Royals Rumors

MLB Teams Pursuing Tadahito Iguchi?

By | December 31, 2008 at 11:06pm CDT

Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker has translated a report from Sponichi, a Japanese news network, claiming that infielder Tadahito Iguchi has multiple offers from MLB teams.

Sponichi speculates that the Giants and Royals are nice fits, while Newman himself believes the White Sox might want Iguchi back. Of course, that’s all conjecture. A few teams in Japan are legitimately vying for his services. The 34-year-old batted .232/.292/.306 last season with two dingers and 24 RBI in 310 at-bats. It seems most MLB teams could do better.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Bradley, Burrell, Dunn

By Tim Dierkes | December 23, 2008 at 1:54pm CDT

Ken Rosenthal filed a new column earlier today.

The Angels are lukewarm on Manny Ramirez, and for now are talking about filling their lineup with internal candidates.
Kevin Towers says that if the Jake Peavy sweepstakes heats back up, "nobody is going to know it." Rosenthal discusses the chances of the Angels or Cubs.
Mark Teixeira is "almost certain" to get an escape clause in his deal.
The Cubs are confident about signing Milton Bradley, but the Rays, Yankees, and Nationals are interested too.
Rosenthal looks at possibilities for Pat Burrell, discussing the Rays, Mariners, Rangers, and Reds.
The Brewers expressed interest in Adam Dunn as they were mulling a Mike Cameron trade (Corey Hart would’ve played center).
Bobby Abreu "remains in touch with the Yankees." Surprisingly to hear, as the two sides reportedly had not spoken for quite a while.
The Rangers would like to move some salary, with Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla, and Hank Blalock the candidates.
The Royals like Jerry Hairston Jr., but don’t have the money to sign him.

Odds and Ends: Wilson, Bautista, Hairston

By Tim Dierkes | December 19, 2008 at 4:29pm CDT

Linkage for Friday…

The AP explains how C.C. Sabathia will be paid $9.5MM before throwing a pitch for the Yankees.
The D’Backs signed lefty Travis Blackley.
Dan Johnson is headed to Japan.
The Cardinals signed Japanese pitcher Katsuhiko Maekawa to a minor league deal. Patrick Newman has details.
Interesting discussion involving Raul Ibanez’s defense.
I did a Q&A with SportingGurus.com.
Ken Rosenthal guesses destinations for 11 remaining free agents in this slideshow.
MLB is undergoing a hiring/salary freeze and taking away 20% of vacation time for ’09.
Dejan Kovacevic had a lengthy chat with Pirates shortstop Jack Wilson, who wishes the team would get more players to become competitive. In his article Kovacevic also notes that the Pirates have had talks about bringing back pitcher Denny Bautista, who was non-tendered a week ago.
Are the Mariners trying to open up a spot for Jerry Hairston Jr.? They’re looking to add a plus-plus defensive second baseman; not sure if he qualifies.
Aubrey Huff tops the list of fantasy baseball’s biggest draft position gainers.
Royals pitcher Kyle Davies is working a construction job this offseason.
The Orioles settled with Sidney Ponson regarding their grievance.

Odds and Ends: Abreu, Millwood, Wigginton

By Tim Dierkes | December 18, 2008 at 2:58pm CDT

Links for Thursday…

Luke Hudson agreed to stay with the Royals on a minor league deal. And because Braves fans keep emailing it…the Braves signed Lance Niekro as a pitcher, as noted in the minor league transactions we linked yesterday. Talking Chop and Henry Schulman have more.
Along similar lines, here’s a link to Joel Sherman’s December 12th story about the Orlando Hudson and Adam Dunn being the Nationals’ backup plan for Mark Teixeira. That came four days before the Jon Heyman report people keep emailing.
C.C. Sabathia’s preferred teams heading into free agency: the Yankees, Brewers, and Angels.
Dave O’Brien tries to figure out what the Braves should do with all their money.
John Fay explains why the Reds may attempt to acquire a young shortstop.
The Orioles may move on to Gregg Zaun now that Matt Treanor is off the board.
Geoff Baker speculates on a possible Mariners-Brewers trade match, though nothing seems to be cooking currently.
RotoAuthority looks at the biggest losers, comparing ’09 fantasy baseball mock draft positions to ’08.
I did a Q&A with Called Safe At Second.
ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick writes about how teams view free agent outfielder Bobby Abreu.
Kevin Millwood has twelve million reasons to pitch 180 innings in 2009. I never understood that phrase. Why is each dollar a reason?
Dejan Kovacevic says Ty Wigginton has no wish to return to Pittsburgh.
Roch Kubatko is hearing the Orioles may have reached a settlement with Sidney Ponson regarding the grievance.
Pitcher Jon Leicester is the latest to head to Japan.
Might not read about this on MLBTR, eh? Chico Harlan says the Nationals signed 16 year-old Dominican prospects Bill Pena and Gregory Baez.

