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Odds and Ends: Perez, Jones, Howard, Burnett

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Let’s round up today’s linkage.

  • No more long-term discussions with Oliver Perez and the Mets.
  • Andruw Jones already wants to talk extension with the Dodgers.
  • The Cardinals are not likely to make anymore acquisitions.  In my view the team has question marks in right field, the middle infield, and the rotation.  Here’s a look at their MLB.com depth chart.  By the way, could Ryan Franklin be a league average starter?  They could try it if the current options don’t pan out.
  • Jim Salisbury thinks the Ryan Howard contract situation is a nonstory.  I think this is partially because (and I hope this doesn’t sound condescending) most fans do not understand the arbitration process.  Anyway Salisbury’s source says the Phillies would match Chase Utley’s seven-year, $85MM deal and might approach $100MM.  He says Howard may want "significantly more."
  • Ivan Rodriguez would like to play beyond the 2008 season and retire a Tiger.  If the Tigers can’t find a taker for Brandon Inge this year, he could be their starting catcher in ’09.
  • Carl Pavano doesn’t seem too popular in the Yankees’ clubhouse.
  • J.P. Ricciardi does not plan to do an extension during the season with A.J. Burnett.  I think Burnett will stay healthy enough to top the two years, $24MM he could get if he does not opt out.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Joe Blanton

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After letting Barry Zito walk last year and trading Danny Haren in December, the A’s appear to be entertaining offers for Joe Blanton. While the Reds and the Dodgers appear to be the most aggressive suitors, Ken Rosenthal speculated that Blanton would be a good fit for the Twins or the Rays and Buster Olney named several other clubs that could be interested in acquiring the right-hander. Blanton, 27, is still three years from free agency, and will make $3.7MM this season. With pitchers and catchers due to report this week, let’s take a look at reactions to the Blanton rumors from the blogosphere.

  • Athletics Nation is surprised that Blanton has not been moved yet. They expect that a deal is more likely now that Johan Santana has been traded, and the free agent market is drying up.
  • Redleg Nation thinks the Reds should be willing to part with Homer Bailey or Johnny Cueto in addition to Joey Votto for a proven pitcher.
  • On the other hand, Red Reporter believes the Reds should only take Blanton if they do not have to surrender one of their top prospects.
  • Pinstripe Alley wouldn’t mind the Yankees acquiring Blanton as long as the trade does not require Joba Chamberlain or Phil Hughes. The would be willing to part with Alan Horne or Austin Jackson from the lower levels.
  • Rays Anatomy believes that Blanton is an asset that the Rays could use (an innings eater), but ultimately does not think the trade makes sense for the Rays.  They are hesitant With so many pitching prospects knocking on the Rays’ door and do not want to part with prospects such as Wade Davis, Jake McGee or Desmond Jennings.
  • Over the Monster does not see the Red Sox giving up Coco Crisp for Blanton as that would be a deviation from their plan to develop pitchers in their system. Rather, they think it is more likely that the Sox sign a free agent or move Julian Tavarez to the rotation.

By Cork Gaines

Dodgers, Reds Pursuing Blanton

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The Dodgers’ rotation stands at Brad Penny, Derek Lowe, Chad Billingsley, Hiroki Kuroda, Jason Schmidt, and Esteban Loaiza – six deep on the surface.  But Kuroda has never pitched in the Majors, Schmidt is a question mark, and Loaiza may not have much left.  More and more, it’s looking like Ned Colletti wants to add one more veteran starter.   

Troy E. Renck believes the Dodgers are after Joe Blanton, with the A’s asking for Andre Ethier, Andy LaRoche, and a prospect.  I could see this happening.  Ethier is fairly expendable, and the Dodgers have not seemed keen on LaRoche recently.  Maybe L.A. would move separately to acquire Joe Crede or even try to get Eric Chavez along with Blanton.  Renck thinks the Dodgers may be interested in Livan Hernandez as an alternative to Blanton.

He also says the Reds are "pushing hard" for Blanton, which jives with the previous info.  The Reds are still kind of shaky behind Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo.

