Twins Looking To Upgrade Infield, Rotation
The Minnesota Twins are interested in bolstering their infield and their starting rotation, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. For now, they seem to be adopting a wait-and-see approach, in hopes that the asking prices for some free agents will drop. Here are the highlights from Morosi's update:
- According to a source, Jarrod Washburn, Jon Garland, Doug Davis, and Brett Myers are among the Twins' pitching targets.
- Garland, who is hoping to sign a multi-year deal, may be out of the Twins' price range.
- The Twins are interested in Mark DeRosa and Adrian Beltre, but may not be able to afford them either. Their more realistic infield options include Miguel Tejada and Juan Uribe.
- The Indians could move Jhonny Peralta, but the Twins "haven't actively pursued a trade" for him yet.
Multiple Teams Watching Kelvim Escobar
WEDNESDAY, 10:52pm: Peter Greenberg, Escobar's agent, informed FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi that representatives from the Yankees and Twins were also at the throwing session (via Twitter).
WEDNESDAY, 2:54pm: Zavarce tweets that the Rays, Cubs, Brewers, Giants, Pirates, Tigers, Mariners, and A's are on hand to watch Escobar throw. Several of those clubs are new additions to the list of suitors.
TUESDAY, 10:17am: If you speak Spanish and would like to read Zavarce's full article about Escobar, click here to download a PDF.
MONDAY, 1:08pm: The Mets offered a minor league deal to pitcher Kelvim Escobar, reports Efrain Zavarce for Venezuelan newspaper El Nacional. According to Zavarce, the Rays are also interested. We cannot find Zavarce's article online, but follow him on Twitter if you speak Spanish. Hat tip to ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr., who pointed followers to Zavarce's article and provided translation.
We learned during the Winter Meetings last week that the Mariners, Brewers, Orioles, Mets, and Yankees are other suitors for Escobar, who will pitch as a reliever in 2010 in hopes of preserving his shoulder.
Red Sox Acquire Boof Bonser
SUNDAY, 1:16pm: Bonser's deal is non-guaranteed and worth $650K, with a $25K bonus for either 20 starts or 45 appearances, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com (via Twitter).
SATURDAY, 9:26pm: The Twins acquired righty Chris Province from the Red Sox for Bonser, according to a press release. It should also be noted that the Sox signed Bonser for 2010.
THURSDAY, 8:53am: The Twins confirmed the move in a press release. They'll receive a player to be named later or cash for Bonser. It'll be an A or AA player, reports Kelsie Smith of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
8:28am: The Red Sox acquired pitcher Boof Bonser, according to the pitcher's agency Reynolds Sports Management. Bonser was designated for assignment on Tuesday to make room for Carl Pavano. The 28-year-old had labrum and rotator cuff surgery in February. Bonser sports a 5.12 ERA, 7.3 K/9, and 2.9 BB/9 over 391.6 career innings spanning three seasons.
Odds & Ends: Diaz, Cedeno, German, Ojeda
A few tidbits from around the majors….
- Blue Jays reliever Jeremy Accardo hopes to be non-tendered tomorrow, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. The righty, 28 this month, dealt with a groin injury and bounced up and down between Triple A and the Majors this year. He earned $900K.
- Cases of players avoiding arbitration and signing for 2010, according to the AP: Matt Diaz of the Braves at $2.55MM, Ronny Cedeno of the Pirates at $1.125MM, and Esteban German of the Rangers at $600K. Diaz gets a 106% raise, heading into his third arbitration year.
- The AP also notes that the Nationals signed pitcher Ryan Speier for $425K. The 30-year-old toiled at Triple A for the Rockies this year, mainly.
- MLB.com's Steve Gilbert (via Twitter) reports that the Diamondbacks have avoided going to arbitration with Augie Ojeda by re-signing the veteran infielder to a one-year deal. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic says the contract is worth $825K. Ojeda, 34, has spent the last three seasons with Arizona and hit .246/.340/.345 in 309 plate appearances in 2009. The defensive specialist is a valuable utilityman, able to play second, third and shortstop.
- Twins GM Bill Smith tells Kelsie Smith of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that his traditionally low-spending team has "substantial funds" to cover arbitration raises and potential signings that could raise Minnesota's payroll into the $90MM neighborhood for next season. The general manager was predictably non-committal when asked if "substantial" translated to "enough to extend Joe Mauer."
