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Bobby Jenks

Rosenthal’s Latest: Jenks, Byrd, Wedge

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FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal has a new column up with a few interesting hot stove items.  Let's dive in…

  • If the White Sox are going to move Bobby Jenks, they'll probably do it early in the offseason.  The market for closers this winter (both in free agency and via trade) is decently strong and GM Kenny Williams will want to be involved in all negotiations from the get-go.
  • Or the White Sox could decide to hand the ninth-inning role to Matt Thornton and find a new setup man among the remaining free agent arms in January.
  • Texas wants to re-sign Marlon Byrd, as we've heard before, but the outfielder's demands might not match the Rangers' available resources.  Byrd posted career-highs in homers and RBI this season and probably won't be interested in taking any sort of discount.

Rosenthal also appeared on the MLB Network this evening for a chat about Eric Wedge, who was fired as Indians manager this morning.  Rosenthal believes Wedge will garner interest from teams looking for a new skipper as soon as next season.  "This is going to be a hot guy," said Rosenthal.  "Someone is going to hire Eric Wedge on the rebound, and someone is going to get a great manager."

Odds & Ends: Holliday, White Sox, Pirates

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Good morning everybody!  Let's check out some links…

  • Matt Holliday has meshed beautifully with the Cardinals since being acquired in July, writes Matthew Leach of MLB.com.
  • Ozzie Guillen says that Matt Thornton has "good enough equipment" to step into the closer role, but wants to learn more about his mental makeup as the season winds down, writes Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune.  Thornton may asked to be the White Sox' fireman in 2010 if the team trades Bobby Jenks, who is entering his second year of arbitration.
  • If the Giants don't pick up his 2010 option, Freddy Sanchez doesn't anticipate coming back to the Pirates, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  • More from Dejan Kovacevic as he says that the Pirates could be calling Matt Capps their closer for 2010 in an effort to boost his trade value.  Capps has an ERA of 5.91 in 53.1 innings of work this year.
  • There are indications that the Mets will keep pitching coach Dan Warthen and batting coach Howard Johnson on board, writes Marty Noble of MLB.com.  There has been no such indication for third-base coach Razor Shines.

Odds & Ends: White Sox, Phillies, A’s

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Only a handful of games on the schedule tonight, but here are some links to make up for it….

  • White Sox GM Ken Williams is let down by his team's performance this season, according to Chris De Luca of The Chicago Sun-Times. Players like Jake Peavy and Alex Rios were acquired with more than just 2009 in mind, but the Sox still hoped to earn a playoff spot in a weak division this year. Dave Cameron at FanGraphs and Rob Neyer at ESPN.com point out that the White Sox didn't underachieve, but rather performed almost exactly as expected. Whether Williams' disappointment will inspire any major offseason moves remains to be seen.
  • Scott Merkin at MLB.com suggests one possible change for the 2010 White Sox: Matt Thornton replacing Bobby Jenks as the team's ninth-inning option.
  • More potential musical chairs in the bullpen ranks from ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. He talks to one scout who suggests that the best closing candidate for the Phillies in October might not be Brad Lidge or Ryan Madson, but Chan Ho Park, if he's healthy. As a soon-to-be free agent, Park could certainly see his stock rise with a strong postseason.
  • Buster Olney and ESPN.com take a look at what moves the Oakland Athletics could make this offseason. The theme is a familiar one in Oakland: veteran bargain hunting. Olney mentions Jermaine Dye and Miguel Tejada as two players in their mid-30s the Athletics might look into signing, and also thinks the A's will try to bring back Justin Duchscherer if they can.
  • T.R. Sullivan at MLB.com writes that Nolan Ryan is interested in ownership of the Texas Rangers. Current owner Tom Hicks has expressed willingness to surrender controlling interest of the club.

Odds & Ends: Aramis, Marte, Lowe

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Links for Wednesday…

  • Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune talked to Aramis Ramirez about his $14.6MM player option for 2011, and the Cubs' third baseman was noncommittal.  Other third basemen who may become free agents after the 2010 season include Garrett Atkins, Jorge Cantu, Mike Lowell, Jhonny Peralta, and Scott Rolen.
  • Former top prospect Andy Marte spoke with Indians GM Mark Shapiro about the future, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.  Shapiro told Marte to play first and third base in winter ball and show up early to Spring Training.  It was a tough year for Marte, who turns 26 in November.  He was designated for assignment to make room for Juan Salas in February, cleared waivers, raked at Triple A, and then struggled in the bigs.
  • Braves GM Frank Wren told MLB.com's Mark Bowman that Derek Lowe "pitched really well for us."  Aside from his home run rate, Lowe's numbers declined across the board this year.
  • The Nationals will improve their minor league catching depth for next year, GM Mike Rizzo told MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
  • Miguel Angel Sano is on the backburner for the Orioles, Roch Kubatko of MASN learned from team president Andy MacPhail.  MLB's inconclusive age investigation is the problem.
  • David Waldstein of the New York Times says Ramon Pena, a special assistant to Mets GM Omar Minaya, will not be back next year.  Waldstein says a scouting/player development shakeup is in order.  Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News has info on possible changes aside from Pena.
  • White Sox closer Bobby Jenks is out for the season with a calf injury.  Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times wonders about the righty's future, given a possible $7MM arbitration reward for the 2010 season.
  • Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News notes the impending raise for Giants closer Brian Wilson, who enters his first arbitration year.  Jenks' $5.6MM salary this year will serve as a comparable, so the Giants will add around $5MM to the payroll compared to Wilson's $480K this year.
  • Braves manager Bobby Cox was not happy with the way GM Frank Wren handled the John Smoltz situation last winter, according to Yahoo's Gordon Edes.