Blanton May Be Traded

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9:14pm: Fay suggests the A’s would want Homer Bailey or Johnny Cueto, Joey Votto, and a third player for Blanton.

1:32pm: Paul Daugherty and John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer report that the Reds and Dodgers are talking to the A’s about Blanton.  Seems to be a disagreement about whether the Dodgers are in on this.

10:31am: Check out this new Ken Rosenthal video (hat tip to MetsBlog).  The video is all about Joe Blanton.

  • One Rosenthal source suggests a 50/50 chance Blanton is traded (presumably before the season starts).
  • Two teams are showing significant interest.  Rosenthal believes the Reds are one, and the Twins or Rays could be another.  He rules out the Dodgers, Yankees, Rockies, and Indians.  The Reds have had preliminary discussions for Blanton already.  How about the Phillies?  They came calling in July.
  • Rosenthal notes that the bounty for Blanton will be less than that of Dan Haren, because Blanton is slightly more expensive and an inferior pitcher.
  • On January 14th, an A’s source suggested to MLB.com’s Jim Molony who expected Blanton to be the A’s Opening Day starter.

Johan Santana Traded To Mets

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UPDATE, 1-29-08 at 4:22: Ken Rosenthal says the 72-hour window to sign Santana is now open.

UPDATE, 1-29-08 at 3:15pm: Bob Nightengale of USA Today says an agreement to trade Santana to the Mets has been reached.  They’ll send Carlos Gomez, Philip Humber, Deolis Guerra, and Kevin Mulvey to the Twins.  The Mets still have to work out a six or seven year extension for Santana, according to Nightengale.  If this baby reaches its true conclusion we’ll sit down and analyze.

UPDATE, 1-29-08 at 2:55pm: More from Olney.  His sources say the Mets have the best offer, the Red Sox also made offers, and the Yanks are out.  Santana apparently asked the Twins to make a decision, wrap this thing up.  Wrap it up!  Olney is not sure whether F-Mart is part of the Mets’ offer.

UPDATE, 1-29-08 at 2:06pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman weighs in.  He sees the Mets as the frontrunner, the Red Sox on the fringes, and the Yankees as nearly out of the running.  The Mets are offering Gomez/Humber/Mulvey/Guerra but not Fernando Martinez.  If they get Santana, the Mets will commit to only five years but with a high average annual value of $22-25MM.

UPDATE, 1-29-08 at 1:11pm: WFAN’s Mike Francesa believes the Twins upped their offer to five years, $100MM for Santana, but he rejected it.

UPDATE, 1-29-08 at 9:42am: ESPN’s Buster Olney says the Twins asked for each team’s "last and best offers" on Monday.  They could decide Santana’s fate as early as today.  Olney adds that the Yankees "appear to be not presently engaged whatsoever in the Santana talks."  Olney used to be a Yankees beat writer, so he’s bound to have a good line on this.

As for the Red Sox – Olney is hearing conflicting things about Jon Lester’s availability.  It’s possible that Lester could only be had in a more limited package – he, Coco Crisp, and not much else.

FROM 1-29-08 at 8:02am:

Over at MetsBlog today, Matthew Cerrone does a nice job summing up the Johan Santana situation. 

The New York Daily News indicates that the Mets are the one team pushing for Santana, but the Twins might use the Erik Bedard haul as a measuring stick.  Joel Sherman sees it as a Mets-Red Sox battle.  He notes that Carlos Gomez will skip the Caribbean Series not because of an impending trade but just to limit his games. 

We could finally get some kind of resolution with Santana this week.  Just to keep things interesting, check out Mark Healey’s note about the Dodgers "creeping into the picture."

Reggie Sanders Ponders Future

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According to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, free agent outfielder Reggie Sanders is looking at several options for 2008.  He could continue his playing career; he’s discussed backup roles with the Padres and Dodgers.  The Dodgers don’t seem to need more outfielders, while the Padres are looking to trade for a corner outfielder.

Other options for Sanders include retirement and/or a foray into a TV analyst career.

