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Dontrelle Willis

Cafardo’s Latest: Teixeira, Ramirez, Baldelli, Furcal

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The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo has a new article up with a few Red Sox rumors, and one for Oakland:

  • Cafardo thinks Mark Teixeira and Manny Ramirez will not change jerseys this offseason because, while their teams might struggle to afford them, they can’t afford to lose them. Teixeira is the protection and future replacement for Vladimir Guerrero that they have been seeking for a long time. He doesn’t rule out the Yankees however.
  • Rocco Baldelli could be Coco Crisp’s replacement as Boston’s fourth outfielder.  Cafardo says Baldelli met with the Red Sox last week.
  • He continues to hit on the Julio Lugo for Dontrelle Willis or Nate Robertson deal, but now suggests Theo Epstein may also eat some of Lugo’s salary and deal him elsewhere.
  • The A’s are looking closely at Rafael Furcal.

Heyman’s Latest: Lowe, Teixeira, Guillen

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SI.com’s Jon Heyman recently published several new blog posts.

  • Free agent outfielder Garret Anderson has a new agent: Scott Boras.  Click here for our full list of Boras clients.
  • Rangers starters Vicente Padilla and Kevin Millwood are drawing interest from the Braves, Dodgers, and Mets.  Padilla is owed $12MM in 2009 with a 2010 option for the same ($1.75MM buyout).  Millwood gets $23MM over the next two seasons and has a limited no-trade clause.
  • Heyman says rather than battle for A.J. Burnett, the Red Sox and Yankees may duke it out for Derek Lowe.  Other suitors for Lowe: the Mets, Braves, Phillies, Giants, Mariners and Dodgers.  There he goes naming the Mariners again as a player for a major free agent…interesting.  The Giants are a new one as well, though Heyman says Lowe may prefer to head back east.
  • Heyman agrees with info from Nick Cafardo, that the Red Sox and Tigers have discussed swapping Julio Lugo for Dontrelle Willis.
  • Dodgers GM Ned Colletti admitted to interest in C.C. Sabathia.  Colletti said he’s waiting to hear from Scott Boras regarding Manny Ramirez, even though the Dodgers pulled their two-year, $45MM offer.
  • It hasn’t happened yet, but the Angels plan to make a "very serious" offer to Mark Teixeira.  A competing exec guessed eight years, $160MM.  Remember, that’s a non-Angels exec making a guess.  Heyman tosses a new team into the mix for Tex: the Mariners.
  • The Royals are "quietly shopping" Jose Guillen.  Guillen, 33 in May, hit .264/.300/.438 in 633 plate appearances this year while playing below-average defense.  He’s owed $24MM for the 2009-10 seasons.
  • Competing execs tell Heyman the Mets appear open to trading Ramon Castro or Brian Schneider.  The Mets would then presumably sign a free agent catcher.

Cafardo’s Latest: Lugo For Dontrelle?

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MONDAY: Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski is casting a wide net for his shortstop vacancy, but no deals are close.

SUNDAY: Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports on a trade that seems too obvious to actually happen: the Tigers are "contemplating a deal with Boston to send either Nate Robertson or Dontrelle Willis for Julio Lugo, but some money issues must be resolved.

In the same article, he mentions Lugo had the lowest average with runners in scoring position in the majors, .139, and wishes him a happy 33rd birthday.

Jon Paul Morosi of the Detroit Free Press had speculated on this in September.

Miller’s Latest: Olsen, Willis, Blake

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Here’s a look at the latest from Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.

  • The Braves and Rangers have talked to the Marlins about lefty Scott Olsen.
  • The Red Sox have done background work on Dontrelle Willis, stirring up the Willis for Julio Lugo rumors.
  • The Twins, Dodgers, and Indians have expressed interest in Casey Blake.  Blake’s agent said he anticipates offers ranging from one to three years.

Tigers Rumors: Pudge, Varitek, Lugo, Thames

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Jon Paul Morosi of the Detroit Free Press doles out the latest Tigers rumors.

