Orioles Notes: Britton, Willis, Catchers
Here's the latest from Charm City…
- Zach Britton underwent two rounds of platelet rich plasma (PRP) therapy today in an effort to solve the inflammation in his throwing shoulder. The young left-hander told reporters (including Brittany Ghiroli from MLB.com) that Dr. James Andrews recommended the procedure and if it works, Britton will be able to avoid surgery. Britton will be sidelined for at least six weeks and he hopes to be pitching by early May.
- Dontrelle Willis said he received offers from other teams before signing with the Orioles, tweets Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun.
- The O's plan to use Willis as a left-handed relief specialist and he'll start the season in the minors, Dan Duquette told reporters (including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com). Duquette also said the team would look out for other available pitchers but are concentrating on evaluating their current arms in camp.
- "It's going to be hard to pick up another catcher this time of the year," Duquette said, indicating that the Orioles will stick with Ronny Paulino as their backup catcher if Taylor Teagarden has to spend time on the disabled list.
Orioles To Sign Dontrelle Willis
The Orioles will sign Dontrelle Willis to a minor league contract, report ESPN's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter). Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun reports (on Twitter) that Willis will make $700K in the big leagues. The Sosnick Cobbe client was released by the Phillies last week.
Willis pitched 75 2/3 innings for the Reds in 2011 — his highest total since 2007. The 30-year-old southpaw posted a 5.00 ERA with 6.8 K/9, 4.4 BB/9 and a 54.5% ground ball rate in 13 second half starts with Cincinnati this past season. An ineffective Spring Training with Philadelphia led to his release.
NL East Notes: Vizcaino, Phillies, Mets, Lannan
Earlier today MLBTR's Tim Dierkes reviewed the Marlins' busy offseason. Here are some more links from the NL East…
- Braves GM Frank Wren told reporters that reliever Arodys Vizcaino will miss the 2012 season after undergoing Tommy John ligament replacement surgery. The 21-year-old right-hander appeared in 17 games with the Braves last year and entered the season as the 40th-best prospect in MLB, according to Baseball America.
- The Phillies could start the season with prospect Freddy Galvis at second base, or explore the trade market for alternatives. ESPN.com’s Buster Olney hears from rival executives that there’s a short list of veteran middle infielders available in trades. Maicer Izturis, Alberto Callaspo, Chris Getz and Blake DeWitt appear to be options for teams seeking infield depth.
- Even though they're short on left-handed relief, the Mets are unlikely to sign C.J. Nitkowski, Hong-Chih Kuo or Dontrelle Willis, Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com reports.
- Jayson Stark of ESPN.com hears the Nationals "still have a lot of motivation" to trade John Lannan and his $5MM salary (Twitter link).
Rockies Will Consider Dontrelle Willis
The Rockies are always looking to add pitching depth, and today the team will internally discuss whether to pursue Dontrelle Willis according to Troy Renck of The Denver Post. The Phillies released the southpaw yesterday.
“It’s tough at this point in camp, but we will take a look at it,” said GM Dan O’Dowd.
Colorado has left-handed relievers Rex Brothers and Matt Reynolds on the 40-man roster, but it should only take a minor league contract to land Willis at this point. The 30-year-old has held lefty batters to a .178/.245/.248 batting line with a 5.0 K/BB ratio in 143 plate appearances over the last two seasons. Yesterday we heard that the Marlins were unlikely to have interest in bringing their former ace back.
Quick Hits: Willis, Marlins, Reyes, Dunn, Blue Jays
Here are some miscellaneous notes from around the league…
- The Marlins are not expected to show interest in their former ace Dontrelle Willis, reports MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (on Twitter). The Phillies released Willis earlier today.
- "Before I signed here, I saw what [the Marlins were] trying to do," said Jose Reyes to David Lennon of Newsday. "That's why I decide to come here to Miami, because of the opportunity to win. Because in my ninth year in the big leagues, I don't win anything yet."
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports expects Adam Dunn to rebound from his disastrous 2011 campaign with the White Sox. The 32-year-old slugger said "ninety percent of what happened was simple, mental."
- Blue Jays assistant GM Tony LaCava spoke to MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm about a number of the team's prospects, including David Cooper, Travis d'Arnaud, and Anthony Gose.
Yankees Notes: Pineda, Ibanez, Willis
The Yankees have averaged more than 97 regular season wins per year since 1996. Here's the latest on the 2012 club via Joel Sherman of the New York Post…
- Yankees officials say Michael Pineda is a hard worker and his teammates say he’s mixing in well, Sherman reports. There’s been some concern about Pineda’s velocity and conditioning this spring, but Sherman points out that it’s wise to avoid definitive statements based on Spring Training information.
- The Yankees say they aren’t worried about Raul Ibanez’s spring struggles, Sherman tweets. Ibanez has been facing more left-handed pitching than he will during the regular season.
- The Yankees offered Dontrelle Willis a minor league deal this offseason, Sherman tweets. The Yankees might look into signing Willis, who was released by the Phillies this morning.
Phillies Release Dontrelle Willis
The Phillies announced that they released left-hander Dontrelle Willis. The Sosnick Cobbe client signed a one-year, $1MM contract with Philadelphia in December and had been expected to contribute out of the bullpen.
