Yankees To Offer Jeter $45MM For Three Years
The Yankees are about to offer Derek Jeter a three-year deal worth $45MM, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported yesterday that the Yankees would likely make such an offer to their captain.
Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork reported earlier in the week that Jeter wants at least a four-year deal and would prefer a five or six-year contract. He also reported that the Yankees would be happy to agree to a three-year $63MM deal. Some have suggested that the Yankees could play hardball with Jeter if he doesn't like their offer and tell him to test the open market and see if he does better.
Yankees Interested In J.C. Romero
The Yankees are interested in left-hander J.C. Romero, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The longtime Phillie has also drawn interest from the Tigers, though they don't necessarily need to add a left-handed reliever.
Romero, 34, kept his ERA under 4.00 for a fourth consecutive season in 2010, pitching to a 3.68 mark in 36 2/3 innings. He gets lots of groundballs and is effective against left-handed hitters, but his free agent value will likely be limited. Romero struggles against right-handed hitters, he walked more batters (29) than he struck out (28) in 2010 and he dealt with elbow and back soreness.
The Yankees are also interested in Pedro Feliciano and, potentially, Scott Downs. Teams will not have to surrender 2011 draft choices to sign Feliciano or Romero, but Downs may cost a pick.
Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Barmes, Thornton, Braves
Links for Thursday night..
- The Yankees will pursue Carl Crawford if they do not land Cliff Lee, writes Newsday's Ken Davidoff.
- There's mutual interest between the Giants and Aubrey Huff, but talks between the two parties have not advanced lately, writes Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com.
- The Dodgers have signed a pair of Japanese amateur pitchers, Kazuya Takano and Kazuki Nishijima, according to Kevin Baxter of the Los Angeles Times.
- Rockies starter Jhoulys Chacin is "untouchable" in trade talks, a team source told Troy Renck of The Denver Post.
- Brian McTaggart of MLB.com writes that the Astros got better in the long run by dealing for Clint Barmes this afternoon.
- Matt Thornton of the White Sox told MLB.com's Scott Merkin that he isn't concerned about hammering out a long-term deal with the club.
- The Phillies have decisions to make on several players in advance of tomorrow's midnight deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 draft, writes MLB.com's Todd Zolecki.
- The Braves have named Jonathan Schuerholz, son of team president John Schuerholz, the manager of their Gulf Coast league affiliate, writes David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Yankees Acquire Scott Allen For Juan Miranda
It's no blockbuster, but Kevin Towers and Brian Cashman made a deal today. The Yankees acquired right-hander Scott Allen from the Diamondbacks for first baseman Juan Miranda, according to a team press release.
The Diamondbacks chose Allen, 19, in the 11th round of the 2009 draft. In 95 2/3 innings over two seasons, he has a 3.95 ERA with 8.9 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9. He won't figure into the Yankees' big league plans for a while, but Miranda could compete for Arizona's first base job in 2011.
Miranda, now 27, has played parts of three seasons with the Yankees and has a .253/.330/.458 line in 94 big league plate appearances. With Mark Teixeira at first base and Jorge Posada DHing, the Yankees don't have much room for Miranda, who has a .281/.367/.478 line in 1779 minor league plate appearances. He's out of options, so the D'Backs will have to expose him to waivers to send him to the minor leagues.
Towers worked for the Yankees in 2010, so he knows their farm system – and their general manager – well. It's not the first time in recent history the two GMs have matched up on a trade. Cashman acquired Chad Gaudin from Towers' Padres in 2009 and acquired Darrell May from San Diego for Paul Quantrill and Tim Redding in 2005.
Justin Upton Rumors: Thursday
Yesterday we learned that rival teams continue to kick the tires on Justin Upton. It will take four or five players to meet Arizona's demands, but GM Kevin Towers seems genuinely open to moving the 23-year-old. The Rockies, Marlins and Red Sox appear to be among the interested teams, but the Braves aren't likely to get involved. Here are today's rumors:
- D'Backs president Derrick Hall isn't concerned about potential fallout if the club does not move Upton, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN. Arizona has talked to Upton and told him that they "owe it to [themselves]" to listen, Crasnick tweets.
- The D’Backs are more inclined to move Upton than they were when the GM Meetings began, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, who confirms that the Blue Jays, Mariners and Marlins “have expressed a high level of interest in Upton.”
- The Blue Jays are showing "strong interest" in Upton, according to Rosenthal (on Twitter). They are the mystery team from FOX Sports' earlier report.
- The Mariners are not ruling out Upton and could construct a deal around pitching prospect Michael Pineda, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
- The Orioles are not pursuing Upton now, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
- Towers is determined not to trade Upton within the NL West, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
- The Red Sox are on the "backburner" in the Upton talks after a mystery team made a strong push yesterday, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. About half of MLB teams showed some interest in Upton, but the D'Backs aren't going to trade him unless they "win" the trade. Arizona wants four prospects in return and teams like the Yankees aren't comfortable parting ways with that much talent. The D'Backs and Red Sox have discussed expanded deals that involve at least one other team.
- The Red Sox are showing more interest than the Yankees, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). He says the D'Backs would likely request Daniel Bard and Jacoby Ellsbury from the Red Sox.
