Levine: Yankees Plan To Keep Cano And Granderson
With the Yankees planning to get under the $189MM luxury tax threshold by 2014, many have wondered if the club will be able to retain both Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson after their contracts expire following the 2013 season. Today, team president Randy Levine flatly stated that the team has a plan in place to retain both stars, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
General Manager Brian Cashman says that the club will not entertain going above the $189MM mark and the front office is committed to getting below that figure. While some wonder if the Yanks can even consider marquee free agents this winter such as Matt Cain or Cole Hamels, Cashman won't rule out making a play for a high-priced player on the open market.
Quick Hits: Yankees, Orioles, Ramirez, Red Sox
Friday night linkage..
- Curtis Granderson might prove to be too pricey for the Yankees down the road, writes John Harper of the New York Daily News. Both the center fielder and Robinson Cano will be eligible for free agency after the 2013 season.
- Things remain quiet between the Angels and shortstop Erick Aybar when it comes to talks on a new deal, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. If they don’t work out a new contract with Aybar, the Halos could re-sign veteran Maicer Izturis after this season or turn the keys over to 22-year-old Jean Segura.
- Orioles General Manager Dan Duquette is grateful to have another shot in MLB, writes Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports. Duquette left Boston with a reputation for being somewhat unapproachable but has returned in Baltimore determined to be more communicative.
- Marlins skipper Ozzie Guillen says that Hanley Ramirez has embraced third base despite early reports to the contrary, writes Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated.
- Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (Insider req’d) runs down seven players who he believes are poised to bounce back in 2012. Among those on the list are Ramirez, Yankees right-hander Phil Hughes, and Indians rightfielder Shin-Soo Choo.
- Reliever Chris Carpenter found his way to the Red Sox through the compensation agreement with the Cubs and one of the few people that can relate is former outfielder Randy Winn. Winn was shipped from the Rays to the Mariners in exchange for manager Lou Piniella and minor leaguer Antonio Perez.
AL East Notes: Rivera, Roberts, Moore, Cherington
It was on this day in 1985 that the Blue Jays and Dave Stieb finalized one of the more unique contracts in baseball history — an 11-year deal worth a guaranteed $16.6MM and (with incentives) possibly worth as much as $25MM. Larry Stone of the Seattle Times looked back at the contract in 2010, noting that while the Jays absorbed some criticism for the deal at the time, they got a bargain in the long run when Stieb developed into one of the best pitchers of his era. In 1991, the Jays reworked three years of the contract to pay Stieb an extra $4.35MM as a gesture of gratitude for his performance.
Here's some news from all around the AL East…
- Yankees closer Mariano Rivera denied a New York Post report from yesterday that claimed he would announce his possible retirement plans before the All-Star Break. Rivera told Wallace Matthews of ESPN New York that "nothing's changed" about his future plans and that he will "tell everybody what my plans are at the same time after the season."
- Brian Roberts isn't sure when, or even if, he'll be able to return to the Orioles following a series of concussions, he tells Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Roberts says he has stopped trying to guess when he may be able to resume his career, though he notes that his recovery is "progressing" and he "has more good days than bad days."
- Rays southpaw Matt Moore tops Baseball America's preseason list of the top 20 rookies in the game. Moore is the only AL East representative on the list, though former Yankee prospect Jesus Montero (now with the Mariners) clocks in at the #3 position.
- "We need some guys to step up on our pitching staff," Red Sox GM Ben Cherington tells MLB.com's Ian Browne. The Sox will be looking at pitching or outfield depth as they conduct their usual scouting of other teams' Spring Training camps. Also in this in-depth interview, Cherington discusses his first winter as a general manager, the difficulty in parting with long-time Red Sox stars Jason Varitek and Tim Wakefield, and what he learned from Theo Epstein.
- The Blue Jays may be the only team that could be a fit for Derrek Lee, writes Fangraphs' Chris Cwik. Lee could be an alternative to Adam Lind at first if Lind struggles, or Lee could at least platoon if Lind again struggles to hit left-handed pitching. Though Cwik was pretty hesitant about Lee's chances of playing anywhere in the Majors in 2012, I'm not sure Toronto works as a landing spot either; the Jays have Edwin Encarnacion backing up at first, Travis Snider or Eric Thames as DH candidates, plus Ben Francisco and Rajai Davis as right-handed bench bats.
Poll: The 2014 Yankees Payroll
The new Collective Bargaining Agreement changed the game for large payroll clubs, raising the luxury tax rate and offering partial revenue sharing refunds for remaining under the luxury tax threshold. Yankees GM Brian Cashman and owner Hal Steinbrenner have both come out and said the club’s goal is to get under the $189MM luxury tax threshold by 2014, just two years from now.
At the moment, the Yankees have just three players under contract for 2014: Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, and CC Sabathia. Those three combine for $75.125MM in salary, giving the team roughly $113MM for the remaining 37 spots on its 40-man roster plus benefits and bonuses. Both Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson are scheduled to become free agents after 2013, and both could command $20MM+ annual salaries if they maintain last year’s production. Michael Pineda and Ivan Nova will both be in their first arbitration years, potentially giving the club two cost effective rotation options behind Sabathia.
Building a World Series contender for $189MM or less is obviously doable, but getting from where the Yankees are now to where they want to be in 2014 may prove difficult. Cashman and everyone else in the front office will have to come up with creative solutions at certain positions and also make some very difficult decisions about whether to retain productive players or allow them to leave as a free agents.
Will the Yankees get under the $189MM luxury tax threshold by 2014?
