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Strong Interest In Aroldis Chapman

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SUNDAY, 12:35pm: As suggested by Lennon earlier, Chapman's price tag is too high for the Mets. Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post reports (via Twitter) that the Mets were told Chapman wants up to $60MM to sign.

SATURDAY, 7:23pm: John Stockstill – the Orioles' director of international scouting – has confirmed that the club will meet with Chapman and his agent next week in New York, according to Roch Kubatko of MASN.com.  In a piece yesterday, Kubatko wrote that he doesn't think Baltimore will end up signing the 21-year-old.

SATURDAY, 2:38pm: Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports the A's have also had interest in Chapman since he became a free agent.  However, they were not among the teams that met the hard-throwing left-hander in New York this week.

FRIDAY, 1:59pm: Lennon says (via Twitter) that the Mets won't bid $40-60MM for Chapman.

FRIDAY, 1:19pm: Add the Blue Jays to the mix of teams interested in Chapman, according to our source.  Also, the Orioles have maintained interest and want to meet.

THURSDAY, 2:39pm: MLBTR has learned that the Cubs and White Sox have expressed interest in free agenty lefty Aroldis Chapman.  The Cardinals have been more aggressive than those clubs, and plan to meet with Chapman next week.  The Yankees and Red Sox, of course, have also been among the aggressive suitors.  A meeting with the Mets will come later this week, according to Newsday's David Lennon.

The Chapman tour began yesterday in New York, as the 21-year-old's agency decided not to make MLB clubs come to Andorra.  ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. believes Chapman will command a contract in the $40-60MM range.

Odds & Ends: La Russa, Indians, Arguelles

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A few links to start your Sunday….

  • Tony La Russa didn't officially say he'll be back in St. Louis in 2010, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. But it sounds like he's leaning towards returning, and that an announcement could be made within a couple days.
  • Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes that Bobby Valentine would be the best choice as an "impact" manager for the Tribe. He thinks that Manny Acta is the favorite though.
  • The Plain Dealer's Bud Shaw also gives his two cents on the Indians' managerial hunt, opining that Valentine's "outside-the-box interview strategy figures to backfire."
  • At least four teams are very interested in Cuban lefty Noel Arguelles, according to Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus (via Twitter). In the same tweet, McDaniel mentions that Wagner Mateo still looks headed to the San Francisco Giants.
  • Michael Baron of MetsBlog agrees with MLB.com's Marty Noble when he says the New York Mets have to address their need for a catcher.

Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Torre, Wang, Wright

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A night without baseball just doesn't feel right…

  • ESPN's Buster Olney wonders if the "legal wrangling" caused by the McCourts' divorce could affect the Dodgers attempt to land a No. 1 starter this offseason. Within the same piece, Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus notes that the prospects traded in deals for Casey Blake and George Sherrill have thinned out LA's system, meaning they might not have the ammo to pull off a major trade.
  • Meanwhile, Phil Wood of MASNsports.com writes that a source told him they believe Joe Torre will manage the Dodgers for years to come. "When push comes to shove, he won't want to leave," said the source.
  • Tyler Kepner of The NY Times mentions that Chien-Ming Wang isn't sure if the Yankees will tender him a contract this offseason. “Nothing’s sure,” Wang said. Wang has thrown just 137 IP over the last two seasons due to foot and shoulder injuries.
  • Dave Cameron at FanGraphs looks at the David Wright–Jose Cruz Jr. non-trade, and says that the Blue Jays messed up by not making the deal, but not because Wright developed into an All-Star. He says J.P. Ricciardi did wrong by not getting any return for Cruz Jr. before he left as a free agent in the offseason.

Odds & Ends: Chapman, Indians, Mulder, Royals

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More links for Friday…

Odds & Ends: Chapman, DeRosa, Lackey, Hinske

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Some links for Friday morning…

  • Roch Kubatko of MASN.com doesn't expect the Orioles to win the bidding for free agent lefty Aroldis Chapman, but the club doesn't have a policy against signing Cuban defectors, according to a high-ranking Orioles official.
  • Tyler Hissey of Around the Majors takes a look at this year's class of free agent second basemen. Players like Mark DeRosa and Freddy Sanchez have value, but Hissey doesn't see a true star among the group. 
  • MLB.com's Carrie Muskat says the Cubs aren't going to sign DeRosa just because he's popular. Jeff Baker is currently the frontrunner to start at second base next year.
  • Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog thinks John Lackey, who turns 31 today, would be a fantastic pitcher for Citi Field.
  • The Blue Jays are looking for a Canadian scout and, according to Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun, have received permission from the Phillies to interview a member of their front office for the job.
  • Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker compiles a list of players who could spend next season in Japan, including Kenji Johjima and Eric Hinske. 
  • Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle points out that most of baseball's best-respected managers improved in their second or third stints.
  • Felix Perez, the Cuban outfielder who was suspended for lying to the Yankees about his age, has been reinstated, according to Jorge Arangure Jr. of ESPN.com.

Odds & Ends: McCourt, Manny, Duncan, Blue Jays

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A few links to check out between ALCS pitches…

  • Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that Dodgers' owner Frank McCourt has fired his wife, Jamie, as CEO of the team. The McCourts are famously going through what will likely be a messy divorce, and Jamie's lawyers maintain that "she owns 50 percent of the team."
  • Diamond Leung tweets that the Dodgers and GM Ned Colletti are planning on having Manny Ramirez around next year. Manny has a $20MM player option that he has until shortly after the World Series to exercise.
  • Now that they've brought in hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo, Mark Potash of The Chicago Sun Times wants to see the Cubs go after pitching coach Dave Duncan. Duncan has said he's going to wait and see what Tony LaRussa does before deciding on his coaching future.
  • ESPN's Keith Law, former special assistant to the GM in Toronto, mentioned a few interesting Blue Jays' non-trades in his chat today. He says that the Mets once offered 19-year-old David Wright for Jose Cruz Jr., but J.P. Ricciardi said "I'm not trading a major league player for some guy in the (Low Class-A) Sally League." Klaw also mentions that the Jays had a chance to trade Cruz Jr. for Rafael Soriano, but wouldn't do it unless the Mariners kicked in Clint Nageotte as well. What could have been, Jays fans.

