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Odds & Ends: Crawford, Alvarez, Mauer, Aumont

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Pirates Notes: Vazquez, Tabata, Alvarez

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Let's check out some Pirates-related tidbits courtesy of MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch..

  • With Ramon Vazquez on the trading block, Langosch stresses that any talk of him being Texas-bound is merely conjecture at this point.  Furthermore, if they do move him, they are unlikely to get much back and may have to eat some of his $2MM salary.  However, Pittsburgh might be willing to move the 33-year-old for next to nothing.
  • One reader asks if the Pirates are considering locking up their young prospects, like Milwaukee did with Ryan Braun or like Tampa Bay did with Evan Longoria.  Langosch says that the Pirates will wait until players like Jose Tabata, Brad Lincoln, and Pedro Alvarez establish themselves in the majors to open up discussions.
  • Speaking of Alvarez, Langosch expects the Pirates to hold off on bringing him up to the big leagues.  Pittsburgh delayed Andrew McCutchen's promotion last season in order to give him more seasoning in the minors and, in all likelihood, to extend his time under team control.

Brian Giles Retires

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Outfielder Brian Giles announced his retirement today, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times.  The Dodgers had signed Giles to a minor league deal on February 7th, and soon after he told MLB.com's Ken Gurnick it wouldn't take long to decide whether his knee could hold up physically.

Though he's not a household name, Giles finishes with an excellent .291/.400/.502 line in 7,835 career plate appearances for the Indians, Pirates, and Padres.  Giles' career OBP currently ranks 59th all-time.  Giles made two All-Star appearances and received MVP votes in five seasons.  He was involved in a blockbuster trade in August of '03, joining the Padres for Jason Bay, Oliver Perez, and Cory Stewart.  According to Baseball Reference, Giles earned about $81MM in his career.

Ramon Vazquez Could Be Traded Or Released

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Infielder Ramon Vazquez is fighting to make the Pirates, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  Vazquez said he's been told he's not on the team right now, despite being guaranteed $2MM in 2010.  GM Neal Huntington admitted he has to consider a trade of some sort, having six players for four bench spots.

A release is the least-desirable approach for the Pirates, since they'd still owe Vazquez's $2MM salary (less $400K if he joins another big league club).  A trade makes more sense, with Kovacevic naming the Rangers and Orioles as possible matches.  Vazquez, 33, hit .230/.335/.279 in 239 plate appearances last year while playing second base, shortstop, and third base.  His poor performance may have been related to a knee injury.

Huntington's plan when signing Vazquez in December of '08 may have been to find a credible back-up middle infielder in case the team traded Freddy Sanchez and/or Jack Wilson.  But you have to question his $4MM commitment to Vazquez, a journeyman platoon player who still didn't hit lefties in his career year '08 season.

Trade Interest In Glen Perkins?

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According to La Velle E. Neal III of The Minneapolis Star-Tribune, scouts from a number of clubs (including the Rockies, Pirates and Blue Jays) watched Glen Perkins pitch on Tuesday night.  It should be noted that the scouts could've been there for any number of reasons or to see any number of players, but the presence of the Toronto scouts is notable given the rumors that the Twins are interested in acquiring Jason Frasor to fill the void left by Joe Nathan's injury.  Given the number of left-handed starting options on the Blue Jays roster, however, one wonders why they'd be looking at Perkins.  The Pirates and Rockies also don't have any obvious need for a left-handed starter, but it's possible one of these clubs could be looking at Perkins as a reliever.

Perkins posted a 5.89 ERA in 18 games (17 of them starts) with Minnesota in 2009 before his season was cut short due to a shoulder injury.  After being sent to the minors for injury rehab, Perkins complained that the move cost him major league service time and filed a grievance against the Twins that was settled over the winter.  Neal wrote in December that the Twins were looking to move Perkins in part because of this dispute.

No Extension Talks Yet For McCutchen

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The Pirates have yet to approach center fielder Andrew McCutchen about a long-term extension, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  Team president Frank Coonelly explained that while McCutchen is the type of player they'd want to lock up, "the earlier you go, the more risk you take on."  McCutchen has only 108 big league games under his belt.

McCutchen told Kovacevic that "it would be cool" to sign a Justin Upton-like extension.  But as the player noted, Upton has significantly more time in the Majors.  I'm not sure he's the right comparable anyway.

McCutchen won't even be arbitration-eligible until after the 2012 season.  The model for an extension might come from this group of signed center fielders: Grady Sizemore, Shane Victorino, Franklin Gutierrez, Curtis Granderson, Nate McLouth, Chris Young, and David DeJesus.  How much will it cost the Pirates to buy out McCutchen's three arbitration years?  That might depend on how much power he displays.  But the players listed gave up their arbitration years at prices ranging from $8.1MM for DeJesus to $17.25MM for Granderson.  Gutierrez, signed most recently, gets $11.5MM.

Kovacevic's article touches on McLouth, as the way he was extended and traded months later was not received well.  Coonelly says that the team's actions will gain the fans' trust.  He also said:

We can never say never, but I will say again that the days of us needing to move players in order to get multiple players in return to rebuild the system, those are over.

