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Rosenthal On B.J. Upton, Bourn, Morse, Ethier

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Here's the latest from FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal as he dissects the buzz and rumors currently circulating around the league…

  • The addition of two former members from the Rays organization has nothing to do with a potential pursuit of center fielder B.J. Upton, says Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr.
  • While some teams may prefer Upton over Michael Bourn thanks to his age (nearly two years younger) and the ability to hit for power, Rosenthal points out that Bourn's value comes from being a well-rounded player. 
  • Nationals first baseman Adam LaRoche's decision regarding his free agency may greatly impact Washington's course of action this offseason, especially with left fielder Michael Morse. 
  • The notion that the Dodgers may consider moving Andre Ethier just months after signing him to a five-year, $85MM contract simply wouldn't be the best move for Los Angeles heading into 2013, opines Rosenthal.
  • Look for the Yankees to re-sign Russell Martin, but the Bombers have had their eye on free agent David Ross, who has served as Brian McCann's backup with the Braves since 2009.
  • The Cardinals and second baseman Skip Schumaker may be parting ways this offseason as the veteran no longer has a defined role with the club thanks to the emergence of young talent. 

Dodgers Outright Alfredo Silverio to Triple-A

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The Dodgers have outrighted outfielder Alfredo Silverio to Triple-A Albuquerque, reports Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. The Dodgers now have four openings on their 40-man roster.

Silverio, considered one of the organization's better outfield prospects a year ago, was seriously injured during a car accident in his native Dominican Republic on January 23. Silverio missed the entire 2012 season because of the injuries he sustained in the crash including a severe concussion and damage to his throwing elbow, which required Tommy John surgery in May.

The 24-year-old was coming off a breakthrough season in 2011 when he hit .306/.340/.542 with 16 homers and 90 runs scored for Double-A Chattanooga. 

 

 

Cafardo On Shields, Twins, Wells, Red Sox, Aceves

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After 25 years as a General Manager and president of the Twins, Cubs, and Orioles, Andy MacPhail stepped away from baseball last season to take care of his ailing father.  Now, MacPhail tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he wants to return to baseball in some capacity.  The executive was often viewed as a future commissioner and it would make sense for him to get involved with the league office.  He also won’t rule out working as a GM again, but he has yet do discuss that with any team and most clubs already have their front office leadership in place.  Here’s more from Cafardo..

  • The Twins have already inquired on Rays pitcher James Shields.  Tampa Bay will field plenty of other calls on Shields in the coming weeks but whether they pull the trigger to obtain offense remains to be seen.  The Dodgers say they’re not shopping Andre Ethier, but it may make sense to use him to get Shields if they have their eye on Josh Hamilton.  The problem there is that the Rays may not be able to carry Ethier’s contract.
  • The Angels are shopping Vernon Wells in an effort to clear some of the $42MM still owed to him.  The Halos have tried to start talks with the Red Sox and would like to get John Lackey back, but the Sox are curious to see what Lackey looks like after Tommy John surgery.
  • There was speculation that the Red Sox were trying to include Alfredo Aceves in a deal for Dan Haren.  The Red Sox love Aceves’ arm and stuff, but could do without the high maintenance. Aceves is very much available, but they won’t give him away for nothing.  The pitcher can fill different roles, but he still prefers to start.
  • The Dodgers would love to reunite with free agent Hiroki Kuroda.  The hurler could have more suitors than any other pitcher this winter if the Yankees don’t tie him up quickly.
  • Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia is taking a wait-and-see approach on his agents, the Levinson brothers.  A few clients have already jumped ship but Pedroia noted that they have been good to him and his family.
  • The Red Sox would like to re-sign Vicente Padilla, but he is on the radar of a few teams, including the Angels, who are desperately looking to retool their bullpen.  Padilla ran out of gas late in the year but turned in a decent year in total.

Rosenthal On Greinke, Free Agency, Trades

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With a national television deal in place and labor peace established, MLB teams are ready to spend. Some people in the commissioner’s office are nervous about the possibility of more lavish free agent contracts, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports. Here are more notes from Rosenthal on the day before free agents can sign with any team…

  • The Angels want to sign Zack Greinke, but so do their biggest rivals, the Dodgers and the Rangers.
  • Rosenthal points out that the offseason could unfold more quickly this year, partly because of the new MLB calendar. Teams won’t have to wait as long to determine which free agents are linked to draft pick compensation, which should accelerate the free agent market. I discussed the possibility in this week’s MLBTR chat.
  • Rosenthal expects almost every free agent who receives a qualifying offer to reject it.
  • MLB officials expect the trade market to remain “hot” throughout the winter, according to Rosenthal.

West Links: Haren, Greinke, Hunter, Scutaro, Affeldt

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The Angels traded Ervin Santana to the Royals earlier today, the first of what figures to be many moves out of Anaheim this offseason. Here's the latest on baseball's two West divisions…

  • The Angels are still working to trade Dan Haren and expect to move him by Friday, reports ESPN's Jim Bowden (Twitter links). Haren will bring a much bigger return that what they received for Santana, adds Bowden.
  • Angels GM Jerry Dipoto acknowledged that "in all likelihood we weren't going to exercise (Santana's) option … We got piece we didn't have," reports Mike DiGiovanna of The Los Angeles Times (on Twitter).
  • Re-signing Zack Greinke is a "huge priority" for the Angels, says Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Part of the club's motivation to move Santana (and Haren) was to free up money for Greinke.
  • The Angels are showing no inclination of making Torii Hunter a $13.3MM qualifying offer by this Friday's deadline, reports USA Today's Bob Nightengale (on Twitter). The Halos will not receive draft pick compensation if Hunter signs elsewhere in that case.
  • Marco Scutaro told Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com that his first choice this offseason is to re-sign with the Giants (Twitter link). When asked what kind of contract he was seeking, the infielder joked "15 years, three thousand million dollars."
  • "There's a market established," said Jeremy Affeldt to Baggarly in reference to Brandon League's new contract (Twitter link). The veteran southpaw said he will cherish his time with the Giants if he doesn't re-sign with them.
  • Oliver Perez pitched to a 2.12 ERA in 29 2/3 relief innings for the Mariners this year, and he told MLB.com's Josh Liebeskind that he enjoyed his new role and would like to remain in the bullpen going forward. Perez will be a free agent this offseason.
  • The Dodgers will hire Bob Engle as their Latin America scouting director, reports Bob Elliott of The Toronto Sun (on Twitter). Engle left the Mariners this month and had previously worked with the Blue Jays as well. He's responsible for signing Roy Halladay and Felix Hernandez as amateurs, among others.

