Indians Rumors: Extensions, Asdrubal, Trades, Perez
A pair of Indians links for you Tribe followers who are still up, courtesy of the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Paul Hoynes and MLB.com's Jordan Bastian:
- Hoynes examines how the Indians have backed off their philosophy of extending young players in recent years and wonders if the pitfalls of the Travis Hafner and Jake Westbrook contracts have made them wary.
- Hoynes quotes one agent who thinks that at this point, the Indians think it'd be too expensive to offer Asdrubal Cabrera a multiyear extension.
- GM Chris Antonetti says there are no black and white rules in the organization for signing pre-arbitration players to extensions; each case is handled on an individual basis.
- In his piece, Bastian writes that Antonetti told reporters on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings that he was discussing a trade "that would be very surprising if it came to fruition."
- The Indians are looking to improve their offense, and teams have come calling about Chris Perez. The Tribe isn't actively shopping their closer, but Bastian says they're willing to listen because of the depth they have in their bullpen, though the number of available arms doesn't give them much leverage in any potential deal. Plus, with an eye on contending in 2012, depleting their bullpen depth may not be the best strategy.
Central Notes: Indians, La Russa, Verlander
A few links to pass along regarding clubs in the Central divisions …
- The Indians are facing an offseason of difficult decisions, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. With basically the same roster, the Tribe's payroll would jump from $49MM in 2011 to roughly $70MM next season, explains Hoynes. Several key players like Shin-Soo Choo, Justin Masterson, Chris Perez and Asdrubal Cabrera will be eligible for arbitration, and the Indians own options on Grady Sizemore ($9MM) and Fausto Carmona ($7MM).
- Cardinals manager Tony La Russa dismissed a rumor that he will manage the Cubs next season, writes Kevin Roberts of MLB.com. A report surfaced earlier this week that the Cubs would hire La Russa and Reds GM Walt Jocketty (formerly the Cards' GM) in an effort to lure impending free agent Albert Pujols this offseason. This one seems to be falling apart, as Reds owner Bob Castellini has said Jocketty will be back with the Reds in 2012.
- The AL MVP Award is now Tigers righty Justin Verlander's to lose, opines Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
AL Central Notes: Zumaya, Twins, Tigers, Cabrera
Links from the AL Central before the Tigers host the Twins and the White Sox host the Indians…
- Joel Zumaya has started throwing in Florida, the first time he's done that since Spring Training according to MLB.com's Chris Vannini and Jason Beck. Zumaya won't make it back in time to pitch for the Tigers this year, but it's a "sign of hope" that he'll be ready for the start of 2012. The hard-throwing righty is a free agent after the season.
- The Twins fired Triple-A manager Tom Nieto and hitting coach Floyd Rayford, according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. GM Bill Smith told MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger that the firing was due to the Triple-A team's performance over the last two years, not about mistakes made by rookies at the MLB level (Twitter link).
- Ryan Ford of the Detroit Free Press runs through some of the Tigers’ best (Ivan Rodriguez and Jose Valverde) and worst (Dean Palmer) free agent signings in recent memory.
- Justin Verlander has been generating MVP buzz recently and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds Miguel Cabrera’s name into the mix, along with Jose Bautista, Curtis Granderson, Robinson Cano, Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia and Adrian Gonzalez.
- Indians manager Manny Acta told MLB.com's Jordan Bastian that Asdrubal Cabrera has been his team's MVP "without a doubt." The shortstop, who played through some minor injuries this season, has a .275/.336/.462 line with 22 homers.
Rosenthal On Jimenez, Red Sox, Rockies, Beltran
In the latest edition of Full Count from Ken Rosenthal, we learn how this year's trade deadline could have turned out drastically different..
- The Rockies wanted five of Boston's top prospects for Ubaldo Jimenez: Will Middlebrooks, Kyle Weiland, Josh Reddick, Felix Doubront, and Ryan Lavarnway. The Red Sox would have gotten more than just Jimenez in return as Rosenthal tweets that the Rockies offered Jimenez and outfielder Seth Smith in return for the quintet of prospects. There were other possible fits in such a deal including Ryan Spilborghs, Chris Iannetta, and Rafael Betancourt.
