Spanish Links: Garcia, Belaguer, Rangers
Links in Spanish as the 2011 Caribbean Series inches closer…
- The White Sox may be considering Freddy Garcia, but Garcia had a different team in his sights when he spoke yesterday with Israel Pacheco Velásquez from the Venezuelan paper Meridiano. "My preference is to be with the New York Yankees, and it's not unreasonable to have that in mind, because I've demonstrated that I can be useful," Garcia said. "A team like New York would be ideal for my age, [as would ] playing in a successful, media-heavy, demanding division. Without doubt it would be an inspiration." Garcia's only previous sojourn to New York came in January 2009, when he signed with the Mets, only to be released in April after a disastrous spring. Garcia insists the team simply never gave him a chance, but his successful 2010 campaign should guarantee a longer leash. Garcia said he plans to sign soon, no matter the team.
- The Marlins have had discussions internally about signing Cuban outfielder Yasiel Balaguer, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. The 18-year-old has worked out for the Cubs and had a recent tryout for the Mariners rained out, reported Michael Miller at the Miami New Times yesterday. However, lest we get ahead of ourselves, Balaguer's agent Carlos Perez at Miami Sports Consulting informed El Nuevo Herald's Jorge Ebro that Balaguer has yet to be unblocked by the State Department after defecting in November.
- The high percentage of Latino players on the Rangers' roster helps the team to maximize on the potential of its prosects, general manager Jon Daniels told Julio E. Castro at the Dominican paper El Caribe. "[Latino players] are the ones that are in charge of advising our prospects, especially those from the Dominican Republic," Daniels said. "Thanks to them, we were able to advance to the World Series last season, and this year, they're key to our goals once again." The Rangers' current 40-man roster includes eight Latino players, down from 12 on last season's roster. Vladimir Guerrero noted last year that the Latino "heart and soul" of the team and its Spanish-friendly clubhouse were key attractions to him as a free agent.
Yankees To Offer Pettitte $12MM
5:09pm: Marc Carig of The Star Ledger hears from Yankees GM Brian Cashman that nothing has changed regarding Pettitte (Twitter link). He hasn't told the team if he will or will not pitch next season yet.
4:44pm: The Yankees' offer to Andy Pettitte is or will be for $12MM, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter links). That won't necessarily be enough to lure the free agent left-hander away from retirement, but some of Heyman's sources expect him to play. "Why would he be working out if he's not playing?" one asked.
Pettitte signed with the Yankees two years ago today, then re-upped with the club in December of 2009. He has never waited later than January 26th to sign a free agent contract, but doesn't appear to be in a hurry this offseason.
Yankees Sign Bartolo Colon
Nine years ago, Bartolo Colon was a stud pitcher on his way to a 20-win season. As talk of relocation continued, the Montreal Expos went all in, shipping prospects Cliff Lee, Brandon Phillips and Grady Sizemore to Cleveland for Colon. Both Colon and Lee have won Cy Young Awards since, but Lee was this offseason's top free agent and Colon is a consolation prize for a Yankees team that has a thin rotation despite its fat checkbook.
Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports that the Yankees have signed Colon to a minor league deal (Twitter link). Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Colon will earn $900K in the majors and has the right to be released if he isn't on the team after Spring Training (Twitter links).
Colon, 38 in May, last pitched in the majors for the 2009 White Sox. He started 12 games for Chicago and posted a 4.19 ERA with 5.5 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and a 44.4% ground ball rate in 62 1/3 innings. Before that he pitched for the Red Sox, where he was effective for a seven-start stint in 2008. Colon's last standout season came in 2005, when he won the Cy Young Award for the Angels.
The Rangers, Indians, Rockies and Pirates all monitored Colon this offseason as he pitched in the Dominican Republic
Minor Transactions: Madrigal, Lane, Vasquez
Tobi Stoner and Jason Pridie both cleared waivers and were outrighted to the Mets' Triple-A affiliate today, reports Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger (Twitter link). The duo were designated for assignment earlier this week.
Here are some other minor moves from around baseball today, courtesy of Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus. All contracts are minor league deals, and all links are to Goldstein's Twitter feed.
- The Yankees signed right-hander Warner Madrigal, who last pitched in the majors with Texas in 2009. Madrigal originally broke into pro ball as an outfielder, but converted to pitching in 2006. He posted a 3.73 ERA in 35 games with the Rangers' Double-A and Triple-A teams last year.
- The Blue Jays re-signed Jason Lane. Best known for his 26-homer season with Houston in 2005, Lane hasn't played in the big leagues since 2007 and has played for the Padres, Red Sox, Yankees, Blue Jays and Marlins organizations since leaving the Astros.
