NL Central Notes: Furcal, Hanrahan, Astros, Brewers
I hesitated at first to include the Astros in these NL Central notes. Thankfully, I've got a year to remap the standings on my mind's sports page. On with the linkage …
- The Pirates are looking at shortstop Rafael Furcal and other options at the position, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.com, although not the premium types like Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins. It'll be interesting to see how the Bucs handle shortstop after declining Ronny Cedeno's $3MM 2012 option last month.
- Pirates closer Joel Hanrahan would be receptive to working out an extension with the team, according to Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com, who reports that there have been no talks but that neither side has ruled it out, either. It's not a regular occurence in Pittsburgh, where Neal Huntington has dished out just one multiyear contract to a reliever, Matt Capps for 2008-09, since taking over in 2007, according to Langosch. Hanrahan is under team control for two more years and is due a sharp raise through arbitration on his $1.4MM 2011 salary coming off a 40-save campaign. The 30-year-old right-hander should earn $4MM in 2012 through arbitration.
- New Astros owner Jim Crane said it was made clear to him before agreeing to purchase the Astros that the team would be moved to the AL, according to Astros senior director of social media Alyson Footer. Crane also cautioned not to expect the Astros to be big players in free agency this year, as they will instead focus on building the farm, and said payroll will "be in line with" incoming revenue (all Twitter links).
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin said he's interested in extending starters Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum, as was reported yesterday, but that the sides haven't had talks yet and aren't in a rush to do so, according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.
- Melvin also hasn't ruled out bringing Craig Counsell aboard as the Brewers' hitting coach, tweets McCalvy. Counsell, however, hasn't ruled out remaining in the game as a player.
- Cardinals CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. said the Redbirds are "going to make every effort" to re-sign first baseman Albert Pujols, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. We heard earlier today and yesterday that the Cards and Pujols' agent have resumed talks.
- New Cubs manager Dale Sveum may bring in Robin Yount as one of his coaches, writes Gordon Wittenmeyer of the Chicago Sun Times.
MLB Owners Approve Astros’ Sale
MLB owners have approved the sale of the Astros from Drayton McLane to Jim Crane, commissioner Bud Selig announced today, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (all Twitter links). The commissioner also confirmed that the Astros will move to the American League West in 2013.
Alyson Footer, the Astros' Senior Director of Social Media, reports that the move to the AL was mandatory for the sale to be approved (Twitter links). Crane told Jeff Wilson of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he Rangers are the model he'd like to follow as the team rebuilds. The Astros finished the worst record in baseball this season at 56-106, and they haven't finished higher than third place in the NL Central since 2006.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Quick Hits: Wood, Red Sox, Angels, Lidge, Astros
Let's round up some links left over from Day Two of the GM meetings in Milwaukee….
- David Kaplan of CSNChicago reports that Kerry Wood is likely to return to the Cubs rather than retire, and may even sign a multiyear deal.
- Echoing Larry Lucchino's sentiment from earlier this evening, GM Ben Cherington told reporters, including ESPNBoston's Gordon Edes (Twitter link), that there's "an expectation" the Red Sox will expand their managerial search. Dale Sveum, the only candidate the Sox have interviewed twice, has reportedly been offered the Cubs' position.
- The Angels promoted Justin Hollander, previously the player development and scouting assistant, to director of baseball operations, according to Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.
- Brad Lidge's agent, Rex Gary, declined to comment to Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald about which clubs had contacted him about the right-hander. However, Gary continues to say his client is open to any role: "He's listening. We’ll listen to whatever clubs want to outline. He certainly can close, but he's open to any other circumstances that presents an opportunity for him to succeed."
- The Angels are among the clubs who seem lukewarm about the idea of the Astros' move to the AL West, writes DiGiovanna.
McLane Confirms Astros Will Move To AL West In 2013
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.
