Pirates Rumors

Odds & Ends: Chapman, Webb, Guerrero

By Luke Adams 2 | January 10, 2010 at 8:14pm CDT

Let's round up some assorted Sunday links….

ESPN.com's Buster Olney tweets that the A's finished second to the Reds in the chase for Aroldis Chapman.
A major league source tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com that the Red Sox tried hard to sign Chapman earlier in the offseason. They pulled their initial offer after Chapman switched agents and never offered another formal deal.
Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic finds it hard to imagine Brandon Webb returning to the D'Backs after 2010.
Jamey Newberg wonders if Vladimir Guerrero will "revive his pinball numbers by playing half his games in his favorite arcade." Vlad has a career 1.175 OPS in Texas, but Jack Moore of FanGraphs suggests this stat is overblown.
Within his Sunday blog entry, ESPN.com's Buster Olney addresses the persistent rumors about a potential reunion for Johnny Damon and the Yankees. Olney says that a few executives around the league "are absolutely convinced" that Damon will end up in the Bronx, but that it would require Damon significantly lowering his asking price and initiating contact with the Yanks.
FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi reports that the Dodgers avoided arbitration with Jason Repko, signing him to a one-year deal worth $500K. Repko should compete for the team's fourth outfield spot.
Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe writes that injuries have slowed the development of Red Sox prospect Ryan Westmoreland, whose name frequently pops up in trade rumors.
Pittsburgh's 2004 first-round pick, Neil Walker, could be without a position at Triple-A this year, and is a candidate to be traded, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer says the Indians hope that at least one of Austin Kearns and Shelley Duncan makes the 25-man roster, to add a right-handed bat to their lefty-heavy outfield.

Houston’s Compensation For Losing Valverde

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 10, 2010 at 8:00pm CDT

Hundreds of players remain on the open market, but only one of the unsigned Type A free agents received an offer of arbitration. Now that players like Jason Bay and Matt Holliday have signed, just Jose Valverde remains.

Valverde's Type A status matters to the teams interested in him. After all, they have to give up a top pick to sign him. It also matters to the Astros, who will receive two top picks in next year's draft unless they bring Valverde back (just one of those picks will come from the team that signs him). So if you're an Astros fan, where do you want Valverde to sign? The short answer is Detroit. But here's a detailed breakdown of what picks the Astros stand to gain, depending on their old closer's new address. Thanks to River Ave. Blues for their updated 2010 draft order.

19th – The Tigers would have to give their first rounder up, but they've reportedly made an offer.
23rd – The Marlins consider Valverde too pricey right now.
49th - The Pirates have some interest, but don't like Valverde's asking price of $8MM per year.
53rd – The D'Backs, who are also interested, have their first round pick protected.
57th – The A's have a protected first rounder, but they may stick with 2009 Rookie of the Year Andrew Bailey.
58th – We haven't heard of definitive interest from the Blue Jays.
The Phillies (27th), Yankees (32nd) and Nats (48th) would all surrender top-50 picks to sign Valverde, though those clubs don't appear to be likely destinations.
The Red Sox haven't been connected to him either, and they'd rather avoid the luxury tax, but here's something to consider: they'd only have to give up their 107th overall pick to add the reliever. Valverde's ranked higher than John Lackey and Marco Scutaro, so the Astros get the 29th pick (now held by the Angels) if their former closer signs with the Red Sox. The Blue Jays and Angels are surely hoping to avoid this possibility because it would strengthen their rival's bullpen and diminish the value of their compensation picks.
Confused? Check out our free agent compensation primer.

