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Stark’s Latest: Burnett, Cantu, Lowe, Furcal

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Jayson Stark’s got a heaping helping of hot stove updates in his most recent blog post at ESPN.com.

  • The Braves’ most recent offer makes them the frontrunners for A.J. Burnett, says Stark.
  • We’re still waiting for another team to come close to the Yankees’ offer for C.C. Sabathia. Stark suggests Sabathia may make up his mind by next week.  He also says there’s "increasing buzz about the Yankees’ interest in Ben Sheets."
  • The White Sox appear to have expressed some interest in Jorge Cantu.
  • Stark doesn’t think the Phillies stand a very good chance of signing Derek Lowe.
  • Only the Dodgers and A’s, and perhaps the Orioles, remain interested in Rafael Furcal.
  • If the Dodgers end up missing on Furcal and Casey Blake, their focus might shift to names like Ty Wigginton and Adrian Beltre.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Dunn, Burrell, Manny

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6:16pm: MLB.com’s Mark Bowman says the Braves are not interested in Dunn because they seek a right-handed bat.  Does that rule out Raul Ibanez as well?

1:51pm: The latest from Ken Rosenthal:

  • The Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, and Phillies are pursuing free agent outfielder Rocco Baldelli.
  • Now that Adam Dunn wasn’t offered arbitration, the market is starting to take shape.  The Braves, Mariners, and Nationals are interested, and the Dodgers and Angels consider him a fallback option.  How about Dunn and Russell Branyan in the same lineup?  Rosenthal considers the Yankees another possibility.
  • Teams considering Pat Burrell, who was also not offered arb: the Mariners, Angels, and Giants.
  • Rosenthal considers the Giants a darkhorse for C.C. Sabathia.  Tim Brown says the Giants may be closing in on Edgar Renteria; Rosenthal has the Dodgers and Cardinals as other suitors.
  • The Brewers will need to increase their offer to Sabathia to six years to have a shot. 
  • Rosenthal believes Jason Varitek will accept his offer of arbitration.  He also wonders if Orlando Cabrera could accept.  He expects Ben Sheets to decline (I made an error on this eariler).
  • Rosenthal ponders the chances of Manny Ramirez accepting the Dodgers’ offer of arbitration.  Buster Olney says three GMs wondered the same.  I was under the impression Manny declining arbitration was a condition of his trade.
  • The Cardinals want to add a young starter with upside.  They also may go after a closer like Brian Fuentes or Kerry Wood if prices drop.
  • Rosenthal believes the Reds could discuss a two-year deal with David Weathers.

Sheets Likely To Decline Arbitration

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According to Ken Rosenthal, Type A free agent starter Ben Sheets is likely to decline the Brewers’ offer of arbitration.  He and C.C. Sabathia could leave the Brewers with four draft picks but two holes at the front of the rotation.

Sheets would’ve had a one-year deal at more than $11MM if he accepted, but his agent apparently expects better on the open market (even though his new team would have to surrender a draft pick).

Braves Rumors: Hampton, Lowe, Burnett

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Dave O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has the latest on the Braves in a new blog post.

  • The Braves never intended Mike Hampton to be one of the two front-rotation starters they acquire this winter, so his rejection of their offer doesn’t affect their plans much.
  • O’Brien notes that he’s heard no indications that the Braves are actively pursuing Derek Lowe.  A.J. Burnett seems to be their top target, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Jake Peavy talks revived at the Winter Meetings.
  • The Braves made trade inquiries on Roy Oswalt and Matt Cain and "haven’t received favorable replies in those pursuits."
  • Free agents Ben Sheets and Randy Johnson don’t seem to be on the radar due to concerns over their reliability.
  • The Braves continue to seek a power bat, with Ryan Ludwick and Jermaine Dye the two targets mentioned in recent weeks.