Minor Moves: Kimball, Corporan, Rottino, Pascucci
Today's minor moves…
- The Twins re-signed left-hander Phil Dumatrait, according to the Sosnick Cobbe Twitter page. Dumatrait appeared in 45 games for the Twins last season, posting a 3.92 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9.
- The Blue Jays claimed right-hander Cole Kimball off of waivers from Washington, according to the Nationals' official Twitter feed. Meanwhile, the Nats outrighted outfielder Corey Brown to Triple-A Syracuse.
- Astros catcher Carlos Corporan cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Oklahoma City, tweets Alyson Footer of the Astros. Corporan has the right to elect free agency due to previously being outrighted.
- The Mets signed catcher/left fielder/first baseman Vinny Rottino and first baseman/DH Val Pascucci to minor league deals, reports ESPN's Adam Rubin. Both players saw their first big league action in several years in 2011.
- Eric Duncan, drafted in the first round by the Yankees in 2003, has signed with the Royals, tweets Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus. The 26-year-old played mostly first base, second base, and left field this year for the Cardinals' Double-A affiliate, hitting .274/.322/.527 in 385 plate appearances.
- The White Sox re-signed Leyson Septimo, tweets Goldstein. The Sox claimed the hard-throwing 26-year-old southpaw off waivers from Arizona in June but removed him from their 40-man roster in October.
- The Giants signed center fielder Gregor Blanco, according to his agency (via Matt Eddy of Baseball America on Twitter). The 27-year-old spent the year with the Triple-A affiliates of the Nationals and Royals, hitting .201/.350/.327 in 252 plate appearances.
- The Phillies acquired righty Adam Worthington from the Diamondbacks to complete the September Mike Zagurski trade, tweets Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Worthington, 24, posted a 4.48 ERA, 10.0 K/9, 4.6 BB/9, and 0.6 HR/9 in 62 1/3 High-A relief innings this year.
- The Yankees signed lefty reliever Mike O'Connor, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. The 31-year-old appeared briefly in the Majors for the Mets this year, also posting a 5.22 ERA, 9.8 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, and 1.0 HR/9 in 60 1/3 Triple-A innings.
Rosenthal/Morosi On Dodgers, Astros, Blue Jays
The latest from Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports…
- The Dodgers' payroll will be well under $100MM in 2012, sources tell the FOX writers. If James Loney and Hiroki Kuroda return, there will be little left to spend. On the plus side, the Dodgers were able to reduce Matt Kemp's '12 salary to slightly more than $10MM as part of his new multiyear deal, in a year where as much as $16MM seemed possible through arbitration. Rosenthal and Morosi say the Dodgers would want to buy out at least two free agent years in a long-term deal for Clayton Kershaw, who may take home the NL Cy Young award tomorrow. With Kershaw under team control for three more years, the Dodgers don't have the same urgency to lock him up as they did Kemp. In MLBTR's exclusive arbitration salary projections, Kershaw was pegged at $8.4MM, easily a first-time record for a pitcher.
- The Astros "probably will acquire a shortstop and add low-cost relief pitching" this offseason, write Rosenthal and Morosi. GM Ed Wade told the FOX writers he plans to stick with Mark Melancon at closer. The GM explained his team's corner outfield situation: "From the standpoint of corner outfield, there are going to be guys out there, looking for opportunities. We’re pretty much the land of opportunity right now."
- Chipper Jones still enjoys playing, says Braves GM Frank Wren. The 39-year-old third baseman is signed through 2012 with a '13 vesting option. Rosenthal and Morosi say Martin Prado is available in the right deal, but the Braves value his versatility, including his ability to back up Jones.
- Yoenis Cespesdes could petition baseball to declare him a free agent fairly quickly, after he establishes temporary residence in the Dominican Republic. The residency part is expected to happen within 10 to 14 days.
- The Blue Jays have expressed interest in trading for Rockies reliever Huston Street. Street has one year and $8MM remaining on his contract. Rosenthal and Morosi say the Rockies remain interested in a deal for Prado, which would require Seth Smith and another piece.
