Yankees Rumors: Girardi, Jeter, Rivera, Pettitte
The Yankees always have interesting offseasons, but this one figures to have a little extra something after the Rangers massively outplayed them in the ALCS. Three of their stalwart players, not to mention the manager, are scheduled to become free agents in a few weeks. Let's round up all the news that came out of Yankeeland following last night's loss, courtesy of Chad Jennings of The Journal News, MLB.com's Bryan Hoch, Mark Feinsand and Anthony McCarron of The Daily News, Marc Carig of The Star-Ledger, and Dom Amore of The Hartford Courant (Twitter link)…
- Re-signing manager Joe Girardi is "the first order of business," said GM Brian Cashman. Cashman also said he has yet to talk to ownership, which gives you an idea of how far along (or not) they are in the process.
- Neither Mariano Rivera nor Derek Jeter would talk about their upcoming free agency after last night's loss. “This is where they belong,” said Cashman, and the general belief is that both will re-sign with the Yankees this winter.
- Andy Pettitte's decision about whether to return for another year or retire will be based solely on his family, adding that he's already accomplished everything he wanted to in his career. Cashman said that they'll give Pettitte as much time as he needs.
- Yankee starting pitchers not named CC Sabathia posted a 5.91 ERA in the second half, so Cashman unsurprisingly said that starting pitching will be a priority in the offseason. They're expected to be major players for Cliff Lee, and will likely check in on Zack Greinke.
Odds & Ends: Jeter, Torre, Towers, Bautista
Links for Tuesday, before Roy Halladay attempts to win 20 games for the third time in his career…
- Back in the spring, Derek Jeter told Jack Curry of the YES Network that we won't find him "hanging on" after his ability fades. Jeter is hitting a little better lately, though his numbers have fallen off overall.
- Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe explains that re-signing Adrian Beltre and Victor Martinez would help the Red Sox against the American League's best left-handers.
- Not surprisingly, the Brewers will not pursue Joe Torre to be their next manager, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (on Twitter).
- GM candidate Kevin Towers is back in Arizona for a second interview, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). The D'Backs have discussed baseball with Towers, but not money.
- If you’re wondering why the Blue Jays would consider locking up Jose Bautista, BattersBox’s Dave Rutt can explain. He says the Blue Jays need to build around superstar caliber players to win in the AL East.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Fusco, Thome, Cubs, Jeter
On this date in 1998, former New York Highlander and St. Louis Brown Red Hoff passed away. At 107 years, four months, and nine days old, the left-handed pitcher had the longest life span of any player in Major League history, out-living his closest competition by more than five years. He pitched to a 2.49 ERA in 83 innings from 1911-1915, but never played after serving in World War I.
Here are a few interesting links from around the blogosphere…
- Phoul Balls interviewed Low-A Greenville manager and former big leaguer Billy McMillon.
- SPANdemonium chatted with Greg Schaum about the Royals' farm system, arguably the best in baseball (well, it's not really all that arguable, it is the best).
- U.S.S. Mariner chimes in on the Carmen Fusco firing in the wake of the Josh Lueke fallout.
- Prospect Insider looks back at the trades Jack Zduriencik made during his first year as Mariners GM.
- Pine Tar And Pocket Protectors examines if Jim Thome was the best signing of the offseason.
- The Few, The Proud, The Braves compares Brian McCann to David Ross.
- SDSports.net wonders if Luis Durango has a future with the Padres.
- Cubs Pack projects Chicago's 2011 payroll.
- Yankeeist asks what kind of contract Derek Jeter will get next season.
- The Nats Blog looks at Adam Dunn's place among the best home run hitters in history.
- The Hardball Times matches up each of the 30 teams with a character from The Simpsons.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
Stark On Rasmus, Jeter, Gonzalez, Morgan
If the Cardinals put Colby Rasmus on the trade market, they would “only get 60 or 70 cents on the dollar,” according to one MLB executive who spoke to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark. Here’s a detailed look at potential suitors for Rasmus, and here are the rest of Stark’s rumors:
- Derek Jeter and agent Casey Close understand that the Yankees aren’t going to offer an embarrassingly low contract this winter. As Stark points out, the Yankees offered Jorge Posada a four-year deal heading into the season in which he turned 37. Posada was coming off of an MVP-caliber season, so the comparison only works to a point, but as many reporters have pointed out this week, Jeter is going nowhere and the Yankees aren’t going to low-ball him.
- Adrian Gonzalez probably won’t be on the trade market this winter, according to clubs that have spoken to the Padres. They’ll try to contend in 2011 and consider trading Gonzalez if they aren’t in contention next summer.
- Two scouts who cover the Nationals say they expect the team to shop Nyjer Morgan this winter. One of the scouts said there’s a “non-existent” chance that Washington keeps him.