- The Angels signed Virgil Vasquez. The right-hander pitched in Tampa Bay's system last year. A seventh-round pick of the Tigers in the 2003 draft, Vasquez has a 6.60 ERA in 19 career Major League games (10 of them starts) with Detroit and Pittsburgh.
- The Rangers signed catcher Robinzon Diaz, who is best known for being the player to be named later that Toronto sent to Pittsburgh for Jose Bautista in 2009. Diaz had 139 plate appearances with the Bucs before being released in the offseason. He played Triple-A ball for Detroit last year.
- The Rockies signed Kala Ka'aihue. Ka'aihue was putting up minor league numbers akin to those of his older brother Kila through the 2008 season, but has struggled the last two years.
AL East Links: Red Sox, Bautista, Wells, Jeter
Four American League East teams won at least 85 games last year. Here are some notes on AL East clubs, as they prepare to compete in baseball's most challenging division:
- It's "doubtful" that the Red Sox will sign another pitcher to a Major League contract this offseason, reports WEEI.com's Alex Speier. One reported Boston target, Joe Beimel, has already been offered a minor league deal by the Orioles and has three other teams interested.
- The "belief" is that the Blue Jays will go to an arbitration hearing with Jose Bautista, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. There have been rumors that the Jays might avoid a hearing by signing Bautista to a long-term contract, but Bautista's agent told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that the team has yet to offer such a deal to the defending AL home run champion. Check out our Arb Tracker for the latest.
- Many of Bautista's current and former teammates believe Vernon Wells will thrive in L.A, Morosi writes.
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman suggested this morning that Derek Jeter will likely shift to the outfield before his current deal expires, but he tells MLB.com's Bryan Hoch that it's "not an issue we have to deal with right now" (Twitter link).
- The Orioles have "limited funds" at this stage, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
- Carl Crawford, who recently left one AL East team for another, plans to meet some of his former Rays teammates for dinner this spring, and B.J. Upton jokes that it will be a good chance for Crawford to put his new contract to good use. "I won’t be the first one to pull out my credit card,’’ Upton told Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (Twitter link).
- Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com discussed the challenges of developing healthy pitchers with Orioles scouting director Joe Jordan.
- As Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com writes, the Orioles could sign a utility player to a minor league deal and have him compete for a job with Brendan Harris and Robert Andino.
- WEEI.com's Rob Bradford explains why Manny Ramirez's $2MM base salary isn't necessarily a bad omen for David Ortiz, who will hit free agency after 2011. Big Papi has continued to produce offensively, so Bradford suggests the slugger could be in line for an $8-9MM salary next offseason.
Quick Hits: Cashman, Mets, Blanton, Indians, DeRosa
One year ago, the Orioles officially signed Miguel Tejada, bringing him back for his second stint with the club. Unfortunately for the O's, the veteran infielder couldn't match the numbers he'd previously put up in Baltimore, posting a .670 OPS before a July trade sent him to the Padres. While we wait to see what January 23rd will bring this year, here are a few links to browse:
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman would prefer to run a small market team, opines Bill Madden of the New York Daily News, who is beginning to think Cashman may walk away from the Yankees when his contract expires following the 2011 season.
- ESPN's Adam Rubin provides a breakdown of the Mets' 2011 payroll following Jeff Wilpon's statement that the team payroll will be in the $145MM-plus range.
- Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer makes a case for Joe Blanton's value, then says the Phillies need to sell that argument to just one other team. Brookover opines that shedding some money by dealing Blanton could give the Phils a little wiggle room to address other potential areas of need.
- Within a multi-sport mailbag, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer addresses the Indians' third base picture, which could include Jason Donald, Lonnie Chisenhall, and Jared Goedert.
- Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle takes a look at what the Giants can expect from Mark DeRosa this season. DeRosa is entering the second and final year of the $12MM deal he signed last winter.
- In their newest blog entries, the Baltimore Sun's Peter Schmuck and MASN's Roch Kubatko each discuss the most recent Orioles rumblings, with a focus on Vladimir Guerrero.
Cafardo On Loney, Papelbon, Pavano, Feliz
Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe tackles the subject of arbitration hearings in his latest column, pointing out that teams are far more willing to settle on salaries with their players than they used to be. After speaking to Astros president Tal Smith, who says hearings don't involve as much "mud-slinging" as you'd think, Cafardo wonders why more clubs aren't inclined to fight to keep their payroll down. Here are the rest of his notes:
- James Loney won't be traded for now, but the Nationals made a "good push" for him earlier this winter, before they signed Adam LaRoche.
- According to one of Cafardo's Red Sox sources, Jonathan Papelbon will be available throughout the season, regardless of where the Sox are in the standings.
- Cafardo indicates that before Carl Pavano agreed to a two-year deal with the Twins, the Yankees offered the right-hander a one-year pact worth $7MM.
