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East Notes: Tanaka, Red Sox, Mets, Braves, Chavez

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The Red Sox would benefit most strongly if Masahiro Tanaka were to not be posted, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal writes. If Tanaka were to stay in Japan, not only would he not go to the Yankees, but prices for other starters (such as Ervin Santana and Matt Garza) would rise, and so would the value of the Red Sox's own pitchers, such as John Lackey, Ryan Dempster and Jake Peavy. Also, if Tanaka were to be posted next offseason, the Red Sox might actually bid for him. Right now, they don't have a need. Here are more notes from the East divisions.

East Notes: Mets, Burnett, Phillies, Benoit

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The Mets' offseason will be a disappointment if the Curtis Granderson acquisition is the only big move, the New York Post's Joel Sherman writes. "If this really is it — after all the buildup asking for patience to let the money of Johan Santana and Jason Bay go away — then this will be a breach with the fan base," Sherman says. "Heading toward another $85 million-ish payroll is — quite frankly — not honoring the commitment. It is being the San Diego Mets." Here are more notes from around the East divisions.

  • A.J. Burnett still hasn't decided whether or not to pitch in 2014, CBS Sports' Jon Heyman tweets. Burnett has previously said he intends to pitch for the Pirates or retire, but Heyman introduces a new possibility — that Burnett could pitch for the Orioles instead. Burnett resides in Maryland.
  • GM Ruben Amaro says the Phillies would eat salary in a trade that improved the team, reports Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Salisbury notes that the Phillies would like to trade Jonathan Papelbon, who will make $13MM in both 2014 and 2015 and has a $13MM vesting option in 2016.
  • Despite the signing of Nate McLouth, the Nationals have no plans to deal Denard Span, tweets Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Span will continue to be their center fielder and leadoff hitter.
  • The Yankees have had "lots of internal discussions" about free agent reliever Joaquin Benoit, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reports (via Twitter). The Yankees would like to add two bullpen arms.

East Notes: Orioles, Gaudin, Cano, Phillies, Mets

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Here are a few quick notes from around the East divisions:

  • The Orioles have not had discussions with Scott Boras about contract extensions for either Matt Wieters or Chris Davis, CSNBaltimore.com's Rich Dubroff tweets.
  • The Orioles are interested in finding another starting pitcher, and they've shown interest in free agent Chad Gaudin, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports (via Twitter).
  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman understands Robinson Cano's decision to leave the Bombers for the Mariners, writes Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger.  "It just comes down to, if the numbers are right, he had 240 million reasons why he should go to Seattle," Cashman says. "And if I was him, I would have done the same thing."
  • The Phillies are "more focused on trying to add starting pitching depth more than anything else," GM Ruben Amaro told reporters, including Ryan Lawrence of the Philadelphia Daily News, yesterday.
  • The Mets talked to Paul Maholm's agent, but they are not expected to sign the veteran lefty, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Mets Re-Sign Jeremy Hefner

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The Mets have re-signed starting pitcher Jeremy Hefner, MLB.com's Anthony DiComo tweets. They non-tendered Hefner last week. Hefner will spend this year rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, which he underwent late in the season.

Hefner, 27, pitched well for the Mets in his second big league season, racking up 130 2/3 innings in 24 outings (23 starts) for the club. Before being shut down in August and undergoing surgery, the right-hander posted a 4.34 ERA to go along with 6.8 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9.

Even though Hefner is unlikely to return to the mound until the second half of the 2014 season, New York's decision to non-tender him came as a bit of a surprise, since he's not yet eligible for arbitration. However, as Adam Rubin of ESPN New York tweets, Hefner's new deal with the Mets will be a minor league pact, which will result in significant cost savings for the team as he rehabs.

Hefner is represented by BBI Sports Group.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

New York Notes: Reynolds, Logan, Gardner, Mets

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Earlier today the Mets introduced Curtis Granderson at a press conference. Here's the latest news out of the New York market with the Winter Meetings in full swing…

  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman spoke to several reporters today, including MLB.com's Bryan Hoch, and noted that he's been in contact with the agents for Mark Reynolds and Boone Logan (Twitter link).
  • Hoch also tweets that the Yanks are receiving many calls on Brett Gardner but aren't shopping him. Cashman said he didn't sign Jacoby Ellsbury to trade Gardner.
  • The Star-Ledger's Andy McCullough tweets that in addition to Gardner, the Yanks have received calls on Ivan Nova, Gary Sanchez and J.R. Murphy (Twitter link).
  • Cashman also said that Michael Pineda is healthy and will compete for a rotation spot in Spring Training (Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News tweeting).
  • Hoch adds that Cashman thinks it will be easier to sign a free agent pitcher than to work out a trade for rotation help.
  • Newsday's David Lennon reports that the Mets will meet with the representatives for Freddy Garcia, Cesar Izturis and Johan Santana today (Twitter link). The team sees a good fit with that group of veterans.
  • Granderson confirmed to reporters, including Newsday's Marc Carig, that the Mets were the lone team to offer four years (Twitter link).

Stephen Drew Rumors: Tuesday

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It's been relatively quiet on the Stephen Drew front to this point, but his name has popped up in a couple of recent rumors. Here's a look at those, and we'll keep track of the rest of today's rumors pertaining to Drew in this post as well…

  • Newsday's David Lennon tweets that the Mets are likely to be picky on the Drew front and may be hesitant to go to a third year. Drew would really need to be a "steal" in order for the Mets to sign Drew, he continues. The Mets, of course, already parted with their second-round pick to sign Curtis Granderson, so signing Drew would require the loss of another pick.

