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Astros Sign Jack Cust

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WEDNESDAY, 11:17am: The Astros announced the non-guaranteed Major League deal, which is worth $600K.  They still need to clear a 40-man roster spot for Cust.

TUESDAY, 9:30pm: The Astros have agreed to sign Jack Cust, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. It's a one-year deal with a club option for 2013, Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle tweets. TWC Sports represents the corner outfielder/DH.

Cust, 33, averaged 28 homers and 103 walks with the A's from 2007-09, but his power numbers have since fallen off. If he regains his form in Houston, he could DH for the Astros in 2013, when the team moves to the American League West. Cust, who has a career UZR/150 of -22.4 as an outfielder, figures to pinch hit and play left and right in 2012.

Cust posted a .213/.344/.329 line with three home runs in 270 plate appearances for the Mariners in 2011, when he earned $2.5MM. The Mariners released him in August and the Phillies signed him soon afterwards. There was no reported interest in Cust earlier in the offseason.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: Tuesday

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Dozens of arbitration eligible players have agreed to deals with their respective teams today and we've been tracking all of the developments right here.  Several teams, including the Rays, Nationals, Marlins, White Sox, Blue Jays, Braves, and perhaps Astros, are known for committing to going to hearings if they get to the point of filing.  Keep track of all the madness with MLBTR's arbitration tracker, which shows settlement amounts, filing figures, and midpoints.  Today's players to avoid arbitration on deals worth less than $4MM:

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Cafardo’s Latest: Zumaya, Carlos Lee, Oswalt

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At least three teams are "pushing hard" for Joel Zumaya, says Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. According to Cafardo, 50 scouts from 20 teams were in attendance for Zumaya's December workout, and the Red Sox and Padres are among the clubs who are very interested in the right-hander. Here are a few more items of interest from Cafardo's Sunday Baseball Notes:

  • An Astros source confirmed to Cafardo that the club has received a few inquires on Carlos Lee, as we heard earlier this week. The Rays briefly discussed a deal, but even half of Lee's $18.5MM salary figures to be too pricey for Tampa Bay.
  • A long-term extension doesn't look likely for Jacoby Ellsbury this week, but he and the Red Sox should avoid arbitration on a one-year deal before Tuesday's deadline.
  • Based on Hiroki Kuroda's deal with the Yankees, an NL GM thinks Roy Oswalt could be had for about $9MM for one year. There were rumblings this week suggesting Oswalt's current asking price may be even lower.
  • An NL scout on Edwin Jackson and his likely cost: "For that kind of money, you need more consistency out of him. I guess there's a lack of trust in that consistency. He's a great athlete, but he doesn't have a great feel for pitching. To me, he's still a complementary piece."
  • Ryan Spilborghs and Chad Qualls are two free agents to keep in mind for the Red Sox, says Cafardo. The Sox have "always liked" Spilborghs, who was non-tendered by the Rockies last month, and Qualls "has been on Boston's radar all offseason."

Stark On Yankees, Red Sox, Reds, Garza

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The new collective bargaining agreement has created millions of dollars in incentives for teams to be below the luxury tax when it reaches $189MM in 2014, according to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark. The upcoming changes have contributed to the relatively restrained spending on the part of the Yankees and Red Sox this offseason, Stark writes. Here are the rest of his rumors…

  • The Yankees won’t be under the luxury tax threshold in 2012 or 2013, but they hope to spend less than $189MM in 2014, Stark writes. However, the CBA isn’t the only reason the Yankees are spending more cautiously. "I think this is what the Yankees were going to do, regardless," one of Stark’s sources said.
  • Hiroki Kuroda is sending signals to the Yankees and Red Sox that he’d like to sign with one of those teams, Stark reports. The Red Sox are “nowhere near close” on Kuroda while the Yankees are mostly “kicking tires,” Stark hears. Stark's colleague Buster Olney reported today that Kuroda's asking price has dropped to the $10-11MM range.
  • Though rival teams were surprised to see the Reds agree to terms with Ryan Madson, the move will help the team stockpile draft picks. They’ll obtain a compensatory pick when Francisco Cordero signs elsewhere and could obtain two more picks if they tender Madson a contract next offseason and he leaves as a free agent.
  • The Reds are going to attempt to turn Aroldis Chapman into a starter this Spring Training, though there’s some skepticism he’ll thrive in the rotation.
  • Chad Qualls’ name is on the Phillies’ shopping list, Stark reports.
  • Rival teams predict the Cubs won’t trade Matt Garza until July, when there are fewer alternatives available in free agency.
  • Stark hears that the Astros would pay half of the $18.5MM remaining on Carlos Lee’s contract and at least $7MM of the $11MM that Brett Myers will earn in 2012. Wandy Rodriguez is also available, though the Astros don’t appear to be nearing a deal involving the left-hander.

