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AL East Notes: Red Sox, Ichiro, Jeter, Orioles

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MLBTR’s offseason in review series is just getting started, but the AL East is now complete. Click here to see how the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays, Blue Jays and Orioles navigated their respective offseasons. Here are some more links from the division…

  • The Red Sox aren't close to bumping up against MLB's luxury tax, as Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com shows. With commitments in the $163MM range, the Red Sox have $15MM separating them from the $178MM threshold.
  • Ichiro Suzuki explained to Ken Davidoff of the New York Post that he wanted to re-sign with the Yankees because of the team's focused emphasis on winning. “Those are things that I wanted in a clubhouse and on a team, and I didn’t know that it existed,” Ichiro said. “I kind of had given up hope that I would find that ideal clubhouse, kind of how I felt how about a clubhouse should be. And I was able to find that last year, and that was here.”
  • In a video blog Davidoff explains that Brian Cashman's recent misadventure won't stop him from doing his job as the Yankees' general manager. Cashman broke his right fibula and dislocated his right ankle after jumping out of a parachute to raise awareness for the Wounded Warrior Project two days ago.
  • Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter and managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner are among the ten most powerful people in baseball, Tom Verducci writes at SI.com. Commissioner Bud Selig tops Verducci's list.
  • The Orioles like what they see from Jair Jurrjens this spring, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports. Jurrjens, who signed a minor league deal with Baltimore this past offseason, is one of 13 Orioles pitchers competing for a rotation spot this spring.

East Notes: Cashman, Ohman, Kendrick, Yanks

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The Yankees announced today that general manager Brian Cashman broke his right fibula and dislocated his right ankle on the landing of a tandem skydive. Cashman was skydiving with the U.S. Army Golden Knights to raise awareness for the Wounded Warrior Project.

“I’m in great spirits, and it was an awesome experience," Cashman was quoted as saying in the press release. "The Golden Knights are first class. While I certainly didn’t intend to raise awareness in exactly this fashion, I’m extremely happy that the Wounded Warrior Project is getting the well-deserved additional attention.” He is scheduled for surgery today. Here's more out of baseball's Eastern divisions…

  • Will Ohman does not have an out clause in his contract, but the Nationals would likely grant him his release if he asked for it, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson (on Twitter). Ohman signed a minor league deal with the reigning NL East champs last month.
  • Phillies righty Kyle Kendrick was roughed up in his start Sunday, but he told David Murphy of the Philadelphia Inquirer that he appreciates knowing the poor outing doesn't jeopardize his rotation spot. As Murphy notes, Kendrick hasn't experienced that type of security in recent years, as he's typically been on the fringe of Philadelphia's rotation.
  • Peter Botte of the New York Daily News writes that Robinson Cano's father, Jose, hopes his son will sign an extension that will make him a Yankee for life. Jose will be a bench coach for the Dominican Republic's WBC team on which Robinson will play. The Bombers' second baseman didn't get into contract talks, but did admit how important his father's advice is to him.
  • The Yankees are very likely to receive their worst offensive output from the catcher position since before Jorge Posada emerged in the late-90s, writes Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues. The Bombers decided against acquiring a standout backstop this offseason and will pull from a group consisting of Chris Stewart, Francisco Cervelli, and Austin Romine.

Cafardo On Red Sox, Vazquez, Stanton, Cano

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In today's column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes that even though the 2013 Red Sox may not knock your socks off, they could still be extremely effective.  In theory, Boston could have used their wiggle room on the likes of Josh Hamilton, Adam LaRoche, and Cody Ross.  Instead, the club's shopping spree yielded Mike Napoli, Shane Victorino, Jonny Gomes, David Ross, Stephen Drew, and Ryan Dempster.  However, the BoSox have set themselves up for bigger things in the long run and they could still be competitive in '13.  Here's more from Cafardo..

