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Twins Looking At Veteran Starters

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While speaking with Joe Christensen of The Star Tribune, Twins' GM Bill Smith may have tipped his hand regarding the team's offseason plans.

"We'll see what's out there," he said. "And if there's a veteran starter or two that's a good fit for us, then we'll proceed accordingly."

The team is already returning at least five young starters, and that isn't counting Kevin Slowey's return from wrist surgery. Christensen mentions that they'll try to re-sign Carl Pavano, and says that the Twins also plan to pursue Jarrod Washburn, who has made it known that he'd like to pitch closer to his home in Wisconsin.

It's unlikely the Twins could afford John Lackey as a free agent, but Christensen says the team should find out if they have what it takes to acquire Roy Halladay or Josh Johnson via trade.

Odds & Ends: Bradley, Lackey, Padilla

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Bonus afternoon links:

  • Yahoo's Tim Brown reports via Twitter that Tampa Bay "will only consider acquiring [Milton] Bradley if Cubs eat so much [of his] salary [that the] Rays could release him at any time without financial hit."
  • John Harper of the New York Daily News wants the Mets to pursue John Lackey as "people around the Angels" view his return as unlikely.
  • Vicente Padilla is grateful for the opportunity he has been given with the Dodgers, writes MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez.  The Dodgers picked up the righty for the prorated portion of the minimum salary after he was released by the Rangers in August.
  • Newsday's Ken Davidoff brings us a strong quote from Yankees GM Brian Cashman on Carl Pavano: "He took a lot of crap, and so did I…Do I blame him for it?  No, I don't.  I don't think he laid down on us."

Discussion: Carl Pavano

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After the trade deadline, the Twins acquired Carl Pavano from the Indians to help bolster their rotation.  The 33-year-old was serviceable in Minnesota, posting a 4.64 ERA, 7.2 K/9 and an xFIP of 4.18.  Tomorrow night at the Metrodome, Pavano will take the mound as the Twins look to stay alive.

Pavano infamously pitched just 145.2 innings for the Yankees over the course of a four-year, $39.55MM pact signed in December of 2004.  During that time a litany of injuries (including a bruised buttocks) kept the righthander off the mound but in 2009 he recorded 199.1 IP in total.

Looking ahead to this winter, Pavano seems to be an attractive commodity in free agency once again.  It's no secret that the pool of free agent starters leaves much to be desired and that should mean a bump in pay for the Connecticut native.  One executive told Ken Rosenthal in September that Pavano could fetch a one-year deal worth as much as $7MM this offseason.

Where would you rank Pavano amongst the other available starters?  Would you dole out $5-7MM per season in a multi-year deal?  Let's hear your thoughts in the comments section.

Heyman On Pavano, Gomez, Nick Johnson

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Reggie Jackson tells Jon Heyman of SI.com that Alex Rodriguez will have a big postseason. Jackson says as much every year, but A-Rod did hit well last night – maybe 2009 is his year. Here are the rest of Heyman's rumors:

  • Like most Yankees people, Jackson is no fan of Carl Pavano.
  • Carlos Gomez is hesitant to call the trade that sent him (and others) to Minnesota for Johan Santana fair. But, as Heyman points out, the Twins beat the Mets to the playoffs.
  • The Mets will look at free agent first basemen this offseason, but don't expect them to sign Nick Johnson. GM Omar Minaya and the Mets are shying away from injury-prone players. I wonder if that applies to pitchers like Ben Sheets, Rich Harden and Erik Bedard.

Rosenthal On Pavano, A’s, Jays, Astros

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As Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports points out, closers Brian Fuentes and Ryan Franklin seem just as shaky as Brad Lidge these days. Rosenthal also covers some hot-stove themed issues. Here are the highlights: 

  • Carl Pavano, who will earn close to $4MM this year if enough incentives kick in, could sign a one-year deal worth $5-7MM this offseason, according to an MLB executive.
  • Cliff Pennington's emergence suggests there's very little chance the A's bring shortstop Orlando Cabrera back after the season.
  • Rosenthal reports that the Blue Jays wanted pitcher-shortstop Casey Kelly more than any of the prospects the Red Sox apparently offered for Roy Halladay.
  • Rosenthal hears that the Astros are likely to hire an experienced manager to permanently replace Cecil Cooper. Former Astro Jeff Bagwell would be a tempting choice, and he would probably consider the job if the Astros were interested, but the team appears more likely to pursue skippers with significant MLB experience.
  • The Indians have lost 17 of their last 20 games under Eric Wedge, who will not likely be out of work for long if he gets fired.

