Royals Interested In Jeff Francis
The Royals are one of seven teams with interest in Jeff Francis, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter). Crasnick named the Nationals, Pirates, Rangers, Yankees and Mets as suitors for the left-hander late last month. Those clubs, along with the Rockies, maintain interest in Francis, Crasnick writes.
Francis missed all of the 2009 season as he recovered from shoulder surgery. He was generally healthy in 2010, when he logged 104 1/3 innings and posted a 5.00 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 for the Rockies.
The Royals expressed interest in Kevin Millwood early in the offseason. Now that they've traded Zack Greinke, their need for starting pitching is even more apparent. Kyle Davies, Luke Hochevar, Sean O'Sullivan and Vin Mazzaro are internal rotation candidates, but GM Dayton Moore figures to add at least one starter by the time Spring Training begins.
Indians Acquire Joe Martinez
The Indians acquired Joe Martinez from the Pirates for a played to be named or cash considerations, the teams announced today. The Pirates acquired Martinez and John Bowker from the Giants for Javier Lopez at last year's trade deadline, and went on to designate Martinez for assignment late last month.
The right-hander posted a 4.12 ERA in 19 2/3 innings for the Giants and Pirates last year, walking as many hitters as he struck out (9). He also spent time at Triple-A as starter and reliever, posting a 3.94 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 109 2/3 minor league innings. Martinez, a 2005 12th round pick by the Giants, turns 28 next month.
Martinez has two options remaining, according to MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter). That enables the Indians to demote him to the minors without exposing him to other teams.
Pirates To Re-Sign Brian Burres
The Pirates added a candidate for the starting rotation today, agreeing to re-sign Brian Burres, according to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch. Even after he non-tendered the 29-year-old left-hander, GM Neal Huntington maintained that the club had interest in a new deal.
Burres appeared in 20 games for the Pirates last year, serving as a swingman. He started 13 games and relieved in seven others, logging 79 1/3 innings and posting a 4.99 ERA. His strikeout (5.1 K/9) and walk (3.9 BB/9) ratios are below-average, but he will provide the Pirates with depth.
Manager Clint Hurdle will choose between some new additions and some familiar faces when he lines up his 2011 rotation. Burres, Kevin Correia, Scott Olsen, Paul Maholm, Ross Ohlendorf, James McDonald, Charlie Morton, Jeff Karstens, Daniel McCutchen and Brad Lincoln could all start for the Pirates this season.
The Pirates can retain Burres through 2013 if they offer him arbitration.
Several Teams Interested In Brian Fuentes
SATURDAY: Having added Hideki Okajima, the Red Sox appear out of the running for Fuentes, tweets Heyman. However, the Rays, Yankees, and a handful of other teams are still showing interest.
THURSDAY: The Rays appear to be very interested in Fuentes and are pursuing him, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
TUESDAY: SI's Jon Heyman pegs the Red Sox, Blue Jays, Rays, Rockies, Mariners, Twins, Pirates, Phillies, Brewers, Yankees, and Mets as teams with some interest in free agent lefty reliever Brian Fuentes.
If Fuentes is still looking for Scott Downs money, as ESPN's Buster Olney suggested 12 days ago, many of those eleven teams will drop out. I'm skeptical the Red Sox would sign Fuentes, as he'd be a luxury and they'd be hit with a 30% added tax. The Blue Jays appear close with Octavio Dotel, the Rockies just added Matt Lindstrom, the Brewers signed Takashi Saito, the Yankees added Pedro Feliciano, the Twins have big commitments to Joe Nathan and Matt Capps, and the Phillies and Mets appear nearly tapped out on payroll.
The Blue Jays, Rays, Mariners, Twins, Pirates, Yankees, and Mets do seem destined to add relievers, though I can see a shift toward a buyer's market a few weeks from now.
New Look For Pirates’ Bench
There are always many ways for 105-loss teams to improve and last year's Pittsburgh Pirates are no exception. GM Neal Huntington has signed starting pitchers (Kevin Correia, Scott Olsen) and a pair of bats (Lyle Overbay, Matt Diaz), but he’s also working to improve the Pirates' bench.
The team has cut ties with Andy LaRoche, Delwyn Young, Akinori Iwamura and Bobby Crosby, a group that was well below average in 2010. WAR, a stat which measures a player’s overall on-field contribution, suggests those four players combined to produce two wins less than replacement players would have mustered. The Pirates may have had more pressing needs this offseason, but their bench had to be revamped.
Last week, the team made two acquisitions that will give manager Clint Hurdle more options in Spring Training. Garrett Atkins, a player who’s familiar with Hurdle from their days in Colorado, and former A’s farmhand Corey Wimberly are now members of the Pirates organization.
