Athletics Rumors: Chapman, Duchscherer, Beltre
Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle brings us the latest A's buzz…
- The A's are "in the thick of the bidding" for Aroldis Chapman. We saw a tweet yesterday from MLB.com's Joe Frisaro that the Marlins are also "firmly in the Chapman sweepstakes." ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. pointed out yesterday that Chapman stands to lose millions to taxes if he signs in 2010, and it's unlikely the paperwork could be done in time even if an agreement is reached in '09.
- Slusser says Justin Duchscherer had a physical yesterday and his signing should be announced this morning. His contract calls for a $2MM base with another $3.5MM in incentives.
- The Athletics' talks for Adrian Beltre "have not progressed much beyond the initial stages," writes Slusser. ESPN's Buster Olney wrote on Saturday that the A's are "taking a serious look" at Beltre. We read details on Boston's interest from ESPN's Gordon Edes yesterday.
Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Beltre, Morrow
Some Saturday afternoon links..
- The Dodgers should have offered salary arbitration to Randy Wolf and Orlando Hudsonto allow themselves the opportunity to receive draft picks, writes Jon Weisman of the Los Angeles Times. Weisman argues that the worst case scenario of being stuck with one or both players at a slightly inflated price for one season wouldn't have been so bad. It's hard to dispute this point as we have yet to see the Dodgers do much of anything this winter.
- Not only are the Athletics talking to free agent Adrian Beltre, they may be the only serious bidder at the moment, according to an item on ESPN's MLB rumor page. The piece also notes that if Beltre's asking price - believed to be north of $10MM per season – drops into Oakland's price range, the Giants, Cardinals, and Tigers could get in the mix.
- Seattle's poor decisions stunted the development of Brandon Morrow, writes Ryan Divish of The News Tribune. While he never had the same ceiling as Tim Lincecum, who was drafted five spots later in the 2006 draft, things could have worked out differently for Morrow if he were given adequate time to develop in the minors.
- Shi Davidi of the Associated Presspraises new Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos and his plan to rebuild the franchise. Davidi writes that Anthopoulos has the support of ownership in a way that J.P. Ricciardi never did.
- A few free agents left on the market might want to consider lowering their asking price, writes Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Adam LaRoche seeking $30MM over three years might be the most wishful of the bunch.
Olney on Bay, Beltre, Holliday
ESPN.com's Buster Olney believes the Yankees and Red Sox when they say that they have budget lines that they are not currently willing to cross. When the trade deadline rolls around, however, it will likely be a different story. Olney brings us his take on the teams who are still willing to spend this winter…
- Since Jason Bay continues to sit on their offer, the Mets may soon give up on him and move on to less expensive free agents. Olney suggests that they ignore fans who are focused on big names and instead spend their money on players who can be had for short-term deals, such as Randy Winn and Orlando Hudson. The Mets "seem to have" something in the range of $15MM to $22MM in payroll flexibility.
- The Mets are shopping for a catcher, left fielder, and starting pitcher. Joel Pineiro tops their list of desired starters.
- Olney characterized the A's consideration of Adrian Beltre as "serious."
- As the Cardinals continue to wait on Matt Holliday's answer, Olney wonders out loud if the club might look into signing Bay as a backup plan.
- Rival executives sense that the M's have some money left to spend, but not a great deal. Seattle needs either a first baseman or second baseman plus help for the back end of their rotation.
- Because of the mass of arbitration-eligible players on their roster, the Angels have limited payroll flexibility. This means that they could pursue Pineiro if they chose to, but are unlikely to factor into the bidding for Bay or Holliday.
Odds & Ends: Yankees, Beltre, Carroll
Merry Christmas everyone! It's time to see what news has been left for us under the tree. I hope there's a vortex football in there for me as well…
- Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports took a look at the offseason thus far in the National League. For his portion on the Cubs, Ringolsby writes that they got the better end of the Milton Bradley-for-Carlos Silva swap.
- Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball counted up the money spent by every team in baseball from 1999-2009, using the end of year salary totals. Over this stretch, the Yankees have spent 44% more than the number two top spender, the Red Sox.
