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Dontrelle Willis

Quick Hits: Choo, Miggy, Braden, Mariners

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Reds center fielder Shin-Soo Choo has been hit by an incredible nine pitches already, which, combined with a very discerning eye at the plate, has lead to an MLB-best .523 OBP. SB Nation's Rob Neyer opines that the Reds correctly assessed that the gap between Choo's offense and Drew Stubbs' offense would outweigh the defensive downgrade. While Choo won't keep this pace up, Neyer points out that Reds leadoff men combined for a .254 OBP last season, making the addition of Choo a worthwhile move.

Choo currently ranks third on MLBTR's 2014 Free Agent Power Rankings, and a career-year in terms of OBP would certainly help keep him near the top of that list. Here's more from around the league…

  • MLB.com's Lyle Spencer writes that Miguel Cabrera was nearly traded to the Angels prior to the 2007 trade that sent him to the Tigers. Cabrera himself told Spencer that he thought he was being traded to Anaheim. The Angels and Marlins discussed Ervin Santana and Joe Saunders in the deal as well as young infielders Howie Kendrick and Brandon Wood. Ultimately, Cabrera said that he thinks he wound up in Detroit because the Tigers were more willing to take on Dontrelle Willis and his $7MM salary.
  • Former Athletics left-hander Dallas Braden implied via Twitter that he could be entertaining a comeback attempt. Braden, now 29 years old, made just three starts in the 2011 season and hasn't pitched since thanks to a pair of shoulder surgeries. Braden famously threw a perfect game against the Rays on May 9, 2010 with his grandmother in attendance.
  • The Mariners' offensive woes present the "biggest crisis of the Jack Zduriencik era," writes Larry Stone of the Seattle Times. While he concedes that it's a small sample, Zduriencik made several moves to bolster the lineup this offseason but the Mariners find themselves in 29th place in nearly every offensive category. The collapse of Justin Smoak, Dustin Ackley and Jesus Montero — who were supposed to be the team's young core — is a major setback in Zduriencik's blueprint.

Dontrelle Willis Signs With Long Island Ducks

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Just one day after Vladimir Guerrero signed a contract to play with the Atlantic League's Long Island Ducks, ESPN's Jerry Crasnick reports that lefty Dontrelle Willis has signed with the Ducks as well (Twitter link).

Willis signed a minor league deal with the Cubs this offseason and was invited to Major League Spring Training with the team. He experienced discomfort in his left shoulder in his first outing, however, and had to leave the game. Willis walked the only batter he faced that day and was cut by the team at the end of March.

The 31-year-old Willis is a former NL Rookie of the Year and NL Cy Young runner-up. From 2003-06 he posted a 3.44 ERA, 6.7 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 817 1/3 innings for the Marlins. His brilliant Rookie of the Year campaign helped propel the Fish to a World Series victory over the Yankees in 2003.

Willis has just a 5.65 ERA in 404 1/3 innings since 2007, having walked 5.4 batters per nine innings and allowed 446 hits in that time. He retired from baseball last July but elected to make a comeback this offseason. Willis is represented by Sosnick & Cobbe.

NL Central Notes: Lohse, Brewers, Wainwright, Willis

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After recapping the Pirates' offseason, let's take a look at the rest of the NL Central..

  • The Collective Bargaining Agreement meant that Kyle Lohse had to wait longer than expected to sign this winter, but he can be a real game changer in the NL Central for the Brewers, writes Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports.  The veteran will pitch alongside Yovani Gallardo and Marco Estrada in front of the National League's best offense in 2012.
  • Fresh off of signing a five-year, $97.5MM contract extension, Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright says that he is ready to be the club's undisputed ace, writes MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch.  Aside from being an impact player on the mound, Wainwright is also looked up to by the other hurlers on the team.
  • The Cubs did some spring cleaning today and made some minor league cuts, including 2010 first-rounder Hayden Simpson and Dontrelle Willis, according to Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter).

NL Central Notes: Gonzalez, Wainwright, Willis, Bucs

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It was on this day in 1986 that Rollie Fingers chose his mustache over the Reds.  The veteran closer was offered a Spring Training invite by the Reds on the condition that Fingers shave his famous handlebar in order to meet with the team's facial hair policies.  Fingers turned the deal down and instead retired, ending his 17-year Major League career and paving the way for his eventual induction into the Hall of Fame. 