Minor Moves: Pridie, Budde, Moore
Today's minor moves…
- Jason Pridie has signed a minor league deal with the Athletics, according to a tweet from Sosnick Cobbe Sports. The 28-year-old earned his first extended look in the bigs in 2011, hitting .231/.309/.370 in 236 plate appearances with the Mets.
- The Diamondbacks signed Ryan Budde to a minor league deal, according to the same tweet. Budde, 32, earned 35 Major League plate appearances over the span of four seasons with the Angels from 2007 to 2010. He spent 2011 at the Blue Jays' Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas.
- The Astros announced they've signed infielder Scott Moore to a minor league deal. The 27-year-old hit .295/.380/.444 with nine home runs in 425 Triple-A plate appearances this year, playing mostly first base, second base, and third base for the Iowa Cubs. The Astros have also signed Brad Snyder, Nick Stavinoha, Travis Buck, Brandon Barnes, Alberto Arias, Jose Valdez, and Xavier Cedeno to minor league deals this offseason. They've added Brian Bixler and Craig Tatum through waiver claims.
Central Notes: Neil Walker, Royals, Oswalt
The latest on several Central division clubs…
- The Pirates are not currently engaged in contract extension discussions for Neil Walker, reports Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The second baseman is under team control through 2016, and will be eligible for arbitration after the 2012 season if he qualifies as a Super Two player.
- Roy Oswalt's agent Bob Garber is expected to meet with the Royals today or tomorrow in Milwaukee, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Garber's agency also represents C.J. Wilson. Kansas City's interest in Oswalt is minimal, however, cautions a Royals source (Twitter link).
- SI's Jon Heyman hears scuttlebutt that if Jim Crane is approved as Astros owner this week, he may spend on a free agent or two. Click here to read my offseason outlook for the team.
- The Tigers have scouted Cuban center fielder Yoenis Cespedes several times, assistant GM Al Avila told John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.
- The Cubs and White Sox could lose possible supplemental draft picks if Type B compensation is eliminated this winter, explains Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune. Of course, under the current system the player has to receive and turn down an arbitration offer for compensation to be possible. For a look at all the Type B free agents, click here.
Astros Likely To Join American League In 2013
Prospective Astros owner Jim Crane has agreed to move the team to the American League in 2013, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Crane still needs the approval of baseball's other owners. He would get a discount of approximately $50MM to switch leagues, according to Heyman. Bob Nightengale of USA Today says compensation will be in the $80MM range (Twitter link).
The move would even out the two leagues at 15 teams each and create six divisions of five teams, assuming Houston joins the four-team American League West. The shift is tied to the upcoming collective bargaining agreement, which may include identical schedules for teams within the same division and boost inter-league play considerably. As MLBTR's Tim Dierkes explained in his GM Meetings preview, owners are expected to approve the sale of the Astros from Drayton McLane to Crane this week.
Minor Moves: Snyder, Fox, Torres
We'll track the latest minor transactions here….
- The Astros have signed outfielder Brad Snyder to a minor league contract, tweets Alyson Footer. The 29-year-old was drafted by the Indians in the first round of the 2003 draft, and spent the last three seasons in the Cubs' organization. He posted an .801 OPS in 407 Triple-A plate appearances for Iowa in 2011.
- Right-hander Matt Fox has agreed to a minor league deal with the Mariners, tweets Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The 28-year-old turned down more money from the Red Sox in favor of what he feels is a better opportunity to pitch in the bigs, MLBTR has learned. Fox made four Major League appearances for the Red Sox and Twins in 2010, but pitched exclusively for Boston's Triple-A affiliate in Pawtucket last season.
- Within the previously linked tweet, Eddy adds that left-hander Joe Torres has re-signed with the Rockies. Torres, a former tenth overall pick by the Angels, spent most of 2011 pitching out of the bullpen at Double-A Tulsa, recording 10.1 K/9 and a 2.28 ERA in 55 1/3 innings.