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Athletics Claim Rich Thompson

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The Athletics announced that they claimed right-hander Rich Thompson off of waivers from the Angels. The A's will announce a corresponding move once Thompson reports to Oakland.

The Angels designated the native of Australia for assignment six days ago, apparently because his velocity had dropped and they no longer trusted him in high-leverage situations. Thompson's average fastball has been checking in at 89 mph so far in 2012, according to FanGraphs. Last year, he averaged 90.7 mph and he was hovering above 92 mph in 2009-10.

The 27-year-old struggled through two appearances this year, but posted a 3.00 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 54 innings a year ago. It's not surprising that the Athletics put in a claim — they had an open 40-man roster spot and Thompson pitched quite well as recently as 2011.

Stark On Nationals, Trumbo, Abreu, Orioles

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Earlier today, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reported that MLB and the MLBPA have agreed to stop including personal services deals and milestone bonus clauses in player contracts. He offers some reaction and detail in today’s column to go along with more rumors from around the league. Here are the highlights:

  • One prominent agent says the aforementioned changes more make it more difficult to add dollars to contracts without counting them against the luxury tax.
  • The Nationals still want to move John Lannan, but his slow start at Triple-A (7.50 ERA in three starts) is limiting his trade value.
  • The Nationals aren’t trying to trade Roger Bernadina, Stark reports. Right now Washington is thin on outfield depth, so they’re probably not in a position to trade outfielders away.
  • Some teams wonder if the Angels should shop Mark Trumbo for a controllable reliever. There’s no indication the Angels are looking to trade Trumbo, but they’re “trying feverishly” to move Bobby Abreu, Stark reports.
  • Scouts say the Orioles would “do anything” to trade third baseman Mark Reynolds and right-handed reliever Kevin Gregg.

No More Personal Service Deals & Milestone Bonuses

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Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have agreed to put an end to personal service deals and milestone bonus clauses, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reports. Existing contracts with these deals or bonuses won’t be affected by the changes, which were agreed to this month.

Albert Pujols and Ryan Zimmerman recently signed long-term contracts which include personal services provisions and Alex Rodriguez has milestone bonuses associated with his contract. However, MLB and the union say these bonuses violate baseball’s collective bargaining agreement. The sides have agreed that the CBA doesn’t allow players to agree to deals that include obligations beyond their playing careers.

MLB is trying to prevent teams from finding loopholes that enable them to evade the luxury tax, Stark reports. Personal service deals and milestone bonuses aren’t considered guaranteed money and therefore don’t count against the luxury tax.

Angels Notes: Aybar, Dipoto, Haren, Santana

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Earlier this evening we asked MLBTR readers if they thought the Angels made the right move in signing Erick Aybar to a new four-year, $35MM extension.  As of right now, just over half of you are in favor of the move.  Here's more on the fallout from the deal and other Halos notes..

  • With the Aybar deal completed, the Angels will have $121MM committed to ten players for the 2013 season if the options for Dan Haren, Ervin Santana, and Chris Iannetta are exercised, tweets Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.
  • Meanwhile, Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com tweets that GM Jerry Dipoto doesn't sound like he's focused on taking care of the three club options just yet.  Haren's option is for $15.5MM with a $3.5MM buyout, Santana's is $13MM with a $1MM buyout, and Iannetta's is worth $5MM with a meager $250K buyout.
  • Dipoto says that the amount of money committed to players in the coming years puts added pressure on the scouting and player development system to come through with in-house talent, DiGiovanna tweets.

Poll: Erick Aybar’s Extension

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Yesterday we learned that the Angels reached agreement with shortstop Erick Aybar on a four-year, $35MM deal.  Today, the particulars of the deal went public: Aybar will earn $8.5MM per year with a $1MM signing bonus and won't have a no-trade clause.  The deal, which is similar to Howie Kendrick's extension, marks a significant pay bump for the 28-year-old who avoided arbitration this winter by agreeing to a one-year, $5.075MM deal.

The dollar figure may strike some as high, particularly with prospect Jean Segura waiting in the wings.  However, the 22-year-old shortstop remains in Double-A Arkansas and missed significant time with hamstring issues throughout 2011.  The lack of a no-trade clause for Aybar also gives the Halos flexibility down the line.  If Segura shows that he is ready to take over the starting job, Aybar should attract a fair amount of interest if he can produce at the plate like he did in 2011.  If Segura doesn't progress as expected, then the Angels will have their shortstop situation covered for the next five seasons.

The Angels certainly aren't afraid to spend and have doled out $68.5MM in new deals to lock up their double play combination in 2012.  All things considered, do you like the extension from the Halos' perspective?

