Yankees Designate Romulo Sanchez For Assignment
WEDNESDAY: The Yankees designated Sanchez for assignment and announced that he has an offer to play in Japan.
MONDAY: The Yankees are selling Romulo Sanchez's rights to a Japanese team, according to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch (on Twitter). Sanchez, 27 in April, is an out of options hurler with a 95 mile per hour fastball.
He spent most of last year at Triple-A, posting a 3.97 ERA, 8.3 K/9, 5.1 BB/9, and 0.7 HR/9 in 104 1/3 innings. The Yankees acquired him from the Pirates about two years ago for Eric Hacker. At that time, Baseball America wrote Sanchez was "a big, intimidating presence…[who] lacks a great feel for pitching and has control lapses that keep him from dominating."
Quick Hits: Orioles, Montero, Silva
We've seen four trades already today, but there's still more news on possible deals and free agent signings. Here it is…
- Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail told MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli that there's no late trade in the offing this spring (Twitter link). Baltimore made late-spring trades in 2009 (Robert Andino) and '10 (Julio Lugo, Steve Lerud).
- Yankees catching prospect Jesus Montero failed this spring, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The Yankees wanted him to become their backup catcher and to pretend now that they didn't plan on that is disingenuous, writes Sherman.
- Carlos Silva cleared waivers and is now a free agent, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
Yankees Release Ronnie Belliard
The Yankees released Ronnie Belliard, according to Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter). The Yankees signed the veteran infielder to a minor league deal last month, but he did not make the team. Instead, Eduardo Nunez and Eric Chavez will be the Yankees' backup infielders.
Belliard, 35, hit .216/.295/.327 in 185 plate appearances for the Dodgers last year, playing first, second and third. He has a .273/.338/.415 line in 13 MLB seasons.
AL East Notes: Red Sox, Showalter, Sabathia
Among AL East clubs, only the Yankees will play on the season's first day Thursday. Here's the latest from the division…
- Relievers Dennys Reyes and Matt Albers made Boston's 25-man roster, reports WEEI's Alex Speier. Hideki Okajima and Alfredo Aceves were optioned to Triple-A. GM Theo Epstein explained to reporters that the choices were about "preservation of pitching depth," since he would have lost Reyes and Albers if they didn't make the team. Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald has quotes from Okajima's agent Joe Rosen on the decision.
- Orioles manager Buck Showalter stirred the pot in this Men's Journal interview with Paul Solotaroff, saying, "I’d like to see how smart Theo Epstein is with the Tampa Bay payroll." Epstein has already accepted an apology from Showalter on the comments, tweets Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
- Red Sox 2010 second-round pick Brandon Workman changed agents from Kevin Hubbard to Jeff Berry of CAA Sports, reports Speier. Workman had signed for $800K, about $165K over slot. Track all the latest in our Agency Database.
- Another strong year might make C.C. Sabathia the Yankees' best free agent signing ever, suggests Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The contract could end up being a three-year, $60MM deal if the lefty opts out after the season.
Offseason In Review: New York Yankees
The Yankees are next in our Offseason In Review series.
Major League Signings
- Derek Jeter, SS: three years, $51MM.
- Rafael Soriano, RP: three years, $35MM.
- Mariano Rivera, RP: two years, $30MM.
- Pedro Feliciano, RP: two years, $8MM.
- Russell Martin, C: one year, $4MM.
- Andruw Jones, OF: one year, $2MM.
- Total spend: $130MM.
Notable Minor League Signings
- Kevin Millwood, Ronnie Belliard, Eric Chavez, Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon, Brian Anderson, Buddy Carlyle, Mark Prior, Neal Cotts, Warner Madrigal, Luis Ayala, Andy Sisco
International Signings
- Juan Carlos Paniagua, Yadil Mujica, Freiter Marte, Wilmer Romero
Trades and Claims
- Acquired SP Scott Allen from Diamondbacks for 1B Juan Miranda
- Acquired OF Cody Johnson from Braves for cash considerations
- Claimed OF Jordan Parraz off waivers from Red Sox
- Acquired OF Justin Maxwell from Nationals for RP Adam Olbrychowski
- Acquired OF Chris Dickerson from Brewers for SP Sergio Mitre
Notable Losses
- Marcus Thames, Lance Berkman, Austin Kearns, Nick Johnson, Juan Miranda, Adam Olbrychowski, Kerry Wood, Javier Vazquez, Andy Pettitte, Dustin Moseley, Alfredo Aceves
Summary
Only the Yankees can spend $130MM on free agents and have it seem like they didn't do much during the offseason. Cliff Lee spurned the team's huge offer, but they were able to retain future Hall of Famers Jeter and Rivera while improving the bullpen.
