Odds & Ends: Gordon, Uribe, D’backs, Igawa
Links for a busy Wednesday, as writers, agents, and GMs catch their flights out of O'Hare…
- Welcome to Twitter: ESPN's Buster Olney.
- ESPN's Keith Law assesses the Mark Teahen, J.J. Hardy, Jeremy Hermida, and Akinori Iwamura trades.
- The Royals are committed to Alex Gordon as their third baseman despite acquiring Josh Fields, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Fields instead could play left field in the event David DeJesus is traded. DeJesus' name popped up in our left field trade market post.
- Rosenthal and Morosi also note that the Giants are talking with Juan Uribe about a new contract. Uribe was one of the year's best minor league deals. He's represented by Barry Praver.
- Rosenthal reported yesterday that the Nationals hired Bryan Minnitti from the Pirates to be their new assistant GM. Jake from New Bucs interviewed the young exec last year.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic names four relievers who might be of interest to the Diamondbacks: Rafael Betancourt, Mike Gonzalez, LaTroy Hawkins, and Bob Howry.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues has a reality check for fans as we head toward the offseason insanity.
- Victor Martinez's agent Alan Nero told WEEI's Rob Bradford there's been "little or no dialogue" in terms of the Red Sox extending his client.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post wonders if the Yankees' championship might enable them to take things more slowly this winter.
- Sherman tweets that there is interest in Japan from Kei Igawa, but he doesn't want to go. Igawa posted a 4.15 ERA in 145.3 Triple A innings this year, and still has $8MM remaining on his contract.
- Baseball America's Matt Eddy has your minor league transactions. Wilson Valdez and Mike Gosling are among those joining the free agent ranks.
- New Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos seems passionate, talking to Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun. Anthopoulos even gives props to the fine Jays blogs out there.
- Padres pitcher Chris Young told Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune that he understands the business aspect of baseball. With a healthy first half, Young could be a trade candidate.
- Grant at McCovey Chronicles says AT&T Park isn't a pitcher's park anymore, and agents know that.
Royals Rumors: Soria, Gordon, Buck, Jacobs
ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick explores many of the disappointing elements of the Royals' 2009 season and turns up some rumors along the way. Here they are:
- GM Dayton Moore says he tried to build a winner and holds himself accountable for the team's failure.
- Now he wants to build through scouting and player development. The Royals' system has improved as the team has spent more, but there's not an abundance of talent in the upper minors.
- Crasnick says the Royals need a "major overhaul" but suggests no one on the team's roster other than Zack Greinke or Joakim Soria would fetch much in a trade.
- Some believe the Royals would be better off shopping Soria for two or three young players. Moore says he'll be open-minded to that sort of deal if it helps the Royals long-term.
- One AL scout says the Royals rushed Alex Gordon and prevented him from developing fully.
- The Royals may not offer contracts to John Buck and Mike Jacobs after the season.
Odds and Ends: Pudge, Reds, Boras, Gordon
Links from around the league on Tuesday evening…
- Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle writes that the Astros got good value in return for Pudge Rodriguez.
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks to Reds GM Walt Jocketty about the plan for his team's future.
- Kevin Kaduk at Yahoo.com argues that Scott Boras neither won nor lost the Strasburg contract negotiations.
- Matthew Pouliot at NBCSports.com writes that the Royals "hit a new low" by demoting Alex Gordon.
- And Baseball America breaks down each team's total spending on the first ten rounds of the draft.
Service Time Update: Gordon, Snider
Updates on a pair of former first round picks…
- The Royals sent Alex Gordon to the minors, according to Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star. If the demotion lasts for more than 20 days, the Royals will have delayed his free agency by a season. Gordon, who was expected to become a free agent after 2012, may not become a free agent until after the 2013 season.
- It's no surprise to see the Jays call Travis Snider up. As we showed earlier in the month, the Jays had the chance to prevent Snider from reaching Super Two status by keeping him in the minors for a couple extra weeks. They took advantage of the opportunity and Snider will likely be a few days short of Super Two status after 2011.