- The Rangers had enough prospects to get Carlos Beltran in addition to Koji Uehara and Mike Adams at the deadline. To do that, they would have needed to take either Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland out of the Adams deal as the Mets are fond of both. Rosenthal was told that one of the two pitchers was in the offer for Beltran.
- The Indians traded their two best pitching prospects to land ace Ubaldo Jimenez but the deal wasn't just for this season. Cleveland is mindful of the big picture and they have their key pieces locked up for the next few years. Jimenez, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Shin-Soo Choo are under control for the next two seasons while Justin Masterson and Chris Perez are under control for the next three. If the Tribe doesn't win in the next few years, they can always flip some of those players for prospects.
Indians Notes: Choo, Cabrera, Acta, Minaya
Mitch Talbot's ERA jumped from 1.46 to 5.87 today as the Red Sox welcomed him back from the disabled list with an eight-run attack. Boston won 14-2, but the 30-17 Indians still have the game's best record. Here's the latest on the Tribe:
- Former Indians GM Mark Shapiro and former Mariners GM Bill Bavasi reflect on two of their 2006 deals with ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick. Five years ago, the Mariners sent Shin-Soo Choo and Asdrubal Cabrera to the Indians in a pair of trades for Ben Broussard and Eduardo Perez. They’re now seen as steals for the Indians, something Bavasi readily admits, but Shapiro wasn’t expecting one-sided deals. “You're not looking to steal players and win trades. You like trades to be a foundation for a future trade," Shapiro said. Now the Indians’ president, Shapiro says the Indians “identified [Choo] as a potential big leaguer, but not as one of the best all-around players in the big leagues. Not one scout and no objective analysis said that."
- Indians manager Manny Acta told Yahoo’s Jeff Passan that he has believed in his team's ability since Spring Training. “Just because you have a low payroll and you’re young doesn’t mean you’re rebuilding,” Acta said. “It just means you don’t have the resources and that you’re young.”
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post hears that former GM Omar Minaya can have a job as a super scout with the Indians at any time (Twitter links). Minaya, who is still being paid by the Mets, has ties to Acta and Indians president Mark Shapiro. Earlier today, Jon Heyman of SI.com reported that a few teams are interested in Minaya’s services.
Quick Hits: Cabrera, Kazmir, Padres’ Draft
Here are a few items of note as Jarrod Saltalamacchia parks one over the Big Green Monster on Sunday Night Baseball …
- The Indians' acquisition of shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera is looking like one of the organization's best moves in recent years, writes Bud Shaw of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. The Tribe plucked Cabrera, now 25 and posting All-Star caliber numbers, from the Mariners in 2006 in exchange for Eduardo Perez. For more on how the 2011 Indians were assembled, check out Ben Nicholson-Smith's recent post.
- Angels lefty Scott Kazmir, who's spent most of the season on the disabled list, will soon begin a minor league rehab stint, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. Kazmir may return to to the bigs as a long reliever, and if he continues to struggle, he could be released, in which case the Halos will have to eat his contract (what's left of his $12MM salary, plus a $2.5MM buyout after the season). Mike Axisa wrote in January that this one would be a make-or-break season for Kazmir, and it's not going well so far. Ben thinks the lefty may have to settle for a minor league deal this offseason.
- The Padres own six of the first 58 picks in next month's draft, writes Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune, and they face some pressure after they were unable to sign last year's first-round pick, Karsten Whitson. Center speculates that the Friars could focus on pitching and up-the-middle players, considering their farm is relatively stocked with corner infielders and outfielders. For more on the draft, be sure to check out our Amateur Draft Glossary.
Players To Avoid Arbitration: Monday
Teams and players exchange arbitration figures tomorrow if they haven't already come to terms for 2011. That means plenty of players will likely avoid arbitration today. We'll keep track of them all right here and with our Arbitration Tracker; the latest updates are at the top of this post:
- The Blue Jays avoided arbitration with Shawn Camp, agreeing to a one-year, $2.25MM deal, according to MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm (on Twitter).
- The Tigers avoided arbitration with Armando Galarraga by agreeing to a one-year, $2.3MM deal, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.
- The Orioles and Jim Johnson have agreed to a one-year, $975K deal, according to Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun.
- The Blue Jays have reached agreement on a one-year, $830K deal with Jesse Litsch, according to Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star (Twitter links).
- The Indians have avoided arbitration with Asdrubal Cabrera, agreeing to a one-year deal, according to the team's Twitter feed. The deal is worth $2.025MM, according to the Associated Press.