Olney On Holliday, Valverde, Cust, Branyan

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 8, 2010 at 9:27am CDT

ESPN.com's Buster Olney argues that baseball writers shouldn't decide who makes it into the Hall of Fame. After explaining why he'd prefer to see the Hall of Fame appoint its own panel, Olney turns up some rumors from around the league. Here they are:

One MLB official says the Matt Holliday deal may end up as "one of the worst deals in major league history" because the Cardinals were apparently bidding against themselves.
Olney hears from negotiators who believe the Cards should have lowered their offer considerably once the Mets signed Jason Bay.
Jose Valverde is asking for $8MM per season and wants to be a closer. As Olney points out, the Pirates and Marlins are not likely to match Valverde's asking price unless he lowers it. The Tigers have been cost-conscious this offseason, but they could use an accomplished reliever.
Olney says it's clear that Billy Beane and the A's value Jack Cust "in a way that many other teams do not."
Executives around the league are concerned about Russell Branyan's back. The 34-year-old slugged 31 homers last year, though he didn't play after August.

Pirates Rumors: Dotel, Ankiel, Iwamura

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 8, 2010 at 8:39am CDT

The Pirates won't spend as much on free agents as their division rivals, the Brewers and Cardinals, but they're still being aggressive. Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the Pirates are gaining momentum with Octavio Dotel, though talks with Rick Ankiel aren't progressing as well.

The Pirates, who made initial inquiries on Jose Valverde and Kevin Gregg before talks with the two relievers slowed, have offers out to Dotel and other relievers. As Ed Price reported yesterday, the Pirates are interested in Dotel's former teammate, D.J. Carrasco.

The Pirates aren't willing to promise any free agent – including Rick Ankiel – a starting job. The outfielder's agent, Scott Boras, hopes to find a full-time role for his client, so talks aren't developing, though the Pirates are open to signing the one-time pitcher.

Kovacevic also updates us on a couple former Rays. In this article, we hear that Akinori Iwamura has a release clause in his contract that allows him to become a free agent before he has six years of service time. He'll hit the open market after this year year if the Pirates don't lock him up. Also, the Pirates aren't interested in Jonny Gomes.

Odds & Ends: Yankees, Cardinals, Delgado

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 7, 2010 at 8:53pm CDT

Some more links for the evening…

Chad Jennings of LoHud.com provides an extensive breakdown of the Yankees' potential outfield options.
Cardinals GM John Mozeliak says his team will decide in the near future "if we have a bullet to use what would we use it on," according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter).
Ed Price of AOL FanHouse tweets that the Pirates are the leaders for D.J. Carrasco, who is being pursued by three other teams. In a separate tweet, Price adds that the Mets plan to scout Carlos Delgado this weekend in Puerto Rico.
ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports that Josh Johnson is definitely not switching agents any time soon. Matt Sosnick represents the big righty.
Justin Sablich lists the best remaining free agents for the New York Times.
Chien-Ming Wang is telling friends he's prepared to move on from the Yankees, according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. Abraham says Wang should be ready to join an MLB rotation in May.
David Aardsma could come close to tripling his 2009 salary of $419K, according to MLB.com's Jim Street. The reliever is one of five arbitration-eligible Mariners
MLB.com's Dick Kaegel tweets that Noel Arguelles passed his physical with the Royals, making official the five-year $7MM deal he agreed to earlier in the offseason.
Larry Larue of the Tacoma News Tribune says Russell Branyan's likely not returning to Seattle now that the Mariners are poised to add Casey Kotchman.
Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog hears from people connected to the Mets that they are interested in John Smoltz. The NL East is all over Smoltz – the Phils and Nats have interest, too.

Rosenthal On Bell, Tejada, Holliday, Ankiel

By Tim Dierkes | January 7, 2010 at 12:45pm CDT

The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…

Three or four teams are interested in Padres closer Heath Bell, but the team isn't really looking to move him. Rosenthal sees Bell getting just $3-4MM in his second arbitration year; that seems light to me.
Rosenthal reminds us that the Rockies are eyeing Robb Quinlan and Fernando Tatis as bench candidates. He wonders, though, if the Rockies, Cardinals, A's, and Cubs could find starting infielders at bargain prices as the offseason wears on. Rosenthal says Miguel Tejada is looking for two years and $16MM; I can't think of a team that would come close to that.
The Cardinals believed Scott Boras might've taken Matt Holliday elsewhere on a one-year deal, though a rival executive believes that was unlikely.
The Pirates' interest in Rick Ankiel is obvious – Frank Coonelly has said as much in multiple chats with fans. A couple of Rosenthal sources were divided on the Bucs' chances of signing Ankiel, who would play right field for them. The only other known suitor is the Royals.