Odds & Ends: Mets, Cameron, Valentine

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A few news items to think about while we get ready for Game Five of the NLCS….

  • MLB.com's Marty Noble agrees with a reader e-mail that a defensively-sound first baseman would do wonders for the Mets' infield defense and overall performance.
  • From that same piece, Noble thinks that Mike Cameron would be a good fit with the Mets due to his ability to cover the vast expanses of Citi Field's outfield.  Noble isn't as keen on Chone Figgins since he doesn't fit New York's needs.
  • MLB.com's Noah Coslov tweets that the Indians will interview Bobby Valentine on Thursday.
  • If Manny Acta isn't hired in Cleveland or Houston, The Globe & Mail's Jeff Blair thinks he could land in Toronto.
  • Canadian Business Online looks at the best and worst free agent signings from last year and examines which teams got the most value from their rosters in 2009.

Mets Roundup: Madoff, Catchers, Jauss

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The Yankees may be one win from the World Series, but there is a lot going on with New York's other team today.

  • Ray Ratto of CBSSports.com writes about the news from court filings this week that the Mets may have gained $48MM in the Bernie Madoff swindle, rather than lost a previously-reported range of $300MM to $700MM. Unfortunately, this isn't necessarily good news. Those who lost money to Madoff are in the process of suing the Madoff winners, and the uncertainty over $48MM could complicate offseason plans for the Mets.
  • Metsblog's Matt Cerrone believes the Mets will return Josh Thole to Triple-A for more seasoning, and find a defense-first catcher to split time with Omir Santos. He mentioned Rod Barajas specifically, who seems like the best fit for a team that could use some offense from the position, too.
  • Licey Tigers manager Dave Jauss was in New York on Monday to discuss a position with the Mets. Jauss managed in the Montreal system, receiving the honor of Eastern League Manager of the Year in 1994.

Odds & Ends: Sano, Towers, D’Backs, Fehr

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Links for Wednesday…

  • Kevin Towers has a standing offer from the Red Sox, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.  For now, Towers plans on taking a few months off.  In contrast, a week ago ESPN's Buster Olney wrote that "there would appear to be excellent odds that Towers will land with the Yankees as a special assistant sometime in the months ahead." 
  • The Cubs' contract with hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo is official.
  • Miguel Angel Sano received his U.S. work visa, according to SI's Melissa Segura.
  • The new Rays hitting coach is Derek Shelton, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
  • Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic crafts an offseason plan for the Diamondbacks, who have a decent amount of money to work with.  We did our Offseason Outlook for the team back in September.
  • J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics says tendering a contract to arbitration-eligible right fielder Jeff Francoeur is probably worthwhile for the Mets.  I don't sense that non-tendering him is a serious consideration.
  • Donald Fehr will receive an $11MM parting gift when he steps down from his MLBPA position, says ESPN's Amy K. Nelson.  The players were mostly in favor of the decision, according to Curtis Granderson.
  • The Rangers met with Jim Crane's group Tuesday, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.  Two more potential investing groups are scheduled.
  • Backup catcher Mike Redmond told MLB.com's Kelly Thesier he plans on playing next year, whether or not it's with the Twins.
  • 41-year-old righty Keiichi Yabu also hopes to play in 2010, says NPB Tracker's Ryo Shinkawa.
  • Reliever George Sherrill has no hard feelings about the Orioles trading him to the Dodgers, says Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.
  • MLB.com's Dick Kaegel talked to Zack Greinke, who was characteristically blunt.
  • In a Saturday post, Jon Weisman of Dodger Thoughts said he'd like to see how GM Ned Colletti handles the decreased payroll flexibility once his young players reach arbitration.  Weisman is even-handed in his assessment of Colletti, but here's a funny quote: "I don't laud him for retaining the young core of the team: Kershaw, Kemp, Billingsley, Broxton, Martin, et al. Knowing not to dump those guys is like knowing not to show up to work in your underwear."

Heyman On Jaramillo, Holliday, Mets, Nationals

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11:24pm: Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com says the Cubs will announce the signing of Jaramillo tomorrow.  The Cubs paid up for the hitting coach's services – three years, $2.42MM.

6:01pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman discusses a variety of hot stove topics in his latest column and in an appearance on WFAN, which Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog summarizes. Here are a few of Heyman's main points….

  • The Mets will be the main player for Matt Holliday, with the Giants and Braves in the mix as well. In addition to the Cardinals, the Red Sox and Yankees are also contenders for the star outfielder.
  • Rather than make a run at Roy Halladay, the Mets may be more inclined to sign free agents and keep their top prospects.
  • Intermin manager Jim Riggleman is the favorite to manage the Washington Nationals in 2010.
  • The Mariners' management is glad that Kenji Johjima opted out of his deal, since they "never thought much of him as a player."  That's Heyman's quote, not anything from the team.
  • Rudy Jaramillo, who seems likely to become the Cubs' hitting coach, has had success working with Alfonso Soriano in the past. Heyman hears that Jaramillo will sign a multi-year deal with Chicago that will make him the highest-paid hitting coach in the league.
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