Derek Lowe Rumors: Wednesday
Boston.com, the Boston Globe Web site, is reporting with a background source that Derek Lowe is close to a deal with the New York Mets. The post indicates the deal could be three to four years in the neighborhood of $15MM/season.
The N.Y. Daily News and N.Y. Post each have related stories to the Mets’ interest in Derek Lowe.
John Harper’s Daily News story indicates a deal could be reached between Christmas and New Year’s.
Ben Shpigel of the N.Y. Times writes that if the Mets sign Lowe, they might need to thank the Yankees.
No Manny For Angels, Mets
8:19pm: Dan Graziano says Omar Minaya is unable to convince Mets ownership to allow him to pursue Manny, much to Scott Boras’ chagrin. Will Manny have to go crawling back to the Dodgers, as Graziano puts it?
2:07pm: MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger talked to Angels GM Tony Reagins, who said:
"Manny Ramirez will not play for the Angels in 2009, or beyond, for that matter."
Mets Deep In Negotiations With Lowe
According to Yahoo’s Gordon Edes, the Mets are deep in negotiations with free agent starter Derek Lowe. However, the Mets have yet to make an offer.
Olney’s Latest: Lyon, Cabrera, Castillo
The latest from ESPN’s Buster Olney.
- Olney says the Brewers "might take a look at" free agent reliever Brandon Lyon, who’s been linked in other reports to the Twins and Red Sox. It’s been reported that Lyon seeks a multiyear deal and may wait until Brian Fuentes signs. Nick Piecoro suggested that one unknown Lyon suitor views him as a starter.
- Olney says the Brewers will probably reach out to Trevor Hoffman, and the Dodgers will also take a look. He adds that the Dodgers will not attempt to re-sign Derek Lowe despite his sinking price tag.
- The Dodgers turned back to Rafael Furcal after realizing Orlando Cabrera had an asking price close to the amount Furcal signed for. The market for Cabrera seems weak, perhaps since he will cost a draft pick. Cabrera signing with the Dodgers would’ve been ideal for the White Sox, who would’ve swiped L.A.’s #17 draft pick in June.
- Olney says the Mets continue to attempt to unload Luis Castillo, who has $18MM left on his deal.
- Interesting note: "For the first time in recent memory, the Yankees’ offices will be closed in the week between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day — one of the signs of the more measured leadership of Hal Steinbrenner."
Murray Chass: Furcal, Sabathia, Lowe, Teixeira
Murray Chass has a nice Sunday post covering some of the biggest names in the game. Let’s take a look:
- Chass summarizes the Rafael Furcal fiasco nicely, and explains the potential legal hazards that refusing to work with the Wasserman group could lead to.
- Brian Cashman has said that his refusal to trade for Johan Santana last year was because the Yankees knew C.C. Sabathia was going to be a free agent this year. Chass looks at their numbers side-by-side and points explains how by not trading for Santana, the Yankees risked missing out on both aces.
- The Mets are very interested in Derek Lowe, but not his pricetag. Boras wants similar money to Barry Zito – about $18MM per season – for the 35-year-old Lowe. The Mets also like Oliver Perez, but he’s another Boras client with a big price tag. The Mets don’t want to add another big contract.
- Is there really a team with a $200MM+ offer on the table for Mark Teixeira? Chass isn’t so sure. It seems that Boras always has a "mystery team" in on the negotiations, but his client never seems to sign there… Don’t count the Red Sox out just yet.
Odds & Ends: Webb, Mitsui, Burnett
Some links for the afternoon…
- Nick Piecoro looks at the Brandon Webb situation. The D’Backs ace is eligible for free agency after the 2010 season.
- NPB Tracker says Koji Mitsui may require a Major League deal to come to the States.
- Ted Berg interviewed Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. Newman takes a look at Koji Uehara, Kenshin Kawakami, Ken Takahashi, and Mitsui. They’ve all been linked to the Mets.
- George A. King III from the NY Post looks at whether or not A.J. Burnett will be able to handle the Yankee spotlight.
- Tim did an interview with Kevin Seefried from 6 Pound 8 Ounce Baby Joba, covering many topics related to the AL East.