  • The Red Sox, Nationals, Yankees, Orioles, and Brewers had major interest in free agent pitcher Javier Vazquez before knee surgery put his season in jeopardy. “Never say never,” said a major league source close to the hurler, “but we won’t see him in the immediate future.”
  • One AL executive cautions not to rule out the Tigers as a major player for the Marlins' Giancarlo Stanton when the time comes. Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski has strong ties to the Marlins from his time with them and may have the chips to get a deal done.  Detroit could use third baseman/outfielder Nick Castellanos, outfielder Avisail Garcia, righty Rick Porcello, and others to entice Miami.
  • One NL executive says that he is envious of the position that Robinson Cano finds himself in.  “He’s going to have the Yankees and the Dodgers offering him a record amount of money,” said the exec.  GM Brian Cashman says he has already offered a “significant” contract, but there's no reason for the Scott Boras client to take the deal when considering how much the Dodgers may be willing to bid.
  • Royals outfielder Jeff Francoeur had the worst WAR among everyday players last season, but at age 29, he feels that he is just entering his prime.  It appears that the Royals would be willing to move him and his strong arm in the outfield could attract interest.

Poll: Will The Yankees Get Under $189MM For 2014?

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Last year, the Bombers made waves and eyes roll when they said that they were determined to get under the $189MM figure to avoid being severely taxed in 2014.  The new Collective Bargaining Agreement meant that the Yankees’ free-spending ways were no longer good business, but people were still skeptical that the Steinbrenner family would go through with tightening the belt.  One year later, it seems like they’re still serious about being smart shoppers.

The Yankees kept veteran pitchers Andy Pettitte and Hiroki Kuroda on one-year deals, meaning that they’ll see a combined $27MM come off of the books after this season.  Kevin Youkilis was also brought in on a one-year, $12MM deal to satisfy the club’s need at third base.  Meanwhile, the club resisted temptation and stayed away from the bigger names on the open market this winter.  It’ll stay that way too, despite Scott Boras’ desire for the club to get involved with Kyle Lohse.

Everything seems to be falling in line for the Yankees when it comes to getting under the $189MM mark, except when it comes to their star second baseman.  The Yanks insist that they have made a “significant offer” to keep Cano for the long-term, but there could be a significant gap between the club and the Boras client.  The Bombers could be thinking about something in the neighborhood of seven years at $171MM while Boras might expect opening bids for ten years at $20-25MM per season.  Ultimately, keeping Cano from testing free agency may mean compromising their repeated desire to avoid paying steep luxury tax penalties.  When all is said and done, do you see the Bombers sticking to their guns?

East Notes: Wang, Yankees, Rays, Marlins

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The Yankees are among the teams keeping an eye on Chien-Ming Wang, who threw six shutout innings against Australia in the World Baseball Classic, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  The Aussies may not be the toughest team in the WBC, but Wang looked strong and probably helped his case for hooking on with the Bombers or another club as pitching depth.  Here's more out of the AL and NL East..

  • MLBPA chief Michael Weiner said this morning that there's "some legitimacy" to the Rays' management concerns that the new CBA has not helped them in terms of competitive balance, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.
  • Weiner went on to say that he is "disappointed" in the Rays' attendance figures, but neither contraction nor relocation have come up as possibilities.  He also says there is a curiosity to see what could happen with stadium on other side of Tampa, closer to Orlando (Twitter links).
  • Mets catcher John Buck says that he's keeping himself out of the beef between his former Marlins teammates and the club's management, writes Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel. Jose Reyes and Mark Buehrle have both spoken out against Miami owner Jeffrey Loria.
  • Marlins hitting coach Tino Martinez says that Jake Marisnick, who was acquired in the trade with the Blue Jays, could be the best defensive center fielder in the game right now, Sherman tweets.

AL East Notes: Yankees, Cano, De La Rosa, Red Sox

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Here’s a look at the American League East..

  • Ken Davidoff of the New York Post opines that the Yankees and Robinson Cano need to take a season-long break from their contract talks.  With Cano confessing that the negotiations are starting to get into his head, it would be in the best interest of both parties to table everything for a good seven or eight months.  At this point, however, there’s no indication that they’ll do that.
  • Fireballing right-hander Rubby De La Rosa, who came over in the blockbuster deal with the Dodgers, looks to be a gem for the Red Sox, writes John Tomase of the Boston Herald.  De La Rosa won’t be with the varsity squad to start the season, but the BoSox are high on him nonetheless.  “He’s got electric stuff,” Dustin Pedroia said. “We’re glad to have him. You can never have enough pitching, and it’s pretty exciting, the guys we got in that trade. They’ve got some great stuff. Getting young talent like that, especially pitching, those are prized pieces. This will be huge for our team.” 
  • Rob Bradford of WEEI.com wonders how good of a first baseman offseason acquisition Mike Napoli can become.  So far, Napoli is getting strong reviews from infield coach Brian Butterfield.