Perrotto’s Latest: Vazquez, Valverde, DeRosa, Pavano

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In today's column over at Baseball Prospectus, John Perrotto says nobody has been better at making deadline deals in the previous two seasons than Theo Epstein. I might agree but would love to hear some counter arguments.

As usual, Perrotto has his share of rumors from around the league:

  • The Braves need offense and are considering dealing Javier Vazquez to get it.
  • Don't expect Jose Valverde to return to Houston next season. He plans to test free agency and will likely find a better paycheck elsewhere.
  • The White Sox plan to re-sign Freddy Garcia to be their fifth starter.
  • The Cardinals would like to re-sign Mark DeRosa before he reaches free agency at the end of the season.
  • The Twins are planning an attempt to re-sign Carl Pavano, also a to-be free agent at season's end.
  • If the Nationals can acquire a shortstop in the offseason they would like Cristian Guzman to move to second base.

Odds & Ends: Castillo, Wagner, Pitching

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Some links to look through on the day Eric Munson returns to the big leagues…

  • Joel Sherman of The NY Post wonders if a Luis Castillo for Jeremy Bonderman or Nate Robertson deal makes sense. Placido Polanco will be a free agent after the season, and both pitchers are expendable to Detroit. Castillo is owed $12MM over the next two years, while Bonderman and Robertson will take in $12.5MM and $10MM, respectively, in the final season of their contracts next year.
  • Jon Heyman of SI.com tweets that the best possibilities for Billy Wagner next year are the Braves, Astros, Cubs, Tigers, and maybe even the Nationals.
  • In a piece at ESPN, Baseball Prospectus' Shawn Hoffman looks at who could be the best pitching bargains of the offseason. Carl Pavano, Erik Bedard, and John Smoltz might be the best of the lot. You need Insider to read the article, but it comes recommended.

Twins Rumors: Potential Free Agents, Mauer

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We already know that the Twins weren't able to swing a deal with the Cubs for pitcher Rich Harden today, but the Minnesota rumors don't end there. Let's recap some miscellaneous items…

  • Twins GM Bill Smith said there will be no negotiations with potential free agents Carl Pavano, Orlando Cabrera, Joe Crede, and Mike Redmond until after the season, according to Sid Hartman of The Star Tribune.
  • After word got out that the team has the money to keep megastar Joe Mauer in Minnesota, R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs took a look at the math and says that "unless Mauer really loves the area and takes a team friendly deal, I’m not sure they can meet his market value, and maybe you could argue they shouldn’t given the risks associated with being a catcher."

One thing to remember is that the Twins have brand new Target Field set to open next year, and new stadiums are almost always a cash cow for at least the first few years.

Indians Rumors: Debt, Shapiro, Wedge

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Terry Pluto of The Cleveland Plain Dealer sat down for a chat with Indians team president Paul Dolan and some other front office personnel. Lots of interesting information came to light, so let's dig in…

  • Dolan indicated that the team was $16MM in the red in July and headed towards $20MM. The trades of Cliff Lee, Victor Martinez, and Carl Pavano bring that number down to about $12MM.
  • Jake Westbrook's injury will actually save the team money because insurance will cover about 50% of his $11MM salary.
  • Had the Tribe not made any moves at the deadline, they would have been looking at about $30MM in losses next year because of declining attendance.
  • Dolan has "no plans" to sell the team, nor has he received any serious offers.
  • "Mark Shapiro will be the general manager next year; that has never been in question," said Dolan. "He has done a very good job of rebuilding the franchise once after the 1990s. Our fans may not realize it, but our franchise is viewed around baseball as one of the better ones in the game."
  • The future of manager Eric Wedge will be decided after the season, and the $1.3MM owed to him in 2010 will "not be factor."
  • Pluto also provides some notes about several Tribe prospects, including Carlos Carrasco and Michael Brantley. Carrasco was acquired in the Lee trade, Brantley in last year's CC Sabathia deal.

Indians Acquire Yohan Pino To Complete Pavano Trade

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The Indians have announced that they have acquired righthander Yohan Pino from the Twins as the player to be named later in this month's Carl Pavano trade. Pino was not on Minnesota's 40-man roster, so he did not need to pass through waivers to be included in the deal.

The 25-yr old has a 3.03 ERA and an impressive 4.00 K/BB ratio in 113 innings split between the Double- and Triple-A levels this year.

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