- The Marlins have agreed to terms one-year deals with Leo Nunez and Edward Mujica, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post (via Twitter). Nunez will earn $3.65MM, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com tweets. Meanwhile, Mujica will make $800K according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel (via Twitter).
- The Blue Jays and Casey Janssen have agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.095MM, according to the Associated Press.
- The Rays and B.J. Upton avoided arbitration, agreeing to a one-year deal worth $4.825MM, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (Twitter links).
- The Nationals avoided arbitration with John Lannan, agreeing to a one-year, $2.75MM deal, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
- The Rockies and Matt Lindstrom agreed to a two-year deal.
- The Royals avoided arbitration with Robinson Tejeda, agreeing to a one-year contract, the team announced. It's worth $1.55MM, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star (on Twitter). The deal leaves Billy Butler and Kyle Davies as Kansas City's remaining unsigned arbitration eligible players.
Indians Notes: Brantley, Branyan, Choo, Sizemore
Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com discusses some Tribe topics in a fan mailbag…
- Castrovince thinks Michael Brantley will be in Cleveland by midseason, as the Russell Branyan signing was made with an eye towards postponing Brantley's major league service clock. A strong first half of the season for Branyan could get the veteran traded, thus creating regular playing time for Brantley in left field and Matt LaPorta moving to first.
- Speaking of veterans being dealt, Castrovince says "it's hard to imagine Jake Westbrook, Kerry Wood and Branyan remaining with this club beyond the 2010 season, and Jhonny Peralta's future here is also in question."
- We've heard about Shin-Soo Choo's looming conflict with his South Korean military service and how it may affect his playing career. Castrovince argues that a compromise (such as Choo postponing his service until after his career is over) would work best for both the player and the government. Castrovince notes that the South Korean government might not want to be seen as forcing one of the country's sporting heroes away from playing major league baseball.
- In the wake of Choo switching agents from Alan Nero to Scott Boras, Castrovince reported in a separate blog post that another Nero client in Cleveland (Asdrubal Cabrera) "has no plans" to change his representation. Castrovince also notes that Boras has his eye on Indians prospect Carlos Santana and is "pursuing him hard."
- In another article, Castrovince discusses Grady Sizemore's future with the Tribe. He believes that Sizemore's contract is structured well enough that "the Indians find it difficult to imagine a scenario in which they'd be compelled to deal him to another club in either of the next two years."
Indians Notes: Cabrera, Salcedo, Shapiro
Some Indians tidbits courtesy of MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince..
- The Indians believe that they have the long-term financial flexibility to investigate long-term deals for their emerging core players such as Asdrubal Cabrera and Shin-Soo Choo. Both players will be arbitration-eligible at season's end and eligible for free agency after the 2013 season.
- In other Choo news, the South Korea native is facing a deadline from his country to enlist in the military. The 27-year-old is hoping to receive an exemption but has a backup plan in case he is denied, writes Castrovince.
- The Tribe's interest in Edward Salcedo appears to have been overstated. To Castrovince's knowledge, they have not been linked to him since two years ago, when a Dominican newspaper reported that they signed the shortstop.
- The promotions of Mark Shapiro and Chris Antonetti are "unsurprising" to Castrovince. He writes that while some fans are upset with the promotion, one must consider the financial constraints the two men have had to work with in recent years.
Indians Rumors: Shoppach, Roberts, Street
Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer discusses the Indians’ offseason needs.
- With Victor Martinez, Kelly Shoppach, Carlos Santana, and others, the Indians have a surplus of catching (and mad guitar skills). The Red Sox, Marlins, Reds, and Tigers are known to be in the market, so maybe the Indians can deal a catcher to fill another need. Those other needs: an infielder, a late inning reliever, and a starter.
- Hoynes believes the Indians will fall short of meeting the demands of free agents Francisco Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes, and Rafael Furcal.
- Hoynes implies the asking price for one year of Brian Roberts is Fausto Carmona and Asdrubal Cabrera. That won’t work for the Tribe; they are looking to add a starter. They might have the same problem if they try to acquire Garrett Atkins.
- As we’ve heard, the Indians are in on Huston Street.
- Hoynes tosses out a couple of possible free agent bargains that may come with the necessary price break: Joe Crede and Jason Isringhausen.