Braves Close To Nearing Deal For Dan Uggla
The Braves "appear to be very close to nearing a deal" for Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla, tweets MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweeted minutes ago that the division rivals are discussing a deal that would send Uggla to Atlanta for utility man Omar Infante and lefty reliever Mike Dunn.
Infante, a super-utility type, hit .321/.359/.416 in 506 plate appearances for the Braves this year. He's under contract through 2011. Dunn, 26 in May, is a hard-throwing left-handed reliever who came to Atlanta from the Yankees a year ago in the Javier Vazquez deal. Dunn racked up big-time strikeout and walk numbers this year between Triple-A and the Majors. The intra-division asking price for Uggla was said to be large, but this return would be OK at best.
Rosenthal On Brewers, Doubront, Marlins, Barmes
In case there was any doubt, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that the Brewers aren't going to trade Ryan Braun. However, the Brewers are open to trading any of their other top hitters for rotation help. That means Rickie Weeks, Casey McGehee and, of course, Prince Fielder would be available in the right deal. Here are the details and the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:
- The Brewers don't want to trade top players for back-of-the-rotation starters, but teams are reluctant to include top young pitchers in potential deals.
- The Padres have spoken repeatedly to the Brewers about minor league infielder Brett Lawrie, who could be obtained for young pitching.
- Adrian Gonzalez is still drawing trade interest, even though he won't be ready to swing a bat until the end of Spring Training.
- Two GMs tell Rosenthal that the Red Sox are open to trading Felix Doubront. One says Boston would part with the left-hander "in a heartbeat" and the other guaranteed the Red Sox will trade him by mid-summer. Red Sox GM Theo Epstein told Rosenthal that the Red Sox "value Felix tremendously" and that the report "couldn't be further from the truth."
- Every young Orioles pitcher "could be in play for the right bat," Rosenthal reports.
- If the Marlins trade Dan Uggla, they would use the savings to sign at least one free agent. John Buck is a target for the Marlins regardless of whether they trade or extend Uggla.
- The A's don't have interest in Mark Reynolds.
- The Rockies are drawing lots of interest in Clint Barmes. They could trade or non-tender the infielder if they aren't able to sign him to a multi-year contract.
- Cody Ross and Javier Lopez are strong candidates to receive extensions from the Giants.
Jays The Favorite For Uggla, Rox Priced Out?
After having their four-year, $48MM extension offer to Dan Uggla rejected, the Marlins seem intent on trading their second baseman. Uggla has his faults; he's not a gifted defender, strikes out in more than one of every four plate appearances for his career, and he's due a nice raise on his $7.8MM salary for 2010. What Uggla does best is hit the ball far, and hit the ball hard. He's never hit fewer than 27 home runs, and has topped 31 long balls in each of the past four seasons.
ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that two rival executives have told him Toronto would be the favorite to acquire Uggla in a trade, should the Marlins indeed follow through on their trade intentions.
The Blue Jays may not seem the most apparent fit at first, given Aaron Hill's presence, however they could intend on moving Uggla to third base. And Uggla certainly fits in with the Blue Jays' mold from 2010. Toronto led the Majors with 257 home runs, and the club parted ways with third baseman Edwin Encarnacion earlier in the week.
Toronto also has a depth of pitching talent available, something that other teams no doubt covet. While the Marlins have acquired three young relievers in the past week (Ryan Webb, Edward Mujica, and Dustin Richardson), they'll no doubt still be on the lookout for young, controllable talent in any return for Uggla.
In a second tweet, Olney also notes that the Rockies were interested in acquiring Uggla midseason in 2010, but the Marlins slugger is likely to be too expensive for their tastes now.
Marlins Intend To Trade Uggla
After breaking off extension talks and gauging interest in their second baseman, the Marlins now plan to trade Dan Uggla, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Marlins are "down the road" in discussions with a few teams and could make a deal within the next week, according to Rosenthal's source. Rosenthal identifies the Nationals, Tigers, Braves, and Blue Jays as potential suitors who are in on the 30-year-old.
When Rosenthal ran down the list of teams who could have interest in Uggla, he noted that not every club would view the Marlin as a second baseman. Many teams with question marks at third base are considering making a play for Uggla. Meanwhile, Rosenthal indicates the Cubs and Angels are among the teams who don't have interest in acquiring Uggla, despite having a need for offense.
Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post believes that Uggla and the Marlins could still agree on an extension, but concedes that the two sides are currently "very bitter at each other." He expects Florida to actively shop Uggla at this week's GM meetings, though he suggests the team will be demanding a significant return (all Twitter links).
