Francisco Rodriguez’s agent Paul Kinzer spoke to the AP today. Kinzer says he believes K-Rod will sign after the winter meetings. He’ll talk to the Mets at those meetings (December 8-11), but wouldn’t reveal any other suitors.
Mets Rumors
Rockies Rumors: Embree, Shouse, Taveras, Atkins
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has the latest on the Rockies.
Manager Clint Hurdle says the Rockies are focused on adding pitching, particularly in the bullpen. On the radar: Aaron Heilman, Alan Embree, Joe Beimel, and Brian Shouse. Yesterday Joel Sherman said the Mets balked at the idea of swapping Heilman and Pedro Feliciano for Huston Street.
Renck adds that the Reds and White Sox remain interested in outfielder Willy Taveras. On November 11th, Tracy Ringolsby said the Reds were not interested in Taveras despite reports. As for Garrett Atkins, Renck believes the market will take shape after Casey Blake signs.
Looking Beyond Varitek
According to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald, a slew of catchers are being shopped to the Red Sox. Among them: Jeff Mathis, Mike Napoli, Brian Schneider, Miguel Montero, John Buck, Ramon Hernandez, Bengie Molina, Carlos Santana, Kelly Shoppach, Victor Martinez, Jesus Flores, Kenji Johjima, Jeff Clement, Yorvit Torrealba, and the Rangers’ guys. Silverman says the Braves, Cardinals, and Rays also have catchers available. It seems that teams are asking for players like Justin Masterson, Clay Buchholz, or Lars Anderson in some cases.
On the Jason Varitek front, Scott Boras told the AP yesterday that he’s had no financial discussions with the Red Sox. He expects the matter to be discussed after Thanksgiving. Curt Schilling commented last week about Varitek possibly playing fewer games in 2009, but Boras shot down the idea of a reduced role.
Rafael Furcal Rumors: Tuesday
10:30pm: Ken Rosenthal reports that Furcal, his wife, and his agent Paul Kinzer met with the A’s in Oakland today. He received the full tour. They may discuss financial terms tomorrow. The Giants and a mystery team are also said to be in the mix. However, MLB.com’s Chris Haft learned that Kinzer hasn’t spoken with the Giants in two days.
2:56pm: I exchanged emails with Yancen Pujols, sports editor at the El Caribe newspaper. He reminded me that the author of their article, Rafael Fellito Ortiz, quoted Furcal himself regarding offers from the A’s and Mets. So the unanswered question here is why Furcal said these things.
9:23am: Let’s sort out the facts involving free agent shortstop Rafael Furcal.
- Reports about Furcal from yesterday from El Caribe and Impacto Deportivo have been dismissed. There has been no four-year, $48MM offer from the A’s, no four-year, $52MM offer from the Braves, and no interest from the Mets. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman says the Braves wouldn’t be in a position to make an offer unless they dealt Yunel Escobar or Kelly Johnson first.
- Three teams have made offers for Furcal, at least one of them for four years according to Dylan Hernandez. The A’s and Giants seem to be in the lead, while the Dodgers are slipping out of the picture. Hernandez says they’re "reluctant to even match the three-year, $39 million contract he completed this year."
- Susan Slusser expects negotiations for Furcal to drag into December.
- The third team making an offer seems to be the "surprise team." That team is not the Mets, and probably not the Dodgers, Reds, or Braves. Brown wondered if it could be the Cubs, Orioles, or Cardinals.
Mets Rumors: K-Rod, Dye, Vazquez
6:22pm: According to SI.com’s Jon Heyman, Minaya has reached out to K-Rod and Fuentes. He says the Mets prefer free agency to trading.
We also have a rumor from Joel Sherman of the New York Post. He says the Mets offered Aaron Heilman to the Rockies for Street shortly after Colorado acquired him. The Rox wanted the Mets to add Pedro Feliciano, and the Mets refused. MetsBlog has more insight into the team’s plans.
1:33pm: Rounding up today’s Mets rumors…
- On Friday, David Lennon of Newsday said the Mets had received Francisco Rodriguez’s medical records. He also had Omar Minaya saying the club’s doctors were looking it over. However, Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post writes today that the Mets did not receive the records until yesterday afternoon. According to Hubbuch, the Mets told Paul Kinzer they’ll get back to him after Thanksgiving regarding K-Rod.
- Hubbuch names five other Mets targets: Brian Fuentes, Kerry Wood, Trevor Hoffman, J.J. Putz, and Huston Street.
- Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News talked to Minaya, who said the Mets have not made offers to any free agents yet.
- In case you missed it, Ken Rosenthal had several Mets nuggets in today’s column. He said the Mets balked at Chicago’s asking price for Jermaine Dye, and aren’t enamored with Javier Vazquez. Rosenthal believes the Rays’ Andy Sonnanstine "represents a more desirable target" for the Mets.
- SI.com’s Jon Heyman rattles off a list of the Mets’ free agent targets, which does not include Manny Ramirez.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Dye, Burrell, Young
Here’s a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Rosenthal says the Braves are interested in A.J. Burnett, but you already knew that.
- Rosenthal believes Trevor Hoffman to the Dodgers "makes sense."
- The Red Sox apparently have confidence they could trade Mike Lowell if need be, but rival execs believe he’d have to prove his health in spring first. Lowell has two years and $24MM on his deal.
