Yankees Release Chad Gaudin
3:01pm: The Dodgers are in too, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The D'Backs are not interested, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
11:38am: The Mets are discussing Gaudin, tweets Newsday's David Lennon.
7:57am: The Yankees released pitcher Chad Gaudin, tweets Marc Carig of the Newark Star-Ledger. Gaudin had been placed on waivers on Tuesday, but no team claimed his $2.95MM salary. Since he was on a non-guaranteed contract, the Yankees will only pay a quarter ($737,500).
A year ago when Gaudin was released by the Cubs, he chose the Padres in part because of the opportunity to start. In that role in '09 he posted a 4.76 ERA, 8.37 K/9, and 4.69 BB/9 in 134.3 innings. The Mets, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, and Mariners are among the clubs looking a little short on arms. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tells us that the A's are not interested in a reunion with Gaudin.
Rafael DePaula May Sign Soon
17-year-old righty Rafael DePaula may sign soon, reports MLBTR contributor Blake Bentley on the scene in the Dominican Republic. Bentley sees a two-horse race between the Yankees and Mariners, with a bonus in the $1.5-2MM range possible.
DePaula threw a showcase yesterday, working in the 92-93 mph range. You can view Bentley's video of that here. ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. reported in January that DePaula's birth date was verified as April 1, 1992 by Junta Central, "the Dominican's official registrar." Previously MLB had suspended DePaula for a year on the belief that he lied about his age.
Yankees Place Chad Gaudin On Waivers
The Yankees placed righty Chad Gaudin on waivers, tweets Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. Assuming he's not picked up, the Yankees can then release him and pay a quarter of his $2.95MM salary ($737,500) or send him to the minors and pay his full salary.
Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News wrote yesterday of whispers of the Yanks sending Gaudin or Sergio Mitre to the Dodgers for Jamie Hoffmann, though you have to think Gaudin's salary would be an issue. A year ago, after the Cubs released Gaudin, the Nationals, Rockies, and Athletics expressed interest before he signed with the Padres. The Rockies went in a different direction with their acquisition of Jason Hammel, one of the best trades of the year.
Odds & Ends: Helton, Gaudin, Hensley, Papelbon
Links for Monday…
- Troy Renck of The Denver Post has the details of Todd Helton's new contract extension. He can void the deal if two of three general partners sell their controlling interest in the team, and it contains $13.1MM in deferred money at three percent interest.
- The Yankees could look to move Chad Gaudin soon, according to Rosenthal (via Twitter). In another tweet, he mentions that Clay Hensley can opt out of his contract with the Marlins if he's not on the roster by April 1st.
- Jim Bowden shows off his post-trade fist pump in his latest GM's Corner video for FOX Sports. Bowden asked a slew of GMs about their processes for making deals; Frank Wren estimated that less than ten percent of discussions lead to trades.
- In considering Jonathan Papelbon's future, WEEI's Alex Speier demonstrates just how risky large multiyear deals for relievers have been.
- FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal says the Blue Jays "will not settle for fringe prospects in return" for relievers Scott Downs and Jason Frasor, and they could use them to continue the rebuilding effort.
- Rosenthal adds that Gary Sheffield is talking to a NL club, though it's not clear which one.
- Meanwhile, Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com notes that both Jamey Wright and Austin Kearns have out clauses in their contracts, but a club official said the provisions will not impact the makeup of the team. A source added that there are "no trades on the horizon" for Cleveland.
Could The Yankees Get Hoffmann Back?
Earlier today the Yankees returned Rule 5 selection Jamie Hoffmann to the Dodgers, however the doesn't mean they lost him forever. Mark Feinsand of The New York Daily News notes that there have been "plenty of whispers in recent weeks" about the two teams working out a trade to keep Hoffmann in pinstripes, possibly involving Chad Gaudin or Sergio Mitre.
Los Angeles already has plenty of options in camp for the back of their rotation, though many of those pitchers have unfavorable contract situations. Both Gaudin and Mitre are out of options, but there's a chance the Dodgers' brass feels more comfortable with one of them in the rotation instead of their current fifth starter hodgepodge. Last week we heard that the Yanks were "almost certain" to deal one of Gaudin or Mitre.
If a trade is made, it would allow the Yankees to stash Hoffmann in Triple-A, something they couldn't do with the Rule 5 strings attached. After dealing both Melky Cabrera and Austin Jackson earlier this offseason, the team is looking to rebuild some outfield depth.
