Yankees Rumors: Pettitte, Lefty Relievers, Lee, Martin
The latest on the Yankees:
- Andy Pettitte is likely to return because his family supports it, tweets SI.com's Jon Heyman. The lefty will not take a "lowball" offer, however.
- The Yankees "seem to be looking" at lefty relievers at the moment, says SI.com's Jon Heyman. He lists Arthur Rhodes, Brian Fuentes, and Pedro Feliciano in his tweet.
- Darek Braunecker, agent for Cliff Lee, told reporters "The fact of the matter is, there's nothing the Yankees could have done differently" at today's introductory press conference according to Marc Carig of The Star Ledger. MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez adds this (via Twitter) from Lee himself: "There wasn't anything that scared me away from playing in New York."
- Russell Martin's contract guarantees him $4MM and the catcher could earn another $1.4MM in incentives, according to Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times. If Martin catches 120 games, he'll earn the full $1.4MM in incentives.
- The Yankees expect Andy Pettitte to tell them whether he intends to retire within a few days, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). They're cautiously optimistic that he'll return.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the Yankees will be a deeper, less top-heavy team without Cliff Lee. Expect the Yankees to sign a couple relievers and an outfielder who bats from the right side as they continue to monitor the market for starting pitching.
- So which starters might the Yankees pursue? In a separate piece, Sherman says the Yankees don't like Brandon Webb all that much. However, they will consider pursuing a veteran with "good stuff but questionable health."
- Bill Madden of the New York Daily News says Carlos Zambrano is a "likely target" for GM Brian Cashman. Like new addition Mark Prior, Zambrano knows Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild from their time in Chicago.
- The Yankees are believed to be on Felix Hernandez's no-trade list, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
National News: Lee, LaRoche, Pavano, Webb
Let's round up the latest from the nation's capital, courtesy of MLB.com's Bill Ladson…
- The Nats have expressed interest in free agent first baseman Derrek Lee, echoing a report from yesterday.
- All of their eggs are not in one basket however, Ladson says the team also maintains interest in Adam LaRoche. It appeared that a deal between the two sides was a go last week, but obviously nothing came from it.
- "We will explore both options, so it expands our pool a little bit more," said GM Mike Rizzo, referring to short and long-term first base options, not Lee and LaRoche. "I don't ever want to feel rushed to do a deal. I think when you feel rushed to do a deal, you make a deal that you may not have wanted to do. So we are going to look at our options. We feel there are still good options out there, and we will see where they take us."
- The Nats are still in on Carl Pavano and expect talks to get serious this week. Two days ago we learned that Washington wasn't thrilled with the idea of offering the right-hander a multiyear deal.
- Brandon Webb "remains excited" about the Nationals, and the two sides talked during the winter meetings.
Cubs Remain Focused On Webb
Free agent righty Brandon Webb remains the Cubs' No. 1 target, according to Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. The Cubs met with Webb's agent Jonathan Maurer multiple times during the Winter Meetings. Sullivan says Rays officials were amused by the Matt Garza speculation, and the Cubs aren't getting Zack Greinke either.
After adding Carlos Pena to a creative one-year, $10MM deal, the Cubs appear to have limited funds remaining to bring in a starter and bullpen arm.
Reds Rumors: Rhodes, Votto, Webb
The Reds signed Miguel Cairo to a two-year deal today. Here are the rest of the rumors from the Winter Meetings:
- The Reds aren't particularly close to re-signing Arthur Rhodes, since the reliever values himself differently than the team does, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. Rhodes is seeking a multiyear deal. He's 41, but GM Walt Jocketty was willing to give the 36-year-old Cairo two years.
- The Reds talked to Joey Votto's agent and will offer the NL MVP a multiyear deal, but the team doesn't expect to reach an agreement soon. Votto's representatives "weren't really ready to talk about [an extension]" Jocketty said.
- The Reds were often mentioned as a speculative destination for Brandon Webb, since his Ashland, Kentucky home is relatively close to Cincinnati. However, they haven't talked to the right-hander, according to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer (on Twitter).
Nationals Notes: Winn, Webb, Wang, LaRoche
Washington may or may not be in on Cliff Lee. Here's what we do know about the Nationals:
- The Nationals may show interest in Randy Winn, a source told MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he met with Brandon Webb's agent this week (Twitter link). The Nationals believe the right-hander is healthy. The Cubs and Rangers have interest in Webb, but the Brewers aren't currently interested.
- Washington also likes Chien-Ming Wang, another pitcher coming back from injury, according to Ben Goessling of MASNSports.com (Twitter link). Rizzo told Goessling that he's hopeful of signing Wang, who could re-join the Nats even if they sign Webb.