Quick Hits: Yankees, Cano, Lohse, Nationals

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On the latest edition of the Rosters & Rumblings podcast, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith and Jason Mart.inez of MLB Depth Charts discussed Robinson Cano's contract status and the Padres' 2013 chances.  Here are some links to close out this Friday evening..

  • A more restrained approach to spending by the Yankees doesn't mean that they can't re-sign Cano to a hefty, long-term deal, writes MLB.com's Mike Bauman.  From a competitive standpoint, the Yanks cannot afford to lose Cano considering their aging lineup and the loss of power elsewhere.
  • The Kyle Lohse situation shows that not even Scott Boras can truly command the invisible hand of the market, Jack Moore of Fangraphs writes.  However, Boras has found a way around this in the past with pillow contracts and Moore looks at examples including Edwin Jackson, Ryan Madson, and Adrian Beltre.
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America takes a stab at predicting the 2016 World Series and has the Nationals topping the Rays.  Callis sees the Nats' stable of first-rounders powering the club in the years to come and envisions Anthony Rendon and Lucas Giolito emerging by this time.
  • The Marlins are giving non-roster invitee Michael Wuertz a chance at salvaging his career, writes Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.

Offseason In Review: New York Yankees

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The Yankees seem determined to avoid the luxury tax in 2014, yet the club entered the 2012-13 offseason with a variety of major needs. They addressed most of them with short-term solutions, only to see more issues emerge. 

Major League Signings

Notable Minor League Signings

Trades and Claims

  • Acquired RP Shawn Kelley from Mariners for OF Abraham Almonte.
  • Claimed UT Russ Canzler off waivers from Indians.  Later claimed off waivers by Orioles.
  • Claimed RP Jim Miller off waivers from Athletics.
  • Claimed RP Mickey Storey off waivers from Astros.
  • Claimed RP Josh Spence off waivers from Padres.
  • Claimed RP David Herndon off waivers from Blue Jays.
  • Claimed C Eli Whiteside off waivers from Giants. Later claimed off waivers by Blue Jays.

Notable Losses

Ichiro Suzuki - Yankees (PW)

Needs Addressed

Lavish spending set the Yankees apart from other MLB teams for years. No other franchise spent as aggressively, and it was difficult to argue with the results: five championships since 1996. Their wild spending habits have now disappeared, but Brian Cashman’s job description hasn’t changed. He’s still tasked with bringing another championship to New York.

Cashman retained starters Hiroki Kuroda and Andy Pettitte on one-year deals, solidifying the rotation for 2013. The veteran pitchers didn't require long-term commitments — a bonus for any team, especially the suddenly cost-conscious Yankees. 

Mariano Rivera returns for a 19th season in pinstripes after signing a one-year deal. Spending $10MM on a reliever returning from a lost season wouldn’t make sense in most instances, but this is the greatest closer of all time, someone who has proven he can succeed past his 40th birthday.

The Yankees added a number of accomplished but aging position players in Ichiro Suzuki, Kevin Youkilis, Travis Hafner and Juan Rivera. Suzuki required a two-year commitment, which was something of a surprise considering his combined .308 on-base percentage for 2011-12. Yet Suzuki played well after joining the Yankees in a midseason trade, providing strong defense. Plus, the Phillies reportedly offered more than the Yankees did, so the market for Suzuki was strong. 

The addition of Youkilis makes sense in my view. He’s not the player he once was, but considering the thin offseason market for third basemen and Alex Rodriguez’s hip issues the Yankees did well to acquire Youkilis, a longtime New York nemesis. 

Though Hafner is another player in decline, the Yankees don’t need him to perform at the level he did seven or eight years ago. Instead, they’ll hope his left-handed swing translates into lots of Yankee Stadium home runs. It’s a gamble worth taking and — notice a pattern here? — it’s just a one-year commitment.

Questions Remaining

Even though the free agent market for catchers featured Russell Martin, Mike Napoli and A.J. Pierzynski, the Yankees passed, choosing instead to rely on Chris Stewart and Francisco Cervelli behind the plate. Neither Stewart nor Cervelli has played 100 games in a season, so the Yankees are taking on significant risk here.

