Crasnick’s Latest: Kuroda, Marquis, Morris
ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick has an in-depth look at the pitching market. I’ll highlight a few new tidbits.
- Hiroki Kuroda might require four years, as some teams are viewing him as the best available free agent starter.
- Scott Boras might wait out the market a bit and then push for five years for Kyle Lohse. That’s right, five years for Kyle Lohse.
- Matt Clement to the Reds is a possibility I hadn’t considered. Clement did pitch for Dusty Baker with the Cubs.
- Crasnick reports there would be huge interest in Mark Prior if the Cubs non-tender him. As in, pretty much every team in baseball. Crasnick’s source indicates that Prior and the Cubs don’t have the best relationship.
- Crasnick spoke to Doug Melvin and confirmed that Claudio Vargas and Chris Capuano will not be non-tendered. But they could definitely be traded.
- The Cubs are listening to offers for Jason Marquis, who is owed $16.25MM over 2008-09. So maybe they are still in on Kuroda.
- New Pirates GM Neal Huntington is shopping Dave Littlefield’s mistake, Matt Morris. Morris makes $9.5MM in ’08 and would be owed a $1MM buyout in ’09.
D’Backs, Dodgers, Royals After Kuroda
UPDATE, 11-27-07 at 10pm: The D’Backs’ offer is rumored to be for three years and $27MM. The Royals were connected to Kuroda today also, but that rumor surfaced on November 8th. It was also revealed tonight that the Dodgers sent three people to Tokyo last week to talk to Kuroda, including Takashi Saito.
FROM 11-27-07 at 9am:
According to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, the Diamondbacks made an offer to free agent Hiroki Kuroda ten days ago. Piecoro suggests Kuroda could receive $10MM annually for three or four years. A recent Japanese report indicated it might take four years, $45MM. The Phillies also have an offer out to Kuroda. Jim McLennan of AZ Snakepit has some additional info on the Japanese starter.
The Mariners are in the lead for Kuroda; they sent a contingent to Japan to speak with him. Interest is huge – we’ve got the Rangers, Dodgers, Cubs, Phillies, Tigers, Royals, Mets in the mix as well. The Cubs might be out now that they’ve officially moved Ryan Dempster to the rotation. The Phillies are going hard after Randy Wolf, but that might not prevent them from pursuing Kuroda. The Dodgers could be right behind the Mariners, according to the L.A. Daily News. They’ve scouted him quite a bit.
Back to the D’Backs – they’re considering a couple different routes to add a starter. They’d be in the mix for Joe Blanton, Dan Haren, Ervin Santana or Jeremy Bonderman if those young hurlers were made available. Carlos Gonzalez is said to be the main trade chip. They also might opt to offer incentive-free deals to injury risks like Matt Clement or Bartolo Colon.
More Odds and Ends: Kuroda, Pena, Wolf, Percival, Molina
Tim sent me a couple of items, so let’s create another bullet list:
- Mariners GM Bill Bavasi and manager John McLaren have met with Hiroki Kuroda yesterday. There is no report of an offer, but it’s believed that four years and $45 million are expected. Kuroda hopes to make his decision on the 29th.
- Impacto Deportivo, the same site that had first news of the Mets deal with Luis Castillo, reports that Carlos Pena has rejected a three-year, $30 million deal from the Rays. Pena, however, calls the report "a straight lie."
- Randy Wolf is generating interest from the Padres, Phillies, and Astros. Ken Rosenthal notes that the market for high-risk, moderate-reward pitchers is strong, since the rest of the market isn’t very appealing. This includes Bartolo Colon, Jason Jennings, Freddy Garcia, Jon Lieber, Matt Clement, and Kris Benson.
- The Brewers are in on Troy Percival after losing Francisco Cordero to the Reds. As has been said since the signing, this could also mean that Derrick Turnbow gets another shot in the closer’s role.
- The Mets inquired about Bengie Molina at the GM meetings, and even though they have acquired Johnny Estrada, they could rekindle talks at the Winter Meetings. Rosenthal notes that the Giants might not want to trade Molina, since they lose considerable leverage because of the $12 million owed to him over the next two years.
Joe Pawlikowski is co-author of River Ave. Blues.
Royals Pursue Guillen, Reportedly Set With Yabuta
The Royals were in on the Torii Hunter sweepstakes, having offered five years and $70 million, with every intention of going higher if necessary. Now that the Angels have locked him up, Jose Guillen has become the "indisputable No. 1 on the Royals’ list of off-season targets."
“Obviously, our objective remains the same,” general manager Dayton Moore said. “We do want to acquire a right-handed bat to hit in the middle of our order, and we’ll keep working through every opportunity imaginable.”
Bob Dutton thinks that losing out on Hunter could have added benefits. In addition to acquiring the cheaper Guillen, the Royals could use the Hunter money to pursue RHPs Hiroki Kuroda or Carlos Silva.
Each is seeking a four-year, $40 million deal. Added with Guillen’s asking price of three years, $30 million (though that could come down with his steroid allegations), that’s the $70 million they were offering Hunter.
Dutton also reports that the Royals have a deal in place for RHP Yasuhiko Yabuta on a two-year deal for between $5 and $6 million, with a club option for 2010. The deal should be announced once Yabuta makes his way to the States for his physical.
Joe Pawlikowski is co-author of River Ave. Blues.
Phillies Make Offers To Kuroda, Wolf
According to Todd Zolecki of the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Phillies currently have offers out to free agent starters Hiroki Kuroda and Randy Wolf. There are other unknown offers out as well. The Phils are thought to have roughly $10-12MM to burn this winter.
