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Rosenthal On White Sox, Pedro, Baker

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The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…

  • The White Sox are still trying to figure out their center field situation, but they are not involved on pricey veterans such as Juan Pierre and Gary Matthews Jr.
  • Fantasy alert: Rosenthal names David Aardsma as the likely leader for the Mariners closer job, with Chad Cordero and Brandon Morrow lingering.
  • The Dodgers "continue to balk at Pedro Martinez's $5MM asking price."
  • Rockies utility man Jeff Baker, who is out of options, is drawing interest from the Phillies, Astros, and Pirates.  Rosenthal suggests recently-demoted Kyle Kendrick as a possible target for Colorado, assuming the Phils can move Geoff Jenkins or Matt Stairs to clear a spot.  Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post says the Yankees are unlikely to acquire Baker.
  • The Blue Jays have been scouting shortstops Chin-Lung Hu, Juan Castro, and others in hopes of finding someone they can stash at Triple A for insurance.
  • Was Willy Taveras a bad move for the Reds?  Rosenthal says rival executives think so.

Pirates Looking For Pitching

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Pirates GM Neal Huntington isn't content with his bullpen, based on comments made to Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  The locks are Matt Capps, John Grabow, and Tyler Yates.  Craig Hansen and Donnie Veal could be lost if they're not kept in the bigs.

Huntington would like to add pitching to the mix, mentioning free agency but qualifying that route as "very unlikely."  The Bucs may prefer to acquire an out of options player as they did with Yates last year.  Here's my partial list – maybe Angel Guzman or one of the Orioles' pitchers would work (my own speculation).  Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette adds that the Pirates are also looking for starting pitching.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Bucs, Jays, Pedro, Pudge, Phils, Twins

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On this date 72 years ago, in what may have been the biggest trade in Negro League history, Josh Gibson and Judy Johnson were traded from the Pittsburgh Crawfords to the Homestead Grays for $25K and two players. Earlier this week, Pudge Rodriguez, one of the greatest catchers of this generation, became the latest big-name free agent to find a home. Let's take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…

  • Pirate Revolution takes a look at some players that could become available for the Pirates in the next two weeks as teams trim their rosters, including Jeff Niemann.
  • The 2012 payroll commitments in the AL East do not sit well with Drunk Jays Fans.
  • MLB Notebook attempts to calculate exactly how much teams should be willing to give Pedro Martinez.
  • Jorge Says No! says the Astros and Pedro are a good match and the recent signing of Pudge is an indication that the Astros are going for it this season.
  • The Ghost of Moonlight Graham says Pudge "fooled" the Astros into giving him $1.5MM.
  • The Fightins try to dispel the myth that Raul Ibanez was a poor defensive addition to the Phillies.
  • Twins Geek takes a look at the Twins incredible shrinking payroll.
  • Fire Brand of the American League says the release of Josh Bard has much bigger implications for the Red Sox than might be evident on the surface.
  • Sully Baseball takes a look at the Cleveland Indians all-time homegrown team versus their all-time acquired team.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here.

Odds & Ends: Pudge, A-Rod, Wilson, Hill

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Links for Thursday…

Odds & Ends: Cardinals, Pudge, Gorzelanny, Miller

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Your Wednesday links, with more to come…

Several Teams Interested In Pedro

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SUNDAY, 1:50pm: Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com writes that the Pirates won’t be signing Pedro unless his asking price comes down. They’ve shown interest, contacting his agent, but are unwilling to meet the $5MM-$8MM asking price.

Pittsburgh’s $51MM payroll gives them a bit of flexibility, and signing a veteran starter was one of their offseason priorities. However, Langosch writes that they’re very pleased with the depth of their starting pitching this Spring. Seems like they don’t consider adding Pedro a necessity.

SATURDAY, 8:07pm: The Chicago Tribune’s Phil Rogers writes that Pedro "insists he could have signed a contract long ago but wasn’t ready to commit." He cites a commitment to the World Baseball Classic as the reason he has waited to sign. (Scroll down to Miller’s first note after the main story.)

Pedro added the following: "The major leagues have, unfortunately, become more of a business than something to be proud of."

1:15pm:SI.com’s Jon Heyman reports that several teams have interest in free agent Pedro Martinez. 

The Dodgers have already made it known that they’re "curious," and now the Indians, Pirates and Mets have joined the fun.  Pedro is still seeking between $5MM and $8MM on a one-year deal, but will probably have to settle for an incentive-laden package with a low base salary.  According to his agent, Fern Cuza, Martinez "feels better than his first year with the Mets."

