Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Reds Rumors

National League Free Agent Arbitration Offers

By | at

10 National League teams have free agent arbitration offer decisions to make today, and we'll update them in this post in advance of the 11pm central time deadline.  For a fantastic customizable chart with all 57 Type A/B free agents and their teams' decisions in real-time, click here.  

Updated team decisions:

Teams with automatic decisions only:

Angels Eyeing Hanigan In Search For Catcher

By | at

The Angels have been interested in a number of free agent pitchers this offseason, both starters and relievers, and now they're looking for an entire new battery. ESPN's Buster Olney reports that the Halos have intensified their search for a catcher, and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says they have their eye on Ryan Hanigan of the Reds (Twitter links). 

Jeff Mathis, Bobby Wilson, and Hank Conger are on the team's 40-man roster, but Mathis is a non-tender candidate and Wilson is a .206/.268/.344 career hitter in 116 big league games. Conger is one of the team's top prospects, but he might not be ready to catch everyday after hitting just .204/.284/.345 in limited time with the Angels over the last two seasons. Hanigan, 31, has hit .275/.371/.368 in 287 games with Cincinnati over the last five years. Rosenthal says the Reds could re-sign Ramon Hernandez if they move Hanigan.

As our Free Agent Tracker shows, backstops like Kelly Shoppach, Ivan Rodriguez, former Angel Jose Molina, and Hernandez are available on the open market. Hernandez will be treated as a Type-B free agent thanks to the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, so it will not cost a draft pick to sign him.

Reds’ First Priority Is Finding A Starting Pitcher

By | at

The Reds have made it no secret that they want to add a top-of-the-rotation starter this winter, and today GM Walt Jocketty reiterated to John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer that starting pitching is the team's top priority…

“I can’t comment of other team’s players," said Jocketty, "although others are OK talking about ours. I will say we’re looking at improving pitching. The first priority is finding a starting pitcher. If [Francisco] Cordero leaves, we’ll have to look at finding a closer.”

The Reds have been linked to Huston Street and Andrew Bailey this week, and earlier this month Jocketty said the team is more likely to seek upgrades via trade rather than free agency. Internal solutions are also "something we'll discuss" according to GM, who said that Aroldis Chapman "probably" won't be one of those solutions. The hard-throwing southpaw was supposed to work as a starter in winter ball before a shoulder problem put that plan on hold.

Yonder Alonso is the club's primary piece of trade bait since Joey Votto is off limits. Tim Dierkes broke down the trade market for starting pitchers earlier this month, though not many of the clubs with available starters are in need of a first baseman.

Six Teams Interested In Huston Street

By | at

TUESDAY: The Marlins, Red Sox, Reds and Mets are also interested in Street, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).

MONDAY: The Orioles and Blue Jays are among the teams to have expressed trade interest in Rockies reliever Huston Street, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

Jim Johnson replaced Kevin Gregg as the Orioles' closer late last season, but Rosenthal says the O's prefer Johnson in next year's rotation.  There's no harm in inquiring on Street, but in my opinion an $8MM closer is a luxury the Orioles don't need.  We'll see whether the Rockies are willing to cover a decent chunk of his contract.  Rosenthal suggests Orioles starter Jeremy Guthrie as a possible fit for Colorado, though I think Baltimore could trade Guthrie for better long-term assets than Street.

With Rafael Betancourt penciled in to close for the Rockies next year, Street seems widely available.  Rosenthal and colleague Jon Paul Morosi first made the Blue Jays connection last week.

Latest On Andrew Bailey

By | at

4:43pm: The Mariners have inquired on Bailey, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter).  Olney suggests the A's will definitely move the reliever this offseason.

12:48pm: The A's are very willing to trade Bailey, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports.  He notes that the Phillies had interest before they signed Jonathan Papelbon.

11:19am: A Reds source agrees that Alonso is way too much for Bailey, writes MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.  Sheldon notes that starting pitching is a more pressing need for the Reds than a closer.