Atkins will compete for a corner utility job and Huntington says Wimberly will also be a candidate to back up the likes of Ronny Cedeno, Neil Walker and Pedro Alvarez on the infield.
“We traded for Wimberly because his defensive versatility and speed makes him a quality role player with some upside for more,” Huntington told MLBTR.
Wimberly should be able to handle a number of roles. The 27-year-old switch hitter played ten or more games as a center fielder, left fielder, shortstop, second baseman and third baseman at Triple-A last year. In the process, he batted .284/.373/.354, led the Pacific Coast League in stolen bases (56 SB) and walked (58 BB) nearly as much as he struck out (64 K).
But Wimberly and Atkins will have competition this Spring. Rule 5 pick Josh Rodriguez is about as versatile as Wimberly. The former Indians prospect played all three outfield positions and every infield position but first base in the upper minors last year, batting .297/.378/.484.
Pedro Ciriaco, a product of the deal that brought Chris Snyder to Pittsburgh, could also win a big league job. The 25-year-old middle infielder hasn’t showed the same offensive promise as Wimberly or Rodriguez (.265/.281/.387 Triple-A line last year), but he did appear in eight big league games in 2010.
Like Atkins, who has a .294/.379/.467 line against lefties in his career, Steve Pearce can handle southpaws. The powerful first baseman/right fielder has a .304/.372/.557 line against left-handed pitching as a major leaguer. He’ll likely compete with Atkins to make the team as a corner infielder who can spell Lyle Overbay and Pedro Alvarez, two starters who bat from the left side.
Andy Marte and Josh Fields both have extensive big league experience at third base and could contribute off the bench in 2011. Neither player hit much last year, but the two former top prospects have played first base as well as at the hot corner.
These seemingly minor acquisitions are important ones for a team that could have used considerably more production off the bench in 2010. There are no guarantees for Atkins, who struggled mightily in 2010 or the others, who have not had extended big league success. But these additions could transform the Pirates' bench from significantly below average to respectable.
Unfinished Business: NL Central
We looked at the NL East earlier; now it's time to examine the unfinished business of NL Central clubs.
- Cubs: Starting pitcher. ESPN's Bruce Levine says the Cubs are still talking to Tampa Bay about Matt Garza, though the Rays seem to prefer to hang on to him. The Cubs' rotation is already five-deep, so adding a back-end guy wouldn't make sense.
- Reds: Lefty reliever, left-handed hitting outfielder/leadoff hitter, backup shortstop, Joey Votto extension. The Reds have a small amount of cash to play with after Arthur Rhodes signed with the Rangers. Scott Podsednik or Fred Lewis could fit into their tight budget. NL MVP Votto will be tough to lock up, but he's under team control through 2013 anyway.
- Astros: Lefty reliever. The Astros will probably stay in-house for left-handed relief, though they could make a minor move. They also appear reluctant to sign a left fielder and affect Brett Wallace's playing time. Their last move may be trading Jeff Keppinger to clear a little payroll.
- Brewers: None. After signing Takashi Saito today, the Brewers might be done with a successful offseason. They have Yuniesky Betancourt at shortstop and Carlos Gomez/Chris Dickerson in center, but don't appear to be looking for upgrades.
- Pirates: Veteran reliever, starting pitcher, taker for Ryan Doumit. Despite the signings of Kevin Correia and Scott Olsen, MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch says they're still looking for starting pitching. They've also been in on Octavio Dotel and others and appear to be shopping Doumit.
- Cardinals: Albert Pujols extension, pitching depth. There was word on December 8th from Joe Strauss that the Cards were shopping for a sixth starter and big league reliever, though MLB.com's Matthew Leach wrote six days ago that they appear to be done adding Major Leaguers. An established backup third baseman wouldn't hurt. The dominating story for the next several weeks should be Pujols, who will be perilously close to free agency if the Cards don't get something done before spring training.
Extension Candidate: Andrew McCutchen
When the Reds inked Jay Bruce to a six-year extension earlier this month, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review took the opportunity to examine how the contract could affect Andrew McCutchen. While the Pirates have not yet discussed a multiyear extension with their center fielder, Biertempfel suggested that McCutchen's value would be similar to Bruce's.
The more appropriate comparison for McCutchen might actually be the player whose contract Bruce's appeared to be modeled after – Justin Upton and his six-year, $51.25MM extension. When Upton signed the extension last winter, he had posted a career slash line of .272/.350/.485 in 1157 plate appearances. At the time, McCutchen acknowledged his track record in the majors wasn't as strong as that of the Diamondbacks' outfielder, but after a strong 2010 season, the gap has closed. McCutchen's current .286/.365/.459 line, in 1146 plate appearances, matches up well with Upton's pre-2010 numbers. Upton exhibited a little more power (43 HR to McCutchen's 28), and played better defense, according to UZR. However, McCutchen plays the more challenging position in the outfield, and is more dangerous on the basepaths (55 SB to Upton's 23).