- Sam Borden of the LoHud Yankees Blog takes a look at the remaining free agents who could fill the Yankees' vacancy in left field. Three names that jump out to him: Jonny Gomes, Xavier Nady, and Reed Johnson. Although Gomes had a strong '09 offensively (.879 OPS), his career defensive metrics leave much to be desired. Nady, of course, is only an attractive option if healthy.
- The A's are talking with free agent Adrian Beltre, according to the headline of a post by Mychael Urban of Comcast SportsNet. We first heard that Oakland was interested a week ago, but "only in an Oakland economy size financial package." Urban's piece says that Beltre is reportedly seeking $10-15MM per season.
- Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times writes that Jamey Carroll's contract with the Dodgers does not include the "Ramirez Provision", which is a clause that mandates a donation to the team's charity. While owner Frank McCourt said that the clause would be standard for all contracts after Manny Ramirez signed his new deal, a grievance filed by the player's union may have caused the Dodgers to ease up on the requirement.
- The Chiba Lotte Mariners will be sending a representative to California to negotiate with/for Dodgers pitcher Eric Stults, according to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker who passes along the report from Spinochi. The Japanese club has been interested in Stults for a couple of months and have already been rebuffed by the Dodgers once already.
Athletics Sign Coco Crisp
The Athletics signed center fielder Coco Crisp to a one-year, $5.25MM deal today. He has a 2011 club option for $5.75MM with a $500K buyout. MLBTR first reported the agreement early Sunday, while Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle added the financial details today. Crisp had been talking to the Padres as well.
Crisp, 30, tallied only 215 plate appearances with the Royals this year due to shoulder injuries. He had surgery on both shoulders during the summer and plans to be ready for Spring Training.
Given his salary, Crisp figures to be penciled in as the starting center fielder in Oakland. Scott Hairston, Rajai Davis, and Ryan Sweeney would battle for playing time in the other two spots, unless someone is traded.
Olney On Mets, Chapman, Duchscherer
ESPN.com's Buster Olney says the Mets would still like to sign Jason Bay, but are considering alternatives in case the left fielder's demands don't match their budget. Instead of signing Bay, the Mets could spread their resources and sign a number of the many available free agents. The Mets could obtain lots with the $15-22MM they have available, so Olney envisions some possible solutions. Here are a couple more hot stove notes:
- Aroldis Chapman should sign for more than the $15.67MM that Stephen Strasburg obtained, even though scouts aren't uniformly impressed with the Cuban lefty and wonder if he might end up as a reliever. Chapman is on the open market, while Strasburg could only negotiate with one team. Other clubs tell Olney that the Yankees didn't have much of a presence at Chapman's workout last week.
- Olney hears that the A's could bring Justin Duchscherer back. The right-hander may sign soon.
Odds & Ends: Vazquez, A’s, Orioles, Marlins
A few links…
- ESPN's Keith Law rated David Ortiz signing with Boston as the best free agent pickup of the decade. Darren Dreifort's deal with the Dodgers was the worst, and he called the Erik Bedard trade the biggest of the decade. That last one is certainly debatable; I prefer the Bartolo Colon for Grady Sizemore (plus others) deal.
- Interestingly, Yankees' GM Brian Cashman noted today that the club tried to acquire Javier Vazquez from Arizona after 2005 and the White Sox after 2008, “but we just didn’t match up," reports Chad Jennings of The Journal News.
- Bruce Jenkins of The SF Chronicle says that the A's are winning the battle of the Bay Area this offseason. Of course, the regular season is the battle you really want to win.
- Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports that Orioles' president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said "My guess is I wouldn't think we'll be doing anything anytime soon, which is not to be interpreted as not doing anything between now and Sarasota." The O's finalized the Garrett Atkins deal today.
- MLB.com's Joe Frisaro writes about the Marlins' first base situation, noting that there's certainly no shortage of in-house options.
- Bill Ladson of MLB.com tweets that the Nationals continue to show interest in righty John Smoltz, "but they are not willing to break the bank to get him."
- Coco Crisp's physical with the A's was delayed because of travel issues, so the announcement of his signing will have to wait says Susan Slusser of The SF Chronicle.
- Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball takes a look at the growth of player salaries over the last decade.
- Here's some news on a different kind of contract negotiation: According to the AP (via ESPN) MLB and the umpires hope to have a new agreement in place tomorrow, which will allow for greater flexibility with postseason assignments.