Willis pitched 75 2/3 innings for the Reds in 2011 — his highest total since 2007. The 30-year-old southpaw posted a 5.00 ERA with 6.8 K/9, 4.4 BB/9 and a 54.5% ground ball rate in 13 second half starts with Cincinnati this past season. The Mariners, Blue Jays, Red Sox and Reds reportedly had interest in Willis as a reliever before he signed with the Phillies.
Phillies Notes: Trades, Pierre, Willis, Playoffs
The Phillies won a franchise-record 102 games last season, but were denied a World Series berth by the now-champion Cardinals. This offseason, they re-signed Jimmy Rollins, extended Kyle Kendrick, and added Jonathan Papelbon, Jim Thome, Laynce Nix, and Dontrelle Willis to bolster their bench and bullpen. Here's the latest on the defending NL East Champions…
- GM Ruben Amaro Jr. and assistant GM Benny Looper are well aware that trades they've made to acquire Roy Halladay, Hunter Pence, and others will eventually be painful, writes Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Amaro and Looper both discuss how difficult it was to part ways with players like Travis d'Arnaud and Anthony Gose. Amaro didn't deny the November report that he attempted to re-acquire D'Arnaud.
- The Phillies are the only team who reached out to Juan Pierre this offseason, the outfielder told the Miami Herald's Manny Navarro. Pierre inked a minor league deal back in January.
- In the same piece, Navarro writes that Willis and Pierre are happy to be in camp together. The pair won a World Series together with the Marlins in 2003, and have remained very close friends since. Pierre is the godfather of all three of Willis' daughters, and the two refer to each other as "brothers." Willis also noted that the Marlins have shown interest in him again since trading him.
- Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that Halladay isn't a big fan of the extended playoffs. Halladay doesn't like the concept of opening a five-game series with two road games, nor does he like the thought of a 162-game season coming down to one game.
- Freddy Galvis is working out at second base and third base with the hopes of making the big league team as a utility infielder now that Rollins has re-signed, according to the Inquirer's Matt Gelb.
Contract Details: Tejeda, Blue Jays, Phillies, Pirates
MLB.com's beat reporters have been digging up details on some recent minor league deals. Here are the latest updates:
- Robinson Tejeda will earn $825K if he makes the Indians' roster and can earn $50K for pitching in 50 games, 55 games, 60 games and 65 games, Jordan Bastian tweets. Tejeda would earn a $100K bonus for pitching in 70 games.
- Aaron Laffey will earn $800K if he makes the Blue Jays, Gregor Chisholm tweets. Brian Bocock would earn $480K at the Major League level.
- Todd Zolecki has the details on the Phillies' deals with Dontrelle Willis and Luis Montanez. Willis has many incentives, including bonuses for winning the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger.
- Jenifer Langosch reports what Anderson Hernandez ($500K), Logan Kensing ($675K) and Jose Morales ($650K) will earn if they make the Pirates' roster.
NL East Links: Oswalt, Davis, Cedeno, Cuddyer
Here's the latest from the National League East…
- The Nationals "have had little contact with" Roy Oswalt, a source tells MLB.com's Bill Ladson. We heard last week that Oswalt was the Nats' "plan B" once Mark Buehrle signed with Miami. The Nats didn't bid on Yu Darvish and won't meet Oakland's price for Gio Gonzalez, so the club may stick with its current rotation.
- Ladson believes the Nationals will look for bench help before re-entering the pitching market. To that end, Ladson reports the team is maintaining interest in Mike Cameron, Mark DeRosa and Greg Dobbs. (Both links go to Ladson's Twitter account.)
- The Marlins are interested in Rays right-hander Wade Davis, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post. With Matt Moore, David Price, Jeremy Hellickson as untouchables and the Rays seemingly determined to keep James Shields, Davis and Jeff Niemann are the most likely Rays pitchers to be moved, if the club does indeed try to deal from its pitching surplus. The inter-Florida rivals have already completed one (lower-profile) trade this offseason, involving righty Burke Badenhop.
- The Mets have talked to Ronny Cedeno and Jack Wilson, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). Wilson has been linked to the Mets for a few weeks, but Cedeno is a new name in the mix for the Amazins. The Red Sox and Braves have also had interest in Cedeno this offseason.
- Also from Heyman, the Phillies made Michael Cuddyer an early contract offer worth more than $25MM. The club lost interest in Cuddyer, however, after signing Ty Wigginton and Laynce Nix. Cuddyer agreed to a three-year, $31.5MM deal today with the Rockies.
- Dontrelle Willis sounded confident that he will play alongside his longtime friend Jimmy Rollins with the Phillies next season, reports Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
- Jose Reyes has yet to speak to Hanley Ramirez since signing with the Marlins, according to The Associated Press. "As soon as I have the opportunity, I'm going to talk to him, because we are very good friends," Reyes said. "We're both here for one reason — to win the World Series. It doesn't matter where I'm going to play or where he's going to play."
- The Braves will rely on several players aged 24 and under next season, but Fangraphs' Jason Roberts thinks the health of veterans like Chipper Jones and Tim Hudson are bigger concerns for the club.