Twins Rumors

Phillies Notes: Willingham, Ross, Suzuki, Ellsbury

By Mark Polishuk | December 7, 2012 at 5:28pm CDT

Here's the latest on Philadelphia's offseason dealings, courtesy of CSNPhilly.com's Jim Salisbury…

Before the Phillies acquired Ben Revere from the Twins, they attempted to also get Josh Willingham in either the same trade package or in a separate deal.
The club is still in the market for a corner outfielder. The Phillies "have seriously considered" signing Ichiro Suzuki and "have long liked" Cody Ross.
Any further upgrades may have to come via the free agency market since the Phillies don't have much prospect depth aside from possibly at catcher. Salisbury notes that Tommy Joseph, the most well-regarded of the team's young catchers, "probably isn't going anywhere."
The Red Sox approached the Phillies about a trade of Jacoby Ellsbury for Cliff Lee, but the Phillies said that Lee wasn't available. I can't blame the Phils for turning that offer down; even if they did want to move Lee, he would fetch far more on the trade market than just one year of Ellsbury, who hits free agency next winter.

Dodgers, Twins Interested In Skip Schumaker

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | December 7, 2012 at 9:00am CDT

The Dodgers and Twins are among the teams that have some level of interest in Cardinals bench player Skip Schumaker, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. GM John Mozeliak acknowledged that Schumaker’s name has been out there as a potential trade candidate.

“We’ve tried to optimize the type of return we might get for him,” Mozeliak said. “We’ve left it fairly open. If we can get Major League help, we would definitely consider that. If we can’t find it we will look for someone who can fit into our minor league system.”

Schumaker, 32, will earn $1.5MM in 2013, the last year on his contract. As Goold notes, this seems reasonable given the escalating cost of infield help in free agency. Other than the Dodgers and Twins, the Reds could also be interested in Schumaker, a versatile player capable of playing second base and the outfield. The left-handed hitter has a .345 career on-base percentage, but he struggles to hit lefties.

Quick Hits: Greinke, Cubs, White Sox, Dodgers

By Zachary Links | December 7, 2012 at 12:14am CDT

Post-meetings links from around baseball..

Dodgers people are starting to sound a little less optimistic in their pursuit of Zack Greinke and are wondering if the pitcher might prefer the Rangers, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
The Cubs' addition of Nate Schierholtz doesn't end their search for outfield help, according to Carrie Muskat of MLB.com (via Twitter).
The White Sox sound like they would like to add another bullpen arm to the mix, writes Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com. General Manager Rick Hahn specifically identified the role vacated by free agent Brett Myers, who is now drawing interest as a starter.
Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times wonders if the Dodgers' policy on no-trade clauses will preclude their ability to lure free agents.
Twins GM Terry Ryan tells MLB Network Radio (via Twitter) that they will listen to all offers on Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau.
Brewers GM Doug Melvin says that the club isn't in on Brian Wilson, tweets Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.
Agent Scott Boras explained to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times that the Red Sox were paying for more than baseball ability when they gave Daisuke Matsuzaka his monster deal in 2006.

Twins To Extend Jared Burton

By Zachary Links | December 6, 2012 at 5:31pm CDT

The Twins locked up one of their best relievers today, signing Jared Burton to a two-year, $5.5MM extension with a $3.6MM club option for 2015. Burton would have been entering a walk year in 2013, so the contract buys out one free agent year with an option for another. He's represented by Dave Pepe of Pro Agents, Inc.

Burton, 31, inked a minor league deal with the Twins last November and made the big league roster after a strong showing in Spring Training. The right-hander had a breakout season with the Twins in 2012, posting a 2.18 ERA, 8.0 K/9, 2.3 BB/9, 0.73 HR/9, and 48.5% groundball rate in 62 innings of work. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected a $2.1MM salary for Burton's last trip through arbitration in 2013, so his actual $2.05MM salary isn't much of a discount. But the Twins now have Burton potentially through 2015, as well as reliever Glen Perkins possibly through 2016 from an extension signed in March.

As MLBTR's arbitration tracker shows, the Twins' class is down to just Drew Butera and Brian Duensing.

Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN first reported the extension was close. Tim Dierkes contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Phillies Acquire Ben Revere

By Tim Dierkes | December 6, 2012 at 11:11am CDT

The Phillies acquired outfielder Ben Revere from the Twins, reports MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. Starting pitcher Vance Worley is going to the Twins in the deal, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports, as well as pitching prospect Trevor May, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Both teams have since confirmed the trade.

Revere, 24, hit .294/.333/.342 in 553 plate appearances for the Twins this year, stealing 40 bags in 49 tries. With just one year and 149 days of Major League service, Revere will not be arbitration eligible until 2014 at the earliest, and is under team control through 2017. He was a first-round pick of the Twins in 2007. He'd been penciled in to take over center field from Denard Span, who the Twins dealt to the Nationals less than a week ago.

"Ben is an outstanding, young, controllable center fielder who fits nicely with our club," Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. said in a statement. He's also affordable, allowing for payroll flexibility for the team. Meanwhile, there's one less suitor for free agent Michael Bourn.

Worley, 25, posted a 4.20 ERA, 7.2 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 0.81 HR/9, and 46% groundball rate in 133 innings this year for the Phillies. He battled a bone chip in his elbow for much of the season, which was removed in September surgery. Worley has one year and 152 days of Major League service, matching up nicely with Revere in terms of club control.