9:00am: The Reds are talking about a possible deal for Athletics closer Andrew Bailey, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.  The A's are interested in Yonder Alonso, tweets Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM and ESPN.com.  The Reds have a need at the back end of their bullpen, with Francisco Cordero entertaining offers as a free agent.  The Blue Jays are also known to have Bailey on the radar.

Bailey, 27, posted a 3.24 ERA, 8.9 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 0.6 HR/9, and 37.1% groundball rate in 41 2/3 innings this year.  He missed time with an oblique injury in 2010, and also had elbow surgery in September of that year.  Effects of the procedure caused him to miss most of the first two months of the 2011 campaign.

Bailey is under team control through 2014, and we project him for a reasonable $3.5MM in 2012 as he'll be arbitration eligible for the first time. 

Added To 40-Man Roster: Giants, Dodgers, Pirates

By | at

Today is the deadline for teams to add players to the 40-man roster to protect them from next month's Rule 5 draft. Here's more on which players need to be protected and here are the details on which players have had their contracts selected to the 40-man roster:

Read more

Cordero Says Reds, Five Other Teams Still In “Hunt”

By | at

In an interview with Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio, Francisco Cordero said that unless the Reds increase their most recent contract offer, he will leave Cincinnati.  The Reds are still in the "hunt," however, along with other teams who have shown interest in the free agent closer: the Angels, Blue Jays, Rangers, Rays and Red Sox (all Twitter links).

The Rays and Rangers are new additions to a busy market for Cordero that also includes the Dodgers, Marlins and Mets.  As a Type A free agent, Cordero would cost his new team a first round draft pick as compensation to the Reds if that new team didn't have a protected pick.  This presumes, of course, that Cordero turns down the Reds' offer of arbitration and that the Type A compensation rules aren't changed by the new collective bargaining agreement. 

Of Cordero's known suitors, the Angels, Blue Jays, Dodgers, Rangers, Rays and Red Sox all have unprotected picks, though the Jays and Sox each currently have two picks in the first round of next year's draft.  Toronto's extra pick is compensation for not signing Tyler Beede last year, while Boston currently possesses the Phillies' first round pick (31st overall) as compensation for Philadelphia's signing of Jonathan Papelbon.

Reds Notes: Phillips, Cordero

By | at

The latest from The Queen City, courtesy of MLB.com's Mark Sheldon …

  • Reds GM Walt Jocketty said the team and second baseman Brandon Phillips have "made progress, but we're not close" in negotiations for a contract extension. The Reds have already exercised Phillips' 2012 option, so he's in the fold for next season, but he has been vocal about wanting a multiyear extension beyond that for a while now. John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer speculated recently that the Reds are probably hoping to extend Phillips, 30, for something like four years and $48MM, while Sheldon points out that the Dan Uggla's five-year, $62MM pact with the Braves last offseason is a recent high-water mark for second basemen.
  • As well, there have been "no new developments" between the Reds and free agent closer Francisco Cordero, according to Sheldon. Jocketty did not meet with Cordero's agent during the General Manager Meetings earlier this week in Milwaukee. "If we did not sign Coco, we'd first look outside of the organization," Jocketty said.

McLane Confirms Astros Will Move To AL West In 2013

By | at

Drayton McLane confirmed to reporters, including Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link), that the Astros will be moving to the American League West for 2013. McLane added that the Astros' sale is on the agenda for the owners' meetings tomorrow, at which point Jim Crane is expected to be approved as the team's new owner.

More links on the Astros and the rest of the clubs they'll compete with in the NL Central for one more year:

  • McLane said he's "kind of sad" to be moving on, but that the Astros will have a "very good" owner in Crane, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
  • Kristie Rieken of the Associated Press reports that Major League Baseball told Crane it wouldn't approve his purchase of the Astros unless he agreed to move the team to the AL.
  • The Reds "made good progress" with Brandon Phillips' agent today, though no long-term deal is imminent yet, tweets Jon Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
  • MLB.com's Carrie Muskat has the latest details on the Cubs' managerial search.

Quick Hits: Phillips, Kuroda, Ortiz, Wood, Counsell

By | at

It's been a busy first day of the GM meetings, but we don't want to let anything fall through the cracks. Here's a collection of assorted links from throughout the day:

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top