Heyman’s Latest: Perez, Greinke, Dye, Garland

By Tim Dierkes | December 18, 2008 at 2:16pm CDT

The latest from SI.com’s Jon Heyman, non-Teixeira department…

Heyman describes the Mets’ chance of signing Oliver Perez as "remote for now." He names other "potential suitors" – the Brewers, Dodgers, Reds, and perhaps Mariners.
Apparently some Yankees people wouldn’t mind if Andy Pettitte passed on their $10MM offer, as they’d be able to pursue Ben Sheets or Derek Lowe.
The Red Sox "looked into" trading for Zack Greinke but didn’t like the price.
Heyman says the Reds, Braves, and Rays are still showing interest in Jermaine Dye.
He says the Dodgers, White Sox, and Mets "could be possibilities" for Jon Garland. A return to Chicago?

19 Teams Interested In Joe Nelson

By Tim Dierkes | December 17, 2008 at 9:30pm CDT

There’s a good chance your favorite team has inquired on free agent reliever Joe Nelson. MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro learned that Nelson’s agent has received inquiries from 19 teams. A few teams have topped a $1MM in their offer. The known suitors: the Royals, Cardinals, Red Sox, Braves, Rays, and Mets. Nelson is hoping to sign before Christmas.

On Friday, the Marlins made the thrifty decision to non-tender Nelson, a positive development for the 34 year-old reliever. He hasn’t ruled out the Marlins, but a return doesn’t seem likely.

Odds and Ends: Ponson, Pie, Dohmann

By Tim Dierkes | December 17, 2008 at 2:00pm CDT

Links for Wednesday…

Check out the recent minor league transactions, always some familiar names.
Scott Erickson’s wife talks about his comeback bid.
The Red Sox have had "early-stage conversations" about an extension for Kevin Youkilis.
The Phillies invited ten players to Spring Training and signed a bunch of minor league free agents. The Royals invited four, including Lenny DiNardo and Oscar Villarreal.
Roch Kubatko suggests the Orioles should try to acquire Ryan Garko.
Curt Schilling weighs in on Mark Teixeira’s options.
Dayton Moore still doesn’t sound willing to trade Zack Greinke.
Peter Schmuck and Craig Calcaterra discuss the Sidney Ponson case, which could have a significant impact on the game.
RotoAuthority looks at the current top fantasy draft picks at each position.
Gordon Wittenmyer expects Felix Pie to be traded.
Cesar Izturis’ contract is actually for two years and $5MM guaranteed, plus incentives.
John Fay looks at options for a right-handed bat for the Reds.
Reliever Scott Dohmann is headed to Japan on a $650K deal plus incentives.
Chris Capuano can earn over $3MM this year based on incentives.
Willie Bloomquist hasn’t received an offer yet, and he doesn’t expect to return to Seattle.

No Trade Market For Jack Wilson

By Tim Dierkes | December 16, 2008 at 11:53pm CDT

According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Pirates might not be able to trade shortstop Jack Wilson this offseason. Even if the Dodgers miss out on Rafael Furcal, their Plan B is Orlando Cabrera. The A’s, Royals, and Blue Jays have not expressed interest in Wilson. Kovacevic says the Blue Jays are definitely not interested. You may recall that J.P. Ricciardi went out of his way to deny interest in Wilson in July of last year.

Odds and Ends: Wigginton, Andruw, Royals

By Tim Dierkes | December 16, 2008 at 3:00pm CDT

Links and notes for Tuesday…

The Rays held a "get-to-know you" chat with free agent reliever Joe Nelson. Also, exec Andrew Friedman doesn’t see their pursuit for a hitter lasting into late January.
The Mets will not be affected by the money a few of their owners lost in the Bernard Madoff scheme.
Argenis Reyes and Ambiorix Burgos are now free agents after being non-tendered.
RotoAuthority has a running list of pitchers who are moving from the AL to the NL for 2009.
I chatted about the Yankees with Coast To Coast Baseball.
El Lefty Malo discusses the idea of the Giants signing Ty Wigginton.
Kevin Baxter passes along quotes from Andruw Jones regarding the future.
Rany Jazayerli weighs in on recent Royals moves.
Bleeding Blue and Teal tells us about Taiwanese lefty Fu-Te Ni, who may sign with a Major League team.

Royals Sign John Bale

By Tim Dierkes | December 16, 2008 at 12:43pm CDT

According to Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star, the Royals signed lefty John Bale to a one-year deal. They non-tendered him last week. Bale pitched 11.1 scoreless innings in relief this year after returning from a self-inflicted broken hand.

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