Heyman’s Latest: Crawford, Yankees, Werth, Twins
Jon Heyman has a new column up at SI.com, so let's dive on in…
- The Rays tried hard to sign Carl Crawford to a contract extension this offseason, but they got nowhere."That's something we spent a good amount of time on this winter and, obviously, wasn't something that came together quickly or easily," said GM Andrew Friedman. Owner Stuart Sternberg added "We're going to do everything we can within our means to keep him a Ray," referring of course to his leftfielder.
- The Yankees "absolutely love" Crawford according to a rival executive, and they also like Jayson Werth, who is set to become a free agent after the season. Heyman mentions that they didn't want to re-sign Johnny Damon to a two-year deal this past offseason to potentially keep a spot open for Crawford.
- Heyman thinks the Twins will probably go out and acquire a bona fide closer since, as he puts it, it would be the smart thing to do with close to a $100MM payroll. Minnesota has inquired about Heath Bell and Jason Frasor within the last week or two.
Yankees Return Hoffmann To Dodgers
The Yankees Rule 5 pick Jamie Hoffmann cleared waivers and was returned to the Dodgers, reports Chad Jennings of The Journal News. New York essentially acquired Hoffmann for Brian Bruney back in December, and he was was battling with Marcus Thames for the chance to serve as the Yanks' right-handed bench bat. Neither player has done much in Spring Training so far.
Hoffmann, 25, hit .284/.360/.455 for the Dodgers' Triple A club last year while playing center and right field.
Odds & Ends: Crawford, Alvarez, Mauer, Aumont
Some links for your Friday…
- Tom Verducci of SI.com said on WEEI's Dennis & Callahan show that he expects Carl Crawford to sign with the Yankees after the season, because "nobody is going to outbid them." The Yankees and Red Sox both love Crawford, according to Verducci.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Dodgers should spend more aggressively, especially considering they led the league in attendance last year.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com points out that Mike Lowell, Jason Varitek, Bill Hall and Jeremy Hermida will combine to make only $10MM or so less than the entire Pirates team this year. Why is that noteworthy? All four Red Sox are expected to be bench players.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry is under contract through 2012, but he tells ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick that he knows "these jobs aren't forever."
- The Pirates say Pedro Alvarez needs seasoning above AA, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Sending the third baseman to the minors limits his MLB service time, so it's a sound financial decision by the Pirates.
- The A's haven't called Joe Beimel, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- The A's worked out Wagner Mateo on Tuesday, according to Slusser.
- ESPN.com’s Buster Olney thinks that the Joe Mauer contract negotiations, which remain cordial, could continue in a few months if the sides don’t reach a deal in Spring Training.
- The Dominican prospect already worked out for the D'Backs and will likely work out for the Indians.
- Twins minor league director Jim Rantz told Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that another Dominican prospect, Miguel Sano, has "tremendous upside." Kovacevic says it's still too early to know how much the Pirates missed out on when Sano signed with the Twins instead of the Pirates.
- Phillies prospect Phillippe Aumont tells Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun that he thought he was heading to the Blue Jays at one point this offseason.
- Carl Crawford tells Tyler Kepner of the New York Times that he's comfortable with the speculation about his future since it "comes with the territory." Crawford is a free agent after the season.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Jays, Bell, Davis, Dunn
On this date in 2002, the Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network launched. Although the regional network barely broke even that year, YES has gone on to generate millions in revenue, much of which goes right into the Yankees' pockets. As recently as 2008, there was talk that the network was worth more than the team itself.
After you wrap your head around that, here are some links to check out from around the baseball blogosphere…
- The Baseball Opinion says that the Adeiny Hechevarria signing caps off an impressive offseason for new GM Alex Anthopoulos.
- The Friarhood examines the trade market for Padres' closer Heath Bell.
- Phillies Nation has some fun with internal discussions after the Albert Pujols–Ryan Howard rumors.
- DRays Bay wonders if Andy Sonnanstine will start the season in Tampa's rotation so they can send Wade Davis to the minors and push his service time clock back.
- Around The Majors wonders if the Nationals should really be trying to sign Adam Dunn to a contract extension.
- The Dodgerhater says that Sergio Romo and Dan Runzler are the key to San Francisco's bullpen this year.
- Bronx Bombers Beat wonders if Robinson Cano can take that next step towards being a middle of the order hitter for a team with some aging core hitters.
- SPANdemonium looks at some players drafted in the second round of the 2008 draft who have already had an impact in the big leagues.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
D’Backs Looking For Rotation Depth
A National League executive tells Joel Sherman of the New York Post that the D'Backs are exploring trades for rotation depth. Brandon Webb is recovering from a shoulder injury, so the D'Backs have some concern about their starting five. Right now, that group consists of Dan Haren, Edwin Jackson and some combination of Ian Kennedy, Billy Buckner, Kevin Mulvey and Rodrigo Lopez.