MLBTR Originals News & Rumors

Here's a look back at some of the analysis and reporting MLBTR's writing team delivered this week..

• Phillies starter Roy Oswalt is no longer considering retirement after this season, but the Phillies probably won't exercise their end of his $16MM mutual option for 2012.  Dan Mennella examined his stock heading into free agency this winter.
• Tim Dierkes writes that Michael Cuddyer could find three years and $30MM on the open market this winter.  If the Twins want to hang on to him they might have to offer something in the three-year, $27MM range.
• Howard Megdal wonders if owners and GMs learn from bad contracts.
• We took a look back at four MLBTR polls from the month of February to see how everyone did.
• Francisco Rodriguez is gearing up for his second venture into free agency and he might seek out a one-year deal so that he can hit the open market again next year, writes Dan Mennella.
• Mark Polishuk reviewed Moneyball to see how Michael Lewis' book fits the silver screen.
• On Saturday, Mike Axisa rounded up the best from the web for this week's edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
• On Thursday, Ben Nicholson-Smith examined Boston's starting pitching options as they continue their late season slide.
• Our GM Candidates series continued as Ben Nicholson-Smith talked to Matt Klentak who serves as the Orioles' director of baseball operations.  You can check out the entire series here.
• If the Giants allow Jeremy Affeldt to hit free agency this offseason instead of picking up the veteran left-hander’s $5MM option for 2012, his job prospects will probably be promising.
• Ben also examined the free agent stock of Cody Ross.
• If you missed out on Tim Dierkes' weekly chat, you can take a look at the transcript right here.
• The Arbitration Eligibles series rolled on with a look at the Rangers, Marlins, and Braves.
• Jonathan Broxton has been sidelined with right arm problems since May 3rd and when he returns there’s a good chance we’ll see a different kind of pitcher.  Now, a one-year, incentive-based deal seems likely for the hurler, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith.
• There have been seventeen $100MM+ contracts signed in free agency and we asked our readers how many they expect to be inked this winter.
• This week we posted a handy list of links to our team Facebook, Twitter, and RSS pages and feeds.

Here's a look back at this week's original reporting and analysis from the MLBTR staff..

• Mike Axisa gathered the best from around the web in this week's edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
• With a number of closing jobs opening up around baseball, Ryan Madson’s job prospects are promising, writes Ben Nichsolon-Smith.
• Ben also looked at the free agent prospects of Javier Vazquez and revisited the Felipe Paulino for Clint Barmes swap.
• On Wednesday, Tim Dierkes outlined the Ten Best Minor League Deals Of The Year of 2011.  It's no surprise that Bartolo Colon of the Yankees tops the list.
• Jacoby Ellsbury is in line for a raise in arbitration this winter, but how much can the 28-year-old expect to come away with?
• We outlined the Angels, Athletics, and Royals in our Arbitration Eligibles series this week.  You can check out all of our Arbitration Eligibles posts right here.
• Here are our predictions on the options of 15 relievers coming up this winter.
• Our latest Elias Rankings projections are up, and 26 free agents are in line for Type A status. 
• Under GM John Mozeliak, the Cardinals have been the lone team to embrace September extensions, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith.
• There are a number of potential suitors for Jose Reyes but only four appear to be clear fits. We also previewed the market for third baseman Aramis Ramirez.
• Here's a handy post which outlines the many ways to enjoy MLB Trade Rumors.
• Did you miss our weekly chat?  Don't fret, you can check out the transcript right here.
• Tim Dierkes took a look at the ACES agency, which has a strong record of securing multiyear deals.
• Here at MLBTR, we're bringing you closer to this year's GM candidates with a series of pieces.  This week we caught up with De Jon Watson and John Coppolella.

