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Discussion: Andy Sonnanstine

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No teams have formally inquired about trading for Andy Sonnanstine, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. However, the right-hander could become the topic of a few trade rumors before the season begins, given Tampa Bay's surplus of starting pitching.

Morosi tweets a few teams that could use another starting pitcher: the Diamondbacks, Mariners, Mets, Twins, Dodgers and Nationals. That list could easily double by Opening Day, with spring performances and injuries potentially raising depth concerns for a few more clubs.

The Rays shouldn't feel any pressure to deal Sonnanstine though. Even if there's no room for him in their rotation, their starting pitching depth is a luxury. As the FOX report suggests, the Rays could use Sonnanstine out of the bullpen as a long reliever, or even send him to Triple-A to start the year, since he has options remaining.

If you were running the Rays, what's your move here? Would you start shopping Sonnanstine, hoping to get some value in return? Or would you keep the right-hander around, providing insurance in case youngsters like Wade Davis and Jeremy Hellickson struggle?

Execs Name Best, Worst Moves Of The Offseason

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Recently MLBTR spoke to several MLB executives to gather their nominations for the best and worst moves of the offseason.

Free agent signings that received mention for the best moves: Felipe Lopez, Adrian Beltre, Adam LaRoche, Chone Figgins, Hideki Matsui, and Aroldis Chapman.  Said one exec on Chapman: "He might truly live up to the hype."  It's hard not to praise the Cards for getting Lopez on a one-year, $1MM deal.

Three trades came up as choices for the best moves of the offseason: the Mariners' acquisition of Cliff Lee, the Royals' trade of Mark Teahen, and the Rangers' trade of Kevin Millwood.  One exec noted that the Mariners "didn't trade anyone that can hurt them in the next couple of years" for Lee, while another believed that "trading Lee and Kyle Drabek in the Roy Halladay deal will hurt [the Phillies] in the long run."  The Royals received props for "getting some value for Teahen," while the Rangers' increased payroll flexibility from the Millwood deal was noted.

Nominated for the worst moves: free agent deals for Jason Bay, Matt Holliday, Brandon Lyon, Jason Kendall, Aubrey Huff, Jason Marquis, Randy Wolf, and Garrett Atkins.  All the execs polled mentioned Holliday's seven year, $120MM deal when choosing their worst deals of the winter.  Said one: "The fear that he would sign a one-year deal elsewhere and take his chances a year from now — that just doesn't make sense to me."

Aside from Kendall and Huff, there was a vibe of "like the player, hate the contract" with the panned free agent signings.  One exec felt the Royals downgraded behind the plate with Kendall.  Huff was nominated as a small-scale misstep, in that the exec felt that "Hank Blalock is better and he couldn't get half that salary on a non-roster deal."

Odds & Ends: Nats, Bell, Mahay, Smoltz

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Sunday night linkage..

  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wonders if money might be a factor in the Nationals' starting shortstop battle.  Ian Desmond is making a compelling case for the starting job but the club might be unwilling to put Cristian Guzman and his $8MM contract on the bench.
  • Padres closer Heath Bell told Tom Krasovic of AOL Fanhouse that he would be agreeable to signing an extension that is budget-friendly for the Padres.  San Diego avoided arbitration with Bell in January when they agreed to a one-year, $4MM pact.
  • It appears that reliever Ron Mahay won't be signing with the Mets, writes Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News.  A source tells Rubin that there's no way Mahay would accept a minor league deal.  Meanwhile, a separate source says that the Mets won't offer a major league contract.
  • In his latest mailbag, a reader suggests to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro that the Marlins should sign John Smoltz.  Frisaro says that the Marlins have no interest in the 42-year-old as the 26-year-old Josh Johnson is a good influence on the team's young pitchers.

Escobar To Decide About 2010 On April 1

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The R-word has been swirling around Kelvim Escobar lately, amidst reports that the 33-year-old Mets reliever may need shoulder surgery again after managing just one start in two seasons. Escobar answers some of these concerns in an interview with Rafael Tejera at the Venezuelan paper El Nacional (link in Spanish), telling Tejera, "If I wanted to retire, I would have done it already."

As for the 2010 season, Escobar insists he hasn't given up on it yet, but he will only make his final decision after picking up a ball again. "In the coming weeks, I'll simply work to strengthen my shoulder, and then it will be April 1 when I return to throwing," he says. "If I feel the same pain that day, I'll have to make the decision I have been considering since I was with the Angels: to rest for a full year and recover."

Other links from the Spanish language beat:

  • With Cuban prospect Leslie Anderson's foot now planted in the door to the tune of $3.75MM for four years with the Rays, the question becomes: When and at what position will he play? A source close to the negotiations tells the Nuevo Herald's Jorge Ebro that the Rays want to see the 27-year-old "wearing the uniform as quickly as possible," while Marc Topkin at the St. Petersburg Times notes that Anderson is widely expected to start off in the minors. Neither brings up the subject of positions, although Anderson's agent Jaime Torres tells Topkin that Anderson will head to Rays camp later this month ready to fight for a spot on the big league roster at first base and all three outfield positions.
  • Another high-average hitter from the Cuban Serie Nacional, shortstop Yadil Mujica, has been cleared as a free agent, tweets ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. In the same day, Mujica switched agents to Legacy Sports, also the new home of Jose Julio Ruiz. A scouting report on Mujica can be found here.
  • Jesus Guzman tells Lider en Deportes' Carlos Rodriguez that he has received no guarantee of making the Giants' opening day roster, but he has received another sort of guarantee from manager Bruce Bochy: Whatever chance he has will be in the outfield, as opposed to the infield, where Guzman has almost exclusively played in the past. After three brief callups in 2009, the Giants designated the 26-year-old Venezuelan for assignment to make room for Bengie Molina this offseason, then invited him back to spring training. Last season at Triple A Fresno, Guzman put up a .321/.379/.507 line in 500 PA while playing mostly first base.

