Manny Ramirez Rumors: Friday
9:04pm: Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News spoke with Dodgers GM Ned Colletti on Friday. Jackson asked if there would come a time when the Dodgers will simply have to move on from their pursuit of Manny. Here’s Colletti’s response:
"At some point in time, yes, but I’m not sure when that point in time will come yet. We signed Furcal, we signed Loretta, we signed Ausmus, we signed Casey Blake, we signed Wolf, and we signed Mota. We haven’t been sitting and waiting for one player to sign. We have been active, and we have continued to put a club together. At some point in time, we have to come to a conclusion. But we’re not there yet, and we’re still open-minded.”
8:17pm: A few current Giants offered perspectives Friday on the possibility of having Manny in the clubhouse:
"You’d be an idiot if you didn’t say a guy like Manny Ramirez can’t help your team," center fielder Aaron Rowand said. "But even with that being said, there’s not a guy in here who’s looking at that and hoping and praying. To a man, we’re all confident about what we have right now."
"Manny Ramirez is an unbelievable hitter," said right fielder Randy Winn. "He’s probably the best RBI guy that I’ve ever played against. Of course he’s going to help any team he goes to. But it’s nothing I can focus on because it’s kind of like a trade rumor. It’s probably not going to happen."
4:44pm: Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News has a Manny Ramirez update today, from the Giants’ point of view. Most Giants execs, as well as former owner Peter Magowan, expect Manny to re-sign with the Dodgers. They’ll continue to explore the possibility though.
On the other hand, ESPN’s Jayson Stark talked to one official who regularly speaks with the Giants’ front office. That person thinks new owner Bill Neukom wants to make a splash and said, "I would watch the Giants" in regard to Manny. The official also suggested the Giants may have "more dollars to spend than they’ve been letting on."
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Manny, Braves Howard, Mets, Nomar, Sheets
On this date 51 years ago, the Red Sox signed Ted Williams to a one-year deal for $135K – making him the highest paid player in Major League history. This contract came on the heels of a season in which Williams hit .388-38-87 with a .526 OBP and 233 OPS+. And all of that was at age 38. With one week to go before pitchers and catchers report, several players in the twilight of their career are still looking for contracts of their own. Let’s take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…
- River Ave. Blues says a one-year deal for Manny Ramirez in L.A. would open the door to Manny being Manny in pinstripes next year.
- Feeling Dodger Blue takes a look at options for the Dodgers other than Manny.
- Braves Blast sees Bobby Abreu as a better fit for the Braves than Adam Dunn and a better option than trading for Xavier Nady or Nick Swisher.
- The Phrontiersman argues for trading Ryan Howard.
- UmpBump continues their "Hot Offseason Action" series, this time looking at the Red Sox, their offseason moves and how the roster might look on opening day.
- Mets Geek breaks down the Mets offseason.
- The ‘Ropolitans say the Mets’ bullpen still needs work and wonders why they don’t go after one of the remaining big-name relievers on the market.
- Detroit Tigers Thoughts notes that if Orlando Hudson wants to sign a one-year deal after the June draft, he is more likely to lose his type-A free agent status next season if he signs with an NL club this season.
- Goat Riders of the Apocalypse feels that Nomar Garciaparra would make a nice backup shortstop for the Cubs.
- More Hardball puts together an All-Star squad of players still available on the free agent market.
- MLB Notebook takes a look at which teams might be interested in signing Ben Sheets for the second half.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here.
Stark On Andruw, Swisher, Hudson, Pedro
The latest from ESPN’s Jayson Stark…
- Stark looks at all the factors influencing this year’s slow-moving free agent market, talking to all sorts of anonymous execs. It’s a good read.
- Among all the teams, the Phillies have added the most to their payroll this winter ($30MM+). Only ten teams raised payroll this year. The Phils are still looking at the same cast of righthanded bench bats, and are also looking to sign a reliever for one year. Names of interest: Joe Borowski, Rudy Seanez, Will Ohman, Joe Beimel, Dennys Reyes, and Randy Flores. Stark notes that Flores is out until June due to shoulder surgery.
- Andruw Jones is looking for a team that will give him playing time. One of Stark’s sources says Braves manager Bobby Cox is "lobbying harder for Jones than the rest of the baseball operation."
- The Braves are the top suitor for Nick Swisher, but their suggestion that the Yankees eat some of Swisher’s contract was shot down.
