Quick Hits: NL Central Grades, J. Upton, Salazar
Here are some items of note for Feb. 8. On this day in 1999, the Red Sox's arbitration hearing with Midre Cummings was decided by Elizabeth Neumeier, marking the first time a woman had decided an arbitration case since its adoption by MLB in 1974. The preceeding 409 cases had all been decided by men.
- With Spring Training nearly upon us and most teams merely making a few roster tweaks here and there, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com hands out his grades for the best and worst offseasons among the residents of the NL Central. The Brewers, on the strength of bolstering their rotation with Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum, fared the best, writes Stark. The Cubs did well to retool a bit with the additions of Matt Garza and Carlos Pena, while the Pirates and Reds got so-so marks for their modest changes. The rebuilding Astros are pulling up the rear, and the jury is still out on the Cardinals, who have an outstanding issue to tend to with respect to a potential extension for Albert Pujols.
- Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers was never really interested in dealing Justin Upton this offseason, writes Tom Verducci of SI.com, but he felt it prudent to gauge other teams' interest. No offers were of particular interest to Towers, according to Verducci. Towers is interested in seeing what Upton can do under the tutelage of new hitting coach Don Baylor, under whom one-time uberprospect Carlos Gonzalez realized his full potential with the Rockies in 2010.
- Padres infielder Oscar Salazar has cleared waivers after being designated for assignment, has accepted his minor league assignment and will be in Major League camp, tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com.
MLB Teams Sign Six Dominican League Prospects
The Dominican Prospect League announced that Major League organizations have signed six of its top prospects. Here are the details on the deals:
- The Yankees signed 20-year-old center fielder Freiter Marte for $100K. Marte had been selected to play in the DPL All-Star Game.
- Elvis Rubio, who was also chosen to play in the All-Star Game, signed with the Brewers for $95K. Rubio is a 17-year-old corner outfielder.
- If you think Rubio is young, look at who the Rays signed. Tampa Bay signed 16-year-old left-hander Luis Cepeda for $60K. The Rays get another DPL All-Star in Cepeda.
- The Cardinals signed Fernando Gonzalez, a 16-year old right-hander, for $66K. Gonzalez has drawn comparisons to a young Leo Nunez, according to the league.
- The Indians signed Kevin Calderon for $80K. The 16-year old made this year's All-Star team and is considered a top defensive catcher.
- The Pirates signed Leandro Rodriguez, a 17-year-old right-hander with a loose arm, for $80K.
Quick Hits: Diamondbacks, Guerrero, Marcum, Pence
Football will dominate today's sports headlines, but ESPN.com's Jayson Stark tweets some good news for baseball fans – Super Sunday also represents the start of the last week without baseball until November! Here are today's links, as the Packers and Steelers prepare to square off in Texas….
- The Diamondbacks could hit it big in the draft this year, a rival scout tells Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic. Arizona will hold the No. 3 and No. 7 picks this June.
- It's time to give Peter Angelos and the Orioles credit for signing Vladimir Guerrero, writes Kevin Cowherd of The Baltimore Sun. The big ticket signing is the latest move made by the O's who will see their payroll jump from $73MM in 2010 to $93MM in 2011.
- Francisco Liriano's $4.3MM salary could impact the Brewers' negotiations with Shaun Marcum, writes MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Both pitchers submitted a $5MM figure. Milwaukee countered with $3MM while the Twins offered Liriano $3.6MM before settling on a $4.3MM mark last week.
- An arbitration hearing for Hunter Pence and the Astros has been set for February 18th, reports Stephen Goff of the Houston Astros Examiner. As MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, Pence is Houston's last remaining case, and the two sides' figures are $1.75MM apart.
- Within a piece on the Rays' bullpen, Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune writes that the team is waiting until early this week to make roster moves to free room on the 40-man roster for Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez.
