Dodgers Put Bullpen Search On Hold
Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News reports that the Dodgers have put their search for a lefty reliever on hold because talks aren’t progressing with Will Ohman, Dennys Reyes and Jamey Wright.
The Dodgers have added some lower tier arms and for now GM Ned Colletti says he’s happy to let pitchers such as Carmen Cali, Stephen Randolph and Scott Strickland compete with Jeff Weaver and others.
Manny Ramirez Rumors: Friday
Ken Gurnick of MLB.com spoke with Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti and manager Joe Torre about the Manny Ramirez saga.
Colletti said he speaks regularly with Ramirez’ agent, Scott Boras, about bringing the free agent outfielder back.
“There’s been some progress made, but obviously not enough to consummate a deal,” said Colletti. “We’re both clear on why we stand where we stand. Three months ago, it was guesswork more than anything else.”
Torre spoke directly with Ramirez on Tuesday. “He was his usual upbeat self,” Torre said. “I’ve told him a number of times to do what’s best for his family. He’s admitted he was comfortable playing in L.A. It comes down to satisfying both parties. You like to believe there’s a lot of romance, but he’s looking for length.”
Gurnick believes the Dodgers are ready to wait indefinitely for Ramirez. After all, they didn’t have him last season until July 31.
Ramirez, 37 in May, hit .332/.430/.601 for the Boston Red Sox and Dodgers in 2008.
Manny Ramirez Rumors: Thursday
9:26pm: MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick suggests that the "signings this week of Bobby Abreu and Adam Dunn will be the trigger to bring the Dodgers and Ramirez toward a middle ground."
Gurnick also shares this quote from Giants president Larry Baer, implying that his club is sitting idle on the Manny front: "Nothing’s really changed from our perspective."
4:40pm: Ken Rosenthal offers thoughts on the Dodgers and Manny, as well as Hudson.
3:50pm: Not sure if this qualifies as news, but Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times learned that Ramirez cancelled a promotional appearance because he could sign a contract at any time.
8:48am: Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times has the latest on Manny Ramirez today. Talks continue with the Dodgers, but there’s nothing new to report.
Some had speculated that Bobby Abreu and Adam Dunn were the Dodgers’ backup plan, but Ned Colletti and Scott Boras are both claiming the signings don’t affect the Manny negotiations.
How many teams are in on Ramirez? From Shaikin’s article:
Boras said the other day that he was negotiating with "several" teams for Ramirez. We asked him whether "several" could be defined as "more than two." He chuckled. "Two or more," he said.
Shaikin adds that Orlando Hudson "called the Dodgers, not the other way around." Signing Hudson would mean shuffling around Blake DeWitt and/or Casey Blake. Ken Davidoff of Newsday notes that the Dodgers have pretty much run out of ways to "reallocate their Manny resources."
Nats Will Not Pursue Orlando Hudson
According to MLB.com’s Bill Ladson, the Nationals have dropped out of the running for free agent second baseman Orlando Hudson.
General manager Jim Bowden declined to give a reason why Hudson will not be a member of the team, writes Ladson.
The Nationals must feel comfortable with what they have in Ronnie Belliard, Anderson Hernandez, Alberto Gonzalez and Willie Harris. Belliard and Hernandez would seem to be the front-runners for the starting second base job. Belli hit .287/.372/.473 with 11 homers and 46 RBI in 96 games last season, and Hernandez batted .333 with 17 RBI in 28 games after coming over from the Mets in late August.
Ethier Likely Headed To Arbitration
According to Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News, "it now appears that an arbitration hearing is all but inevitable for Andre Ethier."
Ethier’s hearing is currently scheduled for Tuesday, February 17. He requested $3.75MM and the Dodgers countered with a $2.65MM bid back when figures were due. Jackson notes that the Dodgers have won their last two arbitration cases, with Eric Gagne in 2004 and Joe Beimel in 2007.
Heyman On Manny, Pudge, Cabrera, Howard
The latest from SI.com’s Jon Heyman…
- Heyman says "most in the know seem to still believe [Dodgers owner Frank] McCourt will bend on Manny Ramirez and go to three years."
- The Nationals’ offer to Adam Dunn was on the table for weeks until he realized no team was going to beat or approach it. There were rumors months ago that Dunn sought a $100MM deal heading into free agency.
- The Astros and Marlins are looking at Ivan Rodriguez. There’s even an El Nuevo Dia report suggesting the Astros offered $2.5MM+ to Pudge, but that seems out of their price range to me. In today’s mailbag, MLB.com’s Alyson Footer opines that the Astros wouldn’t go to $3MM for a catcher.
