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Tigers Rumors: Rogers, Jones, Jenkins

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Lynn Henning of the Detroit News has some Tigers tidbits today.

  • The Tigers want to bring Kenny Rogers back, who has said Detroit is the only place he’ll play if he doesn’t retire. 
  • The team will finally go with Joel Zumaya in the closer role next year, but they’d like Todd Jones around as a backup.  Jones’ first pick is Atlanta but it’s not known if they’re interested.  The mustachioed closer earned $5MM this year.
  • Henning indicates that the acquisition of Edgar Renteria will allow the Tigers to be content with a Marcus Thames/Timo Perez/Ryan Raburn combo in left field, instead of signing Geoff Jenkins.  Maybe the Tigers don’t want to appear too desperate for Jenkins, or maybe they’re serious.

Schilling Names Targets

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UPDATE, 10-31-07: Gordon Edes and Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe spoke to a Red Sox source who does not expect Schilling to return to the team.  The Red Sox will offer an incentive-based contract.  The source added that Tim Wakefield’s option is likely to be exercised.

FROM 10/30/07:

Interesting.  After Boston, Curt Schilling has 12 teams he’d consider pitching for in 2008.  Here they are:

Indians
Tigers
Angels
Mets
Phillies
Braves
Dodgers
Padres
Diamondbacks
Cubs
Cardinals
Brewers

Schilling had talked about the idea of going somewhere he could tutor young pitchers, like Tampa Bay.  But it sounds like that idea is out and he wants to play for a contender.  Not that the Rays can’t contend in ’08.  I’m curious as to why the White Sox and Rockies were excluded, but who knows.

That’s a nice extensive list, so it should be fun if Boston passes.  At a reasonable one-year commitment, any of the dozen should have interest no matter what their rotation looks like.

Tigers Acquire Edgar Renteria

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Big news!  The Tigers made an early strike to improve the shortstop position by acquiring Edgar Renteria for youngsters Jair Jurrjens and Gorkys Hernandez.

The Tigers will owe Renteria roughly $6.3MM in ’08 and have a good chance of exercising his $11MM option for ’09.  They’ve added a five-win shortstop in Renteria.

The price was reasonable.  Jurrjens turns 22 in January and can probably jump into the Braves’ rotation.  He throws in the 90-93 with good control.  Kevin Goldstein projected him as a future middle-rotation guy.  The one concern is that shoulder inflammation surfaced in August of this year.

Hernandez is the potential star in the deal.  He turned 20 in September and should man center field in Atlanta for a long time once he’s ready.  He’s a burner with solid defense, but he’s yet to grow into his power.  He’s still a ways from the bigs though.  Goldstein recently ranked him the game’s 10th best CF prospect, behind the Braves’ own Jordan Schafer and others like Jay Bruce, Colby Rasmus, Andrew McCutchen, and Jacoby Ellsbury.

All in all, I think the Tigers did quite well here.  I’d like the deal a bit more for Atlanta if I felt that Jurrjens could provide 180 solid innings in ’08.  Will Carroll and the aforementioned Goldstein contribute some additional analysis at BP.  Sounds like this one began under John Schuerholz.

A-Rod Aftermath

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Lost in the shuffle of Alex Rodriguez’s opt-out media frenzy – the Yankees should be able to snag some nice draft picks for him.  They’ll undoubtedly offer him arbitration, and he’ll decline that offer.  If that does happen and he’s signed by the Cubs, Tigers, Mets, Angels, or Red Sox, the Yankees will get that team’s first-round pick.  The Giants and Dodgers’ first round picks are protected however.

Joel Sherman names the Angels, Dodgers, Cubs, Mets, Red Sox, and Tigers as teams to watch in this bidding war.  Kat O’Brien adds the White Sox to the mix, while Peter Abraham adds the Giants.  My best guess is the Halos.  Another thought – does it have to be Lowell or A-Rod for Boston?  Couldn’t it be both if they believe Rodriguez can play a capable shortstop?

Odds and Ends: Abreu, Beckett, Helton, Schilling

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Friday afternoon rumor tidbits…

  • The Indians will probably let Kenny Lofton leave while exercising Joe Borowski’s $4MM option.  No big surprise there.
  • Nor is it a surprise that the Yankees are heavily leaning towards exercising Bobby Abreu’s $16MM option.
  • From the what might’ve been department: Red Sox owner John Henry was in favor of signing A.J. Burnett instead of trading for Josh Beckett.  One could make a solid argument that the Red Sox would be better off if Henry had gotten his wish.  Beckett and Julio Lugo combined for 8.6 wins at $14MM this year while Burnett and Hanley Ramirez combined for 14.8 wins at $12.4MM (according to WARP).
  • From that same department – Tom Gage notes that the Tigers once nearly acquired Todd Helton for Tony Clark.  There were many Clark rumors from 1999-2001 before the Red Sox claimed him off waivers.  I heard Buck and McCarver talking recently about how Helton is not a product of his home park.  For the record Helton has hit .368/.474/.668 at home in his career and .304/.409/.515 on the road.  He probably belongs in the Hall but it would be a lot tighter if his career OPS was .924 instead of 1.014.
  • Nick Cafardo makes his case for the Red Sox to re-sign Curt Schilling.
  • A scouting look at Hiroki Kuroda, plus other Japanese pitchers who may come over (hat tip to MetsBlog).  Jason Churchill estimates a three-year deal for Kuroda at $9-11MM per.
  • How would you like to face a 125 mph fastball?