  • How will the Tigers resolve their catching situation?  GM Dave Dombrowski calls an Ivan Rodriguez reunion a longshot, and Scott Boras is asking the moon for Jason Varitek.  The Tigers may not have the goods to swing a trade for Gerald Laird.  Morosi likes the idea of Henry Blanco, but says the Tigers have yet to contact his agent.  Check out the other free agent options here.
  • Morosi considers a bad contract swap for Julio Lugo a viable option for the Tigers.  He notes that Dontrelle Willis and Nate Robertson have similar commitments. Lugo for Robertson does seem reasonable for both sides.
  • Morosi believes the Tigers match up well with the Reds, who are looking for a power-hitting outfielder.  Magglio Ordonez is the marquee name, but Morosi likes the fit with Marcus Thames.

Latest Red Sox Rumors

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A few notes on the Red Sox…

From Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe

  • Scott Boras met with Theo Epstein about Jason Varitek. Boras is still seeking a deal similar to the one signed by Jorge Posada (four years/$52.4MM).
  • Epstein continues to look at other catchers including Jarrod Saltalamacchia or Taylor Teagarden. Cafardo also notes that the Red Sox could go after a veteran through the trade market like Bengie Molina.
  • Other teams have expressed interest in both Coco Crisp and Julio Lugo, but noted that Lugo would not be part of a deal to the White Sox. Cafardo says the Tigers could be a good match for Lugo if the Red Sox take Nate Robertson or Dontrelle Willis noting they could even eat some of Lugo’s remaining contract.
  • The Red Sox are likely out of the market for CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett.

Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald adds to the Lugo and Crisp rumors.

One executive at the general managers meetings talked to the Sox recently estimated that “five or six” teams have shown a willingness to discuss a deal for Crisp…The line being formed to bid for shortstop Julio Lugo, on the other hand, is not nearly as long – though it isn’t nonexistent.

McAdam lists several teams that could be interested in Crisp, including the White Sox, A’s, Braves and Padres. However, McAdam notes that the Cubs are not interested. He also lists some clubs that could have a need for a player like Lugo, including the Cardinals, Twins, Indians, Tigers, O’s and Giants. McAdam sees the White Sox as the best fit, but notes that they will seek more than Lugo in return for Javier Vazquez or Nick Swisher.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.

Cafardo’s Latest: Contract Swap Meet

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The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo wonders:

"I never really understood why there aren’t more "swap meet" type deals in baseball. As in, ’You take what I can’t use and I’ll take what you can’t use.’"

It’s a valid question if you believe a change of scenery can help a player and yet these deals rarely happen. Cafardo then goes on to list all of the players he considers "overpriced, underperforming, too old, or not useful to their present teams." Here’s the list:

Table 1, starting pitchers: Barry Zito (Giants); Dontrelle Willis and Nate Robertson (Tigers); Adam Eaton (Phillies); Carlos Silva, Miguel Batista, and Jarrod Washburn (Mariners); Daniel Cabrera (Orioles); Jeff Suppan (Brewers); Ian Kennedy and Kei Igawa (Yankees); Scott Olsen (Marlins).

Table 2, relief pitchers: Mike MacDougal (White Sox); Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoenweis (Mets); Jason Frasor (Blue Jays); Luis Vizcaino (Rockies); Kevin Gregg (Marlins); Justin Speier (Angels); Brandon Backe (Astros).

Table 3, infielders: Julio Lugo (Red Sox); Jack Wilson and Freddie Sanchez (Pirates); Scott Rolen (Blue Jays); Miguel Tejada (Astros); Melvin Mora (Orioles); Rickie Weeks and Bill Hall (Brewers); Mark Teahen and Ross Gload (Royals); Nick Johnson and Dmitri Young (Nationals); Luis Castillo (Mets).

Table 4, catchers: Yorvit Torrealba (Rockies); Ramon Hernandez (Orioles); Bengie Molina (Giants); Kenji Johjima (Mariners).

