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Michael Young Requests Trade

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TUESDAY, 12:10am: Young feels a breach of trust occurred with the Rangers in part because they told him they were not trying to trade him when they actually were, tweets ESPN's Jayson Stark.  Stark adds that Young would be willing to consider expanding his eight-team list on a "case-to-case basis."

MONDAY, 10:34pm: MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan has the list of eight teams Young is willing to accept a trade to: Cardinals, Yankees, Twins, Astros, Rockies, Dodgers, Angels, and Padres. The team has said they are dealing with just those eight teams right now.

9:45pm: Grant passes along some strong words from Young…

"I've kept a low profile out of respect for the team, the coaching staff, my family and the fans because I didn't want to put anybody on an unnecessary roller-coaster. Now, I think it's important to address the inaccurate portrayal that is being painted. The suggestion that I've simply had a change of heart and asked for a trade is a manipulation of the truth."

"I want to be traded because I've been misled and manipulated and I'm sick of it."

Young wouldn't elaborate when asked how he was "misled and manipulated," instead saying it "would be unproductive for everybody, particularly my teammates and coaches. I know the truth and Jon Daniels knows the truth and I will sleep well."

9:16pm: Jeff Wilson of The Star Telegram hears that the Rangers would be willing to trade Young within the AL West as long as it helps improve the team. He reminds us that Texas traded high-end prospects to a division rival for Cliff Lee just last summer.

5:06pm: Michael Young has officially requested a trade according to Rangers GM Jon Daniels, reports Anthony Andro of The Star Telegram (Twitter links). The request came about a week ago, though Daniels said "nothing's imminent" according to SI.com's Jon Heyman (on Twitter).

"It's not our first choice," said Daniels. "We'd like to go to camp with him … If we can accomodate his request and upgrade the club he would like to do that."

Those quotes come courtesy of Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News and Troy Renck of the Denver Post (Twitter links). Team president Nolan Ryan said they're "going to do what’s in the best interest of the ballclub" according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Ryan would not speculate about whether the team would eat some of Young's salary, and he said he expects "proper compensation" for his third baseman according to Andro and Renck (Twitter links).

This is not the first time Young has requested a trade from the Rangers. He did so before the 2009 season, after the club asked him to play third base in deference to Elvis Andrus. Obviously nothing came of that, but Young still had a clearly defined role with the team back then. Now he's expected to be a part-time infielder and part-time DH with Adrian Beltre and Mike Napoli on board.

Young, 34, has been mentioned in trade talk all winter, most notably with the Rockies. He was said to have "grown disillusioned about his diminished role" over the weekend, and we heard that Colorado would need Texas to eat about $20MM of the $48MM left on Young's salary to make a deal happen.

Young has a limited no-trade clause that allows him to block deals to all but eight teams, however Colorado is one of the eight. Ryan says that Young will not expand the list of teams he's willing to go to even though some of the clubs on the no-trade list have expressed interest in acquiring him according to Renck and Andro (all Twitter links). Daniels would not specify which teams have inquired about Young.

If Texas was willing to trade within the division, they might find suitors in the Angels and Athletics, though that is speculation on my part. Both clubs whiffed on Beltre and are known to be seeking upgrades at the hot corner. Colorado would use Young at second base full-time.

Misc. Signings: Coke, Bourgeois, Rodriguez, Hammock

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Here are a few miscellaneous signings from around the league…

  • The Tigers have agreed to terms with eight pre-arbitration-eligible players according to MLB.com's Jason Beck. The only big leaguer of the bunch is left-hander Phil Coke, who received $425K. The other seven players are minor league prospects.
  • Senior Director of Social Media Alyson Footer tweets that the Astros have agreed to terms with a pair of pre-arb players. Outfielder Jason Bourgeois gets $424K, right-hander Aneury Rodriguez $413K. Houston acquired Rodriguez in this offseason's Rule 5 Draft.
  • The Diamondbacks have signed Robby Hammock to a minor league contract according to MLB.com's Steve Gilbert. Hammock, 33, spent the 2010 season in the Yankees' minor league system, hitting .233/.341/.370 in 85 plate appearances while battling injury. He played with the D'Backs from 2003 through 2008, and has experience at catcher, first base, third base, and the corner outfield spots. 

Quick Hits: Diamondbacks, Guerrero, Marcum, Pence

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Football will dominate today's sports headlines, but ESPN.com's Jayson Stark tweets some good news for baseball fans – Super Sunday also represents the start of the last week without baseball until November! Here are today's links, as the Packers and Steelers prepare to square off in Texas….