- The White Sox want a young starter and additional players for right fielder Jermaine Dye. The Mets, Rays, and Phillies are "balking at such a price." Rosenthal learned that most of the six teams on Dye’s no-trade list are in the northeast. Interesting that the White Sox are still willing to trade Dye after moving Nick Swisher.
- The Mets "aren’t enamored" with Javier Vazquez.
- Rosenthal suggests the Rays will sit back and hope one of the free agent DH-types becomes a bargain for them.
- SI.com’s Jon Heyman wrote on Friday that the "Braves, Dodgers, and Mets are believed to be among teams that have inquired about Rangers starting pitchers Kevin Millwood and Vicente Padilla." However, Rosenthal says the Braves and Mets are not interested in either pitcher and the Rangers aren’t desperate to move them.
- Rosenthal has Francisco Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes, and Pat Burrell on the Angels’ radar if they fail to sign Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia, or Manny Ramirez.
- A rival GM tells Rosenthal Twins outfielder Delmon Young is "very, very much out there."
Angels Begin Talks With Sabathia
According to Bill Shaikin and Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times, the Angels have begun contract discussions with C.C. Sabathia. The authors believe the Halos could make an offer in the range of Johan Santana’s six-year, $137.5MM deal. If the Angels do make such an offer, you have to imagine the Yankees will respond by upping their bid significantly.
Despite the talks for Sabathia, Mark Teixeira remains the Angels’ top priority. They haven’t made an offer yet, but Scott Boras seems to want ten years while the Angels are willing to do seven. It makes sense to open serious dialogue with Sabathia to lessen the risk of missing out on both star free agents.
Rafael Furcal Rumors: Monday
6:20pm: Impacto Deportivo says the surprise team is the Braves, possibly offering four years and $52MM. It’d be wise to treat the report with caution until it is confirmed by another source.
6:09pm: The Reds had a brief conversation with Kinzer about Furcal, but it probably isn’t going anywhere.
3:58pm: ESPN’s Enrique Rojas says Furcal traveled to the West Coast today, where he could sign with the Giants or A’s. However, a third team remains involved.
1:36pm: Yahoo’s Tim Brown talked to Furcal’s agent, Paul Kinzer. Kinzer called the El Caribe report "bogus." Apparently there has been no four-year, $48MM offer from Oakland nor are the Mets interested. And Furcal doesn’t want to move to second base anyway.
The A’s and Giants are leading the charge for Furcal, with a "surprise team" also in the mix.
12:26pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman does not believe the Mets made an offer to Furcal.
12:11pm: Susan Slusser’s A’s source calls the below report "untrue," but it’s unclear to what degree.
8:40am: Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times passes along a report from El Caribe, a newspaper in the Dominican Republic. In the report, Rafael-Fellito Ortiz talked to free agent shortstop Rafael Furcal. Furcal says he has a four-year, $48MM deal on the table from the A’s (with another $2MM in incentives). Surprisingly, he also has an offer from the Mets, who would use him as a second baseman. Ortiz believes Furcal might sign soon.
Mets Rumors: K-Rod, Fuentes, Vazquez, Garland
The latest on the Mets.
- Joel Sherman believes the Brewers could interfere with the Mets’ attempts to sign Brian Fuentes or Francisco Rodriguez.
- Ben Shpigel of the New York Times wrote this weekend that the Mets don’t appear likely to dabble in the second-tier relief market for pitchers like Juan Cruz or Joe Beimel.
- Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog passes along a John Harper article from the New York Daily News, adding his own commentary.
- Harper believes the Mets may have to move on to Javier Vazquez, Jon Garland, and Edwin Jackson due to the high price tags on Boras clients Oliver Perez and Derek Lowe.
Other Suitors For Sabathia, Rodriguez, Fuentes
Joel Sherman of the New York Post offers some potential spoilers for the Yankees and Mets in regards to C.C. Sabathia and closers Francisco Rodriguez and Brian Fuentes.
Sherman suggests that Sabathia could wind up in an Angels uniform if Mark Teixeira isn’t re-signed. Owner Arte Moreno won’t wait around for Scott Boras’s games, and has stated that he’ll make an offer with a time limit. If Teixeira can’t be had, the Angels will likely shift their focus to Sabathia.
Sherman likens this situation to that of the 2004 Astros, who waited until mid-January for Boras and Carlos Beltran to decide on the Mets. That loss crippled the Astros’ offseason, as their #2 and #3 targets had by that point been signed. Sherman feels Moreno won’t make that mistake. Sabathia has pointed out a strong desire to pitch in the National League and/or on the West Coast:
He has placed a value on either the NL and/or West Coast, and could take less to fill at least one of those desires. How? Remember that Johan Santana’s current pitching record deal of six years at $137.5 million is loaded with deferrals that make the real present-day annual average not $22.92 million, but $20.66 million. So maybe a West Coast team only has to beat that lower annual total.
Sherman also feels the Brewers could swoop in and snatch up a top-tier closer away from the Mets. The Brewers have shown a willingness to pay for this position (offering Francisco Cordero a four-year, $40MM contract, and then signing Eric Gagne to a one-year, $10MM deal when Cordero went to the Reds). Sherman offers a scenario where the Ben Sheets accepts the Brewers’ arbitration offer to re-build his reputation on a one-year, $15MM deal, which could alleviate the need for starting pitching and lead to the Brewers signing a top-tier closer.
With the Angels freeing up a lot of money, and Salomon Torres telling the Brewers he’s hanging it up, both of these situations seem plausible, particularly the Brewers scenario if you ask this guy. What does everyone else think? Can the Angels really land Sabathia?