- Ron Washington offers the latest on the Rangers' plan for Neftali Feliz, who could get a chance to start this year after winning Rookie of the Year honors as a closer: "We’re going to bring [Feliz] into camp and give him an opportunity to stretch himself out. And if he shows us he’s better fitted with our ball club to start, then we’ll go in that direction. If not, we know he can close ballgames and we’re very happy with that."
- Joaquin Benoit discussed former teammates Carl Crawford and Rafael Soriano with Cafardo, opining that Red Sox pitchers will love having Crawford behind them, and expressing some surprise that Soriano won't be closing in 2011. He also told Cafardo that he was "getting a lot of phone calls" this winter from fellow relievers who felt Benoit helped them by signing early to his three-year deal.
Quick Hits: Yankees, Bradley, Padres, Teheran
What a day for outfielders. Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez went to the Rays, Vernon Wells went to the Angels, Vladimir Guerrero could be going to the Orioles and maybe the greatest outfielder of all time went to a New York City public school.
Some news items on a busy Friday in the majors…
- Yankee fans, be warned: SI's Tom Verducci looks at how Mark Teixeira could be headed for a decline.
- The Yankees could probably afford to sign Albert Pujols as a free agent next winter, but Mike Axisa of the River Avenue Blues blog points to Teixeira's presence and the albatross of Alex Rodriguez's giant contract as reasons why Pujols just doesn't fit in the Bronx.
- Geoff Baker and Larry Stone of the Seattle Times agree that a split between Milton Bradley and the Mariners would be beneficial to both the player and the team.
- Jed Hoyer and Bud Black predict the Padres' offense won't suffer much of a dropoff without Adrian Gonzalez, reports MLB.com's Corey Brock. "I think our offense has the potential to be as good as last year," Hoyer said. "We lost our clear best player [Gonzalez], but we have better balance. The positions we were weak last year, we're better at now."
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman profiles Julio Teheran, a 19-year-old right-hander and non-roster invitee to the Braves' Spring Training camp who has drawn comparisons to Pedro Martinez.
- The Reds wanted to bring back Arthur Rhodes, but the Rangers' willingness to give Rhodes a vesting option for 2012 was an offer Cincinnati just couldn't match, says MLB.com's Mark Sheldon as part of a reader mailbag.
Heyman On Fielder, Papelbon, Rays, Giants
Prince Fielder is looking to join the $200MM club and the Red Sox considered trading Jonathan Papelbon to the A's or White Sox, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. Here are the details and the rest of Heyman's rumors:
- Fielder is looking for at least eight years and $200MM or so when he hits free agency after the season, according to Heyman. Not surprisingly, the Brewers don't like the idea of committing that much to their first baseman.
- The Red Sox talked to the A's and White Sox about Jonathan Papelbon. Boston appeared willing to offer Rafael Soriano a one-year deal and make him their closer. If the sides had agreed to a deal, the Red Sox would have sent Papelbon elsewhere, likely to Oakland or Chicago
- The Rays, who are moving toward a deal with Johnny Damon, have also considered Vladimir Guerrero, Manny Ramirez, Russell Branyan and Nick Johnson.
- The Yankees hope to hear from Andy Pettitte soon, but the lefty is still mulling retirement.
- The Giants appear to be nearing a one-year deal with Andres Torres. As our Arb Tracker shows, Torres filed at $2.6MM and the Giants countered with $1.8MM.
- Heyman says there's "scuttlebutt" that the Rangers could look to lock Josh Hamilton up on a multiyear deal.
- Heyman talked to executives about Joey Votto's new deal and arrived at the conclusion I reached after talking to insiders earlier in the week: the Reds didn't appear to gain much from their deal with the reigning NL MVP.
- Heyman points out that Jose Bautista's representatives will have to convince arbitrators to overlook the string of pedestrian seasons that led up to Bautista's mammoth 2010 campaign. For more on Bautista's case, click here.
Yankees To Sign Andruw Jones
The Yankees agreed to sign Andruw Jones to a one-year deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The Scott Boras client signed for $2MM and can make up to $1.2MM more by reaching incentives.
The Yankees were looking for an outfielder who can hit lefties and can handle left and center field. Outfielders Curtis Granderson and Brett Gardner both bat from the left side, so Jones, a right-handed hitter, will spell them against tough southpaws. He has an .863 OPS against lefties in his career, including a .931 mark in 2010. The 33-year-old hit 19 homers for the White Sox last year, playing all three outfield positions.
The Rays, Rockies and Braves were among the teams that showed interest in Jones this offseason. Meanwhile, Johnny Damon, a rumored alternative for the Yankees, will presumably have to seek employment elsewhere. The Angels could use an outfielder with on-base skills, so they are one possible suitor for Damon.
Damon, Manny Ramirez and Kevin Millwood are among Boras' most noteworthy unsigned clients, now that Jones has agreed to terms.