Angels, Erick Aybar Agree To Extension

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Months after signing second baseman Howie Kendrick to an extension, the Angels have agreed to extend shortstop Erick Aybar with a four-year contract beginning in 2013.  The new portion of the deal is worth $35MM and will pay $8.5MM per season with a $1MM signing bonus.

Kendrick’s four-year, $33.5MM extension was apparently used as framework for Aybar’s deal, though the shorstop was reportedly seeking at least five years and $50MM. As our Extension Tracker shows, Aybar joins Troy Tulowitzki and Alexei Ramirez as the only shortstops to sign extensions worth $30MM or more in recent years.

Aybar, 28, has been the Halos’ regular shortstop since the start of the 2008 season. He’s hit .278/.322/.386 during that time, doing his best work in 2009 (.312/.353/.423) and 2011 (.279/.322/.421). Aybar reached both the 30 stolen base and ten home run plateaus for the first time in his career last season. He took home a Gold Glove Award last year and ranks eighth among all shortstops with a +2.6 UZR/150 since the start of 2010.

MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez first reported the agreement while Mike DiGiovanna of The Los Angeles Times and ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (Twitter link) had the terms of the deal.  Mike Axisa and Zach Links contributed to this post.

Angels, Erick Aybar Nearing Extension

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The Angels are nearing a multiyear extension with Erick Aybar, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports. The deal with the SFX client could be announced by tomorrow.

Angels GM Jerry Dipoto recently acknowledged that the club has made progress in discussions with Aybar, who had been scheduled to hit free agency this coming offseason. Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times reported this week that the sides had yet to agree on the value of the deal. The Angels prefer to sign Aybar for something close to Howie Kendrick’s four-year, $33.5MM extension, but the shortstop appears to seek at least five years and $50M. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com has heard that the Angels have been proposing a four-year deal in the $35MM range (Twitter link).

MLBTR's Extension Tracker offers a look at recent extensions for shortstops around MLB.

Angels Notes: Aybar, Gonzalez, Thompson

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It's early, but this wasn't the start the Angels were hoping for. They've lost more games than they've won, allowed more runs than they've scored and Albert Pujols still isn't hitting. Here are some links as we await tonight's home game against the Athletics…

  • GM Jerry Dipoto told Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times that he remains very confident the Angels will be able to sign Erick Aybar long-term. “I'm very encouraged by where we are and that we will ultimately get there," he said. The Angels would prefer to sign Aybar for something close to Howie Kendrick’s four-year, $33.5MM extension, but the shortstop appears to be seeking at least five years and $50MM.
  • MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez hears the Angels offered free agent left-hander Mike Gonzalez the same minor league deal they offered Jason Isringhausen. Gonzalez seeks more money and wasn't interested, however.
  • There are no takers for Rich Thompson so far, Gonzalez writes. The Angels are shopping the recently-designated right-hander since his velocity is down and they don't trust him in high-leverage situations. The Angels would like to bring up ground ball pitcher David Carpenter.

Quick Hits: Hunter, Angels, Royals, Draft

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The Dodgers improved to 9-1 tonight with a win over the Padres and did so in impressive fashion.  With the score tied 4-4, the Dodgers turned a triple play in the top of the ninth – their first since 1998.  Dee Gordon later scored the game winning run with a single to left to give Los Angeles the 5-4 victory.  It's hard to imagine a better outcome for the Dodgers on a day dedicated to the legacy of Jackie Robinson.  A look at links from around baseball tonight..

  • ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter) talked to Angels outfielder Torii Hunter about how long he wants to play and in the back of his mind, the outfielder wonders if he might have a chance to play with his son, Torii Jr.  The 36-year-old's son is a high school senior and considering a handful of Division-I baseball programs.  Hunter is in the final season of a five-year, $90MM contract with the Angels.
  • Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow tries to make sure the team has a scout at every game involving players who might be taken with the first overall pick, writes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.  The GM doesn't expect the club to decide who they're going to take until close to the Draft as there is no clear cut No. 1 choice.
  • As the draft draws closer, industry speculation is that the Royals are targeting LSU pitcher Kevin Gausman with the fifth-overall pick, writes Keith Law of ESPN.com.  Law assumes that he would be Kansas City's pick if Byron Buxton, Mark Appel, Kyle Zimmer, and Mike Zunino are the first four off of the board.

Angels To Shop Rich Thompson

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The Angels will look to trade right-hander Rich Thompson over the next few days before placing him on waivers, according to MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez (via Twitter).  However, Gonzalez adds that it's hard to envision a taker for him given the drop in his velocity.

Thompson, 27, was designated for assignment by the Halos early Saturday morning.  The right-hander posted a 3.00 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 54 innings for the Angels in 2011 and may be claimed if he is ultimately waived.

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