GM: Royals Won’t Trade Core Players
The Royals aren't trading any of their core players this year, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. GM Dayton Moore said some players just aren't available.
"You're not going to see us unloading Gil Meche and Zack Greinke and Joakim Soria and Alex Gordon and Billy Butler," Moore said. "You're not going to see us doing that. You're just not."
Moore didn't say as much, but Dutton suggests the Royals are open to dealing David Dejesus and Mark Teahen. They need a center fielder and could negotiate a deal with injured outfielder Coco Crisp or look for one in a trade. They're not expected to pick up Crisp's $8MM option for 2010, but remain open to a new deal with him.
The Royals will likely rely on the trade market to revamp their team, since they don't have much MLB-ready talent in the minors and aren't expected to be big spenders this offseason.
Odds & Ends: Bonifacio, Jimenez, Darvish
Links for Friday…
- Royals third baseman Alex Gordon is out 10-12 weeks due to hip surgery. Mark Teahen will slide over to take his place.
- Ken Rosenthal examines the Indians.
- I did a Q&A with But The Game Is On.
- Chico Harlan of the Washington Post gets into the Emilio Bonifacio trade.
- ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. writes about how the Yankees' signing of D'Angelo Jimenez changed everything.
- Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker has a Yu Darvish velocity chart.
- The Big Lead talked to Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
- Paul DePodesta explains the Padres' decision to expose Travis Denker to waivers.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Furcal, Bradley, Greinke
Another day, another Ken Rosenthal column.
- The A’s have payroll flexibility, and are expressing "strong interest" in free agent shortstop Rafael Furcal. Bobby Crosby is set to earn $5.25MM in ’09, but it makes sense to upgrade.
- Contrary to previous reports, Rosenthal says the Tigers are not in on Furcal. They’ll also pass on Francisco Rodriguez, which was expected.
- Rosenthal discusses possible fits for Milton Bradley, including the Rays, Rangers, Blue Jays, Mets, Cardinals, and Phillies. It will be hard to overlook the health risk and give Bradley a three-year deal, especially for an NL club.
- Rosenthal confirms interest in Khalil Greene from the Orioles and Reds. The Blue Jays and Tigers have also been mentioned.
- There’s no way the Phillies can afford Manny Ramirez; a look at their ’09 commitments makes that clear.
- The Royals hope to sign Zack Greinke and Alex Gordon to long-term extensions. Rosenthal feels trade discussions could pick up for Greinke if the Royals can’t sign him. Keith Law said the same yesterday.
- The Padres will exercise Brian Giles‘ $9MM option in the next day or two.
What’s Next For The Royals?
MLB.com’s Dick Kaegel notes that the Royals have closer Joakim Soria and outfielder David DeJesus under contract multiple years into the future. Is anything cooking with other young Royals?
- The Royals didn’t seek Soria out to sign him. Instead, he was "very aggressive" and approached the team, according to Dayton Moore. And Allard Baird signed DeJesus.
- Kaegel spoke to Alex Gordon and Brian Bannister, and learned that nothing is in the works. Bannister wondered whether his age (27) could be a factor.
- Kaegel didn’t talk to Zack Greinke or John Buck, but Bob Dutton did a week ago. Neither has been approached to talk extension. Greinke said he didn’t know what he was worth, while Buck admitted he’d welcome talks. No word on Billy Butler or Mark Teahen.
- Craig Brown of Royals Authority offers his predictions on contenders for long-term deals.
Would You Trade Alex Gordon For A-Rod?
Tom Keegan would. I can only hope Dayton Moore disagrees. Sure, the contracts of Mike Sweeney and Angel Berroa are painful…but a team looking to win in 2008 or 2009 shouldn’t be giving their best prospect to the Yankees.
Perhaps the Royals win an extra game or two over the next few seasons with Rodriguez instead of Gordon at third. Even that is an open question. But I don’t think A-Rod would put butts in the seats any more than Gordon will.
If Moore wants to make a splash and spend some money, he should put in the top bid for Daisuke Matsuzaka and keep the cheaper Alex.