Offseason In Review: Pittsburgh Pirates

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Next up in our Offseason In Review series, the Pirates.  Here’s what I wrote about the team on September 12th.  The changes for 2009:

Additions: Pedro Alvarez, Eric Hinske, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Bootcheck, Donald Veal, Craig Monroe, Andy Phillips, Jeff Salazar, Virgil Vasquez, Jason Jaramillo.  Midseason: Robinzon Diaz, Craig Hansen, Jeff Karstens, Ross Ohlendorf, Andy LaRoche, Brandon Moss, Jose Tabata

Subtractions: Doug Mientkiewicz, Jason Michaels, Luis Rivas, Chris Gomez, Ronny Paulino, Franquelis Osoria, Raul Chavez, T.J. Beam, John Van Benschoten.  Midseason: Jason Bay, Xavier Nady, Jose Bautista, Damaso Marte, Matt Morris

Extensions: Ryan Doumit, Nate McLouth, Paul Maholm

Pirates GM Neal Huntington had two main tasks this winter: test the trade market for his remaining veterans, and sign certain young players to extensions.  Adding free agents was never top priority, and the Bucs sensibly kept those commitments low.  They still could bring in a cheap veteran free agent starting pitcher like Pedro Martinez or Odalis Perez.

Much of Huntington’s veteran purge was accomplished last summer, with the trades of Bay, Nady, and Marte.  He shopped Jack Wilson this winter, but couldn’t find a match.  Hindsight being 20/20, perhaps he should’ve been more flexible in the December dealings with Detroit.  As for LaRoche, it makes sense to wait given his history of slow starts.

With the new extensions, the Pirates can have Maholm and McLouth through 2012 and Doumit through 2013.  The extensions don’t necessarily add trade value in all three cases, so hopefully the Pirates will contend in 2010, ’11, or ’12.

Bottom line: Rather than free agents, the Pirates chose to invest in their own youth this winter.  Now Huntington’s focus will be on maximizing the return for Wilson, LaRoche, and John Grabow.

Cardinals Exploring Lefty Relief Options

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THURSDAY: Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch talks about the Cardinals’ pursuit of a lefty reliever:

Internal support exists for pursuing Beimel, but [GM John] Mozeliak recently denied making contact with Beimel’s agent, Joe Sroba.

Speaking of Beimel, Pirates president Frank Coonelly commented on him during an MLB.com chat yesterday:

He is someone who we have considered this offseason and have had discussions with his representative. To date, Joe has not been receptive to the type of contract we have discussed.

WEDNESDAY: According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the Cardinals are "exploring the remaining lefties on the free agent market."  So far this offseason they’ve imported Trever Miller, Royce Ring, Charlie Manning, and Ian Ostlund.  Perhaps they’re attracted to the possibility of a bargain, with three solid southpaws remaining on the market.

Rosenthal notes that Dennys Reyes’ agent Casey Close is telling teams his client is close to a decision.  Furthermore, he won’t be signing with Oakland.  The A’s could move on to Joe Beimel.  Rosenthal adds that the Cardinals are interested in Reyes as well as Will Ohman.

Barry Bonds Rejections

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Yesterday Bob Nightengale of USA Today talked to Barry Bonds’ agent Jeff Borris, learning that Borris will contact all 30 teams in hopes of landing a job for his client.  Borris is not optimistic.  In case it becomes a trend, we’ll use this post to note which teams have rejected the agent’s overtures.

  • The Nationals will pass – manager Manny Acta told Chico Harlan of the Washington Post that "It’s not a match for us" while choking back laughter.
  • Twins GM Bill Smith to the AP: "I would tell you that I don’t think it’s a very good fit for us right now."
  • Reds manager Dusty Baker to John Fay: "I don’t [see] where. He might be better suited for an American League team."
  • Pirates president Frank Coonelly: "We are not interested in inviting Barry to Spring Training."
  • Nick Cafardo hears that the Red Sox won’t pursue Bonds either.
  • Bill Shaikin of the LA Times reports that Angels GM Tony Reagins has no interest in Bonds.

MRI On Pirates Prospect Reveals Inflammation

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6:59pm: Apparently, the Pirates couldn’t wait until Tuesday. Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review found out from Huntington that Tabata had the MRI today and everything looks fine.

“He does have some mild rotator cuff inflammation, but is able to return to activities as (the pain is) tolerated.”

6:11pm: Highly-touted prospect Jose Tabata will have an MRI done on his right shoulder Tuesday after alerting the Pittsburgh Pirates’ medical staff to some recent soreness, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

General manager Neal Huntington told Langosch that the team’s medical staff does not believe there is reason for serious concern. The MRI should help identify to doctors what is causing the outfielder discomfort.

Tabata was the marquee piece in last summer’s trade that sent Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte to the New York Yankees. He quickly became one of the Pirates’ top prospects and has already drawn unsolicited praise from manager John Russell this spring.

Tabata, 20, is 0-for-3 with three walks this spring.

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