NL West Notes: Hairston, Rockies, Diamondbacks
The Dodgers signed Roberto Clemente on this date in 1954, beating out a number of interested clubs in the process. The Dodgers would lose the future Hall of Famer in the following Rule 5 draft and he'd spend his entire 18-year career with the Pirates. Here are the latest AL-West related links…
- Jerry Hairston Jr. won't necessarily retire if the Dodgers win the 2013 World Series, Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times reports. “It’s February. A lot can happen, really, in a year,” he said. The 36-year-old utility player previously indicated he would retire at the end of the season if the Dodgers won it all.
- The Rockies continue challenging conventional wisdom while constructing their roster. The team is considering the idea of using eight relievers at home and seven relievers on the road, Troy Renck of the Denver Post reports. Director of Major League operations Bill Geivett said "it's a fluid situation" but acknowledged the approach could be used to limit scoring at hitter-friendly Coors Field.
- Tony Campana hasn't produced much as an MLB hitter, but as Dave Cameron of FanGraphs explains those shortcomings don't prevent the speedy outfielder from adding value. Cameron suggests Campana might be able to add one win of value as a pinch runner, especially now that offense has dropped off across MLB. The Diamondbacks acquired Campana from the Cubs for Erick Leal and Jesus Castillo yesterday.
NL West Links: D’Backs, Torrealba, Crawford, Colletti
Diamondbacks outfielder Adam Eaton holds the top spot on Keith Law's top 20 list of prospects (ESPN Insider subscription required) who will have the biggest impact in 2013. Eaton is projected as Arizona's leadoff man and everyday center fielder, and Law believes Eaton can be a Rookie Of The Year candidate given how well his game fits Chase Field. D'Backs left-hander Tyler Skaggs is #4 on Law's list and Trevor Bauer (who the Snakes dealt to the Indians this offseason) ranked fifth. Padres righty Casey Kelly also appears in the top 20, while Padres infielder Jedd Gyorko and Giants reliever Heath Hembree are honorable mentions.
Here's the latest from the NL West…
- Derrick Hall, the Diamondbacks' president and CEO, said "our moves are done at this point" during his monthly chat with fans on MLB.com. Hall confirmed that the team would be keeping Jason Kubel, which GM Kevin Towers noted in the wake of the Justin Upton deal last month.
- D'Backs GM Kevin Towers said the club didn't require Didi Gregorius to take a physical before they acquired him in December, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports. This is significant only because Gregorius is currently suffering from a slightly-strained UCL, as Piecoro notes that it is fairly rare for teams to ask for players to take full physicals before deals unless the player has a particular injury history.
- Yorvit Torrealba is back with the Rockies and some team officials have admitted the club erred in not re-signing the catcher as a free agent after the 2009 season, MLB.com's Thomas Harding writes. Torrealba signed a minor league deal with Colorado last month and is battling Ramon Hernandez for the backup catching job.
- Carl Crawford feels invigorated by his trade to the Dodgers, the outfielder tells Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. Crawford said he was "in kind of a depression stage" during his troubled tenure in Boston, and he described the environment with the Red Sox as "toxic."
- Expectations are high for the free-spending Dodgers but manager Don Mattingly and GM Ned Colletti aren't fazed by the pressure, Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register writes.
- From earlier today, the Rockies acquired utilityman Reid Brignac from the Rays and we covered some more Dodgers items as part of a Los Angeles Notes post.
Rockies Acquire Reid Brignac
Infielder Reid Brignac told Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times that he has been traded to the Rockies (Twitter link). The Rockies announced the deal, which sends cash consideration and a player to be named later to Tampa Bay (Twitter link). The Rays had designated Brignac for assignment last week to create roster space for Kyle Farnsworth and Kelly Johnson.
Brignac appeared in 16 games for the Rays last year, playing second base, third base, shortstop and left field. The 27-year-old spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he posted a .231/.323/.353 batting line in 400 plate appearances as a middle infielder. Brignac, who is not yet arbitration eligible, has a .227/.268/.317 batting line in parts of five MLB seasons.
Brignac joins a middle infield mix that includes starters Troy Tulowitzki and Josh Rutledge and reserves Jonathan Herrera and D.J. LeMahieu.
Rockies, Fowler Agree To Two-Year Deal
The Rockies have avoided arbitration with Dexter Fowler by agreeing to a two-year deal, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter). The contract is worth $11.6MM, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (Twitter link). The 26-year-old Fowler is represented by Excel Sports Management.
