Yankees Rumors

Odds & Ends: Yankees, Braves, Cardinals

By Howard Megdal | March 3, 2010 at 9:02pm CDT

March goes in like a lion, but the lion is cut when the rosters get trimmed to 25…

Benjamin Kabak at River Avenue Blues takes a look at how the Yankees can include an ownership stake in Derek Jeter's next contract.
Former Yankee Melky Cabrer a is also in the news, with MLB.com's Mark Bowman detailing how his game translates in the National League. As should surprise no one who has watched both leagues lately, the move figures to help Melky.
Brian Walton of the St. Louis Globe-Democrat has a rundown of the Cardinals' 21 new signings from Venezuela and the Dominican Republic. Tops among the new signings appears to be Amauris Capellan, an outfielder who has drawn comparisons to Raul Mondesi.
Taiwan Baseball has an update on Min-Tzu Chen, an outfielder-turned-pitcher three months ago, who is now sporting a fastball at 90-93 MPH. According to the site, the Royals and Padres have both made offers in the $150K-$200K range.
Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe thinks the Red Sox may have found something special in offseason acquisition Boof Bonser.

Heyman On Adrian, Jeter, Hamilton

By Tim Dierkes | March 3, 2010 at 12:42pm CDT

SI's Jon Heyman leads his latest column with a discussion about Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, who he feels is likely to be shopped hard at this year's trade deadline. I've noted before that Gonzalez's market should not be limited to big-spending clubs, as he's set to earn just $10.25MM for 2010-11. It's fitting that Heyman believes as many as 10 to 12 teams already inquired, including the Red Sox, Mets, Mariners, and Dodgers. On to Heyman's other rumors…

Heyman spoke to "two executives from competing teams" who believe Derek Jeter "could ask for a six-year deal." The idea is that a six-year extension would take Jeter to age 42, as Alex Rodriguez's contract does.
Heyman notes that Josh Hamilton turned down a four-year, $24MM offer from the Rangers last year. The security might've made sense for Hamilton given his injury problems.
One executive Heyman spoke to believes the availability of decent free agents, perhaps continuing into the season, could reduce trading.

Minor League Signings: Van Benschoten, Bourgeois

By Tim Dierkes | March 2, 2010 at 8:25am CDT

Matt Eddy of Baseball America has the latest minor league transactions. A few highlights:

The Yankees signed pitcher John Van Benschoten, former eighth overall pick by the Pirates in '01. JvB posted a 6.35 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 3.5 BB/9, and tons of hits allowed in 78 innings for the White Sox Triple A club last year.
The Astros signed 28-year-old outfielder Jason Bourgeois, who they claimed off waivers from the Brewers in October but designated for assignment later to make room for Brett Myers. Bourgeois hit .316/.354/.401 in Triple A last year while playing all three outfield positions.
The Rockies added a few familiar names in first baseman Brad Eldred and third baseman Travis Metcalf. Eldred, 29, has made five stops at Triple A, last year with the Nationals' affiliate. Metcalf, 27, has 242 big league plate appearances with the Rangers under his belt but has yet to master Triple A.
The Dodgers signed Robin Yount's son Dustin, formerly of the Tucson Toros.
The Rangers signed corner infielder Wes Bankston. The 26-year-old hasn't done much in his four Triple A stints.

Yankees Designate Edwar Ramirez For Assignment

By Luke Adams 2 | February 28, 2010 at 11:04am CDT

The Yankees designated Edwar Ramirez for assignment, according to a team press release. The move was necessary to make room on the 40-man roster for Chan Ho Park, whose signing is now official.

Ramirez pitched 22 innings out of the Yankees' bullpen in 2009, recording a 5.73 ERA. The 28-year-old righty did show promise in his time with New York though, striking out 116 batters in 98.1 career major league innings.

Yankees Sign Chan Ho Park

By Tim Dierkes | February 28, 2010 at 10:50am CDT

The Yankees offically signed pitcher Chan Ho Park to a one-year, $1.2MM deal. He can earn another $300K in incentives. Kang Seung-woo of The Korea Times first reported the agreement a week ago.

At his press conference in Korea, Park said he was leaning toward the Cubs until recently, as they were willing to let him battle for a rotation spot. The Yankees' "history and championship contention" won out, and Park will join their bullpen. Joel Sherman of the New York Times says Yankees GM Brian Cashman lobbied ownership to expand the payroll for Park, but now Chad Gaudin or Sergio Mitre could be traded.

Park, 36, posted a 2.52 ERA, 9.4 K/9, and 2.9 BB/9 in 50 relief innings for the Phillies last year. The Type B free agent was not offered arbitration by the Phils, but they did reportedly make a $3.25MM proposal.