Here's the latest from around the NL Central…

  • The Cardinals exchanged figures with Alex Gonzalez this offseason but couldn't come to terms, and the veteran shortstop instead signed with the Brewers, MLB.com's Adam McCalvy reports.  The Cards' best offer was a one-year deal worth a guaranteed $1MM plus another $1MM if Gonzalez made the roster, which couldn't top Gonzalez's deal with Milwaukee.  A dozen teams scouted Gonzalez's offseason workout sessions, with the Red Sox and Dodgers showing particular interest in the 36-year-old.
  • Steve Hammond, Adam Wainwright's agent, is out of the country for the next 10 days so there won't be any immediate extension talks between Wainwright and the Cardinals, B.J. Rains of St. Louis 1380 AM Radio reports (via Twitter).  We heard on Monday that both sides were keeping the lines of communication open about a new contract for the ace right-hander.
  • Dontrelle Willis talks to CSN Chicago's Patrick Mooney about his career, his short-lived retirement, his controversial exit from the Orioles organization and his return to the Cubs on a minor league contract.
  • The Pirates are desperate for success but ESPN's Buster Olney notes that the team must weigh the short-term benefit of a winning season against the long-term costs (both developmentally and financially) of calling up young starters Jameson Taillon and Gerrit Cole.  MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith noted earlier today that the Pirates could prevent Cole from gaining Super Two eligibility by delaying his callup until mid-June.

Cubs Sign Dontrelle Willis

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The Cubs have signed Dontrelle Willis according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). The left-hander officially gets an invitation to minor league Spring Training, but could get a look in big league camp if he's throwing well. The 2003 NL Rookie of the Year is a Sosnick/Cobbe client.

Willis, 31 later this month, retired from baseball back in July. He allowed eight runs in 6 1/3 innings with the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate early last season before calling it quits. Willis last appeared in the big leagues with the Reds in 2011, when he pitched to a 5.00 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9 in 75 2/3 innings across 13 starts.

Willis started his professional career with the Cubs, who drafted him in the eighth round of the 2000 draft. Chicago traded him to the Marlins as part of the package for Matt Clement and Antonio Alfonseca two years later.

Minor Moves: Lin, Del Rosario, Thompson, Cubs

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Here are some of the minor transactions from around the league…

Dontrelle Willis To Retire

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3:50pm: The Orioles confirmed that Willis is retiring, tweets Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com.

2:36pm: Pitcher Dontrelle Willis is considering retirement and is not expected to make next start for the Orioles’ Triple-A affiliate, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (via Twitter).  The left-hander has been in the O’s system since signing a minor league deal in March.

Willis was placed on the restricted list by Baltimore in late April after a difference of opinions between him and the organization.  The 30-year-old left Triple-A Norfolk believing that he was going to be granted his release but instead was placed on the restricted list because GM Dan Duquette did not authorize the move.  Willis planned on filing a grievance against the Orioles but instead returned to the club’s farm system.

The southpaw wound up making just three relief appearances and one start for Triple-A Norfolk after all was said and done. Willis originally signed a one-year, $1MM deal with the Phillies in December of last year but was released in March.

Willis owns a career 4.17 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 for his career and has earned nearly $41MM over the course of his career, according to Baseball-Reference.  The pitcher known as D-Train burst on to the scene as a 21-year-old with the Marlins and captured the National League Rookie of the Year award with a brilliant campaign.  Two years later, Willis finished second in Cy Young voting to Chris Carpenter, posting 2.63 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9.

Latest On Orioles, Dontrelle Willis

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May 15th: The Orioles removed Willis from the restricted list and assigned him to Class A, the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate announced (Twitter link).

May 9th: Willis has agreed to drop his grievance, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports. The Orioles will allow him to start in the minor leagues once he builds up arm strength at extended Spring Training.

April 24th: Left-hander Dontrelle Willis will file a grievance against the Orioles following the club's decision to place him on the restricted list, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports. Willis recently left the Orioles' Triple-A team after a disagreement about his role in the organization.

Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette told CBSSports.com yesterday that Willis left Triple-A Norfolk without permission, but the pitcher's agent, Matt Sosnick, says Willis did obtain permission from the Orioles to leave. Willis can't sign with another club while on the restricted list, so Willis and Sosnick are frustrated.

"We're talking about a minor league player that Baltimore has relatively no financial investment in whatsoever," Sosnick told Crasnick. "It's the dumbest thing ever and a waste of everybody's time. Dan [Duquette] has had a thousand chances to ratchet this down a notch, and all he's done is ratchet it up."

Duquette told Jon Heyman yesterday that he hopes Willis will return and pitch effectively out of the bullpen. However, it sounds as though Willis would prefer to move on.

Quick Hits: Willis, Pudge, Lopez, Alvarez

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As if the Phillies didn't already have enough stars on the disabled list, Hunter Pence missed Monday's game due to a shoulder injury suffered diving for a ball Sunday against the Padres.  The extent of the injury is yet unknown and Pence is considered day-to-day for the time being.

Some news from Monday in the Major Leagues…

  • Dontrelle Willis talks to MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko about the situation that resulted in Willis being placed on the Orioles' restricted list.  Willis is "almost dumbfounded" by how things unfolded, as he thought he and the O's had agreed to part ways since he was injured and not adjusting well to relief pitching.  "I don't understand what's really going on. I don't know if there's been a miscommunication there," Willis said. "Not with me. I talked to my agent and we talked about it, I talked to the proper representation, I talked to Dan [Duquette] personally….It was face-to-face. I don't know what's going on. And now if I want to sign with another team, I can't."
  • Kubatko hears that Willis has drawn interest from a team in South Korea and a team in Japan, but Matt Sosnick, Willis' agent, denies that his client has received any offers.
  • The Marlins' signing of Ivan Rodriguez in 2003 was "money well spent," team president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest tells Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.  Beinfest doesn't regret any of the moves the club made that season (even trading then-prospect Adrian Gonzalez for Ugueth Urbina) because it led to a championship. "You always hate to trade away a talent like Adrian Gonzalez. But you make it every day if you're going to win the World Series," Beinfest said.
    Read more here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/fish_bytes/2012/04/quick-reflection-on-pudge.html#storylink=cpy
  • Cubs manager Dale Sveum hopes Rodrigo Lopez will clear waivers and remain with the organization, reports ESPN Chicago's Doug Padilla.  The right-hander was designated for assignment earlier today as the Cubs added Michael Bowden to the roster.
  • Pedro Alvarez's struggles inspired a discussion of the greatest draft busts in history in this mailbag piece from Baseball America's Jim Callis.  Alvarez, taken by the Pirates with the second overall pick of the 2008 draft, could be "the biggest waste of hitting talent in draft history" unless he turns himself around, Callis writes.
  • Twins President Dave St. Peter told Jim Memolo and Jeff Nelson on MLB Network Radio that his team needs to pitch better to recover from its 5-11 start. St. Peter suggested the Twins could move Francisco Liriano to the bullpen temporarily. “He’s an asset for this franchise and we need to get him back into a situation where he can go deep into ballgames,” St Peter said. The 28-year-old lefty faces a make or break year and it was announced today that Liriano would skip his next start and not pitch until May 1.

Latest On Orioles, Dontrelle Willis

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Dontrelle Willis is on the restricted list following a difference of opinion on the left-hander's role in the Orioles' minor league system. Willis left Baltimore's Triple-A affiliate over the weekend, believing he had been released when he had actually been placed on the restricted list.

"My understanding is that the Orioles people involved in telling Dontrelle he could have his release reiterated that commitment to Dan Duquette," Agent Matt Sosnick told MLBTR's Tim Dierkes. "Yet Duquette refused to honor that and instead put Dontrelle on the restricted list.  We ended up reading about him being put on the restricted list in the news.  It's the craziest thing.  Our expectation is that Dontrelle will be removed from the restricted list today."

Willis left the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate without permission, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com first reported today. Duquette, Baltimore's executive VP of baseball operations, confirmed to Heyman that the sides had a difference of opinion on whether Willis should start or pitch out of the bullpen. Duquette hopes Willis will return and believes he can be an effective reliever, Heyman reports.

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