Quick Hits: Theriot, Aoki, Nakajima, Orioles
Links for Saturday night..
- Congratulations to MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith on being named among the 100 most influential Canadians in baseball by Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun. Luke Adams and Mark Polishuk picked up honorable mentions.
- The Rays' interest in Ryan Theriot, presumably as a backup, has been preliminary to this point, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The Mets and Braves are also said to be interested in the infielder's services.
- Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker breaks down the pros and cons of Japanese import Norichika Aoki. Earlier this month, the Brewers won the negotiating rights to the speedy outfielder and have until mid-January to work out a deal. Milwaukee reportedly started negotiations with an offer in the $1-1.5MM range.
- Meanwhile, the Yankees and Hiroyuki Nakajima are said to remain far apart in their talks, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Bombers won the exclusive right to negotiate with the shortstop with a bid around $2MM earlier this month. The deadline to reach a deal is on Tuesday.
- Just as they were at the beginning of 2011, the Marlins will begin 2012 on the prowl for a starter, writes Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel.
- Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com wonders if a new year will mean a new DH for the Orioles. For the time being, it seems like the O's will look for an in-house solution to fill the gap.
Tigers Join Pursuit Of Matt Garza
The Tigers have emerged as a suitor for Cubs starter Matt Garza, according to Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. The increased interest in Garza from multiple teams seems to indicate that the right-hander will be dealt before the start of Spring Training.
The Yankees are also known to be interested in Garza but according to one source, they are not currently engaged due to the Cubs’ asking price. Garza’s rising salary could also be an issue for the Bombers as they approach the luxury-tax barrier. The hurler projects to earn $8.7MM in 2012 with another year of arbitration afterwards.
Boston and Toronto have also been connected to Garza but sources say that there hasn't been much momentum towards a deal for either team. It’s also unclear if the Red Sox have the prospects to land Garza after dealing minor league depth to acquire Andrew Bailey and Mark Melancon.
Cubs GM Theo Epstein recently said that Garza is the type of pitcher that he would like to build around, but as the club looks to rebuild he'll listen on everyone.
AL East Links: Yankees, Red Sox, Hill, Madson, O’s
The Yankees agreed to re-sign Andruw Jones and the Blue Jays agreed to sign Darren Oliver earlier today, and now let's round up some more news from the AL East…
- “There’s obviously room to improve the team,” said Yankees team president Randy Levine to Mark Hale of The New York Post. “I don’t like to get into the amounts, but obviously there’s room to improve the team." Recent reports indicated that the Yankees don't have enough room in the budget to add a starter like Hiroki Kuroda. "After [CC Sabathia], as far as large contracts, we haven’t done anything," added Levine. "But that’s really our choice."
- The Red Sox will continue to explore the market to see if there's an affordable outfield upgrade available, writes WEEI.com's Alex Speier. That could be a right-handed platoon bat to partner with Ryan Sweeney, or someone who deserves a larger role.
- Speier reports (on Twitter) that Rich Hill will make $725K prorated in the majors next season. The Red Sox re-signed Hill to a minor league deal earlier today.
- Tommy Rancel of ESPN Florida wonders if the Rays could be a fit for Ryan Madson on a short-term contract if his market doesn't start to pick up. Just under 6.5% of the readers we polled yesterday believe Madson will end up with Tampa Bay.
- Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com wonders if the Orioles have a trade involving a starter in the works. They are reportedly pursuing Joe Saunders and Wei-Yi Chen, and already have Jeremy Guthrie, Tsuyoshi Wada, Zach Britton, Brian Matusz, Jake Arrieta, Tommy Hunter, Chris Tillman, Dana Eveland, and Brad Bergesen on the 40-man roster.
Yankees Agree To Sign Andruw Jones
The Yankees and Andruw Jones have agreed to a one-year deal with a $2MM base salary and $1.4MM in incentives, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). The deal is pending a physical. The Yankees have a full 40-man roster and will need to clear a spot once the signing becomes official.
