A’s Rumors: Kennedy, Wuertz, Cabrera
Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle passes along the latest on three Athletics not named Matt Holliday:
- Mid-season acquisition Adam Kennedy says he loves it in Oakland and wants to remain with the A's.
- The Twins are looking at Michael Wuertz and Orlando Cabrera as they attempt to improve their bullpen and middle infield.
- Wuertz makes $1.1MM and Cabrera makes $4MM, so both are relatively affordable options for the Twins, who are 2.5 games back of the AL Central lead.
Trade Candidates: Middle Infielders
The Mets, Reds, Cardinals, Twins, Cubs, Brewers and Giants could all potentially look for middle infield help. Here are some trade candidates, listed from largest 2009 salary to smallest:
- Miguel Tejada – His $13MM salary would be too much for some teams if the Astros made him available, but his 32 extra base hits and low strikeout numbers sure look good.
- Julio Lugo – He makes $9MM this year and the same amount next year, so the Red Sox would presumably take on salary in any deal. The 33-year-old is hitting .370 since the beginning of June.
- Cristian Guzman – At $8MM this year and next he's not cheap, but he's consistently hit for a high average in recent years.
- Jack Wilson – He makes $7.25MM this year and his team will have to buy him out for $600k to avoid paying him even more in 2010. However, he's a good defender who puts the ball in play and has doubles power.
- Freddy Sanchez – He'll make over $6MM this year and his 2010 option for $8MM will likely vest. It's a lot of money, but the former batting titlist is a better hitter than most middle infield trade candidates.
- Dan Uggla - The most powerful option available may not be available, after all. The Marlins are in it, so they may keep Uggla and his $3.5MM salary.
- Orlando Cabrera – He's posted a .610 OPS this year and he'll make $4MM- not an enticing combination, but the A's are falling far out of the race.
- Felipe Lopez – At just $3.5MM, his .771 OPS looks good, in spite of the big strikeout total.
- Jamey Carroll - As a free agent-to-be on the Indians, he's a candidate to be moved. The 35-year-old has a .735 OPS to go along with his $2.5MM salary.
- Cesar Izturis – He'll earn $2.4MM this year and $2.6MM in 2010. He's on the DL, recovering from an apendectomy, and his slow recovery is making it less likely that he'll be traded.
- Yuniesky Betancourt – His $2MM salary is deceptive, as he's still guaranteed about $10MM before his deal expires. That figure, plus his .609 OPS mean he'll likely be staying put, but he could be had.
- John McDonald – He's barely played at all for the Jays, but McDonald, who makes $1.9MM, could work for a team looking for a defensive specialist.
- Yunel Escobar – He makes just $425k this year and Buster Olney says the Braves would consider dealing him for a bat.
- Blake DeWitt – The Dodgers have Orlando Hudson playing second base, so DeWitt could be expendable. He's making just $405k, but his Triple A numbers are uninspired.
- Adam Kennedy – The A's are just paying Kennedy the major league minimum and he's produced an OPS approaching .800 for them.
Rosenthal On Giants, Dye, Lopez, Kennedy
Diamond Leung passes along a clip in which Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports suggests potential trade targets for the Giants. Here are a few possibilities:
- The Astros, now 5.0 games back in the NL Central, aren't about to trade Miguel Tejada away, so don't expect him to end up on the Giants.
- Rosenthal says Jermaine Dye is a potential fit for the Giants, even though they aren't desperate for outfielders. If the Giants are willing to take on his $11.5MM salary, they wouldn't have to give up as much in return for Dye. The White Sox are just 5.0 games back themselves, however.
- Rosenthal also mentions Felipe Lopez and Adam Kennedy as cheaper options that could help the Giants out.
A’s Acquire Adam Kennedy
SATURDAY, 7:18pm: According to the Associated Press, via the Miami Herald, the A's have sent minor league infielder Joe Dillon to the Rays to complete the trade.
Dillon, 33, has been on the Triple-A Sacramento disabled list all season with a lower back injury. He hit .263/.374/.409 in 171 minor league at-bats last season and will simply provide organizational depth for the Rays.
FRIDAY, 6:48pm: Marc Lancaster of the Tampa Tribune gathered a nice quote from Rays executive vice president Andrew Friedman, on why the club felt compelled to make the deal:
"It's an extended opportunity for Adam and we weren't going to stand in the way," said Friedman. "We feel like we're going to get a guy that's going to help us some depth-wise, and that was our understanding with Adam coming in — we're not a group that's going to stand in the way of someone, especially someone that hadn't played in the minor leagues in 10 years."