Odds & Ends: Lopes, Maybin, Farrell, Cubs, Cousins
Links for Saturday…
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff provides a primer for next week's GM Meetings in Orlando. MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith will be on the scene there Tuesday and Wednesday.
- Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times tweets that former Phillies' first base coach Davey Lopes is close to joining the Dodgers' coaching staff in an unknown capacity.
- Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse analyzes the Cameron Maybin trade, saying the outfielder doesn't need to develop into a star to represent an upgrade for the Padres.
- Richard Griffin of The Star has a one-on-one interview with new Blue Jays manager John Farrell.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry told Gordon Wittenmyer of The Chicago Sun Times that he's not worried about making a splash this offseason, but that it's "really imperative that we have two or three really good moves."
- MLB.com's Joe Frisaro says that in the wake of the Maybin deal, the Marlins will give Scott Cousins a long look in center field next year (Twitter link).
- Meanwhile, Padres GM Jed Hoyer told Dan Hayes of The North County Times that Maybin is "exactly the type of player we hoped to acquire for Petco Park." (Twitter link)
- MLB.com's Jason Beck states the obvious, saying that the Marlins probably would have been better off keeping Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis and then taking the draft picks when they left as free agents. I'm not sure that keeping those two would have been financially possible, though.
- Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com writes that after catcher Erik Kratz signed with the Phillies, the Pirates will now have to bring in a catcher or two to provide depth at the Triple-A level.
- The Nationals have signed righty reliever Tim Wood to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com. Wood, who turns 28 on Tuesday, appeared in 44 games with the Marlins over the last two seasons, pitching to a 4.32 ERA with nearly as many walks (25) as strikeouts (26) in 50 innings.
- ESPN's Buster Olney expects the Cardinals to aggressively pursue Juan Uribe since they could use him at pretty much any of their non-first base infield positions (Twitter link).
- Michael Silverman of The Boston Herald reports that GM Theo Epstein said the team has talked to Kevin Youkilis about moving to third base in the event that they are unable to re-sign Adrian Beltre, who we learned is one of their priorities.
- Meanwhile, Alex Speier of WEEI.com separates fact from fiction with regards to Scott Boras' claims about Beltre.
- SI.com's Melissa Segura tweets that a new league launched in the Dominican Republic yesterday, and it features the top young free agent players the country has to offer.
Padres Acquire Cameron Maybin From Marlins
The Padres have acquired Cameron Maybin from the Marlins, according to Tom Krasovic of Fanhouse (via Twitter). Florida will receive relievers Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica in exchange for the center fielder, Krasovic tweets. The Marlins have announced that the deal is now official.
The deal will provide Maybin with a much needed change of scenery, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports writes (via Twitter). The 23-year-old has yet to realize his potential after coming over to the Marlins in the 2007 Miguel Cabrera–Dontrelle Willis trade. Maybin's performance at the plate was particularly disappointing this season as he hit .234/.302/.361 with eight homers in 322 plate appearances. His arrival presumably bumps Tony Gwynn from the Padres' starting lineup and makes him an even more likely non-tender candidate.
The 6'6" Webb appears to be the key to the trade, Krasovic tweets. The right-hander could be a set-up man for the Fish and is not yet arbitration-eligible. Heading into the 2010 season, Baseball America rated Webb as the 24th best prospect in San Diego's system. The 24-year-old has a 94-96 mph fastball with a strong mid-80s curveball, according to the publication. In 54 big league games this year, Webb registered a 2.90 ERA with 6.7 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9.
Meanwhile, Mujica is arbitration eligible for the first time this winter. The 26-year-old hurler turned in a 3.62 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 0.8 BB/9 across 59 games this year.
Marlins Measuring Trade Interest In Dan Uggla
The Marlins broke off contract talks with Dan Uggla and are now gauging potential trade interest in their second baseman according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. A source says the team is not confident they can sign Uggla long-term after he rejected a four-year contract that would have paid him $48MM.
Frisaro says the team has been "initiating and field calls" about the 30-year-old Uggla, and two unidentified National League clubs have expressed interest in addition to the Tigers. He adds that the Marlins have been asking for relief pitching return, and they're expected to have more discussions about Uggla at next week's General Manager Meetings. In his middle infielder buyer's guide at ESPN (Insider req'd), Keith Law said he'd "love to trade for one year of Uggla, especially a walk year, but I don't want to be on the hook for his age 34 or 35 seasons, by which point his defense will probably have moved him off second base."
Uggla is arbitration eligible for the final time this offseason, and will become a free agent after the 2011 season. He is likely to see his salary climb past $10MM after earning $7.8MM this year. Uggla is a .263/.349/.488 career hitter, clubbing no fewer than 27 homers in each of his five seasons as a big leaguer. He is one of just nine players to eclipse the 30-homer plateau in each of the last four years.