The starting rotation must be considered a concern, especially now that Phil Hughes may not be ready for Opening Day. Pettitte hasn’t started 30 games since 2009 and can’t be counted on for a full season. And while David Phelps, Ivan Nova and Adam Warren are valuable arms, the Yankees would presumably prefer not to have to rely on these players to lead them to October.

Health is a concern for many Yankees, including Derek Jeter, who’s recovering from ankle surgery, and Rivera, who missed almost all of the 2012 season. The embattled Rodriguez won’t be back before midseason due to his hip issues.

Another infielder, second baseman Robinson Cano, has received a "significant" contract offer from the Yankees. The club must now determine whether Cano and agent Scott Boras define "significant" differently than they do, or if a long-term deal remains within reach.

The Yankees also have a potential need in left field, now that Curtis Granderson is sidelined with a broken arm. In one sense the timing is ideal — half of Granderson’s recovery period overlaps with Spring Training. In another sense, it’s too late for Cashman to pursue upgrades now that the best trade candidates and free agents are no longer available. 

Deal of Note

Credit the Yankees for their handling of free agents Kuroda, Rafael Soriano, Nick Swisher. All three players obtained qualifying from the Yankees early on in the winter, and all three players declined the $13.3MM offers. The results could hardly have been better from the Yankees’ perspective. Kuroda later signed a one-year deal with New York, where he’ll look to build on a strong 2012 season. Swisher and Soriano left, bringing the Yankees valuable compensatory picks in the upcoming amateur draft. 

In particular, the Yankees’ dealt with Soriano much differently than they did two offseasons ago, when they initially signed him. During the 2010-11 offseason, upper level Yankees executives were intent on signing Soriano, even though it cost them a draft pick to do so. Two winters later, the Yankees preferred the draft pick to the player.

Overview

The Yankees’ offseason moves weren’t particularly exciting. The organization changed course, bypassing the elite free agents they would have pursued five or ten years ago in the hopes of avoiding baseball’s luxury tax by 2014. Limited by this goal, Cashman signed veterans to short-term deals, addressing most needs, and setting the team up for another run at a championship. After a good, but not great offseason, the Yankees have a good, but not great team.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Robinson Cano Rumors: Friday

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GM Brian Cashman announced yesterday that the Yankees extended a "significant offer" to Robinson Cano. Agent Scott Boras responded, stating that discussions will remain confidential and suggesting that talks will end if they become a distraction. It sounds as though the sides intend to limit leaks for now, but we’ll pass on any Cano-related updates here…

  • Cano told reporters this morning that he wants to "focus on baseball," but he acknowledged that contract talks are "never" going to be off of his mind completely, Dave D'Alessandro of the Star-Ledger reports.
  • Cano didn't say whether he had declined the Yankees' offer, Dave Waldstein of the New York Times reports. In fact, Cano didn’t even confirm that he had received an offer.
  • There’s some disagreement as to whether the Yankees made Cano an official offer, Buster Olney said on ESPN.com’s Baseball Tonight podcast. Some of Olney’s sources say it was more a discussion of concepts and comparables. It’s still early, yet the sides are talking about some “really big numbers,” according to Olney. It’s possible the Yankees would offer $27-28MM per season on a seven-year deal. The club would probably prefer to avoid a ten-year commitment in Olney’s view.

Vladimir Guerrero Seeks Minor League Deal

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12:30pm: Darren Wolfson ‏of ESPN 1500 heard that Guerrero's representatives approached Twins GM Terry Ryan about a possible deal (Twitter link). However, the Twins said 'no thanks.'

8:52am: Vladimir Guerrero is attempting a comeback and is willing to accept a minor league deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).  The veteran, who is now represented by California Sports Management, released a promotional video this week.

The Yankees, Rosenthal adds (Twitter link) are not interested in the veteran's services.  The 38-year-old last appeared in the majors with Baltimore in 2011.  Last year, he signed a minor league deal with the Blue Jays but asked for his release after 12 games in their system. 

Guerrero was previously a client of Proformance.  For agency info on more than 1,700 players, be sure to check out MLBTR's Agency Database.

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