Rangers Rumors: DeJesus, Lamb, Millar
Evan Grant writes for the Dallas Morning News, but he posted this column at night. Go figure. He’s got some new info regarding the Rangers.
- As you know, the Rangers have had difficulty finding a long-term center fielder. That’s the main focus of this offseason. The team has already shown interest in Torii Hunter and Aaron Rowand, the top center fielders available. Other free agents such as Andruw Jones and Mike Cameron appear to be in play as well. Grant’s trade candidates: Coco Crisp, David DeJesus, Mark Kotsay, and Carlos Beltran. We’ve speculated on DeJesus to Atlanta in the past. With DeJesus signed cheaply through 2011 and the market at the position robust this winter, it might make sense for Dayton Moore to wait a year to shop him aggressively.
- Grant adds that Jon Daniels is considering some affordable options for first base. They’ve already talked to Mike Lamb‘s agent and like Kevin Millar as well. Lamb came up through the Rangers’ system but was traded to the Yankees in ’04. Millar is under contract for ’08 but it’s in the $3-4MM range and the Orioles should be open to a trade. Grant says Ben Broussard could pique the Rangers’ interest if he’s non-tendered.
- Grant concludes with five Rangers whose names will be bandied about in trade talks: Gerald Laird, Vicente Padilla, Joaquin Arias, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and Nelson Cruz. Salty’s not being shopped but Grant expects teams to ask. He proposes some kind of bad contract swap for Padilla – Jason Giambi, Richie Sexson, or Adam Eaton are named. I still think it’s funny the way Padilla crawled away from the brawl he started this year.
Odds and Ends: Cook, Benoit, Griffey, Riske
Some random tidbits that didn’t get their own posts today…
- The Rockies picked up Aaron Cook‘s $4.5MM option as expected. The bigger question is whether they can sign him long-term, maybe for three years. They also passed on LaTroy Hawkins for $3.75MM but may still sign him.
- The Rangers agreed to a two-year contract with reliever Joaquin Benoit for two years and $6MM. He would’ve hit free agency after 2008. Smart move would be to let him rack up 10-15 saves next season and then trade him for something good.
- The Braves aren’t expected to get their next center fielder through free agency, and Terence Moore suggests trading for Ken Griffey Jr. to fill the position. More reasonable targets might be David DeJesus or Coco Crisp.
- The Royals may yet retain David Riske, who wants a multiyear deal and would like to stay. They’ll definitely offer him arbitration, since he’s a Type B free agent. Also, longtime Royal Mike Sweeney might finally play elsewhere.
- Free agent Shawn Chacon is looking to start in 2008, and he’ll make over $4MM.
- Charley Walters says the Twins won’t pursue Barry Bonds. If Bonds is to land in the AL, the Orioles, Devil Rays, Royals, Angels, and A’s may be his only options.
- McCovey Chronicles suggests a Noah Lowry for Bill Hall swap.
Could Bonds Join Royals, Devil Rays?
Barry Bonds has a stated desire to win a World Series before his finishes his career. That doesn’t gel with the idea of joining a last-place team like the Royals or Devil Rays. However, he may have to decide between non-contenders and retirement.
Last week when the Giants told Bonds he wasn’t welcome in 2008, I analyzed the situations of the 14 American League teams’ DH spots. The Orioles, Royals, Angels, A’s and Rangers seemed the most likely fits. I didn’t like the D-Rays for Bonds because they’ve already got all three outfield spots filled and have to find playing time for Jonny Gomes and Rocco Baldelli at DH.
However, Buster Olney is intrigued by the idea of Bonds in Tampa Bay. In Olney’s view, Bonds would basically split time at DH with Baldelli, pushing Gomes out of the starting picture (perhaps he’d be traded). That’s reasonable if the price is right. But keep in mind John Shea’s note, that Bonds wouldn’t have gone to St. Petersburg had the Giants moved there in 1993. Beggars can’t be choosy though.
