Twins Rumors: Torii Hunter, Jacque Jones
One club that doesn’t get a lot of play on MLBTR is the Twins. They don’t make a lot of big trades or signings. Although last year they did inquire on Alfonso Soriano. Today, we don’t have any blockbusters, but do have rumors regarding Torii Hunter and Jacque Jones from La Velle Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
Regarding Hunter – he is leaving the door open for a contract extension with the Twins. He told a radio station yesterday he doesn’t want Vernon Wells money but the Twins still haven’t talked to him about an extension at all. He sounds bummed about it, but it just doesn’t seem likely the Twins can retain Hunter. He’s going to need more than three years and more than $12MM annually. The Twins aren’t in a position to give him even a reasonable discounted contract.
Meanwhile, Neal reveals that the Twins were previously in on Jacque Jones. That would’ve been an interesting re-acquisition. However, the Cubs pulled out of the Marlins deal because they didn’t want to eat 90%+ of his contract. That stance probably knocks the Twins out of the running.
Neal notes that because of commitments for 2008, any deadline acquisition for a hitter made by Terry Ryan this year would likely be a rental. Which is what makes Adam Dunn so perfect.
Twins After Mike Lowell?
At this time last year, Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell had surprised most people by batting .310/.357/.515. He slumped a bit to .267/.327/.448 thereafter, but it was a major bonus when the unwanted throw-in to the Josh Beckett trade became an asset. That year, he was actually the better part of the deal.
The Padres had about three different Lowell trade rumors floating about last year. What began as a legitimate, sensible rumor somehow became Lowell for Jake Peavy. I still don’t know how that one picked up steam. The Twins were mentioned, though I don’t know if it ever became an official rumor.
Today, La Velle Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune writes that Lowell might be available again this year and could be a fit for the Twins if Boston eats some of his $9MM salary. Neal says the Sox could pull a blockbuster, acquiring Mark Teixeira, moving Kevin Youkilis to third, and trading Lowell. Sure, it’s a long shot, but we’re all about speculation here at MLBTR. The guy that keeps coming to mind as a very useful possibly available Twin is Scott Baker. I still refuse to believe that his repertoire and command can’t work in a fifth or even fourth starter role in the bigs.
Ken Rosenthal recently discussed clubs that could pursue Lowell as a free agent after this season: the Yankees, Dodgers, Giants, Angels, Phillies, and Astros. Any of those teams aside from the Yanks could look to make that move a few months early via trade.
Rosenthal’s Latest
The authority on all trade rumors, Ken Rosenthal has spoken. Let’s review.
- As we have heard before, the Dodgers like Adam Dunn. We’ve also discussed the fact that there’s not a clear place to put him. Whether you go with first base or left field, a veteran must move. The Padres like Dunn as well but talks have yet to occur. The Angels may have liked him in the past but they don’t seem likely at this point. And the Twins? They just won’t break the bank for him unfortunately.
- With Michael Barrett having issues with 40% of the Cubs’ rotation, the Cubs could look to trade him. Even though he’s a top offensive catcher, his impending free agency might prevent any strong return. Plus, the Cubs would have to go with a Henry Blanco/Koyie Hill tandem. A more likely scenario is that the Cubs will let Barrett walk after the season.
- Finally some clarity on Eric Gagne‘s limited no-trade protection. Rosenthal reveals that he can veto trades to 12 teams. The Phillies and Indians are again mentioned as suitors. Rosenthal thinks Mark Teixeira could generate a lot of talk but no action at the trading deadline. Kind of like Alfonso Soriano or A.J. Burnett before him.
- The asking price for Brad Lidge, supposedly: a premium young catcher and promising young pitcher. Lidge will probably earn $8MM next year before hitting free agency. The Astros should be happy with a young catcher or a young pitcher, not both. I’d mention Salty here but I think he is worth much more than Lidge. Rosenthal says the Astros could move another bullpen arm like Wheeler or Qualls to get the bat they need.
- Could the Devil Rays simply retain Al Reyes and Carlos Pena? Both players could be valuable contributors to the 2008 club. I like the idea of keeping Reyes around for next year, but I think Pena has peaked.
- Noah Lowry would get the attention of the Braves or Cardinals, but the Giants are unlikely to move him.
- The Phils are likely to pass on Tomo Ohka despite their need for pitching.
Twins May Target Wigginton
According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the Twins may target Ty Wigginton of the Devil Rays as a third baseman and DH with some power. Wigginton makes less than $3MM and offers right-handed pop. The Twins are tenth in the league with a .393 SLG. They’re even worse against southpaws, and Wigginton can definitely handle lefties.
Twins’ 3Bs have hit .236/.319/.336, and the team’s DHs have hit .256/.335/.365. These areas should both be fairly easy deadline upgrades. Minnesota is seven games out in the AL Central and 5.5 games out of the wild card.
Other potential cheap sources of DH power: Dmitri Young, Sammy Sosa, and Mike Sweeney.
Hunter A Fit With Rangers
The Rangers need a long-term center fielder, and they play 45 minutes from Torii Hunter’s hometown. Seems like a perfect fit, right?
Maybe. But according to Hunter yesterday, his heart still lies in Minnesota. It seems that if the Twins can muster even a fairly competitive long-term offer for him, he’ll stay. Hunter’s next deal will cover his age 32-35 seasons, at the least. $13MM annually might be considered a discount. Will the Twins at least offer Hunter a Johnny Damon contract? Even if they did, he would have to turn a blind eye to more lucrative offers. I think some team would give him a fifth year, and $15MM a year seems plenty possible following a career season.
The Rangers could certainly use Hunter in the lineup, especially if they trade Mark Teixeira for pitching (as has been speculated). The team entered the season with a $71MM payroll, down from a high of $105MM in 2002. Money coming off the books in ’08: Gagne ($6MM+), Lofton ($6MM), Wilkerson ($4.35MM), Sosa (about $2.4MM), and Mahay ($1.2MM). That’s about $20MM, plus a random Jerry Hairston here and there. On the other hand, some players have escalating salaries for ’08: Millwood ($1MM), Padilla ($2MM), Teixeira ($2.6MM), Blalock ($1.2MM), plus various other minor increases and arb-eligible guys. Still, the Rangers should clear about $13MM even if they keep Teixeira, meaning there is definitely room for Hunter in the payroll.
I should add that if Alex Rodriguez becomes a free agent, that’s $27MM saved for Texas.
Healey’s Latest
Mark Healey of Gotham Baseball has some new rumors for us this morning.
- There’s talk that if the Twins are more than five games out at the trading deadline, they’ll start dealing veterans. An obvious one is Luis Castillo, earning $5.75MM this season. He has long been connected to the Mets. He almost signed with New York as a free agent and the team has tried trading for him before. Healey believes Lastings Milledge is too much to give up, so don’t look for a straight up swap of those two. Though I imagine the Twins would love having Milledge to man center field in 2008.
- The Reds are ten games under .500 and ten out in the NL Central. Healey speculates that Adam Dunn, Ryan Freel, and Dave Weathers are the Reds’ most tradeable commodities. The Reds recently extended Freel through 2009, though – I think they want him around as a fan favorite. Dunn I can see being moved. He earns $10.5MM this year with a $13MM club option for ’08. He’s got an unsurprising line of .263/.366/.538; that’s worth $13 mil these days. The Dodgers or White Sox seem like good fits.
More Rosenthal
Ken Rosenthal’s been a busy man today. He’s got another column up for FOXSports.com; go read it. The high-level version:
- Rosenthal sees the Yankees declining Bobby Abreu‘s 2008 option and turning to Melky Cabrera or a big name free agent for right field. I agree; you can check out my other assessments of 2008 club options here. Might be time to switch my predictions on Juan Uribe, Jose Guillen, and Paul Byrd. I can now see Uribe declined and the other two exercised. Byrd has come alive, and Guillen’s strong May has sparked the chance of the Ms taking their $9MM option for ’08.