- As the Nats' official Twitter feed reminds us, Rizzo still intends to add a first baseman who isn't currently in the organization. No deal with Adam LaRoche is imminent, but the Nationals are interested, at the very least. The Nationals had interest in Carlos Pena before he signed with the Cubs.
Brewers Rumors: Weeks, Capuano, Francis, Webb
The Brewers have had some trade discussions about Prince Fielder, and inquired on Matt Garza. Here are the rest of the details on the Crew:
- The Brewers had "productive" talks with Rickie Weeks' representatives about a potential extension, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Assistant GM Gord Ash says the sides have "reason to continue to talk" to Weeks, who can become a free agent after the 2011 season.
- GM Doug Melvin told Haudricourt that he intends to meet with the agent for Craig Counsell and work a deal out soon. The Brewers have made the veteran infielder more than one proposal.
- The Brewers have another offer out to Chris Capuano and are waiting to hear from him.
- Manager Ron Roenicke says the team would like to pair Jonathan Lucroy with a veteran catcher next year, according to Haudricourt (Twitter link).
- The Brewers seem hesitant to commit to a pitcher coming back from an injury, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
- Melvin says the Brewers haven't called the agent for Jeff Francis, though they've been linked to the left-hander repeatedly. The team scouted Brandon Webb, but their level of interest in the former Cy Young Award winner seems low.
- The Brewers have had discussions with the Braves, but Melvin says he doesn't have any ongoing talks with Atlanta.
Brandon Webb Rumors: Tuesday
Things are heating up for free agent starter Brandon Webb. The latest:
- Webb's agent will meet with the Cubs again this afternoon, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick.
- The Nationals will meet with Webb's agent Jonathan Maurer soon, MLBTR has learned.
- The Rangers met last night with Maurer, tweets Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse. The agent also spoke with the Cubs last night, tweets Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.
Brandon Webb Rumors: Monday
Given the guarantees required to sign Cliff Lee or Carl Pavano, Brandon Webb must appeal to many teams even after missing almost all of the last two seasons. The latest on the sinkerballer:
- The Cubs, Nationals, and Rangers remain in the mix for Webb, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. The righty's surgeon issued a positive report for 2011, according to Crasnick (Twitter link). The Mets appear to think Webb is too risky, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.
- The Pirates' pursuit of Webb appears to have gone cold, writes Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Kovacevic says the Bucs have not been in touch with him since November 22nd.
Cubs, Nationals Step Up Pursuit Of Webb
The Cubs and Nationals are stepping up their pursuit of Brandon Webb, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter). A number of other clubs, including the Dodgers, Pirates, Twins, Rangers and Rockies, are interested in the former Cy Young Award winner.
Webb, 31, has missed virtually all of the past two seasons with shoulder surgery. He finished in the top two in Cy Young voting every year from 2006-08, when he averaged 233 innings and posting a 3.13 ERA with 7.2 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.
Odds & Ends: Jeter, Berkman, A’s, Upton, Webb
Exactly ten years ago, the Orix Blue Wave lost a 27-year-old outfielder to the Seattle Mariners. A decade later, Ichiro Suzuki has ten Gold Gloves and 2244 big league hits to his name. Here are today's links…
- Derek Jeter is meeting with agent Casey Close, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (on Twitter). They met with the Yankees in Tampa today, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- An executive interested in Lance Berkman expects that it would take a one-year deal worth $7MM to sign the switch-hitter, according to Yahoo’s Jeff Passan.
- Passan reports that the A’s continue to talk with right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma, though talks appeared to sour earlier in the month.
- The Nationals are still discussing potential deals with Carl Pavano, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post (on Twitter).
- D'Backs GM Kevin Towers told MLB.com's Steve Gilbert that he'll know by the end of next week's winter meetings whether it makes sense to trade Justin Upton.
- A.J. Pierzynski said on The Waddle & Silvy Show on ESPN 1000 that he's talking to the White Sox and some other teams about potential deals (via ESPNChicago). The White Sox are open to bringing the catcher back, though they didn't offer him arbitration last week.
- Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball looks back at some record salary arbitration cases from over the years. For instance, Tim Lincecum's demand for a $13MM salary last year was the most any first-time eligible pitcher has ever asked for.
- The Rangers have signed a European player for the first time in franchise history. They agreed to a minor league deal with 18-year-old Dutch middle infielder Nick Urbanus, according to the Newberg Report.
- The agent for Brandon Webb told Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the former Cy Young Award winner would have interest in pitching for the Pirates. About six teams are interested in Webb, including Pittsburgh.