Jack Cust Clears Waivers
SATURDAY, 11:05am: Cust has accepted his outright assignment to the minors according to the team. Smart move, I'm not sure he would have been able to find another $2.65MM on the free agent market.
12:19pm: Slusser counter–tweets that Cust's camp says a decision has not been made and it may take a few more days. She explains in an article that Cust is likely to accept the assignment, as he won't receive his $2.65MM if he doesn't.
FRIDAY, 10:42am: Cust has accepted the assignment to Triple A, reports CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban.
THURSDAY, 10:25pm: Cust cleared waivers, tweets Slusser, but it's not yet known whether he'll accept an assignment to Triple A.
SATURDAY, 7:11pm: The Athletics have designated Jack Cust for assignment, according to Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter). Slusser mentions that if he clears waivers, he would consider a minor league assignment to remain with the team.
Oakland non-tendered Cust back in December, then re-signed him to a one year, $2.65MM deal in January. The 31-year-old has seen his performance decline each year since his 2007 breakout campaign, bottoming out at .240/.356/.417 with 25 homers last year. He's led the American League in strikeouts each of the last three seasons, though the power and on-base numbers have continued to decline, and he's never had any defensive value.
With both Travis Buck and Jake Fox making the team, there was just no room for Cust and his limited skill set. Any team that were to claim him off waivers would assume the full $2.65MM on his deal, but would still have another year of team control.
Discussion: Kurt Suzuki Extension
A month ago, CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban wrote that prelimary talks on an extension for Athletics catcher Kurt Suzuki are underway. However, Susan Slusser and John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle heard differently from the catcher's agent. Suzuki, 26, is eligible for arbitration for the first time after the season. Let's look at possible comparables for an extension. (Arb means arbitration, FA means free agent year).
- Yadier Molina, Cardinals: Four-year, $15.5MM deal covers arb 1-3 and FA 1, with a club option on FA 2. Received $9.25MM for three arb years. Signed in January of '08.
- Chris Snyder, Diamondbacks. Three-year, $14.25MM deal covers arb 2-3 and FA 1, with a club option on FA 2. Though deal did not cover all three arb years, Snyder received $9.6MM for them. Signed in December of '08.
- Ryan Doumit, Pirates. Three-year, $11.5MM deal covers arb 1-3 with club options on FA 1-2. Receives $10.7MM for three arb years. Signed in December of '08.
- Carlos Ruiz, Phillies. Three-year, $8.85MM deal covers arb 1-3 with a club option on FA 1. Received $8.35MM for three arb years. Signed in Janunary of '10.
- Kelly Shoppach, Rays. Two-year, $5.55MM deal covers arb 2-3 with a club option on FA 1. Will receive $7.2MM for three arb years, though arb 1 wasn't covered in the deal. Signed in January of '10.
- Chris Iannetta, Rockies. Three-year, $8.35MM deal covers arb 1-3 with a club option on FA 1. Will receive $7.85MM for three arb years.
- Doumit, Ruiz, and Iannetta are the best comparables, in that they signed before their first arbitration seasons and relatively recently. But unlike these three, Suzuki will have about 500 games under his belt when he reaches arbitration. Even though they're all being compared as 3+ service time players, Suzuki will have a full season's worth of games (and the accompanying counting stats) more than the others.
- Although Doumit was overpaid, Suzuki has a strong case to top his arbitration year salaries. Suzuki's first free agent year could be in the $6-8MM range, whether it's guaranteed or a club option. If Suzuki allows for a club option, he should seek a deal worth at least $12MM. The option would be convenient for the A's, as top catching prospect Max Stassi may be ready by 2014. From Suzuki's point of view, he'd get a buyout if the option is declined and reach free agency as a 30-year-old.
Athletics Claim Jai Miller Off Waivers
The Athletics claimed outfielder Jai Miller off waivers from the Marlins and optioned him to Triple A, according to the team's Twitter feed. Miller had been designated for assignment five days ago, as the Marlins cleared spots for Mike Lamb and Jose Veras.
Miller, 25, hit .289/.360/.510 in his second Triple A stint for the Marlins last year, playing right and center field. Back in their '08 Handbook, Baseball America said his doubters wonder if "Miller isn't merely the next Reggie Abercrombie, a tools-laden player whose skills never fully transferred to the diamond." Two years later, they wrote that "some in the organization still see him as a late bloomer with Mike Cameron characteristics."
2011 Contract Issues: Oakland Athletics
Let's start with a look at the Athletics' 2011 options:
- Eric Chavez has a $12.5MM club option with a $3MM buyout. This appears highly unlikely to be exercised.
- Mark Ellis has a $6MM club option with a $500K buyout. Ellis missed a large chunk of last year with a calf strain and hasn't played a full season since '07. Should he stay relatively healthy and maintain his top-notch defense, WAR might suggest Ellis will be worth the $5.5MM net price in 2011. Still, the A's would have to weigh their many second base alternatives as well as Ellis' market value.