Quick Hits: Pedro, Diamondbacks, Astros, Pettitte

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Friday Night Links..

  • Pedro Martinez isn't working out and a comeback is looking less and less likely, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated.  If Martinez does return in 2011, it'll be on a second-half deal again. 
  • Jeff Moorad's stake in the Diamondbacks is finally close to being sold, writes Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic.  Moorad parted ways with the D'Backs more than two years ago to lead a group that purchased the Padres.
  • Since Astros owner Drayton McLane announced in November he was going to put the team up for sale, he has been purposely tight-lipped about the process, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com.  Even though McLane has kept things quiet, McTaggart writes that there is probably plenty of negotiating going on behind the scenes.
  • WEEI.com's Alex Speier remembers Boston's pursuit of Andy Pettitte in 2003.

The Connection Between Pence, Scott And Young

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Hunter Pence and his representatives at Beverly Hills Sports Council likely took notice when Mike Napoli and the Rangers agreed to a $5.8MM salary for 2011. And Pence’s agency will probably be watching the cases for Luke Scott and Delmon Young just as carefully (keep track of all arbitration submissions with MLBTR's Arb Tracker).

Pence, a super two who is arbitration eligible for the second time, asked for more money than Scott, Napoli, or Young even though the Astros outfielder is a year further from free agency than the others. Pence can ask for $6.9MM through arbitration, since his career totals compare well with players like Scott and Young, who are on track to hit free agency after 2012. 

Pence

Pence doesn’t have as much big league experience as Scott, Napoli or Young, but he has more career runs and stolen bases than any of them and comparable home run and RBI totals. Pence is also working from a relatively high base salary ($3.5MM) and is the only one of the players above to have made an All-Star team.

Length and consistency of career contribution matter in an arbitration hearing, which plays in Pence’s favor. He has appeared in 156 games or more in each of his three full seasons, hitting exactly 25 homers three times in a row. He has finished the past two campaigns with a .282 batting average, so it shouldn’t be hard for BHSC to show that Pence has been consistent and durable.

Pence is far from a perfect player; he has been successful just 61% of the time he has attempted to steal bases and doesn’t walk as much as Scott or Napoli. But it's his $6.9MM asking price that could become his biggest problem. Napoli, a comparable player in terms of career accomplishments, settled for $5.8MM. Carlos Quentin, another comparable player, already settled for $5.05MM, reducing the others’ leverage.

Young ($6.25MM) and Scott ($6.85MM) filed for less than Pence, but they could still help their fellow-outfielder by winning in arbitration. If they lose or settle, however, Pence will have a hard time explaining that he’s worth more than the $6.025MM midpoint (the Astros filed at $5.15MM) when comparable players are making $5-6MM.

Pence and the Astros are headed to arbitration soon and what happens with Scott and Young could have a major impact on how much the Astros are paying their right fielder for 2011 and beyond.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Heyman On Pettitte, Millwood, Molina, Wandy

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Yankees people seem a bit more optimistic about the potential return of Andy Pettitte, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. They’ll consider alternatives such as Kevin Millwood, but only after hearing from Pettitte. Here are the rest of Heyman’s rumors:

  • The Indians and Royals remain possibilities for Millwood.
  • One rival executive doesn’t think the Bartolo Colon signing means much for the Yankees. "There is no real risk. But there is no real reward, either," the executive said.
  • Bengie Molina might consider returning for “special opportunities,” Heyman writes.
  • The Rangers and GM Jon Daniels have started discussing a contract extension and Rangers people expect a new deal for Daniels, whose current contract expires after the 2011 season.
  • One competing executive believes the Astros overpaid for Wandy Rodriguez. I don’t mind this deal for the Astros, since solid left-handed starters aren’t cheap or easy to find and Rodriguez was about to hit free agency.

Astros, Wandy Rodriguez Sign Long-Term Deal

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The Astros have avoided arbitration with Wandy Rodriguez, agreeing to a three-year, $34MM contract with the left-hander, the team announced. Rodriguez has passed his physical, according to Astros senior director of social media Alyson Footer (on Twitter).

Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes first reported the extension and Footer tweets that the contract also includes a vesting option for 2014 that could raise the total value of the deal to $44.5MM. Rodriguez is represented by the Wasserman Group.

The average annual value of $11.33MM per season will pay Rodriguez more than the $10.25MM arbitration number he submitted last week (Houston submitted an $8MM contract offer).  The deal covers not just Rodriguez's final arbitration year, but it also buys out his first two free agent years.  MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith listed Rodriguez on his list of ten arbitration cases to watch and noted that the southpaw's eight-figure asking price wasn't so outlandish given his career numbers.