Tigers Hot Stove Talk

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Lynn Henning of the Detroit News runs down all of the big names rumored to be possibilities for the Tigers this winter and assesses the likelihood of each.  It’s a well-written article so be sure to read it.  Here are the players, ranked by the percent chance of playing for Detroit next year:

Kenny Rogers – 90%
Todd Jones – 80%
Geoff Jenkins – 75%
Edgar Renteria – 50%
Jack Wilson – 30%
Francisco Cordero – 5%
Alex Rodriguez – 3%
Mariano Rivera – 3%
Raul Ibanez – 0.5%
Torii Hunter – 0%
Andruw Jones – 0%

  • Henning believes Jenkins is quite likely to become a Tiger on a two-year deal.  He only costs money, as the Brewers won’t be offering him arbitration if they decline his option.  The Twins may be in the mix for him as well.
  • Henning notes that new Braves GM Frank Wren and current Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski have a connection and could easily work together on a Renteria trade.  Pitching would be the requirement.  Jeremy Bonderman seems like too much; Nate Robertson perhaps too little.
  • The Tigers badly want to bring Rogers back; that seems very likely.
  • Henning expects Jones back unless he receives an offer from the Braves, located somewhat near his home.  That’s not expected.

More Mariners Info

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I just learned that Larry LaRue of the Tacoma News Tribune has his own blog.  Here’s some recent info from him to complement our Mariners Needs and Luxuries post.

  • Regarding that starter they need to add this winter…how about Johan Santana?  LaRue had a post a couple of weeks ago indicating the Twins have scouted the Mariners and would start the discussion with Adam Jones.  With a negotiating window, it’s something the Ms would have to consider.  Santana and Felix Hernandez fronting the rotation would get all of Venezuela tuning in for 40% of Mariners games.
  • LaRue seemingly takes a shot at Jayson Stark, saying that Stark’s note about a team claiming Richie Sexson and the Mariners pulling him back was false.  LaRue probably did not realize the rumor started with a respected baseball writer. 

Rosenthal’s Latest: Bonds, Nathan, Barrett

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Ken Rosenthal has a new rumor column up.  Feels like it’s been a while.

  • Rosenthal thinks it’s a sign of desperation that the Angels would entertain signing Barry Bonds, who doesn’t fit in with their club.  His OBP would fit in anywhere, but he would tie up the DH spot at the expense of Juan Rivera and Vladimir Guerrero.
  • The Cubs are expected to bring Daryle Ward back at $1.2MM (makes sense) and Steve Trachsel at $4.75MM (questionable).  Cubs fans can only hope Trachsel would be considered a tradeable asset, as Rosenthal opines.  Rosenthal also quashes the idea of trading Aramis Ramirez, both because of his full no-trade clause and the team’s impending sale. 
  • David Eckstein is expected to leave the Cardinals, no big surprise.  Rosenthal reiterates recent rumors connecting him to the White Sox, Tigers, and Mets.
  • Rosenthal’s idea for Bill Smith and the Twins: keep Johan Santana this winter, and instead trade the $6MM super-closer Joe Nathan.  Teams would line up for him, and Pat Neshek wouldn’t be a bad replacement.
  • Do you think Michael Barrett could be a free agent bargain?  Rosenthal talked to one exec who feels this way, and it is a good point if he can bounce back to .280/.350/.480 for five million bucks.

Catcher Salaries

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Dan Graziano noted in his column today that Ivan Rodriguez may have set the market for Jorge Posada when his option was exercised.  Posada was the game’s second-highest paid catcher in 2007, with his $12MM salary behind only Jason Kendall’s $13MM.  Posada is coming off a .338/.426/.543 season, so he’s going to break the bank.  Some team is probably going to offer $15MM per year over four years. 

Now that Pudge is locked in at $13MM for ’08, he’s jumped to that top of the list.  Behind him, Jason Varitek makes $9MM and Ramon Hernandez earns $7.5MM next year.  Ramon Castro should prepare for a huge raise – he made $850K in ’07 but could be around $4MM in ’08.

Many catchers will definitely have to take a pay cut.  Kendall won’t get $13MM again, of course.  Paul Lo Duca probably won’t pull $6.25MM.  Jason LaRue will come down from this year’s $5.2MM.  Michael Barrett at $4.6MM?  Probably not.  Brad Ausmus at $3.5MM?  No way.

If you’re interested, Download catcher_salaries.xls.  It’s an Excel spreadsheet with all the 2007 and 2008 catcher salaries.

Tigers Exercise Pudge’s $13MM Option

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According to Baseball Digest Daily, the Tigers have picked up Ivan Rodriguez’s $13MM option for 2008.  It was a $10MM decision for the Tigers given the $3MM buyout price.  The Detroit Tiger Weblog is OK with the decision, given the lack of better alternatives. 

By my count, the Tigers have roughly $83MM on the books plus maybe another $6MM for those making near the minimum.  Ballpark it at $90MM, which is $5MM below their Opening Day ’07 mark.  The Tigers have some holes to fill, but it wouldn’t be surprised to see payroll rise past $100MM.  The Tigers passed the 3MM attendance mark this year for the first time ever.

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