Odds & Ends: Jeter, Marlins, Fielder, Aurilia, Boras

By Mike Axisa | February 27, 2010 at 7:08pm CDT

If you're in the Northeast, here are some links to check out while you take a break from shoveling…

ESPN's Jayson Stark ranked baseball's ten-year contracts, with Derek Jeter's soon to be completed ten-year, $189MM deal coming in as the best.
The Marlins agreed to one-year contracts with 12 of their pre-arbitration eligible players according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro, including Sean West, Chris Volstad, Emilio Bonifacio, and Dan Meyer.
Brewers owner Mark Attanasio confirmed that he will be involved in long-term contract discussions with Prince Fielder, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter). Haudricourt also tweets that Attanasio and GM Doug Melvin met today to discuss the situation and there will be no deadlines imposed on the 25-year-old.
Rich Aurilia, who stopped by the Giants' camp today, says that while he's still looking for a job, he will retire if he doesn't have one by the end of spring, tweets Jeff Fletcher of AOL Fanhouse. The 38-year-old has a broadcasting deal in place if he is unable to find a job on the field.
Shin-Soo Choo says that he would like to stay in Cleveland long-term, writes MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince. Choo, like Morales, cut ties with his former agent (Alan Nero) in favor of Scott Boras.
Michael Weiner, the executive director of the players' union, confirmed that the union is participating in an investigation into alleged unauthorized withdrawals from Kendry Morales' bank account by a former employee of his former agents, Hendricks Sports Management (Bill Plunkett of the OC Register reporting). Morales recently dropped HSM and hired Scott Boras.
Bernie Miklasz of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch provides a few quotes from Albert Pujols about his contract situation. "Do I want to do this right now and take care of this so we don't need to worry about it? Of course," said Pujols. "If it happens, it happens. But there are some things I am able to control and there are other things that are out of my hands that I can't control. And that's the truth."
The Mariners signed righty Tom Wilhelmsen to a minor league contract, according to Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times. The 27-year-old had been out of baseball since 2005 because of substance abuse issues, though he resurfaced with an independent league team last season.
Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker passes along a report indicating the the Orix Buffaloes are moving towards a deal with Freddie Bynum. The White Sox released Bynum last week so he could pursue opportunities in Japan.
Meanwhile, Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch says that Felipe Lopez will provide the Cardinals with a great amount of flexibility.
Joel Sherman of The New York Post calls the contracts of Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia and other Yankee players "time-bomb contracts."
John Tomase of The Boston Herald says the Red Sox have a deep bench with Mike Lowell, Bill Hall, Jeremy Hermida, and Jason Varitek.

Discussion: Best Move Of The Offseason

By Mike Axisa | February 27, 2010 at 5:20pm CDT

With Felipe Lopez finally catching on with the Cardinals, essentially every big name free agent is off the market (no disrespect to Jermaine Dye and Jarrod Washburn). That allows us to sit back and reflect on all of the offseason's moves, and try to figure out which one was the very best.

Here are some candidates…

Mets sign Jason Bay to a four-year, $66MM contract.
Yankees acquire Curtis Granderson for three prospects.
Phillies acquire Roy Halladay for three prospects.
Red Sox sign John Lackey to a five-year, $82.5MM contract.
Mariners acquire Cliff Lee for three prospects.
Rays acquire Rafael Soriano for Jesse Chavez.

There's certainly no shortage of candidates, but one has to be the best of the best, right? What do you think it is?