- The Yankees' hunt for starting pitching and the Mets' financial issues will get more attention, but Joel Sherman of the New York Post thinks the more intriguing stories in New York involve the futures of the two starting shortstops.
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer previews some storylines and poses some questions for the Reds as they prepare for the season.
Quick Hits: Vlad, Brewers, Yankees, Pujols
Nine years ago today, MLB announced it had withdrawn its plan to contract the Twins and Expos due to legal issues and major opposition from the players' union. Minnesota has won six division titles and moved into Target Field since then, and they now boast a $100MM+ payroll. The Expos have since relocated to Washington and moved into Nationals Park, and this winter they handed out their first $100MM+ contract.
Here's some links for Saturday…
- Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes reports (on Twitter) that Vladimir Guerrero is scheduled to take his physical with the Orioles this upcoming Friday in Baltimore.
- Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio spoke to Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel about letting talent dictate the team's payroll as opposed to spending for the sake of spending.
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman wasn't terribly interested in the starters that were left on the open market after Cliff Lee signed with the Phillies, writes Chad Jennings of The LoHud Yankees Blog.
- In today's blog post at ESPN (Insider req'd), Buster Olney says there does not to appear to have been much progress in talks about a long-term contract extension between the Cardinals and Albert Pujols. The Spring Training deadline is about two weeks away.
- Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun says the Guerrero signing has created some questions, such as what the Orioles' Opening Day payroll will be.
- Minor league contract signees Eric Chavez and Ronnie Belliard will compete with four homegrown players for two spots on the Yankees' bench according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but he notes that Ramiro Pena and Eduardo Nunez have an advantage because they can play shortstop.
Brewers Sign Mark Kotsay
The Brewers signed Mark Kotsay to a Major League contract, according to the team. Kotsay will earn $800K plus a $100K roster bonus and $350K in performance bonuses, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The 35-year-old Legacy Sports client will provide the Brewers with another option in the outfield and at first base.
Kotsay hit .239/.306/.376 in 359 plate appearances for the White Sox last year. The left-handed hitter clubbed eight homers while playing first base and right field.
Between Carlos Gomez, Ryan Braun, Corey Hart, Chris Dickerson, Jeremy Reed, Brandon Boggs, Caleb Gindl and Logan Schafer, the Brewers have lots of outfield options. Jim Edmonds, Casey McGehee and George Kottaras backed up Prince Fielder at first last year, but none of them have as much experience at the position as Kotsay and Edmonds appears to be close to retiring.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported the deal (on Twitter).
Brewers Designate Roque Mercedes For Assignment
The Brewers designated Roque Mercedes for assignment to create roster space for Mark Kotsay, according to the team (on Twitter). The Brewers claimed Mercedes in December after the D'Backs designated him for assignment.
Mercedes, who came up through the Brewers' system before Milwaukee sent him to Arizona in the 2009 Felipe Lopez trade, spent last year at Double-A. The 24-year-old Dominican posted a 4.36 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 in 53 2/3 innings of relief work.
Quick Hits: Millwood, Bautista, Hawkins
Here are some items of note for Feb. 3, 2011, the day on which former AL Rookie of the Year and MVP Fred Lynn turned 59.
- The Indians are interested in free-agent righty Kevin Millwood, tweets Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer, but not at the current asking price of one year, $4-5MM. Cleveland is among the handful of potential Millwood suitors enumerated by Ben Nicholson-Smith earlier on Thursday. The Yankees are part of the group, too, and it stands to reason that Andy Pettitte's retirement might strengthen their interest, writes Chris Bahr of the Sporting News.
- The Red Sox's interest in trading for Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista is telling because it indicates there is a belief among baseball executives and talent evaluators that Bautista's monstrous 54-homer campaign in 2010 was not a fluke, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com. The Red Sox eventually got their man when they signed free-agent outfielder Carl Crawford, so Bautista-to-Boston is obviously off, notes Morosi, but it bodes well for Bautista in his final season before hitting free agency.
