Gammons On Gardner, Denorfia, Drew
Here are some hot stove items from Peter Gammons in his latest piece for his namesake website, GammonsDaily.com…
- Gammons adds the Phillies to the list of teams who "have taken a run" at acquiring Brett Gardner from the Yankees. Philadelphia is one of "at least a half-dozen teams" who have checked in on Gardner — we've seen the Tigers, Reds, Indians, and Giants also linked to Gardner earlier in the offseason. Both Yankees president Randy Levine and GM Brian Cashman have said they admire Gardner's play and aren't willing to move him, though Gammons feels that Cashman "won’t move [Gardner] until and unless [Cashman] has to for starting pitching." This is just my speculation, but Gammons' phrasing could be a hint that the Yankees could shop Gardner if they fail to land Masahiro Tanaka.
- The Rangers, Red Sox and Rockies are three of "at least a half-dozen teams" who have asked the Padres about Chris Denorfia. Colorado's interest has presumably dried up due to their acquisition of Drew Stubbs. San Diego GM Josh Byrnes isn't willing to discuss trading Denorfia as long as he feels the Padres can be contenders, and Byrnes thinks his club's offseason moves could put them in the playoff mix. The Rangers also showed interest in Denorfia last July before the trade deadline.
- Mets assistant GM J.P. Ricciardi recently claimed that his team was happy with Ruben Tejada as a starting shortstop and that the free agent shortstop market wasn't to the Mets' liking, but Gammons hears otherwise from an NL general manager. The GM believes the Mets are concerned about their inexperience up the middle (Tejada at short, Juan Lagares in center and Travis d'Arnaud behind the plate) and are only seeming disinterested in Stephen Drew as part of negotiations with agent Scott Boras.
- If Drew re-signs with the Red Sox, Gammons doesn't expect Boston to deal Will Middlebrooks, as the team still values his power.
- The offseason's most interesting overlooked deal is the Athletics/Rangers swap that sent Craig Gentry to Oakland and Michael Choice to Texas, Gammons opines. Gentry is a right-handed bat who can spell Coco Crisp in center or replace him in case of injury, and "the A’s think Gentry’s comp is at least Peter Bourjos," Gammons writes. Choice, meanwhile, gives the Rangers a corner outfield bat who can spell Shin-Soo Choo against left-handed pitching.
East Notes: Red Sox, Orioles, Mets
If the Red Sox don't re-sign Stephen Drew, they'll likely go into the 2014 season with Jackie Bradley Jr. in center field and Xander Bogaerts at shortstop, and that will be a gamble, given their inexperience, WEEI.com's Alex Speier writes. To find a World Series-winning team that had rookies as their primary starters at center field and shortstop, one has to go all the way back to the 1959 Dodgers, with Don Demeter and Maury Wills. That doesn't prove much, of course. A few decades' worth of World Series-winning teams isn't a huge sample size, and as Speier points out, the Red Sox have recently blended in young up-the-middle players in Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury and Jed Lowrie while still having very successful teams. But there may be value in having stability at tough defensive positions. Here are more notes from the East divisions.
- The Orioles still could look for a closer, starting pitcher and hitter, CSNBaltimore.com's Rich Dubroff writes. It's unclear whether the O's will go with Tommy Hunter at closer, or perhaps sign free agent Fernando Rodney. Plenty of free-agent starters who have been connected to the Orioles, including Bronson Arroyo and A.J. Burnett, are still on the market. Dubroff also says the Orioles are more likely to sign Kendrys Morales than Nelson Cruz to help their offense.
- If the Orioles want to acquire premium talent in a trade, they may have to give up a good pitching prospect or two, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun argues. That doesn't mean they should trade Eduardo Rodriguez for Ike Davis, however, as the Mets reportedly asked.
