Twins Sign Levi Michael
The Twins have signed first round pick Levi Michael for $1.175MM, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (on Twitter). Selected 30th overall in June, Michael played shortstop and third base at North Carolina. He put up impressive offensive numbers in college and mostly did so as a teenager, since he didn't turn 20 until this February. The switch hitting North Carolina native grew up rooting for the Tar Heels.
You can keep track of which top picks have signed with MLBTR's list.
Supplemental Draft Pick Signings
When teams lose ranked free agents after offering arbitration, they obtain supplemental first round picks in the following year's amateur draft. The teams then have until August 15th to sign the picks. Today is the last day for teams to sign this year's draft picks and we'll keep track of the latest deals for supplemental first rounders right here:
- The Rays signed Tyler Goedell, according to the team. The third baseman obtains $1.5MM, according to Callis. The Rays also signed Grayson Garvin, according to Conor Glassey of Baseball America (on Twitter). It's a $370K deal, according to Callis (on Twitter). Tampa Bay obtained the 59th overall pick for the loss of Brad Hawpe.
- The Padres signed Michael Kelly, according to Callis (Twitter links). It's a $718K deal.
- The Red Sox signed 36th overall pick Henry Owens for $1.55MM, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com (on Twitter). They also signed Jackie Bradley Jr. for $1.1MM, according to John Manuel of Baseball America (on Twitter).
- The Nationals agreed to terms with Brian Goodwin, the 34th overall pick, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The outfielder's bonus is believed to be $3MM.
- The Twins will sign supplemental first rounder Travis Harrison to a deal worth $1.05MM, according Zoodig, an athlete digital media platform, on Twitter. The Twins also signed supplemental first rounder Hudson Boyd for $1MM, according to Callis (onTwitter). The Twins obtained the 55th overall pick for losing Orlando Hudson.
- The Diamondbacks agreed to sign Andrew Chafin for $875K, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America. The D'Backs obtained the 43rd overall pick as compensation for Adam LaRoche.
Tigers Acquire Delmon Young
In a surprising intra-division deal, the Twins announced today that they've traded left fielder Delmon Young to the Tigers for minor league lefty Cole Nelson and a player to be named later. The press release notes that the PTBNL must be chosen on or before October 15th. The Tigers already had an open spot on the 40-man roster for Young. It's not yet clear whether Young cleared waivers, or just made it past the seven American League clubs that would have allowed the Tigers to win the claim. Young won't have to alter his plans, as the Twins were headed to Detroit tonight to begin a three-game set.
Young, 25, is hitting just .266/.305/.357 in 325 plate appearances in a season that has included separate DL stints for oblique and ankle strains. Though he's generally regarded as a subpar defender, his UZR is positive in this year's 642 inning sample. Young (pictured) is under team control through next year, but with a mild raise likely from this year's $5.375MM salary, the Twins weren't necessarily going to tender him a contract in December. By trading Young now, the Twins saved about $1.3MM in salary.
Drafted first overall by the Rays in 2003, Young was the key part of the '07 challenge trade that sent Jason Bartlett and Matt Garza to Tampa Bay. He hasn't lived up to his potential, posting solid batting averages but failing to draw walks or hit for power outside of his .493 slugging percentage last year. Still, a year ago it was hard to picture the Twins moving Young, especially to a division rival.
With the Tigers' Brennan Boesch expected to return from a strained thumb tonight and Young now in the mix, the job of right fielder Magglio Ordonez is in jeopardy.
Nelson, 22, has a 4.87 ERA, 7.4 K/9, 4.3 BB/9, and 0.5 HR/9 in 105 1/3 innings for the Tigers' High-A club this year. He's spent time in the rotation and bullpen. As our transaction tracker shows, this is the first trade between GMs Dave Dombrowski and Bill Smith.
Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.
Non-Tender Candidate: Kevin Slowey
Kevin Slowey established himself as a decent back-of-the-rotation starter in his first three-plus Major League seasons, but 2011 has been different. The Twins have shown little confidence in Slowey, using him for just 14 2/3 innings so far and considering trades for him in the offseason, in Spring Training and at the trade deadline. The Twins called Slowey back up this week, so now is a good time to examine his chances of getting a contract offer from Minnesota this winter.