4:31pm: According to Jeff Fletcher of AOL Fanhouse the Rays traded Adam Kennedy to the A's for a player to be named later. Kennedy, 33, was playing at Triple-A Durham for the Rays and the A's have assigned him to their Triple-A affiliate, Sacramento. Kennedy gives the A's the infield depth they need after losing Mark Ellis, Eric Chavez and Nomar Garciaparra to the disabled list.
Rays Ink Adam Kennedy To Minor League Deal
According to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times, the Rays have added infielder Adam Kennedy on a minor league contract.
Kennedy was released by the Cardinals about a week ago. St. Louis has to foot the bill for his $4MM ’09 salary, so it’s a fairly low-risk signing by the Rays. The 33-year-old hit .280/.321/.372 last season with two home runs and 36 RBI in 339 at-bats. He’ll earn just the league minimum ($400K) from the Rays if he makes the roster.
"We talk a lot about depth, and I think this move fits perfectly in line with that," Rays executive VP Andrew Friedman said Tuesday. "He’s a tremendous defender, he does a lot of things well and we’re anxious to watch him play on a daily basis.”
Durham Turns Down Offer From Nationals
According to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, free agent second baseman Ray Durham turned down a minor league offer from the Nationals potentially worth $850K plus incentives. Durham would require more than that, and is 50-50 on retirement. The offer from Washington was Durham’s first of the offseason.
A note from Crasnick regarding the Cardinals:
The Cardinals, who expressed interest in Durham earlier this winter, released second baseman Adam Kennedy on Monday. But early indications are that St. Louis plans to fill the void from within. If general manager John Mozeliak does pursue a free agent, Orlando Hudson would probably rank ahead of Durham on the priority list.
Durham, 37, authored a strong .380 OBP in 426 plate appearances last year.
Cardinals Release Adam Kennedy
According to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals have released Adam Kennedy. They’ll still be responsible for his $4MM salary. The move was "apparently made at the strong urging of manager Tony La Russa," who didn’t want Kennedy to be his starting second baseman.
Skip Schumaker has been working out at second base, and could play there if the Cards don’t add anyone to replace Kennedy. Strauss mentions Brendan Ryan and a few others as possible competitors for the job.
This is good news for Orlando Hudson, who has another possible bidder for his services.
Cardinals Outfielders Speak
A few Cardinals notes this evening coming out of the team’s Winter Warmup.
- Before Matt Holliday was traded to the A’s, Cards outfielder Skip Schumaker thought he’d wind up in Colorado as part of the rumored Holliday-Ryan Ludwick deal. Schumaker said, "I thought that was a done deal, and from everything I heard and from pretty good sources I thought I was definitely out of here."
- Ludwick and Rick Ankiel are two of the team’s prominent arbitration cases. Ludwick said the Cards have not opened up extension talks. Ankiel, a Scott Boras client, is eligible for free agency after the season. Ankiel’s quote about the future: "Absolutely, I’ve told [Boras] I want to work in St. Louis. But for me, it’s just focusing on having a healthy year. If you don’t play, nobody’s going to want you."
- The cheapest autograph at the Warmup: $5 for Adam Kennedy. Kennedy drew Tony La Russa’s ire for not attending last year.
More On Aaron Miles
Some interesting facts are mentioned in Derrick Goold’s article about Aaron Miles’ departure from St. Louis.
Apparently, the Cardinals were prepared to offer $4.3MM themselves – only $600,000 less than the Cubs. What drew Miles to Chicago, however, was a more sincere interest demonstrated by Cub management. As reported previously, the Cardinals waited until the last minute to give Miles their offer. Goold suggests that offer was delayed by dealings with Adam Kennedy.
Cards Switch Focus To Free Agency
According to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Cardinals GM John Mozeliak recently shifted his focus from trades to free agency in regards to his pitching staff. They briefly mulled the idea of jumping in on Jake Peavy but decided against it.
Strauss suggests four free agent starters the Cardinals might consider signing for the short-term: Oliver Perez, Andy Pettitte, Randy Wolf, and Brad Penny. The Cards have about $15-17MM to work with, but they won’t be chasing the big fish free agent starters.
Straus adds that it now looks like the Cardinals will retain second baseman Adam Kennedy.