Starter Rumors: Red Sox Yet To Engage On Hamels, Giants May Be In
With Jon Lester off the market, we should start to see some dominoes fall. Here are the latest pitching rumors from around baseball.
- Talks between the Tigers and Red Sox have yet to gain any traction, tweets Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
- The Red Sox have yet to engage the Phillies on Hamels, Stark reports (Twitter links). It is early, of course, though perhaps it would have been expected that Boston would immediate move to that option. The team is, however, working on several other deals including a previously-rumored swap involving Yoenis Cespedes and Rick Porcello.
Earlier Updates
- After missing on Lester, the Giants have interest in dealing for Hamels, sources tell Jayson Stark of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Earlier rumors that San Francisco is casting a wide net appear to have been well-founded, as the team has been reported to have at least some involvement in a wide variety of possible additions.
- The Twins have interest in Kyle Kendrick and have already had a meeting in San Diego, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets.
- Dillon Gee is the most likely Mets pitcher to go in trade, followed by Jon Niese and Bartolo Colon, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). The Rangers aren’t enamored with the Mets’ pitching but the Royals and Twins have been mentioned as possibilities.
- The Red Sox aren’t currently close on acquiring Cole Hamels from the Phillies, sources tell Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). They could now turn their attention to Diamondbacks pitcher Wade Miley instead and one of five other pitchers that they have their eyes on. James Shields could also be a free agent option for Boston.
- Two unnamed owners traveled to the winter meetings to meet with Max Scherzer‘s agent Scott Boras, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Scherzer’s market should develop after Lester signed for $155MM over six years, but he’s aiming much higher this winter. The losers in the Lester derby – the Giants, Red Sox, and Dodgers – could all be candidates for Scherzer with the Giants being the one team in the group certain to take a serious look.
Latest On Sergio Romo
The relief market is in full swing this morning. Sergio Romo is arguably the best bullpen piece left on the market. The 31-year-old righty had a down year last year, but had been lights out for some time before and regained his former dominance over the season’s second half.
Here’s the latest:
- The Dodgers, Yankees, and Red Sox all have interest in Romo, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports on Twitter. All said, it would appear that Romo has quite a wealthy group of suitors, which bodes well for his ability to max out his market.
- Romo is in talks with the incumbent Giants, per Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The Tigers have actually not inquired on Romo, Rosenthal tweets in correction of his prior report. San Francisco is in, though it has other priorities, he adds.
AL Central Notes: Tigers, Santana, Neshek, Viciedo
A reunion between Max Scherzer and the Tigers is “not happening,” a club official tells Peter Gammons (via Twitter). What Detroit might do, however, is trade right-hander Rick Porcello to the Red Sox for a package of Yoenis Cespedes and Rubby De La Rosa. Rumors of a Porcello/Cespedes deal arose a few days ago but talks between the two sides were “not hot” according to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald. Here’s some more from around the AL Central…
- The Angels are searching for middle infield help and the Twins‘ Eduardo Escobar is on their list of targets, MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez tweets. Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (also via Twitter) thinks the Halos could offer Minnesota a reliever in return, with Vinnie Pestano being “one name to watch.”
- Also from Berardino (on Twitter), the Twins haven’t yet talked to free agent starter Ervin Santana. The right-hander’s representatives are open to hearing from Minnesota, however, with a source telling Berardino that Santana “loves pitching in the cold.”
- Pat Neshek‘s agent Barry Meister tells Berardino that he had a “social discussion” with Twins GM Terry Ryan but the two sides “haven’t had any substantive discussions at all” about the reliever rejoining the club. Meister said that there has been “substantial interest“ from around the league in Neshek and another top reliever client, Sergio Romo.
- The White Sox are telling teams that Dayan Viciedo is available, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports (Twitter link). It’s no surprise that Viciedo is being shopped given that the Sox have been rumored to be exploring such outfield replacements as Melky Cabrera. Viciedo hit .231/.281/.405 with 21 homers in 563 PA last season, providing below-replacement level value with -0.9 rWAR.