Slowey has spent considerable time on the disabled list this year, first with right shoulder bursitis and later with an abdominal strain. Over the course of two rehab stints and an optional assignment, he has a 3.60 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 1.1 BB/9 in 50 minor league innings. If those numbers look familiar, it's because Slowey had similar MLB stats from 2007-10. He posted a 4.41 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 in 473 1/3 innings heading into 2011.
Those stats and Slowey’s career 39-21 record helped the right-hander to a $2.7MM salary this season, his first as an arbitration eligible player. He’s eligible for arbitration again this offseason and though he’s certainly not going to earn much of a raise, the Twins can’t offer less than $2.16MM (80% of Slowey’s current salary), according to the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
That price might seem steep to the Twins, who don’t appear to view Slowey as an essential member of their pitching staff. So assuming he doesn’t overwhelm the Twins between now and the end of the season, Minnesota’s front office will have a few options this offseason. Flip Slowey to another club for a modest return, work out an affordable one-year deal for 2012 before the deadline for teams to tender eligible players contracts, non-tender him or go through the arbitration process like they did last year. Given how Slowey’s season has progressed so far, only the last option would be a surprise.
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Heyman On Reyes, Ortiz, Cole, Twins
The market for Jose Reyes should still be strong after the season, Jon Heyman writes at SI.com. MLB executives tell Heyman that the Giants, Cardinals, Tigers, Angels, Nationals, Braves, Phillies, Red Sox, Yankees and Mets could be fits for the shortstop in terms of finances and positional need. Here are the rest of Heyman’s rumors…
- Yankees people suggest they’re unlikely to pursue Reyes and Red Sox people say they don’t expect to spend big on a position player this winter.
- The Red Sox haven’t discussed a new deal with David Ortiz, though they’re confident that they’ll be able to re-sign him after the season. Ortiz has expressed interest in a multiyear deal for a while, but the Red Sox don’t want to guarantee more than one year.
- First overall draft pick Gerrit Cole is looking to approach Stephen Strasburg’s $15.1MM bonus and top Mariners pick Danny Hultzen is looking for $13MM plus money for school, Heyman reports. Keep track of which top picks have signed here.
- The Twins appear to want to keep Joe Nathan when he hits free agency after the season, but they’ll probably let Matt Capps sign elsewhere.
Stark On Reyes, Bell, Astros, Slowey
Jose Reyes’ injuries have hurt his free agent stock, as we saw earlier today. ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark surveys people around MLB to determine what kind of contract the shortstop will obtain in free agency. Here are the details and the rest of Stark’s rumors:
- There’s buzz that the Mets were prepared to offer Reyes $100MM over five years earlier in the summer, Stark reports. It’s not hard to imagine the Mets scaling back their offer or replacing guaranteed years with vesting options now.
- One of Stark’s sources estimates that each day on the disabled list costs Reyes $500K. However, there's no doubt that Reyes will see some substantial offers this winter.
- Rival teams expect the Padres to trade Heath Bell this month, Stark reports. The Cardinals and Diamondbacks are the serious NL contenders with the worst record (62-53), which makes them prime candidates to make a claim on Bell. Assuming he does get claimed, the Padres will only be able to trade with the claiming team, so they’ll want to time his placement on waivers carefully.
- The Astros’ sale is just a week away, Stark writes. Other clubs are hearing that incoming owner Jim Crane may drive payroll down to $50MM or below from $71MM.
- One executive expressed his surprise at the Twins’ decision to keep Kevin Slowey, a non-tender candidate who’s currently earning $2.7MM at Triple-A. “If they'd traded him, at least they would have gotten something,” the person said. At least they would have gotten rid of the money. So I'm just not sure why he's still there."
Stark On Twins, Kuroda, Phillies
The Twins were willing to listen to offers for Francisco Liriano leading up to the trade deadline, according to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark. However, Minnesota wanted a massive prospect return for the left-hander and no club met their asking price. Here’s the latest on the Twins with more of Stark’s notes from around MLB…
- The chances that the Nationals can restart talks with Minnesota about Denard Span over the winter are not good, Stark reports. Minnesota wanted Drew Storen for their bullpen in an attempt to win now, but the Twins’ sense of urgency figures to disappear this offseason.
- Rival teams say the Tigers and Red Sox each believed they were closing in on a deal for Hiroki Kuroda before the right-hander decided not to waive his no-trade clause.
