Odds and Ends: Rowand, A-Rod, Calero, Clemens
Some odds and ends floating about…
- Andrew Baggarly has the structure of Aaron Rowand‘s new deal. It’s quite backloaded and has partial no-trade protection after the first year.
- The Yankees made A-Rod’s ten-year deal official.
- The A’s quickly moved to sign Kiko Calero to a one-year deal the day after non-tendering him. I mentioned here that he was a solid reliever for four years prior to 2007.
- The Rocket denies the steroid allegations. Thoughts?
Today’s Non-tenders: Towers, Prior, Everett, Durbin
Tim’s out for the night, so we’ve got a fresh post started for the non-tenders. MLB.com has a running list as well.
These guys are the officials as of now:
- As expected, the Marlins non-tendered catcher Miguel Olivo. Johnny Estrada was another casualty; these two make up the market for starting catchers.
- The Blue Jays non-tendered Josh Towers, a surprising move. Some NL team could offer him two years and get league average work out of him.
- Mark Prior has been non-tendered. Honestly if I were the Cubs, I would’ve tossed the $3.5MM his way just to see.
- Aaron Miles is now a free agent.
- The A’s cut Kiko Calero loose.
- The Padres have non-tendered four: Morgan Ensberg, Jason Lane, and pitchers Jack Cassell and Ryan Ketchner. RotoWorld speculates that the latter two, not arbitration eligible, could be offered minor league deals.
- The Royals cut the cord on Emil Brown. He turns 33 soon; he hit an ugly .257/.300/.347 in 2007. Brown earned $3.45MM in ’07.
- The Tigers non-tendered Chad Durbin, toss him into the free agent pool. Guess those trade talks with the Bucs didn’t work out.
- The Twins have let go Jason Tyner.
- The Nats have cut bait with Nook Logan and LHP Michael O’Connor.
- The Dodgers wave goodbye to Mark Hendrickson.
- The White Sox have non-tendered Andy Gonzalez and LHP Heath Phillips. Joe Crede sticks with the Pale Hose for now.
- Adam Everett has lost his job with the Astros. It’d be kind of funny if the Orioles signed him.
- Per RotoWorld, the Angels have non-tendered Dallas McPherson. He’s full of potential, but he’s never come through. He’s only 27, though, so he could still catch on somewhere. Unless, RotoWorld notes, he has an agreement in place with the Angels.
- The Braves have non-tendered Willie Harris, though he had already been DFA’d.
–Joe and Tim
Indians Rumors: Haren, Blanton, Bedard, Inge
Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer gets the Indians rumor mill churning.
- As we mentioned earlier today, the Indians have spoken to the A’s about Dan Haren and Joe Blanton. They’ve also inquired on Erik Bedard. The Tribe is quietly looking to pair C.C. Sabathia with another ace. Such an acquisition would soften the blow if Sabathia leaves after the ’08 season. Hoynes says a Haren acquisition might require one player from the Indians’ 25-man roster plus at least one near MLB-ready guy.
- The Tribe had brief talks with Detroit about Brandon Inge, but they’ve moved on. Doesn’t seem to be much interest in Inge.
- Cliff Lee and Kelly Shoppach weren’t part of the Jason Bay discussions. Instead, the Pirates were looking for a slew of the Indians’ best prospects. It seems the Bay talks have since cooled.
Surprise Players For Haren
During the Winter Meetings, there wasn’t much talk of the Indians or Reds pursuing Oakland starter Dan Haren. However, there’s buzz that both Ohio teams have interest.
The Tribe definitely inquired on Haren. See Susan Slusser’s article today, where she notes that Asdrubal Cabrera was "believed to be an A’s target." The Indians don’t want to part with the young infielder, a player they stole from the Mariners in June of 2006 for Eduardo Perez. Paul Hoynes further solidifies it, saying Mark Shapiro has spoken to Billy Beane about Haren.
Slusser believes the Reds "might turn their focus toward Haren with an offer that could include starter Homer Bailey" if they can’t get Erik Bedard. Slusser’s report is unclear whether Wayne Krivsky has had conversations with Billy Beane about Haren. Ken Rosenthal says the Reds are "pushing for Haren," which does indicate talks.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Santana, Cabrera, Kuroda, Edmonds, Rolen
Ken Rosenthal checks in with the latest hot stove buzz around baseball.
- Johan Santana is Boston’s only target – they’re not after Dan Haren or any other starter. The talks keep slugging along. For what it’s worth, Curt Schilling expects the Red Sox to get him.
- 36 year-old first baseman Alex Cabrera is a sleeper power threat among free agents. The former Rockie, Cub, and Diamondback has been mashing in Japan since 2001. The Nationals don’t have any room for him but want him anyway. Rosenthal says A.L. clubs are looking at him as a DH candidate, also. Cabrera hit .295/.377/.512 with 27 HR in 441 ABs in Japan in 2007.
