Joakim Soria Signs Extension
SUNDAY, 10:29am: Bob Dutton reports that Soria gets $8MM guaranteed with a chance to earn $32MM. There are accelerator clauses included to cover a possible move to the rotation.
SATURDAY, 10:11pm: Royals closer Joakim Soria signed a three-year contract extension with an additional three option years tonight. The terms are not yet known.
Soria, 24 years old tomorrow, would’ve been arbitration-eligible starting with the 2010 season. Assuming the contract starts in ’09, it appears to buy out two arb years with an option on the last. Then the Royals have options on two free agent seasons. If Soria’s deal is similar to that of Manny Corpas, Soria might get around $7MM guaranteed for the 2009-11. I’m sure we’ll know soon enough.
Soria’s lights-out start to the ’08 season seems to demonstrate improvement upon his fine rookie year. Will the Royals try him in the rotation one of these years? Also, are they discussing extensions with Zack Greinke or Brian Bannister? Nothing has been reported yet.
Odds and Ends: Jacque, Vizquel, Greinke
Today’s linkage…
- An MLBTR chat will take place in this space at 2pm CST – get your questions ready!
- I will also be hopping on ESPN-1580 (Columbia, MO) today at 4:20pm CST.
- Jacque Jones prefers to play for the Marlins…I imagine he will end up there.
- GM bloodlines courtesy of Batter’s Box.
- Omar Vizquel wants to play in ’09, if he has a good offensive year in ’08.
- The White Sox do not intend to overpay their 8th overall pick this June.
- The Royals haven’t had any extension talks yet with Zack Greinke, who would become a free agent after the 2010 season. Greinke says he doesn’t know what he’s worth. The market says about $11MM over the 2009-10 seasons.
- J.P. Ricciardi says he’s done tinkering with his offense.
Stark’s Latest: Griffey, Daniel Cabrera, Lidge
ESPN’s Jayson Stark has a new column up; it’s a must-read.
- Stark examines the impact of ten deals made last offseason; check it out.
- Because of last year’s surprise playoff clubs, teams may wait extra long this year before throwing in the towel and trading veterans.
- As Peter Gammons has noted, Ken Griffey Jr.‘s 2009 option will be an impediment in dealing him. Even if the Reds find a suitor Griffey will probably want that $16.5MM guaranteed for ’09.
- Daniel Cabrera will be available again this summer. The Orioles should trade him as soon as possible; the .213 BABIP and 1.62 K/BB ratio indicate that his 3.54 ERA is a fluke.
- The Royals will have pitching to spare this summer, with guys like Ron Mahay, Jimmy Gobble, and Brett Tomko on the block. Might make sense to shop Gil Meche, too.
- The Phillies may want to explore an extension with impending free agent Brad Lidge before season’s end. Three years might be their max, though. The extension subject has not yet been broached with Pat Burrell.
Royals Mulling Options For No. 3 Pick
In MLB.com articles here and here, Dick Kaegel attempts to decipher the Royals’ plans for their #3 pick in the June draft.
Comments from Royals’ scouting director Deric Ladnier have been understandably cryptic. Kaegel’s interpretation is that the Royals will lean toward a college power hitter such as Pedro Alvarez (if available) or Justin Smoak. Top pitchers as well as catchers Kyle Skipworth and Buster Posey can’t be ruled out though. First baseman Eric Hosmer has been suggested as another possibility; it’s still wide open.
Rockies Acquire Jason Grilli, Jorge de la Rosa
The Rockies and Tigers made a swap today. The Rockies get 31 year-old pitcher Jason Grilli, while the Tigers receive 22 year-old pitcher Zach Simons.
Grilli has served as a mop-up man for the Tigers the past two years, eating bullpen innings at a mediocre ERA. The Rox may have been drawn to his typically decent groundball rates.
Simons appears to be a long shot to reach the bigs; he wasn’t among the Rockies’ top 30 prospects.
The Rox also completed their long-rumored deal for lefty Jorge de la Rosa. He’ll jump right into the rotation. The 27 year-old is an interesting arm when healthy.
Odds and Ends: Morris, Moeller, de la Rosa
Let’s kick things off with an odds and ends post today. By the way did anyone watch Max Scherzer‘s debut last night? Damn.
- Dejan Kovacevic notes that even if Matt Morris considered retiring and abandoning his ’08 salary, the Players Association would’ve strongly objected.
