Giants’ Talks With Feliz Stall
According to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle, talks between the Giants and free agent third baseman Pedro Feliz are stalling. The parties have now passed a Giants-imposed deadline, apparently because the Giants wouldn’t go three years on him. Even a two-year offer would be a mistake. Bringing him back in general seems an odd idea.
Schulman suggests that Scott Rolen or Joe Crede could now become trade targets for Brian Sabean. What is this team’s direction?
Odds and Ends: Lima, Clemens, Pagan
Some links of interest this evening…
- RotoAuthority ranks the top 24 catchers for fantasy baseball.
- Eduardo Encina says the Edwin Jackson to Seattle rumor won’t go away, but he’s still not buying it.
- Sox Machine notes that most of Kenny Williams’ trades come without warning.
- Jose Lima has signed on as a top of the rotation starter.
- Roger Clemens, Mike Wallace, blah blah blah. This is officially not interesting.
- Are the Cards looking for a lefty reliever? Does this mean Tyler Johnson is on his way out? Viva El Birdos suggests that Mark Hendrickson could be the acquisition.
- The Cubs shipped fifth outfielder Angel Pagan back to the Mets for a couple of minor leaguers. I tried to ignore this one for lack of interest, but the emails keep comin’ in.
Odds and Ends: Cameron, Inge, Bay
Here are some random rumors and links I’ve cobbled together today.
- The Fish officially signed Jorge Cantu to a minor-league deal worth $500K with $100K in incentives.
- The Cardinals re-upped Aaron Miles for $1.4 mil. This team needs some good middle infielders.
- According to Tyler Kepner, Alex Rodriguez has been "privately endorsing" Mike Cameron. Well, it’s not private anymore! The Yankees could entertain such a signing if they trade Melky Cabrera but don’t want to move Johnny Damon back to center. Kepner’s article also discusses the internal struggle between Hank and Hal Steinbrenner. Hank wants Johan Santana, Hal wants to show a little financial restraint.
- Lynn Henning digs into the Brandon Inge situation, with help from the always-insightful Keith Law. Henning believes Inge would view a shift back to catcher "with contempt."
- Scott Wuerz runs through various possible Cardinals targets. He notes that the Pirates had considered the White Sox their best possible trade partner for Jason Bay, and are disappointed by Chicago’s Nick Swisher acquisition.
- Seems that Bartolo Colon has yet to crack 90 mph in the Dominican Winter League.
- There are rumblings that the Astros are considering bringing Freddy Garcia back.
- R.J. Anderson snagged an interesting interview with Paul DePodesta.
- Minor League guru and MLB.com senior writer Jonathan Mayo has a new book coming out about what it’s like to face Roger Clemens. I’m going to do a Q&A with Jonathan next week; if you have any good question ideas leave ’em in the comments. By the way, Mayo finished his book before the Mitchell Report came out.
- Yankees fans – Ray Istorico has an illustrated history of the early Yankees coming out in a few months.
- I will be appearing on XM Radio’s MLB Home Plate show on Sunday around 2:25 CST.
Nick Swisher Traded To White Sox
Baseball Digest Daily is reporting that the A’s have traded Nick Swisher to the White Sox for Gio Gonzalez, Fautino De Los Santos, and Ryan Sweeney. I’d heard about the Sweeney part but hadn’t been able to confirm it. This is a fascinating trade – let’s discuss.
I have to imagine the White Sox plan to use Swisher as their center fielder for the next couple of years; he did play 59 games there in ’07. Kenny Williams stuck to his word about adding OBP to his team, picking up Swisher and Carlos Quentin to fill out his outfield. Swisher, 27, is signed at a very reasonable price: $3.5MM in ’08, $5.3MM in ’09, $6.75MM in ’10, $9MM in ’11, and a $10.25MM club option for ’12 with a $1MM buyout. The option gets a $1.75MM bump if Swisher is top five for the MVP voting during the contract. He has limited no-trade protection for 2011-12.
The White Sox paid a massive price to get their man, however. Pitchers De Los Santos and Gonzalez were their two best prospects, according to Baseball Prospectus’ Kevin Goldstein. De Los Santos is said to have a huge ceiling, whereas Gio is a solid lefty who’s nearly big-league ready. Goldstein ranked Sweeney eighth on the team, but projects him as more of a fourth-outfielder type (he was once very highly regarded though).
If it wasn’t obvious with the Dan Haren trade, the A’s are in full-fledged rebuilding mode. Joe Blanton, Huston Street, and Mark Ellis could be next to go.
Mailbag: Nioka, Crede, Snell
Let’s dig through the ol’ mailbag once again. Feel free to shoot an email to mlbtraderumors@gmail.com.
Do you have any news regarding Japanese shortstop Tomohiro Nioka? Is he a free agent and are any teams pursuing him? – Bob
It seems that Nioka turned out to be ineligible for free agency. We’ll have to keep an eye out for him next year.
What’s up with Joe Crede? Will the ChiSox be looking to deal him this summer if they are struggling? And if so, you have to believe the Phillies would be top contenders for him. – Dan
I’m almost certain Crede will be dealt, I’m just not sure when. Maybe after a week or two of proving his health in Spring Training? Josh Fields needs his reps at third base, so I’d be surprised if the Sox started the season with Crede at the hot corner. The Phillies seem like the perfect fit, especially since Kenny Williams and Pat Gillick have gotten together for many deals.