Dodgers Targeting James Shields

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The Dodgers have identified James Shields as their top target, Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com reports (hat tip: Rays Index). The Rays will exercise the right-hander’s 2013 option, but could consider trading him as a way of freeing up payroll and addressing other needs.

Dodgers GM Ned Colletti aims to add a starting pitcher this offseason, Saxon writes. Shields would be an excellent fit, as I suggested when previewing the Dodgers’ offseason. The 30-year-old posted a 3.52 ERA with 8.8 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 227 2/3 innings this past season and his contract includes an option for 2014.

Colletti said he has also spoken to the agent for left-handed reliever Randy Choate. The Dodgers made their first major offseason move last night, signing Brandon League to a three-year deal.

Dodgers Re-Sign Brandon League

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10:24pm: The 2016 vesting option can escalate from $7.5MM to $9MM based on games finished, according to Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (via Twitter).  League can also earn an additional $500K per year based on games finished.

8:27pm: League's option for 2016 is worth $7.5MM and will vest if he finishes 55 games in 2015, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.

8:01pm: The deal, negoatiated by League's representatives at ACES, is worth $22.5MM across three years with a vesting option, according to Tim Dierkes (via Twitter). 

7:01pm: The Dodgers have re-signed reliever Brandon League, a source tells Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter).  There's no word on the dollar amount yet but Hernandez reports that the deal is for three years (Twitter link).

League's representatives told Hernandez on Saturday afternoon that the two sides were discussing a three-year contract.  The 29-year-old earned $5MM last season in his final year as an arbitration eligible player.

The Dodgers acquired League on July 30th for a pair of minor leaguers, outfielder Leon Landry and right-hander Logan Bawcom.  In 28 appearances for the Dodgers last season, the California native posted a 2.30 ERA with 8.9 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9.  League was less-than-stellar in Seattle but rebounded nicely in Los Angeles and finished out the year as closer.

The Dodgers are hoping to keep most of their bullpen in place and General Manager Ned Colletti has said that he hopes to hang on to League, Jamey Wright, and Randy Choate.  As a whole, the Dodgers' pen had a 3.23 ERA on the year, good for fourth-best in the National League and eighth-best in the majors.

Latest On Dodgers, Ethier

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TUESDAY: A trade involving Ethier is "not happening," Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports.

MONDAY: The Dodgers made headlines this season when they signed Andre Ethier to a five-year, $85MM extension. ESPN's Buster Olney reports that now, just months later, the team is open to the concept of trading their slugging right fielder (Twitter link).

Trading a player recently signed to such a large contract would be virtually unprecedented, though it would make previous reports that the team could retain Shane Victorino more logical.

The 30-year-old Ethier hit .284/.351/.460 with 20 home runs in 2012. Despite that production, there would be many deterrents for teams that show interest. Ethier struggled mightily against left-handed pitching, triple-slashing just .222/.276/.330 against southpaws. He'll be 31 years old on April 10 next season, and he will be 35 years of age when his $85MM extension expires. Beyond that, defensive metrics such as UZR and the Fielding Bible have never been fans of his glovework (though he has one Gold Glove under his belt).

However, most believe that Ethier would have fetched a larger payday had he become a free agent this offseason rather than signing his extension. Teams that would have had interest in the longtime Dodger could look at this as an opportunity to get Ethier into their lineup while saving some money. He would also present an alternative for teams that miss out on Josh Hamilton in free agency.

Managerial Notes: Butterfield, Blue Jays

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The Tigers signed manager Jim Leyland to a one-year contract extension today, which means there are still just three teams looking for managers. Here are the latest managerial notes, starting in the AL East…

  • The Red Sox announced that they've hired longtime Blue Jays coach Brian Butterfield to coach third base in Boston. Butterfield joins manager John Farrell and bench coach Torey Lovullo as former Blue Jays personnel in Boston. 
  • Multiple teams were actively courting Butterfield before he signed in Boston, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter).
  • The Dodgers have granted the Blue Jays permission to interview third base coach Tim Wallach for their managerial opening, Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times reports. The Blue Jays wanted to interview Wallach the last time they had a managerial opening, in 2010. However, Wallach wasn't allowed to interview because of a clause in his contract. Sandy Alomar Jr., DeMarlo Hale and Don Wakamatsu also appear to be in the mix for the Toronto job. Butterfield had been a candidate before accepting his new position in Boston.

Dodgers Decline Options For Coffey, Rivera, Treanor

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The Dodgers have declined the 2013 contract options for Todd Coffey, Juan Rivera and Matt Treanor, Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times reports (on Twitter). The players are now free agents.

Coffey's contract included a $2.5MM club option with a $300K buyout, Rivera's contract included a $4MM club option with a $500K buyout, and Treanor's contract included a $950K option with a $150K buyout. The team has confirmed the moves (Twitter link). For more on the Dodgers' winter plans, check out my recent Offseason Outlook post.

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