- Rays Senior VP of Baseball Ops Gerry Hunsicker indicates that the team will spend money to improve the team if they’re still contending a few months from now.
- According to Jon Heyman, catcher Chad Moeller will remain with the Yankees.
- Another fine piece from Bob Nightengale of USA Today (hat tip to ShysterBall). The article discusses the pros and cons of young players leaving money on the table in exchange for security.
- The Rockies may complete their long-rumored Jorge de la Rosa acquisition. The Rox have question marks in the rotation after Aaron Cook and Jeff Francis.
- Good point from Ken Davidoff – the Phil Hughes/Johan Santana question can’t be answered yet.
Odds And Ends: Thomas, Jays, Myers, Nomo
Expect another one of these today. There’s lots of little stuff, but not much in the way of substantive rumors.
- The Mariners were one of four teams contacted by Frank Thomas’s agent. The A’s were obviously another. So who were the other two?
- With 24-year-old backstop Robinzon Diaz mashing in AAA, the Jays might look to spin off either Gregg Zaun or Rod Barajas come July.
- 39-year-old southpaw Mike Myers requested and was granted his unconditional release from the Dodgers.
- After DFAing him on Sunday, the Royals have placed Hideo Nomo on release waivers. If unclaimed by noon on Tuesday, he’ll become a free agent.
- Curtis Granderson says his allergies are killing him. I can empathize. Fret not, Curtis. If you’re like me, you’ll be in the clear next week.
Posted by Joe Pawlikowski.
No Thomas, Bonds For Royals
On Monday, Bradford Doolittle suggested that Frank Thomas or Barry Bonds might make sense for the Royals if they move Billy Butler to first base. The Royals’ .311 OBP is 13th in the AL; their .346 SLG is the league’s worst. Based on Dayton Moore’s offseason moves, he seems to be playing to win in ’08.
Moore rained on the Thomas/Bonds parade yesterday, implying that he is not considering either player currently. Mike Piazza might work, if it’s clubhouse concerns the Royals aim to avoid.
Royals Seeking Offensive Upgrade?
Did you know that the Royals have yet to score more than six runs in a game this season? I didn’t, either, before I came across Bradford Doolittle’s piece in the Kansas City Star. While the team has seen some quality performances from the pitching staff, their offense is in a rut. Lucky for them, there are two guys waiting by the phone right now who could provide instant upgrades: Frank Thomas and Barry Bonds.
Thomas could definitely fit into the picture. Ross Gload is okay, but certainly not a lock as a regular. The only problem here is that if you replace Gload with Thomas, you have to move Billy Butler out to first base. Yeah, there are more disastrous spots for him out there — I recall Baseball Prospectus’s Kevin Goldstein telling a less than flattering story of Butler’s outfield skills. He can’t be much worse than Jason Giambi out there, so it’s worth a shot.
The crazy thing is that Bonds could fit in, too. The only obstacle is Jose Guillen’s contract. The newly-signed right fielder is hitting .173/.205/.307, while having the most at bats on the team. I know the season is young, but this can become a problem. It’s not like Guillen was a superstar coming in. It’s just that there’s no way the Royals can rid themselves of him — that is, even if they wanted to.
But if Dayton Moore slid Mark Teahen back to right and signed Bonds, he might be creating a decent situation. Bonds can’t play left all the time, but when he can’t, you can get Joey Gathright to play out there (with David DeJesus manning CF full-time). Bonds can DH to give Thomas days off. And Gload can fill in for Butler when needed.
No, it’s not an ideal solution. You’d be bringing in one defensive liability in Bonds, and creating another one by signing Thomas. However, if the Royals think they can compete this year, they’re going to need an offensive upgrade. Nabbing Frank Thomas seems like a logical move, then.
Posted by Joe Pawlikowski, who writes for River Ave. Blues, a Yankees blog. You can email me rumors here.
Royals Considerations For No. 3 Pick
Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star has an article discussing the Royals’ third overall pick in the June draft. The Royals are giving the usual line about taking the best available player.
It seems logical that the Rays could take shortstop Tim Beckham first, and then the Pirates would take corner infielder Pedro Alvarez. That’d leave pitchers Aaron Crow and Brian Matusz and first baseman Eric Hosmer as possibilities for KC. Saberscouting did a mock draft today, suggesting Crow and Hosmer as the likely candidates. Additionally, ESPN scouting guru Keith Law dropped me a line suggesting catcher Buster Posey is a definite top three draft candidate.