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Rafael Soriano To Decline Yankees’ Qualifying Offer

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Rafael Soriano will decline the Yankees' qualifying offer, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (Twitter link).  The move ensures that New York will receive a compensatory draft pick for Soriano should he sign elsewhere.  Soriano was one of nine players who received qualifying offers from their teams, and the nine have until tomorrow to accept or decline the one-year, $13.3MM offers.

It was no surprise that Soriano declined the offer, as the Scott Boras client already opted out of the final year of his Yankees contract last week, leaving $14MM on the table in search of a multiyear contract with a team that could guarantee him the full-time closer's job.

It's hard to see how the Yankees could necessarily bring back Soriano given his desire to close and the fact that Mariano Rivera has said he will return in 2013.  Rivera's health status is questionable after he missed most of last season with a torn ACL, though since Rivera will obviously have priority in closing games in New York, Soriano would find himself as a set-up man again unless Rivera were to suffer another injury.  There's also the possibility that the Yankees could re-sign Soriano to close and let Rivera go as a free agent, though that move would be hard to fathom given Rivera's legendary status with the team.

AL East Links: Orioles, Red Sox, Sizemore, Yankees

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The Blue Jays have pulled off a trade, a signing, and a DFA today, all before lunch time where the GM Meetings are being held in California. Here's the latest from the AL East…

Sherman’s Latest: Dickey, Wright, Hunter, Upton

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Here's the latest from Joel Sherman of The New York Post…

  • The Mets are making progress, albeit slowly, in contract talks with David Wright and R.A. Dickey. The impression is that there is still a substantial gap in talks with Dickey, and they've been gauging his trade value during the GM Meetings. They are not doing the same with Wright, however.
  • The Yankees would not do a two-year deal worth $20MM or so for Torii Hunter since they want to get under the luxury tax threshold next year. They are fixated on one-year contracts this offseason and could fill their right field hole with a low-cost platoon.
  • "The Yankees are not on him," said a source about Justin Upton, in part because they're unsure if he's a good fit for New York (Twitter link). The Rangers and Rays are strongest early players for Upton, and Sherman gets the sense that the D'Backs want to act quickly (Twitter links).
  • The Diamondbacks want high-end, MLB ready players in return for Upton and would love to get Jurickson Profar or (more likely) Elvis Andrus from the Rangers. They don't love Mike Olt, however (Twitter links). GM Kevin Towers likes Yankees prospect Mason Williams, but he is several years away from the show and unlikely to be enough to headline a trade package (all Twitter links).
  • Next year's crop of free agent starting pitchers is weak, which could benefit Zack Greinke since teams won't be able to find a stopgap and reassess next year. Josh Johnson and Tim Lincecum highlight next winter's pitching crop, and both come with question marks.
  • The Mariners, who have young pitching, are said to be talking to the Royals and Twins, who have young hitting. Seattle would love to pry Wil Myers, Aaron Hicks, and/or Ben Revere loose.
  • Jason Bay didn't produce with the Mets, but he lived up to his billing as a hard worker and good teammate. Sherman expects the outfielder to take a low-salary, change of scenery deal (Twitter link).
  • Mets officials think Scott Hairston will get a two-year deal worth between $8-10MM this winter.

D’Backs In “Active Discussions” About Justin Upton

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It's that time of the year again. The Diamondbacks are engaged in "active discussions" about a trade involving Justin Upton, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Multiple teams are looking into his background, makeup, etc. (Twitter link), and one executive put the outfielder's chances of playing elsewhere next season at 80-20.

Upton, 25, hit .280/.355/.430 with 17 homers this season while battling hand issues. He hit .289/.369/.529 with 31 homers just a year ago, earning him a fourth place finish in the MVP voting. Upton is signed through 2015 for a total of $38.5MM. Rosenthal says his limited no-trade clause included the Yankees, Red Sox, Indians, and Cubs this year, though the list has since changed.

The Diamondbacks seems to be involved in trade discussions involving Upon every offseason and every trade deadline, though the most serious talks occurred back in 2010. Arizona has already traded Chris Young and still has plenty of outfield depth with Gerardo Parra, Adam Eaton, and Jason Kubel.

Yankees Rumors: A-Rod, Rivera, Pettitte, Excel

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Earlier today we had some news on the Mets, now let's travel to the other side of town and check in on the Yankees…

Olney’s Latest: Cano, GM Meetings, Posey

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In a free preview of Insider, ESPN's Buster Olney writes that Yankees GM Brian Cashman is likely to take a surprisingly hard line during contract extension talks with Robinson Cano. That said, ownership could step in to make a deal happen like they have with Alex Rodriguez and Bernie Williams in the past. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…

  • Two of the items on the GM Meetings agenda are instant replay and the next wave of PEDs. The latter is a growing concern within the game.
  • Olney lists Francisco Liriano, James Loney, Stephen Drew, and Melky Cabrera as players who could take a one-year contract this winter in an effort to rebuild value.
  • It would make sense for the Giants to explore a long-term extension for Buster Posey at some point this offseason. The backstop is all the way back from his ankle injury and could soon add an MVP to his two World Series rings and Rookie of the Year award.

Yankees Claim Josh Spence

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The Yankees have claimed Josh Spence off waivers from the Padres, the team announced. Earlier today New York claimed David Herndon from the Blue Jays.

Spence, 24, has pitched to a 3.15 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9 in 40 relief innings for San Diego over the last two seasons. The left-hander has held lefty hitters to a .158/.247/.237 batting line as a big leaguer.

Yankees Claim David Herndon

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The Yankees claimed David Herndon off of waivers from Toronto, according to the team's website. The Blue Jays designated the right-hander for assignment one week ago after claiming him from Philadelphia on October 23rd.

The 27-year-old underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery in June, which means he won't be ready to return until midway through the 2013 season. Herndon was a key contributor for the Phillies from 2010-11, when he posted a 3.79 ERA with 5.6 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 over the course of 92 games. He appeared in five games for the Phillies this April before being placed on the disabled list.

AL East Notes: Ross, Yankees, Orioles

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The Blue Jays aren’t going to rush their managerial search, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reported yesterday. Here’s the latest on the rest of the AL East, on the day before the GM Meetings begin in California…

Soria Would Set Up For Yanks; Eight Others Interested

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Oscar Suarez, the agent for Joakim Soria, has received calls from eight contending teams expressing interest in his client, writes Andrew Marchand of ESPN New York. Suarez has yet to hear from Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, but says that Soria would be more than willing to pitch in a setup role for his idol, Mariano Rivera:

"If the Yankees call, we will be all ears," Soria's agent, Oscar Suarez, said by phone Monday. "If there is a fit, Joakim would be elated to work with Mo. He would close everywhere except there."

Suarez tells Marchand that Soria is "not a greedy individual," and he could envision his client signing quickly if the right situation arises. Soria's preference is to sign with a contending team. According to Suarez, Soria will be able to participate in Spring Training but is unlikely to pitch in a Major League game until May next season.

The 28-year-old Soria underwent Tommy John surgery prior to Opening Day 2012. He stumbled to a 4.03 ERA in 2011 but still owns a career 2.40 mark with a 9.7 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 315 1/3 innings with the Royals. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes ranked Soria as the 37th-best free agent this offseason and predicted that he'll re-sign with the Royals. You can predict Soria's destination yourself in MLBTR's Free Agent Prediction Contest.

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