White Sox Rumors: Jenks, Podsednik, Linebrink

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Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune has a new mailbag up, in which he answers some questions about potential offseason moves for the White Sox. A few highlights….

  • Gonzales expects the Sox to hang on to John Danks, whose quality innings still come at an affordable price. He can, however, envision them shopping closer Bobby Jenks, perhaps in search of a leadoff hitter.
  • Given Scott Podsednik's consistent production this season and the struggling economy, Gonzales thinks there's at least a decent chance the 33-year-old outfielder will be back in Chicago in 2010.
  • He sees the Sox keeping Gordon Beckham at third base, where they expect his power to eventually develop enough for a corner infielder.
  • If the White Sox want to make a play for Bobby Abreu this offseason, they'll have to be willing to pay more than the $5MM he earned this year.
  • Gonzales doesn't anticipate there being any market for Scott Linebrink, meaning the Sox will have to hold on to him and hope that he bounces back next spring.

Discussion: Bobby Jenks

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A few weeks ago, White Sox GM Kenny Williams sent a memo to the other 29 clubs saying that pretty much all of his veterans were available. It's unclear if closer Bobby Jenks was included in that memo, but Bob Nightengale of USA Today says the burly righthander will be prime trade bait this winter because of his shaky season, and he goes so far as to say it "will be a bigger surprise if he's back than if traded."

Jenks' performance has suffered this year because he's giving up more longballs than ever before, more than one every six innings pitched. Prior to 2009, Jenks' strikeout rate had been in a four year decline, bottoming out at 5.55 K/9 last year. Even though he's rebounded to post an 8.27 K/9 this season, he's still having the worst year of his career, and FanGraphs values his performance at just $1.9MM.

In his first year of arbitration, the 28-year-old Jenks is earning $5.6MM, and he'll surely get a raise in the offseason. This winter's free agent class features plenty of closers - including Billy Wagner and Trevor Hoffman – which might limit the market for Jenks. What kind of trade value does a homer prone reliever with World Series experience have? Could he fetch a return similar to what the Orioles received for George Sherrill, another closer about to enter his second year of arbitration?

Odds & Ends: Strasburg, White Sox, Rangers

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Here's a few links to the get night started right…

  • Ben Goessling of The Washington Times reports that a "club source said managing principal owner Ted Lerner, team president Stan Kasten and acting general manager Mike Rizzo all flew to California last week to visit with (Stephen) Strasburg." It is unknown if Scott Boras was part of the meeting, or if Strasburg took the physical necessary to sign a Major League contract.
  • Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse tweets that Erik Bedard had his "bursa debrided & labrum repaired" when he underwent shoulder surgery. He can resume baseball activity in 4-6 months, right in the middle of his impending free agency.
  • Mark Gonzales of The Chicago Tribune writes about the payroll challenges facing White Sox GM Kenny Williams in 2010. The team has $68.3MM tied up in ten players next year - including the recently acquired Jake Peavy and Alex Rios – and will owe considerable raises to Carlos Quentin and John Danks, both of whom are arbitration eligible for the first time. Gonzales says that "probably means the Sox will listen to offers for closer Bobby Jenks." 
  • MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan reports that Rangers first round pick Matt Purke is in town for a physical, but no deal is imminent. The club just wants to get that part of signing process out of the way because negotiations might go down to the wire. GM Jon Daniels said "They are where you would expect them to be. We still have a gap, a divide, to bridge. That's not unusual three days before the deadline. They have been amicable discussions. He agreed to submit to the physical and get that completed just to get it behind us so we can focus on negotiations. We don't want any hurdles if we negotiate late."
  • In news that involves players who have actually signed, Jim Callis of Baseball America reports that the Rangers have inked 14th rounder Chad Bell to a $450K bonus. He's the third player Texas has signed for more than MLB's recommended $150K maximum after the fifth round.
  • Chad Jennings of The Times Tribune mentions that Josh Towers is expected to return to the Triple-A Scranton rotation next week. The Yankees DFA'd Towers last weekend, but he apparently declined to become a free agent in favor of having a job.

Cafardo’s Latest: Jenks, Teahen, Wood, Mulder

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Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has some rumors from around the league. Let's sift through them.

  • The Dodgers, Brewers, and Phillies remain interested in Mark Mulder who is finishing his rehab and hopes to entertain offers in a week.
  • Cafardo speculates if former Royals GM Allard Baird will deliver Mark Teahen, a former player of his, to the Red Sox. Baird is currently assistant to the GM in Boston.
  • The Mets might be able to add about $5 to $6MM in payroll before the deadline.
  • Brandon Wood would have to be a part of the package for Roy Halladay if the Angels were to make a serious push.
  • There's a "good chance" Kenny Williams is looking into Halladay, says Cafardo. He wonders if Williams, who now has back-of-the-bullpen depth, would trade Bobby Jenks to shave payroll.
  • The Red Sox are confident with the pieces they have, even if obtaining Halladay might guarantee them a championship. Regardless, the Jays "would likely not want to deal Halladay within the division," says Cafardo.

Odds And Ends: White Sox, Smoltz, Lowrie

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A few links for Thursday morning…

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