Brewers Offer Arb To Sabathia, Sheets, Shouse

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According to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, the Brewers offered arbitration to C.C. Sabathia (Type A), Ben Sheets (Type A), and Brian Shouse (Type B).  They declined to offer arb to Eric Gagne (Type B).

Sheets and Shouse were the question marks.  The Brewers apparently don’t mind getting Shouse back on a one-year deal, though he seeks two years.  Sheets also seems likely to decline and pursue multiple years.  If he declines and signs elsewhere, his new team will lose a draft pick to the Brewers.  Ken Davidoff wonders if Sheets might accept the offer.

Cafardo’s Latest: Lowe, Lowell, Dye, Saltalamacchia

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Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says when Derek Lowe sat down with his agent, he inquired first about the Boston Red Sox. Says Cafardo,

"This Lowe doesn’t bear much resemblance to the guy who left the Sox after 2004. Back then, his out-of-control personal life seemed to consume him. The Red Sox didn’t want to deal with it and let him become a free agent. Lowe feels leaving was the best thing. ’I think I’m a lot better pitcher now, teammate now, than I was four years ago,’ he said. ’Sometimes you have to learn, and I think getting out of Boston was the best thing for me.’"

Lowe notes the Red Sox fit the mold of what he’s looking for in his next team.

And around the bigs:

  • Roy Oswalt is pushing Ben Sheets to consider the Astros.
  • Split opinions on interest in Mike Lowell, but either way this shouldn’t affect the Red Sox pursuit of Mark Teixeira. Cafardo lists Dodgers, Angels, Indians, and Twins as possible destinations for Lowell.
  • Jermaine Dye is a good fit for Philadelphia, Tampa Bay, and the Mets. The White Sox would want more than Andy Sonnanstine or Edwin Jackson in exchange for Dye.
  • Jarrod Saltalamacchia looks good in the Dominican League, hitting .435 with 4 homeruns and 2 doubles in 23 ABs.
  • Willie Bloomquist could be Alex Cora’s replacement at utility in Boston.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Dunn, Wood, Sheets

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Ken Rosenthal suggests that in this economy some teams may not offer arbitration to Type A free agents to avoid risking a payroll hit. Further, some players may opt to accept the certainty of arbitration over "a volatile free agent period."

The Dbacks were always expected to offer arbitration to Adam Dunn and he was expected to decline thus netting Arizona two draft picks to compensate for the three players they dealt in August. In arbitration, Dunn would command $15-16MM. Says Rosenthal,

"…if the D-backs made the offer, it’s doubtful that Dunn and his agents would determine by midnight Saturday that a multiyear contract was beyond their reach. What’s more, the D-backs always could trade Dunn if he accepted their offer. In that sense, he would be an asset on a one-year deal; the Nationals, among other teams, would jump."

In arbitration, Kerry Wood would get around $9-10MM per year but it’s obvious the Cubs are not interested in even one year at that price – that money is better spent improving the rotation. The Cubs see Carlos Marmol, not Wood, as their closer and have opted to replace their setup man by trading for Kevin Gregg rather than paying Wood to slot into the role. Rosenthal notes Wood said he would have returned on a one year deal, and if he were to accept arbitration then the Cubs would most likely look to deal him – perhaps to the Rangers?

Rosenthal also points out that arbitration contracts are not guaranteed, but releasing Wood in Spring Training would result in a grievance by the players union. It would be hard to justify releasing a player of Wood’s caliber.

Ben Sheets could command $13-14MM in arbitration and for an ace-quality pitcher that’s reasonable. Rosenthal makes this easy:

"If the Brewers fail to offer Sheets arbitration, it will be a clear indication that club officials are concerned about his ability to stay healthy in 2009. And remember, the Brewers know Sheets better than any other team."