Jayson Stark reiterated that the Phils are after Wolf, noting that he’s high on their list. Stark adds Matt Clement, Kris Benson, and Mike Wood to those coveted by the Phils. Seven other teams are after Benson, including the Royals and Marlins.
MLBTR readers also know the Phils like Jon Lieber, Bartolo Colon, Kenny Rogers, Livan Hernandez, Mark Prior, Shawn Chacon, Joe Kennedy, Brian Fuentes, and A.J. Burnett.
Ms Sending Bavasi To Japan For Kuroda?
While talks are in the preliminary stages, the Mariners may send GM Bill Bavasi to Tokyo to negotiate with free agent Hiroki Kuroda. He is apparently the team’s top priority, and the Mariners have advantages in geography, their home park, and their current Japanese personnel.
Word from Larry LaRue is that Kuroda is after a three or four year contract at $11MM annually. I think he can get it, as the list of suitors is long and growing. LaRue names the Rangers, Dodgers, Cubs, and Phillies as other serious contenders. We also know the Tigers, Royals, and Mets are in on him. That’s eight teams publicly known to have interest.
Still not buying the reports of Kuroda having a 96mph heater. I will bet you an order of Arby’s Loaded Potato Bites that he tops out at 93.
Odds and Ends: Kuroda, Hunter, Crede
What’d I miss recently? Here are some odds and ends.
- The Tigers have expressed interest in Hiroki Kuroda. They join the Phillies, Mariners, Dodgers, Royals, Rangers, Cubs, and Mets in that pursuit.
- 10 teams are interested in Aaron Rowand! That’s almost 1/3 of all baseball teams!
- Torii Hunter is after a seven-year deal. Most feel he’s saying that because he wants six. Clever!
- The Twins are taking a look at Tony Clark as a cheap DH option. He’s supposedly looking for something like two years, $4MM and more playing time. This would be a very Twins-like signing.
- T.R. Sullivan has a Rangers update. Apparently Jon Daniels is checking in on big names like Johan Santana, Erik Bedard, and Miguel Cabrera. More realistically Daniels may go out to Japan for players such as Kosuke Fukudome and Hiroki Kuroda (we knew that already). We also knew the Rangers had Kerry Wood and Eric Gagne on their radar. Sullivan speculates that Scott Linebrink and LaTroy Hawkins could also be in the mix.
- Barry Rozner expects Joe Crede to be traded. It seems like Crede is a Plan B or C for a lot of teams and Kenny Williams may have to wait til a few dominoes fall first.
Phillies May Only Have $10MM To Spend
The Phillies need a starting pitcher, maybe two. Problem is, they may only have $10MM left to spend. All of that money is expected to go to pitching, so Aaron Rowand should pack his bags.
Todd Zolecki says the Phils won’t attempt to retain Kyle Lohse. Carlos Silva seems too pricey. Instead, Zolecki names Hiroki Kuroda, Kris Benson, Matt Clement, Livan Hernandez, Tom Glavine, Mark Prior, Shawn Chacon, and Joe Kennedy as possibilities.
Scott Lauber has heard from Ruben Amaro Jr. that the team will definitely consider Japanese options like Kuroda and reliever Masahide Kobayashi. Trading for pitching seems unlikely, as the Phils would probably have to part with Shane Victorino to get anyone decent.
Mariners Searching For Starters
John Hickey has an update on the Mariners’ starting pitching targets. The options look grim.
As far as trade targets, there’s always Johan Santana and Dontrelle Willis. The Mariners have long had their eye on Dontrelle, so maybe they’d offer a Wladimir Balentien/Jeff Clement package.
Carlos Silva might be on the radar, but Hickey says the vibe is that he could get north of $12MM per season. A better deal might be Hiroki Kuroda, who is estimated to earn $7-9MM annually by Hickey. The Mariners may have the edge on Kuroda because of their location and Japanese catcher. I keep reading that Kuroda throws in the mid-90s…forgive me if I’m skeptical.
Hickey notes that Bartolo Colon might also be on the radar, and implies that they could pick up Carl Pavano on a whim if he’s released.
Larry King Expects Kent To Return
TV’s Larry King spoke to Jeff Kent recently, and came away convinced he’ll return to play in 2008. Odd source of information. The same sentiment about Kent has recently been expressed by Joe Torre and Ned Colletti. It sounds like the Dodgers will be set at second base for ’08.
Torre also provided thoughts on Andy Pettitte and Alex Rodriguez recently. Torre said Pettitte was "leaning towards staying home" and it was "possible" the Dodgers could sign A-Rod. Such a signing would not cost the Dodgers their valuable 15th overall pick next year. The Yankees have to be rooting against this.
I recently watched an ESPN video (top right corner) where Keith Law said he didn’t see Colletti patching things up to cut a deal with Scott Boras. If the Dodgers are to sign A-Rod it might have to be Dodgers owner Frank McCourt taking care of things. It’s assumed that Pettitte will either retire or pitch for the Yankees, though Nick Cafardo speculated he could go to L.A. to pitch for Torre.
A couple of vets would like to re-join the Dodgers in David Wells and Luis Gonzalez. They’ve already made a minor addition in Chan Ho Park. Others who have been connected to the Dodgers: Miguel Cabrera, Luis Castillo (probably only if Kent retires), Hiroki Kuroda, Andruw Jones, and Torii Hunter. A note on Kuroda – Phil Rogers’ straw poll indicated that roughly 20 teams have some level of interest in him.