- The Red Sox and Rockies discussed an expanded deal that would have sent Josh Reddick to Colorado and Seth Smith to Boston while considering possible moves involving Ubaldo Jimenez. Talks between the 2007 World Series foes had essentially stopped by Saturday, though.
- Though GM Ruben Amaro Jr. has publicly said Domonic Brown was not available, Stark hears from three different teams that the Phillies were willing to move the young outfielder in the right deal.
- Teams that have spoken with the Phillies don’t expect them to be active on the waiver wire this month, since they want to avoid paying MLB’s luxury tax.
Twins Talked Extension With Cuddyer
The Twins recently approached Michael Cuddyer about a contract extension, floating a two-year, $16MM deal, according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. The conversations didn’t progress from there, as Cuddyer appears to prefer to postpone negotiations until after the season, when he hits free agency.
Cuddyer and GM Bill Smith declined to comment on the discussions, which occurred after Sunday’s trade deadline, according to Christensen. A two-year, $16MM deal would represent a pay cut for the versatile Cuddyer, who earns $10.5MM this year. The 32-year-old, who projects as a Type A free agent, has made it clear that he hopes to remain in Minnesota.
Olney On Bell, Goldschmidt, Cuddyer
The latest MLB news and rumors from ESPN.com’s Buster Olney…
- Rival evaluators believe the Padres made a major mistake in not trading Heath Bell at the deadline, according to Olney. If the closer accepts arbitration, as he says he would, the small market Padres will be burdened with a big contract. And if they don’t offer arbitration, the Padres won’t get anything for losing Bell.
- The Twins want to keep hot-hitting Michael Cuddyer after the season, according to Olney (on Twitter). The versatile Cuddyer hits free agency this winter.
- Arizona GM Kevin Towers told Olney that he was impressed by Paul Goldschmidt's power and work ethic in Spring Training. The rookie first baseman homered against Tim Lincecum Tuesday and Towers says he'll be able to cope when things aren't going so well. "He's not a kid who's going to start hanging his head if he gets a couple of oh-fers," Towers said.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Matt Capps
MLB teams made what's arguarbly the riskiest investment in baseball 17 times last offseason, signing free agent relief pitchers to multiyear deals. Not surprisingly, many of the deals haven't worked out, but that won't stop baseball's owners from handing out another round of generous contracts to the relievers who hit the open market this offseason.
Relievers like Matt Capps, who are mere months away from free agency, have every reason to wonder if they'll be among the beneficiaries of teams' never-ending search for bullpen stability. Unfortunately for Capps (and the Twins), his numbers have fallen off in 2011, so his case for a multiyear deal isn't as strong as it would have been last year.
The 27-year-old is striking out far fewer hitters this year (4.5 K/9, 12.3 K%) than in 2010 (7.3 K/9, 19.3 K%). Capps' average fastball velocity has dropped from 94 mph to 92.8 mph and opposing hitters are making more contact than they did a year ago. When they do make contact, it's much less likely to be a ground ball now (38.8% ground ball rate) than it was in 2010 (49.8% ground ball rate). The right-hander's ERA now sits at 4.34 (4.27 xFIP), about two runs higher than last year's 2.47 mark (3.31 xFIP).
To his credit, Capps has cut down on walks (1.2 BB/9) compared to last year (2.1 BB/9), but that doesn't make the warning signs disappear. The market for relievers who are losing fastball velocity, inducing fewer ground balls and generating fewer swings and misses doesn't tend to be strong.
It's a lot for the Twins to take into account when deciding whether to offer arbitration this offseason. Capps projects as a Type A free agent, so Minnesota could theoretically obtain two top draft choices by offering arbitration if he declines the offer and signs elsewhere.
But would any team surrender a high draft choice for the right to sign Capps? And, perhaps more to the point, wouldn't Capps' representatives at Wasserman Media Group recommend that their client accept an offer of arbitration? After all, Capps earns $7.15MM this season and would earn a raise by accepting arbitration.
All of this makes it seem unlikely that Capps will obtain an arbitration offer from the Twins, so it's hard to imagine him hitting the market tied to draft pick compensation. All Capps will cost is cash and owners have shown a willingness to overpay for serviceable relievers before. If he obtains multiyear security on the open market despite his decline in performance, he won't be the first reliever to profit from baseball's over-eager owners.
Photo courtesy Icon SMI.