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Varitek, Burnett, Teixeira

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Let’s take a look at what is being written around the Blogosphere…

  • River Ave. Blues debates Ben Sheets versus A.J. Burnett and wonders if Sheets will be the better bargain in the end.
  • Detroit Tiger Thoughts shows that Jason Varitek is not a good fit with the Tigers, even in a platoon situation.
  • Fire Brand of the American League lays down several reasons why the Red Sox should avoid signing Teixeira.
  • Where have you gone, Andy Van Slyke? sees no downside to the Pirates’ signing of Indian imports Dinesh Patel and Rinku Singh.
  • The ’Burgh Blues feels Eric Hinske is an economical fit for the Bucs.
  • Amazin’ Avenue does not see Raul Ibanez as an upgrade for the Mets, suggesting he may not be any better than Fernando Tatis.
  • The Baseball Opinion breaks down what the acquisition of Tyler Lumsden means for the Royals and Astros.
  • Batter’s Box takes a look a recent J.P. Ricciardi quote and the current state of the economy and wonders if the Jays are going to reduce their payroll.
  • Royals Review lists the ten best free agent signings in Royals history, topped by David Cone. Amazingly, four of the signings occurred in the last five seasons.

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

Odds and Ends: Halladay, Lopez, Glavine

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Links for Monday…

Stark’s Latest: Putz, Manny, Lackey, Ibanez

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Let’s take a look at the latest column from ESPN’s Jayson Stark.

  • Stark does the math and finds 15 potentially available closers versus six clubs in the market for one.  Should result in a few bargains or teams holding on to their surpluses.
  • The Mets don’t seem willing to extend to four years for Francisco Rodriguez.  Stark says J.J. Putz would become the Mets’ top closer target if he’s made available.  MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone wrote a few days ago that the Mets are likely to trade for a reliever with closing experience before attempting to sign one.
  • J.P. Ricciardi quote: "We won’t be involved with Manny."  Ricciardi last month: "He’s on our radar, but maybe not on our radar like some people will report."
  • Despite reports to the contrary, Stark talked to a rival executive who says Jake Peavy made it "onto [the Angels’] radar pretty hard."  Stark speculates that Peavy could fit if the Halos sign Mark Teixeira.
  • It seems likely that the Angels will put out an offer to Teixeira with a deadline, and then either sign him or move on.
  • John Lackey’s been telling friends he expects to have an extension with the Angels by Opening Day.  Lackey indicated last month he’d wait to see the Halos’ offensive plans before re-signing.
  • Stark suspects the Players Union might be OK with C.C. Sabathia turning down a larger offer from the Yankees if he still signed for more than Johan Santana’s $23MM per year.  I don’t really see why Sabathia would worry about the union in any regard.
  • The Dodgers inquired on the asking price of Jason Varitek, with the idea of moving Russell Martin to third base in mind.  They balked at Scott Boras’ demand for Tek, however.
  • Curt Schilling is "more likely than ever" to attempt a late June or early July comeback.
  • Tons of teams have expressed some degree of interest in Raul Ibanez: the Mets, Phillies, Cubs, Cardinals, Nationals, Braves, Royals, Rays, Blue Jays, Rangers, Angels, and Mariners.  Some interesting new ones in there.
  • The Phillies never made a two-year, $21MM offer to Pat Burrell.  Will the Phils at least offer him arbitration?  The rumored offer was questionable from Day 1, as Paul Hagen said Burrell "reportedly turned down a two-year, $22MM offer" but didn’t reference a specific report.
  • Stark believes that the Brewers were not thrilled with the Yankees’ "overbid" for C.C. Sabathia, and therefore would prefer not to trade Mike Cameron to them.  Dan Graziano wrote yesterday about the Yanks’ conversations for Cameron.
  • Roy Oswalt wants the Astros to sign Ben Sheets, but the price tag may be too high.  Stark has the following names on their radar: Randy Wolf, Mike Hampton, Freddy Garcia, Paul Byrd, and maybe Pedro Martinez.  Is Drayton McLane willing to bring Andy Pettitte back?  GM Ed Wade seemed interested in his chat yesterday, saying, "We’ll have to see what develops down the road."
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