- NPB Tracker passes on news from Japanese site Sanspo.com that the Yakult Swallows will announce next week that they have signed Eulogio De La Cruz. The right-hander was released by the Padres on Wednesday. De La Cruz has an 11.84 ERA in 15 appearances over three seasons with San Diego, Florida and Detroit.
- The White Sox seem ready to stick with Randy Williams as the only left-handed reliever (besides, of course, set-up man Matt Thornton) next season, as Chicago GM Kenny Williams told Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. Gonzales notes that if the club changes its mind, a possible target could be former White Sox reliever Neal Cotts, who will be non-tendered by the Cubs tomorrow.
Twitter Rumors: Smoltz, Damon, Mulder, Felix, Counsell
Twitter madness…
- Surprisingly, Ken Davidoff of Newsday writes of an "increasing expectation around MLB" that the Yankees will eventually re-sign Hideki Matsui.
- Crasnick talked to one exec who says Scott Boras wants three years and big money for outfielder Rick Ankiel.
- The Royals talked to the Dodgers about Juan Pierre, writes ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, but the Dodgers would have to eat too much money to make it work.
- ESPN's Jayson Stark says the Phillies are now looking hard at John Smoltz as a possible "back-of-the-bullpen weapon." Smoltz's agent apparently told the Phils that the pitcher has no problem with Citizens Bank Park.
- ESPN's Buster Olney heard "the Yankees are in the process of negotiating with Johnny Damon's camp." He adds that the Yanks "intend to use market forces to pressure Damon to make a decision quickly." I'm sure Scott Boras will love that.
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin plans to visit free agent lefty Mark Mulder in January to discuss a possible contract, says Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports says there have been no Felix Hernandez negotiations this week after an initial four-year offer from the Mariners.
- Dodgers GM Ned Colletti told Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times that they'll tender contracts to all of their arbitration-eligible players. No big surprise, though it's a large group of players.
- Scott Lauber of the News Journal talked to Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr., who said Astros GM Ed Wade stole Brandon Lyon from the Phillies. The Astros committed three years and $15MM to Lyon despite holes at shortstop and third base.
- MLB.com's Adam McCalvy says the Brewers upped their offer to Craig Counsell this morning and GM Doug Melvin is confident they'll get it done. The Reds are still in the mix for Counsell, says MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.
- La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune heard last night that Twins infielder Alexi Casilla is available.
Padres Discussing Kouzmanoff
618pm: Stark hears that the Padres offered Kouzmanoff up for Lewis and Frandsen. That doesn't match with the reports below, which suggest the Padres wanted more. Stark agrees with Nightengale that the Padres wanted more than Glen Perkins in return from the Twins.
WEDNESDAY, 5:21pm: Jayson Stark of ESPN.com hears that the Padres are aggressively trying to move Kouzmanoff. The Twins and Giants are interested.
TUESDAY, 5:39pm: The Twins offered Perkins for Kouzmanoff, but the Padres want more, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
4:50pm: MLB.com's Corey Brock hears that Kouzmanoff has drawn interest from as many as eight teams. The Padres aren't interested in Lewis or Frandsen.
1:47pm: USA Today's Bob Nightengale tweets about an NL West trade discussion: the Giants are talking to the Padres about third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff, but the Padres want more than Fred Lewis and Kevin Frandsen. I'm guessing the Padres would prefer not to pay Kouzmanoff the $3-5MM he'll get through arbitration.
Meanwhile La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says the Padres would like to discuss Kouzmanoff with the Twins. He wonders if they'd be interested in Glen Perkins, who is available. Neal notes that Pedro Feliz's agents would like to talk to the Twins as well.
Twins Rumors: Third Base, Harden
2:34pm: Kelsie Smith of the St. Paul Pioneer Press spoke to DeRosa's agent Keith Grunewald, who said talks with the Twins have been nothing more than preliminary.
10:49am: Neal has more, questioning the Feliz and Uribe links. Also, Neal spoke to someone from Rich Harden's agency and came away thinking the Mariners are the favorite (the Twins have not been in contact recently).