Heyman On Jeter, Ortiz, Minaya
It’s a foregone conclusion that the Yankees will re-sign Derek Jeter, but as Jon Heyman of SI.com points out, “the Yankees' business is so good it doesn't have to look at things the normal way.” That means the Bronx Bombers can afford to pay franchise icons like Jeter for past greatness, even if the offensive numbers aren't there anymore. Here’s the latest on Jeter, plus other notes from around the league:
- One executive told Heyman that he can see the Yankees offering $45-50MM over three years. That fits in with what MLBTR readers predicted earlier in the week. As Dave Cameron of FanGraphs noted, Chipper Jones’ most recent deal was for $42MM over three years.
- Some executives can see the Red Sox trying to lock David Ortiz up for $18-20MM or so over two years instead of exercising his $12.5MM option for 2011. Ortiz has said he’d like to stay in Boston, but he wants a multi-year deal.
- Heyman says it’s still “extremely likely” that the Mets re-assign Omar Minaya. In other words, he may not be the GM for much longer.
Poll: Derek Jeter’s Next Contract
Derek Jeter will presumably re-sign with the Yankees this winter and even though he's having a down-year by his lofty standards, the Yankees don't intend to "play hardball" when their shortstop hits free agency this winter, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Understandably, they'd prefer not to bicker with their captain and are prepared to pay him.
Jeter has a .264/.331/.372 line in 2010. It's acceptable for a durable shortstop, but he has never posted lower batting, on base, or slugging averages in a full season. The stats aren't there this year, but Jeter did have an excellent season at the plate in 2009. The 36-year-old is 103 hits away from reaching 3,000 for his career and provides the Yankees with value as an iconic, marketable player. Let's make some predictions:
How much guaranteed money will Derek Jeter sign for?
Click here to take the survey and here to view the results.
Rosenthal On Jeter, Werth, Cardinals, Reds
Derek Jeter’s .264/.331/.372 batting line is remarkably similar to Marco Scutaro’s .271/.331/.372 line, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports points out. Scutaro’s a quality major league player, but the two-year $12.5MM deal he signed as a free agent last winter pales in comparison to the kind of contract Jeter seems likely to sign when he hits the open market after the season. Here’s Rosenthal’s Jeter update, plus other notes from around the majors:
- Yankees officials do not plan to “play hardball” with Jeter this winter. MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes suggested in May that $30MM over three years could be reasonable, but the Yankees don’t want to lowball their captain.
- One GM who may have interest in signing Jayson Werth this offseason has doubts about the outfielder’s ability to hit in a less imposing lineup.
- Cardinals manager Tony La Russa told Rosenthal that St. Louis made multiple waiver claims on hitters last month, though they “went nowhere.”
- The Reds and Dusty Baker have exchanged ideas since the Reds offered Baker a one-year extension with no raise, according to Rosenthal.
Cafardo On Jeter, Ortiz, Pavano, Kemp
Barring an incredible comeback or collapse, perennial playoff contenders like the Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, and Cardinals won't be playing meaningful October baseball this year. In his weekly Sunday column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe examines why these clubs have fallen short in 2010. He also shares a few hot stove notes….
- One American League executive calls Derek Jeter a "two-year, $8MM-a-year player on the open market," though the exec acknowledges that the Yankees will pay more than that to keep their long-time shortstop around.
- While David Ortiz believes that he could play first base for a National League team next season, he tells Cafardo that he'd rather stay in Boston and DH.
- Carl Pavano's ideal offseason would see him signing a multi-year deal with the Twins. His agent, Tom O'Connell, says Pavano would "love for something to work out" with Minnesota. When MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith looked at Pavano's impending free agency earlier this week, he concluded that the right-hander might have trouble landing more than a one-year deal.
- Cafardo spoke to Dodgers officials who said they'd be very surprised if the club moved Matt Kemp this winter. One team official told Cafardo, "You never know in trades, but I’d guess we’d have to be pretty overwhelmed to give up on him."
- Fredi Gonzalez is widely considered the favorite to replace Bobby Cox in Atlanta, but the former Marlins skipper should be a candidate for the Cubs and Mariners as well. Jim Hendry and Jack Zduriencik both like Gonzalez's managerial style.
Heyman On Fielder, Kemp, Mets, Jeter
In his latest column for Sports Illustrated, Jon Heyman writes that the waiver trade deadline was a dud outside of the Manny Ramirez claim by the White Sox. Even though the waiver trade deadline was somewhat quiet, this offseason should bring us plenty of interesting storylines. Here's what Heyman has in hot stove news..
- The Brewers are still holding out hope that they can re-sign Prince Fielder. Meanwhile, others in baseball believe that they have virtually no chance of retaining the slugger. Milwaukee's chances of hanging on to Fielder took a hit when the Twins re-upped Joe Mauer for $180MM. Fielder wants at least that much but it's likely too rich for Milwaukee's blood.