Odds & Ends: Royals, Pena, Alderson, De La Rosa
Happy 133rd birthday to Archie "Moonlight" Graham. Arguably baseball's most famous one-game player (Eddie Gaedel also has a great case for this distinction), Moonlight Graham's only taste of the majors was one half-inning as a defensive replacement for the 1905 New York Giants. That half-inning grew into immortality thanks to his characterization in W.P. Kinsella's novel Shoeless Joe and its film adaptation Field Of Dreams. Graham, who passed away in 1965, went on to become a doctor in Chisholm, Minnesota following his brief playing career.
Onto some news items…
- Dayton Moore tells Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star that the David DeJesus trade won't deepen the Royals' interest in the free agent market. “It’s not cost effective at this time for us to be real aggressive with major-league free agents,” Moore said.
- Even if Aubrey Huff re-signs with the Giants, CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban thinks the team should look into signing Carlos Pena.
- Fanhouse's Tom Krasovic looks at the pros and cons of Sandy Alderson's tenure as CEO of the Padres and what Mets fans might expect from their new general manager.
- Add the Brewers, Pirates and Rangers to the list of teams believed to be interested in Jorge de la Rosa, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post. We know that list already includes the Nationals, Rockies and Yankees.
- If San Francisco really has soured on Pablo Sandoval due to the Panda's conditioning issues, Fangraphs' Matt Klassen thinks other teams should be contacting the Giants about a buy-low trade.
- During the season, an American League executive told Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com that Adam Dunn will stay in the NL since he genuinely wants to keep playing in the field. However, this executive predicted "Dunn will consider AL teams at least long enough to try to use them as leverage."
- The Mets will interview Jose Oquendo about the manager's job on Monday, tweets ESPNNewYork.com's Adam Rubin.
- Chad Durbin is receiving interest from teams as both a bullpen and rotation option, tweets ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. Durbin has made 75 starts in his career, but none since 2007.
- Most of the free agent catching crop will wait until "the lead domino" (Victor Martinez) signs before they look at joining new teams, says Newsday's Ken Davidoff. (Twitter link)
- Chris Coghlan will move to third base next year, reports MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. You can tentatively cross the Marlins off the list of teams exploring the free agent market for help at the hot corner, though it's possible Coghlan could be needed to play second if Florida trades Dan Uggla.
Marlins Break Off Uggla Extension Talks; Tigers Interested
The Marlins have ceased negotiations with Dan Uggla about a long-term contract, the second baseman told The Associated Press. Uggla said he and his representatives still want to negotiate, but the club has broken off talks for the time being.
It's possible the Marlins are simply going back to the drawing board to create a new offer after Uggla turned down their four-year, $48MM proposal last weekend. Or, perhaps the club is taking time to once again look at its trade options with regards to the slugger. Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com report that the Tigers have contacted Florida about Uggla. Though Detroit's primary need is for a left-handed batter, the right-handed hitting Uggla provides a big upgrade over the Tigers' current second base options of Scott Sizemore and Will Rhymes.
Morosi and Rosenthal report the Tigers are "looking everywhere for a power bat." Detroit could revisit trying to acquire Adam Dunn after exploring a deal for him at the trade deadline, though the club's main offseason priority is Victor Martinez.
Red Sox Acquire Andrew Miller
The Red Sox acquired Andrew Miller from the Marlins in exchange for Dustin Richardson, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports (on Twitter).
Miller, 25, was picked sixth overall by Detroit in the 2006 amateur draft and was dealt to Florida as part of the big Miguel Cabrera/Dontrelle Willis swap in December 2007. Miller was seen as arguably the biggest piece (along with Cameron Maybin) of the six-prospect package that Florida acquired for their stars, but the left-hander has struggled to become a consistent major league hurler. In 79 career games, 54 of them starts, Miller has a 5.84 ERA and a 7.2 BB/9 rate. Miller was out of options with the Marlins and could've been non-tendered, but the Red Sox were clearly willing to take a chance on a young pitcher who still has a high ceiling.
Richardson is also a 25-year-old southpaw originally chosen in the 2006 draft, though Richardson's pick came in the fifth round. Also like Miller, Richardson has struggled with control issues — in 16.1 major league innings, Richardson has recorded 15 walks. His control has been better (4.4 BB/9 rate) in the minors, plus he has a K/9 ratio of 10.0 over his five minor league seasons. Richardson has pitched exclusively out of the bullpen for the last two years and the Marlins were known to be looking for relief pitching this winter.