Earlier Updates

  • An executive from a team that's believed to be in the market for Drew tells Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that he expects Drew to end up back with the Red Sox (Twitter link).
  • The Mets are still in the market for a shortstop, and Drew is still in play, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (also on Twitter).

Indians Willing To Listen On Masterson, Cabrera

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10:41am: Despite their need for a shortstop, the Mets aren't in on Cabrera, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter).

TUESDAY, 10:32am: The Indians are also willing to listen on Asdrubal Cabrera, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter links). As Morosi notes, Cleveland has a potential franchise shortstop on the horizon in Francisco Lindor. Their willingness to shop Cabrera isn't surprising given Lindor's presence, Cabrera's $10MM salary in 2014 and the fact that Cabrera slumped to a .242/.299/.402 batting line in 2013.

MONDAY: The Indians are open to fielding Justin Masterson trade pitches, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Rosenthal reports that Cleveland will listen on Masterson, with the idea of targeting players that would remain under team control for more years.

Masterson, 28, enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career in 2013, posting a 3.45 ERA and 9.1 K/9 in 32 outings (29 starts) for the Indians. However, he's entering his final arbitration-eligible season, meaning he'll likely earn between $9-10MM in 2014, based on Matt Swartz's projections. Masterson will also be eligible for free agency a year from now, so the Indians will have to decide soon whether or not he'll be part of the club's long-term plan.

NL Central Notes: Cubs, Pirates, Brewers, Hart

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After passing along several updates from out of the NL East and NL West, we'll turn to the National League's third division, as Monday winds down…

  • According to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link), the Cubs have received inquiries about Starlin Castro's availability, but have no intention of trading him. "We're excited to have Starlin," said GM Jed Hoyer.
  • Hoyer hasn't ruled out the possibility of the Cubs trading a top prospect, telling reporters, including Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com (Twitter link), that they "would certainly consider it" if it made sense for the club's long-term future.
  • Discussing potential free agent additions, GM Neal Huntington said today that it's very unlikely the Pirates would sign a player that required giving up draft pick compensation, and confirmed that Pittsburgh won't be in on Masahiro Tanaka if he's posted (Twitter links via Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review).
  • The Pirates plan to fill their hole in right field internally, but are keeping an eye out for a starting pitcher, a middle infielder, and another bat (likely a first baseman), according to Huntington (Twitter link via Sawchik).
  • Adam Rubin of ESPN New York (Twitter link) continues to hear that the Brewers' preference is to re-sign Corey Hart, assuming the money doesn't rise out of their price range. In that case, the Mets would have to look elsewhere for an Ike Davis trade partner.

Reliever Rumors: Mets, Orioles, Mariners, Tigers

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Considering how many teams continue to seek bullpen help, it shouldn't come as a surprise that we're following up our earlier post on reliever rumors with another round of them. Let's dive in…

  • The Mets have kicked the tires on Chris Perez as a potential late-inning addition, according to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (Twitter link). DiComo notes that Perez could serve as ninth-inning insurance for New York if Bobby Parnell isn't healthy.
  • In addition to Perez, Mitchell Boggs is receiving interest from the Mets, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Boggs was non-tendered after a subpar 2013, but is viewed as an intriguing buy-low candidate by New York, says Sherman.
  • Baltimore could be another potential fit for Perez, but the Orioles are also eyeing Grant Balfour and John Axford, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter link).
  • The Mariners don't appear to be prioritizing bullpen additions at this point, according to GM Jack Zduriencik, who says that with their available money, the M's "would look at adding a legitimate closer as a lower priority" (Twitter link via Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune).
  • Noting that Dave Dombrowski has suggested the Tigers may take a flier on a veteran as insurance for Bruce Rondon, MLB.com's Jason Beck wonders if Octavio Dotel might be a fit to return to Detroit (Twitter link).

Mets Exploring Ike Davis, Daniel Murphy Trades

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9:06pm: Andy Martino of the New York Daily News tweets that the Orioles aren't "hot" for either Davis or Murphy at the moment, while Jim Duquette of MLB Network Radio says Baltimore's talks for Murphy are "way overblown" (Twitter link).

8:00pm: The Mets aren't pushing to move Murphy, but remain open to a trade, according to Marc Carig of Newsday. Carig adds that Davis appears more likely to be dealt than Murphy (Twitter links).

7:25pm: While they may not be seriously in the mix for Davis, the Orioles appear to be a legit suitor for Murphy, says Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). Sherman also adds the Rays to the list of potential destinations for Davis.

6:44pm: The Mets are pushing "very hard" to move Murphy, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). As for Davis, the Orioles don't appear to be a serious suitor. Mike Puma of the New York Post hears that Baltimore's interest is "distant" at the moment (Twitter link).

5:36pm: The Mets and Brewers met today to revisit the possibility of an Ike Davis trade, reports Adam McCalvy of MLB.com (Twitter link). Newsday's Marc Carig is hearing the same thing, tweeting that Milwaukee is one of four teams engaged with the Mets about the first baseman.

We initially heard nearly a month ago that the Brewers and Mets had discussed the idea of a trade that would send Davis to Milwaukee. Corey Hart remains a possibility for Milwaukee at first base, but it doesn't sound like the club is closing in on a deal for either player, as McCalvy indicates that the team has laid the groundwork on both fronts.

Andy Martino of the New York Daily News adds (via Twitter) that there doesn't seem to be much traction yet on a deal for either Davis or fellow trade candidate Daniel Murphy. According to Martino, there's some skepticism among executives that New York will find many takers for Murphy.

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