The Yankees ended up paying about twice what Jeter is probably worth in a strictly baseball sense, after a few unnecessary verbal jabs from both sides. I don't have a problem with it; they can afford to overpay, and they didn't have a superior alternative at shortstop. The price to keep Rivera was steep as well, yet he remains among the game's best relievers into his 40s. Perhaps the Yankees found it reassuring that multiple teams were willing to offer Rivera three guaranteed years, which suggests they weren't forced to overpay just for being the Yankees.
The mystery team actually signed Lee, with the Phillies inking him to a five-year, $120MM deal in mid-December. At $148MM over seven years, the Yankees offered Lee more guaranteed money than the Rangers or Phillies. Still, the Phillies seemingly offered the biggest salary at $24MM a year. Had the Yankees extended themselves to $150MM over six years, they might have gotten their man – even if they represented his second or third choice. With Pettitte's status an unknown at the time, going the extra mile for Lee still would have been the right move. The Yankees cannot buy or trade for high-quality starting pitching if it just isn't there, and I'm not convinced this year's trade market will feature even a #2-type starter.
Carl Crawford and Jayson Werth were already off the board by the time Lee signed, and Adrian Beltre would have been an even tougher fit, so there weren't any big names left for the Yankees to pursue. The starting pitching market was especially bleak at that point, but credit GM Brian Cashman for setting aside a potential fan backlash and exploring a reunion with Carl Pavano.
Cashman chose not to pursue Zack Greinke, who secretly met with the GM during the Winter Meetings to try to convince him he'd thrive in New York. Jon Heyman's article implies Cashman bowed out mainly because he thought Greinke wasn't a good fit with the club, rather than balking at the Royals' asking price. If true, it's interesting that Cashman felt Greinke was a bad fit but Pavano was a good one, but of course the stakes were higher with Greinke.
Assuming a Matt Garza trade would have made both the Rays and Yankees uneasy, Cashman was out of options on starting pitching. His plan at that point was apparently to toss a mere $14MM at complementary pieces Feliciano, Martin, and Jones. There's something to be said for committing two years to Feliciano instead of three, and the Yankees will need a strong bullpen if their fourth and fifth starters consistently fail to go deep into games. Even if Cashman wasn't on board, the Soriano signing certainly gives the team a much stronger bullpen. The dual opt-outs are the smallest concern with that contract, which I explained in a separate post.
The Yankees' minor league signings include former big names Chavez, Colon, Garcia, Millwood, and Prior. There are spring indications that several of them can have positive contributions for the big league club in 2011. The main goal may be to wring a couple of good months out of the rotation candidates.
Most likely we'll hear the Yankees connected to every starting pitcher with a pulse throughout the season, after which the team's rotation could be further depleted if C.C. Sabathia opts out. Problem is, it's hard to identify even one front-end starter who projects to be available in July. The Yankees may need one or two of their in-house starters to exceed expectations if they are to go deep into the playoffs this year.
Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.
NL Central Notes: Pendleton, Rodriguez, Pujols, Silva
Let's take a look at what's happening around the NL Central on this fine Sunday afternoon…
- MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports that the Astros tried to work out a trade for right-hander Lance Pendleton before the Rule 5 Draft pick was returned to the Yankees earlier today. The two sides just couldn't find a match.
- Pirates GM Neal Huntington told Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that Rule 5 pick Josh Rodriguez has made the team (Twitter link).
- Albert Pujols is at peace with his current contract situation and has no hard feelings toward the Cardinals after failing to work out an extension, writes Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post Dispatch. Pujols said he still hopes something can be worked out following the season.
- Strauss also tweets that the Cardinals aren't interested in the recently released Carlos Silva.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel tweets that Brewers infielder Luis Cruz cleared waivers and will be assigned to Triple-A.
- MLB.com's Brian McTaggart opines that the addition of Joe Inglett to the Astros means Jason Bourgeois will make the team and helps Tommy Manzella's chances to start at shortstop (Twitter link).
New York Notes: Silva, Sanchez, Beato, Colon
Here's the latest out of Queens and the Bronx on the final Sunday before regular season baseball gets underway….
- The Yankees have no plans to pursue the recently released Carlos Silva tweets Jack Curry of the YES Network. Pitching coach Larry Rothschild was Silva's pitching coach with the Cubs last season.
