Dodgers, Red Sox Meet On Manny
Ken Rosenthal reports that the Red Sox and Dodgers met late last night to discuss a possible Manny Ramirez trade. Rosenthal speculates that a package of Brad Penny, Andy LaRoche, and James Loney could get it done.
Rosenthal also mentions that Jacque Jones could be available and Brian Cashman is meeting with Ted Lilly‘s agent.
Manny on the move?
For real, this time! Or not.
First off, Buster Olney thinks that Manny could be moved this week. Maybe for a less-than-perfect package. The team that keeps coming up is the Giants, but…how? I can’t imagine the Red Sox would be very interested in the Bay Area chapter of the AARP.
I’ve heard speculation that the Giants rumors persist because the Red Sox want to up the bidding from the Dodgers, but I haven’t seen or heard any details about that deal. I’d imagine it would include either James Loney or Andre Ethier, as one of those guys would end up on the bench if Manny came to L.A. (And, of course, the Red Sox would want something of quality in return.)
A Cubs source e-mailed that Chicago has offered Matt Murton, Bob Howry, Sean Gallagher and Donald Veal, and that Felix Pie hasn’t come up. That sounds like not quite enough, but if the Red Sox trade Manny, then turn around and sign J.D. Drew and Julio Lugo, the need for impact-quality major-league talent (say, Michael Young) is lessened. The same source indicates that the Mets and Braves are also interested.
Olney says, "you get the sense that the Red Sox are increasingly comfortable with the idea of moving Ramirez even if they aren’t offered a perfect package in return." If that’s true, it seems that the likelihood of a deal getting done is higher than ever. If Drew is ready to sign with the Red Sox, teams that want a big bat have very few options, and most of them are expensive. Manny’s contract has never looked better, and if the Red Sox aren’t asking for the moon, a trade looks very realistic.
By Jeff Sackmann
Wolf, Baez to new homes
Looks like Randy Wolf is about to become a Dodger. Apparently LA is set to sign him to a one-year deal with an option for 2008; I’d guess it’s in the $6-7M range. The same article speculates that Greg Maddux is looking for a raise on his $9M salary from last year–a two-year deal for Mike Mussina money. I guess I didn’t realize quite what a stud he was after the trade last year, but I don’t know who’s going to give him that kind of cash. I’ve been a Maddux fan since the first time he was with the Cubs, but if you had the choice between Maddux at $22.5M/2 and Ted Lilly at $27M/3, isn’t that a no-brainer? Then again, we don’t know that Lilly won’t get more than that.
Also, Danys Baez looks to be headed to Baltimore. The Orioles seem to think that, whatever their problems were last year, they can be solved with a very expensive bullpen. It’s a three-year deal, according to the Baltimore Sun, and I suppose it could open up the possibility that Chris Ray could be traded for something that the Orioles really need. Like, oh, I don’t know, an 1B/OF/DH type who can hit above replacement level? (Otherwise known as "the Fahey line.")
By Jeff Sackmann
Juan Pierre: $45M/5
Insanity. $9M for Pierre is a stretch: he’s not a great defender, he hasn’t posted an OBP above .330 in two years, and he isn’t even a particularly high-percentage basestealer. As I mentioned earlier, Kenny Lofton had a better 2006. But, in this market, $9M a year for a leadoff hitter isn’t too crazy–Pierre might well be better than, say, Gary Matthews Jr.
But…five years? It would certainly appear that Matthews is going to get the money he’s after. Dave Roberts‘s agent probably just upped his demands, too. Even Lofton ought to get either a two-year deal or a rich one-year contract.
In other news this evening:
The Marlins swapped Chris Resop to the Angels for Kevin Gregg.
The Mets officially declined Tom Glavine‘s option.
Pierre to the Dodgers?
Rosenthal says Juan Pierre is about to sign with the Dodgers. Oddly enough, it probably won’t result in an improvement from last year: Kenny Lofton had a very nice season in LA, outperforming Pierre in just about every category except for steals. The Dodgers do need at least one more outfielder, as only Andre Ethier is much of a certainty, but this is an awfully expensive way to plug that gap.
Rosenthal doesn’t mention money, but a couple of days ago, a report surfaced that the Giants had offered Pierre $30M for 3 years. That’s awful high if you think Ethier can play center, or if you think Matt Kemp (or any number of other Dodger farmhands) might be ready by 2008. However, Ned Colletti didn’t shop in the bargain bin last year, and it doesn’t look like he’s going to do so this year, either.
By Jeff Sackmann
Garciaparra About to Sign
The Dodgers now have a first (or third) baseman for the next couple of years. Nomar Garciaparra agreed to come back to L.A. for two more years. There have been no monetary details in the articles I’ve seen, but since Nomar made $8.5M with incentives last year, I have to imagine he’s making more than that in each year of this deal. Maybe $10-11M per year? Seems like his value should be in the Frank Thomas range; maybe a little higher since the risk of career-ending injury isn’t so high.
With Bill Mueller’s retirement, that would seem to open up third base for Wilson Betemit, unless Rafael Furcal or Jeff Kent gets hurt, in which case Betemit could slide over, opening up third for Nomar or Andy LaRoche. If Nomar is slotted in at first, that means (as speculated) that James Loney will start the year in the outfield.
UPDATE: The LA Times says it’s $18M total. Good deal for Ned Coletti.
By Jeff Sackmann
Pujols Arrested for Crack Possession
Kei Igawa Has Been Posted
Rotoworld lists the potential suitors for Kei Igawa as the "Padres, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Yankees, Braves, Mets, Cubs and Indians." They rule out the Red Sox and Mariners, though this Tacoma News-Tribune article says the M’s are "likely" to bid. That same article predicts that the posting fee will be about "two-thirds less" than Daisuke Matsuzaka‘s $51.1M: $17M.
That seems high for a guy who David Wright isn’t convinced has MLB-quality stuff. Personally, I wouldn’t want my team spending more than $10M for his rights, but with all those teams involved, $17M seems plausible.
UPDATE: An alert e-mailer points out this article on the Braves official site. According to club officials, Atlanta won’t be involved in this one.
By Jeff Sackmann
MetsBlog On Dontrelle Willis
MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone talked to various baseball insiders and came away with some info concerning the possibility of a Dontrelle Willis trade. Cerrone’s sources indicate the Marlins want an MLB ready potential All-Star and the D’Backs and Dodgers are best equipped to satisfy that request.
Pure speculation, but I could see a deal for Matt Kemp and one of Scott Elbert/Chad Billingsley. This would be comparable to the bounty the Fish received for Josh Beckett – stud position player, stud starter. I wouldn’t make that deal if I was Ned Colletti, but that’s what I could see Larry Beinfest requiring.
Kei Igawa Hopes To Play On West Coast
Word from Yahoo Japan (in Japanese) tonight is that southpaw pitcher Kei Igawa would like to join a West Coast team. That probably means the Dodgers or Mariners, who have hosted such Japanese stars as Ichiro, Kenji Johjima, and Takashi Saito.
Of course, Igawa is coming to the U.S. via the posting system and doesn’t have a say in his destination. However, his preference to play on the west coast may compel Ned Colletti or Bill Bavasi to bid higher and sign Igawa to a slightly cheaper contract.
So far the Braves, Mets, and Tigers have also been connected to Igawa. The smart money is on the Dodgers or Mariners with the Mets in a distant third. However, history may go out the window as 2007 brings the largest influx of Japanese talent to the Majors yet. More and more teams are looking overseas to fill their needs.
If the Dodgers are to re-sign Greg Maddux and the Mariners miss out on Matsuzaka, Igawa seems to be destined for Seattle.