While Upton, Bruce, and McCutchen are all comparable talents, performance and potential aren't the only factors the Pirates will take into consideration when deciding whether to extend McCutchen. One difference between Upton's and Bruce's deals involves service time – Upton had acculumated just over two years of major league time when he inked his extension, meaning the first of the six years was a pre-arbitration season. As such, his contract covers just two free agent years, while Bruce's covers three, with a club option for the fourth.
Heading into the 2011 campaign, McCutchen has racked up one year and 123 days of service time, which poses an interesting dilemma for both the Pirates and McCutchen's representation. This fall, Bruce was among the group of players who became arbitration eligible early by achieving Super Two status; this year's cutoff was just two years and 122 days of service time. If the cutoff is similar in 2011, McCutchen could become arbitration eligible as early as 2012, which would have a significant impact on Pittsburgh's payroll going forward. Because of the uncertainty surrounding the 24-year-old's status, the two sides may choose to wait for some clarity before seriously discussing a long-term deal.
The more pressing question than the issue of service time though is whether the Pirates will even be willing to pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $50MM in a multiyear extension. Players who have roamed the Pittsburgh outfield in recent years, such as Jason Bay, Nate McLouth, and Xavier Nady, have all eventually been traded before their salaries became exorbitant.
Such an extension for McCutchen wouldn't be entirely unprecedented though. Ten years ago, the Pirates agreed to a six-year, $60MM deal with Jason Kendall, the largest contract in team history. And while they haven't committed nearly that much money to a player in recent years, the club has exhibited a willingness to spend some cash; they've committed big money on the amateur draft and, as MLBTR's transaction tracker shows, have added a handful of major league free agents this month. Perhaps, with youngsters like Pedro Alvarez, Jose Tabata, and Neil Walker now playing at the big league level, and with plenty of promising minor league talent on the way, Pittsburgh would be inclined to keep their core intact by locking up McCutchen, the relative veteran of the group.
For now, the bet here is that the Pirates wait to verify whether or not McCutchen will become a Super Two. Regardless of when he becomes eligible for arbitration, the 24-year-old will be under team control through 2015, which should give the two sides plenty of time to talk.
Pirates, A’s Swap Minor Leaguers
The Pirates acquired Corey Wimberly from the A's, according to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch (on Twitter). The A's acquire right-hander Ryan Kelly in the deal, according to MLB.com's Jane Lee.
Wimberly has not appeared in the majors, but he turned in a productive season as a utility player for the A's at Triple-A in 2010. The 27-year-old posted a .284/.373/.354 line with 56 steals while playing at least ten games at short, second, third, left and center.
Kelly, a 23-year-old reliever, posted a 4.20 ERA with 9.0 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 75 innings at A ball last year. It was his second season in the South Atlantic League and his fourth as a pro, so his ascension through the minors has been unhurried.
Pirates Sign Garrett Atkins
The Pirates announced that they signed Garrett Atkins to a minor league contract and invited him to Spring Training. He'll earn $800K in the major leagues, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter). Agent Jeff Blank represents Atkins.
The Orioles signed Atkins after the Rockies non-tendered him last offseason, but the O's released him in July. Atkins batted .214/.276/.286 in 152 plate appearances last year and saw his home run total dip for a fourth consecutive season.
If the signing works out, Atkins could spell first baseman Lyle Overbay against lefties. Overbay has a career .279/.375/.463 line against right-handers and Atkins has a career .294/.379/.467 line against southpaws, so there's a potential platoon fit here. Third baseman Pedro Alvarez also bats from the left side, so the Pirates could rest him against left-handers and play Atkins at the hot corner.
Atkins can play both corner infield positions, though most of his big league experience comes at third base. He will play under Pirates skipper Clint Hurdle, who managed him in Colorado.
Pirates Claim Aaron Thompson, DFA Ledezma
The Pirates announced that they claimed left-hander Aaron Thompson off of waivers from the Nationals and designated Wil Ledezma for assignment.
Thompson, a 2005 first rounder who turns 24 in February, posted a 5.65 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 in 141 2/3 innings for the Nationals' Double-A and Triple-A affiliates last year. The longtime Marlins farmhand has yet to appear in the major leagues.
The Pirates agreed to terms on a one-year deal with Ledezma last month, avoiding arbitration. The lefty, who turns 30 next month, posted a 6.86 ERA with 10.1 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 19 2/3 innings for the Pirates last year.