- Brewers reliever LaTroy Hawkins said that his surgically repaired shoulder feels good and that he'll compete for a spot in Milwaukee's bullpen, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Hawkins signed a two-year, $7.5MM deal with Milwaukee prior to last season but pitched in just 18 games before being lost to an injured labrum and rotator cuff. Hawkins has a guaranteed contract, so the Brewers will surely want him to be at full strength and pitching well, but it bears watching how they handle him if he struggles with injury and/or ineffectiveness.
Brewers, Kotsay Close To Deal
The Brewers are close to a deal with Mark Kotsay, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The 35-year-old Legacy Sports client would provide the Brewers with another option in the outfield.
Kotsay hit .239/.306/.376 in 359 plate appearances for the White Sox last year. The left-handed hitter clubbed eight homers while playing first base and right field.
The Brewers already have a number of outfield options. They recently signed Jeremy Reed to a minor league deal and outfielders Chris Dickerson, Brandon Boggs, Caleb Gindl and Logan Schafer will also be in Brewers camp this spring. Gomez, Ryan Braun and Corey Hart are the team's starting outfielders.
This post was originally published February 1st, 2011.
Quick Hits: Weeks, Dodgers, Cuddyer, Mets
On this day 20 years ago, the Atlanta Braves signed Falcons cornerback Deion Sanders as a free agent. Though he struggled in his first year as a Brave, 'Prime Time' was a key contributor for the National League champs in 1992; he hit .304/.346/.495 with 26 stolen bases in 325 regular season plate appearances and added eight hits and five steals in four World Series games. Sanders ended up leaving both Atlanta franchises in 1994, but not before he racked up 75 stolen bases and ten touchdowns for the Braves and Falcons respectively. Here are Sunday's links:
- The Brewers are comfortable with Rickie Weeks' deadline for an extension, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. He relays a quote from assistant GM Gord Ash praising Weeks for focusing on the right area once the season starts — baseball.
- Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times looks at the possibility of Tony Gwynn Jr. hitting well enough to play every day and how that would impact the Dodgers' roster.
- Michael Cuddyer and agent Casey Close have yet to discuss a long-term extension with the Twins, writes MLB.com's Kelly Thesier. While Cuddyer is open to talking about a contract during Spring Training, he'd prefer to table the topic during the regular season.
- Martin Luther King III, son of the civil rights leader, is leading a group that's interested in buying at least 50% of the Mets, reports Kevin Kernan of the New York Post. The Wilpons were said to be willing to sell up to 25% of the team.
- Given the Mets' financial situation, some rival executives think Jose Reyes is likely to be moved before this year's trade deadline, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Insider-only).
- In a tweet, Olney adds that, despite considering it, the Diamondbacks are "probably not" going to implement a humidor at Chase Field this year.
- Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer wonders why expectations for Phillies' prospect Domonic Brown seem to have diminished since last summer.
- Within an Indians mailbag, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer says he can see the Tribe signing a couple more players before Spring Training, though the team would likely only do minor league deals.
Rickie Weeks Has Deadline For Extension Negotiations
Rickie Weeks, who is eligible for free agency after 2011, does not want to talk about a multiyear extension once Spring Training begins, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "Once I get to Spring Training, I want to focus on baseball," the second baseman told Haudricourt.
Weeks, 28, is still without a contract for 2011, though we heard this morning that the Brewers are optimistic about working out a one-year deal rather than going to a hearing. Arbitration eligible for the last time, Weeks filed for $7.2MM, while the Brewers countered with $4.85MM.
The Brewers have expressed a desire to sign Weeks to a multiyear deal, but tabled those talks for the time being, while they work on a one-year contract. Even if the two sides agree on a salary for 2011 soon, the Brewers will have to re-open multiyear discussions fairly quickly if they hope to lock Weeks up long-term before his Spring Training deadline. Given how far apart the two sides were when they talked before, Haudricourt says an extension before Spring Training "sounds almost impossible."