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No 72% (10,113)
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Yes 28% (4,023)
Total votes: 14,136
AL East Notes: Duquette, Damon, Martin
Wei-Ying Chen, Hiroki Kuroda and Carlos Pena obtained the biggest free agent contracts handed out by AL East teams this offseason, not counting the Yankees’ extended agreement with C.C. Sabathia. Here’s the latest on the division…
- Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette told Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe that he’s operating differently in Baltimore than he did as Boston’s GM. “I have a fresh start in Baltimore,’’ he said. “I believe I could do a better job in one-on-one communication in a couple of different areas of the job.
- Ian Browne of MLB.com checks in with Ben Cherington, who’s now wrapping up his first offseason as Boston’s GM. Though Cherington says he’s far from unflappable, his boss, Red Sox president/CEO Larry Lucchino, says he’s off to a “flying start.”
- The Orioles haven’t ruled out Johnny Damon, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. The Orioles have switch-hitting DH Wilson Betemit in place, but they could shift him to third at times or play Damon in left if their interest in the free agent is serious.
- Yankees catcher Russell Martin told Heyman that he was pleased to see the Cardinals recognize the value of Yadier Molina’s all-around game with a $75MM deal (Twitter link). "He kind of set the bar," Martin said.
Mariano Rivera May Announce Decision Before All-Star Break
"I think maybe it will be before the All-Star break," legendary Yankees closer Mariano Rivera told Kevin Kernan of the New York Post regarding an announcement of whether he will pitch in 2013. Rivera wants to be certain of his decision, which he seems to have already made privately. Rivera said that when he does retire, "It would be nice that you tell the fans, so every stadium you go to, the fans will be there to show their appreciation and you appreciate the fans."
If Rivera retires, the Yankees will have determine a new closer for the first time in many years. David Robertson, Rafael Soriano, and Joba Chamberlain could be candidates.
AL East Notes: Rays, Howell, Yankees, Hendry
Here's a look at some items out of the AL East..
- The Rays believe that J.P. Howell is worth their investment after an up-and-down 2011 campaign, writes Roger Mooney of The Tampa Tribune. The Rays avoided arbitration with Howell this winter, agreeing to a $1.35MM deal for 2012.
- Looking back on it, Rays pitcher Joel Peralta has no regrets about lying about his age to land a contract from a major league team, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. In 1996, the Dominican pitcher told scouts that he was 16-years-old rather than 20.
- Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger spoke with Jim Hendry who is now with the Yankees as a special assignment scout. The former Cubs General Manager says that he hasn't put much thought into whether he'd want to serve as a GM again and doesn't plan to leave the Yanks job after one year.
- Hiroki Kuroda will have to make adjustments with the Yankees but the pitcher already showed an ability to adapt by finding success in MLB, Carig writes.
- Orioles manager Buck Showalter said this week that he’s used the Rays recent success as proof that Baltimore can compete in the AL East with a limited payroll, writes Eduardo A. Encina of The Baltimore Sun.
Quick Hits: Cespedes, Nationals, Axford, Calero
Links for Saturday afternoon..
- Yoenis Cespedes' deal with the Athletics is now official, according to the club's Twitter account. Cespedes' deal is for four years and is reportedly worth $36MM.
- In a corresponding move, the A's opened a spot for Cespedes on the 40-man roster by placing Scott Sizemore on the 60-day disabled list. Sizemore will miss the entire 2012 campaign after tearing his left ACL.
- Outfielders Rick Ankiel and Brett Carroll, who are both on minor league deals, are making a solid case to make the Nationals' major league squad, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
- Although people in the Nationals organization like Davey Johnson wanted him to return, Livan Hernandez says that he knew early on that his time was up in Washington, tweets Ladson.
- The Brewers renewed the contract of right-hander John Axford this afternoon and the two sides continue to talk about a multiyear deal, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
- Right-hander Kiko Calero is considering a procedure similar to what Bartolo Colon underwent as he weighs a comeback, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
- Both the Yankees and Red Sox are operating differently in 2012 thanks to the luxury tax threshold of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com. The new provision, Speier writes, creates the possibility for more payroll parity than the game has seen in years.
Quick Hits: Yankees, Nationals, Playoffs
On this date in 1995, MLB owners and players agreed to end the strike that began in August of 1994. There hasn't been an MLB labor stoppage since, despite a close call in 2002. Here are some links for Friday evening…
- The Yankees intend to lower payroll below $189MM by 2014, but GM Brian Cashman explained that the club will continue spending aggressively, according to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch (Twitter link). "We’re still the Yankees,” he said. “We’re still going to outspend everybody else. That’s not going to change."
- The Nationals announced that they renewed the contracts of right-hander Drew Storen and outfielder Roger Bernadina. The team has the right to unilaterally assign the players a 2012 salary, since they aren’t yet eligible for salary arbitration.
- ESPN.com's Jayson Stark has a detailed breakdown of the recently-announced postseason schedule. Stark also answers some common questions about the new format and explains why he's in favor of it. "One game — with the entire season riding on it," Stark writes. "It's March Madness with bats and balls."
- MLB and the MLBPA aren’t considering expanding the postseason beyond ten teams at this point, Stark tweets. Michael Weiner of the MLBPA says the sides "never seriously discussed" that option.
Mark Teixeira Hires Casey Close
Mark Teixeira has hired agent Casey Close of Excel Sports Management to represent him, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. The first baseman, who is under contract through 2016, parted ways with former agent Scott Boras a year ago this time.
Teixeira, 31, will earn $22.5MM in each of the next five seasons before hitting free agency. As MLBTR's Agency Database shows, Close represents a number of MLB players, including Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.