- Heyman hears that Matt Kemp is seeking a deal with the Dodgers similar to Nick Markakis' contract. Markakis inked a six-year, $66MM extension with the O's in January of 2009. In fact, as a center fielder with power, Kemp sees himself as more valuable. However, the soon-to-be 26-year-old knows that he won't get that kind of deal with the Dodgers.
- Speaking of the Dodgers, Heyman says that it's tough to envision Ted Lilly approaching the $12MM salary he got from the Cubs.
- Mets GM Omar Minaya has told friends that he enjoys scouting and talent evaluation. Heyman wonders aloud if this is a precursor to Minaya has accepted that he will be assigned to a new position. Some in the organization wonder if owner Fred Wilpon traveling to the minors with assistant GM John Ricco means that the Mets intend to elevate Ricco to the GM position. It's possible, however, that Ricco was just assisting on a scouting mission.
- It's hard to quantify Derek Jeter's value to the Yankees though early guesses of him earning $25MM per season in his next contract seem high at the moment.
- Unsurprisingly, Heyman writes that Texas will non-tender Jeff Francoeur this offseason.
Potential Suitors For Derek Jeter
Let’s indulge ourselves for a minute and play a game. Imagine, if you can, that Derek Jeter is not going to re-sign with the Yankees this winter. As hard as that is to do, let’s try to figure out which teams would have interest in Mr. November if the Yankees let him walk.
I’ll spare you the details on Jeter, since we’re all familiar with his track record, but here are the essentials. He is hitting .280/.343/.394 this year with 12 steals in 16 attempts. The four-time Gold Glover restored his defensive reputation last year, when he posted an above-average UZR/150, but UZR doesn’t like Jeter’s defense so far in 2010.
Jeter, perhaps the most marketable player in baseball, figures to reach 3,000 hits at some point in 2011. He’s also as durable as it gets; he averaged 152 games from 1996-2009 and is on pace to play just as many times this season.
There's absolutely no reason to expect Jeter to leave the Yankees, but here’s a look at the teams that would have interest in Jeter if the Yankees do not re-sign him. For the purposes of this piece, we’ll assume that Jeter wants to play shortstop, not left field or third base.
- Orioles – The Orioles need a shortstop, but it seems unlikely that Jeter would choose to finish his career for a team that doesn't appear ready to contend immediately.
- Tigers – Jeter would probably be tempting for the Tigers, who have relied on Ramon Santiago and Danny Worth at short this year.
- Twins – J.J. Hardy is a non-tender candidate after a disappointing first season in Minneapolis, so the Twins could be in the market for a shortstop this winter.
- A’s – The A’s need offense and Jeter’s track record suggests he would be a clear offensive upgrade over Cliff Pennington.
- Nationals – The Nationals, who have interest in one big-name free agent, could move Ian Desmond to second to make room for Jeter.
- Reds – The Reds have a $4MM option for Orlando Cabrera’s services, but would be a potential suitor for Jeter. However, Cincinnati will also be looking to replace or re-sign Ramon Hernandez, Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang.
- Cardinals – The Cards have Brendan Ryan and Tyler Greene, but they’d surely be tempted by Jeter.
- Padres – Miguel Tejada and Jerry Hairston Jr. are free agents, so the Padres could let them walk and replace Everth Cabrera with Jeter.
- Giants – Even if the Giants let Juan Uribe walk and decline Edgar Renteria's option, they could get by with Mike Fontenot and Emmanuel Burriss. But there's a big difference between just getting by and signing Derek Jeter.
- Others – The Mariners could get creative and move Jack Wilson to a backup-utility role; the Braves could decline Alex Gonzalez’s 2011 option or pick it up and trade him
The Rays (Jason Bartlett, Reid Brignac, Sean Rodriguez), Red Sox (Marco Scutaro), Blue Jays (Yunel Escobar), Indians (Asdrubal Cabrera), White Sox (Alexei Ramirez), Angels (Erick Aybar), Rangers (Elvis Andrus), Phillies (Jimmy Rollins), Mets (Jose Reyes), Marlins (Hanley Ramirez), Brewers (Alcides Escobar), Cubs (Starlin Castro), Dodgers (Rafael Furcal), Diamondbacks (Stephen Drew) and Rockies (Troy Tulowitzki) all have shortstops under team control for 2011.
Christian Colon, the Royals’ first-round selection in this year’s draft (fourth-overall) may move from short to second eventually, but the Royals still don’t seem like a fit for Jeter. Neither do the Pirates and Astros, who aren’t in win-now mode.
Again, it's virtually impossible to imagine Jeter signing anywhere but the Bronx, so this piece is mostly for fun. But if he wanted to test the free agent market, Jeter would be able to choose from a number of legitimate suitors.