Outrighted To Triple-A: Ishikawa, Torres, Ford, Nickeas
Tonight’s outright assignments..
- The Brewers announced via press release that they have outrighted first baseman Travis Ishikawa to Triple-A Nashville. Ishikawa, 29, hit .257/.329/.428 with four homers in 94 games last season.
- The Rockies announced (via Twitter) that they have outrighted right-hander Carlos Torres. In related moves, the club selected the contracts of right-hander Josh Sullivan, reinstated Todd Helton, Juan Nicasio, and Christian Friedrich from the 60-day DL. The right-hander appeared in 31 games for the Rockies this season posting a 5.26 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9.
- The Orioles announced (via Twitter) that they have outrighted Lew Ford, Zach Phillips and Steven Tolleson to Triple-A Norfolk. Ford turned in another strong Triple-A batting line in 2012, hitting .331/.390/.550 with 11 homers in 62 games.
- Mets catcher Mike Nickeas cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Las Vegas, tweets Andy McCullough of The Star-Ledger. Nickeas saw time in 47 big league games for the Mets this season as one of several backstops to pitch in at the position.
- The Twins announced that right-hander Sam Deduno has been assigned outright to Triple-A Rochester. The move will help make room for the acquisitions of Thomas Field, Josh Roenicke, and Alexi Casilla off of waivers.
- The Royals sent catcher Manny Pina to Triple-A Omaha on outright assignment, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. In related moves, left-hander Danny Duffy and right-hander Felipe Paulino have been reinstated from the 60-day disabled list. Pina, 25, hit .260/.389/.397 in 162 Double-A plate appearances last year.
Quick Hits: Martin, Ankiel, Young
Links from around MLB on the day teams must decide whether to make qualifying offers to departing free agents…
- The Yankees like Russell Martin very much and are hoping to re-sign him as a free agent this offseason, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. The Pirates, Rangers and Mariners could all spend on catching this offseason. While the Mets need catching, they seem likely to pursue trades in Heyman’s view.
- Agent Scott Boras said there’s no chance of Rick Ankiel returning to the mound, Yahoo’s Tim Brown reports (on Twitter). “He's not pitching," Boras said. It was reported yesterday that Ankiel might be open to pitching again.
- The White Sox announced that they promoted former MLB manager and player Buddy Bell to the role of vice president/assistant GM. Bell, 61, played from 1972-88, then managed the Tigers, Rockies and Royals.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs provides a guide to the top 25 values available in free agency this offseason, complete with a look at five players teams might want to avoid. Within the piece, which is well worth your time, Cameron explains that Delmon Young has essentially become a platoon bat, and argues that Maicer Izturis could bounce back in 2013. Be sure to check out MLBTR’s list of the offseason’s top 50 free agents if you haven't done so already.
New York Notes: Outfield, Soriano, A-Rod, Wright
The Yankees are considering a defensive change for next season, shifting Curtis Granderson to left field and Brett Gardner to center, reports Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Granderson's defense has declined in recent years, as he has posted negative UZR/150 ratings in four of the last five years, including a -18.2 UZR/150 in 2012. Gardner, on the other hand, has a career 30.6 UZR/150, ranking him amongst the best defensive outfielders in the game.
Here's the latest from both the Yankees and Mets…
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman doesn't plan to offer Rafael Soriano a deal similar to the one he signed after the 2010 season that established Soriano as Mariano Rivera's set-up man and understudy at closer, reports ESPN New York's Wallace Matthews. "I don't think Soriano would sign here if he's not going to be the closer," Cashman said. "And I don't think we would do again what we did before. He's going to want closer money and I doubt he would want to come back here as a set-up man." Soriano is a free agent after opting out of the last year of his deal, and agent Scott Boras said Soriano is looking for a four-year contract to close. Soriano could still return to the Bronx, of course, if Rivera retires and the Bombers suddenly have a hole at the back of their bullpen.