Table 5, outfielders: David Dellucci (Indians); Eric Byrnes (Diamondbacks); Nick Swisher (White Sox); Dave Roberts and Randy Winn (Giants); Kosuke Fukudome and Alfonso Soriano (Cubs); Gary Sheffield (Tigers); Gary Matthews Jr. (Angels); Austin Kearns and Wily Mo Pena (Nationals); Jeremy Hermida and Josh Willingham (Marlins); Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon, and Melky Cabrera (Yankees); Juan Pierre and Andruw Jones (Dodgers); Willy Taveras (Rockies); Jeff Francoeur (Braves).

Cafardo says the reason we don’t see more of these "swaps" is that GMs fear ridicule if these deals don’t pan out for them and that matching salaries can be tricky.

He cites a few examples: Julio Lugo for Nate Robertson or Dontrelle Willis as being a possible – this has been discussed here before as a longshot idea. Or what about Kosuke Fukudome for Gary Matthews?

See anything better?

Dontrelle For Lugo?

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The Tigers 2009 season is going to be reliant on some bounce back candidates to do just that.

According to Jon Paul Morosi, the Tigers will need to guess which of Justin Verlander, Jeremy Bonderman, Dontrelle Willis, and Nate Robertson will bounce back. And aside from Verlander, they will more than likely want to deal one of them to scale back an already unsustainable projected team salary of $130MM.

Some speculation by Morosi: The Tigers need a shortstop and could swap Dontrelle Willis for Boston’s Julio Lugo. Both guys are signed through 2010, Willis making $22MM and Lugo making $18MM. The Red Sox have shown a willingness to take on reclamation projects in pitchers like Wade Miller and Bartolo Colon, so why not Dontrelle when they have a more favorable (and fan-friendly) option at shortstop in Jed Lowrie? The Tigers could also use the spare $4MM and the Red Sox could afford the risk. Morosi quotes Jim Duquette:

"That can be an effective way to swap players who’ve had below-average years," Duquette said, when asked about that approach. "Lugo would not be a bad player in that situation, as long as you’re not taking on any more money. It would be a break-even proposition. "You take the position player and hope that Lugo has more of a bounce-back year."

With Willis Injured, Is Snyder Detroit-Bound?

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Tigers lefty Dontrelle Willis didn’t even make it out of the first inning last night, leaving the game with a hyperextended right knee. The bullpen kept the game close, and the vaunted yet under-performing Tigers offense carried the team to victory. However, Willis’s knee adds greater concern to an already shaky rotation. Only Jeremy Bonderman has gone over 6.0 IP in a single start this year. Do these woes, combined with the Willis injury, mean that recently-DFA’d Kyle Snyder could be wearing orange soon?

Yesterday, Tim told us that the Tigers were among two other teams interested in the 30-year-old righty. The Phillies and the Rays are the others. Whether that would be for the rotation or the bullpen we don’t know. The Tigers could certainly use him as a swingman of sorts, as their bullpen also poses a problem.

I wasn’t able to find any word on how long this injury will keep Willis off the mound. If it’s just one or even two starts, the Tigers might not be desperate to make a move. Then again, the Tigers could stand to add some depth to the rotation and the bullpen in any case. Not sure if they are so keen on Snyder as an answer, though.

Posted by Joe Pawlikowski. Please, email me rumors.

Willis Signs Extension With Tigers

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UPDATE, 12-20-07 at 11:52am: Jerry Crasnick says Willis has agreed to a three-year, $29MM extension with Detroit.  The deal buys out one year of free agency.  I like it – assuming Willis’ elbow checks out, the Tigers paid the innings-eater rate for a guy who could be more than that.  And by 2010, can you imagine what the innings eater rate will be?

UPDATE, 12-20-07 at 9:04am: Morosi reports that progress has been made on this extension.

FROM 12-19-07 at 1:57pm:

The Tigers have begun talks with Dontrelle Willis’ agent on a three or four-year extension, according to Jon Paul Morosi.  Morosi is thinking around $25-30MM.  It would be Willis’ first multiyear contract.

Morosi notes that both Willis and Nate Robertson are free agents after the 2009 season, and Kenny Rogers might be done after ’08.  Robertson also wants to talk extension.

Jeremy Bonderman is signed through 2010.  He’ll team with Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello to form the team’s pitching nucleus.

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