Odds & Ends: Nationals, Podsednik, Duchscherer
Links for Monday…
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that the Nationals still have money left to sign Matt Capps, assuming he wants to go there. Morosi expects Capps to decide on his next team this week.
- In a separate tweet, Morosi notes that the Tigers are only interested in Scott Podsednik if it's a one-year deal. Detroit has no interest in Rick Ankiel.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick reports that Justin Duchscherer has received contract offers from three unnamed teams, and he expects to decide on his 2010 home within a week.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Royals are interested in free agent outfielder Brian Anderson on a minor league deal.
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle sees Rajai Davis and Ryan Sweeney retaining starting jobs in the wake of the impending Coco Crisp signing. Slusser suggests a possible reduced role or trade for Scott Hairston. FanGraphs' Dave Cameron doesn't understand the move, noting that Davis and Sweeney are similar to Crisp. Crisp's physical will take place tomorrow, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.
- Matthew Carruth of Lookout Landing explains that Mariners fans fully understand the dangers of Milton Bradley. The Seattle Times' Geoff Baker reflects on Carlos Silva's time with the club.
- Patrick Newman joins FanGraphs with a look at Japanese baseball imports and exports for 2010. Speaking of which, new Met Ryota Igarashi would like to be Francisco Rodriguez's set-up man.
Odds & Ends: Gonzalez, Bradley, Hamels
Let's have a look at some miscellaneous Sunday links….
- The Tigers purchased the contract of catcher Andy Bouchie from the Long Beach Armada. Bouchie, 24, was a seventh round pick by the Brewers after his junior season at Oral Roberts University, but was released due to catching depth in the Milwaukee system. He hit .290 with 7 home runs and 45 RBI in 59 games in the Golden Baseball League this year.
- Jon Paul Morosi explains why the Padres should wait until July 31 to trade Adrian Gonzalez.
- Larry Stone offers some optimism for Seattle fans with concerns about newly-acquired Milton Bradley in a nice article, reminding us that Bradley has had non-problematic stops over the course of his career. Stone quotes Eddie Guardado, Bud Black, and Ken Macha, all of whom support Bradley.
- Scott Lauber writes that amidst the Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee pandemonium, it's easy to forget about Cole Hamels, but the Phillies haven't. They still see Hamels as a top-of-the-rotation arm and are confident in his ability to rebound from a forgettable 2009.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney writes that Oakland's potential deal with Coco Crisp reflects the value the A's place on defense.
- In his usual lengthy Sunday column, the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo focuses primarily on the Red Sox' moves, past, present, and future. He provides at least one interesting hot stove note though: Mark DeRosa's asking price has come down, and Cafardo wonders if the Mets could sign the infielder and play him at first base.
- Cafardo also mentions that, while plenty of teams are interested in Chien-Ming Wang, the Yankees hope to match any final offer the right-hander receives.
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff can't see any other teams taking a chance on Mike Lowell unless he exhibits good health in Spring Training.
- In a separate article, Davidoff examines the next move for Johnny Damon. Davidoff lists the Braves, Rays, Cubs, and Mets as possible destinations, but concedes there are roadblocks in each case.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports looks at the remaining names on the closing market, concluding that there are too many arms and not enough teams in need of a closer.
- Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun says there's nothing wrong with any of the Orioles' recent signings, but that they aren't the big splashes fans may have hoped to see.
Dodgers Sign Jamey Carroll
The Dodgers signed veteran infielder Jamey Carroll to a two-year deal, as first reported by ESPN's Buster Olney. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports specified the contract's value as $3.85MM. Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times says there's another $500K in incentives. Carroll reportedly drew interest from eight teams this winter.
Carroll hit .276/.355/.340 in 358 plate appearances with Cleveland last season, playing mostly as a second baseman but also seeing significant time at third base and in the outfield. His versatility makes him particularly attractive to the Dodgers, since they stand to lose multiple infielders to free agency and Carroll would fill any number of holes on the bench or in the starting lineup should Blake DeWitt struggle as the everyday second baseman.
Where did the cash-strapped Dodgers get the money for Carroll? Hernandez notes that the infielder's funds came from the money GM Ned Colletti saved by shipping Juan Pierre to the White Sox. Colletti quickly spent about half of the Pierre savings on Carroll.
This post has been rewritten by Tim Dierkes.