Odds & Ends: Weeks, Castro, Roberts, Piniella

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Lots of rainouts in Florida, so here are some links to get you through the day…

Mets Liked Lackey, Preferred Bay

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A major league source tells Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that the Mets thought a five-year offer to John Lackey would be riskier than a four-year offer to Jason Bay. The Mets, who say they are not concerned about Bay's defense, ultimately signed the outfielder to a four-year $66MM deal with a vesting option for a fifth year. They talked to Lackey and had strong interest in him, though they considered Bay the safer choice.

“We liked Lackey,” GM Omar Minaya said. “We thought Lackey was probably the best starting pitcher out there. As for as Bay, we thought we needed a power hitter."

Bay thinks the Red Sox were smart to add another top starter to their rotation. He told Bradford in this article that the Lackey signing was "genius" and the team's rotation is "ridiculous."

Sweeney, Escobar Discuss Retirement

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It's no secret that veterans Mike Sweeney and Kelvim Escobar are nearing the end of their major league careers, but as both of these players discussed on Wednesday, their last days in the majors might have already occurred.

FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi reports that Sweeney will retire if he isn't on a major league roster by opening day.  The 15-year veteran signed a minor league deal with Seattle last month but told Morosi that he has no interest in going back to the minors or in taking a coaching job.  If Sweeney doesn't make the Mariners, he would try to catch on with another club and "would give priority to West Coast teams" so he could be closer to his family in San Diego. 

The injury-plagued Sweeney hasn't had more than 289 plate appearances in a season since 2005, but could still provide a team with a solid pinch-hitting option.  Sweeney hit .340/.377/.434 in 114 plate appearances against right-handers last season, and over his career has had success against both lefties and righties (.864 career OPS vs. RHP, .827 OPS vs. LHP).  Looking just at west coast options, the Angels could be in need of a right-handed compliment at DH if Hideki Matsui needs a day off.

Escobar, meanwhile, may have his career ended not by lack of opportunity, but by injury.  David Waldstein of the New York Times reports that Escobar has been bothered by shoulder pain following a four-week break from pitching after his stint in the Venezuelan winter league.  Such an injury is of particular concern to Escobar given that he has pitched just five major league innings since 2007 due to a number of shoulder problems and labrum surgery in July 2008.  Waldstein says that Escobar will get an MRI if the pain continues, and the right-hander is willing to undergo one more surgical procedure if doctors give him a decent chance of pitching again.  If not, then Escobar said he will call it a career after 12 seasons in the bigs.

Escobar signed a $1.5MM contract with the Mets in December, so it wouldn't be a major financial blow to the club if Escobar couldn't pitch.  It would, however, further weaken the already-thin New York bullpen and it certainly wouldn't look good on the Mets given the team's myriad of injuries last season.

Jay Marshall Returned To Athletics; Released

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Lefty reliever Jay Marshall was returned to the Athletics, reported Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News last night.  Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the A's released Marshall once he was returned. 

The Mets had claimed Marshall off waivers from the A's on January 8th, but Rubin says the claim was voided due to a shoulder injury Marshall had at the time of the claim.  The A's had designated Marshall in December to make room for Justin Duchscherer.  Marshall, 27, posted a 3.20 ERA, 5.3 K/9, and 2.7 BB/9 in 50.6 Triple A innings last year.

Odds & Ends: Fielder, Young, Pierzynski Dice-K

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Links for Tuesday…

2011 Vesting Options

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Vesting options are always fun for hot stove junkies to follow during the season.  Last year we had Kevin Millwood's $12 Million Out and the Tigers allowing Magglio Ordonez's pricey option to vest.  2011 vesting options to watch this year:

  • Brian Fuentes, Angels: $9MM option vests with 55 games finished.  Fuentes has finished 55+ three times in his career, last year included.  Fernando Rodney will be lurking.
  • Billy Wagner, Braves: $6.5MM option vests with 50 games finished.
  • Trever Miller, Cardinals: $2MM option vests with 45 games, but reverts to a club option with a left arm or shoulder injury.
  • Matt Cain, Giants: $6.25MM option vests with 182.3 innings or 27 starts.  The Giants will exercise this even if it doesn't vest, as the alternative will be going to arbitration with Cain and potentially paying him more.
  • Kerry Wood, Indians: $11MM option vests with 55 games finished.  A trade into a non-closing job could affect Wood's bank account.  That's three closers whose GF totals we'll be monitoring. 
  • Alex Cora, Mets: $2MM option vests with 80 starts.
  • Darren Oliver, Rangers: $3.25MM option vests with 59 appearances.
  • Ramon Hernandez, Reds: $3.25MM option vests with 120 games played.
  • Magglio Ordonez, Tigers: $15MM option vests with 135 starts or 540 plate appearances.
  • Note that a game finished is given to the last non-starting pitcher of record.  Also, thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
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