Angels Notes: Infielders, Beachy, Medlen
Here’s the latest from Angel Stadium…
- The Angels are targeting the Rockies‘ Josh Rutledge, the Astros‘ Marwin Gonzalez, the Tigers‘ Eugenio Suarez and the Cardinals‘ Pete Kozma in their search for middle infield depth, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports. Rutledge would require the most back in return since he has experience in an everyday role.
- Also from Fletcher’s Twitter account, he reports that the Angels aren’t interested in Brandon Beachy or Kris Medlen. Both starters underwent Tommy John surgery last year and were recently non-tendered by the Braves.
- GM Jerry Dipoto told reporters (including MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez and Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times) that his team is “probably not” going to pursue more international players during the 2014-15 signing period, though “we’re open to it.” The Halos have already far exceeded their bonus pool for the 2014-15 period thanks to their $8MM expenditure on Roberto Baldoquin, an overage that will prevent them from spending any significant money when the 2015-16 international market opens.
- The player most often asked about by other teams is catcher Carlos Perez, Dipoto said.
Latest On Tigers, Max Scherzer
7:03pm: Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski told reporters (including MLive.com’s Chris Iott) denied Olney’s report, saying “I don’t know where he got that. That’s not accurate….I can 100 percent guarantee you that our situation has not changed whatsoever.” The Tigers haven’t had any new talks with Scherzer or gotten involved with any major free agents, Dombrowski said.
1:39pm: The Tigers are focused on retaining starter Max Scherzer, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports on Twitter. Detroit is “prepared to spend big” to do so, Olney adds.
There had been some speculation that Detroit would not be willing or able to bring both Scherzer and David Price into 2015, but Olney shoots down that notion as well. He says the club intends to keep the recently-added Price for next year.
The report is unsurprising on some levels: the Tigers are, of course, a big-spending, win-now team that has agreed to massive deals with its own players. And it could still use the added rotation arm even after dealing for Shane Greene.
On the other, it is hard to imagine what the Detroit balance sheet will look like if a Scherzer deal is added to it. The club’s enormous commitments to Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander both pose significant long-term risk. After bringing back Victor Martinez for four years and $68MM, the Tigers are within shouting distance of the Dodgers in terms of total future payroll commitments, and would likely overtake Los Angeles by adding Scherzer.
Central Rumors: Cabrera, Royals, Pirates, Cards
The Royals have interest in free agent Asdrubal Cabrera, according to MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes (via Twitter). Earlier today, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported that the Royals have made Omar Infante available, so they could be viewing Cabrera as a potential upgrade. More from the Central divisions..
- With Francisco Liriano back in the fold, the Pirates are seeking relief help and have some money to spend, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Twitter). The Bucs, he adds, are fans of Pat Neshek.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter) adds that the Pirates are checking the trade market for left-handed relief options. As it stands, Tony Watson is their only proven lefty reliever after the Justin Wilson deal.
- The Cardinals‘ primary focus is on finding a right-handed bat off the bench, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. St. Louis will turn their attention to finding a bargain fifth starter/long man type in January as protection for Carlos Martinez.
- Cardinals GM John Mozeliak is making no secret of the fact that he’s going to wait until the New Year to find pitching, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I would be looking for someone who adds depth to what we already have,” Mozeliak said. “I’m not saying I’m searching for that. That might be the time if we might want to bring in an extra arm or two that we might do it. The way I like to think about it is I don’t know what it looks like. Basically, it’s what’s left.“
- In a chat with reporters yesterday, Tigers General Manager Dave Dombrowski stressed the importance of right-handers Joakim Soria and Bruce Rondon, indicating that he’s not about to make a major bullpen move, writes Chris Iott of MLive.com.
Central Rumors: Tigers, Cespedes, Twins
The Tigers declined to open up a spot on their 40-man roster prior to today’s deadline, which means that they will not be adding anyone in the Rule 5 draft, as Chris Iott of MLive.com writes. The Tigers protected infielder Dixon Machado and pitcher Angel Nesbitt from the Rule 5 draft last month, but left Joel Hanrahan unprotected due to his contract situation. More out of the Central divisions.
- Hanrahan’s deal has a $1MM base salary if he reaches the majors with up to $2MM in incentives, according to Jason Beck of MLB.com (via Twitter). It was originally believed that Hanrahan’s deal with the Tigers had a bit more in incentives.
- Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski said that the club is open to a possible Andy Dirks return, according to Chris Iott of MLive.com (via Twitter).
- “A lot of clubs have asked about” Tigers pitchers, but Dombrowski says that he still feels good about the five starters they currently have in place, Iott tweets.
- The Reds have a need for a power bat and have some interest in Red Sox outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, according to CSNNE.com’s Sean McAdam. The Reds and Cespedes have been connected for some time. The Reds have starting pitching that they can deal, which would make the two teams seem like solid trade partners on the surface.
- Twins manager Paul Molitor has not made any recruiting calls since contacting outfielder Torii Hunter, tweets Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
- Brewers manager Ron Roenicke says the club is focused on filling the bullpen, reports Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (via Twitter). Milwaukee is open to both free agents and trades. Today, they focused on watching video of left-handed relievers.
AL East Notes: Cespedes, Ichiro, Rays
The latest from the AL East..
- The Red Sox spoke with the Tigers about a deal involving Yoenis Cespedes and Rick Porcello, but there wasn’t a match there, accoridng to Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com (via Twitter). Yesterday, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reported that those talks were “not hot” between the two teams.
- Ichiro Suzuki‘s agent John Boggs says his client isn’t in a rush to find a new home, tweets Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. However, if the right offer came along, he would sign “in two seconds.” Ichiro is entering his age 41 season after hitting .284/.324/.340 in 385 plate appearances with the Yankees.
- The Rays have reached an agreement with St. Petersburg that will allow the club to search for stadium sites in nearby Hillsborough County, reports Stephen Nohlgren of the Tampa Bay Times. Under the deal, the Rays will pay a set annual amount based on the amount of time remaining in their current lease of Tropicana Field, which expires in 2027. The Rays will pay $4MM per season until 2018, $3MM through 2022, and $2MM for the remainder of the term.
- MLB is still investigating the Cubs on charges of tampering with former manager Joe Maddon, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Maddon, now with the Cubs, opted out of his contract with the Rays earlier this offseason. Per Tampa GM Matt Silverman, “they’re handling it.”
Brad Johnson contributed to this post.
AL Notes: Moss, Samardzija, Yankees, Tigers
Here’s a morning links roundup from the American League:
- The Athletics are still “inching” toward a deal with the Indians on Brandon Moss, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets. A swap is likely to go down over the next few days, Sherman adds.
- Clubs that have spoken with the Athletics about Jeff Samardzija have been left with the impression that Oakland would not be willing to grant an extension negotiation window as part of the deal, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports on Twitter. That is perhaps not terribly surprising, as Samardzija does not appear particularly likely to forego a chance at testing the open market.
- For the Yankees, one side benefit of adding Martin Prado (last summer) and Andrew Miller (just a few days ago) is that it conveys leverage in talks with now-free agent third baseman Chase Headley and closer David Robertson, Sherman writes. While New York is now willing to put a fourth year on the table for both players, says Sherman, it will not match the reported four-year, $65MM offer out to Headley or the $50MM+ asking price of Robertson.
- While there are several intriguing possibilities for the Tigers at the Winter Meetings, the odds are that the team will make only smaller moves, if any, per Chris Iott of MLive.com. Iott takes a look at Detroit’s various options for improvement, concluding that most are rather unlikely to take place.
Yoenis Cespedes Rumors: Sunday
Here’s the latest on trade rumors surrounding Red Sox outfielder Yoenis Cespedes:
- The Tigers and Red Sox have discussed a potential deal involving Cespedes and Rick Porcello, although those discussions are “not hot” right now, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald tweets. Porcello, like Cespedes, has one year remaining before free agency. A Porcello/Cespedes deal would appear to make sense from the Red Sox’ perspective, but it might be trickier for the Tigers — earlier this week, ESPN’s Jayson Stark noted that the Tigers wouldn’t want to deal Porcello if they didn’t have an obvious replacement for him.
- The Mets have not been involved in the bidding for Cespedes, WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford tweets. That’s probably not surprising, given that they have Curtis Granderson and the newly signed Michael Cuddyer to play the corner outfield positions.