- The Mets could look for depth options in case anything goes wrong with their rotation, writes Michael Baron of MetsBlog. Baron speculates that Daisuke Matsuzaka or Aaron Harang, both of whom pitched for the Mets in 2013, might be possibilities. The Mets will also have several internal options available, including prospects Rafael Montero, Jacob deGrom, and Noah Syndergaard.
Mets Still Talking With Stephen Drew
The Mets are still in contact with Scott Boras, the agent for shortstop Stephen Drew, a person with knowledge of the talks tells Marc Carig of Newsday. However, the source likened the situation to the Mets' pursuit of outfielder Michael Bourn late last winter, a chase that ended with the outfielder signing with the Indians.
The parallel here, in the source's view, is that the Mets made a serious run at signing Bourn mostly because he lowered his asking price late in the offseason. Meanwhile, Mets assistant GM J.P. Ricciardi recently indicated in a radio interview that the club is happy with Ruben Tejada as their starting shortstop. The Mets have been frustrated with Tejada's effort in the past, but they seem to believe that he is ready to turn things around in 2014.
Drew's market doesn't look any clearer as we approach the New Year. The Red Sox have interest in bringing the shortstop back, but they're also determined to wait things out and get a deal that suits them.
Quick Hits: Rangers, Tanaka, Davis, Orioles
Rangers owner Bob Simpson is happy to leave the baseball decisions to his staff, Richard Durrett of ESPN Dallas writes. Simpson doesn't want to be a general manager like Cowboys counterpart Jerry Jones. "I don't and for the reasons everyone else wishes he wasn't," says Simpson. "I like Jerry, but we've got great people, so leave it to them." Simpson also notes that, with the signing of Shin-Soo Choo, the Rangers' projected payroll is between $130MM and $135MM for 2014. Here are more notes from around the big leagues.
- Simpson says signing Masahiro Tanaka would be "a tough thing," MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan reports. "We aggressively went after Yu [Darvish], who we are fortunate to have. I guess I should never say never, but at the moment, we're more interested in just rounding out our team than marquee players," Simpson says. The Rangers have already added Choo and Prince Fielder this offseason.
- Earlier today, a report indicated that the Mets were trying to get the Orioles to trade lefty pitching prospect Eduardo Rodriguez for first baseman Ike Davis, but that, so far, the Orioles had refused to do so. Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun now tweets that the O's would have to be "blown away" to deal Rodriguez. MLB.com ranks Rodriguez the Orioles' third-best prospect.
Mets’ Ricciardi On Ruben Tejada, Draft Picks
The Mets are happy with Ruben Tejada as their starting shortstop, special assistant J.P. Ricciardi tells WEEI's Rob Bradford and John McDonald (yes, that John McDonald). "I think in Ruben’s case, he got a lot early in his career and I think he’s starting to realize that he has to work a lot harder than he has in the past, and he has," Ricciardi says. "I think next year he’s going to be a better player than he was this previous year."
Stephen Drew remains a free agent and would provide an immediate upgrade at shortstop. While Ricciardi doesn't go into details about Drew in particular, he makes clear that the shortstop market is not what the Mets would like it to be. "I think in this case there’s a lot of shortstops that are already in place," says Ricciardi.
Last week, Mets GM Sandy Alderson said the Mets were also exploring trade possibilities at the position, but that there was a greater chance than there was at the beginning of the offseason that Tejada would open 2014 as the team's starting shortstop.
While it doesn't necessarily sound like the Mets will be big players for Drew, who rejected a qualifying offer from the Red Sox, Ricciardi notes that, in general, he thinks the issue of draft pick forfeiture is only a minor consideration. The Mets' first-round pick in 2014, No. 10 overall, is protected, but the team already gave up its second-round pick to sign Curtis Granderson. "One of the things that is happening in baseball right now, that I scratch my head with [is that] young players are so overvalued right now, and I think falls in with the draft picks, too," Ricciardi says. "No one builds through the draft. You add through the draft." Ricciardi says that, to him, proven big-league players are more valuable.