Fowler enjoyed a career year in 2012, posting a robust .300/.389/.474 triple slash line to go along with 13 home runs and 12 stolen bases. As a Super Two player, Fowler was eligible for arbitration for the second time this season. The new contract buys out his second and third years of arbitration eligibility, though he'll be under control for one more season following the completion of this deal.
Fowler had filed for $5.15MM, and the Rockies countered with a $4.25MM offer. The Rockies took a similar approach to Jhoulys Chacin's arbitration situation. The right-hander recently signed a two-year deal that will buy out his first and second arbitration years but does not include his final year of eligibility.
As MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, Fowler was the Rockies' final unresolved arbitration case. The team has successfully avoided a hearing with all six of its arbitration-eligible players.
NL Notes: Phillies, Reds, Rockies, Figgins
As players, coaches, and front office personnel begin to arrive in Florida and Arizona for Spring Training 2013, let's take a look at the news and notes from the National League:
- The Phillies were surprised Ben Revere was available and, in fact, it was the Twins who brought his name up in trade talks after dealing Denard Span to the Nationals, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer's Bob Brookover.
- Within the same article, Brookover writes the struggles of Domonic Brown were one reason the Phillies were forced to alter their offseason blueprint. "We were hopeful that Domonic would lock down one of those corner outfield spots," GM Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "He did not do that. He still may do that…but we can't necessarily count on that to happen. Because of that, then we were kind of filling all three outfield positions."
- MLB.com's Mark Sheldon provided additional contract details for some of the players the Reds have signed within the last month including right-hander Logan Ondrusek, who has more than two dozen different escalators, incentives, and bonuses written into the two-year deal he signed last month.
- Jorge De La Rosa, Jhoulys Chacin, Juan Nicasio, and Jeff Francis are near locks for the first four slots in the Rockies' starting rotation leaving Drew Pomeranz, Christian Friedrich, Tyler Chatwood and Chris Volstad jockeying for the fifth spot, according to Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.
- MLB.com's Thomas Harding tweets the candidates for the Rockies' rotation change daily, but the final two spots could come down to Nicasio, Pomeranz, and Chatwood.
- Larry Beinfest, the Marlins' president of baseball operations, envisions the recently signed Chone Figgins in a Alfredo Amezaga-type role, tweets Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun-Sentinel. Amezaga played every position, except pitcher and catcher, during his four-year stint in Miami.
Quick Hits: Johnson, Boras, Givens, Reds, Lowe
The newest member of the Rays organization, Kelly Johnson, spoke with reporters on a conference call earlier today about his signing with Tampa Bay. The veteran second baseman/outfielder said he respected the Rays way of playing baseball under manager Joe Maddon, which made joining the franchise an easy decision. "I wasn't surprised they were interested. I knew if I wanted to go to Tampa I had to be willing to move around. They called and I was happy hear from them."
Here is what's happening around the league…
- Scott Boras denied his involvement with the planting of a rumor about his client Jose Valverde and an imminent deal with the Marlins, reports Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.
- Mychal Givens will no longer play shortstop in the minors for the Orioles, but rather try his hand at pitching, writes Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com.
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty has yet to hear any updates from Scott Rolen while he remains at a stalemate with his four remaining arbitration-eligible players, says Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.
- Francisco Liriano's deal with the Pirates remains on track to become official, but will not do so until his non-throwing arm heals so the veteran can take a physical, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
- Derek Lowe will wait to see what other offers come his way after passing on a minor league deal from the Rockies, writes Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
Rockies Notes: Tulo, Giambi, Chacin, Volstad
Four years ago today, the Rockies avoided arbitration with third baseman Garrett Atkins by agreeing to a one-year, $7.05MM contract making him the second-highest paid player on the team behind only Todd Helton. The Rockies, however, didn't get their money's worth. After averaging a slash line of .301/.363/.480 the previous four seasons, Atkins' 2009 numbers dropped to .226/.308/.342 and was non-tendered that winter. He played just 44 games with the Orioles in 2010 before being released midseason and hasn't seen any MLB action since. Let's take a look at the news and notes coming out of the Mile High City today:
- Coming off an injury-plagued 2012, Troy Tulowitzki was the subject of several trade rumors this offseason. "It was a weird thing – the first time I had ever had any trade rumors," Tulowitzki told MLB.com's Thomas Harding. "Any normal person is going to start to think, 'What if this? What if that?' But I can't control those things. Whatever happens, happens, but I definitely want to stay."