Ryan Expects Yanks To Outbid Rangers For Lee
Nolan Ryan told Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal that he expects the Yankees to outbid the Rangers for Cliff Lee (Twitter link). The Rangers will try to sell the appeal of Texas to Lee, an Arkansas native, but they don't have the same spending power as the Yankees.
The Rangers met with Lee at his home on Monday, less than a week after the Yankees made the same trip. Lee will command a deal worth more than $100MM and no team wants to enter a bidding war with the Yankees, but the Rangers can afford to make multiple free agent additions this winter, according to FOX Sports. It's not just the Yankees and Rangers, of course; the Nationals are among the other interested teams.
Yankees Likely To Sign DePaula
The Yankees are expected to sign Dominican right-hander Rafael DePaula for about $700K later today, according to Melissa Segura of SI.com (on Twitter). He reappeared on the market a week ago after facing age and identity fraud questions for a year. MLB suspended him in 2009 and he later confessed to using a false identity.
If not for the suspension, DePaula would likely have signed for more, according to Segura. He turns 20 soon, so the Yankees may fast track his path through the minor leagues. (Twitter links).
Yankees To Make Jeter An Offer; How Will It Look?
The Yankees plan to offer Derek Jeter a contract of at least three years, possibly by the end of the week, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Jon Heyman of SI.com and Sherman both suggest the Yankees' initial offer will likely be worth roughly $45MM (Twitter link). However, Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork reported yesterday that the Yankees would be happy to agree to a three-year $63MM deal.
Sherman suggests the Yankees might be willing to increase their offer to the $57-60MM range on a three-year deal and notes that the team could offer a fourth year or an option for a fourth year. According to Matthews, Jeter wants at least a four-year deal and has a preference for a five or six-year contract.
At least one person in the Yankees front office wants the team to draw a hard line with Jeter, Matthews reported. Sherman finds it "very possible" that the Yankees will make an offer and tell Jeter to beat it on the open market if he doesn't like it. The Yankees insist that they'll be offering a baseball contract. Yankees president Randy Levine told reporters that Jeter's contract "isn't a licensing deal or commercial rights deal."
Latin Links: Tejada, Uribe, Feliz, Cuban Players
Links from Spanish-language news sources…
- Sources close to Miguel Tejada and Juan Uribe said the infielders will wait and see what kind of contract Derek Jeter signs before committing to anything on their own, according to ESPN Deportes' Enrique Rojas. Neither player is aspiring to Jeter-like money, Rojas writes, but they think Jeter will "establish the market value of veteran shortstops" and give their own respective values a boost. The Cardinals are supposedly interested in both players.
- Neftali Feliz told Jose Caceres of Hoy he's heard rumors about the Rangers planning to move him to the rotation, but on the team's end, "Nobody has said anything to me." SI's Jon Heyman tweeted earlier today that the team would consider the move if they can't sign Cliff Lee.
- Victor Mesa, a former Cuban National Team manager and one of the all-time greats of Cuban baseball, told the official government newspaper Trabajadores that the time has finally come for those in power to allow Cuban players to sign with foreign teams, conveys Diario de Cuba. "I think there could be incorporation [into foreign teams], so that they could spend eight years playing in our National Series and [sign] with our involvement, not independently," Mesa said. The most recent prominent player to flee the country is a speedy teenaged outfielder in the mold of Mesa himself: 17-year-old centerfielder Yasiel Balaguer, who arrived in Nicaragua a few days ago.
Justin Upton Rumors: Wednesday
Today's Justin Upton rumors…
- One AL exec told SI.com's Jon Heyman (Twitter link) that Arizona's asking price for Upton is "ridiculous."
- The Rockies inquired on Upton, according to the Denver Post's Troy Renck. A Diamondbacks official expects the team would be willing to deal within the division, though they'd have to receive a very strong offer.
- The Upton rumors are more than just talk, says ESPN.com's Jayson Stark, who was told the D'Backs are "genuinely open" to moving the 23-year-old. However, it might take a package of five players who could help the team in the short- and long-term (Twitter links).
- The Red Sox discussed Upton with the D'Backs late into Tuesday night, reports CSNNE.com's Sean McAdam, but talks are now stalled over Towers' latest demands.
- The Braves are unlikely to pursue Upton after trading for Dan Uggla, GM Frank Wren implied (via Joel Sherman on Twitter).
- The D'Backs will seek at least four or five players in return for Upton, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. He believes perhaps three of those players would have to be big league ready.
- USA Today's Bob Nightengale introduced the idea of Upton as a trade candidate on Monday, and the rumors took off yesterday. Today, Nightengale says the Yankees' offer for Upton has fallen short but the Red Sox remain engaged. Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers described the Upton trade talks as "people kicking the tires right now."
- Towers told Joel Sherman of the New York Post, "[Upton] would be a tough guy to move. But you always seek out the information on what teams will do because you never know if, to get one player, a team will grossly overpay." Sherman added via Twitter that the D'Backs "have [a] growing belief [they] will trade Upton based on [a] ton of interest."
- Sherman talked to one team executive who says the Marlins have had the most interest in Upton for a while. An exec speculated that Logan Morrison and Ricky Nolasco would get it done, notes Sherman.
- It's not known if the Rays would like to add a second Upton, but the execs Sherman spoke to consider them an early favorite along with the Marlins.