Dodgers Rumors

Cafardo’s Latest: Varitek, Sheets, Glavine

By Nat Boyle | January 18, 2009 at 12:12pm CDT

Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has a new article up in this Sunday’s paper:

Mariners advisers have suggested bringing in Jason Varitek to improve the Seattle pitching staff.
"Arbitration-strapped" Philadelphia may have interest in Ben Sheets as he becomes a bigger bargain by the day.
Cafardo details the Kevin Youkilis contract extension, to the dollar.
Kris Benson will work out for the Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Rangers, and Cubs next Saturday.
Tom Glavine would entertain an offer from Washington.
If Atlanta takes on Andruw Jones, they would only have to take on $400K of the $21MM plus the Dodgers are paying him.

Olney’s Latest: Manny, Abreu, Dunn

By Nat Boyle | January 18, 2009 at 9:40am CDT

Buster Olney reports that Scott Boras seems to be taking the same approach with Manny Ramirez as he did with Derek Lowe; that is, to wait.

Olney says "Camp Manny" is "waiting for some other team to be tempted by what Ramirez could do for them, waiting for an offer larger than that made by the Dodgers to develop."

The Dodgers are waiting as well. Olney reports they are not likely to increase their offer of 2 years, $45MM that was offered and promptly ignored in November. Also waiting for something to happen are Bobby Abreu and Adam Dunn. Should Manny wind up on the Giants, Abreu and Dunn may find themselves with leverage to negotiate with the Dodgers. Olney writes, "And given that Dunn and Abreu know that they can find homes at any time for one-year deals, there really is no downside for them to see how the Ramirez situation plays out."

Manny Ramirez Rumors: Saturday

By Ben Jones | January 17, 2009 at 5:51pm CDT

Free agent outfielder Manny Ramirez is still looking for a team, and several outlets are writing about him today.

The New York Mets aren’t looking back at him.
Money and the length of contract are causing the San Francisco Giants to remain on the sideline, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports.
Bill Madden of the N.Y. Daily News has a list of teams in his column. He notes the Los Angeles Dodgers have no reason to bid against themselves. Madden’s list of teams? Dodgers, Mets, Giants, Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees, Washington Nationals and Detroit Tigers.

Rosenthal On Andruw, Nady, Lyon, Madson

By Tim Dierkes | January 16, 2009 at 3:00pm CDT

The latest from Ken Rosenthal…

The Braves are pulling back for the moment in their search for an outfield bat. They’ll hope for a free agent bargain or the right trade. Rosenthal says they’re torn about Andruw Jones. The Braves seek a right-handed hitter but aren’t dead set on it. They were unwilling to meet the Yankees’ demands for Xavier Nady.
Brandon Lyon’s agent is telling teams he has a two-year, $9MM offer in hand (Kyle Farnsworth money). The Tigers or Twins are possibilities there, while the Cardinals may have offered one year. Jon Paul Morosi confirms Detroit’s interest, but says they’ve yet to make an offer. Morosi believes the Tigers have about $5MM left in their budget.
Ryan Madson turned down a three-year, $12MM extension from the Phillies. The Scott Boras client is eligible for free agency after the season.
Execs have all kinds of concerns with Oliver Perez: his flyball tendencies, frequent walks, and inability to reach 200 innings.
The Yankees have little interest in Ben Sheets and Freddy Garcia. The Rangers, Mets, and White Sox remain in the mix for Garcia.
The Brewers and other teams are in on Braden Looper, while the Orioles and Dodgers have backed off.
Edgardo Alfonzo is playing well in the Venezuelan Winter League and could make a comeback.

Russell Martin Hopes To Discuss Extension

By Tim Dierkes | January 16, 2009 at 9:09am CDT

According to Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times, Dodgers catcher Russell Martin hopes to discuss a long-term extension with the team this winter. Martin changed agents this offseason. He’s arbitration-eligible for the first time, so his salary will jump up from $500K to several million. Said Martin:

"I just want to get treated fairly. I’m not trying to steal the bank."