- Yankees manager Joe Girardi told Chad Jennings of The Journal News that Romulo Sanchez was scratched from today's road trip "for reasons I can’t give to you at this point." The right-hander is out of options and a long shot to make the team, and Girardi gave a look that indicated a trade was in the works acording to Jennings.
- Pedro Beato will make the Mets' Opening Day roster, tweets SI.com's Jon Heyman. The Mets selected Beato from the Orioles in the Rule 5 draft.
- In another tweet, Heyman says the Mets are searching for a second left-handed reliever, in part to match up with some of the lefty sluggers in the NL East.
- In a conversation with Steve Selby of the New York Post, David Wright says he's not concerned about the possibility of a Mets fire sale.
- Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News argues that the Yankees took the "safe, easy" route in giving Freddy Garcia a rotation spot over Bartolo Colon.
- The Yankees hope Colon can occupy the swing-man role previously held by Alfredo Aceves, writes Feinsand.
Astros Return Lance Pendleton To Yankees
The Astros have returned Rule 5 pick Lance Pendleton to the Yankees, tweets Astros' director of social media Alyson Footer. Pendleton cleared waivers and will be assigned to New York's minor league camp (Twitter link).
Pendleton, 27, was one of two Rule 5 selections by the Astros, along with Aneury Rodriguez. Pendleton had been competing for a spot in Houston's bullpen, but struggled with his control this spring, walking eight batters in just 7 2/3 innings.
Quick Hits: Rangers, Astros, Reyes, Burrell, Belt
Links for Saturday, after the Yankees announced that Ivan Nova and Freddy Garcia will be their fourth and fifth starters while Bartolo Colon serves as the long reliever…
- The Rangers aren't looking for a centerfielder as they believe that Julio Borbon will be okay after suffering an elbow injury, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. It's not realistic to expect the club to land a starting pitcher either as there isn't much out there.
- Astros owner Drayton McLane Jr. denied a report saying that he's close to selling the team, writes Stephen Goff of Examiner.com.
- Left-hander Dennys Reyes told Alex Speier of WEEI.com that he is healthy after dealing with a forearm strain at the end of last year. Earlier today the Red Sox purchased the veteran's big league contract.
- More teams are structuring deals to guard against major injuries to their star players, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
- As Danny Knobler of CBS Sports reminds us, chances are that back-of-the-rotation won't be the one the Yankees finish the season with.
- Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee told MLB.com's Todd Zolecki that the team's bullpen isn't finalized (Twitter links). "We've still got a few things in the works," said Dubee, which Zolecki says could mean a trade, waiver claim, or an internal option.
- Henry Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Bruce Bochy confirmed that Pat Burrell will be the Giants' Opening Day left fielder, meaning Brandon Belt is likely headed back to the minors. Check out Tim Dierkes' recent look at Belt's service time situation.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reminds us that 40-man roster space (or the lack thereof) can often serve as the tie-breaker when teams make roster decisions with non-roster invitees near the end of Spring Training (Twitter link).
Opt-Out Notes: Batista, Isringhausen, Bush, Chavez
A few notes on veterans with opt-out clauses from around the league…
- Non-roster invitee Miguel Batista has earned a spot on the Cardinals roster, writes B.J. Rains of FOXSportsMidwest.com. The 40-year-old Batista could have opted out of his contract on Monday had the Cards not informed him that he would make the club.
- The Mets have not asked Jason Isringhausen if he would accept a minor league assignment, because he has already said in the past that he won't, tweets Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.
- Dave Bush will use his opt-out tomorrow if he doesn't make the Rangers, writes Richard Durrett of ESPN.com. Bush says that he's not sure which way the club is leaning but wants to stay in Texas.
- Russell Branyan could have opted out of his contract with the Diamondbacks yesterday, but he was instead informed that he has made the club according to Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic. Brandon Allen is likely to go to Triple-A while the out-of-options Juan Miranda stays with the team.
- George A. King III of The New York Post reports that Eric Chavez can ask the Yankees for his release today if he doesn't make the team. "They haven't let me know anything," said Chavez, but his strong showing in camp (.421/.450/.605 in 40 PA) likely won him a bench job.
- Isringhausen told Mike Puma of The New York Post that he will not accept a minor league assignment if he does not make the Mets out of Spring Training. There's a possibility Izzy would go to Extended Spring Training if his swollen elbow isn't fully healed though.