their strong relationship, perhaps the Sox could look to acquire Mark Ellis during the season if the current options fall through.
- Wow – Scott Rolen would’ve accepted a trade to the Phillies. The Phils discussed him internally but decided not to pursue it.
- The Giants briefly considered Sean Casey, who is "really good at life" according to Aaron Boone.
MLB Roundup Video
Time for more video! This time it’s a team effort for a program called MLB Roundup. I do a section on Joe Crede.
Tomo Ohka Signs With White Sox
According to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune, the White Sox have signed pitcher Tomo Ohka, who turns 32 in March. Ohka made ten big league starts in ’07 for the Jays, and the results were not pretty. He also pitched at Triple A for the Mariners and Cardinals, ineffectively.
Ohka is an interesting character. I wrote this profile of him over a year ago, but it’s still a decent look at his history. You might say he’s had a few attitude problems. Regardless, it doesn’t hurt for the Sox to have him in Triple A as insurance.
Odds and Ends: Roberts, Garcia, Crede
Today’s assortment of links.
- Gary Sheffield is not fond of Scott Boras.
- Arte Moreno and the Angels aren’t closing the door on K-Rod yet.
- Turns out Brian Roberts left camp because of a possible kidney stone.
- From Small Ball To The Long Ball has all kinds of cool data that I haven’t seen elsewhere. For example, average initial pitch speed for pitchers. Dustin McGowan‘s fastball: 96.11mph. Tim Wakefield‘s: 75.62mph.
- Seems that Freddy Garcia might wait a few months before signing.
- Andrew Baggarly says the Giants consider Joe Crede a possible long-term piece even with his impending free agency. So maybe if they get him and he stays healthy they’ll look to extend him. Baggarly speculates that a guy like Fred Lewis (who is out of options) could work for a Crede swap.
No White Sox Agreement With Colon
THURSDAY, 9:21am: Rather than categorically deny the Colon rumor, Sox GM Kenny Williams gave a more cryptic response. Scot Gregor makes a good point that Colon had been rumored to prefer the National League.
WEDNESDAY, 10:41am:Ozzie Guillen says the Sox haven’t met with Colon’s people for weeks, according to Mark Gonzales. So maybe this rumor is dead.
TUESDAY, 10:03pm:Impacto Deportivo indicates tonight that the White Sox reached an agreement with starter Bartolo Colon, pending a physical. We’ll have to see whether his shoulder passes the test. Impacto Deportivo has a good track record but often jumps the gun, so we may see some semi-rebuttals from the Sox.
Assuming Colon still has something in the tank, I like the move. It has to be a one-year contract. This is the kind of gamble the Sox need to pan out if they’re to sniff the Wild Card. If the big righty is able to take the mound, John Danks and Gavin Floyd would presumably battle for the fifth starter job. However, Floyd is out of options so he could become the long man if Danks wins.
The White Sox acquired Colon for the ’03 season; he posted a 3.87 ERA in 242 innings that year.
Cubs Sign Alex Cintron
Minor signing this morning, as the Cubs inked shortstop Alex Cintron to a minor league deal according to ESPN 1000 Radio’s Bruce Levine. Does this have implications for Ronny Cedeno, who’s been a rumored piece in the Brian Roberts discussions? And since Cintron had been on Baltimore’s radar, will they now focus on Juan Uribe?
Cintron, 29, hit .243/.281/.324 for the White Sox in 185 ABs last year. He dealt with bone spurs in his elbow, a bruised thumb, and time spent on the bereavement list for his grandfather.