- Jason Giambi has received calls from a few teams and is working out five days a week, as he is determined to continue his playing career, reports Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.
- Better health of the pitching staff and improved defense are two reasons why fans should have hope for the Rockies, Renck writes within the same article. Renck cites Jhoulys Chacin as a prime candidate for a bounceback year because of his strong finish last season, his new two-year, $6.5MM contract, and a repaired relationship with the front office.
- Renck feels right-hander Chris Volstad will receive a long look in Spring Training, especially with his former Marlins pitching coach Mark Wiley now working for the Rockies as their new pitching coordinator (via Sulia).
Quick Hits: Pirates, Liriano, Indians, Aviles, Rockies
Links from around baseball as Friday turns into Saturday..
- Pirates General Manager Neal Huntington is non-committal about the likelihood of finalizing a deal with Francisco Liriano before the start of spring training, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “The process continues,” Huntington said. “We have ongoing conversations. I'm not an oddsmaker, so I don't know if it is likely or unlikely that we will add another pitcher.”
- Indians GM Chris Antonetti says that it's hard to quantify the odds of the team working out a deal with Mike Aviles to avoid arbitration, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. As MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, Aviles filed for a $3.4MM contract while Cleveland is offering $2.4MM.
- The Rockies' biggest offseason addition has been the acquisition of reliever Wilton Lopez from the Astros, but they shouldn't be overlooked in 2013, writes Tracy Ringolsby of MLB.com.
Minor Moves: Garko, Golson, Haeger, Figaro
We’ll track today’s minor moves here…
- The Rockies signed first baseman Ryan Garko and outfielder Greg Golson to minor league contracts, Baseball America's Matthew Eddy reports. Garko saw regular time as the Indians' first baseman from 2006-09 but hasn't played in the majors since 2010, spending the 2011 season in Korea and last year with the Rays' Double-A affiliate. Golson, picked 21st overall by Philadelphia in the 2004 draft, amassed 42 Major League plate appearances with the Phillies, Rangers and Yankees between 2008-2011 and hit .276/.309/.412 in 480 PA with the White Sox Triple-A affiliate in 2012.
- Also from Eddy, the Red Sox re-signed knuckleballer Charlie Haeger to a new minor league deal. Haeger last pitched in the majors in 2010 and has been in the Red Sox farm system since July 2011, though he missed all of last season with an arm injury.
- The Brewers have signed right-hander Alfredo Figaro to a minor league contract that includes an invitation to MLB Spring Training, the team announced (via Mike Vassallo on Twitter). It took more than a month for the sides to complete the deal, since agent Barry Praver had to negotiate a departure from Figaro's Japanese team, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports (on Twitter). The 28-year-old returns to MLB after spending the past two seasons pitching in Japan for the Orix Buffaloes. He picked up some MLB experience with the Tigers before going to Japan, appearing in 14 games from 2009-10.
MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post
Rangers Notes: Cruz, Gonzalez, Ryan
In the wake of Nelson Cruz's connection to a Miami-based clinic that allegedly supplied performance-enhancing drugs to several MLB players, the Rangers released an official response (transcribed by ESPN Dallas) saying that they were contacted about the story by the Miami New Times last week and then themselves contacted Major League Baseball. Beyond these details, the club had "no further comment" about the allegations.
Here are some more items out of Arlington…
- If Cruz ends up having to serve a 50-game suspension, ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett doesn't think the Rangers would respond by signing Michael Bourn. Texas isn't interested in signing Bourn to the four- or five-year deal that he desires but could possibly explore a shorter-term agreement if Bourn lowers his demands. If lieu of a new acquisition, Durrett notes that the Rangers could use internal options to replace Cruz, such as moving Mike Olt, Ian Kinsler or Mitch Moreland to the outfield.
- The Rangers had a "preliminary chat" with the Rockies about Carlos Gonzalez, MLB.com's Tracy Ringolsby reports, but the talks didn't lead anywhere since the Rangers weren't willing to give up Olt or Jurickson Profar. Several teams asked Colorado about Gonzalez during the Winter Meetings but were told the outfielder wasn't available.
- Also from Ringolsby's piece, Rangers president Nolan Ryan and GM Jon Daniels were satisfied with the team's fairly low-key offseason, despite missing out on signing Zack Greinke and losing Josh Hamilton to the Angels. "You have to guard against overreacting to something someone else did or not getting the players you anticipated," said Ryan. "When things don't work out the way you hoped, you have to step back, digest the circumstances, and figure out what to do to keep moving forward."