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AL West Notes: Figgins, Angels, Willingham

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No American League West team is truly out of contention. The Rangers lead the way with a 40-36 record, the Mariners and Angels are hovering around .500 and the A's are back within 5.5 games of the division lead after a recent six-game winning streak. Here's the latest on the AL West: 

  • The Mariners still owe Chone Figgins over $20MM between now and the end of the 2013 season, but the infielder is playing poorly, so Larry Stone of the Seattle Times runs through the team's options. Stone concludes that the Mariners probably have to cut down on Figgins’ playing time and hope he finally heats up so that they can get some value from him, either in a trade or on the field. 
  • Angels GM Tony Reagins told Kevin Baxter of the LA Times that international free agency is an increasingly important and challenging source of talent for MLB teams. This year's international signing period begins July 2nd (link via the Baltimore Sun).
  • One scout for a contending team told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that Josh Willingham's Achilles injury could scare teams considering the outfielder as a possible trade target. The A's put Willingham on the disabled list, but he could return in early July, in time to reestablish his trade value.

Quick Hits: D’Backs, Figgins, Tejada, McCourt

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As Anthony Rizzo prepares for his Major League debut tomorrow with the Padres, it was one year ago today that Stephen Strasburg and Mike Stanton both made their first appearances in the majors.  Both star prospects lived up to the hype — Strasburg recorded 14 strikeouts and no walks in seven innings against the Pirates, while Stanton went 3-for-5 (all singles) and scored twice against the Phillies.

Some items from around the league…

  • The Diamondbacks were judged as the biggest winners of the amateur draft, writes Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com.  Mayo spoke to a number of scouts to produce a list of the five teams who had the best drafts, with three AL East teams making the cut. 
  • Fangraphs' Joe Pawlikowski wonders how long the Mariners can afford to keep putting Chone Figgins in the lineup.  Pawlikowski also predicts that the Giants will release Miguel Tejada once Pablo Sandoval returns from the DL.
  • Dodgers owner Frank McCourt will be able to meet the team's payroll on June 15, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
  • In a radio appearance on the Mut & Merloni Show today, Peter Gammons noted the lack of top-quality arms available at this year's trade deadline.  Gammons said a pitching-needy team like the Yankees would have to look at pitchers like Brett Myers or Edwin Jackson, while he shoots down the idea that Felix Hernandez, Francisco Liriano or any of the Athletics' young arms would be on the market.  WEEI's Jerry Spar has the full transcript of Gammons' appearance here.

Chone Figgins: “I’m A Seattle Mariner”

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7:06pm: Regardless of whether or not Figgins would allow a trade to the A's, talks appear to be dead. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link) hears from a source that "nothing is going to happen," and ESPN.com's Buster Olney says (via Twitter) that the Mariners, who talked to Oakland three weeks ago, aren't motivated to move Figgins.

3:47pm: We heard yesterday about a proposed trade that would've sent Chone Figgins from Seattle to Oakland, but the rumored deal would have hinged on Figgins accepting the move, given that the A's are one of the teams on his no-trade list.  Speaking to fans and media — including Larry Stone of the Seattle Times — at the Mariners' FanFest event on Saturday, Figgins said he didn't want to be traded anywhere.

"I always said, it's a great thing to be wanted,'' Figgins said. "But I want to win here. I've said all along, this has been one of the best places I've ever played — the city, the fans. I'll always love playing here. This is where I want to be, and until they force me out of here, this is where I'm going to be.''

"I've been on the trade block for years, even with the Angels. Like I said, it's always a great thing to be wanted, but I'm a Seattle Mariner. I'm going to play third base unless they rip the jersey off me.''

Figgins briefly spoke to Seattle GM Jack Zduriencik at the event, and Zduriencik told reporters that their chat was the first time the two had spoken since the trade rumors broke yesterday.

"I just let Chone know how things get started," Zduriencik said.  "In this game, it's interesting how things get started. It happens all the time. You have general managers talk, agents talk about players – I'm not referring to this particular situation, but the next thing you know, someone is putting two and two together and coming up with five."

This would seem to put an end to this trade speculation for the time being, unless the rumors about the Blue Jays as a third team involved in the deal develop into a seperate Toronto-Oakland swap involving Kevin Kouzmanoff.  The Jays are in the market for a third baseman, though it's hard to see why the Athletics would create their own hole at third by moving Kouzmanoff without getting another third baseman (like Figgins) in return.

Quick Hits: Chavez, Vlad, Pierzynski, Royals

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Happy 51st birthday to Steve Sax!  Sax was the NL Rookie of the Year in 1982, played on two World Series champions, made five All-Star teams, and holds a special bit of pop culture history as one of Mr. Burns' softball ringers on The Simpsons.

Today's news tidbits…

Olney On Mets, Young, Figgins

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The fallout continues from the Mets' announcement on Friday that a portion of the team is up for sale, writes Buster Olney of ESPN.com. Here's Olney's take, as well as some other items of note …

  • The Madoff scandal could prove to be a turning point in Mets history if it leads to a change in the team's ownership. The financial implications go a long way toward explaining why the Mets' baseball-operations staff has been on a shorter payroll leash since the signing of Jason Bay, and one has to wonder how long the Mets will be operating in that mode as the legal process plays out. To that end, signing a big-ticket free agent like Albert Pujols in the near future would be difficult. Finally, was new GM Sandy Alderson aware of the Mets' financial standing when he took the job?
  • Rangers president Nolan Ryan and manager Ron Washington are on record as saying that Michael Young will be with Texas on Opening Day, as Young is well-liked by the organization and will be useful in the super utility role. Both the Rangers and Rockies say that trade talks regarding Young have not been rekindled.
  • The Athletics' rumored pursuit of Chone Figgins makes sense if you consider that he fits Oakland's preference for acquiring players who are fast and defensively sound. To boot, Figgins would cost the A's only about 60 percent of what they were willing to spend on free-agent Adrian Beltre, who signed with the rival Rangers. Olney interprets Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik's comment that Figgins is the Mariners' third baseman as a, "no comment."

