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Minor Moves: Mariners, Royals, Jonathan Albaladejo

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We'll keep track of the day's minor moves right here…

  • The Mariners have signed right-hander Josh Kinney to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training, reports MLB.com's Greg Johns (on Twitter). The 32-year-old allowed 13 runs in 17 2/3 innings for the White Sox last season, though he did strike out 20 and get a ground ball nearly 60% of the time. It was Kinney's first big league action since 2009.  The Mariners also announced ten other minor league signings: infielder Luis Rodriguez, righties Jeff Marquez, Matt Fox, Jarrett Grube, and Scott Patterson, lefties Steve Garrison, Sean Henn, and Philippe Valiquette, outfielder Darren Ford, and catcher Guillermo Quiroz.  Rodriguez, Marquez, Garrison, and Ford logged time in the Majors this year.
  • The Royals announced that they signed right-hander Juan Gutierrez, left-hander Francisley Bueno, catcher Max Ramirez and outfielder Greg Golson to minor league deals. Golson appeared in nine games with the Yankees in 2011, but they released him last week. Ramirez didn't play in the Major Leagues in 2011, but he has MLB experience with the Rangers.
  • The Diamondbacks have signed Jonathan Albaladejo, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter links). The 29-year-old right-hander spent the 2011 season in Japan after posting a 4.15 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in four seasons with the Nationals and Yankees. The Mets were a finalist for Albaladejo.

NL East Links: Rollins, Conrad, Mets, Baxter

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Eight years ago today, the Braves acquired J.D. Drew and Eli Marrero from the Cardinals in exchange for Ray King, Jason Marquis, and a pitching prospect named Adam Wainwright. Here's the latest from the NL East (all links go to Twitter) …

  • Dan Lozano, agent for Jimmy Rollins, told a source of ESPN's Jayson Stark that he is having dialogue with a team other than the Phillies. The Tigers are believed to have interest, however Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com says they insist they won't pursue the shortstop. People with other teams believe they will though, according to Knobler.
  • The Braves non-tendered Brooks Conrad yesterday, and Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution heard that the team told him to check out the free agent market. They do have interest in bringing him back on a minor league deal, though.
  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson told Adam Rubin of ESPN New York that adding starting pitching will be tricky because they need to have the flexibility to move a new starter to the bullpen or even option him to the minors.
  • The Mets have interest in bringing Mike Baxter back according to Rubin, though it depends on what the market offers the outfielder. Baxter was non-tendered yesterday.
  • Alderson told Andy Martino of The New York Daily News that minority sales of the Mets could be complete next month. The GM answered more financial questions on FOX Business' "After The Bell," today. MLB.com's Anthony DiComo has a transcript.
  • MLB.com's Joe Frisaro reports (on Twitter) that Nick Green's minor league contract with the Marlins has been finalized. The infielder has not played in MLB since 2010, but he gets an invite to Spring Training.

No Significant Trade Talks Involving Jon Niese

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With starting pitching at a premium, the Mets were reportedly listening to offers for left-hander Jonathon Niese last week at the winter meetings. GM Sandy Alderson told ESPN New York's Adam Rubin that there have been no "significant" trade talks involving Niese though, and he still envisions him as part of the club's future (Twitter link).

Niese, 25, told Andy Martino of The New York Daily News that the front office reached out to him last week after the trade rumors became public to assure him they still want him on their club (Twitter link). Three or four teams still have interest in trading for him according to CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman (on Twitter), and the Mets seek a young catcher and young pitchers in return. That price is too high for some clubs, says Martino (on Twitter). The Rockies and Yankees were said to have some interest in Niese last week.

Although his 4.40 ERA in 2011 is nothing special, Niese did post impressive peripheral stats in his 157 1/3 innings: 7.89 K/9, 2.52 BB/9, and 51.5% grounders. He's had trouble staying healthy in recent years thanks to hamstring and oblique problems, which is why he's never thrown more than 180 innings in a season, majors or minors. Niese is under team control for another four years, the final three as an arbitration-eligible player.

National League Non-Tenders

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Here are this year's National League non-tenders. You can also keep track of all teams with our non-tender tracker and check out our list of non-tender candidates:

Mets Claim Jeremy Hefner; Sign May, Olson

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The Mets claimed righty Jeremy Hefner off waivers from the Pirates, reports ESPN New York's Adam Rubin.  They also signed catcher Lucas May and lefty Garrett Olson to minor league deals.

Hefner, 25, was claimed by the Pirates from the Padres in November but designated for assignment by Pittsburgh on Friday.  The 25-year-old posted a 4.98 ERA, 6.9 K/9, 3.5 BB/9, and 1.2 HR/9 in 157 1/3 innings at Triple-A this year.  Baseball America ranked him 15th among Padres prospects prior to the season, noting that his "three average offerings and feel for the strike zone make him ideally suited to fit in the back of a rotation."

May, 27, hit .238/.330/.427 in 286 Triple-A plate appearances this year for the Diamondbacks' and Royals' affiliates.  Olson, 28, is a former first-round draft pick who posted a 3.05 ERA, 6.4 K/9, 4.9 BB/9, and 0.7 HR/9 in 85 2/3 Triple-A innings for the Pirates' affiliate.

Dodgers Interested In Daniel Murphy

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During the Winter Meetings, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti alluded to a near-trade for a position player that fell through.  That player was Daniel Murphy of the Mets and they might make another run at him, a source tells Ken Gurnick of MLB.com.