May, 23, was ranked as the Phillies' second-best prospect by MLB.com. He posted a 4.87 ERA, 9.1 K/9, 4.7 BB/9, and 1.32 HR/9 in 149 2/3 Double-A innings this year. Prior to the season, Baseball America wrote, "If his command continues to improve, he could become a No. 2 starter, and he should be at least a solid mid-rotation workhorse." The Twins added Alex Meyer in the Span trade, ranked the 50th-best prospect in baseball by MLB.com.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

2012 Rule 5 Draft Results

By Steve Adams | December 6, 2012 at 9:03am CDT

Each year, Major League Baseball's Winter Meetings conclude with the Rule 5 Draft. For those who are unfamiliar with the event, MLBTR offers an in-depth description, but here's a quick overview.

Players are eligible for the Rule 5 Draft if they aren't on the 40-man roster four or five years after signing, depending on the age at which they signed. Teams draft in the reverse order of the previous season's standings but aren't required to make a selection. If they do choose a player, they pay his former team $50K and must keep that player on the Major League roster all season or offer him back to his original team for $25K.

The results from the Major League phase:

Astros take righty Josh Fields from Red Sox
Cubs take righty Hector Rondon from Indians
Rockies take lefty Danny Rosenbaum from Nationals
Twins take righty Ryan Pressly from Red Sox
Indians take first baseman Chris McGuiness from Rangers
Marlins take outfielder Alfredo Silverio from Dodgers
Red Sox take second baseman Jeff Kobernus from Nationals; traded to Tigers for infielder/outfielder Justin Henry
Royals
Blue Jays
Mets take lefty Kyle Lobstein from Rays; traded to Tigers for cash considerations
Mariners
Padres
Pirates
Diamondbacks take righty Starling Peralta from Cubs
Phillies take outfielder Ender Inciarte from Diamondbacks
Brewers
White Sox take infielder Angel Sanchez from Angels
Dodgers
Cardinals
Tigers
Angels
Rays
Orioles take lefty T.J. McFarland from Indians
Rangers take righty Coty Woods from Rockies
Athletics
Giants
Braves
Yankees
Reds
Nationals

Second round of Major League phase:

Astros take first baseman Nate Freiman from Padres
Marlins take lefty Braulio Lara from Rays

Latest On Ben Revere

By Tim Dierkes | December 6, 2012 at 8:51am CDT

Twins outfielder Ben Revere appears to be in play, despite the team trading Denard Span to the Nationals six days ago. Revere, 24, hit .294/.333/.342 in 553 plate appearances for the Twins this year, stealing 40 bags in 49 tries. With just one year and 149 days of Major League service, Revere will not be arbitration eligible until 2014 at the earliest, and is under team control through 2017. The latest:

Revere may be the Phillies' top choice for center field, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. The Twins are interested in Vance Worley plus a pitching prospect, tweets Knobler. Phillies executives Ruben Amaro Jr. and Pat Gillick met separately with Twins GM Terry Ryan this morning, tweets MLB.com's Todd Zolecki.
The Braves are interested and have spoken to the Twins about Revere, tweets David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Overnight Links: Burnett, Phillies, Giants, Rays

By Steve Adams | December 6, 2012 at 3:55am CDT

It's the middle of the night, but news rarely stops coming in over the course of baseball's Winter Meetings. Here are some links from around the baseball world for those who are still awake…

One of the reasons that Sean Burnett's two-year, $8MM deal with the Angels was so affordable was because he had surgery to remove a bone spur this offseason, tweets Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times. For comparison, Jeremy Affeldt signed for three years and $18MM.
Danny Knobler of CBS Sports writes that the Phillies have a list of five center field targets that includes Michael Bourn, Josh Hamilton, Dexter Fowler, Curtis Granderson and Ben Revere. This is the first they've been linked to Revere, who Knobler says the Twins will move for young pitching despite already having traded Denard Span.
Scott Boras told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that he's spoken to Giants team president Larry Baer about established closers like Rafael Soriano and Jose Valverde (Twitter link). There doesn't seem to be a match there in my opinion, given Sergio Romo's excellence and reports that the Giants are at their payroll threshold.
The Rays have hired former Astros scouting director Bobby Heck as as special assignment scout, tweets Brian McTaggart of MLB.com.

Latest On Mike Pelfrey

By Tim Dierkes | December 5, 2012 at 5:28pm CDT

Free agent righty Mike Pelfrey is getting a lot of play, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, with the Mariners, Indians, Twins, and others in the mix. The Pirates were connected to Pelfrey earlier.

Pelfrey, 29 in January, had Tommy John surgery in early May and was non-tendered by the Mets last week.

Teams Contacting Rangers About Holland

By Luke Adams 2 | December 5, 2012 at 10:54am CDT

With the Rangers believed to be very much involved in the Zack Greinke sweepstakes, Texas is a candidate to add a big-name starter this week, in which case the team may look to trade one of its in-house options. As such, rival teams are calling to inquire about the availability of left-hander Derek Holland, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter).

The Brewers, Twins, and Royals are among the clubs that have been in touch with the Rangers about Holland, says Morosi.

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