Chone Figgins Rumors: Friday

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6:29pm: Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik told MLB.com's Jane Lee and Greg Johns that the team's plan is to have Figgins at third base on Opening Day. "I'm looking forward to Figgins being our starting third baseman … He'll be here tomorrow [for the Mariners' FanFest]. He's been agreeable to moving back to third base and that's our plan, to have Chone be our Opening Day third baseman."

1:17pm: The A's are on Figgins' limited no-trade list and he hasn't yet been asked to waive it, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter).

12:50pm: There could be a third team involved in trade talks, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter link). Olney suggests the Blue Jays could be the third team. Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos acknowledged last night that the team has toyed with the idea of adding a third baseman, so the Blue Jays could have interest in Kouzmanoff.

8:47am: The A’s are trying to acquire Chone Figgins for Kevin Kouzmanoff and perhaps a pitcher, according to Joe Stiglich of the Contra Costa Times. Figgins, 33, could play third base for the A's, who missed out on free agent Adrian Beltre.

The Mariners owe Figgins $26MM through 2013 and the infielder's contract includes a vesting option for 2014. Figgins hit .259/.340/.306 last year with 42 stolen bases and 74 walks. He led the league with 101 walks in 2009, stealing 42 bases and posting a .298/.395/.393 line for another AL West team, the Angels.

The Braves inquired on Figgins last July, but there hasn't been reported interest in him since.

Quick Hits: Pettitte, Figgins, Giants, Hoffman

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On this date in 2002, the Diamondbacks signed Carlos Gonzalez as an amateur free agent. Two blockbuster trades and one breakout season later, CarGo has agreed to a seven-year extension with the Rockies. Here are today's links…

  • Andy Pettitte told Brian Costello of the New York Post at his home in Texas that he's just "chilling out, hanging" and still hasn't decided whether he'll play in 2011.
  • The Mariners have officially asked Chone Figgins to move back to third base, reports Kirby Arnold of the Daily Herald. Figgins has played more games at third than at any other position, but he played second base last year.
  • The Giants will likely rely on players already in the organization for infield depth now that Edgar Renteria has agreed to sign with the Reds, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
  • Trevor Hoffman is leaning toward retirement, according to Heyman (on Twitter). The reliever has drawn some interest this offseason, but he had hoped for the chance to close in 2011.
  • Michael Girsch will replace John Abbamondi as the Cardinals' assistant GM, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter).

Odds & Ends: Huff, Marlins, Sampson, D’Backs

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Links for Thursday, exactly ten years after the Angels signed Ervin Santana as an amateur free agent…

  • Aubrey Huff is enjoying his time in San Francisco, writes Chris Haft of MLB.com.  Huff, who signed a one-year, $3MM deal with the Giants in the offseason, will be a free agent at season's end.
  • The Marlins still consider Bobby Valentine a candidate for their managerial opening and Valentine didn't rule out the possibility of re-starting talks with the team, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). 
  • The Astros announced that they removed Chris Sampson from their 40-man roster. He has three days to accept a minor league assignment or opt for free agency. Sampson told MLB.com's Brian McTaggart that he realizes his time with the Astros is likely over.
  • The Mariners say they knew little about Josh Lueke's history with the law when they acquired the pitching prospect in the Cliff Lee trade, but both the Rangers and former Mariners pitching coach Rick Adair have different versions of the story, as Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times explains.
  • Unsure where your team is going to pick in next year's draft? Check out our reverse standings page, which we link to under 'Features' on the right side of the page.
  • Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports that the D’Backs plan to speak to De Jon Watson, the Dodgers assistant GM for player development, about their permanent GM job. Also in the running, some familiar names: Jerry Dipoto, D’Backs assistant GM Peter Woodfork, Kevin Towers, Damon Oppenheimer and Logan White.
  • Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic believes Chien-Ming Wang, who signed for $2MM plus incentives, is a better comparable for Brandon Webb than Rich Harden, Tim Hudson, or the other pitchers his agent compared him to. 
  • Chone Figgins told Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times that he doesn't regret signing in Seattle.
  • Rookie pitcher Hisanori Takahashi can become a free agent after the season, as David Waldstein of the New York Times reports. He and the Mets haven't started negotiating an extension, but there's mutual interest in one.

Odds & Ends: Johnson, Figgins, Pineda, Ross

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Saturday night links, as Joey Votto, Adam Dunn, and Paul Konerko belt their 32nd home runs…

Angels Sign Kaleb Cowart

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The Angels signed first-round pick Kaleb Cowart, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports by way of a team press release.  BA's Jim Callis reports that he'll get $2.3MM, about $900K over slot.  Cowart, a pitcher and third baseman drafted out of high school, was chosen 18th overall by the Angels.  The Angels received the pick from the Mariners as compensation for the Chone Figgins signing.

With the Cowart agreement, 16 first-round picks remain unsigned.

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