- Stark has heard that Angels owner Arte Moreno is ticked at Scott Boras and Mark Teixeira for the way they handled negotiations.
- Stark received conflicting answers on whether the Elias formulas "can be changed without a special negotiation." It figures that the players union would push to eliminate the Jason Varitek/Juan Cruz/Orlando Cabrera situations we saw this winter. The D’Backs may have interest in re-signing Cruz, but don’t look for a Cabrera-White Sox reunion.
- The Yankees and Mets have not pursued Orlando Hudson, despite Hudson’s statements of their interest. Stark sees a one-year deal with the Nationals or Dodgers in his future.
- One assistant GM doesn’t think the WBC will be a good gauge for Pedro Martinez‘s abilities, since he’ll be doing short stints.
- Stark has details on Eddie Guardado‘s contract, which has interesting provisions if he is to be traded.
Manny Ramirez Rumors: Thursday
9:05pm: Jayson Stark has been told that the Angels will not pursue Ramirez. GM Tony Reagins put it plainly to ESPN.com:
"I can make this very brief and very clear. We are not in on Manny — and will not be."
9:01pm: According to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angles Times, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti wrote in an e-mail that he "hasn’t had any conversations today" with Scott Boras. This is fun, isn’t it?
2:33pm: ESPN’s Jayson Stark talked to Rangers GM Jon Daniels, who dismissed the idea of signing Manny.
2:13pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman learned from Ned Colletti that the Dodgers do not have a "drop-dead date" on the Manny negotiations. Heyman says that Joe Torre prefers Bobby Abreu to Adam Dunn, in terms of a backup plan.
8:47am: Your daily dose of Manny Ramirez: Ken Rosenthal says the Dodgers’ one-year, $25MM offer contained some deferred money, but Scott Boras didn’t seem put off by that aspect of the offer. He still rejected it quickly though. Rosenthal says Boras is holding out for more years especially since players such as Rafael Furcal, Derek Lowe, and Raul Ibanez received at least three.
According to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti sent out a text message to reporters about his Wednesday talks with Boras:
Colletti wrote that the two sides restated their respective positions — Ramirez has been asking for at least a four-year deal and the Dodgers are interested in something shorter. The sides agreed to maintain communication over the next few days.
Hernandez received a clarification from Boras, who expects Manny to be signed by the time Spring Training games begin (Feb. 25) rather than when camp begins (Feb. 14).
Heyman On Andruw, Pedro, Crede, Grudz
The latest from SI.com’s Jon Heyman…
- The Yankees offered a minor league deal to Andruw Jones, which he turned down. Other teams "thought to have interest": the Rangers, Phillies, Braves, and Mets.
- Heyman thinks Pedro Martinez makes a lot of sense for the Dodgers. However, Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times learned from Ned Colletti on January 6th that the Dodgers weren’t among the teams pursuing Pedro.
- Jason Varitek‘s camp (ie, Scott Boras) apparently has no regrets about rejecting arbitration since it wouldn’t have been a guaranteed contract.
- Chad Cordero‘s next showcase is scheduled for February 19th.
- Heyman has the Twins as favorites over the Giants to sign Joe Crede. More on Crede here.
- Heyman says the Yankees feel they’re more likely to find a deal for Nick Swisher than Xavier Nady.
- Add Mark Grudzielanek to the list of right-handed hitters the Phillies are considering (Nomar Garciaparra, Rich Aurilia, and Moises Alou being the others).
Dodgers Resume Talks With Randy Wolf
According to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, the Dodgers resumed negotiations with the representatives for free agent Randy Wolf on Wednesday evening.
Ken Rosenthal said Tuesday that Wolf "should be theirs by the end of the week." The Orioles have also shown interest, but are currently engaged in talks with Braden Looper. Wolf, 32, went 12-12 with a 4.30 earned run average last year. He has a 4.26 career ERA.
Manny Ramirez Rumors: Wednesday
9:46pm: Jayson Stark of ESPN.com reports that Ramirez’s agent, Scott Boras, and Dodgers GM Ned Colletti spoke by phone Wednesday. As Stark writes, "There were no indications the two sides made any significant progress toward resolving their differences. But they did agree to stay in touch over the next several days."
6:55pm: Giants manager Bruce Bochy appeared on XM Radio’s Home Plate program Wednesday afternoon. Manny was discussed:
The host, Lee Hamilton, asked Bochy whether the Giants are in on Ramirez. His response: "Well, I’ll say this, he is a free agent, Lee. There have been talks."