- Also from Matthews, he reports that the Yankees will make qualifying offers to Nick Swisher and Hiroki Kuroda. Swisher will almost surely turn this offer down but Kuroda "might accept it." The Yankees have interest in bringing back Ichiro Suzuki and Raul Ibanez on short-term contracts, while the club also would like to re-sign Andy Pettitte and Russell Martin.
- The Yankees haven't received any calls from teams interested in Alex Rodriguez, reports USA Today's Bob Nightengale. It could be a moot point, as Nightengale hears that Rodriguez isn't willing to waive his no-trade clause for any team.
- The Mets are continuing to talk to David Wright about a multiyear extension but talks are "stuck in neutral" and there is "nothing imminent" between the two sides, reports Mike Puma of the New York Post and Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger (both links to Twitter).
- ESPN's Jim Bowden believes Wright and the Mets will agree to a new long-term contract, but if they can't, Bowden suggests five teams who could become trade destinations for Wright.
Mets, Wright To Intensify Talks
The Mets and David Wright plan to intensify talks about a possible contract extension in the near future, Andy Martino of the New York Daily News reports. The sides could discuss years and dollars as soon as this week.
The Mets, who exercised Wright’s $16MM contract option for 2013 two days ago, are determined to keep talks private. So far the sides haven’t discussed years or dollars, but that could change now that the option has been exercised. Jon Heyman reported this week that the negotiations with the ACES client seemed to be progressing.
The Mets will also discuss a possible extension with R.A. Dickey, whose $5MM 2013 option was also exercised this week. There remains a genuine chance that the Mets could trade Dickey, Martino reports.
Mets Exercise Options On Wright, Dickey
The Mets have formally picked up their contract options for David Wright and R.A. Dickey, sources told Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The Mets began the early stages of extension talks with both players after the season but the discussions were reportedly moving slowly.
Wright's option for 2013 will pay him $16MM while Dickey's is for just $5MM. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported earlier today that the third baseman was discussing a long-term deal with the club. Officials told Joel Sherman of the New York Post that they expected an extension for Wright to cost about $143MM over eight years when including the 2013 option.
Some have speculated that Dickey could be in line for a Oliver Perez-type extension, which would be for three years at about $36MM. However, the Mets reportedly don't have anything that lucrative in mind. At the age of 38, Dickey's situation is a complicated one as knuckleballers historically haven't fared well beyond 40.
Quick Hits: Yankees, Mets, Indians, Ross
With just one day to go before option decisions are due and only a few days remaining before free agents can sign with any team, here are the latest links from around MLB…
- The Yankees should consider pursuing players such as Carlos Beltran and Jeff Keppinger in the coming offseason, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes.
- Meanwhile, the Mets should check in on A.J. Pierzynski, Marco Scutaro and Randy Choate in the view of the Post’s Ken Davidoff.
- Brian Cashman of the Yankees and Chris Antonetti of the Indians have some of the toughest offseason assignments in baseball, former GM Jim Bowden writes at ESPN.com.
- It's not a foregone conclusion that David Ross will return to the Braves, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes (on Twitter). The Braves would like to re-sign the catcher, but he'll draw interest following a strong season. He's a possible fit for the Tigers in my view.
Heyman On Wright, A’s, Cabrera
The latest from notes and rumors from Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com…
- The Mets are discussing a long-term deal with David Wright, Heyman reports. They'll exercise the third baseman's $16MM option for 2013 by tomorrow, assuming a larger deal isn't completed by then. The sides appear to have made progress, though some say the negotiations are progressing slowly. It appears the discussions will continue after the option's exercised, Heyman writes.
- The Athletics are talking to free agent shortstop Stephen Drew about a new contract, Heyman reports. The A's declined their half of Drew's 2013 mutual option yesterday, but assistant general manager David Forst said the team will continue talking to him about a possible deal.
- Everth Cabrera has hired Scott Boras as his agent, Heyman reports (on Twitter). Cabrera, a former ACES client, will be arbitration eligible for the first time this coming offseason. Be sure to check out MLBTR’s Agency Database for any information about player representatives.