Here's a look back at the original content we published this week at MLBTR …

• Mike Axisa took a look at the impending free agency of Rays first baseman Casey Kotchman.
• We're all about player movement here at MLBTR but Ben Nicholson-Smith ran down the five non-moves that shaped the 2011 season.
• Ben Nicholson-Smith spoke to Yankees scouting director and GM candidate Damon Oppenheimer.
• The Arbitration Eligibles series continued with posts on the Tigers, White Sox, Indians, and Twins.
• Twenty position players and ten starting pitchers face contractual options this winter and Tim Dierkes laid out his predictions for all of them.
• We collected the best baseball analysis from around the web in our weekly edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
• Orioles slugger Luke Scott will probably be in line for another one-year, $6.4MM contract next season but Tim Dierkes says that the 33-year-old could be a non-tender candidate.
• Francisco Cordero's $12MM 2012 club option is very likely to be declined and Dan Mennella explained why that's the case.
• It's a safe bet that Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder will command the biggest contracts on the open market this winter.  Plenty of clubs will be in the mix but there are 15 clubs that probably won't go after either slugger, says Ben Nicholson-Smith.
• If you missed our weekly chat, you can check out the transcript right here.
• On Monday, we ran down the top free agent at each position.
• Plenty of clubs fell short of expectations this season, but according to MLBTR readers the Twins were the biggest bust with nearly 23% of the vote.  The White Sox finished in a close second with almost 18%.
• Heading into this offseason, it looks like the Braves will have a surplus of starting pitching to work with.

A look back at the originals pieces we published here at MLBTR last week …

• Orioles center fielder Adam Jones is an extension candidate, according to Tim Dierkes.
• How does Ricky Romero's extension look one year later? Ben Nicholson-Smith examines.
• Jose Reyes' final month of the season is crucial to his foray into free agency, according to Ben.
• Will Rangers lefty C.J. Wilson get a $100MM contract in free agency this offseason? Tim has a look.
• It's never too soon to start looking ahead to next year's draft. We've reversed the standings to get an idea of where each time might be picking in June 2012.
• Our GM Candidates series continued with Nats assistant GM Bryan Minniti, courtesy of Ben.
• Our Arbitration Eligibles series continued with the AL East: the Toronto Blue Jays, the Tampa Bay Rays, and the New York Yankees.
• The free-agent market will be flooded with relievers this offseason. Tim has a preliminary look at the closer carousel.
• Tim conducted the weekly MLBTR chat. Here's the transcript.
• If you're wondering which teams are interested in Yu Darvish, Ben compiled a list.
• The latest Elias rankings update was released.
• Mike Axisa rounded up some of the best pieces from around baseball's blogosphere. Among the hot topics: The Mariners, Adam Dunn, and the Giants.
• Edwin Encarnacion has been en fuego for a couple months now. Will the Blue Jays exercise his 2012 option? Ben has a look.
• Howard Megdal recalled 1993, the year that September trades mattered. Ben also looked at some notable September trades that have gone down in recent years.
• Mike Axisa identified Rays outfielder Desmond Jennings as a potential extension candidate, as well.
• Mark Polishuk looked at Diamondbacks catcher Miguel Montero as an extension candidate.

Let's take a look back at some of the original content produced by MLBTR this past week:

• Tim Dierkes talked to Jerry Dipoto, Mike Chernoff, and Bill Geivett as part of our GM Candidates series. Meanwhile, Ben Nicholson-Smith profiled Tony LaCava and Mike Radcliff. You can see the entire list of MLBTR's GM candidates here.
• What fan wouldn't love to have a bat like Prince Fielder sitting in the middle of his or her team's lineup? You may be hoping that your team will ink Milwaukee's masher, and obviously he'll play somewhere, but Tim Dierkes has at least one reason why each of MLB's 30 teams could pass on Prince.
• Speaking of sluggers, in light of this week's Jim Thome trade, Howard Megdal takes a historical look back at when other great sluggers were traded.
• Ben Nicholson-Smith examines Chris Carpenter's 2012 option and concludes that while it's a luxury, it's a luxury on which Cardinals GM John Mozeliak may indeed choose to spend.
• Tim Dierkes conducted this week's MLBTR chat and also shared the lastest Elias rankings with readers, which are of course exclusively provided to MLBTR by Eddie Bajek.
• Tim also noted that this offseason provides a pretty weak market for free agent offense.
• Mike Axisa rounded up the latest and greatest from around the baseball blogosphere in this week's edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.
• In a conference call with Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers, Ben Nicholson-Smith learned that Arizona had defense and infield depth in mind when they flipped Kelly Johnson for Aaron Hill and John McDonald.
• Sticking in the NL West, Ben also took a look at the Padres' options with Heath Bell and checked in on the Rockies' lengthy list of offseason extensions.
• Dan Mennella turned the clock back to August 2010 and checked out some of the notable August deals from a year ago.
• Tim Dierkes kicked off his Arbitration Eligibles series with a look at the Orioles and then the Red Sox.