Rodriguez, who turned 32 last week, has a 3.36 ERA, a 2.87 K/BB ratio and an 8.4 K/9 rate in 90 starts for Houston over the last three seasons.  With this extension in place, Hunter Pence is the only arbitration-eligible Astro who hasn't yet settled on a 2011 contract.  MLBTR's ArbTracker offers details on all the arbitration settlements and submitted figures this offseason.

Astros Notes: Pence, Rodriguez, Figueroa

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Wandy Rodriguez's contract extension is the big news out of Houston today, but here are some other Astros-related items of note…

  • The Astros set a 5pm deadline today to reach agreements with any remaining arbitration-eligible players, according to a team press release.  The club beat the deadline with Rodriguez, but not with Hunter Pence, so the Astros and the 27-year-old outfielder will go to an arbitration hearing.  As MLBTR's ArbTracker shows, Pence is Houston's last unsigned arb-eligible player.  The club offered $5.15MM, while Pence is asking for $6.9MM in his second arbitration year.  Pence is a Super Two player, so he still has two more arb years left after this one.
  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post has the breakdown of Rodriguez's contract (Twitter link).  The southpaw will earn $7MM next season, $10MM in 2012 and $13MM in 2013.  There is a vesting option worth $13MM in 2014 that has a $2.5MM buyout.  Rodriguez also receives a $1.5MM signing bonus.
  • MLB.com's Brian McTaggart notes that Houston now has its top four starters (Rodriguez, Brett Myers, J.A. Happ and Bud Norris) all under team control through at least 2012.
  • Nelson Figueroa talks to Astros senior director of social media Alyson Footer about how relieved he is to be on a guaranteed contract for the first time in his eight-year Major League career.

Braves Not Pursuing Jorge Cantu

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6:39pm: Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution confirmed that the Braves discussed Cantu, but they have decided not to pursue him. His source says they only wanted him for a bench role and to mainly backup rookie Freddie Freeman at first base (Twitter links).

12:31pm: The Padres and Braves appear to be the front-runners to land Jorge Cantu, writes Stephen Goff of the Houston Astros Examiner. In addition to San Diego and Atlanta, Cleveland remains a potential destination for the infielder.

Cantu, who turns 29 next weekend, expressed some disappointment that he wasn't able to work out a deal with his hometown Astros, but is optimistic about securing a contract with another team:

"We've been talking to Atlanta, Houston, San Diego and Cleveland," Cantu said. "We were really trying with Houston, but talks have just ceased with them, which is unfortunate…. Still, San Diego is talking a lot. I like San Diego. They have a winning ballclub and had a great pitching staff last year. I wouldn't mind going over there."

The Rockies, Mariners, and Diamondbacks have also been linked to Cantu at various times this offseason, though it's unclear if they still have any interest.

Quick Hits: Vlad, White Sox, Rockies, Reds

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Links for Saturday…

  • SI.com's Jon Heyman reports (via Twitter) that the Orioles and Vladimir Guerrero haven't talked in two weeks. Team president Andy MacPhail shot down a report indicating that the two sides were close to a deal earlier today.
  • White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago that it was a tough decision to add payroll this offseason. "Last year we weren't as good as we thought we could be," said Reinsdorf. "Our attendance was down … I just decided two days before the Adam Dunn signing, 'Let's go for it.' If we spend the money, the attendance will pick up." 
  • Steve Foster of Inside the Rockies notes that the Rockies now have four of their five starting pitchers under contract for 2012 following Jason Hammel's two-year pact, so he looks at possible candidates for that fifth spot.
  • The Cincinnati Enquirer lists the ten most lopsided trades in Reds' history with a little twist: it's the trades that did not work out for Cincy.
  • SI.com's Melissa Segura tweets that the Astros have signed Jose Carlos Thompson for approximately $250K. The second baseman hit .440/.484/.729 at Western Oklahoma State, and is said to be a close friend of Aroldis Chapman's. I'm not sure if that last part has any tangible benefit though.
  • Steve Dilbeck of The Los Angeles Times estimates that the Dodgers are on the hook for almost $94.5MM in payroll next season, plus another $16.3MM in deferred payments.
  • Alex Speier of WEEI.com explains why the Vernon Wells' trade makes the Carl Crawford signing look even better for the Red Sox.
  • Josh Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle says the moves the Athletics' made this offseason make them a serious contender for the AL West crown.
  • The AP (via The Boston Herald) provides a comprehensive list of each team's free agent signings this winter. Of course, you could always use our Transaction Tracker for that and a whole lot more.
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