"I can’t quantify how much of a player, but this guy no question a tremendous player. Impacts the game, very few players can, it’s got to be the right thing. This is a business, you understand, that as a manager my job is to manage the players. Whatever ownership can do, which they done a lot already, I’ve got to be thankful for what we’ve done. Acquiring [Randy] Johnson, relievers, [Edgar] Renteria, but as long he [Ramirez] is still out there, you never know."
9:29am: We start out today’s Manny Ramirez rumors with a Scott Boras quote obtained by Yahoo’s Tim Brown, which apparently refers to the Dodgers:
"What I do know, you better watch out when you’re playing chicken."
Meanwhile, Buster Olney wonders if Manny, not Boras, is behind the holdout.
Need a refresher on all the recent developments in this saga? Check out our Manny archive.
Rosenthal On Peavy, Ohman, Looper
Here’s the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Jeff Moorad’s acquistion of the Padres does not affect the likelihood of a Jake Peavy trade, according to Rosenthal’s source. There have been no recent conversations with the Cubs about Peavy.
- The Phillies had been confident of signing Ty Wigginton before the Orioles offered two years. The Phils are still mulling Nomar Garciaparra and Rich Aurilia, with the Giants also in on Aurilia. The Phillies are out on Will Ohman.
- Braden Looper is receiving interest from Baltimore, but he prefers the NL. The Brewers are not optimistic about signing Looper despite a recent conversation with one of his agents (Tom Haudricourt believes the Brewers are "laying in the weeds" for when the right pitcher comes along). Looper is Plan B behind Randy Wolf for the Dodgers, and not a candidate to return to the Cardinals (who are apparently out of money). One other team known to have interest in Looper is the Pirates.
Dodgers Rumors: Manny, Dunn, Hudson, Wolf
3:11pm: Dylan Hernandez and Bill Shaikin asked Dodgers owner Frank McCourt about the Manny situation:
"We very much want this player back and we’re trying to hard to do that, which is why we came up with something that we thought was creative that gave him a lot of money, well-deserved money, in a very, very challenging economy, but also gave him flexibility. I don’t see the long-term contract happening in this particular baseball market that we’re in."
More McCourt quotes from MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick:
"The other thing is, the agent [Scott Boras] is challenging to work with and we’ve tried hard. We’ve made three efforts and we still have not received a specific number from the agent, and I don’t know what to tell you. At some point, you have to move on and start to get ready to win a championship."
SI.com’s Jon Heyman says the Dodgers and Manny are "nowhere near a deal."
11:55am: Dodgers GM Ned Colletti says the team remains interested in Ramirez despite the newly rejected offer, according to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times. Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle says "the Giants still maintain interest in Ramirez on a two-year deal max."
ESPN’s Jayson Stark has info on their progressing pursuit of Wolf:
It’s believed the Dodgers are offering a one-year deal with an option that could be similar to the contract free-agent starter Jon Garland just signed with Arizona.
11:39am: ESPN’s Buster Olney says the Dodgers are considering their Manny alternatives, including going after Hudson and Dunn.
8:38am: Manny Ramirez has rejected another offer from the Dodgers, this time for one year and $25MM. This offer seemed like something that could work for both sides – Manny gets a salary increase and a chance to re-enter the market quickly, the Dodgers minimize their risk and keep that free agency carrot in front of him. Manny and Scott Boras did not agree.
Ken Rosenthal suggests the Giants and perhaps the Nationals as Manny’s remaining suitors if the Dodgers drop out. There is no indication that those teams will top the Dodgers’ offers. What is Boras’ master plan here?
Rosenthal says the Dodgers are "intrigued by the possibility" of signing Randy Wolf, Orlando Hudson, and Adam Dunn instead of Ramirez. He says Wolf "should be theirs by the end of the week." It should be noted that the Dodgers would lose their #17 pick if they sign Hudson or Orlando Cabrera prior to the June draft.
Adam Dunn Has Offer From Nationals
According to SI.com’s Jon Heyman, Adam Dunn received a contract offer from the Nationals. He’s been sitting on it for a while, indicating the Nats are not his top choice. Jayson Stark has said Dunn prefers the Dodgers, and is waiting to see how the Manny Ramirez situation plays out.
Dunn has been only loosely connected to the Braves and Red Sox.