A look back at the original pieces we published here at MLBTR last week …

• Ben Nicholson-Smith interviewed three GM candidates: Ben Cherington, Al Avila, and Thad Levine.
• On Thursday, Tim Dierkes was the first to report that the Pirates were discussing a multiyear deal with Jose Tabata, that it would have three club options, and that he parted ways with his previous agency.
• Tim was first to report that the Braves signed righty Juan Jaime to a minor league deal that covers 2012.
• The Nationals' decision to pass on Adam Dunn looks smart now, writes Ben.
• The Boras Corporation will be busy as always this offseason. Here's a look ahead, courtesy of Tim.
• What does it mean when a draft pick signs a Major League deal? Tim has you covered.
• We been refreshing this ever-evolving list of players who have cleared waivers and can therefore be traded.
• Here's a refresher on the various ways one can enjoy MLBTR.
• The latest Elias Rankings Update is out!
• Mike Napoli is having a great year on the heels of an offseason in which he was twice traded. Tim recounts those swaps.
• Carlos Zambrano isn't the hottest trade commodity these days, but he could feasibly be moved for some other bad contracts, according to Tim.
• Tim looked at some lefty relievers the Yankees and Phillies could reasonably acquire.
• Being a Type A Free Agent ain't all it's cracked up to be, and Tim looks at which guys that distinction could hurt.
• Who might be non-tendered this offseason? Tim has a look.
• Here's the transcript to the weekly MLBTR Chat with Tim.
• Ben has a closer look at trade candidate Hideki Matsui.
• Howard Megdal writes about the similarities between Hunter Pence and Rondell White.
• Baseball Blogs Weigh In makes its weekly appearance, courtsey of Mike Axisa. Among the hot topics: Jim Thome, The Draft, and the Angels.

MLBTR's top-notch writing team was on fire last week with original content.  Let's take a look:

• Ben Nicholson-Smith and I presented our inaugural list of the top GM candidates in baseball, after surveying a diverse group of baseball insiders.  We're aiming to bring you interviews with many of the executives on the list over the next few months, so you'll be fully prepared if a GM job opens up.
• Speaking of GMs past and present, Ben scored interviews with John Hart and Andrew Friedman for a piece discussing the parallels between Hart's Indians extensions and Friedman's Rays contracts.
• The Tigers extended manager Jim Leyland and GM Dave Dombrowski, and Ben jumped on the conference call to snag quotes from the latter. 
• Tigers closer Jose Valverde is a perfect 35 for 35 in save chances this year, but his recent track record on finding the right agency is not as good.  He recently switched to Proformance, MLBTR was first to report.  You'll find all the latest info in our one-of-a-kind Agency Database.
• Willie Eyre's first call to the bigs since '09 was first reported on MLBTR.
• Neftali Ruiz and Mario Guerrero brought readers this story on the struggles of Haitian prospects, while our Nick Collias translated their work to English and tied it all together.
• Ben ran through the 2010 non-tenders currently contributing with their new teams.  Ben also explained why Twins righty Kevin Slowey is a candidate for the indignity of a non-tender after this season.
• What would it take for the Blue Jays to lock up Brandon Morrow, whose K/9 stands tall over the rest of the American League?  Mark Polishuk investigated.  Meanwhile, Dan Mennella explored Jonathan Papelbon's free agent prospects.
• Indians fans can only hope the Ubaldo Jimenez trade doesn't end up mirroring Brock-for-Broglio, but Howard Megdal shows why Jimenez and Broglio are trade targets separated at birth.
• Thousands of MLBTR readers voted on polls asking whether the Rays should trade B.J. Upton this winter and which recent Brewers trade was the best.
• Ben answered reader questions on Dontrelle Willis' next contract, this offseason's extension candidates, and what it would take to lock up Michael Bourn, among many others in last week's chat.
• Lots of interesting stuff from baseball blogs around the web last week, collected by Mike Axisa here.  Especially notable is Bronx Baseball Daily's interview with C.C. Sabathia.