Jones, 34, hit .247/.356/.495 with 13 homers for the Yankees last year, doing most of his damage against left-handed pitchers: .286/.384/.540 with eight homers. He figures to again serve as the team's fourth outfielder, spelling the lefty hitting Curtis Granderson and Brett Gardner against the AL East's tough southpaws. Jones is a Scott Boras client.
Olney’s Latest: Yankees, Ethier, Angels, Blue Jays
In today's Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Buster Olney ranks the ten best outfields in the game. The Diamondbacks, Yankees, and Rangers top the list, though I thought it was surprising the Rays didn't even garner an honorable mention. Here are Buster's rumors…
- The Yankees have "quietly checked around" on possible right field alternatives to Nick Swisher as they prepare for his possible free agent departure after next season.
- Andre Ethier can also become a free agent after 2012, and Olney points out that a pre-deadline trade involving the Dodgers outfielder is possible.
- "[Angels owner Arte Moreno] made it known he wants to leave the baseball decisions to the baseball department," said one talent evaluator. Manager Mike Scioscia essentially dictated moves in the past, but that has changed since Moreno hired GM Jerry Dipoto earlier this offseason.
- Sources tell Olney that the Blue Jays are much more like to hold or even cut their payroll rather than increase it.
AL East Notes: Jurrjens, Chen, Longoria, Yankees
Here's the latest from the AL East….
- The Red Sox are not in on Jair Jurrjens, but the Orioles, Blue Jays, Rockies and Tigers remain in on the Braves right-hander, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
- The Orioles are still interested in Chunichi Dragons left-hander Wei-Yin Chen, reports Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, and the team has scouted Chen several times in Japan. The O's were linked to Chen earlier this offseason and we've also heard that the PIrates had an interest in the free agent southpaw. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes predicted Chen could be signed for a contract in the neighborhood of four years and under $20MM.
- Rays third baseman Evan Longoria texted the St. Petersburg Times (reported by The Times' Marc Topkin) to deny recent internet rumors that he wanted to leave Tampa Bay. "I don't have any idea where that rumor came from! It's completely false,'' Longoria said. "I've said from the start I love Tampa, I love the direction we are heading as a franchise and there is no better place for me to continue to grow as a player and person.''
- The Yankees have been quiet this winter seemingly in an attempt to avoid a hefty luxury tax penalty next season, but one AL executive doesn't think this strategy will last. "I think they can sit back right now," the anonymous exec told The Star-Ledger's Jeff Bradley, "because on paper they have a very strong team. But do I think the Yankees won't spend aggressively if they start to dip in the win column? Not a chance. I think they'll do what they have to do to win."
- The Athletics wanted right-hander Noah Syndergaard from the Blue Jays as part of any trade for Gio Gonzalez, reported Jeff Blair on the Fan590's Prime Time Sports radio show (passed on by Andrew Stoeten of the Drunk Jays Fans blog.) Syndergaard was drafted 38th overall by Toronto in the 2010 draft and has posted impressive numbers in his first two years of pro ball.
- Earlier today, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith posted a collection of Red Sox notes.
Matt Garza Talks Heating Up
5:12pm: The Cubs and Blue Jays continue to discuss a Garza deal, Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio and ESPN.com tweets. The Cubs seem to be prioritizing young starting pitching in talks about Garza, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. One executive told Heyman that the Yankees and Blue Jays have what it takes to acquire Garza.
12:53pm: Trade talks for Cubs starter Matt Garza are heating up, writes David Kaplan of Comcast Sportsnet Chicago. Kaplan says the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Red Sox are involved, but the Cubs' asking price is "incredibly high."
Yesterday, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith took an in-depth look at Garza's contract situation; he's under team control through 2013. Cubs president Theo Epstein said on Friday that Garza is "exactly type of pitcher we want to build around," but he'll listen on everybody. So far this winter trade values have been established for Gio Gonzalez, Mat Latos, and Trevor Cahill, but all of them came with at least four years of team control.