Odds & Ends: Epstein, Cards, Contracts, Greene

By Tim Dierkes | January 7, 2010 at 10:25am CDT

Links for a snowy Thursday…

MLB.com's Lyle Spencer tweets of the Dodgers' interest in Robb Quinlan for a fourth outfielder role. The Rockies and Twins are other known suitors.
Red Sox GM Theo Epstein appeared on the Toucher and Rich show this morning. He spoke about the team's offense, Adrian Gonzalez, Mike Lowell, and the "bridge period" comment; MLB.com's Ian Browne provides the transcript.
MASN's Steve Melewski says the Red Sox rescinded the contract given to reliever Bob McCrory after he failed his physical.
Tommy Rancel of DRays Bay looks at the team-friendly deals signed by Paul Cohen clients.
Cardinals manager Tony La Russa told Cam Inman of The Contra Costa Times there's a non-zero chance the team adds Mark McGwire to the player roster on August 31st.
There is currently no timetable for the Cardinals to sit down with Albert Pujols' agents, GM John Mozeliak told Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Cards are ready to talk when Pujols is.
Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball is beta-testing an MLB salary database. Also of note: Cot's Baseball Contracts has joined the Baseball Prospectus family.
ESPN's Buster Olney wrote yesterday that Khalil Greene is working hard and seeks a big league deal. Greene can play shortstop or third base, and Olney sees Oakland as a potential match.
The Pirates aren't far apart with Zach Duke on his 2010 salary, writes Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Kovacevic believes Duke's $2.2MM salary could double in his second arbitration year. A multiyear deal is not in the works.
Murray Chass chronicles the blank contract Andre Dawson gave to the Cubs in the spring of '87.
Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues looks at Nick Johnson's injury history in detail.
A December 30th tweet from SI's Melissa Segura notes that Dominican lefty Victor Payano signed with the Rangers. Payano had a deal with the Red Sox in July for $900K that was voided due to shoulder concerns. Here's a video of the 16-year-old courtesy of Kiley McDaniel.

GM Trade Histories: NL Central

By Tim Dierkes | January 7, 2010 at 8:56am CDT

Brendan Bianowicz continues to update the GM Trade History series, covering the NL Central today. Click below to download Excel spreadsheets chronicling trades, free agent signings, and top draft picks for each GM.

Urban On Athletics, Giants

By Tim Dierkes | January 6, 2010 at 4:45pm CDT

CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban checks in with the latest on the A's and Giants.

After failing to sign Adrian Beltre, the A's continue to seek a third baseman. The team has considered attempting to trade for the Pirates' Andy LaRoche or the Padres' Kevin Kouzmanoff. Neither player hit for much power in 2009, however (Kouz hit 18 home runs, but slugged only .420). Adam Kennedy is said to be Plan D or E.
The A's are still talking to Jack Cust's agent, though they've yet to make an offer. Regarding the idea of returning to the A's after being non-tendered, Cust told Urban, "Stranger things have happened." Urban senses Cust would give the A's the opportunity to match any offer.
Urban finds Cust a less-than-ideal fit for the Giants. He likes Adam LaRoche, or perhaps Miguel Tejada if LaRoche's demands remain high.

Pirates To Sign Brian Burres, Neal Cotts, Tyler Yates

By Tim Dierkes | January 4, 2010 at 1:39pm CDT

The Pirates agreed to terms on minor league contracts with pitchers Brian Burres, Neal Cotts, and Tyler Yates today, according to a team press release.

Burres, 29 in April, spent the season with the Blue Jays' Triple A affiliate after being claimed off waivers from Baltimore in February. He posted a 7.0 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, and seemingly-undeserved 4.76 ERA in 107.6 innings.

Cotts, 30 in March, had Tommy John surgery in July and was non-tendered by the Cubs after the season. Yates, 32, also had Tommy John surgery in July and was outrighted by the Bucs in October.

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