Here's a rundown of MLBTR's original content from this past week….

• This week, MLBTR was the first to learn that the Orioles claimed pitcher Jo-Jo Reyes after he was DFA'd by Toronto.  We were also the first to report the O's release of Justin Duchscherer.
• Ben Nicholson-Smith took a look at Jimmy Rollins' impending free agency and gauged the market for reliever Matt Capps.
• I looked back at the July deals made in the American League (East, Central, West) and the National League (East, Central, West)
• Even though the trade deadline has passed, there's still the potential for more significant trades in the month of August.  Tim Dierkes gave us his August trade candidates by team.
• Nippon-Ham Fighters ace Yu Darvish is represented by Arn Tellem of Wasserman Media Group as well as Don Nomura, MLBTR confirmed.
• Mike Axisa gave us an update on players with 2012 vesting options.  Bobby Abreu recently got his $9MM option vested for next season.
• The 40/60/80 arbitration rule doesn't work to the extent that some suggest it does, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith.
• We released an update on the Elias Rankings and outlined the free agents who switched leagues.
• We had a lot of great content in this week's edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.  If you have a suggestion for BBWI, you can reach Mike Axisa at this email address.
• It came as a surprise to many of us when the Padres didn't trade Heath Bell at the trade deadline.  This week, 44% of our readers said that the Friars should now sign the closer to a two or three year extension this offseason.  For more on Bell, check out Dan Mennella's recent post on him over at CloserNews.com.
• MLBTR was the first to learn that right-hander Willie Eyre opted for free agency this week. 
• Last offseason, six prominent Rays relievers hit free agency and signed elsewhere for a total of $67.65MM.  How are they faring in 2011?  We also checked in on this year's Rule 5 picks.
• Did you miss our weekly chat?  Don't fret, you can check out the transcript right here.
• This year there have been four converted relievers have who started extensively in 2011 and Ben Nicholson-Smith gave us an update on how they're doing so far.
• The recently-launched CloserNews.com is looking for writers.

Here's a look back at our original work from the week – with all of the trades that went down, there's a good chance you missed some of these the first time around…

• We rounded up reaction to the deadline in general and took stock of the Hunter Pence trade, the Carlos Beltran trade and the trade that sent Edwin Jackson to St. Louis for Colby Rasmus.
• Dan Mennella examined this week's moves from a fantasy angle.
• Howard Megdal paged through the history books and determined that it's pretty rare for outfielders like Beltran to get traded midseason.
• Dan asked and you answered – Beltran isn't quite as appealing as B.J. Upton.
• Tim Dierkes presented some projected Type B free agents who could be acquired because of the potential for a draft pick.
• We provided an updated projection for this winter's Elias Rankings.
• I talked to Jose Bautista about some of his trade deadline experiences.
• Tim asked a question that will resonate around MLB this August: is Wandy Rodriguez overpaid?
• Tim also presented potentially available bats by wOBA.
• Mike rounded up the best of the blogs for another edition of his Baseball Blogs Weigh In feature.

A look back at the original pieces published here this week at MLBTR …

• A list of players with 10-and-5 rights, by Tim Dierkes.
• The price to acquire Padres reliever Mike Adams prompted a post by Tim.
• Tim looked at starting pitcher trade candidates by SIERA.
• The Royals have a handful of trade candidates, and Tim correctly identified Wilson Betemit as one.
• Don't sleep on the wounded as potential trade candidates. Tim had a look at those guys.
• Tim compiled the respective wish lists for each contender based on published reports.
• The latest Elias rankings update was posted, courtesy of Ben Nicholson-Smith.
• Howard Megdal had his usual humorous look at Columbia Lions who've reached the bigs.
• Tim conducted the weekly MLBTR chat. Check out the transcript in case you missed it.
• MLBTR is the place to be for all things trade deadline. Here's a refresher on how to get around the site, and here are our Twitter, Facebook and RSS feeds.
• Mike Axisa rounded up this week's best from the baseball blogosphere. Among the hot topics: Derrick Hall, Carlos Beltran, Clint Barmes and the Cubs.