- Coco Crisp has a $5.75MM club option with a $500K buyout. The club option is the silver lining on a pretty risky signing.
After 2010, the A's will be free of their $4MM obligation to Willy Taveras. Veteran starters Ben Sheets and Justin Duchscherer will be eligible for free agency.
The Athletics' first-year arbitration players will include Kurt Suzuki, Ryan Sweeney, Dallas Braden, Craig Breslow, and Travis Buck. A long-term deal for Suzuki may be in order. The A's will also have Kevin Kouzmanoff, Rajai Davis, and Joey Devine due raises as second-year arbitration players. Gabe Gross and Chad Gaudin are two more arbitration-eligible players, though they stand a chance of being non-tendered.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the information.
Billy Beane Talks To Athletics Nation
General manager Billy Beane spoke to Tyler Bleszinski of Athletics Nation about a week ago. Check out the interview here and here. A few hot stove-related highlights:
- Beane was told the A's were the runners-up in the Aroldis Chapman bidding. He said "I think we got slightly outbid" by the Reds' six-year, $30.25MM offer to the Cuban lefty.
- Center fielder Coco Crisp, signed to a one-year, $5.5MM deal, was considered "good value relative to the cost." Beane admitted that the A's probably will not be able to afford to re-sign Crisp if he has a healthy season. While there was trade interest in Rajai Davis, Beane is looking for continuity.
- Beane was frank in saying that he expects to "follow the cycle" of the last 10-15 years if the team does not get a new venue. That implies trading Ben Sheets and/or other veterans in July if the team falls out of contention, but conversely making acquisitions if the A's are still in the hunt.
- Brad Pitt met with Beane in preparation for the actor's role in the Moneyball movie. Beane described Pitt as "very down-to-earth."
Odds & Ends: Rule 5, Jones, Hechevarria, Brewers
Links for Easter Sunday…
- Baseball America's John Manuel provides updates on five Rule 5 picks: Carlos Monasterios with the Dodgers, John Raynor with the Pirates, Zachary Kroenke, who was optioned to the minors by the D'Backs, Kanekoa Texeira with the Mariners, and David Herndon with the Phillies.
- Peter Gammons previews storylines for the 2010 season, such as emerging stars, prospects of the future, a slew of contenders, and the ever-present unpredictability of baseball.
- Dave Campbell of the AP looks at Jacque Jones and how Minnesota's late-season surge in 2009 inspired a comeback attempt for 2010 when he was on the verge of retirement. Jones is reporting to Triple-A Rochester after hitting .366/.409/.585 with the Twins this spring.
- In an interview with Mike Wilner of the FAN 590 in Toronto, Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos said while the team hasn't officially said anything about Adeiny Hechevarria, international cases like his are often slowed by visa issues and other approval processes.
- Tom Haudricourt tweets that there will be no last-minute changes to the Brewers 25-man roster.
- The San Francisco Chronicle's Susan Slusser spoke with recently-DFA'ed Jack Cust, who is shocked and offended by the move. Cust says he will accept a minor league assignment if he clears waivers, but won't let Oakland "walk all over" him. The 31-year-old slugger has led the A's in home runs the past three seasons. Slusser takes a deeper look at the Cust move in a separate piece.
- Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times looks at what the Cubs' performance in 2010 means to Jim Hendry's job, and talks to several players about their positive relationships with the Chicago GM.
- Elliot Johnson cleared waivers and will report to Triple-A Durham, according to Marc Topkin. He adds that the Rays have set their roster and are waiting to hear from Hank Blalock on whether or not he'll accept a minor league assignment.
Offseason Questions For The AL West
With all the offseason reviews completed, we're asking a few questions of every team. The AL West is on the hot seat this time.
- Did the Angels overpay Bobby Abreu and Fernando Rodney? Can Joel Pineiro adequately replace John Lackey?
- The A's guaranteed $17.5MM to three players who barely played last year in Ben Sheets, Justin Duchscherer, and Coco Crisp. Were these signings too risky? Will left-side infield Plan Bs Kevin Kouzmanoff and Cliff Pennington provide sufficient production, after Adrian Beltre and Marco Scutaro chose to sign elsewhere?
- Could the $5.8MM the Mariners spent on Ken Griffey Jr. and Casey Kotchman have gone toward a more productive bat or two? Did the Ms sell high on Brandon Morrow, and should they have added another veteran starter?
- Similar to the A's, the Rangers committed $19MM to three high-variance players in Rich Harden, Vladimir Guerrero, and Colby Lewis. Will at least two of the three play to their upside?
Odds & Ends: Lowell, Redding, Brantley, Wilson
Some news items as we say goodbye to March and hello to another great baseball-filled April…
- ESPN's Rob Neyer thinks the Rangers should just go ahead and acquire Mike Lowell, since the reported $3MM gap between Texas and Boston is a small price to pay for solidifying the Rangers' first base platoon. Given the number of conflicting reports about the deal, it's hard to say if a Lowell-to-Texas trade is imminent or a longshot at this point.