Rangers Looking For Reserve Infield Help

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When the Rangers voided the contract of Khalil Greene last week, it appeared as if the club would look within their system for a replacement.  Indeed, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan was told by Texas officials that there was a "100 percent probability" that this would be the case (via Twitter).

A week later, however, Sullivan reports that the team is changing its tune.  Greene provided both infield depth and a right-handed corner infield bat, and now the Rangers "are re-assessing the situation and early confidence that the roles could be filled from within may be eroding."  The team hopes that prospect Max Ramirez or former Angel Matt Brown can handle the corner infield job, but several options exist outside the Rangers organization for the utility infield spot.  Sulllivan noted the Dodgers have some extra infielders in camp and listed a few other specific names as options…

  • Julio Lugo.  He may be the odd man out in St. Louis given the Cardinals' recent signing of Felipe Lopez.  Sullivan noted the irony of Lugo possibly again being acquired to replace Greene, given that St. Louis did the same thing last summer.  Sullivan also said Lugo "is somebody [the Rangers] have talked about internally."
  • Augie Ojeda.  We heard last winter that Texas had some interest in the Diamondbacks infielder.
  • Ramon Vazquez.  Sullivan said "the Pirates may be willing to talk about" dealing the former Ranger.

Ruiz, Anderson Drawing Interest, Could Sign Soon

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Jose Julio Ruiz is drawing more interest than fellow Cuban first baseman Leslie Anderson, reports ESPN.com’s Jorge Arangure Jr.. Ruiz has attracted interest from many teams, including the Red Sox and his agents have fielded multiple offers. It’s unlikely that the 25-year-old will sign before Monday, but he could sign soon. Some teams wonder if Ruiz could hit in the majors immediately.

Anderson worked out in Mexico last week, but the nine teams that watched the 27-year-old were generally unimpressed. One interested executive called the showing "mediocre at best." Still, Anderson could sign with a big league club within a week.

Here are a few other notes from Arangure Jr.:
  • Eduardo Salcedo, an 18-year-old infielder, could be cleared to sign with MLB teams sometime this week. If everything goes through, the D’Backs and Braves will be among the teams interested in signing him. The bidding could reach $2MM for the shortstop-third baseman.
  • The Pirates agreed to sign 17-year-old Dominican outfielder Willy Garcia for $280K. 
  • The D’Backs signed 17-year-old Dominican outfielder Socrates Abrito for $190K.

Odds & Ends: Gonzalez, Benson, Giants, Mariners

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A quick rundown of some of the day's items…

  • In an appearance on WEEI's Dale & Holley Show, ESPN's Keith Law said that the Red Sox are the clear front-runners if and when Adrian Gonzalez hits the trade market.  "I really think that Boston could top anybody if Adrian Gonzalez becomes available, and he will," Law said.  The transcript of Law's appearance is available here.
  • It looks like Washington might still be the only team interested in Kris Benson.  Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets that the Indians have no interest in the right-hander.
  • ESPN.com's Jayson Stark polled "20 baseball wise men" to get their take on the offseason moves.  The panel picked Seattle and Arizona as the most improved teams in their respective leagues, while Cleveland and the Dodgers were the least improved.  John Lackey was named the winter's best free agent signing, while Brandon Lyon's deal with Houston was considered the worst.
  • Giants infielder Freddy Sanchez underwent shoulder surgery on December 23, but the news of the procedure didn't come out until almost a month later.  Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News believes the club wanted to keep Sanchez's condition a secret in order to help them sign Juan Uribe to a more team-friendly contract.  Uribe signed a one-year, $3.25MM deal on January 5.
  • MLB.com's Jim Street answers some Mariner-related questions in a fan mailbag.  Some topics of note include the possibility that the M's could deal one of their surplus outfielders, and Chad Cordero could also be trade bait if he doesn't make the Seattle bullpen but otherwise appears recovered from shoulder surgery.
  • Matt Klaassen of Fangraphs thinks "Arizona overpaid a bit" in the arbitration settlement between the Diamondbacks and Edwin Jackson, but also notes that "there is reason to believe this deal is fair to both sides."
  • Miguel Olivo took less money to play in Colorado because he wanted to be on a contending team, reports Troy Renck of The Denver Post.
  • "It's decision time" for teams to negotiate with players entering the last year of their contracts, says USA Today's Bob Nightengale.
  • Wandy Rodriguez and the Astros had their arbitration hearing today, and The Associated Press reports that a decision should be reached by tomorrow.  Rodriguez wants $7MM, while Houston has countered with an offer of $5MM.   
  • Jane Lee of MLB.com breaks down the dollars and reasoning behind Oakland's quick flip of Willy Taveras earlier this month.
  • There are no new developments between Jonny Gomes and the Reds, but John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes that the two sides are still talking.  GM Walt Jocketty is hopeful the team and player "can get something done this weekend."
  • Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette looks at some of the issues facing the Pirates this spring, and notes that the club's young players could be helped without the pressure to win starting jobs.

Odds & Ends: Hart, Dukes, Moreno, Farnsworth

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