Yankees Notes: A-Rod, Nakajima, Chavez, Andruw
Today the Yankees agreed to a minor league deal with lefty Hideki Okajima. He's made 31 appearances against them over the years as a member of the Red Sox. Other Yankees news…
- Third baseman Alex Rodriguez recently traveled to Germany for an experimental therapy called Orthokine on his right knee, reported Mike Puma of the New York Post. Orthokine is similar to Platelet Rich Plasma therapy, which reliever Takashi Saito had done several years ago. The procedure, which was recommended by Kobe Bryant, came with the blessing of the Yankees and the commissioner's office. Puma explains, "Orthokine involves taking blood from the patient’s arm and spinning it in a centrifuge, a machine used in laboratories to spin objects around a fixed axis. The serum is then injected into the affected area." Yankees GM Brian Cashman told reporters the procedure was done on Rodriguez's left shoulder as well. For more on the topic, check out this article from Teri Thompson and Christian Red of the New York Daily News.
- Cashman appears to be waiting for a resolution on the Hiroyuki Nakajima situation before pursuing Eric Chavez any further, tweets MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. Hoch says the Nakajima situation will be resolved next week. The Yankees won the exclusive right to negotiate with Nakajima with a bid around $2MM earlier this month.
- Hoch notes that the Yankees are still talking about re-signing Andruw Jones but Cashman says he has nothing to report right now.
Yankees To Sign Hideki Okajima
The Yankees agreed to a minor league deal with reliever Hideki Okajima, tweets David Waldstein of the New York Times. Earlier, Sports Hochi in Japan reported talks between the two parties were in the final stages and a deal could be reached shortly after the new year (as translated by NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman).
Okajima, 36, has a 3.11 ERA across 246 1/3 big league innings, all with the Red Sox from 2007-11. He spent most of 2011 at Triple-A, posting a 2.29 ERA, 8.5 K/9, 1.6 BB/9, and 0.53 HR/9 in 51 innings. As you'd expect, Okajima has been better against lefties in the Majors, with a 8.2 K/9, 2.7 BB/9, 0.67 HR/9, and 3.87 xFIP across 107 1/3 innings per FanGraphs.
Quick Hits: Beltran, Corpas, Dickey, Ross
Six years ago today, the Diamondbacks officially traded third baseman Troy Glaus and shortstop prospect Sergio Santos to the Blue Jays for righty Miguel Batista and second baseman Orlando Hudson. Josh Byrnes and J.P. Ricciardi were the respective GMs. Glaus' retirement came with little fanfare despite 320 career home runs and four All-Star Game appearances. Santos eventually found his way to the White Sox, who helped him become a successful reliever and recently traded him back to Toronto. Batista is a 40-year-old free agent with 101 career wins to his name. Hudson, a four-time Gold Glove winner, is a trade candidate for the Padres, the team Byrnes now heads up. Ricciardi now serves as a special assistant to Mets GM Sandy Alderson, who appears to have interest in re-signing Batista.
MLBTR was less than two months old at the time of the Glaus trade; you can read my paragraph on it here. Back then the site was a one-man show with gray text against a black background, and Twitter did not exist. We've come a long way! On to today's links…
- Carlos Beltran offered to sign with the Yankees for the same two-year, $26MM deal he ultimately signed with St. Louis, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Adds Heyman, "Like seven years ago, they declined."
- Reliever Manny Corpas, who agreed to a non-guaranteed split contract with the Cubs, has a $1MM base salary while in the bigs with another potential $1MM in incentives, tweets Heyman.
- The Mets sent R.A. Dickey's agent a letter to warn that they can void his contract if he's injured climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in January, writes Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal. As GM Sandy Alderson noted, that hasn't dissuaded the 37-year-old knuckleballer.
- The Rockies' interest in Cody Ross is based on whether they trade Seth Smith, writes ESPN's Buster Olney.
- Yahoo's Jeff Passan looks at the 2012-13 free agent class, writing, "What the class lacks in breadth up top it makes up for in depth." We've got the full list here. The potentially available young starting pitching looks deep in theory, but we'll see which of Matt Cain, Cole Hamels, Zack Greinke, Anibal Sanchez, and Brandon McCarthy are extended.