Bob Dutton also wrote about the possibility of Bonds joining the Royals next year. Dutton says the Royals have $30MM coming off the books. Billy Butler could play maybe 120 games at first base and 40 at DH in ’08. The heart of this order could put up some runs, though you’d like to see some kind of offense coming out of left field or shortstop:
David DeJesus – CF
Mark Grudzielanek – 2B
Barry Bonds – DH
Billy Butler – 1B
Alex Gordon – 3B
Mark Teahen – RF
John Buck – C
Joey Gathright – LF
Tony Pena Jr. – SS
Needs and Luxuries: Kansas City Royals
Next up in our Needs and Luxuries series, the Royals. My projected 2008 setup is below.
C – John Buck
1B – Ross Gload/Billy Butler
2B – Mark Grudzielanek
SS – Tony Pena Jr.
3B – Alex Gordon
LF – Joey Gathright
CF – David DeJesus
RF – Mark Teahen
DH – Billy Butler/Mike Sweeney
SP – Gil Meche
SP – Brian Bannister
SP – Zack Greinke
SP – Kyle Davies
SP – Jorge De La Rosa/Billy Buckner/Luke Hochevar/Luke Hudson
Setup – David Riske
Closer – Joakim Soria
Needs
You have to like what Dayton Moore is doing with this club. They’re looking to have their best record since ’03 and definitely appear on the way up. Of course, like any rebuilding team, they have some needs.
One need the Royals have is power. They’re dead last in the AL with a .392 SLG. To be fair, their stadium is not receptive to the longball. But the Royals don’t hit for power on the road either. The good news is that Gordon and Butler both project as 30 home run guys in the near future. And Buck can hit 20. The bad news is that Mark Teahen‘s ’06 power surge now looks like a mirage and the cupboard is otherwise bare. I don’t think the next contending Royals team will have its corner outfielders combining for 16 home runs.
The Royals also need an injection of OBP but I’m less worried about that. Gordon will pick it up, and Emil Brown will hopefully be non-tendered. I also think Gload should be less of a regular and more of a bench player, so the team needs to decide if Butler can handle first base.
The team’s 4.47 ERA isn’t too bad; it’s barely worse than that of the Yankees. Of course, most teams need pitching. The Royals should continue to stock up on young hurlers however possible. I liked the way Moore turned the Octavio Dotel rental into Davies. Maybe they can try it again with Milton Bradley, Mike Piazza, Matt Clement, Jon Lieber…I could go on. Hell, they could just sign Dotel again and flip him.
Luxuries
Rebuilding teams aren’t known for having surpluses. That said I do like DeJesus and Riske as candidates to be flipped this winter or at the ’08 trade deadline. DeJesus is signed reasonably through 2011, while Riske’s ’08 option for around $3MM will certainly be picked up. Both have their flaws but neither will kill you. The targets should be more young pitchers and maybe a corner type with pop. Perhaps Moore could get the Braves interested in DeJesus for Scott Thorman or Kala Kaaihue. Or if he can do better, fantastic.
Hopefully teams will look at DeJesus and Riske as lower cost alternatives to the free agent center fielders and late inning relievers.
I suppose another luxury could be an excess of first base types lacking the offense for the position, like Gload, Ryan Shealy, and Justin Huber. But the market for those guys is surely weak. Maybe a Thorman type would only add to that.
You can’t call the starting pitching a luxury at present but you have to like the core of Meche, Bannister, and Greinke for the next few seasons. If Moore gets a third cheap guy to pan out, he can make a big free agent splash for one more veteran arm when the team is ready to contend.
Royals Considering Re-Signing Sweeney
The Royals are considering re-signing designated hitter and former face of the franchise Mike Sweeney for 2008. Sweeney, one of baseball’s nice guys, had this to say:
"I think this team is going to turn into a winning team real soon, and I definitely want to be here when it happens. Next year, rather than being tagged with being the $11 million man, I’ll be the guy who is getting $11 over the minimum."