Astros Designate Henry Villar For Assignment

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The Astros announced that they designated right-hander Henry Villar for assignment to create 40-man roster space. Houston claimed outfielder Fernando Martinez from the Mets earlier today. 

Villar, 24, did not appear with the Astros in 2011, though he pitched in eight MLB games in 2010. He spent last year with Houston's top two affiliates and posted a 5.45 ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 76 total innings. In six minor league seasons with the Astros, Villar has a 3.63 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.

Astros Claim Fernando Martinez

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1:35pm: The Astros claimed Martinez, tweets ESPNNewYork's Adam Rubin.  They had the first crack at Martinez in the waiver process, with MLB's worst record in 2011.

11:53am: Mets outfielder Fernando Martinez will be claimed shortly by an NL Central team, tweets ESPN's Enrique Rojas.  The team appears to be the Astros, based on this tweet from Rojas.

Baseball America named Martinez one of the top 100 prospects in the game before each of the 2007-10 seasons, and at age 23, he's worth a 40-man roster spot for new Houston GM Jeff Luhnow.  Injuries, selectivity, and plate coverage have limited Martinez thus far, wrote Baseball America a year ago.

Astros Links: Lee, Wandy, Vasquez, Santana, Law

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The Astros inked southpaw Trever Miller on this date in 2006, bringing him back for a second stint with the team. Here's the latest from Houston…

  • The Astros have heard from a few teams with interest in Carlos Lee, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Nothing is close however, and Morosi speculates that the Indians could be a fit.
  • Interest in Wandy Rodriguez "seems almost nonexistent," reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). Last month we heard that the Astros seemed willing to absorb some of the $25.5MM left on the left-hander's contract to facilitate a trade.
  • MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports that the Astros have signed 16-year-old right-hander Carlos Vasquez and 17-year-old outfielder Edward Santana. An agreement with 17-year-old righty Tomas Lopez is not yet official. All three players are from the Dominican Republic and will report to the team's academy there.
  • Keith Law announced (on Twitter) that he will remain with ESPN after interviewing for some front office positions with the Astros last month.
  • The Astros have received permission to interview Cardinals regional cross-checker Mike Elias for a special assistant role in scouting, reports Law (on Twitter).

Luhnow On Rebuilding, Free Agents, Payroll, Norris

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Astros GM Jeff Luhnow made an appearance on Astroline Radio yesterday, discussing a variety of topics about the team. You can listen to the interview here, though Astros' senior director of social media Alyson Footer provided a partial transcript. Here are the highlights…

  • "[Our] plan involves us building from within, developing a system that can be productive and allow us to compete year in and year out," said the GM. "How long it takes until we’re competing year in and year out, I don’t know at this point."
  • Luhnow said they will "be a small market team for a few years" as they rebuild, meaning they will avoid big free agent contracts.
  • The Houston market is big enough that the Astros can support a large payroll, but the team has "milestones along the way that [they're] going to need to hit" if they want to approach $100MM.
  • The team plans to emphasize both scouting and statistical analysis to make the best decisions as they move forward.
  • Luhnow does not plan to trade right-hander Bud Norris. "He is a critical part of the plan moving forward," said the GM.

NL Central Notes: Garza, Cubs, Cespedes, Astros

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Today, we learned that even though there's mutual interest between the Cardinals and free agent Roy Oswalt, it seems that the club might be looking at the veteran in a relief role.  The Cards already have five starters in the fold, but it's unknown whether Oswalt would open to pitching out of the bullpen.  Here's more from the NL Central..

  • A contending team can land Cubs right-hander Matt Garza if they're willing to part with three prospects from a team's "A" list, a Major League source tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.  The Red Sox, Yankees, and Blue Jays are among the teams known to be interested, but none have upped their offers to this point.
  • The Pirates have been tracking Yoenis Cespedes for a number of years, GM Neal Huntington told Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.  The Bucs are expected to be among the bidders for the outfielder but are not considered to be a frontrunner.
  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow is "open for business" when it comes to trades, but it appears that Wandy Rodriguez, Brett Myers, and Carlos Lee will remain with the club when Spring Training starts, writes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.
  • The Astros have hired Sig Mejdal as the club’s director of decision sciences, writes Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle.  The addition of Mejdal should help the club to apply statistical analysis to all areas of the organization.  Houston has also brought Stephanie Wilka aboard as the coordinator of amateur scouting.  Wilka previously worked for the Dodgers and Red Sox.

Astros Interview Keith Law

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The Astros kicked off a new era when they hired Jeff Luhnow to be their new GM earlier this month, and now they’re looking to fill out the rest of their front office. Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports report that the Astros have interviewed ESPN’s Keith Law for a number of front office roles, including the position of scouting director. They have not yet made him an offer, however.

The FOX duo report that Law met with Luhnow and club president George Postolos last week. Before joining ESPN in 2006, Law spent four and a half years with the Blue Jays as a special assistant to then-GM J.P. Ricciardi. 

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