Have you heard anything about a package of Snell and Bay from Pittsburgh to the M’s for some prospects? – Aaron
Jake at Bucco Blog heard this rumor just a few days ago. Both of them going to Seattle would represent a whole lot of talent. Seems that it would require Adam Jones and then some. Might make more sense for the Mariners to target just Snell, since they’re in fine shape in the outfield.
Mailbag: Lopez, Colon, Cano
Let’s dig into the MLBTR mailbag once again. You could ask a question by emailing mlbtraderumors@gmail.com.
What moves would you like to see the Rockies make to improve their starting rotation? – Sean
The Rockies seem to have decent rotation depth – Aaron Cook, Jeff Francis, Jason Hirsh, Ubaldo Jimenez, Franklin Morales, Taylor Buchholz, even Kip Wells and Mark Redman. I would like to see Dan O’Dowd toss an injury-recovering free agent into the mix. The one I like is Rodrigo Lopez. He was quietly very solid for a half-season in Colorado this year. He had surgery to repair a torn flexor tendon in his elbow in August but there’s no timetable quite yet. Adding a wrinkle is that Scott Boras represents him.
Why don’t the White Sox go after Freddy Garcia or Bartolo Colon or something like that? – Tim
Two clubs that have seen Colon’s medical reports and/or price tag have already backed off (Astros, Rangers). The Cardinals, Nationals, and Mets may have lingering interest, but we don’t have great information here. How healthy is he? Would he take a one-year deal? On December 4th, Bill Ladson suggested he was not open to one year. Anyway, I like the idea of Colon returning to the White Sox in theory, and they’ve got the money and need, but it’s hard for an outsider to say whether this is a good investment.
I read a piece last night that noted the Yankees have pulled Robinson Cano from winter ball. Do you think there is a chance that the Yanks are holding him up while he is doing well (Cano was hitting .389 in 9 games) and considering a revised offer that would include him in a Santana deal? – Steve
While there is a chance, this doesn’t seem likely to me. I’ve always read that Phil Hughes was the one Yankee the Twins had to have in a Santana deal, and including Cano would probably mean he’s out. Plus Cano has two years of service time, so he’s more expensive than Hughes.
White Sox Not Interested In Prior
On December 19th, ESPN’s Jayson Stark named the White Sox as one of eleven teams interested in free agent starter Mark Prior. However, White Sox GM Kenny Williams was asked whether he had interest in Prior yesterday and replied in the negative (hat tip to South Side Sox). So, no Prior jerseys on the south side.
The current scoreboard on Prior: the Red Sox, Mets, Cardinals, Padres, Astros, Giants, Reds, Nationals, Marlins, and Indians are in. The Yankees, White Sox, Rangers, Phillies, and Pirates are out. Buster Olney recently said that Prior could make his decision by this evening and named San Diego as the frontrunner.
White Sox Sign Alexei Ramirez
UPDATE, 12-22-07 at 6:00pm: Ramirez can earn another $3.25MM in incentives.
UPDATE, 12-21-07 at 10:57pm: Ramirez gets a mere $4.75MM over the four-year pact. That’s an excellent move right there, in my opinion. Dirt cheap – low risk, decent reward.
FROM 12-21-07 at 5:35pm:
The White Sox made an interesting move today, signing Cuban defector Alexei Ramirez to a four-year contract. The presence of Jose Contreras should be helpful for him. Ramirez probably profiles as Chicago’s center fielder, though he could also play second base. Here’s what Baseball America had to say about him a few months ago.
It’s tough to judge this signing until we hear the money involved. He was apparently highly sought after, as ESPN says he worked out for the Red Sox, Indians, Reds, Cubs, Mets, Yankees, Twins, and A’s too. Ramirez is apparently 26 years old. I think he’s going to need some time in the minors, as Clay Davenport has equated Cuban baseball with our short season A ball.
As a means of comparison, Yuniesky Betancourt signed for four years and $2.826MM in January of 2005. Kendry Morales signed a four-year deal worth around $10MM in December of 2004.
Odds and Ends: Santana, Cabrera, Kapler
A few good reads that I didn’t know how to fit elsewhere.
- LENIII does a Johan Q&A. I can’t say much has changed but he does dissect the situation well.
- Mike DiGiovanna also does a mailbag, with tidbits about Howie Kendrick, Miguel Cabrera, Paul Konerko, and many others.
- I know I said I like to skip minor signings, but it’s interesting to see Gabe Kapler out of retirement, signing with the Brewers.
The Mark Prior Derby
Let’s do a recap on the Mark Prior Derby, which is getting more confusing each day. Jerry Crasnick has added some good info this afternoon. Prior wants a one-year deal and hopes to be on a big league mound before the end of May.
- Yankees – They’ll probably pass, per Hank Steinbrenner.
- Red Sox – Named only by Jayson Stark.
- White Sox – Named only by Stark.
- Mariners – Named by Stark, denied by Jim Street.
- Mets – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Ken Rosenthal, Ed Price
- Cardinals – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Rosenthal, Matthew Leach
- Padres – Named by many, made an offer according to Crasnick. Prior went to USC but would have to take less money to play in San Diego
- Astros – Named by many, made an offer according to Alyson Footer
- Giants – Named only by Stark
- Reds – Named by Stark, Crasnick. Prior previously played under Dusty Baker
- Nationals – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Bill Ladson
- Rangers – Named by Crasnick but not Stark, aggressively pursuing according to Rosenthal
- Marlins – Named only by Crasnick
- Indians – Named only by Crasnick
One more and we’re at half of all baseball teams linked at some point. The Phillies and Pirates are not interested, and it’s probably safe to count the Cubs out.