Andruw Jones Draws Inquiries
Diamond Leung talked to Ned Colletti, who said a few teams asked about Andruw Jones. However, those teams would ask the Dodgers to pick up the "vast majority" of the $22.1MM owed to Jones. Hmmm…would 150% of it be sufficient?
Brown’s Latest: Teixeira, Crede, Friedman
Yahoo’s Tim Brown filed a column late last night; let’s take a look.
- Scott Boras doesn’t know of any kind of contingency where the Dodgers would have to unload Andruw Jones‘ contract before signing Manny Ramirez.
- The Angels have not yet made an offer to Mark Teixeira, but they’ll deal with that situation before moving on to other needs. Boras is suggesting Teixeira pays for himself.
- Boras compared Joe Crede to Magglio Ordonez. I think he is implying that he may seek big money for Crede but allow a team to opt out after a year if he hits the DL for back problems.
- Ken Williams spoke up manufacturing runs, while Billy Beane still prefers walks and homers.
- Rays GM Andrew Friedman doesn’t have a contract, but he isn’t concerned.
Andruw Wants To Return To Atlanta
Jennifer Brett of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution talked to Dodgers outfielder Andruw Jones, who says he’d like to come back and play for the Braves again. It’s unclear from his quote whether Jones is campaigning to return to the Braves in 2009 or after that. It takes two to tango, however, and the Braves are probably looking for an outfielder who is not coming off a historically bad season. The Braves didn’t even offer Jones arbitration last year.
A few weeks ago, Jones said, "I’m an everyday guy or I need to move out." However, he hasn’t formally requested a trade from the Dodgers. The 31 year-old is set to earn a $15MM salary next year. He’ll also receive $2.1MM of his signing bonus in ’09 and another $5MM in ’10.
Odds and Ends: Jacobs, Howard, Renteria
Links for Friday…
- The A’s claimed infielder Joe Dillon off waivers from the Brewers.
- Dave Cameron criticizes the Royals’ acquisition of Mike Jacobs. ESPN’s Keith Law also panned the move, suggesting Jacobs was a non-tender candidate for the Marlins.
- Peter Abraham breaks down the different types of hot stove stories and sources.
- Derrick Goold looks at Ryan Howard‘s arbitration case.
- MLB.com’s Chris Haft talked to various scouts about Matt Cain‘s trade value.
- Edgar Renteria hopes to remain in Detroit, saying "Next year, we are going to win everything."
- ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian names his top ten offseason storylines.
- Ken Davidoff says the Mets were interested in Brad Lidge last year, but the Astros’ asking price was too high.
- Joel Sherman debates the merits of a Luis Castillo–Andruw Jones swap while stressing that no such deal is actually being discussed.
- The 2008 Fielding Bible awards are out.
Dodgers Rumors: Manny, Furcal, Peavy
Dodgers GM Ned Colletti talked to the media yesterday; here’s the latest.
- Tony Jackson of the L.A. Daily News believes Colletti will pursue a competent backup catcher to allow more rest for Russell Martin. A decision is due on Gary Bennett‘s $900K option within seven days.
- So far this offseason, Colletti and Scott Boras have exchanged two voicemails. They’ll meet in person to discuss Manny Ramirez and other Boras clients (Derek Lowe, Greg Maddux, Andruw Jones, maybe Joe Crede) at next week’s GM meetings. Colletti will not put the other team needs on hold to deal with Manny.
- Colletti has had preliminary talks with the agents for Rafael Furcal, Casey Blake, and Nomar Garciaparra, while Jeff Kent is expected to retire.
- Colletti intends to acquire a top of the line starting pitcher, but Jake Peavy is unlikely (the Dodgers would have to pay extra due to the same-division factor). Free agents Lowe and C.C. Sabathia may be considered. The Dodgers have seven days to decide on Brad Penny‘s $9.25MM option versus the $2MM buyout.
- The Dodgers would love to have Takashi Saito back, but the situation with his elbow injury is unclear.
- Juan Pierre and Andruw Jones have expressed a desire to be traded through the media, but not formally to the Dodgers.
Odds and Ends: Beltran, Brewers, Padres
Links for Friday…
- The Padres claimed second baseman Travis Denker off waivers from the Giants. Surprising to see the Giants let him go.
- Ted Berg at MetsBlog explains how a Carlos Beltran rumbling spun out of control.
- I recently did a Brewers Q&A with Bernie’s Crew.
- The Padres called yesterday’s report about John Moores selling his share of the team "highly speculative." Tim Sullivan considers the statement revealing, and notes that this is a bad time to sell.
- Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times chatted with Scott Boras.
- Mark Cuban mentions that the struggling economy is slowing down the sale of the Cubs.
- Terry Pluto believes the Indians should pursue Brian Roberts.
- David Brown at Yahoo profiles Theo Epstein and Andrew Friedman.
- Freddy Garcia is headed to winter ball. The Tigers will have the first crack at signing him. Andruw Jones will also play winter ball; he seems to want a trade if he’s not a starter next year.
- Elbow surgery for Tom Gordon, which probably means the Phillies will buy out his ’09 option for $1MM.
Odds and Ends: LaCava, Colletti, Andruw
Links for Wednesday…
- I did a Q&A with the Roselle Press. The article includes a sweet picture of me hacking the Internet.
- Greg Cote of the Miami Herald speculates on the new-look 2009 Marlins. If defense is a goal, they could look to acquire Adrian Beltre and try Jorge Cantu at first base. Randy Winn could improve the defense in right.
- John Fay runs through the Reds’ nine free agents. He believes Jerry Hairston Jr. wants to return.
- Brian Cashman wants to acquire a real first baseman, rather than have Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui spend time there.
- The Mariners received permission to interview Blue Jays assistant GM Tony LaCava, according to Geoff Baker.
- It’s still not known whether the Dodgers will bring GM Ned Colletti back for the final year of his contract. Interesting note from ESPN’s Buster Olney – the Andruw Jones signing was engineered by owner Frank McCourt rather than Colletti.
- Olney feels Brian Cashman is more likely to pursue Derek Lowe than Mark Teixeira.
- Will Joe Girardi’s presence discourage free agents from signing with the Yankees?
- McCovey Chronicles sees the Giants trading for a second or third baseman this winter. I tossed out a bunch of names in my Offseason Outlook.
- Pedro Alvarez clammed up when asked precisely what time he accepted the original deal from the Pirates.
- MetsBlog tries to figure out whether Ryan Church loves or hates New York.
- Oliver Perez predicts a tough offseason following the Mets’ final-day elimination. On the bright side, he stands to earn a ridiculous amount of money as a free agent.
Odds and Ends: Santos, Blalock, Lo Duca
Let’s dig through today’s rumor bin…
- The Jays claimed southpaw Reid Santos off waivers from the Indians. MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince says the Indians are clearing room on their 40-man roster in preparation for the winter.
- Dejan Kovacevic has yet to observe why new Pirates third baseman Andy LaRoche is so highly regarded.
- Jamey Newberg feels Hank Blalock‘s $6.2MM option for ’09 is an easy call to exercise.
- J.C. Bradbury sees a rift within the Braves organization.
- Craig Calcaterra dismisses the silly idea of Frank McCourt suing Andruw Jones.
- Paul Lo Duca would prefer a non-guaranteed deal next year if he gets a chance to compete for a starting job.
- Ian O’Connor doesn’t see Alex Rodriguez finishing his contract as a Yankee.
- C.C. Sabathia just wants to be happy in his next destination.
- Will the Braves re-sign Mike Hampton this winter? Is it possible both he and Carl Pavano are useful pitchers in 2009?
Odds and Ends: Bay, Clement, Fuentes, Cabrera
We’ve got plenty of links today.
- There is speculation that Andruw Jones could be sent back to the minors.
- Joel Sherman wonders if MLB should’ve gotten involved when Manny Ramirez decided to orchestrate his own exit. Kind of reminds me of Gary Sheffield intentionally botching plays to force a trade out of Milwaukee in ’92.
- Gordon Edes stands by his report that Manny pledged to give full effort if the Red Sox dropped his options. That phone call between Scott Boras and Theo Epstein occurred within an hour of his trade to the Dodgers.
- Jon Heyman takes us inside the Manny trade. He says Ramirez signed an agreement in advance that he’d accept a trade to any team if his options were dropped. Heyman believes Omar Minaya fibbed in saying he had failed trade discussions with Boston.
- The Red Sox are still waiting to hear whether Joe Borowski will accept their offer of a minor league deal.
- Dejan Kovacevic gives as inside look at the Jason Bay trade talks here and here. Did the Rays offer Reid Brignac and Jeff Niemann? Reports are conflicting.
- The Cardinals released Matt Clement on Saturday. Let this serve as another reminder of how hard it is to come back from shoulder surgery.
- The Cardinals weren’t willing to trade catching prospect Bryan Anderson plus a pitching prospect for Brian Fuentes. Also, GM John Mozeliak confirmed failed talks for Bay.
- RotoAuthority takes a look at young pitchers who may face innings caps this year.
- Another failed deal: Orlando Cabrera to the Orioles in a Brian Roberts deal.
- Geoff Baker believes that when inside information related to the Blue Jays leaks out, GM J.P. Ricciardi is likely responsible.
- Please continue to email me if you see a pop-up or full-page ad on MLB Trade Rumors.
Keith Law’s Latest: Players On The Move
Keith Law drops some science on some big name players that could still be on the move if they clear waivers. To wit:
Paul Byrd: Law argues that Byrd would be better served pitching in the National League where a "finesse" hurler like him would have an easier time. Byrd was a Type B free agent in 2007, which means he could slip to non-compensation status this year, an incentive for the Indians to try and trade him if he clears waivers.
Greg Maddux: The Bulldog will only waive his no-trade clause for a team on the West Coast, meaning it’s the Dodgers or the Dodgers. The Padres tried to make a deal with L.A. prior to the deadline, but it fell through.
Andruw Jones/Juan Pierre: Speaking of the Dodgers, Law thinks that both Pierre and Jones would sail through waivers due to their hefty salaries and bad performance at the plate.
Aubrey Huff: Ditto for Huff, who’s owed more than $10MM between now and the end of his contract in 2009.
Law makes the case that Brian Fuentes and Adam Dunn would not clear waivers. It’s no secret Fuentes was one of the most coveted relievers before the deadline, but the Rockies were holding out for the perfect offer that never came (never mind that they’re showing signs of life in a mediocre NL West).
Dunn should still draw interest from teams looking for a corner outfielder that can hit .385/.550, argues Law, and a direct rival could place a claim on Dunn to make sure other contending teams don’t.
Alejandro A. Leal writes for UmpBump.com. Post-deadline rumors? Comments? alexo05 [at] umpbump [daught] com.