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A’s Rumors: Iwakuma, Berkman, Beltre

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The latest on the Oakland Athletics, all of which comes in the form of Twitter links…

Red Sox Notes: Bell, Beltre, Martin, Wakefield

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The increase in Adrian Gonzalez trade chatter is the biggest news out of Fenway Park today.  Here's a bit of extra news about those rumors plus some other Boston notes…

Athletics Avoid Arbitration With Ryan Sweeney

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The Athletics have signed outfielder Ryan Sweeney to a one-year contract, reports MLB.com's Evan Drellich.  The deal will pay Sweeney $1.4MM in 2011, according to the Associated Press.  Sweeney was one of seven players tendered contracts by Oakland yesterday, and the signing means the club avoids arbitration with the 25-year-old.  Sweeney is represented by agent Larry Reynolds.

Sweeney hit .294/.342/.383 in 331 plate appearances with the A's in 2010, though he didn't play after July 11 due to a right knee injury that eventually required surgery.  Since coming to Oakland as part of the Nick Swisher trade in January 2008, Sweeney has a .740 OPS in 1298 plate appearances and has played all three outfield positions, though he mostly stuck to right field last year.  Sweeney made $420K with the A's last season and this would've been his first year of arbitration eligibility.

White Sox Sign Adam Dunn

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The White Sox added one of the game's most consistent sluggers today, locking Adam Dunn up to a four-year $56MM deal. The team has officially announced the deal.

Dunn settled for a two-year, $20MM deal when he last hit free agency, but his representation at Legacy Sports was aggressive this time, setting their client up with the biggest contract so far this offseason and nearly tripling the value of Dunn's previous deal.

Dunn has hit 38 or more homers in each of the past seven seasons. He boasts a career .250/.381/.521 line with 354 home runs in ten seasons. Few players are as durable as the 31-year-old, who has appeared in 150 or more games in eight of nine seasons since becoming a regular.

It's not clear how often Dunn will play in the field, but that likely depends on Chicago's pursuit of free agent first baseman Paul Konerko. Dunn appeared reluctant to be a full-time DH despite criticisms of his defensive play.

The Nationals, who discussed extensions with the slugger all season long, will obtain a supplementary first rounder plus Chicago's 23rd overall pick in next year's draft. Adam LaRoche and Carlos Pena are Washington's most likely first base targets, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).

Crasnick reported that the White Sox had serious interest in Dunn, Jon Heyman of SI.com reported that the sides were closing in on a deal and Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times reported the terms of the contract. Peter Gammons of MLB Network and Bob Nightengale of USA Today also reported elements of the story on Twitter.

Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post.

Olney On Crawford, Berkman, Konerko

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The Angels are seen as the favorites to sign Carl Crawford and we know the Red Sox met with him and his representatives, but it looks like at least one more American League team has strong interest in the left fielder. ESPN.com's Buster Olney has the details:

  • The Yankees are very much engaged in conversations with Crawford, though it's unclear whether they have the flexibility to spend on him and Cliff Lee (Twitter links). The Yankees plan to set up a meeting with Crawford, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
  • The A's are targeting Lance Berkman enthusiastically, but they haven't started talking salary with him (Twitter link).
  • The White Sox still appear to be the favorites to sign Paul Konerko, Olney writes. The Orioles and Cubs appear to be in on the first baseman, but the Diamondbacks may no longer be bidding for him.
  • Olney says the Nationals missed out on a chance to extend Adam Dunn or recoup more value for him. 
  • Olney boldly predicts that the Yankees will reach an agreement with Derek Jeter today.

American League Non-Tenders

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This post will list all the American League players non-tendered today, but the best place to track all 200+ arbitration eligible players is our new non-tender tracker.

Rockies Aggressively Pursuing Berkman

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THURSDAY, 7:51am: The Rockies' initial offer to Berkman was low, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  It appears Berkman is looking for $8-10MM, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.  Rosenthal notes that if Berkman were to sign with Oakland, he would spend some time in the field.

WEDNESDAY, 6:50pm: The Rockies are aggressively pursuing free agent outfielder Lance Berkman, writes Troy Renck of The Denver Post.  Renck writes that the slugger will likely get offered more money elsewhere but his preference to return to the National League helps Colorado's chances.  Berkman recently said that there are eight teams interested in him this winter.

While the 34-year-old slugger won't rule out being a DH, he says that he is still capable of playing either first base or corner outfield.  Berkman has not played the outfield since 2007 but claims to have made a full recovery from the arthroscopic knee surgery he underwent in March.

In 122 games for the Astros and Yankees last season, the five-time All-Star hit .248/.368/.413 with 14 homers in 481 plate appearances.

A’s Did Not Meet With Adam Dunn Yesterday

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3:35pm: Slusser now reports that the A's did not meet with Dunn yesterday, though they remain in the mix for his services (Twitter links).

12:13pm: Lance Berkman isn't the only slugger who met with the A's yesterday. They also met with Adam Dunn and are a serious suitor for the slugger, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Both meetings took place in Houston.

Yahoo's Jeff Passan reported yesterday that Dunn's agent expects the bidding to begin at $60MM over four years. Since he's a Type A free agent who declined arbitration, Dunn will cost a top draft pick. Oakland's first round pick is protected, but the A's would have to surrender their second rounder to the Nationals if they sign the 31-year-old.

There should be no shortage of interest in Dunn, though the Tigers are out of the bidding for him. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports examined potential suitors yesterday.

Odds & Ends: Berkman, Edmonds, De La Rosa

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On this date in 1998, the Orioles signed Albert Belle to a five-year, $65MM deal. He batted .289/.374/.509 with Baltimore, but didn't play at all after the 2000 season. Here are today's links…

  • Stop by at 2pm CDT for this week's chat.
  • Oakland’s immediate goal is to sign Lance Berkman, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The A's met with Berkman and Adam Dunn yesterday.
  • Rosenthal suggests the A’s likely want to hear back from Scott Boras and Adrian Beltre about the five-year, $64MM offer they reportedly made in November.
  • Yahoo's Jeff Passan asks Bud Selig to leave the playoffs alone and suggests the commissioner could improve the game by introducing more instant replay and asking major TV networks to show a more diverse selection of teams.
  • Jim Edmonds is contemplating playing one more season, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
  • The Phillies are more likely to pursue free agent left-handers who don't cost a draft pick, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). In other words, they'd rather not give up a pick to sign Scott Downs.
  • Speaking of relievers, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun explains that the Orioles have interest in any competent veteran reliever and will kick the tires on most.
  • The Mets re-signed former big leaguer Mike O'Connor according to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (on Twitter). The 30-year-old left-hander last pitched in the majors for the 2008 Nationals, but he appeared in 51 games at Triple-A Buffalo in 2010, posting 8.9 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 for the top Mets affiliate.
  • The Pirates made a competitive offer for Jorge de la Rosa before he agreed to a deal with the Rockies, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter). 
  • De La Rosa's agents approached the Padres about a potential deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. San Diego couldn't afford the lefty, though they were interested.

Odds & Ends: Jeter, Berkman, A’s, Upton, Webb

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Exactly ten years ago, the Orix Blue Wave lost a 27-year-old outfielder to the Seattle Mariners. A decade later, Ichiro Suzuki has ten Gold Gloves and 2244 big league hits to his name. Here are today's links…

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