- RotoAuthority analyzes some of the most undervalued players in Fantasy Baseball coming into the 2008 season.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Looper, Redding
In detailing their offseason plan to address the rotation, Ken Rosenthal adds the Baltimore Orioles to the short list of teams interested in acquiring Tim Redding. The Orioles are also interested in Braden Looper, says the article.
In addition to the Orioles, Redding is being sought after by the New York Mets and Colorado Rockies. The Rockies have also been mentioned in rumors regarding a potential pursuit of Looper.
It may take a two-year deal to land Redding, and recent rumors have made it appear as though only the Mets are willing to go that far.
Based on the rumors we’ve been seeing lately, it may come down to dividing three back-end starting pitchers among three teams in need of rotation help: one each of Redding, Looper and Jason Marquis, for the Orioles, Rockies, and Mets.
Alex Walsh can be reached at alexander.walsh@gmail.com.
Nationals Sign Daniel Cabrera
10:26pm: Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports the contract for Daniel Cabrera is a one-year deal worth $2.6 million, about a million less than he’d have been owed after arbitration.
1:24pm: According to MLB.com’s Bill Ladson, the Nationals signed Daniel Cabrera to a one-year deal (pending a physical). One of Ladson’s sources says the Nats beat out the Mets and Pirates for him. So far this offseason the Nationals have added Cabrera and Scott Olsen to their rotation.
Cabrera, 28 in May, made 30 starts for the Orioles in 2008 with a 5.25 ERA. His walks remained high, while his strikeout rate was way down and he lost 1.7mph off his average fastball. Cabrera’s season ended in September with an elbow sprain, which did not require surgery.
Mets Starting Pitching Update
SATURDAY, 6:27PM: Ken Rosenthal confirms several of the ideas suggested in Heyman’s Friday article.
The Mets apparently are in fact interested in Tim Redding as a back-of-the-rotation starter, and would like to add either Derek Lowe or Oliver Perez to the front. The Mets appear willing to give Redding a two-year deal, while the Rockies, also interested in Redding’s services, are willing to do a one-year deal only.
Jason Marquis appears to be a likely target of the team that fails to sign Redding.
FRIDAY, 12:28PM: SI.com’s Jon Heyman has the latest on the Mets’ quest to add two starting pitchers.
Heyman says the Mets are waiting for Scott Boras to get Mark Teixeira signed before seriously engaging for Derek Lowe and Oliver Perez, their top two targets (in that order). Randy Wolf is the third choice if the Boras clients fall through. Heyman suggests Lowe’s asking price is $66MM over four years.
The Mets are also looking to add a back-end type to soak up innings. This group includes Freddy Garcia, Tim Redding, and Jason Marquis.
Odds and Ends: Redding, Turnbow, Looper
Links for Saturday…
- RotoAuthority looks at projections for Chris Davis. 35 home runs next year?
- Bill Madden suggests Paul Kinzer screwed up in both the Rafael Furcal and Francisco Rodriguez negotiations.
- More details on Dan Johnson – the Rays are selling him to a Japanese team for $100,000-500,000.
- Tim Redding‘s agent says "the Mets are very much in the mix" for the righty.
- Juan C. Rodriguez confirms the Marlins’ interest in Derrick Turnbow, but says they aren’t going after Ray King.
- The Rockies could pursue Braden Looper.
- The Orioles have expressed interest in Phillies catcher Chris Coste.
- New National Josh Willingham likes the Marlins’ young talent.
- New Phillie Raul Ibanez likes the chances that the Mariners will have a better offense in 2009.
- The AP has details on the perks in the C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett deals.
- Ken Davidoff looks at the impact Mark Teixeira‘s decision will have on six teams. Amazing how one deal will shape so many teams’ plans.
- Buster Olney writes that many players are going to make much less than expected in 2009, including Manny Ramirez. In that same blog post, Olney notes that his colleague Jerry Crasnick says the Angels’ signing of Juan Rivera takes them out of the market for Manny.
- The D’Backs’ discussions for Tony Clark are progressing.