- The Angels are still talking to teams about possible deals involving Ervin Santana and Dan Haren, Heyman reports. In case you missed it, MLBTR reported today that Santana switched agencies again.
Sherman on Mets, Phillies, Cabrera, Olivo, Shoppach
Even in the middle of the World Series, baseball people continue to talk about embattled Giants outfielder Melky Cabrera, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. News on Cabrera and other notes from today’s column..
- Sherman spoke with a group of baseball executives about where Cabrera will sign and the Mets and Phillies both came up regularly. The Mets could look to Cabrera as corner outfield insurance against Jason Bay and Lucas Duda if he is affordable. Such a move would make even more sense if they are unable to retain Scott Hairston.
- The majority of the execs see Cabrera winding up with a one-year deal in the $2-$5MM range to audition himself. One exec could see him getting $10-$12MM while another said he could possibly get one year at $8-10MM.
- The Mets are unlikely to obtain catcher Kelly Shoppach and they are instead eyeing free agent Miguel Olivo. When the Mets were combing the trade market for catchers this summer, the Mets had Olivo as a secondary candidate to the Rockies‘ Ramon Hernandez before ultimately trading for Shoppach. The Mariners announced on Wednesday that they would not pick up Olivo’s $3MM option for 2013.
- Yankees officials never saw Cabrera as a negative influence on Robinson Cano the way that people outside of the organization did, but he doesn’t look to be a great fit regardless. The Yankees might not be able to offer the certainty of playing time that Cabrera will need to rebuild his value.
Sherman’s Latest: Wright, Soriano, Tigers, LaRussa
Here's the latest from Joel Sherman of The New York Post…
- Sherman has spoken to more than ten executives outside the Mets organization who believe the team will re-sign David Wright and relatively soon. It's a public relations move as much as a baseball move, plus getting him signed quickly will allow them to fine tune their offseason plans.
- Officials expect Wright to receive a seven-year, $127MM extension that, when combined with his $16MM club option for next year, would be worth a total of $143MM across eight years. It would make Wright the highest paid Met in history (ahead of Johan Santana) and the second high paid third baseman in history (behind Alex Rodriguez).
- “Teams no longer like paying big money for closers, there is a lot of tread on his tires and he is not known as a great guy," said one NL executive about Rafael Soriano, who is expected to opt-out of his contract with the Yankees and become a free agent this offseason.
- Sherman wonders if Jose Valverde's late-season collapse will help Soriano on the open market as the Tigers will likely look for a high-end closer. Tigers own Mike Ilitch has a strong working relationship with Soriano's agent Scott Boras.
- Former manager Tony LaRussa recently said he would not have offered more than five or six years to Albert Pujols last winter or Josh Hamilton this winter, and Sherman says the players association was not pleased. LaRussa is currently an advisor to the Commissioner and anything resembling talk of collusion from baseball's higher-ups sets off an alarm.
NL East Notes: Mets, Wright, Dickey, Marlins
The Mets‘ contract talks with David Wright and R.A. Dickey have not advanced to the point of discussing years or dollars, a source with direct knowledge of the negotiations tells Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. General Manager Sandy Alderson has remained in touch with representatives for both players but the sides are “still talking about when to really get talking,” according to the source. Martino writes that some in the organization believe that the Mets will sign Wright but ultimately trade Dickey. Here’s more on the Mets and other items out of the NL East..
- Alderson disclosed that manager Wally Backman will return to the Mets‘ Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas next season, tweets Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger. The 53-year-old has managed in the organization’s minor league system for the past three seasons.
- The Phillies had some interest in bringing Backman aboard as their Triple-A manager in Lehigh Valley to replace Ryne Sandberg, Martino tweets. Sandberg was bumped up to third base coach for the Phillies earlier this month.
- The Marlins are said to have interest in Reds pitching coach Bryan Price for their managerial vacancy, but Price has recently agreed to a new deal with the club, tweets John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer. However, Price won’t comment on whether the club has asked for permission to talk to him, writes Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel.