Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Dodgers Rumors

Rosenthal On Dunn, Angels, Garland, Roberts

By | at

Let’s take a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal.

  • The Dodgers won’t go after Adam Dunn until they exhaust their options with Manny Ramirez.  Rosenthal likes the Dunn-L.A. match.  Should Dunn opt for a one-year deal so he can try his hand at a weaker free agent market?
  • Rosenthal wonders if Tony La Russa and/or Albert Pujols will depart if the Cardinals do not contend in coming seasons.
  • The Angels are not in on any hitter currently, but could engage in trade talks this summer if necessary.
  • Rosenthal drives home just how difficult it would be for the Mets to move Luis Castillo.  He says the team wants to bring in a capable backup infielder such as Alex Cora, David Eckstein, or Craig Counsell.
  • The D’Backs made offers for Jon Garland and Brad Penny, but Penny signed with Boston and they’re out on Garland.  Rosenthal says the D’Backs still aren’t necessarily in the market for a starter.
  • A Brian Roberts trade is said to be a "growing possibility."

Manny Ramirez Rumors: Tuesday

By | at

4:35pm: Brian Sabean was on MLB Home Plate’s The Show with Rob Dibble and Jody MacDonald on XM 175 today.  His comment on Manny:

"In our case I’m not sure yet.  We’re monitoring the situation.  We’ve had talks.  We have not made an offer.  We’ve talked in parameters of what would be yearwise.  It would have to be a perfect fit dollarwise and more so what we’re doing to try and build this thing going forward on a younger basis.  It’s actually not what we’re looking for, except that he’s such a profound middle of the order hitter.  Which we need."

4:16pm: According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark:

According to one source familiar with the Giants’ thinking, just about every recent rumor connecting the Giants with Manny is "unfounded" or "baloney."  "If a million things came together over the next few weeks, would it be possible? Maybe," the source told ESPN.com. "But for where [Boras] is right now and where the team is right now, it doesn’t make sense economically and it doesn’t make sense for how the team fits together."

Boras continues to set the floor at four years and $100MM, a stance which has caused the Dodgers to focus on other needs.  Stark’s sources also believe the Giants’ interest in Joe Crede is exaggerated.  The team cannot extend payroll to the $100MM range; they’re already around $85MM.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Swisher, Nady, Kapler, Zaun

By | at

The latest from Ken Rosenthal.

  • A recent Ned Colletti-Scott Boras conversation about Manny Ramirez didn’t result in progress.  Boras still has his sights on at least $100MM over four years.  Rosenthal adds that Manny is "cool to the idea of playing in San Francisco."
  • Nick Swisher and Xavier Nady are drawing "significant interest."  Rosenthal speculates that the Giants, Braves, or Pirates would make sense.
  • The door is not closed with the Yankees and Andy Pettitte.  Pettitte recently rejected the Yanks’ one-year, $10MM offer.
  • Some Mets people prefer Oliver Perez to Derek Lowe.  The Braves have yet to speak to Boras about Lowe, while the Brewers and Phillies have financial concerns about fitting him in.
  • Trevor Hoffman has a West Coast preference (the Dodgers or maybe a Padres reconciliation) but interest with the Brewers is mutual.  Other relievers on the Dodgers’ radar: Juan Cruz, Guillermo Mota, and Dennys Reyes.
  • Brian Fuentes’ agent had serious talks with the Yankees, but no offer was made.  Fuentes would’ve been Mariano Rivera’s set-up man and perhaps taken over upon his retirement.
  • Rosenthal notes that MLB kicked in a small part of the $10MM owed to Sidney Ponson from their luxury tax pool, which is not uncommon.
  • If they can afford it, the Rays would like to sign Gabe Kapler.
  • The Orioles, Red Sox, and A’s are interested in Gregg Zaun.
  • Perhaps because of the cool market for his services, Orlando Cabrera is willing to play second base.  The Yankees did not have interest.
  • That Gavin Floyd for Brian Roberts rumor "seemingly arose from internal discussions among Orioles officials."

Brown’s Latest: Abreu, Manny, Looper

By | at

The latest from Yahoo’s Tim Brown…

  • Bobby Abreu still wants $48MM over three years, according to Brown and Gordon Edes.  Abreu may have lost three potential suitors today in the Cubs, Rays, and A’s.  Buster Olney suggests Abreu is "probably out on the ledge, more than any other player in the corner outfield market."
  • Brown says the Dodgers, Orioles, Nationals and Mariners "seem to have the most interest in adding an outfielder." Haven’t heard much about the Orioles looking for help there.
  • Brown believes the Dodgers are "sitting on their original offer of two years and $45 million guaranteed" to Manny Ramirez.  He says Scott Boras still wants four or five years at $25MM per.
  • Starters on the Dodgers’ radar: Randy Wolf, Jon Garland, and Braden Looper.  Looper might be a new name.
  • Kenshin Kawakami is apparently "drawing solid interest from the Braves, Cardinals, Red Sox, Twins and Orioles."  It’d be surprising to see Boston sign him after getting Brad Penny.

Dodgers Rumors: Manny, Andruw, Saito

By | at

Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times has the latest on the Dodgers, as well as free agent pitcher Pedro Martinez.

  • Nothing much to report with Manny Ramirez – there has been no new offer from the Dodgers yet but the two sides are still talking.  That two-year $45MM offer Scott Boras dissed isn’t looking too bad anymore.
  • Boras is "just looking for a situation" for Andruw Jones.  I see.  Boras had a meeting in November with Ned Colletti and Joe Torre and the three decided to rework the contract and get him out of L.A.
  • Hernandez says Trevor Hoffman remains a possibility but the Dodgers haven’t heard back from Takashi Saito.
  • The Dodgers are not pursuing Pedro, but he’s narrowed his choices to two teams in each league according to his agent.
  • Diamond Leung tells us the Dodgers signed infielder Juan Castro to a minor league deal.

Reds Still Looking At Baldelli, Hairston Jr.

By | at

The Cincinnati Reds remain interested in free agents Rocco Baldelli and Jerry Hairston Jr., MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon reports.

Reds general manager Walt Jocketty told Sheldon that he has talked with their agent, Casey Close, during the weekend.

Jocketty said that he expects something to happen this week with regard to Hairston Jr.

The Reds have had no talks with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Andruw Jones and appear not to be interested, Sheldon notes.

The Cincinnati Enquirer’s John Fay also spoke with Jocketty. In addition to the Reds’ stance on Baldelli, Hairston Jr. and Jones, Fay notes that the Reds won’t be trading first baseman Joey Votto.

Jocketty also told Fay that Votto (Canada), Edinson Volquez and Johnny Cueto (Dominican Republic) might play in the World Baseball Classic.

Odds and Ends: Andruw, Marquis, Coonelly

By | at

Links for Monday…

Olney’s Latest: Andruw Jones

By | at

Buster Olney says that despite the Dodgers’ restructuring of Andruw Jones’ contract, serious regression in his abilities has resulted in minimal interest around the league. The Reds are not a good fit and the Mets aren’t interested. Regression may be directly related to a weight increase that could jeopardize his career. Olney writes,

"There is not a lot of confidence in the minds of evaluators that Jones is a candidate for a body transformation… he has never been known as a workout freak… he has looked bad in winter ball this year, reports one highly ranked executive.

The Dodgers will probably end up releasing him before spring training, and somebody will give him a chance — and he needs to show something, in a hurry, because there is a perception within the industry that he might be finished, despite his age, despite the fact that he slammed 41 homers in 2006."

Jones is owed only $5MM next season.

Manny Ramirez Rumors: Saturday

By | at

10:11pm: Ray Ratto of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that the Giants want to wait until the corner outfield market is "more precisely defined" before pursuing Manny. He adds that the Giants are unlikely to enter a bidding war so they need more financial flexibility than usual from Boras.

10:45am: Buster Olney adds that rival executives have "major doubts" about the Giants’ willingness to spend enough to sign Manny, especially in the midst of a recession. Olney points out that trading Randy Winn or Aaron Rowand to clear payroll would likely yield very little in the current market.

9:13am: Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle carefully summarizes the Giants’ interest in Manny Ramirez to kick off the day’s Manny rumors.

Schulman reminds us that the Giants have talked with Scott Boras about Manny and writes that this is "not another case of Boras just trying to drum up another suitor."

That said, their interest is far from "an all-out assault on Ramirez in a bid to get him." They’re simply intrigued.

Like any team at this point in the year, the Giants are apparently considering other free agents and "trying to make trades." In other words, they’re interested, but they have other options.

Dodgers Rework Andruw Jones Deal

By | at

SATURDAY, 11:23am: Buster Olney’s sources tell him that Jones will receive the $15MM he’s owed in 2009 over the next six seasons, without interest. Apparently the Dodgers are likely to call the Braves, Reds and Mets about potential trades. One source familiar with the discussions said it’s virtually certain that the Mets won’t be interested.

11:55pm: Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times says the deal cuts Jones’ 2009 salary to about $5MM.  The Dodgers agreed to trade or release him; interested teams may prefer to wait for the latter.  Shaikin says the Jones restructuring is independent of the Manny Ramirez situation.

7:51pm: Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports that the Major League Players Association has approved the contract agreement, which will defer Jones’ remaining salary.  According to an industry source, Jones will either be traded or released before the start of spring training and perhaps sometime this month.

FRIDAY, 2:38pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman says the Dodgers and Jones have agreed to rework his contract to save the team $12MM in ’09.  Jones is likely to play for another team in the coming season.

THURSDAY, 9:55pm: As pointed out in the comments section below, Andruw’s ’09 salary could be deferred across several years and would thus gain interest, resulting in a higher total payout.  That could work for both sides.  A blog called Fantasy Sports Experience recalls a similar situation with the Mets and Bobby Bonilla in 2000.

9:40pm: Ken Gurnick of MLB.com has confirmed that Jones’ contract is being reworked.  It could be an extension or a deferred buyout. 

9:00pm: I just spoke with Simers, who tells me that the Dodgers "would do the deal with Scott Boras."  Jones’ 2009 salary "would be reduced to make him attractive" to possible suitors in a trade.  And the agreement would essentially free up money on the Dodgers’ side that would head directly towards Ramirez, another Boras client.  But it’s still unclear why Jones would want to take the paycut.  Is Boras going to pay the man out of his own pocket?  This kind of dealing is unheard of in the sports world, but you can never doubt the almighty Scott Boras.

8:38pm: T.J. Simers of the L.A. Times has heard that the Dodgers are working on a deal to unload outfielder Andruw Jones.

Simers claims that the deal would save the team $12MM and "send the guy, who couldn’t hit a thing, seeking employment elsewhere."  Jones is in the final year of a two-year contract and is set to make around $15MM in ’09.  He’s not just going to forfeit that money, so it’s not exactly clear what kind of a "deal" the article is speaking of.  A trade?  Buyouts don’t typically happen in baseball.  Nonetheless, Simers is onto something and it appears the Dodgers are readying the cash to make an offer to Manny Ramirez.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top