Odds and Ends: Aybar, Wang, Selig

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How about some late morning odds and ends?  You don’t really have a choice, do you.

  • The Rays have talked to the Braves about acquiring Willy Aybar, according to Marc Lancaster.  Aybar has had some off the field problems.  But he turns 25 in March and could still be a useful player.
  • Reader Yu Hsing Chen checks in from Taiwan with news that Chien-Ming Wang might be heading to an arbitration hearing with the Yankees.  MLBTR had 228 visits from Taiwan yesterday – welcome!  Taiwan is our fifth biggest traffic source, behind the U.S., Canada, UK, and Japan.
  • According to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times, the Dodgers have spoken to free agents Mark Sweeney and Rudy Seanez about bringing them back, but the discussions have stalled.
  • Bud Selig’s contract extended through 2012.  Thoughts?

Olney’s Latest: Hall, Cameron, Benson

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Buster Olney’s ESPN blog is always a good read.  A few nuggets from today’s posting:

  • Olney wonders whether the Brewers and Dodgers will revisit talks about Bill Hall.  There seems to be this general vibe that Hall is upset about moving positions again, even though he hasn’t said anything publicly.  Plus, he’d have to move back to third as a Dodger anyway.
  • According to Olney: "The Yankees were never seriously engaged in talks to sign Mike Cameron."  However you can’t really say Cameron’s agent used the Yankees to pump up Cameron’s price, since he signed for just one year and $6.2MM.
  • The Phils may send people to watch Kris Benson throw next week.  I believe this would be the second time they’ve observed him, so maybe it’s getting serious.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Feliz, Ellis, Lohse

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Ken Rosenthal checks in with a new column of hot stove material.

  • Rosenthal says some suitors are popping up for third baseman Pedro Feliz: the Dodgers, Brewers, Phillies, and Giants.  Phillies Assistant GM Ruben Amaro Jr. confirmed interest today in an MLB.com chat.  Rosenthal admits that the Dodgers don’t seem like a great fit.  He says Bill Hall would have to be traded to make room for Feliz, though Tom Haudricourt implied today that Hall would stay put.  It was said Wednesday that the Giants’ talks with Feliz were stalling over his three-year demand.
  • Rosenthal suggests Mark Ellis would be a nice fit for Colorado, though keep in mind that the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser told us that he was the best bet among veterans to remain with Oakland for 2008.  The Rockies’ current plan is to go with Jayson Nix and keep Marcus Giles around as another option.  I’d be surprised if either pans out.
  • Instead of the four or even five-year demands we were hearing about for Kyle Lohse, Rosenthal says three years with a vesting option for the fourth would now be acceptable.  He believes Lohse’s salary could near $12MM.  Lohse recently said he’s down to about three suitors.
  • Rosenthal still expects the A’s to sign a free agent outfielder, with possible target Mike Cameron headed to Milwaukee.  Take a look at our newly updated free agent list to see who’s out there.

Rangers Rumors: Guardado, Cameron, Hamilton

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MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan has all the latest hot stove buzz around the Rangers.

  • The Rangers are nearing a deal with Eddie Guardado.  Everyday Eddie might be a dark horse to close, if he can flash his late season form again.  The Reds decided in October that he was not worth $3.5MM, and declined his option.  Guardado is 37.
  • The Rangers hope to add some kind of veteran starter.  Bartolo Colon and Jason Jennings are still options, but Mark Prior and Freddy Garcia pretty much are not.  Sullivan names Mike Maroth, Mark Hendrickson, and Josh Towers as pitchers of interest.
  • Mike Cameron could be an option for center field if he’ll take a one-year deal.  A multiyear demand would also take the Rangers out of the running for Corey Patterson.
  • Sullivan notes that the Reds want Edinson Volzquez for Josh Hamilton, a possibility he first mentioned three weeks ago.  Jamey Newberg doesn’t think Volquez would cut it.  Other trade options could include Andre Ethier, Coco Crisp, and Juan Pierre.
  • The Rangers will pass on a Kevin Mench reunion.

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