- Hiroki Kuroda has not reached an agreement with any team, according to Rosenthal.
- The Padres are still considering Jim Edmonds as a center field candidate.
- Here’s a new one: the Indians expressed interest in Scott Rolen. The talks have cooled however.
- Rosenthal says the Astros don’t think they will get Miguel Tejada. Instead they’ve moved on to…Ron Mahay and Jeremy Affeldt.
D’Backs Put Offer On Table For Haren
According to John Mahnke of the East Valley Tribune, the Diamondbacks have a trade offer out to the A’s for Dan Haren. The package includes Carlos Gonzalez, Emilio Bonifacio, and Brett Anderson – but not Max Scherzer.
Gonzalez is apparently the headliner – the A’s would try him in center field even though he’s mostly played right. Mahnke says Gonzalez hasn’t appeared in a winter league game in over a week, and that’s a sign that he’s part of a possible trade.
It’d be surprising to see Josh Byrnes pull this off without giving up any young Major Leaguers. However, none have been named as part of Arizona’s offer as of yet. The D’Backs are one of few teams that could pull this off without disrupting their big league club much. Pairing Brandon Webb with Haren could really help the team plow through playoff series.
Odds And Ends: Inge, Gagne, Pavano
Couple of findings around the Internets:
- Drew Sharp argues that Brandon Inge should stay with the Tigers. His argument is that Inge would still get 300 or so at bats and would be playing for a surefire contender. If he was to be traded, he likely wouldn’t land with a team nearly as good. Plus, with some of the injury histories of current Tigers, it might be best for Inge to wait around for playing time.
- Though the Rangers were interested in Eric Gagne, they were only $6 million interested. For a one-year deal with an option, there was little chance of that happening. Gagne likely would have sooner accepted the Red Sox arbitration offer.
- Carl Pavano will accept a minor league assignment after the Yankees release him this week. They need 40-man roster spots for Alex Rodriguez and Mariano Rivera. They’ve already released Bronson Sardinha to make room for Andy Pettitte.
- Monte Pool dislikes the idea of the A’s signing Barry Bonds. He mentions what you’d expect: The trial, his health, and the money.
–Joe
Coco Crisp’s Agent Speaks
Coco Crisp‘s agent, Steve Comte, supplied all sorts of quotes to the Boston Herald’s Rob Bradford. Covelli’s not a fourth outfielder, he’s better than Jacoby Ellsbury, he’s a proven commodity, stuff like that. It was interesting to read, and you can see where Crisp and Comte are coming from. But it doesn’t really change anything, because if the Red Sox don’t trade Crisp and he wants his $4.75MM next year, he’s going to have to live with a reduced role.
Bradford mentions that the White Sox, A’s, Rangers, and Braves have inquired on Crisp. The Padres, Twins, and Orioles have also been connected to him.
D’Backs Still Searching For A Starter
The D’Backs’ loss of Livan Hernandez should become official today when he declines their offer of arbitration. That leaves the team with a rotation of Brandon Webb, Randy Johnson, Doug Davis, and Micah Owings. The Big Unit is a question mark, so a starter must be acquired.
Back on November 15th, Nick Piecoro noted the team’s interest in Matt Clement and Bartolo Colon. But the Diamondbacks are sticking to their no bonuses/no escalator clauses mandate. So that pair will probably look elsewhere.
Hiroki Kuroda received a three-year offer and a pitch video featuring Randy Johnson. He’ll visit Arizona next week. If he chooses Seattle, L.A., or Kansas City, the D’Backs will have to move on. It’s rumored that the Ms added a fourth year to their offer.
The big name is Dan Haren. Jack Magruder says Arizona’s proposal included two of Carlos Gonzalez, Emilio Bonifacio, and Brett Anderson. Magruder believes the A’s are also seeking Major Leaguers, which makes sense. So that huge untouchables list might have to be compromised if the D’Backs are to get Haren.
A’s May Consider Bonds
It was suggested yesterday that the Cardinals had a little bit of interest in free agent Barry Bonds. Not so, according to Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Miklasz was told a while back by team owner Bill DeWitt that it wasn’t happening.
However, Susan Slusser’s article this morning indicates the A’s will consider signing Bonds. Billy Beane recently indicated he was leaning toward playing to win in ’08, so Bonds makes sense. Slusser talked to a Major League exec who said he’d be shocked if it didn’t happen.
Slusser’s industry source says two other teams have expressed interest, and Bonds’ agent said he’s talking to teams from both leagues. Any guesses? It’s known that the Rangers, Twins, Mariners, and Tigers aren’t interested.