Colletti addressed the near-trade during the meetings without naming Murphy or the Mets specifically.  The GM said he thought the trade might happen until the other club satisfied its need elsewhere.  That apparently was a reference to the Mets trading for Giants outfielder Andres Torres. 

Murphy, 26, has been plauged by injuries in recent years.  The left-handed hitter missed the entire 2010 season with a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee.  In 2011, Murphy hit .320/.362/.448 in 109 games before suffering a torn MCL in his left knee.

Quick Hits: Bell, Reyes, D’Backs, Rox, Rollins

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A handful of odds and ends as Friday night winds down …

  • Joe Frisaro of MLB.com has the breakdown on Heath Bell's and Jose Reyes' respective contracts with the Marlins. Bell's 2015 club option for $9MM will vest if he finishes 55 games in 2014 or 100 games in 2013-14. Reyes will earn a $1MM bonus if he wins a World Series MVP.
  • D'Backs GM Kevin Towers told reporters, including Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, that he's looking to fortify his bullpen and perhaps add another starting pitcher (Twitter link).
  • The Rockies are looking for a short-term answer at third base so as not to block the path of prospect Nolan Arenado, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
  • Phillies GM Ruben Amaro will meet with shortstop Jimmy Rollins' agent, Dan Lozano, on Saturday, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com.
  • Brewers shortstop Alex Gonzalez told Spanish-language sports talk radio show Los Cronistas in Venezuela that he had offers from the Giants and the Mets but that he chose to sign with Milwaukee because he wanted to be a starter (Twitter links). Thanks to MLBTR's Nick Collias for the translation.

Quick Hits: Felix, Cuddyer, Dotel, Phillies

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A round-up of news from around the majors….

  • The Mariners will be hard-pressed to contend with AL West superpowers like the Rangers and Angels, but Larry Stone of the Seattle Times argues the club shouldn't think about trading Felix Hernandez.  Stone thinks such a deal would cause a "backlash" among M's fans and "there's still plenty of time to consider a Hernandez trade down the road if the Mariners' situation gets more dire."
  • Michael Cuddyer was frustrated by the negativity surrounding the Twins last season and isn't sure if the team will be able to contend in the near future, reports Phil Mackey of ESPN 1500 Radio.  The Twins have had a three-year, $24-$25MM offer on the table to Cuddyer for the last few days and the Rockies may also be willing to go to three years for the veteran.  Mackey speculates the Cardinals could check in on Cuddyer to help fill the void left by Albert Pujols.
  • Octavio Dotel tells MLB.com's Jason Beck that his choice of teams came down to the Tigers and the Brewers.  Dotel says the Padres were also interested in signing him as a setup man. 
  • MLB.com's Todd Zolecki has contract details for a number of new Phillies, most notably Jonathan Papelbon.
  • Carlos Beltran hasn't gotten much attention this winter, and Fangraphs' Eric Seidman names seven teams who could be a fit for the free agent outfielder.
  • Nick Punto is "at or near [the] top" of the Braves' list of backup infield options, reports David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter).
  • A rival executive tells FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi (Twitter link) that the Mets won't trade David Wright.  "He’s more valuable to them than he would be to any other team," the exec says.

NL East Notes: Marlins, Rollins, Mets, Zimmerman

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Here's the latest from the NL East, including several aftershocks from the Albert Pujols signing…

  • After missing out on Pujols, it has been speculated that the Marlins could turn their attention to Prince Fielder.  FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reported yesterday that Miami wasn't interested, and today adds that the Marlins' club policy against no-trade clauses would probably keep them out of the running for Fielder anyway.  The Marlins' insistence on avoiding no-trade clauses was a "big reason they lost" Pujols.  (All links are to Rosenthal's Twitter account.)
  • It seemed as if the Phillies could have been the last suitor left for Jimmy Rollins after the Brewers signed Alex Gonzalez, but with Pujols gone, the Cardinals have money to spend on a Rollins contract, writes Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Gelb's Inquirer colleague Bob Brookover wonders if a Rollins/Cardinals match could be impacted by the fact that Rollins' agent Dan Lozano also represents Pujols.
  • When asked if he would sign with the Phillies, Omar Vizquel told Manuel Lira of the Venezuelan newspaper Lider en Deportes (passed on by ESPN's Enrique Rojas) that "We're working on it."  Vizquel turns 45 in April and would be playing his 24th Major League season in 2012.  Vizquel played under Charlie Manuel when Manuel managed the Indians from 2000-02.
  • David Wright may be the only "untouchable" on the Mets roster, writes Mike Puma of the New York Post.  The Mets seem willing to listen to offers on everyone, though young, controllable players such as Ike Davis would naturally require a high price.
  • What the Mets are paying new bullpen acquistions Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch and Ramon Ramirez isn't out of line with other reliever contracts this winter, notes Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger.
  • Mark Zuckerman of Nats Insider thinks the Nationals should look at Pujols leaving the Cardinals as incentive to re-sign Ryan Zimmerman to an extension.  Zimmerman is under contract in Washington through 2013 and Zuckerman says the club's desire to save money for a Zimmerman extension is a reason the Nats haven't pushed for Fielder this offseason.

Quick Hits: Wilson, Jays, Rule 5, Pudge, Ekstrom

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Let's round up a few Winter Meetings leftovers…

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