- Torii Hunter‘s having a well-timed career year, but the Twins can’t trade him unless they’re out of contention. Tough situation. The Twins are 7.5 games back in the Central, 7 out of the wild card. If it’s double digits in July the decision gets easier.
- It wouldn’t be easy for the Cardinals to trade Scott Rolen right now, based on the factors outlined here.
- Erick Aybar remains an excellent trading chip for the Angels. His .600 OPS doesn’t help his value, but it’s pretty much what PECOTA expected. There’s a small chance Aybar becomes Barry Larkin, but to me he looks like the next Cesar Izturis.
Perrotto’s Latest
John Perrotto of Baseball Prospectus has quickly become another fine source for trade rumors. Some highlights from his latest column:
- The Twins would surrender a solid arm – maybe Jesse Crain, Juan Rincon, or Scott Baker – in return for a right-handed hitter. My own speculation: perhaps Wayne Krivsky, looking to stabilize his bullpen, would trade Edwin Encarnacion for Rincon. Rincon has been one of the best setup men in baseball for the past four years. On the other hand, Baker could really flourish in the National League and Kyle Lohse may leave via free agency after the season. Terry Ryan might want a more proven, reliable bat though. Buster Olney throws out Morgan Ensberg‘s name in his blog today.
- Some clubs already have center fielder Torii Hunter on the radar: the Red Sox, White Sox, Cardinals, and Rangers. I think there is no doubt the Rangers go in for one of the "name" center fielders this winter. I can see the Red Sox testing the waters but it would seem odd to block Jacoby Ellsbury for four or five years. Hunter is making the contract year argument, hitting .324/.358/.618 in 35 games. His previous career high in slugging was .524 in ’02.
- Perrotto confirms the finding of Michael Gluskin – Odalis Perez and Chan Ho Park are two names on the Orioles’ target list of starting pitchers. The O’s might have found some relief in the shrewd Jeremy Guthrie pickup – his last two starts against the Devil Rays and Red Sox were excellent.
Torii Hunter At 4/60?
Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press believes Torii Hunter will snag a contract in the neighborhood of four years and $60MM after this season, if his strong offensive output continues. That’s an entirely reasonable estimate and may be low.
A 32 year-old Johnny Damon received four years and $52MM, but that was two years ago and Hunter plays better defense. Alfonso Soriano might be a better point of reference at eight years, $136MM. He turned 31 shortly after he signed; Hunter will be about 32.5. Soriano was simply an experiment in center, while Hunter is a pro.
If Hunter is no longer a .480 SLG type guy, but rather a .540 SLG type (admittedly a long shot), his contract could ramp up to $16MM annually over five or even six years. The only concern is that his newfound power is coming at the expense of walks – Hunter has just three of them so far this year. It works as long as he’s hitting .330.
With Jacoby Ellsbury coming on strong in the minors, the Red Sox don’t need a huge CF expenditure. I could see the Orioles, Rangers, or Phillies splurging on Hunter this winter.
Santana Wants 8 Years?
I am not sure about this rumor, but thought I’d put it out here for debate.
Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune writes:
"Before contract talks broke off between Johan Santana and the Twins, baseball’s best pitcher is believed to have had put the team on notice that he wants a contract at least as long as Barry Zito‘s eight-year deal with San Francisco."
Rogers does not specifically name a source on that statement, and follows it with Santana’s recent quote about hoping to remain a Twin for life. I don’t know if the Zito reference is Rogers’ interpretation of Santana’s Minneapolis Tribune quote, or a new piece of information. I have a feeling Santana might be amenable to a six or seven year contract from the Twins.
As far as the idea of trading Torii Hunter or Santana before they reach free agency, no-trade clauses could complicate matters. Santana has a full no-trade if he places top three in this year’s Cy Young voting, which seems likely based on the past three seasons. Hunter can block deals to the Red Sox, Cubs, Tigers, Devil Rays, and Blue Jays this year. Boston is the one team I could see having a spot for him this summer out of that group.