Odds & Ends: Thames, Manzella, Royals, Marlins

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 26, 2010 at 4:03pm CDT

Links for Friday…

Chad Jennings of The Journal News reports that Marcus Thames can opt out of his contract with the Yankees if he doesn't make the team out of Spring Training. Thames signed a minor league deal earlier this month that would pay him $900K in the big leagues.
Alyson Footer, the Astros' Sr. Director of Social Media, tweets that the team has agreed to terms on a one-year deal with infielder Tommy Manzella worth $400K. He's expected to be the team's regular shortstop in 2010, and he has less than a month's worth of service time.
Mike Aviles and Anthony Lerew agreed to terms with the Royals according to a team press release. Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star tweets that both deals are expected to be worth less than $500K. Both players are not yet eligible for arbitration.
Meanwhile, the Marlins also agreed to terms with six of their pre-arbitration eligible players, reports MLB.com's Joe Frisaro.
Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun reports that Orioles' lefty Brian Matusz has changed agents, and is now represented by CAA Sports. He had a 4.63 ERA in 44.2 innings last year, and is widely considered to be one of the two or three best pitching prospects in the game.
Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo spoke about the Livan Hernandez signing to MASNSports.com's Ben Goessling, and said that the righty isn't guaranteed a rotation spot.
Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports polled nearly 20 baseball people about Carl Crawford's next contract. Many of the agents and executives expect Crawford to command a five-year deal worth $12-16MM per season, but some think the left fielder could make as much as $18MM per year when he hits the open market, probably after 2010.
Scott Rolen was happy to restructure his contract so the Reds could "free up some money to go out and be more competitive," according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Nationals pitcher Rafael Martin tells MLB.com's Bill Ladson that he agreed to his deal on February 8th (Twitter link).
Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd told Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports that he wants his players to be driven by "more than money." O'Dowd also told Ringolsby that he did not shop Brad Hawpe this winter.
The Mets are still looking at lefty and righty relievers, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (via Twitter).
Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt tells Scott Lauber of the News Journal that he expects Placido Polanco to make a smooth transition to third base.
Marlon Byrd tells USA Today's Bob Nightengale that he's uncomfortable being compared to friend and former teammate Milton Bradley.
Big market clubs sent $433MM to small market clubs last year, according to Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball.
The Red Sox don't generally use insurance on their long-term deals. Principal owner John Henry tells Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that "it isn't always easy to get paid," even once players are injured.
Jose Julio Ruiz may be close to signing, but it won't be with the Nationals, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
Astros owner Drayton McLane, who has "a huge amount of confidence" in GM Ed Wade, would consider selling his team for $600MM or more, according to Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Adrian, Howard, Jeter

By Mike Axisa | February 26, 2010 at 8:47am CDT

A year ago today, the Giants renewed reigning Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum's contract for $650K. One year and a second Cy Young later, San Francisco bought out Lincecum's first two years of arbitration eligibility for $23MM. I'm sure they enjoyed paying him just six figures while it lasted.

Let's take a look at what's being written around the baseball blogosphere…

The Friarhood looks at what some other teams could offer the Padres in exchange for Adrian Gonzalez.
Crashburn Alley breaks down the possibility of the Phillies trading Ryan Howard so they could re-sign Jayson Werth.
Meanwhile, TAUNTR thinks it's going to be tough for the Phillies to retain their right fielder.
Statistician Magician says that letting Derek Jeter walk is an option for the Yankees.
Mets Paradise takes a look at the Mets' catching situation with Rod Barajas now on board.
More Hardball constructed a 25-man roster out of players that were signed to minor league contracts this offseason.
River Ave. Blues wonders what CC Sabathia will do with his opt-out clause following the 2011 season.
Baseball Bloggers Alliance challenges readers to put together Toronto's 25-man roster.
The Sports Banter ranks each team's offseason, with two AL East powers leading the way.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

Cuban Links: Ruiz, Anderson, Serrano

By Nick Collias | February 25, 2010 at 12:50am CDT

Get out the Spanish-English dictionary and put on Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…

Morgan Campbell at the Toronto Star posits that Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos' recent scouting trip to the Dominican Republic could mean the team is "closing in" on Jose Julio Ruiz. Yesterday, Ruiz's trainer told the Nuevo Herald that the first baseman's most recent tryout, his "last before signing," was against Blue Jays players. The blog cubanballplayers.com also reported on Tuesday that Ruiz had a private tryout with the Jays. Both the team and Prestige Sports Agency, which represents Ruiz, remain mum on any communication.
Cuban first baseman/outfielder Leslie Anderson tells Angel Mazariego of the Mexican newspaper Sipse that he is willing to play in Mexico this season if nothing materializes for him in the majors. Anderson lists the Red Sox, Yankees, Mariners, Dodgers, Giants and Brewers as the teams he knows to have scouted him recently. Mazariego adds the Dodgers and Tigers to the list.
Amaury Perez Torres at the Cuban baseball blog Las Avispas cites a "source close to" pitching prospect Juan Yasser Serrano saying that the right-hander has worked out for 10 major league teams this winter. Most recently, the source says, Serrano struck out four in a two-inning simulation for the Cubs on February 19, with a fastball that touched 93.
If it seems like there is more chatter about Cuban defectors than ever before, that's no coincidence, writes Campbell in the Toronto Star. In a lengthy article, he outlines how more Cuban players are now aiming at the major leagues thanks to the success of Kendry Morales and Yunel Escobar, neither of whom was a starter in Cuba. Equally significant was the contract that third base prospect Dayan Viciedo signed with the White Sox in 2008. A Cuban baseball expert in Canada tells Campbell that Viciedo made players on the island think, "If he can get $10 million, then what am I worth?"
Speaking of Morales, Jorge Arangure Jr. adds a new dimension to the first baseman's recent switch from Hendricks Sports Management to Scott Boras in an article in ESPN the Magazine. Rodney Fernandez, who recruited both Morales and Aroldis Chapman for Kendricks, is being investigated by the MLBPA and Florida police in regard to $300K that disappeared from Morales' bank account.

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