- The A’s "want to spend no more than $5MM, and probably closer to $3MM" for Orlando Cabrera. He should take that if it’s offered.
- The Angels had been eyeing Joe Crede but may be done after signing Bobby Abreu. The Giants and Twins remain the likeliest suitors for Crede.
- The Phillies hoped to lock up Ryan Howard beyond his arbitration years, and Ruben Amaro Jr. disputed the notion that he is after Teixeira money.
Dodgers Sign Randy Wolf
THURSDAY, 8:50am: The Wolf signing is official. Ramona Shelburne of the L.A. Daily News talked to Wolf, who said:
"I had offers pulled, offers reduced, it was really weird. I was like, ‘Wow, I must’ve had a bad game in the offseason.’"
FRIDAY, 8:06pm: Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News has heard that the deal is worth $5MM. Wolf can also earn up to $3MM in incentives if he reaches 200 innings.
5:54pm: FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal writes that the "deal is expected to be in the $5.5MM range and also will include incentives."
5:15pm: Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports reports that the Dodgers have agreed to terms on a one-year deal with left-hander Randy Wolf.
The exact financial terms are not yet available. Wolf, 32, went 12-12 for the Padres and Astros last season. He posted a 4.30 and struck out 162 batters over 190 1/3 innings. Wolf, a Type B free agent who was denied arbitration by the Astros, is joining a Dodgers rotation that already boasts Chad Billingsley, Hiroki Kuroda, Clayton Kershaw and Jason Schmidt. Shawn Estes, Claudio Vargas or Eric Stults could slide in if Schmidt isn’t able to work through his shoulder issues.
Ken Rosenthal published a run-down of Wolf’s offseason in late January. The Astros offered but quickly pulled a three-year, $28.5MM offer in November.
Fallout From Abreu And Dunn Deals
Let’s look at the fallout from today’s big news. The Angels have reached an agreement with Bobby Abreu and the Nats have done the same with Adam Dunn, but, as many of our commenters have noted, other teams and players are affected by these deals. Here’s a breakdown:
- The Dodgers lose a lot of leverage in their negotiations with Manny Ramirez. Dunn was their preferred alternative to Manny, and Abreu was another possibility. Unless GM Ned Colletti wants to trade for a bat or sign a much lesser hitter, he may have to give in to Manny and offer three years or an enhanced one or two year deal.
- Manny Ramirez and Scott Boras must be smiling tonight. The two strongest suitors for Manny, the Dodgers and Giants, still need bats, but Manny’s the only top-notch outfielder left.
- The Braves lose leverage. They’ve considered trading for Xavier Nady or Nick Swisher, but with Dunn and Abreu off the board, and Manny out of reach, the Braves might have to give up more in a trade with the Yankees.
- The Yankees, in turn, benefit from these two deals because they can demand more from the Braves. Peter Abraham thinks the Yankees should hold onto Swisher and Nady.
- Garret Anderson and Ken Griffey Jr. are now the best remaining alternatives to Manny, so they could both benefit from today’s deals.
Rosenthal On Lefty Relievers, Bobby Crosby
New information from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…
The top free agent lefty relievers may sign this week. Will Ohman received three offers in recent days and four total; he could sign today or tomorrow. Back on February 5th, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick linked the Mets and Phillies to Ohman after talking to his agent. Rosenthal does not indicate which clubs made the offers, however. The Dodgers are in on Joe Beimel, who they declined to offer arbitration to in December. Dennys Reyes continues to draw interest from the Dodgers and A’s.
Rosenthal adds that the A’s want to save their money for Orlando Cabrera, who would replace Bobby Crosby at shortstop. The Padres would not have interest in Crosby.
Beimel Discouraged By Weak Market
Free agent left-hander Joe Beimel told MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick Tuesday that he has spoken with 16 teams this offseason, but none have made "an offer worth accepting."
"It’s a good sign when a club calls, but in this market, you can’t get optimistic just because a club calls," Beimel said. "A lot of teams say they’re interested, but turning words into action hasn’t happened. It’s been strange... I put up good numbers three straight years, I’m durable. Usually that means you get a good contract, but it just hasn’t happened this year. It’s just really weird. I haven’t even had a reasonable offer to negotiate with. I don’t want to sign just to sign. It’s definitely discouraging, but you’ve got to deal with it. I’ll just wait it out."
The Dodgers contacted Beimel’s agent Tuesday afternoon, and the Phillies are also thought to have some level of interest.