- Tim Redding talks to The Denver Post's Jim Armstrong about being assigned to Colorado's Triple-A team. Four days ago, Tracy Ringolsby of Inside the Rockies pointed out that Redding has an opt-out clause he can use if he finds a spot on another team's 25-man roster. That's unlikely; Ringolsby says the Mariners scouted Redding but came away unimpressed.
- The Indians were hoping to hold up Michael Brantley's service clock, but his strong Spring Training and Russell Branyan's injury forced the club's hand, writes Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. Brantley will now be Cleveland's starting left fielder on Opening Day.
- Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times takes a look at Angels catcher Bobby Wilson, who is out of options and faces a tough task in finding a roster spot given the Mike Napoli–Jeff Mathis combo behind the plate in Los Angeles. If the Angels are forced to put Wilson on waivers, you'd figure that several teams would be interested in a catcher who has a solid .283/.338/.423 line in 2642 minor league plate appearances.
- Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com chatted with fans about a number of A's and Giants-related topics, including Urban's belief that the extensions for Matt Cain, Brian Wilson and Jeremy Affeldt may have been inspired by San Francisco's confidence in their upcoming crop of position players.
- In another online chat, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch mentioned that the Cardinals are interested in acquiring a left-handed power bat for the bench. Strauss noted the club's "history of eleventh-hour spring training moves."
Odds & Ends: Offenses, Ben Snyder, Kelly Johnson
Action-packed links for Wednesday…
- NL offense rankings are up at RotoAuthority, courtesy of CHONE projections and the Baseball Musings lineup analysis tool. The Rockies are on top and the Padres bring up the rear, but plenty will change as the season unfolds.
- Two closers were named in recent days, and our Twitter account @CloserNews passed along the info instantly to allow you to make the winning fantasy pickups.
- The Rangers are attempting to work out a trade with the Giants that will allow them to retain Rule 5 lefty Ben Snyder, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Snyder already cleared waivers, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Sullivan also notes that Matt Treanor chose not to exercise his out clause; he's headed to Triple A.
- WEEI's Rob Bradford writes that although the Rangers are scouting Mike Lowell today and they're more interested in him than any other club, a deal is unlikely now and the Rangers would want the Red Sox to pay almost all of his salary. Bradford also notes that earlier this offseason, the Rangers expressed interest in Jed Lowrie.
- Free agent Kevin Millar hopes to continue his playing career, he explained on ESPN's Waddle & Silvy show.
- Diamondbacks second baseman Kelly Johnson strongly considered offers from the Blue Jays, Pirates, and Indians, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
- The A's feel that out of options players Eric Patterson and Jake Fox would not clear waivers, so they're likely to send Landon Powell and Adam Rosales down (Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reporting).
- Baseball America's Matt Eddy offers analysis and predictions for seven out of options pitchers.
- The Orioles are looking for a suitor for catcher Chad Moeller, who is "shocked and disappointed" about not making the team according to Dan Connolly and Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltmore Sun. Peter Schmuck feels that Moeller was a better choice than Craig Tatum.
- Jeff Suppan explained to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy that he's not dealing with a phantom neck injury, despite the convenient timing.
- Though they could've saved $750K, the Nationals chose not to cut Scott Olsen according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs knows the Mariners, and he analyzes the organization's health in this article.
Odds & Ends: Gaudin, Stairs, Lowell, Darvish
Links for Monday…
- FoxSports.com's Jon Paul Morosi spoke to one executive who thinks the lack of open 40-man roster spots is inhibiting trades. There are only 28 open spots across the league, and more than half of the teams are maxed out.
- Chad Gaudin said he considered "a couple" of other teams before deciding to rejoin the A's, reports MLB.com's Jane Lee.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock reminds us that the Padres will have to remove someone from their 40-man roster before Opening Day to make room for Matt Stairs.
- The Rangers have a scout on hand to watch Mike Lowell play third base tonight, tweets ESPN Boston's Gordon Edes. This deal has to get done eventually, right?
- The Braves were concerned the Marlins would take Jason Heyward at #12 in the 2007 draft, writes Yahoo's Jeff Passan.
- Yu Darvish hinted for the first time that he might be willing to come to MLB, says Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. Newman passes along a Sponichi report in which Darvish said, "Well, I’m planning on climbing the ladder, step by step," when asked about moving to MLB one day. Newman notes that Darvish isn't close to free agency, so the Nippon Ham Fighters would have to post him.
- SI's Jon Heyman writes that the Mariners and Jarrod Washburn "are believed to remain apart on the dollars for a new deal."
- Brian Cashman and Johnny Damon met in person for the first time since Damon left the Yankees, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- MLB.com's Peter Gammons names six clubs that might be better than you think.