Martin had a private lunch with the McCourts yesterday at the Dodgers’ new spring home, but they did not discuss a contract. Brian McCann will be paid $15.5MM for his three arb years, $8.5MM for his first free agent year, and has a $12MM club option for another. That deal was signed almost two years ago, however. Also, Martin is a Super Two player and under team control through 2012.

In other Dodgers’ notes, Shaikin adds that they’ve backed off on Juan Cruz. Jon Garland, Braden Looper, Randy Wolf, Andy Pettitte, Luis Ayala, and Dennys Reyes remain on the radar to varying degrees.

Dodgers Release Andruw Jones

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 15, 2009 at 7:16pm CDT

Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News reports that Andruw Jones has been released by the Dodgers.

As MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick points out, any team that signs Jones to the major league minimum will pay only $400K and the Dodgers will pay the rest of the $21MM he’s owed. We know the Braves are reluctant to bring Jones back unless he signs a minor league contract.

Braves Reluctant To Bring Back Jones?

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 15, 2009 at 7:00pm CDT

According to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman, the Braves appear reluctant to offer Andruw Jones a major league contract if he’s released by the Dodgers. If the Braves offer him a contract they would have to clear a space on their 40 man roster and risk losing a player, which could set them back more than the $400k they’d owe Jones.

Bowman writes that "all indications are [Jones] would have to sign a minor league contract" to have the chance to play in Atlanta again. However, he has interest in returning, so he could accept a minor league deal.

Odds and Ends: Smoltz, Cordero, Colon, Byrd

By Tim Dierkes | January 15, 2009 at 10:45am CDT

Links for Thursday…

John Smoltz told Dan Patrick that the Yankees and Dodgers also courted him.
KNBR had interviews with Scott Boras and Ned Colletti yesterday.
The Dodgers are "only monitoring" Kris Benson and Chad Cordero.
The Phillies have "kept tabs" on Cordero and Eric Milton.
Baseball America ranked the Rangers’ farm system as the best in baseball.
Andy MacPhail says the Orioles don’t necessarily have to add a first baseman.
South Side Sox and Sox Machine on the Bartolo Colon signing.
Jon Paul Morosi says Jason Isringhausen is a "natural fit" for the Tigers.
The Red Sox will only get a supplemental pick for Paul Byrd if he signs before the June draft.
Barry Bloom gathers responses from baseball execs on the salary cap issue.
Eddie Bajek made a breakthrough in his attempt to crack the Elias code.
Richard Justice has an interesting story involving new Astro Russ Ortiz.
Rickey Henderson says he’s still available to play. Asked about the WBC, he responded, ""What is [the WBC], wrestling?"
Transcript of an interview with Red Sox owner John Henry.

Dodgers Finalize Contract With Mota

By | January 14, 2009 at 9:13pm CDT

9:13pm: Jackson has made a correction to the report. Mota can earn only $300,000 in performance bonuses.

7:41pm: The Dodgers finalized their one-year deal with reliever Guillermo Mota on Wednesday and released the terms of his contract. The 35-year-old right-hander will make $2.35MM in ’09 and can earn up to $750,000 in performance bonuses. Terms are courtesy of Tony Jackson with the Los Angeles Daily News.

Dodgers To Release Andruw Jones On Thursday

By | January 14, 2009 at 8:29pm CDT

8:29pm: Several e-mailers have pointed out that Andruw Jones is in attendance at the Duke-Georgia Tech men’s basketball game and is wearing an Atlanta Braves hat. Interesting, eh?

7:46pm: According to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, the Dodgers are expected to officialy release Andruw Jones Thursday morning.

Jones, you’ll remember, agreed to defer the $21.1MM remaining on his contract back in early January to open up payroll for the Dodgers, and for a chance at a fresh start with a new team. The Dodgers have reportedly discussed a few potential trades this week, but all talks have apparently fallen flat. He has expressed interest in returning to the Braves.

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