Athletics Win Bidding On Hisashi Iwakuma
8:03pm: The A's bid about $17MM, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
10:25am: The Athletics won the bidding on Japanese righty Hisashi Iwakuma, MLB announced (via Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports on Twitter). Last night, Iwakuma's agent Don Nomura appeared to tweet the same. The A's now have 30 days to hammer out a contract with Iwakuma. Iwakuma's team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles, are expected to accept the bid, tweets NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman. He adds that the Athletics and Golden Eagles already have a working relationship. The Rangers and Mariners also submitted bids, according to Ken Rosenthal.
There's been speculation that Rakuten wanted roughly $18MM in a posting fee, but we really don't know what the A's bid. Iwakuma could be a fairly risky signing with a contract on top. Rosenthal suggested Saturday that the A's may be trying to create a pitching surplus, which for me conjures memories of their unexpected Esteban Loaiza signing five years ago.
Iwakuma, 30 in April, posted a 2.82 ERA, 6.9 K/9, 1.6 BB/9, and 0.49 HR/9 in 201 innings this year. In August, Newman rated him as "the second best MLB pitching prospect currently active in NPB" in a FanGraphs article. He described Iwakuma as "a fairly standard fastball/slider/forkball righty." ESPN's Keith Law ranked Iwakuma as seventh-best free agent starter available, pegging him as a solid No. 4.
Athletics Win Hisashi Iwakuma Bid?
SUNDAY, 10:00pm: Iwakuma's agent Don Nomura tweeted about the Athletics winning the bidding, it appears.
SUNDAY, 8:55am: NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman passes on a pair of Japanese reports suggesting that Rakuten will accept the top bid for Iwakuma, which could be higher than $16MM (Twitter links).
SATURDAY, 1:48pm: Rosenthal writes that the A's "are believed to have made a strong push" for Iwakuma. He speculates that if the Brewers are willing to part with Casey McGehee, they could potentially match up for a trade with Oakland given their need for pitching.
1:07pm: Rosenthal says that the Athletics also bid on Iwakuma (Twitter link) with the idea trading one of the excess starters for a bat if they landed him. The FoxSports.com scribe adds that the Rangers may have bid too low.
12:11pm: FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal tweets that the Rangers may be the high bidder for Japanese righty Hisashi Iwakuma. Last night we heard that the Mariners were the favorite to land him. In a second tweet, Rosenthal says that Texas definitely submitted a bid, but there's no guarantee that the Rakuten Golden Eagles will accept the high bid. They were seeking $16MM-17MM in the posting process.
The Rangers had tremendous success bringing Colby Lewis over from Japan last year, so it makes sense that they'd explore that avenue again. Iwakuma is widely considered to be the second best starting pitcher in Japan behind Yu Darvish.
The bidding closed last night, and reports out of Japan indicated that Seattle submitted a bid of $13MM. Iwakuma was also said to prefer the West Coast.
Odds & Ends: Werth, A’s, Yankees, Berkman, D’Backs
A few more Saturday night links….
- SI.com's Jon Heyman (Twitter link) views Boston as the most likely landing spot for Jayson Werth.
- Billy Beane spoke to Athletics After Dark, discussing Eric Chavez, Mark Ellis, and the Athletics' offseason flexibility. You can listen to the podcast here.
- Bill Madden of the New York Daily News wonders about the Yankees' Plan B if they can't land Cliff Lee this winter.
- It may be painful, but not pursuing Lance Berkman is the right move for the rebuilding Astros, according to the Houston Chronicle's Richard Justice.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic looks ahead to the Diamondbacks' first offseason under Kevin Towers, who says he has started making calls to agents about players of interest.
A’s Sign Willie Eyre, Travis Blackley
The A’s agreed to minor league deals with right-hander Willie Eyre and left-hander Travis Blackley, according to the team. Both will report to big league spring training as non-roster invitees.
Eyre, 32, spent the 2010 season at Triple-A in the Rangers organization. He posted a 3.50 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 72 innings. His big league numbers are less impressive, though. Eyre has a 5.14 ERA with 4.7 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 92 career games.
Blackley, who turned 28 yesterday, last pitched in the major leagues in 2007. The Australia native pitched to a 2.52 ERA with 8.8 K/9 and 5.6 BB/9 in 35 2/3 Triple-A innings for the A's this year.
Odds & Ends: Indians, Jeter, Ellis, Giants, Chen
Happy 92nd birthday to one of baseball's all-time great pitchers, Bob Feller. "Rapid Robert" piled up 266 wins and 2581 strikeouts in his Hall of Fame career. In tribute to Feller, it's only appropriate that we start this batch of news items with something from Cleveland…
- Infielder Drew Sutton is eligible for free agency after being outrighted to Triple-A by the Indians, reports Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The article notes that Andy Marte is expected to be removed from the Cleveland roster before the Rule 5 draft deadline. Also from Hoynes (via Twitter), the Phillies claimed shortstop Carlos Rivero on waivers from the Tribe. Rivero has a .676 OPS in 2156 minor league plate appearances, none above the Double-A level.
- Hal Steinbrenner's recent comments about the Derek Jeter talks strike ESPN's Buster Olney "as if he's preparing the NYY fans for an ugly Jeter negotiation" (Twitter link).
- Now that the A's have exercised Mark Ellis' option for 2011, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that the team will look into an extension for the veteran second baseman.
- Buster Posey and Brian Wilson are the key reasons why the Giants have a chance to win another World Series, says Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com. "How many teams can say, right now, they have zero interest in upgrading at the need-to-have positions of catcher or closer?", Morosi asks. He cites just the Phillies and Twins, and even those two clubs come with question marks.
- Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com thinks the Giants should sign Eric Chavez to a minor-league contract. (Twitter link)
- Bruce Chen wants a multiyear deal but the Royals are "unlikely" to make the left-hander such an offer, tweets The Kansas City Star's Bob Dutton.
- It could be a bad omen for David Ortiz's $12.5MM option that another slugging DH (Vladimir Guerrero) had his $9MM option for 2011 declined by Texas earlier today, writes Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe.
- Tampa Bay added Elliot Johnson to its 40-man roster, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. Without the move, Johnson would've become a free agent. Johnson had a breakout minor league campaign in Triple-A last season, posting a .319/.375/.475 line and winning the International League MVP award.
- In response to a fan mailbag question about Adam Dunn, MLB.com's Bill Ladson warns about the dangers of the Nationals offering a long-term deal to a defensively-challenged slugger. He points out how fans were also wishing the Nats signed Alfonso Soriano to an extension, but in hindsight Washington made the right move.
- Nationals right-hander Collin Balester is looking for members to join his 'Movember' team. Click here to sign up and join Balester in raising money and awareness in the fight against prostate cancer.
A’s Exercise Ellis’ Option; Decline On Chavez
The Athletics exercised Mark Ellis' 2011 option, and declined their option for Eric Chavez, according to the team. The A's chose to pay Ellis $6MM next year instead of buying him out for $500K and they chose Chavez's $3MM buyout over his $12.5MM salary. Oakland picked up Coco Crisp's $5.5MM option earlier today.
Ellis, 33, batted .291/.358/.381 in 492 plate appearances in 2010. He posted an above-average UZR/150 for the seventh consecutive season and made just three errors on defense. If Ellis had turned down an offer of arbitration to sign elsewhere, the A's would have obtained a supplementary round pick as compensation for losing a Type B free agent.
Chavez, a former fixture with Oakland, has had five stints on the DL over the last four years and has appeared in just 64 games since 2008. He had five surgeries between September 2007 and June 2009.
A’s Exercise Coco Crisp’s 2011 Option
The A's exercised Coco Crisp's 2011 option, according to the outfielder's Twitter account. Oakland will pay Crisp $5.75MM next year instead of buying him out for $500K.
Crisp, 31, batted .279/.342/.438 with 26 extra base hits last year, though he appeared in just 75 games. He missed months with a pectoral strain and also battled finger and knee injuries. He was an unranked free agent, so the A's could not have obtained compensation if he had turned down an offer of arbitration to sign elsewhere.
The A's also have 2011 options for Mark Ellis and Eric Chavez. It looks like they'll pick up Ellis' $6MM option and they'll certainly choose to pay Chavez a $3MM buyout instead of a $12.5MM salary.
Bonser Elects Free Agency; Brewers Claim James
The A’s lost one right-hander to free agency and another one to a waiver claim, according to the team. Boof Bonser elected free agency after the A’s outrighted him to Triple-A, and the team lost Justin James when the Brewers claimed him on waivers. The A’s also outrighted outfielder Matt Carson to Triple-A, but Carson agreed to terms on a contract with the team.
Bonser logged 25 innings with the A's and Red Sox this year. The 29-year-old posted a 6.12 ERA, but his strikeout (6.1 K/9) and walk (2.9 BB/9) rates weren't bad.
James, also 29, made his big league debut with the A's in 2010. He pitched just 4.0 innings in the majors, but logged 39.1 impressive frames in the upper minors. James posted a 1.83 ERA with 11.2 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 between Double-A and Triple-A this season.
Odds & Ends: Mets, Blue Jays, Wood, Jenks
Congratulations to the 2010 World Champion San Francisco Giants! Here are your links as the celebration begins…
- The Mets have not set up interviews for their managerial opening, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter).
- Brewers owner Mark Attanasio told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the team is still gathering information about the four finalists for the job. Bobby Valentine appears to be the favorite and Ron Roenicke, Joey Cora and Bob Melvin are also candidates.
- Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos told Chris Toman of The Sports Network that he isn’t opposed to trading prospects for big leaguers.
- Angels GM Tony Reagins told Dan Woike of the Orange County Register that he'll be as patient as possible with Brandon Wood, who has struggled to hit in the majors and is now out of options.
- Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune says it would be "stunning" to see the White Sox offer Bobby Jenks $9MM through arbitration.
Odds & Ends: Long, Romanick, Falkenborg, Carlin
Links for Monday, as Cliff Lee looks to leave a strong last impression on his 2010 season against Tim Lincecum and the Giants…
- The Yankees and hitting coach Kevin Long agreed to a three-year deal, reports George A. King III of the New York Post. He'll be getting a raise on his previous $400K salary.
- The Athletics named Ron Romanick their new pitching coach, tweets Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- King's colleague Joel Sherman doesn't believe Brian Falkenborg will be the next Colby Lewis, as Falkenborg is likely to remain in Japan.
- The Indians removed catcher Luke Carlin from the 40-man roster, according to the team's Twitter account. Carlin, 30 next month, hit .238/.332/.336 at Triple-A this year. The Indians' 40-man roster is at 38. Andy Marte is another candidate to find his way off the 40-man, in my opinion.
- If Carl Crawford has similar offers elsewhere, he'd need to be convinced to join a former rival like the Yankees or Red Sox says ESPN's Buster Olney.
- The Seibu Lions have again denied Hiroyuki Nakajima's appeal to be posted, according to a report passed along by NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman on Twitter. The Japanese shortstop was said Saturday to be holding out hope.
- Check out the voting for the 2010 Fielding Bible Awards.