Mets Still Talking Ike Davis With Brewers, O’s, Pirates
The Ike Davis rumor mill has calmed down as the holiday season has set in, but Mike Puma of the New York Post provides an update (Twitter link). The Mets remain in contact with the Brewers, Pirates and Orioles regarding Davis, but the team has been unsuccessful in its efforts to pry top pitching prospect Eduardo Rodriguez away from Baltimore.
That the Mets are interested in Rodriguez is no surprise, but neither is the fact that the Orioles won't deal him for Davis. Rodriguez, a 20-year-old left-hander, posted a combined 3.41 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 145 innings between Class-A Advanced and Double-A in 2013. His numbers took a hit upon reaching Double-A (4.22 ERA in 59 2/3 innings), but that isn't all that alarming when considering the fact that he was one of the youngest players in the league. The average age of pitchers in the Eastern League, for context, was 24.6. Hitters in the Eastern League had an average age of 24.4.
This isn't the first time Rodriguez's name has appeared on the rumor mill, as the Twins reportedly asked for the lefty in exchange for Josh Willingham when the Orioles claimed Willingham on waivers in August. MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo currently ranks Rodriguez as baseball's No. 85 prospect, and ESPN's Keith Law ranked him No. 44 in his midseason Top 50 prospect list in July (Insider required). Baseball America ranks him third among O's prospects — behind Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman — noting in their subscription-only scouting report that he has the ceiling of a No. 3 starter.
In short, Rodriguez is a lofty asking price for Mets GM Sandy Alderson when peddling Davis to other clubs — higher than his reported asking price of Tyler Thornburg from the Brewers. Davis is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $3.5MM in 2014 and can be controlled through the 2016 season.
Mets Claim Ryan Reid
The Mets have claimed right-hander Ryan Reid off waivers from the Pirates, according to Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish (Twitter link). Reid was designated for assignment last week along with Jerry Sands to clear roster space for Clint Barmes and Edinson Volquez.
The 28-year-old Reid made his big league debut for the Buccos in 2013 and pitched well, posting a 1.64 ERA with seven punchouts and three walks in 11 innings of work. He posted a 51.5 percent ground-ball rate and averaged 91.9 mph on his fastball in that brief Major League sample. Reid has enjoyed continued success as a reliever in the minors, as evidenced by his career 3.57 ERA in 194 innings at Triple-A. He's averaged 8.6 strikeouts and 3.2 walks per nine innings in parts of three seasons at that level.
Cafardo On Papelbon, Youkilis, Overbay, Drew
In today's Boston Globe, Nick Cafardo makes the case for Braves pitcher Tom Glavine to earn induction into the Hall of Fame. For his part, Glavine said he would be thrilled to go in with Greg Maddux and Bobby Cox. “Bobby Cox had the biggest influence in my career and probably the second- or third-biggest influence in my life,” Glavine said. “Greg was a dear friend, and just being around him made me better. I learned so much. We talked so much about pitching and situations, and hitters. I couldn’t have asked for a better teammate and influence on my career. To have three of us together like that would be incredible, and Smoltzy next year.” More from today's column..
- One of the reasons the Phillies haven’t been able to find a buyer for Jonathan Papelbon is his drop in velocity. Papelbon, who was regularly 95-96 in his Red Sox days, fell to 91-92 and sometimes less last season. “That was a red flag for me,” said an AL scout. “He didn’t look like the same guy. Whether that was physical or he just didn’t have the adrenaline flowing with a bad team, I don’t know.”
- Kevin Youkilis' one-year deal could be worth up to $5MM and is apparently more than he could have received anywhere in MLB. The Yankees had some interest, but at a lower price. The Indians, Giants, and Rays also had interest at one time. Back problems limited Youkilis to 28 games last season with the Yankees, and he simply couldn’t convince the masses he was healthy.
- Lyle Overbay's market is lukewarm right now and he'll likely be a January tack-on for someone. Cafardo predicts he'll wind up as a backup or a low-cost option for a team such as the Orioles or Indians.