If his back will allow it, Sweeney might try to play another couple of seasons in hopes of reaching the playoffs as a Royal. He tried yoga last winter and had the usual quotes about feeling great. In May he even talked about moving back behind the plate for ’08. But he was again sidelined, this time with a knee injury that required surgery.
The Royals may try to eke a little bit of defensive value out of young Billy Butler by using him at first base next year. That’d allow them to sign Sweeney for half a million bucks or so. It’s not like Butler would be putting in 150 games at first anyway; even 100 healthy games from Sweeney would be a surprise. There’s a myth that Sweeney hits when he’s out there, but a .252/.329/.423 line in 421 ABs since the start of ’06 says otherwise. The average DH is hitting .264/.350/.433 this year. If the Royals retain Sweeney, it’d be purely for his clubhouse qualities. They could easily find a DH to match Sweeney, even by calling up their own free talent guy in Craig Brazell.
Bob Dutton’s article notes that the Royals have a good $30MM to burn this winter, but want to focus on adding a starting pitcher. Here’s another look at the list. There are a number of interesting plays the Royals should consider – Freddy Garcia, Matt Clement, Bartolo Colon, Kyle Lohse, and even Curt Schilling (if he’d do Tampa Bay, why not KC.) If they’re looking to go young as they did with Gil Meche, I could see Lohse or Carlos Silva on a somewhat overpriced three or four-year deal. Yeah…I think Silva’s getting four years. And Lohse is represented by Scott Boras.
Odds and Ends
Some random rumors and links for Tuesday afternoon…
- The Rockies signed Mark Redman to a minor league contract. It makes sense to add some depth, but I like the team’s plan of using high-octane arms Ubaldo Jimenez and Franklin Morales instead of the safe veteran options.
- Rick Sutcliffe‘s thoughts on showboating.
- At one time, it seemed that Jason Jennings would be primed for a big payday this winter. He still could get a Marquis contract despite his 6.45 ERA in 18 starts. But prospective buyers have to be concerned that he replied "I don’t know" when asked if he is healthy. By the way, that link details a failed ballpark marriage proposal that resulted in popcorn being dumped on the guy’s head. On the Jumbotron.
- It wouldn’t be the Kansas City Star without an enormous pixellated close-up of the player in question. This time it’s Mark Grudzielanek, who’s been extended through 2008. Grudz wouldn’t have reached the 500 PAs needed to guarantee his $4MM option for ’08.
- The Red Sox still haven’t spoken to Mike Lowell about a contract extension. He wants to stay, and Nick Cafardo suggests Jermaine Dye could be the comp at two years, $22MM. That’d be a major concession for Lowell, who’d be the best free agent third baseman unless A-Rod opts out. One scenario has Kevin Youkilis moving to third base and some sort of league average first baseman stepping in, like the newly acquired Chris Carter. Another has the Red Sox signing Alex Rodriguez. The middle ground to those extremes is just to agree on a two-year deal with Lowell. It’d make sense for the Red Sox to hold off on Lowell until they see what A-Rod does.
- The Eric Byrnes contract may serve as a model for Jose Guillen.
- Tom Koch-Weser of STATS, Inc. has a new WHIFF profile of San Diego’s Chris Young. A must-read as always.
Stark On Dotel, Wickman
Jayson Stark was just on ESPN talking about the crazy market for relievers. As you know, the Octavio Dotel to Atlanta trade is held up until medical records for all six players involved in the Teixeira deal are reviewed. That’s just business as usual.
But Stark’s saying that teams are still calling up the Royals trying to beat the offer of Kyle Davies for Dotel. He also mentioned that teams are calling the Braves to try to pry Bob Wickman loose in the event that the Braves do get Dotel. Tim Brown backs this up – Wickman can be had if Dotel is secured.
Dotel To Atlanta Deal Not Close
UPDATE: Word via the Kansas City Star is that the Royals will get Kyle Davies in the deal. The Teixeira trade needs to be finalized first though. Nice job by Dayton Moore. Apparently he preferred Davies over Wladimir Balentien.