9:28am: Let's take a look at the Twins' third base situation. Yesterday afternoon, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports said they're considering free agents Adrian Beltre, Pedro Feliz, Mark DeRosa, and Juan Uribe, though Beltre and DeRosa might be too pricey. He did not see Boston's Mike Lowell as a target. ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. has the Astros and Orioles in on Feliz, in addition to the Twins.
La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune wrote early this morning that the Twins are "very interested in DeRosa." A trade for Kevin Kouzmanoff is another possibility, while re-signing Joe Crede hasn't been ruled out.
Boof Bonser Designated For Assignment
WEDNESDAY, 10:47am: La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says the Twins attempted to sign Bonser to a one-year deal recently, but were turned down. He's expected to be released.
TUESDAY, 1:32pm: The Twins designated pitcher Boof Bonser for assignment to make room for Carl Pavano, tweets Kelsie Smith of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The 28-year-old Bonser had labrum and rotator cuff surgery in February. Bonser sports a 5.12 ERA, 7.3 K/9, and 2.9 BB/9 over 391.6 career innings spanning three seasons.
Odds & Ends: Unit, Rhodes, Crisp, Valverde
More links for the evening…
- The Red Sox will find out tomorrow if their claim on Rays righty Ramon A. Ramirez went through, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. This isn't the same Ramon Ramirez that appeared in 70 games for Boston last year.
- Randy Johnson is still undecided about 2010, according to this AP report on ESPN.com.
- The Rangers discussed Arthur Rhodes with the Reds today, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. The Rangers are on the lookout for lefty relievers.
- The Rangers are considering Jason Kendall and Rod Barajas behind the plate, according to Sullivan. ESPN.com's Keith Law says this is a problem for the Rangers. He doesn't think much of any of the free agent catchers they're considering.
- Coco Crisp would be up for signing with the White Sox, according to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune.
- Talks between the Twins and Joe Crede are progressing slowly, according to MLB.com's Kelly Thesier.
- The Mariners are keeping in touch with Rich Harden's agents, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
- The Nats were interested in Jose Valverde, but they felt his asking price was too high, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times reports that Scott Boras will meet with Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik tonight. Adrian Beltre is one of Boras' clients, so they'll presumably discuss him.
- White Sox reliever Matt Thornton tells Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times that he's recruiting J.J. Putz. Thornton says he and Putz have a long-standing "bromance" that dates back to their Seattle days.
- ESPN.com's Keith Law says Justin Smoak and Neftali Feliz are too much to give up for Josh Johnson. Apparently, the Rangers offered the pair of top prospects up.
- Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus likes the Ivan Rodriguez signing for the Nats, partly because Pudge could help develop Stephen Strasburg.
- By the way, the deal is pending a physical, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- The Braves are interested in Xavier Nady, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- Jon Heyman of SI.com says the Mets may be more inclined to pay top dollar for John Lackey now that they've seen the asking prices of some lesser starters.
- The Cardinals won't be involved with Lackey, but they have interest in signing a lefty bench bat, according to MLB.com's Matthew Leach.
Twitter Rumors: Mets, Granderson, Matsui
More links from Twitter. Be sure to follow MLBTR on Twitter for all your updates.
- Phils GM Ruben Amaro Jr. tells Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer that he is not interested in Aroldis Chapman.
- It doesn't look like the Reds will be spending big on a shortstop like Orlando Cabrera or Miguel Tejada, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.
- The Nationals see John Smoltz as a starter, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Ken Rosenthal says Smoltz could return to St. Louis.
- John Lackey, Joel Pineiro, Jason Marquis, Jon Garland and Doug Davis all have the Mets' attention, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- The D'Backs will look to add a position player and solidify their bullpen now, according to MLB.com's Steve Gilbert.
- The Red Sox discussed a Curtis Granderson trade with the Tigers, according to Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe. Apparently, the Tigers wanted Clay Buchholz and Jacoby Ellsbury (Michael Silverman reporting).
- The Dodgers were interested in Jackson, but didn't want to meet the Tigers' asking price, according to Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times.
- The Dodgers like Paul Maholm, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
- La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports that the Twins and Robb Quinlan may be a fit for one another. The Rockies are interested, too.
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman told Marc Carig of the Star Ledger that he only has interest in Hideki Matsui as a DH.
- Bobby Seay, Dusty Ryan and Jeff Larish are all available in trades, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.