- The Mets and agent Scott Boras have discussed parameters but no firm numbers for Stephen Drew and right now, it looks like GM Sandy Alderson is sticking with Ruben Tejada. There’s always the Yankees, but Drew has never played anywhere but shortstop and Derek Jeter doesn’t appear to be moving to another position. The road, for now, is still leading back to the Red Sox.
- Agent Scott Boras scoffs at the notion that the market for Kendrys Morales has dried up due to the draft pick compensation issue. Cafardo says that at some point a team such as the Orioles may give it up to have a superb hitter in the middle of their order and cautions to never underestimate Boras.
- Mark Mulder is looking for a minor league deal with incentives if he makes the major league club. He's worked out for the Giants, Padres, Diamondbacks, Angels, and Phillies over two sessions and the second session he improved his velocity from 88 to 92 mph. The Red Sox have inquired on Mulder, who hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2008, but probably won’t pursue him. Back in late November, Giants GM Brian Sabean indicated that he wouldn't be in on Mulder since he's seeking a big league deal.
- Even with the Yankees' declaration that Brett Gardner won’t be traded, they would listen to the right deal.
- It's a big surprise that agent Scott Boras couldn’t get Tigers owner Mike Ilitch to outbid the Rangers for Shin-Soo Choo since they have a need for a leadoff hitter. The Tigers are apparently continuing to commit to Austin Jackson at the top of the order and hope his game smooths out.
- The Rays and Cubs want at least three very good players for David Price and Jeff Samardzija, respectively, whether they're major league-ready or top prospects.
Boras Trying To Engage Mets On Morales, Drew
Agent Scott Boras is working to sell the Mets on two notable free agent clients, Kendrys Morales and Stephen Drew, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. Both players are facing uncertain markets at this stage of the offseason with many left scratching their heads over where Morales could land.
For their part, the Mets appear to have little or no interest in Morales and plan to go with Lucas Duda at first base if they move Ike Davis (link). Duda has also seen his name pop up in trade rumors, but not with the same frequency of Davis and their recent preference has been leaning towards rolling with Duda and dealing Davis. It seems unlikely that the cost-conscious Mets would scrap that plan to relegate Duda to the bench so that they can pay significant money for Morales.
Drew would be a strong fit for the Mets, but money is once again an issue after the signings of Curtis Granderson, Bartolo Colon, and Chris Young set the Mets back $87.5MM. Drew, ranked No. 14 on Tim Dierkes' top 50 list at the outset of the offseason, seems destined for a return to the Red Sox, but Boras has a long, impressive track record of finding lucrative deals from improbable suitors for his clients.
Pirates Interested In Ike Davis, Mitch Moreland
7:28pm: The Pirates spoke to the Mets about trading for Davis, a source told Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
3:48pm: The Pirates have seen a pair of first base candidates come off the board in the past week with the Rays re-siging James Loney for $21MM over three years and the Mariners acquiring Logan Morrison. However, they're still looking at the trade market and currently have their sights set on Ike Davis and Mitch Moreland, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (Twitter link).
Davis' name has been most frequently connected to the Brewers in the past week, but Pittsburgh also has a hole to fill at first base. Davis batted .242/.334/.434 overall in 2013 but was strong against right-handed pitching, as can be seen in his .256/.356/.471 slash line. That would seem to make him an ideal platoon partner for Gaby Sanchez, who roughed up lefties at a .333/.438/.539 clip in 2013.
Moreland offers similar platoon issues, having batted just .236/.295/.362 against left-handers in his career. Both he and Davis can be controlled through the 2016 season, though Moreland is projected to earn just $2.7MM in 2014 (per MLBTR's Matt Swartz), while Davis is projected to earn $3.5MM next season. It's not known at this time what the Rangers would be looking for in return for Moreland. New York is said to be asking the Brewers to part with right-hander Tyler Thornburg.