UPDATE 2: Based on this MLB.com report and reports from Sports Radio 810, the deal is not complete and Davies for Dotel was simply an offer. Dotel was apparently seen shagging flies in batting practice today.
UPDATE 3: Mark Bowman of MLB.com says the teams are not close to finalizing a deal and John Schuerholz has yet to enter into serious negotiations.
Interesting development via Ken Rosenthal: the Braves are close to a deal for Royals’ closer Octavio Dotel. They apparently have made a better offer than finalists Cleveland and Los Angeles.
Royals GM Dayton Moore knows his way around Atlanta’s farm system, of course. He had all kinds of player development roles within the Braves organization. The Braves’ top three prospects heading into the season per Baseball America were Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Elvis Andrus, and Matt Harrison. With those three out of the picture perhaps Moore is going for outfielder Brandon Jones or first baseman Scott Thorman.
Quite a day for Atlanta…now to snag a starter…
Mets Hunting For Reliever, Second Baseman
Pretty much the same old story with the Mets, though Joel Sherman and Mark Hale of the New York Post do have some new tidbits.
- The authors name Chad Cordero, Jon Rauch, Octavio Dotel, and Eric Gagne as relievers on the radar. However it seems the asking price is too high for Gagne and the Indians have become the frontrunner for Dotel (they may have passed the Dodgers). Shawn Chacon doesn’t catch the Mets’ eye, and they don’t want Chad Bradford‘s three-year commitment. They had that option with Bradford this winter. I think that logic is silly – Bradford’s pitched well this year, and acquiring him now would be akin to a two-year contract. Sometimes it seems GMs pass over certain players because they simply want to add a fresh name.
- You can add Al Reyes to the mix for the Mets, according to the St. Petersburg Times.
- The Mets think many of the available starting pitchers could be traded in August – Jose Contreras, Kyle Lohse, and Steve Trachsel for example. I don’t agree on Lohse – he’ll be traded today or tomorrow. But Contreras’s contract would probably get through waivers without a claim.
- The Post reports no substantive talks to the Royals about Mark Grudzielanek. An inquiry has been made on Mark Loretta.
- Meanwhile, Newsday says the Twins are open to trading Luis Castillo but don’t want any of the current Major League Mets. Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger seems to disagree, citing a Twins scout at Shea yesterday. Graziano does not believe Castillo would get through waivers unclaimed. He believes the Twins want Double A starter Kevin Mulvey and then some (perhaps Ruben Gotay).
- Graziano says a deal for Castillo could be expanded to include 28 year-old righty reliever Juan Rincon. Rincon had been consistently solid for three years (perhaps aided by steroids) but has seen his strikeout rate and overall performance plummet in 2007. Rincon is under control next year and will make at least $2MM again.
- Graziano notes that the Mets have talked to the A’s about Joe Blanton, but Billy Beane wants Lastings Milledge. The Mets can’t do that without damaging the current team. The Mets could actually add an outfielder in Jay Payton; the Cubs’ interest has waned. The Sammy Sosa rumor also has some legs, as the Mets could bring him in to platoon with Shawn Green if they decide they can tolerate the sideshow.
Tigers Trade Rumors: Barmes, Dotel, Qualls
The Detroit Free Press has a Tigers update for us today.
- The Tigers are intent on acquiring a backup shortstop. They recently sent a scout to watch the Rockies’ Clint Barmes at Triple A. Barmes is at .310/.374/.464 in the minors this year. Perhaps the Tigers envision him as a possible successor to Carlos Guillen at short.
- Relievers on the radar: Brad Lidge, Chad Qualls, Octavio Dotel, and Kyle Farnsworth. Eric Gagne does not seem likely right now, and we know Lidge is a long shot. Farnsworth might make the most sense, as the cost would mainly be money.
- The article names Craig Monroe plus pitching prospects Dallas Trahern and Jair Jurrjens as players the Tigers would trade. Despite all that we’ve read, I’d be surprised if the Royals could get something better than Jurrjens for Dotel.